Chapter Text
Alex takes a deep breath and pushes the door to the record store open. The bell announces her with soft ringing.
No need to panic. She already told you how she feels. You’ve seen how she feels. Just tell her you feel the same.
The record store is empty, just Valkyrie sleeping in the chair at the listening station.
“One day,” Alex whispers to the cat, “I’ll be your friend. Just you wait.” The cat turns her ears into Alex's direction, not acknowledging her any further. Alex decides she’s not in the mood to try her luck at petting Valkyrie. She has enough wounds that need healing from the fall down the mine shaft without added cat scratches. Shaking her hands to get rid of some nervous energy, Alex saunters to the window of the radio booth.
Steph has her back turned to the window, sorting through some vinyls on the shelf while tapping her foot to the rhythm of the beat. The beanie is back on her head, an orange spot of color in her otherwise dark outfit. It looks good on her, Alex assesses.
As if she’s sensing the eyes on her body, Steph turns around. She smiles when she spots Alex, making a beeline to the door. But instead of joining Alex in the store, like the latter had expected, Steph gestures her to come inside. Alex raises her eyebrows in question, but Steph nods.
“Come on in. The mic is off, so don’t worry. Just don’t touch anything.”
“I won’t,” promises Alex, holding her hands up like she’s surrendering. The light is dim, with a blue tint from the screen and a glitter lamp. Steph gestures to the couch, and Alex makes a scene out of placing her hands in her lap without touching the couch. Steph giggles nervously as she falls down next to Alex.
“Glad you came,” Steph turns to sit cross legged on the couch, facing Alex.
“Sorry you had to wait. There was a lot to think about. But I’ve got most of it sorted now.” Steph smiles, a soft purple glow emerging from her. Alex reaches for Steph’s hand to reassure her, before pulling it back. Smirking she asks:
“Am I allowed to touch you?”
Steph snorts with laughter and her aura fades. “I nearly shot myself in the foot there. I was only referring to the equipment.”
Alex takes Stephs hand in her own and searches for her green eyes. The expecting look of the other woman somehow makes her calm down. It’s Steph. She doesn’t have to fear anything.
“I’m not going to draw this out. You made quite an impression on me back at my place, Steph. And I hope you know by now that I’m…” Alex pushes her glasses back, even though they don’t need any adjusting. Steph tightens her grip on Alex’s hand. “I’m pretty into you, Steph. I want to be with you, too.”
A golden glow radiates from Steph as a smile spreads over her face. “Yes,” she pumps the air with her free hand and Alex laughs, “so happy you said that. I’m really into you, too.”
Before Alex can respond, Steph presses her lips to Alex’s. Her lips are soft and warm, and she keeps the kiss short and sweet. Steph’s cheeks are a soft pink when she leans back, and Alex is quite sure she’s also got some color now.
Steph lifts the hand Alex is holding, looking at it with awe: “I get to call you my girlfriend now?”
“Yep,” Alex grins and squeezes. Then she gets serious again. “I also thought about your plans and your offer. The idea of traveling and adventure is… enticing, for sure. But this,” she gestures in an all including circle around her, “is the first time I’ve felt like I belong somewhere. Like I have a home. Even with everything that happened… I kinda wanna stay a little longer. Not saying forever, just… for now. But only if you’d be here, too.”
“I already told you. I’ll be where you are. And if that’s in Haven, that’s cool. I have promised Ethan another LARP anyway. That’s pretty hard to organize from the road.” Alex huffs in amusement. “You are what’s important,” Steph announces seriously. Alex can feel the blood rush to her cheeks.
“Thank you,” Alex puts as much weight in the word as she can. “You make me very happy, Steph. In case you didn’t know.”
Steph grins. “You’re adorable. Can I kiss you some more? I don’t want to hurt you.” She gestures to the nasty cut on Alex’s temple.
Instead of answering, Alex reaches for her neck and pulls her closer. They only stop when someone knocks at the glass.
“Can I pay for my record,” Ryan yells though the barrier, his eyebrows raised in mock offense, “or do I need to come back tomorrow?”
“You know where the register is,” Steph calls back, “pay and get out! You’re kiss-blocking on purpose.”
Ryan grins, waves around a CD with some bird on the cover and saunters out of view. Steph rolls her eyes.
“Do you know why it doesn’t matter?” Alex grins.
“Why?”
“Because you can kiss me whenever you want now. Benefits of being girlfriends.”
“I like the sound of that,” Steph smirks and pulls Alex back in.