I Hate the Way...

Part 70: "When Does This End?"

She tried to push that thought aside though. She reached up to cup her cheek, regaining her attention as she whispered softly, "Hey, let's not worry about right now, okay? We'll figure it out later, I promise."
Josie nodded, offering a weary smile, "Okay."

~~~

When they were finished with their wedding planning for the day, and Hope was busy updating the guys of the engagement part so far, leaving out as many details as possible so they can be surprised, Lizzie dragged Josie off to her room, using the excuse that she couldn't carry all of her notebooks by herself, which actually wasn't a lie.

When they got into the room, Lizzie shut the door behind them and lit her black magic muting candle, making Josie give her sister a confused look as she set the notebooks on Lizzie's dresser, "Um, what are you doing?"

Lizzie turned around to give her sister a knowing look, crossing her arms against her chest, "Spill."

Josie blinked, acting clueless, "Spill what?"

Lizzie scoffed, "Oh please, do you really think I haven't noticed you acting weird all morning. Not to mention how cozy you and Hope are getting. You're terrible at hiding things, Jo, especially when it comes to Hope."

Josie's cheeks flushed slightly as she tried to avoid her sister's gaze, busying herself by straightening one of the notebooks on the dresser before she shrugged and mumbled, "I don't know what you mean."

Lizzie raised an eyebrow at her, "Uh-huh. Sure. Tell that to the marks on your neck and the wobble in the legs." Lizzie's didn't stop even when Josie's eyes widened at her. "This whole 'fake marriage' thing?" she did air quotes with her fingers, "It's looking less fake every day, Jo."

Josie sighed, realizing she wasn't getting out of this conversation. She walked over and sat on the edge of Lizzie's bed, and the blonde waited for her response.

Josie told her softly, "I had a dream about mom last night..."

"Oh really? Me too," Lizzie told her, sitting down beside her.

Josie's eyebrows furrowed at that, remembering how in her dream, her mom told her that she had just visited Lizzie. 'Was that real?'

Josie shook her head at the thought, continuing to tell Lizzie, "First off, she basically confirmed that dad sucks—"

"Ditto. Not really a newsflash but go on," Lizzie said.
Josie added a little quieter, "She also told me to trust my gut when it comes to Hope."

Lizzie hummed, "Uh-huh, and what's it telling you about strawberry shortcake?"

Josie rolled her eyes lightheartedly at that nickname before replying seriously, "I think...I'm falling in love with her." When Lizzie looks like she's about to scream, Josie quickly stops her and adds, "and I think that she might possibly feel similar."

Lizzie's eyes went wide with excitement, her face lighting up with a grin. She clasped her hands together like she was about to start celebrating but Josie quickly raised a finger warning her to keep quiet. Lizzie scoffed, "They can't hear me, I have my candle lit. But, oh my god! Finally!"

"Lizzie," Josie groaned, fighting a smile still, "Please don't make this a big deal."

"Are you joking? This is huge, Jo!" Lizzie wasn't even trying to hide her excitement. "I mean, have you seen the way she looks at you? You're both terrible at hiding it. So what are you gonna do about it? Besides having tons of sex," Lizzie clapped her hands together, unable to contain herself.

Josie ignored that last part. She took a deep breath, biting her lip, "I don't know. I mean, we're  technically just pretending to be married. And I don't want to mess things up by reading into things that maybe aren't even really there. What if I'm making it all up in my head?"

Lizzie rolled her eyes, giving her a look that says 'Are you seriously that fucking dumb?'

But she settles on calming down and offering some more neutral advice, "Jo, even mom told you to trust your gut, right? There's no way you're imagining it. The way she was looking at you this morning...nobody can fake that."

Josie sighed, "I just wish there was some way for me to know for sure..."

~~~

"So, what's this about Josie siphoning from the hex? How's that going?" Raf asked as she leaned over the counter.

Hope nodded, her expression turning thoughtful, "It's been...interesting. I've started to feel my powers coming back. It was like a slow trickle at first but then last night, I could feel my wolf, for the first time that I can remember. It's like a part of me was trying to get out of a cage." Hope added after a second, "She helped me remember my parents."

All of their eyes widened, and MG was the only one who managed to comment on it, "That's huge! Congrats!"

Hope nodded, "It was just their faces, but...it was incredible. I feel like I can finally stop obsessing over it now."

Raf patted Hope on the back, "That's great, Hope. We're happy for you."

Hope offered him a smile before it slowly fell, a thought crossing her mind, "The only thing is that this new supernatural side might make me lose control, and I'm  worried that—that I might hurt Josie. It's like, every time I'm with her, I either want to channel magic, or feed from her, or my wolf gets super restless. It's like...some kind of  attachment to her or something." She turns her gaze to Raf, "Do you know why that could be happening?"

MG and Ethan exchange a glance before looking anywhere else, and Raf's gaze locks onto Hope. He looks confused at first, but some sort of realization seems to wash over him quickly. But the realization only adds to his confusion.

That makes Hope really want to know what's going through his head. His mouth falls open as if to reply, but he doesn't get the chance to tell her. His mouth seals shut when Josie and Lizzie come back into the room.

Hope's eyebrows furrow as his eyes dart between herself and the brunette, as if he's figured something out that she hasn't.

She makes a mental note to ask about that later.

Her expression softens when she feels Josie slip their hands together, leaning her head on her shoulder from behind, uttering softly, "Lizzie wants to watch a movie. Wanna join?" She punctuates the question by leaving a peck to the base of Hope's neck.

Hope finally seems to relax, turning around to face her, a small smile forming on her lips, raising an eyebrow, "Depends on the movie."

Josie grins leaning closer, "But we can cuddle..." she tries to tempt her wife.

And it works. Hope's answer changes to a yes instantly, and she pulls Josie over toward one couch, and everyone else followed and spread out on the other couch and the chairs.

Hope laid down before tugging Josie's arm to pull her down to lay on her. Josie siphoned a pinch of magic from Hope, humming softly at the feeling of Hope's natural magic coursing through her, before she summoned them a blanket and spread it over their bodies, getting comfortable as she cuddled into her wife.

Hope let out a content sigh, "This is perfect."

Josie smiled softly at that before tilting her head to leave a quick peck on Hope's cheek, "Yes, it is."

~~~~~