The first thing you noticed when you gained consciousness was the chilled morning air. If it was any other day, you wouldn't have noticed it. But it wasn't supposed to be cold, not if there was someone sharing their body heat with you. The empty space you found when you turned to your side confirmed your suspicion - Ariana was gone.
While you could argue with yourself that she might just be in the bathroom, or the kitchen - somewhere close, your intuition said otherwise. There was no clothing draped on the armchair beside your jacket, no sound of water running, just silence and stillness. You did find a lone laundry bag sitting quietly on the coffee table; that's something at least.
If it weren't for the single hair tie lying on the nightstand, like a glass slipper, you would have convinced yourself last night was just a long, indulgent dream.
Part of you, the logical part, deduced that she had an emergency with work to explain her hasty departure. This hypothesis was solidified with past experiences of such. However, there is also a part of you that is an overthinking fool, driving you mad with thoughts like was it my fault? and was it not good? And oh god, did she fake all of it?
If so, you were extremely disappointed in yourself. Well, at least you had this one time with her, the closest thing to heaven you'll ever experience.
After taking a quick shower, you ironed your shirt to make it a little more presentable before heading down to the lobby to check out. There, you learned from the receptionist that Ariana settled everything and left two hours ago. They also kindly inform you about the complimentary breakfast buffet, but you weren't hungry even though you felt empty inside.
While the information doesn't answer the questions in your head, you thanked them before leaving and walked all the way home.
-
Ariana went radio silent. You took it that she changed her mind about the whole thing. It was long enough for you to reluctantly accept that it would be the new normal.
So imagine your surprise when you find a text in the form of 'where r u?' while you were in the middle of editing a new Youtube video. The notification sound jolted you out of your concentration. Seeing her nickname on screen elicited different emotions from you, but the one you can identify most prominently was a relief.
You
I'm at home
Why do you ask?
Princess
i'll be there in 10
What surprised you more was when the doorbell rang, causing you to think that she meant seconds. If it was anyone else, you would have thrown them off with a judo move, but it was just her, pouncing on you the moment the door opened. She was lucky you had quick reflexes and strength in your arms to catch her.
"Wha-"
"Shut up and fuck me." Her tone was demanding, but not impolite - like a queen who knew she wouldn't be denied.
"Well, hello to you too." You replied though you sounded more unsure than anything. You tried to carry her to your room. The keyword is 'tried', because someone biting at the column of your throat can be extremely distracting. You never knew someone could be soft and so insistent at the same time. You almost dropped her when she sucked hard on a sensitive spot. You could feel a bruise forming like watercolor paint on paper. "Fuck. Ari-"
She paid no mind to your protest. You gave up and settled for the couch, bending down to release her onto the cushions. However, she made no effort to unwrap her arms or her legs despite practically lying directly above them. So you pivoted and sat down instead, and your knees thanked you for that decision.
Knowing how impatient Ariana can be, you wasted no time in helping her remove her top. Once again, she proved to be non-compliant, not bothering to raise her arms. They were more interested in staying around your waist.
At this point, you weren't sure what to do. While you roughly knew what she was like in bed, it was definitely different from your first time with her, where she had let you take the lead, and take the time to pleasure her. As though she could read your mind, Ariana finally gave you something you could work with. "Touch me."
With her command, your hands rest on her thighs. Goosebumps formed under your fingertips as they trailed upwards till they came into contact with her miniskirt. You wondered if it was intentional to wear one.
"You don't have to be so gentle. I'm not made out of glass."
Your hands paused at her remark. "No, you're far more precious."
"You can't say things like that." She went quiet for a moment, trying to come up with an explanation. "It's too..." You slowed your movements unconsciously, worried that you had offended her in some way. She didn't finish her sentence and the silence thickened. You wanted nothing more than to break it.
You punctuated that thought with the flex of your fingers. The gasp evoked from her was music to your ears.
"Green?"
"Y-yes, green."
You pulled her panties aside.
-
You let Ariana recover after coming undone in your arms. She sprawled across your couch after you lifted her off your lap gently, standing up to stretch your legs. It was awkward, to say the least, as you weren't sure what to say or do now that you finished your "job".
You felt a little sad, knowing how it was going to end. You heard from Olivia's adventurous tales that it was standard procedure to leave after doing the deed, especially for casual hookups. All you could do was temper your need for pillow talk and cuddles, and be an accommodating friend.
"Do you want some water?" You offered. "Before you go." The way guilt showed on her face told you that you failed at not sounding the way you felt. "Because it's important to hydrate, you know, to replenish the loss of... fluids."
This time you managed to produce a small quirk from her lips. "How do you make innocent words sound so dirty ?"
Since you don't have an answer, you went into the kitchen to grab water for the both of you instead. While the cups were getting filled, you countered. "How do you make dirty words sound so innocent?"
"Touché."
You handed her a cup and she took it, drinking from it greedily. The way her throat moved as she swallowed proved to be a distraction when you stood there stiffly, staring blatantly.
"You're too far away, come sit." Ariana's voice broke you out of your trance. You knew she caught you blatantly observing her and felt embarrassed. She patted the cushion her head once occupied.
You hesitated because you weren't sure you would be able to stop yourself from wanting to hold her, which contradicted your feelings of being upset that she basically ghosted you for the past few days. At your lack of action, Ariana walked to you instead.
"I'm sorry." You knew you wore all your emotions on your face when she clasped her hands around your unmoving ones. "That I left without saying anything on New Year's Day..."
Her genuinity made it hard for you to stay hurt, melting your resolve with that doe eyes of hers. "It's cool, I assumed you were busy." You gave her an out as she guided you back to the couch.
"Well, yes... I've been busy preparing for a concert, and I-" Ariana swallowed, clearly troubled. "Let me make it up to you."
You were not prepared for Ariana's fingers to slip past the waistband of your pants. You held her wrist in place instantly. "No."
She stared wide-eyed at you, and you loosened your grip. "I mean, you don't have to do that. Just promise me that you'll tell me whatever's going on, at least eventually."
You held up your pinky and she immediately hooked it with hers. You heard her take a deep breath. "They called me in for an early meeting that day. My publicist thought that there was too much speculation going on. Word got around that I was kissing someone at the party, and seeing how we've been so close lately, it'll be easy for people to put two and two together. So I can't be seen anywhere with you for the next couple of weeks."
So it wasn't your fault or anything like that, her words implied. "That's understandable. I don't want to create any complications for you."
Ariana smiled at your comment, "And I don't want you to get caught up in a potential scandal."
You mirrored her expression, thankful for her thoughtfulness. It was true that you were getting scrutiny on social media, with people wondering who you were and what your relationship was with the singer. There were good comments, neutral ones, and the ever-present bad ones. You didn't mind them too much, because they don't matter - only she does.
"Do I need to remove the videos you appeared in from my channel?"
"That's not necessary, it'll probably just add to the gossip. Just nothing new besides what is already out there."
"Not a problem, I don't have anything else."
"Then we have nothing to worry about, besides on where we should go whenever I'm horny."
And she's back. "Well, it's either your place or mine."
"We can do both." She finalized. After a beat, she continued, "Since I'm already here, round two?"
-
"God, I looked like I had been mauled by a bear." You grimaced after catching a glimpse of yourself in the bathroom mirror. When you washed off the lipstick smudges on your neck, they revealed hickies like a string of necklace. While it looked worse than it felt, anything other than light touches caused it to sting. In the reflection, you could also see Ariana trying to hide her laughter behind her hand. "It's not funny. How am I going to hide this when I'm filming?"
"Why hide the fact that you had amazing sex." You shot a glare at her, but it does nothing to reduce her mirth. "Come here, I'll help you cover it with makeup."
You walked out of the bathroom reluctantly to the bed where she was sitting on. You noticed she had helped herself to your closet, wearing one of your oversized shirts.
Ariana gestured for you to sit on the bed while she went to grab her makeup bag in the living room. When she came back, she made herself comfortable on your lap. You let her do her thing, feeling like a canvas under her brush, under her touch.
Being in this position, the only thing that filled your vision was her face. So no one can blame you for staring, though they could be suspicious as to why your eyes kept trailing down to her lips. Even though they were already smudged, something inside you want to smudge it even further, wipe it all off. You didn't even realize she caught you staring until they parted like they were expecting a kiss, causing you to snap your attention back up.
She avoided your gaze, in the name of nonchalance, and you knew she was giving you the power of making the first move. You were grateful for it, but you couldn't bring yourself to go through with it - it was too intimate to kiss a friend.
What you could do was sift through your brain for any humorous material as a coping mechanism. With Ariana straddling you with a palette in her hand, you were immediately reminded of that one 'lesbians doing makeup' meme you saw on Twitter. So before you could stop yourself, you thought out loud, "This is kinda gay."
Ariana laughed softly at that, and you rolled your eyes fondly. "So this is gay, not the mind-blowing sex with just had?" With the blush you had growing on your face, you don't think you need any more makeup. It turned a shade darker when she leaned in closer to your ear, "And the ones we'll be having in the future?"