About 45 minutes later, Alex, Olivia, Casey, and Serena were all sitting on Alex’s bed waiting for the pizza they had ordered to arrive.

 

“So do your parents know you’re dating?” Alex asked Casey and Serena.

 

Casey and Serena glanced at each other.  “Um…it’s not something I’ve discussed with them yet,” Casey answered.

 

“Same here,” Serena added.  “What about you guys?”

 

“Not yet,” Olivia said with a tight smile.

 

“Well…you two have made some pretty bold moves in front of your parents.  Case in point—your birthday party,” Casey said, looking at Olivia.

 

This time it was Olivia and Alex’s turn to exchange worried glances.  “What do you mean?” Olivia asked.

 

“Remember when Alex gave you your birthday licks?” Serena reminded Olivia.

 

“Come on, Serena…those were completely innocent,” Alex assured her.

 

Serena smirked.  “Right.”

 

“Well, I’m sure they seemed innocent to people who don’t know we’re dating,” Alex argued.

 

Olivia paused for a moment and pondered what Serena and Casey were saying.  She then looked at Alex and suggested, “Maybe we should tone things down a little in front of our parents.”

 

Alex frowned at her.  “Liv…just earlier you said that you wouldn’t let anything or anyone keep us apart.”

 

“I still mean that…but that doesn’t mean I wanna set off alarms in front of our parents or make things purposely hard for us.”

 

“What we did hardly set off any alarms, Liv.”

 

“How can you be so sure, Alex?”

 

“If our actions had set off alarms, then our parents would’ve said something to us.  Just like Mom interrogated you when she thought I was sleeping around with some guy,” Alex responded.

 

“Maybe they just haven’t gotten around to it yet,” Olivia replied reasonably.

 

“Liv, are you ashamed of me?” Alex asked abruptly, hurt.

 

Olivia gave Alex a shocked look.  “No, and I’m offended that you’d even insinuate that.  I just don’t think we should throw a big gay parade just to prove we’re in love.  If our parents don’t take things well, then flaunting it is just gonna make things worse!”

 

“Liv, I’m not asking for a fucking parade.  I’m not even asking for us to kiss in front of them.  But a little hugging or cuddling or innocent touching isn’t gonna cause any problems.”

 

Olivia shook her head and glared at Alex.  “You are un-fucking-believable.  Why don’t we get t-shirts made just telling everyone we’re dating?  Casey’s right.  People can pick up on the little things.”

 

“Our friends only picked up on it because they knew we were dating!  Duh, Liv!” Alex said, throwing her hands up and rolling her eyes.

 

“You know what, Alex?  Your arrogance is really starting to get on my last nerve,” Olivia said in a threatening tone.

 

“So is the fact that you’re a bitch and you’re always looking for an excuse to deny our affection for each other!” Alex retorted.

 

Olivia’s jaw clenched.  “Fuck you, Alex!”

 

“Fuck you!” Alex shouted back.

 

Casey saw that things were getting heated and interjected, “Um…listen guys.  I didn’t mean to start a fight between you two.  Just calm down, take a deep breath…”

 

“Be quiet, Casey,” Olivia ordered, still glaring into Alex’s eyes.

 

“Seriously, guys.  You love each other too much to fight,” Serena added.

 

“Yeah, you two fight like you’re married,” Casey commented.

 

Olivia turned her head to glare at Casey.  “Stay outta this.”

 

The buzzer went off.  “Fine.  Hey, I’ll go get the pizza,” Casey offered, getting up.  “Try not to rip each other’s hair out while I’m gone,” she added, exiting Alex’s bedroom.

 

“I’m not hungry,” Olivia grumbled.  She grabbed her keys and got off the bed.  “I think I should go.”

 

Alex jumped up after her.  “No, Liv.  Don’t go.”

 

Olivia scowled at her.  “Oh, that’s right, Alex.  You’d like me to stay so we can invite our parents to watch us fuck and let them know they can’t do a damn thing about it?  Your arrogance is gonna bite you in the ass one day.”

 

“Liv, I’m sorry.”  She gently placed a hand on her arm and stood in front of her bedroom door.  “Please stay.”

 

Olivia pushed Alex’s hand away.  “Move out of my way,” she growled.

 

Alex continued to stand in front of the door and spread her arms out across it.  “No.”

 

Olivia was getting more irritated by the second.  She grabbed Alex by the waist and easily pushed her aside but Alex quickly resumed her position.  Olivia was annoyed by Alex’s stubbornness but couldn’t say she was surprised by it.  “Alex…seriously, just move.  If I have to, I’ll climb out your damn window.”

 

Alex calmly placed her hands on Olivia’s chest.  “Come on, sweetie.  Don’t be like this.”

 

Olivia looked down at Alex’s hands on her breasts and pushed them away after a few seconds.  “Sweetie?  I thought I was a bitch just a couple minutes ago.”

 

“Liv, I was angry.  You know I didn’t mean it!  I’m sorry,” Alex said, wrapping her arms around her waist.

 

Olivia untangled herself from Alex’s embrace.  “That’s not gonna work either, Alex.”

 

“Well, how about this?” Alex asked, leaning in to softly brush her lips against Olivia’s.

 

Olivia was caught off guard for a moment.  She felt herself giving in to Alex, despite her best efforts to remain angry with her for being so bullheaded. 

 

Alex felt a slight smile beginning to cross her lips.  She knew Olivia was softening towards her.  So she leaned in and whispered in her ear, “God, you’re so fucking hot when you’re angry.”

 

Olivia gulped.  “Stop it.”

 

Alex felt the door budge against her.  Casey was trying to open it to bring in their pizza.  “Hey, you’re blocking the door!” Casey yelled.

 

Alex moved away and grabbed Olivia by the arm so Casey could come in and Olivia wouldn’t rush out.  She then gently began running her fingers through Olivia’s hair and leaned in to kiss her again.  Olivia’s lips slightly parted and Alex quickly slipped her tongue in to massage Olivia’s.  Alex began moaning and slid her hand under Olivia’s shirt to caress her warm stomach, both of which were beginning to drive Olivia wild.

 

“I’m sorry, Liv,” Alex repeated sincerely, stroking Olivia’s face.  “Please don’t be mad at me.”

 

Olivia felt her remaining anger dissipate.  “I’m sorry too, sweetie,” she said, pulling Alex closer to her and passionately reclaiming her mouth.

 

Serena loudly cleared her throat from her seat on the bed.  “Hey guys, we’re still here, you know.”

 

Olivia and Alex reluctantly pulled away from each other.  They returned to the bed and took a slice of pizza each.  Casey shook her head and smirked at Olivia.  She wiggled her pinkie finger.

 

Olivia’s mouth dropped open.  “Alex does not have me wrapped around her pinkie!”

 

“Oh please.  It’s obvious you both have each other wrapped around your pinkies,” Casey said.

 

“And you and Serena don’t?” Olivia asked accusingly.

 

Casey busied herself with eating her slice of pizza and Serena took a huge swig of her Coke.  When neither of them answered promptly, Olivia said with a satisfied grin, “I’ll take that to mean you do.”

 

Serena giggled.  “It was so cute when you two made up.”

 

Olivia smirked.  “Yeah, Alex tried to seduce me.”

 

Alex burst out laughing.  “I did not try to seduce you, Liv.”

 

“Oh please!  You think you can kiss me, touch me, and turn those big blue eyes on me and I’ll do anything you want!” Olivia responded.

 

Casey looked at Serena and smirked.  “Tell me about it,” she muttered.  That of course got her a playful shove from her girlfriend.

 

“What do you mean?” Alex asked, feigning innocence and looking intently into Olivia’s eyes.

 

Olivia felt herself melting all over again.  “Just like that!  You’re doing it now!” she accused.  She reached out to brush a few wisps of Alex’s hair behind her ear.  “God, I love your eyes.”

 

Alex smiled victoriously.  “I know.”

 

“You tricked me!” Olivia exclaimed, grabbing Alex by the waist and pulling her into her arms to tickle her.

 

Alex giggled incessantly and tried to fight Olivia’s hands off.  “Stop, Liv!”  Olivia grabbed Alex’s slice of pizza and took a huge bite out of it.  “Liv, no fair!  You stole my pizza!”

 

“Right, Alex.  Like you never steal my food.  Come on.  We have another box,” Olivia replied.

 

Alex frowned and picked up another slice.  She pulled off a piece of sausage and popped it in her mouth.  “Liv, can you hand me a breadstick with some marinara?  Please don’t eat it.”

 

Serena and Casey laughed and Olivia just smirked.  Dipping the breadstick in a container of marinara sauce, she handed it to Alex.  When Alex bit into it without even thanking her, Olivia smirked again and said sarcastically, “You’re welcome.”

 

“Oh, sorry.  Thanks,” Alex mumbled around her mouthful.  She dipped it in some more sauce and then held it out as a peace offering for Olivia to take a bite.  “Want some?” she asked.

 

“Don’t mind if I do,” Olivia responded, taking a bite.

 

Silence ensued for a few minutes while everyone continued eating their food.  “Sooo…have you girls done it yet?” Alex asked Serena and Casey.

 

Both Serena and Casey turned crimson and almost choked on their slices of pizza.  They looked at each other with expressions of slight panic.  “Um…not exactly,” Serena answered.

 

A wide grin spread across Alex’s face and she said, “Aw, you guys are so cute.  First time jitters.”  Olivia giggled and Casey and Serena blushed even harder.

 

“We’re both a little nervous,” Casey confessed.

 

“Aw guys, it’s nothing to be nervous about.  I must say that Alex and I quite enjoy the mattress mambo,” Olivia declared with a lopsided grin.

 

Alex swatted Olivia’s arm and said, “Hey!”

 

“Well, Alex lucked out with you, Liv because you’d been with a girl before,” Serena added.

 

Olivia’s eyes got wide as she stared at Serena.  “You’ve never had sex with a girl before?” she asked.

 

“No.  Well, I’ve fooled around before but never went all the way with a girl,” Serena admitted quietly. 

 

“Serena and I have gotten pretty close…but we stopped because we weren’t quite sure what to do,” Casey added.

 

Olivia waggled her eyebrows.  “I can give you a few tips.”

 

Alex buried her head under a pillow.  “Oh God help us,” she cried.  Casey and Serena laughed.

 

Olivia comfortingly rubbed Alex’s back.  “Oh baby, come on.  Nothing to be ashamed of.  I must say I was pleasantly surprised the first time we did it.”

 

Alex gasped and pulled her head out from under the pillow.  “Are you saying you thought I was gonna suck because I’d never been with anyone before?”

 

Olivia looked at Alex in shock.  “No, sweetie.  I thought it would be great, but I just didn’t expect a first timer to give me the absolute best sex of my life.  It was a compliment, baby, not an insult.”  She nipped an earlobe and whispered in Alex’s ear, “Sweetie, you’re so sensitive.”  Alex pouted and folded her arms in response.

 

“Who went first?” Casey asked.

 

“I did,” Olivia answered with a proud grin. 

 

Alex blushed.  She knew this conversation was quickly going to go south, in every sense of the word.  “Liv, please don’t go into details.”

 

Olivia saw that Alex was getting embarrassed, so she squeezed her hand.  “I won’t, babe.”  She turned her attention back to Serena and Casey.  “Just go with the flow and do what feels right.  When you love someone, the experience is a whole lot different.  Trust me.”

 

“Were you nervous, Alex?” Casey asked.

 

Alex smiled.  “I was kinda scared at first, but Liv was really gentle.  It barely hurt at all.”

 

Olivia grinned even wider and lovingly placed a kiss against Alex’s neck.  “Aww, thank you, baby.  I didn’t wanna cause you any pain, only pleasure.”

 

“Were you nervous about what Alex would think?” Serena asked Olivia.

 

“Nah.  I knew she’d love it,” Olivia answered.

 

Alex gasped and shoved Olivia’s shoulder.  “Liv!  And you talk about me being arrogant.”

 

Olivia giggled.  “I was kidding, babe.  Of course I was nervous.  I wanted your first time to be wonderful and special—nothing less than perfect.  That’s why I wanted to take my time.”

 

“Just do something really romantic to set the mood,” Alex suggested.  “That way, since neither of you have been with a girl before, it’ll make you concentrate more on each other and less on any nervousness.”

 

“Yeah.  And you don’t have to rush things either,” Olivia added.  “I think making love is a wonderful expression of how much you care for someone, but it’s not the be-all, end-all, if you get what I mean.”

 

“Did you guys feel any different toward each other after your first time?” Casey asked.

 

Olivia and Alex looked at each other and smiled.  “We felt closer,” Olivia answered.  “It was a way we’d never connected before.”

 

“I felt like we were more mature as a couple,” Alex added.  “I don’t wanna say it cemented our relationship because I think we were already solid and would still be if we’d never had sex, but I do agree with Liv that it made us feel closer because we explored each other in the most intimate ways possible.”

 

“Before Alex, I just did it because it felt good.  Now I do it because I love her and I want to experience new heights with her to make her feel special.  Making love with Alex was the first time I actually felt….”  Olivia paused to search for the appropriate word.  “Rapture,” she finally decided.

 

“Aww,” Alex cooed, stroking Olivia’s cheek in appreciation.

 

Serena grinned.  “You two are so cute.”

 

“I think we’re cuter,” Casey said, leaning over to capture Serena’s lips.  Casey looked over at Olivia and Alex and smiled apologetically.  “No offense, guys.”

 

Olivia smirked.  “None taken.”

 

After Serena and Casey had left, Olivia got up off the bed to stretch and said, “Well, it’s getting late.  I guess I’d better be leaving, too.”

 

Alex got up and grabbed her hand.  “Don’t go, Liv.  Spend the night.”

 

Olivia smiled.  “Ok,” she responded simply.

 

Alex went over to her drawers and pulled out some black fleece pajama pants and a navy tank top for Olivia.  Throwing them to her, she said, “Hey, I’m gonna go take a shower.  Promise me you’ll be here when I get back?”

 

Olivia grinned.  “You can count on it.”

 

About 15 minutes later, Alex came out in a towel with her brush in hand.  She pulled out a pair of blue satin pajamas, changed into them, and then sat down on the bed next to Olivia.  Olivia took the brush from her and began gently brushing the tangles out of Alex’s wet hair.

 

“That feels really good,” Alex complimented Olivia.  “I love it when you brush my hair.”

 

Olivia planted a chaste kiss on her cheek and said, “And I love brushing it.”  She deeply inhaled the lingering scent of the Hot Cocoa shampoo and body wash she had bought Alex for Christmas.  “You smell so yummy…nice to see you’re getting good use of your Christmas gifts.”

 

Alex giggled.  “Well, I love them all.”

 

After they were cuddled up to each other in bed, Alex lightly traced a finger down Olivia’s jaw line and said with a pout, “You know…I hate it when we fight.”

 

“Me too,” Olivia agreed.  “But I love it when we make up.”

 

Alex smiled.  “I guess it is something to look forward to, huh?”

 

“I guess so,” Olivia responded happily.

 

Alex looked down briefly before gazing into Olivia’s eyes again and saying, “You know…even though I do think you’re incredibly sexy when you’re pissed off, I still get a little scared.”

 

Olivia furrowed her eyebrows.  “Why?  You don’t…you don’t think I’ll hurt you, do you?”

 

“Well…not exactly.  But I’m afraid of what will happen if I push you too far.  Like how long you’ll stay angry with me.  What you might do…”

 

Hurt flashed across Olivia’s face.  “Oh sweetie, I can never stay mad at you for long.  And baby, I’d never intentionally hurt you.  No matter how angry I got.”

 

“But how can you be so sure?” Alex asked, her eyes wide.

 

“Because I love you.  I treat you differently when I’m upset than I do others.  There’s no way I’d ever hit you.”

 

“I’m just afraid I could…I dunno, push you into the arms of someone else,” Alex said quietly.

 

Olivia shook her head fervently, shocked that Alex would even think such a thing.  “Alex, I don’t belong to anyone but you.  There’s no one else I want.  I’d never cheat on you.  Would you cheat on me or hit me?”

 

“No, Liv.  Of course not.”

 

“Then it’s unfair of you to assume I’d do either to you,” Olivia said, looking into Alex’s eyes.  “I love you just as much as you love me, and I’m just as loyal to you as you are to me.”

 

Alex sighed.  She realized that she was in fact being unfair to Olivia.  “You’re right, sweetie.  I’m sorry.  Sometimes my insecurities get the best of me.”

 

Olivia stroked Alex’s chin.  “Baby, I’m not Abbie.  I’m not anyone else who’s ever hurt you.  I’m Olivia.  And yes, we’re gonna have disagreements.  We’re even gonna have fights where we scream our lungs out at each other, but you know what?”  She picked Alex’s hands up into her own.  “I’m still gonna be there after it all blows over.”

 

Alex smiled.  “I love you, Liv.”

 

“I love you too, baby,” Olivia responded with a smile.

 

“Hey, Liv?” Alex asked softly.

 

“Yeah?”

 

“Did you really mean what you said about feeling rapture when we make love?” Alex asked as she ran her fingers up and down Olivia’s forearm.

 

“Yes,” Olivia responded breathlessly, gazing deeply into Alex’s cerulean pools.

 

Alex smiled brightly.  “Let’s dance,” she said, grabbing Olivia’s hand and pulling her off the bed.

 

“To what?” Olivia asked quizzically.

 

Alex ran over to her CD changer and put in IIO’s “Rapture” single.  She picked up the remote and pushed “play,” then she threw it down on the table and ran back over to Olivia.  As Nadia’s tantric voice floated throughout the air, Alex wrapped her arms around Olivia’s waist and began gently swaying back and forth to the vocals.

 

“The night I laid my eyes on you

Felt everything around me move

Got nervous when you looked my way

But you knew all the words to say

Then your love slowly moved right in

All this time, oh my love, where you been”

 

For a moment they were transfixed by the depths of each other’s eyes.  Olivia placed one hand at the small of Alex’s back and then slowly brought her other up to rest on her chest.  Their breathing increased and they simultaneously closed their eyes and slowly leaned in to taste each other’s lips as the chorus came on.

 

“Mi amore

Don't you know

My love, I want you so

Sugar

You make my soul complete

Rapture tastes so sweet”

 

Olivia pulled Alex as close to her as humanly possible and passionately invaded her mouth as the next verse started.  She tangled her hands in Alex’s hair and tilted her own head to the side so she could allow her tongue to traverse Alex’s soft mouth even more.  Alex could feel their hearts beating together and deepened the kiss, slipping her hands under Olivia’s tank to caress the soft skin of her torso.  She let her fingers linger over Olivia’s warm heart as Olivia brought her own hand under Alex’s top to place it over her heart as well.  The electricity that seemed to spark from their fingers traveled from their hearts throughout the rest of their bodies and reached an apex at their melded tongues. 

 

“I'm mesmerized in every way

You keep me in a state of daze

Your kisses make my skin feel weak

Always melting in your heat

Then I soar like a bird in the wind

Oh I glide as I'm flying through Heaven”

 

As the song continued, they could feel themselves experiencing the intense emotions in the lyrics and music.  Although they were not actually making love, they still felt as if they had achieved a sense of rapture.  Even after the song was over, they didn’t break away from their intimate kiss until several moments later.

 

“That was beautiful,” Olivia remarked, catching her breath.

 

“I agree,” Alex said, taking Olivia’s hand and leading them back over to her bed.

Once they had snuggled up to each other again, Olivia pulled Alex to her and warmly kissed her lips.  “Let’s catch some shuteye, ok?”

 

“Ok,” Alex agreed.  She got back up to turn out the lights and then resumed her position in Olivia’s arms.  “Night, sweetie.”

 

“Night,” Olivia whispered, placing a final kiss on the top of Alex’s head.