Better With You

Chloe’s eyes widened as she read the latest tweet from her. The blonde – who was still in her robe after a relaxing bath – sat on the edge of her luxurious king-sized bed as she tried to calm her erratic heartbeat.   This always happens.   Always.   Just the mention – no – just the mere thought of her ¬- was enough to rattle Chloe.   She bit her lip as she read the update, her smile not leaving her face. She then tapped into her phone and waited for her call to be picked up.   It took three rings before she heard her sister’s voice.   “She’s still in the air, Chloe,” Piper instantly said without preamble. The older blonde knew it would be only a matter of time before her sister pestered her about the most recent post she retweeted.   “Are you picking her up?” Chloe can’t help the giddiness and excitement in her voice.   “No,” Piper grinned as she waited for the inevitable tantrum that her sister was bound to have.   Chloe did not disappoint.   “What?!”   Piper can’t help but smirk at her sister’s reaction, “she’s going to be picked up by the hotel car service and – "     “She’s staying in a hotel?!”   “Calm down, Chloe,” Piper rolled her eyes as she navigated through her bedroom, “she just wants to rest as soon as she lands and I’ll be coming over tomorrow to fetch her.”   “Fetch her….,” Piper waited for the realization to dawn on Chloe.   It didn’t take long.   “She’s staying with you?!”   “Temporarily, yes.”   “I’m – "   “Chloe.” Piper’s voice was firm and Chloe knew there was no arguing with her. “Calm down. Let her settle.”   “I just really want to see her,” Piper didn’t need to see her sister to know that she was pouting.   “I know, sweetie. But what’s a couple of days of waiting after all this time? You know I’m right.”   “I guess.”   “So settle down. Calm your t**s and show her what she’s been missing all these years.”   X X X   Chloe Walton was 15 when she first saw Ava Johnson. Granted it was only in photos, but the impact had been lasting.   Piper went to Columbia for her pre-law course and got Ava as her assigned roommate. The two forged a lasting friendship that saw a seamless camaraderie not only between the two but their respective families as well.   The first time Chloe Walton saw Ava Johnson in person, she was 16.   She was not a romantic by any means, but she was smitten the moment Ava first smiled at her and gave her a hug that made her shiver even days later. Her boyfriend’s hugs and kisses suddenly paled in comparison to that one fleeting moment with Ava. Her girlfriend months later could not elicit the same emotions she felt when she was in Ava’s arms.   Ava’s replies to her messages were short and polite. It was easy to assume that Ava was merely tolerating her best friend’s little sister yet tolerance won’t do with Chloe.   Not when Ava was concerned.   So she tried a different tactic.   She tried to annoy Ava as much as she possibly could in the hopes that the older blonde would bite and spare her more than the bland responses. It worked for a while until Ava became immune to her ribbing and eventually just ignored her.   X   Chloe Walton was 18 when Ava Johnson unknowingly broke her heart.   Piper and Ava decided to pursue law school together after college,   On top of that, they also decided to pursue each other.   X   Chloe kept Piper at arm’s length after that.   Then she stopped talking to Ava. X   To Chloe’s confusion, Piper and Ava broke up less than a year later. By the time they were in their final year in college, the two were back to being the best of friends – as if they never dated at all. There was no bitterness, no awkwardness – not even a hint of resentment towards each other.   They were just Piper and Ava again.   X   Chloe’s life changed drastically when she was 19.   On a trip to California during her first Spring break in college, she was approached in a club by someone who introduced himself as an agent. Apparently, she could dance and was the total package made for a dance-musical television show. Her inebriated state made her mind a little fuzzy and the next thing she knew, she auditioned and got the part.   Her family asked her to think hard before dropping out of college and pursuing a career in an industry that was so cut-throat. Piper came to talk to her but Chloe had already made up her mind.   X   It took Chloe very little time to make a name for herself.   She was no A-lister – not even a B – but she was fine. She had a few million followers on both her Twitter and i********: account and she had no shortage of offers here and there. She bought her own home and had enough money saved in the bank to last her a lifetime.   She also had no shortage of people who warmed her bed. Some of them lasted a few months but most barely made it to a week. But   Chloe didn’t mind. She was living the life.   It was fast.   Wild.   It was exhilarating.   X   Piper met Daniel Guillard in her final year in Law School and the two fell in love fast. By Thanksgiving, Daniel – heir to his family’s company – joined the Walton family for the holiday celebration.   Two months later, they broke up after Daniel came clean about hooking up with Chloe.   X   Piper confused Chloe the second time when the older blonde took very little time to move on from Daniel Guillard and get back to talking to her sister. Chloe did feel guilty. Daniel meant nothing to her. He was just the manifestation of a deeper issue that Chloe refused to acknowledge out loud but knew at the back of her mind was there. Chloe couldn’t be sure, but she felt that Piper knew why she did what she did.   Nonetheless, the damage had been done.   Chloe would have to live with the guilt that came with betraying her sister.   But the harder pill to swallow – more than the guilt that came from betraying Piper - was Ava Johnson’s post that drove Chloe’s mind into overdrive.   AvaJohnson Yours is the purest, most forgiving soul. You deserved better.   Ava did not name names. It could even be argued that she was just talking about something else. But Chloe could not let go of the feeling that she was the one Ava was trying to call out in the most subtle of ways.    Chloe could live with Ava being annoyed by her.   She could live with Ava thinking she was immature, wild, and out of control.     The mere thought that Ava may think she was a bad person cut Chloe to the core.   X   Piper and Ava graduated from Law School and Chloe suddenly found herself around Ava once again after years of evading her. To Chloe’s consternation, she realized that all the time spent trying to forget about Ava – the countless “relationships” she got into in order to erase all the feelings she had for her sister’s best friend – everything was all for naught. Because as soon as Ava awkwardly smiled at her, Chloe was a goner.   Why the heck did Ava Johnson have to be so damn gorgeous?   X   So Chloe decided to go for it.   Maybe Ava was that itch that just needed to be scratched in order for her to finally be able to move on.  Maybe Ava has a secret flaw that she would find to be disgusting and turn her off Ava for good.   Maybe she just needed to scratch the itch.  Ava Johnson must be a terrible lay and Chloe would one day find herself laughing out loud and asking herself "what the heck was I thinking?"   They say you only fail when you stop trying. Chloe has yet to try and she sure as hell wouldn't be that person who wallowed in remorse for not trying.    What was the worst thing that can happen?   X X     After weeks of going back and forth with Piper, the elder Walton convinced Chloe to clear the air and just talk to Ava.   “Like honest to goodness talk,” Piper offered with an amused smile.   “What are you talking about? We do talk,” Chloe mused, eyes not catching Piper’s.   “Chloe,” Piper’s voice was soft, almost too kind, “I know.”   “You know what?”   Piper sighed and looked at her baby sister. Goodness, she looked so grown up yet so childlike that very moment. “I know you’re in love with Ava. Have been for years. Perhaps, always have been.”   Chloe wanted to lie.   She really did.   It would have been too easy.   But this was Piper. They may be at each other’s throats sometimes and even hate each other at some point in their lives – but they were sisters. They loved each other. Most of all, they knew each other.   “At first I didn’t think much of it,” Piper shrugged, “I knew you had a crush on Ava since you first saw our pictures. I was quite amused by your antics and how you behaved idiotically around her. I thought it was cute.”   “You dated her," Chloe rolled her eyes at her sister.   Piper nodded, “and then I dated her and things changed. You resented us.” Piper muttered sadly. Chloe for her part just looked down, not wanting to voice out an acknowledgement to the claim because she did, in fact, resent the two. “We didn’t work,” Piper suddenly had a far-away look on her face, “not because it felt weird to be dating your best friend but because we were not in love. It was just convenient. We were both reeling from one bad relationship to another and we just –"   “I don’t really want details about your relationship if I’m being honest,” Chloe said, a tad bitter still.   Piper sighed, “all I’m saying is that you should try talking to her.”   “And say what?”   “You always go after what and whoever you want, Chloe –"   “Hey! I thought we’ve moved past the Daniel thing? We –"   “Oh I’m over it,” Piper shrugged nonchalantly, “as I said, I knew why you did it even if you refuse to admit it. You hated me for being with Ava and you wanted to hurt me. You wanted to hurt her, or at least get her attention.” When Pipergot no response from Chloe, she continued, “and it’s truly fine now, I promise. I dodged a bullet with that one anyway. He's just content with living off his daddy's money, o I guess, I even have to thank you for that.”   “But Ava hates me for it,” Chloe said dejectedly.   Piper shook her head, “Ava’s not a hateful person.”   “Did you tell her?” Chloe fidgeted under her sister’s gaze, “I mean, have you talked to her about why you think I slept with Daniel?”   “Yes,” Piper admitted. There was no use lying to Chloe.   “And?”   Piper smiled.   “She didn’t believe me, of course,” Piper offered with a smirk, “said there was absolutely zero way you liked her back,”   Chloe’s stunned expression was something Piper wished she had captured on camera.   X X   Chloe knew Ava was going places. She was smart, beautiful, and hardworking. She also knew that Ava won’t be in the market for long because, at some point, someone was bound to snag her and take her away from Chloe,   She just did not anticipate that this was what would be snagging Ava away from her.   The Netherlands.   Specifically, the International Court of Justice. -------   After her talk with Piper, Chloe wasted no time in going after Ava. She figured she wasted so much time already and had to do what Chloe Walton did best – just going for it full blast.   She found Ava in her Manhattan loft on a Sunday morning and despite the lack of sleep (she went straight to LAX after a 14-hour shoot and arrived in New York less than half an hour ago).   There were no preambles. As soon as Ava opened the door clad in nothing but her white cotton robe, Chloe pounced. She started talking - not once giving Ava the chance to stop her.   When she was done talking, Ava – ever the calm and rational one – gently asked her to sit on her couch.   “It’s complicated.”   Not the most encouraging answer but Chloe didn’t hear a no so she reckoned it was a good enough sign.   “First of all,” Ava fidgeted in her seat. She looked awkward but still so darn attractive that it was taking all of Chloe’s self-control not to pull the knot that was tying her robe and just go for it,   “Notwithstanding the fact that I sort of dated Piper –"   “Not a deal-breaker to me,” Chloe shrugged.   It was a lie, of course. It peeved her, but she wanted to look mature and be the bigger person.    “And I’ve known you since you were this annoying teen which sort of make you like my little –"   “I am not your little sister! You’re barely three years older than me and we are not related!”   “In theory.”   Chloe looked at the older blonde beside her – like genuinely looked at her – and it didn’t take long before she broke into a knowing smirk. She knew Ava liked her. Sure, it helped to hear Piper confirm it but right there and then, on that couch, Chloe knew for sure that Ava Johnson wanted her just as much as she did.   “Hardly," Chloe disagreed, "but in reality, I’m sure you fancy me enough to have little dirty thoughts about me,” Chloe beamed.   If Ava didn’t before, she sure as hell planted those seeds into her head right then and she would very well make sure they stayed planted into Ava’s head.   The redness of Ava’s face and the stuttering mess that she turned into after that quip made Chloe give herself a mental pat in the back.   “You like me,” Chloe singsongs, and Ava was at a loss for words. Chloe had her and she knew the younger Walton well enough to understand that she can rib Ava forever until the latter surrendered.   “Fine,” Ava relented, “but I still think we won’t work. Just because we like each other doesn’t mean we can be together.”   “Why not?”   “I just don’t think we’re compatible –“   “Because I’m a no-brain entertainer and you’re this smart, perfect, lawyer?”   “You know very well that was not what I meant, Chloe! We’re just too different.”   “Opposites attract!”   “Well, we might have killed each other first before we even get to that attract phase!”   “Bullocks,” Chloe shook her head in indignation, “we’re already attracted to each other, you just choose to repress it.” Chloe wouldn’t let this one go. “You want to order and control all those rules. I’m wild and I don’t really like following rules. Can’t you see how perfect we are for each other?”   “How is that –“   “Because I’ll gladly let you spank and punish me when I misbehave.”     Chloe c****d her head to the side, keen on getting a rise out of Ava. For her part, Ava looked ready to punch the smaller blonde if the deadly glare she sent Chloe’s way was any indication.   Chloe only smiled sweetly and innocently.   “You know if this fails, my relationship with your family could be a total mess. You understand that, right?”   “You don’t know what the future holds –"   “One doesn’t have to be a fortune-teller to see the writing in the wall –"   “For once just stop overthinking things and use your heart –"   “One of us has to use their head, and it sure looks like it would be me in this situation."   “You –"   “Enough, Chloe!” Ava snapped. “You’re being a brat again. You’re not seeing this from my point of view. I will not be another notch in your bedpost. I have been a part of your family for years and I can’t jeopardize that for something –"   “You’re not just another notch in my bedpost and you know it,” Chloe said exasperatedly, “I’ve wanted you for years, Ava. Years! I’ve tried to move on but it didn’t work. Do you think this was easy for me? Do you think me being here does not scare me shitless? I am so scared but I can’t live another day knowing that I could have tried but didn’t.”   “Chloe….”   “Why can’t we just try? I know it’s complicated but how about we just try?” Chloe was almost pleading and Ava’s resolve was crumbling. “We can try. No one has to know. Not even Piper. If it doesn’t work out, I swear, I won’t make things weird between us.”   “I’m leaving for the Netherlands in a couple of weeks,” Ava muttered softly.   “What?”   “I’ll be working for one of the judges in the International Court of Justice for at least a year, with the option to extend my contract every two years.”   Chloe was still processing Ava’s news and what it meant for them when Ava continued, “so how about this,” Ava looked into Chloe’s eyes as she tried to bring her point across, “we can try and see where this goes once I get back. Let’s see if you still feel the same –"   Chloe scoffed at the older blonde’s words, “I’ve fancied you for close to a decade now. You really think a year would change that?”   “A lot can change in a year, Chloe,” Ava said firmly. The two locked eyes, both indignant and not giving an inch.   X   “Well, damn!!”   Ava and Chloe breathed out at the same time as soon as Ava’s body collapsed on top of Chloe’s for the fifth time in the last few hours.   Everything was a blur after Chloe just threw all caution in the wind and jumped Ava’s bones – quite literally. Chloe could not help but sigh blissfully as she allowed herself to get lost in Ava – their naked and spent bodies molding together perfectly.   This was the initial plan. Chloe, the master seductress, intended to break down all of Ava’s defenses and make her succumb to her notorious charm. But boy did Ava Johnson surprise her.   Chloe hoped their chemistry would be a dud.    She dreaded the realization.   Her and Ava's s****l chemistry was off the charts.   “This is problematic,” Ava muttered as she rolled off Chloe and unto her back. "What genius plan do you have now?"   Chloe smirked before she skillfully straddled Ava, “there's only one plan I've got in mind right this instant, Attorney Johnson.” X   X   X   It wasn’t the best set up but it was better than nothing.   Chloe and Ava decided to just let things flow and allow their budding romance to happen without much fuzz. Since Ava was leaving, they thought it was best to spend as much time as they could together. Then Chloe will try to fly to the Netherlands whenever her schedule permits and talk to each other as much as they could. They agreed to keep things casual and low-key – which also meant that nobody but the two of them knew of their arrangement. Piper being Piper may put that last part in danger since they both could not hide anything from her. They would try though. But at the moment, they won't be offering her any details on purpose.    There would be no pressure.   They established a “no pouting rule” which translated to neither of them getting mad if the other could not visit or answer calls and messages.   They also agreed that it was okay for them to see other people.   No commitment.     No rules.   No pressure.