25. Chapter Twenty-Five

The second Waverly’s feet were firmly planted on the second floor, strong arms wrapped around her waist and her favorite pair of lips descended upon hers as her fingers pulled Nicole’s uniform shirt out from her pants and slid her hands underneath the shirt, sighing against Nicole’s lips at the feel of her warm, soft skin.

Kissing Nicole, touching Nicole had easily become Waverly’s favorite thing to do. The taste of her lips were like a drug that Waverly couldn’t get enough of. The defined muscles in Nicole’s shoulders and back that were somehow firm, yet still so soft under her touch drove Waverly insane. The little gasps of air and breathless chuckles Nicole let out as they kissed sent shivers down Waverly’s spine every time. The feel of Nicole’s fingers in her hair or Nicole’s blunt nails digging into her hips made her body throb with need.

Of course not every kiss was perfect. They were still familiarizing themselves with each other, still learning how the other kissed and liked to be kissed. So, there was a lot of times when they bumped heads or kissed with too much teeth or missed each others mouths completely.

With anyone else, Waverly would have been embarrassed but with Nicole, she wasn’t because every time their kiss was anything less than perfect Nicole would laugh softly and kiss the tip of her nose or she would smile at Waverly widely causing Waverly’s heart to beat in overdrive.

Nicole nipped her bottom lip playfully before pulling back some and resting her forehead against Waverly’s. Her eyes are closed and she’s grinning and Waverly just wants to kiss her again and again and again.

She couldn’t get enough of Nicole and she wondered how they went so long, survived so long without kissing each other. She wondered why they wasted so much time being just friends.

“I met your sister today,” Nicole said after of few moments of them just standing at the top of the stairs, wrapped in each other’s arms.

It was risky for them to be out in the open like this, anyone could walk up the stairs and see them but at that moment with Nicole’s arms wrapped around her, holding her tightly to her chest, Waverly found it hard to care.

Nothing could hurt her while she was in Nicole’s arms. She was safe in Nicole embrace. She knew that Nicole would protect her from anything, no matter what.

“She seemed sad, broken and just a bit haunted.” Nicole paused there, searching for the right words.

Family was a sore subject for the both of them, more so for Waverly and Nicole didn’t want to say anything to upset her, cause her to pull away. But, she wanted Waverly to know that she’d be there for Wynonna in the same way she was there for her, that she’d look after and protect Wynonna, just as she’d protect her.

The Earps have both been through so much and they both deserved to have someone on their side no matter what, they both deserved to have someone looking after them and well, Nicole wanted to be that person to the both of them.

“In that same way you were the morning you had the flat tire.” Nicole stepped back so she could look Waverly in the eyes, reaching out to tuck some hair behind her ear. “Sad and hurting but trying so hard to hide it and in desperate need for someone to see the real you, to be a real friend.”  

“She’s had a hard life and has had a harder time making friends with anyone.” Waverly shrugged, giving off that same nonchalant vibe as Wynonna earlier that morning but Nicole could see how much she cared, how much she worried about her sister.

“You’ve both have had a hard life and you both deserve to be happy, you both deserve to have people on your side, a friend, someone willing to look out for you, defend you, protect you.” Nicole trailed her fingertips down Waverly’s arms to her hands, interlocking their fingers and then lifted one then the other up to her lips, kissing each knuckle. “I can be that person, for the both of you.”

“You’d do that?” Waverly looked up at her with that same awestruck expression she always had whenever Nicole went out of her way to do something for her, went out of her way be kind to her, to care for her.

Nicole was always going above and beyond for her and it constantly amazed Waverly. No one ever has before, not for her and certainly not for her family, not Wynonna.

“I’d do anything for you and for your family Waverly.”

Waverly didn’t doubt that for a second. Nicole had proved time and time again that she’d do anything for Waverly without hesitation, without question.

“You have an incredibly big and kind heart, you know that?” Waverly said, her right hand coming to rest over Nicole’s heart.

Nicole had the kindest and the biggest heart that Waverly had ever seen. Nicole cared so much for everyone she met. She helped people just for the sake of helping them. she didn’t expect anything in return, she didn’t want anything in return, she just wanted to help and protect people.

Nicole was a rare breed. Her heart, her soul was unlike anything Waverly had ever seen before. Nicole made Waverly believe that maybe, just maybe the world wasn’t such a terrible place, made Waverly believe that there was still good in the world. Good people in the world.

“Mhm.” Nicole laid her hand over Waverly’s and grinned at her. “And it beats just for you.”

“You’re so sappy.” Waverly rolled her eyes at the redhead but a smile made it’s way on her face nonetheless.

“You love it,” Nicole laughed lightly, moving in to kiss Waverly’s cheek but right before Nicole’s lips hit her cheek, Waverly turned her head, connecting their lips in a searing kiss.

Ding.

Shorty looked up from the beers he was pouring towards the kitchen window where two plates were sitting, waiting to be served to a couple of regulars. He looked around the saloon for Waverly, sighing deeply when he didn’t see her or Nicole.

He swore that Waverly disappeared from work more with Nicole around than she ever did with Champ. Not that he minded, not really. He was glad that she had someone like Nicole in her life, especially now that Curtis was gone and Wynonna was back but, he was paying her to do a job and not hangout with friends.

“Did you see where Waverly went?” He asked Eric, who was making random designs in the condensation on his glass of coke.

“I think her and Nicole went upstairs to talk,” Eric answered, rolling up the sleeves of his uniform as he got comfortable on the stool.

He knew that he’d probably be here awhile waiting on Nicole. Not that he minded waiting on her as long as Waverly was able to cheer her up. Both of them would have a very long, hard day if Nicole was upset over what happened with Nancy.

“She had a pretty rough morning.”

“Guess I’ll let it slide then,” Shorty said. And he would not just because he had a soft spot for the Earp but because he also had a soft spot for Haught as well. “I’ll be right back.”

“I think they’re good for each other,” Eric spoke softly when Shorty came back and began wiping down glasses. “Nicole’s a strong, steady presence and she cares deeply and with everything she has, that’s something Waverly needs.”

Shorty nodded his head in agreement. Waverly definitely did need someone who was strong and steady, someone who could be a constant thing in her life and Nicole was that someone. Nicole was easily everything Waverly could ever need.

“Nicole needs someone to love her, no matter what,” Shorty commented, giving up on cleaning the beer mugs and leaned against the bar.

No matter how happy Nicole seemed, no matter how carefree and joyous she was, no matter how quick she was to make a joke or make someone smile, Shorty could always see the pain and hurt in her big, brown eyes.

He didn’t know the story behind her pain but it didn’t take any insight into that pain to see that she needed someone who was going to love her unconditionally, care for her. And Waverly was that perfect someone, at least in his opinion.  

“Think now that Champ is out of the way, they’ll actually act on their feelings?” Eric asked, picking up his glass of coke and taking a small sip.

Eric knew that Champ was one of the reasons Nicole never acted on her feelings for Waverly but, he also knew it wasn’t the only reason. Nicole was afraid of losing the family she’s created for herself here, afraid of being rejected, afraid of getting that same reaction from Waverly that she had gotten from her parents, her siblings.

Eric didn’t blame her one bit for being scared. He’d be terrified if he was in her place but, he knew that if she just took a leap of faith and told Waverly how she felt that, Waverly would be waiting at the bottom of the cliff to catch her.

“Guess it all depends on if they’re brave enough to risk it all, if they’re willing to put their friendship on the line for the sake of happiness, for the sake of love,” Shorty replied, waving to some regulars that just walked in.

“We should probably get back,” Nicole panted, leaning her forehead against Waverly’s, running her fingers through Waverly’s disheveled hair.

She didn’t want to leave this little bubble they found themselves in. She’d much rather spend the rest of her day kissing Waverly or just being with Waverly, than doing paperwork or handing off some of their cases to Black Badge.

“Probably,” Waverly sighed, fingers dancing along Nicole’s back.

The last thing Waverly wanted to do was go back downstairs and work, not when she could stay here, with Nicole’s fingers in her hair and Nicole’s body pinning hers to the wall.

She knew they had to go back downstairs, back to real life, their jobs and out of this peaceful moment together but, she was finding it really hard to make any kind of move other than pulling Nicole in for another kiss.

And so she did pull Nicole into one last kiss. She wasn’t able to stop herself, there was just something so addictive about kissing Nicole.

Maybe it was the way every kiss started out slow and soft before their need, their passion took over. Maybe it was the way Nicole held onto her wrist as if to steady herself, ground herself into the moment.

Maybe it was the breathless little moans Nicole made whenever Waverly bit playfully at her bottom lip. Maybe it was Nicole brought their bodies flush together as if she couldn’t get close enough to Waverly.  

Maybe it was the way that Nicole allowed her to take the lead, set the pace. Maybe it was the way that Nicole wasn’t roughly pawing at her clothes and body. Maybe it was the way Nicole didn’t try to suffocate her with her tongue.

Maybe it was just because kissing a woman, kissing Nicole was so much better than kissing Champ.

“We’ll never make it downstairs if you keep kissing me like that,” Nicole whispered, her eyes closed with a blissful smile taking over her face, her fingers still wrapped loosely around Waverly’s wrist, her thumb stroking the skin there.

“I don’t see you trying to stop me.” Waverly smiled, pushing the hairs that had come loose from Nicole’s braid from her face and tucked them behind her ear.

“I’ve been wanting to kiss you since the moment I met you, there’s no way in hell I’m gonna stop you now that I finally have the chance to.”

Waverly pressed a soft peck on Nicole’s lips before pushing her away a bit with a reluctant sigh. She knew if she didn’t put any space between them then they would just end up locking lips again.

“Your braid is a mess, let me redo it?”

“You don’t have to, I can do it.” Nicole reached up to quickly undo then rebraid her hair but Waverly slapped her hand away lightly.

“I want to do it,” Waverly said, taking Nicole’s hand and dragging her down the hall to her apartment.

Truth was, Waverly had been dying to braid Nicole’s hair for awhile but had been afraid to ask because she never thought that she’d be able to keep her hands or lips from wandering.

Nicole smiled to herself, allowing Waverly to guide her down the hall and into the makeshift apartment. Her smile fell as she took in the now bare apartment, her eyebrows knitted together in confusion.  

Everything was neatly packed into labeled boxes. Every bit of decorations that had once been on the walls were gone. The once perfectly made bed was bare and just a mattress sitting on the floor. The brass bedframe and headboard was taken apart and stacked neatly against the wall. The curtain that once covered the weird family tree thing Waverly had on the wall was gone, along with all the pictures and newspaper clippings.

Every ounce of Waverly that had once been in this room was now packed away.

Nicole could feel her heart beat hard against her ribcage as panic started to settle deep in her chest.

Waverly was moving. Waverly was leaving.

“You’re moving?” Nicole asked, voice low and eyes filling with panic.

Of course something like this would happen because things were going good for her, because she was happy and had finally gotten the thing, the person she wanted most in life, wanted more than anything. Of course, something would go wrong because that was her life and in her life, things always went wrong.

Distance was something that she had done before and it hadn’t worked out. Not that she thought Waverly was anything like Jennifer and would do what Jennifer had done to her but, that fear was there, just underneath the surface waiting to burst free.

There was a part of her, a part of her not consumed by fear and insecurities that knew that Waverly wouldn’t just up and leave Purgatory, leave her without a word, without talking to her about it first. They told each other everything, Waverly wouldn’t hide something like this from her.

“Oh yeah, I was going to tell you earlier but it slipped my mind, Wynonna and I are moving back into the homestead tomorrow,” Waverly said, bringing Nicole over to the mattress, sitting down and pulling Nicole down with her.

Kicking off her cowboy boots and tucking her feet underneath her, Waverly got settled in behind Nicole before starting to undo the disheveled braid slowly as to not hurt Nicole.

“T-that’s good.” Nicole cleared her throat, her chest filling with relief, shoulders releasing the tension held in them as that fear, that insecurity crawled back deep down inside.

She hated that her automatic reaction to some things was fear of being hurt. She hated that she always thought worse case scenario when it came to people. And she hated that people in her life had made her that way.

At first Waverly didn’t understand the fear in Nicole’s voice then the relief that followed, she didn’t understand the way her whole body tensed then immediately relaxed at her words but then, she remember Jennifer and what Jennifer did to Nicole and everything clicked into place.

Nicole was afraid and insecure. Though she rarely ever showed it or voiced it, Waverly knew that it was always there, just beneath the surface. Nicole had every right to be afraid and insecure but Waverly wished she wasn’t, wished there was something she could do to completely ease those fears, those insecurities.

She felt helpless. She didn’t know how to ease those fears. She didn’t know what to do, how to help and then she remembered Nicole’s words from the night before.

‘I need reassurance that I’m still wanted, that I’m still good enough.’

Nicole had always been the one reassuring her throughout their whole relationship and it was about time that Waverly paid her back. It was about time that Waverly gave within their relationship instead of just take.

“Hey,” Waverly whispered, moving to kneel in front of Nicole and reaching up to caress her jaw, waiting for Nicole to finally meet her eyes before continuing. “I’m not going anywhere, you hear me? I’m not gonna leave you Nicole.”

Nicole let out a shaky breath, closing her eyes and shaking her head lightly. “I’m sorry.”

She didn’t want to be a burden, didn’t want to need constant reassurance from Waverly, didn’t want to be so damn needy.

Waverly leaned up enough to press a kiss to Nicole’s forehead, then both her cheeks and nose and finally placed a soft, barely there kiss on her lips. “You don’t ever apologize for how you feel.”

Nicole nodded her head, closing her eyes and leaning into Waverly’s touch. Taking a moment to collect herself and her feelings before they had to leave the safety of this room, the safety of each other’s presences.

Waverly kissed Nicole’s forehead once more before moving back behind Nicole on the bed and pulling the bobby pins from Nicole’s hair.  

“So, Wynonna is staying?” Nicole asked, trying to sit still for Waverly and not lean fully into the fingers combing through her hair.

Nicole could probably fall asleep here and now with Waverly's fingers combing through her hair, massaging her scalp.

“For awhile at least.”

Nicole could hear the mix emotions in Waverly’s tone. She sounded both happy and angry but, Nicole didn’t question her on it, Waverly would tell her if/when she was ready.

“That’s good, I know how much you missed her and how much having her here means to you.”

“I’m happy she’s back you know, but there’s a part of me that’s,” Waverly trailed off, unsure on how to continue, unsure how to explain her feelings on the matter.

How did she explain that she was somehow both angry and happy about Wynonna being back home? Angry because she wasn’t the heir, because she spent hours upon hours studying and researching and learning different languages to break the curse while Wynonna ran away from being the heir and drank.

How did she explain how angry and hurt she was that Wynonna had left her in the first place?

Of course, Waverly understood why she had left. This town held too many bad memories for her, this town served as a reminder that she had killed their father and failed to save Willa, this town and the people in it were never kind to her.

Waverly understood why she left, she had a million reasons to leave, to put this town behind her but she had one important reason to stay… Her baby sister, who had lost everything just like her, who was alone and afraid just like her.

How can she explain any of that to Nicole when she couldn't even tell her about the Earp curse?

“Pissed off? Hurt?” Nicole questioned as Waverly weaved strands of her hair together.

Waverly nodded her head yes before realizing that Nicole couldn't see her. “Yes.”

“You have every right to be angry, to be hurt by her leaving. Yes you had Gus and Curtis and even Shorty but you didn’t have the one person you needed, you didn’t have your sister and it’s okay to be angry about that Waverly.”

It amazed Waverly how Nicole always seemed to understand what she was thinking, what she was feeling without her ever having to utter more than a few words. Waverly loved the way Nicole just seemed to get her, understand her.  

Finished with Nicole’s hair, Waverly leaned forward and pressed a soft, lingering kiss to the back of Nicole’s neck.

“Thank you for being here for me.” Waverly kissed her neck again, her eyes fluttering closed at the soft moan escaping Nicole’s lips. “Thank you for understanding this, for understanding me.”

“Understanding you is like understanding myself, it’s easy, almost second nature to me.” Nicole twisted her torso to look back at Waverly. “And I’ll always be here for you Waves, always.”

Nicole kissed her gently, so gently it felt like their lips barely touched at all and before Waverly could pull her in closer or deepen the kiss, Nicole was pulling away giving her an apologetic smile.

“I have to go but I’ll see you tonight, we’ll either be celebrating Trent’s new job or helping him drown his sorrows.”

With one final kiss, Nicole stood from the bed and walked to the door. Stopping just before crossing the threshold, Nicole looked over her shoulder back at Waverly. “I’ll come by with my truck tomorrow and we’ll load all your stuff up and get you moved in with Wynonna, okay?”

“You’re too good to me,” Waverly said, getting up from the mattress, fully intending to kiss Nicole once more before she left but Nicole took two steps backwards out into the hall.

“You haven’t seen anything yet baby.” Nicole winked and then retreated down the hall before she could get distracted by Waverly’s kiss again.

They’d just have to wait till later that night to get lost in each other again.

Nicole was running late, again and that this point she should have expected it. She should have known that she wasn’t ever going to make it out of the station on time when she had plans.

Shooting off a quick text to both Waverly and Trent, letting them know that she’d be there after a quick shower, Nicole walked quickly up the steps leading up to her apartment building.

As much as she was dying to know whether or not Trent had gotten the job or not, she was dying to see her girlfriend even more.

Girlfriend.

Nicole grinned to herself as she unlocked her door and walked into the dimly lit apartment, McGonagall meowing at her as she set her keys and phone on the kitchen counter.

Waverly Earp was her girlfriend. All that time spent pining over her and loving her from afar had been worth it, had been worth the pain of seeing her with Champ, had been worth the pain of being just friends when she wanted so much more.

Nicole fed McGonagall quickly before heading towards the bathroom, stripping off her uniform as she went.

In the shower, Nicole pressed her forehead against the cool tile as the nearly scalding water beat down on her back and shoulders, melting away the tension held there.

Today had been a whirlwind of emotion and she just needed a moment to let everything sink in, needed a moment to process everything that had happened today.

From waking up with Waverly and having their feelings laid out in the open, their hearts and souls laid bare for one another. To that short conversation with Wynonna that left Nicole feeling this overwhelming need to look after her, to be her friend, to protect her in that same way she wanted to protect Waverly.

To that disheartening conversation with Nancy. To failing to convince Nancy to leave her husband, to get a restraining order against him, to put herself first and take care of herself.

Then to the moment at Shorty’s when Waverly whispered the word ‘girlfriends’ and Nicole had swore her heart stopped beating before threatening to beat right out of her chest.

There was so much to process but the only thing lingering on her mind was Waverly and the fact that they were girlfriends, actually girlfriends.

Finishing her shower in record time, Nicole was dressed and heading out the door twenty minutes later, with a skip in her step and a smile that nothing could rid her of.

Waverly caught sight of Nicole first, despite the large crowd in the saloon. She tracked the redhead with her eyes as she weaved in and out of drunks on her way over to the bar.

Waverly’s bottom lip found it’s way between her teeth as she took in the tight, white short sleeve t-shirt Nicole was wearing, that clung to her in all the right places and showed off pale, tone biceps. And then there was the black jeans that hugged her hips and ass perfectly and don’t even get her started on the Toronto Rapters’ snapback she was wearing.

Trent raised his empty beer glass in front of Waverly’s line of sight and cleared his throat, finally gaining her attention. “Can I get a refill, Waves?”

“Oh, yeah sorry.” She blushed a deep shade of red and ducked her head, taking his glass and quickly filling it to the brim from one of the taps.

“What were you staring at?” Amy asked, turning on her stool towards the doors, catching sight of Nicole talking and laughing with a couple of townsfolk as if she had known them her whole life, as if she had grown up with the people in this town.

Deciding to mess with Waverly a bit, make her a little jealous and hopefully make her realize her feelings for Nicole, Amy threw her arm around the redhead’s shoulders when she finally joined the group.

“Damn Haught, lookin’ good,” Amy smirked at Waverly, leaning in a pressing a kiss to Nicole’s cheek. “I forgot how amazing you look out of uniform.”

Waverly slammed a beer for Nicole down on the bar, a little harder than necessary, shooting daggers at Amy as anger and jealousy bubbled up in her chest.

She wanted to yell at Amy to get her hands off her girlfriend. She wanted to walk around the bar between them and grab Nicole by the neck and kiss the hell out of her, showing Amy, showing everyone that Nicole was hers.

But, there was also a part of her that was scared to do so. A part of her that was scared to come out like that, in front of half the town. There was a part of her that wasn’t ready for all the stares, the judgement, the possible rejection from her family.

She was scared, so instead of kissing Nicole, instead of telling Amy to back off, Waverly walked off towards the kitchen, needing a minute to calm down, clear her head, to ease the need to slap Amy’s hands off of Nicole.

Nicole pushed the blonde away from her. “I know what you’re doing and I appreciate it, I really do but you have to stop, you have to let her, let us figure things out on our own.”

With that, Nicole went after Waverly without a second glance at the group.

“They’re acting weird right?” Trent asked, turning to look at Chrissy and Amy.

“What do you mean?” Chrissy asked, taking a sip of her wine and watching Nicole weave in and out of the drunken patrons of Shorty’s to get to the kitchen, to get to Waverly.

“The way they just acted.” Trent waved his hand at the spot Waverly was just standing. “And last night they were touchy-feely, more so than normal.”

“Maybe something is going on between them,” Chrissy shrugged. She may not know what’s going on with them right now but she did know why Waverly was always reaching for Nicole, touching Nicole. “Waverly constantly touching Nicole is a reassurance thing.”

“What do you mean?” Amy questioned, taking her seat in between Trent and Chrissy again. Talking about Waverly and Nicole had gotten easier over time. Especially since she started seeing someone else.  

“Waverly has abandonment issues and, I think she’s always reaching out for Nicole to make sure she’s still there, to make sure that she hasn’t left,” Chrissy explained. “And Nicole consciously or subconsciously knows this and tries to be within reaching distance of her when they’re together, she tries to put Waverly’s fears at ease.”

It was almost sicken how perfect they were for one another, how well they knew each other and each other’s needs but, it was also beautiful. It gave Chrissy hope that there was true love out there, gave her hope that there was someone out there who would understand her in that same way Nicole understood Waverly.

“God, they’re so gross,” Amy groaned.

“You’re just jealous,” Trent teased, bumping her shoulder with his own.

“Of course I’m jealous, who wouldn’t be jealous of Nicole knowing what Waverly needs without asking?” Amy asked. “Don’t you want a love like that?”

“Yeah, yeah I do.” Trent rubbed the back of his neck and glanced shyly over at Chrissy before downing his beer.

“Waverly, wait!” Nicole called over the noise of the kitchen, reaching out and grabbing Waverly’s arm lightly. “Please.”

She understood why Waverly was upset. The only person she had ever dated cheated on her multiple times and she knew that it was hard to get over that level of betrayal, it was hard to let go of the idea that someone else would cheat on you as well.

She knew it also didn’t help that she and Amy had a relationship before, one that was built on purely sex at first.

Waverly stopped in her tracks, the almost desperate pleading in Nicole’s voice too much to ignore but, she didn’t turn around to face her. She just stared at her feet, ashamed with herself for how she acted just now.

She wasn’t mad at Nicole, more upset with herself for getting angry, getting jealous and overreacting when she knew for a fact that there was nothing to be jealous of. She was more upset with herself for being too scared of what others might think of her to kiss Nicole in public like Amy had.

Nicole looked around the small kitchen, at the staff watching them. They couldn’t have this conversation here. Waverly wasn’t ready for people to know and she would respect that.

Sliding her hand down Waverly’s arm and grasping her hand, Nicole lead her out the back door and into the alley, giving them some privacy.

“Baby,” Nicole whispered, tilting Waverly’s chin up with her pointer finger. “You know there’s nothing going on between Amy and me anymore, right?”

“I know,” Waverly nodded, refusing to meet Nicole’s eyes.

“Then what’s wrong?”

How did she explain that she was jealous of Amy for being able to kiss her on the cheek in public when she could barely touch her shoulder this afternoon? How did she explain that while she wanted people to know they were together, that Nicole was her girlfriend, at the same time she was afraid of people knowing?

Then she realized that this was Nicole she was talking to, that no matter if what she said didn’t make any sense, Nicole would somehow understand because Nicole always understood.

“I was jealous,” Waverly mumbled, almost embarrassed to admit it to Nicole.

“What?” Nicole questioned, eyebrows knitted together in the most adorable way that has Waverly reaching up and smoothing them with her thumb.

“I was jealous,” Waverly repeated, louder this time.

Nicole stared down at her for a moment before grinning then laughing, actually laughing at her!

Waverly wanted to be angry because she’s been laughed at her whole life but there’s something about the way Nicole smiled so wide while she laughed that had Waverly leaning up on her tippy toes and pressing a sloppy kiss to Nicole’s lips.

Nicole grinned against her lips, pulling her in closer by the hips and tried to kiss her properly but the brim of her hat hit Waverly’s forehead, keeping their lips from connecting fully.  And she laughing again before taking her snapback off and placing it backwards on Waverly's head.

Then she's pulling Waverly back in for a soft kiss that doesn't linger for long but still managed to leave Waverly breathless.

“You have nothing to be jealous about Waverly,” Nicole reassured her, cradling her face between her palms, gazing down at her with soft brown eyes with beautiful flecks of gold. “Amy may have had a piece of me at one point but you, Waverly you have all of me, every single piece of me.”

Waverly grasped the back of Nicole’s neck and yanked her down for a kiss. Leave it to Nicole to reassure a fear she didn’t have. Leave it to Nicole to be her amazing, caring, thoughtful self.

If Waverly wasn't already so damn in love with Nicole, she’s fallen for her then

“That’s not what I was jealous of,” Waverly said when she pulled away, fingers caressing Nicole’s strong jawline.

“What were you jealous of then?” Nicole's face pinched in confusion.

“I was jealous because she's able to be open about who she is, able to kiss your cheek in front of everyone without a care in the world and I.” Waverly sighed and looked away from Nicole's piercing gaze.

“You what?” Nicole probed, trying in vain to get Waverly to meet her eyes again.

She didn’t understand what Waverly was jealous of. She didn’t understand what was wrong and if she didn’t know, didn’t understand then there was no way for her to put Waverly’s fears or worries at ease. And all she wanted to do was ease whatever fear, whatever worry the Earp had.

“I can barely touch you now without freaking out about someone figuring out that we're together, that I'm,” Waverly trailed off unsure on how to continue, how to say the word out loud.

She wasn’t ashamed of who she was, of how she felt about Nicole. She just didn’t know how to let go of the fear of people knowing, people judging, of people, her family potentially hating her for who she loved.

“That you’re bi,” Nicole finished for her, remembering what it was like to be afraid to say the word gay out loud for the first time. Remembering how long it took for her to be confident in who she was and who she loved.

“That confidence doesn’t happen overnight, it takes months, years to build and even then one day we’ll be walking down the street and you’ll be scared to hold my hand because it may rub some homophobe the wrong way,” Nicole said, fixing the snapback on top of Waverly’s head, hoping she wasn’t freaking her out instead of comforting her.

Waverly just looked up at her with those sad eyes and Nicole pushed through.

“There are going to be times when you are afraid to be who you are because the world is cruel and people are hateful but, it’s okay to be afraid, it’s okay to not want to hold my hand, to not want to kiss my cheek, it’s okay because we’re going at your pace here Waves, we don’t have to do any of that in public as long as I can kiss you when we are alone then I’ll be happy.”

“How did I get so lucky?” Waverly asked, fingers soothing along Nicole’s furrowed brows.

She’d thank her lucky stars for the rest of her life for bringing Nicole into her life, for giving her someone as loving and as caring as Nicole, for giving her someone who understood everything about her.  

“It wasn’t luck, it was fate.” Nicole grinned at her, dimples and all and Waverly wanted nothing more than to stand here with Nicole smiling at her like that for the rest of their lives.

“Ready to go back in?” Nicole asked, looking around the dirty alley they’re standing in, nose scrunching up in disgust. “Because it smells like-”

“Shunk heinie,” Waverly interrupted with a small smile.

Nicole looked at her with nothing but adoration shining in her eyes as she leaned down and pressed a kiss to her forehead before slinging an arm around Waverly’s shoulders leading her to the door they came out of. “You are so incredible adorable.”