No Such Thing as Second Place
Pairing(s) JeTi, mentions of TaeNy and YoonYul.
Rating: R for brief sex scene and language.
The day starts when Krystal bounds into the bedroom and jumps on the bed, rudely rousing Jessica from a dream involving a beach and really warm water.
“Wake up lazy!”
If Jessica weren’t so bone tired she’d grab the pillow under her head and beat Krystal with it. As it is she can only manage a weak flail and a pitiful groan which makes Krystal snort.
“Stop complaining,” she scolds. “I left you breakfast in the fridge. Everyone else is already up and I’m leaving.”
Later on the use of the singular pronoun will register and Jessica will realize that Luna is skipping school again. Right now though, Jessica waits until she hears the door click closed and rolls back over to doze for a few more hours. By the time she can drag herself out of bed it’s almost noon. She stumbles past Luna (who is in the living room playing video games) on her way to the kitchen. There’ a note on the table from Hyoyeon saying that she took Amber out shopping and they’re having Mexican for dinner that night. After a strong cup of coffee and a lot of cold bacon, Jessica grabs a dish towel and marches into the living room to whack Luna over the head.
“What the hell?!” Luna cries, jumping so badly her controller clatters to the floor.
“Why aren’t you in school?” Jessica demands, holding the towel back and ready to hit her again.
Luna rolls her eyes and sticks out her tongue. “Didn’t do my homework, plus I have the flu.”
She waves a forged doctor’s note under Jessica’s nose and Jessica has to stop herself from ripping it to pieces because heaven knows Luna has dozens more stashed away.
Jessica throws the dish towel aside, flops down on the couch and watches Luna play for a few minutes. When she’s woken up enough to take in information as it comes to her, she throws on leggings and a pair of jeans, a tank top, t-shirt and an oversized sweater, two pairs of socks and her snow boots. From the coat closet near the door she grabs a hat, scarf and gloves. She selects a down jacket that falls to her knees and has extra-long sleeves.
Luna gives her a once over. “Have you got your purse?”
Jessica nods and picks it up from the floor.
“Have a good day!” Luna calls.
It’s a two block walk to BOT, or Box Office Tango as it has been affectionately called. If it were even a little further Jessica would drive, but it’s not worth the hassle of parking. Though with the wind chill lowering the temperature, sometimes Jessica wonders if it isn’t worth it after all.
Sooyoung almost pulls a muscle laughing when Jessica comes in. “Where’s your dog sled?” she cackles. She ducks in the elevator before Jessica can throw a punch at her. When Jessica makes her way into the control center of BOT she is greeted by a frazzled (and increasingly frustrated) Tiffany.
“I ordered those reports yesterday,” she growls. “I swear, Taeyeon can’t do anything right. How she has managed to fly under the radar for this long is beyond me.”
Jessica wrestles out of her jacket and scarf, leaving on the gloves and hat until she can feel her fingers again. The layers will peel off as the day progresses.
Tiffany continues to mutter to herself. “I swear the next time she asks me for a favor I won’t do it. I don’t care if all she wants is for me to sew a button on her shirt, I will dump a pot of coffee on her head.”
“No you won’t,” Jessica laughs.
Tiffany startles as if just realizing Jessica was there, but then she relaxes and smiles. “Yeah, you’re probably right.”
“Of course I’m right,” Jessica scoffs. “You think your oldest friend doesn’t know your habits?”
The phone rings and Tiffany dives for it. “Taeyeon?”
But it’s Yoona.
After she hangs up the phone, Tiffany goes into a fresh tirade. “Taeyeon I hate you! That woman is going to give me an ulcer!” She yells.
Jessica rolls her eyes and perches on the armrest of Tiffany’s chair. She peers at the computer screen and laughs. “What are you trying to do here?”
Tiffany has the good sense to stop and look sheepish. “Um…I was hoping you could tell me?”
So begins another day at BOT.
Sooyoung and Yoona come home late that night. When they come back Tiffany isn’t home, she’s in the middle of a meeting, and Jessica is in the shower. Yoona bangs on the door the bathroom door and then comes in without permission.
“You’re a real pain in the ass, you know that?” Jessica grumbles. “What are you doing?”
“Putting on makeup,” Yoona replies shortly. Actually it sounds like she’s brushing her teeth.
“That better not be my toothbrush,” Jessica warns, peering through the fogged glass. The bathroom is arranged so that if you stand near the sink, it’s really hard to see into and out of the shower.
“It’s not,” Yoona assures, and Jessica will have to take her word for it.
Jessica sighs as she hears Yoona wrapping up her preparations. “Not too young, okay?” She calls. Yoona has a habit of going after jailbait-jailbait who then hang on to her for months at a time.
Yoona laughs. “Don’t worry, I’m not going after teenagers tonight.” The door slams behind her. Jessica decides she’d rather not know what that means.
Twelve seconds later the door opens again and Jessica growls. “Now what?!”
“What did I do?”
“Oh,” Jessica gasps. “It’s you.” She leans her head against the glass, but Tiffany is standing too far away to be seen. She can sense Tiffany’s hesitation.
“How did it go?” She asks, giving Tiffany a chance to talk.
“As expected,” Tiffany says shortly. “Can I join you?”
Jessica feels her heart skip a beat and she has to bite the inside of her cheek so she doesn’t smile too widely. “Sure, I’m almost done anyway,” she says nonchalantly.
She can hear Tiffany’s clothes rustle and the soft thump as they fall to the floor. Jessica keeps her back to the door as Tiffany comes in. The rush of cool air makes her shiver, but as soon as the door shuts Jessica forgets about it.
“I don’t want to think about work,” Tiffany says softly, her hands resting on Jessica’s waist.
Jessica’s heart races and she forces herself to keep calm. “So don’t,” she says simply. She reaches for the shampoo but Tiffany takes it from her, squeezing it into her hands and then working it into Jessica’s hair. Jessica sighs as Tiffany massages her scalp, relaxing into the touch.
“Thought I was supposed to be helping you,” she mutters after a minute.
“You are,” Tiffany says lightly. “I need something to focus on.”
Jessica finally turns around, letting her eyes flick briefly over Tiffany’s body.
‘”Something’?” She echoes. “What kind of something?”
Tiffany grins and playfully covers Jessica’s eyes, pulling her under the stream of water to rinse the shampoo from her hair. Even after it’s gone, she keeps her hand where it is, kepping Jessica’s vision totally dark.
Jessica feels her lean in until she can feel Tiffany’s breath against her lips. “Something fun,” she whispers.
Jessica grins. “I like the sound of that.”
Hours later Tiffany’s phone rings, half waking Jessica up from a dream about yet another beach. She’s momentarily confused-where is she? What’s wrapped around her legs? How can it be dark when the sun was shining two seconds ago? Lost between sleep and consciousness, she misses the entirety of the phone call. By the time Jessica can open her eyes, Tiffany is searching for clothes.
Jessica groans and pulls the blankets tighter around herself. She’s naked, blankets tangled around her feet and neck, and without Tiffany she’s going to get cold quickly. “Come back here,” she grouses.
Tiffany looks up at her and grins. Jessica frowns even more. She’s still walking around in her underwear and it’s just not fair that she has to look so damn attractive in black lace. “That was Sooyoung,” she says gently. “There was a slight problem.”
“Is it life threatening?” Jessica deadpans.
Tiffany sits down on the bed and caresses Jessica’s cheek. “No, but it is important.”
“Screw them,” Jessica whines, wrenching one hand free of the blankets and grabbing Tiffany’s wrist. “Come back to bed.”
She leans up and places a soft kiss on Tiffany’s lips. It doesn’t take long for Tiffany to kiss her back and Jessica whines, tugging at Tiffany’s bra strap. Tiffany moves to hover over her, pin her down on the mattress. She deftly pulls the blankets apart, exposing Jessica to the cold air. Her hands wander over Jessica’s body, lower and lower and in her head Jessica crows in triumph…
Then Tiffany pulls away with a sigh. “I can’t, I need to go clean up other people’s messes.”
Jessica doesn’t bother to hide her disappointment. Tiffany kisses her cheek. “I’ll kill Kim Taeyeon for this,” she vows.
Tiffany is gone all night, and when Jessica fights her way through the wind and snow to BOT the next day, she finds the majority of Taeyeon’s gang crowded into the small meeting room. There’s a lot of crumpled paper on the floor and when Jessica puts the box of Dunkin Doughnuts coffee on the table, every single person dives for it. Tiffany shoots her a grateful look, and it makes the extra five blocks Jessica had to walk to get it that much more worth it.
Jessica scans Taeyeon’s side of the table-she recognizes Seohyun and almost snorts into her coffee cup. She has no idea what the hell made Seohyun want to be a gang member, the girl can’t even eat a hamburger, Yoona told her about it. Then there’s Sunny, who is a lot like Taeyeon in that she tries but she’s just too soft. Victoria is there too, the only one Jessica sees having any promise, and Yuri is sitting at the very end, almost squished into a corner, but she’s doing her best to hide behind a notebook. Jessica sees that Yoona is sitting across from her, and realizes with a wave of nausea that Yoona is looking at Yuri like she wants to eat her. Or eat her out.
“Ew,” she whispers, and it goes unheard by all but Amber, who has to bite the back of her hand so she doesn’t laugh.
Tiffany’s side of the table is distinctly more crowded. Hyoyeon, Amber, Yoona and Sooyoung, and now Jessica has arrived. She doesn’t even try to find a seat, instead sinking right into Sooyoung’s lap. She’d try for Tiffany, but she can tell that Tiffany is losing her patience and is about to flip the table. Tiffany shoves a piece of paper under Taeyeon’s nose.
“Is that better?” She growls.
Taeyeon scans it and her eyes widen. “No guns!” she cries, “How many times do I-”
Tiffany slams her hands down on the table. “THERE WILL BE GUNS,” She shouts, and Seohyun almost jumps out of her seat, “OR WE WILL NOT HELP YOU.” She lowers her voice. “Do you want the drugs out of your neighborhood or not?”
Taeyeon huffs. “Fine. But you have to clean up the bodies.”
Jessica is about to protest-why should Tiffany put her neck on the line for something that’s not her problem?-But Tiffany agrees.
Evidently that was the last order of business, because Taeyeon and her girls stand up, bow, and start to collect their things. Yuri is the first one out the door, but Yoona is right on her heels. Jessica leans over to Amber.
“Please tell me that Yoona is not actively pursuing her,” she deadpans.
Amber winces. “Afraid so, Princess.”
Yes, Jessica will definitely need to have a talk with Yoona. No way will she allow one of her girls to date anyone who allies themselves with Taeyeon the Hopeless.
Tiffany gathers her things. “We’re going home,” she says shortly. For all that she gets annoyed with Taeyeon over the phone, seeing her in person leaves her oddly calm. Or maybe not so odd.
Jessica only took her coat off, so she’s the first one dressed again. Tiffany is the last to even get ready, and she gestures for everyone to leave before her, even Jessica. Her heart twinges a little as she crowds into the elevator with everyone else (minus Yoona, she must still be chasing Yuri around). They all seem to notice her bad mood.
“She got so mad at Taeyeon today,” Hyoyeon says, rubbing Jessica’s arm. “You missed the absolute fit that she threw. I swear she was actually going to rip the girl’s face off.”
“What happened?” Jessica asks.
“Seohyun almost got herself arrested,” Sooyoung says gleefully. Her faces darkens. “I would have let her, if it wouldn’t have probably led right back to us.”
“Bunch of idiots,” Hyoyeon sniffs. “And Taeyeon is the biggest one.”
“But Tiffany helps her anyway,” Jessica mutters.
Nobody has anything to say to that.
Jessica sometimes wonders if, when Tiffany is pressing her into the mattress, slipping her fingers under the waistband of her underwear, when Jessica is moaning Tiffany’s name, is Tiffany imagining Taeyeon? She’s afraid to ask, afraid to hear the answer. Tiffany would never admit to it if she was, and Jessica would be able to tell if she’s lying.
When Tiffany does come home, Jessica is waiting for her. She’s already stripped down to her underwear, the hickeys from the night before standing out starkly against her skin. She’s reading a magazine when Tiffany walks in and barely glances up, even when the door closes.
“Took you long enough to get back,” Jessica remarks coldly. Tiffany has started to undress, and Jessica is determined not to look.
“I know,” Tiffany says. “I’m sorry.”
Lies, Jessica thinks. She’s stupid for being here, she should just put her clothes back on and leave, take Amber and Krystal out for barbecue or something else totally mundane.
The bed dips and Tiffany tugs the magazine out of Jessica’s hand, her fingers long since having gone slack. Tiffany places her fingers under Jessica’s chin and tilts her face up.
“I’m sorry,” she repeats. She’s not lying.
Jessica grabs Tiffany’s shoulders and yanks her down for a kiss, open-mouthed and desperate. Tiffany doesn’t even bother with Jessica’s bra, just pulling her panties off and right away slipping a finger inside her. Jessica breaks the kiss, arching back with a gasp. Tiffany sucks a hickey on the base of Jessica’s throat, Jessica winds her fingers into Tiffany’s hair as if she can hold her there forever. Tiffany eventually pulls back, kisses her way down Jessica’s stomach, nudging her legs apart to settle between them. Jessica shuts her eyes at the first press of Tiffany’s tongue against her clit, biting down hard on her lip. It’s so hard to keep her hips still, but she knows that Tiffany enjoys taking her time with this, fucking Jessica open with slow strokes of her tongue, her fingertips lightly tracing Jessica’s thighs.
Jessica loses track of time, allowing herself to believe that this is her life, that Tiffany belongs to her and only her, that when Jessica comes with Tiffany’s name on her lips, Tiffany hears her voice. That when Jessica flips Tiffany onto her back and slides her fingers inside Tiffany, Tiffany is thinking only of her.
Tiffany falls asleep shortly after she comes, but Jessica always feels wide awake. She spends a few minutes just reveling in her post-orgasm haze, trying to commit every second to memory. She watches Tiffany sleep for a few minutes, giggling at the fact that she’s sprawled out like a starfish. Eventually Jessica forces herself up, throws the blanket over Tiffany, grabs her own clothes and heads for the shower. By the time she’s dressed again, she’s back to being bitter and cursing her life.
The fact is, Jessica knows she’s not Tiffany’s first pick. Tiffany fell for Taeyeon first, tried to date her, backed off only because Taeyeon asked her to. Taeyeon doesn’t want Tiffany, and Tiffany says that she’s over Taeyeon, but Jessica knows she’s lying.
Yoona is the only one in the living room when Jessica goes in. She has this look like she fully expects what’s coming, but that only makes Jessica angrier.
“Stay the fuck away from that girl,” Jessica growls.
Yoona straightens up. “Tiffany said it’s okay.”
Jessica steps closer and grabs a hold of Yoona’s hair threateningly. “Did I ask what Tiffany thinks?”
Yoona glares at her, unperturbed by the fact that Jessica could very well yank a chunk out of her hair if she so desired. “Your relationship sucks, Jessica, but that doesn’t give you the right to ruin my life.”
“You’ll get over it,” Jessica hisses.
Yoona bites out a laugh. “Like how you could get over Tiffany?”
Jessica snaps her teeth, but relaxes her grip. “Don’t bring her here. Don’t ever let me see you with her. The last thing I want is any connection to Taeyeon besides the one we already have.”
Yoona rolls her eyes. “Fine.” She stands up and punches Jessica in the arm. “You’re so melodramatic. Tiffany loves you.”
Jessica stalks back to bed. Tiffany doesn’t wake up when she crawls under the covers, but she does shift closer. Jessica thinks that Tiffany may love her, but it doesn’t matter because she’ll never be able to compare to Kim Taeyeon in Tiffany’s eyes. She'll always be second best.
Rating: R for brief sex scene and language.
The day starts when Krystal bounds into the bedroom and jumps on the bed, rudely rousing Jessica from a dream involving a beach and really warm water.
“Wake up lazy!”
If Jessica weren’t so bone tired she’d grab the pillow under her head and beat Krystal with it. As it is she can only manage a weak flail and a pitiful groan which makes Krystal snort.
“Stop complaining,” she scolds. “I left you breakfast in the fridge. Everyone else is already up and I’m leaving.”
Later on the use of the singular pronoun will register and Jessica will realize that Luna is skipping school again. Right now though, Jessica waits until she hears the door click closed and rolls back over to doze for a few more hours. By the time she can drag herself out of bed it’s almost noon. She stumbles past Luna (who is in the living room playing video games) on her way to the kitchen. There’ a note on the table from Hyoyeon saying that she took Amber out shopping and they’re having Mexican for dinner that night. After a strong cup of coffee and a lot of cold bacon, Jessica grabs a dish towel and marches into the living room to whack Luna over the head.
“What the hell?!” Luna cries, jumping so badly her controller clatters to the floor.
“Why aren’t you in school?” Jessica demands, holding the towel back and ready to hit her again.
Luna rolls her eyes and sticks out her tongue. “Didn’t do my homework, plus I have the flu.”
She waves a forged doctor’s note under Jessica’s nose and Jessica has to stop herself from ripping it to pieces because heaven knows Luna has dozens more stashed away.
Jessica throws the dish towel aside, flops down on the couch and watches Luna play for a few minutes. When she’s woken up enough to take in information as it comes to her, she throws on leggings and a pair of jeans, a tank top, t-shirt and an oversized sweater, two pairs of socks and her snow boots. From the coat closet near the door she grabs a hat, scarf and gloves. She selects a down jacket that falls to her knees and has extra-long sleeves.
Luna gives her a once over. “Have you got your purse?”
Jessica nods and picks it up from the floor.
“Have a good day!” Luna calls.
It’s a two block walk to BOT, or Box Office Tango as it has been affectionately called. If it were even a little further Jessica would drive, but it’s not worth the hassle of parking. Though with the wind chill lowering the temperature, sometimes Jessica wonders if it isn’t worth it after all.
Sooyoung almost pulls a muscle laughing when Jessica comes in. “Where’s your dog sled?” she cackles. She ducks in the elevator before Jessica can throw a punch at her. When Jessica makes her way into the control center of BOT she is greeted by a frazzled (and increasingly frustrated) Tiffany.
“I ordered those reports yesterday,” she growls. “I swear, Taeyeon can’t do anything right. How she has managed to fly under the radar for this long is beyond me.”
Jessica wrestles out of her jacket and scarf, leaving on the gloves and hat until she can feel her fingers again. The layers will peel off as the day progresses.
Tiffany continues to mutter to herself. “I swear the next time she asks me for a favor I won’t do it. I don’t care if all she wants is for me to sew a button on her shirt, I will dump a pot of coffee on her head.”
“No you won’t,” Jessica laughs.
Tiffany startles as if just realizing Jessica was there, but then she relaxes and smiles. “Yeah, you’re probably right.”
“Of course I’m right,” Jessica scoffs. “You think your oldest friend doesn’t know your habits?”
The phone rings and Tiffany dives for it. “Taeyeon?”
But it’s Yoona.
After she hangs up the phone, Tiffany goes into a fresh tirade. “Taeyeon I hate you! That woman is going to give me an ulcer!” She yells.
Jessica rolls her eyes and perches on the armrest of Tiffany’s chair. She peers at the computer screen and laughs. “What are you trying to do here?”
Tiffany has the good sense to stop and look sheepish. “Um…I was hoping you could tell me?”
So begins another day at BOT.
Sooyoung and Yoona come home late that night. When they come back Tiffany isn’t home, she’s in the middle of a meeting, and Jessica is in the shower. Yoona bangs on the door the bathroom door and then comes in without permission.
“You’re a real pain in the ass, you know that?” Jessica grumbles. “What are you doing?”
“Putting on makeup,” Yoona replies shortly. Actually it sounds like she’s brushing her teeth.
“That better not be my toothbrush,” Jessica warns, peering through the fogged glass. The bathroom is arranged so that if you stand near the sink, it’s really hard to see into and out of the shower.
“It’s not,” Yoona assures, and Jessica will have to take her word for it.
Jessica sighs as she hears Yoona wrapping up her preparations. “Not too young, okay?” She calls. Yoona has a habit of going after jailbait-jailbait who then hang on to her for months at a time.
Yoona laughs. “Don’t worry, I’m not going after teenagers tonight.” The door slams behind her. Jessica decides she’d rather not know what that means.
Twelve seconds later the door opens again and Jessica growls. “Now what?!”
“What did I do?”
“Oh,” Jessica gasps. “It’s you.” She leans her head against the glass, but Tiffany is standing too far away to be seen. She can sense Tiffany’s hesitation.
“How did it go?” She asks, giving Tiffany a chance to talk.
“As expected,” Tiffany says shortly. “Can I join you?”
Jessica feels her heart skip a beat and she has to bite the inside of her cheek so she doesn’t smile too widely. “Sure, I’m almost done anyway,” she says nonchalantly.
She can hear Tiffany’s clothes rustle and the soft thump as they fall to the floor. Jessica keeps her back to the door as Tiffany comes in. The rush of cool air makes her shiver, but as soon as the door shuts Jessica forgets about it.
“I don’t want to think about work,” Tiffany says softly, her hands resting on Jessica’s waist.
Jessica’s heart races and she forces herself to keep calm. “So don’t,” she says simply. She reaches for the shampoo but Tiffany takes it from her, squeezing it into her hands and then working it into Jessica’s hair. Jessica sighs as Tiffany massages her scalp, relaxing into the touch.
“Thought I was supposed to be helping you,” she mutters after a minute.
“You are,” Tiffany says lightly. “I need something to focus on.”
Jessica finally turns around, letting her eyes flick briefly over Tiffany’s body.
‘”Something’?” She echoes. “What kind of something?”
Tiffany grins and playfully covers Jessica’s eyes, pulling her under the stream of water to rinse the shampoo from her hair. Even after it’s gone, she keeps her hand where it is, kepping Jessica’s vision totally dark.
Jessica feels her lean in until she can feel Tiffany’s breath against her lips. “Something fun,” she whispers.
Jessica grins. “I like the sound of that.”
Hours later Tiffany’s phone rings, half waking Jessica up from a dream about yet another beach. She’s momentarily confused-where is she? What’s wrapped around her legs? How can it be dark when the sun was shining two seconds ago? Lost between sleep and consciousness, she misses the entirety of the phone call. By the time Jessica can open her eyes, Tiffany is searching for clothes.
Jessica groans and pulls the blankets tighter around herself. She’s naked, blankets tangled around her feet and neck, and without Tiffany she’s going to get cold quickly. “Come back here,” she grouses.
Tiffany looks up at her and grins. Jessica frowns even more. She’s still walking around in her underwear and it’s just not fair that she has to look so damn attractive in black lace. “That was Sooyoung,” she says gently. “There was a slight problem.”
“Is it life threatening?” Jessica deadpans.
Tiffany sits down on the bed and caresses Jessica’s cheek. “No, but it is important.”
“Screw them,” Jessica whines, wrenching one hand free of the blankets and grabbing Tiffany’s wrist. “Come back to bed.”
She leans up and places a soft kiss on Tiffany’s lips. It doesn’t take long for Tiffany to kiss her back and Jessica whines, tugging at Tiffany’s bra strap. Tiffany moves to hover over her, pin her down on the mattress. She deftly pulls the blankets apart, exposing Jessica to the cold air. Her hands wander over Jessica’s body, lower and lower and in her head Jessica crows in triumph…
Then Tiffany pulls away with a sigh. “I can’t, I need to go clean up other people’s messes.”
Jessica doesn’t bother to hide her disappointment. Tiffany kisses her cheek. “I’ll kill Kim Taeyeon for this,” she vows.
Tiffany is gone all night, and when Jessica fights her way through the wind and snow to BOT the next day, she finds the majority of Taeyeon’s gang crowded into the small meeting room. There’s a lot of crumpled paper on the floor and when Jessica puts the box of Dunkin Doughnuts coffee on the table, every single person dives for it. Tiffany shoots her a grateful look, and it makes the extra five blocks Jessica had to walk to get it that much more worth it.
Jessica scans Taeyeon’s side of the table-she recognizes Seohyun and almost snorts into her coffee cup. She has no idea what the hell made Seohyun want to be a gang member, the girl can’t even eat a hamburger, Yoona told her about it. Then there’s Sunny, who is a lot like Taeyeon in that she tries but she’s just too soft. Victoria is there too, the only one Jessica sees having any promise, and Yuri is sitting at the very end, almost squished into a corner, but she’s doing her best to hide behind a notebook. Jessica sees that Yoona is sitting across from her, and realizes with a wave of nausea that Yoona is looking at Yuri like she wants to eat her. Or eat her out.
“Ew,” she whispers, and it goes unheard by all but Amber, who has to bite the back of her hand so she doesn’t laugh.
Tiffany’s side of the table is distinctly more crowded. Hyoyeon, Amber, Yoona and Sooyoung, and now Jessica has arrived. She doesn’t even try to find a seat, instead sinking right into Sooyoung’s lap. She’d try for Tiffany, but she can tell that Tiffany is losing her patience and is about to flip the table. Tiffany shoves a piece of paper under Taeyeon’s nose.
“Is that better?” She growls.
Taeyeon scans it and her eyes widen. “No guns!” she cries, “How many times do I-”
Tiffany slams her hands down on the table. “THERE WILL BE GUNS,” She shouts, and Seohyun almost jumps out of her seat, “OR WE WILL NOT HELP YOU.” She lowers her voice. “Do you want the drugs out of your neighborhood or not?”
Taeyeon huffs. “Fine. But you have to clean up the bodies.”
Jessica is about to protest-why should Tiffany put her neck on the line for something that’s not her problem?-But Tiffany agrees.
Evidently that was the last order of business, because Taeyeon and her girls stand up, bow, and start to collect their things. Yuri is the first one out the door, but Yoona is right on her heels. Jessica leans over to Amber.
“Please tell me that Yoona is not actively pursuing her,” she deadpans.
Amber winces. “Afraid so, Princess.”
Yes, Jessica will definitely need to have a talk with Yoona. No way will she allow one of her girls to date anyone who allies themselves with Taeyeon the Hopeless.
Tiffany gathers her things. “We’re going home,” she says shortly. For all that she gets annoyed with Taeyeon over the phone, seeing her in person leaves her oddly calm. Or maybe not so odd.
Jessica only took her coat off, so she’s the first one dressed again. Tiffany is the last to even get ready, and she gestures for everyone to leave before her, even Jessica. Her heart twinges a little as she crowds into the elevator with everyone else (minus Yoona, she must still be chasing Yuri around). They all seem to notice her bad mood.
“She got so mad at Taeyeon today,” Hyoyeon says, rubbing Jessica’s arm. “You missed the absolute fit that she threw. I swear she was actually going to rip the girl’s face off.”
“What happened?” Jessica asks.
“Seohyun almost got herself arrested,” Sooyoung says gleefully. Her faces darkens. “I would have let her, if it wouldn’t have probably led right back to us.”
“Bunch of idiots,” Hyoyeon sniffs. “And Taeyeon is the biggest one.”
“But Tiffany helps her anyway,” Jessica mutters.
Nobody has anything to say to that.
Jessica sometimes wonders if, when Tiffany is pressing her into the mattress, slipping her fingers under the waistband of her underwear, when Jessica is moaning Tiffany’s name, is Tiffany imagining Taeyeon? She’s afraid to ask, afraid to hear the answer. Tiffany would never admit to it if she was, and Jessica would be able to tell if she’s lying.
When Tiffany does come home, Jessica is waiting for her. She’s already stripped down to her underwear, the hickeys from the night before standing out starkly against her skin. She’s reading a magazine when Tiffany walks in and barely glances up, even when the door closes.
“Took you long enough to get back,” Jessica remarks coldly. Tiffany has started to undress, and Jessica is determined not to look.
“I know,” Tiffany says. “I’m sorry.”
Lies, Jessica thinks. She’s stupid for being here, she should just put her clothes back on and leave, take Amber and Krystal out for barbecue or something else totally mundane.
The bed dips and Tiffany tugs the magazine out of Jessica’s hand, her fingers long since having gone slack. Tiffany places her fingers under Jessica’s chin and tilts her face up.
“I’m sorry,” she repeats. She’s not lying.
Jessica grabs Tiffany’s shoulders and yanks her down for a kiss, open-mouthed and desperate. Tiffany doesn’t even bother with Jessica’s bra, just pulling her panties off and right away slipping a finger inside her. Jessica breaks the kiss, arching back with a gasp. Tiffany sucks a hickey on the base of Jessica’s throat, Jessica winds her fingers into Tiffany’s hair as if she can hold her there forever. Tiffany eventually pulls back, kisses her way down Jessica’s stomach, nudging her legs apart to settle between them. Jessica shuts her eyes at the first press of Tiffany’s tongue against her clit, biting down hard on her lip. It’s so hard to keep her hips still, but she knows that Tiffany enjoys taking her time with this, fucking Jessica open with slow strokes of her tongue, her fingertips lightly tracing Jessica’s thighs.
Jessica loses track of time, allowing herself to believe that this is her life, that Tiffany belongs to her and only her, that when Jessica comes with Tiffany’s name on her lips, Tiffany hears her voice. That when Jessica flips Tiffany onto her back and slides her fingers inside Tiffany, Tiffany is thinking only of her.
Tiffany falls asleep shortly after she comes, but Jessica always feels wide awake. She spends a few minutes just reveling in her post-orgasm haze, trying to commit every second to memory. She watches Tiffany sleep for a few minutes, giggling at the fact that she’s sprawled out like a starfish. Eventually Jessica forces herself up, throws the blanket over Tiffany, grabs her own clothes and heads for the shower. By the time she’s dressed again, she’s back to being bitter and cursing her life.
The fact is, Jessica knows she’s not Tiffany’s first pick. Tiffany fell for Taeyeon first, tried to date her, backed off only because Taeyeon asked her to. Taeyeon doesn’t want Tiffany, and Tiffany says that she’s over Taeyeon, but Jessica knows she’s lying.
Yoona is the only one in the living room when Jessica goes in. She has this look like she fully expects what’s coming, but that only makes Jessica angrier.
“Stay the fuck away from that girl,” Jessica growls.
Yoona straightens up. “Tiffany said it’s okay.”
Jessica steps closer and grabs a hold of Yoona’s hair threateningly. “Did I ask what Tiffany thinks?”
Yoona glares at her, unperturbed by the fact that Jessica could very well yank a chunk out of her hair if she so desired. “Your relationship sucks, Jessica, but that doesn’t give you the right to ruin my life.”
“You’ll get over it,” Jessica hisses.
Yoona bites out a laugh. “Like how you could get over Tiffany?”
Jessica snaps her teeth, but relaxes her grip. “Don’t bring her here. Don’t ever let me see you with her. The last thing I want is any connection to Taeyeon besides the one we already have.”
Yoona rolls her eyes. “Fine.” She stands up and punches Jessica in the arm. “You’re so melodramatic. Tiffany loves you.”
Jessica stalks back to bed. Tiffany doesn’t wake up when she crawls under the covers, but she does shift closer. Jessica thinks that Tiffany may love her, but it doesn’t matter because she’ll never be able to compare to Kim Taeyeon in Tiffany’s eyes. She'll always be second best.