Fighting for you. DWP short story
Title: Fighting for you
Summary: They were having a fight. How major, Andy couldn't tell just yet. But... can they fix it?
Fandom: The Devil Wears Prada
Pairing: Miranda/Andy
Disclaimer: Nothing belongs to me... *sighs*
Loads of thanks to my beta freenchie-we're both no native speakers, though... :)
Fighting. Oh, how she hated it!
Well, sometimes she sort of liked it, needed it, even. But not right now, not about this, not with... her. It was about something really stupid. Really. She had asked her to stay for Christmas. But nothing had been said about New Year's Eve. Absolutely nothing. And the time where she needed to read her mind was long gone. Tomorrow was the 30th and she had booked a flight out to her parents very early next morning. With tears in her eyes she packed her bag. She'd only stay for three days, so she wouldn't need much. She hauled the bag carelessly into the hallway of her apartment, near the door, all the while going through the fight again and again in her head. She had demanded she should cancel her flight back home and spend the night with her instead, as the girls were at their father's. But Andy refused to do so. She had asked her to stay in New York for Christmas and that was okay with her, really. She had enjoyed herself very much, had loved the time the four of them had spent together. She even more loved the time only the two of them had been together. Until yesterday morning. They had then talked about New Year's Eve and Andy hat told her that she'd fly home for three days. She wanted to see her parents at least one day this year.
Angrily she wiped at the tears of frustration.
No, she hadn't listened to her reasons, just shut her out by building up her emotional walls. She hadn't even listened as she had told her that there were two tickets. Right. What would she do with the second ticket now? She didn't know yet. Nothing, probably.
She reached for her handbag and took hold of the spare keys to the townhouse. She tossed them on the small table in her hallway, still with frustration. And hurt.
She then took out her phone. Looking at it only provoked more tears. She sunk onto her bed, the phone now lying beside her. On the activated screen, a picture of three female figures and a large dog. Two young girls, cuddling with the dog, rolling over the green grass. They were only a blur. On the bench beside them, the regal figure of Miranda Priestly, her head turned to the sun with closed eyes, a gentle smile on her lips.
Andrea Sachs cried herself to sleep for the first time in years.
** **
She had planned everything. But now it wasn't working out the way she had imagined, not even nearly. That girl had left. Again. She pursed her lips and stared at the wall across the room. She had told her in no uncertain terms that she rather spent New Year's Eve with her parents. She hadn't needed to hear any more of this.
“Ridiculous” she muttered into the silence. “I am ridiculous.”
Of course she was. Believing she meant something to her, held at least a small part of that girl's heart. She snorted ironically. Of course not. She knew it. And that broke her heart. Not that she would admit that to any one. No, no one needed to know. Not her girls, not that girl. Especially not that girl.
But it still hurt.
Her gaze fell upon a picture in front of her at her desk.
Andrea. Andrea, lying on the floor, the girls surrounding her, and a happily barking Patricia beside them. They had tickled each other and then cuddled. That's were Miranda had joined them and not earlier. She wasn't one for tickling.
But cuddling.
She stared at the happy faces and her heart clenched in her chest.
Andrea.
What did she do? She had expected them to spent three full days together, alone, without her girls. Something, that hadn't happened in a way too long time. She had expected it without talking about it with the girl. She should have talked to her, she knew that, but it simply had slipped from her mind. Until Andrea had brought up the topic of New Year's Eve. And now she was spending the next three days without Miranda, wasn't she? Why hadn't they talked?
They should have been talking, the editor guessed. But December was always such a busy time at Runway that they barely had seen each other. Just the weekends which were spent with the twins, baking, chasing Christmas gifts for friends or others or watching a Christmas movie. There hadn't been much time to talk, Miranda admitted to herself. Again she looked at the picture. Her family. Was her pride and stubbornness worth to risk that? Her family?
Determined and with a mission now, she stood up, grabbing her bag and coat on the way out. She needed to speak with her girl. Right now.
It was 12.15 am as she parked her own car in front of the building where Andrea lived.
** **
Andy woke up as the mattress shifted from another weight. Startled she got up, but any words or actions that might have come to her mind vanished as if they had never been there.
“Miranda” she whispered.
** **
The form on the bed looked defeated, sad. Mirandas heart clenched in pain. She did that to her girl. Just because they hadn't found the time to talk.
She had slipped out of her coat and shoes in the hallway of the spacious apartment. Her bag had landed beside them.
Gently she lowered herself to the mattress, slowly crawling over to the other half of the bed.
She didn't want to wake her up, even though she knew they needed to talk. But as she nearly hovered above the sleeping form, Andrea sat up, startled. A whispered “Miranda” fell from her lips.
** **
They looked at each other for a few silent seconds, the street lamps creating an unreal light in the room. They could see the love for each other in their eyes.
Andy pulled Miranda into her arms and they hugged each other tightly, Miranda's head resting on Andy's shoulder, her nose buried in the younger woman's neck. Neither ready to let go soon.
“I'm sorry” Miranda whispered finally, inhaling the scent of the younger woman deeply. She hated to excuse herself, but for Andrea, she would do nearly everything, she realized. But it wasn't a shock for her.
She felt Andrea nod. And then the brunette softly spoke a few words.
“Come with me.”
Miranda drew back and looked at her in surprise.
“How could I?” she asked.
Andy then knew, Miranda truly hadn't listened to her after the first sentence. She smiled. Of course not. But that was so typically Miranda, she shouldn't have expected otherwise.
“Why are you smiling?” Miranda, again, asked. This time she felt a little bit annoyed, tricked, even. She narrowed her eyes.
Andy still smiled, one hand cupping gently the older woman's cheek.
“Because... you came here. Because you apologized. Because you made an effort. And... I have two tickets, as I told you the other day.” She gazed into those oh-so-blue eyes and her face became serious. “But you wouldn't listen. And I don't mind that. Because you are who you are. And I love you for who you are and not what I could wish you to be.” she ended in a whisper.
Those three words had been said out loud before. But for Miranda, they now had a totally different meaning. She had heard them from her sister, even from her parents. From her children and sometimes from her ex husbands. But only from her daughters, they had sounded honest. Until Andrea. Her new family. Just if they fell from the lips of those three females, she truly believed them.
“Andrea.” she simply said in a hushed voice. That one word, name, was full with emotion and unspoken words. It made the brunette smile again.
They then moved their faces nearer towards each other, until their lips hovered only millimeters away from each other. They still gazed intently into each others eyes.
“Andrea” Miranda whispered again. “I love you so much. I'll come with you, where ever you are going. Always.”
Finally their lips met, softly first, only testing and grazing each other, then becoming firmer, more heated.
It felt like the first time, Andy thought. For her it always felt like the first time they had shared a kiss. Mirandas lips were soft, daring and gentle, all in one. Miranda was a good kisser. Every time they kissed, Andy lost herself in the feeling of those lips on top of hers. Every time, her thoughts became incoherent and clouded. She had flutters in her heart and belly.
Just from one small kiss. For nearly one year now. And now, she would take her home. Andy smiled into the kiss at that thought. Oh yes, she was looking forward to three days, all alone with Miranda in her childhood home.
Three hours later, they sat in Mirandas car, driven by Roy. Their flight would leave in two and a half hours, plenty of time, Andy thought.
There was only one other thing to worry about now. How would her parents react?
They knew she was in a relationship. They even knew, it was a woman she was with. But they didn't know with whom she was. Well. They would need to accept, or they would leave. She would spent the time with Miranda, any way.
She smiled and turned her head to look on the woman beside her.
Miranda felt the gaze and turned to hold those brown eyes with her blue ones. A slight smile tucked at her lips. They already were seated on the plane and would take off every minute now.
“Thanks for coming with me, Miranda. This means very much to me.” she confessed in a whisper.
Now, Miranda smiled a full smile.
Everything for you, love, she thought, but kept it to herself. “I am just... glad you accepted my apology.” she said and tilted her head to one side. Her eyes sparkled.
Andy took hold of her hand and squeezed it slightly, just as the plane started to roll towards the runway.
** **
“And your parents will wait for us at the airport. They do know I'm coming, right?” Miranda asked. She was nervous, not that she'd admit it.
Andy smiled and took hold of her hand while they waited to get out of the plane.
“Miranda, as I told you, they know that I'm not coming alone.”
“What means, they don't know with whom they'll be dealing with.” Miranda said and pursed her lips slightly.
“It'll be all right, Miranda” at least I hope so she added in her thoughts.
As the plane touched down, the older woman sighed and squeezed her Andrea's hand tightly.
“All right. Let's go then.”
~Fin.