#(And the fact that Magic Alex is right next to them in this press conference to announce Apple is just the icing on the cake lol)

[reflectismo]

I’m sorry but the juxtaposition of their facial expressions is so funny lol apple was a mess. At least they looked good that day.

[doc-pickles]

don't wanna lose this with you

hello friends I told the group chat I would post this when... well anyways enjoy.

xoxo nina

The moment happens almost too quickly for him to believe it’s real. He’s typing up a chart, about to tell his interns to run labs when she floats across his peripheral vision. He’d recognize her anywhere, always had been able to, but he wasn’t expecting her here. Her hair was shorter, blonde highlighting the normally dark brown color. Her tanned skin popped against the dark grey scrubs she wore, eyes glued to the tablet in front of her. Before he can stop himself, Alex finds himself calling out to her, her eyes darting up in surprise as she moves away from the nurses station to look back at him.

That’s when he sees it, the all too obvious swell of her stomach stretching against her scrubs. She looks like a deer in headlights as their gazes meet, eyes wide and watering. He wants to walk over and fold her into his arms and ask a million questions and apologize profusely all at once, but she’s turning and running the other way before he has a chance.

Alex can barely concentrate the rest of the day, his mind stuck on the vision of Jo standing in the same hallway as him sporting a sizable baby bump. He has no idea why she’s in San Francisco, much less working in a children’s hospital of all places, but he’s grateful that she is and that he just so happened to see her. Lost in his thoughts he barely registers the door of his office opening and closing, the sound of the lock clicking into place startling him from his daze.

Jo is standing with her back pressed against the door, eyes trained on him as silence surrounds them. She’s changed out of her scrubs, her baby bump all the more noticeable with her t-shirt and cardigan combo. Her feet are shifting as if she’s uncomfortable, not with the situation but as if she’s in pain. Her features are schooled and neutral, but Alex doesn’t miss her fingers kneading her back or the slow shallow breaths she takes.

“Sit down, you’ve probably been on your feet all day,” Alex is expecting Jo to bite back with a stubborn remark but instead she silently complies, lowering herself into one of the chairs across from him with a relieved sigh. Her fingers stretch out across her stomach and he can’t help but watch in awe as she attempts to calm the baby beneath her skin.

There’s a silence between them as they sit across from each other. It’s the closest they’ve been in months but it still feels like an ocean’s length between them. Alex watches Jo for a moment before speaking up, “What’re you doing here? Why aren’t you in Seattle?”

“I switched specialties, to OB,” Jo shrugged, eyes focusing on her fingers that are still rubbing circles into her belly. “I had a chance to do an OB residency at UCSF so I took it. I just… I needed to get away from Seattle. I’m here because I was checking up on one of the babies I delivered. What are you doing here?”

The question almost makes Alex laugh, “Izzie’s husband was offered a job as chief of oncology. It made sense for them and the children’s hospital needed a chief so… Here I am.”

Before he even finishes his sentence Jo is chuckling, the sound coming out softly until it turns into full on laughter. Alex stares at her in confusion watching as her laughter turns into loud sobs, tears streaming down her face as she struggles to catch her breath, “You’re so stupid Alex! You’re freaking ridiculous!”

Alex watches helplessly as Jo’s sobs continue to sound out, knowing that she wouldn’t be pleased if he got up to console her. Instead he sits and waits for her to continue talking, knowing he owes her at least that much.

“You left me all alone in Seattle with an empty loft and divorce papers and a freaking baby and you don’t even have the decency to be with the woman you said you loved, the woman you told me you left me for,” Alex can’t tell if Jo is sobbing or laughing at this point, the sounds coming from her wrenching his heart. “You left me! I didn’t think I’d ever see you again because you left after you told me you never would. You told me you were in love with someone else but now you’re here and-“

Alex can’t help it that time as he rounds his desk and kneels in front of Jo, his arms coming up to pull her into his embrace. Her cries don’t stop as he holds her but he takes her arms wrapping around his neck as a sign that not all hope is lost.

-

“Alex? You never call, is everything okay?”

“Everything is fine, the kids are fine. I was just wondering if you could pick them up today.”

“Sure, I’m off today,” there’s a pause before Izzie speaks up again. “Are you sure everything is okay? With you I mean?”

Alex’s eyes float to Jo who’s curled up on his couch, one hand resting on her stomach as she sleeps, “No. Well I mean yes just… complicated. I’ll explain when I pick up Eli and Lex on Friday. Thanks again.”

“Take care of yourself Alex. See you Friday.”

Alex hangs up quickly, thankful for Izzie’s understanding. The uptight and inquisitive Izzie he had known so many years ago was gone, replaced by a laidback and easy going woman. He blamed their children for that, the set of twins so rambunctious and full throttle that he knows the old Izzie would’ve gone crazy trying to contain them. Now though she managed their hyper spurts and six year old craziness with a two year old on her hip and every hair still in place. How she does it Alex will never know.

His eyes trail to Jo, who had turned to her other side so he could see her face again. Even asleep she looks stressed and exhausted, like she hasn’t been able to sleep peacefully in months. Alex kneels next to the couch, letting his hand rest next to hers on her stomach. A firm kick echoes under his palm, the baby below it moving languidly in their mother’s womb as he cherishes the movement.

“I just got them to settle down,” Jo’s voice startles him, his eyes snapping back up to her face as the baby continues to move around. “They’ve been moving around like crazy the last couple days, probably running out of room.”

“Do you know the gender?”

Jo shakes her head, eyes closing again as her hand shifts to cover Alex’s. She hasn’t told him exactly when but he assumes she’s due soon. He’d left Seattle almost seven months ago now, meaning Jo must have gotten pregnant right before he left. His heart sinks at the realization that not only had he missed witnessing all of Jo’s pregnancy firsthand but he hadn’t been able to help or support her either.

“I don’t need you Alex, I can do this by myself,” Jo’s words snap Alex out of his daze, scanning her face and watching her intently as she avoids his gaze. “I’ve been doing this on my own for seven months and I don’t need you now.”

He knows she’s right, if anyone knows what a fighter Jo is it’s him. Alex knows full well that she doesn’t need his help or support with their child no matter how desperately he wants to be there for her. If she decides to walk away from him after everything he’d done she would and there would be no stopping her.

“I don’t need you… but I want you here,” the crack in her voice has Alex leaning up to wipe at the tears that streak her cheeks, her own fingers moving to curl around his. “Please don’t leave again. I don’t want to do this without you, I know I could but I don’t want to. Please Alex.”

He doesn’t waste any time in leaning down and bringing Jo into his embrace, holding her close to his chest as sobs wrack her body. The guilt that has been weighing so heavily on him finally crashes down as he holds her, his grip tightening as he reassures her, “I’m not leaving again, I promise. I’m so sorry Jo, I’m not going to leave you I swear.”

“That’s what you said last time Alex, I can’t handle it if you leave me again,” Jo pulls back from his embrace, meeting his eyes solemnly. “It’s not just me anymore, you can’t just walk away again. I want… I want so badly to trust you again and to raise our baby together but I’m also really scared. I’m putting a lot on the line trusting you.”

Alex pauses for a moment, eyeing Jo as he processes everything she’s unloaded onto him. When he finally speaks again, he’s more sure of his words than he has been of anything ever, “I’m not gonna promise you anything, I don’t deserve that privilege anymore. But I swear that everyday I’ll try my hardest to show you how much you mean to me. You and our baby… you’re everything and I’m not letting you go again. I know my words are hollow at this point but I’m going to show you that I mean them.”

He doesn’t think that the words will magically fix anything, that his promises to Jo will change her mind or make her completely trust him just like that. But saying them out loud, to not only her but himself, made the words seem more real. He wasn’t going to let her slip out his grasp again.

+

“Hey, what’re you doing?”

“I’m about to head into a board meeting,” Alex pauses outside of the conference room, phone pressed to his ear as he waits for Jo to continue talking. “Are you okay? What about the baby?”

“We’re both fine, stop freaking out,” Jo’s laugh across the line calms Alex’s racing heart momentarily, a small grin coming to his face. “I just finished a delivery, but my water broke right as I was catching the baby.”

“You’re not due for two weeks,” Alex exclaims as he begins heading for his office, his meeting long forgotten as he now had a different destination in mind. “How are you so calm about this?”

“Because I knew you’d be freaking out. We’re fine, really we are. I just got settled into my room,” Alex listens intently as Jo takes a pause, her breathing more shallow as he grabs his keys and wallet from his desk. “Okay that hurt. If this kid has a giant head I’m gonna be so pissed.”

Alex chuckles to himself, his mind reeling at the fact that in a few hours he and Jo would have their baby in their arms, “I’m leaving the hospital now, I’ll be there in 20 minutes.”

“Good, I don’t want my new coworkers to hate me because I yelled at them while trying to push a giant Karev baby out of my-,” Jo’s voice cuts off as she lets out a groan, the sound pulling at Alex’s heart as he speeds through the hallways in an attempt to get to her quicker. “Oh holy fuck. Seriously, that’s what that feels like? No wonder my patients are always screaming.”

“Well yeah, you’re about to push out almost eight pounds of-“

“That’s enough from you, I’ll see you when you get here. Room 282,” Jo pauses for a moment, Alex stopping his walk to his car as he listens intently. Even with things still tense between them, he could tell when she was nervous. “Just don’t take too long, okay?”

“I’ll be there as fast as I possibly can be, promise,” Alex quickly exchanges goodbyes with Jo before hanging up and continuing his path to his car.

As he climbs in his eyes move to the car seat strapped into his backseat. The sight wasn’t unusual since he often had the twins with him but the infant carrier made his heart swell with anticipation. He was going to be a dad again and this time he was going to be able to witness his child’s life from the moment it started. No playing catch up, no surprises down the line, he would be there from his child’s first breath and he’d get to raise them with the woman he loved.

Alex lets his thoughts drift to Jo as he makes the short drive to the main hospital across town. He was beyond thankful she’d given him a second chance when he absolutely hadn’t deserved one, even more thankful that she’d allowed him to still be in not only their child’s life but hers as well. Jo had met Alexis and Eli who were immediately fascinated with Jo’s belly and the fact that their sibling was moving around in there. She’d bonded instantly with his children, Alex sometimes questioning if they liked her better than him. They’d talked a little bit, about the baby and what the future held for the three of them. For the most part though, Alex and Jo communicated physically, the way they always did best.

He was shocked the first night she’d spent over at his house when she’d left the guest room not long after they'd said goodnight, quietly crawling beneath the covers of his own bed and molding her body against the side of his. It felt natural, the way they curled together even with their child growing between them. When he woke the next morning, Jo looked peaceful instead of restless and worried like he had noted days before when she’d napped on his couch. After that it seemed only natural for them to find their way into each other’s arms at the end of the day, whether at his house or her apartment. Alex’s fingers would float across her belly as he traced their baby’s movements while Jo’s hands held tight to his t-shirt, both of their bodies falling into a deep sleep.

The few nights that they spent apart when one of them would return alone to their respective homes were soon nonexistent, Jo’s voice breaking through the quiet of her room one night to mention that her lease would be up soon. And so, without a verbal conversation about the matter Alex had spent a weekend moving her few belongings into his home, the nursery furniture she’d collected finding a new home in the guest room and Jo herself finding solace in her permanent position on the other side of Alex’s bed.

Lost in his thoughts, Alex barely notices that he’s arrived at the hospital. While the children’s hospital was large, the main hospital at UCSF was massive. The few times he’d come for a meeting or to pick up Jo Alex had almost always gotten lost. Thankfully he knew exactly where he was headed today and made it to the maternity ward without any issues, pausing outside of Jo’s room for only a moment before walking in.

“I’m perfectly capable of checking my own damn cervix Wendy,” Alex watches as Jo swats away the older doctor's hand, her face scrunching up in irritation. “I don’t need everyone I work with getting an up close look at my lady bits today.”

“Well you look like you’re in good spirits,” Alex steps fully into the room, pressing a kiss to Jo’s forehead as she continues to stare down the doctor in front of her. “Let her check, I’m pretty sure you can’t even reach down there anyways.”

Jo begrudgingly lays back down, letting Wendy check her as Alex brushes back her hair. As soon as the examination is done though, she’s sitting up and removing her legs from the stirrups they were in.

“You know I don’t even know why I’m here, I’ve delivered hundreds of babies before,” Jo is throwing off the blankets on her lap and swinging her legs over the side and pulling at the few monitors she was already hooked up to. “We’re going home, I’m not giving birth here. I’m more than capable of delivering my own baby.”

“Jo, you’re not going anywhere,” the doctor looks from Jo to Alex, fixing him with a serious stare. “You’re fully dilated, your baby is about ready to make their appearance. I’m shocked you’re just getting settled in here.”

Alex moves quickly, placing his hands on Jo’s shoulder and blocking her path as she attempts to stand and leave. She tries to vocally protest, but quickly doubles over with a groan as a contraction hits her, “Would you lay back down? We’re not going anywhere, you heard your doctor.”

Jo shakes her head, still doubled over as she attempts to speak through her pain, “I’m… fine. Don’t need… to be here. Shit that hurts!”

Moving his fingers down, Alex applies counter pressure to Jo’s back as the contraction continues. The doctor gives him an understanding smile, gathering what she needs as she gives the two a small moment of privacy. When Jo’s body finally relaxes against him, he moves his hands to gently rub her back as she evens her breathing out.

“You wanna tell me why you’re all of sudden trying to break out of here,” when Jo doesn’t respond to his question, Alex kneels in front of her, taking her now tear stained cheeks between his hands. “Hey, what’s wrong?”

“I can’t do this, I’m not supposed to be a mom. I am… terrified that I’m going to mess everything up and I’m even more scared that I’m going to have to do all of this by myself,” Jo’s breathing grows more ragged as she begins to sob, her shoulders dropping as she lets the emotion wash over her. “How am I supposed to have someone rely on me for everything when I don’t even have that? I was almost all alone here, Alex! You left me and the only reason you’re here is because we just so happened to run into each other again. And I didn’t even mean to get pregnant! I’m only here because I missed my birth control and we drank too much and had sex in the backseat of your car! I just can’t do this… None of this was supposed to happen, I just can’t- Oh god!”

Jo’s panicked ranting is cut off by another contraction, her body involuntarily curling towards him as she lets out a pained groan. Alex attempts to calm her down as she grips his arms, her crying growing louder as she holds onto him.

“Deep breaths, let it out. You’re okay,” Alex’s attempts to get Jo to breathe and calm herself down are futile as she begins to hyperventilate, fingers digging tightly into his biceps. “Jo, you’re stressing yourself and the baby out. I’m right here in front of you and I’m not going anywhere. I’m not leaving, okay? But no matter what, you’re going to be a mom here soon and I don’t think there’s anyone more prepared. You’re going to be a great mom, that’s something that nothing and no one can change. Our kid? They're the luckiest person on earth to have you as their mom so don’t doubt yourself for a second.”

His words seem to get through to Jo as she relaxes against his shoulder, her cries softening as she reaches blindly for his hand. Alex squeezes back gently as he lets her come down from her panicked state, his arms holding her close to him.

“You are going to be amazing, but we have to stay here and get this baby out. We can worry about the rest later okay,” Jo finally looks up at Alex, his fingers still caressing her cheeks as she attempts to stifle her cries. “Jo you… You are so strong and so brave and I know even if I wasn’t here that you would be able to get through this. But I am, I’m here and I’m never going to leave you or our baby, ever. And I can't promise that something else won’t happen, but I’ll live every day trying to prevent it. I love you so much and I know you love me and we have the rest of our lives to figure everything else out, okay?”

Jo leaned forward, her head resting against Alex’s shoulder as she forced out her next words, “I really really need to push. Like right now.”

Alex acts quickly, alerting the doctor who’d stepped into the hall before coming back to Jo’s side. Her fingers interlock with his and she only pushes for fifteen minutes before she collapses against him with a sigh of relief. Not a moment later there’s a small cry that echoes through the room and both Alex and Jo watch in fascination as the squirming baby settles quickly onto Jo’s chest.

The next hour passes in a blur, everything around him moving a thousand miles a minute, but when he finally has a moment to breathe all Alex can do is stare at Jo. Her eyes are focused on the now swaddled and sleeping baby in her arms, fingers brushing over the chubby cheeks and dark curls of hair on the infant.

“I love you too,” Jo’s words are barely above a whisper as she continues to stare at the baby in her arms. “I didn’t say it earlier, mainly because I was in pain but also because some days it seems easier to try and convince myself that I don’t anymore. But I do love you Alex, even if this little one wasn’t a part of our lives there’s this part of me that loves you so much no matter what we’ve been through.”

Too stunned to move, Alex finds himself staring blankly at Jo as she moves her gaze from the baby up to him. Her eyes are wide and shining with tears, but she doesn’t look upset. Instead she reaches a hand out towards him and gestures for him to join her on the hospital bed. He doesn’t hesitate, his arm wrapping around Jo’s shoulder as she snuggles into his side. The baby on her chest readjusts, one hand reaching upwards which Alex grabs between his own fingers.

“He looks just like you,” Jo chuckles as she leans her head against his chest. “I’m screwed aren't I?”

“Mmm I think if you can survive one Karev boy two will be a walk in the park.”

[welllpthisishappening]

Self-Promo Sunday [Monday] Tag Game

Just for fun this Sunday [Monday], let's talk about our personal favorites of our own fics.

Not the ones we necessarily think are the “best.” The ones we go back and reread again and again (because if you don’t reread your own fics what are you even doing?), or the ones we wrote for something or someone special, or the ones that were most difficult to write and just make us proud when we think about them? Whatever criteria you choose, just talk a bit about the fics of yours that you really like.

I was tagged by @shireness-says​ who really is fantastic and, like, I am not above some shameless self promotion. Plus, it’s a good procrastination technique.

————

All Was Golden in the Sky Magic is dying.

Emma knows it. She can feel it, the emptiness rattling around in her, like it’s trying to make sure she disappears as well. What she doesn’t know is what to do about it, because, suddenly, there is a man in Storybrooke claiming she’s the Savior and a seeress certain a prophecy promises the same and the last thing she expects is for her minimal amount of lingering power to pull her away.To New York City.

And another oddly familiar man with blue eyes and a smile that sinks under her skin and makes magic bloom in the air around her. Things are about to get interesting.

— Listen, this may very well end up being one of my most favorite things I have ever written. Is it ridiculous? You betcha. But am I ridiculously proud of the way I used as much canon as absolutely possible to create something slightly different and a little more magical? You betcha, part two. I legit think it’s one of the more creative things I’ve done and dare I say more romantic? There’s lots of swooning in this one, guys. Killian knew who she was even through magic! The magic brought them back together! Also, Will Scarlet says the words “That’s love, dick!” at one point, which I really think should make more people like it. (I loved this story so much I wrote 50K about Killian and Ariel traipsing around the Enchanted Forest on like a weird, magical road trip, like, just for fun.)

The Period of the Long Change      It’s quick. One second she’s standing there and everything is fine and then Emma looks up and it’s not. It’s awful. And the lights are too bright and there are too many rooms and too many opinions and her phone won’t stop ringing because everything seems to be changing all at once. She’s never been great at coping with change. But, maybe, if she can just figure it out and stay right where she is, with Killian Jones, captain of the New York Rangers, at her side, it’ll be alright.

It’s slow. One second he’s standing there and everything is fine and then Killian’s breath catches and it’s not. It’s terrifying. And the noises are too loud and there are too many questions and he can’t find the right answers to any of them, not sure how to cope with everything changing all at once. That’s never really been his forte. But, maybe, if he can just figure it out and stay right where he is, with Emma Swan, director of New York Rangers community relations, at his side, it’ll be alright.

It’s another season and another challenge and Emma and Killian are both struggling to get over the boards.

— Ok, ok, ok, I know what you’re going to say. Laura, nothing about Blue Line is overlooked. You’re constantly yelling about people still reading Blue Line. And yes, that is true, but also...people were not into this one. Like, at all. They were occasionally mean about it! I cannot tell you how many “This would never happen” comments I got, and people were VERY upset by how often Killian was told he was an idiot. He was, though, so. But again! There’s some real swoon-worthy moments in here, if I do say so myself. In the middle of press conferences, even! The blowup chapter nearly made me cry while I was writing it! They sneak out of Casino Night! Also, the end was an idea I’d had building for a long time and it was nice to write it.

Nights Were Mainly Made for Saying It's possible. Emma is certain. She's going to fix this. She's going to save him. By time traveling. Which is totally, absolutely possible.

She's read about it. There's a theory.

So, no one has ever actually done it yet, but that doesn't mean she can't or they can't try and she just needs a little help. From Killian Jones. And his magic.

— In my limited fic-writing experience, I’ve come to realize modern magical AU’s do not always...resonate. Which is not to say that I do not appreciate those of you who did enjoy this one. This one being a weird little time loop story that was mostly a product of “Immma write this mostly for me.” But there were Hamilton references! And Alex Turner opinions! True Love conquered all!

Wrap Around Your Dreams Emma Swan is not a very good witch. She’s emotional and prone to immediate reactions and neither one of those things are currently helping her when the body count in Storybrooke is on the rise.

And there’s far too much blood at each crime scene and far too much magic and Emma has no idea where to look next. So she does the almost human thing; she starts making a list. Of clues and ideas and the absolute desperate hope that the killer isn’t what she’s certain it absolutely has to be.

The last thing she expects is for the notebook to start writing back.

— To this day, I am fairly certain this whole story was written in some sort of thrown-out-back fever dream. I literally wrote this whole story in one day. And it is very unlike anything I’ve ever written before. It got a little dark in some places? There was a lot of blood. Murder played a prominent role? But, like, True Love again. I live in want of another fever dream in which I write the sequel to this. Please read it. This one, not the non-existent sequel.

One Foot In The facts were these.

Killian Jones was dead. This much Emma knew, standing in the middle of the funeral parlor staring at him. What she didn’t know was why. Or how. Or what she would do when she touched him.

Because Emma Swan had a gift. Touch a dead thing once, bring it back to life. Touch it again, dead forever.

And the last thing Emma could do was bring Killian back to life, talk to him for the first time in years, only to watch him die all over again. Not when she’d spent the better part of those same years being in love with him.

------

Or: the Pushing Daisies AU that some people did ask for.

— Oh boy. So, this one languished in my docs for so long that I’m fairly certain people on the internet thought I was lying about having written it. Pushing Daisies is my favorite show in the history of the world, and combining it with Once was a labor of love that also required kind of a new plot and way more magic than the show ever had. Back at it again with murder playing a real prominent role, which is maybe why people were like, nah, about it. If I may be so bold, though, I think it’s some of my best banter. Which is good, because I’m always just trying to do Bryan Fuller proud.

[sapphicscholar]

Chapter Preview:

Friday afternoon found Alex in Cat’s kitchen once more, standing across from the woman herself and clutching a to-go cup of coffee that Cat had to assume, by the bags under Alex’s eyes, was the only reason she was still upright.

All the same, Cat managed as much snark as she could muster as she folded her arms over her chest and asked: “So what’s this magic plan?”

“We leak it ourselves.”

Cat scoffed, but when Alex’s expression didn’t change, she fixed Alex with a stern glare. “Not those photos we don’t.”

“No…not all of them,” Alex conceded with a dip of her head. “We leak the first one. It’s the one they think is the most incriminating because it actually shows you”—she gestured uselessly with her hand, trying not to dwell on the image—“in the act, as it were.”

Cat looked down at the image Alex had placed on her counter. “But the suit is hidden.”

“Correct.”

“How do we know they won’t leak the others? How do we know they don’t know what’s visible in them?”

“If they knew, they would be blackmailing Kara. We saw it as something other than an undershirt with a logo because we knew to look for it. And yeah, with enough time and enough media scrutiny, I bet someone else would realize it too. But for now? They haven’t. And we act before they have enough time to figure it out.”

“And how do we know that they’re not just…biding their time?”

“Because I was able to track down who took them, and she isn’t the kind to sit on something like that.”

“How do you know? Who is it?”

“Leslie Willis. Ring any bells?”

Fighting to steady her breath, Cat placed a hand on her countertop, ignoring the way it trembled with the force of her suppressed rage. She could feel anger bubbling just beneath the surface, rippling like some kind of toxic undercurrent that might at least give her enough momentum to carry her back into the race. “You mean the woman I pulled out of some gutter and put on the air in National City?”

“Mm, that’s the one. But remember how Dirk moved to a new media company after leaving CatCo’s board?”

“Was ousted is more like it,” Cat grumbled.

“Right, well, it would seem Leslie just got a very nice job offer from that other company with a signing bonus that would impress professional athletes.”

“That fucking—”

“Cat.” Alex slapped her notebook against the marble counter, drawing Cat’s attention back up to her. “Not the point. We have her on camera sneaking into and out of the hotel bathroom with a backpack, then doing it again the next morning. I had a, uh, friend check her Amazon account, and she had ordered a few remote cameras that match the kind of grainy resolution we see in these photos.”

“So then get Lucy and have her taken in or served!” Cat felt herself spiraling, but she couldn’t quite manage to reign it back in on time. She might have overlooked several personal failings when it came to Leslie over her years at CatCo, but she never expected this…this betrayal.

“Remember how we couldn’t get the leaked emails back into Pandora’s Box, even though we certainly didn’t give anyone permission to hack into our system to steal them?” Cat could already tell where it was going, and she nodded along with Alex as she answered her own half-rhetorical question: “Same thing here.”

“So then what? We simply let them win?”

“No. We call a press conference, and on Monday morning you come out and you tell the entire goddam world that you fell in love.” Cat scoffed and rolled her eyes, but Alex pressed on without acknowledging it. “People don’t like scandals, but dammit, Cat, they’ll fall over themselves for a good love story. And this is it. This is the progress narrative.” Alex began pacing around the kitchen, painting a rosy picture that didn’t quite jive with her jaded expression. “You grew up not realizing that certain things were possible, living in a world where the only path that seemed open to you as a viable possibility was settling down, marrying a man, and having kids.”

“And the fact that I have already been with other women?”

“Irrelevant. You’ve never had a significant relationship with one, have you?”

“No.”

“Nothing has ever been documented as such, has it?”

“No.”

“Exactly. You watched as this”—Alex glanced up, her gaze focused on the wall behind Cat’s head as she searched for words—“this great country of ours marched forward. You get some quotes from the history of the gay rights movement. You bring up the moderate groups most palatable to people—you know, HRC, ACLU, the like.” Alex could see Cat already thinking through her contacts at those organizations, already planning on how it might be done. “You talk about shattering glass ceilings with CatCo and fighting to be the second female president. You talk about wanting to set an example, to show people what’s possible the way you wished someone would have done for you. And then you come out, but you don’t make it about a label. Don’t make it about sex. Make it about love—this one person who inspired you. Make it about the next step forward.”

It would certainly lose Cat a few voters, but for the most part, she’d only isolate the ones already campaigning hard against her. Cat felt her mind kicking into overdrive, racing with phrases that she knew would play well with crowds. But in a moment it all came crashing back down, and she spun to face Alex. “What about the fact that the woman in those pictures works for me?”

Read the rest on AO3!