#upon further searching through my camera roll i determined that while i didn’t finish or therefore post anything in june

[goldensunset]

ok ok here’s my art year in review post! i picked one drawing from each month (which was hard to do lol) proud of the progress i’ve made and can’t wait to see what 2023 has in store!

[artificialqueens]

Chapter Four: We'll Show Them-Luci

a/n: exams are over in a week and I’ve already found so much more time to write! hope you like this chapter :) thanks to my wonderful beta @apatheticskeleton and my cheerleaders aqbrits <3

summary: Sasha and Shea’s relationship develops, and as feelings come to the surface, their lives become even more complicated when they’re acted upon

The amber tinted glass of Sasha’s round sunglasses didn’t effectively block out the sunlight that seeped through the window adjacent to her desk. She winced every time she shifted her body and a beam of light blinded her. Her headache felt as though an anaconda had wrapped its body around her forehead, squeezing tighter anytime she tried to concentrate. She groaned under her breath so that she didn’t draw Alexis’s attention, who was already on her case for wearing unnecessarily orange glasses. Sasha’s co-worker was superstitious to say the least and she had already complained twice about Sasha passing on her bad luck.

“How’re you doing?” The words, whilst spoken in a singsong voice, were almost taunting to Sasha. She spun her chair around and faced the newcomer with a scowl. Shea laughed when she saw the expression on Sasha’s face, placing a gentle hand on her shoulder. Sasha rested her cheek on Shea’s hand with a groan, which only amused Shea further. Perching on the clutter free side of Sasha’s desk, Shea laughed when Sasha winced, the conversation not helping her dry throat.

“I’ve seen you drunk before. Hell, I’ve seen you offer a man three hundred dollars to bring your drink from the table in front of you to your hand but this is bad, even for you.” Shea chuckled, her raised eyebrows emphasising her disbelief. Sasha only watched her with a pout, her face flushed with embarrassment.

“Oh don’t,” Sasha whined with a laugh, “I’ve already spent the morning feeling like a disobedient child after one of Alexis’s infamous lectures. If I didn’t have a headache before coming in this morning, I sure as hell had one after that. Why doesn’t she lecture Farrah, she was just as bad as I was.”

“It’s ‘cause she cares about you. She sees you like her delinquent kid. On second thoughts, maybe one of those baby sheep that goes the wrong way when the sheepdog tries to herd it up. I suppose that would make Alexis a farmer, but I can’t see her driving a tractor.” Shea mused aloud, her eyes narrowed as she thought. Sasha laughed loudly, her red lips curving into a wide smile as she imagined her glamorous co-worker in that situation.

“You’re thinking way too much into this. Also, who calls a lamb a baby sheep?” Sasha shook her head fondly while Shea let her jaw drop in offense, giving Sasha the finger secretly so no one else in the room would see. Shea prided herself on her professional façade, especially as the only one able to see past it was Sasha.

“Bitch, that’s what it is.” Shea laughed, shrugging with stubbornness. Her pout only made Sasha laugh more.

“Shea, you don’t call children baby people do you?” She smirked, knowing she’d won their playful argument when Shea muttered “Touché smartass” under her breath.

“So, what’s on your busy schedule for today?” Sasha asked; her curious smile surprisingly bright considering her current state.

“I wanted to make sure you’re alright after the other night, and then I’ve got some dumb meetings. Eureka’s been on my dick trying to get me to organise my finance meeting.” Shea rolled her eyes to express her exasperation.

Sasha’s smile faltered at the mention of the previous night. She couldn’t remember much of what happened, but she knew Shea and Farrah had protected her. She opted to keep it as a forgotten memory, as it deeply concerned all her co-workers. Even Trinity and Eureka had been on the phone all morning, complaining to the bar they’d gone to. Everyone thought that her safety was their responsibility, but Sasha had an inkling that her bosses were worried about what the press would have to say.

Shea watched her worriedly, noticing the change in expression on her co-worker’s face. Sasha’s mouth stretched in a reassuring smile.

“See, you’re a successful woman now, your own meetings and everything. I have to write a report for our next live show. Who knew our jobs consisted of more than just sitting and smiling?” Sasha joked, poking Shea in the arm.

“I’ll help you when I’m finished with the meeting.” Shea promised, crossing her fingers as a gesture.

“Sounds good, thanks. I wish I could sit in on your meeting, it’d be a nice change seeing you be professional.” Sasha smiled cheekily when Shea lightly hit her on the arm in offense.

“Shame you don’t get paid for being shady. Also, it’d be terrible if you came to the meeting, you’d make me laugh and get my ass fired.” Shea laughed loudly, and the sound made the people working around them look up in irritation. Alexis had put in her earphones, blocking out their chatter, but the staff that weren’t used to the pair just shushed them in annoyance. Shea muttered an apology, suddenly conscious of the volume of her voice.

“Good luck with your meeting,” Sasha whispered as Shea was called over by Kimora, “break a leg.”

Shea shook her head and tried not to smile, and muttering, “I’ll get you later” before brushing down her dress and adjusting her long hair so that it sat behind her shoulders, reaching to the small of her back. She disappeared through the doors after Kimora told her that Trinity had requested her, leaving Sasha to sit alone in silence.

Sasha sat cross-legged on her chair, watching the door as it closed behind Shea. She struggled to concentrate on her work as she glanced around the room. Farrah and Aja were sat in one corner of the room beside the camera crew, complaining about the coffee Farrah had bought from the stand down the street. Farrah’s nose wrinkled dramatically as she took a sip from Aja’s cup, as if it was worse than her own. Aja was less bothered by the coffee, but still narrowed her eyes suspiciously at the taste.

On the other side, both Trinity and Eureka’s assistants stood hovering by the printer, chatting absentmindedly as they waited. Sasha liked both Valentina and Kimora; they managed to distract each other almost as much as Sasha and Shea. She also appreciated that both women brought Sasha lunch or coffee whenever they went to pick something up for their bosses.

They noticed Sasha glancing at them and waved, laughing when she expressed her boredom to them. The only other person, aside from the directors and camera crew, in the room was Alexis, but she was happily minding her own business without the company of co-workers. Sasha had always wondered whether or not Alexis was lonely, so she tried to reach out to her whenever possible. Judging by her intolerance of both Sasha and Shea, she decided that Alexis just wasn’t a people person.

She finally turned her attention back to her work, shifting the mouse next to her computer so the black screen changed back to the google search bar. She’d typed only ‘what’ into the search engine, but she was determined to finish her report. It was nearly five in the evening, and she had to get it done before she left. She groaned loudly after writing a paragraph, although she did have to admit it was a very good paragraph.

“Do you have to whine like Farrah goddamn Moan? I can hear you through my earphones.” Alexis snapped, turning her chair so she was staring accusingly at Sasha.

“Just turn your music up if I’m bothering you darling.” Sasha countered, typing on her keyboard while still keeping strong eye contact with Alexis, as if proving her productivity.

Alexis rolled her eyes and showed Sasha her phone screen as she turned up the volume to its maximum. Sasha winced when she heard the music through Alexis’s phone and, when Alexis noticed her discomfort; she turned away with a smug smile.

Sasha wondered when she’d grown fond of Alexis. Maybe it was the motherly complaining or the rolling eyes, but Sasha couldn’t deny that she smiled whenever Alexis yelled at her. Not that she’d ever admit that to Alexis.

Sasha hadn’t heard Shea approach until she scraped her chair across the floor over to Sasha’s desk, the loud noise hurting her sensitive ears. Her headache had disappeared around lunch, and she was determined not to bring it back.

“How’s the report coming on?” Shea asked, sitting down next to Sasha. She rested her elbow on the table and leaned forward, looking for the document on her computer.

“Well, I’ve written an introductory paragraph, but I got distracted by my boredom and Alexis’s terrible taste in music.” Sasha shrugged, gesturing to Alexis. She had her earphones in, but the music was loud enough for the pair to be able to make out the lyrics from where they sat. Shea smirked at the unaware woman adjacent to them.

“God, you’re lucky you’re pretty,” Shea’s voice trailed off when she saw the smirk on Sasha’s face. Shea blushed and focused on the computer screen, not looking Sasha in the eyes.

They sat together for an hour, Shea calling out ideas as Sasha typed. Even Alexis, who had sent in numerous noise complaints about them, couldn’t deny that they worked together like clockwork. Their co-workers muttered goodbyes to the room when their shift ended, but neither woman noticed as they were lost in their teamwork, only pausing to appreciate their success. Trinity called them the dream team when they’d first started working; but that was largely because she had often forgotten their names or called them by the wrong one.

Sasha sat back in her chair with satisfaction when she sent off the report to Eureka, who’d agreed to look over it for her. She called out happily as the clock hit six thirty and they were able to go home.

“Only took us half an hour of overtime, not bad at all.” Shea gestured wildly. Her hand flew down onto Sasha’s thigh as Shea logged off the computer with a smug nod.

“I’ll walk you to the bus stop.” Shea offered, quickly removing her hand from Sasha’s thigh when the latter turned to look at her. Sasha smiled and took her bag from where it hung on the back of her desk chair. The many pins and badges clattered together as she slung it over her shoulder. She waited for Shea to get her coat from her own desk, folding the teal trench coat over her arm. Sasha held the door open as she waited for Shea, who laughed at the gesture, “Oh she’s a gentleman now.”

Farrah was upset to see them go when the said goodbye at her desk, upset at having to work extra time without the company of the others. The papers were stacked up on her desk, and Sasha was concerned that she was using the pile for two mugs, one empty and one filled with fresh coffee. She could see the coffee rings forming on the paper, but Farrah seemed unfazed by this development.

“It’s not fair, what’ve I done to deserve this? I don’t want to stay here without all of you, it’s boring. I don’t wanna work.” Farrah whined, her lips drawn into a dramatic pout. Shea caught Sasha’s eye as she tried to hold in laughter. Shea’s favourite joke of Sasha’s was her impersonation of Farrah. Sasha had a sparkle in her eyes, and Shea knew it was a sign that the woman had been given some new material.

“See you later Farrah.” Shea called as she followed Sasha out the door into the quiet streets. The shops had since closed and most people were home from work, and Sasha enjoyed the peacefulness of the evening. She noticed Shea watching her, smiling fondly as Sasha happily took in her surroundings.

They turned the corner that was next to the entrance of the building where Sasha usually waited for the bus to pull up on the other side of the road when the street was too busy. The brick of the wall was hidden by graffiti, a mixture of signatures and political messages. She could feel Shea standing closely behind her, her hand brushing Sasha’s back. Sasha turned so that she was face to face with Shea, meeting her deep stare.

“What happens if we both get into trouble?” Sasha asked; her voice breathy as it hitched. She was conscious of how close Shea was; her warm breath on the back of Sasha’s neck when she exhaled. Sasha was scared, but it wasn’t the kind of fear she experienced when she’d been thrown into the ocean as a dare in high school, trapped under the icy waves. This fear wasn’t cold though, it was warm. She didn’t feel as if she was drowning, she felt alive.

“Then we’ll have nothing to lose.” Shea answered, her confidence battling with her nerves. Sasha found herself looking at Shea’s lips. They were full, much more so than Sasha’s even when she over lined them. Now, they were lined in a plum colour and filled with a pinkish gloss. Sasha couldn’t help but notice the way the sunlight caught them and made them shine.

It wasn’t a surprise when Shea initiated the kiss, suddenly leaning forward to crash her lips onto Sasha’s. Shea was fearless; and that was exactly what they both needed. Sasha was pressed up against the wall of the building, Shea’s body pressed up against hers. Sasha could feel the coolness of the brick through the thin fabric of her button-up shirt.

There was no hesitation of passion, and neither woman wasted the limited time they had before someone inevitably caught them. Shea fought for power, enjoying the whines that Sasha made when Shea hands explored her body, her touch like fire on her porcelain skin. Sasha struggled for control herself, deepening the kiss whenever Shea pulled her closer. The lip gloss on Shea’s lips had since rubbed off onto Sasha’s but they still tasted of vanilla. Their tongues danced together awkwardly, exploring each other’s mouths. Sasha was thankful that she’d taken the peppermint that Alexis had offered her earlier and, by the taste of it, Alexis had offered one to Shea too.

Their noses had been pressed together and they pulled apart to breathe. Sasha hadn’t realised how breathless she’d been until she took in a gulp of air. Both herself and Shea were synchronised as they breathed in short pants of excitement. They’re bodies were still close together, and Sasha could feel the heat of Shea’s skin on her own. It wasn’t particularly warm, and it had gotten colder through the duration of the day, but neither woman could feel the cold air.

“Come on, I’ll drive you home.” Shea murmured; her hand still tangled in Sasha’s short hair. Sasha stared up at her with wide eyes, but nodded gratefully.

No one spoke throughout the time of the ride home; the only sound was the gentle tap of Shea’s acrylic nails on the steering wheel. Sasha’s hand rested on the edge of her seat and, at some point during a traffic light, she’d found Shea’s hand placed over her own.