Masterlist
One Shots/Mini Series
Frequent Flyer - wnba paige x nurse azzi
Part 2
Epilogue (1/2)
Epilogue (2/2)
Series
Never Enough
Paige is in love with her best friend. It's complicated
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Stranger Things

Discoholic 🪩
noise dept.
trying on a metaphor
2025 on Tumblr: Trends That Defined the Year
Cosimo Galluzzi
Aqua Utopia|海の底で記憶を紡ぐ

⁂
Cosmic Funnies

roma★
Not today Justin

Kiana Khansmith

tannertan36

No title available

izzy's playlists!
hello vonnie

Andulka

@theartofmadeline
ojovivo
seen from United States

seen from United States

seen from United States

seen from Germany
seen from United States
seen from Saudi Arabia

seen from Brazil
seen from Ukraine

seen from Malaysia
seen from United States
seen from Sweden
seen from Malaysia
seen from Malaysia

seen from Malaysia

seen from United States
seen from United States

seen from Belgium

seen from Malaysia

seen from Brazil
seen from Malaysia
@bueckersburn
Masterlist
One Shots/Mini Series
Frequent Flyer - wnba paige x nurse azzi
Part 2
Epilogue (1/2)
Epilogue (2/2)
Series
Never Enough
Paige is in love with her best friend. It's complicated
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
COME BACK FOR PRIDE MONTH PLSSSS
I’ve been trying to write this mini series I have started in my drafts. But I wanna have it at least almost complete before I start posting so I don’t just log off and forget about it and leave it half done
I’m just so exhausted after I get off shift I can’t even make my fingers type. They’re too tired
hi queen! just wanted to remind you that what you’ve published on here is genuinely goated. i dont think you’re really active on here but just know i wont forget about you!! love to reread ur work
I am in fact not very active on here. But I really appreciate the message
Hello!! May we get a frequent flyer wedding and a new job for Azzi?
Okay so I understand wanting to see a wedding… but what’s wrong with Azzi’s job? Why would she need a new one😭
Oh my goodness, so nice to see u again! How have u been? 🩷
I’m exhausted but still alive so we’ll consider that a win. I just got a new job back in march and I’ve been working like at least 60hrs every week.
Fun fact - I wrote frequent flyer cause I was stressing so much going through interviews/sims/exams. I would procrastinate studying by writing instead. Still got the job and the series done though so… great success
behind enemy lines
synopsis: the thing about bad ideas is that they usually look really good at first.
tags: rivals!pazzi, wnba!paige x nwsl!azzi, angst, fluff, oneshot
cw: suggestive language (minors dni)
wc: 8.5k
The club pulsed with bass and bad decisions. Somewhere behind the DJ booth, a remix Paige vaguely recognized thumped through the packed dance floor, blending into the clink of glasses and the occasional burst of laughter from the VIP section.
The white leather booth Paige was sprawled across curved around a glowing table littered with half-empty glasses, melting ice, and the remains of what had once been three very full bottles of liquor. Now they sat mostly drained in silver buckets sweating onto the tables, casualties of a long night.
Paige swirled her Dirty Shirley and watched Nika aggressively throw back another shot of tequila that she absolutely did not need. Honestly, she hadn’t needed the last three, but Paige wasn’t going to try to make that point again. It was a lost cause. The Croatian didn’t even wince.
“I’m serious,” Nika declared for probably the tenth time in the last hour, leaning forward so abruptly her dark ponytail whipped over her shoulder. “She knew exactly what she was doing.”
Across from them, Napheesa Collier, Paige’s Lynx teammate, snorted into her vodka soda.
“Oh my god,” Phee laughed. “You are obsessed with this girl.”
“I am not obsessed with her,” Nika shot back. “I fucking hate her.”
Paige bit back a smile behind the rim of her glass. There was an important distinction in Nika’s mind. Obsession implied admiration. Hatred was apparently noble. And Paige knew better than to question the logic after all these years. This feud ran all the way back to college.
Phee raised a brow. “You’ve said her name at least twenty times tonight.”
“That’s because she’s a fucking bitch.”
“She’s literally just a soccer player,” Paige corrected lazily, her brain, thankfully, a bit fuzzy from the alcohol. “Why you so pressed about her all the time, bro?”
“She’s the devil in shin guards,” Nika argued. “Seriously. Did you see how tiny her shin guards are? Like why even wear them?”
Paige laughed, sinking deeper into the absurdly soft white leather. The booth was tucked in the corner of the VIP section overlooking the dance floor below, giving them a clear view of the entire club. The place was decent size, and about as trendy as you could find in Minneapolis, where the Lynx and the newer NWSL team, Twin Cities FC, were based.
Honestly, Paige kind of loved it. Mostly because she was perfectly drunk enough for the pulsing music to feel pleasant instead of overstimulating as it hummed through her body. And the Lynx had off the next day, a nice reprieve from the gauntlet of games they’d been in to clinch a playoff spot.
Nika, meanwhile, was still fully locked into her postgame spiral after her team had lost to the Washington Spirit. Yet again.
“She took my legs out,” Nika continued, pointing accusingly at nobody. “No attempt at the ball whatsoever.”
Phee tilted her head. “You sure you’re not just pissed she got by you and scored? ”
“Who’s side are you on, Phee?” Nika hissed before turning her attention to Paige. “Get your girl in line, Bueckers,” Nika scoffed, thrusting her thumb over her shoulder. Then she turned, glancing back at Phee through half-open eyes. “Seriously, did you even watch the game? She coulda broke my leg.”
Paige rubbed a hand over her mouth to hide another grin. It had been a hard challenge, but Nika was being a bit dramatic.
The game itself had admittedly been entertaining as hell. Twin Cities FC versus the Washington Spirit always got nasty fast, mostly because their captains seemed biologically incapable of behaving normally around each other for more than five consecutive minutes.
There had been shoving. Bewilderment. Screaming. A few dramatic flops that Nika was still furious hadn’t gotten called. And, okay, maybe Azzi had baited Nika into at least half of them.
In her defense, Nika was extremely easy to bait. Paige was working with a small sample size, but she was pretty sure Croatians came out of the womb ready to commit mild acts of violence over sports. That Balkan temper activated faster than Caitlin Clark fans on Twitter when Paige was mentioned in MVP talks.
Paige had watched the game from the sideline with Phee and a few of her other Lynx teammates. She spent most of the second half trying not to laugh every time the broadcast camera caught Nika and Azzi chirping at each other.
“You know what the worst part is?” Nika groaned.
Phee sighed. “I feel like you’re going to tell us anyway...”
“She acts all smug after. Like she’s funny. She’s been like that since college.”
Paige hummed into her drink. Because Azzi was kinda funny. Even if she was her best friend’s nemesis, Paige enjoyed how Azzi played with a competitive fire that bordered on cocky. It was how Paige played too. And Nika. Maybe that was part of the problem; they were all too similar.
Nika narrowed her eyes. “Why are you making that face?”
“What face?”
“That face,” she huffed, swirling her finger inches from Paige’s smirk.
Paige shrugged one shoulder, entirely unbothered and happy to goad her twin on. “I’m just saying. You can only get so mad when somebody looks that good cooking you.”
Nika stared at her in betrayal while Phee let out a laugh so loud a couple people turned toward the booth. Paige could tell from Nika’s shocked expression that she may have taken it a step too far.
“You’re sick in the head,” Nika informed Paige flatly.
Paige grinned, completely unashamed, but still eager to stay off Nika’s bad side. “Okay, okay,” she chuckled, tossing her hands up in surrender. “You know I support you, twin.”
Nika sighed and dropped her head back dramatically against the booth. “I can’t believe this is the support system I have.”
Phee checked her phone and groaned, her lips pulling into a tight line. “Speaking of support systems, I have to go home and get some sleep. Mila is going to be up so early.”
Paige laughed as Phee slid off the couch, grabbing her purse and jacket off the seat beside her.
“Tell Mila I said hi.”
“She likes you more than me at this point,” Phee muttered.
“That’s because I bribe her with candy all the time.”
“I know,” Phee huffed, shaking her head. “You are literally the reason I have problems.”
Paige accepted the quick side hug Phee leaned down to give her before she turned to Nika.
“And you,” Phee pointed before dapping her up, “need to stop acting like Azzi keyed your car.”
“She’d probably fucking enjoy it.”
“Goodnight, drama queen,” Phee chuckled.
Nika flipped her off affectionately as Phee disappeared through the crowded VIP section toward the exit.
The booth settled into quiet for a moment as they watched Phee leave. Well. As quiet as a nightclub could be.
Holding her sweating glass in one hand, Paige stretched her other arm along the back of the booth, letting her gaze drift lazily across the crowd below while Nika continued muttering under her breath about missed calls and corrupt referees and apparently the moral collapse of professionalism in soccer.
Honestly, Paige only half listened. She loved Nika like a sister, but sometimes post-loss-Nika was like listening to a bad podcast with no pause button. Especially if she lost to Azzi.
Their feud started years ago. Nika and Paige went to UCONN, Azzi to UCLA. They didn’t cross paths much, at least, not enough to think there was time to become bitter enemies. Somehow, Azzi and Nika found a way. If Paige really thought about it, it made sense. The first time Nika and Azzi met was sophomore year when UCONN played UCLA in the national championship game. And maybe, Azzi took a dive in the box that led to a game winning penalty kick for UCLA.
That was where it started but certainly not where it ended. Since then, the two had played countless times. In college tournaments, in subsequent national championship games, in the NWSL, in charity matches. And every time there was pushing and shoving, and cheap shots and swearing, and derogatory names mumbled under their breath. At least, that’s what Nika told her and Paige, ever the supportive friend, didn’t doubt her for a second.
“And then,” Nika continued, drawing Paige’s attention back in, “she had the audacity to wink at me afterward.”
Paige smirked into her drink, trying not to choke on the sip she just took. “That’s kinda funny, bro.”
Nika whipped toward her. “Don’t act like you don’t hate her just as much as me.”
Paige opened her mouth to respond but stopped as a raucous laugh pulled her gaze away.
A group of women had entered the VIP section, full of smiles and what Paige assumed must be postgame adrenaline. Security waved them through with immediate recognition of either their beauty or talent. She wasn’t sure which.
Paige instantly recognized them too. Washington Spirit players. And right in the middle of them…
Oh this is gonna be good, she thought with a wry smile.
Paige slowly leaned back against the booth cushions, manspreading a bit further, eyes narrowing just slightly as Azzi stepped fully into view.
She was wearing black baggy jeans and a tiny red top. A silver chain reflected against her caramel skin and her hair was half up, half down in loose curls.
Nika noticed Paige had gone quiet and followed her line of sight. Her entire face twisted in disdain when she recognized who was there. She drew in a deep breath like she was trying to fill herself with all of the patience she’d need to get through this encounter. Paige knew there wasn’t enough of that in the entire world.
“You have got to be fucking kidding me,” Nika spat.
Paige bit the inside of her cheek hard enough to hurt, mostly to stop herself from smiling at the new development in their evening.
“Absolutely not,” Nika muttered, sitting forward so fast she sloshed some vodka onto the table. “She’s stalking me now. She’s a legitimate psychopath, Paige.”
Paige made a vague sound of acknowledgment, but honestly, her attention had already drifted back. Azzi was laughing at something one of her teammates said, head tipped back, and it hit Paige square in the chest in that irritatingly familiar way it always did.
Azzi was hot.
Objectively.
Subjectively.
All-the-jectivelys.
The club lights caught the cross pendant around Azzi’s throat every few seconds, tiny flashes of sparkles against warm brown skin, and Paige’s eyes tracked the movement before she could stop herself. Her top was cropped just enough to show a strip of stomach when she moved, toned abs in full view.
Throat growing dry, Paige quickly averted her gaze before she got caught staring. By Azzi or Nika. To be honest, she wasn’t sure which would be worse. Probably Nika. She was at least close enough to wrap her hands around Paige’s neck and squeeze.
“She’s looking over here,” Nika complained, glaring back at the Spirit striker.
Paige took another sip, eyes slowly roaming across the club before settling back on Nika. “Maybe because you’re staring at her like you’re planning a murder.”
“That’s because I am planning a murder,” Nika scoffed. “Hers.”
Paige snorted softly as Azzi’s group settled into one of the booths further across the VIP section. Azzi didn’t sit right away. She lingered near the edge of the booth, scanning the room while one of her teammates talked in her ear. Then her fingers tugged briefly under the chain at her throat, adjusting it.
Paige’s brain short-circuited for approximately half a second, gaze locked on her long, slender fingers and the way Azzi bit her lip in concentration at whatever story her teammate was telling. It seemed enthralling.
She blamed the vodka.
“You know,” Paige said casually, finally dragging her attention back toward Nika before she got caught, “there’s only like two places around here people go after games.”
Nika looked horrified. “Are you defending her?”
“I’m just saying it’s not exactly shocking they ended up here.”
“Suprised she didn’t just stay in her hotel room cooking up another social media post. Fucking bitch.”
And, okay. Nika had a point there. The hatred might have started as a rivalry on the pitch all those years ago, but it had turned personal. The fire already burned between them, but Azzi was the one who threw the gasoline. Like a whole can of it. Maybe even two. Nika’s senior year, UCONN lost to UCLA in the national championship game, ending her season and collegiate career. Azzi, in the pure definition of pettiness, added a picture of Nika sitting on the field, knees to her chest, head in her hands, crying, to the end of her natty dump on Instagram. The picture was tagged—maybe next time.
It got taken down shortly after she posted it, but the damage had been done. Nika was ready to board a plane to Los Angeles to rip Azzi apart, and Paige was ten toes down right behind her. Battling it out within the lines was one thing, but that had been a low blow and Paige was heated.
Paige nodded as her pulse ticked up a notch at the memory. “Yeah, that was trash, bro.”
She didn’t mention how Nika got her payback by purposely seeking out Azzi’s ex at a draft-party and posting a video of them making out on her story. That’s really where it reached the point of no return.
“What a terrible human,” Nika slurred. “She probably has a fur coat made out of puppies.”
Paige laughed at the insinuation before taking a long sip of her drink. She flicked her gaze up to Nika, catching the way she clenched her jaw. The Croatian was clearly worked up.
“I dunno, twin,” Paige sighed after a moment. “All that shit started in college. Maybe she grew up…”
Nika narrowed her eyes. “Are you just saying that ‘cause she’s hot?”
Paige leaned back against the booth cushions, very much trying to hide her amusement.
Well.
Yeah.
Anyone with eyes could see that.
Azzi was the kind of hot that made people walk into furniture. She probably got out of parking tickets just by smiling, and maybe even some petty crimes. Paige had spent years pretending she didn’t notice it quite as much as she did, mostly because Nika reacted to Azzi’s existence like a bull seeing red.
Sighing, Paige let her eyes drift back across the room again, watching Azzi grin at something before finally sliding into the booth beside one of her teammates.
Then she shrugged.
“I mean,” Paige admitted easily, “she is hot.”
Nika stared at her like she’d just confessed to owning a Sophie Cunningham jersey.
“You are the weakest soldier I know.”
“Bro, all I’m saying is, aren’t you getting tired of keeping this grudge alive? Maybe she isn’t that bad if you both just gave it a chance.”
“She tried to break my ankle like four hours ago.”
Paige winced. It didn’t seem like Nika had a penchant for forgiveness. Or even acting mature for two fucking minutes.
“Okay, but in fairness, you almost ripped her jersey off near the sideline,” Paige argued.
“That was tactical,” Nika countered in a bewildered tone. “She was going to break with the ball and they had numbers.”
“That was literally almost assault, twin.”
Nika pointed accusingly at her, and Paige realized this was a lost cause. “You’re supposed to be on my side.”
“I am on your side.”
“You just called my nemesis hot.”
Paige grinned into her drink, letting the warm and fuzzy feeling caused by the alcohol sloshing around in her veins smooth the edges of Nika’s harsh tone.
“Multiple things can be true at once,” Paige mumbled under her breath.
It drew a dramatic groan from Nika. Then she dragged both hands down her face.
“She might be hot but you ever notice how she’s always single? Bet no one can deal with that fucking attitude.”
Paige didn’t mention that Nika also had a similar attitude and was also single. Things had already spiraled far enough and she was happy to live in the land of delusion with her best friend for a bit longer.
After a moment, Nika shot Paige a look before abruptly shoving out of the booth.
“You know what? I’m leaving before I accidentally see her flirting with somebody and have to gouge my eyes out.”
Paige’s brows lifted slightly. It was barely eleven and they both had a rare day off tomorrow. “Already?”
“Yes, already.” Nika threw back the last of her drink that she didn’t need and took a step back, swaying slightly. “Some of us have emotional wounds to recover from.”
Paige laughed, but didn’t move to follow when Nika jerked her head toward the exit expectantly.
“You coming?”
Paige shook her head. “Nah, not yet. I’m meeting some people out.”
Nika sighed in annoyance, but she didn’t push.
“Fine,” she muttered, leaning down to dap Paige up before pulling her into a tight hug. “But if she slide tackles somebody in this club too, don’t call me. I won’t help.”
“I’ll keep that in mind,” Paige chucked, drawing back. “You good with your Uber?”
Nika nodded. “Should be here in five. I’m gonna wait outside and get some fresh air. I’ll see you at brunch in the morning.”
She shot one final, deeply offended glare across the VIP section toward Azzi’s booth before making her way toward the exit.
Paige watched Nika disappear into the crowd, then leaned back with a slow exhale, one arm curling behind her head while the other held her half-empty glass.
After another sip, her eyes lifted across the VIP section and landed directly on Azzi.
Who was already looking at her.
Oh.
Azzi sat tucked into the corner of the opposite booth, one arm draped along the back cushion while one of her teammates talked animatedly beside her. But Azzi wasn’t paying attention anymore. Or at least she didn’t seem to be. Her warm brown eyes were fixed straight on Paige, amusement already curling at the edges of her smile like she knew exactly what kind of trouble she’d just caused.
Paige smirked, and shook her head.
That, apparently, was enough of an invitation. Without breaking eye contact, Azzi slid out of the booth.
Oh fuck.
Paige watched her weave through the crowded VIP section. The black jeans sat low on Azzi’s hips, exposing the upper half of her v-line. Paige tried very hard to focus on her curls instead. It wasn’t going particularly well, considering they landed softly on her collarbone and left Paige wondering what would happen if she sunk her teeth in there.
Heart thundering against her rib cage, Paige shifted in her seat and pulled in a deep breath.
Get it together.
Heads turned as Azzi passed, which wasn’t surprising. The annoying part was how Azzi kept her gaze locked on Paige while she walked. Like nothing else was as important as watching Paige crack. And she was cracking.
By the time Azzi stopped in front of the booth, Paige’s pulse was already beating way too hard despite trying to play cool. She wondered if Azzi could see it through the black collared shirt she was wearing.
Azzi tilted her head slightly, curls brushing her bare shoulder. “You know,” she said smoothly over the music, “usually when people stare at me this hard, they at least offer to buy me a drink.”
Paige’s grin widened slowly, infinitely grateful Nika wasn’t here to witness the interaction.
“Thought about it,” she admitted, gaze dragging slowly down Azzi’s perfectly toned body before settling back on her perfectly pretty face. “But then I figured you deserved to work for it.”
Azzi’s eyebrow lifted. “Oh, is that what we’re doing tonight?”
Paige shrugged lazily, entirely too entertained by the little spark in Azzi’s eyes already. Playing indifferent certainly had its perks. “You’re in my city.”
“Oh it’s your city?” Azzi echoed.
Paige nodded once. “Yep,” she said, popping the last letter before licking her lips. She didn’t miss the way Azzi’s gaze dipped. “Last I checked we’re in Minneapolis. Means I can stare if I want to.”
Azzi laughed softly under her breath, the sound dangerous to Paige’s self-control.
“That confidence is crazy,” Azzi murmured incredulously.
Still, she stepped closer.
Paige spread her legs a bit further. It was out of habit. Not at all a reaction to the way Azzi had stepped into her space. Not at all an offering of sorts.
“Hasn’t failed me yet,” Paige said coolly before taking a sip of her drink.
Azzi watched, her eyes locked on the way Paige’s throat bobbed as she swallowed the cool liquid.
“Mmm.” Azzi stepped closer, one hand reaching forward to pluck the glass from her grip.
Paige let it go easily, watching the way Azzi’s lips wrapped around the straw, the way her cheeks hollowed as she pulled the last of the liquid into her mouth, the way her eyes twisted shut and her lips puckered as she swallowed the last sips of vodka.
“I see,” Azzi hummed, voice like velvet. She set the empty glass down on the table before leaning forward to place her hand onto the back of the booth beside Paige’s shoulder. “Does that shit work on all the girls?”
Up close, Paige caught the faint smell of Azzi’s perfume underneath the lingering traces of sweat and expensive vodka. The effect it had on her body hit embarrassingly fast.
Azzi knew it too. It was apparent from the smug little look that settled onto her face.
“Works on the ones that matter,” Paige shot back, regaining some semblance of cool.
That was apparently the correct answer and a coy smile tugged at Azzi’s lips as she climbed into Paige’s lap, sliding one knee onto either side of Paige’s hips. She glanced around theatrically before her soft brown eyes settled back on Paige, pupils blown wide.
“So,” Azzi asked innocently even though they both knew she was anything but, “Nika done pouting yet?”
The club was packed. Azzi’s teammates sat fifty feet away and a who’s who of Minneapolis littered the VIP section, but Azzi didn’t seem to care. And Paige was way too many Dirty Shriely’s deep to really process anything but the beautiful woman sitting in her lap. Who could honestly blame her. Besides Nika.
Blinded by the blissful fog in her brain and the weight of Azzi in her lap, Paige just chuckled, her hands shifting to Azzi’s waist. She stroked the skin peeking out from below the cropped top, relishing its warmth, as Azzi settled. The movement pressed them flush together, and Paige was sure now Azzi could at least feel the way her heart was racing even if she couldn’t see it.
“You’re gonna get me in trouble,” Paige muttered, though she was grinning.
Azzi looped her arms loosely around Paige’s shoulders. “You love trouble.”
Paige hummed at the truth in the statement, blue eyes dropping to Azzi’s mouth for a second before meeting her gaze again. “It does seem to have a way of finding me.”
“Funny,” Azzi murmured, fingertips drifting behind Paige’s ear before trailing down the side of her neck, where they found the collar of Paige’s shirt. She absentmindedly smoothed it flat. “I was thinking the same thing.”
She found the cross pendant resting on Paige’s chest next, adjusting it even though it hadn’t actually needed fixing. Then her palm settled flat in the valley between Paige’s breasts.
They were in the middle of a crowded club, but Paige wasn't complaining. She was too turned on to recognize the alarm bells ringing.
Seemingly emboldened by the way Paige’s heart hammered against her touch, Azzi slid her hand further, fingers grazing a taut nipple through Paige’s shirt.
Jesus Christ.
Paige bit her lip and sucked in a deep breath. It didn’t help settle her. She wasn’t sure anything could at this moment besides a bucket of cold water.
“You tryna get in some real trouble tonight?” Azzi asked, voice soft against her ear. The words were almost swallowed by the crowded club around them, but Paige swore they rattled around her skull louder than the bass.
Paige laughed at the implication but she couldn’t deny the way it settled low in her belly. “It is my specialty.”
“I know.”
“Yeah?” Paige’s hand slid higher along Azzi’s waist, fingers pressing in harder before beginning to stroke back and forth. Two could play this game. And despite not knowing the rules, Paige was certainly enjoying it. “That why you came all the way over here?”
“Maybe.”
“Maybe?”
Azzi shrugged one shoulder, but the smile threatening her lips gave her away. It was small but sinister.
For a second neither of them moved.
The music pounded through the club. Lights flashed across the crowd below them and Paige suddenly felt hyperaware of every inch separating them.
Which wasn’t much.
Some would even argue it was too much. That someone being Paige.
“You look this good tonight just for me?” Paige asked, hopeful at the answer.
A soft laugh escaped Azzi and Paige tried to ignore the way her eyes sparkled when she tipped her head back.
“That’s a terrible line.”
“Do I need a line?” Paige arched a brow, a hint of challenge in her tone. “You’re the one who came over here.”
Azzi’s eyes dropped briefly to Paige’s mouth before darting back up. The movement was quick but not quick enough. Paige caught it, and apparently Azzi realized she had too because a faint blush immediately crept into her cheeks before she looked away.
“You looked lonely,” Azzi surmised, tone implying a casualness that didn’t exist.
“Lonely, huh?”
Paige smirked. They both knew it was bullshit. She could have any woman in the club if she wanted. It wasn’t lost on either of them what was happening.
“Mhm,” Azzi hummed playfully, fingers returning to the collar of Paige’s shirt, and running along it until they found the baby hairs at the nape of her neck. “Thought you could use some company. Pretty confident I’d be better company than you’ve had all night.”
That was a direct shot at Nika.
Paige knew it. Azzi knew it. Azzi knew Paige knew it. Paige knew Azzi knew it.
But Azzi’s legs were bracketed around Paige’s hips, one arm draped loosely across her shoulders and before Paige could defend her friend’s honor, Azzi’s fingers cinched in the hair at the base of her neck and it sent a jolt straight through Paige that settled right between her fucking legs.
Willpower gone. Out the door. On vacation with no idea when it’d come back.
She was fucked.
Or at least that’s all she could think about.
Paige’s hands had a mind of their own, sliding along the narrow strip of exposed skin beneath Azzi’s top before dipping lower to palm her ass through the soft fabric of her jeans. Azzi let out a soft moan that made Paige’s cunt throb. Somehow, she maintained enough composure to resist the urge to buck up into Azzi.
This felt dangerous.
Then again, most things about Azzi were.
The smile.
The confidence.
The history with Nika.
The way she was somehow managing to make direct eye contact feel like fucking foreplay.
All of it.
A pretty little bomb, wrapped with a bow, ready to detonate at any second.
Azzi tilted her head slightly, studying her with a look that felt entirely too knowing.
“What?” Paige asked.
The coy smile widened because Azzi knew exactly the kind of effect she was having on Paige. The kind that had Paige thinking about what she tasted like. Tequila from her drink earlier? Maybe vodka and grenadine from the waning sips of Paige’s Dirty Shirley?
“Nothing.”
“Bullshit.”
A soft laugh escaped Azzi and Paige felt it more than heard it.
The lights swept across the room again, briefly illuminating Azzi’s face, and the faint smudge of lip gloss near the corner of her mouth.
Without thinking, Paige reached up.
Azzi went still as Paige brushed the pad of her thumb lightly against the corner of her lips, catching the smear and dragging it away.
“There,” Paige said, voice not entirely steady.
For a second, Azzi’s eyes tracked the movement of her thumb and Paige knew she had her. It was a look she’d gotten many times over the years from various women. None as enticing as Azzi, though. It was doing wonders for Paige’s ego.
Smirk growing, she slid her thumb back along Azzi’s bottom lip, pulling it down, but resisting the urge to push into her mouth. Then slowly, she looked back up and met Azzi’s gaze. The soft brown was gone, instead replaced by wide, dark pupils, and a hunger that was mirrored in Paige’s own eyes.
The expression on her face made Paige’s pulse kick against her ribs. The air between them was thick with tension. She was in trouble and there was nothing she could do about it. Even if she wanted to. Which she obviously didn’t.
“Thanks,” Azzi whispered, before using her grip on Paige’s hair to pull her in.
The kiss landed hard enough to steal the cocky response from the tip of Paige’s tongue.
Azzi kissed like she played soccer: aggressive, confident, a little cocky about it. Same as Paige, which left them fighting to establish dominance. Azzi’s fingers tightened into the hair at the back of Paige’s neck, nails sliding and scraping against her scalp as Paige’s hands slipped lower and groped her ass.
Azzi made a soft little sound when Paige slipped her tongue into her mouth, and Paige felt it zip straight down her spine. The club blurred around them into bass and flashing lights and distant bodies moving somewhere outside the booth. But all Paige could focus on was the way Azzi kissed her, like she was staking a claim.
After a couple minutes, maybe even more because Paige had honestly lost track, Azzi pulled back just enough to breathe, lips pink and swollen. Paige leaned forward to chase her lips but a firm hand against her chest stopped her.
Paige whined, not caring how pathetic it sounded. She’d had a taste and now it was all she could process. Unfortunately, the striker sent her a pointed glare that deflated Paige instantly.
“I thought,” Azzi started, a slight pout tugging at her mouth, “you were gonna tell her about us tonight.”
Paige groaned, dropping her forehead briefly against Azzi’s shoulder before pulling back to meet her dark gaze.
“Bro,” Paige laughed, “you literally took both her legs out with a slide tackle. You think tonight was the night to tell her?”
“First of all, don’t call me ‘bro’,” Azzi scolded in mock offense. “Second… did you not see her drag me down by my jersey in the first half?”
Paige snorted. “You provoked her.”
“I did no such thing.”
“So you weren’t shit talking her in Croatian?”
Azzi grinned proudly, which was really the only answer Paige needed. “I was just trying to be inclusive.”
Paige laughed again, unable not to. “You’re right, Az,” she admitted, really just hoping to move things along so she could get her mouth back on Azzi.
God, Paige had missed her.
They’d only been apart a couple of weeks—since Paige had played the Mystics—but still.
Unfortunately, the smugness that overtook Azzi’s face was immediate.
“Oh. I’m definitely telling her you said that.”
Paige pointed a warning finger at her, wagging it slightly. “Don’t even think about it. She’ll kill me.”
Azzi grabbed it, interlacing their fingers instead, and Paige felt the resistance seep out of her pores the way it always did when she had Azzi wrapped around her.
“She loves you too much to kill you.”
“She might actually hate you more than she loves me, though,” Paige countered. “You were supposed to chill today so I could talk to her, Az. Not rile her up even more.”
Azzi giggled, and Paige swore that sound alone had probably taken years off her life.
Then Azzi kissed her again. Slower this time, but also a little bit meaner. It was a kiss clearly designed to ruin Paige’s ability to think and it was fucking working. Especially when Azzi shifted in her lap, grinding down enough to make Paige’s grip tighten. A sharp breath caught in Paige’s throat and Azzi smiled against her mouth, pulling back just enough for Paige to see the mischievousness flicker in her eyes.
“You’re evil,” Paige muttered.
“And yet, you’re going to take me back to your house and fuck me anyway.”
“Oh, am I?” Paige shot back with a cocky smirk.
It was rhetorical, laughable even, that Paige even asked the question. They both knew exactly how this evening was going to end—breathless and sated, wrapped around each other in Paige’s bed. And at some point, God willing, Azzi’s legs wrapped around Paige’s shoulders, around her head.
Azzi pulled back and let her eyes rake over Paige. Clearly liking what she saw, she traced a finger up Paige’s arm, sending goosebumps scattering across her skin, before her long fingers wrapped around Paige’s jaw and lifted her chin so their eyes met.
“Yes. You are.”
Then Azzi’s grip on Paige’s jaw tightened. She held Paige in place, leaning forward to whisper in her ear, “Especially on if you want to see what I’m wearing underneath this.”
Paige gulped, swallowing down the cotton in her throat. “Which one is it?” she asked hoarsely, eyes half-lidded.
“Your favorite,” Azzi mumbled coyly into her ear, her warm breath spreading through Paige like wildfire. “The one I wore for your birthday last year.”
Paige’s hand slipped under the waistband of Azzi’s pants, grinning with pure joy when she felt lace beneath her fingertips.
She could picture it now. Azzi in that lavender lingerie set, spread out on Paige’s bed, writhing with pleasure as Paige buried her face between her legs. It sent a flood of wetness to her already soaked boxers.
“Mmm,” Paige hummed against Azzi’s lips. “Yeah, I think we should call an Uber soon, baby.”
Azzi rolled her hips again, slower this time, but definitely intentionally.
“Fuck, baby,” Paige breathed against Azzi’s mouth as she lost the last functioning brain cell she had left.
All she could think about was getting her fingers in Azzi’s cunt. Or her tongue. Or her strap. Paige didn’t care, she was an equal opportunity employer.
And Azzi? She just looked unbearably pleased with herself. She leaned back slightly, fingers tracing teasingly along the chain around Paige’s neck, a soft smile replacing the smug one.
“You know,” Azzi said gently, “you are gonna have to tell her eventually.”
Paige sighed dramatically already knowing where this was headed.
“Or I can just fuck you right here and cause enough of a scene it floods social media by morning and she can find out that way…”
Paige winced at the thought, picturing how wide Nika’s eyes would blow. And then the slew of curse words that would slip from her lips, likely trailing off in another language. Which would probably be good because at least Paige wouldn’t know how Nika was planning on killing her. Sometimes not knowing was better.
In her defense, she had been meaning to tell Nika. For months now, actually. But every single time she tried to bring up Azzi, Nika would say something like “If Azzi Fudd has no haters left on earth it means I’m dead,” or something along those lines, and Paige would lose her nerve.
Which maybe made her a little bit of a coward. But she valued her life. So. Whatever.
Azzi’s fingers slid to Paige’s chain, tugging lightly to pull her back to reality. “Paige.”
She was serious now, the playful banter dissipating and Paige knew why.
“I’ll tell her, Az,” Paige promised, kissing along Azzi’s jaw before she could keep arguing. “I swear I’ll tell Nika soon.”
The attempt at distraction worked. Azzi giggled quietly when Paige’s mouth brushed her neck, settling her weight back down and titling her neck to give Paige more room to work.
“You’ll fucking tell me what soon?”
The blood drained from Paige’s face so fast, chilling in her veins and freezing her in place.
One second Azzi was giggling as Paige kissed along her neck, warm and smug and entirely too comfortable in her lap, and the next Paige was staring over her shoulder at Nika standing beside the booth with wide eyes and her forgotten leather jacket dangling limply from one hand.
For one spectacular moment, nobody spoke.
Paige could only hope Nika permanently lost the ability to speak as her brain scrambled uselessly for literally anything helpful to say. It was to no avail. Every possible sentence immediately sounded incriminating.
On top of her, Azzi had gone still too, though not nearly with the same level of panic. Probably not with any panic at all. Paige could practically feel the amusement simmering under her skin.
Of course she was entertained. It was yet another win to hold over Nika’s head. And Azzi wasn’t the one about to be murdered by her best friend. Although if Paige got murdered, Azzi’s chances of multiple orgasms that evening dropped significantly. So really, it wasn’t a great situation for either of them.
Then Azzi, because apparently self-preservation meant absolutely nothing to her, tilted her head slightly and looked up at Nika with a soft, innocent expression that would’ve been believable if Paige hadn’t witnessed the decade-long feud between them firsthand.
“Sup Mühl,” Azzi said way too fucking casually.
Nika looked physically unwell. Behind the bewilderment, Paige knew rage was simmering. A deep seeded, festering rage.
Paige opened her mouth instinctively. “Nika—”
“No,” Nika cut in immediately, pointing at Paige without taking her fiery gaze off Azzi. “Absolutely not. Don’t even speak right now, P.”
Paige sank deeper into the booth cushions, wishing the couch could swallow her whole.
Nika’s wide-eyed gaze bounced between them, visibly trying to process the image in front of her. Paige knew exactly how bad it looked. Azzi was fully straddling Paige’s lap, Paige’s hand still rested beneath the waistband of her jeans, both of them flushed and disheveled enough that there was absolutely no chance of talking their way out of this.
Nada. Zero. Zilch.
Nika drew in a deep breath, held it a few seconds, and then released it. She suddenly looked entirely too calm. It was unsettling.
Finally, she met Paige’s gaze.
“You,” Nika said slowly to Paige, like each word physically pained her, “are making out with my opp.”
Azzi snorted from Paige’s lap, moving her hands from Paige’s neck to rest gently on her shoulders. “Opp is crazy, Nika.”
“Was I fucking talking to you, Fudd?”
Apparently Azzi didn’t take too keenly to the finger Nika was pointing in her face because she laughed. It was low and cold, a sound Paige had never heard but that made her chest cinch. This might be the worst possible position Paige had ever been in. And she’d found herself in some cataclysmic ones over the years.
“Still pissed you lost, Muhl?”
Nika’s eyes grew impossibly wider and Paige really really wished she had the power of invisibility and could nope herself right the fuck out of there. Even missing out on the chance to fuck Azzi would be better than having to sit through a scolding from Nika when her hands were still down Azzi’s pants.
Oh shit.
That certainly wasn’t helping the matter.
Paige quickly withdrew her hands, not missing the way Nika’s gaze flicked down and cataloged the movement. Luckily, she seemed to be more interested in the bait Azzi was dangling in front of her.
“You literally slide tackled me into another dimension tonight.”
“Okay, that’s a bit dramatic. I got the ball.”
“You got a yellow card!”
“And yet,” Azzi replied smugly, “we still won.”
The strangled sound that left Nika’s throat nearly made Paige laugh. Nearly. Despite the fluidity of her body from the alcohol and its longing for Azzi, it seemed her body also remembered Nika could probably snap her neck before she even saw it coming.
Unfortunately, Nika’s brain was working faster now, piecing together details Paige really wished she wouldn’t piece together. Paige watched the exact moment her eyes dropped to the way Paige’s thumb was absentmindedly rubbing against Azzi’s side. Then Nika clocked how naturally Azzi was tucked against her chest, how comfortable they looked together, how neither of them seemed remotely awkward.
And then came the look. The one Paige recognized instantly. One she knew all too well.
Absolute horror.
“Oh my god,” Nika whispered, eyes widening further as she moved her finger between the two in shock. “How long?”
Nobody answered fast enough. Which was apparently answer enough.
In Paige’s defense, she simply could not bring herself to say years. The words were right there on the tip of her tongue, but they were stuck. Call it self-preservation.
“Paige!”
“Okay,” Paige started carefully, because she suddenly felt like she was diffusing a bomb with her bare hands. Honestly, that might be a more relaxing experience than the one she was currently embroiled in. “Before you react—”
“Before I react?” Nika repeated incredulously. “How long have you been fucking Azzi Fudd behind my back?”
The way she said Azzi’s name with so much disdain felt like a knife to the chest. A couple people at a nearby table glanced over briefly, curious at the sudden yelling.
Paige lowered her voice. “Can you maybe not announce that to the entire club?”
Nika ignored her completely, still staring like she was debating if her entire friendship with Paige had been a lie. “How long?”
Paige hesitated. Which, again, was apparently a mistake because it gave Azzi a chance to open her fucking mouth. A beautiful mouth, but a problem for Paige nonetheless.
Azzi turned, leaning comfortably against Paige’s chest and looking entirely too pleased with herself.
“Why don’t you have a seat, Nika,” Azzi said, inviting her to the couch across from them with a flick of her wrist. In the VIP booth that Nika had booked and paid for that evening. “Grab a drink and we can all talk like adults. For once.”
Nika looked like she might actually combust. Honestly, at this point, Paige genuinely couldn’t tell whether Nika wanted to scream or cry. Probably both and maybe the thoughts were just so conflicting it was making her brain short circuit, which was why Paige and Azzi were still alive.
Paige finally let out a helpless laugh, rubbing a hand down her face. “Okay, baby, you are not helping.”
Silence followed. Nika blinked once, then again, much slower this time. Finally, she closed her eyes and let out a deep sigh before looking back at Paige.
“Baby?”
Ah.
Right.
That sounded bad.
Nika had been around long enough to know Paige didn’t do pet names. At least not with random hookups. The only time she’d used any sort of term of endearment in front of Nika had been in college, when she’d dated Brooke for a couple of years.
Azzi, meanwhile, looked absolutely delighted. Chuffed, if you will. She shifted slightly in Paige’s lap, practically radiating smug satisfaction while Paige mentally drafted her own obituary. The only thing worse than Paige fucking Azzi Fudd, would be actually liking Azzi Fudd.
“Are you… like not just fucking?” Nika asked carefully, like she was scared of the answer. “Like… are you… dating?”
By now the outrage had softened into confusion. The question hit differently than Paige expected. Suddenly the issue wasn’t just the hooking up or the secrecy or even the rivalry. It was the fact that this might be something serious. Something that mattered.
Paige felt Azzi glance at her briefly before she answered.
“Kinda?” Paige said cautiously.
Azzi immediately scoffed, looking offended. “Kinda?”
In all of the romcoms Paige had watched over the years—which was a lot because Nika fucking loved them—none had prepared her for being trapped between her best friend and girlfriend. There was no winning. And literally, Paige’s favorite thing to do was win.
She blew out a shaky breath, remembering the night a few months ago when she had nervously confessed to Azzi that she wanted to be exclusive.
It certainly hadn’t started out that way. They’d met two years ago at an ESPY party. Paige beat Azzi for Best Championship Performance and had sauntered over to her at the bar, wearing a custom Louis Vuitton suit and a smug little grin. Her intention was to gloat, to rub it in a little bit so she could tell Nika all about it.
And she had gloated and she had rubbed it in, and the interaction had confirmed that Azzi Fudd was the terrible little shit she and Nika always thought she was. But Azzi Fudd was also hot, and Paige apparently liked it when a woman was mean to her, because suddenly she was eating Azzi out in the back of a limo, and they were hate fucking in Paige’s hotel room, and she’d woken up in the morning with Azzi’s head between her legs already halfway to an orgasm.
She thought that was that. It was easy enough to chalk up to a drunken night where two people that hated each other fucked. Until she got a “You in my city?” text from Azzi a few months later when the Lynx were in DC playing the Mystics. Followed by an address.
Paige had debated whether or not to go. She wasn’t sure she wanted to see Azzi, sober at least. And she also wasn’t entirely convinced Azzi hadn’t sent directions to a crack house. But then she remembered how Azzi tasted. How she felt writhing underneath her. How she sounded—so breathless and needy and whiny—when she came. And Paige figured one more time wouldn’t hurt.
The next time, Paige happened to be staying in the same hotel as Azzi at New York Fashion Week. A month later it was a Nike event in Los Angeles. Two weeks after that, Azzi was in Minneapolis for a game.
Every time was more of the same. They’d fuck and then one of them would leave. Part of Paige did feel guilty keeping it from Nika, but it was a small part. There was really nothing to tell. No feelings involved. Just two people who didn’t particularly like each other, doling out mind blowing orgasms.
Except, it didn’t stay that way. Somewhere along the way, it stopped being about hate fucking, and just became fucking. Then it became more than fucking, and Paige knew Nika would implode but she was honestly already in too deep.
And as much as Paige knew it was risking life and limb to admit to Nika, this was serious. It did matter.
“Okay, yes, we’re dating.”
Nika stared at both of them like she was trying to keep herself rooted in place, hands shoved in her pockets because if she stepped forward there was no telling what she’d do with them.
“When did this start?” she asked weakly.
Paige grimaced. Unfortunately for her, Azzi looked thrilled by the question.
“When did we start fucking?” Azzi asked sweetly. “Or when did we actually start dating?”
Nika’s soul visibly exited her body.
Paige grabbed Azzi’s thigh, giving it a firm squeeze. “Okay, chill,” she warned, though not unkindly. “You did not need to say it like that.”
Nika dropped heavily onto the edge of the booth beside them like her knees stopped functioning altogether.
“I hate both of you.”
Azzi leaned slightly toward Nika, curls slipping over one shoulder. “To be fair, you hated me before this too.”
“That’s true,” Nika grumbled immediately before grabbing the almost empty bottle of tequila from the bucket of melted ice and taking a big swig.
Then she pointed the bottle accusingly at Paige. “But your girlfriend being so fucking smug right now is making this significantly worse.”
Azzi grinned wider. “I’m trying really hard to be normal actually.”
“Shut up, Fudd.”
That finally broke Paige. She laughed hard enough her shoulders shook, because the entire situation had become so catastrophically stupid that there was nothing else to do anymore.
Nika looked at her like she’d lost her mind. “You’re laughing right now?”
Paige’s heart rate had ticked down a few notches now that it seemed Nika wasn’t planning on killing either of them. At least for the moment. Maybe she did love Paige more than she hated Azzi.
“I never planned for this to happen, Nika,” Paige said exasperatedly, before blowing out a deep sigh. “I’m sorry for keeping it from you. Whatever you want to know I’ll tell you.”
Nika rubbed both hands over her face before groaning toward the ceiling. She opened her mouth, then closed it and shook her head.
“You know what?” she huffed. “I’m too drunk for this shit.”
Paige bit the inside of her cheek to stop smiling. Nika stood again, grabbing her jacket before pointing firmly at both of them.
“I’ll see you at brunch tomorrow.” Then, more aggressively, she added, “Both of you.”
Azzi saluted lazily from Paige’s lap. “Can’t wait.”
Nika made it approximately two steps before whipping around one final time.
“And by the way,” she snapped, pointing directly at Azzi now, “that was a shit tackle and you know it, Fudd.”
Azzi looked deeply unrepentant and Nika’s eyes immediately cut toward Paige.
“Tell her it was a shit tackle, Paige.”
Paige inhaled slowly because this, right here, was the actual trap. She could already feel Azzi watching her, waiting to see which side she’d pick. Her heart slammed against her ribcage and she honestly wished it’d break free. At least then they’d have to call an ambulance and she wouldn’t have to answer, right? Although the two of them would probably start arguing about who got to ride in it with Paige to the hospital and she could only imagine how that would go...
“Nika, I—”
Azzi grabbed Paige’s jaw before she could finish, kissing her hard enough to completely derail the sentence. Paige laughed against her mouth, one arm tightening around Azzi’s waist automatically as Nika let out the most exhausted groan Paige had ever heard in her life.
“See you tomorrow, Nika,” Azzi hummed against Paige’s lips, waving her hand dismissively.
“My best friend,” Nika muttered while walking away, “is fucking my opp.”
Paige didn’t have it in her to fight, instead grabbing Azzi’s hips and pulling her in closer.
She probably should’ve felt more concerned about the impending doom waiting for her at brunch. There was a very real chance Nika would spend the rest of the night drafting a list of crimes she’d like to commit against both of them.
But as Azzi settled into her lap, smiling coyly like she’d just won another game, Paige decided she’d worry about that in the morning. Tonight? She had other priorities.
Had to log back into this account for the first time in months just to repost this masterpiece
Pleaseee come back and write us some magic. A one shot anything. Love your writing so much
So… not to get anyone’s hopes up, but I may or may not have started a new mini series Pazzi au (and by started, I mean I’ve got an outline and a total of 3000 words of plot written).
But I’ve been stupid busy at work and exhausted when I’m off so I have no timeline for when it’d be ready. Like genuinely brace yourselves for the timeline. I’m talking Ella level time to complete
“It’s okay if she is,” her dad rushed to reassure. “We won’t judge.” this had me on the floor CRYING 😭😭🤣😭🤣💀
To the anon who sent me a bunch of their favorite quotes from frequent flyer, thank you. I love it
Sorry to ask, but I really wish frequent flyer was a series. It's so good that I need more. I'm re-reading it again for the 2nd time 😭
I mean… it kinda became one, no?
goats🫶🏻 https://www.tumblr.com/peach4pazzi/808931983211266048/i-was-reminded-a-lot-of-bueckersburns-works-when
I think it’s time for me to finally confess. This is actually @peach4pazzi’s backup account. Surprise!
Frequent Flyer - Epilogue (2/2)
Masterlist ao3
Pazzi (WNBA Paige x Nurse Azzi)
Word Count: 24k+
═══════════════════
a/n: here it is – the final part in this one shot turned not so mini series. enjoy paige finally meeting the fudd family, much to azzi's chagrin
═══════════════════
Even though it was Tuesday morning, it felt more like a Saturday. Lazy and relaxed. Azzi stood at the stove of her apartment attempting to finish cooking breakfast for the two of them.
The key word being attempting. Because Paige was being her usual self; all up in Azzi’s vicinity with absolutely no sense of personal space. Something Azzi usually secretly adored, but this morning it was starting to grate on her nerves just a bit. Because Paige was constantly in the way.
She stood in front of the fridge when Azzi needed to open it to grab strawberries. And again when she needed to grab milk and eggs for the pancake batter. Each time the nurse tried to reach past her, Paige somehow managed to pivot with her.
“You’re literally a golden retriever puppy in human form,” Azzi grumbled at her girlfriend's ability to be in the most inconvenient spots at all times.
The blonde just grinned, interpreting the comparison as a complement rather than the insult it was intended to be.
At one point, Paige was crowded so close behind her as she took the bacon out of the oven Azzi nearly dropped the hot tray. It sizzled dangerously as the nurse steaded it with her mitted hands.
“Careful,” Paige said, both entirely unhelpfully and unbothered, as she peered at the tray. “You almost dropped that.”
“You’re the reason I almost dropped it,” she muttered under her breath.
The blonde had apparently decided that the best vantage point was directly over Azzi’s shoulder, her chin propped there like it belonged. Her arms loosely wrapped around the nurse’s waist as she hummed along to her playlist floating softly from a portable speaker. Azzi nearly dropped the carton of eggs when Paige suddenly spoke loudly, directly into her ear.
“You better not add mushrooms.”
Azzi jumped. “Jesus, Paige.”
“What? I’m just sayin’. I’ll deal with the other nasty stuff you’re putting in there. But I draw the line at mushrooms.”
Paige was either having too much fun testing the nurse’s patience, or Azzi really did need to get her tested for ADHD. Probably both. But she reached around Azzi every thirty seconds to poke at ingredients with her fingers. She constantly nudged the spatula out of place and left a flour handprint on the nurse's ass. At one point she slid the bowl of veggies just far enough away that Azzi grabbed at empty air. Every time Azzi stepped to the side to regain space, Paige mirrored her movements, smiling as though it was a fun little game they were playing together.
The final straw was when Azzi turned to grab the bowl of freshly cut strawberries, only to pause when she realized it was now half empty. Her head immediately whipped towards Paige, whose mouth was suspiciously full.
She finally snapped. “Paige.”
“Yeah?” the blonde responded, innocently. But the word came out muffled around a mouth full of fruit.
The nurse narrowed her eyes at her girlfriend in accusation, patience wearing thin.
“I’m never going to finish cooking,” she began, exasperated, “if you’re constantly in the way and you eat everything before I can put it all together.”
Blue eyes widened. “That wasn’t me,” she lied.
“There’s literally strawberry juice dribbling down your chin right now,” Azzi countered, unamused.
“How do you know it’s strawberries?” she goaded. “It could be drool. I drool sometimes.”
Azzi lifted her hand up, swiping the juice from the side of Paige’s lip with her index finger before bringing it to her own mouth. Paige’s eyebrows ticked up at the action, as she subconsciously licked her own lips.
Azzi hummed around her finger before removing it from her mouth with an audible pop. “Definitely strawberry,” she informed her.
“I’ll cut more,” she offered obediently, turning to grab the knife.
“No!” Azzi yelled, panic coursing through her blood.
Paige jumped, startled by the sheer volume and intensity of Azzi’s reaction.
“No,” the nurse said again, softer this time. “That’s okay. I’ll cut them. Just– just wash me some new ones.”
Paige pouted, but reluctantly did what she was told.
Although it was taking far longer than Azzi could have ever predicted, breakfast was almost ready. The pancakes sat neatly stacked on a plate next to the stove, steam curling into the air above them. The bacon sat perfectly chopped up on the cutting board, miraculously untouched, waiting to be folded into the eggs.
Paige had been banished an entire foot away from the nurse, leaning up against the counter, watching Azzi mix the veggies into the eggs with rapt attention and an everpresent look of adoration in her eyes.
“Will you hand me that?” Azzi asked, nodding her head towards the bacon on the cutting board.
“‘Course,” Paige responded, eager to help. Azzi gave the eggs one more scramble before turning back to Paige, hand extended to grab the chopped breakfast meat.
Except the blonde wasn’t presenting her with bacon. She was extending a very sharp knife, pointed end first, right at the nurse.
Azzi yanked her hand back mere seconds before it would have stabbed her.
She let out a high pitched yelp. “What the fuck?” she admonished.
“Why are you screaming?” Paige cocked her head at the nurse’s reaction. “You asked me to hand this to you.”
“I was talking about the bacon, Paige!”
“You pointed to the knife!”
“I pointed to the bacon. You see me cooking the eggs. Why would I be pointing to the knife?”
Paige’s cheeks were slowly growing redder the more Azzi scolded her. “I was just tryna be helpful,” she grumbled.
“Helpful? You could have killed me,” Azzi said gravely. “Who the fuck hands someone a knife like that?”
Paige opened her mouth, no doubt ready to defend herself. But then she quickly snapped it shut. Azzi watched her brows furrow as it finally seemed to dawn on her that lunging a knife at someone blade first was not the most appropriate way to hand over something sharp.
Azzi closed her eyes, pinching her nose between her fingers as she released a slow breath and internally prayed for patience.
“How about you grab some plates and get us some water,” she suggested. “That seems… safe.”
Paige looked ready to argue that she could be trusted with more than just getting water, but her shoulders dropped and she relented. “Fine.”
After the blonde filled two glasses with water, notably without injury, she set them carefully on the kitchen table. She returned to Azzi’s side to find the nurse finishing up plating the last of their food. Paige’s eyes lit up immediately as she took in the spread.
“Wow,” she said softly. “Damn, I love you. This looks incredible.”
Azzi snorted. “No thanks to you.”
Paige grinned, unfazed, and leaned in to press a quick kiss to Azzi’s cheek. “It seriously smells amazing, Az. Thank you.”
The sincerity in her voice made Azzi pause. She looked at Paige, feeling her heart squeeze full in her chest at the site of the woman she loved. She pulled the blonde in for a proper kiss.
“Love you too,” she mumbled against her lips. Paige’s eyes were half-lidded and her expression dazed when they separated fully.
Azzi couldn’t help the soft breathy laugh that escaped her at the sight. It happened every time she kissed her, no matter the fact that they had officially been dating nearly six months.
After one last peck to the sharp jut of Paige’s jaw, they made their way to the small table together. Azzi sat first, waiting for the blonde to take the seat across from her. She shouldn’t have been surprised to see her drag the chair beside her as close as physically possible to the nurse’s before plopping down, thighs pressed tightly together.
Paige didn’t even notice her faux glare, or at least, she pretended not to. She took one bite of a pancake and moaned dramatically, like it was her first time eating in days.
“Holy shit, that’s amazing,” she said around a mouthful of food. “What size ring do you wear? Gonna have to wife you up soon.”
Azzi chuckled, rolling her eyes and shaking her head softly as she felt heat rise to her face at Paige’s words. “You’re so annoying.”
The blonde bumped her knee against Azzi’s under the table, smiling softly now. Content. And for a moment, the only sound was the clink of forks and the hum of the city waking up outside.
After they finished eating, Azzi sat on the kitchen counter, legs swinging gently as she watched Paige clean up. The nurse had tried to help, but Paige insisted that if she wasn’t allowed to help cook, then Azzi wasn’t allowed to help clean.
Paige said it was her comeuppance. Azzi was shocked to discover the blonde knew that word. Especially after she had to stop the blonde from pouring the bacon grease down her sink and explain why that would have been a terrible thing to do.
“Most people hand wash the bigger pans,” Azzi told her, as she watched the love of her life struggle to fit a frying pan alongside a massive cutting board, griddle, and baking tray in her now overly full dishwasher.
“Why would I do that if you have a dishwasher?” she reasoned. “It’s literally in the name. It washes dishes.”
It was a struggle, but Paige managed to shove everything inside, pouring in dish soap and pressing start. She looked over at Azzi with a smug smile on her face, far too proud of herself at proving the nurse wrong. But then she stepped between Azzi’s legs, and her smile turned soft.
“Hey,” she said. Her hands came up to rest on the nurse’s thighs, thumbs tracing small circles against the skin there.
Azzi let her arms fall across Paige’s shoulders, fingers playing with the soft baby hairs at the nape of her neck.
“So I’ve been thinking,” Paige said slowly.
“Wow...” Azzi smirked. “Thinking and cleaning. Big day for you.”
Paige clicked her tongue. “Shut up.”
Azzi smiled, leaning in to place a soft kiss against her lips. She lingered for a moment before pulling back. “What were you thinking?”
“Last game of the regular season is next week,” she started, hopeful blue eyes searching warm brown. “And it’s against the Mystics.”
Azzi quirked her brows with a teasing smile. “I know, I have your schedule, remember?”
Paige rolled her eyes. “I mean,” she clarified, “it’s in Washington. Like 15 minutes from where you’re from. Where your family is.”
“Is that where the Mystics are from?” Azzi asked sarcastically. “I knew they sounded familiar.”
The blonde groaned, letting her head fall dramatically against Azzi’s shoulder. The nurse felt the warm breath of her exhale against her neck before she pulled back, meeting Azzi’s eyes with steely determination.
“Would you wanna go?” she asked. “You could fly out with me on the team plane. You could see your family, and I– I could meet them?”
Azzi’s breath hitched. And Paige must have heard it, because she immediately launched into a rambling explanation.
“I just thought… you know, I know you miss them. You talk about them all the time. And you always seem homesick whenever you get off the phone with your parents. I thought maybe you’d wanna go. I know you’d have to be back for work soon and I gotta be back to get ready for playoffs, so it wouldn’t be the longest trip– but I figured any time with them would be better than none.”
She paused for a second, hands moving from Azzi’s thighs to her waist, gripping slightly as if to steady herself as she said her next words.
“And I’d love to finally meet everybody.”
Azzi sat there, hands frozen in Paige’s hair, stunned at the offer. At the sincerity in her voice. At the significance of what meeting her family would mean.
Because the truth was, while Azzi’s family was more than aware she was in a relationship and was happier than she had ever been, they didn’t know just how deeply in love Azzi really was. They also weren’t aware of who exactly the nurse was dating.
They were not aware of the fact that she was dating Paige Bueckers. She came from a basketball family, from people whose lives revolved around the sport. They not only knew who she was, but were huge fans of her game. Paige wasn’t just a household name, she was a Fudd household name.
Azzi had heard the name ‘Bueckers’ tossed around for years. Her parents first noticed her during her freshman year of college, watching her games in their living room. They followed her throughout her collegiate career and watched her get drafted at number one.
And though Azzi never participated herself, it didn’t stop her parents from mentioning the up and coming star over calls and Facetime’s and family visits back home in casual conversation. It was a big part of the reason the nurse was less than thrilled to see Paige in her ER the first time they’d met. So Azzi avoided mentioning exactly who her girlfriend was. Because she didn’t want to deal with the consequences. With the shock, or the questions, or the theatrical fanatics.
There was also the fact that Azzi had never introduced anybody she was dating to her family. She’d had a few boyfriends and a couple other girlfriends in the past, but she was never serious enough about them to bring them home. To let them have access to the people who knew her best and loved her the hardest.
But Paige was different.
She was arguably–terrifyingly–the single most important person in her life. She made Azzi happy in a way that felt steady and real. She made her feel loved. Chosen. Special. Sometimes so intensely it was overwhelming.
The problem was that loving Paige, when it was just the two of them, still felt like something Azzi could control. Something she could choose how to show, when to reveal, and how much to give away. It was theirs, and only theirs. No one knew exactly how much Paige meant to her. No one knew just how in love she actually was.
Her family wouldn’t let it stay like that. They wouldn’t need to be told. They would see right through her.
They’d see it in the way Azzi gravitated toward Paige without thinking. The way her attention never really left her. The way she softened in her presence. They’d notice how easily Paige fit, how naturally she already occupied space in Azzi’s life.
And her family wouldn’t let that slide. They would call her out on it. With knowing looks and comments said far too casually.
The part that scared her most was that Paige would see it reflected back at her through them. She would see how deeply embedded she already was. How profoundly Azzi really loved her. The extent of it.
Because saying I love you behind the sanctuary of closed doors and four walls–between just the two of them–was one thing. But having the people who knew her best witness it firsthand? Confirm it? Expose it? It meant giving up the last of her control. And that was something that terrified her down to her core.
The nurse swallowed, fingers curling slightly in Paige’s hair.
She loved Paige. She wasn’t afraid of that. She was afraid of how real it would become once everyone else saw it too. Afraid of losing control of the narrative.
Azzi hesitated before she spoke.
“Paige,” she said quietly, voice barely a whisper.
And Paige’s face fell. She looked devastated, and Azzi felt a sharp pain stab through her heart at the sight of it. At being the reason for it.
“Do you not want me to meet them?” Paige asked. Her voice was smaller and more uncertain than the nurse had ever heard it before. “Are… are you embarrassed of me?”
Azzi’s stomach dropped. No. No, that’s not it at all. She leaned forward, her fingers tightening in Paige’s hair, anchoring her.
“God, no,” Azzi said quickly, the words spilling out before she could second-guess them. “I could never be embarrassed of you. I love you. So much. I’m… I’m just scared of everyone seeing that. Of them seeing how much you mean to me.”
Paige blinked, relief slowly creeping into her expression, though a trace of hurt lingered in stormy blue eyes.
“I love you, Paige,” Azzi said again, almost a whisper. Needing her to believe it. Letting the weight of it settle between them.
Paige’s lips curved into a small, tentative smile, and she pulled Azzi closer to her, melting into the contact. “I know,” she said. “You’re not as good at hiding it as you think you are.”
Azzi scowled. Paige kissed it off of her with a lingering press of her lips. Hands splaying wide and steady against her lower back.
“I love you too,” Paige said when she pulled away. “And I hear what you’re saying about your family. I get it. I promise. I just– I want to meet the people you love. The people who made you… you. But if you’re not ready, it’s okay. We can wait. It’s okay.”
Azzi shook her head, pressing her forehead to Paige’s. “No. No, I want that too.”
And she meant it. Because Paige was so good to her. So sincere and earnest. So pure with her love and her intentions. She wanted to give Paige whatever she desired, even if it scared her.
“But,” Azzi said, hesitantly. “There’s probably a couple of things I should tell you first.”
Paige cocked her head, interest piqued. “Like what?”
The nurse sat up slightly to reply, but her thoughts were interrupted by the realization of just how stiff and uncomfortable she was. Her body reminding her that sitting on a counter for a long period of time while confessing her fears surrounding emotional intimacy was not conducive to comfort.
“Can we go sit on the couch?” she asked the blonde. “I can’t feel my butt anymore.”
Paige reeled back at that, genuine concern overtaking her face. Her hands shot to Azzi’s waist.
“Are you okay?” she asked, panicked, helping her down gently. “Azzi, I’m very attached to that part of you. It’s one of your best attributes.”
Azzi laughed, the sound breaking into a groan as she tipped her head back. “Why are you like this?”
“Do you need me to massage it?” the blonde continued, her faux concern exposed by the small smirk tugging at her lips. “I’ve been told I’m very good with my hands.”
Azzi rolled her eyes, lightly shoving Paige away from her. “I’m about to unlove you.”
Paige simply stepped back into her space, hands settling low on her waist. “You could never.”
The nurse shook her head, almost imperceptibly. But the blonde took it as a win, a victorious smile splitting her face. “C’mon,” she said, capturing Azzi’s hand in her own and tugging her towards the coach. “Tell me what I need to know about your family. We can come back to the massage later.”
Azzi sat first, leaning her back against one of the arms of the coach and stretched her legs out across the cushions in front of her. Paige followed suit, lifting the nurse’s legs and plopping down in the middle with her feet planted on the floor, legs spread comfortably. The epitome of casual confidence. She placed Azzi’s legs across her lap.
They sat in silence for a moment, Paige tracing delicate patterns across Azzi’s shins as the latter gathered the strength to tell the former that not only has she not told her family who she was dating, but also the fact that she has never brought anybody home.
The nurse could feel inquisitive blue eyes studying her face as she gnawed at her lower lip, stomach heavy with apprehension. But Paige, ever so patient, didn’t rush her. Didn’t push.
Instead, the blonde leaned forward, reaching for the remote on the small coffee table in front of them. She flipped through the channels until she landed on a random ESPN segment, hand never ceasing in its calming movements against Azzi’s leg.
Azzi suspected the action was more for her own benefit than Paige’s own interest, the low volume filling the quiet between them. The quiet that was beginning to eat at the nurse as she got further into her own head.
Paige pretended to pay attention to the ESPN analysts making way too early predictions about the NFL season that had barely begun. But the nurse could feel her sneaking not-so-inconspicious glances. She could sense the growing restlessness in Paige’s energy at the way Azz uncharacteristically fiddled with her own hands in apprehension.
When she finally looked up from her lap, Azzi was not surprised to see Paige already staring at her, a mix of curiosity bordering on concern written across her face. Azzi finally opened her mouth to speak, only to snap it shut, losing the nerve as her gaze fell back to her hands.
“Okay…” Paige drawled out. “You’re starting to freak me out a lil.”
Azzi didn’t answer. Deep in her own thoughts. Feeling like she’d built the moment up into something bigger than it was. Than it should be.
“Az,” She squeezed Azzi’s knee, silently urging the nurse to look at her. “What’s up? Why are you twiddling your thumbs like that?”
“Twiddling my thumbs?” the nurse echoed.
“You know what I mean. Fidgeting like that,” she clarified. “That’s a common saying.”
“Yeah, for an eighty year old, maybe,” Azzi teased with a small smirk.
Paige just shot her a dirty look, eyes narrowing at the taunt.
Azzi let out an exasperated sigh, figuring she needed to simply get it over with. That letting her girlfriend sit in the heavy silence was only building the moment into something unnecessarily dramatic. Creating needless anxiety for the both of them.
Then she lost her nerve.
“Wanna watch a movie?” she asked instead.
The blonde eyed her suspiciously.
“No,” she said, decisively. “I wanna know why you’re deflecting.”
“I’m not deflecting,” But the way she broke eye contact when she said it gave her away.
“Azzi, yes you are,” she told her, like she was stating a fact and there was no room for argument.
But Azzi always found room to argue with her girlfriend.
“No, I’m not,” she insisted. “I just… realized I wanted to watch a movie.”
She knew Paige didn’t believe her. She didn’t even need to hear the obnoxious scoff the blonde let out. Or see the incredulous expression she wore to confirm it.
“So you sat me down here all serious, talkin’ bout how you ‘needed to tell me something’ about your family, got all quiet and twitchy, because you wanted to watch a movie?” she reasoned, voice growing higher in pitch with her disbelief.
“Ugh,” the nurse groaned, tipping her head back dramatically. “It’s really not that big of a deal.”
Paige crossed her arms, settling back against the couch like she had all the time in the world. “Then just say it.”
“You’re so demanding,” Azzi admonished.
“I’m not demanding,” her girlfriend contested. “I’m observant.”
“You’re annoying,” Azzi shot back, flatly.
Paige smiled, sweet and smug. “Doesn’t negate the fact that you’re still not telling me.”
Azzi’s eyebrows shot up at that. “Negate? Comeuppance? Twiddling your thumbs? Did you get a thesaurus I don’t know about?”
“I’ve been reading more,” the blonde shrugged, nonchalant. But Azzi noticed the proud look in her eye regardless. “Guess you’re rubbing off on me.”
Azzi shook her head fondly, a soft laugh escaping her lips.
“Quit stalling,” Paige chastised. “Spit it out already.”
Azzi opened her mouth to argue. Then stopped. Her shoulders sagged, just a little, like the fight had been drained from her.
“…Okay,” she said, dragging the word out. “Fine.”
Paige straightened immediately. “Okay fine?”
“Yes. Okay fine,” Azzi repeated, already regretting it. She rubbed her sweaty palms against her thighs, gaze fixed anywhere but Paige’s face. “But I need you to not freak out.”
“I won’t,” Paige squeezed her leg. “I promise.”
Azzi hesitated anyway.
Paige sighed. “Az.”
“I know, I know,” she said quickly. “I’m going. I’m going.”
She took a breath.
“So… my parents,” she started. “They know I’ve been dating you for a while.”
Paige nodded, quiet now.
“They just don’t know I’ve been dating you,” she said, shoulders sagging with relief once she finally got the words out.
Paige blinked. Then her face scrunched up in confusion as her head cocked to the side. Azzi had to make a concerted effort not to tease her for looking like a lost puppy.
“They don’t– what?” the blonde started, lost. "What do you mean?”
Azzi groaned, frustration curling in her chest with the entire situation. With herself for having gotten to this point in the first place. Nevertheless, she pushed through it.
“I mean,” she clarified. “They don’t know I’m dating Paige Bueckers.”
She didn’t think it was possible, but Paige looked even more confused.
“Then who do they think you’re dating?” the blonde asked, thrown.
“They don’t know, exactly,” Azzi admitted. “I’ve never told them your name. Or shown them a picture. They know you more as a… as a concept.”
She saw a trace of hurt flicker across the blonde’s face, her gaze turning from the nurse to stare blankly at the tv in front of them. Azzi’s stomach sank with the realization.
She sat up, pulling her legs out of Paige’s lap and curing them underneath herself, angling her body into her girlfriend’s space. She reached a hand up, gently cupping the prominent edge of her jaw, forcing her to look at her as she spoke. Needing her girlfriend to hear the truth in her next words.
“Hey,” she said, thumb stroking against a sharp cheekbone.
“It’s not what you’re thinking,” she quickly reassured. Fear flooding through her veins at the thought of Paige thinking–for the second time that night–that she was ashamed of her.
Paige’s blue eyes peered into deep brown, intensely. Like she was trying to discern the truth of the declaration. She looked like she wanted to believe her, but doubt clouded her features.
“Then why haven’t you told them?” she asked, voice breaking on the last word.
Azzi’s eyes squeezed shut, unable to stomach the hurt she saw reflected in stormy blue eyes. She opened them again, desperate to see the lightness return to them.
“My family’s just… a lot. Not in a bad way. But they know who you are,” she confessed. “Basketball family, remember? And it’s not like an ‘oh we’ve heard of Paige Bueckers’ kind of know who you are. They’re huge fans. I’m pretty sure they watch every. single. game. They watched you get drafted.”
Paige exhaled, breath warm against Azzi’s face as she continued to keep her close. Azzi let her forehead fall against the blonde’s.
“It’s honestly annoying,” Azzi complained with a roll of her eyes. “They don’t even know I’m dating you and they still manage to bring your name up. If I told them I was dating you, especially over the phone, I’d never hear the end of it.”
“Yeah?” Paige asked, some of the warmth returning to her eyes. That familiar confidence that hovered dangerously close to arrogance settling into her posture. “They’re really fans? I guess good taste runs in your family.”
“You’re so full of yourself,” Azzi scoffed. “I’m not even gonna touch the ‘good taste’ comment. But yes, they’re fans. My brothers would be unbearable, I didn’t want to deal with it. So I’ve been putting it off. I’m sorry.”
Paige didn’t seem upset anymore, the subtle hurt she wore wholly replaced with immodest pride at Azzi’s information.
“Unbearable, how?” she questioned, conspicuous in her desire for Azzi to feed her ego.
The nurse pulled her head back, glaring at the smug look her girlfriend now wore. Not wanting to give her ammunition, but relenting anyway.
“They’d probably start FaceTiming, like constantly," she began to list. “But not to talk to me. To talk to you. I’d get maybe five minutes a day with you because they’d want your attention. They’d ask you for tickets, and autographs, and probably make you follow their TikTok accounts. And they’d–”
Azzi cut herself off, realization dawning on her.
“Oh my god,” she practically whispered to herself, distressed. “That’s all gonna start soon.”
Paige laughed at that, loud and full. She threw her arm around Azzi’s shoulders, pulling her into her side. The nurse could feel the laughter vibrate from Paige’s chest.
“It’ll be okay,” the blonde told her, placing a firm kiss on her temple. “It’s actually a good thing.”
Azzi stared at her, deadpan. “How is that a good thing?”
Paige shrugged, confident and relaxed. Azzi hated how attractive she found it.
“Means I got an advantage,” the blonde smirked. “If your family already likes me, I basically got this shit on lock. I can charm ‘em easy.”
“Were you born this arrogant or did something happen to make you this way?”
“I told you,” Paige reprimanded. “It’s not arrogance. It’s confidence. They’re different.”
“Not with you,” Azzi grumbled.
Paige laughed again, softer this time. Then her gaze fixed on Azzi’s face, eyes dazed as they usually were when in her presence, and her laughter died down.
“Do they usually like your girlfriends?” she asked with genuine interest.
Azzi hesitated. Paige clocked it. Her brows lifted, eyes widening just enough to signal concern.
“Azzi…” she said carefully.
The nurse rolled her body, dramatically shoving her face into the pillow of the couch. “I’ve never brought anyone home,” she mumbled, the words smothered and half-lost against the fabric.
Paige let out an indignant noise, then reached over and lightly grabbed Azzi’s shoulders, tugging her gently. “What’d you just say? I can’t understand you when you’re literally eating your couch.”
Azzi tried to resist, but Paige’s grip was firm enough to roll her out from where she was smushed against the cushions.
The nurse stared up at the ceiling with pursed lips, feeling warm blue eyes sweep over her like a caress. “I’ve never– I’ve never brought home–”
“A girl?” Paige interrupted, her mind filling in the blank before Azzi could finish. “You’ve never brought a girl home before?”
At that moment, Azzi decided not to correct the blonde. The blonde’s assumption wasn’t completely untrue. She determined that Paige didn’t need to know the extent of it–that she had never introduced anybody she was dating to her family, regardless of gender.
“Maybe,” Azzi muttered.
Paige grinned, far too proud of being what she assumed to be the first girl worthy of meeting Azzi’s family.
They spent the rest of the afternoon discussing the nurse’s family and what they did know about Azzi’s mystery girlfriend until the blonde had to leave for practice. Not five minutes after the door shut, lock clicking into place behind her, did Azzi pull up her mom’s contact. She took a deep breath to steady herself before clicking ‘call’.
Her mom answered on the second ring.
“Hey Az,” came Katie’s warm voice from the other end on the line. “I was just about to call you. Give me one second, your dad’s right here. I’m going to put you on speaker.”
“Hey kiddo,” Tim boomed. “What’s up?”
They caught up for a few minutes, Azzi filling them in on work and life in general, her parents doing the same from 1,300 miles away. Eventually though, the conversation shifted to where it always did ever since she’d admitted to seeing someone when they grew suspicious of how happy she seemed all those months ago.
“So,” Tim dragged out. “How’s the girlfriend?”
Azzi groaned, pretending to be irritated by her parents' nosiness, but couldn’t help the wide smile that overtook her face at the thought of Paige. She’d only been gone for ten minutes and Azzi already missed her.
“She’s good,” Azzi said, withholding any details she knew her parents craved.
“Are you finally going to give us a name?” her mom asked, tone laced with curiosity bordering on irritation for how often she’d had to ask and been subsequently denied.
“Actually,” Azzi paused, preparing herself for the inevitable. “Would you guys want to meet her?”
When she was met with nothing but silence, she pulled her phone from her ear, checking to make sure the call hadn’t disconnected somehow.
“Hello?” she asked, after it was clear that her parents had been stunned into silence. “You guys still there?”
She heard a noise that sounded suspiciously like a phone smacking the ground, before panicked shuffling on the other end.
“Yes,” Tim blurted out, overly enthusiastic.
“Yes, you’re still there?” Azzi asked. “Or yes, you want to meet her?”
“Both,” Katie answered. “Sorry, sweetie. We were just surprised to hear you offer. You’ve just been so… unforthcoming about her.”
“Reserved,” Tim corrected. “She means reserved.”
“Unforthcoming sounds like a diss,” she heard her father chide her mother, voice quieter, indicating he’d pulled the phone lower to have a private conversation.
“She has been unforthcoming,” Katie defended. “She barely tells us anything about her. It’s like trying to get information out of a captured prisoner of war.”
“Well she’s offering now,” Tim responded. “Don’t scare her off. This is big. She never–”
“I can hear you guys,” Azzi interrupted, unimpressed by the conversation being had at her expense on the other end of the line.
“You didn’t mute it?” Katie chastised.
“I lowered it!” Tim said. “I didn’t know she’d still be able to hear! Since when are phones that good at picking up sound?”
She heard the phone adjust, her parents voices coming out clearer when they spoke next.
“Our bad, Az.” Tim said, not sounding very apologetic at all. “We’d love to meet her.”
“Did you have something in mind?” her mom added on.
“She has to be in D.C. for work next week,” Azzi explained. “Thought maybe we could stay an extra day or two and come visit you.”
“That’d be great!” Katie enthused. “You said she works in media, right?”
“Mhm,” Azzi hummed.
“Okay,” her mom continued. Sensing her daughter wasn’t going to willingly give up any extra information. “Do you want to fill us in on exactly what she does?”
Azzi sighed. “She’s in the entertainment business. I’ll let her explain it,” she decided.
“She’s not a pornstar, is she?” Tim asked, abruptly.
Azzi heard a distinct smack from the other end of the line.
“Tim Fudd,” her mom admonished.
“It’s okay if she is,” her dad rushed to reassure. “We won’t judge.”
“She’s not a pornstar,” Azzi said firmly.
They caught up for a few more minutes after that, discussing whatever came to mind. The call ended with Azzi promising to text them with details of her upcoming trip as soon as she had them. A mix of excitement and nervousness running through her as she planned for her near future.
—
It was Azzi’s first time on a private jet. Something Paige seemed to be even more excited about than she was, if the way she was documenting the nurse’s every step was any indication.
She filmed her walking down the tarmac, took a picture of her at the top of the top of the stairs as she climbed aboard, and another of her walking down the aisle to their seats. She recorded a video of her settling into her seat with no concept of personal space.
“Are you gonna do this the whole time,” Azzi asked her, unimpressed with the phone in her face.
Paige lowered her phone and sulked for a total of two seconds before perking right back up. “Y’know the best part about flying private?” she asked Azzi.
Azzi was scared to ask. The blonde didn’t seem to care, answering her own question before Azzi built up the nerve to ask.
“No need for seatbelts,” she grinned, lifting the armrest up between their seats and pulling Azzi’s legs into her lap. “We can cuddle the whole time.”
“That doesn’t seem safe,” Azzi said, doubtful. “Or true. I’m pretty sure you’re supposed to wear seatbelts in any plane. What if we crash?”
“What are you talking about, Az?” Paige guffawed. “Private jets don’t crash.”
She’d said it with such certainty and confidence. Like it was a known fact. But the nurse knew her girlfriend well. Knew her predisposition and tendency to believe her own false convictions and delusions.
“That’s just false,” she said, simply. She pulled her legs out of Paige’s lap to buckle herself in securely, reaching over to do the same for the blonde.
Paige wore a look of shock on her face at Azzi’s lack of belief in her prior declaration, before shifting to shove her face between their seats to get the attention of DiJonai and NaLyssa who sat behind them.
“Do you hear this shit?” she asked, gesturing at Azzi like she was the one being ridiculous. “Will you please let my girl know that private jets don’t crash?”
Azzi snickered when she saw DiJonai’s hand come up and smush against Paige’s face, pushing her back through the space between the seats onto her own side. The blonde let out an indignant squeak at the action, head reeling back overdramatically.
“All planes can crash,” DiJonai informed her, voice laced with tired irritation. Like she was already at her wits end with the blonde before they had even taken off. “Keep your seatbelt on.”
The scowl on Paige’s face only made Azzi laugh harder.
“And keep your face over there,” DiJonai added. “I don’t want to see you shoving your big ass head though my seat crack again. Don’t make me regret sitting behind you.”
Paige clicked her tongue, but relented. Leaning over to whisper a snarky comment about her vet in Azzi’s ear. DiJonai kicked the back of the blonde’s seat when she saw it. Paige whipped her head around to glare at her between the seats.
Once they took off, Paige studied film on her iPad and Azzi quickly fell asleep. Tucked against Paige’s side with her head resting against her shoulder as Paige rubbed soothing strokes along her arm. Their seatbelts stayed on the entire time.
They touched down in D.C. around 5pm, checking into the hotel only an hour later. The game was scheduled for midafternoon the following day. Paige was required to stay in the team provided room at the hotel with the rest of her team, but had made it clear that she would be more than understanding if Azzi elected to stay with her family.
The blonde had grinned, goofy and giddy when Azzi didn’t hesitate in her decision to stay with her instead. There really wasn’t anything for the nurse to consider. She missed her family, and was eager to spend as much time as possible with them. But sleeping in a bed without Paige next to her when it wasn’t necessary was not a viable option in her mind.
So while Paige attended film study, a light shootaround, and recovery with her team, Azzi spent the evening with her family in her childhood home. She fielded questions about her mysterious girlfriend. Questions that only intensified when Azzi presented them with courtside seats for the Mystics game tomorrow, courtesy of said mysterious girlfriend.
“Wait,” Jose said, staring in shock at the ticket his sister handed him. “These are courtside, bruh.”
Azzi watched the rest of her family inspect their own tickets closely to confirm.
“How did your girlfriend get these?” Jon asked, bubbling with excitement.
The nurse sipped from her water to hide a smirk, schooling her features before answering. “She got them through her job.”
Both of her brothers launched into more questions about what it is that her girlfriend does for work to get such lucrative perks. But Azzi’s gaze was focused on her mom, who wore a look of hesitation bordering on concern.
The way she was staring at her, gaze unwavering, eyes searching like she was trying to figure something out, made Azzi nervous.
“Why are you looking at me like that?” she asked her mom defensively, effectively ignoring her brothers who continued to talk over each other.
Katie’s eyes narrowed.
“You want to go to the game?” she asked, voice dripping with disbelief.
Azzi simply shrugged. “Yeah. Why not,” she said, like it was no big deal.
But it was a big deal. And the weight of it seemed to hit her family all at once. It got uncharacteristically quiet, everyone staring at the nurse in stunned silence.
As far as her family knew, Azzi didn’t want to be involved with anything involving basketball. Ever since her injury, the subject had become incredibly difficult to approach. She wouldn’t even watch a game, let alone step onto a court or touch a ball.
And it wasn’t like her family hadn’t tried to bring it back into her life. They brought it up casually all the time, always had it on in the background of FaceTimes or when she visited home, even though she wouldn’t acknowledge it or sit and watch with them.
Azzi had no interest. She would shut down anytime they suggested she pick up a ball or attend a game. It became an unspoken rule not to push her about the subject, that casual mentions were the most that were allowed. So the fact that Azzi was now presenting them with tickets and willing them all to go together–with her–was out of character.
The weight of their stares started to make her restless.
“Can you guys stop being weird?” she demanded, suddenly feeling defensive. “If you don’t wanna go we don’t have to.”
“No!” Jon yelled.
“We wanna go,” Jose declared at the same time.
Jon turned to his parents, distraught. “Can you guys shut up? Don’t make her change her mind!”
“Boys,” Tim’s stern voice cut through the tension. “Go outside.”
“But it’s dark out,” Jose whined.
“Then turn on a light,” Tim countered.
Her brothers grumbled, muttering complaints under their breath as they moved, but left nonetheless. When the sliding door shut behind them, Azzi was left alone to bear the weight of her parents' unrelenting attention.
Azzi met their stares, refusing to break the silence first. Steadfast in her stubbornness. Her eyebrow twitched, daring them to speak first.
Tim sighed heavily, leaning back into the couch.
“Azzi,” he said slowly.
“What?” she snapped.
“Relax,” Tim said, raising his hands into the air. “This isn’t an interrogation.”
Azzi clenched her jaw. “Could’ve fooled me,” she snarked.
“Sweetie,” Katie said kindly, trying to defuse the tension riding in her daughter’s frame. “We’re just a little taken aback, that’s all.”
Azzi swallowed, bracing herself for what came next.
“I mean, you can see why we’re surprised, right?” she asked. “We can barely even mention basketball without you–”
“Chewing our heads off,” Tim interrupted.
Katie leveled her husband with a glare Azzi never wanted to be on the other end of.
“Without you getting a little sensitive,” her mom amended. “It’s usually a touchy subject. We’re just curious about your change of heart.”
“I didn’t have a change of heart,” Azzi snarked, still feeling defensive.
Katie exhaled a loud sigh, Tim scoffed.
“What would you call it, then?” her dad challenged her. “Because the last time I asked you to go to a Mystics game you taught me a new curse word.”
Azzi glared at her father and his lack of tact.
“Pa–” she cut herself off after almost blurting out her girlfriends name. “She got you guys tickets because she knows you love the game and the Mystics are your team. She wants to make a good impression. She knows you guys both played.”
“Does she know you played?” Katie asked, softly.
Azzi averted her gaze. “Yes.”
“Okay,” Katie relented, seeing how difficult of a conversation this was for her daughter. “We won’t push you. It was very nice of her to set that up. We’d love to go to a game, especially with the two of you.”
Azzi exhaled a sigh of relief, tension leaving her shoulders knowing this uncomfortable conversation was coming to an end. “Thank you.”
Her brothers came back in after that, pleased to learn that watching the game courtside was still going to happen. They spent the rest of the night watching a movie together as a family, making unnecessary comments and outlandish theories about the characters.
Azzi said her goodbyes with a plan to meet her family at their seats tomorrow, gratefully accepting the keys to a car they offered her to use on her trip. She made her way back to the hotel to find Paige already asleep.
After getting ready for bed quietly, mindful of her girlfriend breathing soundly just outside of the bathroom, she carefully climbed beneath the covers. Her body found Paige’s, curling into her and seeking out her warmth. The blonde shifted instinctively in her sleep, arm coming to wrap around Azzi’s middle, holding her close.
She felt Paige stir when she tucked her cold feet between her girlfriend’s legs.
“Your feet are icecubes, baby,” Paige murmured sleepily.
Azzi tucked her nose beneath the blonde’s chin.
“Your fault,” she told her. “You have the thermostat at fifty degrees.”
Paige chuckled softly into the top of the nurse’s head, pulling her more firmly against her. She felt her place a lingering kiss to the crown of her head.
“Love you,” she mumbled, before drifting back to sleep.
Azzi smiled against her chest, letting her warmth and the steady beat of her heart lull her to sleep. “Love you too.”
When Azzi woke up the next morning, Paige was already gone. Long having left for her typical pregame routine. She missed Paige’s warmth immediately, but she wasn’t nearly as cold as she had expected to be. One of Paige’s oversized hoodies draped over her where she lay, adding an extra layer to the hotel blankets.
She finally dragged herself out of bed, tugging on the jacket before making her way to the bathroom to get ready for the day. But her eyes caught on the thermostat built into the wall. It was currently set to just under seventy degrees.
Her heart warmed at the thought of Paige turning it up before she left. Knowing she’d wake up cold without her, and doing what she could to make sure that didn’t happen. Azzi bit her lip through a smile, making a mental note to thank her for it later.
She took her time getting ready before making her way to her suitcase. She pulled out a pair of acid washed cargo jeans, pairing it with a simple long sleeve white tee that she tucked up into her bra to show off a hint of her bellybutton piercing, finishing her look with a fresh pair of white airforces.
Azzi made her way out of the hotel towards the stadium, finding her seat with practiced ease. She’d been to several Wings games at this point, but usually elected to sit in a less conspicuous area – aside from her first game.
She didn’t want the attention that often came with courtside seats. Though it was a longshot, the nurse worried a broadcaster might recognize her from the few months she did play at a college level. Her shot used to be something talked about widely.
Plus, Paige was not subtle in her affections. Even though Azzi could tell she really was making an effort to do so. But her heart eyes gave her away, the love stuck smile obvious to anyone paying attention. And Paige had a lot of fans that paid far too much attention to the athlete. She had been lucky she was sitting beside Tre her first game, people assuming the enamored smile was directed towards the small child and not the woman next him.
The nurse heard her family, more specifically, her brothers, before she actually saw them. Their voices pulled her attention away from her phone where she was actively texting her girlfriend. When they approached, Azzi stood up to greet them, tucking her phone into her back pocket.
“These seats are insane,” Jose raved, already pulling his phone out to snap a photo of their view of the court.
Jon nodded in agreement, mouth full of a hotdog Azzi didn’t even realize could be purchased so soon before the game started. They took their seats, leaving the seat on one side of Azzi empty, assuming it would soon be occupied by her girlfriend. Her mom sat on the other side of her, her brothers sandwiched between their parents.
“So where’s your girlfriend?” Katie asked, expectantly.
Tim threw an arm against the back of her brother's chair, leaning forward to join the conversation. “Yeah, need to thank her for the seats.”
Azzi smirked. “She’s around here somewhere.”
Just as the words escaped her mouth, the both teams began to funnel out of the tunnel to go through their pregame warmups. Her family’s attention shifted to the Mystics side. Azzi’s eyes never strayed from the Wings’ star player.
Her parents kept looking at the entrance tunnels for the courtside seats. Expecting Azzi’s girlfriend to walk out at any moment. The nurse had to stop herself from laughing at their blatant suspense.
As the players began to get some shots up, she could feel her family’s eyes shift to Paige, like the majority of the stadium. It was like she commanded attention, the smoothness with which she moved. The confidence in her shot.
“I can’t believe we’re about to see Paige Bueckers play from this close up,” Jon said starstruck, eyes following the ball as it left her hands and sunk cleanly through the net. He had finally finished his hotdog and was now entirely focused on the players in front of him.
“No, for real,” Jose agreed. “She was insane last season. But she’s on a whole other level this year. Everybody knows she’s been moving different. I don’t know what she did, but it’s been working.”
Azzi smiled shyly to herself as her brother discussed their theories as to what had Paige playing with “extra swag” this year. She turned back to her phone, remembering her vow to fill Caroline in on her visit and making good on that promise. Azzi was convinced her friend might have been even more excited than Paige herself when she heard she was going to meet her family.
She was interrupted from Caroline’s incessant texts–questions firing off far faster than Azzi could respond–by the feeling of a ball rolling up against her shoe. She lifted her eyes from her phone only to be met with bright blue eyes and a wide smile beaming at her from just a couple of feet away.
Paige closed the space quickly, under the guise of picking up the lost ball Azzi suspected hadn’t actually been lost at all. She picked it up smoothly, but didn’t move to head back to join the rest of her team as they continued to shoot around.
“Whoops,” Paige smirked. “My bad.”
Azzi rolled her eyes, but couldn’t stop the fond smile that pulled at her lips. She looked up at the blonde from where she sat.
“You need to work on your handles,” the nurse informed her girlfriend. “That was sloppy.”
Paige’s eyebrows shot up, mouth falling open around a poorly concealed grin in faux offense.
“Bueckers!” DiJonai yelled, jogging up and physically dragging Paige away by the collar of her warm up shirt. “Stop flirting and focus.”
Paige frowned, removing DiJonai’s hand from where it twisted in her shirt and saying something Azzi could only assume was beyond insulting given the way DiJonai chucked a ball at the back of the blonde’s legs.
Azzi smiled knowingly, eyes following Paige as she ran away from DiJonai, who had managed to find another ball to target her with.
The next time DiJonai passed by Azzi, she shot her a glare. “This is why you’re not allowed to sit up front, Az,” she snarked under her breath.
Azzi was so focused on Paige and the besotted smiles she kept shooting her way after each shot that she didn’t register her family’s dumbfounded silence until it was too late. After a particularly impressive three, Paige turned towards Azzi and winked.
“What the actual fuck?” Jose blurted out, his head swinging dramatically between Azzi and Paige like he was watching a tennis match.
The affectionate grin fell from Azzi’s lips as she turned to face her brother. Her family was staring at her flabbergasted, with their mouths hanging open.
Azzi tried to play it off, feigning apathy. But it was too late, she could see the understanding settle over them in real time.
Well, everyone but Jon.
“How does DiJonai Carrington know your name?” he asked, looking completely lost.
Jose smacked him on the back of the neck. Hard.
Azzi shrugged, aiming for casual indifference. She only held it for a second, before a grin split her face and a breathless laugh escaped her.
“There’s no way,” Jose said, eyes alight with excitement at the implication.
“There’s no way what?” Jon asked, rubbing the back of his neck to soothe the sting of Jose’s previous hit.
“She’s dating Paige Bueckers, you idiot,” Jose told him, mindful of his volume and the people around them in the now full arena.
Jon’s eyes widened in realization. His next words coming out far too loud.
“You’re girlfriend is P–”
Tim smacked a large hand over his son's mouth, cutting off the rest of his sentence. Something Azzi was more than grateful for.
Azzi’s eyes shot forward, finding Paige on instinct. The blonde was already looking at her with a familiar smirk, having figured out the revealing conversation Azzi was currently suffering through.
The nurse slyly slipped her a middle finger, before turning back to her family.
“Well…” she sighed, exasperated. “You’ve been asking for a name. Now you’ve got one.”
Much to Azzi’s appreciation, the buzzer sounded and the lights turned low before her family could harass her, signaling the start of player introductions.
She could feel five sets of eyes on her as they began to announce the Wings starters. Four coming from beside her. The fifth coming from across the court, courtesy of piercing blue eyes.
By the time the final whistle blew, it was clear to everyone who watched Paige was showing off, but only clear to a few the reason why. The guard had made shots that should have been impossible. She ended the night with a 31/5/10 statline, with startling efficiency, only missing a total of three shot attempts.
ESPN would be talking about it for weeks. Her own family, even longer. Azzi practically had to drag her family from the arena once the game concluded. Only willing to leave once Azzi reminded them that Paige would be at their house in just a couple of hours.
After finally seeing her parents and brothers off, she made her way back to the hotel. Paige met her there after her post game media, pulling Azzi into a tight embrace when she saw her. She only pulled back enough to capture Azzi’s lips in a searing kiss that was rendered somewhat ineffective by the grin Paige seemed unable to suppress.
“So your family figured it out, huh?” she said after she reluctantly separated herself from the nurse.
She started to strip, preparing to shower before dinner with Azzi’s family. Azzi had an answer ready, but her reply escaped her when Paige removed her shirt, exposing her toned stomach, sweat still sheeining lightly against her pale skin.
Azzi snapped her gaze up when she heard Paige snicker, and scowled at the smirk on her girlfriend's face.
“Distracted?” Paige teased, already knowing the answer. She set a change of clothes on the bed to presumably change into after she showered.
“Shut up,” Azzi said with no real bite. “How’d you know they figured it out? Maybe I told them.”
“Nah,” Paige made her way to the bathroom, turning on the water and waiting for it to heat up. Azzi followed.
“I saw your face,” the blonde explained, taking her hair out of its ponytail. “You looked caught. Like you got busted. It was cute.”
Paige stepped forward to kiss the pout Azzi didn’t realize she was wearing off of her face.
“Plus, your brother, Jon?” Paige said through a soft chuckle. “He’s kinda loud. Almost announced it to the whole stadium.”
“Ugh,” Azzi groaned at the reminder. “Don’t remind me. I’m lucky my dad shut him up.”
Paige laughed at the distressed look on Azzi’s face, finally pulling back the curtain and stepping into the shower and closing it behind her.
“I’m gonna pack everything up,” Azzi informed her. “You gonna be ready to go soon?”
Paige stuck her head out of the curtain, hair saturated with water. “You wanna shower first? You can join me. Save water and all that.”
“Fat chance.” Azzi pushed her back in with a finger to her forehead. “Hurry up and de-stink.”
The sound of Paige’s laugh followed her out of the bathroom. The rest of the team was heading back to Dallas that night, but Paige had somehow managed to get permission to stay an extra two days.
Azzi wasn’t sure who Paige had managed to convince, or how she did it, but the team didn’t play for another five days, and the blonde could be incredibly persuasive when she wanted to be.
The nurse packed up the last of their stuff, rolling her eyes at the two enormous bags Paige had brought for a trip that would last less than 72 hours.
“Such an overpacker,” she mumbled to herself.
By the time Paige stepped out of the shower, their bags were ready and waiting for them by the door. Azzi stepped into the bathroom to pee, expecting her girlfriend to be dressed and ready by the time she was finished.
What she didn’t expect was to find Paige still in her towel. One of her suitcases on top of their bed, almost entirely unpacked with clothes strewn across nearly every surface of their previously packed up hotel room.
“Paige,” Azzi groaned. “What are you doing? Everything was ready to go. Why are your clothes… everywhere?”
“Tryna find an outfit,” the blonde answered, undeterred in her focus.
“What happened to the outfit you laid out before your shower?” she asked, exasperated.
“Wasn’t good enough.”
The blonde continued rifling through clothes, picking up an item to inspect it before shaking her head and tossing it to the side. She was so immersed in her task she didn’t even notice one of the shirts she tossed behind her smack Azzi in the head with a soft thump.
“Okay,” Azzi huffed. “This is ridiculous. You’re being ridiculous.” Azzi’s hand wrapped around Paige’s wrist, halting her in her movements. Paige finally turned to look at her, expression serious.
“I’m not being ridiculous,” she told her, earnestly. “This is important. I need to pick something that’s gonna impress everyone.”
“If that’s what you’re going for then you might as well just wear your uniform,” Azzi muttered facetiously.
“Should I?” Paige asked, clearly failing to hear the sarcasm.
“No!” Azzi exclaimed, mortified that she was actually considering it. “Ew. You just played a full game in it. That thing probably smells.”
“Yeah. Smells like a winner,” Paige argued.
“Smells like sweat,” Azzi corrected.
“Then why would you tell me to wear it?” Paige looked distraught.
“I was joking, Paige,” she said. “It was a joke.”
Her girlfriend scowled. “This is not the time for jokes.”
Azzi sighed, long and deep.
“Don’t sigh like that,” the blonde admonished. She turned back to her clothes.
“Like what?” Azzi asked, arms folding across her chest.
“Like I’m being difficult.”
“You are being difficult.”
Paige turned to face her again, the look on her face giving Azzi pause. She looked genuinely distressed. Her bottom lip quivered and her eyes took on a glossy sheen.
Azzi closed the space between them in the span of a heartbeat, allowing her hands to rest at the nape of Paige’s neck, fingers stroking gently through the hair there.
“Baby,” Azzi breathed into the small space between them. “It’s okay.”
Paige squeezed her eyes shut, either in embarrassment or to stave away tears. Perhaps both. Azzi lifted her hands to cup her face, thumbs brushing gently just beneath her eyes. She placed a light kiss against her lips, then another on the tip of her nose for good measure.
She continued peppering soft kisses across her face until Paige opened her eyes again. Rather than the bright blue she was used to, Azzi was met with stormy eyes clouded with apprehension.
“Paige,” Azzi tried again. “I promise you, you look good in everything, okay? My parents aren’t gonna like you any less because you chose the wrong shirt.”
“Okay,” Paige said, but she didn’t look like she believed her.
“What if I help you pick something?” Azzi offered, eager to ease the uncertainty her girlfriend was currently wearing like a cloak.
Paige’s shoulders sagged in relief at the offer as she nodded fervently. “Please.”
After far too many options denied, they finally settled on an outfit. Paige changed into loose black pants and a black tank top that showed off her arms. She zipped up a mauve zip-up over the top of it, and layered an open black jacket over it.
She looked good. Almost too good. To the point where it was distracting. Azzi was tempted to tell her family they could meet Paige some other time and spend the rest of the night in the hotel just the two of them.
But she didn’t. Instead, she repacked Paige’s bag for the second time that night while her girlfriend applied a light layer of makeup. They left the hotel far later than Azzi had expected. Paige stubbornly carried Azzi’s duffle in addition to the two massive suitcases of her own she dragged behind her. Resolute in her decision to not let Azzi carry a thing.
Azzi let Paige drive, unsurprised by the offer and content to accept her usual role as passenger princess. She was surprised, however, when Paige pulled off of the main road into the parking lot of a supermarket.
She didn’t even have time to question the unplanned stop before Paige was climbing out of the car and making her way over to the passenger side. She opened Azzi’s door, offering out a hand.
When Azzi didn’t move to exit the car, instead peering up at the blonde, confused, Paige reached into the car and unbuckled her herself. She all but dragged Azzi into the store, only slowing when she reached a section showcasing at least fifty different bouquets.
“Which ones would your mom like the most?” she asked the nurse.
Azzi didn’t respond right away. Too busy studying the woman before her, warmth spreading from her chest through every nerve at the realization of why they stopped.
She didn’t understand why Paige’s thoughtfulness continued to surprise her time and time again. It was something she should be used to by now. It was a part of who she was at her core. Kind. Considerate. Pure. She did everything with intention. But it never failed to make Azzi’s heart pound wildly against her rib cage.
Her girlfriend was so beautiful on the inside and out. Azzi could do nothing but look at her with awe.
It took less than three minutes before Paige became visibly flustered.
“Relax, P,” she cooed, stoking her thumb across Paige’s knuckles surreptitiously, cognizant of the people around them. “They’re going to love you.”
“How do you know that though?” she asked hesitantly. Voice filled with an insecurity Paige never typically showed. “I’m the first girl you’ve brought home. What if I mess it up somehow? Or they figure out I’m not good enough for you? Or what if–”
“Not good enough for me?” Azzi interrupted, taken by complete surprise at the words that just came out of her girlfriend's mouth.
“Azzi,” Paige said. “I mean, come on. You’re way out of my league. You’re way too fucking good for me and they’re gon–”
She interrupted her yet again. This time with an abrupt tug on her arm, yanking the blonde into an empty aisle so she could set the record straight without anyone overhearing what she was about to say.
“Stop saying that,” Azzi demanded, voice low and stern, laced with warning.
Paige’s head cocked to the side, a look of genuine confusion overtaking her expression. “Saying what?”
“That– that you don’t deserve me,” Azzi stuttered, still in disbelief that Paige genuinely seemed to believe that sentiment.
“I don’t, Az,” she said simply.
Azzi’s jaw clenched so tight she worried she might crack a tooth.
“Why are you so upset?” Paige asked, puzzled.
“Because it’s not true!” she exclaimed. “And it pisses me off that you would ever even think that.”
“I–”
“No, Paige,” Azzi interrupted before the blonde could even attempt to justify herself. “You’re so good. You’re so good to me. I– I just…”
She didn’t know how to express how she felt about her with words. Nothing would be adequate enough to explain the way she felt. The way the blonde had become the center of her world. The way that just looking at her, being in her presence, felt like gravity. How she couldn’t breathe when she thought of not having Paige in her life.
“I love you,” she settled on instead. “You make me so fucking happy. And that’s all my parents want for me. They’re going to love you too. Almost as much as I do. I know it.”
Paige took a breath and Azzi saw the tension leave her body with the exhale. Then she smirked.
“Can’t believe you love me so much. Kinda embarrassing for you.”
“Shut up,” Azzi said with a roll of her eyes before pulling Paige in for a kiss. Paige captured Azzi’s bottom lip between her teeth, tugging on it gently as she pulled back.
“For the record, I love you an embarrassing amount too,” she murmured against the nurse's lips before closing the distance again.
Azzi kissed her deeply. Slow and hungry. Like she was trying to pour everything she was feeling but couldn’t say into the kiss. Azzi felt the blonde’s tongue trace her bottom lip, and parted her lips granting Paige access. She couldn’t help the small, breathy whine that escaped her mouth at the feeling of Paige’s tongue against her own.
They got lost in the moment, forgetting where they were as Azzi felt one of Paige’s hands slide from her waist to her ass, squeezing as she pulled Azzi flush against her.
They only broke apart when Azzi registered the sound of someone obnoxiously clearing their throat, apparently in need of whatever product was on the shelf directly behind the two women. One of her hands covering the eyes of her son. They jumped apart, Azzi felt heat rise to her face, Paige looked entirely too proud of herself given the situation they were in.
“Good evening,” Paige said, grabbing Azzi’s hand and leading her back to the flowers. Azzi avoided eye contact with the woman as she let Paige drag her away.
“You’re blushing,” Paige whispered for only the nurse to hear. Azzi didn’t even need to look at her to know exactly which smirk the blonde was wearing.
“Of course I’m blushing,” she whisper-yelled. “You just groped me in a grocery store in front of a child.”
“Nah, that kid was at least thirteen. Probably the highlight of his life,” Paige said smugly.
Azzi slapped her arm with an audible smack.
“Why are you like this?” she groaned.
“Don’t know,” Paige shrugged. “But you love me anyways. Now help me pick which flowers your mom’s gonna like the most.”
By the time they pulled in front of the Fudd household, Azzi could feel the anxiety practically rolling off of Paige in waves. The blonde stood in the driveway frozen, staring at the front door with one of her oversized suitcases in one hand and a vice grip on the bouquet of flowers she had finally chosen.
Azzi had suggested they leave their bags in the car until after dinner, but Paige insisted that one in particular needed to be brought in immediately.
When Paige didn’t seem to hear Azzi call her name, the nurse stepped in front of her. She brought a hand up to the blonde's face, gently cupping her jaw. Azzi could see the moment she snapped out of whatever trance she was in, eyes jolting towards the nurse in surprise.
“You’re gonna do great, baby,” Azzi said softly. “If anyone should be nervous, it’s me. I literally have zero idea what embarrassing stories my brothers and dad are probably planning on telling you.”
It seemed to be the right thing to say, as Paige lit up with a hopeful smile. “You think I’m gonna get some good stories?”
“God I hope not,” Azzi breathed out, linking her arm with Paige’s and leading them to the front door.
Azzi reached for the doorknob, preparing to open the door when Paige’s free hand shot out to catch her wrist.
“What are you doing?” Paige asked, horrified.
“Um,” Azzi faltered, confused by the blatant panic in her girlfriend's voice. “Opening the door?”
“We can’t just walk in,” Paige practically choked out.
Azzi’s hands fell to her sides in resignation. “What are you talking about?”
“We have to knock,” Paige explained. “Or ring the doorbell.”
“You do know I lived here for almost twenty years, right?” Azzi questioned her logic.
Paige blinked. “Well I didn’t,” she reasoned.
Azzi threw her head back and groaned.
“Fine,” she sneered. “I’ll ring the doorbell of my own home.”
She pressed the button and heard the sound echo through the house, footsteps growing closer until the door swung open. Her dad stood on the other side, wearing a look of confusion.
“Why did you ring the doorbell?” he asked. “The door was unlocked.”
Azzi smirked, mumbling an “I told you,” under her breath only for Paige to hear as she entered her house.
“We wanted to be polite,” Azzi answered her dad, sparing Paige the embarrassment and giving him a quick hug before separating.
Tim looked at his daughter like she’d grown a second head.
“Since when are you polite?” he teased.
“Shut up,” Azzi pouted. “You’re not funny.”
She turned to Paige, motioning her to come in. She stepped into the house, dragging her comically large suitcase in behind her. Flowers still gripped tightly in her hand.
“Paige, this is my unfunny dad, Tim,” she turned towards her dad. “Dad, this is–”
“Paige Bueckers,” Tim interrupted. He wore an unimpressed look Azzi knew took everything in him to maintain in front of her girlfriend.
He’d never had the chance to play the role of an intimidating, overprotective father in front of anyone she had dated. She knew he was going to take full advantage of the opportunity now. She rolled her eyes, hoping Paige wouldn’t fall for his act.
Paige shifted the flowers into her left hand and stuck out her right for Tim to shake.
“It’s nice to meet you, Mr. Fudd,” she said politely. “I’ve heard a lot about you.”
Her dad accepted the handshake, shaking it a little too firmly for Azzi’s liking. But Paige didn’t flinch.
“Who was at the door?” she heard her mom shout from the kitchen.
“Your daughter,” Tim informed her, eyes never leaving Paige.
“Really?” Katie said, voice getting closer. “Why did she ring the doorbell?”
Azzi saw Paige’s shoulders slump minisculely in defeat beside her.
Her mom rounded the corner, eyes locking onto Paige as soon as she was in sight, silently appraising the first person Azzi had ever deemed worthy enough to introduce to her parents.
She saw a flash of fear in Paige’s eyes before it was replaced by steely determination. She smiled warmly at Katie, moving to stick her hand out again.
But her mom opened her arms, pulling Paige in for a hug before the blonde could so much as fully extend her hand. Paige’s arms wrapped around Katie, careful of the flowers she still held in one hand.
“It’s nice to finally meet you, sweetheart," her mom said as she pulled back.
“Yeah,” the blonde agreed. “You too.”
Azzi watched her girlfriend seem to realize she was still holding the flowers she got for her mom.
“Oh, um,” she stuck the bouquet out rather awkwardly. “These are for you.”
“Thank you, Paige,” she said, accepting them. “They’re beautiful. I’m going to put them in some water. Can I get you something to drink?”
Azzi grabbed Paige’s arm, pulling her towards the kitchen after her mother. Tim followed close behind.
“Water’s fine,” Paige finally answered. “Thank you.”
Azzi pushed her mother out of the way, filling a glass for Paige as her mom busied herself filling a vase for the flowers. She handed Paige her drink and moved to stand next to her at the kitchen island opposite her parents.
Azzi let her shoulder brush against the blonde’s, just as much for her own benefit as her girlfriends.
“We’ve heard a lot about you,” Katie said
“Not really,” Tim chimed in. Azzi and Katie sent him matching glares.
“Yes, we have,” her mom said pointedly. “Azzi just kept some things hidden. Like your name, your face, and your profession. But she talks about you all the time.”
Azzi felt her cheeks heat up.
“That’a an overexaggeration,” she interjected. “And I didn’t keep her profession hidden. I just didn’t say it… explicitly.”
Her mom leveled her with an unamused stare. “You told us she was in the entertainment business.”
“Entertainment business?” Paige echoed mortified, nearly choking on her water. “Azzi, that makes it sound like I’m a porn star!”
Tim barked out a laugh that startled Paige. The first break in his composure.
“That’s what I said,” her dad agreed, expression back to stern.
“Azzi, what the hell?” she said quietly, only intended for Azzi’s ears but heard by her parents regardless.
Azzi scowled at both Paige and her father.
“Entertainment business does not automatically mean a porn star,” she said flatly, gaze fixated on her girlfriend now. “It encompasses a ton of different careers. It’s an umbrella term.”
“Yeah but most people go on to explain which part of the umbrella they fall under,” Paige argued. “Leaving it at just ‘in the entertainment business’ is what porn stars say when they don’t want to admit that they’re a porn star.”
Azzi snatched Paige’s glass of water from her hand, bringing it to her own mouth to take a sip before handing it back.
“Why do you know so much about porn stars?” Azzi challenged her with a raise of her brows.
Paige’s eyes widened in shock as she subtly kicked Azzi beneath the counter.
“Ignore her,” Katie told Paige.
Tim grunted. “It’s a valid question.”
“Ignore him,” Azzi echoed her mom’s words, nudging Paige with her shoulder. “He’s just trying to seem scary. It’s all an act.”
“It’s working,” Paige mumbled quietly.
Before Azzi could respond the back door slid open, Jon and Jose tumbling inside the house mid argument. Their family dog, Stewie, ran straight to Azzi, stopping to say hi for just a second before turning towards Paige with a wagging tail.
“It’s win by two… to eleven,” Jose huffed. “You can’t just call game and get the win if you're up eight to six. That’s not how it works.”
“I won by two,” Jon said, defiantly.
“You were up by two and then you left! You didn’t make it to ele–”
Jose cut himself off when he rounded the corner to the kitchen and he noticed who was in the room, freezing in his steps. Paige was currently crouched down, giving the small dog lots of love.
Jon walked directly into Jose’s back.
“Bro, what the hell,” Azzi’s youngest brother complained as he stumbled back. “Why would you just stop walking, I–”
His eyes finally landed on Paige.
“Holy shit,” he said.
“Idiots,” Azzi muttered under her breath. She saw Paige look up at her with a fond smile before standing and shifting her gaze to her brothers.
“Jon, Jose, this is Paige,” Azzi introduced. “Paige, these are my idiot brothers. And my dog, Stewie.”
Jose cleared his throat, then tipped his head up in acknowledgement in an attempt to be cool.
“‘Sup,” he said. “Nice to meet you.”
“You’re Paige Bueckers,” Jon said, starstruck. Like he hadn’t just seen her play a couple of hours ago and nearly very publicly announced that she was Azzi’s girlfriend
“Oh my god,” Azzi grumbled, letting her head collapse against her arms on the counter.
Paige looked at Azzi and then grinned, foot moving to press against her own beneath the counter in silent support before her gaze shifted back to the boys.
“Yup,” she confirmed. “It’s good to meet you guys.”
“Can I get your autograph?” Jon blurted out.
Azzi unburied her head from her arms at that, sending her brother a warning glare.
Paige said “sure” at the same time Azzi said “no”.
The two looked at each other.
“No,” Azzi said again, firmer this time. She shifted her gaze to Jon. “Go shower or something. I can smell you from over here.”
“Be nice,” Katie chided. “But she’s right. You both need to shower. You stink.”
They opened their mouths to protest, but Tim beat them to it.
“No arguing,” he cut in. “Listen to your mother.”
The two boys sulked as they left the kitchen, making their way upstairs.
“I’m going to go pick up some extra stuff from the store for dinner,” Katie informed the couple. “Paige, are you okay with BBQ? Tim wants to show off his grill skills.”
“She’s a vegetarian," Azzi answered before she could agree with the offered food.
“She’s lying,” Paige quickly reassured her. “Barbeque sounds great, thank you, Mrs. Fudd.”
Katie rolled her eyes at her daughter, then turned towards Paige.
“Katie,” her mom corrected her girlfriend. “I’ll be back in a bit. You guys get settled,” she told them. “Azzi, give her the tour.”
Katie started to make her way out of the kitchen when Azzi noticed her father hadn’t stopped staring the blonde down.
“Take Dad with you!” Azzi called out to her mother. “He’s being weird.”
“Tim,” Katie beckoned. “You can drive.”
Her dad stood with a grunt, narrowing his eyes at Paige one last time before exiting the kitchen. The sound of the front door opening and closing followed soon after, and Paige and Azzi were finally alone.
Paige moved to collapse dramatically onto a chair behind her, running her hands down her face in obvious distress.
“What is wrong with you?” she asked the nurse.
Azzi plopped down onto her lap with a grin, hands wrapping around her shoulders. Paige’s hands found her waist like it was second nature.
“What?” Azzi asked innocently.
“Why do I know so much about porn stars?” she quoted with a pinch to Azzi’s side, making her yelp. “Why would you ask me that in front of your parents?”
Azzu full on giggled.
“It’s not funny,” the blonde chastised, but the corners of her mouth twitched. “Who does that, Azzi? It’s like you want to see me suffer.”
“You made me ring the doorbell,” Azzi said, like that was all the explanation necessary.
Paige’s head fell into the nurse’s chest, breath huffing in an exaggerated huff against the skin of her decolletage.
“You’re a monster,” she mumbled.
“Feel better down there?” Azzi asked with a grin, referring to the way Paige’s face was buried in her cleavage.
“Honestly?” Paige asked. “Yeah.”
Azzi smirked, an idea coming to mind. She was having far too much fun messing with her girlfriend to stop now.
“Oh hey, Dad,” Azzi said to the empty room.
Paige’s head shot up from Azzi’s chest so fast the nurse nearly slid off of her lap from the force of it. Her girlfriend's cheeks turned bright red as she scanned the room, expecting to see Azzi’s father.
Azzi couldn’t hold it together any longer, laughter escaping her full bellied and loud. Paige gave her a look resembling a mix of disbelief and betrayal when she finally realized they were still alone and the nurse was just messing with her.
“You’re actually evil,” she told Azzi. But the look on her face was quickly morphed into one adoration, a tender smile falling across her lips as she watched Azzi laugh with unbridled joy.
The nurse took a moment to compose herself before sliding off of Paige and offering her a hand to stand up.
“C’mon,” she said, eyes scanning Paige from head to toe when she stood. The way she looked was really doing something to her tonight. “I’ll give you a tour.”
And Azzi did. She took Paige room to room, giving her time to take in the pictures of a younger version of Azzi on the walls and answer her questions about the stories behind them.
When they made it to Azzi’s room, Paige had grabbed their bags from the car and dumped them in the corner. The blonde left one of her two suitcases in the living room downstairs, claiming she had to grab something out of it when her dad was back before she could bring it up.
So now, Paige currently stood in the center of her childhood bedroom, taking everything in with wide eyes. Azzi was content to watch her. To see the way her eyes tracked the photos hung on the wall. The way she gently trailed her fingers against the objects on her desk, against the soft pink comforter on her bed.
“It’s so… you,” she finally said.
Azzi blinked. “It’s my room.”
Paige rolled her eyes.
“Yeah but, it’s like unapologetically you,” she explained, moving to sit next to Azzi on the bed. “You have a room in your apartment in Dallas, but it’s more muted. This is like… unfiltered Azzi.”
The nurse scoffed.
“Seriously, Az,” Paige continued. “This is what I’d imagine the inside of your brain looks like. Kinda messy, and cluttered, and full of random stuff and… so pink.”
Azzi frowned. “That is not how I’d want someone to describe my brain.”
Paige’s gaze met her own, steady and full of warmth. She leaned in slowly, capturing Azzi’s lips in an easy, unhurried kiss. The nurse leaned into it instinctually. It was soft and familiar in a way that made her chest ache.
When she pulled back, she suddenly found that she didn’t mind Paige’s earlier description of her brain. Not when she looked at her the way she was now, gaze filled with unbridled adoration. Full of uninhibited love.
“Wanna see the backyard?” Azzi asked quietly.
Paige smirked. “Is that a euphemism?”
She caught Azzi’s hand when it came up to smack her, placing a kiss to her knuckles before interlacing their fingers and telling her to lead the way.
They barely made it down the stairs when they were cut off by Azzi’s overeager brothers.
“Where are you guys going?” Jose asked, blocking them from escaping.
Jon was next to him, mouth agape as he stared up at Paige.
Azzi narrowed her eyes at both of them. “None of your business. Go away.”
“Don’t be an asshole,” Jose scowled.
“We wanna hang out with Paige,” Jon told them.
“You can hang out with Paige later,” she told her brothers, pulling Paige closer similar to the way a child did with something they were afraid someone might take.
She felt more than heard the soft laugh Paige let out at her possessive reaction.
“Actually,” Paige started. “I have something for you guys.”
Azzi looked at her girlfriend, head titled in confusion. She didn’t mention anything about bringing something for her brothers. Jon and Jose lit up at the words.
“What is it?” Jon asked, nearly bouncing with excitement.
“C’mon,” she said, interlacing her fingers with Azzi and giving her hand a squeeze. “I’ll show you.”
She led the three siblings to the living room, removing her hand from Azzi’s to undo the zipper of her giant suitcase. Azzi was lost, all she saw were layers of Paige’s clothes folded and shoved together without much care.
Until she removed a hoodie splayed wide over the top. Beneath it was a brand new, unopened PS5 box. The seal was still unbroken.
Jon made a noise somewhere between a laugh and a choke. Jose blinked, eyes darting between the box and the professional athlete. “No way,” he said, his voice threaded with disbelief and giddy awe.
“Did–” Azzi stared at Paige, genuinely at a loss for words. “Did you buy my brothers a PS5?”
Paige met her gaze, then shrugged.
“You said they’ve been complaining about their PS4 not working right,” she said simply.
She said it like that explained everything. Like showing up with a brand-new gaming console for your girlfriend’s siblings was a perfectly reasonable thing to do when meeting her family for the first time.
Jose let out a sharp laugh. “Nah, this is fake. This gotta be some kind of prank.”
Jon crouched down, inspecting the box for any signs of counterfeit.
“It’s real,” he declared. “It’s sealed and everything.”
Paige nodded. “I kept the receipt,” she added. “Just in case.”
Azzi finally found her voice. “In case of what? Buyer’s remorse?”
Paige’s mouth twitched. “In case your parents don’t want them to have it.”
“No!” Jose said, panicked. “They definitely want us to have it.”
Jon looked up from the box, eyes wide. “Can we– am I allowed to hug you?”
Paige laughed. “Yeah. I think that’s allowed.”
They left Azzi’s brothers in front of the TV, enthusiastically setting up their new console, arguing about what to play first. Azzi recaptured Paige’s hand and quietly led them towards the back door.
“You’re ridiculous,” Azzi mumbled to her girlfriend.
When they finally stepped outside, Azzi flipped the switch next to the door, turning on a series of string lights that traced the fence line and cut softly through the dark. Azzi noticed the way Paige’s eyes lingered on the small concrete basketball court tucked to one side, a single hoop standing beneath the lights with a ball resting against the post.
“Come on,” she said, pulling Paige towards the court, sensing the way she was drawn to it.
Paige stepped onto the concrete carefully, eyes gazing at the string lights draped over the space. The lights glowed softly against Paige’s skin, making her look ethereal. Azzi couldn’t help but pull out her phone and sneak a photo of her, capturing the moment forever. She tucked the phone back into the pocket of her pants and beelined for the basketball.
She picked it up, tossing it to Paige.
“Think you still remember how to play on an outdoor hoop?” Azzi roused. “Or are you too used to your fancy indoor courts?”
Paige scoffed, aghast. “Excuse me?”
“I’m just saying,” Azzi smirked. “You live a pretty privileged life now. Perfectly polished courts. Temperature control. Regularly maintenanced rims.”
Paige glared at her, then shot. The ball spun around the rim before rolling out.
“See?” Azzi quipped.
“That was a fluke,” Paige reasoned.
“Sure,” the nurse jeered.
“Oh, you think you could do better?”
Azzi shrugged one shoulder. “Probably.”
Paige’s eyes narrowed slightly, eyes twinkling, a conspiratory smile on her face.
“Play me,” she said.
“What?”
“Play me,” the blonde repeated, eyes imploring.
“Horse. Or pig, if you’re worried about losing by,” she paused to count on her fingers. “Five letters.”
Azzi scoffed, insulted. “Please, you would not beat in horse, let alone shut me out.”
“Prove it, then,” Paige urged. She passed the ball to Azzi. “I’ll even let you start.”
Azzi considered walking away. Considered throwing the ball back and walking back into the warmth of the house. But she desperately wanted to wipe the smug look off of Paige’s face. And she knew her girlfriend was internally itching to see her shoot.
“Fine,” she relented. She didn’t miss the look of astonished exhilaration on Paige’s face.
She made her way to the top of the three point line, letting the ball rotate in her hands before she allowed muscle memory take over. She lined up for the shot, releasing the ball from her fingers and watching it drop straight through the net with a satisfying snap.
Azzi looked over at Paige, ready to gloat. But what she saw made her pause. Because Paige was looking at her with pure adulation. Her eyes wide with nothing short of reverence.
“Holy shit,” Paige muttered, voice coming out in whispered awe.
Azzi beamed. She tracked down her rebound and passed it to Paige.
“Your turn.”
Paige dribbled to the same spot Azzi had just occupied at the top of the key and squared her shoulders. The ball snapped cleanly through the net. Paige looked at Azzi, shooting her a smirk.
The nurse rolled her eyes and grabbed the rebound.
Azzi made her way to the left of the key, dribbling the ball between her legs as she settled on a spot way beyond the line. Azzi sank the deep three like it was nothing. The ball barely touched the net as it dropped straight through.
Paige’s eyebrows were nearly at her hairline, expression awestruck.
“What the fuck, Azzi,” she said in disbelief. “Every time I think I can’t fall any more in love with you, you go and prove me wrong.”
She dribbled out to where Azzi had shot, eyes focused on the rim. The ball soared through the air, then fell short, clanging against the front iron, bouncing right back to its shooter.
“That’s ‘h’,” Azzi said smugly, walking in front of Paige and taking the ball from her hands as the blonde just stared in stunned silence.
By the time Paige had ‘hor’ and Azzi was yet to miss, a shiver wracked through the nurse, the temperature dropping quickly once the sun set this late into the year.
Paige noticed, because of course she did.
“You cold?” she asked, already shrugging off her outermost jacket and helping Azzi into it without waiting for a response.
The black jacket was heavy and still carried Paige’s warmth as she slipped it on.
“Thank you,” she mumbled shyly, tucking her chin into the collar and breathing in the lingering scent of Paige’s cologne.
“You want this one too?” Paige asked, moving to take off the mauve zip up.
The action would have left her in nothing but the black muscle tank that showed off her toned arms. As much as Azzi would have appreciated the view, she didn’t want her girlfriend cold.
“No, no,” she denied, pulling Paige’s hands away from where they moved to unzip her jacket. “This is super warm, I’m okay.”
Paige hesitated, eyes scanning over Azzi to discern the truth of her statement.
“Okay,” she finally acquiesced. “Your shot.”
Azzi caught a whiff of Paige’s cologne from her jacket when she raised the ball to shoot, overwhelming her senses.
She missed.
“Oh, so you are human,” Paige snarked.
Azzi glared at her, that familiar sense of competition–the desire to win–taking over.
It was her only miss of the night. She beat Paige without a single letter herself.
Paige complained as they walked back into the house, claiming she only lost because her body was tired from having just played a full game. But Azzi could tell that the pride she felt at seeing Azzi’s skill firsthand far exceeded any sense of defeat she felt about the arguably embarrassing loss.
They had just finished washing their hands when Azzi’s parents walked through the front door, arms filled with grocery bags. Azzi felt her eyes soften helplessly as she watched her girlfriend rush to take the bags from her mother. Unrepentant in her desire to help the people around her.
Her mom muttered a slick, “nice jacket,” under her breath when she passed Azzi. The nurse felt her cheeks warm up at her mothers vigilance.
After setting the bags on the counter, Paige helped Azzi set the table. Though it might have been more accurate to say that Paige followed Azzi from seat to seat as the latter set the table.
Katie pulled ingredients from the grocery bags, efficiently separating them into corresponding piles for what was going to be cooked tonight.
“I’m going to go turn on the grill,” Tim informed the three women in the kitchen.
“Wait!” Paige blurted out.
Three pairs of eyes fell on her at the abrupt outburst. Azzi noticed her face warm under the attention.
“Um,” Paige started, nervously. “I have something for you, Mr. Fudd,” she said.
Tim’s eyebrows raised in a mix of piqued interest and slight suspicion.
“Hold on,” Paige said, darting towards the living room. “Be right back!”
Her parents' eyes landed on their daughter, giving her an imploring look. Azzi took one last look at the spot Paige had just occupied before turning to face her parents.
Azzi raised her hands, “I… honestly have no idea.”
Paige came back a moment later carrying something folded neatly over her arms. She stopped in front of Tim, suddenly looking small in front of his towering frame.
Her father crossed his arm, raising an eyebrow at the increasingly nervous blonde in front of him. Azzi had to restrain herself from rolling her eyes at her dad’s obvious attempt to try and intimidate her girlfriend.
“This is– uh,” she said, exhaling. “This is for you.”
Tim took it from her hands, slow and curious. When he unfolded it, the leather fabric fell open to reveal a deep, muted navy apron, trimmed in red.
Azzi stepped closer to get a better look.
Across the chest, stitched in clean varsity block letters, was AMERICAN. Beneath it sat the number he wore throughout his college career, and below that, FUDD, laid out in the same font. Reminiscent of the jersey he used to wear.
The significance hit Azzi like a slap in the face. The thought behind it. The careful attention to detail, the way Paige had somehow captured everything she knew about her girlfriend’s father in one perfect gift.
Along the lower hem, nearly hidden, were three words sewn in smaller cursive lettering.
Father. Coach. Chef.
Azzi watched her father’s thumb drag slowly over the stitching. The corners of his mouth softened in a way she hadn’t seen all night.
“Azzi told me cooking is kinda your thing,” Paige rushed to fill the silence. “And I know basketball is definitely your thing, so…,”
Tim huffed out a breath. Not a laugh, but something closer to surprise.
“Well, she wasn’t lying,” he said at last, glancing up at Paige, “You didn’t have to do all this.”
Paige nodded once. “I know.”
Tim studied her for a moment. Really studied her. Not like before, when his gaze had been sharp and measuring. When he wore the mask of an overprotective father who didn’t think anyone was good enough for his only daughter.
This time it was different. Quieter. Considered.
He lifted the apron over his head, tugging the straps into place. The jersey style lettering stretched across his chest, the pockets hanging in just the right place, and something in his posture shifted.
“Looks good on you, Mr. Fudd,” Paige said, signature confident smile back on her face.
“Nope,” he said, sweeping her up in a bear hug so tight Azzi could hear her gasp for air. “You get to call me Tim now.”
After the exchange, Tim got started on grilling while Katie took to cooking some sides inside. Azzi and Paige joined the former’s brothers in the living room, where they hadn’t moved from their spots on the floor in front of the TV, controllers in hand.
Azzi plopped herself on the couch first. She was beyond confused when Paige didn’t sit as close as humanely possible, instead electing to keep nearly three feet of space between them.
“Why are you so far?” she asked, incredulously.
But she spoke quietly enough that her brothers wouldn’t overhear. Not that anything could distract them from the game they were playing anyways.
Paige didn’t answer with words. Instead, she pointedly motioned with her eyes to her brothers, sitting a few feet in front of them.
The nurse let it slide for a total of ten seconds before she scoffed and shifted over, closing the space between them so they were pressed up against each other. She felt Paige relax into the contact, sinking further against her before giving in and wrapping an arm around Azzi’s shoulders.
Her brothers finally seemed to notice them when they died in the game, eyes widening when they saw them on the couch.
“Yo, Paige,” Jose said. “You play Fortnite?”
Paige grinned. “Need me to carry you to a win?”
Jose lit up, snatching the controller in his brother's hands and tossing it up to Paige.
“Hey!” Jon complained, hands still holding a phantom controller.
Paige pulled her arm away from Azzi to grip the controller, sitting up slightly to get into proper gaming position.
Azzi frowned. Unhappy with the new lack of contact between them. The nurse took it upon herself to amend it as much as possible.
She wrapped her arm around one of Paige’s and leaned her head against her shoulder. Focusing more on the warmth radiating from her girlfriend than the game she was engaged in.
Azzi felt her chest fill with warmth, surrounded by three of the people she loved most in the world. Paige just fit so easily into the space. Bickering and trash talking her brothers as they absorbed themselves in the game.
“Azzi, get off of her,” Jon scolded when Paige got knocked in the game. “How is she supposed to play if you’re hanging all over her like that?”
Azzi extended her leg, kicking Jon in the back with a scowl on her face.
Jose finally took his eyes off the screen to look at the couple behind him at the movement.
“Ayo, what the fuck, Az,” Jose said, frustrated. “Give her space. She needs to lock in.”
Paige laughed. Then leaned over to place a soft kiss against her cheek when the boys turned their attention back to the screen.
“Don’t listen to them,” Paige mumbled into her ear. “I like you this close.”
By the time Paige finally upheld her guarantee to lead Jose to a win, Azzi heard her mom call them to dinner. The six of them settled around the table, the two brothers on one side, the parents at each head. Paige and Azzi squeezed in on the other, their chairs nearly touching.
Her parents noticed. Katie’s eyebrows lifted in silent evaluation, the faintest smirk tugging at her lips. Her father took a less subtle approach.
“I didn’t realize you were left-handed,” Tim said to Paige, eyes flicking toward her hand.
Paige tilted her head. “I’m not.”
“Ah,” he said, smirking. “I guess it’s just hard to use your right hand when my daughter’s practically fusing herself to your arm.”
Azzi shot her father a sharp look, but he just grinned like he was proud of himself. Heat crept up her neck and settled in her cheeks.
She opened her mouth to fire back, to mock him for the fact that he was still wearing the apron Paige got him. But then she felt the warm weight of Paige’s hand settle on her thigh beneath the table, out of view from her family. Azzi’s lips curved into the tiniest, secretive smile. The flush in her cheeks remained, but now stemming from a different cause.
Stewie didn’t move from beneath Paige’s chair for the entire dinner. Paige claimed it was because she was his new favorite, but Azzi knew it was because her girlfriend was sneaking him tiny pieces of chicken from her plate.
The fourth time it happened, Azzi finally called her out.
“Quit feeding him,” she whispered sternly, only for Paige’s to hear.
The blonde froze.
“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” she lied.
Azzi sent her a look that effectively conveyed her lack of belief and amusement in her girlfriend’s statement.
A few moments later, Paige quietly picked through her salad, carefully pulling the cherry tomatoes from her plate. Without a word, she slid the pile onto Azzi’s plate, tucking them neatly into place.
Azzi smiled, a warmth spreading through her chest. “Thanks,” she whispered.
Paige just shrugged, a small grin tugging at her lips. “Enjoy your little balls of goopy nastiness.” Then she went back to her own salad like it was the most natural thing in the world.
Azzi looked up. Then froze.
Her parents had watched the entire exchange. Her mom’s eyebrows lifted in a subtle, knowing arch, while her father’s lips quirked with a half smile.
Her brothers were too focused on shoveling food into their mouths to notice a thing.
The conversation flowed easily throughout the meal. Paige fielded answers from the nurse’s parents and brothers with effortless charm. Her family happily teasing her for the way they met and Paige’s lack of skill in the kitchen.
She fit so naturally, like she had been a part of their lives for years rather than mere hours.
And Azzi was escaping without too much humiliation. Her family was more than happy to share embarrassing stories with their new guest. But none so unbearable she wouldn’t be able to look Paige in the eyes when dinner ended.
Until Katie apparently decided Azzi hadn’t suffered enough and opened her mouth to speak.
“Y’know,” she started. “We were very surprised when Azzi offered to let us meet you.”
“Yeah?” Paige asked before stuffing a piece of chicken into her mouth.
“Oh yeah,” Tim confirmed with a slow, dramatic nod of his head.
Azzi felt the blood flowing through her veins turn cold, knowing exactly where this line of conversation was headed.
Paige must’ve sensed the shift in her energy, because Azzi felt her gently nudge her leg, eyes looking at her inquisitively. When Azzi refused to meet her gaze, the blonde shifted her attention back to her parents.
She let her arm come up against the back of Azzi’s chair. It looked casual, like she was just resting it there for comfort. But the way her thumb traced slow, deliberate circles into her upper back was intentional.
“I wasn’t too worried,” Paige said, pressing her thumb further into Azzi to offer support. “I knew it’d happen eventually. I just had to work for it.”
“How hard did you have to work?” Jose questioned with wide eyes. “Cause when my mom told us Azzi was visiting with her girlfriend I fully thought she was lying.”
“Should we watch a movie after this?” Azzi interrupted, a last ditch effort to change the conversation before it was too late. “What should we watch? I hear there’s a new–”
“That’s why I had to play the overprotective dad card,” Tim interrupted, acting like his daughter hadn’t even opened her mouth. “Never got to do it before. It’s fun.”
“I get it,” Paige smirked. “She warned me I was the first girlfriend to meet the family.”
“Girlfriend?” Jon barked out. “You’re the first anyone.”
Azzi felt Paige freeze at the words, her thumbs faltering in their comforting movements against her.
The nurse sent a death stare at her brother, kicking him hard beneath the table. The force of the contact against his shin was audible, and he let out a pained yelp as he jerked his leg back.
“What the hell, Azzi?” Jon whined. “It’s true. You’ve literally never introduced us to anyone you’ve dated.”
When her family began to argue amongst themselves, voices overlapping as they talked all at once, Azzi finally chanced a glance at Paige.
The blonde was staring at her with her mouth slightly open, eyes wide and shimmering with a kind of awe that made it hard for Azzi to breathe. Her blue eyes overflowed with reverence and devotion so profound it made the nurse’s heart catch just as much as her breath.
She avoided Paige’s gaze for the rest of dinner for the sake of her own self-preservation. But she could feel her girlfriend’s blue eyes tracking her every movement, and the few glances Azzi did sneak revealed the same heady look in her eye.
Despite feeling like Azzi would die at that table, dinner eventually ended. Paige was able to wash about two plates before Azzi’s father caught her, all but shoving her out of the way with some declaration of “guests don’t do dishes in my home”.
Azzi, her brothers, her mom, and Paige ultimately made their way over to the living room to find a movie to watch. Paige sat towards the end of the couch, leaving barely a foot of space between her and the arm. Azzi squeezed herself into that space, half of her body nearly on top of her girlfriend.
She watched Paige look at her with that familiar dazed look in her eyes, baby blue overflowing with unfiltered adoration. Her arm snaked around Azzi’s waist, pulling her that much closer. The nurse got lost in the feeling of Paige against her. In the warmth seeping from her body and the look in her eyes. Until her mom’s voice snapped her out of it.
“What the hell,” Katie said, confusion directed at her sons. “Did you guys get a new Playstation?”
Azzi felt Paige stiffen beside her, the nurse had to stifle a laugh into the blonde’s shoulder.
“It was Paige,” Jon said, pointing a finger at the blonde, happy to throw her under the bus to take the heat off of himself and his brother.
Paige’s mouth fell open. “Dude,” she exclaimed, dismayed.
Katie’s head turned slowly over her shoulder to Paige, eyebrows raised and expression unamused.
The blonde folded immediately. “I can return it,” she offered. “I have the receipt.”
“No!” Jon and Jose shouted in unison.
“Mom, come on,” Jose reasoned. “You were gonna buy us one for Christmas anyways. Now you don’t have to.”
“Yeah,” Jon agreed. “Now you can get us something else.”
Katie rolled her eyes. “Now I don’t have to get you jack squat,” she informed them. She turned to make her way to the two seater against the wall to the left of Paige and Azzi, flicking the blonde in the forehead as she walked past.
Azzi felt Paige flinch dramatically beside her, and her own heart swell in her chest at her mom’s actions towards Paige. At the significance behind the gesture. The acceptance. Azzi wrapped her arms around her girlfriend's middle, squeezing herself closer against her. She felt Paige melt into it.
Tim called the boys into the kitchen, and the three of them reappeared a few moments later with bowls of ice cream in their hands for everyone. They dished them out, and Jose moved to sit on the opposite end of the couch Paige and Azzi were cuddled up on, Jon plopping onto the floor with his back resting against the couch between his brother and the blonde. Tim joined Katie on the two seater pressed up against the wall to the left of the main couch, snatching the remote out of his wife’s hand.
“What’re you guys feeling?” he asked the group, scrolling through a list of options on Netflix.
As the group started to argue over what to watch, Paige’s eyes narrowed on a picture of a young Azzi hanging from the wall, her right arm sarran wrapped to her body. Azzi followed her gaze, letting out a soft laugh when she noticed where she was looking.
When Paige voiced her curiosity about the photo, the Fudd’s were more than happy to indulge. Launching into a story about how they wanted to improve her dribbling skills with her left hand. They went on to tell her about how they did the same with her left hand to perfect her shooting form, not wanting her guide hand to influence her shot.
“It worked,” Paige mumbled around a mouthful of ice cream before swallowing. “Your daughter kicked my ass in horse.”
The blonde was so focused on spooning off her next bite she didn’t realize the way the whole Fudd family had gone still. She continued talking as her spoon clanked against the edge of the bowl rather obnoxiously.
“Like, it was a complete blowout,” she complained, frowning as a glob of ice cream fell off her spoon, plopping back into the bowl before it could reach her lips.
When she finally managed to spoon a bite into her mouth without losing it, she looked up at the Fudd family with a proud smile at her accomplishment. Her smile fell in an instant when she finally caught sight of the openmouthed, staggered looks on their faces.
“What?” Paige asked, lost. And the worried look on her face would have made Azzi laugh at any other time. But all the nurse could do was feel the pit in her stomach open wide, as she waited for her family to process what they were hearing.
“What do you mean Azzi kicked your ass at horse?” Tim asked, baffled.
“I mean,” Paige clarified, “I didn’t even get a single letter on her, it was actually kinda embarrassing.”
Azzi could feel Paige start to fidget under the weight of every one of her family members' eyes on her, wide with shock. Then Katie's eyes narrowed.
“When was this?” she asked, slowly.
“Um,” Paige’s eyes darted to Azzi, brows furrowing before looking back to answer Katie. “Like an hour or two ago? In the backyard, before dinner.”
Azzi could tell her silence was beginning to make her girlfriend uncomfortable. But she couldn’t force herself out of the terror running cold through her veins at the significance of the information Paige was unknowingly sharing with her family to comfort her. All she could hear was her own heartbeat pounding in her ears.
“Azzi… played?” Jose asked bewildered. “Like, she picked up the ball and shot it?”
Paige’s head was on a swivel, gaze darting quickly between each of the Fudd’s, confusion evident in her eyes from their stunned reactions.
“Yeah?” she finally said, voice unsure, clearly recognizing this was a momentous moment but not understanding the reason behind it.
All of a sudden, Azzi felt five pairs of eyes shift their gaze towards her. She didn’t look up from her lap, but could feel the weight of their heavy scrutiny regardless.
“What’s going on?” Paige whispered to Azzi, breaking the oppressive silence that had landed amongst the group. “Did I say something wrong?”
But Paige was never the greatest whisperer, and the quiet that had settled was so heavy even a whisper sounded magnified. Her family caught it easily.
“What’s going on is my sister hasn’t touched a basketball in fucking years. She won’t even talk about it. Now she’s dating you and all of a sudden she’s going to games and playing?” Jose informed the blonde, voice pitching up in disbelief as he finished.
Azzi snapped out of her stupor, eyes wide with panic flitting to Paige. The blonde was already looking at her with an astonished expression, eyes imploring.
“That’s not true,” Azzi lied.
“Oh bullshit,” Jon called her out. “The last time I tried to get you to play you kicked me so hard I’m pretty sure my testicals got stuck in my stomach for a month,” he finished, shuddering at the memory.
“That’s enough,” Katie scolded her sons. “Azzi–”
But Azzi didn’t hear the rest. The nurse felt her breathing start to pick up, fingers starting to tingle as she took in too much air too fast. She shot up from the couch, ripping herself out of Paige’s grasp and bolting out of the room. She barely made out the sound of someone calling her name before she reached the bathroom, slamming the door shut behind her.
Her hands found the sink, gripping the edges so tight her knuckles turned white. When Azzi looked at herself in the mirror, she felt like she was watching herself through somebody else’s eyes, barely recognizing the face in the mirror.
Azzi’s face was flushed, sweat beading along her hairline, chest heaving rapidly with shallow breaths. Her face was tingling, heart thrumming so fast in her chest it felt like it was about to stop completely. She felt like she couldn’t breathe. She squeezed her eyes closed so tightly light bloomed behind her lids.
With unsteady hands, Azzi managed to turn the faucet on, cold water rushing out. She cupped her hands beneath the stream, splashing it onto her face, waiting for the moment to inevitably pass. Trying to slow her breathing.
Through the sound of blood rushing hot through her ears, she faintly registered a soft rap of knuckles against the bathroom door.
“Go away,” she choked out between broken breaths. Her hands still clutched the sink, eyes still squeezed shut. She knew Katie would be on the other side, ready to question her. Equally desperate to ease her daughter’s panic as she was to get more information out of her about her sudden willingness to engage in something she had adamantly refused to touch for years.
The nurse heard the door open despite her protest, and she turned towards it ready to lash out at her mom on the other side for the intrusion. “I said go the fuck–” she started, but the words fell from her mouth when she saw who was on the other side.
“Azzi, baby,” Paige said, voice so soft and full of concern she barely heard it. “It’s okay.”
She stepped into Azzi’s space hesitantly, gaze tracing over her features. When she met Azzi’s panicked eyes brimming with tears, she pulled her flush against her, hands splaying wide beneath her jacket against her back in a tight embrace.
Azzi froze against her for a heartbeat, before melting into it completely. Fists clenching tightly into the fabric of Paige’s zip up.
“It’s okay,” the blonde muttered against her temple, hands moving in firm, soothing swoops against her back. “You’re okay, baby.”
Azzi let the words wash over her, let Paige’s heat seep through the contact and warm the icy panic running through her veins. She felt her breathing begin to slow, matching the rise and fall of her chest to that of Paige’s pressed against her.
“That’s my girl,” Paige cooed when Azzi’s breathing finally returned to normal, fingers loosening their taut grip. Readjusting to hold the cloth loosely instead. After letting herself be held for another moment, basking in the familiar sense of safety Paige offered, Azzi released a shuddering breath and stepped back.
She didn’t separate herself completely, hands sliding from her back to her front, holding the edge of where Paige’s zip up had come slightly undone. Paige’s own hands slid slowly from where they splayed against the nurse’s back to hold her wait, hips still flush against each other.
“Hey,” Paige said with a soft smile, nuzzling their noses together softly. When Azzi refused to meet her gaze, shame weighing heavy on her chest, Paige kissed her softly, gently capturing her lips.
“Hey,” she said again when they separated, nudging Azzi to meet her eyes. When Azzi looked into baby blue, she saw nothing but love and compassion. The nurse opened her mouth to apologize, to explain, to say something. But Paige cut her off before she could.
“You don’t gotta explain anything,” she told her quietly. “I promise.”
Azzi knitted her eyebrows, frowning at her girlfriend's understanding. At her willingness not to push her on the subject. To simply be there for her without any expectation.
“What should we watch?” Paige asked instead, thumbs rubbing steady arcs against her hips beneath her shirt. “Pretty sure your brothers are currently fighting over who gets the final say.”
“They already told you, didn’t they?” Azzi asked, with a humorless chuckle.
Paige didn’t answer, just pulled her towards the living room, never separating their fingers. Her silence was answer enough, and Azzi felt her heart fill with warmth at the blonde’s ability to make her feel better.
When they returned to the living room, Azzi was grateful that her family barely acknowledged them, eyes trained on the tv as the intro credits began to play. Azzi grabbed a blanket off of the back of the couch, covering herself and the blonde, curling herself into her side, tangling their legs together and nuzzling her head into the space between her chest and shoulder. Paige’s arms wrapped around her immediately, and Azzi’s eyes fluttered shut as she felt her place a soft kiss to the crown of her head.
“Love you,” Azzi mumbled into her neck. Paige’s arms squeezed tighter around her in acknowledgement before she whispered it back against her hair. She felt Stewie jump up on the couch, curling himself against Paige’s other side.
The nurse was pressed too tightly against the blonde–eyes already drifting shut in contentment–to notice the way her mom watched the two of them with a small smile of approval gracing her lips.
Azzi slept through the entirety of the movie, only rousing from where she slumped against Paige when the blonde squeezed her gently, speaking softly into her hair.
“Movie’s over, Az,” she told her. “Let’s go to sleep.”
When Azzi opened her eyes, the credits were rolling. Everyone but her dad and girlfriend were asleep, her brothers snoring softly. She adjusted slightly, angling her head to look at Paige. She felt her cheeks heat up from the way she was already gazing back at her, blue eyes filled with warmth and adoration, a small smile on her lips.
“Okay!” Tim said loudly, startling the rest of her family awake. “Bed time! Since apparently none of you could even manage to stay awake for a movie you chose. Bunch of babies.”
Katie smacked her husband lightly against his arm, unhappy about being startled awake. Jose groaned, mumbling something about being too tired to move and crashing on the couch for the night.
“Hey,” Paige protested with a frown. “I didn’t fall asleep”
Tim smirked at her. “That’s why you’re my new favorite."
Paige beamed at the declaration, looking at Azzi to make sure she heard it too. “Hear that?” she goaded. “I’m your dog's favorite, and your dad’s favorite.”
“You’re not either of their favorite’s,” Azzi glowered, reluctantly untangling herself from Paige, peeling the blanket from the two of them and getting up from the couch. Paige’s eyes followed her with reverence before snapping out of it as the rest of Azzi’s family began to get up as well.
They said their goodnights, and Azzi couldn’t keep the smile off of her face as she watched her parents take turns pulling Paige in for a hug. She noticed Paige stiffen at first, before melting into it with a proud grin.
Paige and Azzi made their way to the upstairs bathroom, brushing their teeth side by side. Paige’s elbow knocking against the nurse’s own far too often for Azzi to consider it an accident. When the blonde timed a particularly hard bump so that Azzi’s toothbrush knocked out of her mouth, leaving a foamy streak of toothpaste against her cheek, the nurse glowered at her through the mirror.
Paige giggled at the sight like it was the funniest thing she’d ever seen. Azzi tried to keep her glare firmly in place, but she couldn’t help the way her eyes darkened as they swept across Paige’s features. With their teeth brushed and faces washed, Paige turned to open the door and exit the bathroom. Azzi stopped her with a hand against her wrist, pulling her into a kiss that immediately began hungry. She nipped at Paige’s bottom lip, soothing it with a swipe of her tongue before separating. Their chest heaved, slightly breathless, and when Paige finally opened her eyes, the blue of her irises were nearly entirely eclipsed by pupils blown wide.
Azzi dragged Paige to her room with their hands interlinked, but froze when she saw her mom sitting at her desk, the dog laying on the floor by her feet. Apparently her girlfriend was too distracted to notice the way Azzi had stopped abruptly, crashing into the nurse’s back with an indignant “hmph”.
“What are you doing?” Azzi asked her mother suspiciously, dropping Paige’s hand.
Katie chuckled. “I just wanted to say goodnight.”
“You already said goodnight,” Azzi countered.
Her mother just rolled her eyes in response.
“I see where you get the eyeroll from,” Paige commented offhandedly. Azzi’s head whipped back, glaring at her girlfriend's unhelpful commentary.
“Can we talk?” Katie asked.
Paige’s brows furrowed. “Me and you?” she confirmed. “I mean… yeah of course, if you want–”
“No, Paige, not you.” Katie said, a mix of exasperation and bewilderment overtaking her features as she stared at the blonde. “Me and my daughter.”
“Mom,” Azzi sighed. “I’m really tired. I just want to go to sleep.”
Katie looked like she was going to protest, but Azzi sensed it and kept going.
“We can talk tomorrow,” she said. “I promise.”
Her mom blew out a defeated sigh. “Fine,” she acquiesced. “But I’m holding you to that.”
Azzi rolled her eyes.
“See!” Paige exclaimed, either failing to read the room or simply undeterred by the moment. “Same eye roll.”
Azzi sneered at her girlfriend, throwing her hands up in a ‘what the fuck’, and Paige had the decency to look somewhat bashful at her unnecessary declaration.
“I’m just sayin’,” Paige mumbled. “I knew it had to come from somewhere.”
Katie chuckled, making her way to the door. Stewie popped his head up, but made no move to follow her. “I’ll let you guys get some sleep,” she told the two of them.
“Take Stewie with you,” Azzi instructed her mother, lightly pushing him up with her foot. He looked back at her with sad puppy-dog-eyes as he begrudgingly followed her mom out.
Katie’s eyebrows shot up. “You don’t want the dog to sleep with you?” she questioned, disbelievingly. “You always want the dog to sleep with you.”
“Paige is allergic to dogs,” Azzi informed her. “She gets congested and itchy if she’s around them for too long, it’ll make her snore and neither of us will sleep.”
Katie hummed in understanding, saying a final goodnight and heading to her own room. The door clicked shut and Azzi locked it, turning to find Paige looking at her.
“I’m not allergic to dogs,” the blonde told her.
“I know.”
Paige cocked her head. “You just told your mom I’m allergic to dogs.”
Azzi smirked as she stepped forward into Paige’s space, slowly dragging the zipper of her mauve jacket down until it fell open. Her hands came to rest against the flat plane of her stomach, separated only by the thin fabric of her tank top.
She brought her mouth to Paige’s ear, letting her breath ghost over it as she spoke.
“I don’t want my dog to see the things I’m gonna do to you,” she whispered seductively as she slowly dragged her nails down Paige’s stomach.
Azzi saw Paige’s eyes darken immediately when she pulled back, gaze falling to her mouth. The blonde leaned in, ready to capture Azzi’s lips between her own. But Azzi pulled back just before she could, smirk growing.
“Take this off,” she murmured as she shoved the jacket from Paige’s shoulders. It was more of a demand than a request. But the blonde hastily pulled it off, dropping it to the floor before leaning back in, eyes half-lidded and mouth parted.
The nurse stopped her once again, this time with a hand to her chest.
“Azzi,” Paige complained, voice low. “Lemme kiss you.”
Azzi let her hand drag slowly from the blonde’s chest down her stomach, fingertips trailing suggestively before her hands slipped beneath her tank, rucking it up as her hands found purchase on her waist. Her skin burned beneath her touch.
She leaned forward, breath ghosting against Paige’s lips, still refusing to close the distance. “This too,” she husked.
Paige followed orders, ripping the tank top from her body and letting it fall carelessly on top of her previously discarded jacket. Azzi’s hooded eyes traced the newly exposed skin, fingers raking gently across the flat plane of the blonde’s stomach. She smirked when she saw goosebumps follow in her wake.
Though Azzi was content to soak in the sight in front of her–the increasingly rapid rise and fall of her chest, the way her abdomen contracted under her touch–her girlfriend did not share that same sentiment. Paige surged forward, cupping one hand around Azzi’s jaw and the other dangerously low on the small of her back. She closed the distance, letting out a shaky exhale mixed with relief and desire when their lips finally met.
Paige wasn’t gentle, she didn’t ease into it. She kissed her hungry, slow, and desperate. Her tongue entered Azzi’s mouth at the first opportunity, stroking languidly against her. The nurse matched her fervor. Was helpless against the breathless whimpers escaping her lips at the intensity of the moment.
Her stomach swooped and she moaned softly into Paige’s mouth when the blonde’s hand moved confidently from her back to her ass, kneading the flesh as she pulled her flush against her. Azzi felt every nerve ending light up at the groan Paige released when Azzi started to roll her hips against her.
Azzi pulled back, capturing Paige’s kiss swollen bottom lip between her teeth, releasing it with a quiet snap. When she opened her eyes, she saw Paige’s blue one’s nearly entirely eclipsed by black, burning with desire, staring back with half lidded eyes.
Paige opened her mouth like she was going to protest the lack of contact between their lips until Azzi shrugged out of Paige’s her jacket, quickly followed by her shirt. Blue eyes dropped to the newly exposed skin immediately as she subconsciously licked her lips.
“Fuck,” Paige rasped, hands splaying across the nurse’s overheating skin. “You’re so… you’re perfect.”
Azzi didn’t get the opportunity to respond, gasping into Paige’s mouth as she crushed their lips together, moaning at the feeling of skin on skin contact. One of Azzi’s hands found purchase on Paige’s back, slowly dragging her nails down, leaving faint red lines against pale skin. The other tangled in soft blonde hair, pulling Paige with her as she walked them backwards towards her bed.
When the back of her legs collided with the bed frame, she lowered her hands. Her fingers toyed with Paige’s belt, undoing it torturously slow before moving to the button of her jeans and doing the same thing.
As soon as Azzi slid the blonde’s zipper down, Paige frantically shoved her jeans down her legs, stepping out of them ungraciously. She recaptured Azzi’s lips in a heated kiss and let her hands slide from Azzi’s sides possessively across her bare abdomen, then lower, until they reached the edge of the nurse’s jeans. As her fingers fumbled to unbutton them, her mouth trailed from Azzi’s mouth to her jaw, pressing open mouthed kisses against her heated skin until she settled on her pulse point just beneath her ear at the corner of her jaw.
Azzi sucked in a sharp breath as she felt Paige’s teeth scrape sensitive skin, before soothing it with a hot tongue and the pressure of warm lips. Azzi knew it would leave a mark, that she would have to be extra cautious in covering it up in the morning. She knew she should tell Paige not to leave any more. But she couldn’t find the words. Didn’t want to. She was too content with the feeling of Paige nibbling and sucking against the delicate skin of her neck as her hands pushed down on the waistband of her pants, urging her out of her jeans.
Azzi let Paige guide her onto the bed, never disconnecting her lips from where they worked against her skin as she lowered herself on top of her. The nurse let herself bask in the feeling of Paige’s hands caressing her stomach, waist, and the newly exposed skin of her hips for a moment. But when one of Paige’s hands moved to slide beneath the waistband of black lace, Azzi took advantage of the distraction, wrapping one leg around the blonde’s waist and planting the other in the bed beneath her. She used the momentum to flip them, resulting in her straddling Paige’s hips as blue eyes gazed up at her. Glazed over with lust and admiration.
Paige’s hands gripped low on her waist, fingers digging into her flesh with barely concealed restraint as Azzi brought her hands behind her back to unclasp her own bra. She let the fabric fall slowly, reveling in the way blue eyes helplessly fell to her chest, mouth parted as shallow breaths escaped in needy puffs. Her pale skin was flushed from where it disappeared beneath her sports bra to the tops of her sharp cheek bones.
Paige’s hands moved to take advantage of the newly exposed skin. As soon as she made contact, thumb brushing delicately over her nipple, Azzi caught her wrists. She let her weight fall forward, pinning the blonde’s hands above her head. Their mouths only millimeters apart.
“Don’t touch,” Azzi instructed, capturing her girlfriend's mouth in a heated kiss full of intent. Full of promise of what’s yet to come. “Not yet.”
Paige groaned into her mouth, a mix of frustration and desire. She felt the blonde try to escalate the kiss, desperation evident in the movement of her lips. In the swipe of her tongue. But Azzi refused to let her speed her up. She kissed Paige deep and deliberate, like she had all the time in the world and intended to use it.
“Keep them here,” Azzi demanded seductively against her mouth. Her hands squeezed Paige’s wrists once for emphasis. “Can you do that for me?”
Paige nodded fervently, arching her back into Azzi’s body above her, surging forward in an attempt to recapture her lips.
“Good girl,” Azzi whispered, releasing her hold on Paige’s wrists and reconnecting their mouths in a kiss that was downright dirty. Her tongue plunged into Paige’s mouth immediately, caressing her tongue with her own in deliberate swipes. Paige moaned loudly into the kiss at the praise.
Azzi pulled back at the sound, her hand quickly covering Paige’s mouth as her eyebrows raised in disbelief.
“Baby,” the nurse chastised raspily. “You have to be quiet.”
“Then stop teasing,” she countered. “And touch me already.”
Azzi clicked her tongue, feigning disappointment. “You have no patience.”
She watched something like realization flicker over Paige’s face as a smirk pulled at the corner of her mouth. Her lust filled eyes tracing
“Have you ever had sex in your childhood bed?” Paige husked.
Azzi shook her head slowly, a smirk tugging at her as she lowered her mouth to Paige’s ear, letting her lips caress the shell softly as she spoke. “Ask me again in a few minutes.” She took the blonde's earlobe between her teeth, biting down lightly as she tugged.
She felt Paige shiver beneath her at her words. At the feeling of her teeth against her. Azzi released the lobe, trailing her lips down her neck and across her collar bones, mouthing at a perked nipple through her sports bra.
“Fuck,” Paige rasped. When Azzi pulled back, she let her eyes rake over her girlfriend's features. Took note of the way her eyes squeezed shut, the unsteady rise and fall of her chest, the way her fists clenched tight above her head, evident of the difficulty she was having at following Azzi’s previous command. Her hips tried to roll from where they were trapped beneath the nurse’s, desperate for contact. For relief.
Azzi ground her hips once against the blonde, capturing the sound she let out in response to the motion in her mouth. Then again. And again. Until she was steadily rolling against Paige’s center, the nurse’s own breathy whimpers escaped every time her hips ground just right. Paige swallowed every one. Azzi could feel the tension coiling low in her gut. Could feel the evidence of her own arousal leaking out of the thin lace, staining Paige’s boxers beneath her. The thought only made her hips move faster.
“You can touch now,” Azzi told her between kisses, breathless. “I want you to touch me. Need it, baby. Need you.”
Paige’s hands moved immediately, finding purchase on Azzi’s ass. Guiding her movements, pressing her closer. Deeper. One hand stayed guiding, kneading, as the other moved across her abdomen, inching towards where she needed her most.
Azzi gasped as Paige’s long fingers swipe gingerly across soaked lace at the same time her mouth captured one of the nurse’s nipples. Her tongue mirrored the movements of her fingers, stroking languidly as Azzi felt herself grow closer.
“Please,” Azzi croaked out. Desperate to feel Paige against her without the barrier of thin lace.
Paige released her nipple with an audible pop, pupils blown as she stared up at Azzi. “What d’you need?” she asked teasingly, but too eager to please her girlfriend to deny whatever request was coming.
Azzi recaptured her lips in a messy kiss, filled with heat and desire. “Your fingers. Anything,” she choked out. “Everything. Just need to feel you,” she confessed hoarsely against her mouth between kisses.
“Yeah?” Paige husked. “Wanna ride my fingers?”
The nurse barely nodded before a moan tore from her throat as Paige pushed the sodden lace aside, sinking two long fingers into her with ease. The hand on Azzi’s hip helped guide her as she curled them inside of her, steadily pumping in and out.
“Fuck, Azzi,” Paige groaned, teeth grazing against her neck before she pulled the skin into her mouth. “You’re dripping. Who got you like this, huh?”
Azzi was too far gone–too close to the edge–to respond with anything but the truth. “You,” she gasped. “Always you. Only you.”
Paige moaned. Whether it was from Azzi’s answer or the way the nurse’s nails were raking down the blonde’s stomach as her other hand clutched desperately in her hair, Azzi wasn’t sure. But her mind was far too occupied to determine the reasoning behind it when the sound only intensified the heat in her stomach.
“That’s right,” Paige whispered, voice low, confident, and claiming. “You’re mine.” The way she said it made the tension coiling in Azzi’s tighten, threatening to snap. Every nerve alight.
“I’m yours,” Azzi breathed back, voice barely a whisper. When she felt Paige’s thumb rub against her clit, the coil snapped, and she let herself go entirely. She couldn’t fight it, couldn’t resist it. The fear, the hesitation, the control–all of it slipped away in the heat of Paige’s hands, lips, and body pressed against her. And Paige helped her ride it out, movements slowing but never stopping. Whispering soft praises against her ear from where Azzi’s head fell into the crook of her neck.
Every nerve in her body was ringing, every thought gone except for the warmth, the pressure, the intensity of being wanted so completely. Her chest heaved, breath ragged, heart hammering, and Paige just smiled against her skin, patient, relentless, and utterly consuming.
By the time she lifted her head, Azzi was trembling, still gasping, still wrapped around Paige, flushed and entirely undone. Paige’s grin was victorious, soft, and intimate, leaning down to press a gentle kiss to her forehead.
“You okay?” she whispered.
Azzi could only shake her head, lost in heat and relief and satisfaction. But when she saw the look in Paige’s eyes; the heady mixture of desire and love, Azzi felt the heat begin to stir anew. Then Paige removed her fingers from where they remained in the nurse, bringing them to her mouth and cleaning Azzi off of them. Azzi’s eyes followed the movement, gaze dark, eyelids heavy.
“I’m about to be,” she smirked. She crushed their lips together, tongue tracing Paige’s lips and moaning at the taste of herself.
Azzi let her fingers toy with the edge of Paige’s boxers, dipping them lightly underneath the band before pulling it back, releasing it with a snap. The blonde’s hips arched forwards as a soft gasp escaped her lips.
“Azzi…” she choked out. A desperate plea.
She pressed herself closer to Paige, lips tracing her jaw, nipping lightly, letting her hands roam with deliberate intent. She whispered low, rough, teasing words into Paige’s ear, feeling the way the vibrations of her voice–her praise–send shivers down the blonde’s spine.
“You like that, don’t you?” Azzi murmured, fingers and lips both teasing, testing. “You like it when I tell you how good you are for me.” Paige let out a soft moan at her words, and Azzi let her fingers dip fully beneath Paige’s boxers, gasping at the arousal she found pooled there.
“Fuck, Paige,” she keened, forehead falling against the blonde’s shoulder. “You’re so wet.” She let her middle finger slip inside slowly, curling it immediately, before pulling it out and repeating the motion with a second.
Paige gasped, arching into her touch, hands clutching at Azzi as heat pulsed through her. “Azzi… oh shit…”
Azzi tangled her free hand in Paige’s tousled blonde hair as she leaned down, her lips tracing along Paige’s skin with a slow, teasing determination. She committed every shiver, every breathy gasp, every tremor of reaction to memory. She took her time with Paige, unhurriedly moving down her body and leaving marks in places that would remain hidden beneath the blonde’s clothes for days.
She only forced her lips from her skin and fingers from where they pumped steadily inside of the blonde to remove her boxers completely. She brought her mouth back to her, nipping at the sensitive skin of her inner thighs, fingers teasing at her entrance. She felt Paige’s fingers curl in her hair, tugging her closer to where she needed her most.
Azzi reentered her at the same time her mouth wrapped around Paige’s clit and sucked gently, smirking at the breathy moan that escaped the blonde. She whispered against her skin, voice low and teasing. “You like that… don’t you?”
Paige could only gasp, a shiver running through her. “Fuck–” her voice caught. “Yes.”
Felt Paige’s hand tighten in her hair, holding her close against her.
“You feel amazing,” Azzi murmured, her voice thick with desire, “Taste so good. I could stay like this forever.”
Paige didn't answer with words, instead pulling her closer, gasping, writhing, utterly consumed. Every brush of Azzi’s lips, every press of her body, every whispered praise sent sparks through her nerves, leaving her completely undone. Azzi didn’t rush. She savored every reaction, letting the heat build until she broke, and every one of the nurse’s senses was consumed by everything Paige.
By the time Azzi lifted her head, both were flushed and breathless, hearts pounding in unison. She made her way back up, laying herself completely on top of the blonde. Paige’s eyes were half-lidded, lips parted, like she could barely form words.
“You… you’re amazing,” she whispered. “Fuck, I love you.”
Azzi grinned, brushing a damp strand of hair from Paige’s forehead. “I love you more,” she murmured, pressing a lingering, soft kiss to her lips.
—
By the time the heat had settled into a warm, tingling exhaustion, they lay tangled together, still a bit breathless, and completely entwined. Their overheated skin beginning to cool as they lay face to face on their sides, pressed together.
One of Paige’s hands traced soothing patterns up and down Azzi’s side. Her blue eyes filled with warmth as they roved the features of Azzi’s face. Azzi’s own eyes felt grew heavier with each sweep of hand against her, fighting to stay open and focused on the face in front of her.
“So I’m really the first person you’ve ever brought home?” Paige asked her, tone matching the quietness of the room. Of the moment.
Azzi sighed, figuring that she had been more than exposed tonight, so she might as well be honest. Continue the trend. “You’re the first person I’ve ever loved,” she admitted, voice vulnerable and slightly unsteady.
Paige paused. Face contorted in adorable concentration as she went over the words in her head. Her hand faltered in its movements, and Azzi watched her try to discern exactly what she meant.
“Have you…” she paused, eyes flickering across Azzi’s face as she figured out exactly how to ask what she was wondering. “Have you ever told anyone you’ve been with that you loved them?”
Azzi shook her head, voice escaping her. She watched blue eyes grow misty as understanding washed over Paige’s features before the blonde huffed out a small, disbelieving huff. “I can’t believe it,” she said through a grin, voice dripping with awe. “So I’m really the only person you’ve ever said that to?”
The nurse just nodded slowly, still unable to speak. Helpless against the small roll of her eyes as seeing the pure unadulterated glee written across Paige’s face.
Then Paige smirked. “And you said it first,” she added with far too much satisfaction.
That helped Azzi find her voice.
“No I didn’t,” the nurse said stubbornly.
“Azzi, yes you did,” she adamantly challenged. “I literally have the texts to prove it.”
“That wasn’t the first time we said it,” she said barely above a whisper, but refusing to let Paige think she was right. Adamant in her internal decision not to let the blonde hold it over her head any longer.
“What?” Paige looked so confused. “What are you talking about?”
“Do you remember your first home win of the season?” she asked. “Like a month or two into us dating?”
Paige nodded, eyes open and imploring.
“You went out with your teammates,” she reminded her. “Came home so drunk you could barely stand.”
“I wasn’t that drunk,” Paige refuted.
Azzi ignored her and continued. “That was the first time. You were drifting off to sleep, and just said it. When you woke up the next morning you had no recollection of it.”
“What?” Paige said, slightly panicked. “No I didn’t. You’re lying. I woulda remembered that.”
“I’m not lying,” Azzi scoffed. “You didn’t even remember how you ended up in my bed the next morning. How would you have remembered what you said half asleep, dummy?”
“I– You didn’t run away,” Paige settled on, seemingly giving up on arguing for once. “I was so scared to say it first. I didn’t want to scare you off. But you didn’t run away.”
Azzi shook her head. “No, I didn’t.”
“Why not? You were so flighty when it came to that kind of stuff. You still are sometimes,” Azzi lightly smacked her at the insult, but Paige continued anyways. “I said it so early. How come you didn’t run away?”
“I–,” Azzi paused, thinking of the reason. “I think deep down, I was already a little bit in love with you too. I just didn’t know how to say it.”
“So that was the first time I told you?”
Azzi nodded.
“And then you told me while we were arguing about how disgusting tofu is–”
“It’s not disgusting,” Azzi interjected
“–and I got to say it again?” Paige continued like Azzi never spoke.
Azzi hesitated. Paige caught it. Her eyes widened.
“I didn’t say it again until after you told me,” Paige was practically pleading for her own words to be true. “Right?”
Azzi gave her a sympathetic smile.
“You said it two other times. You’re a sappy drunk.”
“Oh fuck me,” Paige groaned, dropping her head in shame. “I’m never drinking again.”
“You don’t have anything to worry about when you drink now,” Azzi giggled at her embarrassment. “You’ve already confessed everything.”
“That’s so embarrassing,” Paige complained. But the way she pulled Azzi closer to her, arms wrapping protectively around her waist, legs entertaining, suggested she wasn’t nearly as embarrassed as she claimed to be.
“I love you, Azzi,” she murmured into her hair.
Azzi melted further into her at that. It didn’t matter how many times she said it. The words still slipped past every defense, settling low and steady in her chest, like they belonged there.
“I love you, too,” she confessed. “More than you’ll ever know.”
Azzi was on the cusp of sleep, breaths falling slow and steady, body heavy and relaxed. Paige’s arm wrapped tightly around her middle, holding her close against her. Bodies pressed tightly together, no space between them. Just before she slipped into unconsciousness, Paige spoke without warning.
“You should move in with me.”
Azzi’s eyes shot open.
═══════════════════
a/n: welp, it's been lit... see ya. jkjk. seriously though, thank you so much to everyone who has supported this story. i didn't think it'd be more than a 10k one shot, let alone an 83k+ multiparter. please lmk what you think in the comments and in my inbox. ik i'm terrible at responding but it makes my day reading them
this is the end of this series. but just like that song lover, you should've come over by my boy jeff buckley... it's never over. there's always a chance i get inspired at some unknown point in the future and write true oneshots set in this same universe.
I truly love your ability to just *post* and run 🫶
lmao this cracked me up. thank you for referring to it an ability and not a character flaw
hello mama i am wondering when pt 2 of epilogue will be posted 😁
very very soon. sorry to make everyone wait so long, i had a hard time writing a scene i just wasn't in the mood to write. but i'm doing a final run through right now. should have it posted within the next twenty four hours
hi! will you be posting the epilogue on ao3 as well? 😍
yes! i will as soon as i get home from work tonight.
i just used my phone to post to tumbr from the back of the ambulance in between calls lol. i need my computer to post to ao3
Frequent Flyer - Epilogue (1/2)
Masterlist ao3
Pazzi (WNBA Paige x Nurse Azzi)
Word Count: 26.5k+
═══════════════════
a/n: good news and bad news. good news is there's another 20k words of this epilogue. bad news is tumblr won't let me post the whole thing at once. i had to format this half kinda weird to get it all to fit. anyways, enjoy over 26k words of nurse azzi and down bad paige from azzi's perspective
═══════════════════
Azzi Fudd couldn't believe she was actually dating Paige Bueckers. And not in the sense of wow I’m dating one of the most famous and talented female athletes of this century and the gay awakening of every woman under the age of thirty, but more in the sense of wow, I can’t believe I actually fell for this annoying blonde dork.
Dating Paige had been different than what she’d thought it would be. Sure, Paige was still the same irritating, overconfident, cocky, talkative, stubborn, way too competitive blonde that walked through her emergency department doors months ago, but Azzi had gained access to a different side of Paige. A side Azzi quickly realized most people weren’t privy to.
Simply put, Paige was a complete and utter simp for the nurse. At least, that’s what Azzi liked to tease her for rather regularly. But it was true, and Paige had no ground to stand on to deny it, no matter how hard she seemed to try. She was softer around Azzi than anybody else. The nurse saw it in the way her eyes would melt into warm pools of blue the second they landed on her. Heard it in the way her voice went soft around the edges when she spoke to her. Azzi was convinced that if someone were to look up “heart eyes” in the dictionary, there would be a picture of Paige staring at her as the definition.
Paige also treated Azzi in a way the nurse hadn’t expected. She remembered small details Azzi barely even realized she’d shared. The way Azzi liked her coffee, exactly how she liked her scrubs folded, the songs that always got her out of a bad mood. Azzi hadn’t made a new playlist since she started dating the blonde, Paige constantly curating new ones with songs she thought the nurse would like.
Paige would text with random check ins. Sometimes they were reminders that she missed her or was thinking about her, sometimes they were thoughts Paige definitely should have kept to herself. It got to the point that her coworkers teased her relentlessly for smiling at her phone so often, always aware of who was on the other end.
Paige would show up to the hospital with lunch, coffee, or her favorite snacks, as if she had some sixth sense for when Azzi needed a pick-me-up. Sometimes she’d show up with food or coffee for her coworkers too. She was infuriatingly charming, worming her way into the hearts of everyone in Azzi’s life.
Paige showed she cared through the little things. The playful teasing when Azzi was stressed, the way she’d wrap her arms around Azzi from behind while she cooked. Or the way she’d insist on reading aloud to her when Azzi was too exhausted to focus, but desperate to finish the chapter of whatever book she was currently reading. She had never been so taken care of or spoiled in her life.
And then there was the chaos. Paige left her things everywhere. There were half empty water bottles and gatorades perched on chairs and counters. Protein bar wrappers and empty candy bags in between the cushions of her couch and on her bedside table. Her clothes were draped over door handles and piled on the floor in the bathroom and the foot of her bed. When Azzi did laundry, half of what came out of the washer was Paige’s.
She had a toothbrush at Azzi’s apartment and a toothbrush for Azzi at her own. Paige always used Azzi’s expensive shower products, annoying her to no end. But she’d go out of her way to buy the same shampoo and conditioner to keep at her place for when Azzi stayed over.
She never stopped talking, always had to be touching Azzi in some way or another, and was always moving. Tapping her foot, bouncing her knees, rearranging something, or fiddling with her phone or Azzi’s things.
She was tempted, on more than one occasion, to tell Paige she needed to see a psychiatrist. Not because she was worried about her, exactly, but because as a nurse, it was obvious to her that Paige’s brain was wired a little differently, and she could see how much untapped energy was bouncing around inside her. But every time she opened her mouth to say it, Paige would flash her those ridiculously bright blue eyes and start rambling about some random thought she’d had in the last thirty seconds, and Azzi would immediately lose the nerve.
Paige was also impossibly clingy, but in a way that made Azzi feel like the center of her world. Every chaotic habit also somehow felt like an act of affection. It was loud and messy and exhausting, and yet Azzi couldn’t imagine her life without it.
And the flowers? Azzi was beginning to think Paige was single handedly responsible for the success of the US flower business. Paige had actually bought so many flowers for Azzi within the first month and a half of their relationship that it got to the point where the nurse had to sit her down and have a conversation about it.
At the time, Azzi had the day off, and Paige planned to head straight to the nurses apartment after her shoot around ended. Azzi knew the blonde’s time management skills were subpar, to say the least, and had figured she’d have some time before she arrived. She was in the middle of a true crime documentary when she heard the knock at her door, pressing pause and making her way over.
She opened the door to find Paige on the other side, clearly fresh out of the shower with her hair still damp, down in waves, and a giant bouquet of flowers wrapped in brown paper, tied off with a ribbon in her right hand.
“Hey lover,” Paige said, pulling Azzi in for a hug. The paper wrapping the flowers crinkled against her back with the action.
“Don’t call me lover,” Azzi chastised, accompanied by a roll of her eyes. Returning Paige’s hug and subtlety inhaling her increasingly familiar scent.
“Whatever you say, kitten,” the blonde acquiesced, breath warm against Azzi’s ear from where her head tucked into the nurse’s shoulder.
Azzi shoved Paige off of her at that, giving her a stern look. “Ew. That’s so much worse.”
Paige couldn’t help but laugh at her reaction. “Yeah, I can’t even lie. Kitten’s pretty fucking foul. My bad s-”
“I will kick you out,” Azzi said, interrupting her before she could continue to amuse herself. “You’re not funny.”
“I’m very funny, Az,” Paige responded, unperturbed. She smacked a loud kiss against Azzi’s cheek before letting herself further into the apartment.
“These are for you,” the blonde said, handing her the admittedly stunning bouquet of flowers in her hand. Azzi couldn’t help but to bring them to her nose, taking a deep inhale of their delicate scent.
Paige started opening cabinets. “Why don’t you have any vases?”
Azzi let out an exasperated sigh. “I think we need to talk.”
She gently set the bouquet on the countertop. Paige’s entire body went rigid at her words before she turned to face the nurse, eyes wide with panic.
“Not like that.” Azzi clarified quickly, realizing how it sounded. “Just… sit down for a second.”
She interlaced her fingers with Paige’s, giving her hand a reassuring squeeze as she walked them to the couch. When the nurse sat down, she wasn’t even the tiniest bit surprised when Paige sat so close against her she was nearly on top of her.
She was quickly growing used to the blonde’s clinginess and incessant need to be touching at all times. Azzi rolled her eyes, pretending to be annoyed by Paige's proximity. But on the inside, she secretly adored it. She relished in the fact that the blonde couldn’t seem to be in her presence without the need for some sort of physical contact. It made her feel like a love sick teenager, giddy at the attention.
“Look, Paige,” she began, thumb brushing wide strokes across the knuckles of Paige’s hand. “We need to talk about the flowers.”
“You don’t like them?” Paige asked, voice filled with genuine concern. “I know pink are your favorite, but I’ve gotten you so many pink ones I thought I’d switch it up this time,” she explained.
“But if you don’t like them I can go get different ones right now,” she said, standing up, clearly serious about her offer.
Azzi immediately yanked her back down. “No. I love them, they’re beautiful. That’s not the problem.”
Paige’s head cocked to the side in a way that resembled a confused puppy. “Then what is the problem?”
Azzi paused, not knowing exactly how to phrase her words without sounding unappreciative.
“Do you think maybe there should be a limit?”
At Paige’s befuddled look, the nurse continued. “There’s just… so many.”
Paige scoffed. “Bro, I don’t buy you that many flowers.”
“Less than two months ago, I owned two vases. Now I own twelve.”
“That is a lie,” Paige argued. “You don’t even have a single vase in any of your cabinets.”
“That’s because all twelve are already filled with flowers!”
Paige blinked. Once. Then again. She turned her head, surveying the apartment. Azzi could see the moment she fully took in her surroundings by the slight pink rising to her cheeks.
There were five vases filled with stunning bouquets just within eyesight. One on the coffee table in front of them, two more on either side of the tv, another on her kitchen table, and a fifth by the small entry table next to her front door.
And that wasn’t even taking into account the flowers out of her direct field of view. There were at least three more bouquets in her bedroom that Paige had delivered during her last couple of away games, one in each bathroom, and a couple in the guest bedroom.
“Oh,” Paige said sheepishly. “Shit. Sorry. I– I just…”
She trailed off, gaze dropping to where their hands were still intertwined. Her thumb rubbed an absentminded circle against Azzi’s knuckles, like she was working up the confidence to say whatever she was going to say next.
“I see them,” she started quietly. “Like, I’ll be walking past a store or that little stand on the corner, and they’re just… there. And they’re pretty and smell really good, just like you. Not that you smell like flowers. Well, not that you don’t either. You smell like vanilla. Is vanilla a flower? I’m not sure, but I just meant– they’re also pretty and they also smell really good…”
She finally glanced up at Azzi, a small, almost embarrassed smile tugging at her lips. “They just make me think of you.”
Azzi felt her chest tighten.
“I know it’s stupid,” Paige rushed, words tumbling over each other. “But I want you to treat you right. You take care of people all day long, and I just–” She shrugged, cheeks growing even pinker. “I guess flowers felt like the easiest way to say, ‘Hey, I’m thinking about you. I hope these make you happy or think of me when I’m not around’. Especially when I’m traveling for a game.”
She squeezed Azzi’s hand a little tighter. “And,” she said softly, “they don’t last forever. So I keep buying them.”
Paige swallowed, eyes earnest. “I can stop though. If it’s too much,” she offered.
“No!” Azzi all but yelled, far too abruptly and far too loud, if the way Paige jolted was any indication. She cleared her throat, trying to gather her bearings, face warming slightly at her accidental outburst.
“No,” she said softer this time. “I don’t want you to stop. I really do love them. And I love that they remind me of you.”
She saw Paige’s shoulders relax just a fraction.
“I just–” Azzi exhaled, tilting her head back against the couch. “I feel ridiculous and so ungrateful saying this, because it’s such a good problem to have. But sometimes it feels…,” she droned off, building up the courage to be honest with the blonde. To be vulnerable with her.
“Sometimes it just feels like I’m drowning in proof that you care about me, and I don’t really know what to do with that.”
Paige frowned slightly. “That’s… bad?”
“No,” Azzi said quickly, shaking her head. “Not bad. Just… new.” She looked back at Paige, eyes soft. “I’m not used to it. To being thought about like this. Or spoiled. Or…” She gestured vaguely around the apartment. “Needing to take an allergy pill when I wake up because the pollen count is so high inside of my own apartment.”
That earned her a small laugh from Paige.
“I don’t need you to keep proving anything to me,” Azzi continued, thumb brushing gently over Paige’s. “I already know you’re thinking about me. I know you care. I can see it in the way you look at me. I hear it in the way you speak to me. I can feel it in the way you touch me. You don’t have to keep buying me flowers to make it real.”
Paige’s jaw tightened, insecurity flickering across her face. “I just don’t want you to ever feel like I’m taking you for granted.”
Azzi leaned in then, forehead pressing gently against Paige’s. “You could never.”
She lifted their intertwined hands, pressing a soft kiss to Paige’s knuckles. Then another to the sharp edge of her jaw for good measure. “I just… don’t want you feeling like you have to get me new ones every other day to prove you care about me.”
Paige swallowed. “I told you. They don’t last forever.”
“Neither do muffins from my neighbor’s sympathy basket,” Azzi muttered.
Paige blinked. “Your what?”
Azzi groaned, dropping her head into Paige’s shoulder. “She saw all the deliveries. She thought someone died.”
Paige burst out laughing, the sound bright and unrestrained, arms immediately wrapping around Azzi. “Okay, yeah. That’s on me.”
Azzi smiled against her neck. “All I’m asking is maybe… slow it down a little? Save them for days when you really miss me. Or when you want to celebrate something. I don’t need them every time you pass a flower stand.”
Paige nodded slowly. “Okay. I can do that.”
She pulled back just enough to look at Azzi. “But I’m still gonna get you them sometimes.
Azzi smirked. “I’d be suspicious if you didn’t.”
Paige’s grin softened. “Good. Because I like giving you things.”
Azzi’s chest warmed, her earlier guilt melting into something steadier. “I like you,” she admitted quietly.
Paige leaned in, pressing a kiss to Azzi’s lips that started soft, but quickly escalated.
“Then we’re good,” she mumbled against her mouth.
—
Despite the fact that the two had been dating for a couple of months now, they still hadn't had the official girlfriend talk. Though it becomes clear to Azzi that Paige thought they had been girlfriends for a while when Paige is begging the nurse to meet her teammates.
It was Azzi’s second day off of the week, and after completing her morning workout and some necessary errands, she caved to Paige’s many texts begging her to come over. Which is exactly how she found herself curled up in Paige's ridiculously comfortable bed, buried beneath soft sheets as she tried to force herself not to fall back asleep for a second nap of the day. She couldn’t help it though. She always slept better in Paige’s bed. Or more specifically, with Paige next to her.
Azzi was still somewhat grumpy about the fact that she had been rudely pulled out of her comfortable sleep, curled into Paige’s side, by the obnoxious and incessant ringing of the blonde's phone.
Said blonde was notably less irritated by the rude awakening when she realized why her phone was blowing up.
“Az, come on,” Paige all but begged. “It’ll be fun, I promise. And if it’s not, we can dip early. Swear.”
Paige’s teammates had decided to go out tonight, and had apparently deemed Azzi’s attendance mandatory. The blonde had been pacing in front of the bed trying to convince Azzi to go with her for the past ten minutes as the nurse tried to read. Both women too stubborn for their own good.
“C’mon,” Paige dragged the word out, giving her a pleading look. “Please?”
“But why do I need to go?” Azzi asked for the umpteenth time. Finally putting her book down for a second. “I’ve only got a few more chapters left and your bed is so comfortable. Why can’t I just stay here and read and you can crawl into bed with me when you get home hammered at god knows what time in the morning like usual?”
Paige fired off a text before leveling the nurse with a glare. “Okay, I have a few problems with what you just said.”
“First of all,” she began, holding up one finger. “Sometimes, I have a drink or two with my teammates. I do not get ‘hammered’ and come home at ridiculous hours of the night. That is not our ‘usual’.”
“Second of all,” she continued, another finger joining the one she was still holding up. “My comfortable bed and your stupid, boring book will still be here when we get back.”
“It’s not boring,” Azzi rebuked.
“And third of all,” Paige added a third finger, shoving her hand towards the nurse with a wave and ignoring her defense about her book. “I really, really want you to come.”
“But why?” Azzi whined, frowning when she realized she sounded like a petulant child. “You always let me stay back and read.”
Paige let herself fall onto the bed dramatically, turning her head to look at Azzi. “Cause everyone wants to meet you.”
“I’ve already met a few of them,” Azzi tried to argue, weakly.
“Nai and Lyss don’t count,” Paige said, resolutely.
Azzi scoffed. “Yes they do.”
Paige shook her head. “No they don’t”
“Why wouldn’t they count?”
“Because,” Paige’s brows furrowed in concentration, seemingly trying to come up with a reason for her prior declaration. “You technically met Nai on accident. And you only know Lyss cause she follows Nai around like a lost puppy.”
“Hmph, if that’s not the pot calling the kettle black,” Azzi muttered under her breath, turning back to her book.
She wasn’t even able to open it to the page she’d left off on before she felt a pillow smack her in the side of the head with a thump.
“Paige!” Azzi admonished. “What the–”
“I heard that,” she scowled.
Azzi giggled, and the scowl slipped off of the blonde’s face, replaced with half-lidded eyes and a soft, lopsided smile.
The nurse sighed at the love drunk look on Paige’s face. She set her book down on the bedside table, officially giving up on reading it for now.
“Is it really that important to you that I go?” she asked, reluctantly.
Paige’s eyes widened in eager anticipation, sensing her opportunity.
“Yes,” she nodded so violently Azzi was concerned about a contrecoup injury and damage to her brain.
The nurse pinched the bridge of her nose, already regretting the words about to come out of her mouth. “Fine. I’ll go.”
Azzi didn’t even have time to brace herself before the nurse was launching herself at her full force, tackling her back into the bed and peppering obnoxiously loud kisses all over her face. With one final sloppy kiss pressed to her cheek, Paige pulled back, hovering over Azzi with a massive grin the nurse couldn’t help but mirror at the blonde’s excitement.
“I can’t wait for you to meet everyone,” she enthused. “They’re all gonna love you. And they’ll see that you’re real.”
Azzi's eyes narrowed at that, confused. “Real?”
The nurse’s arms snaked around the blonde’s back, hands stroking absent patterns across broad shoulders. Paige visibly melted into her touch, eyes going unfocused as they gazed at Azzi beneath her.
“What do you mean they’ll see that I’m real?” she questioned again after a moment, realizing Paige had most definitely lost her train of thought based on the way she was staring at her with unfocused eyes.
Paige blinked at her, mind trying to catch up to Azzi’s question. Then she groaned, letting her head fall into the crook of Azzi’s neck with a huff.
“It’s Nika’s fault,” Paige grumbled into her skin.
Those were three words Azzi had heard quite often in the past few weeks. Ever since Nika had been traded to the Wings just a month into the season, the blonde had been subjected once again to the antics Paige had told her plenty of stories about from their time together in college.
“She doesn’t believe me,” she mumbled.
Paige popped her head back up. “She told everyone you weren’t real,” she informed the nurse, distraught. “That I made you up.”
Azzi snickered at that. Visualizing Paige vehemently defending her existence to her teammates as Nika discredited her story.
“It’s not funny,” Paige scolded her. “She literally sees me on the phone with you all the time. She’s seen my wallpaper. And I’ve shown her like a million pictures of you,” she continued.
Azzi felt her chest warm at the reminder that the majority of the blonde’s camera roll was composed of pictures of her. She wasn’t a fan of most of them, claiming they were unflattering and she had been caught off guard or asleep when Paige took them, but Paige adored them. She claimed she needed to have something to look at while Azzi was at work or when the blonde was out of town for away games so she didn’t forget what the nurse looked like.
“She told everyone that they’re AI generated,” the blonde continued. “I don’t even know how to do that, Azzi,” she practically whined.
Azzi pursed her lips, “I know you don’t,” she said sympathetically. “I still have nightmares about that AI baby you tried to make.”
“It was supposed to be ours,” Paige reminded her, distraught.
Azzi leveled her with an unimpressed look. “It was terrifying. It looked like a light skinned Chucky. You had to sleep with the lights on for a week.”
“Okay, okay,” she grumbled. “I thought you said you wouldn’t bring that up anymore. I don’t want to think about it. I thought it was gonna be cute. Not… that,” she shuddered at the memory.
Before she could tease her further, Azzi’s phone started ringing, lighting up with the name ‘DiJonai Carrington’. Azzi groaned out loud, swiping to answer.
“Put her on speakerphone,” Paige ordered.
Azzi reached for her phone on the bedside table. She shoved the blonde off of her as she answered, sitting up and ignoring her request.
“Hey, Nai,” she said brightly into the phone, angling her body away from Paige who was now trying to grab at it.
“Azzi,” Paige said, trying to get her attention.
“You’re coming out with us tonight,” DiJonai informed her, like she had no say in the matter. “Non-negotiable.”
“Okay, first of all–” the nurse began, ready to tell her she’d already reluctantly agreed to go before she was cut off.
“Azzi,” Paige said, louder this time, not wanting to be ignored or excluded. “What’s she saying? Put her on speaker.”
She heard DiJonai let out a huff of laughter on the other end of the line, obviously registering the situation Azzi was in.
“Are you with your lesser half?” DiJonai asked sarcastically.
She looked at Paige, narrowing her eyes at her in false suspicion. “Why yes, she is with me.”
The blonde smacked her lightly on the arm, gesturing to her phone. “Put it on speaker,” she said again.
Azzi rolled her eyes, but acquiesced. “You’re on speaker,” she warned DiJonai.
“‘Sup DJ,” Paige said obnoxiously loud.
“She can hear you, you don’t have to yell,” Azzi chided.
“Don’t call me that,” DiJonai said, voice crackling through the speaker. “I shouldn’t have to keep telling you not to call me that.”
Azzi smiled. She loved the relationship between Paige and DiJonai. Their dynamic was always entertaining. Comprised of squabbles and insignificant arguments, but the nurse could feel the love they had for each other. She appreciated that Paige had someone looking out for her when she wasn’t around.
The blonde relished in getting on pretty much everyone’s nerves, but Azzi suspected there were a few people she took extra joy in provoking. Herself and DiJonai being at the top of that list. It was something that the two of them bonded over, leading to an unexpected friendship Azzi was incredibly appreciative of.
Paige smirked, waggling her eyes at Azzi as if to say ‘watch this’.
“Fine,” she started, a shit eating grin overtaking her face. “I’ll just call you N–”
“Don’t even say it,” DiJonai cut her off, voice the epitome of a mother’s warning. “Azzi, take me off speaker. I’m already at my limit with her.”
Azzi grinned at the blonde, who looked thoroughly scolded.
“She’ll behave,” she reassured the woman on the other end of the line. Paige nodded at the nurse in a silent agreement to abide by the promise she made on her behalf.
DiJonai let out a long exhale. “See, this is why you need to come tonight. She’s more tolerable when you’re around.”
“Hey!” Paige exclaimed, insulted.
Azzi placed a quiet, placating kiss against her lips to soothe the blow of her teammates' words. If Paige’s glazed eyes and sappy smile were anything to go off of, it worked.
“Paige already convinced me,” she told DiJonai. “Apparently, I need to prove to Nika that I’m real, and not a figment of Paige’s imagination.”
DiJonai burst out cackling at that, causing Paige to pout.
“It’s not funny,” Paige protested, for the second time in the last ten minutes.
“It’s so funny,” DiJonai contested, still laughing. “Az, did you know she told everyone Paige’s pictures of you are fake?”
“So I’ve heard,” Azzi confirmed, smiling softly at a still pouting Paige. She placed her legs in the blonde's lap, knowing she’d appreciate the contact.
Warm hands immediately found purchase, one resting against the inside of her thigh just above her knee, the other interlacing her fingers with Azzi’s free hand.
“Like Paige could ever figure out how to do that,” DiJonai continued. “Remember when she tried to see what your future kid would look like? That thing was disgusting.”
Paige’s mouth fell open, a look of exaggerated betrayal overtaking her face.
“You showed her that?” Paige squawked.
‘Sorry,’ she mouthed, squeezing the blonde’s hand. “I had to show someone. It was really disturbing, babe.”
“It’s fine,” she mumbled quietly, just for Azzi to hear. “I showed my therapist.”
Azzi laughed at that.
“What’d she say?” DiJonai asked, startling Azzi, who had forgotten she was still on the phone for a second.
“Nothing,” Azzi lied. “She’s just trying to figure out what to wear tonight.”
That seemed to distract DiJonai, who immediately began describing exactly what the nurse should wear. Letting her know it was the perfect opportunity to wear the miniskirt she bought when they went shopping together last week. It was still in one of the bags in Paige’s closet that she hadn’t managed to take home yet.
Paige perked up at the word ‘miniskirt’.
“Miniskirt?” she asked, eyes slowly roaming Azzi’s body up and down like she was already picturing her in it. The nurse felt herself warm at the look in her eyes. “You bought a miniskirt?”
“She bought two,” DiJonai supplied, unhelpfully.
“Thank you for that,” Azzi said sarcastically.
Paige snatched the phone out of her hand. “We gotta go, see you at 10,” she said before hanging up and tossing Azzi’s phone somewhere towards the bottom of the bed.
Azzi scowled at her. “That was rude.”
“So was keeping your new ‘miniskirt’ a secret,” she countered, pulling at the nurse's waist until she was straddling her.
Azzi laughed, letting her arms fall around Paige’s shoulders. “I wasn’t keeping it a secret.”
“No?” Paige asked, hands stroking her thighs, thumbs coming up to rest just beneath the hem of her sleep shorts.
“No,” Azzi confirmed.
“Hmm,” Paige hummed, doubtful. She brought her lips to Azzi’s neck, placing them against her pulse point. “How come I haven’t seen it yet, then?”
Azzi let out a soft breath at the feeling of Paige against her skin. She tilted her head, giving her more access to her neck. “I was keeping it a surprise. Waiting for the right occasion.”
Paige pulled back reluctantly, resting her forehead against the nurse’s. “And tonight’s the right occasion?”
“It is according to Nai,” she said airily, eyes trained on Paige’s lips.
Paige reared her head back at that. “I don’t think I like when you say her name with that look in your eyes,” the blonde said with a frown.
Azzi grinned with a roll of her eyes. “Come here,” she said, pulling Paige in and connecting their lips.
She took Paige’s bottom lip between her own, tracing it with her tongue, moving to deepen the kiss when Paige’s phone began to ring obnoxiously. The nurse began to withdraw, separating her mouth from the blonde’s.
“Ignore it,” Paige said, pulling Azzi back into her. The kiss lasted for all of another fifteen seconds before her phone rang again.
The blonde groaned dramatically, glowering when Azzi peeled herself off of her after a final, chaste peck.
“I’m gonna start getting ready,” she told the blonde, heading for the bathroom. Suddenly extra grateful that Paige bought duplicates of Azzi’s makeup so she didn’t have to keep bringing her own back and forth between their apartments.
A couple of weeks ago, the nurse had been surprised to find all of her usual daily wear makeup products neatly organized on Paige’s bathroom counter, plus a few extras. Apparently, the blonde had taken a picture of everything she used at her own apartment after the nurse had offhandedly complained about going to work barefaced more often than she’d like. Paige had told her she didn’t need makeup, that she was stunning without it. But surprised her with what slightly resembled an at-home-sephora worth of products.
She currently had the bathroom door open as she got to work. Listening in and smiling at Paige’s half of the conversation. She couldn’t hear Nika, but she did hear the lingering frustration in the blonde’s voice at having been interrupted by the Croatian.
“This better be an emergency, Nika,” she said when she’d finally answered on Nika’s third call.
“Yes, she’s coming.”
“No, fuck you, bro.”
“I’m not having this conversation with you again.”
“No!”
“I swear to god, I will ask for you to be traded again.”
“Whatever, you’re an idiot.”
“Yes, okay,” she groaned. “I will.”
“This whole conversation could have been a text.”
“Yeah, yeah. I’ll see you soon.”
It was silent for a moment, the only sound the soft patter of Paige’s footsteps getting closer. She walked into the bathroom, arms wrapping around Azzi’s middle from behind. For a second she just watched Azzi through the mirror with an expression of awe as she finished the last touches of her lip combo. Azzi set the gloss down on the bathroom counter and met blue eyes through the mirror.
“Your mom?” she asked, referring to the phone call.
Paige scoffed. “You think you're so funny.”
Azzi turned in her arms, her own coming to rest against Paige’s shoulders.
“Are you gonna tell me I’m not?” she challenged.
But Paige didn’t hear her, eyes zeroed in on her lips. Heavy lidded and dazed, as if she were in a trance. She moved to close the distance, but Azzi swerved her when she realized what was about to happen. The blonde’s lips collided with her cheek at the last second.
“Wha–”
“I just finished my lip combo,” the nurse explained.
Paige’s lower lip jutted out in a pout. “Seriously?”
Azzi shook her head affectionately. She moved one of her hands from Paige’s shoulders to hold her jaw between her thumb and two fingers. She leaned in to place a featherlight kiss against her pout, pulling back with a grin.
“Get ready,” she told the blonde, moving to exit the bathroom and get dressed for the night. Paige shut the door, planning on rinsing off before they left. The nurse helped herself to Paige’s closet to find a shirt and jacket for the night.
When Paige came out of the bathroom, skin still tinged pink from the heat of her shower, Azzi was already dressed. The blonde froze in her steps when she saw the nurse. Eyes slowly tracking her from head to toe, lingering at her skirt.
When her gaze finally met Azzi’s again, her blue eyes were nearly entirely eclipsed with dilated pupils. “Fuck,” she muttered, crossing the few steps between them.
“You had this here the whole time?” she asked, hands finding purchase low on Azzi’s hips against the smooth leather of her skirt.
It took far longer for them to leave than it should have, but neither Paige’s eyes nor hands would stop wandering. And Azzi wasn’t actually bothered enough by it to stop her, though she’d pretended like she was.
They finally made it out of the apartment a solid hour later than they had originally planned. The blonde tried to get them to skip all together, despite the fact that she had been begging her to go, not so long ago. Azzi ended up having to redo her lip combo, while Paige ended up having to scrub said lip combo off of her own face, as well as other parts of her body.
When they walked into the venue Azzi was instantly overwhelmed by music blasting through massive speakers. Troves of people were packed together under flashing lights as they moved to the beat of a bass so loud the nurse could feel it vibrate in her chest. Much to Azzi’s amazement, Paige had somehow managed to spot Nika in the crowd near the bar. The blonde interlaced their fingers, keeping the nurse close to her as she began to lead them through hoards of people to her teammate.
“Yo! Nika,” Paige called out once they were within shouting distance.
Nika turned around at the sound of her name, eyes scanning the people in front of her before landing on Paige, then lighting up when they landed on Azzi beside her as they approached her at the bar.
“Holy shit,” Nika said, appearing to forget about Paige entirely when she realized who was standing next to her. “You’re actually real.”
Azzi let out a soft laugh, disentangling her fingers from Paige’s to offer it out to the Croatian in greeting. “I’m Azzi.”
“You’re hot,” Nika said, shaking the offered hand. “Like… really hot.”
She felt Paige’s hand come to rest low and possessive on her hip, a not-so-subtle claim. Azzi caught the proud smirk she wore out of the corner of her eye.
“Chill,” Paige warned.
Then she broke out in a grin bordering on arrogance. “Told ya.”
“You sure she didn’t like… buy you or something?” she asked Azzi, eyebrows furrowed in confusion. Like she couldn’t comprehend that the nurse was actually there with Paige.
“Nika!” Paige chastised.
“No offense,” Nika clarified, with her hands up. “You’re just, like, so hot. And Paige is so…”
“Annoying?” Azzi supplied, deadpan, accompanied by a twitch of her eyebrows.
“Hey!” the blonde exclaimed.
Nika broke out into a shit eating grin of approval. “Oh, so you do know her.”
The three of them fell into easy conversation after that. Azzi and Nika talking and laughing like they were old friends catching up, rather than two people who had just met. Paige chimed in now and then, but seemed mostly content to simply watch Azzi with a lovestruck grin plastered on her face.
They were interrupted by the bartender handing Nika her drink before he turned to Paige and Azzi to take their orders. As soon as they spewed out their requests, the bartender got to work. Azzi reached into her small purse, hardly big enough to hold her phone and a tiny wallet. She had barely begun to lift the wallet out of her bag when she felt Paige lightly smack her hand, making her drop it.
“Whatchu think you’re doing?” Paige asked with a bewildered look. Like Azzi paying for their drinks was completely unfathomable.
“I was trying to get my card out,” Azzi glowered at her. “Before you hit me.”
“Not happening,” she informed her, pulling her own card out from the back of her phone. “And I didn’t hit you. I tapped your hand.”
“That was a smack,” Azzi argued. “The bartender probably thinks I’m a victim of domestic violence. He’s probably waiting for me to signal for help.”
The blonde scowled, opening her mouth to argue, but was interrupted by the guffaw Nika let out. The noise startled both women, who had forgotten about her presence for a moment.
“Dude,” she nudged Paige. “I think you finally met your match, twin. She’s perfect.”
The blonde blushed at her words, a shy smile on her lips. Azzi let out a soft laugh, both at the sentiment of Nika’s words, and at Paige’s reaction.
Nika took a long sip of her drink, letting out an exaggerated sigh after she swallowed. “Fuck, that’s good,” she said.
She looked at the girls expectantly. “I’m gonna head back to everyone else. We got a big booth in the back left corner, come find us after you get your drinks.”
“Bet,” Paige nodded. “You gonna go tell everyone you were wrong? Tell em’ you’re an asshole and my girlfriend is real?”
“Yeah. Real out of your league,” she smirked, shoulder checking the blonde lightly as she walked past her towards the rest of the group. The bartender appeared back in front of them with their drinks. Paige handed him her card, telling him to start a tab for the night.
As soon as he walked away and Nika was out of sight, having disappeared into the crowd, Azzi turned to Paige with a small smirk and the glint of a challenge in her voice.
“So… I’m your girlfriend now?”
Paige turned to face her fully, expression one of utter confusion.
Azzi hated how adorable the blonde looked with her eyebrows furrowed and head cocked to the side in bewilderment. “What do you mean? Of course you are.”
“Hmm,” Azzi hummed noncommittally. “Funny. I don’t remember that conversation.”
“Azzi,” Paige began, exasperated. “We’ve been together for almost three months now. What are you talking about? What else would you call us?”
The nurse took a sip of her drink to hide her smirk of amusement at the beginnings of what was sure to be another ‘Paige spiral’.
“I mean, we’ve been dating. Yeah,” Azzi replied. “But there's a difference between dating and girlfriends. There’s a shift. A conversation. And I don’t remember having that conversation.”
Paige’s blue eyes went wide with panic. “Shift? What shift? What– what are you talking about? You date your girlfriend. That’s how it works, Az. There’s no difference.”
Her eyes scanned Azzi’s face rapidly, as though she was trying to determine the truth of her own words before she spoke again. “Is there a difference? What’s the difference?”
Azzi pursed her lips in an attempt to hold back a smile at the blonde’s alarmed ramble.
“Dating is a blanket term. Girlfriend means commitment, and exclusivity,” Azzi rationalized, secretly enjoying the consternation overtaking Paige’s face as she explained.
She turned to make her way to the table Nika said to meet the rest of the team at, but only made it a half a step before she felt Paige’s hand wrap gently around her arm, literally dragging her back into the conversation the blonde was clearly nowhere near finished with.
“But I– we’ve been committed. And exclusive,” she paused, eyebrows furrowing so intensely Azzi was worried she’d need botox in her near future. “Have… has this not been exclusive? Have you been seeing other people?”
The nurse finally decided to take some pity on her, recognizing just how distraught this conversation seemed to be making the blonde, whose shoulders were pulled so taut they nearly reached her ears.
“Baby, I see you more than I see my own shadow. When would I have the time to see other people?”
Paige visibly relaxed at her words, shoulders easing as she let out a tense breath. “Are you not committed?” she asked quietly, still trying to figure out what she was missing.
“I spend pretty much all of my free time with you. I’m about to meet your entire team,” Azzi responded easily. “And I sleep with you more than I sleep alone at this point. So I’d say I’m pretty committed.”
“Yeah,” Paige nodded emphatically, more so to herself than the nurse. “Okay. Yeah. Exactly. We’re exclusive and committed and we're dating and so… you’re my girlfriend,” she continued, voicing her train of logic outloud. “Right?”
Azzi laughed softly and full of endearment. “Is this,” she made a broad gesture to all of Paige, “you asking me to be your girlfriend?”
Paige’s eyes went wide again. “I– I didn’t know I had to ask. I thought you already were,” she pouted.
Azzi sighed, deciding to take mercy on her official girlfriend, pulling her in for a quick kiss that left the blonde visibly dazed.
“Guess I’m your girlfriend, then,” she said with a small shake of her head, interlacing their fingers together between them. “I should probably cancel the other dates I had scheduled for this week, huh?”
“That’s not funny,” Paige scowled, taking the glass out of Azzi’s hand and setting both of their drinks on the bar top. She pulled Azzi in by the waist to embrace her firmly. The nurse’s arms came up around the blonde's shoulders, squeezing tight and breathing her in. Melting at the contact and the warmth of her. I’m so fucked, Azzi thought to herself. I’m basically in love with an idiot.
After they sorted out the status of their relationship, the two girls grabbed their drinks and made their way to the rest of the group hand in hand.
Azzi was good with people. She knew that, deep down. It came with the territory of her job. She was charming and well spoken. She could hold a conversation with just about anyone. But even with that knowledge, she still felt a nervous anticipation coursing through her body as they approached the table.
Because this wasn’t just a table full of ridiculously tall and athletic women. It was a table full of people who mattered to Paige. The blonde must’ve sensed her hesitation, the way she always seemed to do. Like picking up on every miniscule shift in Azzi’s energy was instinctual. She felt Paige squeeze her hand before leaning towards her.
“They’re gonna love you, Az,” she said, breath warm against her, lips softly caressing the shell of her ear as she leaned close so she could hear her.
Azzi returned the squeeze to the blonde’s hand, drawing strength from her touch and taking a deep breath to steel herself before they closed the final distance to the table.
DiJonai saw her first, letting out an inebriated squeal. “Azzi!”
She was blocked in by NaLyssa, and began aggressively shoving her girlfriend out of the booth so she could get out and properly greet the nurse.
With a few curse words and a glare thrown at NaLyssa for her apparent lack of urgency to let DiJonai exit the booth, she engulfed Azzi in a hug. Effectively separating her hand from Paige’s, much to the blonde’s dismay.
“Hey, girl,” she said, pulling away and holding Azzi by the shoulders to look her up and down in appraisal. “You look good, Az.”
“Well, you basically dressed me,” Azzi laughed softly.
“I did a fantastic job,” DiJonai replied, eyeing her up and down again with a smug smile. “God damn.”
Azzi was about to return the compliment when NaLyssa spoke up.
“She’s right, you look great,” she said, giving the nurse a quick side hug in greeting.
DiJonai smirked, looking directly at Paige when she spoke next. “Y’know Azzi, if Lyss and I were ever gonna have a third–”
“Okay, bruh,” Paige’s hand came to rest possessively at her lower back. “Y’all can back off. You’re not funny.”
Azzi looked up at her girlfriend, eyes alight and filled with affection for Paige.
“They’re kinda funny,” she murmured just for the blonde to hear.
The glare Paige aimed at her lasted only a second, before she rolled her eyes with a reluctant smile. DiJonai finally relented, slipping back into the booth with NaLyssa following in after her. Paige turned to the rest of the group, proudly introducing Azzi to her team.
After the initial introductions, Azzi slipped into the booth beside NaLyssa. Paige sidled in right after, pressed tightly against her, thigh to thigh. The blonde slipped an arm around Azzi's shoulder as the group immediately began hounding the nurse with questions. They were easily impressed with Azzi's career, and the nurse had them cackling with some of her funnier hospital stories of crazy patients, and injuries so absurd they almost sound made up. They weren’t though. People really are that stupid.
“Wait,” Maddy said, a look of horror on her face as she interrupted Azzi’s retelling of a frat boy's injury last week. “He willingly stuck a firework up his asshole?”
Azzi took a sip of her new drink, the one that Paige had refreshed a few minutes prior. “Mhm,” she nodded.
“And he lit it?” Arike chimed in, appalled.
“Yup,” Azzi confirmed.
The wide variety of expressions on the faces looking back at her made Azzi chuckle. Some were cracking up, others utterly mortified, a few a healthy mix of both. Nika seemed delighted. Paige just looked proud, eyes never straying from Azzi’s face.
“Is he okay?” Arike’s fiance, Lala, asked with genuine concern, looking a little green.
“The explosion caused some pretty severe burns and damaged part of his bowel,” she said. “He needed a colostomy. But he’s going to be okay.”
“Why would he do that?” Maddy asked, unable to make sense of the kid’s choices. “Like why would he think that’s a good idea?”
Azzi just shrugged, having long given up on trying to understand the reasoning behind people’s stupid decisions.
“Probably trying to impress his frat brothers,” Nika supplied, grinning. “They’re always daring each other to do stupid shit. Pretty much all share a singular brain cell.”
“It’s a brotherhood,” NaLyssa added, sarcastically.
“Who needs friends when you have enemas like that,” Azzi joked, laughing at her own pun.
The only one who seemed to get it was DiJonai, who burst out laughing. DiJonai was much smarter than most people seemed to give her credit for. It was part of why they became friends so easily. She actually understood most of what Azzi talked about.
Everyone else stared at the two of them in confused amusement.
The group continued like that, swapping stories and laughing over many more rounds. Azzi could feel the alcohol settling warmly into her blood, loosening her lips and smoothing the sharp edges of her usual restraint. The initially overwhelming noise of the bar had blurred into a distant hum, and she found herself enjoying the night without constantly overthinking.
She was always aware of Paige's presence, the way she stayed pressed against her. The hand against Azzi steadily grew bolder with each drink. It rested against the nurse’s shoulder, before sliding down, low on her waist like it belonged there. Her fingers would brush against her thigh, tracing idle, absent minded patterns beneath the hem of her skirt, leaving a trail of goosebumps in their wake and sending a small thrill up her spine.
The nurse relished in the subtle attention. In the way the touch was meant only for her. Never performative or excessive, just a quiet constant in the chaos of conversation. A reminder that the blonde’s attention never truly left her.
At a certain point, the conversation inevitably came back to Paige and Azzi, and their relationship. The group did not hold back on embarrassing the blonde. The nurse's cheeks hurt from grinning so hard.
“I’m not even exaggerating, Azzi,” Arike began, swinging her drink around drunkenly as she spoke. “We’ve basically had to ban your name at practice.”
“It’s true,” NaLyssa confirmed. “She’s not allowed to mention you more than three times.”
“She usually goes through all three before we even leave the locker room,” Nika added.
“I had to ban both of your names in our house,” Lala informed them. “Rike started to drive me crazy with all her complaining about how often P talks about you.”
Paige scoffed, insulted, and glaring at the group. “You guys are being dramatic. I do not talk about her that often.”
She shifted her head to look directly at Azzi trying to convince her of the truth of her own words. “I don’t talk about you that much.”
“Yes, she does,” someone said, but Azzi didn’t catch who it was, too enraptured by earnest blue eyes. She heard a few grumbles of agreement from the rest of the group, contradicting Paige’s assertion.
“It’s cute,” Maddy defended.
“It’s annoying,” Nika corrected. “I had to switch seats on the plane the other day. The only seat left was next to coach. I had to listen to him berate me about every single time I was out of position against Vegas.”
The Croatian downed the rest of her drink in one large gulp before continuing. “And that was still better than hearing Paige talk about how she couldn’t wait to see Azzi for three hours straight.”
They kept going. Telling anecdote after anecdote of Paige being completely and utterly down bad for the nurse. Airing out information Azzi was certain the blonde never intended for her to know.
Like the fact that Paige had a picture of her hanging up in her locker. One she looked at before games. Or that Paige apparently kept a running list on the notes app of her phone of Azzi’s go to order at every restaurant, ice cream parlor, and coffee shop they’d ever been to, just so she’d know exactly what to get her next time.
Each story only made the nurse fall that much further for the hopelessly devoted, and endearingly dorky blonde. The way she cared for Azzi was so pure. Selfless and constant in its nature. It left the nurse a little breathless every time she noticed it. Every time she was reminded that it wasn’t just visible to her, but to everyone else as well.
But Azzi caught the slow bloom of red creeping up Paige’s neck. Saw the way her jaw worked as she clenched and unclenched it, like she was holding something back. Felt the way the thumb tracing steady patterns against her waist faltered. The teasing was getting to her. She was genuinely a little self-conscious at the way her teammates continued to rag on her. Paige wasn’t laughing anymore. It was subtle, but she was shrinking in on herself. And the realization hit Azzi like a slap in the face.
The thought of Paige being genuinely self-conscious sent a sharp squeeze through her heart. Something instinctive flared inside of her. Protective and immediate. Without drawing attention, Azzi shifted her hand from her half empty glass and slid it beneath the table. Her fingers settled warm and sure on Paige’s thigh, giving it a reassuring squeeze before staying there.
“It worked, though,” Azzi said to the group. The urge to defend Paige had her speaking before she could second guess herself. “It’s all a part of her charm.”
She could feel the way her words seemed to reassure the blonde. Her posture shifted back into its typical relaxed confidence, no longer looking like she was subconsciously trying to make herself smaller. Her jaw unclenched, replaced with a cocky grin. And the hand at her side slid just a little bit lower, thumbs resuming their idle patterns.
“Don’t encourage her,” Nika admonished. “She is not charming.”
Azzi smirked.
“I don’t know,” she said slowly. “I’m into it.”
She didn’t get to say anything else before she felt Paige pull her impossibly closer against her side, leaning in and placing a soft, lingering kiss, against her temple.
After Nika fake gagged at the display, the rest of the group broke off into separate conversations, paying no mind to Paige and Azzi in their own little bubble.
“Thanks,” Paige murmured quietly, keeping her voice low enough for only the nurse to hear.
Azzi’s gaze fell to Paige’s mouth for a beat, taking note of the small and sincere smile she saw there, before flicking her gaze back up to meet bright blue eyes.
“I know I like to give you shit for it all the time,” the nurse started, eyebrows pulled together in sincerity. “But I don’t ever want you to feel embarrassed for something I’m actually really grateful for.”
“I’m not,” Paige reassured her quickly. “I could never be embarrassed for how I feel about you.”
Azzi’s breath caught in her throat at Paige’s words. She’d meant the actions, the thoughtfulness. The way Paige showed up for her, not the feelings themselves. Apparently they were one in the same for the blonde. She saw no distinction. The realization settled heavy in Azzi’s chest.
Paige continued, blissfully unaware of the way the nurse’s heart was pounding in her chest, full and warm. “I just didn’t need everyone laying it all out there all at once. Especially in front of you.”
“I thought it was sweet,” she told the blonde softly, tracing random patterns on Paige’s thigh with the hand that still rested there.
Paige pursed her lips as if to hold back a smile, slightly rolling her eyes as she shook her head, face growing just a touch flushed at the nurse’s words.
“You’re okay, though?” Azzi asked her girlfriend.
“Yeah,” Paige reassured her, a grateful smile gracing her lips. “I can handle it.”
“Good,” the nurse breathed out, still trying to settle the rapid thrum of her heart. “Because I don’t know if I could stop teasing you if you asked. And they just gave me a lot to work with.”
“I like when you tease me,” she informs her with a shrug. “It’s your love language.”
Azzi rolled her eyes, but couldn’t deny the truth of the statement. She brought her glass to lips to hide her smile. It was nearly empty, more watered down than actual drink at this point, but she took a sip anyway. Just to give herself something to do other than kiss the blonde next to her in front of her entire team.
“You want another drink?” Paige offered, nodding at her nearly empty glass.
Azzi’s gaze never strayed from blue eyes, alight with adoration.
“I’m good,” she told her, biting her lip through a small smile at the blonde’s attentiveness to her needs.
When she finally tore her eyes away from Paige’s with more effort than she cared to acknowledge, she caught the gaze of DiJonai. The woman had ended up across from them in the group’s ongoing game of musical chairs. It was a constant shuffle every time someone got up to pee or order another round.
Although there was no chance she’d overheard their conversation, DiJonai must have seen the entire interaction. The small but knowing smile curving her lips giving her away.
She gave Azzi a subtle wink of approval. Azzi pretended to scratch an itch under her eye with her middle finger, surreptitiously flipping her off.
The group stayed until last call, finally making their way out of the bar when the music shut off and the overhead lights turned on, the establishment’s not so subtle attempt to urge everyone out. They said their goodbyes, Azzi promising to join them again soon. Paige’s arm found its place back on her waist, phone held loosely in her free hand, opened to the Uber app.
“Mine or yours?” she asked Azzi, attempting to place a lingering kiss on her cheek that landed closer to her eye as Paige swayed slightly off balance.
“Yours,” Azzi answered without hesitation, her words coming out only slightly slurred. “Your bed’s the comfiest.”
She let her head rest against Paige’s shoulder. Grateful that most of Dallas was already asleep, leaving her free to cling to the blonde without fear of someone taking a photo. Paige seemed to share that sentiment, letting her own head rest against Azzi’s as she ordered the car.
When their ride pulled up, Paige guided her to the car, opening the door and allowing the nurse to enter first.
“I can feel you staring,” she scolded the blonde, weakly.
“You’re the one who wore a miniskirt, bro,” Paige mumbled in defense, climbing in behind her, a hint of pink creeping across her cheeks.
Azzi had scooted to the far side, directly behind the driver. Paige slipped in from behind the passenger seat and wedged herself into the middle, pressing herself against the nurse's side like she couldn’t bear to be separated by even a few inches of space.
“Paige,” Azzi complained, wriggling. “Your legs are way too long for that. There’s not enough room. Scoot over,” she tried pushing her back to her side, but the blonde planted her feet and refused to budge.
“Quit bein’ dramatic,” she argued. “You got a ton of room.”
Azzi, in fact, did not have a ton of room. Her left side was pressed completely up against the door, and the already very limited space for her knees was being thoroughly encroached upon by Paige’s own legs.
But she was far too tired, and Paige was far too warm against her for the nurse to argue. A large hand moved to rest high on Azzi’s inner thigh. She let out a deep sigh of defeat, wrapping both her arms around the blonde’s left, and allowed her heavy head to fall against Paige’s shoulder.
She let her eyes fall closed, breathing in Paige’s scent, a heady mix of her cologne and something uniquely her. She felt the blonde place a kiss to the crown of her head, as the car picked up speed, music playing faintly out of the speakers.
“Thanks for coming tonight,” Paige said quietly, voice so close the nurse could feel the sound waves travel from her mouth straight into her ear. The timbre settling over her like a warm blanket.
“I had fun,” she told the blonde, sleepily. Eyes too heavy to open.
“Yeah?” Paige asked.
“Mhm,” Azzi hummed, tipsy smile on her lips. “I always have fun with you.”
The nurse really did try to stay awake. Tried to pay attention to the words coming out of Paige’s mouth. She briefly registered something about how everyone loved her and how pretty she looked. But she felt her body grow heavier. The soft circled Paige traced on her bare thigh in combination with the comforting hum of her voice quickly lulling Azzi to sleep.
Azzi fell asleep in the back of the Uber, smushed between a car door and her girlfriend. Knees crowded and shoved roughly against the back of the driver's seat, with Paige’s foot stepping on her own. She had never been so uncomfortably at ease in her entire life.
—
Until now, Paige never pressured Azzi to attend, or even watch, a game. Which the nurse was both grateful for, and a little bit suspicious of. Paige didn’t know it, as it was not something she wanted to admit to the blonde, but she had purchased the league pass, and watched every one of her games. Azzi told herself it was purely from a place of medical concern.
After Paige’s concussion, she was concerned about the blonde getting hurt again. And she knew Paige downplayed any and all injuries, not wanting to worry the nurse. So Azzi took the matter into her own hands, watching every game with a meticulous eye. Paying mind to any contact Paige came into, looking out for minute expressions of pain on her face. Watched for any indication of discomfort in the way she moved after a tough play or a physical drive. And there were plenty of them.
Within less than a week of the season beginning, Azzi decided she despised whoever was in charge of the league. Physicality was part of the game, she understood that, but the extent of it was beyond excessive. It was reckless. The lack of calls, the lack of accountability, the way players were expected to just absorb it all without consequence made her stomach turn. Her own experience flashing through her mind.
As the season continued, she saw season ending injuries every week. Watched careers get cut short because profit was prioritized over protection. Because someone higher up decided money mattered more than the well being of the players. And the minimal time between games made her furious.
Paige had given her the schedule casually, not because she expected Azzi to watch any games, but so she’d know when she’d be away. When she’d be close, and when she’d be halfway across the country. The nurse hadn’t even meant to analyze it. But once she noticed the back-to-back games, the tight turnarounds, and the stretches with barely a day in between, she was pissed.
She had paced angrily in front of Paige’s couch, hands flying around as she ranted. Paige had sat there quietly, eyes tracking her every step with rapt attention. The nurse went off at the blonde about the dangers of inadequate recovery time, cross-country flights, disrupted sleep cycles, and inflammation that never gets a chance to reduce.
“Do you know what back-to-backs actually do to your body?” Azzi asked her angrily.
“Make us tired,” Paige joked in response, a failed attempt to ease the nurse’s obvious agitation.
Azzi stopped pacing. “Tired is what you feel after a poor night’s sleep. This is cumulative trauma, Paige.” She gestured vaguely at the blonde’s knees. Her head. “Your muscles don’t fully repair in twenty-four hours. Microtears need time. Glycogen stores need time. Your nervous system needs time.”
She started pacing again, aware of the way Paige’s eyes continued to follow her every move. “Reaction speed drops, coordination slips, and suddenly you’re half a second late on a cut or a contest.”
Azzi took a deep breath, trying to calm herself down from the frustrated state she’d worked herself up into. But it was ineffective.
“That’s when injuries happen, Paige. Non-contact ACLs. Ankle tears.” Her mind was going a mile a minute, overwhelmed with images of Paige injured.
“Concussions because your neck muscles are so fatigued they can’t stabilize your head on impact.” Her voice caught despite herself. Her mind flooded with images – memories – of an unconscious blonde being rolled through her ER doors on a stretcher, blood pooling at her temple. “Second-impact syndrome is rare, but it’s real. All it takes is one missed call and one overworked body.”
Paige finally rose from the couch, moving into the direct path where Azzi continued to pace, halting her in her steps. Her hands came up to cup Azzi’s jaw delicately, holding her like she was something fragile. Her thumb wiped away a tear she hadn’t realized had formed, let alone fallen.
“Azzi,” the blonde said, so gently the nurse almost didn’t hear her over the panicked beating of her heart. Paige placed a delicate kiss to the corner of her mouth before letting their foreheads rest against each other.
“Breathe, baby,” she instructed the nurse, encouraging her to match Paige’s deep inhale, and slow exhale. Azzi did. Eventually feeling her heart return to an appropriate rhythm.
“I’m gonna be okay, Az,” she whispered into the small space between their mouths. Thumbs never ceasing their gentle strokes across sharp cheekbones. “I promise.”
“But, what if–,” Azzi began.
“No,” Paige cut her off. “You can’t do that. Can’t think about all the small stuff that could go wrong. It’ll drive you crazy.”
“I just…,” Azzi exhaled deeply. “I worry about you.”
“That’s ‘cause you’re secretly the biggest overthinker I’ve ever met,” Paige teased.
“Shut up,” she sulked. “No I’m not.”
Paige laughed softly. “Yeah, you are. But it’s okay. I worry about you too, ya know?”
“What do you mean?” Azzi asked, confused.
“Your job is more dangerous than mine,” she said. “Like– way riskier.”
Azzi blinked. “No it is not.”
“Yes, it is,” Paige challenged. “You’re surrounded by knives that are literally designed to cut into people’s skin. And needles. And I just learned that oxygen tanks are basically bombs if they’re dropped. Or if there’s a flame near them.”
“How are you just finding that out?” Azzi wondered out loud. There were signs everywhere indicating the danger of oxygen tanks and flames. Paige has undergone hyperbaric oxygen chamber therapy as a part of her recovery plan on multiple occasions. Azzi knows for a fact that there are many highly visible O2 flame warnings all over the place.
“What if a patient brings in a lighter?” Paige continued, ignoring Azzi’s astonishment. “At least I know the people I’m going up against. I know they would never intentionally try to hurt me. At least most of them,” she mumbled the last part.
“You have no idea who you’re treating. You gotta watch out for drunks and paranoid drug users. People do unpredictable things when they’re scared and hurt,” she explained.
“When I dropped off lunch for you the other day there were literally four different people in handcuffs,” she reminded her. “And don’t even get me started on that massive dude strapped to the bed by his hands and feet screaming he was going to kill everyone.”
Azzi huffed out a small laugh at the memory, despite herself. “That’s different.”
“It’s really not, though,” she said gently. “Everything has some inherent level of danger if you really think about it. I could slip in the shower and crack open my head. I could step off a curb wrong and trip into traffic, get hit by a car. Or even–”
“You’re not making me feel better,” she told the blonde.
“Sorry,” Paige said, getting back on track. “My point is, you can’t worry about what might happen to me with my job. Just like I can’t worry about every dangerous thing that could possibly go wrong for you with your job. It would drive us both crazy. We’d never get anything done.”
She held Azzi’s jaw a little firmer now, one hand sliding around to the nape of her neck. Fingers kneading firmly into the flesh, helping dissipate some of the tension there.
“We can’t worry about the little things we can’t control. Can’t think worst case-scenario everytime. And I know that probably goes against your nurse instincts,” she said. “But we gotta stay where our feet are.”
The nurse didn’t speak, letting Paige’s words settle.
“Can you do that for me?” she asked quietly, voice low and sincere. Her blue eyes searching Azzi’s face.
Azzi closed her eyes. “Yeah, I can do that.”
Then she closed the distance between them. She kissed her with intention behind every movement, trying to show her appreciation for the blonde without words. They both melted into it, one of Azzi’s hands slid up to cup Paige’s jaw, the other rested over her heart, letting the steady rhythm ground her.
“I still can’t believe you just learned oxygen is flammable,” Azzi murmured against Paige’s mouth, a smile tugging at her lips.
So as worried as it made her to see Paige hit the ground or collide with a hard screen, she couldn’t look away. Wouldn’t let herself catastrophize and think about the worst-case scenarios constantly firing in her head like her instincts demanded her to. Instead, the nurse would spend the next time she saw the blonde – whether it was that night after a home game or the day she flew back from an away game – helping her recover.
Forcing her to ice her knees and seemingly endless bruises. Heat treatments where she knew she needed them, rubbing and kneading sore muscles. Azzi could tell the massages were definitely Paige’s favorite. She’d get soft and warm and pliable under the nurses skilled hands.
Paige would eye her suspiciously, like she wanted to ask how she knew she needed the care Azzi was providing. But much to the nurse’s appreciation, she never asked. Seemingly content just to have her practiced hands ease her pain.
Azzi was currently laying against Paige’s chest beneath the covers, dressed in one of the blonde's oversized hoodies and her own small sleep shorts. The sun had set hours ago, the only light in the room coming from the warm glow of the lamp on Paige’s bedside table, casting shadows across the sharp edge of the blonde's jaw. The weather outside was warm and stiff, typical of Dallas summer heat, but Paige seemed to have her thermostat permanently set to a crisp 63º. Azzi had a hunch that the blonde kept it extra low in her presence, knowing the nurse’s tendency to get cold.
In fact, Azzi swore the blonde used to keep her apartment at least five degrees warmer when they first started dating. But the first time it had been extra cold in the apartment, Paige had suggested she borrow one of her hoodies and stay close to “conserve body heat”. After that, the temperature was never raised again, the blonde far too happy to have Azzi seek out her warmth and borrow her clothes. Azzi never called her out on it though, she enjoyed it just as much as Paige did. Though she’d never give the blonde the satisfaction of knowing that.
Paige’s hand drew absent minded patterns against her back, slowly luring her to sleep, when her voice cut through the comfortable silence.
“Hey…” the blonde began, hesitant in a way she normally was not.
Azzi adjusted her head slightly so she could peer up into deep blue eyes that flickered uncertainly between her own.
“Hmm?” the nurse acknowledged, unable to keep her gaze from straying to Paige’s mouth for a quick glance before catching herself and returning her focus to blue eyes.
And of course Paige noticed, the corner of her mouth quirking up into a familiar cocky smirk before she leaned down and captured Azzi’s mouth in a quick and affectionate kiss before she could roll her eyes. When the blonde pulled back, her eyes half lidded and a goofy love drunk smile on her face, she seemed to gain just enough confidence to say whatever had her hesitating just moments prior. Though it wasn’t eloquent.
“Would uh– would you ever wanna like… come to one of my games?” She asked. The question came out rushed and quiet. Eyebrows arched up and eyes darting across the nurses face in anticipation.
Azzi didn’t answer right away. Her relationship with basketball was rocky – infinitely better than when she’d first lost it. But she hadn’t been inside of a gym in years. The idea of physically sitting in an arena and watching what was once her greatest passion before it was cruelly ripped away from her caused a dull ache in her heart.
But it brought so much joy to the woman she was falling for, and she didn’t have it in her to deny the blonde. Not that she’d ever admit out loud that Paige held so much power over her. Paige clearly interpreted the silence as discomfort, because she started rambling, and Azzi could hear the blonde’s heartbeat pick up in her chest beneath her ear.
“I mean… you can say no. I’m not tryna like pressure you or anything. It won’t hurt my feelings if you say no, I swear. I know anything basketball, especially going to and watching a game prolly isn’t at the top of your ‘things I wanna do list’ after everything that happened at UCLA, but–”
Azzi sat up at that, effectively cutting Paige off, eyes narrowing in suspicion at the rambling blonde. “How do you know about UCLA?” the nurse questioned.
Paige’s entire body stiffened abruptly. “I– uh… what?”
“You said I probably wouldn’t want to do anything basketball related after everything that happened at UCLA,” she explained slowly. “I’ve never talked to you about UCLA.”
“Um… are you sure?” Paige tried, face turning redder by the second. “I think you mighta–”
“Paige,” Azzi deadpanned, sitting up fully now, the blonde following suit. She refused to make eye contact with the nurse, suddenly seeming to find the walls of her room to be fascinating.
Azzi watched her silently. Took in the way her hands refused to still, the way her face and the tips of her ears were dusted red. Her eyes traced Paige’s features. The nurse let out a huff mixed with disbelief and amusement, forcing herself not to smile as she put the pieces together. Despite her best efforts, the corners of her eyes crinkled when she spoke next.
“Did you… did you google me?”
Azzi didn’t think it was possible for Paige to get any redder, but she was quickly proven wrong. Paige went completely still for the second time that night. The nurse couldn’t control the onslaught of laughter that overcame her at Paige’s unintentional confirmation.
“Oh my god. You totally googled me!”
Paige collapsed back onto the bed, flipping onto her stomach to dramatically bury her face into the pillows as she grumbled out a weak and mumbled, “shut up, bro,” into the feathers. Azzi pulled the pillow out from under Paige's face, causing the blonde to faceplant into the mattress with a humiliated groan.
“Nuh-uh,” Azzi contested. She felt giddy at the sight of Paige caught and so obviously flustered. “You’re not getting out of this so easy. Explain yourself,” she paused for a second, before adding fuel to the fire on Paige’s face. “Stalker.”
That got Paige to move. In a blur of movement she all but tackled Azzi back down into the bed, pinning her down with the weight of her warm body, caging the nurse beneath her, her forearms bracing her weight on either side of Azzi’s head.
Azzi was grinning up at her, making a concerted effort to ignore the butterflies flying rampant in her stomach as a result of the blonde pressed against her. Of the eyes peering into her own. It felt like she was staring into her very soul. She brought a hand up to tuck an errant stray of blonde hair behind Paige’s ear before giving her a quick peck on the tip of her nose to ease some of her embarrassment.
“You could’ve just asked me, you know?” she said softly, carding her fingers through the fine hairs on the nape of Paige’s neck.
“I know…,” Paige began, resting her forehead against the nurses. Azzi adored the way the blonde melted into her. The way she always seemed to draw strength from their proximity.
“It was before we were dating,” she confessed. “When you made me go fourteen days without seeing you. Your instagram was private, but I found some articles.”
“Some articles?” Azzi questioned, with an eyebrow raised. Tucking away the fact that Paige had tried to find her instagram in the back of her mind for future use.
“...And some film,” Paige admitted begrudgingly.
Azzi felt her heart swell with affection, “You’re such a creep,” she teased.
Paige pulled back at that, a pout overtaking her face. “I am not a creep.”
“Baby, you googled me,” Azzi said carefully, like she was breaking bad news to a small child.
“I wasn’t bein’ creepy. I was being…” Paige paused for a second as she thought of the right word. “Studious,” she finally decided on, with a nod.
“Studious?” Azzi repeated, voice laced with disbelief.
Paige groaned, collapsing fully on top of Azzi, burying her face in the nurse's neck. “Yes, studious,” she confirmed. “I was doing research, okay?”
“Hmm,” Azzi acknowledged, grinning uninhibitedly at just how much of a complete and utter dork her girlfriend was now that she couldn’t see her. Azzi's arms snaked around the blonde, holding her tight against her.
“I didn’t read everything,” Paige mumbled into her neck, breath warm against the nurse's skin.
“No?” Azzi asked.
“Nah,” Paige confirmed, shaking her head. Her blonde hair tickled Azzi with the motion. “I wanted to hear the rest from you.”
The nurse didn’t respond with words, instead squeezing Paige just a little tighter, and placing a lingering kiss against the crown of her head. She could feel the blonde smile against her, nuzzling even closer.
One of her hands came up to card through Paige’s soft, wavy hair, the other still holding her close. She felt the blonde’s breathing beginning to even out, moments away from drifting to sleep. Azzi took in a long pull of air, before letting it out with a deep exhale.
“I’d love to go to one of your games, P,” she said gently into the comfortable quiet between them.
Paige shot up at that, suddenly wide awake.
“Seriously?” she said, eyes darting wildly across Azzi’s face, clearly looking for any hesitance or doubt.
Azzi smiled softly, nodding softly before capturing Paige’s lips in a gentle kiss. “Yeah,” she said when she pulled back.
“Epic,” Paige said with an enamored look and goofy grin. The epitome of heart eyes.
Azzi scowled at her. “I’m not going if you start saying ‘epic’ after I kiss you,” she declared.
Paige chuckled softly before rolling off of Azzi and pulling the nurse against her chest, tangling their legs together beneath the covers.
“If I promise not to say ‘epic’ will you tell me about you and basketball?” she asked quietly.
Azzi brought her arm across Paige’s stomach, finger curling into her worn t-shirt as she tucked herself fully against the blonde. “What do you want to know?”
“Everything,” Paige whispered earnestly.
“Everything?” Azzi laughed softly at the sincerity in Paige’s voice. At the way her girlfriend couldn’t even hide admiration.
“Yeah… like, when did you start playing? And why? And how did you get so good? Were you always a shooting guard? Have you ever puked during a game? Did you ever–”
“Oh you mean everything, everything,” Azzi interrupted with a smile.
Paige adjusted her head to look into Azzi’s eyes. The nurse felt her breath hitch in her throat at the intensity of Paige’s blue eyes. “Azzi, I literally wanna know every single thing about you.”
Azzi was worried she had spontaneously developed afib from the way her heart was beating so erratically and irregularly in her chest.
—
Azzi almost threw up twice before she found her seat. She followed the rows and numbers down towards the floor, heart beating faster with every step. Paige had her courtside. But she hadn’t been this close to a basketball court in years. Standing so close now made her feel like a ghost of who she used to be. The sound of people filing in, pregame music blasting through the speakers, and sneakers squeaking against the court all culminated in an overwhelming mix of noise.
She took a breath to steady herself, looking at the ticket on her phone to confirm she found the right seat. Her fingers lifted, brushing the back of the chair before forcing herself to sit and demanding her heart to settle in her chest.
She could do this because she was doing it for Paige. For the woman who showed her support for Azzi in a million different ways, a thousand times a day. And though it was no longer the case for her, basketball was still everything to Paige. And Paige was quickly becoming everything to Azzi.
Azzi had her phone out, mindlessly scrolling through her email to give herself something to do when a small voice pulled her out of it.
“Nurse Azzi!”
She looked up at the sound of her name, a smile pulling at her lips when her eyes landed on the small boy who said it. He was hobbling his way towards her, propped up on crutches he clearly still had yet to perfect the use of, his blue cast gleaming under the arena lights. He grinned at her like this was the greatest day of his life. And honestly, it probably was.
“No way,” Azzi said softly as she tucked her phone away, standing to face him. “Hey, Tre.”
The boy beamed, then turned to his father.
“I told you it was her,” he exclaimed.
“Nice to see you again, Azzi,” his father said with a knowing smile, sitting down in a seat one over from the nurse.
“You fixed my ankle,” Tre told her, like she might not remember.
Azzi crouched down to meet him at eye level, instinct taking over.
“I remember,” she said with a genuine smile. “You broke it during basketball tryouts. Paige said you told her you didn’t even cry, right?”
She glanced at Tre’s father out of the side of her eye when he heard him huff in response to her last sentence. But the boy recaptured her attention.
“Yeah,” he nodded enthusiastically, beyond thrilled that Azzi seemed to remember him. “And Paige signed my cast and said she’d get me tickets. I didn’t know I’d be this close though.”
He looked at the court, eyes wide and filled with awe. Then he turned back to Azzi, eager to fill her in on what he deemed the most important updates of his life.
“They took that cast though,” he said, frowning at the memory. “They wouldn’t let me keep it on. Told me I had to get a new one and that one was just for a little bit. I told them it was a special one because Paige signed it, but they didn’t listen.”
Azzi let out a soft huff of laughter at his rambling and expressive eyes.
“I got to choose the color of my new one though!” he told her, perking up again. “I chose blue. Because it’s my favorite. Do you like it?”
“It’s a really good color,” she told him. His smile widened at the nurse’s approval. “How’s your ankle feeling? Have you been doing what your doctors told you?”
“Mostly. It gets itchy and I shove stuff down there to scratch it, but sometimes the stuff gets lost down there.” Tre shrugged, unrepentant. “I wish I could still see you instead. My new doctor’s kind of an a-s-s hole,” he spelt out.
“Tre,” his father scolded. “Watch it.”
“I didn’t say it, I just spelt it,” he argued, wobbling a bit before catching himself. “That doesn’t count.”
Azzi had to bite back a smile.
“Sit down,” his father instructed. “Before you fall.”
The nurse watched the boy climb – rather ungracefully – into the seat next to his dad. Azzi moved to take her own seat, finally registering the fact that it was directly next to the young boy.
Azzi sat back in her seat slowly, realization dawning on her, loosening something in her chest before her heart swelled in the newly loosened space. Paige had picked the game. Paige had picked the seats.
It was too much of a coincidence for it to be anything but intentional. Far too thoughtful to be anything but Paige’s doing. Her girlfriend knew how uncomfortable of an environment it might’ve been for Azzi, even though the nurse would never say it out loud. So Paige went out of her way to make it as comfortable as possible for her in the only way she could.
“I’m so happy I’m here,” Tre said to her, eyes earnest. “I’m so glad you came too, Nurse Azzi.”
Azzi swallowed, eyes flicking briefly to the court before returning to Tre.
“Me too,” she said, and meant it.
He studied her for a minute, opening his mouth before snapping it shut. Like he couldn’t decide whether or not to say what was on his mind. Azzi huffed a laugh, deciding to make the decision for him.
“What’s up?” she questioned.
“Um,” he paused. “Will you sign my cast?”
Azzi stalled for a second, brows furrowing in slight confusion.
“You want me to sign it?” she double checked, thinking maybe she misunderstood.
“Yes please,” Tre confirmed. “You’re the one who fixed me. And you said you used to play basketball before. My dad and I watched some of your games. You were really good.”
Azzi blushed slightly at that, looking over Tre’s head at his father for confirmation.
“We uh– we might’ve found a few of your UCLA games,” his dad admitted, rather shyly. “Tre googled you after we were discharged.”
Azzi raised her eyebrows at him, at a loss for words.
“Sorry,” he said, a faint blush visible even against his dark skin. “You’re shot is impressive, though. You’re his new favorite shooter.”
“So will you sign it?” Tre asked, calling her attention back to him before she could think of a response to his father.
“Yeah,” Azzi agreed. “I’ll sign it. You have a pen?”
Tre radiated excitement at her answer. “I got one right here!”
He shifted his leg so Azzi could see a sharpie sticking out from the tiny gap between his cast and his leg.
She crouched down, pulling it out. “Is this for signatures or for scratching?”
Tre glanced at his dad before leaning closer to Azzi so he wouldn’t hear.
“It’s for both,” he whispered loudly.
Azzi laughed. “I won’t tell,” she whispered back.
She uncapped the marker, hand faltering just before it connected with the hard outer shell. She deliberated for a second before signing her name in a way she hadn’t done in years. The same way she used to sign fans jerseys and posters. With her first name and her old number. When she finished, she recapped the sharpie and tucked it gently back into his cast, returning to her seat beside him.
The players came out of the tunnel a few minutes later, interrupting Tre’s dramatic retelling of how cool everyone thought he was when he showed up to school the following day with crutches and a cast. His eyes were focused on the players in front of him.
Tre’s father excused himself to use a bathroom before the game started, thanking Azzi excessively when she offered to keep an eye on his son so he didn’t have to hobble behind him. Paige only put up a couple of shots before beelining straight towards where Tre and Azzi sat. Azzi rolled her eyes at the bewitched smile overtaking the blonde’s face when her eyes caught sight of her.
“What’s up, superstar?” she asked Tre, offering him a fistbump. The boy practically glowed under her attention.
Then her eyes shifted to Azzi.
“Hi,” she said softly, a stark contrast to the way she spoke to Tre. Her eyes were half lidded, staring at the nurse with the most obvious heart eyes she’d ever seen.
Tre launched into some story Azzi barely heard, focused entirely on the way Paige interacted with him. Laughing at his rambling and asking questions to engage him. Tre’s father found his way back, shaking Paige’s hand and thanking her for the seats. Before Paige turned to rejoin her team, she lightly nudged the blue cast with her foot.
“Want me to sign it?” she offered.
“Really?” the boy’s eyes widened comically large.
“‘Course,” Paige said, crouching down and pulling the sharpie that was lodged half way in the cast.
“I use it as a scratcher, too,” Tre informed her.
“Smart kid,” Paige smirked, tongue poking out as she carefully signed. “My little brother used a stick when he broke his arm, but it snapped off and he lost it in there.”
Tre blushed, clearly not as inclined to offer up information about losing stuff in his own cast as he was to Azzi. The nurse supposed it was doctor-patient confidentiality.
Paige capped the marker and wedged it back in the cast, making Tre giggle.
“Nurse Azzi signed it, too,” Tre told the blonde, rotating his foot so Paige could see.
Paige angled her head to inspect it closely, then her eyes snapped up to Azzi’s in recognition. She’d seen Azzi’s signature on many different documents. This one wasn’t the same and she knew Paige discerned the difference.
“Is– was that,” she stuttered.
The blonde stood up and cleared her throat, regaining some of her usual swagger.
“You’re gonna wanna keep that, dude,” she told Tre. “That’s a super rare autograph. Basically a collector’s item. Super valuable.”
Her gaze found its way to Azzi, eyes softening with adoration. The nurse saw the way Paige had to drag her eyes away from her, forcing herself to focus her attention back on Tre.
“I’ll have the rest of the team come and sign it after the game,” she told him.
Azzi grabbed her wrist just before she left. Paige let herself be pulled towards her girlfriend with zero hesitation, looking down at her with glossed eyes. The nurse released her wrist, pulling away with a subtle stroke of her thumb against Paige’s pulsepoint.
“Maybe you could find something else for the team to sign?” she suggested. “Casts usually smell really bad when they come off. Don’t make his parents have to suffer through keeping that.”
“Yeah,” Paige nodded, visibly dazed from the proximity to Azzi. “Okay. I’ll uh– I’ll find a ball or something.”
“Okay,” Azzi pursed her lips so as to not smile at her.
The blonde blinked a couple of times before shaking herself out of her stupor.
“See you after,” she said, turning to jog back to the rest of her team and warm up her shot.
Tre’s dad leaned forward to address Azzi.
“Thank you for that,” he said. “I think you might have saved our house from some pretty noxious fumes.”
Azzi chuckled. “No problem.”
Tre’s head kept swinging between Azzi and Paige, brow furrowing as he considered something.
“Are you and Paige in love?” he asked.
Azzi blanched. Luckily she was saved by the overhead speakers announcing the beginning of the starting line ups. Tre was thoroughly distracted and Azzi made it through the rest of their time without any more invasive questions.
By the time the game ended and the arena cleared out, Paige texted Azzi to meet her in the player tunnel, letting her know she would find her as soon as she took a quick shower. DiJonai found her first.
“Hey, Az,” she said, giving her a hug. “Your girl begged Arike to take her spot for media, so she should be out soon.”
Azzi let out a laugh, picturing how that conversation must’ve gone in her head.
“How you feeling?” DiJonai asked with genuine concern.
They spoke for a bit. Azzi reminded of how grateful she was for how close they had grown. That she could be honest and open with her, free to speak her mind without trepidation. The two women were deep in conversation when Paige sidled up to her, throwing an arm over the nurse’s shoulder. She did a quick sweep for cameras before leaning in and pressing a wet kiss to her cheek.
“Ew,” Azzi groaned.
The nurse made a face of disgust she didn’t really feel, making a show of wiping the moisture off of her face.
Paige pouted and DiJonai laughed, giving the both of them a hug goodbye before heading off. The blonde’s arm returned around Azzi’s shoulder as she began to lead them in the opposite direction of her teammate, heading towards her car.
“So,” Paige began, giving Azzi’s shoulder a little squeeze. “First game, what’d you think?”
Azzi rolled her eyes, more than aware that her girlfriend was fishing for compliments.
“You’re three ball could use some work,” she said, slipping on her practiced face and tone of boredom.
“Oh, okay, Curry,” Paige mocked. “You gotta fix your standards. Not everybody can master your perfect release, Az.”
“Clearly,” the nurse agreed.
Paige clicked her tongue. “Seriously, what’d you think?”
“I thought you were cute with Tre,” she said. Letting Paige sit without a compliment to her game for another moment. The blonde was happy to hear any praise apparently, still smiling proudly at Azzi’s prior compliment. She steered them left down a tunnel Azzi didn’t notice.
“And…?” she egged on.
“And you played really well, Paige,” she finally relented.
Paige frowned. “That’s it?” She dropped her arm from the nurse’s shoulder.
Azzi blinked at her. “What do you want me to say?”
Paige looked taken aback. “I don’t know. But it’s the first time you’ve ever seen me play and all you gotta say is ‘played well’?”
“Who said that was my first time watching you play?”
“I mean… I wasn’t expecting like a full on scouting report, but I kinda thought you’d give me more than–”
Paige’s brows furrowed, finally processing Azzi’s words. “Wait, what?”
“What?” Azzi asked, innocently.
“What you just said.”
“What’d I say?”
“That wasn’t your first time watching me play?”
“No,” Azzi said simply.
“Wait,” Paige said, still looking lost. “‘No’, that’s not what you said? Or ‘no’, that wasn’t your first time watching me play?”
“The latter,” she answered.
“Ladder?” Paige said, now completely disoriented. She glanced around like maybe the nurse had spotted a ladder she was somehow missing.
“No, I said ‘latter’,” Azzi clarified, trying not to laugh.
“I know,” Paige said, starting to get frustrated. “I heard you loud and clear. But I don’t get it. What ladder?”
“Latter, Paige,” she said, trying to enunciate more clearly.
“What ladder?” Paige asked again, voice rising.
“No, I– ugh,” Azzi groaned, realizing this was going nowhere.
Azzi sighed, finally turning to face her fully. “I’ve seen you play before.”
“What?” she guffawed. “When?”
“I bought the League Pass,” she admitted quietly.
Paige shook her head, stunned. “You’ve been watching me?”
Azzi met her gaze now, unflinching. “Yeah.”
“For how long?”
“Since you almost gave me a heart attack showing up in my hospital with your head split open,” Azzi responded, unhappy at the memory.
“But that was before the season even started,” she said with furrowed brows.
Azzi just shrugged. She started walking again, hoping she was headed in the right direction. Paige stayed frozen behind her.
“Wait,” Paige said, jogging to catch up. “Have you been watching every game?”
Azzi could feel her cheeks heating up. “I don’t trust you to tell me when you’re actually hurt. I need to see for myself.”
“And what do you think?” Paige urged.
“I think I was right. You don’t tell me shit,” she snarked.
“You know that’s not what I meant,” Paige grinned.
“I think,” Azzi paused, deciding to tell her girlfriend what she was desperate to hear. “You're one of the best players I’ve ever seen. Watching you is… an experience.”
Paige didn’t respond at first, a giant grin splitting her face. Then her steps slowed as she seemed to piece something together.
“I knew there was no way you just happened to know what muscle I needed massaged after games,” she lit up. “I just assumed Nai was feeding you insider information.”
They approached a door that Paige pushed open, holding it for Azzi to walk through. The nurse didn’t understand how they’d ended up in an underground parking lot based on the path they took, but she didn’t question it.
“Oh, she is,” Azzi confirmed. “I have multiple sources. But firsthand observation is one of the most important.”
Paige sighed, happy and content. “I can’t believe it,” she whispered.
Azzi assumed she said it more to herself than for the nurse to hear. But the awe in her girlfriend's voice made her smile regardless.
They reached Paige’s car, and she followed Azzi to the passenger side to open the door for her.
“Thank you,” Azzi blushed, still prone to getting flustered when Paige opened her door like it was second-nature. Even though she did it every time.
Just as Paige made her way to the driver's side, Azzi reached over the console and pushed the door open from the inside. The blonde climbed in with a shy smile, a slight flush coloring her cheeks.
Azzi looked at her with a proud smile. Paige just stared at her adoringly. She exhaled deeply, shaking her head.
One of Paige’s hands came up to hold her by the hinge of her jaw, thumb stroking gently beneath her eye. She opened her mouth to speak and Azzi felt her eyes widen in slight panic, half expecting those three words to come out of her mouth.
Something like recognition flickered in her blue eyes.
“You’re perfect,” she said instead.
“Paige,” she started, not sure what she intended to say, only that she needed to say something.
But Paige didn’t give her the chance before she pulled forward, closing the distance and kissed her. It was unhurried and tender, and Azzi melted into it instantly. Her hand found the front of Paige’s hoodie, fingers curling into the fabric like she needed something solid to hold onto.
She felt Paige smile against her mouth, and then deepened the kiss just a little. When they finally pulled apart, they stayed close, foreheads pressed together, breathing each other in.
“Thank you for coming today,” Paige said into the space between them, her breath warm against Azzi’s face. “I know it wasn’t easy for you.”
Azzi opened her mouth, ready to deny Paige’s statement. To lie and say it was no big deal, that she didn’t almost throw up or back out. But Paige cut her off.
“I saw your face,” she told her. “When you walked in.”
The blonde pulled back, leaning her head against her seat to study Azzi’s face.
“Can I ask you something?” she asked softly.
The tenderness in her eyes had Azzi nodding before she could even really think about another response. She would say yes to anything Paige asked when she looked at her like that.
“When’s the last time you went to a game?” she questioned, eyes still open and earnest.
Azzi averted her gaze from blue, staring at the way Paige’s fingers played with the sleeve of her own hoodie. She lifted her eyes back up to Paige’s just before she spoke.
“Not since I tore my ACL,” she confessed, her voice sounding unsteady to her own ears.
Paige’s eyes widened in surprise before something that looked an awful lot like guilt overtook her features. Blue eyes squeezed close.
“Fuck, Azzi,” she said, voice breaking.
When she opened her eyes again, the typically bright blue was clouded with emotion.
“Why didn’t you tell me?” she croaked. “I– I wouldn’t have pushed you to come. I shouldn’t have pushed you to come. I’m sorry.”
Azzi was speechless. It looked like it hurt Paige more than it had hurt Azzi. She felt that instinct to protect Paige consume her. Her hand reached out instinctively, resting against the side of Paige’s neck, fingers gently stroking the baby hairs at the nape.
“Paige, you have nothing to be sorry for,” she told her resolutely. “I wanted to go.”
“But–”
“No,” Azzi cut her off, desperate to ease the guilt swimming in her eyes. Desperate for her to believe her. “If I really didn’t want to go, I wouldn’t have.”
“You might not know this,” the nurse whispered, leaning closer conspiratorially. “But I’m a little bit stubborn.”
Paige laughed at that, some of the warmth returning to her eyes.
“A little bit is an underexaggeration," she muttered.
“Seriously, though. I’m glad I went. I like watching you play,” she reassured her. “Besides, you sat me next to Tre. How could I not have enjoyed it?”
Paige narrowed her eyes suspiciously.
“What makes you think I sat you next to Tre?” she probed. “That could have just been a coincidence.”
“Coincidence, my ass,” Azzi scoffed. “That was 100% a Paige move. Don’t even try to deny it.”
She looked like she was going to try, but then snapped her mouth shut. She smiled shyly at the nurse instead.
“I knew it wasn’t gonna be painless,” she admitted. “I didn’t realize the extent until now. But I thought having something familiar… a reminder of the life you’ve built helping people now that you don’t play anymore, might make it hurt less.”
Azzi bit the inside of her cheek, squeezing her eyes shut to stave off a wave of tears that threatened to well up behind her lids. The urge to cry had nothing to do with sadness, but with the weight of being understood and cared for so thoroughly.
“Take me home,” she ordered. “I miss your bed. I didn’t get to nap today.”
“Yes ma’am,” Paige chuckled softly.
She turned on the ignition, placing her hand on the gearshift to put the car in drive. But just before she did, she removed her hand, turning to face Azzi with a look of contemplation on her face.
“Wait, can I ask you one more question before we leave?” she asked.
Azzi groaned, letting her head fall against the back of the seat. She had officially reached her daily limit of intrusive questions and emotional vulnerability. “Now what?” she huffed.
“Did you actually see a ladder back there, or were you just messing with me?”
Azzi blinked, processing the question. Then she burst out laughing.
—
The day Azzi knew Paige was it for her, that she was undeniably and irrevocably in love, was after one of the worst shifts of her life. Losing a patient was never easy. Losing a child was a different kind of pain entirely. Hearing the agonizing screams of a mother learning her eight month old daughter was gone and never coming back was something you never forget. It haunts you. It erodes your soul quietly, until your heart feels split open in your chest. Raw, exposed, and bleeding long after the shift ends.
So when Azzi finally made it home, she was emotionally and physically drained. She didn’t even have the energy to shower off the events of her shift, instead collapsing on the couch and sobbing until sleep finally overtook her. She was woken up an hour later by the sound of her phone ringing, only one contact with the ability to automatically bypass her do not disturb.
“Fuck,” she mumbled outloud into the suffocating quiet of her apartment. She had completely forgotten she’d told Paige she would come over once she was off.
She debated ignoring it, but knew that would only make the blonde worry and most likely cause her to show up. The last thing she wanted was for Paige to see her in her current state. She didn’t answer until the last ring, finally swiping right.
“Hey,” she said, voice rough with sleep and grief.
“You fall asleep?” Paige chuckled.
When she only hummed noncommittally in response, she heard movement on the other end of the line, like Paige was shifting the phone closer to her ear. “Hey, you okay?”
“Yeah,” she lied, but her voice cracked.
“Baby, what’s wrong?” Paige questioned, and the way she asked was so gentle and sincere it nearly broke her.
Azzi willed the tears pooling in her eyes not to start falling again. Helpless against the quiver in her lower lip at the worry evident in Paige’s voice. She tried not to let the sob building up in her chest burst free as she exhaled shakily.
“Nothing. Just tired. Long shift,” but the excuse sounded weak to her own ears. She knew Paige wouldn’t let it go if she heard too much more. “I’m not gonna make it tonight. Rain check, okay?”
“Az–”
She hung up swiftly before she broke all over again, clutching a pillow to her chest, helpless to the tears streaking freely down her face. She heard the ding of her phone, certain Paige was texting her concerned after her abrupt hang up, but she didn’t have the strength to pick it up and respond. Too spent to give the blonde the reassurance she probably deserved.
She wasn’t sure how much time had passed, only knew that she must’ve fallen back asleep. Because she was stirred from her wretched slumber by the sound of knuckles rapping gently, but urgently, against her front door.
It took far more effort than she cared to admit, but she trudged her way from the couch to the front door, too out of sorts to think about who could be on the other side when she swung it open. She opened her mouth, ready to tell whoever it was off, only to freeze at the sight in front of her.
Paige stood in her hallway in loose sweats and a big t-shirt, with her hair pulled back haphazardly into a loose bun, glasses askew on her face, and a plastic grocery bag filled with god knows what in one hand. Azzi probably would have laughed at how distressed her girlfriend looked at the sight of her if it were any other day. But seeing the worry on Paige’s face made her acutely aware of her current state. She was still in her scrubs, hair surely a mess of matted curls, with stained tear tracks streaking her face.
“Azzi,” Paige breathed out. It sounded the way Azzi felt. Raw and painful, but filled with an added layer of agonizing concern.
Azzi pressed her palms tightly into her eyes, trying to stave off another round of tears. How do I even have anything left to cry, she thought to herself dejectedly. Her shoulders began to shake with the weight of her grief.
She briefly registered the sound of plastic hitting the hardwood floor and the click of her door closing before she felt Paige’s arms wrapping tightly against her. One arm snaked around her waist pressing her close, the fingers of the blonde’s other hand coming up to the back of her neck, holding her tight against her chest.
The feeling of security, the warmth, the familiar smell of Paige only made her cry harder. Her own hands found purchase in the blonde’s t-shirt, clutching to her like a lifeline. Paige walked them slowly over to the couch, cooing soft reassurances the entire way.
Paige had managed to maneuver them so that Azzi was essentially laying on top of the blonde, face tucked into the crook of her neck. She held her close, rubbing circles between her shoulder blades and placing gentle kisses to her temple. Azzi wasn’t sure if it had been five minutes or thirty before her sobs finally slowed and humiliation began to settle heavy in her chest, piling on to the anguish that already felt like it would live there forever.
With one last sniffle she finally extricated her face from where it was practically molded into the blonde’s neck. “Sorry,” she mumbled, voice strained from tears and disuse.
Paige looked at her carefully. “Baby, why are you saying sorry to me right now?” she asked, baffled.
Azzi shrugged weakly. “For– for all that,” she mumbled. “For breaking down.” She refused to meet Paige’s gaze, terrified of what she might find there. Paige liked her because she was strong, because she never broke. And she had just shattered the illusion.
With a shaky hand, Paige cupped her cheek delicately, forcing the nurse to meet her eyes. What she found wasn’t disappointment, or judgement, or anything else she had been scared to see. Paige’s blue eyes were filled with concern and tenderness. And something else Azzi was scared to name for an entirely different reason.
“Azzi, you never have to apologize to me,” she said softly but absolutely. “Especially not for this. I want to be there for you– be the one you come to. Not just for the easy stuff. But when you’re hurting, too.”
She brushed her thumb gently across Azzi’s cheek, holding her like she was something precious. “I– I want to be your person.”
“You’re gonna make me cry again,” Azzi mumbled, tucking her face back into Paige’s neck. Overwhelmed by the sincerity in her voice. By the affection in her eyes.
“S’okay. I’ll hold you through it,” Paige whispered back, carding her fingers through dark curls. Working gently through the tangles.
Azzi didn’t respond with words, just squeezed her arms around Paige tighter and placed a kiss against her neck. They laid like that, tangled silently in each other for a few more minutes before Paige finally spoke again.
“C’mon,” she urged gently. “Let’s go shower, stinky.”
“Excuse me?” Azzi questioned, eyebrows raising in a weak challenge.
“Not a bad stinky,” Paige clarified, standing up from the couch, stretching her arms above her head before offering a hand out for the nurse. “You just smell like hospital disinfectant.”
Azzi let the blonde help her up before glaring at her. Paige threw her hands up in surrender.
“Hey, I like the smell,” she said. “But I know your ass is gonna be pissed with both of us if you climb in bed without showering.”
“Fine, whatever,” Azzi murmured, letting Paige pull her into one more embrace before leading them to the bathroom in her bedroom with a hand on the small of her back.
The bathroom light felt too bright, too harsh against the dull ache behind Azzi’s eyes. Paige reached past her to turn it down, dimming it just enough to soften the edges of everything. It was such a small thing. But the action held so much thought and intention it made Azzi’s chest ache all the same. Paige turned on the shower, adjusting the temperature with practiced ease, testing the spray with her hand before nodding to herself. Steam began to curl into the air, fogging the mirror.
“Can I?” Paige asked quietly, fingers already hovering at the hem of Azzi’s scrub top.
Azzi nodded, not trusting her voice not to break.
Paige moved slowly, like she was afraid of startling her. She lifted the shirt over Azzi’s head, careful not to tug at her hair. Her hands were warm and steady as she helped her step out of the rest of her clothes.
There was no rush, no teasing. Just gentle touches that grounded the nurse. Paige let her actions speak for her. Carefully retying Azzi’s hair into a bun on the top of her head, knowing it wasn’t a hair washing day.
When Paige guided her into the shower, the warm water hit Azzi’s skin and something inside her finally gave way. Not in sobs this time, but in a deep, shuddering exhale. Paige followed her in, fully clothed at first, until Azzi let out a quiet, incredulous laugh.
“You don’t have to–”
“I know,” Paige said easily, already reaching for the soap. “But I want to.”
She slipped out of her t-shirt and sweats quickly, then stepped back under the spray with Azzi, positioning herself close enough that their bodies touched, Paige’s presence a steady anchor behind her.
Paige lathered the soap between her palms and began washing Azzi’s arms first. Long, careful strokes. Up and down. Over wrists that shook slightly, over forearms that carried more weight than anyone ever acknowledged. She rinsed them clean, then moved to her shoulders, thumbs kneading gently into tight muscles until Azzi sagged back against her chest with a quiet, broken sound.
“That’s it,” Paige murmured. “I got you.”
She washed her back next, tracing the lines of her spine, the contours of her muscles, like she was memorizing every inch. Like she was something sacred. When Paige turned her gently to face her, Azzi kept her eyes closed, trusting completely as Paige cleaned the day from her skin. The smell of hospital, the invisible heaviness, the grief that clung to her like a second layer.
Paige knelt briefly to wash her legs, hands reverent and patient. Movements steady and certain. When she stood again, she rested her forehead against Azzi’s, water cascading around them, steam wrapping them in something close and private.
Azzi finally opened her eyes. Paige was watching her like she always did. Like Azzi was something worth worrying over, worth showing up for.
Azzi leaned forward, pressing a kiss to Paige’s lips. Slow and deliberate, full of everything she couldn’t say. Paige kissed her back without hesitation, without question, like it was the most natural thing in the world.
When the nurse pulled back, her breath was coming out in shallow puffs, overwhelmed by the sudden need for the woman in front of her.
“Paige,” she breathed out breathless, and desperate to even her own ears. “Touch me.”
The blonde hesitated. “Azzi–”
“Please.”
Paige pulled back, looking her in the eyes, searching her face for any signs of uncertainty. Any hint of doubt. Azzi grabbed her hand, bringing it to where she needed her most. “Please.”
“Okay,” Paige whispered against her mouth before capturing her lips in the most gentle kiss Azzi had ever experienced in her life. The hand Azzi had guided south didn’t touch her yet, instead moving to her waist.
Paige held her steady, fingers pressing tightly into her sides as she deepened the kiss. Her lips firmer, tongue tracing against the Azzi’s bottom lip in teasing swipes.
She gently urged her backwards, pressing her against the shower wall. The sensation of the cool tile on her back a stark contrast to the burning heat of Paige’s body against her front. She gasped at the contact. Paige took advantage, swallowing the sound and pushing her tongue into Azzi’s mouth. The feel of the blonde’s tongue caressing her own caused goosebumps to spread across her bronze skin.
Paige’s lips moved to her neck, slowly. Sucking burning kisses into her skin there. Nipping carefully with her teeth against the strained tendon of Azzi’s neck before soothing it with her tongue. Focusing on a particularly sensitive spot until she was gasping and writing beneath her.
Only then did she move, mouthing across Azzi’s collarbones to her chest, sucking a bruising kiss just above the nurse's heart, before taking a nipple into her mouth, teasing it into a stiff peak and laving it with her tongue. She did the same on the other side before slowly kissing her way lower until she was on her knees.
Paige traced her tongue across the contours of Azzi’s stomach. Taking her time, as if refusing to leave a single inch of skin untouched. She ran her tongue across her belly piercing, moving slowly down her navel. Her hands never ceasing their movements. Alternating between kneading her ass and her tits. She sucked one final bruise into the nurse's hip before finally descending lower.
The first swipe of her tongue against Azzi had the nurse releasing a breathy moan she was unable to swallow down. One hand came to tangle in wet blonde hair, pulling her closer against her, the other splayed against the tile wall for balance. Paige licked through her slowly, tongue all wet heat, lapping up everything Azzi had to offer.
“Fuck,” Paige moaned into her, the vibrations adding to her pleasure. “You taste so good, baby.”
Azzi couldn’t help the moan that clawed out of her throat at the words.
Paige was worshipping her with hungry restraint. Every movement felt intentional, like she was savoring every reaction she pulled from Azzi. She lingered where the nurse was most sensitive, paying mind to every touch and sound she pulled. Responding to the way her body arched and softened beneath her. The heat building steadily between her legs impossible to ignore. Coiloing low and deep in her stomach.
Azzi’s breath was coming out in broken gasps, her head tipping back against the tile as the warm water cascaded over her shoulders. Paige didn’t let up, her tongue working deep through her. Alternating in its pressure and patterns. Every nerve ending felt exposed. Like a live wire beneath the onslaught of water and tongue.
Paige’s hands were everywhere and nowhere all at once, like they couldn’t decide where to land. Where to settle. Steadying her hips, kneading her ass, tracing deliberate paths up her sides where he thumbs pressed just enough to remind her she wasn’t going to fall.
“Paige,” Azzi whispered, voice wrecked. More plea than name. Her hands tugged the blonde upwards, suddenly overcome with the need to have her close.
Paige seemed to sense her desperation, rising slowly. Dragging her body back into Azzi’s until there was no space left between them. No room for air. Azzi barely had time to take note of the slick covering Paige’s mouth and chin, glistening with evidence of her need for the blonde, before she kissed her hard.
Her mouth was hot and claiming, allowing the nurse to taste herself as their tongues clashed. She swallowed every sound Azzi made. It wasn’t rushed, but deep, slow, and devastating. Paige caught Azzi’s bottom lip between her teeth, pulling back slightly before releasing it with an audible snap. She soothed the bite with a swipe of her tongue. Kissing her deeply again. Slow and hungry. Her mouth felt like liquid fire. Far hotter than the water cascading down their bodies.
Paige kissed her like she had all the time in the world. Like she intended to take her apart piece by piece and put her back together whole again.
Azzi melted into it, fingers digging into Paige’s shoulders, grounding herself there. Leaving crescent marks in pale skin from the intensity of her grip she’d apologize for later. Though Paige would have no qualms with the memory of Azzi’s desire carved into her skin.
Paige’s thigh slipped between her own, deliberate and teasing. Azzi gasped into her mouth at the pressure. The blonde groaned softly at the sound, pulling back just enough to rest their foreheads together.
“So perfect for me, baby,” she whispered hotly against her mouth.
Be began to guide the nurse’s hips in a steady grind against her. Azzi was so wet she couldn’t tell the difference between the water dripping between her legs and her own slick.
“Shit, Az,” Paige murmured, breath fanning over her lips. “You feel s’fucking good.”
The praise hit her harder than it should have. Azzi shuddered, overwhelmed all over again. But this time, with want and desire instead of grief. Paige felt the shudder wracking through the nurse’s body and responded immediately. Hands tightening against her, encouraging the incessant roll of her hips against a flexed thigh. Lips never parting from where they worked against her skin for more than a breath.
“I got you,” she said, pressing hot open mouthed kisses against the corner of her jaw, just below her ear. “Let go, baby. Come for me.”
And Azzi did.
It wasn’t explosive in the typical way she normally experienced with Paige when they were intimate. It was all consuming. Heat spread through every nerve ending like liquid fire. Her body pulled taut before going boneless against Paige’s as the last of the tension she’d been carrying all day slipped free.
Paige held her through the aftershocks, movements slowing but never stopping as she helped her ride it out. Murmuring soft praises against her temple as her hands moved soothingly. Lips posessive against her skin.
Only once Azzi’s breathing finally began to even out did Paige shift them completely beneath the spray again, careful to avoid wetting the nurse’s hair. She pressed gentle kisses along her jaw, her throat, her shoulder. Soft and affectionate. Grounding her back in her body. The water rinsed away the sweat and the ache, leaving only warmth and closeness behind.
Azzi rested her forehead against Paige’s shoulder, utterly spent. Emotion pressed tight against her ribs. “You’re way too good to me,” she murmured faintly.
Paige frowned slightly at her words, wrapping her arms tightly around Azzi’s middle, hands splaying wide against her back. “That’s not possible, Az.”
The blonde placed a lingering kiss to her temple, willing her to believe her next words. “You’re perfect.”
She finished washing Azzi then, taking her time to carefully remove the makeup from her face with a soft cloth and gentle swipes. Washed away the last of the suds from her body with slow hands and lingering touches. In no rush to let the moment end.
When she shut the water off, she grabbed a towel for Azzi first, wrapping her in the soft terry cloth before pulling her close against her body once more. Arms holding her firmly against her. Azzi rested her head in the juncture of Paige’s shoulder and neck, feeling the blonde’s warmth seep through the towel straight to her heart.
She grabbed a second towel for herself before leading Azzi back out into the bedroom, arm wrapped around her waist. Always in some sort of contact, like she was worried Azzi would disappear if she let go for even a moment.
She grabbed a pair of sleep shorts and one of her many hoodies that now permanently belonged to the nurse, slipping it over Azzi’s head. She helped her pull her arms through the sleeves, gently reaching inside of the cuffs that extended long past Azzi’s hands to pull them free. When they slipped out, she brought a hand to her mouth, pressing soft kisses against each knuckle.
Then she knelt in front of her, helping her step into the sleep shorts.
“I can dress myself, you know,” Azzi muttered, holding on to Paige’s broad shoulders for balance anyway. She lifted each leg into her shorts when the blonde tapped her thigh, signalling for her to do so.
“Yeah well… I’m better at it,” Paige replied with a small, teasing smirk. The smirk was gone as quickly as it appeared. Replaced with a look of what Azzi could only describe as adorable concentration, as she focused on her sliding the shorts over long legs and the firm swell of Azzi’s backside. Gently pulling the waistband into place over her hips.
The sight of Paige on her knees before her, dressing her so carefully, taking care of her like she was something worth revering had her heart aching in an entirely different way than it had earlier in the night.
The blonde was just so tender with her. So patient. So loving. Azzi didn’t know what she did to deserve someone so good. She didn’t know how to express everything she felt for the woman in front of her. Didn’t have the words.
So instead, she carefully pulled Paige back up to a standing position, and stepped into her, closing the already minimal space between them. She curled one hand in blonde hair, the other clutching the front of the towel Paige still wore, and pulled her into a searing kiss. Trying to convey everything she felt for the blonde through the movement of her lips. When she pulled back, Paige looked dazed. Her eyes half-lidded, and a lopsided smile on her face. Like she still couldn’t believe Azzi was hers.
The blonde exhaled deeply, eyes tracing all features of the nurse’s face. She gave her one last lingering kiss before stepping back to dress herself. As soon as she was in a pair of boxers and one of Azzi’s old oversized t-shirts, she was back in Azzi’s space. Hands finding her waist like they belonged there, forehead resting against the nurse’s.
“You hungry?” Paige asked her quietly, breath puffing gently against her lips.
“No,” Azzi replied, with a small shake of her head. But her stomach contradicted her words with an audible grumble.
Paige pulled her head back slightly to level her with an unimpressed look. “When’s the last time you ate?”
Azzi paused at that, eyebrows furrowing as she tried to remember. “Um…,” she thought out loud. “I think I ate…” she trailed off in thought.
“Nope,” Paige interrupted. “S’ been too long already if you gotta think about it that hard.”
She slowly dragged her hands from Azzi’s waist, letting her touch linger before interlacing their fingers and all but dragging her out of the bedroom.
“You’re the medical professional, Azzi,” Paige scolded as she led them down the hall to the kitchen. “You know how important it is to eat. I shouldn’t be the one who has to tell you that.”
Azzi rolled her eyes at the blonde’s dramatics. “I wasn’t hungry.”
“Doesn’t matter. Your brain needs nutrients. Brain energy conversion and all that? Isn’t that what you tell me all the time when you nag me to eat those nasty–”
“Oh shit!” Paige cut herself off, eyes going wide when they landed on the plastic bag on the ground near Azzi’s front door.
She dropped the nurse’s hand and practically sprinted towards it. Azzi watched her, a faint smile on tired lips. Amused by, but not unused to, her girlfriend's random spaz outs.
“What’s in there?” she asked curiously, as she took a seat at one of the barstools in front of the kitchen island. Paige made her way over with the bag, pulling out the seat directly next to Azzi and moving it so she could stand pressed entirely against her side with no space between them.
Normally, Azzi would tease her for her clinginess. Her inability to simply sit next to her without room for air. But in that moment, Azzi was silently grateful for it. Soaking up the contact. The warmth of the heat that radiated off of her body pressed against her side. She set the bag on the counter before beginning to pull an absurd amount of stuff out of it.
“Well,” she started, suddenly shy. “You sounded upset on the phone… so I picked up some stuff that I thought might help. But I didn’t know what was wrong so I just tried to prepare for the basics.”
“I kinda forgot I needed to put this in the freezer,” Paige said with a frown, as she pulled out a container of chocolate ice cream that more likely resembled soup than a frozen treat at this point.
Azzi let out a soft huff of amusement, leaning her head against Paige’s arm as she watched her shove the melted ice cream to the side with a pout.
“It’ll refreeze,” the nurse reassured her, turning her face to place a small kiss of appreciation to the blonde’s arm before resting her head again. Paige continued pulling random snacks out of the bag. Some she already knew were Azzi’s favorites, and others she figured the nurse might appreciate trying.
“I think that might be a lost cause,” Azzi said, nodding to the cottage cheese.
“What?” Paige looked appalled at the sentiment. “It’s fine. It can be recooled. Just like the ice cream.”
“It’s warm to the touch,” Azzi countered. “Borderline hot.”
“But you love cottage cheese,” Paige argued.
“Not when it’s spoiled.”
“It’s not spoiled.”
“Take a bite then,” Azzi challenged.
“Ew, bro,” Paige made a face of disgust. “I’m not touchin’ those gross, clumpy, milk curds. You know that.”
“It’s not that bad,” Azzi started. “You just like to be dramatic. It’s good when it’s cold. And it’s good for you.”
“Hell nah. It’s like if cheese had acne,” Paige retorted, and Azzi couldn’t help the small smile pulling at her lips. “There’s no way a bowl of blended cheese brains is good for you. I don’t care what your science says. It’s a lie.”
“You have such a way with words,” Azzi teased with a small smirk. Drained, but apparently never too drained to goad the blonde.
“If basketball doesn’t work out, I could be a poetry writer,” Paige said, overly self assured.
“A poet,” Azzi corrected.
Paige gave her a light hearted glare. “You could be the grammar police. Like, badge and all,” she grumbled sarcastically.
“Only if I get handcuffs too,” she pondered. “I wouldn’t mind putting you in handcuffs.”
She caught the subtle hitch in the blonde’s breath. The way her eyes glossed over briefly before she realized she’d stalled out. Azzi huffed a quiet almost-laugh at the reaction.
Paige shook her head like she could physically clear the thoughts forming in her mind, cheeks faintly pink. “Whatever,” she murmured. “So you’re really gonna throw out the cottage cheese?”
“It’s been sitting out for hours, Paige,” Azzi said dryly. “I love cottage cheese. But I draw the line at spoiled milk.”
“Fine,” Paige grumbled, pushing it to the side. “You’re lucky you’re so pretty.”
Azzi’s stomach swooped at the words, before it growled again. Louder this time, as if begging for attention. Or at least, food. She felt her face warm slightly at the sound.
“Okay, okay,” Paige said, digging through the bag. The nurse was genuinely confused how there were still more items inside of it. Her counter was currently littered with random snacks, a small bouquet of pink peonies, a book Azzi had mentioned wanting to read in passing, a sudoku book, and two different crossword books Paige thought she might enjoy because she was ‘such a nerd’.
“I know exactly what you need,” Paige declared, pulling two things of cup-a-noodles from the bag and holding them up like trophies. “Comfort food.”
Azzi lifted a brow at the conviction in her voice. “Comfort food,” she repeated, dubious. “That’s what you’re calling that?”
“Yes, Azzi,” Paige scoffed. “It’s soup. It’s warm. It’s comforting. And it’s… soupy.”
Azzi opened her mouth to argue, but her stomach betrayed her with another growl. She sighed. “Fine.” She reached for the cups.
Paige snatched them out of her reach before she could touch them. “I’ll make them.”
“Paige…” Azzi hesitated. “I don’t know if that’s a good idea.”
The blonde stared at her, visibly offended. “Azzi.”
“Do you not remember what happened the last time you tried to make me breakfast?” Azzi reminded her, gently. “Or the fact that we literally met because I had to stitch your hand back together after you sliced it open in your kitchen?”
Paige groaned. “Okay, first of all, there was no need to bring up breakfast. You promised we’d never talk about it again.” She pointed a finger accusingly. “And second, this is literally two steps. Water and a microwave. I’m not gonna mess that up.”
“You’re supposed to boil the water and let it sit,” Azzi corrected her. “Not microwave it.”
“Oh, I’m sorry,” Paige shot back. “I didn’t realize I was dating Martha fucking Stewart. The microwave is faster and just as good. I’ve made these like a hundred times.”
Azzi still looked unconvinced.
Paige narrowed her eyes. “Go sit down. Pick a movie. I got this.”
After another second, Azzi relented and shuffled toward the couch. She faintly heard Paige mutter, “No faith in me, I swear,” under her breath.
“Can you dump out the veggies?” Azzi called back.
“What?” Paige yelped. “Azzi Fudd wants me to remove the vegetables?”
“They’re not real vegetables,” Azzi argued. “They’re just dehydrated lumps of salt.”
Paige laughed. Azzi flopped on the couch unceremoniously. She heard the crinkle of plastic, then the faint rattle of freeze-dried bits hitting the bottom of the sink.
Azzi groaned as she flicked through a seemingly endless selection of recommended titles on Netflix. “There’s too many. I don’t know what I’m in the mood for.”
The microwave door thudded shut, followed by a rapid series of beeps as Paige punched in the time. Paige plopped onto the couch beside her, arm immediately coming to wrap around Azzi’s shoulders. “So indecisive,” she murmured, pressing a sloppy kiss to her cheek. The low hum of the microwave filled the apartment, steady background noise as she continued to scroll.
As it turned out, Azzi’s lack of faith in Paige’s ability to cook something as simple as cup-a-noodles was warranted. After a couple of minutes of scrolling – Paige suggesting different movies only for the nurse to veto them all – Azzi noticed something wasn’t right.
“Do you smell burning?” Azzi asked with a frown, moving to sit up from where she sagged against the blonde.
Paige sniffed the air in an exaggerated display. “No,” she denied. “It smells like–”
She was cut off by the ding of the microwave, signaling their ‘comfort food’ was ready. “Be right back,” Paige said, jumping up off the couch. Far too excited about something as trivial as microwavable soup.
Azzi barely had time to open her mouth before she heard the microwave door open, followed immediately by a high-pitched scream. Then the door slam shut. Azzi was on her feet in an instant.
She saw Paige tearing through the kitchen in a blind panic, knocking over the utensil jar as she fished out a pair of tongs. When she yanked the microwave open again, Azzi caught a glimpse of orange flames licking up the sides of a collapsing styrofoam cup, thick black smoke pooling inside her previously spotless microwave.
Paige clamped the tongs around the melting container and dropped it into the sink. She flicked the faucet on full force, sending water blasting on the engulfed noodles. The flames hissed as steam and smoke curled toward the ceiling.
A second later, the fire alarm went off.
“Paige,” Azzi shouted over the alarm, already waving a dish towel uselessly at the ceiling. “Why was it on fire?”
“Oh my god,” Paige groaned, red in the face, dropping the tongs into the sink with a clang. “Okay, okay, I’m handling it.” She glanced around, then climbed onto the counter without hesitation.
“Paige–” Azzi started, immediately alarmed for entirely different reasons. “Get down. Do not climb on the counter.”
“Relax,” Paige shot back, reaching for the alarm. “I’ve done this before.”
“That is not reassuring!”
Paige stretched up on her toes, one hand bracing against the cabinet, the other poking at the alarm until it finally cut off with a click. There was a beat of silence, the only sound coming from the faucet continuing to pour water over thoroughly burnt noodles.
They both froze for a second. Paige still perched on the counter, breathing a little hard, hair slightly frizzed, and cheeks flushed. Then she hopped down, grinning sheepishly as she turned off the faucet.
“Why is it always like this with you?” Azzi asked, continuing to uselessly wave her dish towel around at the lingering smoke.
Paige crossed her arms defensively. “Okay, first of all–”
“Paige,” Azzi cut her off, dropping the dish towel onto the counter.
“This was not my fault,” she said immediately. “You distracted me.”
Azzi blinked, incredulous. “I– what? How is this my fault?”
“You asked me to dump out the veggies,” Paige continued, counting on her fingers. “Then you made me choose a movie, which you refused to commit to, by the way. My brain can only handle so much at once!”
Azzi stared inquisitively at the charred remains of the cup-a-noodles slumped sadly in the sink, gears turning in her head. “Did– did you forget to put water in it?”
The blonde avoided eye contact. “Maybe.”
“Paige.”
“You were flirting with me earlier!” Paige began to defend herself, naturally shifting the blame to Azzi. “That’s on you. You can’t expect me to cook and process handcuff implications.”
Azzi stared at her for a long second. Then she laughed.
Not a quiet huff. Not a tired exhale. A real laugh, surprised and unguarded, bubbling up out of her chest before she could stop it. It was the first time she’d laughed since her shift from hell had started. Paige’s expression softened instantly. She crossed the kitchen in two steps.
“You’re laughing,” she said gently, hands settling at Azzi’s waist. “I missed that sound.”
“You set soup on fire,” Azzi justified her outburst, still smiling, forehead dropping to Paige’s shoulder.
“S’really not my fault,” she pouted.
Azzi shook her head, but the smile continued to tug at her mouth despite herself. “You forgot the single most important step. Really the only step.”
“Okay, wow,” Paige said. “There’s no need to rub it in. I was trying to be nurturing.”
“You nearly burned my apartment down.”
“I saved your apartment. It coulda burned down completely. I was a hero,” she attested. Her delusion never failed to amuse Azzi.
The nurse shook her head, exhaustion settling back in now that the moment had passed, but lighter somehow. “You’re banned from my kitchen. From any kitchen.”
Paige grinned, pressing a kiss into Azzi’s hair. “We can discuss that later. I’m gonna order us something to eat. And order you a new microwave…”
By the time they finally made it to bed, teeth brushed, bellies full, and hair still smelling faintly of smoke, Azzi was bone-tired. Her mind felt heavy, her body even heavier, weighed down by the torrent of the many emotions she’d experienced in such a short period of time.
She curled into Paige on her side, fitting against her like she was made specifically for her. Azzi’s head rested over Paige’s heart, cheek pressed to her chest, while their legs tangled together beneath the sheets. Paige’s arms wrapped around her without hesitation, one hand sliding beneath the hem of Azzi’s t-shirt, tracing slow, absent patterns over warm skin.
“You wanna talk about it?” Paige asked quietly into the silence between them.
Azzi sighed, heavy and reluctant, not wanting to get into it. To relive it. But she felt like she owed Paige at least somewhat of an explanation for her breakdown. Especially after the way she had taken care of her. The way she had stayed with her, steady and patient.
Before she could find her voice to respond, the woman holding her spoke again.
“You don’t have to, if you don’t want to,” Paige said, as if reading her mind. “It’s okay.”
And Azzi could tell she meant it. That she could tell her she’d rather not talk about it and Paige wouldn’t push the subject. Would be perfectly fine holding her through her sorrow, despite never knowing the cause. That knowledge gave the Azzi the strength to continue.
“Lost a kid today,” she began, her chest growing tighter as she spoke. “A baby. Not even a year old.” She focused on the warmth of Paige’s hands tracing slow, calming patterns against her bare skin. Beneath her t-shirt, across her shoulders and down her back. “I just keep hearing the mom’s screams in my head… seeing her face,” she managed to choke out.
She felt more than heard Paige’s breath hitch in her chest. “Fuck,” she breathed out.
“It’s okay,” Azzi continued, telling herself just as much as Paige. “It’s not the first time. Won’t be the last. Part of my job.”
“That doesn’t make it any easier,” Paige murmured.
She squeezed her eyes together tightly, wondering what she did in another life to deserve the woman beside her. Someone so steady, so present, so… perfect. Paige didn’t press for details. Didn’t insist that it wasn’t her fault or that everything would be okay. She simply acknowledged her hurt and held her through it. She was exactly what she needed in that moment.
She let herself melt against the blonde, eyes closed, heart aching in so many ways. Aching with grief of a loss, with pain for the mother who lost her child. With love for the woman holding her.
Her eyelids grew impossibly heavy. Every inhale brought the calming scent of Paige. Warm and safe. She felt the knot in her chest loosen slightly. And in that moment, she knew she was done for. Paige was it for her. Her person. She was undeniably, irrevocably, in love.
—
Unbeknownst to Paige, the blonde had confessed her love for Azzi on multiple occasions. Three, to be exact.
Paige, however, did not remember any of them. As much as Azzi wanted to tease her for her apparent love and lack of decorum, she didn’t know how to bring it up without sending the blonde into a full blown panic. So she let her girlfriend remain blissfully unaware of her slip ups.
The first time it happened, they had been dating for less than two months. Paige had gone out with her team to celebrate a tough win, and had a few too many drinks. She’d shown up to Azzi’s apartment close to three in the morning completely hammered.
The nurse had been sound asleep since the moment she got home from her shift, and was awoken by obnoxious pounding on her front door.
She climbed out of bed completely disoriented, bonnet slouched to the left side of her head as she made her way out of her bedroom, trudging past the kitchen, through the living room to get to her front door. She looked through her peep hole to figure out who the hell was making that much noise in the middle of the night on a Monday.
She’d never admit it out loud, but she softened as soon as she realized who was on the other side of the door, irritation giving way to affection for the clearly inebriated blonde. She unlocked the door and swung it open with a hand propped on her hip, doing her best to come off as irritated for having been woken up, rather than elated to see the woman standing in front of her.
“It’s three in the morning,” she said firmly, in lieu of a greeting.
“Hi baby,” Paige purred, entirely undeterred by the nurse's demeanor as a sloppy, goofy grin overtook her face at the sight of Azzi.
She stumbled through the threshold straight into Azzi’s arms, essentially melting into her as toned arms wrapped tightly around the nurse's waist.
Paige shoved her face into the crook of Azzi’s neck. “Missed’you,” she slurred.
Azzi sighed, keeping Paige steady with one hand as she shut her front door with the other, before returning the blonde’s embrace.
“I missed you too,” she admitted, knowing full and well Paige wouldn’t remember any of this in the morning.
“You have fun?” she asked, as she rubbed circles into Paige’s back. The smell of alcohol and Paige’s cologne engulfing her senses.
“Mhm,” the blonde responded. Voice equal parts sleepy and intoxicated. “Woulda been mor’fun with you there.”
Azzi huffed out a soft laugh and her drunken, exhausted state. “I don’t know. Seems like you had a pretty good time.”
“S’ always more fun wit’ you,” Paige slurred, stubborn no matter her condition.
“C’mon,” Azzi said, trying to extract herself from the vice grip Paige had on her. “Let’s get you to bed.” The nurse was bearing the majority of the blonde’s weight at this point.
Paige pulled her face back slightly at Azzi’s words. “Mm, to bed, huh?” she said, trying to waggle her eyebrows provocatively. From the nurse’s professional opinion, it looked more like she was having a stroke. “You tryna fu–”
“To sleep, Paige,” she cut her off before she could slur out the rest of her sentence.
The blonde caved immediately, happily letting Azzi guide her through the apartment into her bedroom. She brought her into the en suite bathroom first, carefully wiping her face with a damp towel before all but brushing the blonde’s teeth for her. Paige stared at her with adoration and half lidded eyes the entire time. The dazed look and droopy smile never leaving her face.
By the time Azzi got her stripped out of her pants, into a baggy t-shirt, and tucked beneath the covers, the blonde was barely awake. Laying on her stomach, arms folded underneath her head and her face half buried in the pillow.
Before Azzi climbed in next to her, she made her way into the kitchen. She grabbed two bottles of water from the fridge and some ibuprofen from one of the drawers, making her way back to her room with the newly acquired items. She set one of the water bottles and the pills down on the nightstand beside Paige, before gently stroking the blonde's cheek to stir her awake.
“Hmm,” Paige hummed in contentment, leaning into the contact, eyes still closed.
“Sit up, baby,” Azzi said softly. “I need you to drink this before you sleep, okay?” she told the blonde, holding out the second bottle of water.
“N’thank you,” Paige said, already half unconscious.
The nurse breathed a laugh out through her nose. “Paige,” she said with a little more authority this time. “Sit up. You need to drink.”
Paige groaned, pushing herself up and flipping herself on to her back unceremoniously until her top half was somewhat propped up on her forearms behind her. When she looked at Azzi, her bottom lip was jutted out in a full pout. “Fine.”
Azzi smiled, shaking her head gently. “You’ll thank me in the morning,” she said, carefully cupping Paige’s cheek to direct the water into her mouth. The blonde diligently downed the entire thing before collapsing back into the bed.
“Good girl,” Azzi mumbled, pressing a soft kiss to a flushed cheek. The nurse couldn’t help but to snicker at the blonde's visible reaction to her words.
She peeled the covers back, climbing in beside Paige, who immediately draped herself to lay almost directly on top of Azzi. She tucked her face into the crook of the nurse's neck, tangling their legs together.
“Y’smell s’good,” Paige mumbled. Her hand snuck beneath Azzi’s shirt, resting on the warm skin of her stomach. “Feel so good too. Skins s’soft.”
Azzi placed a kiss to the side of the blonde’s head, grateful that Paige was too out of it to call out the way her heartrate picked up in her chest. “Goodnight, Paige.”
Paige sighed deep and content. “G’night,” she murmured. “Love you, Az. S’much.”
Azzi froze as soon as the words were out of the blonde’s mouth. Entire body going still, a stark contrast to the way her heart began to pound furiously against her chest. She held her breath until her lungs burned, demanding air.
“You what?” she finally breathed out, but Paige was already deep in sleep, breathing heavy and steady against her neck. It took Azzi far too long to follow suit, Paige’s drunken words ricochetting in her brain.
When Azzi woke up the next morning, it was to Paige groaning in pain beside her, one hand covering her eyes, the other clutching her head. She’d had no memory of how she ended up at Azzi’s apartment, let alone of the words she said.
It happened two other times. And both times, Paige was completely wasted, with no recollection of the prior night the following morning.
The first time Azzi told Paige she loved her had been a complete accident. The words just slipped out, much to Azzi’s chagrin.
Paige had returned from an away game in LA earlier that afternoon, and Azzi had the next three days off of work. Paige was downright exhausted, so Azzi offered to pick up dinner on her way to the blonde’s apartment.
Paige tried to convince her that they should order in so the nurse didn’t have to go out of her way. But Azzi knew it was only because the blonde was desperate to see her after three nights apart. She rejected her offer to doordash, electing to pick up dinner the old fashioned way. She was almost to the Thai place when she received an incoming call from Paige, affectionately rolling her eyes before swiping to answer.
“Let’s just doordash,” Paige said before Azzi could even say a word.
“Who is this?”
“Ha. Ha. So funny,” Paige retorted, voice dripping with sarcasm. “Come be funny in my apartment. In my bed. While we wait for our food to be delivered.”
“You can’t doordash every meal, babe,” Azzi chastised.
“Yes I can,” Paige said defiantly. “I’m an ambassador, remember?”
Azzi rolled her eyes.
“Hey!” Paige admonished. “I could literally hear that eye roll through the phone.”
“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” Azzi replied, grinning despite herself.
Paige groaned over the line. “It’s gonna be forever before you finally get here.”
“It won’t take me more than 30 minutes, Paige.”
“Exactly Azzi. That’s forever. It’s already been three days. I honestly can even remember what you look like anymore.”
“How are you so dramatic all the time? Doesn’t it get exhausting?”
“I actually find it refreshing,” Paige snarked.
“You’re a pain in my ass.”
“I like your ass. A lot. One of your top three body parts.”
Azzi pulled into a parking spot in front of their local Thai place, grabbing her purse off of the passenger seat and taking her phone off of speakerphone, bringing it up to her ear.
“I’m going to hang up.”
“No, wait! I’m sorry,” she rushed out. “I like all of your body parts. Don’t hang up.”
Azzi chuckled at her dramatics. “I just pulled up. I have to order. You want Pad Thai right? Cause you’re basic?”
Azzi heard Paige scoff from the other end of the line, “That is not basic. It’s classic.”
“Mhm,” Azzi hummed, making her way inside.
“Man whatever, my order is way better than that nasty veggie plate you get,” she goaded.
“You mean stir fry?” Azzi corrected. “Stir fry is not a nasty veggie plate. It’s good. And you’d know that if you weren’t so damn stubborn and just tried even one bite of it.”
“Why would I try it if I already know it’s nasty? You don’t even get it with a good protein. You get tofu, Az. Eughck. Sicko. I can’t believe I’m dating you sometimes.”
Azzi rose to the bait. “Tofu is not nasty, you just have the palate of a four year ol–”
The nurse cut herself off, taking an audible deep breath. “You know what? I’m not having this argument right now.”
“Why not?” Paige challenged, testing Azzi’s patience. “‘Cause you know I’m right and you’re wrong?”
“I’m not wrong. Tofu is a perfectly valid protein, you’re just anti-growth,” Azzi said, slipping into line.
“Anti-growth?” Paige repeated. “Azzi, I’m six foot. I’m very pro-protein. Very pro growth.”
“You regularly order off of the kids menu when we go out,” Azzi shot back. “Your opinion is invalid.”
“Hey, the kids menu is good,” Paige defended. “It’s reliable. Unlike tofu. That shit tastes like a sad sponge.”
“That’s a skill issue,” Azzi snapped. “If you season it properly–”
“Why would I need to trick my food into tasting good?” Paige interrupted. “That’s how you know it’s bad.”
Azzi scoffed. “I cannot believe I’m dating someone who ordered chicken tenders at a Japanese restaurant.”
“That was one time!” Paige admonished. “And you know I hate seafood.”
“I know. Still doesn’t make it better. They had other adult options.” Azzi sighed. “Look, I have to order, okay?”
“But–”
“I’ll see you soon. Bye Paige, love you.”
As soon as she pressed the end call button, Azzi realized what she’d done.
“Oh no,” she whispered. “No, no, no.”
Her heart beat violently against her ribs as the weight of what she’d just said crashed down on her. She squeezed her eyes shut, willing time to reverse itself. Hoping that Paige hadn’t heard it.
Her phone lit up immediately. An incoming call from Paige.
Azzi declined it so fast she nearly dropped the phone. She rushed through her order at the counter, words tumbling out too quickly, hands shaking as she paid. Before she could even step aside, her phone buzzed again. Decline.
Again. Decline.
After three more calls, the blonde began to text.
5:42pm – Paige Bueckers: Azzi
5:42pm – Paige Bueckers: Pick up the phone
5:42pm – Paige Bueckers: Now
5:43pm – Paige Bueckers: U can’t just tell me u love me for the first time while we’re arguing about tofu and then not answer my calls
5:43pm – Paige Bueckers: Azzi
5:43pm – Paige Bueckers: Answer. The. Phone.
5:43pm – Paige Bueckers: Azzi be so ffr rn and pick up the phone
5:44pm – Paige Bueckers: Azzi Jazlyn Fudd
5:44pm – Paige Bueckers: U can’t ignore me forever
Azzi powered her phone off. Panic clawed at her chest, making it hard to breathe.
She hadn’t meant to say those words. Not out loud. Not like this, not now, not over the phone. And especially not first.
She did mean them. Of course she meant them. She was head over heels, completely, terrifyingly in love with Paige. She had never felt anything like it for anyone else, and the intensity of it made her chest ache. But Paige didn’t need to know that. Especially not like this. But the words had just slipped out.
Azzi had never said I love you to anyone before. The idea of saying it was horrifying enough. Actually having said it outloud? Even worse. Paige thinking Azzi was the first to admit it? The worst. Paige was never going to let her live it down. Fuck, fuck, fuck, she thought to herself. What the fuck did I just do.
She spent an agonizing amount of time attempting to slow her racing heart and correct her shallow breathing. She had no idea how much time passed like that, until a voice calling her name from the restaurant startled her out of her thoughts. Her order was ready. Her shaky hands grabbed the bag and she muttered a quick “thank you” before she beelined for her car.
She spent another ten minutes taking deep breaths to try to calm herself before starting the drive to Paige’s apartment. Her palms slick with nervous sweat against the steering wheel. She spent the entire drive there debating whether or not she should turn around and go to her own place instead, but realized that Paige would definitely show up at her door if she did that.
When she pulled into Paige’s apartment parking lot, she spent another fifteen minutes talking herself through a gameplan. I’ll just play dumb, she thought to herself. I’ll tell her she misheard me, or she made it up. It’ll be fine. She made one last attempt to steel herself before taking the quickly cooling takeout from her passenger seat and making her way up to Paige’s apartment.
Her knuckles barely brushed Paige’s door before it swung open, revealing a shellshocked blonde. Paige’s mouth hung open, eyebrows hovering near her hairline.
“Azzi, what the fuck,” Paige said, voice a mix of awe and disbelief.
“What?” Azzi asked innocently, trying to keep her voice steady. Proud of how unbothered she sounded.
“What?” Paige echoed, baffled. “Don’t ‘what’ me. You know what!”
Azzi stepped inside, brushing past the blonde who was far too stunned to move aside for her. She placed the – now less than warm – takeout on the kitchen island.
“I got dinner,” she said, too casually, moving as though nothing had happened.
“Azzi.”
“Paige,” Azzi deadpanned, refusing to meet her eyes, busying herself with taking out the containers of food from the bag.
The blonde began closing the distance slowly, deliberately. “Azzi.”
“What, Paige,” Azzi replied, her heart hammering.
Step by step, Paige advanced. And step by step, Azzi retreated. Until finally, her back collided with the counter. Paige loomed over her, hands braced against the surface behind the nurse, effectively caging her in.
“Azzi.”
The way Paige said her name held a world of emotion.
“Stop saying my name!” she snapped, half panicked, half flustered.
“You love me,” Paige said quietly, but with undeniable conviction. Her eyes glimmering with something Azzi was too distressed to try and name.
Azzi’s throat constricted. She shook her head fervently in lieu of the words refusing to form.
“You love me,” Paige repeated. Her voice broke slightly, half way through, soft yet unyielding.
Azzi tried to duck her head, but Paige caught her face gently between two hands, forcing her to meet the stormy blue eyes she adored. Her eyes were so deep, and so full of emotion Azzi worried she might drown in them.
Paige’s thumbs swiped gently across Azzi’s cheekbones, eyes darting all over her face like she was trying to memorize every feature, every moment. She let her forehead fall against the nurses.
“You love me,” Paige whispered, softer now, coaxing and intimate. Like saying it gently enough would finally get Azzi to admit it.
Azzi’s eyes fluttered closed, and she nodded. Nearly imperceptibly. Paige exhaled against her lips. A mixture of disbelief and relief puffed warm against her mouth.
“Say it,” she urged.
Azzi inhaled, steadying herself against the surge of emotion, forcing herself to look directly into impossible blue eyes.
“I love you, Paige,” she said, finally, fully, without hesitation.
Paige’s lips were on her own as soon as the words left her mouth. Her lips were soft but insistent, warm and intoxicating. Azzi responded instinctively, pressing closer, her hands tangling in blonde hair, pulling her flush against her.
It was the kind of kiss that carried longing, panic, and relief all at once. Everything Azzi wanted to say but didn’t have the words to express. Every brush of lips, every tilt of head, every sigh and breathless whimper between them spoke volumes. Paige’s hands stayed cupped around Azzi’s jaw, thumbs tracing her cheekbones, anchoring them both in the moment. Azzi’s fingers roamed from Paige’s hair to her back and shoulders, memorizing the curve of her body. The subtle tremble in her spine.
Their breaths mingled, shallow and rapid, hearts beating in a shared chaotic pulse. Azzi could feel the strength of Paige’s conviction in the way she held her. Steady and unwavering, like she’d been holding her love for the nurse in her own chest just as tightly.
Paige broke the kiss just enough to whisper against Azzi’s lips, her words hot and trembling. “Fuck, I love you, Azzi.”
But she didn’t stop there. “I… I think I’ve loved you since I first saw you,” Paige said, each word raw and jagged with emotion. “And every time I see you, every time I hear your laugh, your dimples, your smile, it’s like… like my heart is going to explode in my chest it just feels so fucking full. I miss you even when you’re right here. I– God, I can’t explain it. It’s so much, Azzi. I’ve never felt anything like this for anyone. I love you so much it hurts. So much it… It’s like I don’t know how to breathe around you, how to exist when you’re not touching me or looking at me. And when you are it’s… I’m just– I’m– fuck.”
Azzi’s chest tightened, her fingers twisting in the blonde’s t-shirt to hide their tremor. She was helpless to the tears welling in her eyes at the sincerity in Paige’s words. In the relief of hearing her say everything she felt out loud. At the fact that it was reciprocated. That Paige loved her just as much.
Azzi kissed her again, deeper this time. Slow and consuming, as if she could imprint every piece of herself into Paige through the movement of her lips. Filled with the of the kind of love that settled deep into her bones and refused to let go.
═══════════════════
a/n: please let me know what you think! i love reading your comments and thoughts. i'm working on finishing up the second half of this epilogue, hoping to have it out soon
WHERED U GO IM SNOWED IN NEED THE NURSE AND WBB PAIGE ASAP PSLSL
i'm still here! i've currently got over 40k words worth of an epilogue
just learned tumblr has a "text block" limit i didn't realize i could reach, so i'm finishing up editing the first half to get it out just for you so you're not too bored during the snow storm
Fortunately for everyone but me, I've been writing instead of sleeping for the past week. I'm currently sitting at 24k words, with a few more scenes and a whole lot of editing to go. Guesstimating is not one of my strengths, but if I had to do it I'd guess final word count would be over 30k. But I have no idea when I'll be finished.
So I guess my question for everyone is this: would you rather have multiple smaller parts so you don't have to wait an indeterminate amount of time for me to finish? Or would you rather have it all together and completely done?
Either way it's probably gonna be at least a week or two for me to finish. But I could probably finalize close to 10k words for you by the end of the week if that's what you prefer.
You Tell Me
Multiple Parts (~7-10k each)
All Together (~30k+)