maybe we can dance with everybody | ao3
prompt: jealousy + can i help with your hair? a garsantos oneshot for @slamdancepulse
The first time Yolanda saw Trinity, she knew she wanted her in any capacity.
She wanted dinner with her. She wanted drinks with her. She wanted to dance the night away with Trinity in her favorite club. Most of all, she wanted to fuck Trinity until she decided Yolanda was her best bet at having a decent sex life while in Pittsburgh.
It was easy to achieve all that.
She wasn’t calling Trinity easy—not at all. It wasn’t Yolanda’s fault that she was charming when she needed to be, and it wasn’t her fault either that Trinity was just so eager to please, which simply made the work easier for Yolanda. In summation, everything just worked out pretty well for Yolanda, and everyone was happy for it.
What was Yolanda’s fault was her inability to stand by her word when it came to pretty girls like Trinity.
Ten months ago, she’d been happy just being in Trinity’s life—and pants. That was until she learned that Trinity had a habit of scrunching her nose while waking up from her slumber, that she stretched the sleep away with the most scandalous noise known to mankind, only to fall back into bed to burrow close and deep to the warmest thing she could find. Occasionally, it was her favorite bolster pillow; most of the time, it was Yolanda.
Yolanda also learned that Trinity was flexible. Granted, she learned this during sex, but what really trapped Yolanda in this discovery was the way in which Trinity sometimes carried herself without her knowing it. This was most noticeable during movie nights. Yolanda, out of habit, always took the far-right end of the couch, sitting with one leg over the other while cradling a bowl of popcorn on her lap. Trinity, on the other hand, would pick the opposite side because she had no other choice. But instead of sitting like a normal person, Trinity would sit with one leg bent under her body and the other stretched out towards Yolanda so she could poke and kick at Yolanda now and then.
Not that Yolanda was complaining.
Yolanda had more stored in her little box called Trinity in the back of her head, but Yolanda should really start thinking about when to set that box on fire. With Trinity considering double-boarding, Yolanda knew their time was running out. If Trinity proceeded with her plans, Yolanda would have to set very strict boundaries lest she end up in trouble for sleeping with someone working in the same department as her—or she could just end things with Trinity. That might be easier and faster.
If only this were ten months ago and not now.
—
Weaning off from Trinity Santos was a lot harder than Yolanda had expected.
She’d been trying to gradually ease herself into a routine of less trinity, more work. Back to the old ways, as Emery would tell her time and time again, but denying herself their playful banter in and out of the hospital was as enjoyable as chewing on a cactus. They said it would usually take three weeks to break a habit, but Yolanda wanted three seconds to learn to keep her eyes locked on anything but Trinity whenever they ended up in the same room.
Ambitious, delusional, and extremely difficult, but she was succeeding so far. Her jaws were starting to hurt from all the clenching and teeth-gritting, but she was happy with her progress so far.
So what if they were supposed to meet later that night to watch fireworks together? Backing out of it should be as easy as counting to three. They were not officially together; Trinity had expressed no interest in becoming more than what they were to each other, and so Yolanda was more than happy to play the casual game.
But, again, if only this were ten months ago.
Now Yolanda must deal with forcing her eyes to focus on Robby’s face, or Whitaker’s, or sometimes Javadi’s. She really wished she’d stuck with Whitaker’s face rather than allowing herself to look at Dr. Al-Hashimi, because doing so resulted in her watching the new attending go up to Trinity to talk about god knows what. She should be walking to trauma one. Someone had called her attention there, and a patient could be running out of time while Yolanda fought against the glue that had kept her feet from moving any further, but that stupid, fucking smile—
“Dr. Garcia, any minute now!”
Yolanda’s glare sliced through the E.D. and landed on Robby’s stupid face. Right. She had a job to do. Wondering what the new attending wanted with her—with Trinity was none of her business.
—
So maybe she got a little curious.
As more consultations demanded her presence in the E.D., Yolanda found herself working on cases with Dr. Al-Hashimi. Despite herself, Yolanda found that it was a breath of fresh air. It was clear that Dr. Al-Hashimi came from a place that operated differently from The Pitt. She was by the book, balked at some choices made in the department, but was ultimately earnest in her care for the patients—all traits that Yolanda, quite honestly, found attractive in a woman.
At some point, Yolanda found herself wondering: what would life be like if she’d chosen to mess around with a woman like Dr. Al-Hashimi instead of letting herself get caught with someone like Trinity? Someone who seemed well-adjusted and had her life figured out?
She shook her head as she watched her cup fill up with hot coffee. That was unfair of her to think. Trinity was not as messy as she once thought she was ten months ago. Trinity was young and only starting to figure out what made her heart beat with passion in her field. To compare her to Dr. Al-hashimi was a disservice to all the efforts she’d poured into her work, and Yolanda was no one significant enough to belittle that, even in misguided thoughts.
Not only that—wondering about a scenario where she was sleeping with Dr. Al-Hashimi instead of Trinity was appalling, in some ways. She lifted her cup to her lips, briefly blowing on the steaming coffee before taking a timid sip. She should focus her energy on getting as much caffeine into her body as she can during the short break she was afforded.
“Still stealing our coffee, huh?”
The voice startled Yolanda, but not enough to cause a visible reaction. Cool as always, she turned to the source of it, a perfectly trimmed eyebrow arching in response.
Trinity walked further into the break room until she was standing next to Yolanda. Not too close, but close enough for Yolanda to feel her warmth in the otherwise cold room.
“Shift’s been crazy, huh?” Trinity asked as she poured herself a cup, then added a dash of creamer and some sugar. “What do you think of the new attending?”
“Gossiping now?” Yolanda turned to lean against the counter, cup now cradled in both hands as she held it close to her face. “The hospital should really stop paying you for gossiping during company time.”
“Boo. You’re no fun.” Trinity rolled her eyes. “Come on. Humor me. What do you think of her?”
As if on cue, Dr. Al-hashimi passed by the door, still looking as pristine as she did at the start of the shift.
“She’s good,” Yolanda said. “If a little too optimistic, but nothing the Pitt can’t fix.”
Trinity snorted. “You’re mean. I think she’s great. Kind of. I mean, I wish she’d stop pressing me about charting, but—”
“Was that what you guys were talking about earlier?”
Trinity blinked. “You were watching us?”
“Kinda hard not to when you two were doing it in the middle of the E.D., no?”
So much for not letting her emotions get the best of her. So much for not jumping to conclusions, for not being the type to get jealous over someone she wasn’t officially dating.
God, she was far too old to be acting like this.
Yolanda pursed her lips, no longer interested in her coffee. Without second thoughts, Yolanda poured the whole thing down the drain and turned on the faucet, letting the rush of water drown out any potential response from Trinity. She made quick work of rinsing her cup, placed it back on the drying rack, and then snatched a paper towel to dry her hands off.
“Yolanda—”
“About tonight,” Yolanda interrupted, jaws briefly clenching. “I may need a rain check.”
Trinity’s face fell. Yolanda wished she could take it back, but she didn’t. She wouldn’t. This was for Trinity’s sake, eventually, and it was something that Yolanda needed to commit to.
“We’re swamped,” Yolanda continued. “You know how it is.”
Trinity blinked languidly, shaking her head as if physically dragging herself out of a stupor she’d abruptly fallen into. “Right, of course,” she cleared her throat. “Let me know if you— if things change?”
“Sure.”
Yolanda wouldn’t.
—
Today was not Yolanda’s Fourth of July at work, so it would be a lie to say that she was exhausted because of the job. Operating on injuries caused by fireworks, among other things related to the day’s event, was just another Tuesday for Yolanda at that point in her career. Nothing could surprise her now—except Trinity, apparently.
—
Despite what she said to Trinity earlier in the break room, Yolanda found herself walking to the park near the ptmc. The same place they agreed to meet after work to watch the fireworks display in the city, without having to deal with a dense crowd.
Yolanda’s feet dragged on the pavement, one hand kept warm in her pants’ pocket while the other held onto the sling of her messenger bag, all while thinking about the person she was supposed to meet that night.
She could probably fix things; call Trinity and ask if she was still up to watch fireworks with her. Maybe apologize for how she acted and make a promise to be better. But doing so would defeat the purpose of her keeping her distance from Trinity, wouldn’t it? She couldn’t do that to Trinity, especially not after being an asshole to her because she couldn’t get her shit together when it came to Trinity.
As she got closer to the spot with the perfect view of the sky, Yolanda’s steps faltered. The park wasn’t deserted. There was a handful of people standing around, watching as the sky was lit with bright colors, but one standing just a few feet away from her was so familiar, she didn’t need another second to realize it was Trinity.
Yolanda had always thought it cringy when one of the main characters in a romantic movie would stop and watch their love interest from afar. Why not just go up there and kiss them? Why stand there like a fool instead of doing something about your breathless moment and thunderous heartbeat?
Well, now you know.
Yolanda felt like she had been transported back to Trinity’s couch. She felt like she was sitting just a few feet away from her, watching the side of her face as the light from the screen reflected on her pale skin. She wished she were sitting that close to Trinity in that moment so she could steal her bowl of popcorn and cackle as Trinity complained about it. She wished they were sitting on her couch so she could feel Trinity’s toes poke at her thigh just to bother her.
She was wishing for many things, wasn’t she?
In the midst of all that, Yolanda hadn’t realized she’d closed the distance between her and Trinity. However, instead of greeting Yolanda, Trinity kept her eyes on the sky, her hands tightly shoved in her jacket’s pockets. Any other day, Trinity would have reached for her arm and held on tight. Any other day, Yolanda would have reached up and tucked the stray strands of her hair behind her ear. tonight, rightfully so, Yolanda didn’t get to have that privilege.
“You came,” Trinity said, lips briefly pressing together as she sneaked a look at Yolanda.
“Yeah.” Yolanda nodded, rolling her lips inwards as she took the final step that would have her standing arm to arm with Trinity. She then looked up at the sky, content to stay like that for now. “How long have you been out here?”
“Not long,” Trinity replied. She began to sway on her feet and stood on her toes now and then, a clear sign that Trinity wasn’t as collected as she was trying to be. “Happy fourth.”
Yolanda let out a soft laugh through her nose. “Happy fourth. Why is this awkward?”
“Only awkward if you make it awkward.” Trinity shrugged.
“Right.”
“I was supposed to go with Dr. Al-hashimi.”
Yolanda’s gaze snapped to Trinity’s face. “What?”
To her further surprise, Trinity only snorted, her gaze knowing. “I knew you were fucking jealous.”
“…What?”
“I was kidding,” Trinity said, rolling her eyes. “I barely know the woman.”
“You barely knew me when you fell into my bed.”
“That was four days after my first day at PTMC. I had more than enough time to get to know you.”
“You mean me in the hospital?”
“Sure, but that’s still you.” Trinity shrugged again, eyeing Yolanda in a way that was more chastising than anything. “I guess I have three days to get to know Dr. Al-hashimi before getting into her pants, huh?”
Yolanda clenched her jaws, felt the beginnings of anger simmer beneath her skin, but ultimately managed to calm down. She knew what Trinity was telling her, and she wasn’t about to ruin the night more than she already had.
“I’m sorry,” Yolanda muttered, keeping her gaze locked on the side of Trinity’s face. She was there to watch the fireworks, but she was doing more watching of every subtle shift in Trinity’s facial muscles, desperate to see the smallest sign of forgiveness.
Trinity merely sighed. “Hug me.”
Yolanda was right there with her, feeling the tension in her shoulders bleed out of her pores as she moved to face Trinity, already poised to hug her from the side, until she was interrupted by a gentle shrug of her shoulder.
“From behind,” Trinity said, looking at her as if Yolanda should have known better.
And yeah, she should have known better.
Feeling much lighter than she had just moments prior, Yolanda finally allowed herself to relax. She breathed out a soft laugh as she stepped to stand behind Trinity, wrapping her arms around her waist while resting her chin on the side of Trinity’s head. Yolanda felt Trinity’s arms wrap around hers, and finally, since the day began, Yolanda felt at ease.
They stayed silent like that for a long moment, content in each other’s arms as they watched the dwindling brightness above their heads. When the show was clearly almost over, Yolanda took a tiny step back, squeezing Trinity as assurance that she wasn’t going anywhere, to give herself enough room to lean down and press a soft, apologetic kiss on the delicate curve of Trinity’s neck. She let her lips linger, doing nothing more than just letting herself feel the warmth of Trinity’s skin and the steady pulse beneath it.
“Let’s go back to my place,” Yolanda muttered into Trinity’s neck, not bothering to move an inch to make herself sound clearer amidst the city’s noise. "View’s much better there.“
Yolanda felt Trinity’s fingers curl into her skin, her blunt fingernails digging into it. “Only if you let me help with your hair.”
Yolanda hummed and pressed another kiss on Trinity’s neck. This time, accentuated by a tiny nip.
“Of course.”