Looking at the same sky
HSS (CA)
MC (Bailey Westlake)
MC x Skye
Notes: This is my first attempt at a choices fanfic so I hope I can do some justice. This is going to be a few instalments long so bear with it. Hope you enjoy.
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Bailey wiped the sweat from her brow as she rushed from table to table, trying to clear with one hand and jot down orders with the other. The Golden Griddle was swarmed with people as it usually was on a Friday evening. Cedar Cove was a nice town, but there wasn’t much of a dating scene which left young couples with the choice of the arcade, the beach or the Golden Griddle. While balancing a small stack of dishes on her bent elbow, Bailey held the note pad and pen, turning to the next table without taking her concentration off of the precariously balanced stack.
“Welcome to the Golden Griddle” She said, breathlessly. “What can I get you?”
“A black coffee…. and a kiss.” Said the soft voice that Bailey could only just notice.
“OK, that’ll be out for you in just a sec.” With that, she rushed to the window that joined the kitchen to the dining room. “Hey Casey. We need 3 Apple pie slices for table six, franks and eggs for table two and a black coffee and a kiss for table five. I’ll get the coffee if you pass out the rest.”
She ran the tap that poured out piping hot water, quickly nudging a cup in to the stream. After stirring in the coffee and setting it on a dish with a few small sugar packets she called back to Casey. “How are those orders coming?”
“Here’s table two and six.” Casey chuckled as he passed the plates through the opening.
“What about table five?”
“Bailey, read the order.”
“I did! Black coffee, which I’ve done, and a…” She stopped short, looking slowly up at the table across the diner where she saw the familiar shine of deep red waves spilling over the matching stripes of a tight top.
There sat Skye Crandall, trying her best not to burst with laughter at Bailey’s obliviousness. Bailey turned and scowled at Casey for not correcting her sooner. She quickly tore open the sugar packets, emptying six into the dark drink before rushing it over to the table where her girlfriend sat.
“Hi…” Bailey said with a tired smile.
“Hey yourself. Sorry about the order, I just know how you get in to work and couldn’t resist messing with you a little.” Skye smirked.
“It’s fine. I should have recognised your voice.” Bailey laughed, setting the coffee in front of Skye. “I already poured your ridiculous amount of sugar. Why do you have so much anyway?”
“The coffee here is really bitter. My mom always buys this almond infused stuff so I don’t have as much at home. What time do you finish?”
“Maybe another hour or so. Why? Are you going to whisk me away?”
“Um, no? But I wondered if you wanted to walk me home. But only if you want to. No obligation or anything.” Skye stammered.
“I’d love to, as long as you don’t mind waiting. Where have you been?”
“Nowhere, just thought I’d come see you at work. Is that weird?”
“Wait. You came all this way to see me for a hot minute at work and you’re worried I’ll say no to walking you home?”
“Urgh, I knew this weird. I’ll just leave.”
“NO!… I mean, no, stay. I’ll finish up as quickly as I can, then I’m all yours.”
Skye laughed. The faint embarrassed blush creeping away from her cheeks. “All mine?”
“All yours.” Bailey said with a salute as she walked backwards to get back to work. As she turned, she collided with a large frame, knocking herself to the floor while the person she bumped into stood firm.
“Sorry, sorry, sorry, sorry.” She squeaked as she scrambled to her feet. Looking up she saw the person she had crashed into was Jordan Daniels (JD). The most popular girl in school, captain of the football team and victim of the leg breaking incident of Bailey’s first day at Berry. “Oh, JD. Sorry!”
“You said that already” She laughed, straightening her clothes. “Its fine, no harm done. Are you OK?”
“Yeah. Yes, I’m good. Just overworked.”
“Yeah…” JD said as she glanced around the diner. “Its usually pretty quiet in here. Serves me right for craving your dad’s chilli-cheese dogs on a Friday, huh.”
“Yep. It’s like…”
“BAILEY!” A stern voice interrupted. “Come on, there’s people waiting.” Came her dad’s voice from the kitchen.
“Sorry! Can you start a chilli-cheese dog please?”
“Oh, and a double strawberry shake and fries?” JD called out to Bailey’s dad, doing her best Bailey impression; laughing when he failed to notice, also buried under his workload. “We’ll be in the corner booth, Bailey.” She smiled, making her way over to the beautiful blonde sitting across the diner.
Bailey continued her work, clearing table after table and waving goodbye to customers as the diner slowly started to clear out. When just a few patrons remained, she caught her dad’s eye and gave him a pleading look, motioning towards Skye. He gave a stiff nod, and barely hid the sorrowful look on his face as he turned back to finish clearing down the kitchen.
“Time to go” Bailey said with a grin as she put out a hand for Skye to take. “Sorry you had to wait. I hate Friday shifts.”
“its OK, really. i wasn’t expecting you to just drop your work for me.”
“But, you know i definitely would if i could. I’d give anything for more time with you.” at that, Skye looked taken aback.
“You really mean that don’t you?” It was more of a statement than a question.
“I do.” Bailey laced her fingers through Skye’s as they walked together. “And i always will.” The two of them walked closely through the town in time to see the lights of the stores and other restaurants shutting off. The night was quiet aside from the occasional rumble of a motorcycle passing somewhere close by. They walked in silence for most of their journey. This was a usual thing. Skye wasn’t much of a talker at the best of times and Bailey was glad to enjoy the peace after the rush of the diner. Another usual thing that occurred was, the closer they got to Skye’s family home, the more she would start striking up things to talk about. Bailey could easily recognise what was happening. Skye would try to keep her talking for as long as possible to buy herself valuable minutes before re-entering the house and switching her attention from the one person who brought her serenity to those who gave her nothing but stress and anxiety.
Midway through Skye talking about a new movie they should go and see, (not even one she would usually be interested in, but that was irrelevant right now), Bailey cut her off.
“Hey, so tell me if this is too forward, but…” She blushed furiously, earning herself a half smirk from the darkened lips of the beautiful girl before her. “…Did you want me to ask my parents if you can stay over tonight?”
Now it was Skye’s turn to blush. Her face heated at the mild implication and her breath caught in her throat. “Um, yeah… Yeah, that sounds, nice.”
Without wasting another second, Bailey called her mom and had to focus to stop herself from bouncing on the spot with nervous energy.
“Hello?” Her Mom answered.
“Mom…..” Bailey dragged the word out, tryng to soften the blow of what she was about to ask. “Skye and i were wondering….”
“Are you about to ask me if she can stay over for the night?” Her voice had a slight teasing tone which sounded positive to Bailey.
“Yes. But!… I’ll keep my door open a crack and we’ll just be watching movies and its not like she never stayed over before, but this time there’s no one else to worry about. Also, i’ll walk Biscuit every day for the next month, even the days that Casey owes me and you definitely let Erin stay over super late for Casey and i am technically the older sibling…”
“Bailey!” her mom’s voice rang through so loud that the phone was almost unnecessary. “Thank you for being mature enough to ask me, and you do make a very convincing argument. But i’m afraid tonight just wont do sweetie”
“oh… OK. but, why not?” She asked, sounding as though the breath had been pulled from her body along with every ounce of her excitement.
“Your Dad and I need to talk to you and your brother. Don’t worry, the discussion is not off the table. We’ll talk about it very soon OK?”
“Yeah, OK Mom. i’ll head home now.” They said their “I love you”s and hung up. Bailey turned back to Skye who had a look of grim acceptance on her face, her eyes flicking repeatedly over to the lit-up window of the living room of her house. More-so, the shadows that kept passing it. “I’m sorry Skye”
“It’s OK. At least i always know i have you near, and if i need you, you’ll come rescue me, right?”
“Always” Bailey smiled
“Then there’s nothing for me to worry about, right?”
“Right!” Bailey pulled Skye by their still linked hands in to a tight embrace. it was never going to be long until they saw each other again, but the moments in between haunted Bailey. Knowing what the Crandalls were like was bad enough, but what truly haunted her were the things she was sure Skye didn’t tell her.
“Get home safe, OK?” Skye whispered against the tender skin of Bailey’s neck.
“You be safe too.” She said concernedly
“Duh, i live right there…” Skye smirked, pointing to the house a few feet from them. Bailey smiled back but was sure that Skye knew what she meant and was just covering up her own worry.
“I’ll see you tomorrow” She waved as she walked out of the yard and on to the streets. “I love you.”
At that they both stopped, still getting used to the three words passing beautifully between them.
“I love you too.” Skye smiled earnestly before opening the front door and disappearing inside.
The walk home wasn’t far from Skye’s house and though it wasn’t cold out, Bailey could feel the chill on her hand and up her arm, in all the places that Skye had been making contact on their walk together. Seeing her house come in to view, her mind began to wander. Thoughts of how different things could have been tonight, if Skye had been allowed to stay with her. First came exhilaration of the possibilities of having her first serious girlfriend to herself all night, and the things that they had talked about up until now, maybe, finally happening for real instead of just fantasies. Exhilaration gave way to worry when she thought of where the girl she loved was instead. In a pit of vipers that hiss as venomously as they bite, and her alone to face them.
Forcing herself to push the negative thoughts aside, promising silently that she would text Skye as soon as she was in her room to check in, she opened the door to her home. What she saw inside was curious. Both of her parents looking extremely guilty, and Casey just looking confused.
“Whats going on?” she asked, looking from one member of her family to another.
“Bailey, come and sit down. You need to hear this.” Her mom said calmly. Bailey made her way to the dining table where they were sat, trying to figure out the unfamiliar look on her twins face. “The thing is honey…”
Before she had a chance to finish her thought, Casey stood abruptly up, knocking his chair over with the force. “They’re making us move, Bailey! Regardless of our friends, our relationships, our school!”
She was sure she could still faintly hear Casey yelling, but her ears rushed and her head span. Fighting past the feeling of sawdust in her mouth, Bailey only managed two words before the tears pricking at her eyes threatened to spill.
“But…No….
To be continued.
