AUTHOR: Shadowcat
E-MAIL: [email protected]
FEEDBACK: Yes, please. All kinds accepted.
DISTRIBUTION: Sure. Just let me know where.
CONTENT: Maggie/Bianca
RATING: PG
DISCLAIMER: All My Children belongs to AMC. Mags and Binx are not my characters.
SUMMARY: Maggie realizes that it's time to talk to Bianca about their relationship.
Maggie stood in the bar, watching her cousin and his wife walk away happily. She smiled as they left, and thought about the amazing scene she had wandered into. David had talked a woman through an emergency medical procedure over his cell phone. It was one of the most amazing things she had ever seen. Anna seemed to be even more impressed, and had gotten a bit choked up about her love for the man. They were finally back together. Maggie was overjoyed at seeing the core of her family together again. She sighed, and thought about her own words just a few minutes ago.
"Hello, you guys are all over each other. Why don't you just admit it?"
"Admit what?"
"That you love each other, that you're crazy about each other. Come on, anybody can see it. You know, the two of you are so brilliant, and sometimes you just act like such knuckleheads."
The situation with Bianca had been haunting her for months. They had grown even closer after Leo's death, and depended on one another now. Maggie counted every moment with Bianca as precious. She'd been clear about how much the girl meant to her. She just hadn't said those three words out loud. Still, Bianca had to know. She was sure of it. It was reflected in her eyes whenever the brunette looked at her. Maggie lost herself whenever she looked into those beautiful brown eyes.
But what if she didn't? What if she was still trying to convince herself that they were just close friends? It had been obvious to Maggie that Bianca wanted more. Maggie had been confused for so long about her feelings about the girl. The more time she spent with her, the more sure she was of one thing. She needed Bianca in her life. She wanted her in her life. Bianca was the one person who mattered most to Maggie, the one she wanted to come home to. She was the reason that Maggie was still in Pine Valley. She hadn't tried to run this time. Maggie wanted to be there for Bianca.
Maybe it's time that I took my own advice. Maggie pulled out her cell phone, and quickly dialed Bianca's number.
"Hello?"
"Bianca, it's me. I need to talk to you. Are you still eating with your mother?"
"Hey, Maggie. We're just finishing up. What's going on? Bio-Chem driving you crazy?"
"It's not about school. Can you come over to my place? It's important."
"Sure, I'll have my mom drop me off there. Are you ok, Maggie?"
"Yeah. I just want to talk. I'll see you soon."
"I'll be there. Bye."
Maggie sighed, and turned off the phone. Now if I can just keep my nerve. She turned, and headed up to her room. The girls had been skirting a discussion about their feelings for so long. They put it off even longer when they lost Leo. Things were starting to return to normal. It was time to talk.
When she got to her room, Maggie frantically gathered up her discarded clothing. I'm such a slob, she though, stuffing the clothes into her closet. She tidied up for a few more minutes, then sat on her bed.
"What am I going to say to her? Bianca, I love you, and I want to be your girlfriend. No, she'll freak. The heart wants what the heart wants, Bianca. That's not bad. God, what am I doing?" Maggie groaned, and ran her fingers through her hair. She just hoped that by the time Bianca got there that she'd be able to speak at all. Her stomach was already starting to knot up.
"Ok, ok. I'll just try to be calm, and see where it goes. I know one thing. I'm not going to let her brush it off this time. We are going to talk if I have to lock her in here and tie her to a chair." Maggie, plopped onto the bed, and impatiently waited for her friend to arrive.
When the knock finally came, Maggie had practically worn a groove in the carpet from her pacing. She opened the door, and froze. Her breath caught in her throat. Oh God, she thought. I don't know if I can do this. Bianca stood before her door with one of her glorious smiles on her face. Every time Maggie saw that smile, she felt her heart try to jump out of her chest.
"Hey," said Bianca. She looked at Maggie with concern. The shorter girl seemed a bit out of it. "Are you alright?"
"Me? Oh, I'm great." Maggie finally got her breath back, and leaned against the door frame. For some reason, she couldn't take her eyes off of the girl in front of her. She had planned the entire conversation in her head, but all of her plans seemed to disappear once Bianca showed up.
"Ok... Are you going to become a permanent attachment to the door, or are you going to let me in?" Bianca joked.
Maggie slapped her forehead with her hand. "Ugh, sorry. I guess I'm in a bit of a daze." She moved aside to let the taller girl in, and closed the door behind her. Maggie leaned against the door and watched Bianca walk over to the bed before joining her.
The tall girl sat down, and placed her bag on the floor.
"So, what's up? You sounded like you had some important news."
Maggie nodded, and looked down at her hands. She took a few deep breaths, then looked up at Bianca with a forced smile.
"Yeah. David and Anna are back together. It's great. I came back here, and David was on his cell, talking Maureen Gorman, or Grey, or whatever her name is, through an emergency tracheotomy. She got into a car accident, and Edmund was with her."
"Oh my God. Is he ok?" A look of horror crossed Bianca's face as she though of how serious Edmund's injuries must be.
"I think so. She got him breathing, and the EMTs got there pretty quickly. David and Anna rushed over to the hospital just before I called you."
"Wow. I hope they're alright."
"I think they'll be fine. You should have seen it, Bianca. David was amazing. He talked her through the whole thing. How many doctors can talk someone through emergency surgery like that? I can only dream of being that good." Maggie ran her hands through her hair, and looked up into the air. She was still amazed at the miracle her cousin had helped perform.
Bianca smiled, and bumped Maggie with her shoulder. "I'm sure you'll be great. Especially with David helping you through it. It won't be long before they'll be paging Dr. Stone."
Maggie giggled, and leaned into Bianca. "I dunno about that. I've got a few years left before I can even get into med school."
"Still, I'm sure that you'll be great at whatever you decide to do." Bianca smiled down at her friend warmly.
Maggie felt her heart stop for a few seconds. This can't be good for my health, she thought. I'm going to have a heart attack before I'm twenty five, at this rate.
"Woo, ok." Maggie looked back down at her hands, and smiled. Her heart was pounding again, so hard that she could feel her whole body pulse to it's rhythm. "Bianca, we need to talk about something."
The brunette hooked a few strands of hair behind her ear, and gave Maggie a worried look. She felt a pang a fear start to rise. Maybe she'd she'd been a little too intense. They'd been having a lot of those moments lately. "About what?"
"Well, you know how I said that David and Anna are back together?"
Bianca nodded, and patiently waited for the girl to get to the point. Every moment she skirted the issue made Bianca panic a little more.
"Before they finally admitted it, I gave them this whole spiel about how obvious it was that they're crazy about each other. I mean, anyone who's ever seen them together can see it." Maggie looked back up at Bianca to see if the girl could see where she was going with the conversation.
The other girl had no clue. Her brows were knit in a look of confusion and concern as she watched the smaller girl speak. She nodded to her to continue.
Maggie took a deep breath. She made sure that she held Bianca's gaze before she said the words that had been echoing in her head for the past half hour.
"I think it's time I took my own advice."
Her heart beat thudded loudly in Bianca's ears. She blinked, still looking into Maggie's eyes. The other girl was gazing at her so intensely that it caused to Bianca forget to breathe for a moment. She couldn't mean what I think she means. She's not saying this.
"What do you mean, Maggie?" she whispered.
She stood up, and ran her hands through her hair again. Turning to face the dark haired girl, she felt her emotions getting the best of her. Her eyes started to water, but she pushed the tears back. She needed to get through this. She needed to tell her.
"Bianca, I am crazy about you. Can't you see that? I think about you all the time. I miss you when you're not around. My heart stops when I see you smile. I want to spend every moment that I can with you." Maggie sighed, and pushed her hair back. "I've never felt like this about anyone before. I didn't know how to handle it... It was just too intense."
Bianca looked up at Maggie in shock. She'd dreamed of the girl saying those words to her, but had convinced herself that it would never happen. She'd convinced herself that every touch or glance was just part of their intense friendship. Bianca hadn't wanted to believe that there was something more. She'd been hurt in every relationship she'd ever had, and didn't want to open herself up to that possibility again.
"Maggie..." She couldn't deny her friend's feelings now. Maggie was laying her heart open to Bianca, and she couldn't put it off as anything other than what it was.
Maggie sat down next to Bianca, and reached for her hand.
"I know I've been sending you mixed signals, and I'm sorry. It's taken me a while to figure out my feelings. I'm not good with this emotional stuff, ya know? I usually just pack up and run." She squeezed the girl's hand, and smiled. "I don't want to run this time, Bianca. I have to face this, and I was hoping to face it with you."
Tears filled Bianca's eyes as she watched the girl confess her love. It was everything she wanted, everything she needed, but she was afraid. For the first time, the tables were turned. She was afraid, while another girl looked on with love.
"But Maggie... Are you gay? You made it pretty clear on your birthday that you weren't like me."
Maggie frowned, and looked down at the hand that held Bianca's. "I'm sorry about that. I was afraid, and I totally freaked out on you. No one ever looked at me like you did, Bianca, and it scared the hell out of me. It was everything I always wanted, but I knew that it wasn't for me. That made me mad. I guess I just lashed out. I don't know if I am or I'm not." She looked back up into dark brown eyes, and gave the girl's hand a squeeze. "I've never felt like this about anyone before, man or woman. That alone scared me. The fact that you're a girl just made me even more confused. I tried to fight it. Do you remember when you told me about when you figured out that you were gay? Didn't you try to fight it, too? You went and tried to make out with the captain of some sports team. That was what I tried with Tim. You kept throwing him at me, Bianca. I never felt anything for him, but you made me feel like I should have. That's why I kissed him. I tried to prove that I wasn't in love with you. And look how that turned out." Maggie sighed, and looked down again.
Bianca reached up a hand to cup Maggie's cheek. She turned the girl's head up to look into her eyes. Maggie's eyes were incredibly sad. Bianca believed that she regretted her mistake, and instantly forgave her.
"Are you sure?" She searched Maggie's eyes for any doubt that this was what she wanted.
Maggie smiled, and placed her hand over Bianca's on her cheek. She gazed into the brown eyes, and said in a clear voice, "I love you. I've never been more sure of anything as I am of that."
The fingers on Maggie's cheek caressed her slowly. Bianca's heart melted as she realized that she'd finally gotten her wish. She loved someone who loved her back. Someone loved her enough to risk everything she knew to be with her. Grandma, are you watching? It's actually happening.
"I love you, too, Maggie." Bianca sighed, and gave the girl a brilliant smile. "I've been holding that in for so long. I feel like I can finally breathe again."
"I don't know, Bianca. When you smile like that, I find it pretty hard to breathe."
Bianca's smile widened, and she slid her hand off of Maggie's cheek to tuck a lock of hair behind her ear.
"See? You're so cute. It makes me just want to..." Maggie's voice trailed off, her eyes still gazing at Bianca lovingly.
The brunette's eyebrows quirked up, and a sly grin graced her lips. "Makes you want to what?"
Eyes locked in a heated gaze, the girls slowly leaned closer. Maggie's heart beat rang in her ears. She placed her hand flat on the bed, and leaned in further. Bianca's lips loomed before her, the prize she'd wanted to claim for months. She dreamed about those lips; how beautiful they looked when they smiled; the cute pout they formed when Bianca was deep in thought; how soft and supple they seemed when they formed words. She imagined how warm they would feel against her own, how hot they would be against her skin. Maggie's own lips parted for the ragged breath laboring in her chest to escape.
Bianca felt the hot breath wash over her face, and shivered. The moment seemed to stretch forever, every millimeter taking an eternity to cross. She could taste a slight tang of wine on Maggie's breath. She brought a hand up to the girl's neck, and slid her fingers around to the back. Her lips parted in anticipation. Then everything stopped. Warm, soft lips pressed against hers in the most exquisite feeling. Her body seemed to come alive with the kiss. Desire electrified her skin. For one long moment, she forgot to breathe.
Maggie pulled away slowly, her eyes wide with surprise. Her hand fluttered up to her lips, touching them as if they weren't real. She'd never felt anything like that kiss. Her heart was beating double time, and she felt as if she couldn't catch her breath.
"Oh my God. What was that?" Maggie whispered in amazement.
Half lidded brown eyes looked at her in amusement. Bianca was pleasantly surprised by the heat between them, and wanted to feel it again. She smiled slyly, and leaned closer as if to divest a secret.
"I believe that was what is called a 'kiss'. A very, very nice kiss. It's been so long since I've had one that I'm not sure I remember it correctly, but I've seen pictures." Bianca giggled, and winked at the stunned Maggie.
"Ha. I think you remember better than you let on. Wow, Bianca. I had no idea. If I'd known it'd be that good, I would have kissed you at Prom," Maggie said, still a bit in a daze.
Bianca blushed, and tucked a lock of hair behind her ear. "You wanted to kiss me at Prom?"
"Oh, yeah. You looked so hot. I thought you might freak out, though, and I was still so confused. I guess that was when I realized how much you'd come to mean to me. I never got that nervous about going out with a guy." Maggie chuckled, and pushed her hair back. She looked the girl she loved, and just smiled happily. Bianca returned the smile, and tiled her head.
"So..."
"So?" Maggie couldn't stop smiling. Things were going far better than she had hoped.
"Are you just going to stare at me with that goofy grin, or are you going to kiss me again?" asked Bianca, her eyes twinkling with amusement.
"Oh-ho. Demanding woman. I think I like it." Maggie quipped as she leaned in closer.
"Well, you do have several months of lost time to make up for," whispered Bianca. Her voice was low and breathy as the inches between them disappeared.
"Now, there's an assignment I can get into." Maggie grinned, and captured the other girl's lips hungrily. During the next few hours she learned all about biochemical reactions. Unfortunately, the experience wasn't something that was useful for a written test. Somehow, she really didn't mind.
THE END