Author's Notes

Ok, so here's wtf's up with this one. Yesterday, Rin posted a new Kyori story in honor of Pride Month. "Oh, cool," I thought. "I mean, we've seen them like that before...a looot of times...but never in honor of Pride Month!"

Then literally five hours later, we got it again. (...kinda. Yes, I read the story~)

At that point I had to throw my hat into the ring, just for some character diversity. ;P (I kid, I kid, lol. ...mostly.) I've barely written a word for weeks, but I was inspired for this one. So I told myself if I could make this the next fic posted, I'd go on; if I couldn't, I'd probably hang it all up. Eighteen hours later, here we are :)

This takes place shortly after the end of Gorgeous. If you recall, that story featured Athena getting drunk (unknowingly) and making out with Yuri. In the year-later epilogue, Yuri admitted she didn't mind it - and proposed a threesome with Robert. (...that summary makes me feel like a perv, lol. Here's hoping this story's better about that. ;) If I ever do continue Gorgeous, this will fall out of continuity - but for now, it's an official followup.

Hope you enjoy!

Reunion

The question haunted Athena for weeks.

Was Yuri being serious?

Did she really mean it?

Did she really want...that?

She wouldn't lie: she'd thought about that before, too. (Wouldn't lie to herself, that is. She'd lied her ass off to the media.) Their kiss had been an embarrassment, a drunken mess - and an undeniable turn-on. She'd still been a virgin at the time; she knew nothing about love, knew even less about sex. She had never thought about girls that way...but hell, she'd barely even thought that way about boys.

Still, she didn't pursue it. Yuri was a friend, and that was that. So for the sake of their friendship, she'd suppressed it, just like she'd done with Kensou all these years. ...except it was a little bit harder, this time. She saw Kensou in a friendly manner every single day - and she'd never felt like that about him in the first place. (Maybe she would if they'd kissed? Who knew.)

But she did it. The two were friends again, and she hadn't wanted anything more from her in months.

Then, at the tournament, she'd dropped that bomb...and it had all come back in spades.

She wouldn't lie this time, either: she was considering it. Yuri making it a threesome actually made her feel better about it. It meant Yuri wouldn't lose Robert; it meant she could compare guys and gals at once. And it meant she wouldn't technically be a lesbian - just a little kinky.

The thing was...she was still a virgin.

Did she really want to lose it like this?

She made her decision shortly after the tournament finals. She had expected to go home without making the call - but she had not expected the destruction of Southtown, or the near-death of one of her teammates. So she'd extended her stay, giving Bao time to rest and helping the recovery efforts. Three nights before her new return date, Athena was channel-surfing in her hotel room, the Question still heavy in her heart.

She landed on a new episode of Sex and the City.

She saw Carrie, the main character, dating a bisexual. She saw Alanis Morissette - a singer, like her - guest-starring as a lesbian. She saw the three go to a party; she saw them playing Spin The Bottle.

Then she saw Carrie and Morissette's character kiss.

"...that's it," she crumbled, immediately picking up the phone.

(She turned the TV off so she could talk, conveniently missing the part where Carrie immediately ran.)

The next night, Athena traveled to a different hotel room, taking a private car to a private entrance. Not sure of how to dress - what did one wear to a threesome⁇ - she went the casual route, hoping to not draw attention. Wearing blue jeans, black flats and a dark red t-shirt, she slipped into an elevator and pressed the button for the penthouse. She waited nervously as it rose, praying no one would get in; when it arrived, she stepped outside, took a breath, and knocked on the door.

When it opened, Athena instantly felt better...and worse.

Yuri had not gone the casual route. She was wearing a long black cocktail dress, slit halfway up the thigh; she'd put her hair up in a chignon bun, a little oversized but still elegant. She'd even put on more noticeable makeup, adding blue eyeshadow and ruby lipstick to her daily routine. ...the lipstick was a nice touch, too, though the eyeshadow might've been a bit much.

Severely underdressed, Athena kind of wanted to cringe. But instead she nearly laughed, as Yuri did not fit this image. Whether the problem was her looks, her spirit, or the half-empty bottle of wine in her hand, she didn't know.

"Ashena...!" Yuri slurred, putting on a leering grin.

"Hey, Yuri," said Athena, trying not to giggle. She walked in and hugged her - she had a kind of fruity version of the usual alcohol stink - before closing the door behind her.

"It'sh great to shee you again," said Yuri, her grin gentling into a smile.

"Hehe. You too," Athena replied with a blush. She pointed at the wine and added, "I guess you're nervous too, huh?"

"What?" Yuri looked down at the bottle as if she'd never seen it before. "...oh, right, thish thing. Nah, 'sh not cush I'm nervoush. ...'sh cush Robbie hann't got here yet."

"He hasn't?"

"Nope. Got caught up in shome shutpid businessh thing," Yuri groused. "...we were gonna, uhh...'get 'n the mood' 'till you got here."

"I see," Athena murmured, her cheeks flushing further.

Her lover-to-be caught it and grinned. "Hey, don' go gettin' embarrasshed at that," she teased. "C'mon over and relaxsh! Have shome fruit or wine or shomethin'...!"

She wobbled towards a yellow sofa at the side of the room, not quite fall-down-drunk but getting there. When she got there she fell to her seat with a sigh, barely keeping the bottle of wine upright. ...then she winced and pulled up a bit, rubbing the back of her head. "Shtupid bun," she mumbled, not noticing Athena's snicker.

She did notice her not getting a wine glass before she sat down, though. "Yer not drinkin'...?" she asked.

"I don't, actually," said Athena. Not since THAT night, at least. "Maybe you should stop for now too? Quit while you're ahead?"

Yuri snorted. "I'm fiiiiiiiiine," she told her, her head swaying enough to prove she wasn't.

"You sure about that?" Athena teased right back. "Don't want you falling asleep without me."

"...without you, huh?" Yuri held up the bottle, putting on another leer. "You could catcsh up with me, y'know..."

"I just told you, I don't drink."

"Wouldn't now be a good time to shtart...?"

Athena frowned at that one, though. "Are you sure you're up for this, Yuri?" she asked, more concerned for her friend than attracted to her at this point.

Yuri's response looked more like a scowl. "Yes, I am," she snapped, sobering up a bit. "I'm the one that ashked for it, remember?"

"Well, yeah, but - "

"D'you know how much I've dreamed about that night?"

Athena blinked. "...really?"

"God yes," Yuri sighed, leaning her head back on the sofa. Then she winced as her bun smashed back into it. "...ow."

"Let me take that out," Athena offered, scooting towards her.

"'m ok," Yuri muttered, waving her away. "...I mean it though, Athena. That kissh wash...damn. I have never felt that way about Robbie."

"Y-you haven't⁇" Athena stammered, starting to sweat.

"I have not," Yuri repeated. "We've gotten drunk together, too. Really drunk. But it washn't the same." She took another swig of wine and sighed again. "...you're the only one that excitesh me anymore."

Athena said nothing, her heart pounding. She'd felt the same way about Yuri for months.

Before they could say any more, though, Yuri's cell phone rang. Her face lit up, and she went for it immediately (it was on the coffee table, thank goodness). She took a few tries to answer it, then put the phone up to her mouth. "Heeeyy, Robbie," she drawled, doing her best to sound sultry.

...it faded pretty quick, though, when Robert replied. "You're still stuck⁇" she exclaimed. "What the hell is going on down there!?" A pause. "...'emergency'? What emergency⁇ I'm your emergency, dammit‼"

(Athena had to snicker again at that one.)

"...yeah, Robbie, I know. 'Livelihood,' 'company future', toilet - blah blah blah. But Athena is here right now!" she hissed, her voice dropping to a whisper. (As if Athena couldn't hear it from six feet away.) "What are we supposed to do till you get here, huh?"

Then, after another pause, she scowled.

"You're a pig, Robert," she snapped, hanging up on him abruptly.

"What the heck was that about?" Athena asked.

"He still can't come!" Yuri answered in disbelief. "He might not get here for hours!"

"Goodness... What's he doing, anyway?"

"Ahhh, I dunno," she grumbled, crossing her arms. "Something about 'flushing the business down the toilet' or whatever."

Athena's eyebrow raised. Did Yuri even know what the "love of her life" did...?

"Oh, but that's not the best part," Yuri sneered before she could ask. "When I asked what we should do in the meantime, he told me we should 'start without him'."

Athena snorted. "...he is a pig," she let slip out (and cringed).

"Tell me about it," Yuri (luckily) agreed. She sighed once more, looking down at her pretty black dress. "...that guy. All guys. They just - dammit, dammit, dammit!"

She slammed her head back on the sofa in time with the words. Unfortunately, this also meant she slammed back her bun; the third time actually made her cry out in pain. "Aahhh! ...sonofabitch...!"

"That's enough, Yuri," said Athena, chuckling in spite of it all. "Turn around. I'm taking that thing out."

"...yeah, alright," Yuri relented. She scooted backwards down the couch as Athena scooted up towards her. They met right near the middle, stopping about a foot away from each other; then Yuri sat stone still as Athena reached into her hair.

A moment later, she frowned. This thing was really stuck in there. She couldn't decide if Yuri had done a great job or a lousy one. Clicking her tongue, Athena slowed down her fingers, trying to be delicate.

...another moment later, her fingers slowed for a different reason.

They'd been very close for a while now, she noticed. She still had that wine smell about her...but it seemed lighter now, less acrid. Yuri was starting to fidget, her bare shoulders shifting back and forth; Athena mostly ignored it, fiddling with her soft, silky hair. The more she freed, the more she remembered its beauty...and the more her fingers massaged Yuri's scalp, slowly turning her fidgets into barely-stifled moans.

Finally, Athena pulled out the last pin and let go. All at once, Yuri's hair cascaded down her back, a dark brown mane that went past the backless part of her dress. Her cheeks already bright red, Athena flushed further at the sight; she already wanted to run her fingers through it again.

Then Yuri slowly turned around, and Athena found her just as flushed.

"Uhm. ...well."

"Yeah. ...thanks."

"Sure. ...no problem."

Silence.

"...y'know...there's no reason we couldn't...start without him," Yuri breathed.

Athena didn't reply...and when Yuri's hands crawled up to her face, she didn't stop her. Gently, she pulled them together, and their eyes closed as they kissed again for the first time. Her lips were like buttered honey on Athena's own; she tasted of fruits and wine and spirit. Their mouths shifted in concert, their touches soft but firm, as a year's worth of dreams and memories danced through their heads.

Athena pulled away before she had to breathe again. Her companion opened her eyes, looking almost hurt...but she had one more question to ask.

"Yuri...what is Robert's job?"

"...I have no idea."

She snatched the wine bottle from Yuri's lap. Tilting her head back, she downed the rest in one gulp, though there was still nearly half of it left. When she finished she gasped for air, holding her throat as she caught her breath.

The instant she did, she stuck her tongue down Yuri's throat.

So I'm a lesbian, Athena decided, as they eased onto the sofa. Right now, she couldn't be happier.

Robert never made it to the hotel that night.

He finally called in the morning, with a thousand apologies.

Yuri said she didn't mind as Athena nuzzled her neck.

The next day, Athena extended her stay.

The next month, Yuri and Robert had to talk.

End Notes

...I don't even know what to say, lol. (Except maybe "Why do my stories keep getting out of hand...?")

(Oh, and "You have no idea how happy I am that episode dropped when it did. XD")

Happy Pride Month everybody :) See you next time!