Archive of Our Own

In hindsight, Rio should have known that this was a very bad idea. She comes to the realization as she sips from the champagne glass that was offered at check-in as a welcome to the resort. There had been many off-handed comments, many more serious suggestions, and then many concrete plans for the Thirties and Thriving group to take their vacation conversations out of the group chat.

So now, as she feels the sweet bubbly travel down the length of her throat, the air feels suddenly stifling. She knows it has nothing to do with the warmth of Mexico. The flutter of nervousness in her belly has everything to do with the fact that while everyone else had paired up with each other, she was stuck rooming with Agatha. 

The bane of her existence, Agatha. 

The reason for all of her reinvigorated snark, Agatha.

The “I wouldn’t touch you with a ten-foot pole, Vidal. I think you need to grow up, it’s just a bed”, Agatha.

The burning passion of hate that Agatha brings out of her is visceral. She’s rude, obnoxiously full of herself, at times can be borderline cruel, and above all - devastatingly fucking gorgeous. She’s so much of all these things that it lights a fire in Rio like no other thing or person ever has. Sometimes, she thinks Agatha loves to get her so worked up because she likes the thrill of watching her whole being crash and burn. 

They’ve been playing this game since they met through Alice and Jen just after college many years ago. Always teasingly bickering, tip-toeing the line of hatred and abhorrence, but always maintaining a respect for the sake of the balance of the friends around them. It would be a lie to say she wasn’t attracted to the push and pull they’ve always had. The heated exchanges on the one hand, but on the other, appraising glimpses she briefly catches over the table when they’re all out for drinks, the jabs about her wanting to start her day hot and sweaty at the gym, the way the space between them lessens when another disagreement arises.

It’s not often that Rio loses her cool or stews with loathing, but there’s always been something about Agatha that brings out her innermost detestable nature. 

“Alright, that’s all settled. We’re good to go, nerd”.

Rio thinks her answering eye-roll is so hard that it nearly causes her eyes to get stuck behind her eyelids.

The room is nice - large for two people, a king-sized bed with an overly large mirror on the wall beside it, a bathroom that actually allows privacy with a door, a television they won’t use that’s mounted with a stand below it for storage, a beautifully green-tiled shower not attached to a bathtub, and a walkout right to a private hot tub with a simple fence to separate them from their neighbours and the beach.

Five days and four nights - that’s how long Rio has to survive being in another country with Agatha. Five days and four nights of not having the safety of her own home to cool off at when Agatha gets under her skin. 

Five days and four nights of a shared bed. God - she doesn’t even know why she’s letting it get to her as much as it is right now. 

She never has, especially despite intimacy being suggested - vehemently - by their friends. “You guys should just fuck so you’re both not miserable around each other all the time”, “Maybe hate sex really is all that people make it out to be. You should find out”, or Rio’s personal favourite, “Hit it and then maybe hit it again…and again…and then maybe once more. She’s hot, you’re hot, we’d get it”. 

The thing is, the two of them have never once breached their unspoken boundary. Never once given in to ignore their stubbornness. Never once allowed themselves to be anything other than the friends that simply just tolerate each other. They’ve managed to dodge the pestering and the innuendos every time. It’s been so many years of pandering to disliking Agatha that even if there was room for anything else, Rio wouldn’t even know where to start. 

If that’s something she wanted.

Which it’s not.

Because they’re just barely amiable and it would upset this carefully curated spirited sport of theirs.

Obviously.

She squeezes her eyes shut and rubs her palms down her face with a heavy sigh. She’s laying starfished on their bed waiting for Agatha to finish doing her hair in the bathroom before they can head out to meet the rest of their friends at the buffet for dinner. She needs another drink - or four - to forget about this stupid headspace she unwillingly put herself in.

When Agatha finally emerges, she has to will her head not to quickly whip up from the bed like it wants to. Instead, she feigns interest in her freshly painted pale bubble bath pink nails. “You were in there for almost an hour”. 

“If I wanted to look like I just came off a three-hour flight, I would’ve just taken a quick fifteen minutes, like you”, she quips. “I’m here to eat good food, get drunk on the beach, look incredibly good, and maybe see where that takes me”. The insinuation is there. Agatha isn’t above a night spent a little too close to a stranger. 

She’s never been one to shy away from getting what she wants, definitely not embarrassed to let it be known. And she does let it be known. She can unfortunately be very, very descriptive. Unfortunately because Rio does not need to know exactly where Agatha likes to be touched, does not need to know how firm of a grip she enjoys, and definitely does not need to know what kind of things she likes whispered between breaths. 

But she does know. And unfortunately, even though she’s never going to need that knowledge and even though she’s tried plenty of times, she won’t ever forget.

At that, she raises her head. Long, brown hair is perfectly pulled back in a messy, yet somehow still neat ponytail, makeup kept light so the sweltering heat doesn’t affect it, and a forest green two piece hugs Agatha just right so that her curves are accentuated but not overly on display. The cropped tank and matching skirt part just above her belly button, showing just enough skin to be appropriate, yet enticing. It’s almost enough to make Rio’s mouth water. Her lips curl in a fake smile, almost a sneer. “I know effortless beauty doesn’t come to everyone. That’s okay, sweetheart. You take all the time you need”.

She snatches the crossbody bag laying beside her before pushing herself up from the bed and waltzing past the other woman. If Rio makes sure to give Agatha a shameless wink as she grips the door handle well, that’s her business.

Honestly, she should’ve never agreed to this trip. Maybe then she would’ve at least had a few days at home of truly knowing what peace was like.

“What the heck happened to you?” Jen asks after she places her plate onto the table and shuffles into her chair, scowl on her face. 

“Someone decided they wanted to help themself to the last carne asada taco after I was already reaching for it”, she responds, angrily slicing through her chicken.

The chair across from her screeches as it’s pulled back. She sees that the offending taco is on the plate being settled in front of her own, a teasing reminder of Agatha’s petty victory. “I am just utterly dying to try this carne asada. The lady in front of me was just absolutely raving about it”. And then she reaches for it, bringing it to her lips and taking an exaggeratingly slow, sensual bite. There’s juice that dribbles slightly from the corner of plump red lips and sue her - she’s staring, ok!

The moan that leaves Agatha’s throat is so obscene that Rio has to clench her jaw tightly shut to make sure it’s not hanging open. “I hate you”, she seethes through closed teeth instead.

Their friends are used to their squabbles, laughing at Agatha’s antics and Rio’s misfortune.

Lilia pipes up, “Oh come on Agatha, there’s other people around”. And then, after a beat, “Save it for the bedroom later”. It brings another round of loud laughter across the table.  

It’s not the reminder Rio needed to rid her of the uninvited slip in her mind but it at least is enough to cause the slight tinge of a blush to creep up from Agatha’s chest to her cheeks. 

Huh.

Rio pretends not to notice.

“I don’t know why we ever thought you two in closer quarters for days at a time in another country would be a good idea”, Wanda giggles.

When the conversation finally steers away from them, everyone settling on spending the rest of their night by the pool bar and waiting for tomorrow to hit the beach, Rio breathes a quiet sigh of relief. That first sip of her ice cold Corona sunrise from her left hand, then the sip from her ice cold Corona sunrise from her right hand is going to cure every single little worry nagging at the back of her head.

As it turns out, two rounds of double-fisting her drinks and two questionably unknown shots later does actually ease the tension she created in her own head. Instead of her brain being filled with fuzzy thoughts about a certain sarcastic, mean woman, it’s filled with disdain and admittedly uncalled-for hatred for another. 

Disdain and uncalled-for hatred for some random blonde bimbo. 

Okay, that’s rude Rio - we don’t call women bimbos. 

She’s actually very pretty. Her hair is long and wavy with a slight curl at the tips. She has so many freckles spattered across her nose and cheeks that it can be seen from a distance. Legs for days are on display, peeking out of a hot pink, short skirt that doesn’t leave much to the imagination. When she throws her head back in a laugh Rio can see even more prominently the near-perfect sculpt of her jawline. It’s quite offensive, really.

“Why don’t we loosen that grip there, pal”. Alice’s hand lightly touches her own, shaking her out of her gaze and averting her eyes from the sight at the bar.

She places her cup carefully back onto the table beside them. She hadn’t even realized the white-knuckled grip she had on it. “Shit, yeah I’m drunk”, she laughs.

Simmering hate aside, she is genuinely having a good time. There’s a resort party happening around them. A DJ is blaring some popular reggaeton songs, Wanda and Jen took off to dance somewhere in the crowd that had formed in front of the booth, harmless drunk idiots a couple tables over are loudly playing some card game that they somehow roped Lilia into. 

She’d been shooting the shit with Alice, talking about some excursion with cenotes and an ancient city they’d like to do and downing their drinks at record speed when she’d noticed Agatha sidling up to the blonde at the bar while waiting for her next round.

She tries to get her boggled brain to school her expression, attempting instead to focus on Alice’s face again only to notice the other woman’s attention has turned to where Rio was just focused. This time, Rio does look away quickly, eyes suddenly very interested in the pool where the water is definitely deep enough to hopefully drown herself in to stop this conversation from starting.

“You know what the first thought I had was when Jen introduced me to Agatha? I thought, this woman is such a cutthroat bitch. I can’t wait for Rio to meet her. Whenever I think you guys are done, you just find something else to be worked up over”. 

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

“I knew you’d challenge each other. It’s irritating and sometimes unbearable but I don’t think I expected to ever see you both so alive when it happens”. 

A response doesn’t form quickly enough and soon, Alice is turning to walk away. “I’m gonna go find my wife!”, she shouts over the music, thumb pointed into the crowd. 

She chances one more look towards the bar after that but Agatha and the stranger are nowhere to be seen. Suddenly, the warmth of the alcohol becomes uncomfortable and that feeling in the pit of her stomach is back. The depth of the pool is very inviting. 

Maybe heading over to her room and calling it a night is what she needs.

When she makes it there, she showers and goes through the motions of getting ready to sleep. She slips on her shorts and her faded Sam Roberts Band shirt before crawling under the covers. She feels refreshed - slightly calmer and less tipsy; her mind is definitely clearer. 

No blonde stranger, no cryptic words from her best friend, no Agatha. Sleep claims her easier than she thought it would.

Rio startles awake in the middle of the night, lightly jostling herself but noticing she’s restrained from too much movement. It takes her a moment to catch her bearings. 

She’s laying on her left side facing the sliding door of the walkout where she can see the moonlight seeping through the cheap curtains. There’s heat that she can feel from a body pressed up against her own, from an arm that’s lightly draped across her midsection. Her heart rate picks up slowly. There’s someone quietly breathing next to her ear, head pressed close. She looks down at the fingers splayed gently on her exposed skin - the unmistakable glint of the family heirloom ring that Agatha wears on her right hand. 

It feels nice. More than nice even. For the briefest moment, she entertains how it would feel to be tangled with her every morning.

It feels right, like they fit so effortlessly. It’s that thought that makes Rio’s mind instantly kick into gear. 

This isn’t how they’re supposed to be.

Rio slowly peels herself away, careful not to wake the other woman, and shuffles out of the bed. The light sweater she has hanging over her luggage snatched quickly, arms fitting through the sleeves. She searches for the keycard that she remembers tossing somewhere on the television stand before quietly making her way out of the room. 

The crash of the waves on the shore are almost loud enough to distract her but the overwhelming sense of her mind running a mile a minute doesn’t give her any rest. It’s the first night of their vacation and she’s already given herself more to think about than what she’d like.

She doesn’t know what brought all of this on. Through the years she’s been bothered by friends, has seen Agatha with other women, has butted heads with her more than she can count. Maybe there is something in the air here.

There’s always been a physical attractiveness to Agatha, that much she’s sure of. The way her hair naturally falls in the most beautiful waves. Her inherent smirk that she wears more often than necessary, drawing her sharp cheekbones upwards. Her fingers - long and slightly slender - always drawing eyes with their constant movement. 

Rio thinks that anyone who doesn’t see Agatha as attractive certainly is out of their mind. Whether they like her as a person or not, Agatha Harkness is not unattractive. She refuses to think about the rest of her appearance - that might just make her heartbeat quicken again.

She shuffles on the lounge chair, letting her back rest peacefully and her eyes close as she uncrosses and stretches out her legs. 

Does she enjoy her company? Want her attention? 

Admittedly, she definitely finds herself drawn to her. The game they had started when they met only bringing the two closer and closer more often than not. She’s incredibly intelligent, determined, would commit the most foul murder for anyone she cares about. 

Does she have feelings that are buried away so deep in the recess of her mind that she’s always refused to acknowledge?

She stops herself there otherwise she might just spiral. 

These next couple of days are supposed to be a way to relax and decompress, and you know what? Who says she can’t also have fun? Alice has Jen, Lilia and Wanda both have families back home,  Agatha is clearly open to quite a lot.

She’s 32 and unmarried, her only responsibilities - work and her various beloved plants currently being tended to by her neighbour, Sharon - are behind her and out of her mind. Slowly, she takes a deep breath, holds it for three seconds, then breathes out. She makes her way back to the room feeling much better than she had all day.

There’s light shining through the thin curtains. The heat of it across her face is the first thing she registers as she slowly wakes. The sheets feel much cooler than they did last night. Even with her eyes still closed she can tell it’s only her still laying in bed. She reaches out regardless, extending her arm and brushing where the other woman had been, eyes opening and confirming her suspicion that Agatha is gone. 

She takes a moment to fully wake, rubbing her eyes and stretching away the stiffness in her muscles. It must still be early - the sun out but not fully burning. The alarm, she notices, reads 08:33 A.M., which means everyone has most likely already started to gather for breakfast. She lifts the covers and swings her legs to the side of the bed, preparing to get ready for the day.

As she walks in, she notices that the only seat available at the table with her friends is conveniently across from Agatha again. 

“Well, well, well. Hello there, sleepyhead. I was just saying to Agatha that I’m surprised she didn’t take the opportunity to wake you by shoving you off the bed”, says Wanda, smiling.

Jen pipes up quickly, “I’m honestly surprised she didn’t stick a pillow over your head when you were sleeping”.

Suspiciously, Agatha is quite reserved for the majority of their breakfast. She passes up on the obvious chances to poke at Rio and speaks in short replies as if she has something that’s distracting her. 

When Rio notices her walking over to the service counter to refill her coffee mug, she asks “Alright, who is that and what did they do with the resident witch?”

“No idea. She left Blonde Barbie by the pool last night. No kiss, no hug, no wave goodbye, nothing, it was weird”. Wanda looks at her, a smirk forming on her face, “Are you worried about her?”

That’s…odd. 

When Rio had seen the pair they looked convincingly into each other. Their conversation - whatever it was about - seemed to flow enough for them to stare into each other’s eyes almost mesmerizingly, Agatha had a strand of blonde hair twirling around her fingers, the stranger’s hand rubbed Agatha’s arm very teasingly.

Alice gives her a look, like she wants to say something but stops herself, thinking better of it. 

Her mouth opens but Lilia doesn’t give her the chance to respond. “Rio hunny, you may have some sort of detachment issue. Don’t worry, she’ll be back really soon. I’m sure you’ll go back to your foreplay in no time”. 

“Okay, okay, laugh it up. I was just wondering why she was so quiet as opposed to constantly jabbering our ears off”. That’s what she’s sticking with. Agatha is normally so engrossed in whatever the hell is going on in her own life that she never shuts up. 

That’s all it is.

With the acceptance that she’s found ease regarding her newly settled predicament, Rio can admit freely - and with zero relation to said predicament - that she is no better than any man. 

Wanda, Rio, and Alice have opted for lounging on the beach chairs, basking in the sun and graciously taking every single bit of heat it gives while Lilia, Jen, and Agatha laugh and talk in the crystal blue water, letting the waves crash over their thighs. 

It’s a feat not to stare.

She doesn’t know how in all the years of knowing each other they haven’t been to the beach together before. Surely, if they had, Rio wouldn’t currently be gulping down her beer like it’s a lifeline. It’s unfair really, for someone to have a face like Agatha’s and a body like that too. The wind blowing across her forehead is doing absolutely nothing to cool her down. 

Jesus. She needs to relax. 

Or get laid. That would certainly-

Alice bumps her shoulder, “You know, the harder you stare, the more I think you have some sort of degradation thing going on”.

She nearly spits out her beer, sputtering through a cough while Wanda barks out a loud laugh. “Oh my god! I wasn’t staring, I thought I saw a fin!” Her cheeks feel like they’re becoming even warmer and she knows it’s not from the sun.

“Babe, you’ve been ogling since she pulled that cover string loose”.

Rio might actually commit murder on this trip. Wanda being first to go, she’s decided.

“You like it when she’s mean to you, don’t you?”

On second thought, it’s Alice’s grave that’ll be dug first.

“Remember, she’s hot, you’re hot. Just get it over with”. They're both shamelessly digging at her.

She can see the trio beginning to make their way out of the water and towards their chairs. 

“Shut up before someone else hears you being inappropriate. This is a family friendly resort”. She’s grasping at straws and she knows it.

The smirk reappears on Alice’s face, “This is an adults only resort, and you didn’t deny it”.

“Didn’t deny what?” Agatha rudely snatches the towel resting behind her head instead of the one she left neatly folded on the vacant chair. It takes every bit of refrain in Rio’s brain not to watch as Agatha wipes up every single drop of water beating down her legs.

“Oh, you know, Rio is just being her overly respectful self instead of admitting there are a lot of attractive women on the beach right now that she’d potentially like to sleep with”. 

She widens her eyes in warning at Alice. 

Agatha hums, “I don’t even think Rio would know what to do with any attractive woman”. 

Welp, there’s the Agatha she knows and hates so well. Her refrain from earlier is clearly gone. “Excuse you, not that my sex life is anyone’s business but I do more than fine in that department”.

“Oh please, how long has it been? Did they hold your hand the whole time?”

“Fuck you, Agatha”.

“You wish, Vidal. You couldn’t handle me”.

Instead of giving her the satisfaction of seeing her heated, Rio abruptly stands and heads for the water. She makes sure to raise her middle finger without looking back at the other woman but she can hear the resounding laughter behind her as she stomps away, admittedly childishly.

The thing is, she does do fine with women. Knows how to drop her voice just enough to get them to leave the bar with her, knows how much to tease and push before finally giving them the satisfaction they’re looking for, knows that memorizing what makes them gasp can take them well into the early hours of a new day. 

Rio will not give Agatha any inkling of what she’s like between closed doors. It’s none of her damn business anyway. 

Thankfully, for her own sanity, the rest of the day goes on quite uneventfully. 

Later, over dinner when Agatha gets asked about Blonde Bimbo, Blonde Barbie, the blonde stranger from the night before, she notes the slight hesitancy in Agatha’s tone and carefully chosen words when she tells Jen that she really wasn’t that interesting after all.

It’s arguably one of the best sleeps she’s had in a very long time. Rio’s halfway to being awake, still drifting in and out of consciousness but she’s just so content that she wills her mind to rest some more. She adjusts her head, trying to burrow further in the comfort of her pillow when it happens. 

A hitch of breath from above her that her sleepy mind barely catches. It’s like cold water being poured over her. 

Brown eyes blink open quickly, taking in her surroundings. Her pillow is in fact not her pillow. No, her pillow is Agatha’s rapidly rising and falling chest. Her hand, all the way across the warmth of the other body, lightly grips the edge of Agatha’s baby blue tank top. Her tanned, right leg is dangerously tangled between Agatha’s pale thighs. Their bodies are so close that Agatha has definitely felt nearly every curve of Rio’s body pressed against her.

The quickening anxiety makes Rio want to vomit. 

“Oh good, you’re awake. Please get off me”.

“Fuck”. She scrambles to extract herself, trying her hardest not to touch Agatha any more in the process. “I’m so sorry, I had no idea”. 

Great. Another thing for the brunette to hang over her head. 

She makes her way to her luggage, grabbing at some clothes and trying to avoid what surely is the most smug, entertained expression on Agatha’s face. When she gets in the bathroom, she closes the door and rests her hands on the cool countertop beside the sink. Her eyes close and she drops her head, letting it hang. She’s mortified.

She turns the tap on, making sure the water she splashes on her face is cold enough to shock herself into thinking about the unbearable temperature instead. After changing and brushing her teeth she takes a deep breath before walking back out. 

“I’m going to meet up with Alice. We have that excursion we booked”.

The city they see is incredible. She loves anything having to do with ancient history. Loves that sometime so long ago there were people in the exact spot she currently stands who had so many different customs and traditions. Loves that she can see the mark they’ve left on the culture of the people that have come after them. 

It’s silly, but it’s partly why she’s a botanist. She sees all this greenery thriving and thinks back to her texts - knowing they’ve been here just as long as those people have. 

It makes her wonder where she'll be in the future. Will she still be doing research work for the university she once was a student at? Is there someone she’ll go home to at the end of her exhausting days? Will little feet patter down the hallway and grabby little hands stretch out towards her?

She looks down at her running shoes - scuffed and slightly now brown from the dust and pebbles they’ve been walking on.

“Do you think I’m too safe?” She doesn’t know why she blurts it out.

Alice’s eyebrows furrow before answering. “Safe?”

“Like, do I miss out on things?”

“Are you- Is this a crisis? Catch me up”.

They stop walking, Rio bracing her hands on the wooden rail that looks over the cliff and down to the restless ocean below. “I’m 32 and the rest of my life is just a wide open blank book. You and Jen are about to start your first IVF round, Wanda and Vis have their boys and live in a fucking cul-de-sac, Lilia’s been with her husband practically since the beginning of time. What do I have? Anyone I take home I’m not interested enough in, I drown myself in work, this trip is probably the most spontaneous thing I’ve done my whole life”.

“Okay, I think I’m following. Listen, the house and the kids aren’t a be-all, end-all dream and it especially isn’t what everyone needs to strive for. It’s not for everyone, but if you do want it then you don’t need to stress yourself over any time lost. You’re young, Rio. You’ve established your name at work; you’ve gotten your name on so many published research papers. You’re an amazing aunt to those two boys. You even volunteer at the fucking old folks home just because it makes you happy”.

A gentle hand moves her chin up. “Hey, look at me”. The sincerity in Alice’s face calms her and she has to bite her lip to keep her emotions from spilling over; she can feel the pinpricks of the tears she refuses to let fall.

“I think you’re calculated and you prefer to think things through before you commit to anything. Who cares how long it takes to get what you want? Life isn’t a race and it sure as hell isn’t a competition. I don’t think you’re safe, I think you’re smart…but I also think it wouldn’t hurt to maybe be a little more stupid once in a while”. 

It makes Rio let out a laugh. Alice is right - she knows that sometimes she should just let things be instead of getting in her head about them. She has momentary slips sometimes - not feeling like her life has been sufficient enough. Being unsure about her successes. But her friends are always there to reassure her.  “Thank you. I think sometimes it’s just…lonely not being at the same stage of life as everyone else. Having fun isn’t always my first thought”.

Hands grip her shoulders and shake them slightly. “Rio, I’m telling you this because I love you. You need to get over whatever reservations you have and for the love of God, please just put us all out of our misery and at least just sleep with her so you both let us all live in peace. I can’t listen to her talk about you anymore”.

“I’m strong enough to toss you over the edge, you know”, she manages to say with a straight face. “What if it goes terribly wrong and ruins everyone’s friendship?”

“It would make us all very, very happy and I’m pretty sure you wouldn’t have much of a hard time with the convincing but if you think it’s not for you then you’ll never hear me pester you ever again”.

“This isn’t me agreeing, and it’s not me having feelings”, she scoffs.

“You’ve done this plenty of times. Just let loose, have some fun. Whatever you’re comfortable with”.

She chooses not to question what Alice meant about listening to Agatha talk about her.

Rio is far from being a prude. When she does give in to the excitement of a good night, she can enjoy the casualness of a stranger’s touch and not expect anything more. If the opportunity presents itself, she wouldn’t be hesitant to act on her impulses. Alice’s suggestion however, is certifiably stupid and as much as she doesn’t want to admit it, Rio spends the whole bus ride back to the resort talking herself into considering being stupid. 

Specifically, being stupid on this vacation with Agatha.

It doesn’t take much convincing, although she’ll argue with anyone that may ask that it does. She runs through a quick list of her non -romantic feelings and experiences with the brunette. Attraction: alright, that’s a silly one to grade. Flirtation: a strong 80% of their interactions. Mental gravitation: she’s clever, always quick. As Alice would say, they challenge each other. 

She decides she’ll feel it out. Make sure they’re on the same page before jumping into it. Make sure to emphasize that it’s the perfect opportunity to do this stupid thing and then they’re more than okay to forget about it when they get back home. She can still be smart and have a good time.

She hears the music blaring before she even walks up to the door of their room. Some god awful EDM remix of a Pitbull song is playing from somewhere past their door. When she enters the room she can see from the entryway that the sliding door on the other side of the room is open, the music coming from the portable speaker beside the hot tub that Agatha must’ve brought with her. The brunette has her back towards Rio, the music likely preventing her from hearing her arrival. 

Rio kicks her shoes to the side and drops her bag, slipping into the bathroom. The swim at the cenote was refreshing for the hot and humid weather but she feels like she needs to have a proper shower to rinse off the long day. 

She doesn’t bother with closing the door - she’s pretty certain Agatha had actually fallen asleep in the tub and she can quickly undress before stepping behind the privacy of the tall shower wall anyway. She removes her clothes slowly, there’s still quite a bit of time before their dinner plans at the booked restaurant, so she decides she can take her time, maybe she’ll do some reading on the beach before they leave. Just before she steps into the shower, she realizes that her body scrub is still in her luggage by their bed, so she pulls a towel from the rack and wraps it around herself before turning back out of the bathroom. 

Again, in hindsight, Rio should have known that rooming with Agatha was a very bad idea. 

It’s a very bad idea because the other woman is now standing in front of her already halfway into the room and very, very naked. Her eyes go wide in shock, matching the look of surprise on Agatha’s face. She watches in slow motion how the woman’s blue eyes change from distress to anger. 

“Rio, what the fuck!” She looks around for something to cover herself with but there isn’t a towel in reach.

Thankfully, Rio has the common sense to shut her eyes, throwing her hands over them for extra measure, but it’s already too late. “Jesus Christ! Why were you in there naked!?” 

She’s already seen it all. Seen the way Agatha’s skin had pebbled from the temperature change of hot to cold, her nipples nearly perfectly rounded and protruded - practically calling out to her. Fuck, get a grip, Rio. She saw the brown between her legs that was hidden by her bikini the day before, neatly trimmed and-

“I thought I was alone! You can open your fucking eyes, I have the duvet. Not like you didn’t already see it all anyway”, she scoffs. 

Her arms lower and she peels her eyes open slowly, almost untrusting. “I just came out to-”

“I don’t give a fuck what you were doing. You should’ve told me you were back”. The brunette is stepping closer, clearly not going to let Rio go so quickly. Agatha has always preferred watching others squirm. 

She laughs sarcastically at that. If Agatha thinks she’s going to cower, she’s dead wrong. “Oh yeah, let me just yell over the fucking nails on a chalkboard you have blasting out of that speaker. That would’ve gone a long way”.

They’re practically in each other’s faces. Agatha is so close that Rio can feel the wisp of breath from her. “If you want to be a mopey, broody buzzkill then go do it somewhere else. You shouldn’t have even come if you were just going to be so insufferable the whole time”. The callous, cold dagger is enough to shame Rio into silence.

Needless to say, dinner that night is awkward. Agatha angrily stabs at her food - probably wishing it was Rio - and Rio gets stuck in her head again, spacing out more often than actually contributing to any real conversation. 

Has she been a buzzkill? Do the others think she’s ruining their trip? Agatha definitely does. If that comment was any indication of her true feelings then maybe Rio needs to rethink the whole sleeping with her thing. No matter what, she refuses to stoop so low as to not even have some semblance of self-respect.

Absurdly, she thinks back to Alice’s comment on the beach. Agatha’s distaste can be appealing because there’s always an underlying tease but her viciousness certainly doesn’t turn her on. She finds herself surprisingly hurt by their interaction.

She excuses herself to the washroom just to have a quick moment alone to go run her hands under the tap and breathe. The eyes that stare back at her in the mirror look distant, not really finding herself present. She doesn’t know why she’s letting the comment get to her so much. Rio is so used to Agatha just saying things for the sake of getting under her skin.

Just as she thinks she’s been away for too long, Agatha strolls in, leaning on the door after pushing it closed. Rio tries not to pay her any mind, soaping up her hands just to give herself something to do since her exit is blocked.

“They want to go to a club tonight, I think. Somewhere with a dog named Bongo or something, I don’t know”. She says it so tentatively that it makes Rio’s eyes raise to meet hers. They narrow slightly, unsure of where the other woman is going with this. “I uh, wanted to apologize for earlier”. Agatha’s eyes are on anything but her, bouncing from the floor, to a stall, to the running tap.

“I don’t hear an apology”. She can’t help herself, it’s what would be a normal retort between the two. Something is different though, she looks almost like she does have some remorse. Agatha never apologizes and Rio knows that. Knows that she’ll have to tread lightly to not have the other woman bottle herself up before walking out the door. 

Blue eyes roll dramatically before she pushes herself from the door and takes a step forward towards where Rio stands at the counter, finally looking at her. “I’m sorry. About what I said to you. I can admit when I’ve crossed a line, I’m not that much of a bitch”.

“Could’ve fooled me”.

“Okay you know what-” she makes for the door again and Rio knows she’s messed up. Her hand reaches out, fingers quickly wrapping around Agatha’s wrist to stop her.

“Wait, wait, wait. I’m sorry. Please, wait”. Blue eyes look down when Rio gives her a slight squeeze. The answering huff the other woman gives is enough of a tell that she’s going to stay put. “Thank you for apologizing. I don’t-” she shakes her head, willing her brain to push out the words she wants to say. “Can we just pretend this afternoon didn’t happen? And this morning too, while we’re at it?”

Agatha gently pulls her wrist free and crosses her arms, looking at Rio like she’s sizing her up, taking so long to respond that Rio feels like she’s screwed this all up. “Fine, but you’re buying all of my drinks at the club later”. 

“You’re gonna drink the bar clean, Agatha. That’s not even fair”, it comes out close to sounding like a petulant whine. 

The look on the other woman’s face darkens and Rio knows to brace herself for the teasing. “Drinks, Vidal. Unless you want me to tell everyone that this morning you were grinding on me like your own personal body pillow”, she smiles smugly.

“There was no grinding, that’s such a lie! Besides, you’re the one that was so close that you were practically holding me hostage the night before”. The moment she says it, she feels her stomach sink. She hadn’t meant to let Agatha know of that night mostly just for the sake of her own peace of mind. 

Embarrassment. That’s what Rio sees cross Agatha’s face before it’s expertly schooled into dismissiveness. “Okay, now you’re just projecting”. 

Agatha knows what she did that night. “Oh my - you were awake!”. She can feel the full-blown smirk that’s on her face, energized from the realization. Was she stuck with her arm under Rio’s head, relieved when she had by some miracle woken up? Did self-consciousness cause her to mull over the moment in her brain just like Rio had? 

“I don’t know what you’re talking about”. 

Oh, this is just rich. 

She’s out of the washroom before giving Rio the satisfaction of more teasing.

True to her word, Rio thinks she supplies Agatha with enough alcohol to probably down a full-sized elephant. She doesn’t know how the woman is still coherent and standing, but she’s always held her alcohol surprisingly well. 

Rio on the other hand currently holds her third and knows she’ll probably cut herself off after it’s done. The tingling thrum vibrating through her body makes her warm. She’s comfortable, the drinks making her feel light and giggly. 

The club is packed. There’s barely any room for them to make their way to the dance floor, and the heat of the bodies around them should make her feel suffocated but instead she feels exhilarated.

There are a couple women she’s made eye contact with. Long enough for it to be an invitation for conversation, but she weighs her options. 

The black-haired woman with the thick eyeliner is hot. She has a dangerous look to her that’s incredibly attractive, but Rio‘s noticed her also making eyes with a man across the bar. They seem too familiar with one another and she’s not looking to be a third.

There was another woman sitting at a booth that had her attention. The deep neckline of her dark blue top generously had given Rio the right amount of enticement, but when she turns back to look at her again she sees someone’s already stolen her attention away. 

“Hey there”. Hazel eyes with flecks of green so bright that she can actually see them clearly even despite the darkness of the club. She invades Rio’s space confidently, leaning in close beside her at the bar. 

Well then.

“Wanna buy me a drink?”, she asks sweetly.

If things keep going this smoothly, it might just be the easiest time Rio’s ever gotten a woman into her bed. Shit. She makes the mental note that she’ll have to follow the other woman back to her own room instead, wherever that may be. There’s not a chance in hell she’d give Agatha the opportunity to walk in on them. She takes a second to fully look at the woman. 

Her black fuck-me heels are a bit out of place for the club they’re in but it does wonders for her calves. She trails her eyes up - black skirt so short that it just reaches past the curve of her ass, what must be a burgundy bodysuit tucked underneath showing lots of lace and giving a lift to her chest. It makes Rio’s skin itch.

She plasters on her most smug smirk and places her right hand gently on the woman’s hip, just low enough for her intention to be clear but still respectful enough. “I’m Rio. Who do I have the pleasure of buying a drink for?” She signals the bartender over to take their order. 

“My name‘s Riley,” she reaches out to tease a finger across the arm that Rio has resting on the bar, “but anything you wanna call me later tonight would be fine”. If that isn’t enough of an invitation she doesn’t know what is. Riley orders her drink and they make small talk, flirting back and forth just to keep killing time before the inevitable happens and they both decide it’s time to call a cab. 

Rio knows this isn’t going anywhere beyond the bedroom, but it’s a welcome distraction from the entirety of the trip so far. 

The whole time they’ve been by the bar she’s felt eyes on her - she’s ignored it out of respect for their conversation and respect for Rio’s own libido. Riley is gorgeous and she’ll be damned if she lets anything ruin her fun tonight. It’s when the woman excuses herself quickly to use the restroom that she confirms her suspicion. She takes a quick scan of what she can make out in the room. Faces upon faces, upon faces all gathered tightly around each other but sure enough she’s caught in a stare with Agatha in the midst of them who not so innocently has another woman pressed against her front while they dance. 

It’s confusing. It’s alluring. She doesn’t know why she can’t look away but she also doesn’t feel any shame in staring. She downs the rest of her drink then, suddenly feeling parched and incredibly warm. Agatha turns her head slightly to whisper something against the other woman’s ear and Rio can visibly see the gasp it makes her take, can imagine the bolt it brought throughout her body. 

Before she knows it, what’s left of the ice in her glass clinks as she places it on the bar a bit more aggressively than intended. 

She’s moving then. Her feet are carrying her across the room and through the shifting bodies. The whole way over to Agatha is a blur - an outer body feeling is happening and she’s not even sure why. Maybe she’s more intoxicated than she thought. Maybe she’s just so worked up from her conversation with Riley. Maybe she wants to give Agatha a piece of her mind because why the hell was she even staring for? Maybe she’s just so sick of thinking. 

Rio’s going to cave. 

She’s going to do something stupid.

She’s going to do something so stupid like grab Agatha’s face and-

Lilia is in front of her and it’s enough to snap her attention back. “Hey, we’re gonna head back. Are you ready to go?”

Fuck.

It’s a saving grace that Wanda is in the cab with them. Rio doesn’t trust that she wouldn’t be climbing over the center console to the back to shove her tongue down Agatha’s throat otherwise. 

“I miss Vis. When I get home, I’m gonna grab him and-”

“Okaaaaay,” Agatha has the decency to smother the next few words with her hand “that’s enough from you, let’s get you back to your room”.

Her leg bounces and she’s busy thrumming her fingers against her knee. She’s not even full of anxiety, it feels more like a nervous excitement. Something happened at the club, something they’ve both never given way to. The cup finally spilled over and she was going to do something about it.

They safely get Wanda to her room and head to their own, Agatha leading the way.

They don’t speak. They haven’t said a word to each other all night. Rio doesn’t dare break that silence now. Not when she’s too busy watching the way Agatha’s hips sway in her red dress with every step she takes. It’s not even meant to be teasing, it’s simply just one of the many seductive things she naturally does. She opens the door and walks in, leaving space for Rio to enter.

She barely has time to drop her bag before warm hands are on her, pushing her against the door. For a moment, Rio’s caught off guard by the quick shift. Agatha looks at her - gaze moving from her eyes to lips and back again. 

Before either of them can overthink it, she reaches a hand to the back of Agatha’s head, pulling her in and making the choice for her, their mouths colliding. That first touch is all Rio needs for her whole body to feel like it’s been doused in flames. It doesn’t even start tentatively, Agatha kisses her like she’s starved and Rio has to use what’s left of her conscious thoughts to make sure her knees don’t immediately buckle.

“This doesn’t mean anything” Agatha pants, before she’s diving back in. Good - they’re on the same page. 

Their lips move against each other rapidly, neither wanting to give up control. It’s a dizzying thought, to let Agatha consume her - let her take what she wants.

But doesn’t Agatha always get what she wants?

Agatha seduced her into leaving Riley, didn’t she?

Everything is always just Agatha, Agatha, Agatha - it makes her head spin.

She decides she’s not going to let Agatha have this.

Her hands travel from her jaw and soft hair, down the side of full breasts and stop to grip Agatha’s hips - firm and sure - just how she knows she likes it. She pulls her body into her own, bringing their fronts together and at the gasp Agatha lets out into her mouth she takes the opportunity to change their positions, pinning the other woman roughly against the door. Rio slips her tongue teasingly across Agatha’s lip and it’s welcomed eagerly with a groan, fingers tightening in her shirt. She uses her foot to gently nudge her legs apart and slots her thigh between them, encouraging the other woman to work herself against it roughly. 

Agatha whimpers at the contact, already soaked. Rio is more than sure of that, given the pool of wetness that she instantly feels on her leg through her chinos. She doesn’t waste any time after that, dropping to her knees and hiking up Agatha’s dress so it gathers around her waist. The purple thong underneath is such a sorry excuse for any sort of covering that Rio takes it between her hands and pulls until she feels the fabric give, angry that it’s just in the way. 

She licks up the inside of her thigh, leaving a nip close to where Agatha wants her, making her writhe slightly. She’s almost sure it’ll leave a slight bruise and the thought of Agatha parading around in her bikini with the remnants of her teeth is enough to drive her wild.

Rio eyes her hungrily. Her cunt is nearly dripping with how wet she is for her. She flattens her tongue and reaches out then, gathering her slick from where it’s pooling and dragging slowly up, stopping to swirl at the bundle of nerves. Rio learns quickly that Agatha is loud - breath catching in the most intoxicating moan that she’s ever had the pleasure of hearing. She closes her eyes and loses herself in trying to push the other woman over the edge. From there it doesn’t stop. Every time Rio’s tongue passes over in a new motion, Agatha is whining like she’s never been touched before. 

It spurs her on, lashing her tongue over her clit roughly before taking it between her lips and sucking. Agatha keens at that and Rio opens her eyes to look up at her. Her hands are trying to find purchase on anything solid to keep her upright - one landing to grip the door handle and the other darting into Rio’s hair. Her fingers grip between strands, holding her in place and Rio can tell she’s close. Her eyebrows are knitted together and her eyes tightly shut. There’s a pretty blush across her cheeks and her chest heaves like she can’t breathe in enough air. 

“Fuck! Don’t stop, don’t stop, don’t st-” Rio doubles her effort then, lapping her tongue quickly across her clit, still trapped between her lips and Agatha is gone. “Ah!”  

Her hips shake violently and Rio lets up only for a moment to keep her mouth open, her tongue out so she can ride out her orgasm against it, Agatha’s slick coating every inch of her chin.

She doesn’t give the other woman time to recover, rising back up and spinning her around, pressing her chest to the door and unzipping Agatha’s dress, letting it fall to the floor. Hands travel from hips, over her stomach and up to cup the swell of her breasts. She palms them and kneads roughly, earning another moan. 

If Rio’s going to do this then she’s going to make sure she doesn’t let Agatha rest. Her lips move to the shell of Agatha’s ear and she times the pinch of her nipples to the same moment she asks, “You were just trying to make me jealous at the club, weren’t you?”

“Yes, fuck”, Agatha whines. The admission sends a spark throughout her body. She knows how Agatha likes to fuck and she’s going to use every bit of that against her. Her left hand continues teasing at her nipple, rolling it between her fingertips while her right hand travels over the curve of her ass and down to cup her cunt.

“Here’s how tonight's gonna go, sweetheart. I’m gonna keep touching you - over, and over, and over again. You’re gonna cum as many times as I want you to, and then when you think you can’t cum anymore, you’re gonna give me one more just because I know you can”.

“Rio-” 

She runs her fingers through the wetness, coating them before teasing at Agatha’s entrance. She pushes through with her pointer and middle finger, burying them to the hilt and stilling, immediately feeling the ripple of pleasure around them. Agatha gasps loudly at the intrusion, panting against the door, her eyes press closed once again.

Rio moves then, pulling her fingers nearly all the way out before driving back in hard and for a moment she has the fleeting thought that if anyone were in the hall they’d definitely be hearing everything that passes Agatha’s lips; it excites her.

She pistons her fingers and roughly positions the tips against the spot inside that makes the other woman clench each time. “You’re almost there already, I can feel it”.

It only takes a handful of strokes and a well-placed nip at the crook of Agatha’s neck and shoulder to see her speed to the end. “Oh my god!”, she gasps for breath, a hand slapping against the door to keep her grounded.

Rio eases herself out gently then spins Agatha so they’re face to face again and she sags slightly against the door. She looks sated, her eyes hooded yet there’s still a ravenous look to them. She makes sure to hold her gaze as she brings her fingers to Agatha’s lips.

“Suck”.

She makes a show of it, licking up the soaked length of them enticingly before eagerly taking them between her lips and tasting herself and Rio nearly gets lost in watching the way her tongue moves to clean them. Nearly - she won’t give Agatha the satisfaction. 

Rio pulls her fingers free and lowers herself slightly so that she can snake her arms under Agatha’s thighs, lifting her from the ground. Her chin is still messy from her cum and the other woman takes the opportunity to lick at it dirtily before catching her lips again. It’s messy and filthy, and Rio loves it. 

She moves across the room and lays Agatha onto the bed. When she breaks their kiss to move away, the other woman raises onto her arms disappointedly until she sees Rio pulling her shirt from her pants, watching intently as she unbuttons it and tosses it away carelessly. She reaches back for her bra then, unhooking it and letting it slide down her arms and down to the floor. She eyes Agatha - sees her take in every single inch of her and then when she’s sure the other woman is desperate enough, she slides her fingers under the waistband of both her pants and her boxers and slips them down her legs.

“Stop teasing”. It comes out like a breathless plea and Rio can just tell how much this is getting to her - she revels in it. 

She eases herself slowly to lay on top of Agatha, legs slotting together. The warmth of skin on skin is enough to create a small fissure in Rio’s carefully thought out plan; she’s just as worked up but she doesn’t want the other woman to know that quite yet.

She leans forward to leave small bites down the side of her neck and across her chest that have Agatha groaning. Finally, she flicks her tongue across Agatha’s straining nipple, a hand coming up to play with the other, the buds tense and just as inviting as they had been the other day when Rio saw them. “Did you think about this after I walked in on you?” 

Agatha’s moan is her only response and she tangles a hand in Rio’s hair, short nails slightly pressing to her scalp. She takes it as a yes. When Rio’s sure she’s given it enough attention, she switches, lapping at the other and pinching at her left. 

Soon enough, Agatha gets impatient. Rio can feel the slight nudge of the hand in her hair trying to shift her down to where she needs her and Rio can only comply - eager to taste her again. She places open-mouthed kisses down her stomach and situates her knees onto the floor, pulling Agatha by the waist so her hips are at the edge of the bed. Rio nips at her thighs, hoping to match the other already blooming bruise, as she places her legs over her shoulders and then dives in again. 

She’s heady, a tang from something that is purely Agatha with the slightest bit of a sweetness that’s so addictive and for a moment Rio wonders if she’ll be chasing this every time she pleases another woman. The thought that no one else would compare is a dangerous one.

Her tongue finds Agatha’s clit, so swollen and in need of touch that Rio’s sure she can feel it pulsing. She wets her fingers again and doesn’t hesitate to push the same two back into her. There’s a wail above her urging her to continue, but Rio doesn’t want to just make Agatha cum. 

She wants to ruin her. Wants to take every single bit of her apart until she’s found absolutely everything that drives her mad. 

A third finger eases into her and Agatha’s hips jerk so much at the added stretch that Rio’s left hand has to come across her waist to settle them. Her hands are fisted in the sheets, head thrown back, body quivering with every pump. “Be good for me”, she whispers and the answering cry is so unlike anything Rio’s ever heard come from Agatha before. 

“I can be good for you. So good for you. Only good for you”. The words are mumbled so quickly that she barely catches them. 

She curls her fingers on every outward stroke and sucks the nub into her mouth. 

“Please make me cum”. It hits Rio so unexpectedly; the woman under her mouth begging for release is never one to give up her power over others so easily - yet here she is, pleading after two orgasms for another. And to Rio, of all people.

On the next stroke she pushes into Agatha hard, stills her arm and lets her fingers rub roughly. She moves the other hand holding her down to her stomach and presses. The pressure sends her careening so far over the peak that Rio thinks that it may have been the last her body can stand - hips rising high off the bed and gasping for breath. 

Removing her hand and standing up, she takes in Agatha’s body. Hair splayed messily around her, the flush on her chest even deeper in colour now, a sheen of sweat across her skin.

“Bottom pocket inside of my luggage” she mumbles, hand lazily pointing to the corner of the room. 

“What?”

“Grab what’s in the bottom pocket inside of my luggage”. Her voice is coming back slowly - Rio’s quite unsure how given how much of a show she’s put on.

Rio follows her directions amusedly, walking over to the purple luggage and opening it curiously. She unzips the pocket and reaches in - her hand stilling as soon as it touches the toy. She immediately knows what it is, she’s not unfamiliar with donning one with certain women when the occasion calls for it. 

“A bit presumptuous, don’t you think?” she laughs, pulling it from the pocket and examining it. It’s emerald green with a few ridges, slightly larger than what Rio has at home in both length and its width. Agatha just might kill her, whether she’s the one wearing it or not.

She’s moved to the middle of the bed, arms propping her up again, legs still splayed open so Rio can see the mess she made. “Are you going to fuck me with it or not?”

It makes her groan. She pulls the straps up her legs and fastens them to her liking before walking back to the bed. “Get on your hands and knees. Face the mirror”.

Agatha seemingly has had enough time to try to compose herself - a look of indifference on her face as she complies. 

Rio’s already set her mind on washing that bratty look right off of her face. If Agatha thought she was already given the most of Rio’s expertise, she’s dead wrong. She gets on the bed, shifting herself behind the other woman who eyes her expectantly.

“Don’t be gentle”.

The slap that rings throughout the room is more sound than force but Agatha drops her head with a huff anyway. Rio’s hand comes up to rub at the pink spot of her ass and she squeezes the sore spot slightly. It makes her groan, hips rocking back, looking for the pleasure she wants. 

Rio’s on her knees just far enough so that only the tip of the strap touches where she knows Agatha needs it. “Do you think you deserve it?”

When she gets no answer other than a mewl she swings her hand across the same spot again, this time harder. “Ah!”

“I thought you wanted to be good for me”. It hits Agatha exactly how Rio thought it would - she can see her clench around nothing as a whine leaves her lips. “I’ve been good, I deserve it”.

Rio moves closer then, moving her hand from Agatha’s ass and gripping the strap, rubbing the length of it through her folds - wetting it. When the tip accidentally brushes her clit she moans.

“Rio, please”, an almost silent petition that Rio can’t resist.

She lines herself up, the head at Agatha’s dripping entrance, and pushes slowly. She watches like she's in a trance as inch by inch the green disappears into the other woman. 

“Oh, yes!”

When she finally bottoms out, her hands find Agatha’s waist and she’s unsure if it’s to position herself better or to have something solid to hold onto so that she doesn’t pass out from the view in front of her. She steadies her breathing and withdraws her hips, a few inches slipping out before she sinks them back in. She keeps the same motion for a bit, watching as Agatha slowly lowers onto her arms instead, her body arched and moaning with every press back into her. 

“You like being on your knees for me like this?” she goads, slightly picking up her pace, the new angle letting Rio slip deeper.

“Yeah”.

“You’re such a slut”. It rolls off Rio’s tongue without even thinking and for a quick moment, she thinks she may have overstepped. But then she swears she can feel Agatha tighten around her even more.

“Your slut”. 

Rio absolutely reels at it, groaning and setting a brutal pace. She’s sure her fingers are gripped so tightly around Agatha’s creamy, white hips that she’s going to leave marks where they are.

She can hear how wet she is, their thighs meeting on every thrust and the squelch of the strap rocking in and out is almost as loud as the wrecked sounds coming from Agatha’s mouth.

She looks down to where Agatha’s impaled on her and her hips stutter. She’s stretched so much that she can see the tight grip her cunt has around the toy - it makes her feel feral. Doing this to Agatha and making these noises come out of her is wholly intoxicating. 

Her hips are unforgiving then. She slides a hand down the smooth expanse of her back and around to the front of her throat, pulling her up slightly. “Open your eyes”. When she does, Rio can see she’s already gone. She looks in the mirror, watching as Agatha realizes what she wants. They look at each other through the reflection, Rio seeing how much of an effort it’s taking for her to keep her focus.

Rio’s barely pulling out before driving hard back in. “Look at you, taking my cock like you’re meant for it. Such a good girl”. Agatha’s mouth is slack and a desperate cry rips through her before she tries to drop her head again, trying to muffle it.

She moves her hand to grip her hair then, pulling her head back up and keeping it in place. “Ah, ah. Let everyone hear how much you love it”.

“I fucking love it”. It comes out as a shriek and through the reflection, Rio can see that tears are almost ready to fall. Her concentration is dwindling with every rock of her hips forward.

She watches as the first few drops stream across Agatha’s cheeks then. “You’re so fucking deep”, she cries out. 

She’s almost certain she has to be hitting Agatha’s cervix each time the strap slams back in. It touches on some primitive part of Rio’s brain telling her to take, take, take. 

The bedframe repeatedly knocks against the wall with every thrust and suddenly Rio knows she’s not going to last long herself, all too aware that the strap has been rubbing her in the right way this whole time - her own orgasm rapidly approaching. 

She’s determined to not lose it before Agatha does. She gives a tug to the hair still within her grasp and folds herself over Agatha’s back, bringing her lips to her ear. “You gonna come all over my cock, baby? I can feel how tight you’re getting”. 

“Yes! Fuck. Ye-”

Her fingers move from her hair to find her clit. Agatha screams as soon as she brushes over it - her orgasm crashing over her hard. In the mirror, she can see her eyes roll back as she lets the overwhelming pleasure wash over her. Rio fucks her through it and pinches the bud between her fingers, not letting up. 

Suddenly, there’s a gush of wetness between their legs and Rio looks down. Her vision nearly goes white seeing Agatha squirt all over them. Her own orgasm hits her then. Her eyes pinch shut and head falls back as she feels the sensation below her gut take over, hips jerking unsteadily as her moans mix with Agatha’s. 

She drops her forehead onto Agatha’s back while she rides the last small waves of pleasure and wills herself to get her breathing under control.

She promised one more and she was going to keep her word. Slowly, she eases the strap out of the other woman and gently turns her over to lay on her back, head resting against the pillows. 

“No more, Rio. I can’t”.

“Last one, I promise I'll be gentle”, she whispers against her neck before placing a soft kiss to her heated skin. Agatha nods tiredly.

She loosens the strap and slips it down her legs, then tosses it off of the edge of the bed. She kisses across the slick skin under her on her way back between Agatha’s legs. 

Rio takes her time then, the touch of her tongue slower and much more subdued than earlier. She works her back up steadily and makes sure she lets Agatha know she’s content with this pace, moaning into her. 

Her eyes close and she takes a moment to lose herself, basking in the soft sounds coming from the other woman; a stark difference from the previous ones. When a hand finds her shoulder she looks up - Agatha’s breathing is much more controlled than earlier, but her chest still rises and falls heavily. She has a nipple pinched between her fingers and Rio takes it as a sign to move on. 

When her tongue teases at her entrance and then slowly eases in, nails dig into where they rest on her shoulder and she earns a breathy moan. She moves her thumb to rub gentle circles over her clit as she pushes her tongue inside. Repeatedly, she moves in and then pulls out to lick up the length of her. It’s not long before her legs are shaking again, her last orgasm gently brought on but no less powerful than the others, crumbling under Rio’s ministrations beautifully.

Rio wipes her face with the back of her hand and moves up the bed to lay next to Agatha, side by side on their back. She doesn’t say anything - not quite sure what to say or trusting herself to not ruin this rare moment of peace.

A few minutes go by before Agatha starts laughing. It’s a full, genuine laugh that shakes her body and Rio can’t help but turn to stare in amused confusion. “What?” she asks lightly.

Agatha takes a moment, breathing in deeply before releasing. “I owe Lilia $50. You are not vanilla” she smiles, head lolling to the side to stare back.

“Oh my god, you guys are unbelievable”, Rio chuckles, "Why would that even come up?”

“No reason” she brushes it off. “If you don’t mind, I came so hard that my ears were ringing so I’d like to sleep now”.

It causes a shit-eating grin to appear on Rio’s face and Agatha must already regret stroking her ego. “You also soaked the bed when you squirted all over me”.

“I did not do that” she scoffs, eyes rolling.

The grin only gets larger. “You don’t have to take my word for it, it’s all over the duvet if you don’t believe me”.

She watches as Agatha’s eyes follow the nod of her head between them to the middle of the bed. Sure enough, the pastel yellow is much darker on a large part of the fabric. A blush flushes her cheeks and she’s quick to grab at the duvet and yank it off of the bed as if it would erase the fact of how the wet spot got there. 

Rio’s laugh rings around the room as they ease under the sheets, both women falling asleep side by side.

Rio wakes on her stomach, roused out of sleep by the warm press of Agatha’s body and small nips across her back. “Are you awake?” 

“I am now”. Her voice is still sleepy, but she can feel the way her body slowly stirs - desire creeping in.

She feels Agatha’s smirk against her skin. “You had your fun yesterday but now I get my turn. Can I touch you?” Soft hands roam down her skin, lighting a fire under their touch.

“Yes”, she breathes.

“Lift your hips for me a little”. Rio submits, giving Agatha what she wants because it’s what she wants. Last night she needed to rid herself of the frustration she put herself through those first couple days of the trip. This morning she’s content to let the other woman have her. 

A hand reaches between her thighs, not teasing but going right to where she needs her. The tips of her fingers finding Rio’s clit and pressing slightly as she rubs across it, working her up slowly. She lets out an appreciative moan, hips twitching at the touch.

She knows she’s not going to last long. Her mind takes her back to the night before - the way Agatha cried out for her, how she came apart under her when she brought her to the edge over and over again. The attention to her clit continues and soon she feels the fingers of Agatha’s other hand run through the mess already between her legs.

One finger slips in, then two, and her mouth opens to let a soft gasp fall from her lips. 

When they arrive at the buffet for breakfast, they’re both silently sated. They sit across from each other again after grabbing their food and silently chew through their meal while their friends recount their time at the club.

“I’m so fucking hungover”, Wanda whines, tearing into a greasy piece of bacon and groaning at the taste. 

Alice chuckles. “I literally don’t remember anything after that third tequila shot you guys gave me”. 

Jen leans over, kissing her cheek sweetly with a smile on her face. “Don’t worry babe, I made sure you were safe”. She turns her attention to Rio then, “Annnnd, I do remember seeing someone getting handsy at the bar with a very pretty lady. Care to elaborate on the details?”

She bristles a little at feeling everyone’s eyes on her, especially Agatha’s.

“Not much to tell”. She shrugs and pops a grape in her mouth, hoping the topic gets dropped.

“Did you have sex with her?” 

“Nope”. Another grape. 

At least it’s the truth. It wasn’t Riley that ended up splayed across the bed last night.

“Borinnnngg”, Jen sings. 

Lilia suddenly cuts in. “Well, I also saw something juicy last night”. She wiggles her eyebrows in excitement and claps her hands together. “Two people at this very table were having a very heated staring competition before we left the club”.

Everyone knows who she’s talking about. There really only could be herself and Agatha that could be accused. The table goes silent, everyone looking at the pair, waiting for something. 

“What?” Agatha nearly barks.

Alice eyes them and when she turns back to Rio, Rio chooses to take a long, long sip of her coffee, trying to bury her face. “You two fucked”. She says it so matter-of-factly that it’s not even the slightest bit accusatory, like she already knows that lying would be pointless because she’s obviously right.

She chokes on the liquid, sputtering some of it back into the mug. “We most definitely did not”, her voice coming out higher than usual. 

Real convincing, Rio. 

“Oh my god - you did!” 

She looks across at Agatha, willing her to help and not let her drown - although it would be the Agatha thing to do.

Thankfully, she does. “If I tell you what happened will you all swear to never bring it up again?”

They all nod excitedly, impatiently waiting on the edge of their seats.

She’s going to kill her.

“We got back to the room and Rio had to hold my hair back over the toilet bowl all night because I couldn’t stop yacking”. 

Rio lets out the breath she didn’t even realize she was holding.

“Booooo”. Wanda tosses her napkin over at Agatha.

“You guys suck”.

Rio goes for a swim later with Jen and Alice. They’ve both been weird since breakfast and it makes her feel uneasy. Like she should be bracing herself for something. “Okay, you’re both freaking me out. What is it?”

They exchange a look before Jen nods seemingly in approval.

“You know she’s the one that wanted to room with you, right?” Alice asks.

“What do you mean?”

Jen throws her hands up dramatically. “How are you so smart, yet so dumb at the same time?”

“I’m not sure what to say”, she admits honestly. Agatha wanted to room with her for the trip? Why ? So she could torture her and leave her body buried somewhere along the beach? Yeah, that’s the most probable reason.

“Rio, you’re smart. Please put the pieces together so I don’t have to be the bad friend that went behind another friend’s back”, Jen pleads with her.

It’s the last night before they leave and Rio spends it in blissful ignorance. They enjoy the last resort party together and head back to their rooms around 11PM to finish packing - the early morning flight cutting their fun short.

Her and Agatha don’t have sex again that night. 

In fact, Rio’s almost certain that maybe their friends were right. Maybe sex was all they needed to make all of the fight in the both of them subside. The two had been civil all day, even tag-teaming on taking the opportunity to make fun of Wanda when she accidentally almost flashed the whole bar.

The happiness that Rio thought she’d feel being back in the comfort of her home isn’t quite what she experiences. Instead, she sulks and feels like she’s just going through the typical motions of her typical day.

Wake up, make a protein smoothie, go to the gym. Look through slide upon slide of plant matter until her eyes burn, scribble notes into her book, type out a new hypothesis. Get home, water plants, cook, eat, turn on a mindless documentary, sleep. It goes on for three days before she’s laying in her bed on that third night, telling herself something isn’t right.

It’s not right because each night that her head has hit her pillow since the trip, the first thought crossing her mind is soft skin and wandering hands. Every day, she has to will herself to stop thinking about breathy moans and a phantom taste on her tongue.

It didn’t mean anything, just like they agreed.

It was something to be left in the past. Forgotten, never to be spoken of. Something to not have to mull over in the middle of the night when they went back to their lives at home.

Her phone buzzes then, cutting through her turmoil and she picks it up from her bedside table; it’s a text from Alice. 

“I know I said I’d drop it……but u know I can’t..Have u spoken to Agatha?”

As if she knew thoughts about Agatha were what was currently keeping her up. She doesn’t respond, placing her phone back on the table face-down.

She rubs at her eyes in frustration, returning back to her unanswered question from the first night on of the trip when she found herself alone on the beach.

Does she have feelings for Agatha?

If so, has she always had feelings for her? It’s not that simple - she tells herself. She can’t just snap her fingers and have her answer.

She thinks about the lingering stares, the unnecessary brief touches, the sharp words laced playfully with something else. She’s tried so hard to avoid it all. Tried so hard to not have feelings for anyone because she had been so focused on her career - so determined to carve her own path into her profession that she didn’t spend any time paying any mind to building the other parts of her life that now practically scream with emptiness. This is exactly what she worriedly had spoken to Alice about that day on the excursion. 

She loves her job, loves Wanda’s kids, loves reading to the elderly in her community every Sunday, but something is glaringly missing.

The nights she took strangers into her bed only satisfied her to a superficial extent. They provided a release, a temporary patch to fill in the empty gap. The truth is, she drove a wedge between herself and whoever the stranger may have been because she knew it was pointless for them to try to be anything like the person she was trying to avoid. 

Like the person she was never ready to admit gave her every single piece she needed to hold it all together.

She wasn’t scared of her feelings, she just wasn’t ready and then life got in the way.

It felt right waking up in Agatha’s arms that morning because she wanted it and now, she stupidly probably screwed it up. Her eyes water at the thought. She’s not even positive that the other woman feels the same but she knows there’s a chance, if all of the encouragement from her friends was any indication. 

She turns to look at the clock, 01:28 A.M. shining dimly back at her.

Before she can second-guess herself, she reaches for her phone again, pulling up Agatha’s contact.

“Hey…u free?”. She deletes it and starts again.

“Can we talk?” Absolutely not.

“Hey, what are the odds you’re up?” She hits send and waits, tapping nervously against her stomach. She’ll give it ten minutes before forcing herself to let it go for the night.

Three pass.

Then, four.

Five, and six. 

On the seventh, she eyes her phone nervously and watches as a bubble appears and then it’s gone.

She’s starting to accept her disappointment when a text comes through on the ninth. One minute to spare.

“Depends on the reason for me to be up”

“How about if I say I’m coming over?”

“I could possibly let you in”

Her heartbeat picks up. She tosses her blanket aside and throws on a hoodie and some matching sweatpants before bolting to the washroom to make herself somewhat presentable.

“Give me 15 minutes?”

She pulls her hair into a ponytail and splashes some water on her face to wake her up.

“You have 15 only”

The walk to Agatha’s building is at least 15 minutes, but if she runs…well, she can probably make it in under 12, she thinks. She takes off then, locking her door and sprinting down the street. 

When she arrives in front of Agatha’s door, her chest heaves with exertion and she has to take a moment, resting her hands on her knees. She chides herself for skipping cardio this morning and raises her hand to knock at the door - three minutes to spare.

It swings open and Agatha’s there on the other side, hair tousled probably from laying in bed, the same baby blue tank she’s already had her hand twisted in, shorts lazily sitting low on her hips.

“Didn’t think you were gonna make it” she says.

And then Rio is stumbling forward, her hands reaching out to cup Agatha’s face as she leans in and kisses her hard. It takes a moment for Agatha to respond, but when she does it’s pure bliss. They stay like that, lips moving against one another, not expecting anything more. Hands find Rio’s sweater and tug, pulling her into the condo, Agatha walking backwards and closing the door. 

She parts from her then, staring into Agatha’s eyes. “I’m sorry”, she whispers, afraid anything more would cause the moment to burst. She gets lost for a moment, shaking her head, “God - your eyes are so blue. It’s the first thing I remember noticing about you”. 

Agatha stares back, confusion written on her face. “Rio, why are you here?”

“You laughed at me and told me to come find you when I grow a pair. I was drunk, but I remember what you said that night”.

She laughs at the memory, but it’s not a sound that’s happy, instead it sounds defeated, tired. “We were out for Jen’s birthday and you couldn’t stop talking about never needing to be in a relationship”.

“I didn’t know, Agatha. I didn’t understand”. Her thumb gently smooths across her cheek. “At that point I didn’t know, and then after that I just kept it boxed away, and I’m so sorry it took me so long. We got back from the trip and I could just feel this emptiness and you’re all I can think about. I think about the way you smile at me before you‘re going to cause trouble, I think about how you take my breath away every time I see you, I think about how fucking nice it felt to wake up with you in the same bed”.

Agatha’s eyes are teary and she can see the range of emotions on her face.

“I’m so stupid. I was so caught up in other things that I pushed you away instead of just giving in to what I wanted. It’s only been three days since we got home and you’ve crept into every single minute of every single one of them. I thought that I wanted to ignore everything that happened on the trip, but I don’t. It’s not fair to myself because now I know that the way I feel about you can be so fulfilling if I just let it be. Please tell me it meant something to you”. 

A single tear escapes, slipping down Agatha’s cheek and Rio wipes it away.

She takes a shaky breath. “Rio, I’ve wanted you since the first day we met. I don’t think I was ever going to stop wanting you; you drive me crazy”.

Rio smiles then. “Let me spend our time making it up to you. I promise, I won’t take a second for granted. Can we start with dinner? I’d really like to do this properly with you”.

She bites her lip, visibly contemplating, “I’ll think about it”.

“Oh…okay”. It’s not the response she was hoping for. She’s ready to settle anyway, any slight chance better than nothing at all.

“Rio, I’m kidding”, she chuckles; this is the Agatha she’s used to. “Pick me up Friday night?” 

The grip in her sweater loosens and Rio feels arms settle around her lower back. She’s reeling - the excitement winning over her previous worry. “Positanos at 8?”

“Don’t expect me to put out after”, Agatha warns.

It’s such a ridiculous thing for her to say, but it makes Rio giggle anyway. “I’ll wait as long as you want me to”.

The menacing grin that Rio’s come to know flashes across Agatha’s face and she knows she’s been had. “I mean that I need to repay you for that night. Don’t be expecting anything other than me having my way with you”.

Her cheeks feel hot all of a sudden. “Oh”. Her brain is surely short-circuited. Is this what being with Agatha will be like? She’s in for it, if so.

“Don’t make plans for Saturday morning. Maybe the whole day depending on how dinner goes”. She leans back in then, capturing Rio’s lips in a kiss that makes her eyes close.

“Yeah, I’ll - I’ll uh - make sure to uh, arrange that, or whatever”, she gets out, leaning back in to kiss her again and again and again. 

“Stay the night, since it’s late?” Agatha asks against her lips.

“Yeah, mhm. Good. Fantastic idea”. 

“You’re real nervous for someone who’s already been-”

Her eyes shoot open. “Please don’t finish that. That was a power trip and this revelation is already doing so much for me that I think I might just combust”. 

Agatha throws her head back and laughs - fully, genuinely, just like she had when they were in bed together - and she’s beautiful and hers and she can’t wait to make sure she spends every minute letting Agatha know that she cares so much about her. “Sleep only. I promise no funny business”.

She takes her by the hand and leads her down the hall to her bedroom. Rio follows dumbly behind her. “I’m okay with a little funny business”. And that laugh returns, filling Rio’s chest with something else she’s sure will come stumbling out of her mouth soon enough. 

In hindsight, Rio should’ve known that the trip was going to be a very good idea. She comes to the realization as she lays in sheets that smell like lavender, holding Agatha Harkness to her chest, rubbing soothing circles over her back.

The extremely drop-dead gorgeous, Agatha Harkness.

The reason for her rapid heartbeat, Agatha Harkness.

The “Hold me tighter, I’m cold”, Agatha Harkness. 

She feels some of the emptiness start to dissipate. Slowly, they’ll fill it with so much happiness that the space overflows. Rio closes her eyes, thinks about where she’ll be ten years from now, and wishes silently that it’s in this exact spot, with the same woman in her arms. 

Sleep takes her quickly. She’s content with knowing that she plans to make it come true.