Chapter Text
It’s a rainy day in London today, as per usual, as Ava walks toward the yoga studio building she works at 5 days a week for average pay. Yes, it's really shit money, but she works here as an instructor, and she loves it, so the extent of the money she makes doesn't matter to her. This job has given Ava a place where she can spend every day relaxing and helping other people to relax through the healing and calming act of yoga.
Is Ava’s desire to work in such a meh, paying profession that allows her to focus on healing connected to losing her mom and dad when she was young? Yes, yes it is. Losing them hurt her very soul; her heart was torn into a billion tiny pieces, as well as leaving her body a broken mess after the car accident. So when a nurse recommended to her during her recovery to try yoga to try to find an outlet to calm and slow her grief-filled mind, she jumped headfirst into the practice without a second’s thought after seeing just how much it helped calm her and her shattered mind and heart. As well, of course, helping her body in the process.
She rushes in from the rain, shivering to the bone from the cold, then shakes herself like a dog, much to Lilith’s displeasure, as she sprays her with a spraying of water at her desk at reception.
“Oops! Sorry, Lily!” She apologises while giving Lilith a guilty look, as Lilith’s unblinking eyes that she seems to give Ava every time Ava sees her when she comes into work every morning stare daggers at her.
She means, what did she ever do to Lilith to elicit such hateful looks every day? She wasn’t the person who stuck a stick so far up her ass it made her a complete... she better not finish that sentence. Lilith’s probably reading her mind right now and will turn her into a puddle with her wicked bitch – she means witch – powers.
“You’re late, Ava. How many times have you been late this month?” Lilith asks Ava sternly as she flicks some moisture that hit her brow with distaste.
“I don’t know once or twice.” Ava sheepishly replies as she puts her coat up on a hanger in the staff room opposite reception.
“4 times, Ava! I won’t cover for you forever; Mum will find out eventually.”
Ava walks out of the staff room in annoyance but holds herself back when she reaches the desk, as she remembers Lilith has her by the proverbial balls in this matter, then just gives her a forced smile and reply through gritted teeth.
“Thank you for being so understanding, Lily. You know I have trouble with sleeping; I really appreciate it.”
Lilith seems to be satisfied with this response and then gives a stiff nod, dismissing Ava like a headteacher after they’re done dealing with a misbehaving student.
She walks away to get ready for her first class, digging her fingernails into her palm hard to avoid going back and snapping back at Miss Uptight that she was barely 4 minutes late and that’s always the extent of her lateness.
Why, you ask, does Lilith have such an enjoyment of lecturing Ava so much if she only ever comes in late by a few minutes now and then?
Well, as Lilith referenced, she’s the boss, aka Julia’s daughter, and she likes to flaunt that fact by tattling on any misbehaving or tardy employees to her mother whenever she can. Last month Lilith complained so much to Mommy Dearest that JC had terrible hygiene and smelt like he just came out of a drug den every time he walked through sliding doors every morning that Suzanne fired him.
JC was a bit of a tool, to be fair, so she doesn’t mind the fact he’s gone. Plus, the guy was always trying to get into her pants. Yuck, even imagining that douchebag in that way gives her chills.
So now, as Ava heads to the yoga studio room, she endeavours in the next months to arrive early rather than poke the beast that is Lilith Duretti, daughter of Julia and owner of this studio, Francesco, who bought this place and handed the keys to his wife as an anniversary gift.
About 30 minutes later, after Ava gets set up and prepared for her first class of the day, she sits on a yoga mat and crosses her legs to give off the best I’m the best yoga instructor you’re ever going to have vibes as her students began to arrive.
I am Ava Silva. I am one with the yoga. Follow me, and I’ll help you all find inner peace.
For about 45 minutes.
“Hi, Ava.” Mary, one of Ava’s regulars, politely greets her along with Shannon, her wife. Yoga mats under there arms.
She gives them a polite smile and replies warmly to the two, “Good morning, you two lovebirds. Ready for another day of kicking inner peace’s ass?”
They both snort.
“Hell yeah! Master Silva!” Shannon exclaims.
“Master Silva?” Ava wonders with a confused smile and a light-hearted voice.
“Yeah, master of yoga and master of helping deal with my constant stress of being married to this one.” Shannon teasingly points down to Mary, who’s flattening her yoga mat.
“I heard that, Shan.” Mary replies in amused annoyance.
“Yeah, so what? What are you going to do about it, Mary?” Shannon flirts as Mary gets up. “Oh!” Mary shocks Shannon; she pulls her in by the small of her back and then ravages her lips.
Before the two can make the class there own personal snogging session. Ava awkwardly clears her throat. “Excuse me, you two; the rest of the class are coming in now, and I don’t want them thinking they’ve found themselves in some kind of…”
Before she can finish her teasing words, Mary snaps away from Shannon’s lips, then glares threateningly, “Don’t you dare finish that sentence, Ava.”
Ava gives Mary a playful wink and then raises her hands in surrender. “Okay, then don’t go eating your wife’s face off in front of my class. I have a reputation to maintain, you know?”
Mary scoffs, then slaps Shannon’s ass, making her cheeks blush so red. Ava thinks Shannon’s going to spontaneously combust from being so turned on right now.
God, Ava admires these two love-struck dummies. They’re always so free with their affection toward each other in a world where if you’re in any way different, you’re looked down on sometimes. As an openly bi woman herself, it’s inspiring to see every week.
As the class begin to settle down for the beginning of class. Ava closes her eyes and then takes some calming breaths, which the class, as always, follows in doing.
She’d like to have a relationship again one day with a woman properly, beyond just the physical side. She’s had sexual endeavours in college and all that jazz, but she’s never actually had a long-term or even short-to-medium relationship with a woman. The only lasting relationship she’s had at all really was with Michael, her college boyfriend. He wanted to get hitched when they left education, but it was madness. He loved her far more than she loved him.
A pattern clear as day there. All Ava’s sexual endeavours were in college, and there’s a good reason for that. It’s far easier to meet people when you’re forced to spend time around hundreds of different people per day than it is in adult life.
Oh wait, she guesses she does that every week here at work. Well, shit, maybe she’s just making excuses for why she hasn’t tried to get some action for the last few years.
Michael wasn’t the most gracious about getting rejected.
Anyway, before going down that rabbit hole of not having a sex life, let’s continue with the class.
“Okay class, take a nice deep breath in, then out, a few times, and we’ll get to…”
“Excuse me?” A very posh voice speaks over Ava’s words from the back of the room, making Ava open one eye in annoyance.
“Yes, can I help...?” She stops.
Her throat suddenly feels so dry, and speaking feels impossible. A woman in tight leggings that show off her curves. A woman in a sports bra that shows off her extremely toned, sun-kissed abs stands at the entrance to the room, holding a yoga mat and wearing a nervous expression on her face, looking at Ava with such piercing brown eyes.
Even from the distance between them from Ava's spot in the yoga space with specialised flooring and mirrors behind, she’s affected by them. They’re so intense.
She’s hot. She sees attractive women all the time, like Caitlyn to her right and Vi to her left, but she is. She’s gorgeous.
“I um you I.” Dear God, Ava speaks words before Mary and Shannon pick up that I’ve lost the ability to speak and tease me for it.
Because this woman, this person with her hair tied in a bun and freckles around her nose, undoubtedly, without question, affects her in a way she hasn’t been for a while.
“Hi, I’m Beatrice. Is this the early morning class?” The sun-kissed woman named Beatrice thankfully breaks Ava’s internal panic by asking with a polite smile on her lips and waving at her. It’s sweet. She is.
“Ahem, yes it is. Please sit; we’re just getting started.” Ava eventually manages to croak out as her heart beats so fast it could compete in a race with a freaking gazelle running at full speed.
“Okay, as we have a new member of…” Ava looks at Beatrice as she lays her mat down. Her insides go like jelly shortly after. Her eyes widen as Beatrice bends down to unfurl her mat, showing off her ass. Oh fuck. Focus on the class, you horny idiot. Jeez, pull it together. I see plenty of attractive women in my….
Her thoughts stop as Beatrice turns to her after sitting down. She gives this so genuinely kind smile that any man or woman could get lost in looking at it for days on end.
Fuck, I’m totally gawking at her right now. Shit, Mary or Shannon, do something before I freak her out.
“Ahem, Ava?”
Thank god. I love you, Shannon Masters. Ava thinks in relief as Shannon drags her attention back to the class.
“Oh yes, sorry about that. Let’s do some more breaths for our new addition to get caught up.”
Okay. Deep breaths. She actually sounded okay there. Disaster was avoided in front of a whole class. At least for now, because if that extremely attractive woman is coming back regularly, Ava thinks she’ll start to openly drool on her yoga mat.
“Deep breath in, then deep breath out nice and slow, everyone.”
Ava says calmly, then opens her eyes again and quickly spots Beatrice wearing an engagement ring on her ring finger while her hands are resting on her lap.
Huh, okay, that makes this easier. She’s getting married; she’s off limits. Who is she kidding? She wouldn’t ask a freakin’ squirrel to go on a date with her after so long out of the game, never mind a woman like Beatrice, so intense and kind-looking, who’s just taken her breath away after she just checked her out.
Though… she really is horny. She’s been feeling that a lot recently. She thinks she has been so for years. Maybe this is a sign to put herself out there again. Michael was a bad experience in the end, but it shouldn’t deter her. She’s happy and calm in her life, and she enjoys having her own space, but why not?
“Oh, sorry! I’m late!”
Not another interruption. Jeez.
Ava groans within and frowns at another newcomer. Curly hair, dark skin and similar clothing to Beatrice, and everyone else looking dishevelled and panicked, stumble through the door. Holding a mat under her arm.
“Lucia?” Beatrice, sitting cross-legged like the rest of the class of 15, now 16, seems to know the newcomer.
“Please find a spot so we can start.” Ava smirks at the class in front of her, who are equally miffed. “Again.” She gets a few laughs for that.
“My bad!” Lucia, as Beatrice names her, sits by Beatrice after hurrying to unfurl her mat.
There’s…something different about Beatrice as Ava looks at her again. She’s hot, but there’s something else. Can’t say what it is, but she feels it intensely.
Lucia pecks Beatrice on the cheek as she settles, and any notions of ever asking Beatrice out that were already gone post seeing her ring flow away like a piece of paper in the wind. Back to the class. Doesn’t mean she can’t chat to Beatrice after class. Make a new friend. It’s so weird. She’s only spoken a few words with the woman, but she just feels a link for some reason beyond Bea’s beauty and kind eyes. She can’t describe it, but she feels it.
Lucia catches her looking and gives her a wink, making Ava a little hot. Beatrice has a hot fiancée, that’s for sure. They make a very hot couple.