31 - Lucky

Emily woke up with her view blocked by blonde hair. She adjusted to the sun light coming from the window as she pulled her head back from its position behind Ali's neck.

She woke up knowing what she wanted to do that morning. She wanted to jog. She tended to jog around her neighborhood in Rosewood, but she hadn't been doing much of that lately. Much of any exercise, if she was going to be honest. And knowing she needed to keep her body strong and fit for next year's swimming season, she rose from the bed without waking Alison up and before she had time to regret it, and got ready quickly. After exiting the bathroom, she pulled on her Nike leggings and running shoes, along with a sports bra and a tank top, all of which she'd brought from home. It was merely a bit chilly outside but she knew she would feel warmer once she started running.

The brunette left her girlfriend a note on the bedside table before exiting the room. She greeted the people at the front desk politely as she walked by them and exited the hotel.

Emily took off running down the street, and before she knew it, she was entering a large community park that had a designated running course. The sun was barely up and it was still a little dark outside, but Emily liked it this way. There weren't any people around, only other runners such as herself. The brunette loved jogging in general, it gave her time to think and clear her head, all while doing exercise.

Meanwhile, at the hotel room not too far away, almost 45 minutes later, Alison woke up to an empty bed. She peered around her and found a small note with a little heart-shaped chocolate next to it, one of the many that Hanna had taken from the bowl at the front desk. She smiled sleepily at Emily's cuteness before reading the note.

Good morning, Ali.

Went out for a jog, be back soon.

Em xx

Alison went off to the bathroom in order to get ready, then stepped out to the balcony when she was done. She breathed in the sweet morning air, looking at all of Paris laid out at her feet as she decided to make breakfast for Emily, like the brunette had done to her a few days before. She entered the kitchen and began making French toast and eggs - two of the only things she knew how to make, which were thankfully, some of the brunette's favorites. She also made a smoothie since she knew Emily liked those, and organized them for the brunette. She started eating her own breakfast as she scrolled through her phone aimlessly, waiting for the girl's return. She came across a familiar number and dialed it.

"Hello?" the person said.

"Hey, Noel," Alison greeted casually.

"Ali! Haven't heard from you in a while. What's up?" he said, his happy tone making her smile.

"Nothing much, just made breakfast for Emily. Paris is so much fun, I honestly wish you and Mona were here too," she conversed before scoffing and adding teasingly, "I can't believe I actually miss you, you jerk."

She heard him laughing on the other end of the phone. "Miss you too, Ali. How is everyone?" he asked.

"We're good, soaking up Paris as much as possible," Alison answered easily.

"And how's Em?" Alison could practically see the childish smirk Noel had on his face.

"She's good," she emphasized the 'good', knowing it will make Noel roll his eyes knowingly.

"Is she there? Because if she is, I'd rather hang up before you jump her bones," he taunted.

"No, she isn't here, she went jogging. And what's that supposed to mean?" Alison asked with a rather amused expression.

"It means I've never seen you this lovesick," Noel laughed.

"Yeah, yeah." Alison dismissed with an eye roll, even though she knew he was right. "Hey, what's going on with your parents, by the way?" she asked, intrigued since she hadn't talked to him in a while.

"Well, good news are they're sleeping in the same bed again. But the bad news are they're in denial. They won't admit they have issues," Noel complained.

"Well, maybe they don't anymore. You said they're sleeping in the same bed again, right? Maybe they've worked out their differences." Alison reasoned.

"Yeah, maybe," Noel huffed. "I guess I need to focus on the good part here."

As if on cue, Alison heard the door open and Emily walked through it, grinning broadly at her girlfriend. Alison did a double-take once she noted how attractive Emily looked after working out; her strong, toned body covered in a thin layer of sweat, making the clothes stick to her skin, polishing majestically and showing her curves in the best way possible - it was all very sexy if you asked her. Plus, she was panting lightly from the run, and Alison's mind directly associated the action with other activities they had been doing where both she and Emily ended up breathing just as heavily.

"Noel, I'll talk to you later, okay?" Alison mumbled into her phone, not taking her eyes off of her girlfriend. She didn't wait for an answer as she blindly hung up the phone, walking over to Emily.

"Hey, beautiful," Emily remarked breathlessly and smiled as Alison inched closer to her.

"You look... great," Alison started, feeling this funny feeling between her legs that she got whenever Emily turned her on. She scanned the brunette's body in a lustful gaze.

"Ali, I just came back from a run, how can I possibly look great?" Emily blushed, releasing a nervous laugh.

"Trust me, I- wow," Alison breathed out as she began admiring the brunette's biceps. "Em, I had no idea you were that fit," she told her with an impressed expression.

Emily couldn't help but feel proud of herself at that moment for having such a strong body. She used to have only one purpose for doing all of this exercise - improving her swimming - but now, she figured she had two purposes, the second one being that Alison would look at her like that again.

Alison lifted Emily's shirt up, revealing a slight six-pack. She had seen Emily naked before, obviously, but she came to the realization that she had been too caught up in their business that she hadn't taken enough time to appreciate her girlfriend's body as much as she needed to.

Emily's blush increased when Alison decided to run her hand over the brunette's abs, biting her lip in the process. "A-Ali, don't we need to get ready?" Emily stammered. She was afraid that Spencer would burst into their room and drag them by their ears for causing them to go behind schedule.

Alison broke out of her trance, but not before pulling a surprised Emily by the front of her dry-fit tank top into a strong kiss.

"I hate that you're right. I'm going to go take a shower, eat your breakfast," she said against Emily's lips, making the girl squirm.

She began walking away, only to have Emily grab her wrist powerfully, spinning her around to face her quickly, until their bodies were flushed and Alison was breathing heavily, trying to keep her hormones at bay. Bold Emily turned her on most of all. She loved it when Emily confidently made a blunt move like that.

"Em-" Alison never got to finish her thought as Emily pressed her lips to the blonde's, suddenly not caring about their schedule. Spencer could burst into their room a million times and Emily still wouldn't let Alison go.

Alison couldn't hold back the moan that escaped her mouth as Emily had her pinned against the kitchen island, making the brunette smirk against her lips. As much as Alison wanted to continue this, and she did, she also really needed to shower and get ready, and Emily needed to do that as well. Today they were going to the Palace of Versailles, and she knew that the group had set aside a certain hour to leave and how rightfully pissed they would be if they were behind on their plans because of the two girls.

So, as gently as she could, she pushed Emily away by the shoulders, parting from her. "Get your ass in that chair, Fields, I made you breakfast and you're gonna eat it," she commanded breathlessly.

"Yes, ma'am," Emily responded huskily in a way that only made Alison drag her into their bedroom even more, her baby blue eyes darkening dangerously. Emily chuckled once she noticed that, giving Alison one last kiss before walking away towards her barstool. Alison couldn't resist the urge and gave the brunette a slap on her ass for good measure, making Emily squeal in surprise. The blonde smirked as she made her way to the bathroom.

Once Emily was done eating, she entered the bedroom, setting aside clothes for the day, then sitting on the bed and scrolling through her phone. Her ears caught the sound of not only water running, but soft singing. She smiled widely as she listened to Alison sing and hum some melodies. The blonde had a wonderful voice, it surprised Emily how she didn't do anything with it.

A minute of pure bliss later, she heard the water being turned off and waited for Alison to exit the bathroom. As the blonde walked out, wearing nothing but a short white towel that reached her upper-thighs, Emily couldn't help but eye her up and down.

The brunette smiled to herself as she walked by Alison, kissing her on the cheek and then entering the bathroom herself.

XXXXX

"Guys, this is amazing. Louis The Sixteenth was the last French king to live here, during-" Spencer's gushing was cut off by Aria.

"-The French revolution, right? I remember learning it in history," Aria finished with a smile. Spencer grinned at her proudly.

They had entered the Palace and were walking inside the truly impressive structure. They were surrounded by people left and right, some in organized groups with an instructor and some just strolling around like they were. Luckily, there weren't that many people to the point of their group needing to split up like they did at the Philadelphia Zoo.

Emily had her hand cupping Alison's warmly as they all sauntered around gracefully, some with pamphlets in their hands, looking around them in awe at the artwork of a building.

They all stopped to admire a painting that was hung on one of the huge, never-ending palace walls. Emily pulled her hand away from Alison's and edged closer, squeezing her way through some people in order to observe the painting more clearly.

All of a sudden, someone bumped into Alison, making her lose her balance, but she quickly regained it and turned to the intruder in irritation. He had been looking down at his phone, but when he bumped into her, he picked his head up slightly.

"Sorry," he apologized shortly, and Alison quickly realized he was British from his accent.

"It's fine," she excused him with a clipped tone. It actually wasn't fine, and the old her would've wanted nothing more than to shout at the top of her voice at him for causing her to stumble back in these already painful-enough high heels, but she reminded herself that as much as she was changing for her girlfriend, she was changing for herself, too. Not merely changing, but truly bettering herself.

It took all strength in her to dismiss him politely the way she did, but when he heard her soft voice, he picked up his head - fully this time - his eyes widening slightly at the sight of her.

Alison was wearing a soft, light pink dress that fitted her nicely along with a belt and a few pieces of jewelry, and with her usual flowy light-curls, she looked as beautiful as ever. She was used to people double-taking at her, but this guy was really scanning her up and down, looking like a little kid in an ice cream shop.

"Maybe it's a good thing I bumped into you, otherwise I wouldn't have seen you, and it's a shame thinking I could've gone my whole life without seeing such a lovely face," he flirted blatantly as she just barely resisted the urge to roll her eyes.

'Seriously? ' she thought as she shook her head mentally.

The second thing she noticed about him (other than the fact that he was british) was the ring on his finger. He was married. Men like that disgusted her. "Well, thank you, but this lovely face belongs to someone else." she said.

"A lucky man. But he doesn't have to know," he offered in a rather smug manner.

"She isn't as lucky as I am. Now, if you'll excuse me-" she was about to walk away but he quickly blocked her way in a desperate attempt to stop her.

"I don't understand," he started uneasily.

"Look, what's your name?" Alison asked in fatigueness, probably in the most disinterested way possible.

"Elliot," the man answered hastily.

"Okay, Elliot. You're married, I have a girlfriend. What's there not to understand?" she retorted coldly. "And just to add to the top of your humiliation," she added, her voice dripping fake-sweetness, "I'm fifteen."

His mouth opened and closed several times in a lame attempt to defend himself, and she rolled her eyes hard, bumping into his shoulder harshly as she stomped away.

She merely made it a few steps before she heard him curse at her back, "I don't need this shit from a little girl. You don't want this? Well, fuck you!"

She briskly turned around, "She already has." she said harshly. Alison walked away proudly and finally reached Emily, who was still obliviously admiring the artwork, and grabbed her by the two sides of her face, pulling her into a passionate kiss, making sure the man saw her. When she pulled away, she saw him shaking his head as he walked away, swearing under his breath.

Emily only smiled kindly at her, pressing a kiss on her cheek as the group finally continued their impromptu tour of the palace. Alison wrapped her arm around Emily's hip possessively, afraid someone like that jerk, Elliot would hit on Emily, too.

Hanna turned to Emily as they walked. "Em?" she called quietly.

"Yeah, Han?" the brunette responded in the same tone.

"Still wanna go to the mall?" Hanna asked.

"Yeah, you have to help me," Emily said softly, making sure that Alison, who was now talking to Aria and Ezra, didn't hear them.

"How about tonight? The guys are going out again, so Caleb won't be there, and Spence and Aria are going to hang out so Ali could just join them. We can say you and I are doing something together," Hanna offered with a small smile. The blonde hadn't been to the mall with Emily in a while, so she really was well and truly excited.

Emily nodded in agreement and returned the smile as they continued sauntering through the manor.

XXXXX

"Hanna, I don't know about this," Emily doubtfully eyed the mannequin through the showcase window.

"Emily, this is your anniversary! Don't you wanna do something special for Ali?" Hanna pleaded.

"This isn't what I meant!" Emily hissed loudly, looking around like a hawk to make sure no one she knows was passing by, as unlikely as it was.

"She is going to love it, now come on!" Hanna dragged Emily's arm into the store and the brunette hesitantly followed. "See? This isn't so bad, right?" she gestured around her once they were in the store.

"Okay, that could not be considered functional underwear," Emily frowned as she picked up a pair of skimpy blue lace underwear from a counter.

"Uh, Em, just warning you ahead, some people might've tried that on already-" before the amused blonde could finish, Emily looked at her with a horrified expression and dropped the object hastily, looking at her hands in disgust.

"God, you are such a prude," Hanna laughed teasingly.

"I'm not a prude," Emily defended.

"Fine. If you're not a prude, go and try that on," Hanna said, pointing at a piece of black bustier lingerie on another counter.

Emily debated the decision in her head for a moment. She did want to surprise Alison, and she figured it would be a rather pleasant surprise for the blonde, considering everything Emily had seen during that particular morning, but the brunette had never done anything like this before.

Not only that, but the pictures of the perfectly-shaped models on the walls made her stomach churn and she suddenly felt a bit self-conscious, which she didn't like one bit. Apparently Hanna could read her like an open book after years of practice, because she walked over to her and placed a calming hand on her shoulder.

"Em, Ali's a really lucky girl, okay? I mean, if I were into girls, you can bet this would be our anniversary you'd be planning for right now," Hanna said softly, trying to lighten the mood. "I mean, we would even have a cute name. Eminna? Hemily?" the bubbly looked she was genuinely thinking about the subject in a serious matter.

"Hanna?" Emily laughed in amusement, bringing the girl back from her thoughts.

"Hannily!" Hanna beamed as she came up with the proper name. She shook her head, getting back to her point. "Look, what I'm trying to say is, when I was at a low point, stressing myself out about my weight, you were the one I turned to because you always told me I was beautiful, no matter what. After a while that you said it, I actually started believing it myself. That's why I started working out with Spencer and now I look and feel a lot better," she gestured to herself.

It wasn't a secret that these days, Hanna was looking skinnier and a bit taller, and Emily couldn't have not noticed, and she had been constantly and proudly praising her best friend for all of her hard work in losing weight in a healthy way. It satisfied Emily to see Hanna so happy with her current, much more fit body, not that she wasn't always gorgeous just the way she was.

"Em, you told me I was beautiful even when I thought I wasn't, and now it's my turn to say it back. You are hot, okay? I know it, Ali knows it, anyone with a freaking pair of eyes knows it! Now get your sexy ass in that booth and try on that lingerie!" Hanna encouragingly pushed Emily towards the counter, but the brunette was too momentarily paralyzed by Hanna's words to do anything. She'd never known she was such a great help to her blonde friend in rough days. Since when did her goofy Hanna turn into such a serious pocker-faced woman?

Emily grabbed the piece lingerie and turned to give Hanna a thankful smile which the blonde was happy to return. Feeling confident in Hanna's words, Emily took a deep breath and marched into the dressing room area with her designated piece of clothing. She entered the area and the sight in front of her made her instantly gape, feeling thunderstruck.

'Oh, crap,' was the only thing playing on repeat in her brain.

"Alison?" Emily called out hesitantly to her girlfriend who stood right in front of her, looking down at her phone absentmindedly. Alison looked up, her jaw instantly dropping and matching Emily's face.

"Em? What are you doing here?" Alison asked curiously, placing her phone in her back pocket.

"What are you doing here?" Emily asked, suddenly nervous. Why would Alison be there? Blush covered her cheeks once she caught Alison glancing at the choice of lingerie in the brunette's hands.

"Uh, Spence and Aria wanted to go to the mall and this place was the closest thing I found to Victoria's Secret," Alison replied in suspicion, but Emily could see a faint of a teasing smirk in the corner of her lips.

Emily pretended she didn't just hear that sentence, but failed miserably as her throat dried. The thought of the blonde beauty in any one of the items in the store gave her a feeling of want, rushing through every cell in her body. It made her want to march over to the blonde and kiss her senselessly, but she somehow repressed it.

She gulped loudly when she realized Alison was still staring at her. "Your turn," the blonde reminded her.

"I was... Uh-" Emily was cut off by another blonde entering the room.

"Em, seriously, what is taking so long? I told you Ali is going to love- Oh! Hi, Ali," Hanna, sporting a wide-eyed expression, tried desperately to stifle a laugh at the scene in front of her. Their blonde friend decided to take the quick way out of the awkward situation. "Yeah, okay, I'm just gonna..." Hanna trailed off and made some vague hand gestures before sending the brunette a look of apology and walking away.

"Em," Alison started again once Hanna was out of sight. "Does this have anything to do with our anniversary tomorrow?" the blonde guessed, her tone turning suggestive.

"I, uh... M-Maybe?" Emily looked around, not agreeing to meet the blonde's sinful gaze.

Alison smirked a little to herself in satisfaction before walking over to Emily and resting her hands on the brunette's hips, inching her closer. "Are you gonna wear that for me?" she asked in a low, husky voice that made Emily melt. Even though Alison was the slightly shorter one out of the two, it had always felt like she was more dominant, even though Hanna would probably insinuate that Emily has a few tricks up her sleeve, too.

"D-Do you want me to?" Emily asked shyly.

Alison nodded hastily in exaggeration, making Emily laugh lightly. The brunette looked at the item that was now draped over her forearm and frowned her eyebrows once more.

"I just, I don't know if my body will even look good in this," Emily said honestly as she thought out loud. She wasn't trying to squeeze out a compliment, but she genuinely didn't know. Alison stared at her in surprise and the swimmer tried to read her expression. "What?" she asked softly.

"Em, you are drop-dead gorgeous, you're a freaking goddess, okay? God, if you only knew how my heart races every time I see you..." Alison trailed off. She grabbed Emily's arm and lifted in to her chest, holding it against her heart that was racing furiously. "Do you feel that?" she asked. Emily nodded and kept her eyes locked on the blonde. "This is how beautiful you are."

Alison took one more look at the article of clothing, "I think you should buy it. And try it on. You know, now," she said mischeviously, making them both giggle.

Alison bit her lower lip and leaned in to kiss the brunette, but Emily pulled away. "Uh uh, you're gonna have to wait till tomorrow," the brunette teased, surprising both herself and Alison with her sudden boldness. Emily pulled her arm away and inched a little farther from Alison, not trusting her impulses to not jump the blonde in public.

Alison pouted and the brunette laughed lovingly at her expression. "Em," the blonde pleaded.

"Tomorrow," she reminded Alison and quickly pecked her on the lips, turning to get into the fitting room, but the blonde wouldn't have any of it.

She grabbed Emily's wrist tightly, spun Emily back to face her and pushed her against the wall. "Screw waiting," she managed to whisper before kissing Emily passionately without any objection from the brunette. Their kiss was filled with anticipation and desperation; Alison wanting to see Emily in those clothes, and Emily suddenly feeling truly excited about their upcoming date tomorrow. Emily grazed her fingernails on the skin behind Alison's neck, making the blonde shiver with need. Alison, on the other hand, moved her hands to the small of Emily's back, pulling their bodies as close as humanely possible. Emily opened her mouth and Alison's tongue began exploring it in exhilaration. She couldn't help herself when the brunette was being a tease.

"Eh hem," Hanna said intentionally a little too loudly and crossed her arms. Alison and Emily parted from each other hastily and looked at their blonde friend.

"Jeez, I can't leave you two for five minutes without finding you sucking on each other's faces, can I?" Hanna rolled her eyes as she scolded them playfully.

"Sorry, Han," Emily mumbled an apology as her cheeks turned a bright crimson color.

Alison shrugged, "Well, I'm not." She leaned in and pecked Emily one more time before declaring, "Tomorrow," followed by a saucy wink. "Bye, Hanna," she said innocently as she walked past Hanna and towards the exit.

Hanna chuckled at the Queen Bee's nonchalance and at Emily's reaction to the whole situation. "Well? Did you try it on?" she asked finally.

"No, I didn't have time, we were talking," Emily reminded, still staring in the direction Alison just left.

"Right, talking," Hanna said with a chuckle. "If that was just talking, I'd hate to see what it's like when you two actually have sex."

"Shut up, Hanna," Emily rolled her eyes as she entered the fitting room.

XXXXX

By the time Emily returned to her hotel room, the blonde was already getting ready to go to sleep.

"Find anything?" Alison asked with a mischievous glint in her eyes as Emily entered the bedroom.

"Yes," Emily rolled her eyes playfully. "I found something in the first twenty minutes, but Hanna insisted on going into every store in the freaking mall," the brunette groaned as she slumped into the bed with various bags in her hands.

"Typical," Alison laughed as she sat on the bed next to her girlfriend. Emily nodded in agreement.

The blonde moved her hand to rest on top of Emily's stomach, slowly edging upwards. "Well... Do I get a preview?" she asked quietly.

"Tomorrow, Ali," Emily chuckled as the blonde's hand reached a ticklish area mid-stomach.

"Fine," Alison removed her hand. "But I better get the whole show," she whispered seductively in Emily's ear, making the brunette squirm.

Alison smirked at her reaction, before shifting to lie down, leaving Emily's bedside lamp as the only light in the room. Emily quickly changed into her pajamas and crawled into the bed. She looked at the watch on the wall as the time showed 00:02 AM.

She smiled as she turned off her bedside lamp and spooned the barely awake Alison. "Happy anniversary, Ali," she said softly and kissed the back of the blonde's neck.

"Happy anniversary, Em."