Lexa is pacing and has been for the last hour. It's Friday night and she agreed on meeting Clarke's friend tonight. Sure it was her idea but that doesn't mean she's not nervous because she is pretty sure that getting along with Octavia and Raven means the world to her girlfriend. Her girlfriend. She's still getting used to that, never in a million years did she expect on finding someone that is handling her condition as well as Clarke does.
Okay now back to business. Lexa has a system for things like that and planed a schedule for the day to calm her down and at the same time to assure that she gets ready on time. She planed a little gaming time for herself till three, kind of a reward for venturing out of her comfort zone – and advice of Indra's actually. It gives her a good feeling that assures a good start for the day and for the things she has planed. Afterwards she has half a hour to clean her apartment which would seem silly for most people. Why clean it when you spent our time elsewhere? The answer is pretty simple, it's not about the cleaning itself more about checking everything before she has to leave. Are the windows closed and locked? The heating not too high? Every unnecessary plug pulled out? The stove not running? Getting everything clean at the same time is a nice plus.
Lexa tends to be really forgetful at times, for example leaving the stove on multiple times, and she even puts her hand on the hot plate and burning herself in the process.
After cleaning and checking she has half a hour for a shower and another half a hour for picking her outfit and dressing. Anya helped her in choosing something for the special occasion. Now she is clean and dressed she has 15 minutes to spare. What to do? Another check around her apartment – she checks the stove three times because she forgot to turn it off three times last week – and there is a knock on the door.
"Kid open up! I had three cans of energy drinks on my way here and if you don't open that door right now it won't be pretty!"
How lovely. Lexa doesn't even have time to open the door all the way when Anya shoves past her and sprints to the bathroom. At least she has the decency to close the door behind her. It takes a few minutes till her sister returns and plops down beside her on the couch. Lexa can't but help to ask:
"Are you alright?"
"Yeah just a rough night shift at the centre. A few boys started a fight and it took us some time to break it off. How about you? Nervous?"
"Well yeah but you'll be there and Clarke too and I think it's gonna be alright."
"You astound me kid, you're handling this pretty well, I expected a meltdown and you refusing to go."
"I'm really nervous, I'm not good with people especially meeting them but it's not as scary as I thought. Clarke talked to me beforehand and made a schedule for the evening so I know what to expect."
"Do her friends know about you?"
"Yeah Clarke told them right at the beginning. They can be pretty wild I guess and she wanted them to tone it down for tonight so I can get used to it bit by bit."
"That's … pretty nice of her. She seems pretty cool with all of this and really tries to make it as easy as possible huh?"
A small blush appears on Lexa's cheeks and a smile forms on her lips.
"She really does but she doesn't make it too easy you know? She always encourages me to come out of my comfort zones .. at least a little bit but she never pushes too much and is always there for me when I need help."
"Sounds like a really supportive girlfriend you got yourself there. Exactly what you need and deserve, she's good in my book."
"Be careful Anya as it might sound like that you actually like her and you don't like anyone."
That right there stops Anya and leaves her completely dumbfounded.
"Lex … did you really use sarcasm right now?"
Lexa can't help but puffing out her chest, proud of the shocked look her sister gives her. That means she got it right.
"Yeah Clarke taught me, that was pretty good right?"
"That was some badass sarcasm kid! That woman just keeps growing on me."
"Thanks. Clarke will be proud I think. It took a long time till I could distinguish the varying pitches and tones of her voice."
"Just what exactly are you doing when you're together?"
"That's none of your business."
"I don't even know what to say … Should we head out? What does the plan say?"
A quick look at her phone and the brunette jumps out of her seat and rushes to grab her jacket.
"We're one minute behind schedule, let's go!"
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At the other side of town Clarke frantically checks every part of the apartment. God she hopes everything is ready and sends a quick prayer that she didn't forget something important. Her roommates were supposed to help her but are now banned to the living room after an unsuccessful attempt to steal some dessert from the fridge.
Clarke spent the better part of the day cleaning their apartment, occasionaly barking at her amused friends to help her just to get sly smirks and two missing spoon full of cake for an answer.
Cleaning their apartment took longer than expected because good god they are slobs! When was the last time they cleaned? Probably the day they moved in.
Now that everything is done it's time to take a shower and to make herself presentable. After the original joy of having Lexa over it dawns on her that she gets to meet her girlfriend's sister Anya who is like mama bear protective and probably won't hesitate to kick her ass if she ever dares to hurt Lexa. She is the most important person in the brunettes life so this is like a make it or break it situation. Neither does Clarke know that she already passed almost all of Anya's tests.
Getting out of the shower fresh and clean she quickly dries herself off, puts on some light make up and puts on the outfit she may or may not bought just for this evening. A quick check of the kitchen and dinning table, cutlery out – check, food being kept warm on the stove – check, wine beer and dessert cooling in the fridge – double check. Alright now she just needs to wait for her guests, time to remind the "children" to be on their best behaviour tonight, she wants Lexa to feel as comfortable as possible.
Clarke finds them on the couch and from the looks of it they're having a pretty intense match of some game on one of Raven's gaming systems. She tries to get their attention multiple times till she has to do the most dirty trick … standing in front of the TV. For a second she considers pulling the plug but she decides against it. She made that mistake on time and well it lead to ugly words being said and them not talking to each other for two days.
"Okay kids listen up."
Octavia is the first to make her anger known.
"God damnit Griffin! Move your fat ass out of the way!"
"Don't make me pull the plug!"
Raves gasps and almost drops her controller in her haste of raising her hands in surrender.
"Clarke don't do anything we will both regret. I lost three hours of gaming time on that day and I will never get them back!"
"Then give me two minutes of your precious time and I'm gonna let you do your thing in peace until they are here."
Octavia pauses the game and signals the blonde to carry on.
"I just wanted to remind you to tone it down tonight okay? You know Lexa gets overwhelmed pretty easily and I would really like er to come back."
That earns her an almost perfectly synchronized eye roll of her best friends.
"That being said that the rules for tonight..."
Raves stands up and puts a comforting hand on her shoulder.
"Babe I know you're nervous, this is your first relationship since god knows when and you're meeting the sister but I promise you everything will be fine."
Octavia joins them with a rare soft smile in her lips.
"Raven and I researched a few tips and pointers and made a game plan for today. We'll keep our distance and pay attention to talking not too loud or too fast..."
"...we will keep the jokes to a minimum so Lexa doesn't feel left out..."
"...there won't be any pranks or embarrassing questions..."
"...softly and quietly addressing her..."
"...first letting her get a feeling for this place to make her more comfortable..."
"...but not babying her too much."
This is why Clarke loves her friends so much and she can't help but but to pull them in a tight hug with a watery "Thanks guys I love you so much."
The group hug is interrupted by the doorbell. Clarke steps back, tugging her clothes in place and ruffles her hair.
"Do I look good?"
"You look smokin' but try to relax a little okay?"
"O's right, your smile looks like you're here to kill Batman."
Okay, keep it cool. You can do this. With that thought Clarke goes to open the door and all worries melt away when she sees her girlfriend in front of her. Right beside her stands a tall blonde woman equally as beautiful as her sister.
"Hey guys. I'm glad you could make it and you must be Anya, nice to meet you."
Anya is impressed by the outstretched hand waiting to shake hers. Manners … another point for Clarke. She grabs it with a smile.
"Nice to meet you too, my sister doesn't stop talking about you."
Clarke smiles back and turns her attention to Lexa and notices the ear buds. Slowly she raises her hand and pulls one out.
"Hey beautiful. Too much noise on your way here?"
Lexa nods quietly not quite meeting the blondes eyes.
"I'm going to hug you now okay? Tab my shoulder if it gets too much."
Clarke moves slowly giving her time to pull away but the brunette does the opposite and falls in er arms with a quiet whine. Lexa wraps her arms around her shoulders and kisses the skin of her neck. Anya steps past them to give them some privacy.
"It's okay now Lex. You're here. Take your time and then we will greet the others when you're ready alright?"
A weak nod is answer enough.
Meanwhile Anya steps into the apartment knowing Lexa is in good hands.
"Clarke should I take the pots from the stove or...?"
The rest of Raven's sentence is cut off when she sees the blonde standing in their home and by god if that's not the most perfect woman she has ever seen. Anya doesn't know whtat to make off the brunette starring at her so she just raises her hand to a wave.
"Uhm hi. I'm Anya, Lexa's sister and you are?"
"Pretty, you're really pretty."
"I'm sorry what?"
Octavia shoots out of the living room, ready to rescue her friend.
"Hey. I'm Octavia and that blabbering fool is Raven."
"Well nice to meet you I guess. You must be the roommates."
A quick shake of hands then Octavia nods her head in the direction of the kitchen.
"Food is ready, where are the love birds?"
"They need a minute. They'll be right here."
"Okay then Anya take a seat. What do you wanna drink? We have beer, wine and water."
"I'll have a beer thanks."
Anya moves to take a seat but finds Raven still unmoving and blinking owlishly at her.
"Raven, you coming?"
The direct approach seems to snap the brunette out of it and she is quick to follow the blonde.
Outside the apartment Clarke and Lexa are still joined in a tight hug but the trembling of Lexa's body gradually lessens. Clarke rubs soothing circles on her girlfriends back and tries to keep her her voice as low as possible.
"You're okay baby, it's over now. Just focus on my voice."
It takes a few more minutes to calm down but eventually Lexa is able to relax and pulls the second ear bud out.
"You doing good now baby?"
Clarke tugs stray hairs behind her ear and strokes her cheek.
"I'm good thank you … babe?"
It comes out as more as a question than an actual term of endearment but it earns her a soft kiss nonetheless.
"You ready to go in or do you need a moment?"
"No, no. I'm ready."
Clarke couldn't be more proud of her girlfriend. She takes her hand, intertwines their fingers and pulls her into the apartment before closing the door behind them.
"Tour or food first?"
The sheepish smile Lexa gives her warms her heart like nothing else.
"Food first if you don't mind, I'm kinda hungry now."
Of course the blonde thinks to herself. After situations like this with a high amount of input Lexa usually feels drained and hungry. It's important to recharge the batteries either with food or a nap.
"Come on then big girl, time to feet you."
Going into the dining room the lovebirds are greeted with Octavia and Anya hatting about their workplaces and Raven … kinda looks like she's hung up on drugs, looking at Lexa's sister like she is another species. Clarke steps forward and cleans her throat.
"O, Raven. This is Lexa."
Anya almost does not believe her eyes as her little sister actually looks at them and gives a short wave.
"It's nice to meet you. Clarke has told me a lot about you."
To the surprise of everyone Raven is the first to raise and approach her but stops a good distance away.
"Hey Lexa. We were really excited to meet you. My name is Raven and that girl over there is Octavia. We got you chocolate milk for today. It's your favourite right?"
Clarke and Octavia are stunned. Never have they ever heard Raven talk with such a quiet voice and it takes them a few moments to recover. Octavia too stands up to greet their guest.
"As the doofus said I'm Octavia, nice to meet you. Please have a seat, it's all prepared and ready to go."
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The rest of the evening is spent eating and chatting. Laughter is heard trough the apartment as Clarke recounts the most funniest things that ever happened during her shifts. Anya takes a liking to the blondes friends but is still nut sure if she likes Raven or is annoyed with her staring.
Lexa and her sister stay long after the last piece of cake is eaten but all good things come to an end and so at ten it's time for them to go home, Anya has the early shift the next day as well as Clarke. The sisters offer to help with the dishes but their offer is declined by Raven and Octavia who want to make up for the blonde doing all the work so they put themselves on cleaning duty.
But late at night as the lovebirds are in their beds they still can't stop smiling as the evening went better than any of them expected and they can't wait for the next time they'll be seeing each other again.