Come Monday, Ash was in a better mood. Mr Duncan was funny again. She laughed when Mr Griffin's toupee fell off his head. The substitute teacher ended class ten minutes early, rushing out presumably to go cry in the bathroom after Ash asked her a few too many uprooting questions. In Biology, Ash accidentally sprayed gut juice all over Britney's blouse and in English... well Miss Olivia was looking beautiful as always.

"Ash, see me after school or you get detention." That was how Amplebaum greeted her at the door to her class room.

You're lucky you're beautiful, Ash thought.

"Nice to see you too, Olivia," she mumbled instead.

And like that, she was not looking forward to the end of school.

Olivia Applebaum was going to skin her for flouting her orders the previous Friday and while Ash counted each time in the overwhelming presence of the older woman a blessing, she was not fun when she was upset.

When school finally rolled around to a close, Ash dragged her feet all the way to Miss Applebaum's empty classroom where the woman sat grading papers at her desk.

She stood in the doorway and knocked on the door.

Ms Applebaum perked up and set down the pen.

Before she could invite her in, Ash walked into the room.

"Did I mention you look stunning today? The eggshell white," She stared pointedly at her chest as if her statement justified it; demanded it even, "really brings out your—"

"Have a seat, Ash."

"Oh shit."

"Language!"

"Oh..." She thought of a replacement. "poop?" She shrugged.

Ms Applebaum sighed exhaustively and pointed at the desk directly in front of her. Ash took the seat.

"Wait I'm not failing your class, am I?" she inquired.

"No but you are getting Bs and Cs on my test. I believe you can do better than that."

Ash humored her with a moment of exaggerated pondering before she said,

"No, I don't think so."

Ms Applebaum didn't say anything for a while after that. Ash waited patiently and silently. She was not about to put herself in trouble. Maybe she really had forgotten and this was something else.

"Now, about Friday..."

Or not.

"What about it?" Ash asked.

Ms Applebaum seemed displeased at her feigned aloofness. Not quite angry, more like frustrated. But why?

She left her seat and walked around to lean against it directly in front of Ash.

"I think I've seen this porno," Ash observed.

"Ash, I realize you don't want to be here and you don't want to talk about this," What is going on? "but as your teachers I think it's my duty to make sure my students are okay."

Oh no.

Ash could suddenly feel the walls closing in. It wasn't a new feeling but it was one she hadn't had to deal with since her grief counselor.

"I'm fine, Ms Amplebum—"

"Applebaum."

"—Honestly. What happened on Friday was just a little mood swing. Totally nothing to worry about." She nodded for emphasis.

Unfortunately the teacher wasn't convinced.

"Ash..."

"I'm fine now. Really. I did some soul searching and I realized being sad was a drag and being happy was awesome so I chose to be awesome. Problem solved."

Admitting defeat, she nodded. "Fine then. But just remember, you can come talk to me whenever you want. Within school hours of course."

Against her natural instinct to make a sexual joke, Ash nodded solemnly.

"I appreciate the concern but I have soccer practice in five minutes so..." She let her sentence hang in the air unfinished.

"Go." Ms Applebaum sighed.

Ash bolted for the door before the woman could think of something else to add, but there she came to an abrupt halt, tripping awkwardly and catching herself as she did.

"In case no one told you, you look beautiful today Ms Applebaum."

The suggestive wink that followed took every atom of innocence from the compliment but Ash was already racing down the halls before the woman could reply.

*****

The girls were out stretching on the field before practice, and Ash was with them, few minutes after her talk with the lovely Olivia Amplebum.

Ash was seated on grass stretching to touch her fully extended legs at the toes while the others where in various other forms of basic contortion—everyone except Maddie.

Thanks to years of yoga—and maybe the fact that she was part limbless reptile—, Maddie could do really strange things with her body, bending like her bones were made of rubber. It was one of the more potent reasons Ash and Maddie had lasted so long. The girl could do things in bed other girls could either only dream of or would pass out at the thought of. Ash was fairly certain she could put her mouth to her own nether regions with little difficulty and only mild disgust.

Maddie was next to Ash bending her back so far in Ash was basically waiting for the pop! when Ash realized they had not really spoken about her new relationship ever since it became a thing, especially since Maddie had accused her of cheating on her with Hailey before they became an item.

Lowering her voice to a whisper, she asked, "Hey, Maddie?"

Around her the others paid no mind, talking about something else.

"Yup?"

"Could we talk?"

"Yeah. Sure." She unfurled herself from the position that was frankly unnecessary for a warm up—but since she was the best goalie the school had ever had, no one questioned her methods; if she wanted to do a dance to the gods of sports too, they would not only let her but also join in.

She sat in the lotus position next to Ash with a posture so finesse it was incredible.

"What's up?"

"I noticed we haven't really talked about me moving on with Hailey yet and I know you said you were cool back then but I gotta know, are we cool?"

She opened her mouth to speak immediately, clearly to debunk all worries, but when she saw that Ash wanted a real answer, her lips pressed back together for a moment longer.

"Ash, I'm not gonna lie, I was hurt. A part of me still is. I let you go and that's gonna be my loss for the rest of my life."

Ash felt a twinge of guilt in her chest. Maddie was very over protective but she was not very in touch with her emotions. Hearing her talk like this was strange. She had seen a fraction of this at her mother's funeral when Maddie had attempted to console her.

"But, we weren't good together and I gave you good reasons to do what you did. I'm not fine with it but I'm determined to be."

Ash nodded.

"Plus there is this cheerleader I've been checking out recently. Total booty call but who am I to say no?"

She leaned away, laughing as Ash reached over to smack her.

When her laugh died down, she grew serious once more.

"You really like this one, don't you?"

Ash took her time to respond even though she knew the answer. Maddie and her had not had the most exclusive relationships which meant Ash had a lot of meaningless flings. The fact that she had cut off them all to be with Hailey was answer enough.

She nodded. "I do."

*****

"So... How was practice?"

"You were there, Hailey," Ash reminded.

Hailey huffed in a cute way that only she knew how to and drummed on the wheel.

"Yeah, but I wasn't exactly watching the practice," Hailey muttered, "Besides, I like when you talk about stuff that I don't understand."

"Even though you don't understand?" Ash asked.

"You always sound excited when you talk about sports. And your eyes sort of shine too."

Ash's mouth hung open.

"They do not!"

"Do too." She swerved the vehicle into the driveway of her home and killed the engine. "We're here."

"Good. I'm starving." Ash freed herself from her seatbelt and reached around back to grab one of the to-go bags in the backseat.

They were unofficially on a date. Having already stopped at a drive-thru to pick up burgers, fries and a large coke, Hailey had driven to her house where she would be spending the late afternoon and early evening learning to play video games.

Unfortunately, Hailey had deemed all the food gaming snacks and as such refused to let Ash take so much as a burger despite the fact that Ash had bought more than she was confident she could inhale. Even as she unwrapped the burger and took it to her mouth, Hailey reached over and snatched it, returning it to the bag despite Ash's extremely rare pouty face.

"But I'm hungry!" she wailed, ending with her dark red lips pushed forward in a continued pout.

Practice had been grueling and it was for more reasons that because Ash had suffered through a headache half the time, although that had not helped her performance.

Hailey turned a deaf ear to her protests, stepped out of the car and marched up to the house, bags in tow.

Shoulders sagged to match the state of her hollow insides, Ash followed.

As expected—and planned—the house was empty. Hailey's dad was not in town, her mom was at work and her brother was not expected home till much later. This meant they had the house to themselves which sounded promising.

Hailey was in the living room, setting up her Xbox when Ash got there.

She looked up when Ash didn't move any further into the room. Ash chose then to give her a meaningful look, then she glanced at the food then back at her.

"Oh, go for it already."

It could quite literally be said that Ash descended upon the burgers with furious hunger. From her previous position, she pounced on the couch and ripped into the first she could lay her hands on.

She was done with her first and—now partially sated—was slowly unraveling the second with her legs crisscrossed beneath her when Hailey came to sit with her, the screen in front of them loading.

Hailey handed her a game pad and rushed her through the basic controls then fished out and started on a burger all before the menu came up. Where Ash had been worried that Hailey would dominate her at the game, she was now certain that not only would Hailey mercilessly do so, but she would also leave Ash utterly clueless as she did.

And that was how it happened. The first three games, Hailey wrecked her so diligently she had Ash questioning her monthly performance as girlfriend; wondering if this was revenge for a transgression she had no recollection of committing. Finally, Hailey did teach her, and then she beat her some more.

They went on to other games but the result was the same whether Ash was shooting or fighting barehanded or navigating a race car.

While Ash did not enjoy having her ass handed to her over and over, virtually raping her was doing plenty for Hailey's self esteem. The girl was in her element, wielding her pad like the fate of the world depended on it.

When Hailey bumped into her for the umpteenth time—a needless action but one that coincided with the ferocity of the racing game they were playing—Ash snatched her pad from her, raising it high above her head.

"Time out, you witch," Ash said, "I think that's enough for today."

Hailey barely hesitated before she jumped at Ash, the sheer weight of her body and the suddenness of the attack sending them both falling onto the couch.

"The game's not over yet!"

Hailey continued to reach for the pad, not yet taking in the position she had gotten into with her form stretched out against Ash's and practically grinding as she wrestled with her.

Ash's hand which held the controller remained safely out of reach despite Hailey's attempts and her palm pushing her away by the face away.

"Does it matter? You win, you little monster."

"Yeah but I don't get the satisfaction of—"

"Of completely destroying me?"

Hailey settled down as she contemplated the question.

"Yeah. Pretty much." She smiled.

She started to pull away when Ash wrapped her leg around her waist and pinned her down. Reaching over the arm of chair to drop both controllers and free her hands, she cupped her cheeks.

"But the game..."

Her words faded to nothing as Ash moved up and licked her along the neck. She collapsed against Ash and sighed pleasantly but Ash was in the mood to tease.

She turned away when Hailey reached to kiss her and made to rise.

When Hailey's expression betrayed confusion, she gave an innocent smile and said,

"The game, remember?"

When Hailey refused to budge, Ash gave a smile that said 'yeah I didn't think so'.

"The game can wait."

"It sure can," Ash agreed.

She let Hailey plant one on her lips and held her there with her hand to the back of her head, loosely clutching a fistful of her hair. She freed her ponytail from the hairband bondage and a curtain of coffee brown locks fell around her face, blocking off any and everything that wasn't Hailey—not that she saw anything else.

As Hailey began to slowly grind against her, Ash reached in, pushing up the front of her loose-fitting sweater, and grabbed on to her tit, caressing the rough outer fabric of her bra with the base of her palm.

With a deftness born of practice, she slid one hand around her and unhooked her bra in one motion.

Before Ash could further her intentions, the front door opened and Hailey's mom stepped in, her view impeded by a couple of grocery bags she was carrying.

Panicking and senseless doing so, Hailey fell off the couch with a grunt and shot to her feet.

"Hailey?" her mom called, "Come help me out here."

"Coming, mom." Hailey replied.

Shooting Ash a meaningful look first, she turned her back to her and waited.  

Ash got the hint perfectly but she was in the mood to play. Instead of hooking the bra back, she turned away and walked towards the kitchen where Mrs Summers had disappeared to, her entry preceded by a loud "Sharon! Mrs S! My, you look lovely!"

Behind her, a long string of unladylike words exploded from Hailey's lips in a barely controlled whisper.

*****

Ash was already occupying the closest stool to the door at the kitchen island when Hailey appeared a minute and a half later. She had rushed of to take care of the bra situation herself before coming down and Ash seemed mighty pleased about how flustered she was.

"Oh there you are! Finally."

The look Hailey sent her way was deadly, promising death and destruction. It brought a smile to Ash's lips.

Ignoring her, Hailey turned to her mother.

"You needed help?"

"Oh don't worry, honey. Ash and I got everything sorted." She patted Ash's cheek fondly and Ash smiled slowly, like perhaps a contented fat cat would.

Hailey moved over to Ash's other side and discreetly pinched her as she sat down. A clenched jaw was all the satisfaction Ash let her have before she reached over, in the guise of holding her by the waist, and unhooked her bra again. She held on tight as Hailey attempted to run off to go fix it a second time, then moved subtly to put herself between Hailey and the doorway. The other way out was to move past her mother and Hailey did not want that.

"Well, don't you two look cute!" her mother commented.

Hailey faked a smile and leaned in to accent the image her mother was seeing while Ash flashed a real one. She was enjoying this. The she demon was enjoying this.

Hailey could not tell if this was payback for the defeat she had suffered at her hands a few moments ago or just plain wickedness.

"I'll make us sandwiches. What would you prefer, Ash?"

"A peanut butter and jelly sandwich for me please," Ash said, "and nothing for Hailey. She says she's watching her weight."

Hailey's jaw hung open as she stared at Ash who pretended not to see.

"Oh good for you, honey. I was going to say something about the extra weight you've put on."

Ash buried her face on the island and laughed so hard Hailey could hear muffled sobs as her shoulders quivered. She however was rooted to the spot, her jaws now touching the ground.

It would have been all fun and games if Hailey's insecurities didn't raise their ugly heads at that moment. But there was no way Ash could know and her mom could be painfully aloof without meaning to. Neither saw her expression until it went resolute.

Ash's smile disappeared when Hailey pushed past her and stormed out. All the way up to the stairs she acknowledged that she was acting like a child but she didn't care.

"I got it, Mrs Summers." She heard Ash say before she went up the stairs and out of earshot.

Ash came through her bedroom door as Hailey sat on the edge of her bed. She shut the door behind her and leaned against it with an eloquent sigh.

"Okay, bebita, talk to me."

Hailey looked up, aware of the lingering sadness her eyes held.

"You probably don't remember this but I was a fat kid...all the way to junior high. The kids were brutal with the teasing. I lost weight eventually but now I'm insecure about it, among other things."

"Oh, honey..." Her brows rose sympathetically.

"I shouldn't have reacted like that. I'm sorry."

She took two resolute steps into the room and crouched before her, taking her hands.

"It's okay to feel how you felt." She took a deep breath, as if motivating herself to go on. "I used to have anxiety attacks before every game. It comes back up sometimes."

Hailey could not believe her ears.

"Bullshit."

"No no. I'm serious," Ash said, "It was really bad. None of the girls know this. In training, I was near flawless, on the field I was almost crippled."

Hailey stared into her eyes and found that she was saying the truth.

"My uh...my mom helped me through it." She pressed her lips into a thin line. "She said some things that always help me get through things."

Hailey hugged her.

"Thank you for telling me that. Thank you..."

Ash pulled away and kissed her on the lips. 

"By the way, from what I remember you were a cute chubby."

Before Hailey could react, she reached for her legs and pulled her thighs around her waist, then without warning lifted her off the bed, rising to her feet.

"And I love your body, Hailey Summers. I'd love you with extra layers." She kissed her fiercely to prove her point. "Just not too much that you look like Jabba the Hutt."

She buried her face in the crook of Hailey's neck and jumped for the bed, taking Hailey with her.

"Now...you will call me mami."

She did.