Chapter Text
Jess takes a deep breath. Last game of Nationals. They win this, they win it all. It would be the first time Jess has actually won Nationals in her college career. They’d probably even put their picture in the school newspaper for the first time in years. The trophy would look damn good in their coach’s office, that’s for damn sure. Not to mention the wonders it would probably do for their funding. To have a tiny school from Minnesota beat one of the biggest universities in California? In the country? Oh, yeah. It would force them to finally see women’s lacrosse as something worthwhile.
She has the ball because she won the draw (of course she did, she always does, it’s her whole thing) and the other midfielder’s ankle juts out to trip her in an incredibly illegal move, but of course the referees don’t catch it. Even so, Jess all but hops over said ankle and keeps running towards the goal. The last game they played was the one versus Texas and Jess won’t lie and say she’s a little surprised when the defender that crashes into her isn’t a spunky curly-haired player that Jess somehow still hasn’t stopped thinking about even though it’s been weeks.
Because of course, they had gone to lunch — Jess juts right, cradling low to avoid a clash of sticks that probably would have cost her the ball judging by the sheer force of air that whooshes over her head. They had gone to lunch and Jess had the time of her life because of course they had to click off the field (and out of the locker room) but then — Jess gets the ball over to Ana with a throw so forceful she can feel herself pull her shoulder back into place with a groan. Jess had flown back to Minnesota. And Lupe hadn’t called. Or texted. Or anything. Then again, Jess hadn’t either. But she had hoped for at least a hope you landed okay but nope, nothing. She was losing her mind.
Okay, finals are over. She just has to win this game and then she can carry on with her summer and everything will be fine. Jess’ll go home to Moose Jaw for a couple weeks, come back to Minnesota in July for training, and she’ll live and breathe lacrosse again all while trying to navigate the hell that is registering for classes she quite literally needs to graduate.
She takes a breath, opening up herself so Ana can toss the ball back to her since she has a better shot at the goal. Thankfully, Ana gets the message and the ball finds itself arcing over to Jess. It lands in her net because it always does and she gets an accidental elbow to the face, the whistle blows and she’s out of her head. Her mouth tastes metallic around her mouthguard, but she resists the urge to take it out because if she spits blood she’s out of the game. So, she perseveres. She wonders if Lupe maybe texted her good luck before the game and Jess didn’t notice because she always shoves her phone away an hour before the game. It’s possible. Okay, whistle blowing, she runs and takes a shot at the goal. It hits the net, she smiles through her mouthguard.
Jess gets a couple of pats on the back and she goes to head out to the circle in the middle, but she sees Terri walking up and she groans, pulling out her mouthguard and asking, “Seriously? He’s subbing me out now?”
“I can already see the bruise forming on your cheek, take a breather,” Terri tells her and as much as Jess wants to wring her neck (she doesn’t really, Terri is too sweet for her own good, Jess could never) she pulls her goggles up to her forehead and jogs off the field, mouthguard tucked under the trap of her uniform.
The minute she’s on the bench, her leg is bouncing against the track and she’s chugging water like her life depends on it even though she knows she’ll feel sick the moment she starts running again. Still, it does feel good to cool off for a moment even if she almost always refuses a sub if she can help it. Her coach tells her it’s just for her to catch her breath for a play, but she’s too antsy for her own good. There’s less than five minutes left and she very well could be on the bench until the end of the game if the play runs long enough.
Selfishly, she’s a little relieved when the other team scores just because it means she’s running back onto the field. “Terri, coach says you’re taking Ana.”
Terri nods and steps to the circle as Ana jogs to the bench and Jess takes a breath. Okay, two minutes left. She gets a little bit of deja vu as the whistle blows. Jess is taller than the other girl, arms longer as she reaches up and catches the airborne ball in her stick and makes a run for it. The opponent’s midfielder didn’t stand a chance in terms of speed, but the defender catches Jess off guard. She rolls her eyes internally, but throws the ball to Jo who was partially open (in Jess’s eyes, open enough) before letting herself be taken by the defender. Her eyes betray her, looking at the clock. A minute thirty. Jo’s gotta have it.
A defender knocks it out of Jo’s stick and it goes to the grass. Jess is sprinting before her mind can even fully catch up. A minute on the clock and the ball is in her stick. There’s two defenders crossing in front of her, blocking the goal so the ball goes back to Jo. She creates space between her, the goal, and the three defenders and midfielders that flock to her. Running the clock, just like she should. Of course, the panic to defend against Jo leaves both Terri and Jess all but wide open.
Jo’s eyes catch her across a couple yards and Jess has her stick ready, cradling before it’s even in her net. It arcs against the setting sun, hitting Jess’s net with fifteen seconds left. It hits the goal with two seconds left. They’re two points ahead. The game is called.
They just won Nationals. Jess just won nationals. Jo is screaming in her ear before she even fully processes it.
As they’re coming off of the field, about to head into their (thankfully separated) locker room, Jess hears a low whistle come from the direction of the audience. Followed by a slow clap.
“Wow, she really is unbeatable, the legends are true,” Jess turns around and sure enough. Lupe fucking Garcia. Jess clenches her jaw, trying to bite back the smile fighting to appear because she is not going to let Lupe know that Jess hasn’t stopped thinking about her. “Don’t look so surprised, sheesh, c’mon, the team had to take a quick road trip to support our number one fucking enemies.”
Jess is still holding her stick with her gear bag tossed over her shoulder, looking like an idiot as Lupe walks up the track to her. In the entrance to the locker rooms, she sees Jo give her a thumbs up and she can’t help but roll her eyes. “Damn, they let you in here? I thought this area was for the people that actually made it to Nationals?”
“Ha ha, that’s a good one,” Lupe stops two steps away from her. “How’ve you been?”
“What’re you doing here?” The you didn’t call is left off. Jess doesn’t know why it bothered her so badly. It was one date. But seeing Lupe in the flesh again reminds her why she got so addicted in the first place. “Haven’t heard from you.” Damn it.
Lupe bites her lip, shoving her hands in her pockets. Despite the fact that they’re still surrounded by people, Jess can’t help but feel like they’re the only two people in the world right now. “I don’t have a good excuse, honestly. It actually wasn’t even my idea to come to the game, not that I didn’t want to. The distance scared me a little.”
“It was one date, I didn’t ask you to marry me, Lu,” Jess can’t help but chuckle. She gets it, she does. Jess had stared at their text conversation for probably hours debating whether or not to carry it on, but it just didn’t feel plausible. It’s not the first time Jess has had some sort of affair with another player, but it was the first time she found herself wanting more out of it. It was scary, still is.
She slings her arm around Lupe’s shoulders and pulls her towards the locker room. Lupe leans into the touch and walks with her. “Almost wish you did, then I would have had an excuse to chase after you.”
“Well, you followed me to California, so you kinda did,” Jess teases, “Call me after a date maybe and then we can talk about marriage.”
Lupe’s hand comes up to her heart, letting out an exaggerated sigh, “Oh, thank God. Here I thought I had totally obliterated my chances.”
They stop outside the doors to the locker room and Jess removes her arm from Lupe’s shoulders, but she grabs Jess’s hand anyway, stopping her from going in for a moment. Jess smiles softly, “You drove to California to come watch the game that you missed out on. I think that deserves another chance. Besides, I could’ve called, too. So, there’s that.”
“Well,” Lupe hesitates, biting back a sly grin, “You said it, not me.”
“I like you,” Jess says next, surprising even herself. “And I think this could go somewhere if we try.”
“I like you, too.” Lupe’s averting her eyes and Jess can’t help but think she’s just as scared as Jess is. She hasn’t had a real relationship, or even tried, since high school. And those never ended well. “What do you suggest?”
Jess bites her lip, racking her brain, “Well, for the long-term, I think you should come visit me over the summer. Or, the month of summer we get to ourselves.”
Lupe seems to perk up at this, “To Minnesota?”
“Moose Jaw. It’s in Canada,” she explains with a laugh, leaning against the wall beside the door with her arms crossed and one foot against the wall, leg bent at the knee. “Short-term, though. They splurged for single rooms for all the players, something about championships and winning, I dunno.” It’s coy, but Lupe knows exactly what she’s implying. “I’ll give you the room number.”
Lupe had been facing her, keeping a safe distance, but she takes a step forward when Jess says this. Her leg comes up against where Jess’s is bent, the skin of her thigh barely brushing against Lupe’s pant leg. Jess bites her lip, relishing in the warmth of having Lupe up in her space again. It makes her want to skip the hotel room all together and just pull Lupe into the locker room and have her way with her. She leans her head back against the wall, uncrossing her arms so she can tug Lupe closer to her.
She wants to tease a little longer, really, she plans to. Until Lupe lifts her chin up just slightly and Jess can’t help but lean down enough to connect their lips. It’s soft and tentative, both of them a little unsure of where they stand, but Jess doesn’t mind. One of her hands holds Lupe’s elbow while the other tugs at her belt loop, keeping her close. A wandering hand of Lupe’s is resting on the fair skin of her thigh, freckled and just a little pink from the sun, fingers just barely slipping up the hem of her uniform skirt and sliding up beneath her shorts. The fact that they’re standing in the middle of the hall completely slips past her mind.
Until someone pushes through the doors to the locker room and the two of them can’t help but jump apart like they’ve been burned. Thankfully, it’s just Jo who immediately picks up on what the two of them were doing, letting out a low dog whistle.
“Whew, keep it in your pants, you two, sheesh,” Jo teases, crossing her arms and shaking her head. “Lu, you’re invited to team dinner, by the way, team decided.”
“This is their way of trapping you into a line of questioning, don’t fall for it.” Jess reaches out and grabs Lupe’s arm, despite the fact she would not mind Lupe tagging along. She only has a couple of spare days in California and she has no idea how long until Lupe has to be back in Texas and shamelessly she wants to make the most of it. Although, she wouldn’t mind making the most of it in just her hotel room.
“Don’t listen to her,” Jo gestures between the two of them, grabbing Lupe’s attention again, “We just wanna know more about our mortal enemy who has somehow managed to charm Jess of all people.”
Lupe bites her lip, holding back a smile as she looks at Jess, “Team dinner sounds lovely.”
Jess groans, letting her head hit the wall with a thunk, “Okay, fine. Give me five minutes. You two are awful together already.”
Sure enough, Jess ends up sandwiched between Lupe and Jo at some random diner because it was the only place open by the time everyone found their way out of the locker room and she is going insane because Lupe’s hand is on her thigh while she’s laughing with her team and Jess does not have the patience for this right now. She loves her team, yes, she loves that they won the biggest game of their careers thus far. However, she really wants to be beneath the woman next to her right now.
They finished their food a while ago, but no one has gotten up to leave except for coach, who left his credit card (much to everyone’s relief — they are college students after all) for the bill and took an early night. Lupe’s hand on Jess’s thigh burns through the fabric of her pants, their shoulders pressed together since everyone is squeezed into a booth as best they can.
After a few more minutes of this special kind of torture, the conversation seems to fizzle a little bit and Lupe is leaning in her ear, asking, “Wanna get out of here?”
Jess probably sounds far too relieved when she responds with, “God, yes.”
She turns to Jo who is currently trapping them in the booth, saying, “Hey, Joey, I think I’m gonna call it a night, mind letting me out?”
Jo’s eyes go to her, then Lupe, then back to Jess, “Call it a night?”
Although the implied accusation is absolutely correct and both of them know this, Jess nods anyway, “Yeah, I’m exhausted from carrying your ass through that game now let me out.”
“Ouch, right for the jugular, McCready,” Jo mocks offense, but she laughs and lets them squeeze out of the booth anyway.
The team bids the two of them goodnight, Ana and Jo especially wearing knowing expressions that Jess is sure to hear about later, but she doesn’t care about that right now. They head out into the warm summer air, hands still linked because neither of them bothered to let go.
“I think they like you,” Jess muses, breaking the comfortable silence as they walk back to the hotel. It’s only a couple of blocks, but it feels like forever right now. “Most of them think I’m entirely incapable of human emotion, so you surprised them a little.”
Lupe looks just a little too smug about this, “Oh, you mean the moody star of the team who is disturbingly violent on the field isn’t a hopeless romantic? That’s crazy. I never would’ve guessed.”
“Disturbingly violent?” Jess asks, “You tripped me, last I checked. Also throat checked me. Also—”
“It was an accident!” Lupe defends, but she’s laughing as she says it. She’s tugging her along, the sidewalks almost empty at this time of night.
Jess takes a pause for a moment, tugging Lupe back to her and stopping them in their path just so she can kiss her. Lupe follows along immediately, one hand coming up to hold her face as their other hands stay interlocked between them.
“What was that for?” Lupe murmurs once they break apart, neither of them making a move to keep walking just yet.
Jess shrugs, biting her lip, “Just wanted to. C’mon, let’s get back to the hotel so I can have you all to myself.”
“Oh, were those your intentions? I really thought we were just gonna talk the night away.”
Jess keeps walking, glaring back at Lupe as she catches up. The hotel is in sight now. “Really, you came all this way, least I can do.”
“We’ll have all the time we want in Moose Jaw, too, ya know. Long term and all that,” Lupe shrugs, sidling against her and walking side by side as they step out of the night and into the lobby of the hotel. When Jess doesn’t say anything, she adds, “What? Thought I wasn’t gonna take you up on your offer?”
“Wasn’t sure,” Jess shrugs, the two of them heading for the elevator. Her heart thrums in her chest with anticipation — getting Lupe underneath her has been the only thing she’s been thinking about all night, for the past few weeks even.
The minute the elevator door closes behind them, Lupe has her up against the wall and all conversation has been abandoned. Lupe’s leg slots between her thighs as their lips meet in a kiss that is much more heated than they’ve dared to thus far. Jess presses up against Lupe, holding their bodies together in the small space. The possibility that the doors could open any moment and someone could see them is completely out of her brain, but it hopefully won’t be a problem. Just to get a small taste of Lupe is enough for now as Jess kisses like her life depends on it.
There’s a small ding and they pull apart as the doors open onto Jess’s floor. She tugs Lupe out of the elevator, finding her door with ease and pulling out the room key. Lupe comes up behind her, arms around Jess’s waist and kissing her neck. She can’t help but lose her focus a little bit, struggling with the door. She can feel Lupe smile against her skin, but Jess just rolls her eyes and pushes it open.
She shoves Lupe up against the door and kisses her roughly; desperately. If Lupe has any complaints, she doesn’t voice them as she instead licks at Jess’s mouth, opening up her lips so the kiss can deepen. Something about Lupe is so all-consuming it drives Jess insane. No matter the fact that every line of their bodies is pressed together, Jess wants her ever closer.
“Should we do it in the shower for old times’ sake?” Lupe asks, whispering against Jess’s lips.
Jess just scoffs. “I’m good, thanks.”
She tugs Lupe away from the door and pushes her towards the mattress. Watching as Lupe falls back, propping herself up on her elbows, eyes tracing over Jess’s form as she pulls her shirt over her head. Lupe’s eyes on her are hungry, looking like she would devour her given the chance. Jess knows she would let her.
Lupe pushes up to meet her as Jess crawls onto the bed, arms on either side of Lupe as their lips meet once more. Jess’s teeth bite down ever so slightly on her lip, just a little tease that elicits a quiet whimper from Lupe that goes straight to her crotch. Oh, she’s not going to last long at all.
Her hand slides up Lupe’s shirt, the fabric riding up along her arm as she teases at Lupe’s nipples, feeling the cool metal beneath her fingertips — one of the other things about Lupe that has been impossible to stop thinking about. Lupe reacts soundly to the touch, breathy moans befalling her lips which Jess chases down with her own breath, not wanting to break away from Lupe for even a moment.
“Fuck, Jess, please,” Lupe breathes out and Jess knows exactly what she’s asking for.
Her hands reluctantly leave Lupe’s chest as she goes for the zipper of her jeans, tugging them down to her thighs. After a second, though, Lupe just kicks off her shoes and jeans all together. Jess bites back her smile at the idea of Lupe matching her eagerness, holding back the intense feelings of relief that Lupe wants this just as badly as she does.
Jess kisses Lupe deeply as her hand breaches the fabric of Lupe’s underwear, dipping into the wetness between her legs. Feeling just how badly Lupe is turned on for her makes the feeling between her own thighs that much worse. She clenches her thighs where she rests between Lupe’s legs, trying to create any kind of pressure that may hold her over. Her fingers tease over Lupe’s slick folds, just to hear her beg.
“So wet for me, baby,” she whispers, leaning up against Lupe’s neck, biting and sucking at the skin beneath her ear, just to feel the vibrations of her moans against her lips.
Lupe’s arm around her neck clutches tightly, blunt nails carving crescent shaped marks into her fair skin. Jess aches for Lupe to mark her up, to belong to her and no one else. Her teammates had teased the hell out of her after their first time together, marks littering Jess’s neck, but all she had felt was a strange sense of pride.
“Please, Jess, please,” Lupe whines, throwing her head back against the pillows as Jess lingers around her clit, not quite creating the pressure she needs to get off.
“Since you asked so nicely,” Jess relents, pressing down on her clit just to see the way Lupe reacts.
Two fingers tease ever so slightly at her entrance and Lupe looks at her through lidded eyes, her gaze desperate and hungry. Jess bites her lip as she presses into Lupe, feeling the wetness consume her fingers as she curls them inside of Lupe. She keeps biting at Lupe’s neck, pushing up into Lupe as she slowly develops a rhythm. She pushes down against Jess’s fingers, one of her hands drifting downward to Jess’s chest, teasing her nipple before drifting lower and lower. Jess lets out a moan against Lupe’s skin the moment her hand presses up against the wetness between her legs, all but soaking through the fabric of her pants. She still feels all too clothed for the occasion, but she doesn’t have the willingness to take a break from fucking Lupe to get her pants off.
Lupe seems to have no qualms about this, tugging Jess up by the belt loops just so she can fiddle with her zipper, hands shaky as she trembles beneath Jess. Their wrists cross in the middle as Lupe shoves her hand down Jess’s pants, finally bringing some relief to her aching cunt. She can’t help but whimper against Lupe’s neck, biting down on the junction between her neck and shoulder as Lupe teases at her clit. She loses her rhythm, fucking into Lupe haphazardly as her focus slips away from her. To make up for her losing her coordination, she adds another finger.
Lupe is close and she knows it, she can feel it in the way she keeps tensing up and releasing in anticipation, holding on for no good reason. Jess can’t help but give her another command, not that Lupe doesn’t like it, she knows she does. “C’mon, come for me, baby.”
“Fuck,” Lupe spills out, her hand leaving Jess’s pants momentarily just to splay around her hip, fingers spreading Jess’s own slick against her skin.
Jess kisses down Lupe’s chest as she comes, taking one of her nipples into her mouth and teasing at the piercing with her teeth. The way Lupe looks down at her, one hand cradling the back of her head and running her fingers through her hair is intoxicating, just enough to drive Jess insane.
Once Lupe seems to recover from her orgasm, she takes a hand on Jess’s chest and shoves her down against the mattress, climbing half on top of her as their lips meet once more. Jess absentmindedly wipes her hand on her pants, coming up to hold Lupe’s face as they kiss messily in a clash of tongue and teeth. Her chest flutters as Lupe’s hand drifts lower, tugging Jess’s pants down enough for her to get better leverage before sliding back into Jess’s underwear — somewhere it was absolutely made to be.
“Please, Lu,” the absolute yearning in her voice surprises even herself, but the look on Lupe’s face shows that it only seems to turn her on even more.
The feeling when Lupe finally pushes two fingers inside of her is indescribable. One of her hands comes down to clutch the sheets as her hips buck up against Lupe’s touch, begging for more without even having to use her words. She tangles her other hand in Lupe’s dark curls, her grip tight as it grounds her against Lupe.
Lupe is unforgiving as she fucks into Jess, curling and spreading her fingers in a way where Jess knows she’s not going to last much longer. Her lips meet Lupe’s in a vain attempt to hide the embarrassing amount of noise falling past her lips and Lupe swallows down every last whimper, whine, and moan without complaint. Only Lupe seems to have this way of dismantling her, something that has become so beyond addicting.
Her touch washes over her in waves as she preens against Lupe’s touch, her orgasm catching her off guard as she spills around her fingers in what feels like an entirely too short time. She wants her night with Lupe to last forever. Then again, there really isn’t much stopping them from going all night. Sure, her built-up stamina is useful during a game, but she’s even more grateful for it in times like these.
Lupe settles on top of her, slowing her movements inside of Jess, but not stopping them entirely as she nuzzles against Jess’s neck, leaving sultry sweet kisses along the skin there. Neither of their motions are particularly hurried as Jess settles against the mattress, just letting Lupe do whatever she wants.
“You,” she breathes out once she finds her words again, “are utterly insatiable.”
“You want me to stop?” Lupe asks with a lilt in her voice that tells Jess she already knows the answer.
Jess shakes her head because how could she say no when Lupe feels so good inside of her — which is something she doesn’t even like normally. But she thinks she would let Lupe do quite literally anything to her which is both terrifying and comforting all at once.
“Feels good,” she mumbles, her hand coming down to trace the lines of Lupe’s wrist as she fucks Jess softly and tenderly. She’s not chasing an orgasm, just trying to make Jess feel good for a little while longer.
Eventually, though, Lupe stalls her movement and pulls out of Jess and she whines at the loss, catching herself off guard. Lupe falls beside her on the mattress, turning her head so her eyes meet Jess’s. Together, they look like a mess. Lupe’s shirt is rucked up halfway up her chest, her underwear askew. Meanwhile Jess is completely topless with her pants halfway down her thighs.
“What a pair we make,” Lupe comments, eyes tracing down Jess’s form, hands linked together over her stomach.
Jess hums contentedly, reaching out and wrapping her arm around Lupe’s waist, pulling her closer so their lips can meet against the mattress. The kiss is sweeter, but it keeps the same heat from before. Jess thinks she could kiss Lupe forever.
“I hope you know, I like you, like, an embarrassing amount,” Lupe says once they break apart and Jess really is just glad Lupe was the one to say it first.
She just laughs, kissing Lupe again, chaster this time, “I like you, too.”
“So, do two dates constitute a marriage proposal?”
“Team dinner does not count as a date.”
“Come on,” Lupe groans, trying (and failing) to hold back her laughter. Jess doesn’t budge, although a smile certainly fights to break through her stern expression. “I will visit Moose Jaw for you, though, wherever that is.”
Jess hums, “Good. I want to have my ways with you before we go back to being mortal enemies on the field again.”
Lupe grins, leaning forward and kissing Jess deeply. It can’t help but feel like the start of something new; something good. “I can’t wait.”