“Heeey!  Spence I was t…totally just wondering where yooooou were, and look, you’re heeere!” Ashley slurred as she stumbled towards the blonde.

   “Ash, be careful, you’re gonna fall,” Spencer warned as she was a few steps away from the girl.

   “Pshhh, no way.  I’ve got impectab…able balance!  Imp-ap-ec-ab-b-bleeee,” laughed the brunette as she finally reached Spencer, grabbing onto her shoulders for support. 

   “Ash…” sighed the blonde, grabbing onto the girl’s arms to steady her.  “Ash, you’re so wasted.  Where did you even get the alcohol from?” she asked, not really expecting an actual answer.

   “Um…one of those b-bar thingies wasn’t paying too much at-ten-tension to our ordeeerrrs,”

   “You should really go to bed; you shouldn’t be walking around here in the dark like this.  It’s not safe,” stated the concerned blonde.

The brunette immediately shook her head at the suggestion, only proceeding to intensify her dizziness.  “Awww…Spencey, you’re so sweet when you’re worriiiiieeed…” Ashley said as she brought a hand up to the blonde’s cheek and looked hazily into her intense blue eyes. 

    “No Ashley seriously, we should get you back to your cabin…” started the blonde before she was interrupted by Ashley pressing a finger to her lips to silence her.

    “Shh…it’s okay Spenceeeeyy,” giggled the brunette, “I’m gonna be just f-fine alriiighht.  You don’t have to worry ab-bouttt me, just go to sleeeep and I’ll see you tomor-ro-row, okaaay?”

    “But Ash…”

   “Shh…no, really,” insisted Ashley, interrupting the blonde once again, “Not another wo-ord abooout it Spencey, just go to bed!”

 If Spencer hadn’t been so concerned about the girl she would have found her drunken reasoning hysterical.  The blonde reluctantly accepted the fact that there was no point in arguing with Ashley and that there was no way she was ever going to convince her into going to bed.  So Spencer just gazed at the gorgeous, incoherent girl and hoped that she would, in fact, be okay and not end up overboard somehow.

Ashley gazed back at the taller girl with as much focus she could muster and grinned sloppily at her before wrapping her in a tight, intimate hug.  Spencer let herself relax in the drunken girl’s arms while the strong stench of hard alcohol filled her nose.  Even though the brunette was completely tanked, Spencer couldn’t help but revel in the feel of the smaller girl’s wrapped securely around her.

After a few long moments Ashley pulled back to release Spencer from the embrace, but kept her arms loosely around the girl’s waist.

     “Goodnight Spence,” said Ashley sweetly.

   “Goodnight Ash, please be careful,” replied the blonde in a last attempt to help the drunken girl.

    “I will, don’t worry,” whispered Ashley before she leaned in, placing a sweet kiss on the blonde’s cheek.  The smaller girl slowly pulled back, offering Spencer one last sincere smile before retreating back towards the basketball court. 

Spencer watched her as she made her way back over to the net surrounding the court.  Once the smaller girl had reached the net the blonde turned around and began to walk back towards the stairs down to the nearest elevator in defeat.

The blonde had a hard time falling asleep that night out of genuine concern for Ashley.  This thing going on between them, whatever it was, was certainly complicated and confusing to say the least, but that didn’t matter in the slightest to Spencer.  All she knew was that she had never felt this way, and whatever this thing between her and Ashley would bring, well she would welcome it with open arms.