You and Tequila

Chapter Four

"Sleepy Swan," Ruby sing-songs, her mocking tone just inches from Emma's peaceful face. "No more hitting the snooze button. It's get your ass up time or Regina will fire your pretty little bottom."

This is the golden ticket that springs Emma's heavy eyelids apart and forces her to greet the morning. Her golden mane is in disarray as she blinks rapidly, gaping at her friend in shock because Ruby is kneeling beside her bed, her hair dripping wet and those little droplets descending toward the far too small towel that's attempting to cover the woman's long torso.

"What time is it?" Emma's scratchy throat still thick from her sleep induced coma, barely makes it passed her lips and into the still dark room.

"Six o'clock," Ruby nonchalantly replies as she stands tall on her toothpick legs and sashays away, ignoring Emma's childish groans of protest. "We have to be downstairs, looking flawless, might I add, in one hour and fifteen minutes."

Emma releases another puff of annoyance while stretching out her sleepy limbs. She groans one last time before her feet connect with the plushy carpet below and she forces herself to greet the day.

"I thought Regina's first interview is at eight?" She mumbles through a yawn and pads lazily across the hotel room toward the bathroom.

"Yes, but it takes fifteen minutes to drive there and we need to be downstairs before she is and she always insists on arriving anywhere at least fifteen minutes early. Punctuality is a quirk of hers."

Emma nods along mindlessly, not truly listening to a word her friend is saying even though she knows she should probably be writing down half this shit. She turns on the shower, trying so desperately to suppress another yawn and waits for the water to warm up.

"Uh, you gonna go back to your room now?" Emma questions when she realizes she needs to strip, but Ruby isn't making any plans to leave the bathroom.

Ruby rolls those dazzling green eyes as she stares intently at her pores through the mirror. "Not like I haven't seen you naked before," she flippantly replies, because she has seen Emma bare, far too many times when they were teenagers and truthfully that just isn't something she's shy or timid about.

Yet, Emma, she flushes crimson and spins on her heel in a lame attempt to hide the burning embarrassment. That was a long time ago in her mind and back then things were different. Emma was a hell of a lot more of a free spirit back then and she and Ruby were inseparable. They never thought once about changing in front of each other or how inappropriate it might have been to go skinny dipping with boys...one too many times to actually count. But now, she's older and she's changed a lot. She's an adult, with responsibilities and well...she just doesn't feel that comfortable anymore. Maybe her body isn't as young and tight as it once was when she was sixteen.

"Girl, come on," Ruby exasperates, easily dropping her towel to expose all her goodies and to Emma's mortification, she hears that material hit the floor. Emma quickly whips around to face the shower and slams her eyes shut. "Where's the wild child I remember?"

"Dude, come on, we aren't kids anymore. Put that towel back on," she tosses over her shoulder and even though her eyes are closed, she shields them with her hands as well for extra protection.

"No, not until you lighten up. I haven't seen my best friend since we have become reacquainted again. Let her come out and play or I swear I will hug you," Ruby threatens, sneaking a few steps closer, trying so hard to be quiet behind Emma's back.

"Don't," she firmly demands, her hands making quick work to drop her skimpy cotton shorts and fumble to remove her tank top. She hastily jumps into the shower, pulling the curtain with extra speed and breathing a sigh in relief when she knows she's alone. "Five years is a long time apart, Rubes. You have to understand that I've changed. I've grown up," she sighs heavily from that separation ache in her heart, twisting the organ yet again.