concordia

thirty five

word count:  869

date written: 24.8.20

verse: alt-canon; scene rewrite

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the second floor was just as dead as ever when she reached it, and her heels echoed ominously as she passed the darkened filing room to reach elle's office on the other side. they'd dropped the habit of knocking a long time, and so she didn't bother when she got there, letting herself inside uninvited. her arrival was ill-timed. she walked right in on elle getting changed, freeing her arms from her scrubs just as the door opened. connie hovered awkwardly on the threshold. 

"sorry," she said when elle looked over at her arrival. "shall i-?" she gestured lamely to the corridor behind her, wordlessly offering to step back outside and wait, but elle only rolled her eyes at the suggestion. 

"don't be silly," she scoffed, throwing her creased shirt haphazardly at her nearby chair and paying no attention to whether or not it landed where intended. "what's up?" connie sighed, closing the door gently behind herself. if elle wasn't fazed by the situation, there was no reason for her to be either, and she cleared her throat as she stepped further into the office. 

"i just finished putting together what i think are the key figures for tomorrow," she said, folding her arms, "and they should be sufficient enough to suggest our overall flow rate, and uh..." she faltered as elle unabashedly removed her white undershirt, exposing her dark skin to the glow of the overhead light. "... performance." connie swallowed thickly. when they'd been at the hotel what felt like forever ago, she'd finished getting changed in the bathroom to discover that elle's 'pyjamas' were nothing but a shirt that was blatantly too short. she'd been lascivious enough back then, and connie was reminded of that now, unable to stop her eyes from wandering up elle's slender figure to her cleavage, black lace running parallel to the visible swell of her breasts.

elle balled up her shirt before tossing it carelessly towards her bag and looking over at connie. she was still visibly in a daze, her mind elsewhere, and undeniably staring, but instead of mentioning it, elle pointed to the fresh shirt folded neatly on the cabinet just behind her. "could you-?" 

still dumbstruck by elle's state of undress, connie almost didn't hear her speak, let alone what she'd said, and it took her a moment to even turn in the direction elle was pointing. "oh. right." she shook her head slightly, finally freeing herself from the depths of her daydream as she moved to collect the shirt. it was faded yellow and soft to the touch but felt inexplicably heavy when she gingerly picked it up and turned back. her gaze automatically rover over elle's body again as she crossed the room, slowly moving higher the more their proximity shrank, and she numbly held out the shirt as soon as she was within reach. elle quirked an eyebrow, taking it from her without so much as a word. 

"anyway," connie continued awkwardly, returning to why she'd come here in the first place, "um, i think we're safe to mention the training stats, but as far as recommendations go, i, uh..." she found herself pausing for a second time, and far too soon after the first, briefly distracted by elle pulling on her shirt and how the muscles in her stomach shifted as she stretched her arms above her head. "i think we should avoid committing ourselves to anything." 

elle pulled her shirt taut, and connie's attention automatically strayed to her crooked collar, a glaring blemish on an otherwise perfect canvas, but while she herself was oblivious to the state it was in, connie instinctively stepped forward to fix it. she closed the gap between them without conscious thought or a warning, and while elle tensed slightly in surprise, she held her tongue as connie only carried on talking. 

"maybe, um... y'know, just not say very much," she said absently, straightening elle's collar and stroking the material between her fingers. "keep a low profile and not make ourselves too big a target..." she trailed off, falling quiet, and her gaze flickered up to meet elle's before she could stop it. heat immediately prickled across her skin, a familiar desire blooming to life in the pit of her stomach as her chest tightened, and elle's collar suddenly felt glued to her fingertips. she couldn't have let go even if she'd wanted to. 

the tension in the room was palpable, with a heartbeat of its own, and time had ground to a knowing halt. there was something unspoken hanging in the air but it was left there to ruminate as they stared at each other in silence, waiting, until elle found the sense to break it. 

"so you think we should stay quiet," she said, voice low, almost as if they were discussing a secret. in reality, they were keeping one but only from each other. connie pressed her lips together, mouth dry.

"it's just for now," she clarified, finding her voice alongside the wherewithal to finally release elle's collar. she stepped back, threading her fingers together as they burned from the invisible scorch marks left behind by the fabric. "until we're on top of things again, that's all."