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now that we don’t talk [part 2 | paige bueckers]

paige bueckers x fem!reader

summary: you and paige reunite, but in the worst way possible

a/n: i wrote this part like a month ago but i never posted it. im not sure about continuing this series because i dont have a vision for how i want it to go

word count: 3.4k

prev | next | masterlist

You shut your eyes, exhaling. The breath that came out was shaky, and you hated it. You hated feeling this weak and unstable before a game, when usually you were all collected and confident.

Your brain was a battle of emotions. Your school, USC, was facing off against UConn in a pre-season match today, and since it was the first game of October, the administration on both teams had agreed to dedicate this game to Breast Cancer Awareness Month.

In a kind gesture that had left you at a loss for words, your head coach Gottlieb had organized custom pink shirts for the entire team to wear during warmup, with a painting of your grandma’s face in the front and one of her quotes on the back - “Strength is not the absence of fear, but the courage to confront it.” Your grandma had been a force in the basketball world, being one of the founders and fighters of the WNBA, and you knowed that part of the reason why both USC and UConn were rallying so hard for breast awareness was because both coaches knew of your relationship with your grandma.

After taking a few more deep breaths, you felt calm enough to rejoin your team as they warmed up their shooting. Looking around, you laid eyes on Paige, who was silently stretching in the corner. You took her in - her blonde hair was up in her typical game day do, with her braids in the front and the rest of her hair collected into a tight ponytail. She looked good, her cheeks slightly rosy, her eyes concentrated. You felt your heatt flutter as you examined her, but your heart suddenly dropped when you realized what she was wearing.

You knew this was bad idea, but you couldn’t help yourself. You found your legs pacing towards Paige, carrying you with a level of authority you didn’t know you had.

“What the fuck is this?”

Paige turned around, her resistance band now hanging limp in her hand. She did a double take once she realized who’d just spoken to her, her eyes carefully and unashamedly taking you in. “What?”

You gestured aggressively at her ahirt. “Take it off.”

Paige’s eyes hardened as she leaned back from you. “Excuse me?”

“I said, take it off.” Your voice was icy and unfamiliar to your own ears. In your peripheral vision, you saw heads starting to turn, as girls from both teams watched with curiosity as you stepped closer to Paige, anger drawn on both of your faces.

“Where did you even get it from?” Your voice trembled as you studied Paige’s shirt again. It was familiar to you, because you had the exact same one, just in different colors, hanging up in your room. It was your grandma’s jersey, from her high school team in the 1960s. As far as you knew, she only had a few, and she’d given one to you, one that you’d viligantly taken care of since you’d received it.

Paige raised her chin defiantly. “She gave it to me.”

Those words knocked you off your feet, and you stumbled even though you’d been standing still. “No, she didn’t.” Paige only gritted her teeth without responding. Desperate for a reaction, for anything than just silence, you continued, “She wasn’t even your grandma.” It was a low blow, and you knew it. Over the course of your friendship and then relationship, Paige had gotten almost as close to your grandma as you were. They had adored each other, and back then you had loved the way they loved each other. But now, you couldn’t seem to hate anything more.

You were spiraling, a destructive disarray of grief and bitterness and jealousy. When your grandma had died two months ago, you’d wished that Paige would’ve done more then send a couple of DMs on Twitter. But she didn’t, hadn’t reached out after that, which you couldn’t exactly blame her for because she owed no obligation to comfort you. You guys weren’t even dating anymore. But you’d hopelessly wanted Paige to do more, to show up on your doorstep and take you into her arms.

Paige, seemingly unaffected by your desperate words, regarded you coolly. “How would you know?” she asked menacingly, the hostility in her tone sending shivers down your spine. “You weren’t even there for her in the last few months.” She paused before landing her final blow. “But guess who was?” Her eyebrows cocked as she brushed past you and went back to her team on the court.

It felt like Paige had physically hit you, the way your heart stuttered and your mind reeled. You clenched your first, wishing you’d never came over here in the first place.

“Hey.” A gentle hand brushed your shoulder. Familiar perfume filled your nostrils, and you turned around to see Caroline.

Holding back a sob, she opened her arms and you fell into them. This was too much. Your nasty exchange with Paige, combined with the loss of your grandma still achingly fresh in your mind, along with the guilt of seeing the team that you’d left without so much as a goodbye. You’d been avoiding their looks the entire warmup. Nika had tried to talk to you earlier, but you’d brushed her off. And now, Caroline was standing in front of you, with the softest smile on her face as if you hadn’t ghosted her for the last year.

Caroline, one of your closest friends from your two years at UConn, comfortingly rubbed your back as you embraced her. When you pulled back, you almost couldn’t meet her eyes. “I’m sorry,” you rasped, looking down.

“You have nothing to apologize for.” The kindness in her tone almost sent you into another fit.

“But I do.” You bit your bottom lip. “I transferred to USC without telling any of you guys. And when I left, I didn’t even bother to say goodbye. All I did was send a stupid text.” You kicked the ground, chastising yourself for how you’d treated your closest friends.

“You were hurting.” Caroline squeezed your arms. “We all understand. None of us are mad, alright? We all just miss you.” When you didn’t say anything, too overwhelmed with guilt, she nudged you. “You wanna make it up to us?”

You nodded quickly. Anything.

“Come hang with us after. At my place. No bar, nothing public. Just you and us. We can catch up, you can tell us all about USC and we’ll give you all the latest drama here.”

Thoughts of Pauge flashed through your mind before you shut it down. It was time to stop putting your feelings over Paige before your friends. You had to rebuild the gap, for the sake of the girls that you loved. “I’ll be there,” you responded, and Caroline’s eyes lit up with a grin.

“Great,” she beamed. “And about your grandma. I’m so sorry, babe. She was a really good person.”

You nodded. “Thank you. She really was.” Caroline gave you one last hug before you both parted ways to finish warming up before the game.

———————————-

Sweat dripped off your temples. You blinked roughly, trying to stave off the fogginess creeping in at the edge of your vision. Your muscles ached, screaming for oxygen and a break from the constant back-and-forth of the game. Whenever you opened your mouth, your throat burned from all the screaming you’d done over the past hour to attempt to communicate as well as UConn was doing.

It was no use. You’d been part of the UConn system before, and the drills that Geno had spent hours on, making sure you guys talked through every play, calling out unders or overs on screens, back door cuts, and picks, made the defensive coordination of UConn the best in the nation. Your team was starting to loosen at the seams and fall behind, and you could sense it.

The entire game had been intense, a battle of aggression between the two teams seemingly fueled by the personal vendettas between you and Paige, each captains of your respective teams. She was relentless, having scored 30 points with 2 minutes left in the last quarter. You’d yet to defend her, which was a relief. You didn’t know if you could bear all the aggressive contact, the tensions, the overflow of emotions that would occur once you started to guard her.

After Aaliyah posted up to score another latup, Gottlieb signaled for a time out. “Alright,” she declared, focusing her eyes on you. “You’re taking Paige. I want you to press her hard. Keep your weight off your heels and don’t cross your feet.”

You squirted water into your mouth, nodding. You guys were down by 5 points, and shutting down Paige was the main priority right now. USC broke, but Juju grabbed your arm. “Hey,” she said lowly. “Keep your emotions out of this, alright? Focus on the game.”

You clenched your jaw, avoiding eye contact with your best friend. “I got it. I want to win just as much as you do.”

“Okay.” Juju clearly didn’t believe you, but she released your arm and jogged back to her spot. You rolled back your shoulders. Right now was not the time to think about how Paige was looking at you, or how her girlfriend was sitting court-side, just a few feet from your assigned spot. You wiped the bottom of your shoes, trying to get rid of the sweat in your palms and add some traction to your feet. Leslie eyed you the entire time, smacking her gum loudly. “Come on, Paige!” she cheered with an obnoxious grin as soon as she made eye contact with you. You clenched your jaw, feeling Juju give you a warning look from across the court.

One of your teammates unbounded the ball, and you took off across the court. Rayah stepped out to set a screen, but you drove baseline away from it. You received the ball as you reached the post, and you passed it to Juju, who was waiting at the 3. The play ran beautifully, but as the ball arched towards Juju, a hand reached up and knocked it down.

Paige grabbed the ball and passed it down the court to Nika. You sprinted to defense, heart pumping, fueled by the humiliation of getting a pass intercepted, and by Paige of all people. You reached Nika, lunging for the ball in a desperate last second attempt, but she side stepped you for the layup, sending you flying across the floor.

You heard the oohs of the crowds as you landed hard on your butt, your ankle twisted underneath you. Biting your lip to muffle your shout of pain, you clenched your jersey to try and assuage the throbbing in your tailbone and leg.

You heard a commotion around you, and suddenly there was Paige, standing above you, concern etched into her eyebrow. She held out a hand, but Juju quickly appeared, bending down to touch your elbow and offering her own hand. Ignoring Paige, you wrapped both of your hands around Juju’s as she heaved you up.

Paige stepped back, her mouth in an unforgiving line. “You okay?” she asked, tone haughty and neutral.

“She’s fine,” Juju snapped, stepping protectively between the two of you. “Give her some space, will you?”

Paige held her hands up in surrender and took a couple steps back. Her gaze on you stayed with unwavering intensity, though. But you avoided it, like you’d done the entire game, and let the trainer examine you.

“You good?” Nika ran up to you, chest heaving. “I didn’t see you there.”

“Yeah.” You smiled in reassurance at her. “Not your fault. Don’t worry about it.”

Nika nodded as the trainer helped you up and led you off the court. Paige’s gaze burned into your back, but when you turned around, she quickly averted her eyes.

You hadn’t injured yourself, only taken a rough fall, but you still sat on the bench for the remaining minute of the game. Unfortunately, with your dominating presence out, USC couldn’t catch up, and your team lost by a single heartbreaking point.

You walked slowly as USC and UConn formed lines to wish each other a good game. You’d been nervous beforehand, thinking about what to say to the girls, but Caroline had told the truth. None of them seemed to have anything against you, all pulling you in for a tight hug and telling you how good you played and how much they missed you. So although you were exhausted and your ankle was starting to throb again, you knew that you had to go to Caroline’s hangout.

—————————-

“Oh my god, come in!” You chuckled as Azzi opened the door and practically started jumping on her heels from excitement. You grabbed Juju’s hand and led her in from behind you. She was there for backup, a familiar face in a sea of once familiar faces. When you’d asked the Uconn girls if she could come, they’d all happily agreed, saying that they’d been wanting to meet the freshman phenom that had taken the basketball world by storm.

The girls were scattered around Caroline’s apartment. Some of them were sprawled on the couch, watching an NBA game as if they hadn’t had enough basketball for the night. Others were drinking wine in the kitchen and picking at a charcuterie board. Thankfully, you didn’t see any sign of a blonde when you scanned the room, and let out a breath you didn’t know you’d been holding.

“Hey guys, this is Juju.” Juju waved her hand shyly, and everyone clambered up to meet her. You smiled at the scene. Despite rivalries on the court and the vigor that UConn played with, you knew they left behind all of that once the shot clock buzzed for the final time. These girls were the nicest you’d ever met, welcoming everyone as their own.

You and Juju found a spot on the couch. You were almost getting comfortable before the door swung open and a familiar laugh filled the room. You didn’t bother to look up, trying to play it cool, but when Juju laid a hand on your arm in warning the same time an unfamiliar voice resonated, you realized that a certain brunette had came too.

Masking your face with indifference, you congratulated yourself for having the power to control your facial expression once Paige and Leslie tumbled into the family room, Leslie’s hands attached to Paige’s waist as they both laughed, obviously already having put some drinks into their system before coming here. You ignored the silence that had fallen over the rest of the team as they realized the awkwardness of the situation.

“I’m so sorry,” Caroline mouthed from her spot on the armchair. “I didn’t know she was gonna be here.”

You only shrugged, your eyes focused on your lap as you tried to maintain your facade of apathy. Juju shifted closer to you in support, and you’d never loved her more.

“Okay!” Caroline said brightly, cutting through the heavy tension in the room. “Who wants a margarita?” All the girls cheered, and the ambience in the apartment returned as conversations resumed.

This is only awkward if you let it be awkward, you thought. You and Paige had broken up over a year ago. You could be civil. You were so over her. But you knew you were lying from the way your insides jolted when Leslie leaned in to press a loud kiss on Paige’s cheek.

Soon, some of the girls started recording Tiktoks and doing silly dances. You turned down their offers to make a cameo in their videos, content with just watching. As you observed rhem, it dawned on you how much you’d missed them. Their silliness made you laugh in a way you hadn’t laughed at in a long time. Throughout the entire night, you tried to pretend as if Paige and Leslie didn’t exist, although it was hard with the exuberant amount of PDA they were showing. They were sitting on each other’s laps, their hands wandering, and they weren’t making out but you almost wish they were so that you wouldn’t have to see either of their faces.

“Paige! Did you come here to celebrate or eye fuck your girlfriend the entire time?” KK yelled, waving a Nintendo controller. “Come play Smash Bros.”

Paige rolled her eyes, but she caught the controller that KK threw at her. She wrapped around Leslie, who was still on top her lap, and started to press buttons on the controller as she chose her chatacter. You stiffened at the memory of Paige doing the exact same thing with you, all those late nights she’d played Fortnite with the team, you falling asleep with your head in the crook of her neck as she gamed. It’d always ended with her carrying you to bed, tucking you in and wrapping her arms around yours.

“Watch out KK,” Leslie joked. “P is a beast at Smash Bros.”

“Yeah, I’m pretty good at smashing,” Paige teased, her words dripping with sexual undertones. Everyone groaned, and Leslie giggled, a high pitched and screeching noise that you thought could be used as torture for prisoners if put on replay.

Leslie reached for her margarita, but her movements were sluggish from her tipsy state, causing the alcohol to slosh over the side of the cocktail glass. Immediately, Paige jumped up, hurriedly removing Leslie from her lap as she examined herself. It was only then that you realized that Paige had taken off the sweater she’d arrived with and was now in your grandma’s jersey, a jersey that now sported a large wet stain.

“Leslie, oh my god.” She yelled, her voice panicked. “I told you to be careful.”

“Oh shit, my bad.” Leslie set down her drink and reached for Paige, who stepped backwards and away from her touch.

“You fucker.” The words were out of your mouth before you knew it, and all eyes in the room turned to you. Juju kicked you nervously, but you ignored her. “How could you?” You rushed over to Paige, looking closely at the jersey now reeking with alcohol. You held back tears as you saw the print already starting to fade. The jersey was 60 years old, already fragile and old, and you knew that it was now as good as ruined.

Paige turned to Leslie. “I thought I told you not to fucking drink while you were around me. You know how important this jersey is to me.”

Leslie stood rigid, her expression now calculated. “You guys are being so dramatic. Let me have the jersey. I’ll go wash it and bring it back good as new.”

“Don’t you dare fucking touch it.” You turned from Leslie, gently touching the frayed ends with shaky fingers. “You can’t just wash it. It’ll fall apart. Oh my god, you just ruined one of the only things my grandma left us.” Your voice was choked now, tears forming at your eyes. “Shit!” You slammed your first into the ground in anger.

The team exchanged hesitant looks, worry clear in their eyes. Juju came up from behind you. “Come on, babe,” she whispered. “I’m sure we can do something about it. Let me take a look, hmm?”

You moved aside, but from the look on Juju’s face as the faded patches and stressed seams became visible as she studied it, you knew there was no use. The tears started falling then, an uncontrollable stream that left you feeling broken. “Excuse me,” you whimpered, and you ran into the bathroom, locking yourself inside.

You heard murmurs of the team outside. You heard the front door slam. Soon, someone knocked softly on the door. “It’s Juju,” your friend called, and you resignedly unlocked the door and let her inside before shutting it again.

You slumped down on the ground, you face in your hands. “Oh,” Juju whispered, and she knelt down next to you as you started to sob.

Another knock came in, followed by a tentative voice calling your name. You exchanged looks with Juju, who got up and slipped outside.

“Are you serious right now?” Juju’s voice was muffled, but you could still hear the fury radiating from her words. “You know you’re the reason she’s crying right now?”

“I know.” A pause. “I need to apologize.”

“She doesn’t wanna see you right now.”

You heard Paige‘s sharp intake of breath. “Juju, please.”

You could practically feel Juju’s hesitance, but she must‘ve relented, because when the door opened, it was Paige who stepped in.

now that we don’t talk [part 2 | paige bueckers]

paige bueckers x fem!reader

summary: you and paige reunite, but in the worst way possible

a/n: i wrote this part like a month ago but i never posted it. im not sure about continuing this series because i dont have a vision for how i want it to go

word count: 3.4k

prev | next | masterlist

You shut your eyes, exhaling. The breath that came out was shaky, and you hated it. You hated feeling this weak and unstable before a game, when usually you were all collected and confident.

Your brain was a battle of emotions. Your school, USC, was facing off against UConn in a pre-season match today, and since it was the first game of October, the administration on both teams had agreed to dedicate this game to Breast Cancer Awareness Month.

In a kind gesture that had left you at a loss for words, your head coach Gottlieb had organized custom pink shirts for the entire team to wear during warmup, with a painting of your grandma’s face in the front and one of her quotes on the back - “Strength is not the absence of fear, but the courage to confront it.” Your grandma had been a force in the basketball world, being one of the founders and fighters of the WNBA, and you knowed that part of the reason why both USC and UConn were rallying so hard for breast awareness was because both coaches knew of your relationship with your grandma.

After taking a few more deep breaths, you felt calm enough to rejoin your team as they warmed up their shooting. Looking around, you laid eyes on Paige, who was silently stretching in the corner. You took her in - her blonde hair was up in her typical game day do, with her braids in the front and the rest of her hair collected into a tight ponytail. She looked good, her cheeks slightly rosy, her eyes concentrated. You felt your heatt flutter as you examined her, but your heart suddenly dropped when you realized what she was wearing.

You knew this was bad idea, but you couldn’t help yourself. You found your legs pacing towards Paige, carrying you with a level of authority you didn’t know you had.

“What the fuck is this?”

Paige turned around, her resistance band now hanging limp in her hand. She did a double take once she realized who’d just spoken to her, her eyes carefully and unashamedly taking you in. “What?”

You gestured aggressively at her ahirt. “Take it off.”

Paige’s eyes hardened as she leaned back from you. “Excuse me?”

“I said, take it off.” Your voice was icy and unfamiliar to your own ears. In your peripheral vision, you saw heads starting to turn, as girls from both teams watched with curiosity as you stepped closer to Paige, anger drawn on both of your faces.

“Where did you even get it from?” Your voice trembled as you studied Paige’s shirt again. It was familiar to you, because you had the exact same one, just in different colors, hanging up in your room. It was your grandma’s jersey, from her high school team in the 1960s. As far as you knew, she only had a few, and she’d given one to you, one that you’d viligantly taken care of since you’d received it.

Paige raised her chin defiantly. “She gave it to me.”

Those words knocked you off your feet, and you stumbled even though you’d been standing still. “No, she didn’t.” Paige only gritted her teeth without responding. Desperate for a reaction, for anything than just silence, you continued, “She wasn’t even your grandma.” It was a low blow, and you knew it. Over the course of your friendship and then relationship, Paige had gotten almost as close to your grandma as you were. They had adored each other, and back then you had loved the way they loved each other. But now, you couldn’t seem to hate anything more.

You were spiraling, a destructive disarray of grief and bitterness and jealousy. When your grandma had died two months ago, you’d wished that Paige would’ve done more then send a couple of DMs on Twitter. But she didn’t, hadn’t reached out after that, which you couldn’t exactly blame her for because she owed no obligation to comfort you. You guys weren’t even dating anymore. But you’d hopelessly wanted Paige to do more, to show up on your doorstep and take you into her arms.

Paige, seemingly unaffected by your desperate words, regarded you coolly. “How would you know?” she asked menacingly, the hostility in her tone sending shivers down your spine. “You weren’t even there for her in the last few months.” She paused before landing her final blow. “But guess who was?” Her eyebrows cocked as she brushed past you and went back to her team on the court.

It felt like Paige had physically hit you, the way your heart stuttered and your mind reeled. You clenched your first, wishing you’d never came over here in the first place.

“Hey.” A gentle hand brushed your shoulder. Familiar perfume filled your nostrils, and you turned around to see Caroline.

Holding back a sob, she opened her arms and you fell into them. This was too much. Your nasty exchange with Paige, combined with the loss of your grandma still achingly fresh in your mind, along with the guilt of seeing the team that you’d left without so much as a goodbye. You’d been avoiding their looks the entire warmup. Nika had tried to talk to you earlier, but you’d brushed her off. And now, Caroline was standing in front of you, with the softest smile on her face as if you hadn’t ghosted her for the last year.

Caroline, one of your closest friends from your two years at UConn, comfortingly rubbed your back as you embraced her. When you pulled back, you almost couldn’t meet her eyes. “I’m sorry,” you rasped, looking down.

“You have nothing to apologize for.” The kindness in her tone almost sent you into another fit.

“But I do.” You bit your bottom lip. “I transferred to USC without telling any of you guys. And when I left, I didn’t even bother to say goodbye. All I did was send a stupid text.” You kicked the ground, chastising yourself for how you’d treated your closest friends.

“You were hurting.” Caroline squeezed your arms. “We all understand. None of us are mad, alright? We all just miss you.” When you didn’t say anything, too overwhelmed with guilt, she nudged you. “You wanna make it up to us?”

You nodded quickly. Anything.

“Come hang with us after. At my place. No bar, nothing public. Just you and us. We can catch up, you can tell us all about USC and we’ll give you all the latest drama here.”

Thoughts of Pauge flashed through your mind before you shut it down. It was time to stop putting your feelings over Paige before your friends. You had to rebuild the gap, for the sake of the girls that you loved. “I’ll be there,” you responded, and Caroline’s eyes lit up with a grin.

“Great,” she beamed. “And about your grandma. I’m so sorry, babe. She was a really good person.”

You nodded. “Thank you. She really was.” Caroline gave you one last hug before you both parted ways to finish warming up before the game.

———————————-

Sweat dripped off your temples. You blinked roughly, trying to stave off the fogginess creeping in at the edge of your vision. Your muscles ached, screaming for oxygen and a break from the constant back-and-forth of the game. Whenever you opened your mouth, your throat burned from all the screaming you’d done over the past hour to attempt to communicate as well as UConn was doing.

It was no use. You’d been part of the UConn system before, and the drills that Geno had spent hours on, making sure you guys talked through every play, calling out unders or overs on screens, back door cuts, and picks, made the defensive coordination of UConn the best in the nation. Your team was starting to loosen at the seams and fall behind, and you could sense it.

The entire game had been intense, a battle of aggression between the two teams seemingly fueled by the personal vendettas between you and Paige, each captains of your respective teams. She was relentless, having scored 30 points with 2 minutes left in the last quarter. You’d yet to defend her, which was a relief. You didn’t know if you could bear all the aggressive contact, the tensions, the overflow of emotions that would occur once you started to guard her.

After Aaliyah posted up to score another latup, Gottlieb signaled for a time out. “Alright,” she declared, focusing her eyes on you. “You’re taking Paige. I want you to press her hard. Keep your weight off your heels and don’t cross your feet.”

You squirted water into your mouth, nodding. You guys were down by 5 points, and shutting down Paige was the main priority right now. USC broke, but Juju grabbed your arm. “Hey,” she said lowly. “Keep your emotions out of this, alright? Focus on the game.”

You clenched your jaw, avoiding eye contact with your best friend. “I got it. I want to win just as much as you do.”

“Okay.” Juju clearly didn’t believe you, but she released your arm and jogged back to her spot. You rolled back your shoulders. Right now was not the time to think about how Paige was looking at you, or how her girlfriend was sitting court-side, just a few feet from your assigned spot. You wiped the bottom of your shoes, trying to get rid of the sweat in your palms and add some traction to your feet. Leslie eyed you the entire time, smacking her gum loudly. “Come on, Paige!” she cheered with an obnoxious grin as soon as she made eye contact with you. You clenched your jaw, feeling Juju give you a warning look from across the court.

One of your teammates unbounded the ball, and you took off across the court. Rayah stepped out to set a screen, but you drove baseline away from it. You received the ball as you reached the post, and you passed it to Juju, who was waiting at the 3. The play ran beautifully, but as the ball arched towards Juju, a hand reached up and knocked it down.

Paige grabbed the ball and passed it down the court to Nika. You sprinted to defense, heart pumping, fueled by the humiliation of getting a pass intercepted, and by Paige of all people. You reached Nika, lunging for the ball in a desperate last second attempt, but she side stepped you for the layup, sending you flying across the floor.

You heard the oohs of the crowds as you landed hard on your butt, your ankle twisted underneath you. Biting your lip to muffle your shout of pain, you clenched your jersey to try and assuage the throbbing in your tailbone and leg.

You heard a commotion around you, and suddenly there was Paige, standing above you, concern etched into her eyebrow. She held out a hand, but Juju quickly appeared, bending down to touch your elbow and offering her own hand. Ignoring Paige, you wrapped both of your hands around Juju’s as she heaved you up.

Paige stepped back, her mouth in an unforgiving line. “You okay?” she asked, tone haughty and neutral.

“She’s fine,” Juju snapped, stepping protectively between the two of you. “Give her some space, will you?”

Paige held her hands up in surrender and took a couple steps back. Her gaze on you stayed with unwavering intensity, though. But you avoided it, like you’d done the entire game, and let the trainer examine you.

“You good?” Nika ran up to you, chest heaving. “I didn’t see you there.”

“Yeah.” You smiled in reassurance at her. “Not your fault. Don’t worry about it.”

Nika nodded as the trainer helped you up and led you off the court. Paige’s gaze burned into your back, but when you turned around, she quickly averted her eyes.

You hadn’t injured yourself, only taken a rough fall, but you still sat on the bench for the remaining minute of the game. Unfortunately, with your dominating presence out, USC couldn’t catch up, and your team lost by a single heartbreaking point.

You walked slowly as USC and UConn formed lines to wish each other a good game. You’d been nervous beforehand, thinking about what to say to the girls, but Caroline had told the truth. None of them seemed to have anything against you, all pulling you in for a tight hug and telling you how good you played and how much they missed you. So although you were exhausted and your ankle was starting to throb again, you knew that you had to go to Caroline’s hangout.

—————————-

“Oh my god, come in!” You chuckled as Azzi opened the door and practically started jumping on her heels from excitement. You grabbed Juju’s hand and led her in from behind you. She was there for backup, a familiar face in a sea of once familiar faces. When you’d asked the Uconn girls if she could come, they’d all happily agreed, saying that they’d been wanting to meet the freshman phenom that had taken the basketball world by storm.

The girls were scattered around Caroline’s apartment. Some of them were sprawled on the couch, watching an NBA game as if they hadn’t had enough basketball for the night. Others were drinking wine in the kitchen and picking at a charcuterie board. Thankfully, you didn’t see any sign of a blonde when you scanned the room, and let out a breath you didn’t know you’d been holding.

“Hey guys, this is Juju.” Juju waved her hand shyly, and everyone clambered up to meet her. You smiled at the scene. Despite rivalries on the court and the vigor that UConn played with, you knew they left behind all of that once the shot clock buzzed for the final time. These girls were the nicest you’d ever met, welcoming everyone as their own.

You and Juju found a spot on the couch. You were almost getting comfortable before the door swung open and a familiar laugh filled the room. You didn’t bother to look up, trying to play it cool, but when Juju laid a hand on your arm in warning the same time an unfamiliar voice resonated, you realized that a certain brunette had came too.

Masking your face with indifference, you congratulated yourself for having the power to control your facial expression once Paige and Leslie tumbled into the family room, Leslie’s hands attached to Paige’s waist as they both laughed, obviously already having put some drinks into their system before coming here. You ignored the silence that had fallen over the rest of the team as they realized the awkwardness of the situation.

“I’m so sorry,” Caroline mouthed from her spot on the armchair. “I didn’t know she was gonna be here.”

You only shrugged, your eyes focused on your lap as you tried to maintain your facade of apathy. Juju shifted closer to you in support, and you’d never loved her more.

“Okay!” Caroline said brightly, cutting through the heavy tension in the room. “Who wants a margarita?” All the girls cheered, and the ambience in the apartment returned as conversations resumed.

This is only awkward if you let it be awkward, you thought. You and Paige had broken up over a year ago. You could be civil. You were so over her. But you knew you were lying from the way your insides jolted when Leslie leaned in to press a loud kiss on Paige’s cheek.

Soon, some of the girls started recording Tiktoks and doing silly dances. You turned down their offers to make a cameo in their videos, content with just watching. As you observed rhem, it dawned on you how much you’d missed them. Their silliness made you laugh in a way you hadn’t laughed at in a long time. Throughout the entire night, you tried to pretend as if Paige and Leslie didn’t exist, although it was hard with the exuberant amount of PDA they were showing. They were sitting on each other’s laps, their hands wandering, and they weren’t making out but you almost wish they were so that you wouldn’t have to see either of their faces.

“Paige! Did you come here to celebrate or eye fuck your girlfriend the entire time?” KK yelled, waving a Nintendo controller. “Come play Smash Bros.”

Paige rolled her eyes, but she caught the controller that KK threw at her. She wrapped around Leslie, who was still on top her lap, and started to press buttons on the controller as she chose her chatacter. You stiffened at the memory of Paige doing the exact same thing with you, all those late nights she’d played Fortnite with the team, you falling asleep with your head in the crook of her neck as she gamed. It’d always ended with her carrying you to bed, tucking you in and wrapping her arms around yours.

“Watch out KK,” Leslie joked. “P is a beast at Smash Bros.”

“Yeah, I’m pretty good at smashing,” Paige teased, her words dripping with sexual undertones. Everyone groaned, and Leslie giggled, a high pitched and screeching noise that you thought could be used as torture for prisoners if put on replay.

Leslie reached for her margarita, but her movements were sluggish from her tipsy state, causing the alcohol to slosh over the side of the cocktail glass. Immediately, Paige jumped up, hurriedly removing Leslie from her lap as she examined herself. It was only then that you realized that Paige had taken off the sweater she’d arrived with and was now in your grandma’s jersey, a jersey that now sported a large wet stain.

“Leslie, oh my god.” She yelled, her voice panicked. “I told you to be careful.”

“Oh shit, my bad.” Leslie set down her drink and reached for Paige, who stepped backwards and away from her touch.

“You fucker.” The words were out of your mouth before you knew it, and all eyes in the room turned to you. Juju kicked you nervously, but you ignored her. “How could you?” You rushed over to Paige, looking closely at the jersey now reeking with alcohol. You held back tears as you saw the print already starting to fade. The jersey was 60 years old, already fragile and old, and you knew that it was now as good as ruined.

Paige turned to Leslie. “I thought I told you not to fucking drink while you were around me. You know how important this jersey is to me.”

Leslie stood rigid, her expression now calculated. “You guys are being so dramatic. Let me have the jersey. I’ll go wash it and bring it back good as new.”

“Don’t you dare fucking touch it.” You turned from Leslie, gently touching the frayed ends with shaky fingers. “You can’t just wash it. It’ll fall apart. Oh my god, you just ruined one of the only things my grandma left us.” Your voice was choked now, tears forming at your eyes. “Shit!” You slammed your first into the ground in anger.

The team exchanged hesitant looks, worry clear in their eyes. Juju came up from behind you. “Come on, babe,” she whispered. “I’m sure we can do something about it. Let me take a look, hmm?”

You moved aside, but from the look on Juju’s face as the faded patches and stressed seams became visible as she studied it, you knew there was no use. The tears started falling then, an uncontrollable stream that left you feeling broken. “Excuse me,” you whimpered, and you ran into the bathroom, locking yourself inside.

You heard murmurs of the team outside. You heard the front door slam. Soon, someone knocked softly on the door. “It’s Juju,” your friend called, and you resignedly unlocked the door and let her inside before shutting it again.

You slumped down on the ground, you face in your hands. “Oh,” Juju whispered, and she knelt down next to you as you started to sob.

Another knock came in, followed by a tentative voice calling your name. You exchanged looks with Juju, who got up and slipped outside.

“Are you serious right now?” Juju’s voice was muffled, but you could still hear the fury radiating from her words. “You know you’re the reason she’s crying right now?”

“I know.” A pause. “I need to apologize.”

“She doesn’t wanna see you right now.”

You heard Paige‘s sharp intake of breath. “Juju, please.”

You could practically feel Juju’s hesitance, but she must‘ve relented, because when the door opened, it was Paige who stepped in.

THIS IS TRUE ACTUALLY OMGG

y’all r too much 😭😭

(Thank you to everyone who got me to 5000 likes!)

all this for thirsting over basketball players 🤞🏻

masterlist !

CAITLIN CLARK WINNER WHERE'S THE TROPHY¹

WHERES THE TROPHY? ¹ Caitlin Clark

Caitlin Clark x reader based on this concept! PART TWO COMING this is in response to that bday post Caitlin made, bby you can do sm better </3 I was listening to the alchemy during this lol

word count: 2.1k

The lines between friendship and relationship for you and Caitlin had been blurred worse than the eyesight of an 80 year old man with four pairs of glasses. The little fleeting moments of domesticity made you question where your friendship with Caitlin had strayed from the plot. At what point it forged from the paths of your other friendships, and it had become too much to ignore.

Like the time you caught her wearing your soccer sweatshirt straight from your closet, as if proudly displaying your last name was an occurrence she wouldn't even question. It knocked your heart into your stomach to find she had even taken to wearing it to her game days. So she could "always have your good luck with her" as she put it with a convincing pout when you asked for it back. And you were in no place to question it, even if you were always right in the stands waiting to send her all the good luck in the world.

Or when she'd held your face a smidge too intimately while feeding you a forkful of pasta, leaving you absolutely breathless. Her strong grip on your jaw guided you closer, almost instinctively as you wrapped your lips aroundthe fork in her hand.

She smiled smugly at your reaction, as if taunting you, which your entire audience watched gleefully from a live stream. Though she did not seem to care and you had to laugh forcefully and pull your hood up to cover the burning face you were stuck with, even minutes later. You couldn't help but notice the string of comments wishing to be in your place.

And how could you forget the most prominent tradition that she had started years ago during her first lowa game? Caitlin was a show off on the court, that was a fact. But you had learned that only stemmed from a deep down need of reassurance.

So when she makes a perfect logo 3 and points right at you to make sure you're watching, you think she's just fooling around and looking for attention. Until she uses her fingers to form a cute little heart in front of her face, a cheesy but heart warming smile accompanying it.

As a mere friend of hers, you tried not to let this tradition give you debilitating heart palpitations, though that possibility was already long gone.

But as the line blurred to indicate more than friends, you were doomed. It only got worse when Caitlin did it again, and again, and again. Until you had begun expecting it and returning the gesture back to her after every basket.

You'd think all of these acts, which some may call devotion, would come from a girlfriend. And in theory they did, but just not yours. Evil took a human form in the name of Connor, that guy had been hanging around Caitlin for far too long in your opinion.

Maybe hypocritical, as you've been waiting for her for 6 years but at least you got on the soccer team by your own hard work, not nepotism like some people! And he hadn't even been a good enough boyfriend to watch his superstar of a girlfriend at her last three games.

That's how you ended up sitting comfortably cheering on the girl from a foldable chair, court side inside the emptied arena. Caitlin was running drills and you were moral support. Every basket she made elicited a dramatic and rowdy cheer, mimicking a stadium's enthusiasm. She broke her focus to grin at you, her bottom lip trapped between her teeth bashfully.

"C'mere," You gestured to her shoe and she set her foot gently on your knee. You carefully began to tie the laces that had come undone and tapped her ankle when you had made a perfect little bow. She wordlessly put her other foot in the same place, careful not to lean her weight on you.

"So, are you gonna wish me good luck?" The arrogant smirk on her face annoyed you to no end, because you knew she had no doubt that you were going to do it regardless. Her correctly placed confidence in your admiration for her was frustrating to no end.

"Good luck," you both lifted your hands in unison, bringing them together in a high five as you stood up. When you were prepared to let go, Caitlin wasn't and she purposefully drew out the moment with your hands still in the air, linked. Hesitantly, she brought your hands down, still connected and you smiled shyly at the brunette, "You know you've got this, superstar."

Her confident smirk was replaced with a sheepish grin, practically melting at the genuine praise you sent her way, "Thank you."

You grinned at Caitlin as she started to back away, refusing to let go of your hands until your arms were stretched as far as possible. Even then, she held on for dear life to your fingertips for a few lingering moments before running off to the locker room.

Six minutes into the second quarter of the Fever game, you sense a sinister energy lurking around and are not shocked to see Connor making his way to a spot near you. Figures, the only game he comes to he's almost missed half of.

He settles next to you, too close for your own comfort so you make a spectacle of shuffling over. In the midst of this, a teammate had given Caitlin possession of the ball and you had more important things to worry about than the boy next to you.

As if it was second nature, Caitlin took a step back from her defender and the crowd watched in anticipation as the ball flew through the air before landing in the net with a satisfying swoosh. The crowd went crazy, though your girl only celebrated by lifting her fingers into a perfectly formed heart, one that had been practiced far too many times before.

Your heart soared in your chest, same as it did every time before. The moment was interrupted when you were reminded of Connor's agonizing presence by his reaction, which shouldn't have existed.

Seeing him smiling, almost lovingly, at her action reserved for you made a sick feeling twist in your stomach. In no world was that for him.

You tried to shove down the jealousy threatening to push its way out as you made the walk to see Caitlin at halftime. She was already waiting for you once you got the end of the bleachers, holding her hands out to help you down the last step.

Though you could've gotten down on your own, you basked in the opportunity and joined hands with her. And if she knew that you took a few extra seconds to hop down and release her on purpose, she pretended not to notice.

"I got you gatorade," You announced and she pretended to be shocked while you handed her the same flavor you did every halftime. She took it with a grateful smile, preparing to open it and reply.

That irritating, nagging, voice cut back in from whatever end of hell it came from, "I got you water, babe." He placed his hand on Caitlin's back, uncomfortably close to yours but you refused to move.

His eyes bored into yours, almost like he wanted you to back down.

"Cait always drinks a blue gatorade at halftime." Your shrug may come off as cocky but you didn't care enough to mask it.

You wanted to smack the grin off his face as he urged the water bottle toward Caitlin's face, "Better to drink water for now, right babe?"

There was no hiding the passive aggressive tone your words held, "Maybe if you had made effort to go to more than one game you would know she doesn't like," your eyes scanned over the object almost with disgust at his offer, "room temperature water when she's running around."

Though you expected Caitlin's agreement to accompany you, your gazes met for the first time since the slight standoff with her boyfriend and your heart dropped at the look she was giving you.

A tiny part of you, mostly a petty one, screamed for her to throw the water in his face and open the gatorade. You wanted to hit yourself, the most minuscule of "competitions" getting you riled up over your best friend. But with the way she narrowed her stare, leaning the slightest bit away from your touch, you could tell that you overstepped.

And when you were about to apologize, she took a step away and chugged the bottle of water. As she walked, she dropped the bottle of gatorade into the trash can and kept her back to you all the way until she reached the bench.

Your eyes closed in frustration, running a hand over your face and silently wished you weren't an adult so you could punch the grinning male next to you without repercussions. Though this was your doing and your jealousy.

The second half played out and you couldn't help but feel the slightest bit guilty for Caitlin's poor performance. She played with her emotions, and you had confronted her (questionable) boyfriend right before a big part of the game. Connor now sat a few rows in front of you, and it was distinguishable when Caitlin made a layup and pointed in his direction instead of yours.

The next few minutes passed painfully slow as so many ugly emotions built up inside of you. Most of all was anger at yourself for not being able to be happy for your best friend.

You sulked back to the locker room where you met Caitlin after every game. Maybe if you were lucky, she chose the nepo baby again and you could delay this conversation until you cried and convinced yourself today didn't happen.

"What was that out there? Are you trying to shove him out of my life?" She confronted with aggravation lacing her tone. She pulled her hair out of its confined tie, letting it lay against her shoulders. You got momentarily distracted and it showed.

"No, yes, I mean," Your frustration got the best of you and you loathed that your cards were being laid out on the table, "No, I'm not. That wasn't my place to say, I know. I just felt like this was our thing, okay?"

Cailtin's eye brows furrowed and the idea of having to clarify made you even more sick than before.

You gestured to the space between the two of you incredulously, "Basketball was our thing, it sucked that he was abruptly apart of it too. And you can't tell me that you weren't trying to get back at me toward the end."

Her nonchalant laugh made you want to shrink into a ball, it was enough that she didn't have to vocalize that you were reading into everything.

Caitlin ran her fingers through her hair and looked anywhere but at you, "He's my boyfriend, I don't want to choose between the two of you."

You couldn't respond, couldn't find it in yourself to tell her to choose, but also couldn't find the will to say she didn't have to. It wasn't her fault that you couldn't find room in your heart to like her and also be happy for her.

"Did you feel like it'd be only us forever," She said your name slowly as if your statement was impossible to believe, "We can both venture outside of each other and still be best friends. One of us would have to get a boyfriend eventually."

The conviction she spoke with stabbed straight through your chest.

Spoken like it was only a matter of time and no other options laid on the table. You were starting to realize that maybe to her, none ever did.

"Yeah," you tilted your head back momentarily to look at the ceiling, a bitter laugh escaping as your waterline gathered tears, "Yeah, we both could, but there's a reason only one of us did, Caitlin." Something in her began to soften, maybe it was the direct confrontation of what you had both skirted around for way too long now.

After a moment to gather yourself, you turned and left Caitlin standing with her gold painted award. The trophy in her hand felt dull in comparison to the one she usually walked away with, the one that was currently walking away from her tearfully.

such a cute pic aw

Biggest Fan - CC

Pairing: Caitlin Clark x Reader

Summary: Caitlin finds you courtside and can't help but get to know you (based on THIS request)

Warnings: fluff

Word Count: 3.6k

Sweetbans Masterlist

AN: A little different than the initial request but I feel like we got to the same finish.

Caitlin doesn't get nervous. Never has, at least when it comes to being on the court. When she is locked in - nothing phases her and this holds true during games. Why couldn't it be like that all the time for the 22-year-old girl?

Caitlin finishes with a courtside interview when she sees a handful of her teammates head to a girl sitting courtside. Before Cait can fully see who is sitting down, her teammates block you as they begin sparking up a conversation. She notices you are standing now and is giving hugs as more of the team goes running over.

You greet the team as they make their way to you. Hugging them one by one.

"Way to come out with the dub," you say as you give the last hug to Lexi.

"We had to show up and show out, you know that," AB says as she playfully elbows your arm.

"Girl I am here every game, I am not the reason. But thank you for saying I am," you say smiling back.

Caitlin is walking up to the group at this point when she finally sees you. The calm, cool, and collected girl she was is now replaced with a fidgeting, trying to keep her breath controlled girl. She stands towards the back and just watched the interaction.

"Who are you wearing today?" Erica asks as she pulls at the jersey you are wearing.

"Well wouldn't you like to know," you tease her and swat her hand away. "Guess."

"Well you wore mine last home game," Katie says proudly. "One of my best games of the season."

"And that was before you knew I was sporting you," you say.

"I bet it's mine," Nalyssa says. "Haven't seen you in mine since last season."

"Ding! Ding! Ding!" You say and point at Smith, revealing her number on the jersey. "Got my girl Smith on."

The group cheers as Smith gives you a high-five and a side hug.

"'Bout time," Nalyssa says.

"Smith was on one today," Erica says. "Another double-double with 23 points, it only makes sense."

"You guys make it sound like my jersey choice directly correlates to who does well and we all know that is crazy," you say with a laugh.

"Maybe you are just a team motivator," Boston says.

"Sureee, it has nothing to do with the thousands of fans that show up to cheer you on every time you play," you say sarcastically.

"They are here to see her," Lexie says smiling. Caitlin freezes as all eyes turn to her now. You smile sweetly at her and wave. There is something in Cait that is new and unfamiliar with seeing your smile. Something that has her questioning everything she once knew. She is mesmerized by you and she has no idea why.

The team says their goodbyes as Cait realizes she never smiled or waved back to you. She feels like an idiot. She follows the rest of the team back to the locker rooms and sits down, still deep in thought.

The second Cait saw you, she thought you were stunning. Has she ever thought a woman has been stunning before? It is something she thought she would remember but doesn't. She was unfamiliar with her breath getting taken away by someone, not even her boyfriend had that effect on her.

Caitlin feels like she is going through a quarter-life crisis. Ya, she has felt closer to girls her whole life but that was because she was a girl right? Forget the girl she had met in college whom she hit it off really well but decided to swallow her feelings because that just wasn't her. She has always had teammates who had liked girls but the thought of it for her was never one she grew up able to believe. So why now? Why now, after years of swallowing down the thoughts and feelings that threatened to creep through and destroy everything she knew? Would it destroy everything she knew? She was so confused.

"Caitlin, earth to Cait," Aliyah says, shaking the girl out of her thoughts.

"What?" Caitlin asks. She was in trouble.

"You have been sitting there for the past 20 minutes, everyone is heading out - are you good?" Aliyah asks. She notices Caitlin's thinking eyes.

"Who were you all talking to after the game?" Caitlin asks. Aliyah smiles. She says your name.

"She has been coming to Fever games since last year. She is a friend of one of the coaches, always sits courtside, and wears a different tea jersey every game," Aliyah says. "We all have this theory that whoever's jersey she is wearing is who plays best that game. It is kind of dumb but it's fun."

Caitlin takes in all Aliyah says and nods.

"You know, you kind of acted a little weird when she waved at you," Aliyah says and observes Caitlin's internal battle. She sits across from Caitlin.

"She is at every game?" Caitlin asks, still in thought.

"Ya, maybe she will wear your jersey next," Aliyah says, watching Caitlin's reaction to see if she can get a better understanding of what the girl in front of her is thinking.

Caitlin's head whips to look at Aliyah. She opens her mouth to say something but nothing comes out. Her lips close.

Aliyah begins to understand. Before she can speak someone is coming into the locker.

"Hey, Caitlin? Your boyfriend is waiting outside for you," they say.

Aliyah stands and looks over at the girl sitting. Caitlin nods but doesn't feel herself doing it.

"She'll be right out," Aliyah says and Caitlin is thankful.

"Cait, I'm here if you ever need to talk," Aliyah says and keeps it vague.

"Thanks, AB," Caitlin says as she is pulled from all of her thoughts. Now is not the time to be questioning everything she knew. There's no need to question everything right?

Caitlin had been counting down the hours. They had two gameless days but are back at it. The last two days she had tried to keep her head down and work but every time they were on the court, she couldn't help herself glancing over at the seat you had been in just a few nights ago.

During one of the days off, her boyfriend came over and they hung out. There wasn't anything exciting about it. Cait thought spending time with him would remove you from her brain, the two seconds she actually saw you, but it didn't.

Maybe Caitlin just wanted to be friends with you. She had been pretty lonely with the move and a new team, which she had been quickly getting to know thankfully. But that's what it was, at least that's what she was trying to convince herself of. She just wanted you as a friend because you looked like someone who would be a lot of fun to be around.

The Fever Thursday night rolled around and Caitlin found herself looking at the courtside seats during shootaround. You are nowhere to be seen yet but if there is anything she had learned from the team, it is that you would be there. Hopefully in her jersey...

Aliyah sees Caitlin checking your seat every five minutes and feels bad for the girl.

"She'll be here," Aliyah whispers to Caitlin.

"Huh, oh. I wasn't thinking about that," Caitlin tries to be convincing but is far from it.

"She's always here," Aliyah says, knowing very well Caitlin's boyfriend has only been to two or three of their games.

Caitlin nods.

They all finish warming up and get ready. They run out of the tunnel and go through their last-minute warm-ups. Caitlin fights every ounce of herself to keep from turning to that one courtside seat.

After what feels like forever, she finally turns and sees you sitting there. You are watching them warm up with a smile. Caitlin immediately perks up and tries harder in her warm-ups.

'What the hell', Caitlin thinks to herself. This isn't her, she isn't the show-off type. Maybe you are affecting her more than she realizes.

"It's my lucky night," Lexi says as she comes over and 'brags' pointing over to you in her jersey. The team playfully pushes Lexi.

Caitlin can't help but feel the overwhelming sense of disappointment that has pooled in her stomach and chest when she looks over at you to see exactly what her teammate has just stated. I mean why would you wear her jersey? She is not doing what everyone expected her to do.

Lexi runs over to you and you pat her hip, showing her the jersey you were wearing. Lexi says something to make you laugh and Caitlin has two thoughts.

One - Caitlin wants to be the cause of your smile and laugh. So much so that she is throwing out all the thoughts she suppressed about you.

Two - Oh what Caitlin would do to feel your hands on her hips. A tap. A pinch. Skin to skin. Caitlin swallowed.

You push Lexi back towards the team and she jogs back. Caitlin needs to figure out how she can get to that point with you.

The game begins and you lock in on watching your team. You watch them start off fast - they set the pace really well and are pushing a lot in transition in the first quarter. You observe as Caitlin is reading and running the floor like a true pro.

When she is working off the ball you see her occasionally glance over in your direction. At first, you didn't notice it, but then she started doing it with the ball in her hand and you couldn't help but smile every time she did. As the glances became more frequent, the butterflies in your stomach managed to grow.

You try to get the school-girl feeling to pass as you watch the rookie control the floor. She's in a relationship you tell yourself. She is in a relationship with a man. So why is she looking over your way so frequently?

Halftime comes and you feel like you can breathe. The Fever is down by 4 going into the half which is better than they were the last time they matched up against this team. You hope their halftime talk is enough to push them ahead going into the third.

The team runs back out and you watch the team put a few shots. Your eyes immediately find the rookie as you watch her get loose both with the ball and with her team. As you watched the young Fever team this season, one thing that you have seen is how it has taken some time for the new team to build some chemistry. You have heard your friend talk about it but it could visibly be seen. So seeing Caitlin smiling and messing around with Lexi and Lyss has you hopeful that the chemistry is brewing faster rather than slower.

Caitlin is laughing at something Lexi says when she leans her head back, hand on her stomach, all with eyes closed. When her eyes open they meet yours. Cait holds your gaze, a smile still on her face. You grow a smile looking at the girl and give her a little nod. Her smile never fades as she finally looks away from you.

Well, if you were questioning the girl before, you are for sure questioning the rookie's thoughts now.

You watch the rest of the game and the Fever takes the win. A fun one at that.

You walk over to your friend who has been stressed the whole game and give them a hug.

"Good job, coach," you say and pat him on the back. he just shakes his head.

"They are going to be the death of me," he says jokingly but with a hint of seriousness in his tone.

Erica runs over and jumps on his back, only proving his previous statement.

You see Lexi and Caitlin make their way over as well.

You give Lex a hug and congratulate her on a stellar game. You then step over and introduce yourself.

"I'm Caitlin," the girl says.

"I know," you say with a soft smile. "Everyone knows who you are."

She blushes but tries not to break eye contact. It is as clear as day to her team that Cait is acting differently towards you, they all take a mental note.

"Way to come out with another win for the season. The turnaround in the fourth made for an exciting game," you say to the group.

"Would be better if they could do it a little faster than in the fourth," your friend says.

"Hey, we got there, didn't we?" Erica says.

"You did, and that is all that matters," you nudge your friend who just shakes his head.

"Hey, we are having a game night tomorrow and would be fun if you joined," Lexi says with a smile looking at you. Caitlin's eyes are wide as she wants to yell at Lexi to take it back. A light panic begins to grow in the younger girl's chest but she chooses to keep her mouth shut.

"That sounds like fun, can I let you know in the morning?" You ask.

"Of course," Lex responds.

Great, now Catilin has to worry for the next 20 hours to see if you will be at their team hangout. Not only that, but a team hang out where significant others will be, her boyfriend included. There is no need for Cait to panic just yet but she can't help it.

The next morning rolls around and Caitlin toys with the idea of calling Lexi to see if you will be at the game night. She decides against it remembering she will see Lex in the weight room. She gets ready for the day and makes her way to the gym.

"Hey girlie," Lexi says walking up with Katie Lou and pulling Caitlin out of her thoughts.

Caitlin smiles but doesn't say anything. Katie bumps the younger girl's arm and Caitlin looks up debating if it will be too much to ask the one question that has plagued her brain since last night.

"Ready for our game night?" Katie asks.

"Who all is going to be there?" Caitlin asks, trying to get the information out without directly asking if you would be there.

"Wouldn't you like to know," Lexi teases.

"Yes, I would," Caitlin says in all seriousness.

"Could it have anything to do with me asking a certain courtside girl to join?" Lexi asks.

Caitlin stutters and doesn't know what to say. Lexi's hand comes to her shoulder.

"She will be there," Lexi says sweetly.

The three girls go through their weight routine and head out for the day.

As Caitlin is getting ready for the night her boyfriend texts saying he has to bail on the game night. Cait should have been disappointed but she's relieved. Maybe tonight will help give the girl some clarity.

Caitlin was right.

The whole night was spent getting to know you. She found out shortly into the first game that your competitiveness matched hers. It made for a fun night for the two of you. The night ended with you and her playing a game, just the two of you. It didn't occur to either of you that it had just been you two for the last 20 minutes.

What was most surprising to Cait was how easy it was. She thought it would be weird or awkward but your conversation flowed easily. By the end of the night the younger girl didn't want it to end.

You are walking out with Caitlin when you decide to be a little bold. You walk her to her car.

"That was a fun one," you say.

"It was. It was great getting to know you a little more," Caitlin says, feeling her palms become sweaty. She looks everywhere except your eyes, trying to suppress the thoughts and feelings stirring inside of her.

You bring your hand up to brush come of the hair out of her face, tucking it behind her ear. You are a lot closer than Caitlin remembers. She finally looks up and her eyes meet yours. Your hand remains by her face, not quite touching.

Caitlin leans her head over just a smidge, drawing the contact from your hand. Her eyes close as your thumb rubs her cheek.

To anyone watching, it was all innocent. But between the two of you, it was electrifying. The closeness. Your touch on her cheek. Caitlin's curiosity gets the best of her and begins to lean in.

You lean in but instead of your lips meeting, you lean your forehead against hers. To say Caitlin was disappointed was an understatement.

"I know you have a boyfriend," you whisper. "And I am not going to be the one to make you a cheater but I do want to kiss you."

Caitlin blushes like crazy, eyes still closed and forehead still on yours. She is not ready to part from the closeness.

"You intrigue me, rookie," you say and finally part from the girl.

Caitlin wants to tell you how she has not once felt what she is feeling now with her boyfriend. That she has felt more alive with you that night than she had in the last three months. Neither of which escape Caitlin's lips.

You give the girl one last look and head to your car.

The next few weeks the team sees the crush that Caitlin has developed on you. None of them say anything considering she is still in a relationship, that is until she isn't.

Caitlin had replayed the game night in her head more times than she could count. She had thought on it so much that it led her to a sitdown with her boyfriend, ultimately ending with them taking a break.

Caitlin thought she would be sad and angry even at the fact that the guy didn't seem to be upset in any way but all she could feel was relief. If that wasn't a sign, she doesn't know what would be.

Another game night approaches and outside of playing, Cait help but think about seeing you. You have yet to wear her jersey and it has been driving Cailtin insane. She has been doing great things on the court but for some reason, you haven't chosen her yet.

Clark runs out to the court, eyes immediately looking for you. She has one goal today and it involves you. She doesn't see you as names are called for the starting line up and she begins to worry. You are always there for the starting lineup.

The teams get set to kick off the game and you frantically make your way to your seat. Caitlin sees you sit down but can't make out the jersey you are wearing. She has to remind herself that isn't what is important at the moment, the only thing that matters is showing up and out for this game.

Caitlin goes out the gates with a bang. Over the course of the game, she is doing everything on the floor. It is in the fourth quarter that Caitlin reaches up to grab a rebound when the crowd erupts.

You jump to your feet and cheer on Clark as she becomes the first WNBA rookie to record a triple-double. The crowd is going wild but Caitlin knows the job isn't done. She pushes pace, passing Lexi the ball where she draws a foul. When the clock stops she looks over at you still on your feet and clapping.

Her heart jumps when she sees you in her jersey. About damn time, she thinks as she pulls her attention back to the game. The team pushes in the last final minutes and pulls through with the win.

The team celebrates, Caitlin, trying to pull away to find you. When she spots you, she runs right up to you.

"Just had to show off, didn't you," you say teasing the girl.

"You and me, Friday night. I am taking you out," Caitlin says with the utmost confidence.

You look up at her, beaming.

"Okay Clark, Friday," you say and Caitlin is now the one beaming.

The team comes up, shaking Caitlin. You think it is for the triple-double but soon find out it is because she has finally asked you out.

"About time," Erica says. Caitlin looks appalled.

"About time? About time? If anything there you should be saying 'about time' to is this girl wearing my jersey," Caitlin points at you in her jersey, a sight she wants to see every game moving forward.

"Hey, I had to give you some time to get there, and you did so I don't know why you are complaining," you say giving Cait's shoulder a little shove.

"Oh you wanna go, I am ready to go," she says bumping her body with yours.

"The only play you two are going is out tomorrow night," Lexi says and both of your heads whip to her.

Caitlin's cheeks heat up as she looks to hide her face. She leans into you, hiding it on your shoulder.

"I mean, she isn't wrong," you say to Cait as you feel her groan.

AN: Another cute one. Sort of feels a little choppy but let me know what you think. And as always, thank you for your love and support 🤍

she’s so fineeee

salivating!!!!!!!!!

GUYS !!!!!???? ⁉️⁉️⁉️⁉️

guys i fear it’s bad for me …

real

I keep re-watching Kate's technical. it's become a part of my morning routine.

i need her to do unspeakable things to me im so serious

her and these damn reporters, the flirting is crazyyy.

OH MY GOOOOD I NEED HER

she's so fine

Milkshakes - CC

Pairing: Caitlin Clark x Reader

Should Have Been Me

Summary: 3 times you and Caitlin get milkshakes and once when she's just missing you, AKA the prequel to Should Have Been Me (based on THIS request)

Warnings: fluff, last part is angst but is also really sweet

Word Count: 3.5k

Sweetbans Masterlist

AN: I hope this helps heal what was broken in Should Have Been Me

one. midnight talks.

Your dreams are coming true.

Caitlin and you just graduated high school and are on your way to the University of Iowa. Both of you had made the women's basketball team and were ready to start a new chapter together. And in the frenzy and excitement of graduation, the two of you found yourselves sitting in your favorite diner.

You are sitting across from your favorite girl, sipping milkshakes as the two of you talk about anything and everything.

"Do you think the team is going to like us?" You ask as you take a sip of your milkshake.

"They are going to love you," Caitlin responds. "I haven't met a single person who doesn't love you."

Her hand comes across the table to hold yours. If it was up to her, you would be sitting on her side of the booth so she could cuddle into your side. If anyone were to ask, she was 100% a physical touch girl. Some part of her was always on you at all times. There was just something about your warmth that she had been drawn to.

It had been like that since you could remember. Even before you were dating she would be right next to you. It became extremely helpful when she would get overworked during games, even if you couldn't see it. She has always had a big mouth on the court but when she was around you, it would tame her enough to just flirt with a technical instead of receiving one every other game.

When the two of you were growing up you would have sleepovers. You would always wake up with Caitlin curled up by your side. Even when you put a pillow in between you to separate the two of you because of the heat or whatever the reason, she would find her way to you in the middle of the night usually resulting in you waking up in a sweat but you never minded.

The only time it ever really got to be too much was when you were out and about with people. There is one time, in particular, you could remember it being a distraction.

Your high school team decided to go watch the guy's team play in one of their playoff games. It was an away game and you had all piled into two cars, not wanting to deal with using more gas than necessary or having to find parking. You and Cait had driven to school together and then jumped into one of your friend's cars. She was saving a spot for you when another girl from the team jumped in and sat in the spot, leaving you to sit on the other side and away from her.

She was annoyed but knew it would be fine if she sat by you during the game.

When you all arrived at the game, Caitlin stood right next to you to make sure she would be sitting somewhere around you. And she was right, she sat right in front of you which she was happy about. This meant she could lean back into your legs while you played with her hair.

When she sat down she immediately leaned back and your legs welcomed her torso. She was content. Content for at least a whole five minutes until you began to tab her back.

"Can you sit up? My legs are falling asleep," you say and she reluctantly gets up and slumps her shoulder. When you noticed her shoulders you leaned in.

"Are you okay CC?" You ask, whispering into her ear.

She nods. You don't push it.

A few of your teammates mention they are going to go grab snacks and you join them. You get up and squeeze Caitlin's shoulder. Her hand comes up to hold yours for a quick second before you remove it from her which she wishes you didn't.

When you come back, you notice someone has taken your spot behind Caitlin so you find a seat a little further down with the girls you just came back with.

You feel eyes burning into you and turn to see your girlfriend's eyes staring into your soul. You give her a questioning look but she just crosses her arms and turns back towards the game.

You get back into the game and cheer on the team. They come out victorious and you could not be more excited. The team decides to head to grab a bit after, and Caitlin stays as far away from you as possible. It doesn't matter if it is internally tearing Caitlin apart - she is mad at you and wants to make that known.

When you finally get back to the school and get in your car with Caitlin, she sits in the front seat, arms crossed just like the game, and doesn't say a word to you.

"CC what's wrong?" You ask as you turn to her before even turning the car on.

"Nothing," she says and you know she is lying to you.

You reach over and touch her arm and she immediately flinches away from you, turning towards the window.

"Caity babe, look at me," you say now putting your hand on her favorite spot on her thigh. Her knee begins to tap.

Your other hand goes to rub her shoulder and neck - you are doing all of her favorite things and you both know it.

She sighs and the tension she was holding in releases. She turns to face you - arms still crossed.

"Use your words, love," you say as your thumb comes to rub her cheek.

"it's dumb," she says and lets out a 'hmph'.

"It's not it if has you feeling this annoyed," you remove your hands from her.

"No," she yelps and grabs your hands bringing them into her. It all clicked.

"Come here," you say and open your arms. She unbuckles and awkwardly maneuvers over your center console and into your lap. You have to admit it is not the most conventional and you realize that when her elbow hits your horn. You let out a laugh and she lets out a groan. You move your seat back as far as it will go and you wrap your arms around your girl.

Her head finds its place in your neck and you feel her relax into you.

"I'm sorry," you say as you rub one of her thighs. Her legs are lying across your center console and her feet are on your passenger seat.

"'S okay," she mutters into your neck. "Just like being close to you."

"I know, I should have known that," you say. You sit there for a few minutes before loosening your grip on your girl. "Ready to go home?"

"Will you spend the night?" Caitlin asks.

"Of course," you say and kiss the top of her head.

The two of you talk about what you both plan on expecting to experience as you head into college. You reassure her that the team will love her. It is not that she was worried per se, but it was a known fact that people naturally gravitated towards you over her.

"I wish we were roommates," she says. It had been about two weeks since finding out that the two of you would be in different rooms but were still in the same dorm. She has brought it up at least once since you found out.

"I think we will be okay," you say.

"But we aren't even on the same floor," she says dipping her finger in your milkshake.

"Hey!" You yell at her and pull your glass back. You offer her the excess of your shake that they brought you in the mental cup and automatically grab her excess. She complies with the trade.

"We will be okay. We will see each other the same that we see each other now, if not more," you say. "Plus, if you saw me 24/7 you would get annoyed with me."

"I would not," she says appalled that I would even think that.

"You would," you say knowingly.

"Would not."

"Would."

Would not."

"Would."

"Would not." You know you are not winning this.

"Agree to disagree," you say.

"Fine, but I wouldn't," she whispers and takes another sip.

"Don't push it, Clark," you warn. She throws her hands up in defeat.

The two of you finish your milkshakes as you both continue talking about how excited you are, including how you plan to continue doing some of your favorite things together. It is all just a matter of time.

two. i love you.

It was the summer before junior year of high school and you and Caitlin were heading home from practice for your club team, Attack. She was driving the two of you back to your house when you mentioned you wanted to stop to get milkshakes. She happily pulled over at your favorite local spot. Once the two of you had gotten your sweet treat, you sat in her car drinking milkshakes.

"I feel like we are single-handedly keeping this diner in business," you say as you take the first sip of your milkshake. "They literally get better every time."

"I can't imagine our lives without these," Caitlin says.

The diner was the first place the two of you went when you got your license. Caitlin was the first to get hers and you were only a few months behind. When Cait got hers, she begged her parents to let her take you to get milkshakes and after hours of bugging them, they finally said yes.

She drove to your house and picked you up to get milkshakes, the first time without one of your parents.

Since then, the two of you have been there multiple times a week. That is how you ended up there now.

"This will always be our place," she says and you sit there in thought. The two of you sit there drinking your sweet treat.

"Cait?" You ask as she is finishing her milkshake. She looks up at you.

You go silent again and are just staring directly at her dashboard. Caitlin looks at you until you finally turn to look back at her.

"This will always be our place," you say, repeating the words she just spoke to you. She smiles.

"Ya," she says.

"Just like I will always be yours," you say and Caitlin freezes.

"I love you," you say.

Up to this point, the two of you had both told each other you liked each other more than friends and started to explore what that looked like. You would say the two of you had been dating for the past couple of months - keeping it really low-key as you didn't know how the people around you would take it. But there was something about this moment, something about being together and just doing life together that helped you realize she is your everything.

She looks at you slightly shocked.

"You don't need to say it back!" You say, not wanting to pressure her. You just didn't want to go another day without telling her. "I just needed to tell you because, well, I do. I love you, Caitlin Clark."

A goofy little smile makes its way to her face and she pulls you in for a hug. It isn't the most comfortable considering you sitting in a car and have some piece of the center console pushing into your rib cage but you didn't mind.

"I love you," she whispers in your ear as she hugs you.

It was the first of many times the two of you would say those three words to each other.

three. firsts.

You were in first grade, the same as Caitlin. Your parents decided it would be a good idea to enroll the two of you into a summer basketball league which you didn't want to do but Caitlin had convinced you it would be fun. Caitlin's convincing was really just saying it would be fun. She was your best friend and you had no reason to not believe her so you agreed and your parents.

Your dad took the two of you to the first practice and he watched as the two of you outplayed everyone else on the court.

To be fair, Caitlin growing up with two brothers, and with her competitive nature, she had her dad teach the two of you the basics before the first practice. It served both of you well considering there was no girl team and the two of you were on the boy's team.

He watched as the two of you ran circles around the little boys and were already playing well with each other - it had him thinking that both of you had insanely bright futures. And that was not just because of your dad but the other dads came up to him and sparked up conversations on how good the two of you were.

After practice, the two of you come bouncing over to your dad with giant smiles on your faces, faces still red from running around but neither of you could be bothered by that.

"That was so fun!" You say and hug your dad.

"I told you it would be," Caitlin says in a matter-of-fact tone.

You roll your eyes at your best friend.

"I know what you told me," you say. "But you didn't say it was going to be like that."

"Well I didn't know it was going to be like that," she says.

"Okay, girls, it was more fun than both of you thought," your dad says as he grabs both of your backpacks from you.

You load into his car and are on the way home.

"Daddy," you yell from the back. "Can we get a treat?"

"Sure sweetie," he says and pulls into a diner on the side of the road.

"I've been here before!" Caitlin yells and gets excited.

"Do they have anything sweet?" You ask giving it a questioning look.

"They have the best sweet treat," she says. "Well except my mommy's cookies."

"Oooo your mommy's cookies are really good," you say remembering having one the last time you were at her house.

"Ya but they have milkshakes here," Caitlin says excitedly. She begins to run ahead when your dad calls out to her to not run in the parking lot. She comes right back to your side and holds your hand.

"Milkshake? What's that?" You ask as you swing your hands.

"Wait, you've never had a milkshake before?" Caitlin stops dead in her tracks and looks at you like you are crazy. You shake your head no. She then proceeds to pull you to the door like you couldn't wait any longer or you would die.

"You need one now!" Caitlin yells.

The three of you sit in a booth, you and Caitlin on one side with your dad on the other.

Caitlin picks out a chocolate milkshake for the two of you to share. As the two of you waited, Caitlin wouldn't stop talking about how it's going to be the best thing ever and that you will never be the same. She was hyping it up so much, she made it sound like it was the most magical thing in the world.

The waitress brings out the milkshake and places two straws on the table. Both of your little fingers work to unwrap the straws.

"Okay, you try it first," Caitlin says as she pushes the glass towards you. She looks at you with excited eyes.

You stick your straw in and take a sip. It doesn't hit your tongue immediately as your little hands come to hold the glass as you try sucking the liquid gold up with all your might.

Your eyes light up when you finally get a taste of it.

"WOW!" You yell.

"Right?" Caitlin says with a laugh and sticks her straw in. She struggles like you do to get the first sip.

"I could drink this every day until I die," you say. Your dad lets out a little laugh.

"Well this used to be just my thing," Caitlin says pulling her legs up to sit on her knees. "But since you like them too, this can be our thing now!" The excitement radiates off of her and mesmerizes you.

"Ya! It is our thing now!" You say as the two of you finish every last drop.

four. without you.

It has been 3 years since she had lost you. Two years without you.

It's the second anniversary of your passing and Caitlin has made her way back to your hometown. She is driving through the town you two grew up in, not really having a destination but reminiscing on when you were here with her.

The two you both grew up in held so many memories.

She drives past a park - your park.

In high school when you couldn't sleep you would make your way to this park. It wasn't super far from your house but became much easier to get to when you had your own car.

If you had stopped responding to Cait at night it would be one of two things. Either you had fallen asleep or clearing your mind at the park. She would always check your location. It would worry her if you were at the park alone. It never mattered how tired she was, if she saw your little dot not at home after 9pm, she would be up and heading to your location.

You are at the park, on the court. It wasn't uncommon for you to be there at this hour - your parents and Caitlin knew you would go when you had too many thoughts in your head.

You run through a few sequences when you hear footsteps approaching.

You grab your ball and turn towards your girl.

"Babe, you didn't have to come," you say knowing she would be there every time.

She gives you a 'you've got to be kidding me' look and you give her a shy smile. You walk up to her and she wraps her arms around you. Typically it would be you holding her - that's how she preferred it but whenever you found yourself at the park, you would also find yourself in her arms.

"I couldn't sleep," you say after a few minutes. She rubs your back.

"I know baby," she says.

"What if I don't get in, or make the team?" You ask separating from her.

"That is crazy," Cait says as she tries to get you to look into her eyes. "You are going to get in."

"But what if I don't," you say, not able to look into her eyes.

Her hands come to cup your face.

"Look at me, please," she whispers. You slowly bring your eyes to hers. Tears threaten to fall.

"You are getting in and we will be playing college ball together and than we will get drafted to the W. That might not be together but that is okay, I have no doubt that we will end up together again. I will make sure of it," Caitlin says.

You believe her because your heart can't bear the thought of anything else.

Leaning in, you rest your forehead on hers.

"I love you so much," you say and kiss her.

Caitlin brings her fingers to touch her lips. She misses the way your lips mold perfectly to hers.

She keeps driving, finally pulling into an old rundown parking lot. She parks her car and sits there.

She grabs something from the passenger seat and holds it up to her chest, giving it a hug. It's the stuffed bear the two of you made on your anniversary all those years back.

As she hugs the bear, her hand finds the chain around her neck that holds the ring you never got the chance to give her yourself. She fights the tears but fails.

She looks up at the abandoned restaurant, void of light and life, sort of how she feels now.

There have been a lot of highs in the past few years but with the highs came the lows. She was incredibly thankful that Colin moved to Indiana with her because she would not have done on her own. She thought about you every day.

She stares off into the space as she thinks about you.

She hasn't been able to stomach the thought of drinking a milkshake without you and hasn't had one since. It didn't feel right.

She is busy in thought then something catches her eye. A pop of color amidst the grayish building.

Caitlin gets out of the car and makes her way over it. She walks up to see a single group of flowers growing through the pavement in front of the door. She bends down and runs her hands through them, bear still in her arms.

She squats in disbelief as her hand runs through your favorite flowers growing in front of one of your favorite places. She stares in awe, similar to how she would look at you.

A gust of wind comes and brushes through her hair. She sighs.

"Forever and always," she whispers, eyes closing - tears finally falling to bring life to what seemed to be the impossible.

AN: I had to end it that way, I do not apologize. Hopefully, this helps get a glimpse into life before the pain. Let me know what you think! And as always, thank you for all the love and support 🤍

Kate after that tech😭

tiktok pisses me off. i do not want to see connor and caitlin especially not after today 😭😭😭

my pretty girl

beautiful

I Can Do It With a Broken Heart (Part 2): Fake It Til You Make It

Paige Bueckers x reader

You go out on a date. Paige gets drunk. Chaos ensues.

Themes: hella angst, KK being a cutie pie

Word Count: 2.4k

A/N: I’m honestly so overwhelmed by the love on the first part. You guys are amazing! I hope you enjoy the second part, too 😌💓

Part 1 - KK tries to set you up on live, and things between you and Paige go south.

~

It had been three days since Paige had turned her back to you in a brutal and nonchalant rejection, and you were now spiraling. You would be a fucking liar if you did not admit to the fact that that night had shook you to your core, and you could not stop replaying it in your mind. 

And because you could not help but unabashedly wear your heart on your sleeve, pretty much everyone but Paige could tell.

The morning after, Aubrey had stopped by your apartment with kind, curious eyes, asking you how you were feeling. You had shrugged, worried that if you opened your mouth, everything you felt would come flying out in a candid display of want, and that was something you were trying to avoid. But she had prodded, and it was not long before she was enveloping you in a warm hug as you sobbed. 

You did not know how to survive the weirdness that had developed the previous night; there was never any awkwardness between you and Paige, and now your friendship had a dark cloud resting over it. 

You had pulled away a few moments later, wiping at your eyes and looking at Aubrey, who had a very concerned look on her face. 

“It’ll work itself out,” she promises, and you can’t help but feel cynical. Paige was never going to love you, so how could it possibly work out? 

You nod to appease her, and thank her for checking on you. You spend the rest of the day curled up in bed, texting Scarlett, and trying to distract yourself from the gnawing feeling that was eating away at you.

The next evening, Ice and KK had showed up at your door, trying to entice you to come over to where everyone was hanging out with Paige. You gave them a blank expression, telling them that Paige clearly did not want to see you, and that you were going to be keeping your distance for awhile. Ice had shot you a sympathetic smile, while KK, who normally had a huge grin on her face, looked like someone had kicked her puppy. 

She perks up at the mention of Scarlett, and you tell her that the two of you had planned a date for next weekend, but her smile falls as Ice elbows her in the ribs, shaking her head subtly.

Your eyebrows furrow at Ice’s shifty behavior, but before you can ask, she is already turning to leave, dragging a protesting KK behind her. 

‘Weirdos,’ you think amusedly.

And now, here you were, three days later, an absolute fucking mess. But it was Monday, and while you were able to spend the whole weekend moping, you had shit to do. Luckily, the constant stream of texts from Scarlett was a welcomed distraction, and it almost disguised the pang you felt when your mind cruelly drifted to Paige. 

She had gone live again with KK and Ice, and you watched the clips on tiktok. She laughed alongside her teammates, gallivanting around and showing off, but the light in her eyes was dimmed. And to any other person, she looked so happy, but you could see the circles under her eyes and the way her smile did not quite reach her eyes. 

It almost gave you the tiniest shred of hope, but if there was any chance of you and Paige, you would not even dare to think about it. Because once that idea was fabricated, there was no going back.

~

The rest of the week drags on, and the ache in your chest on account of Paige’s absence grows exponentially. You consider calling off your date and running unabashedly to her door to beg and plead for an explanation. Her silence confuses the hell out of you, and as you wake Friday morning, you are brought to tears again. Your date was this evening, and you already were anticipating needing copious amounts of concealer to cover the dark circles under your eyes, the unforgiving effect of late nights spent pondering over what the fuck had happened between you and the tall blonde. 

You float through the rest of the day, just wanting to get it over with, and as you finish the final touches on your hair, your stomach is in your ass.

Your anxiety spikes at you hear a loud knock on your door, and you reach for the knob, pulling it open cautiously. KK, Ice, and Aubrey are standing in front of you, each adorned with looks of unfathomable pity. 

“Hey guys,” you say wistfully, missing them in Paige’s absence last week. 

“We’re going out tonight. Please come out with us.” Ice nearly begs. You had grown really close to the younger girls, almost acting like their mother, and the distance pained you. 

“You know I’ve got that date,” you reluctantly remind her. As much as you wanted to go, you knew it would be rude as hell to cancel this late. 

Ice pouts, along with KK, who says “C’mon. Will you at least come after?” 

You hesitate, biting your lips as you think about it. “I don’t know,” you trail. “I’ll see how the date goes. Might need a drink,” you say, cracking a smile. 

This seems to appease the girls, and they turn to make their leave, wishing you luck on your date. You go to close the door before you hear KK say a bit too loudly, “Paige is gonna be sad.” 

Fuck. 

~

You meet Scarlett at a nearby restaurant. You wanted to keep the first date casual, and when she had suggested a place that you and Paige often went to together, you thought it might help your nerves. 

Scarlett looked absolutely stunning. Her long dark hair flowed over her shoulders and down her back in glossy waterfalls, and her eyes were a deep green and piercing. She was soft and feminine, and she was about your height. It was odd to be around another girl who you did not have to crane your neck to look up towards, and your mind mercilessly floats back to blue eyes and long, blonde hair.

You remind yourself to stop comparing her to Paige, but your lovelorn subconscious ached at the internal chastising.

The two of you get along great. The conversation flows easily, and you find yourself relaxing as time passes. You take a sip of your drink, when Scarlett suddenly brings up Paige. Your stomach lurches in surprise. 

“Paige is so hot. Is she single?” 

Shock overcomes you, and you are momentarily speechless, trying to find the right words to express how the fuck you were feeling. Her blatant brazenness hits you like a truck, and you feel foolish for thinking this beautiful girl would actually want you. 

“Um yeah, she is,” you mumble, fiddling with the napkin on your lap. 

She straightens up, looking at you eagerly. “She’s single?” 

You nod, not trusting yourself to speak without your voice cracking in a traitorous manner. 

“You think you could introduce me? I’ve noticed you’re always hanging around the whole team.” 

You pinch your arm, trying to distract yourself from the tears threatening to well up in your eyes. You take a deep breath, “I need to go to the bathroom,” you whisper. You don’t even give her enough time to answer before you get out of your chair, and run into the restroom for a reprieve. 

Without thinking, you pull out your phone, dialing KK’s number, and she picks up on the first ring. 

“Hey!” She exclaims. “How’s the date goin’? 

A sob escapes your throat. “She just asked me if Paige was single,” you whimper, and KK gasps in disbelief. 

“Are you serious?” She whispers, and you let out a watery chuckle. “It was all too damn good to be true.” 

“Fuck,” she sighs, and you can practically feel her anger and empathy through the phone. 

“I tried,” you mumble through the tears. “I give up now. I am so fucking done with this shit." The embarrassment was seeping into your voice, and another sob wracked your body.

“You need to leave,” KK says firmly. “Come out with us tonight, girl!"

“I think I just want to be alone,” you mutter. “But call me if any of you guys need a ride.”

Kk hangs up, threatening Scarlett vehemently before she does so, and you feel slightly better at her reaction. 

Before you exit the bathroom, you fix your makeup, and you take a deep breath, trying to give yourself a pep talk before walking out to leave. 

Scarlett gives a friendly wave as you approach the table, cluelessly, and you grab your purse, pulling out some money to put on the table. 

“Going on a date with me to get to Paige is fucking pathetic,” you spit before spinning on your heel and leaving without another word. 

At least you got the last word in. Now you could go cry in peace. 

By the time you arrive back home, your phone was blowing up with text messages from the team. KK had obviously told them what had happened, and you were grateful for their support, albeit a tiny bit embarrassed. You hoped Paige was still in the dark, and you couldn’t bear to think about her reaction. 

You spend the night laying in bed watching tv and replying to the myriad of drunk text messages and snap chats you receive from the team. You giggled as Jana sent you a video of her dancing with Paige. The blonde looked absolutely gone, and while she looked like she was having a good time, you were slightly worried for her. 

You knew once “Party P” reached her limit, she would need someone to take care of her. That was usually your job. And before you could even think to stop yourself, you are calling Jana, asking her to let you talk to Paige. 

You hear the pounding of the music as Jana gives her the phone, and she answers with a loud exclamation of your name.

Your heart flutters. Maybe she wasn’t mad at you anymore? 

“Hey, P,” you say softly. “Having fun?”

“S’much fun! Wish you were here,” she yells over the music. 

You agree with her. Sitting at home feeling sorry for yourself did you no good. 

“Need a ride home, P?” You ask cautiously. 

“Yeah, baby. Missed you,” she slurs, eliciting a giggle of relief. 

Things were going to be okay. 

~

A few hours later, you walk through the door, arms still wrapped around Paige’s waist, trying desperately to keep her from falling onto the floor. When you had picked her up from the bar, she had been dangerously intoxicated, immediately launching herself into your arms, whispering about how sorry she was and how much she missed you. Her clinginess had yet to fade. 

She sways as she walks, giggling as she does so. You lead her to the couch, where she drops down onto it, pulling you to sit next to her. You do so, gingerly attempting to keep some distance between you. 

But Paige has other ideas. 

Swinging a leg across your lap, she straddles you, staring at you with hooded eyes. You press your body back into the couch, trying to maintain the friendly bounds of friendship. Her breath fans over your face, and you can smell the remnants of the bar. Her tongue was stained pink from the grenadine of the Shirley temples she always drank, as she licked her lips tantalizingly slow. 

Your breath hitches at the proximity, and you reach up to cup her cheek. She leans into your touch, eyes closing momentarily as you stroke the flushed skin. 

“Let’s get you to bed,” you murmur, wishing she was sober. 

She pouts in response, still leaning into you, but you push down your urges to lean in and kiss her. You turn your head, avoiding her gaze, and you shift your hips to try and get off the couch. 

Paige was typically stronger than you, but her blatant drunkenness gives you an edge, and you manage to get out from her hold. 

“C’monnn. Want cuddles,” she whines, looking up at you from the couch. 

You laugh at her fondly and hold out your hand for her to grasp it. “Once you get ready for bed, we can cuddle,” you respond, a blush covering your face and creeping down your neck at her words. 

Paige finally relents, letting you help her off the couch and moving towards the bathroom. She all but falls onto the closed lid of the toilet, and you place a dollop of toothpaste onto her toothbrush and give it to her. She brushes sloppily, leaving a ring of toothpaste around her mouth. Giggling, you wet a washcloth, cleaning her up, and she closes her eyes blissfully as you do so. 

You had never seen her so drunk. And it was mildly concerning. But she was hilarious, and you tried not to read too much into it. 

Once she is finished in the bathroom, Paige stumbles into her bedroom, falling onto the bed with a laugh. She looks up at you, pulling at the tight material of her crop top she still had on. 

“Want this off,” she slurs, and your cheeks turn pink again. You had both changed in front of each other before, but your relationship had changed dramatically. 

“Pleaseee help me,” she pleads, and you let out a sigh. You move directly in front of her, and she raises her arms up as you pull her tiny shirt off. Squatting down, you help take off her pants, leaving her in her boxers and a bra. 

Awkwardly, you avert your eyes, walking towards her dresser and pulling out an oversized shirt. You pull it over her head, and she gazes up at you with a stupid grin, and you poke her nose. 

She lays back down, pulling you down with her, and you scoot next to her. Her grip on you was intense, as if she was terrified you would never return if she let you go. 

It makes you think about the past week, and your heart breaks. 

Sure, she shut you out. But sometimes that’s a simple defense mechanism. So you let her cling to you, secretly basking in her presence and warmth. You had missed her as much as she missed you. 

Brushing her hair away from her face, you mumble out a good night, the emotions of the day making you suddenly weary, and you shut your eyes. 

She responds quietly. Your ears nearly miss it. 

“I’m so in love with you.” 

Your eyes fly open. 

What. The. Fuck.

~

AHHH another cliffhanger. Angst is so much fun to write. Do you guys want a part 3?? If so, I'm thinkin' fluff

xoxo katy

She’s Such a Good Girl (Part 2)

Paige continues her assault on your innocence, leading you to spiral.

Paige Bueckers x reader

Word Count: 2.7k

Themes: angst in the beginning, Paige being hot and flirty the rest of it woohoo, mentions of being horny oops

Part 1 - You move in across the hall from Paige Bueckers. It doesn’t take long before she tries to shatter your innocent persona. And you just let her.

Masterlist

A/N: I’m so, so grateful for all the love on the first part of this little mini series. Let me know if you are up for a third part:)) I have soo many ideas it's ridiculous

~

You wake up feeling anything but well rested. Your sleep was muddled with dreams of Paige, her smile infiltrating your unconsciousness until you woke up with an uncomfortable stickiness in between your thighs. You groan into your pillow, the general overwhelmingness of last night draining you even more.

Grabbing your phone from your bedside table, you see a text from Paige, and the butterflies erupt inside of you once more. 

‘We’re all planning on going out tonight. You’re coming with us.’

Her bluntness momentarily stuns you, but you were grateful to be included. It seemed she was hell bent on getting you out of your shell, for whatever reason, and you were simply just going to concede. You needed this.

You respond, your heart beating out of your chest, and the anxiety begins to set in. 

It was getting harder and harder to deny the gay feelings you had. And although it had been years since your “oh shit, I’m gay,” moment had dawned on you, this was reaching new heights of awareness. But you had refused to truly accept it thus far.

You had a complicated relationship with your sexuality. Most of the time you had shied away from even acknowledging it; it was too painful. In high school, you were surrounded by other gay people, and it felt like you almost belonged, slowly coming to terms with your sapphism. But as you moved away to college, you were the only one in your friend group who was even a little remotely queer, and you felt isolated by your glaring differences. 

Your religious upbringing did not help the situation either. You quickly learned how to hide your emotions. Slurs were regularly thrown around the dinner table, the nasty words cutting into your being, and your fists would be tightening in your lap, fighting to keep a neutral expression on your face.

You could not give yourself away.

As soon as you could, you’d seek solace in your room, hot, shameful tears sliding down your cheeks, forcing yourself to quiet the sobs erupting through your chest. The words of contempt echoed through your mind, until eventually you had nearly come to believe them yourself. 

Each evening you clasped your hands together desperately in prayer, vehemently struggling with everything you had been raised to know and everything you wanted and needed to feel. It was an eternal battle that raged on inside, slowly withering you into a ghost, haunted by the darkness that had flourished in the absence of support and acceptance.

You wondered what the people who had claimed to love and know you the most, would do if they found out about your dirty, little secret. The anxieties about being outed manifested in cruel dreams, awakening you suddenly, a thin layer of sweat glistening on your body as your chest rose and fell in quick staccato breaths. 

That was something you still wondered today. And you would certainly wonder for the rest of your life. You had vowed that you would never come out to your family unless you truly fell in love with a girl. So you had kept everyone at arm's length to protect yourself. But Paige Bueckers was slowly breaking your walls down, brick by brick. 

A wave of nausea washes over you as you realize that getting closer to Paige meant toying the line of the false heteronormative persona you’ve been carefully crafting since you were a young teenager. The temptation of feeling normal in a group of girls quickly shuts down any immediate worries. That was a problem for another time. 

You hear your roommates in the living room, bustling around without having any idea of your internal battle. With a sigh, you drag yourself out of bed to go out to meet them, already preparing for the deafening noises that would inevitably come with telling them of last night's events. 

You open your door, nearly shuffling your feet against the carpet as you walk out to greet Taylor and Sarah. Their heads turn from the focus on the television, faces set in smiles as they see you emerge from your room.

“Guess what I did last night?” You prompt them, and their faces morph into ones of natural curiosity. 

“Did you read your class syllabuses to get a head start?” Sarah asks sarcastically, and you stick your tongue out at her in false derision. 

“No,” you scoff, although her guess was not completely off base. “I went over and hung out with Paige and the rest of the team.”

Taylor and Sarah were uncharacteristically quiet for a moment. They glanced at each other, momentarily stunned before erupting in hollers, jumping to their feet in excitement. 

“How the fuck did that happen?” Taylor all but yells, still jumping up and down. It was a good thing you did not have downstairs neighbors.

“Well they were being so loud, and I wanted to go to bed, so I knocked on the door to politely ask them to shut up,” you explain, trying to hide the giddiness you felt as you recalled the events of last night.

“And Paige answered and invited me in. And now I’m going out with her and the team tonight,” you finish, carefully watching the reactions of your two best friends. 

Their faces were morphed into ones of sheer delight and astonishment.

“My innocent, little angel is growing up,” Taylor exclaims, pretending to wipe a tear from her eye, and you swat at her, giggling at the sheer hilarity of the situation.

“What am I supposed to wear to a bar?” You ask, and the girls shriek in laughter, clapping their hands and promising to help you get dressed later.

You feel better about everything, the support from your roommates briefly quelling the fears and uncertainties that had plagued your mind for years. And your excitement was a testimony to the effect a certain blonde had on you.

~

“You’ve got great tits. Might as well show them off,” Sarah says exasperatedly, shoving one of her low cut tops at you.

Your face heats up, and you hold up the tiny tank top. “Don’t you think it’s a little, I don’t know, slutty?” Your voice trails to a whisper as you think about purposely showing off your body. 

“That’s the point, girl! It’s finally your time to show everyone what you’re fucking made of. Go be a sexy, bad bitch!” Taylor urges, slapping you on the butt as she does.

You take a deep breath, nodding in agreement, finally pushing yourself further away from the perfect, good girl act that had been placed upon you since you were a child. 

You don the skimpy black tank, admiring the way it shows off your slim waist, and you pair it with tight jeans that accentuate the curve of your ass perfectly. You fluff your hair and add a layer of lip gloss, before taking one last long glance in the mirror.

You could do this.

With a few encouraging words from your roommates and a few slaps to your ass, you nervously make your way across the hall to knock once more on Paige’s door. The door is thrown open, loud cheers erupting as you appear, and KK launches herself at you excitedly, throwing her arms around you and pulling you into her. 

Giggling, you hug her back, your nerves melting away at her friendly disposition. She pulls away, eyeing you up and down with an approving nod. “Someone cooked here,” she smirks, and your face blooms an embarrassing shade of deep red.

“My roommates kind of helped me get dressed,” you admit, hands tugging down your impossibly small shirt. 

“Girl, you look fineee,” she says, rubbing her hands together, causing several of the other girls to cackle at her not so subtle attempt to rizz you up.

“Who looks fine?” you hear a familiar voice, and your head whips in the direction of the question. You see Paige sauntering towards you, and your heart immediately begins to pound as your eyes rake over her tall figure. 

Her hair was down in blonde waves, making you want to reach out and run your hand through the soft-looking locks. Her toned stomach was exposed from her crop top, her abs flashing in a way that had your stomach rolling with an unfamiliar feeling. You couldn’t necessarily put your finger on it, but it shot down in an intense display of unbridled want. And she had the smuggest look on her face, accentuating the plumpness of her bottom lip. Your tongue subconsciously darts out to lick a slow line against your own lip as you watch her approach you.

KK points at you, waggling her eyebrows. “The pretty princess over here.” 

You blush again. Shit, you really had to get that under control. 

Paige hums, looking you up and down once more. “She’s not wrong,” she mutters huskily in your ear as she pulls you in for a hug. Your knees weaken at her touch, and you aren't sure if you’d be able to survive the night. It had just begun, and she had you completely and irrevocably fucked. 

30 minutes later, you, Paige, and the other members of UCONN’s women’s basketball team were shuffling into several ubers to head to a nearby bar. Unsure of which car to get into, you awkwardly stand off to the side, the anxiety pumping through your veins once more, but you soon feel a muscular arm wrap around your waist.

Looking up, you are met with Paige’s blue eyes and that smug smirk, and with a wink, she guides you to the nearest car, helping you into the backseat. As you sit, you adjust your top, overly aware of how much of your chest was actually out. Paige sits next to you, settling in with a low grunt, and she immediately places a hand on your thigh. Your eyes focus on the veins and the length of her fingers, and that feeling in your belly ignites again. 

As you arrive at the bar, Paige helps you out of the car with a chivalrous hand. And it does not leave yours as you enter the doors. She laces her fingers through yours, and you don’t miss the way it feels so damn right. She guides you through the crowds of people, and your breath hitches, feeling slightly overwhelmed from the volume and the hoards of drunk people pushing into your frame. 

Paige notices immediately, and she pulls you closer, tucking you into her side protectively. You preen at the attention, the feeling so foreign but addictive. You needed more, and the idea of it ripped away from you sent an unsettling spike of dread shooting through you maliciously. 

Subtly, you shake your head in a futile attempt to clear the thoughts out of your head. Overthinking was sure to be your downfall. Nothing a little alcohol couldn’t fix, though.

Aside from the occasional glass of wine, you had never really drank. And you certainly had never done shots. But when Nika and Aubrey had thrusted a tray of them towards where you and Paige were sitting, you were quick to grab one, eager to dull the bitter voices in your head. 

You bring it to your face, taking a hesitant sniff that causes your nose to wrinkle, eliciting a fond chuckle from the blonde. “Do I just sip it or…?” You trail off shyly, suddenly very aware of how ridiculous you sounded. What kind of college girl didn’t know how to take a shot?

Paige bites her lip. “Lemme help you, baby,” she mutters in your ear, and she takes the shot out of your hand. “Breathe all of the air out and then swallow it all at once before you take another breath, okay?” 

You nod, letting the air leave your mouth, lips pouting. Without her gaze leaving your mouth, Paige holds up the shot glass, pouring the liquid down your throat in a swift motion. 

You swallow quickly, feeling the burn slide down your throat and settle into a warm pool in your belly. You lick your lips, trying to catch a tiny drop that had slid past your mouth and trailed down your chin towards your neck. 

Before you can chase the trickle, Paige leans in, swiping it with her thumb, placing it into her mouth and sucking, her cheeks hollowing in the process. 

Your face morphs into a look of shock, and she gives you a shit-eating grin. The effect she had on you was something out of a book you spent many lonely nights immersing yourself in. And now that you were living in the crystal clear reality, you regretted not getting out of your shell a little sooner. 

“Can I do another?” You ask, already looking at the tray where a few shots still remained. 

Paige laughs. “Maybe wait a few, princess. The alcohol will kick in soon,” she promises. “You can share mine,” she gestures to her drink, and you don’t miss the way the pet name rolls off her tongue effortlessly. 

Paige was not lying when she had told you that the effects would soon hit you. Before you could even start to feel uncomfortable, a delicious easiness fell over you, loosening you up in a way you had never experienced before. You reach for Paige’s straw once more, pretending that her mouth was not just on it, and you relish in the sweet liquid adding to your tipsiness.

Paige had stayed close all night, similarly to the night before, and you were grateful for her constant presence anchoring you. The other girls took turns dancing with you, showering you with compliments and making future plans. Even through the haze of the alcohol, your heart felt as if it could burst; they were all so nice, and for the first time in a long time, you felt like you actually belonged. 

The night flies by, and as it does, you and Paige get more and more touchy. Her hands took turns between trailing down your back and resting heavily on your hips. She played with a lock of your hair, twisting it in her fingers as you swayed to the music, and she was constantly gazing at you through heavy lids, pupils blown from the darkness of the bar and pure want.

Emboldened by the drinks that had graced your lips, you don’t shy away, and before you know it, you’re leaning in closer, intoxicated by more than just the liquor. The bustling crowds and excessive noise surrounding you melts away as Paige grips your waist, pulling you closer into her. 

Your heart pounds at her proximity. She reaches up, cradling your jaw and stroking the soft skin of your neck with her thumb. You wonder if she can feel the thumping of your carotid, but you’re too enthralled in her presence to even care. Her eyes flit between your own and your slightly parted lips. Everything felt so fucking delicate, as if one small move would break everything. 

“Been thinkin’ about doin’ this all night,” she whispers, and pulls you into a kiss.

All the air is sucked out of you as her lips touch yours. And while you are momentarily stunned, it does not take long before yours are moving against her in a delicious exchange of passion. All worries of not being a good kisser leave your mind as Paige moans against your mouth, the sound shooting straight down your belly and to your pussy. Her tongue moves against you, and the feel of it does not help the slick now accumulating in your panties. 

The kiss eventually ends, much to your displeasure, and as you pull away, a giggle erupts from your mouth at the insanity of it all.

You had just kissed Paige Bueckers.

“OOH, P is fucking whipped!” KK shouts over the music, enthusiastically high-fiving Ice and Nika. 

Fuck, you were caught. 

But little did KK know, is that you were pretty fucking whipped, too. With one smooth move, Paige had broken down all your walls, and you were surrounded by the bricks of your carefully crafted innocence shattered around you at your feet. And maybe you could blame it on the alcohol, but you were pretty sure that if Paige made you anything less of a good girl, you were certainly okay with that. 

~

The beginning hits a little too close to home I’m so sorry I blacked out while writing it. It’s been almost 9 years since I realized I had feelings for girls, and I still struggle every day with accepting myself. To all the readers who are going through the same thing, I love you, and here’s to hoping things get better. If you ever want to reach out, my inbox is always open.

xoxo katy

THE CHAIINN?? THE RINGS??? GOD DAMN

cc is safe and sound in my arms don't worry

this is connor undercover i feel like