Come Back to Me - Part 7.2
Title: Come Back To Me
Rating: PG-13 (for now)
Pairing: Pepa/Silvia
Summary: Post best/worst wedding of the year.
COME BACK TO ME - Part 7.2
“I can’t Pepa!” Silvia cried out, staring at the water fearfully. It loomed in front of her like an ominous gaping hole, waiting to suck her in and drown her. Silvia bit her lip, tears threatening to fill her eyes.
Pepa bobbed in the water, pushing her wet bangs off her face as she stared up at the redhead hovering by the edge of the public pool. She glanced over to her left, seeing Paco and Lola lounging on the deck chairs and back to her sister in law. “C’mon pelirroja, it’s just water!” She emphasized this by splashing a hand through the liquid.
Silvia felt her eyes fill up with tears and she sniffed. She had never been the water baby, she knew Pepa was. In fact, she hated the water. She recounted all the times her parents had spent chasing her around the house when bath time came about. How she would make the biggest fuss; kicking, screaming and howling her lungs out as her mother and/or father finally caught up to her, picked her up and carried her to the dreaded bathtub.
And the public pool…it’s was officially the biggest most terrifying looking bathtub Silvia had ever seen. The blue bottom looked endless. She shuddered and turned to walk away back to where Paco and Lola were.
“Hey!” Silvia stopped short when she heard a brief splash and a grunt as Pepa pulled herself out of the water and chased after her, almost slipping on the tiles. Silvia did not turn around, even as she felt the taller girl’s presence at her back. She had to turn however, when Pepa tugged at her arm. Silvia pivoted on her heel and glanced up at the brunette, tears still brimming in her eyes.
Pepa frowned. She hated seeing Silvia cry and hated it more when she was the cause of those tears. She reached up with a wet hand, droplets of pool water shimmering like diamonds on her arm, and brushed away the few beads of tears that had stubbornly scattered onto Silvia’s cheeks.
“Why are you so scared of the water, princesa?” Pepa asked quietly.
Silvia shrugged. “I don’t know. It’s just scary,” she admitted to the taller girl, hating her insecurity. “That’s why papa never bothered to teach me how to swim.”
Pepa pulled at the arm she still held onto, drew the redhead closer and wrapped Silvia in a comforting yet squishy hug. Pepa after all was still soaked from being in the water. She sighed contently as Silvia wrapped hesitant arms around her, returning the hug gratefully. After a few moments, Pepa pulled back and grinned at the redhead. “C’mon pelirroja, let’s go to the baby pool. I’ll teach you to swim.”
Silvia started to shake her head but Pepa cut her off. “I’ll be right in there with you,” Pepa declared solemnly. “I won’t let anything happen to you.” She looked deep into Silvia’s eyes and was delighted when Silvia finally nodded.
Grinning her trademark thousand-watt grin, Pepa tangled her fingers with the smaller girl and started to lead her to the baby pool, which was fortunately empty. She maneuvered the two of them to the edge of the pool and stepped in first. Then Pepa turned around and held her arms out to the redhead who was observing the water, her eyes slightly wide with alarm.
“C’mon, Silvia!” Pepa encouraged. She jumped up and down slightly in the water. “It’s shallow see? Your feet will touch the bottom.” She waited patiently, arms still stretched out in front of her, waiting to collect the precious package that was Silvia.
Silvia tugged at her hair, a nervous tick. Finally taking a deep breath, she allowed one toe to dip into the water, cringing slightly at the cold sensation. Her eyes desperately found Pepa’s and the taller girl only sent back a look of encouragement. Silvia tensed her entire body as she took her first step into the baby pool. She closed her eyes, one foot in and one foot out. Nothing happened. Resuming eye contact with her sister in law Silvia slowly stepped into the pool, walking down the two steps before falling into Pepa’s arms, clutching at the taller girl fearfully.
Pepa smoothed back Silvia’s hair, arms wrapped tightly around the redhead. “Relax,” she husked into the smaller girl’s ear. “I’m right here.”
Silvia believed Pepa wouldn’t let go. Over the years, the brunette was not above showing her protectiveness over Silvia and the redhead knew that she was safe in Pepa’s arms. She started to relax a little, as Pepa began to float them both across the pool.
“See princesa, it’s not that bad,” Pepa whispered as she floated on her back, Silvia’s own back pressed against Pepa’s front. She impulsively kissed the redhead’s now damp hair.
Silvia smiled and leaned back into Pepa, enjoying the feel of the taller girl’s arm around her. They floated together around the small pool for a few minutes before Pepa righted the both of them up, making sure Silvia’s feet were planted onto the bottom of the pool.
“Ok Silvia,” Pepa began with all the eagerness of a 13 year old. She stepped slightly away from the redhead, calming Silvia with an indulgent expression as Silvia reached for her, panic setting in her face. “Calm down,” Pepa soothed. She waited for Silvia’s nod of confirmation before moving even further back. “Look I’m just going to show you the simplest stroke. They call it the…” Pepa’s brow furrowed as she attempted to remember. “The breast stroke! Look!” Pepa demonstrated for a few moments, moving far enough away from the redhead to avoid hitting her as she swam but staying close enough to ensure Silvia wouldn’t have a panic attack.
She swam a few strokes back and forth in the baby pool and then made her way to Silvia. “C’mon, Silvia,” Pepa encouraged. “Try it,” she urged.
Silvia bit her lip but allowed Pepa to lower her into the water, stomach down. She saw the water get closer to her face and started to resist but Pepa reached under the water and placed one hand on her stomach, the other under her chin. “Shhh…” Pepa soothed. “I’m right here, remember?” Pepa gave Silvia another kiss, this time on the cheek, smiling in satisfaction as she felt Silvia physically relax.
“That’s it, princesa,” Pepa said. “You remember how I moved my arms through the water?” A nod from the redhead. “Good. Try it.” She swallowed a chuckle as Silvia did, arms flailing in and out of the water violently, spraying them both with water. “Gently, Silvia. Slowly.”
Silvia sucked in a deep breath and tried to concentrate on the arm movements Pepa had demonstrated earlier. So intense was her concentration that she let loose a startled squeak as she heard clapping from behind her and turned around to see Pepa standing a little away from her. Silvia shrieked when she realized that she was alone in the middle of the pool and abruptly forgot the movements or the fact that the pool was indeed shallow and that her feet could touch the ground. She started to thrash in the water and almost screamed before Pepa was there, pulling her up and into her arms. She hung onto Pepa tightly.
Pepa brushed back wet curls plastered to Silvia’s forehead. “You did it, pelirroja!” Pepa stated, a proud grin creasing the corners of her mouth. Pepa’s eyes crinkled with joy. She then cupped Silvia’s jaw. “You swam!”
Silvia glanced disbelievingly at the taller girl. “I did?” she inquired.
Pepa nodded enthusiastically. “Yup.” Then she smirked at Silvia. “Until the end when you decided to flap around the water like a fish on land.”
Silvia laughed self-consciously and slapped Pepa on the shoulder. “You startled me,” Silvia retorted in self-defense.
Pepa’s smirk only widened but she didn’t say anything else. She simply glanced down at Silvia who peeked back up at her, smiling shyly.
“Thank you for teaching me, Pepa,” Silvia said softly, blushing slightly as Pepa bestowed Silvia with a crooked grin that she seem to reserve only for the redhead.
“You’re welcome, princesa,” Pepa replied.
They were interrupted by Paco calling them from where he and Lola sat. Pepa stepped back from Silvia but still holding her hand led the smaller girl out of the water.
***********
Pepa smiled as the memory of that day swept over her, enveloping her with a sense of contentment. She knew even as a child, that she and Silvia had a special bond. She glanced down now at the redhead in question, marveling that even after so many years apart, their connection was as strong as ever when they finally reunited. She looked down at their entwined hands, their wedding bands glinting off the ceiling light and smiled sweetly at her wife.
“I’m glad I was the one who taught you how to swim, pelirroja,” Pepa admitted, coloring slightly at this declaration.
Silvia turned her head a little and offered Pepa a dazzling smile. “I wouldn’t have let anyone else teach me,” she replied sincerely. She yawned. “I’m tired, Pepa.”
Pepa pressed a kiss to her wife’s cheek. “Sleep, my love. I’ll be here when you wake up.”
“Thank you for the story, Pepa,” Silvia mumbled, as her eyes closed and she started to fall back asleep. “I love you.”
“I love you,” Pepa affirmed. She held Silvia as she felt her wife drift off to sleep. After watching her wife for a few precious minutes, Pepa joined her in slumber.
A/N 2: I just wanna say that I don't have some crazy obsession with drenching Pepa in water. I just happened to be at the beach whilst writing this.