Author's Note: The next part in my Becky/Alexa series of stories (a list of which can be found on my absolute MESS of a profile). Takes place after 'How Many Times?'

Full of Surprises

Alexa's heart was full. It was so full that she was afraid it would spill over onto her - neatly carpeted and expertly tidied - living room floor. Well, her heart was always full, but moreso now than the usual. For Alexa, the best thing about Becky's new job was that the Irish woman was now already home before her. Being greeted every afternoon by the sight of Becky's smiling face was a gift that she didn't mind receiving over and over again. If the gods were truly feeling generous, Becky would be sprawled out on their couch, her hair neatly tucked behind a lone ear so as to leave every inch of her perfect cheeks uncovered. Her body draped with a thin, faded t-shirt - only a t-shirt - as her bare legs rested idly by atop their cushions.

That was a gift Alexa usually took her time to unwrap.

While the gods were sleeping on the job, Alexa was still being treated to a rare occurrence in this household. As she stepped through their front door, she rubbed her eyes to make sure what she was seeing was indeed real, and not another one of Becky's made up fairy tales. When Alexa's vision returned to normal, her eyebrows raised so high that they could touch the stratosphere.

Becky Lynch was cooking.

Alexa stood there bewildered, wondering how the smell of three different cheeses didn't immediately invade her nostrils upon entering the house. It was strong, but that was the way Becky made her macaroni and cheese. 'Becky's Famous Mac & Cheese,' she dramatically referred to it as. A name so silly that it would make any human being groan themselves into an early grave. She was very specific about her use of the ampersand. Despite it's childish name, along liberal - and, dare she say, irresponsible? - use of cheese, it was actually quite delicious. It was one of Alexa's favorite meals, and the only thing Becky would make.

Correction. The only thing Alexa would allow Becky to make. She could recall her girlfriend, filled with nothing but good intentions, slapping down a steak bigger than either of their heads onto the kitchen table.

"Just going to try my hand at some flamin' mignon."

"It's 'filet mignon,' Becks."

"It'll be flamin' when I'm through with it!"

From that moment on, Alexa swore to never let chef Becky put her hands on another pot or pan again. The exception was, of course, for macaroni and cheese. The house continued to remain fire-free, and that was good enough for Alexa.

Still, this was all a huge surprise to her. Becky was good at that - surprising her. Whether it was with affection, words of encouragement, or simply making dinner, Alexa could confidently say that Becky always went out of her way to keep things interesting with little surprises. It was tough for the blonde to say the same, feeling pretty dull in comparison to her fiery counterpart. She took one more glance at Becky, the woman keeping her back to Alexa as she worked away, and an idea came to her.

Quietly closing the door behind her, Alexa carefully tiptoed over to the macaroni connoisseur, ready to attack her with the biggest, softest hug known to mankind. A hug so powerful, future history books would dedicate entire chapters to this one event. 'The Hug Heard 'round the World,' they'd call it. The apostrophe was important.

"Had a dream I… hadn't made it. Dudu nuh nuh draggin' down we, yeah. Yuh yuh girl dudu shush it all out the ma-ay-ay."

Alexa could hear the faint murmurs of Becky singing one of her favorite songs. Inaccurately, but singing nonetheless. How could she sing that song? Without her?! They would have a talk about this later. With Becky still laser-focused on her task, Alexa seized the opportunity and threw her arms around her lover's waist.

"Honey, I'm home!"

Without warning, a loud shriek of terror came bursting forth from Becky's mouth, her body violently shaking back and forth. The sound of metal colliding against the ground filled the room - pots, pans, and utensils of all kinds littered the kitchen floor. Before Alexa knew it, she had unwittingly joined them, the force of Becky's movements knocking the smaller woman off of her feet.

"Alexa!" Becky shouted. No, it wasn't a shout. It was scream, a much angrier yell. "What the hell are you doing?!"

Alexa was startled, to say the least. She had expected Becky to be a little surprised, maybe even jump a little in shock, but this raw anger seemed to come from out of nowhere. "I wanted to-" She didn't get the chance to explain herself before being interrupted.

"You can't just grab people from behind when they're not expecting it! Do you have any idea how crazy that is?! What's wrong with you?!"

Alexa took a second to really look at her girlfriend's face. She was angry - beyond angry, even - but it wasn't just anger. It was terror. It was fear that came all the way from inside of Becky and presented itself in the form of screaming and yelling. Her brow was furrowed, but her eyes were teary. Her voice was loud, but it was shaky. She was angry, but she was scared.

Pulling herself up from the floor, Alexa attempted to reach out, to grab her hand or her shoulder or her face or anything. Like a wounded animal, Becky took a step back. Not a step, a leap. Alexa was horrified. What was going on here? Alexa stared at her for minutes, waiting for something to happen. When it seemed like nothing ever would, the scowl on Becky's face was suddenly washed away by a river of regret. Her teary eyes threatened to leak, and her bottom lip was tucked firmly between her teeth, skin nearly breaking at the touch.

"Do you want to talk?" Alexa asked, hopefully. "We could sit on the talky couch and-"

"I don't want to talk about this."

Alexa attempted to hold Becky once more, but again she stepped back, flinching reflexively. Trembling, Becky rushed out a sharp "I'm sorry" and proceeded to run past Alexa.

"Where are you going?" Alexa called out, noticing the older woman heading for the door.

"I… I need to take a walk. I'll be back in a bit, okay?" Becky stated, her voice on the brink of cracking, her foundation slipping away beneath her feet. She didn't turn around, she didn't say goodbye. She simply left.

Alexa could only watch as the love of her life walked out of the house. She didn't know what to feel, aside from guilty, more than words could describe. She made her girlfriend feel that way. She made Becky Lynch leave.

And now she was here alone with her feelings. And now she wanted to cry.

Becky had left an hour ago, and it was one of the scariest hours of Alexa's life. She had no idea when the other woman would come home - no idea where she even went. It was the first time in a long time that she could say she was truly worried. So, when Becky casually strolled through the front door, sipping on a can of grape juice - complete with animal mascots on the side, as was the typical Becky fare - it took everything in Alexa's power to not run up and hug her. She didn't want a repeat of before, her leg sporting a hefty bruise from when she hit the floor.

"Um, hey darlin'," Becky said, the awkward tension in the air thicker than the layers of the earth. If there were four layers of earth, this was easily the fifth. She held her hands up defensively, ready to be chewed out by an angry, tiny elf. Her angry, tiny elf. Alexa took in a huge breath, ready to speak her a piece of her mind!

"I'm so sorry!" she stated frantically. Becky was noticeably taken aback, her eyes widening in shock, but that wasn't going to stop Alexa from saying what she needed to say. "I'm so sorry. I just wanted to surprise you with a hug and I'm so sorry and I thought that I could do something nice for you because you're so amazing and I'm so sorry and you were making me dinner and I'm just I'm so sorry!"

"Whoa whoa, let's cool our jets here."

"But I'm so s-"

"You're so sorry, I get it. You don't have to keep saying it," Becky replied, cutting Alexa off before she went on another spree of sorries. Alexa heard a sigh from Becky's lips, and before she could ask, Becky began to speak. "I should be the one apologizing to you. I freaked out and, I don't know, I needed to clear my head. Get some fresh air flowing through the noggin'."

Alexa wanted to ask more - wanted to know what Becky was feeling - but she couldn't risk upsetting her again. Not after spending the past hour hunched over a toilet, ready to regurgitate her lunch at any second. Instead, she gave Becky a curt nod, before turning away. If Becky wanted space, then Alexa would give it to her. It was the least she could do after all the trouble she caused. Whatever internal battle was going on inside of Becky's head, Alexa would let her handle it how she wanted to.

Alexa nearly fell over for a second time that day. She turned her head, her wrist was now being clutched by Becky, the latter preventing her from leaving.

"You want to know, right?"

'Yes!' Alexa mentally shouted. Of course she wanted to know more, if she was willing to tell her.

"Well, I do, but…"

"But?"

"There's obviously something wrong, but I don't want you to force yourself to tell me. If you need time, take it. Tell me when you're ready."

Alexa wanted to smack herself. Maybe she should've asked Becky to spill her guts, but what kind of girlfriend - what kind of person - would she be if she had to drag Becky's past into the conversation without her consent? Not a very good one. She had all but resigned herself to Becky's silence, yet when she started to walk away, she was once again stopped, this time by Becky's voice.

"I… I used to get bullied. A lot."

Alexa's ears perked up at that. She spun on her heel fast, so fast that she was sure she burned a hole straight through their carpet and down to the center of the earth. She gave herself a minute to let the word sink in.

Bullied.

Becky used to be bullied. She didn't feel comfortable saying it. She didn't feel comfortable thinking it. Becky was 'out there,' as far as people went, but the idea that anyone could be mean to her Becky was outrageous. Who in the world could say a hurtful thing to this wonderful, perfect human being? If time travel were a thing, her first act as time lord would be to slap anyone that would dare cause Becky any sadness.

Alexa cringed. After today, she'd potentially have to slap herself, too.

Growing up, Alexa was bullied for a multitude of reasons by a multitude of people. For being too loud, for being too quiet, for being too thin, for not being thin enough. Any chance that someone could find to tear away at her self-confidence, they took it. It led to her doing nightmarish things to herself, and it took a lengthy hospital stay for her to realize that she was fine the way she was. Becky knew this - she knew all of this about her. The fact that Becky kept her own experience of bullying hidden for so long must have meant that it was a especially painful to think about.

The thought made Alexa furious.

Before Becky could continue, she silently led Alexa to their favorite couch. The couch where deep thoughts and troubled pasts were shared. It was tradition, stemming from their old dormitory days. Couches and beds - those places, to them, were made for this.

Once she was seated, legs crossed at the knees so that she could properly look at Becky, Alexa held her hands out. She didn't attempt to grab her girlfriend's own hands - she learned from her mistakes. She lay her hands out in front of her, palms turned toward the sky, inviting Becky to place her own on top, if she wanted to.

She wanted to.

With little hesitation, Becky placed her hands - clammy, but still somehow perfectly smooth to the touch - in Alexa's tinier ones. Alexa held them carefully, treating her angelic fingers like fragile glass, thumbs meeting knuckles in a gentle caress. She gave Becky a smile. A smile that said, "It's okay" and, "I'm here for you, always," all with one curve of the lips. Becky smiled back. She always smiled back.

"High school, well, sucked. New girl, funny accent. Crazy red hair. And - this might be hard to believe, considering my rock hard abs - I was a bit chubby."

Becky was waiting, seemingly for a gasp or any indication of shock from the other side of the couch. Alexa sat there, barely able to hide her incredulous gaze.

"You were supposed to gasp there."

"Sorry, I was too busy thinking about your 'rock hard abs,'" Alexa countered. "They're passable, I guess."

"They certainly pass your mouth inspection."

"Anyway," Alexa continued, trying her best to ignore Becky's comment. "You used to be chubby?"

"Yeah. I was a bit of a mess. Depression, mostly. You know how it is." Becky gave Alexa a sympathetic look, both knowing the story of the blonde's past depression all too well.

"Unfortunately."

"I basically loaded up a machine gun and said, 'Here's all the ammo you'll need to make fun of me for the next four years.' Go nuts!"

It was Becky's natural instinct to make jokes wherever she could find them - a defense mechanism to brighten up the mood a little - but Alexa couldn't find it in her heart to laugh. She couldn't help but wonder why teenagers were so cruel to each other. Was it to fit in? Was it for fun? Did make someone else miserable make them feel better? Did it make them feel powerful? These were questions that she knew she would never get an answer to. She wished that Becky didn't have to suffer the same fate she did.

"I had friends," Becky continued, "but they wouldn't stand up for me if their chairs were covered with cactuses. Er, cacti. You know what I mean."

"Some friends," Alexa said, rolling her eyes.

"Come to think of it, you were the first person to ever stand up for me. Back in college. Hard to believe that was only a few years ago."

"Is that when I poured orange paint all over Peyton's hair?"

"Because she and Billie wouldn't stop making fun of my hair. Ah, the classic," Becky reminisced.

"Gotta love Art History 101."

"Not worth the credit hours."

Alexa wasn't a vengeful person by any means. Yet, when two Australians were constantly ruining your best friend's day, there aren't many other options. At the time, however, Alexa didn't know how much that moment really stuck with Becky. In fact, Alexa, herself, nearly forgot about it until it was brought up a minute ago. It made her wonder what kinds of 'friends' Becky had in high school.

"I- Oh. This is the hard part."

Alexa could feel how tense Becky was solely through her fingers, the digits shaking, desperately trying not to curl over into fists. Without thinking, she took both of Becky's hands and cradled them. She was afraid that Becky might recoil, but when she didn't, she gripped her hands more tightly. It was all Alexa could do, but it was enough to encourage Becky to keep going.

"I used to walk home from school. I was in the Drama Club - played a good onstage clown. I'm good at the hahas."

"And the heehees, if you're feeling daring," Alexa added.

"Exactly. The problem was that it ended so late sometimes. Normally, my parents would pick me up, since they didn't want me walking home late at night. Except this one time."

Becky closed her eyes, breathing deeply, Alexa whispering words of encouragement to her as she did.

"My parents were both working extremely late. It happens, you know? I wasn't mad, but I did have to walk back in the dark. Everything was fine for awhile. I'm moving along, chubby little Irish girl walking through the darkness, then boom! I'm on the floor."

The exaggerated 'boom' sound effect made Alexa jump, but she didn't want to stop Becky. "What happened?"

"These three girls from my class. They followed me the whole way, to grab me from behind and beat me around. It was… not pleasant. They beat me up real bad, you know? Kicked me, stomped on my head, nearly broke my arm. One girl tried to cut my hair off with some old scissors."

That's disgusting, Alexa thought. She couldn't get the words to come out, trying and failing to swallow the large lump in her throat. She was getting anxious just listening to this.

"Why?" she finally managed to croak out.

"'Cause they didn't like me. That's all it was. I cried all the way home. Cried all night. Cried all day, and the next day after that. I never told my parents, because I thought I was being 'brave,' and in the end, nothing happened to those girls. We all graduated together. I told myself that I'd never let something like that stop me from being who I am, and it didn't. Only now, any time someone comes up from behind me, I freak out."

That was it, Alexa said to herself. The reason why Becky lashed out at her. It was due to this trauma. It made sense - they grabbed her from behind, much like Alexa did earlier - but she never could've guessed that was the reason. She somehow felt worse than before, if that was possible at this juncture, something that Becky must have immediately picked up on.

"You couldn't have known."

"You're right, but I still feel guilty. I-"

"You better stop apologizing right now before I come over there and try to kiss you, but then fake you out and leave you kissless."

It was a Becky threat, that was for sure. Not wanting to be left in suspense with the kiss that never was, Alexa held off on another apology.

"It's my fault anyway," Becky stated. "You told me about the time when you were bullied, and if I had done the same like a good girlfriend - hell, a good friend - we wouldn't be having this conversation."

Alexa realized that she was still holding Becky's hands between her own. Noticing this, she brought them up to her lips, planting small pecks between every groove and curve on Becky's knuckles.

"It's not on you to tell me anything you don't want to, personal or otherwise. I love you, and I want you to be comfortable above anything else. You tell me something when you're ready to tell me. Don't forget that, okay?"

"I won't, not ever." Finally, Becky's fingers steadied, her body now relaxed. "I love you, too," she said, voice steadily coming back to her.

"Besides, I can't have you running loose out there in the world. My lunch was almost all over the bathroom."

"Aw, you missed me that much?"

"I was worried, idiot," Alexa retaliated, adding a slap to the back of Becky's hand to get the point across. "All of this because I wanted to surprise you."

"So that's what you were trying to do!" Becky yelled, as if she had solved the world's most difficult puzzle. "You know what would be really surprising? If you came over here and kissed the rest of me."

"Becks. You literally said what you wanted me to do. How is that surprising?"

Becky moved closer to the other side of the couch, pulling her hands away. Though initially upset at the sudden loss of contact, Alexa's disappointment was swiftly abated by the pair of lips dancing along her collarbone. They continued to waltz across her cheek, a sensual warmth now radiating throughout the entirety of her neck. The devilish pink duo settled on her ear, finishing their tango.

"See, the trick to surprises," she paused to take Alexa's earlobe between her teeth, nipping it until she heard a 'squeak' from her partner. "Is that anything can be a surprise if you say the word."

Shoving Becky back onto the couch, Alexa threw herself on top of her. She took hold of the redhead's ear between her teeth, reciprocating the earlier gesture. She leaned down, her breath tickling Becky's ear, the warm air sending chills down her spine.

"Surprise," Alexa muttered.

They both smiled. They knew that there was nothing surprising about what was to follow tonight.