Not only had she just kicked her husband out of her apartment, but now she was sitting in her car, soaking wet from the rain, staring up at Rafe's building. A few yellowish glows were visible through the sunroof of her little hatchback. He'd said once before that she was free to ask him for anything. But did this count? Or did that one group date a few months prior mean nothing? Or it at least meant he'd have sex with her? Just sex?

Since that evening, that gentle hand on her knee, the warmth she felt whenever Rafe laughed at one of his own jokes, he'd seemed to avoid her entirely. Her periodic calls and text messages were met with silence or overly professional conversation. And her final message before this evening reading "You're all I can think about." had gone unseen...or just ignored. It was like when they first knew one another. Like ten years had never happened.

And yet there she was, car parked on his street in front of his apartment building. He was the first person that had come to mind despite the fact that they hadn't seen each other for weeks. Anyone else would have assumed that he wouldn't care, but Diana was still drawn there in this moment of desperation. He was the first thought in her mind after she and Jim had finally agreed on that fateful decision.

She sat in her car for a few minutes, engine off but the radio still playing. Every time her hand reached for the door handle, she found herself hesitating. What if she was reading too much into this? What if he only kissed her all those months ago because he was bored?

Or just because she'd looked alluring to him in that moment? What if she got up to his door and he just laughed at her? Maybe not that far, but if she made it clear that she wanted — NO — needed him, would he return the sentiment?

"Fuck it — " she muttered under her breath, throwing the door open and entering the building. not caring about the looks people gave her wet, matted hair and soggy clothes. She prodded the button for Rafe's floor in the elevator and ignored the disgusted comment an older woman gave as she left. Diana spent the whole ride in the elevator alone, the wetness in her shoes bothering her every time she shifted her weight. The 'squitching' sound reminding her that she likely looked homeless. It was a wonder that the building's security wasn't being sent after her. Or maybe they just recognized her from her previous frequent visits just to chat or share a couple drinks with Rafe.

Once she was finally at his door, she hesitated again. Those lingering doubts had returned. But she chose to ignore them this time. To refuse to let them stay for longer than a few seconds. Not enough to change her mind on the matter. Besides, she just couldn't be in the same house as Jim right then, even if he was in the process of packing his things and leaving. She pressed the intercom doorbell a few times; a specific code agreed upon by the two of them years ago at his previous place; that way they knew who to answer the door for. However, he didn't open the door immediately like she expected. But considering the nature of their relationship recently, she wasn't letting herself get worried or discouraged just yet. He'd seemed to want to get it all back to being professional like before...Several years before, when they'd first met.

It didn't stop her from getting a tad anxious, though. She stood at the door, squeezing her hands into fists and chewing the inside of her cheek. Her heart raced. More so than the several times in the past when she thought she was going to die. Diana remained there for a while, and right when she considered turning back and going home, Rafe opened the door. They each stood there silently for a moment or two; Diana trying to think of the right way to break the news to him, while Rafe seemed to simply watch her intently. She broke the tension first:

"Jim and I are getting a divorce."

He blinked a few times, head nodding slowly. "Come in," he said, waving her inside. She obliged.

His apartment was at least twenty degrees warmer than it was outside. It was cozy. The place itself was gigantic considering that they were in a building overlooking Central Park, but it was warm and welcoming, unlike the sprawling urban landscape that surrounded it. She heard the door shut with a barely audible 'beep' from the security system, and Rafe continued, "What happened? Is he —?"

"No," she assured him, "no, Jim's not hurting me or anything. I promise. It's just..." Diana fell silent. She laced her hands together in front of her stomach, still chewing the inside of her lip for an instant. "A lot of things 've happened, Rafe." She tossed her hoodie over the back of the couch, her arms crossing over her chest in an attempt to preserve some body heat but dry off at the same time.

All she could hear was the crackle of the flame in his fireplace and the rhythmic 'thump' of her heartbeat. She didn't know how to string the words together. How whenever she was around Rafe she felt a sharp pang in her chest that she should have felt for her husband, but never quite did. How, instead of the man she'd married, Rafe was the one that had started making her feel dizzy whenever he was in the same room as her. How right now she can barely think over the sound of her pulse because of all these feelings he stirred up in her.

"Rafe," she felt her chest flutter when she said his name, and that had surely been audible — the tiny gasp. If she was reading this all correctly, he would have instantly picked up on that. He wasn't stupid. Not in the least. It was probably one of the reasons she was so fond of him. Diana continued, "I...I don't think...I don't think I ever really loved Jim?" She had no idea why that turned into a question. God, she was a wreck right now. She half-hoped a Vaudeville cane might appear at the front door and pull her out of there before she made a fool of herself.

"Don't feel bad about that," Rafe said simply. He was certainly better at all this than she had ever been.

"I agreed to spend the rest of my days with him..." she trailed off.

Rafe eyed her, implying she continue as he reached waved for her to have a seat on one of the couches in the den. She worried a little bit for the leather, using a throw blanket as a buffer between her and the sofa while Rafe gave her another blanket. "...But I'm here," she continued, "After I tell him I don't love him. That I never really did in the first place, now that I think about it. It was all a lie. I thought that he and I were the same teenagers we were in high school under all the trauma and bravado. But we aren't. I never should have just married him so quickly like that."

He nodded slowly, having a seat beside her. Rafe reached an arm over her shoulders to pull her close, giving her a light squeeze as she made a cocoon out of the blanket. It worked somewhat, but the warmth she felt had nothing to do with his gesture.

Diana continued, "I missed you...but I didn't at the same time. I was mad at you and I wasn't. I wanted to see you again like we used to, but you kept your distance right after that..." Diana blinked a few times, "...The kiss. At dinner a few months ago."

"I don't regret that."

"Yeah, you didn't care about your date — " she tried dismissing it.

Rafe leaned in a bit closer. "That wasn't it."

"Then what was it?"

"...You know exactly what."

"No, I don't."

"Why'd you come here, of all places?" he asked genuinely, but he still seemed to know the answer already, "You could have just gone to the museum or the library and spent some time alone...but you didn't. You came here. You came to me."

He was right. You'd have to be stupid not to have figured it out. Or at least be in complete denial. She replied, taking a deep breath, "I just..."

Diana had no idea how to word it. Of course there was the campy 'I love you,' but she couldn't bring herself to just finish that sentence. It was as if there were a literal wall keeping the words from escaping, lest she misjudged Rafe's kindness as being attracted to her and those little words wrought havoc on what friendship they had left. Whether she liked it or not, he was an important part of her life. They had entrusted their lives to one another on numerous occasions. She couldn't even remember how many times she had Rafe to thank for simplybeing alive to sit in his apartment in that moment.

One little phrase would change the entire nature of their relationship, either for better or worse. The insecure voice that lingered within her was saying that if she let those words slip that she would lose her last good friend for good, while the faintest voice of optimism was telling her to just go for it. Embrace it. If it didn't work...well, she'd figure that out when she needed to. Diana knew how to disappear. Too well.

"I came here because..." Just power through it. "...Because it's where I belong. With you is where I belong." ...Or accidentally poetic works. People say 'I love you' too much anyway.

Diana watched as a familiar smug grin played at the corners of his lips. He didn't reply immediately, which terrified her. She felt her hands shake — even more than they normally did — and she knew that the next words she spoke were going to sound frail. Luckily, she didn't have to make a sound because after a couple moments he let out a soft chuckle. "...I'm in love with you too, Di."

She had bowed her head into the blanket as he pulled her closer.

"I'm gonna go make you some coffee...You gonna be okay?"

That was the first time she'd ever heard him sound...genuine. Or anyone sound that genuine to her. She had gotten so used to both hearing others mask their feelings with sarcasm — and done so herself for the past few decades — that to hear someone...care like that was bizarre. But bizarre in a good way. She didn't want to leave. Did she really need to go back to her apartment soon? She could always be that girlfriend and move in on the second day.

"Yeah...I think I'll be fine."