Hi guys! Here's the second chapter of this story! It was 1 AM and I didn't feel like sleeping, so here you go. Tell me what you think!

Alfendi was surging with strange emotion. He sat at the table in his flat the next morning, staring blankly at the wall, trying to ignore the unpleasant way his head was pulsing.

Why had he been such an arse to Lucy? That one thing he had said to her stuck in his mind.

"I don't want to be with you."

He hurt with regret for saying it. And then he had gone and made a move at her, the poor lass. How could she know what to think? What really struck him was that, after all his rudeness of the evening, Lucy had been kind enough to take him home. He hardly remembered it, and trying to made his head hurt worse, but he faintly recalled leaning on her as she lead him through the chilly streets of London, and her then allowing him to rest his head on her shoulder as they rode the tube. Somehow, he remembered how her neck had smelled. This perplexed him.

It took him awhile, but at last he remembered how he had ended up so pissed in the first place. He had been depressed about Hilda. Was that it? Yes, it was. His real side used to do that sometimes; drink for comfort. However, one thing that he really couldn't recall was why he had wanted Hilda back so badly. Of course, he knew he had for four years, but now he wasn't sure why. Had he actually wanted her back, or just his old life, his pre-placid life? He wasn't sure.

His thoughts drifted back to Lucy. She had actually cared for him, even though he had been so mean to her. He knew that she had feelings for him, his acute powers of deduction could figure that much out, but he couldn't figure out why. Not only was his sanity more than a bit dodgy, but he was nearly thirty years old!

He suddenly remembered the tea that he had made himself, sitting in a mug that his hand was grasping. He took a sip. It was cold and bitter, as he had never taken the tea bag out.

Sighing, he got up from his chair to dump out the bad tea. A knock on the door made him jump. He quickly put down the mug on the counter and hurriedly tried to smooth his hair. Who could be visiting him on a Saturday morning? The knocking became louder.

"Prof? You there?"

He froze. Trying to collect himself, he walked to the door and opened it. There he saw, as he knew he would, his little assistant, her eyes worried. Alfendi said nothing, he just stared at her.

"Prof! You took your time!"

"I wasn't ten seconds!"

"Er... I guess you're right. I was just worried."

"There's nothing to be worried about. Erm... why are you..."

"Just wanted t' check up on ya!" She said happily, no longer worried. "You were in a right state last night."

Alfendi looked awkward. "Er, yes, do come in." She came in and sat herself down on the couch, throwing down her bag and looking around. Alfendi, however, stayed standing by the door, eyeing her. "You were... worried about me?"

"Oh, it's got nowt t' do with tha'. A lass's gotta know when t' move on..." She tried to sound upbeat, but he could tell that what she was thinking was quite different from what she was saying. "Anyways, I just wanted t' make sure you were okay!"

"Er... Quite." He stood there more awkwardly still, beginning to fidget and look down at his hands. The scent that he remembered from last night had come in with Lucy, and he couldn't help himself from breathing it in deeply.

"Everything alright, Prof? You seem off. Still feeling down about Hilda?"

"Wh— Hilda? I— oh, er..."

"You wanna talk about it? I'm all ears!" She looked at him sympathetically. "C'mon, lets go grab a bite!" Lucy sprung up from the couch, grabbed Alfendi's hand, and dragged him out of his apartment.

She took them to a quaint little coffee shop where she sat him on a bulging little sofa and went to get them some tea and scones.

He watched her, ever more confused. Why did she care about him so much? How was he supposed to talk about his feelings for Hilda when the only thing Hilda made him think of was Lucy... however that worked.

"Here y'are, Prof! Earl Grey for you, Yorkshire for me!" She handed him a steaming mug of tea and set down a small plate of scones on the coffee table in front of the sofa, then sat down next to him. Their sofa was in a far corner of the cafe, and there were few other customers.

Alfendi gathered himself and sighed, "Lucy, I'm sorry."

She looked at him. "What for?"

"You know!" He exclaimed, "For ignoring you, then being straight out mean to you, then making a move on you. I'm sorry for everything."

"Oh, it were nowt, Prof." Lucy said, looking down. It didn't seem that she wanted to be reminded of last night.

"Thank you, also. For taking me home. And... well... just, thanks for..." he wanted to say "caring about me," but instead he said, "everything."

"Er... Aye."

There was a long pause. Lucy sipped her tea and avoided Alfendi's gaze. He felt as though he was really going insane now. Did he really feel the same way about Lucy as he did about Hilda? No. He didn't. Hilda was a great friend and a very competent coworker, but she could be very stuck up and unhelpful sometimes. Lucy, on the other hand... Well, she was loving and gentle, but strong at the same time. She was also an amazing detective, but less stubborn than Hilda. She was willing to learn. And of course, there was something to be said about her deep amber eyes. Alfendi turned quickly to stare into his mug of tea. He had been looking at her for too long.

"What was it like with you an' Hilda int' first place?" Her question was abrupt, but straightforward.

So he gave a straightforward answer. "Aggressive. Everything about it was aggressive. We fought constantly. Of course, my... er... other side was dominant then, and... well... you know Hilda."

"Aye. You both have... strong personalities."

"Quite. We had a sort of off-and-on relationship since we were in college together. I don't think there was too much more than physical attraction at first. Who knows, maybe it was never more than that." Why was he telling her this? He wasn't used to talking with people about his personal affairs. Or about anything personal.

"Hilda does 'ave it going for 'er int' looks department, I'll give 'er tha'!"

"Yes, well, we hardly got along. I'm sure we would have gotten along better if we weren't... er... Anyway, after Forbodium, I started to have feelings for her. Most likely because of the personality change. She, however, was no longer interested in me that way. After all, I was pathetic! Who'd blame her for not liking me?" His hair cooled in color so quickly it was almost as though it had never happened.

He had been talking so calmly up until this point, that Lucy jumped a little.

"Sorry Lucy. I didn't mean to startle you." He said, surprised he had told her so much. The words had flowed out easily, as though he was telling someone else's story and wasn't effected by its contents.

"You just made me jump a bit, is all. I weren't expecting Potty t' pop out, 'e 'adn't made an appearance yet! Anyway, aren't you glad you told me tha'? Doesn't it feel any better?"

"I guess..." It didn't feel much different at all. He didn't really care one way or another.

"'Course it does. Me mum would always sit me down with a hot mug of tea when I 'ad summat on my mind." She looked at him, smiling, then took a sip of tea. Alfendi followed suit. They continued to drink tea and eat scones until there was nothing left. They got up to give the mugs and plate back and pay, then walked back to Alfendi's flat. They stood outside the door awkwardly.

"Well, I've gotta go 'ome now. See ya Monday, I guess!"

"See you Monday." Alfendi echoed quietly. He gently touched her arm as she turned to leave. She looked around quickly and smiled, then walked away. Alfendi watched as she bounced along the sidewalk. She went across the zebra crossing, then around a corner, and he could no longer see her.

"I'll be looking forward to it." He whispered, then frowned. What a strange thing life was.