She pulled the throw tighter against her chest, fear momentarily paralyzing her. The night had seemed unbearably long and, after spending several restless hours upstairs tossing and turning in bed, she'd relented and headed down to the sofa. Since then she'd watched every hour pass.

Now, she sat staring at the door, terrified by what, until last night, would have been a simple knock at the door. But what if it was him? What if he was here?

Phyllis stood, her legs feeling weak as she forced herself towards the door. Her whole body shook as the sound of the knocking once again echoed through the room.

"Phyllis?"

Her eyes filled with tears almost instantly, relief flooding her body. She reached out, grabbing the doorknob and bracing herself, taking a deep breath before opening the door. "Billy," she breathed, "What are you doing here?"

He smiled, tilting his head a little, "I'm guessing I would have been waiting quite a while if I'd just waited for you to show up, huh?"

She stood silent for a moment, just staring at him. "I don't understand," she mumbled.

"Crimson Lights," he said with a smile, gesturing to the tray that held two coffee cups and balanced a paper bag. "You were supposed to meet me there this morning? Any of this ringing any bells?"

"Oh." The word was barely a whisper as it left her mouth and her eyes fluttered close for a moment. Everything that happened before last night seemed so long ago. She took another breath, pulling the robe tighter around herself, now more conscious of what Billy might notice and the questions he might ask. "I'm sorry, Billy. We'll plan for another day, okay?"

"No need," he grinned, "I brought Crimson Lights to you." He gestured to the paper tray. "I got your favorites." He stepped beside her and before she had a chance to protest he was walking into the room. "I'll just get this set up for us…" His voice trailed off as he looked around the room.

Phyllis bent down quickly, grabbing the jacket she'd discarded on the floor the night before and grabbing for the shoes that sat in the middle of the walkway. "Sorry," she said quickly, "I wasn't expecting company."

Billy shook his head, flashing a charming smile, "No worries." He walked towards the kitchen, opening the cabinet and grabbing a plate. "Not that I'm complaining or anything," He looked up at her as he arranged the brownies and cookies, "But aren't you going to work today?"

"I'm uh…I'm taking a personal day," she said quietly. "Just got to some things to take care of." She turned her back to him, afraid he'd take one look at her and see right through the façade. He'd always known her better than anyone else. Sometimes she'd swear he knew her better than she knew herself.

"Wow. I didn't know Fenmore's offered profit sharing."

Phyllis turned, her eyes widening as she saw the dress in his hand. She opened her mouth to speak, but nothing came out.

Billy grinned at her, holding up the dress. "You just throwing clothes away now, huh? Making that kind of money?"

"No," she said quickly, walking over and taking the dress from his hands quickly, "it just…it's ruined. That dress is ruined and it can't be fixed." Her voice trembled as she stared down at it, the images of the night before flashing far too vividly in her mind.

"Hey. You okay?" He reached out, grabbing the dress that was still clasped tightly in her hand. His brow furrowed. "You're shaking.."

She let the dress fall immediately, shoving her hands into the pockets of her robe. "I'm fine," she said softly. "I really would just rather we do this another day, Billy. Today is just not a good day."

He sensed something now and she knew it. There was no way to stop it.

"Phyllis." He took a hesitant step towards her. "Listen, something isn't right here. I know you and I know when you're upset and you're obviously very upset about something. Just tell me what it is..maybe I can help."

"It's nothing." The feelings were back—the same ones from last night, the painful pressure in her chest, the waves of nausea, the thickness of the air that made it hard to breathe. She rushed towards the door, pulling it open. "I really think you should go, Billy." She looked up at him, her eyes shiny with tears. "Now."

Just a few more minutes, she silently assured herself as she watched him walk towards the door. More than anything she wanted to tell him. She needed to talk to someone and he was the one person she'd always been able to trust, but this…this was something she could tell no one. This was something she wasn't even sure Billy would understand. She raised her eyes to look at him as he stood in front of her.

"Please don't do this. I just want to help. I know something's wrong and I honestly just want to help you."

"You can't, Billy. Not this time."

He shook his head slowly, a heavy sigh escaping his lips. His mouth opened as if considered protesting again, but he stopped, choosing instead to lift his hand and cup the side of her neck. The feel of his hand on her skin was normally a comfort…

"Don't." She jerked, railing at his touch, as she felt tears leave her eyes.

"What?" His eyes were wide as he stared at her. "Phyllis? What did I do?"

He moved towards her again and she shrunk from him, watching in horror as his eyes studied her.

"Phyllis." He stopped only for a moment, and only long enough to ensure she was looking directly into his eyes. "What happened to your neck?"

"I…I don't…" She looked around the room, searching for an escape, a distraction, anything…

"Come," he said quietly, "Come over here and sit down."

Billy waited a moment as he allowed her to settle, his own heart pounding in his chest. There were so many nightmarish scenarios he could imagine in his mind to explain her behavior and his prayer was that none of them were true. He needed to know the answers to the questions, but he wasn't sure he wanted to. He reached out to take her hand, pausing for a moment. "This okay?"

He felt her small fingers wrap tight around his and smiled at her.

"I don't even know where to start," she said, her voice trembling.

"Wherever you want, whenever you're ready—I'll be right here."