Ugh, sorry this took SO LONG! I've just been so not in the mood to write lately, I think it's stress, and I really had to force myself to finish this chapter. I'm sorry if it sucks, guys. Feel free to review.
Alexis' POV
The night air was cold on their skin after the crowded heat of the club and Alexis shivered when they stepped outside of the building. After scoping out the next few streets, Eric deemed them clear and she dutifully followed him around the back and hurried in the direction of the fence.
When her side began cramping and the bruises on her feet throbbed with every step she took, Alexis slumped against a brick wall in the dark alley they were in and tried to catch her breath. In his black t-shirt and pants, Eric was hard to see in the darkness and Alexis jumped when his hand grasped her elbow.
"It's important that we keep going." He said.
"Believe me, I know. But I won't be able to keep going if I don't take a breather." She replied, massaging the stitch in her side. The back street was eerily quiet except for the whistle of wind between the buildings and her nearly naked body trembled from the chilly draft.
She couldn't see the expression on his face, but she could hear the concern in his voice when he asked, "Are you cold?"
"Yes." Alexis said, hoping he'd take the hint and give her his coat until she realized that he didn't have it and must've left it back at the apartment. Her disappointment quickly faded when he moved in front of her, effectively blocking the wind, and wrapped his arms around her.
"What are you doing?" She asked; her arms limp at her sides.
"The only thing I can do where heat is concerned. I'll give you five minutes and then we're gone." His voice rumbled beneath her ear.
His body was like a furnace and she couldn't stop herself from hugging him back in order to maximize the absorption of his body heat as she slowly relaxed at the familiarity of his embrace.
"How did you know he'd want sexual favors?" She asked to lessen the feeling of intimacy between them.
Eric's body tensed and he said, "I've seen a lot of men like him in the fringe and what they do to women, and it's not something I want to see happen to you."
It was clear that Eric knew just what type of man Wesley was and Alexis was slightly amazed at how accurate he was in judging people. She also agreed with him and cringed at the thought of dating Wesley.
The first time she met him, he had come to the office seeking legal counsel after being accused of forcing himself upon his girlfriend, and even though there was no evidence to prove it, Alexis could feel in her bones that he'd done it.
When he had gotten away without so much as a slap on the hand and asked her out, she vowed to stay clear of him and had completely forgotten that it was Wesley who mentioned the club before. In her haste to think of a hiding place, it was the only location that came to mind and she was thankful to have Eric with her when she realized that Wesley was there.
If there were more men like him in the Fringe, then it was definitely a dangerous place to be in, she decided. Then she remembered that Eric had come from the Fringe and stiffened.
"Are you expecting anything in return for your help?" She asked, afraid of what his answer might be; wondering if she had gotten herself into a worse mess than Wesley.
He grunted and said, "I may be an asshole, but I'm not that kind of asshole."
"What kind are you then?" She found herself asking, her interest piqued.
"The kind that pushes people around when they don't do what I want them too."
"Why am I not surprised? You do come off as cocky and arrogant." She said.
"Hey, you fell in love with me. What kind of person does that make you?" He responded in his defense.
Alexis looked up at him and said, "Obviously the kind that saw something good about you, because I doubt it was your winning personality that I supposedly fell in love with."
His expression softened and he brushed her cheek with his thumb. "You're right. I didn't deserve you then and I might not now, but you didn't let that stop you from seeing something in me that no one else had and I am so thankful for that… for you."
Alexis could feel the pull between them as her body unconsciously leaned into his as he lowered his head to kiss her and it took every ounce of her will power to pull away before his lips touched hers.
She couldn't meet his gaze again, knowing he was disappointed from the way his hold on her body stiffened at the rejection, and said, "I'm sorry. It wouldn't be fair to let you think I might feel the same way you do about me when I can't give you that. Not yet anyway."
"I understand." He gruffly replied after a moment and let his arms drop to his sides. "We better get going." He added and took a step back.
She gave him a silent nod and tried to suppress the guilt that began to weigh heavily on her chest, but little tendrils kept crawling back up from the depths and focused her mind away from the pain she felt earlier.
It wasn't her fault if she couldn't remember a man who apparently loved her, so there was no reason why should she feel bad about it, but she knew what it felt like to be lonely and she hated knowing he felt it too.
Alexis followed his dark figure as it made its' way through the abandoned streets and the buildings steadily became smaller as they left the old downtown and entered the residential areas before the fence.
Then suddenly Eric stopped her with an outstretched arm, barring her from going any further. She gave him a confused look and he put his finger against his lips before pointing to the end of the road. She had to strain her eyes, but the figures of two women walked by again and she understood as Eric tugged her behind the nearest house for cover.
"So what's the plan? Are you going to take them out like the guy back at the club and then scale the fence, because if you haven't noticed, we're on the opposite side from where the gate is?" She asked from her crouched position next to his as they peered around the corner.
He glowered at her. "I know that." He then looked back at the guards and the fence like he was analyzing the situation and frowned. "I don't know yet."
"Well, it's a good thing I've got a plan, then."
They both jumped at the voice behind them. A man Alexis had never seen before was grinning like he found the situation funny and she narrowed her eyes at him.
"What are you doing here, Amar? I thought you were waiting for us at the gate." Eric frowned.
"And I thought you were gonna meet me at the gate, but it looks like you have other plans. Hey, Alexis," He nodded to her in greeting and sized her up. "Geez, you look cold. Here." He shrugged his black coat off and handed it to her.
She tentatively took it and as she put the jacket on, she looked at him closely to see if he looked familiar, but neither the tied back dread locks nor his face rang any bells. "Do we know each other?"
"We used to, for a short time. You saved my life." He replied.
Alexis was taken aback. "I did?"
Amar opened his mouth to reply but Eric quickly butted in and repeated his question. "Why are you here?"
Amar's amusement faded as he regarded the other man. "What's up your ass, Eric? I thought we were helping each other."
Eric bristled. "I don't know what you're doing, Amar. First, you conveniently show up at the right time and claim to be on my side and then the Divergent just show up at her door looking for us when you knew all along we were there. Am I supposed to think those were coincidences?"
"Yeah, because they are coincidences and I am on your side." Amar heatedly replied and then took a deep breath. "Look, Four and Mark were supposed to cover the cameras in her apartment, but obviously something went wrong. While I was waiting for you, there was excitement over the radio about their arrests and as soon as I heard the orders for your retrieval from Alexis' place, I knew you'd run and I went into plan B mode."
"Which is?" Eric asked.
"Find you and get you out of the city, then back to the Bureau." He said, clearly confused as to why Eric wasn't getting it.
"We don't need your help." Eric muttered before turning back to the street.
Alexis didn't know what was wrong with him either. This guy was giving them a way out and Eric wasn't taking it. "Eric, I think we should go with him." She said, wanting to convince him to listen.
"We're not going to the Bureau." He snapped.
"If it's the Bureau you have a problem with, trust me, Four won't be in jail for long and it will be safe to go back, so what's the problem?" Amar asked.
"I don't want her anywhere near Four, that's what!" He shouted back at him.
"Eric, man," Amar paused in sympathy. "Four's not trying to steal your girl from you. He knows she chose you."
"That's the thing. She hasn't chosen me, not in this new life." He said and glanced at her sadly. "Four has a chance to change her mind."
What the hell is going on? She asked herself, startled and confused by the conversation. Who the hell was Four and what did he have to do with her feelings for Eric?
"Wouldn't it be better to know she chose you fair and square rather than forcing the choice on her?" Amar asked him.
Eric glared at him for a long moment and Alexis flinched when he suddenly punched the wall in frustration. He didn't cry out in pain like she would expect anyone to, but instead walked away and flexed the fingers of the hand he had just injured.
"Fine. How do you propose we get out?" He ground out when he came back.
Amar's lips twisted upward.
Eric's POV
Amar's plan was crazy in his opinion and although Alexis seemed okay with the idea of swimming through a man-hole sized grid into an open ocean, he didn't feel any better about it. He'd never been submerged in a large body of water bigger than a bathtub before and it scared the shit out of him.
In the morning they would find and plunder an old sporting goods store for supplies and make their way to the beach where the city of San Francisco met the Pacific Ocean. Unlike Chicago where they cut the water off to prevent anyone from leaving by boat, here they allowed water through small grids in the bottom of the fence for leisure and fishing, according to Amar.
Eric insisted they stay the night in the house before going on such an idiotic mission so he could school his nerves and get some rest. Neither of them disagreed and they were all currently relaxing around a small fire he built in the middle of the living room floor.
Amar quickly fell asleep on a very old and dusty couch while the two of them sat against the decaying wall. Eric was staring into the flames, so deep in thought about the mission the next day that he didn't notice Alexis watching him rub his sore knuckles and scoot closer to him until she spoke.
"Do you want some help?" She asked, indicating his hand with a nod of her head.
"Hmm? Oh… No, I'm okay." He said, dropping his hand into his lap to prove it was fine.
She looked at him and sighed. "It's okay to take help when you need it, Eric. I know your hand hurts, so just let me massage it for you."
He thought about pulling away when she leaned over and took his hurt hand in hers, but changed his mind as soon as she gently added pressure along his palm. He groaned in relief and closed his eyes, letting the stress melt out of him at her touch.
"Want to tell me what's up with this Four fellow and why you're so against me meeting him?" She asked as she rubbed the meaty part of his thumb.
Eric cracked an eye open to look at her and thought about telling her it was none of her business, but of course it was. She had a right to know about her past and Amar was right. He couldn't keep it from her if he wanted her to truly want to be with him.
He closed his eye again and cleared his throat. "Four's the polar opposite of me. When I was training you to fight, Four was helping me because he was too nosy for his own good, and we both fell in love with you. You liked him because he was kind and easy to talk to whereas I just bullied you around and pushed you away. I'm not even sure why you picked me over him, because I never got a chance to ask."
"I'm wondering why I picked you too." She sighed. "No offence, but besides the whole sexy bad boy thing you've got going on, you've been nothing but rude to Amar, selfish in both coming for me and trying to keep me away from someone you're afraid will steal me away when in fact I might choose neither of you, and the only thing you've told me about yourself and our relationship is that you're an asshole who didn't want me around."
Eric angrily pulled his hand out from hers. "I get it. I'm not prince charming." He said and got up, leaving her alone with a sleeping Amar as he left the house.
The back door closed behind him with a creak and he ferociously kicked at the crumbling cement steps before collapsing on them in his grief. Resting his arms on his bent knees, he lowered his head and concentrated on pulling all his anger, fear and pain inward with deep breaths.
He was ruining it. Sure he could tell her that he was some hero like in her romance novels who saved people, but in truth, that felt like a lie. He didn't really save anyone; he just switched their old captor for a new one and if he took her back to the Bureau, he knew that Four would win. Kind, unselfish, compassionate, fucking, Four would get the girl like he should have the first time and Eric would be alone again. But there was nothing that he could about it anymore except face reality.
He was so tired of this shit. Tired of running; tired of fighting to save others and trying to survive. Was it so bad that he wanted something for himself for once? He hastily swiped at the tear that trickled down his face and stared out at the stars.
Alexis' POV
Alexis watched him from the kitchen window as he sat there looking utterly defeated and miserable. Why did I have to open my big mouth?
"He's not so bad you know. I mean, everything you said is true," Amar said and yawned as he approached from the living room and stood next to her by the window, "he can be a real dick, but he has his redeeming qualities too."
"Like what?" She asked, hoping to understand the mystery of Eric.
"It's probably not my place to tell you if Eric won't, but Four might be inclined to tell you if you asked him." Amar winked at her.
"Good, because I intend to have a nice long chat with him when I finally meet him." She replied, watching Eric intently.
