Fair warning: This chapter is sort of depressing. I got sad a couple of times here when I wrote certain parts. Ugh! I just feel so bad for the characters! :( Anyways, do enjoy this lovely chapter.

The next morning was blurry and foggy as Thorin woke up on his bed. He glanced around the room and squinted his eyes at the bright sun pouring through the window. He grew nauseous as he sat up and felt the room begin to spin. Slowly and wobbly, Thorin stumbled to the bathroom where he threw up the liquor he had downed the night before. He sagged against the bathtub and tied his long hair back. Such loud noises were coming into his head and the piercing bathroom light was making his head throb. He sat there for a good forty-five minutes before the hangover slowly subsided. Drained from heaving, Thorin half-crawled half-trudged back into his room where he involuntarily reached for a half-full bottle of whiskey and sat down on the edge of his bed.

As he took several swigs, he remembered how he left Bilbo's house and drove straight for Erebor Pub. There, he drank at least seven drinks before the owner offered to give him a ride home. Not in any state to say no, Thorin obliged as well as he could and was brought home by the owner; though he would have to return to the pub to pick up his car that he left. He will admit that drinking had felt good, at least for a little while, for he had not had a swig of alcohol for the past ten years. Now as he sat there, he thought about his day ahead. He would have to call his close coworkers and say he wouldn't be coming in today, and he would have to go to-

The doorbell rang.

Shit.

Thorin slowly stood and grabbed a clean shirt from the drawer and tossed it on. He padded over to the door and opened it, cringing when he saw his two nephews standing there. He quickly moved to close the door when he heard a shrill voice call his name.

"Don't you dare close that door on my boys!" came the voice.

Thorin glanced up as his sister came into view. "Dis," he said in a small voice. "What are you doing here?"

His sister neared him and Thorin did his best not to look at her as her eyes grazed him up and down. "What happened to you?" she asked, spotting the bottle of whiskey in his hand. "Did all hell break loose?"

Thorin flashed her a forced smile. "Funny," he said sarcastically.

"And when did you start drinking?" she asked as she pushed her way into his house.

Thorin sighed and shut the door behind his nephews. He joined them in the living room where they were all seated and staring straight at him.

"What happened to you, uncle?" Fili asked, glancing around the messy room. "You've always been so-"

"Neat," Kili finished, looking around at the strewn papers and broken glass on the floor. Fili glared at his brother.

"Yes," Dis began, "my question exactly. Thorin, what have you gotten yourself into now?"

Thorin wasn't in any mood to speak of the events that happened the night before. He closed his eyes and rested his head on the chair, his movements reminding of him of the way Bilbo had ran his fingers through his hair. He quickly snapped his head up and took a good long gulp of whiskey before sighing and staring back at his sister. "I do not wish to talk about it." He reached for his cell phone, which he had carelessly thrown on the floor when he came home a drunken mess. He flipped it open and walked into his bedroom where dialed a number and held a conversation with Balin.

Dis was about to snap at him for abruptly leaving the room, but she heard the tone of her brother's voice coming from the other room. She knew something really awful must have happened the day before. When Thorin came back into the room, she offered him a small, comforting smile. He returned it as he sat back down.

"Uncle?" Kili asked.

"Yes, Kili?" Thorin said.

The young lad pointed at Thorin's arm. "Where did you get those?" he asked innocently. "It looks like something angry got to you."

Thorin slightly smiled at his nephew's remark but shook his head. "It is nothing. Do not worry about it."

"Brother?" Dis asked. "Why did you call Balin?"

Thorin sighed heavily. "I am not going to work today," he answered. "I have matters to deal with right now."

"So, work isn't as important as this thing you are going to do today?" Fili retorted before his mother could.

The older man clenched his jaw tightly before answering in a cold voice that made all three of his guests freeze. "Yes, this thing I have is more important that some stupid job."

Dis smirked and folded her arms across her chest. "If I didn't know better, and if I wasn't getting married in two weeks, I'd say you're in love with someone."

Thorin didn't answer.

"Who is she?" Fili and Kili asked together; both equally excited that their uncle found someone.

"No, boys," Dis said. "Ask: who is he?"

Fili and Kili grabbed each other in pure excitement at the thought of Uncle Thorin dating a man.

Thorin shook his head. "I am not talking about this at all. Not today." He stood again; this time, he opened the front door. "If all you wish to talk about is my failing love life, please get out."

Dis waved her hand towards the empty chair. "Sit down, Thorin," she said. "We promise we won't mention anything else of that sort today. Right boys?"

Fili nodded while his brother hesitated but nodded when his brother elbowed him in the ribs. Thorin glared at all three of them but closed the door and returned to his seat. They all sat there for some time before one of them got up the courage to speak.

"So, what did you come here for?" Thorin asked quietly.

Dis huffed. "I came here to tell you that I need help on Thursday with my bridal... stuff," she said, waving her hand at the stuff she had to do. "My boys, unfortunately, have other plans and I was hoping my brother wouldn't be too busy that day." She smiled widely at Thorin who let out an exasperated sigh.

"I though you had girlfriends that could go with you." Thorin closed his eyes as he thought for a long time about this. He shook his head and looked at his sister. "I cannot go. I am busy that day, with work and other things..."

"I told you, all of my girlfriends are out of town," Dis explained for what she felt was the umpteenth time. "Please, dear brother. Will you not accompany your favorite sister to the bridal store so she could pick out the perfect dress for her perfect day?"

"You are my only sister," Thorin pointed out. "I am sorry but I cannot..." he trailed seeing the pout on his sister's face. "Fine," he relented. "Thursday? What time?"

"Um," she began thoughtfully, "around ten o'clock. Does that work?"

Thorin grumbled but nodded.

Silence filled the room as no one wanted to speak.

After some time of pure awkwardness, Fili had struck up a one-man conversation as Thorin read the bottle of whiskey in his hand and his mother was staring off into space. He talked about how he was going to be going off to college and that he was in need of a part-time job. He looked expectantly at Thorin who was interested in the fancy design on the bottle. Rolling his eyes, he continued talking about his dreams of following in the footsteps of his uncle; mind you when he mentioned his uncle, he over-emphasized the word a lot. Thorin did not look up. Fili huffed angrily and sat back into the couch. Dis was about to speak when Thorin's cell phone rang loudly.

Slowly but somewhat quickly, Thorin flipped it open. The Caller ID read Bilbo Baggins. Thorin nearly dropped the glass bottle when he saw the name. He majorly hesitated in answering it; Bilbo was probably calling him to tell him that he had moved on and Thorin wasn't in the mood for another heartbreak. The phone rang seven more times before it went silent. Thorin sighed and sank back into the chair. He really didn't want to talk to anyone right now much less have them in his house. After glancing at his sister and nephews, Thorin stood and opened the door.

"I would much like to be alone now," he informed them as best he could.

Dis, Fili, and Kili nodded and filed out of the house. As he closed the door, Dis turned and gave her brother a Durin glare. "Monday. Do not forget." She stood there, waiting for Thorin to nod his head and when he did she turned to join her sons.

Thorin closed the door with a growl; an bitter growl at his own actions the night before. He trudged to his bedroom and collapsed on his bed, feeling incredibly put out and upset at himself. He laid there for the next three hours, falling asleep off and on, before he decided he had better take a shower and start his day at... he leaned over and glanced at the clock... at four o'clock in the evening.

Calmly, Thorin had walked from his house to Erebor Pub and had picked up his car that had been clearly abandoned yesterday. After he climbed into his car, he wasn't even sure how he ended up in front of Bilbo's house. He knew he shouldn't be there, not after what happened the night before. Shifting the car into drive, he reluctantly pulled away from the curb and returned home, where he remained for the rest of the day.

Bilbo, however, felt extremely guilty about what he had done to Thorin last night. He didn't even give the other man a chance to explain the matter. Sure, he might have jumped to a conclusion, but he should have let Thorin explain himself. Bilbo had tried to call Thorin a couple of hours ago but he ended up leaving a voice-mail instead, three actually though he did regret the last one very much. He didn't blame Thorin for not wanting to speak to him. He should have been nicer to Thorin because the man had been so nervous on the lunch date-thingy and every time he came in contact with Bilbo. The signs were there, and Bilbo knew it. He just didn't want be rejected by someone like Thorin.

Well, at least one good outcome happened that day: Bilbo got a job, and he thought he would be happy but he wasn't. All he wanted was to make things right with Thorin and go on that date with him. He wanted to tell the other man how sorry and foolish he was. And he wanted to kiss the living daylights out of him. So bad.

Now, he laid in bed thinking about how he should apologize to Thorin, if he ever saw him again. He didn't know where the man lived and he didn't know where to start, and he was pretty sure that there would be a seriously bad outcome if he showed up at Arkenstone Mutual. He'd have to sort that out tomorrow and somehow not miss his first day at his new job.

Sunday morning came and Thorin found himself in a similar state. He sat in the bathroom for an hour and a half before crawling into bed again and letting his tears fall freely. He couldn't remember how long or how much he drank last night; all he knew was the pain that traveled through him wasn't all he deserved. So, he laid there sobbing and crying until he could no longer. With blurred vision, he wiped his puffy eyes and reached for his cell phone which was balancing on the edge of the bedside table. Flipping it open, he saw that he had eighteen missed calls; all ranging from the pub owner to Bilbo.

Sighing, he opened message number one: "Thorin, I was worried about you. This is the second time I've called you. Please get back to me when you can," the Erebor Pub owner's voice said. "Bye."

Message number two: "Thorin Oakenshield," Dwalin's heavy voice said sternly. "We have lost a total of ten clients today. What has happened? They all blame your actions for making them leave us."

Message number three: "Thorin, you never not answer your phone!" Dwalin's voice said, angrily. "This is the second time I've called you in four hours." He heard Dwalin sigh and in a much calmer voice say, "For the love of God, Thorin. What is going on? Call me back when you can."

Message number four: "Thorin?" His heart caught in his throat when he heard Bilbo's soft voice. "I... I... it was a mistake. I shouldn't have called you." Thorin heart dropped as Bilbo's call ended.

Reluctantly, message number five: it was from Balin and Thorin stopped it halfway.

He scrolled through his phone and found two more messages from Bilbo. He listened to both messages twice before downing another bottle of whiskey.

The bottle was nearly finished in one breath before Thorin flung the empty bottle against the wall where it shattered, its shards joining those on the floor from broken frames. Thorin listened to the last massage Bilbo left, again: "Thorin, I am not sorry for what I did. I have... I did have feelings for you, but now I know you... you do not feel the same way about me." Thorin listened to the breath Bilbo took. "Please do not ever call me or visit me again."

Thorin ended the message. He stood and raised his hand to throw the phone but thought better of it. Instead, he sighed and laid back down where he did not move for the remainder of that Sunday.

Bilbo's heart beat fast as he walked through the doors of Map and Key Law Firm, which was mostly called MK Law Firm, on Monday morning. A short, blonde receptionist was seated at the counter in the front room of the grand building. She smiled when Bilbo walked up to the counter.

"How can I help you?" she asked in a slight sing-song voice which Bilbo assumed had taken her hours to practice.

"I am the new assistant for Mr. Gloin," Bilbo told the young woman. He watched as she dialed a number onto the phone and clarified that Bilbo was telling the truth. When she hung up, she nodded and told Bilbo to go straight down the hall and up two flights of stairs and turn left at the end of the hall. Bilbo nodded and unconsciously made his way to the office. He was utterly confused by her directions but managed to get to the office door. He leaned his ear against it, not wanting to disturb any meetings. He heard deep voices talk heartily with one another with the occasional laugh of a woman. Bilbo stepped back and patiently waited for the conversations to end.

Well, he stood there waiting... for three hours before the door opened. He quickly tried to make himself presentable for the first day at his new job and prepared to smile at whoever walked through the door.

A tall woman with black hair and blue eyes came out of the room first. She smiled politely at Bilbo who returned the same smile. She stood off to the side as a slightly taller man stepped into the corridor. The man wore an exceptionally well-tailored suit and shiny suede shoes. Bilbo's mind was elsewhere when the man stepped into the hallway, so he was unable to act quickly as the man turned around and faced him.

Thorin.