A/N: I know, I've been horrible about updating. The next one won't take so long, I promise.

Monday mornings were normally a very routine part of the week at the Major Case Squad. The squad room was always full of detectives catching up on their case files, sifting through the piles of fresh paperwork, and talking to their colleagues about their respective weekends. For most of the officers milling around the eleventh floor, Monday the 24th was no exception. But for Bobby, this particular Monday was a glaring exception.

Because this Monday happened to be the day he would find out if he was going to lose his best friend, the woman he loved. Today was the day he found out if his partnership was over.

It was still early and Alex hadn't arrived yet. He hadn't seen or spoken to her again since their ill-fated encounter outside her apartment Sunday evening. That night, he'd felt like a pathetic teenager, sitting no more than one room away from a phone at all times, praying to God that she would call so they could work this out. He had enough personal crises going on without having to add another one to the list. If he lost her…he didn't know if he could handle it. He'd been going out of his mind all night and all morning. He couldn't have slept for more than an hour or two last night; he'd spent the majority of the night sitting on his couch trying to work out a plan for damage control. His hours of thinking hadn't helped; his analysis had backfired on him and kept him up even longer thinking about all the ways things could get even worse than they already were.

He could feel his eyes widen and his whole body become flushed when he saw her walking into the squad room through the double glass doors. She held a cup of coffee in one hand and a piece of paper in the other. As she approached her desk, he started to open his mouth to say something to her, but abruptly closed it again when she walked straight past them and into Deakins' office, tossing her now-empty foam cup into the trash on the way. The blinds on his door weren't drawn, a sign they'd learned over the years that signaled his door was open to whoever needed him at the moment. Opening it and stepping inside, she shut the door and pulled on the drawstring of the blinds to close them, a small but ominous gesture that told Bobby one thing – whatever she had to say to the captain, it couldn't be good.

Alex had spent the entire morning agonizing over what to do. One weekend had caused so much damage - her partnership was in shambles, the man she loved was currently estranged, and now she had no idea how to fix it. Her self-assurance was gone; she felt as if she'd lost control of her own life. She hated the uncertainty of it all.

But 24 hours of deliberation had produced only one solution. When she'd first thought of it, she'd shut it out, tagging it as a last resort. But as time went on and no miracle resolution came to her, she'd come to the horrifying realization that she may not have any other options.

She slipped quietly through the door into the captain's office, shutting it behind her and drawing the blinds for good measure.

Looking up from his desk, Deakins started to smile, but stopped when he saw the look of distress on her face. "Eames? You all right?" he asked with genuine concern. "What's wrong?"

She quickly moved toward one of the chairs in front of his desk and sat down, hoping that he didn't notice the tremble that refused to leave her hands. "Captain, I…" she began, doing the best to keep the quiver out of her voice. "Do you remember that letter I wrote 5 years ago?"

He looked at her in confusion. "After the Garret trial, I don't think any of us can forget it. Why?"

Looking him solemnly in the eye, she slid the paper in her hand across the desk to him. "I think it's time for me to use it."

For ten minutes, Bobby sat at his desk, alternating between wringing his hands, running his hand through his hair, and an assortment of other nervous tics that showed just how anxious he really was. When Alex finally emerged from Deakins' office, he started to open his mouth, desperate to tell her the million things he'd thought of since he'd seen her last. But instead of going to her desk, she turned right out the door, heading for the interrogation rooms. He got up out of his chair, fully intent on going after her, but stopped when Deakins called his name.

"Goren, my office, now." The captain's voice was stern, but still held the note of understanding that it always seemed to have. Obeying, he turned around and charted a course for the now open door.

Upon entering the room, Bobby shut the door behind him and took a seat. Looking warily at Deakins, he waited for him to speak. He was caught between his desperate need to know what she'd said and the dread that it was something he didn't want to hear.

"Goren, do you want to tell me what in the hell is going on between you and Eames? When I come into work in the morning, I don't want the first conversation I have to be with someone who's so distraught over some fight you two had that she doesn't think that you can work together anymore!" The sympathy was gone from his voice, only to be replaced by irritation. "She wouldn't even tell me what happened, she just kept saying that she couldn't work with you anymore." He sighed deeply. "I managed to talk her out of officially requesting a new partner, but she's still not alright. I haven't seen her this upset since she testified at the Garret trial." He gave Bobby an imploring look. "Now, Goren, I don't know what you two did this weekend, and I don't think I want to. But I do know that you need to go find your partner and talk to her."

Bobby just nodded silently, his mind racing. He knew she was upset, but he hadn't known it was this bad. If she was asking for a new partner…

Standing up, he tried to collect himself and his thoughts. Exiting quickly, he turned out of Deakins' office and headed to the interrogation rooms. She might be giving up, but he wasn't.

He wasn't going to sit back and watch them crumble.