Lean on me: Chapter 6

By: The Confused One

A/N: I hope you all like this chapter. I figured it was time for this part. Special thanks, of course, to InfinityStar for reading this. Please enjoy and remember to review. Thanks.

Shaking slightly, Alex hung up the phone. Letting go of Bobby's hand, she promised, "I'm OK."

Bobby watched her carefully. She avoided looking at him. He wasn't about to force her. They had spent the last hour on the phone to people telling them about the funeral. Her family had offered to come over to finish the calls, but she had refused anyone's help but his. He finally ventured, "You're sure?"

Alex nodded slightly. Wiping away a couple of tears, she announced, "I'm getting the rocky road. I need something."

Bobby nodded. He watched her disappear into the kitchen. A minute later she emerged with two spoons and a carton of ice cream. Sitting back down, she curled up on her side of the couch and turned to face him. Popping the lid and handing him a spoon, she asked, "He could really make him crazy."

Bobby nodded. He agreed, "It's part of loving someone."

Alex closed her eyes and swallowed some ice cream. Jack was gone, she wouldn't let anyone comfort her anymore, and she couldn't bring herself to cry anymore, the only thing left was to try comfort food. Shaking her head, she vaguely asked, "Who's going to remind me to be human? Somewhere between college, the academy, and being a cop I forgot I was female and human. He reminded me that it's OK to be a cop and a woman. We were the oddest pair. He was the smuggest and most obnoxious guy in the precinct, and I was the biggest hardass."

She smiled when Bobby smiled. She was grateful that he was just listening, and he was glad to just listen. He offered, "And his…smugness caught your interest?"

She could help but laugh. Wiping away the few tears that escaped, she continued, "God, no. Not at first. He drove me absolutely crazy. It should have been my first clue, though. He was interested, right from the start though. I got into vice when I made detective. That's when I met him. He'd been there a year, and he used to say it was the longest year of his life. Said he was waiting on me.

"To get under my skin, he used to make damn whistling noises and cat calls when I came back from working undercover. I could have killed him. Do you have any idea how embarrassing it is to be dressed up in that stuff as it is? Then to be bringing johns into the precinct for booking and to have someone making cat calls…I couldn't stand him at first. He never did it to anyone else, and he knew I hated it, just like I hated the fishnet stockings and those damn skirts that were way too short. He finally stopped when I hit him. He told me later he was trying to get my attention, but naturally, I took it wrong and set out to prove myself to him. I think that just served to amuse him more. You think I can get into people's face now? I was at my worst then."

Bobby smiled slightly. He could picture her story perfectly. He asked, "Then he finally asked you out?"

Alex smiled softly. She was relieved to see him use his spoon to finally get some ice cream. She nodded and continued, "He finally surprised the hell out of me by telling me he actually liked me, respected me, and wanted to go out with me. Said I needed someone to remind me that I was a woman, along with being a brilliant cop. It took him five times before I finally went out with him. He was the most persistent man I had ever met. When I finally agreed…it was nice. He surprised me with roses and a nice romantic dinner. Anyone who thinks a vice cop can't be romantic never dated Jack.

"It was almost a year before he proposed at my apartment, over dinner, and it took another six months to plan the wedding. We had endless arguments about the music. He was adamant about picking the band, but every group he liked, I hated. It took weeks. Looking back at every fight…they all seem so silly now."

Bobby nodded in understanding. He assured her, "All couples fight."

Alex nodded. She bitterly replied, "But every one of them seems like such a waste of time now. All the time we could have had…all tied up in those hours of arguing about nothing…nothing that mattered."

Grabbing the spoons and ice cream, Bobby put them on the table and held her, again, as she gave up her fight and dissolved into fresh tears. Pushing her hair out of her face, he tried to reassure her over and over again.

After a few minutes, Alex finally began to pull herself together. Hiccupping, she pulled away and started shakily wiping her tears away. She apologized, "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to cry all over you again."

Bobby shook his head. Watching her, he promised, "It's OK. You're allowed to cry."

Alex closed her eyes again. Sniffling, she replied, "I just…still can't believe he's gone. I'm never going to get to see his smile or hear his stupid jokes again. I can't get used to that. I can't accept that."

Bobby moved Alex's hair out of her face. He assured her, "It'll get easier every day."

Alex shook her head and untangled herself from him and stood up. She suddenly just wanted to be alone. She explained, "I…need to go to bed."

Bobby nodded. He knew. They had a long day ahead of them. She was going to have to get through the final decisions: flowers, photos, and the obituary. She needed her space. He watched her go down the hall and disappear into the bedroom. With a sigh, he grabbed the spoons and ice cream. She'd want it later. He was sure of that. Putting them up, he watched her come out of the bathroom. He stared at the suitcase. He still wasn't sure why he had let her talk him into bringing it, but he opened it, grabbed his toothbrush, toothpaste and pajamas. It was definitely time to go to bed.