Well took me a while to get back into the swing of work even though I only had two weeks off. I haven't had time to do much with regards fiction writing but I hope this chapter makes it up to you. I am so sorry about the wait but I hope you enjoy it. Please review if it takes your fancy. I love hearing what you think and what you want to happen.


"Are you just going to stand there or are you going to let me in?"

Piper blinked a couple of times to make sure the vision before her was in fact real and not just a figment of her imagination. She hesitated, peering her head around the door which was unintentionally being used as a shield. Only 20 minutes ago, Alex had refused Piper's offer to follow her into the house, and now here she was, patiently waiting for some kind of response from Piper, other than being stared at inquisitively.

"Or I could just go," Alex muttered nervously, her previous confidence diminishing the longer she was kept waiting on the door step.

"No!" Piper shouted, startling both her and Alex. She cleared her throat before lowering her voice an octave. "I mean, no. Come on in."

Piper stood aside and pulled the door wide open, allowing Alex enough room to step over the threshold and enter the hallway. She held out her hands ready for the jacket that Alex was shrugging off her shoulders. She placed it on one of the wall hooks at the bottom of the stairs.

"I'm sorry I took so long answering the door," Piper explained as she walked through to the kitchen, Alex dutifully following her. "I was settling Finn down."

Alex didn't answer, being too preoccupied with studying her surroundings. The kitchen was bigger than she expected despite the island in the middle of the kitchen that took up a lot of room. Although there were plenty of cupboards, which usually meant a lot of hidden space, the worktop was littered with baby essentials such as formula, bottles, and a sterilising kit to name a few.

"Quite a collection you've got here Pipes," Alex remarked, smirking as Piper looked away guiltily.

"Being tidy has never been one of my strong suits."

"I remember," Alex chuckled, recalling the amount of times she would return from a stressful day at work and end up calling Piper to reprimand her for leaving her apartment in such a mess.

"I don't think Polly will be to happy when she…" Alex trailed off, realising her mistake.

"Drink?" Piper asked, choosing to ignore the comment.

"Yeah, please," Alex nodded, her voice barely louder than a whisper due to the tension she unintentionally created at the assumption Polly would recover.

"Hey do you want a Margarita?"

"Yeah sounds, good. Not too cold for one of those."

Piper smiled at the reference to a comment Alex made about her choice of drink on one of their first dates. With it being a torrential snow storm outside, Alex had opted for a Fireball whiskey to warm her insides, whilst Piper opted for the aforementioned cocktail. Alex had ordered in disbelief before turning towards Piper.

"It's a little cold out for a Margarita don't you think?"

"You made me so paranoid when you said that," Piper reminisced whilst collecting the ingredients.

"You refused to drink it and we had to swap. It was not a good cocktail. I don't think the barman lasted much longer after that," Alex laughed. "We were his third complaint of the evening."

Alex sat down on the bar stool and leaned her elbows onto the island, her phone clasped in front of her. She was in the middle of replying to Nicky who was still teasing her, when huffs of frustration and muttered curses brought her attention back to Piper. Her eyes rested upon Piper's bare back, a result of her top riding up due to her stretching above her. Their years apart had been very kind to Piper. She had told Alex in passing, that she didn't get to run as often as she wanted to although seeing her lithe physique, it was hard to believe. Alex thought she looked as toned as she had ever been.

"Perhaps it's all of this yoga she keeps babbling on about."

"Fucks sake!"

The loud curse brought Alex out of her trance and she stood up, rushing forward to place her hands on Piper's hips. Somehow during Alex's admiring of her, Piper had clambered onto the worktop in an effort to reach for something, that she assumed must have been an essential part of the cocktail.

"What are you doing?"

"Looking for god damn cocktail glasses."

"Can we not just have the wine glasses you already set out?" she asked half amused, half exasperated. "They aren't worth breaking your neck for."

"Got them!"

Alex retained a firm grip on Piper's hips, subconsciously tracing patterns with her thumb causing goosebumps to appear on the toned body. Piper wordlessly placed the glasses on a lower shelf and slid down, landing awkwardly on her feet. The action caused her to stumble backwards into Alex whose hands were completely wrapped around her waist. Turning around, Piper found herself nose to nose with Alex, their heavy breathing mixing into the air. Feeling as though it should be Alex to make the first move, Piper gave her the chance then after several moments, she shifted awkwardly and switched her gaze from Alex's lips to her eyes.

"I should…" Piper turned and pointed to the glasses up above.

Alex nodded and took a step back. She grabbed a knife from the block and started to slice the lime, wincing as a bit of the juice got into a cut she didn't realise she had. She sucked on her finger to relieve some of the pain, and glanced over at Piper as she did so. Disappointment was radiating from her every pore, that much was obvious. The slumped shoulders and avoiding eye contact was the major giveaway, Alex knew that much. She knew full well that Piper wouldn't kiss her first. The older woman had always been the instigator and after everything that happened, both knew she would have to make the first move.

The only sounds punctuating the kitchen were that of the knife hitting the chopping board and the blender that Piper was focussing all of her attention on.

Alex finished cutting the fruit and squeezed the lime around the rim of the glasses and lodged the slices into place. Alex raised her glass, once it had been filled with the concoction, and encouraged Piper to do the same.

"To new beginnings."

"New Beginnings," Piper repeated, clinking her glass against the other one.

Once they had consumed a few drinks, the women started to loosen up a bit, finding it much easier to be in each others presence as long as the drinks kept flowing. They avoided delving into their past as a couple too much, simply enjoying their time on a "second" first date.

"So you finally did it. You got your own studio."

"Yeah," Alex nodded, taking a sip of her drink and stretched out, placing the now empty glass onto the coffee table next to her.

They had made their into the living room, after finishing their first drink and were currently sat face to face on the sofa. Piper sat crossed legged and Alex had one leg tucked underneath her with the other dangling off the side of the seat. The only light in the room was that of the television, which had been muted once they found themselves in easy conversation.

"How did that come about then?" Piper asked, referencing the studio. "What made you take the plunge, so to speak?"

Alex tensed, finding a loose thread of cotton on her trouser more interesting than staring into Piper's eyes.

"I just…I guess I took your advice."

Her offering was pitiful but Piper sensed the subject needed changing, so that's what she allowed Alex to do. Had it been a few years ago Piper would have pushed Alex to the point where she would snap, but the blonde was no longer that impressionable, needy 22 year old. She had experience behind her and had matured somewhat ever since their relationship ended. She had faith that Alex would tell her everything she needed to know in her own, good time.

"What about you? I know you don't still work as a waitress in that place. I noticed it had closed down."

"Hmmm you noticed huh? It's a bit out of your way. You sure you weren't trying to find me Vause?"

"You wish Pipes. It's not my style," she winked.

Piper laughed, and reached for the pitcher, refilling their glasses.

"Well, Polly and I finally made the most of Polly's business degree and opened up a shop called Popi," Piper said, addressing Alex's earlier question. "We sell bath salts and soaps, you know that kind of thing. We even got into Barney's."

"Barney's. Wow," Alex raised her eyebrows.

"We have our own little store too. When Polly went on maternity leave, we hired Cal's girlfriend, Neri to take her place. Although she isn't a manager she did learn some of the tricks of the trade from me. She has been an absolute godsend these last couple of months."

"Must be difficult finding the time to be at the store as well as have Finn."

"Yeah it can be. Although Neri is amazing, I can't help but worry. When Polly had Finn, I was at the business all of the time but now, well now I can't be there. If anything happens to this business, Finn's future will be at stake. I don't want him to suffer with his education. Now there won't be Pete's income either, it makes everything that bit more stressful."

Piper acknowledged Alex stroking her knee by throwing her a small smile, the reassuring gesture appreciated. "There's just all of this pressure to succeed, and I don't know if I have it in me anymore."

Piper's eye's started to fill with tears as a result of her finally being able to open up to someone and talk about her concerns. The fact is was Alex she could talk to was just a bonus, and a wonderful one at that.

"Hey," Alex reached out and caught a tear with her finger. "You'll get through it. I know you will."

"It's hard to believe that sometimes," Piper sniffed, trying to blink away more tears. "Urgh I'm just so emotional today."

"I don't think this helps either," Alex gently prised the glass out of Piper's hands and placed it on the floor. She pulled Piper towards her so that blonde hair was resting on her shoulder, the rest of her body embraced in a hug by Alex. She stroked the locks of blonde hair and occasionally massaged Piper's scalp by way of relaxing her. Piper reached for Alex's free hand and held onto it, her knuckles turning white at the strong grip.

Gradually, they both pulled apart, Alex continuing to gently wipe tears away that were on a continuous ascent down Piper's cheeks. Leaning forward, she brushed a few stray hairs behind Piper's ears and kissed her forehead in the gentlest way she could.

"Thank you for today Alex," Piper said, eyes flitting towards her luscious lips as Alex sat back down to face her.

"You don't need to say thank you Piper."

"But I do," she replied, scooting ever so closer to the raven haired woman.

Alex gulped at the sexual tension Piper brought with her just by moving that few inches towards her. Piper waited patiently for Alex to make the first move, not understanding that the reason Alex was scared to was because she didn't want to be accused of taking advantage of her emotional state. Neither knew who made the first move, all they were aware of was their lips meeting in a kiss that started off as a peck, soon developing into a searing lip lock. Upon hearing Piper moan quietly into the kiss, Alex traced her fingers along Piper's cheek and into the hair at the base of her neck. She used it as leverage to pull the other woman closer to her even though there wasn't a lot of space to begin with. They felt as though they had finally been revitalised after all these years apart.

"Will you," Piper started, focussing on playing with Alex's rings on her fingers. "Will you stay with me tonight?"

"I don't think…"

"Please," Piper cut her off before she could finish her sentence with it not being a good idea. "I just need someone to hold me."

The sentence was said with such vulnerability that any intention Alex had of leaving was completely admonished.

"OK."

Piper stood to her feet, reached out her hand for Alex to take and laced their fingers together, leading them up the stairs. Piper came to an abrupt stop, Alex bumping into the back of her at the sudden halt. She allowed Piper to lead her into the room, casting her eyes upon the crib in the corner of the room.

"What if we wake him," Alex whispered, grabbing Piper's elbow, as she released her hand.

"He's been sleeping a lot better the past few days," she spoke in her normal voice. "Besides, we won't be making too much noise. Just falling asleep, right?"

Alex shifted her eyes sideways, biting the inside of her cheek at Piper's hint of suggesting the opposite. Piper chuckled and rummaged through her drawers for some spare clothes for Alex to sleep in. She handed the top and shorts to the taller woman and directed her to the bathroom.

"There's a spare toothbrush in the cupboard above the sink," Piper smiled.

Alex nodded her thanks and entered the bathroom. The entire room looked as though it had been recently fitted with a new suite, the faint smell of paint and plaster in the air. The whole room was a bright white, with a nautical theme on a row of tiles that stretched around the walls. She looked in the main cupboard, which was standing beside the toilet, and frowned upon being met with an abundance of towels and a few ornaments, including a striped blue and white lighthouse. No sign of a toothbrush in there. She frowned and settled her hands on her hips wondering where it could be, when the mirror above the sink caught her eye. It replicated the porthole of a ship, the finish of the wood giving it a vintage feel. She took a chance and pulled on the side, pleased with her discovery when her fingers unwrapped the brand new toothbrush from it's packaging.

She brushed away the taste of tequila until her mouth was minty fresh, and splashed her face with cold water to remove any traces of makeup. She dried her face on the hand towel and looked back into the mirror. She felt slightly self conscious without her eye liner, so she reapplied some, using the spare pencil that she always carried around for emergencies. It wasn't a heavy application, just a light layer until the morning.

Grabbing the t-shirt, she placed it over her head, returning to the mirror to fix the mess the top caused to her hair. She gasped at her reflection, and looked down at the top, pulling at the bottom of it to stretch it out in front of her. She recognised it as the one she used to own before Piper adopted it to sleep in whenever she would stay over at the brunette's apartment. It was the same t-shirt she had worn when she confessed her love for the blonde all of those years ago. The slogan on it was peeling off in places but she would recognise it anywhere. She padded across the hallway, pulling down the shorts slightly, self conscious at the unsuitable fitting. The bedroom was devoid of Piper, so Alex assumed from the clattering downstairs that she was pouring them glasses of water. Her hunch was correct as Piper struggled her way through the door a minute later, jug and 2 glasses in hand. Alex relieved her of the glasses and placed them down onto the bedside table on Piper's side of the bed.

"I can't believe you kept this," Alex pinched at the t-shirt.

"It was the last thing I had left of you," Piper openly admitted, leaving Alex lost for words. "Wow, have I rendered the Alex Vause speechless?"

Piper giggled after a moment's silence.

"No. No, it's just… after all this time? The whole slogan is practically peeled away. I assumed you would have burned it."

"Why would I burn it?"

Piper settled down under the covers and peeled back the duvet from the opposite side of the bed, an invitation that Alex accepted gratefully. They both sat with their backs to the headboard, heads turned so they were face to face.

"I thought you'd burn it because you hated me. I didn't think your boyfriend would approve of you keeping something that is so obviously mine."

"At the risk of spoiling things by delving into the past…I never hated you. I hated the situation and we had become toxic to each other. But I swear Alex, no matter what you might think, I never left you for Larry. I didn't even speak to him for 6 months after I left Paris."

Alex raised her eyebrows in surprise, willing away the niggling doubt that Piper could be lying.

"You didn't speak?"

"Well we spoke," Piper admitted, ignoring the huff of disapproval from the woman next to her. "We corresponded through the occasional email but I didn't see him until he moved in next door to Polly and Pete's old place, which was 2 years ago."

"Seriously?"

"Seriously," Piper smiled. "I promise I never cheated on you, nor did I hate you despite what I might have said."

"That's good to know," Alex quirked, wiggling her body down the bed until her head hit the pillow.

Piper mimicked her movements, and lay down on her back whilst Alex adjusted her position so she was lying on her side, facing Piper's side profile.

She started to absent mindedly play with strands of Piper's hair, eventually lulling the blonde into a sleepy state. She brought her fingers down to Piper's collar bone and traced a line slowly down her shoulder to her arm, lightly tickling the skin. She continued the pattern several times, the occasional contented sigh being released by Piper. Transfixed by the woman next to her, Alex unintentionally traced a new path from Piper's collarbone to her chest. Piper's breath hitched and Alex widened her eyes when she realised how close she was to her hardened nipple.

"Sorry," she muttered, her attempt to withdraw her hand. Her movement was stopped by Piper as she wrapped her own fingers around Alex's.

"Don't stop. It's relaxing me," she whispered.

"It never used to relax you. Quite the opposite if I remember," Alex teased, her laughter dying in her throat at the lustful gaze she was receiving.

This time it was all Piper. It was Piper who initiated the kiss and Piper who flattened Alex's hand so she was palming her breast underneath her top. Piper deepened the kiss as Alex tweaked her nipple, causing both sets of underwear to become damp.

"Fuck," Piper breathed out as Alex grabbed on to Piper's hips, pushing her thigh in between her slender legs, encouraging her to thrust forward.

Piper's breathing became ragged with each manoeuvre of her hips. Alex removed her thigh from it's position much to Piper's dismay, and flipped her onto her back. She placed her knees on either side of Piper's hips and pulled her up to a sitting position so she could easily remove her top. Piper did the same to Alex, both moaning as they leaned back onto the bed, their breasts touching ever so slightly. They resumed the exploration of each other's mouths, tongues duelling in a battle to get to know each other once again.

A few minutes into the kiss, Finn could be heard stirring which the women ignored until his small grunts turned into loud wails. Alex broke the kiss and lifted her head, only to find it being dragged back down to Piper who kissed her as though Alex's lips were her oxygen.

"It's ok. He'll go back to sleep," she panted in between kisses.

The wailing persisted and once again Alex broke the kiss, and rested her forehead on Piper's, giving them both time to catch some much needed air. Piper's hands were still holding Alex's head in place and she sighed upon her lips. The wailing started to cease just as Piper was ready to get up and check on Finn. She did so anyway, and seeing he was fine, guessed he had some kind of bad dream.

The false alarm had woken them up to the reality that they were moving far too fast. Mere days ago, Alex seemed to hate Piper and now she was in her bed and willing to take her to euphoric heights. Not wanting to spoil the small amount of progress they had made, Piper excused herself to the bathroom. She sat on the closed lid of the toilet, and leaned her head against the sink, the cool porcelain doing wonders at calming her temperature.

Piper wanted Alex more than she ever wanted anybody on both a physical and emotional level, the events of the evening only confirming what she already knew to be true. She ripped off a piece of toilet roll and shred it to pieces in her hands, a sign of her frustration.

"I have to ask her to leave," Piper mumbled to herself.

When Alex was lying in her bed next to her, leading her on had been far from Piper's intention. In the heat of the moment she was ready to give Alex all of her, but the interruption had woken her up to their situation. Piper stood up and scooped the pieces of the roll, lifted the lid of the toilet and threw them into the basin. Steeling herself, she turned the door handle and entered her bedroom, smiling as Alex's head snapped back into position. She had been resting her head on her hand which slipped out of place when Piper re entered the room.

Alex took off the glasses that were hanging on an awkward angle, folded them and hooked them onto her top.

"Do you want me to leave?" Alex sat up, leaning against the head board whilst rubbing her tired eyes.

Piper sighed and made her way back to the bed, sitting in the space that Alex made for her. She looked at Alex and traced her fingers down the side of her cheek, brushing raven hair behind her ear, taking note of the new piercing that adorned Alex's ears.

"I don't know," she answered honestly. "I want you so much Alex but…"

"But what?" Alex asked as Piper trailed off.

She turned her body to fully face Alex, one of the blonde's legs dangling from the side of the bed, the other tucked beneath her.

"I don't want to ruin the progress we have made by moving too fast. When we were together, if we ever had a problem we would fuck it away, and that's how we ended up how we did. We wouldn't talk to each other until the problems became too much and when we finally did it was too late. I mean, just a few days ago you seemed to hold all of this anger towards me and I don't want us to get carried away by sleeping together because of this one good day we have had."

"I can see that," Alex agreed, nodding her head.

Piper released the breath she had been holding. Her sentences hadn't made sense to her and she felt as though she was rambling. She didn't know how Alex would react, but she had half expected an argument to erupt and for Alex to storm out and leave, which Piper didn't think she could handle. Alex propped herself up on her elbow and smoothed out the space next to her.

"How about you just be my little spoon then?"

Piper stood to her feet and walked over to the door, startling Alex into thinking she was leaving.

"I think I could live with that," Piper giggled.

She flicked the switch on the wall, plunging the room into darkness. She sprinted back to the bed, jumping on it as she arrived, causing the bed to jerk back much to Alex's amusement.

Piper turned away from Alex and snuggled her back into her, grabbing the taller woman's arm so it was draped over her waist. She played with Alex's slender fingers, twisting the rings that adorned them.

"So you still do that thing where you run from the light switch to the bed in the case of monsters, huh?"

"Not monsters," Piper spoke lowly so that Alex had to move closer and lean in to hear the mumbled words. "Ghosts."

Piper felt her body shake slightly as Alex's husky laughter filled the room, her chest reverberating against Piper's back. She grinned at the reaction, even though the laughter was at her own expense. She closed her eyes in appreciation at the sensation of Alex's lips against her temple, trailing kisses to the base of her neck. Alex tucked her head onto Piper's neck just beneath her ear and breathed in the scent of the blonde's shampoo.

"You know you should really invest in a bedside lamp, or maybe even a night light."

Piper elbowed Alex in her ribs in a playful gesture at the teasing. "Shut up."

"Ok fine. I withdraw my bants."

"Goodnight Alex. Promise me you'll still be here when I wake up."

"I will Pipes, I promise. G'night."

…...

Piper lit the vast amount of tea lights that were placed in precise locations around the room. She discarded the used matches and stood back to admire her handiwork. The bucket of champagne on ice sat on the bedside table, surrounded by the aforementioned tea lights. The bed covers that should have been a plain cream with a faint pattern, were scattered with pieces of red, the rose petals a startling contrast against the pale colour of the sheets. She brushed invisible creases out of her black satin baby doll outfit and lay on her front, leaning on her elbows, her legs crossed behind her up in the air. Excitement reached her senses as she heard the key turn in the lock. She took hold of the rose and placed it into her mouth, taking care to avoid the thorns, and waited for her raven haired beauty to make her way up the stairs where she could finally eat her for dinner.

"Piper!"

"Hmmm Alex," Piper muttered in her sleepy state.

"Pipes!"

The blonde struggled to open her eyes, a task made more difficult by the streaming sunlight in the window. She stretched her whole body, and lay back, smiling as she recalled her wonderful dream.

"Piper."

She sat up instantaneously at the masculine voice and slapped her hand down onto the space next to her, frowning as she didn't hit Alex's body as she expected to. The space was still warm so Alex can't have been gone too long. Piper swallowed the disappointment at Alex's broken promise but she didn't have time to dwell as footsteps could be heard making their way up the staircase.

"You up here?"

Although she wasn't naked, Piper still protectively brought up the sheet on her bed up to her chest. She swung her feet over the mattress and placed them aggressively onto the floor, Alex's sudden departure and the man stomping his way up the stairs putting a negative spin on Piper's mood.

"Pipes?"

"Fucking Larry," she hissed, the words becoming her catchphrase as of late.

"What?"

Larry flinched at the waft of air that hit his face as a result of Piper swinging the door open. She blew a few times at the strands of hair that fell loose of her ponytail and into her face. She gave Larry a scathing look, a warning as her reached forward to brush the offending hair behind her ears. He blushed a shade of crimson and made a point of running his hand through his curly locks as though that had been his intention all along.

"I've told you Larry you should knock first."

"I did. I was stood on the doorstep for 5 minutes. I even through stones at the window."

"Oh how romantic. Well what do you want?"

"I just," he ducked his head trying to see into the room under Piper's outstretched arm. "Why are there 2 glasses on the bedside table?"

"I was thirsty."

"And the glasses?"

"I just told you I was thirsty," she snapped.

"No. Those," he pointed to the black secretary glasses that were folded on top of Piper's novel that she had been skimming through on the nights she was alone.

Piper twisted her body around, until her eyes fell upon the familiar frames. "I, uh, I use them for reading."

"Since when?"

"What do you want Larry?"

"Oh yeah I came to see if I could take Finn for a couple of hours. My parents want to see him. He's the closest thing they have to a grandchild you know."

Piper rolled her eyes at the sly dig. Throughout her relationship with Larry, both of their parents were forever dropping hints for their offspring to produce. Whilst Larry was eager and considered it the next step for them, Piper disagreed, feeling stifled by a relationship that she wasn't sure she wanted.

"He's not even ready yet."

"I can wait."

"Oh you can wait? You can't get him ready yourself?"

Larry looked at her blankly and shrugged.

"See now this. This," she pointed an accusing finger at Larry. "This is why I am glad I didn't have children with you."

She closed the door over with a little more force than necessary and threw the sheet onto her bed. She put her favourite hoody on and gently roused Finn from his sleep which wasn't too difficult. Grabbing his changing mat and clothes along with her, she struggled with the items down the stairs and rolled her eyes at Larry's obvious disdain at the scattered glasses and pitchers in the living room.

"Save your judgement for someone who cares," she snapped. "His milk is in the kitchen, diapers are in the corner over there and here is the man himself."

Larry graciously took Finn and bounced him up and down in a greeting. Piper walked through to the kitchen and swallowed a couple of tablets to ease the impending headache. She glanced into the living room and seeing Larry was changing Finn's diaper - for once- she prepared the youngsters breakfast in order to hurry Larry along. The sooner he left, the sooner she could go back to mourning over what she had the night before. Alex's disappearing act left her with little to no hope that they would ever get back together.

Half an hour later, Piper stood in the doorway waving Finn off. She breathed in the fresh air, and upon admiring the blue sky, decided on taking a run and feeling the fresh air hit her skin. It would relieve some of the tension and anxiety that she found herself experiencing.

She made her way back to bedroom and retrieved her phone from underneath her pillow, her shoulders sagging upon seeing no new notifications.

"Damn you, Alex," she muttered, the phone bouncing slightly as she dropped it onto the bed.

Piper stripped herself of the layers covering her body and put on her sports bra and underwear. She set out her running clothes which she always kept in a designated drawer, and opened her closet to retrieve her running shoes.

"About fucking time."

She jumped back in fright at the unexpected voice and after a moment of shock, pulled Alex up by her elbow and dragged her out of the closet. She bit on her lower lip in attempt to stifle an impending laugh at Alex's tousled hair and heated face.

"Silly question," she started, handing Alex her glasses. "May I ask why you were camping out in my closet?"

"I wasn't camping out. I was hiding and plotting my revenge on that ass hat. And as for you," she pointed an accusing finger to a stunned Piper, as the blonde had done to Larry just half an hour previous. "I tried to wake you up but you just kept slapping me away. The dude wouldn't give up he was banging on the door and throwing stones. I thought he was going to break the window at one point. It's not funny Piper!"

Piper found it hard to control the laughter, it soon becoming contagious causing Alex's anger to melt within a matter of minutes.

"Seriously though, what's his deal? Is he always so stalkerish and letting himself in here all the time?"

"Oh I have spoken to him about that, trust me. Why did you hide anyway? Were you afraid of the Big Bad Larry?" Piper playfully mocked her last sentence in a childish voice.

"You know I could take him," Alex stated, folding her arms across her chest. "Seriously though, I didn't want you getting any unnecessary grief from him. It's the last thing you need at the minute. Plus I heard how he almost flipped his shit at seeing 2 glasses of water so I am glad I did hide."

"He did," Piper rolled her eyes. "You know I was probably so pissy with him because I was so angry with you. I thought you'd just left without saying goodbye."

"I like it when you're pissy," Alex pulled Piper towards her and wrapped her arms around her waist. "It makes me kinda hot."

"I'll remember that. Did you say you have a client at one today?"

"Urgh, yeah," she sighed. "I should be going soon, need to get showered and stuff first. What time is it?"

"Its about 11 o'clock."

"Shit. That late already? How long was I in the closet for? I'd best be going," she released her hold on Piper and rushed around the room trying to find her pile of clothes.

"Why don't you take a shower here then head straight there? Would save you some time."

"That does actually make sense. Thanks, kid."


"Don't forget to put this on."

Piper accepted the tube of cream with a gleeful smile. She squirted some on her fingers and rubbed it cautiously onto her chest.

"Where did you find this? I thought I had sent Finn away with both of them."

"It was on the floor behind the sink. I dropped my ring down there and came across it."

Alex leaned one arm onto the wall to give her some support whilst she squeezed her feet into her boots.

"Pipes, what are you doing?"

"What?"

Piper looked back at Alex, a confused look on her face. The raven haired woman tutted and closed the space between them. She grabbed the tube off Piper and squirted a large amount on to her palm, applying the cream with her fingers.

"It says a liberal amount not a pea sized amount. No wonder it hasn't been getting better," she frowned, careful of knocking any blisters.

Alex excused herself to the bathroom and washed her hands, ridding herself of the cream. She dried her hands and followed Piper downstairs, grabbing her jacket from the hook and draping it over her arm. She opened the door and stepped outside into the warm air, the weather a vast improvement from the day she visited her mother's grave. She turned to face the doorway, one foot raised on the step.

"I think you should visit Polly."

"I can't."

"I know you can't but you should. I think it would help."

"Maybe," Piper folded her arms and cast her head down, her defence mechanism firmly in place. She could feel herself unintentionally and unwillingly closing off from Alex, the mention of visiting Polly casting a cloud over their interaction.

"You have my number, so if you need some support give me a call. I can go with you."

"You would do that?" Piper raised her head, arms still in place.

Alex smiled, and placed a kiss on Piper's cheek, not waiting long enough for it to be reciprocated. She hooked her finger under the collar of her jacket and flung it over her shoulder. She walked a few feet before turning back around, continuing to walk in a backwards motion.

"For you I would, yeah."