Alex put tape over the last packing box, and smiled at Maggie. She knew she was going to miss her, though they both knew sharing an apartment that small wasn't a great idea. Maggie needed her own space.
"That's it, Dimples. Last one. Let's get you moved into the new place. Hey," she realized as she spotted the twin bonsais on the bookshelf. "You almost forgot Barney!" she reached for the tiny tree.
Maggie caught her arm. "No," she said. "I think Barney wants to stay here. He's happy with Barbara. They belong together. Hey, it'll give me an excuse to keep visiting."
Maggie couldn't articulate why she wanted to leave Barney with Alex. But it felt right that something that meant so much to her should stay with the best friend she had ever had.
"You don't need an excuse. And I don't want my key back either. You need it, so's you can let yourself in to take care of the B Twins whenever I'm away."
"The B Twins?" Maggie tried to suppress a laugh.
"Barney and Barbara. Keep up, Sawyer. Okay, let's get this stuff moved to the car." She had insisted on helping Maggie move, despite her injured hand. Her broken fingers were already much improved, and Maggie was impressed by her powers of recovery.
After Alex had helped her move in, Maggie sat down, exhausted. She smiled. This was her first real apartment; the room under the coffee shop didn't really count. This was the first place that was just for her. She was going to enjoy living here.
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Alex got home after the big move, and flopped onto her couch. The absence of Maggie in her apartment was almost visceral. She was really going to miss her. Her phone beeped and vibrated in her pocket.
MS to AD: "Before you dial Stilton Pizza, check your freezer. There's lots of choice there, and they won't all harden your arteries."
Alex opened the freezer, and saw the stack of food that Maggie had pre-cooked for her. There must have been 20 boxes in there. Alex's heart contracted. Nobody had ever shown her such kindness.
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The following morning, Maggie heard a rap at the door, and a call of "it's only us!", and Kara swept into the room, followed by Alex. Kara hugged Maggie fiercely, and thrust a small box at her. "Alex told me you won't take Barney from her apartment."
Maggie lifted the lid of the box, and saw a beautiful bonsai. She grinned when Alex held out a 24-year-old bottle of single malt scotch. Alex shrugged and smiled.
Maggie blinked away tears. She had never had friends like this.
"What does Mack think of the new place?" Kara asked.
Maggie's face clouded over, almost imperceptibly. "We broke up," she said, keeping her voice level and unemotional. But Alex could see hurt flicker over her face.
"Oh Maggie, I'm so sorry," Kara hugged her again. "Are you okay?"
"I'm fine, Little Danvers. Especially now that you are here. How do you feel about shopping for kitchen utensils? Alex is useless."
Alex smiled. So Maggie didn't want to talk about it. That was her prerogative. "Hey," she objected, "I have other talents."
"I know. That's why I need you to come with me to the mall, get a decent router for my wifi. And I'm buying a tv. I got kinda used to having one at your place."
"At last," Kara exclaimed. "We can come round, watch movies together." She clapped her hands with excitement. "If you don't mind," she added, hesitantly.
"I think that would be great," Maggie said. "C'mon, you two, ready for a trip to the mall?"
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Kara left late afternoon, to get ready for a night out with her friends from school.
Alex collapsed on Maggie's new couch. It was so comfortable that she wondered if she would ever want to get up again. She looked over at Maggie, who was collecting beers from her fridge. She took the proffered bottle. "Are you okay?" Alex asked, softly. "Truly?"
Maggie shrugged. "Yeah," she took a swig. "It's life, Alex. She went back to her ex. It happens. We weren't serious anyway. There were lots of things I didn't tell her. That should have made me realize we weren't meant to be together." Maggie fingered the picture of her aunt that Alex had persuaded her to leave out on the bookshelf.
"Tell me about her. Sofia," Alex decided to change the subject. And she was curious. She wanted to learn about the woman who had rescued Maggie at the worst time of her life.
Maggie gave a small smile, her dimples deep and so, so cute. "I loved her," she said simply. "And she loved me. She knew all about me, and she still loved me. She even loved me when I turned into a nightmare when I was 16. She knew I wasn't bad, deep down."
"It was a small apartment?" Alex asked.
"Smaller than this one. But she insisted that I take her bedroom. She put up a curtain in the living room. Her room, such as it was, was behind that. She gave up so much for me. And she had already lost so much. Uncle Ernie died the year before I moved in, so she had nobody. But we made a good team," she smiled. "Apart from those six months when I went crazy."
"What did you do?" Alex was curious.
"Nothing interesting really. Just drinking. Smoking. Being a nightmare. Rude to everyone. Just so angry with the world. But she knew I was just hurting. I'd see them, you see. Often. My parents. I'd see them on the street. Or in the mall. Or walking by the river. They always blanked me. And every time I saw them, I came home and was a little shit. She told me, six months before she died, that she always knew when I'd seen them. She could tell by my behavior. So she just loved me. She gave me space. She gave me hell, too," she grinned. "But even then, when she'd yell at me, she'd always finish by telling me how much she loved me. And she'd hold me. And, often, I'd just fall apart. And she would pick me up, and I would swear it would never happen again. And when it did, she'd hold me again. She was the best person I have ever known."
Alex walked over to Maggie and pulled her into a hug. "I'm so sorry, Mags. I'm sorry for what you went through. I'm so sorry you lost her. Because if she is what made you into who you are, she must have been an incredible woman."
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"Shit," Alex hung up the phone. "Shit."
Maggie looked up from the newspaper. She had arrived early that morning, ostensibly to check on Barney and Barbara, but in reality she had brought breakfast for Alex, who too often skipped meals.
"Little Danvers okay?" Maggie asked.
"She's okay. But somehow she invited Mom for Thanksgiving. I mean, Mom! It's going to be a nightmare."
"How long is it since you've seen her?" Maggie asked.
"Last Christmas," Alex admitted. She had been avoiding her mother. She knew that Eliza loved her, but she was so tired of the endless picking that always came from her. And it would be worse this year, because not only had Alex abandoned her sister for around eight months, now said sister was living a couple of blocks away from her, so anything that ever went wrong for Kara, or anything that Eliza disapproved of, would be Alex's fault. And Alex was only just getting herself together. She was finally getting her life back. She had a job she loved, she had great friends, and her relationship with her adopted sister was stronger than it had ever been. She didn't need the negativity.
Maggie raised an eyebrow, but didn't say anything. It wasn't her place to make Alex feel worse about her family issues.
"It's not Kara's fault," Alex grudgingly admitted. "Mom can be … very persuasive. And Kara did manage to stop her coming when she moved to the city, that won't have been easy. I just hope she doesn't stay too long."
"Where will she stay?"
"At Kara's. I'm not having her here," Alex shuddered at the prospect. "I've always told her this place was too small for guests," she grinned, sheepishly. "So maybe don't say too much about your stay here?"
"I won't even see her, so I think you're safe, Danvers."
"You're not coming to Thanksgiving with us?" Alex looked horrified.
"You don't want me there," Maggie shrugged. "Thanksgiving is a time for family. I'd only get in the way."
"Maggie, you are our family. In every way that counts. Ask Kara. You're like a big sister to her. A tiny big sister," Alex smiled. "Please come. I mean, I know the prospect is less appealing now that I've told you it's going to be a nightmare, I realize that."
"You really want me there?"
"Of course we do. Kara has already asked me what beer you like, so she can have it in stock. Her friend Winn is coming too. We'll all be one big, dysfunctional family. Just like the rest of the country!"
"Then I'll be there, Danvers. And if your mother starts in on you, I'll just toss her off Kara's balcony."
"Deal," Alex smiled, relieved. Maybe this wouldn't be so bad after all.
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"I thought you said you were going to make cranberry sauce?" Eliza needled Alex when she passed the jar to her.
"I said I would bring cranberry sauce. I brought cranberry sauce," Alex's response was curt. She took another swig of her wine. So far, Eliza had cooed with delight about Kara's apartment – apart from the wine glasses, which she knew Alex had bought for her – and had found nothing nice to say to Alex at all. She criticized her new, short hair. "Your hair used to be so pretty." She wanted to know why she hadn't decided to pursue a career as a surgeon. "Your new job sounds like you're a lab tech. You had so much potential." And she had slated her care for her sister. "You're so lucky that Kara has invited you for Thanksgiving."
Maggie felt her nails digging into her own palms. She was itching to slap the woman. Hard. She watched Alex out of the corner of her eye. Alex shrugged and pretended it wasn't hurting her. But she was on her fifth glass of wine already.
As Kara cleared away their plates, Eliza turned to Alex, who had been mostly silent throughout the meal. "I don't suppose you have any real idea how Kara is getting on at school, do you? You always were more interested in yourself."
Maggie couldn't take any more. "Actually, Dr Danvers," she tried to keep calm. "Alex may not have told you, but she has shown a great deal of interest in Kara's education. Before Kara's first day at the journalism school, Alex made a point of going over and introducing herself to every one of her lecturers. And not just the teaching staff either. She talked to the people in the administrative office, and even had a meeting with the guidance counselor. And she gave them all her cell number, so that they could contact her if there were any problems."
Eliza turned to Maggie, and adopted a patronizing tone. "Maggie, I know you mean well, but ..."
Maggie would not be deterred. "Alex probably didn't tell you that she checked out the apartment carefully too. She went through the paperwork with a fine-toothed comb. And then – and I know this, because she asked me to do the baking – she visited every one of Kara's new neighbors and brought them home-made cookies, and left her name and number in case anything happened. And when Kara started at the school – even Kara doesn't know this – Alex went along every afternoon, and hid in the bushes, to watch as Kara left, to make sure that she was making friends. She was so unhappy that first evening, when she saw Kara walking out on her own. But the next afternoon, she saw her leave in a group, and she was laughing and happy. Alex did that every day for ten days. And now, now she has Sister Night with Kara every Sunday. Every Thursday evening, we all get together for Games Night. I would say that Alex is a pretty spectacular sister. Both your daughters are quite extraordinary women. I am proud to know them."
Maggie didn't realize that tears were streaming down her cheeks. She got up, and folded her napkin neatly. She saw Alex staring. Kara was stood by the counter, still grasping the plates.
"Thank you for a wonderful meal. I am sorry if I have offended anybody." Maggie strode toward the door, grabbing her leather jacket off the back of the couch. As she reached the door, Kara intercepted her and hugged her close. "Thank you," she whispered.
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Maggie poured herself a large slug of the single malt that Alex had bought for her, and threw it down in one. She was pouring herself another, when she heard a rap at the door.
She opened the door to see Alex leaning on the doorframe. She was drunker than she had realized when they were at Kara's. "Getting hammered, Sawyer? Need some company?"
Maggie's face crumpled. "I'm so sorry. I just couldn't stop. I couldn't bear it."
Alex pulled her into a hug. "You have nothing to apologize for. Nothing."
"Is your mom really pissed?"
"Yup," Alex pulled back, and steadied herself. She really had had far too much wine. "Even more so after Kara told her that she agreed with everything you said. She stormed out. She's getting a hotel tonight, then she's going home."
"Oh God. Is Little Danvers okay?"
"She will be. She says you were amazing, Maggie." Alex grinned. "She's right. You were. Remind me never to piss you off."
Maggie grabbed her arm, and led her to the couch. She had never seen Alex quite so drunk. "Just how much wine did you have?"
Alex reached into her jacket pocket, and pulled out a mostly empty half bottle of whiskey. "Not just wine, Dimples," she giggled. "Hey, you can't blame me. You've met my mother."
"I'm so sorry, Alex. I should have kept my mouth shut."
Alex shook her head. "Nope. What you said was amazing. YOU are amazing. So Sawyer, you gonna pour me a drink?"
Maggie shook her head. "No. I'm gonna get you a coffee. I need your brain in full working order."
"Because?"
"Because," Maggie picked up the bonsai that Kara had given her. "We've still gotta find a name for this fella. I was thinking Boris, but it doesn't feel right. And you," she eyed her friend carefully, "you really don't need any more booze. I'm cutting you off."
"Killjoy," Alex muttered.
Maggie put a bottle of water in front of her. "Drink that while I start the coffee machine."
Alex harrumphed, but she knew Maggie was right. "Bartholomew. He's clearly a Bartholomew," she pointed at the bonsai. "That bonsai has class. He needs a classy name."
Maggie grinned. "You're so right Danvers. Bartholomew it is."
