Monique called Terrence from the car and invited him over for a few hours. If he would actually want to stay a few hours is another thing all together. Monique paced in the living room, trying desperately to calm her nerves. Barry tried to talk her into sitting down but she just ignored him. How could she relax when the one thing she had been dreading was about to happen. He wasn't a bad guy, but he had become a little aggressive when talking about Barry.

When the knock came to the door she froze. Barry had to push her to the door. He stepped back as she opened the door and hugged Terrence rather rigidly. He kissed her then looked up. She hated the way his body tensed when he saw Barry. "And this is..."

"This is Barry," Monique said as she stepped back to let him inside. "The friend I've been telling you about. Barry this is Terrence, my boyfriend."

Terrence offered his hand and Barry shook it firmly. "I'm glad to finally meet you," Terrence said, not a single hint of a smile on his voice.

Monique stood with her back to the door after closing it. "Barry thought to take this opportunity to go ahead and meet you since both of you were free tonight."

They moved to the couch and Monique sat in her recliner. She couldn't bring herslef to sit with either one or between them. Terrence seemed to ease up a little as he got to really look at him. "So, you're the one Mo's been telling me about. I wasn't sure what to make of you from what she told me, but I'm glad I was wrong about some things."

Barry smiled at that. "Well, I hope I haven't disappointed, at least."

"Oh, no, no don't worry about it. She did tell me you missed the dinner because of medical reasons. Are you, uh, in good health now?"

"I'm completely fine," Barry said with a shrug. "I think it was nerves. I was sick to my stomach but the next morning I was better than good. I do feel bad about that though."

Terrence held up his hands. "As long as you're fine now, that's all that matters. So, where did you meet Mo'?"

"I happened to catch her in a nasty fall while I was leaving a friend's spot and..." He put up his hands and shrugged, "the rest is history."

Terrence seemed to think for a moment. He didn't look upset but Monique didn't like it. "Now, I have to be honest- that's just the way I am, I don't mean any offence by it- but that woman over there is the most important person to me as of this moment and every day I wake up. She's the most gentle and well meaning person I've met in a long time. If anything happens to her while she is with you I won't hesitate to look into that myself. Do you understand what I'm saying?"

"Terrence," Monique sat upright in her chair. "Calm down, please."

"I am calm," he replied without looking at her.

Barry nodded. "Yeah, I mean, I wouldn't let anything happen to her. She reached out to me when I really needed it so she's someone I want to keep safe too." His brow furrowed and he sounded a little uneasy but he was doing his best to keep himself steady. "If she's with me she's safe."

Terrence watched Barry's face as he spoke. He wasn't exactly the deepest, most contemplative man Monique knew, but he was looking at Barry like he was looking for some sort of flaw. Like he was trying to catch him in a lie. He certainly didn't beat around the bush at all. Monique hugged herself as she watched them interact. Terrence asked him a few more questions and Barry complied, slowly unfurling his body as the night went on.

What Monique had been afraid of was Terrence getting defensive and putting too much stress on Barry. She wasn't sure if he would remain in control or if he would pass the light to another alter to handle the situation. She had read that you can't really tell when the alter switched. It was subtle. She watched Barry so closely as they went on it might have been creepy if he had been looking at her, but they were too busy sizing each other up.

Monique did not relax at all during the night until Terrence decided to leave due to the hour being late. "I have an early start tomorrow so I better get going," he said as he stood from the couch. Barry followed suit and stuck a hand in his coat pocket. "I'm glad we finally got to talk. I can't be there all the time so I'm trusting her to you." They shook hands once again.

Barry nodded. "I understand, don't worry about it. She's like the sister I'd never had."

They laughed all the way to the door. "Alright, maybe I'll catch you some other time, Barry?"

"Yeah. Some other time."

"Bye Mo'." He hugged her good and tight one last time then walked out to his car. "Oh, hey, you need a ride?"

"Uh, sure. Good night Mo'."

She waved to them both. "Please be nice," she called after them.

"Haven't I been this whole time?"

Monique honestly wasn't sure she'd call what transpired "niceties", but they didn't fight. It was better to find out just how good he was at a crap eating grin now rather than later. Some of his concerns were put to rest, but he was still a man so he would surely be waiting for Barry to slip up. She was also kind of glad they were so wrapped up in finding faults in each other that her lie never came into question. She opted to forget that whole thing ever happened.

The ride was awkwardly quiet. Terrence dropped a word here or there but ultimately it was just the most painful silence. He didn't stop scrutinizing him since he closed the door and started the engine. Barry could tell that there was more he wanted to say but he wouldn't say it in front of Monique. Honestly, he wasn't feeling another round of twenty questions.

"Monique doesn't have friends," Terrence said as they stopped at a red light. "She's not the most social person but she tries. I've seen her good intentions turn out badly."

"Mo's like a sister to me," Barry said, revisiting an earlier statement. "I don't want anything from her. It's not like that between us." He folded his arms and sighed. It was nice in theory, but his worry was starting to wear on Barry's patience and his head was starting to throb. "We're kind of the same, Mo' and I. I don't usually reach out to people either, but, you know, there was something about her that reminded me of myself. I'm not gonna let anything happen to her, okay? I don't want anything more than friendship, I'm not using her- in fact, I want to protect her just like you do."

Terrence fell silent after that. He didn't speak again until he asked how far they had to go to reach his home. It was a little ways from Monique's place so Barry just asked to be dropped off in front of a familiar restaurant. He'd rather walk the rest of the way home then sit in the strained silence of the car any longer. He thanked him for the ride and politely declined the offer to take him all the way home.

His head was pounding by that point and it was becoming harder to keep the pain off his face. When Terrence finally pulled off and his headlights disappeared, Barry grasped onto the nearest building to keep himself upright. He squeezed his eyes closed against the throbbing pain. It was happening again. He was fighting to stay in control.

Someone was trying to take the light again but he couldn't tell who with the headache pounding away. He didn't live close enough to think he could even start to make it back home. He crumpled to the ground, gripping his head tightly. None of the others spoke: they couldn't. Barry called out to them but they didn't say a word. It was them again.

He groped at his pockets until he grabbed his phone and snatched it out. His vision was blurry but he tapped away at the onscreen keyboard, hoping the right words were coming out.

"pls help not home losing control."

Monique jumped off the couch and grabbed her coat. She scanned the streets as she drove. There was still quite bit of activity despite the late hour so she couldn't drive too slow. She pulled up to a curb when she spotted someone lying on the sidewalk. She recognized the coat and scarf instantly as she practically jumped out of the car and ran to his side. "Barry? Barry! Oh my god... Barry?" He grabbed her hand and squeezed it tightly. "Can you stand?"

She pulled him to his feet and helped him into her car. She took him home but something just didn't feel right about leaving him alone. Barry looked up at her with narrowed eyes. "Mo', you gotta go- you can't be here right now," he said shaking his head. "You have to leave now."

"No, Barry, I'm not leaving you," she said. "Not until I know you're okay."

"You need to go."

"No, Barry," she said as sternly as she could manage. "I'm not leaving you, not now."

She took his hand and held onto it tightly. Never had she felt so useless in her life as she did watching him fight this inner battle. Monique wanted to help him but there was nothing for her to do but watch. She couldn't do a thing for him.

A/N: Thank you all so much for the story love! I'm just shouting out to everybody this way instead of trying to individually talk to each of you because it makes me feel more like it's all of us together. So, thank you all! :)