Chapter 10

A/N

Hey folks, thanks again for your support on this story. To the Guest that asked about flashbacks – I know what you mean but I wanted to keep the time line moving. There probably won't be any flashbacks, but hopefully there are other bits going forward that show some nice moments between them.

There is a trigger warning for this chapter – violence and sexual abuse.

This chapter is a key moment in the story, so please review!

Don't expect me to cry

For all the reasons you had to die

Don't ever ask it of me

Alex knew the next few weeks would be tough, she'd need to pull some long nights to get back on top of things. She felt like Fahri just kept giving her more and more work, like he was testing her, and Alex knew failure wasn't an option. But she also wanted to make sure Piper knew she'd be working a lot, even though she didn't want to.

They had just gotten back from dinner out with Nicky when Alex decided she needed to get things off her chest, "Pipes, you know things have been kinda crazy with work lately. I just wanted to give you a heads up that I'll be working some pretty long hours in the next few weeks. There's so much going on and I've been given a lot to do."

Piper closed the fridge door and looked back at Alex with sadness in her eyes, "Okay."

That response made Alex feel even worse, "I wish I didn't have to. You know I love you Piper, all I want is to be with you, spend time with you. But I can't get away from this."

Piper nodded and walked over to Alex, slowly touching her hands. "I love you too, I just hate it when you're out all night."

Alex knew all too well how much Piper hated her recent work schedule, she looked relieved every time Alex walked back into the apartment after a long night out. Piper's state of mind made it all that much worse, she was still so up and down, and she kept putting off going to the house to get her things. And there was still the heroin use, which seemed to escalate any time Piper was on her own. Alex tried to encourage her to look for work, not because of money, but just to get her out of the apartment. Piper said she'd think about it, but that seemed like a stretch. Alex was willing to be patient with Piper, as patient as she needed to be. She knew what the blonde had been through, and Alex didn't want to push her into anything she wasn't ready for.

She couldn't help but hate it every time Piper asked for more heroin. Alex always gave her more when she asked for it, and Piper always insisted on giving her some money for it, even if it wasn't much. Alex hated it, none of it felt right. They still hadn't had the discussion on what they were to each other, but in Alex's mind they were a couple. They shared their lives and said I love you every day, and that was enough for Alex.

She wrapped her arms around Piper's waist from behind, slowly pulling her towards the lounge room, "I promise I'll make it up to you." Alex was relieved to feel Piper relax against her body, these were always her favourite parts of the day. The moments when it was just the two of them and there was nothing else to worry about. Piper turned around so she was facing Alex, gently pulling her in for a kiss before resting her head on Alex's chest.

"I love you so much Alex, you make me feel good about myself again."

Alex pulled Piper's face back up to hers and kissed her again, "I gotta get ready to go, but I'm taking you out tomorrow, anywhere you want." Alex could never get enough of how Piper smiled at her, she loved seeing her happy.

Another 20 minutes went by before she said goodbye to Piper and left the apartment. First she had a meeting with Fahri and then she needed to do a round of drop offs. It would be a long night, one that she wouldn't get through without some extra help. She reached into her jacket pocket and pulled out a small silver box where she kept her supply of uppers. She only ever took them to help her stay awake, and tonight she needed to be at her best.

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It was close to midnight and Piper was feeling restless, she wasn't expecting Alex to be home for a few more hours. She'd been trying to sleep, but she struggled to get any rest when Alex wasn't there. She missed being able to roll over and wrap herself around the brunette whenever she felt uneasy.

Piper had finally stopped thinking about what to do next with her life, because she felt like she was already where she was mean to be. Piper felt completely at home with Alex, and she didn't want to go anywhere else.

But there was still one thing hanging over her head, and that was Jack. She still hadn't gone to the house to collect her things. She had promised Alex and Nicky they would all go together, but as more time went by she liked that idea less and less. The last time Alex was in that house she came out hurt, and Piper hated it. She didn't want anyone else to get hurt because of her, especially not Alex and Nicky. Piper got up and quickly got dressed before grabbing a duffle bag and her car keys. She wanted to end it all tonight, go to the house and collect her stuff so she could move on from Jack completely.

Her mind was racing on the drive to her old house, she suddenly felt desperate to close that chapter of her life. She hadn't been to the house in so long, it felt weird as she approached the front door. His car was in the driveway and there were lights on inside, he had to be home. Before she could even knock on the door it was flung open, and she saw Jack standing on the other side.

"Why the fuck are you here Piper? You don't answer my calls and then you decide to come here?"

Piper could smell the alcohol on his breath, but he still[MF1] looked steady on his feet. "I just want to get some of my things Jack, then I'll leave."

Jack tried to block the doorway as she pushed past him and walked into the kitchen. "Are you still staying with that woman? Does she know what you did to me? Does she know how fucking heartless you are!?"

Piper turned to face him, she was so sick of him blaming her for everything. "Don't you fucking dare talk to me like that, I fucking loved you Jack! I'm pretty sure you loved me too. What happened wasn't my fault!" Before Piper even knew what was happening, Jack rushed at her and pushed her to the ground, putting his whole weight on top of her. No matter how much she struggled, she couldn't get him off.

"It was all your fault Piper! You took away the one thing I wanted the most, and I wanted it with you!" Piper could see he was holding back tears, maybe it was the alcohol, but he was finally starting to break. She kept struggling against him, thinking about how stupid she was for going to the house without Alex and Nicky. Jack's anger continued to rise, and he raised his fist, hitting Piper hard in the side of the face. For a moment all she could see was faint colours, she was so tempted to let the darkness swallow her whole but she tried to hold on, remembering Alex could be back at the apartment waiting for her. She then felt Jack rip at the hem of her t-shirt, shoving his hands underneath, roughly grabbing at her breasts. "One more time Piper, just one more time." Piper was fighting the darkness, but it was so hard. Jack continued to grab at her chest, scratching her with his nails. He left one hand under her shirt, while he used his other arm to press against her neck, trying to force her to lose consciousness. He was succeeding, Piper was now fighting for every breath, and was about to fade out completely. She then felt him remove his arm from her neck, and she started desperately gasping for air. She vaguely felt him grasping at her zipper and she panicked. She used all of her remaining strength to try and push him off, to which he pressed his arm against her neck again. All she could do was splutter for air, coughing up blood onto the kitchen floor. He shoved his hand down her pants and started feeling her.

"It didn't have to be like this Piper, it didn't have to be this way."

Then suddenly, there was a faint noise coming from the hallway, and for a moment Piper thought she could hear another set of footsteps in the house.

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It was almost 1am by the time Alex got home, she'd managed to wrap up her night early. She was completely exhausted, and all she wanted was to crawl into bed with Piper. Alex dragged herself into the bedroom expecting to find Piper in bed waiting for her, but she wasn't there. Alex's heart started beating faster as she walked back out to the living area and realised Piper wasn't in the apartment. She also realised Piper's car keys were gone, along with the duffle bag she usually took to the gym. Alex's heart was now racing as she thought about where Piper could have gone. She didn't waste any time running back out of the apartment to her car, hoping she was wrong about where she thought the blonde had gone.

She hit her foot hard against the accelerator and sped towards Jack's house, hoping she was wrong. Her heart sank as she got to the house and saw Piper's car on the street, "Fuck!"

The front door was open and Alex ran through the house until she saw Piper on the kitchen floor, and Jack standing over her. Even though she was exhausted and functioning on adrenalin and drugs alone, she ran towards Jack and shoved him as hard as she could, trying to get him away from Piper. She didn't hesitate in grabbing the closest glass and smashing it over his head, she wanted to hurt him. Just as she bent down to check on Piper, she felt Jack pull her up and slam her face first into the closest wall. Alex immediately dropped to her hands and knees, in pain as she felt the warm blood drip from her nose and mouth. He then stood over Alex and kicked her hard in the abdomen, Piper tried to get him away from Alex, but she had no strength left. "Just leave her alone! She hasn't done anything to you!"

Jack looked at her with hatred in his eyes, "Don't you fucking dare tell me what to do! You know what, this is your fault. I want you to watch this and know, this is your fault." Jack pulled Alex up by the front of her shirt and hit her hard across the face with a closed fist, causing her to hit the floor again. Alex kept thinking how much worse this turned out compared to the last time they were here, it was like he'd completely snapped and lost touch with reality. She rolled over slowly on the kitchen floor, trying to steady herself. He stood over Alex again, trying to decide on his next move. He looked down at the woman beneath him with a bloody face, but all he could see was his own pain, all the things he blamed Piper for. He didn't want her to be happy, not when he'd been left so completely miserable. He pulled Alex up again and slammed her back against the same wall, looking into her eyes as he kept hitting her in the side before pushing her back to the ground. She kept coughing, trying to keep her focus on Piper. Alex didn't care what happened to her, so long as she could keep her girlfriend safe.

Before she could move much further she felt his weight on top of her as he grabbed her head and slammed it hard into the kitchen floor until she lost consciousness.

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"You're a fucking bastard!" Jack didn't even try to run, he just sat in a kitchen chair as he watched the scene unfold in front of him. "Alex, Alex you need to wake up, we need to go." Alex wasn't responding, and Piper's panic just continued to rise. "Please Alex, I can't do this without you, I love you." Piper looked at Alex's face, trying to wipe away the blood with her t-shirt, cursing herself for going to the house on her own.

Everything Jack saw in that moment, just made him lose whatever last piece of dignity he had left. He jumped out of his chair and pushed Piper away from Alex, forcing himself back on top of her.

Piper tried to keep her thoughts trained on Alex, as he kept pushing his hand in between her legs, trying to spread her thighs wider. She felt the tears well in her eyes, she couldn't believe this was happening to her.

He moved his hands to his own pants, undoing his belt and zipper. He leant back over Piper and undid her jeans roughly, making his intentions very clear. He was on top of Piper, rubbing his groin against her before forcing himself inside. Silent tears started streaming down her face, she tried to call out but her voice was silent. She looked over and saw Alex lying on the floor just a few feet away from her. Piper tried to forget about the pain, forget about what was happening to her and just focus on her girlfriends face. Her beautiful girlfriend, who'd gotten hurt again because of her. Alex was still unconscious, no amount of noise from Jack making her stir. The blood just kept dripping from her face, soaking into her clothes and dripping onto the kitchen floor.

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Diane and Nicky were both sitting in the hospital waiting room, neither knowing what to say or do. This was the first time the two had ever met, and the circumstances couldn't have been worst. Nicky was listed as Piper's emergency contact, and Diane was Alex's. Diane sat in the uncomfortable plastic chair with tears in her eyes. She'd been worried about ending up about this situation ever since Alex got involved with the cartel. She didn't expect to be here for any other reason, let alone Piper's ex-boyfriend. Diane didn't blame Piper, but she couldn't stand the thought of anything happening to her only child. She knew what Alex was like, she'd been head strong her whole life. If she thought there was the slightest chance Piper wasn't safe, she'd be there immediately. The doctors hadn't said much, only that Piper was awake when they brought her in, but Alex had been unconscious the whole time.

She'd gotten a call from the police telling her to come to the hospital, that Alex had been injured. They told her where Alex had been found, and that the neighbours had called the police because of all the shouting. The police went to the house to find Jack on top of Piper, with Alex lying on the ground unconscious close by.

Diane looked over to Nicky, they'd been sitting there for an hour. The younger woman looked exhausted as she sat there with tears in her eyes. They spoke for a while about Alex and Piper, but they'd been mostly silent as they waited for answers from the doctors. Nicky had told Diane that Piper wasn't close to her parents, they weren't on her emergency contact list anymore since things had fallen apart with Jack. Diane didn't know the details, but she felt bad for Piper. She couldn't imagine not being close to Alex, not wanting to be there for her.

Finally, one of the doctors they met on arrival came to speak with them, bringing them into a smaller room to talk about the girls. He initially tried to take them in separate rooms, but they both insisted he could talk to them together.

"Okay ladies, first thing I want to say is that both of them will be okay."

Diane released a breath she didn't even know she was holding onto, her daughter was going to be okay.

"We'd like to keep Alex in for a few days, mainly because of a very heavy concussion, she's still in and out of consciousness. There's been blunt force to the back of the head, and she's also got a broken nose and a cracked rib."

Diane let the tears roll down her cheeks, she hated hearing those words. She hated imagining those things being done to Alex, when all she did was try and protect her girlfriend. Diane felt Nicky put an arm on her shoulder, and she appreciated the support. Diane was already planning on staying with Alex when she got out of hospital, looking after her.

"When can I see her?"

"As soon as we're done talking here, I'll take you to see her." The doctor had a kind face, which meant a lot at a time like this.

"Piper's going to be sore for a while. Luckily no broken bones, but general lacerations and bruising, especially on her face and neck. I know this isn't easy to hear…..but, the physical examination has revealed sexual assault." The doctor's voice went quiet as he looked back at the two women. Nicky couldn't seem to believe what she was hearing, and Diane felt horrible.

"The police will want to speak to both of them as soon as possible."

Nicky still sat there in silence. Diane reached out and grabbed her hand, squeezing it gently.

"We'll see how things go, but Piper might even be able to go home in the next couple of days, we'll keep monitoring her closely."

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Eventually, a nurse came and led Diane to see Alex, while the doctor took Nicky to Piper's room. Diane couldn't believe Piper had been raped, it sent shivers down her spine. That girl was trying so hard to get back on top of her life, and Alex wanted to help her do that. It was obvious how much those two meant to each other. Diane promised herself she'd do whatever she could to help both of them, she'd take time off to look after both of them. Part of her wanted to ask if someone should call Piper's parents, but she didn't want to push the issue. She'd obviously left them off her emergency contact list for a reason.

Diane's mind was still racing as the nurse showed her into Alex's room, telling her she could stay as long as she liked. Diane sat in a chair next to Alex's bed, reaching out to hold her hand. She hated what she saw, a very bruised face with scratches, a dressing on the back of her head, with scratches all over her hands where she'd tried to fight back. "Hey baby, can you hear me?"

She could see Alex trying to open her eyes, but she didn't seem to have the energy. Diane stood up and kissed her daughter on the cheek. She was so thankful Alex would be okay, but she wanted to kill the person that did this to her.

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Nicky walked into Piper's room, afraid of what she might see. All she could feel right now was anger, she wanted to kill Jack. She saw Piper lying in the bed awake, with the most defeated look on her face. Nicky rushed over to the bed and hugged her best friend, "Fuck Piper, what the hell happened?"

Nicky kept holding onto her, but Piper didn't respond, she didn't even seem to have the energy to cry. Nicky pulled back and looked her in the eye, "I will fucking kill that bastard Piper."

Piper shook her head, Nicky could see the tears in her eyes, but Piper was determined to hold it together. "Please tell me Alex is okay?"

"We just spoke to the doctor, she's gonna be fine."

"We?"

"Yeah, I've been in the waiting room with Alex's mum. But she's gonna be okay Pipes, a few days in the hospital and she'll be out."

Nicky could see that pained look intensifying in Piper's eyes, and she thought she knew why. "Diane doesn't blame you for any of this, she's been fucking worried about both of you."

"I fucked up Nicky, this is all my fault."

"This is his fault Piper!"

Piper kept talking through her tears, "I went alone because I didn't want either of you there! I didn't want anyone to get hurt because of me."

"Well that was stupid Piper! I'm fucking glad Alex showed up, because who knows what the fuck would've happened if she didn't…"

"If she didn't come she wouldn't be in hospital right now!"

"And you might be fucking dead!"

Both women stopped and looked at each other, they were both feeling emotional and taking it out on each other. Piper finally let the tears roll down her face, but she was still trying to hold it together. "I need to see her Nick…"

Nicky could see how worried Piper was, but she needed to rest. Part of Nicky couldn't help but be angry at Piper for going to the house on her own, it's like she wanted him to hurt her. But it was Jack she was truly angry at, who she hated.

"No Pipes, you need to stay the fuck in bed. The doctors will let you know when you can see her. Have the police come yet?"

Piper shook her head and closed her eyes. She didn't want to think about the police, or what happened to her. All she cared about was seeing Alex.

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Diane stayed next to Alex all night, there was no way she was leaving her daughter's side. Her back hurt after sitting in that plastic chair all night, so she got up to stretch. She walked around the room, trying to wake herself up. She slept a little bit through the night, but not much, she couldn't relax. At least not until Alex was better. Diane sat back down next to the bed and took Alex's hand in her own, softly running her thumb over Alex's fingers. It must have triggered something, because she was finally starting to wake up. Her voice was barely a whisper, but Diane was so relieved to hear it, "Mhmm, mum…."

Diane leaned over the bed, never letting go of Alex's hand. She kissed her daughter on the cheek and looked into her green eyes, which looked pained, "Hey baby, it's so good to see you awake."

"I….don't feel good."

"Tell me what's wrong Alex, I'll get the doctor."

"Everything….hurts."

Diane felt her heart constrict as she pushed the alert button next to Alex's bed, she'd never seen her like this, and she hated it. A young nurse walked into the room quickly and saw how much pain Alex was in. She gave Diane a reassuring look as she injected more pain relief into Alex's IV, "I'm Nina, I'll be looking after Alex during the day shifts. I know it looks scary but it's good that she's awake, she'll probably need a lot of pain relief in the next few days. But she's doing really well."

Diane nodded her thanks as the nurse spoke to Alex, "Hi Alex, I've just given you something for the pain. But if it starts to get too much again all you need to do is push this button or tell your mum."

Alex managed to speak again, and Diane could see how terrible she felt, "I feel sick."

The nurse quickly grabbed the silver kidney tray that was next to the bed, "That's okay sweetie, you might feel nauseous for the next 24 hours because of the concussion." Diane helped Alex sit up and held her hair back as she vomited into the tray. The movements were obviously painful for her as tears streamed down her face. Diane was so grateful at how kind the nurse was, who cleaned up Alex's face and helped her lay back down.

"That might happen a few times today, but just call out okay."

Diane thanked the nurse, who gave her a reassuring smile before leaving the room. She kept stroking Alex's face and wiped away the tears, trying to calm her down, "I'm not going anywhere baby."

Alex's breathing slowed and she eventually calmed down as the pain medication kicked in. Diane kept looking at her only daughter, still stroking her cheeks and brushing the hair from her eyes.

"Mum…please stay."

"Of course baby, I'll be right here when you wake up, you just try and get some sleep." Diane was relieved to see Alex's face relax as she held onto her hand and closed her eyes.