A/N: I'm not sure which Abbie you guys hate more, the one in this story or the one in Story of Us. What can I say, she makes a good antagonist at times :3 anyhow, hope you enjoy!

"Honestly, I will never ever know what it is that you saw in that woman when you married her." Kim says with a disapproving shake of her head as she moves around her kitchen early one Saturday morning. "I mean honestly, she's never home and when she is home she is being nothing but controlling towards you. She gets off on scaring other people just because she knows that she can get away with doing so all because she has money. Well let me tell you something Alex, I'm sick of seeing you unhappy every time I go over there to visit. It nearly kills me inside to know that you put up with all of that and for what reason? I have asked my self that question on several occasions and I can never come up with an answer so it would be really beneficial if you could give me one. Why Alex, why do you constantly sit over there unhappy and miserable when there is a perfectly fine woman over here who loves you more than anything."

"I'm scared." Alex replies in a quiet tone. "It really isn't as easy as it sounds. I want it to be, but it's really not. I'm scared because I don't know the future. This is something that I'm not able to plan for. What happens if Casey leaves again? She's done it once before, how do I know that she won't do it again?! Do you have any idea of what it was like waiting all that time to hear from her? I waited Kim, I waited and waited for I don't know how long. She stopped returning my calls and she stopped returning my letters until I felt like I was completely alone since the very first day that she left. It got to the point to where I thought she was dead, simply because I couldn't think of any other reason of why she wasn't answering me because she had promised that she would always be there. She promised me that I would never have to worry because she would always be there to answer and she stopped. For years I waited for an answer of any kind. Probably hundreds of letters that I sent that time span were never returned. Sometimes I found myself reading over the letters that we had sent to each other just to try to remind my self that she was still out there; out there living for me. But nothing new ever came. It never did and it was starting to hurt so much, I—I just didn't know what else to do. I met Abbie and she was so…she was there and she cared for me. When she asked me to marry her, I felt like I was doing the right thing for me by saying yes but I knew that deep in my heart I still loved Casey. The day of my wedding, a letter finally came. My heart skipped a beat when I saw who it was from and I actually sat in the dressing room staring at it for several minutes because I felt like if I blinked, it was just going to vanish in my hands. My fingers were shaking so much I almost couldn't get the damn thing open. I opened the letter expecting to see her telling me she was coming home. I thought she was telling me that she was finally coming to get me and I was more than ready to run to her. But that's far from what I got in that letter. Do you know what that letter said Kim? It said that she wasn't coming home. She said that what we had wasn't enough for her to come home to anymore. She told me that there was a slim chance that I would ever see her again and she would come back when she so felt that she needed to. She told me Kim! She told me she wasn't coming home! I was so heart broken, I—I didn't know what to do. But you know what I eventually did? I forced my self up, I put that dress on and I walked down that damn aisle and I got married. I led my self to believe that I was in love with Abbie. I-I feel like I've become dependent on her since then because even though she isn't there she's taken care of me."

"She has deceived you into believing that she is taking care of you. For heavens sake, she's cheating on your Alex! What more do you need? I don't care what you do, but I want you to leave her."

"I hardly think that my little cousin is going to have much of an influence on my decision."

"Clearly age does nothing because between the two of us, I have a lot more sense than you do." Kim snorts as she places a few strips of bacon in the skillet. "Look, I just want to see you happy alright? I think Casey can make you happy, you just have to give her a chance."

Alex bites down on her bottom lip and she averts her eyes to her hands before she nods. "I know…I-I know. I just…I don't know how to tell Abbie I'm leaving."

Kim snorts again as she shakes her head vigorously. "Here's a thought. Just leave and send her a letter telling her you've left. Please Alex. I…I don't trust her. I never have. I don't want her to hurt you anymore than she already has. You know I can never stand to see you hurting like this."

"I-I want to tell her. I want to leave, but I…I've already made a mistake…"

"Honey, that's what divorce is for. You can correct these kinds of mistakes."

"That's not what I-" Alex trails off as the smell of bacon wafts across her nose. Her stomach lurches violently and her hand flies to her mouth as she slides off of the barstool, making a mad dash towards the bathroom. She just barely makes it before she loses the contents of her stomach into the toilet. She wretches violently for several minutes before she stands up and staggers over towards the sink to give her self cleaned up.

Groaning, she rinses out her mouth and makes her way out of the bathroom, not the least bit surprised when she runs into her cousin right out side the door. "Please no questions. I had the stomach flue a few days ago and I guess that it hasn't really subsided yet. You'll have to forgive me."

Kim folds her arms as she eyes her cousin with a suspicious look. "Uh huh and when did you realize it was the stomach flu? A few days ago, you simply said that it was food poisoning."

"Well maybe it wasn't. Kim, I said no questions."

"Yeah, right, like that's gonna happen. Tell me what's going on."

"It's nothing! I'm sick!"

"You're lying, but I'm not going to force you to tell me. You'll tell me when you're ready."

Alex sighs heavily before she folds her arms and makes her way into the living room where she sits on the very edge of the sofa, wrapping her arms around her self as she seeks comfort. "You sound like you already know…" she says quietly as she focuses her attention on a random smart on the floor.

Kim shrugs her shoulders as she crosses the room and takes a seat next to the blond on the couch. "I think that I do, but you don't have to say it out loud if you don't want me to. Do you…want me to be happy?"

"I can't tell you how to feel Kimberly."

"But you can tell me how you feel Alexandra."

Alex sighs again as a small smile spreads across her face. "When I think about it, I feel happy, but then I really think about it, I get scared again. This is supposed to be an amazing incredible thing that's happening right? Is it wrong that I'm feeling scared?"

Kim thinks for a moment before she gives a small shrug of her shoulders. "I wouldn't know. I would suppose that it's natural to feel a little afraid in this situation. Is it to late to turn back?"

"Even if it is, I could never do that. I would never do something like that. It's just…it's horrible to me and I cringe just thinking about it."

"Does Casey know?"

"I haven't had the chance to tell her yet."

"Honey, I think that you need to tell her. If anything is to happen between the two of you then I strongly believe that she has the right to know. Plus, it's not as if it's anything that you're going to be hide for an extensive period of time."

"I know. Do you think that she's home right now?"

"She should be…I recommend you going to see her."

Alex is silent for a moment before she nods shakily and gives her cousin a hug. "Thank you for listening. Even if I didn't do much talking."

Kim rolls her eyes before she accepts the hug. "Yeah well, that's what I'm here for. Just go handle your business. I would hate to murder your wife and then be on first forty eight as a suspect or something."

Alex laughs and bids her cousin good day before she nervously makes her way next door. She climbs the stairs to Casey's house and lingers outside for a moment before she shakily rings the doorbell. After waiting for a few moments, a butler answers the door, greeting her

"Hello Miss Cabot," the butler says with a grin. "What can I do for you today?" "Um, yeah, I was wondering if Casey was in, today?" The blonde responds nervously as she runs a hand through her hair out of nervous habit.

"Oh yes, Ma'am, she's right out back by the pool the last I saw her. Please, won't you come in?"

Alex nods her thanks as she follows the butler through the large empty house. It's different for her to be in such a house whenever there isn't a party going on, but in the time that she and Casey have been secretly spending together. She's become used to it.

Having become lost in her thoughts, Alex hadn't realized that she had been led out towards the back of the house. Her breath hitches in her throat when she steps outside and she sees Casey swimming laps around the pool.

"Alex! Hey!" Casey exclaims excitedly as she pokes her head out of the water. She waves her hand dismissing the butler as she swims over to the edge of the pool where she climbs out to greet her lover.

"Hey," Alex responds quietly as her eyes involuntarily begin roaming over Casey's body. Her skin glistens perfectly in the sunlight and the blue bikini she's wearing leaves very little to the imagination. In fact, Alex is so transfixed by the redhead's body, she actually misses the fact that Casey is talking to her. "I'm sorry, what?"

"I was wondering what you were doing here. This is a surprise." Casey chuckles as she involuntarily wraps the blonde in her arms. "Sorry, I'm kind of getting you wet."

Alex giggles at the terminology and leans further into Casey's embrace. "It wouldn't be the first time." She whispers before she finds her lips captured into a searing kiss. She moans into the kiss and kisses back with everything she has until the need to breath becomes far too great. "I need to talk to you."

Casey senses the seriousness in the blonde's tone and she tilts her head to the side in genuine worry. "Of course. Is something wrong?"

"No, nothing's wrong, I just…I'm ready. I want tell Abbie that we're in love."

Kind of a cliffhanger here, yeah, I know. Boo on me. Anyhow, leave your thoughts!