A/N: Sorry for leaving you lovely people hanging like that! I wrote this really quickly, so I'm sorry if its not very good. Another authors note at the bottom, enjoy...

White noise overfilled each set of ears.

Surrealism?

Everyone in the room froze. They did not dare to utter a word as the shock of a bullet being fired among them began to slowly evade all their thought processes.

Alex drove frantically, her hands not keeping still on the steering wheel of the stolen car. She skipped a dozen red traffic lights and couldn't give a fuck to be completely honest. There was only one thing on her mind; making sure that Piper was safe. The sudden realisation that Nicky could be in danger, too, hit her with full force, only making her step forcefully on the gas pedal.

The brunette was nearing the end of the road and Piper's house was in sight, only serving to make her drive even faster. The car came to a screeching halt, stopping outside of the blonde's home, where she could see a petite brunette standing in the doorway. Alex rushed out of the car and ran towards the small woman. She exhaled heavily as she slowed down behind the petite woman, who suddenly dropped to the ground, revealing Fahri on the ground with a gun pointing in her direction. Alex quickly realised that the woman lying on the ground was, in fact, Lorna and she had been shot.

The brunette froze, with her lips parted in shock at what this man just did. He was so fucking evil to drag everyone into her mess.

"It was only a matter of time before you showed up, Alex," Fahri smirked as blood leaked down his face.

"What the fuck have you done?!" Alex shouted.

The man laughed through his nose, showing his smugness, although he was obviously in pain from the bleeding gash on the side of his head. "Only what I'm going to do to you…"

"Alex," Piper whispered to herself as she heard that familiar raspy voice. The blonde's eyes widened and she quickly rose to her feet. Nicky stared at Piper in horror and turned on her heel, quickly making her way out of the room. Larry rose up from the couch too, grabbing the blonde's wrist and tugging her back. "Get off me!" Piper hissed and pulled her wrist out of her husband's grip, running in the same direction as Nicky and leaving Larry standing there dumbfounded.

Fahri's grip on the gun tightened as he used every ounce of energy left to press onto the trigger.

Snap.

No more bullets.

Who carries a gun loaded with one bullet? Fahri looked at the gun in his hands, in awe.

And in that moment, he knew he had fucked up royally because Nicky looked at the lifeless body lying on the floor and without thinking, she swung the hockey stick in his direction. The man howled in pain as the wild haired woman continued to swing at him. Blood splattered everywhere; up the walls, on the floor, all over Nicky. Everywhere. The makeshift weapon fell from her grip as tears streamed down her face. Breathing became hard, all of a sudden and her vision blurred, from the anger induced tears. She couldn't lose Lorna now. Not now. It was only last night that the crazy haired woman asked Morello to be her girlfriend and confessed her undying love to her. Now, she was feeling as if she had failed as a girlfriend by not protecting her and letting this wicked man shoot her.

It seemed as if everyone was fucking up today.

Piper ran over to Alex who was consoling Lorna on the floor. The brunette looked up at the blonde rushing over to her and finally breathed; a breath she didn't realise she was holding in for a long time. She was safe. "Call 911," Alex said under her breath as she stood to look for something to contain the blood gushing out of Lorna's gun wound. Piper obeyed and dialed the three numbers shakily. Alex glanced over at Nicky who stood still, looking distressed, like as if she had been the person shot. "Shit." She said quietly. Alex rushed over to the lifeless body of Fahri and put her fingers on his pulse point. No pulse. Nothing. He was dead. Wrapping her arms around the wild haired woman's' shoulders, Alex guided her to a seat in the front room, where Larry stood there helplessly. She avoided eye contact as she picked up a blanket on the side and ran back out to Piper and Lorna. "Here. Put some pressure on the wound," Alex instructed the blonde, passing the blanket to her. "Did you call an ambulance?"

"Yeah," the blonde replied quietly.

Alex couldn't hate herself any more in this moment. This was all her fault. If it weren't for her, Fahri wouldn't have been here. If it weren't for her, Lorna wouldn't have been shot and if it weren't for her, Nicky wouldn't be in the state that she is in. Idiot. Nothing in Alex's life went smoothly, in fact, her life had been a bumpy ride; from be bullied by Jessica Wedge in school, her mum struggling with three jobs to working for the drug cartel. It was like her life was destined to be a really shit ride.

The brunette kneeled down next to Piper. "Lorna. Come on, I need you to stay awake." Alex pleaded with Lorna, looking like she was slipping in and out of consciousness and blinking rapidly. Her life was hanging on a thread and it was all Alex's fault. Alex turned to look at Piper, vulnerability shown in her face. "This is all my fault…" Piper didn't speak, instead she continued to press the blanket onto Lorna's abdomen. The blonde didn't know how to feel right now, her head was all over the place, still trying to grasp the events that took place mere minutes ago.

The hospital's waiting room was intense. No one spoke a word. Alex paced around nervously awaiting any news of Lorna's condition, who was rushed into surgery to remove the bullet lodged inside of her. There was still the element of risk, Lorna could die and Alex would have her blood all over her hands. Alex couldn't hate herself anymore right now. Just when things were looking on the upside in her life, this had to happen. Running away from her past seemed impossible; it always had a way of catching up to her. She wouldn't be able to forget about the drug cartel, there were constant reminders everywhere. Reminders that she seems to regret more and more as events unfold.

The brunette glanced at the two other women in the waiting room. Piper sat next to Nicky trying her best to comfort her. That was one of many qualities that Alex loved about the blonde; she always had a way of making people feel better. Whether it was with that effortless smile or not. Piper was likable, which is why Alex fell in love with her effortlessly.

And Alex could not love the blonde any more in that moment.

However, Piper and Alex hadn't had a chance to talk so far and the blonde seemed awfully quiet. Seeing Nicky in this state was not helping the brunette feel any better about this situation either. The hopeless woman was her best friend. That supposedly permanent smirk on her face, absent. Replaced by hurt and worry. That's all the wild haired woman conveyed right now. This was not Nicky. It was like as if a part of she had been taken away by that fucking man. The brunette only prayed that this was temporary.

Two hours.

All three women had waited in the room, restless, for little over two hours and still no news on Lorna's condition.

Time.

Time was adding to the ever-growing frustrations of not knowing anything. Being kept in the unknown.

Patience.

Something which was diminishing every second. Patience was not a virtue right now.

Hope?

Well, fuck. That was quickly being tossed out of the window as time went on and patience ran out.

Two hours and seventeen minutes.

Two hours and seventeen minutes it took for someone to finally approach all three women. But, it was not what they were all expecting. Or, who they were expecting. No, it wasn't a doctor coming to update them on Lorna's current condition.

It was three stocky police officers who approached the women instead.

"Nicole Nichols?" one of them asked.

"Yes?" Nicky muttered, looking up at the three men.

"I am arresting you on suspicion of murder," one of the police officers said quietly, careful not to cause a scene in the waiting room. "You do not have to say anything, but it may harm your defence if you do not mention when questioned something you later rely on in court. Anything you do say may be given in evidence. Do you understand?"

Nicky nodded and didn't protest. She looked like she had given up. Defeated. The wild haired woman allowed the officers to handcuff her and escort her out. Alex looked on helplessly. This day had gone from bad to worse and then to hell.

"What the fuck! It was self-defence! The man had a gun," Alex protested.

"Ma'am, we would advise you calm down, otherwise we would be forced to arrest you too," another officer declared.

"No I will not fucking calm down! You've got this all wrong! Nicky don't say anything. Wait 'till I get you a lawyer." the brunette shouted. Nicky turned to look at Alex and nodded once in understanding, before turning back around.

"Ma'am please," the officer continued.

Before Alex could form a comeback, she felt a hand gently squeeze on her shoulder. "Alex, just calm down. Nicky is going to be fine." Piper voiced confidently as she stood next to the brunette. Sighing, the brunette gave up and bowed her head down ever so slightly, as the police officer started towards the exit.

She really wished that she would spontaneously disappear into thin air, so she won't have to deal with all this shit. She watched her best friend being dragged out and that fucking hurt. She felt deflated. Piper wrapped an arm around the brunette and hugged her close to her own body. "I've fucked up so badly…" Alex trailed off and shook her head.

"It's okay, Al. I'm here." Piper assured her, resting her head on the brunettes shoulder.

The calming nature of the blonde's voice seemed to relieve some of the tension within Alex's body, relaxing a little. She felt a little at ease knowing the blonde was going to be there for her, by her side. And Alex was not going to leave her either. The brunette really wanted to ask the blonde what had happened before she turned up, but Alex felt this really wasn't the time to be asking. Especially when her best friend had just been arrested on charges of murder and another friends life was on the line. It just really wasn't the place to be asking questions.

Several minutes later, a doctor finally approaches the women. She has a neutral expression, not giving away whether the news she is about to deliver is good or bad. Alex and Piper, who were now sitting down, both rose to her feet as the doctor asked if they're family or friends of Lorna Morello.

"Yes," Alex replied quickly.

"Well," the doctor smiles a little. "Surgery was successful and we have managed to maintain the bleeding in her uterus, where the bullet hit." Alex lets out a sigh of relief and Piper nods at the doctor. "However…" Alex's heart momentarily stops beating as she holds her breath. There always has to be a 'however'. "She needs a lot of rest and has to be checked regularly, so she has to stay in ICU for a while." The brunette finally breathes. She cannot speak right now. Too much shock to her system for one day.

"Is there a way that we can see her?" Piper asks.

"Yeah. She's currently resting right now, so try not to wake her up."

Piper looks at Alex to see if she's alright with going to see Lorna. The brunette looks expressionless. "I need some air…" Alex trails off.

"Oh. Okay," Piper replies, confusedly.

"I'll be there in five minutes." She smiles weakly at Piper and the doctor before heading out towards the exit. Her feet feel heavy, like she has a couple of weights hanging from the back of her boots. By now, it was beginning to get dark outside. Alex made her way over to a bench on the side and pulled out a box of cigarettes from her leather jacket. She took a long drag before pulling her phone out and making a call to her lawyer. Thank God she has the money to pay for a highly respected lawyer. Not a sloppy man who really doesn't care and enjoys his pay check more than his job.

Piper walks into the brightly lit room, where Lorna will reside for a while. The white wash walls and large window on the far side of the room create a spacey atmosphere. The room is bare, the only sign of life is the little woman currently in a slumber. The heart monitor beeps constantly and far too many pipes and wires flow around the petite brunette. The blonde hasn't personally met Lorna yet, only hearing a few things about the woman from Alex and Nicky. She really wasn't feeling up to telling the woman what had happened if she woke up and really hoped that a tall raven haired woman would walk in any moment now.

Piper wasn't disappointed when Alex walked in minutes after herself, smiling a little. The blonde smiled back and offered the taller woman her seat, which the brunette happily took and swiftly pulled Piper onto her lap.

The palpable rush of chemistry between the two was almost tangible, as they looked at each other like two love struck teenagers. No, this wasn't really the correct time to have eye sex but both women felt at ease in each other's company. Alex was beaming at the blonde, knowing fully the effect she was having on the woman currently on her lap.

However, their moment was cut short when the doctor re-entered the room, making the blonde blush and skyrocket off Alex's lap. She returned a clear bag with Lorna's belongings when said person arrived at the hospital and asked whether the two women needed to contact any immediate family members. Obviously no emergency contacts were on their database, otherwise they would have been contacted a long time ago.

Alex shook her head, "I have no way of contacting her family."

"That's okay," the doctor smiled. "Is there a way that you could bring some toiletries and a change of clothes for Miss Morello?"

Alex looked at the blonde and back at the doctor a tad confused, thinking that the hospital supplied them with these things. I mean, you pay these huge medical bills for what?

"Yeah, sure. We'll get them." The brunette responded.

"Thank you," and then the doctor disappeared out of the room again.

In the next hour, Alex buys two coffees for herself and Piper, and a dozen snacks for when Lorna wakes up. It's the best she can do, considering the food hall was closed for the evening and all that was available was vending machine snacks. Piper returns to her spot on Alex's lap as they sit quietly next to Lorna's bed, awaiting any news on Nicky.

"Why do you always feel so inevitable to me?" Piper asks as she studies Alex's face.

A small smirk makes its way onto Alex's face. The question hangs in the air for a while the brunette ponders her answer. "I heart you."

"You heart me? What is that, like I love you for pussies?" the brunette lets out a low husky chuckle, trying not to wake the sleeping woman beside them.

"Say pussy again." Alex laughs back. A smile makes its way onto the blondes face as Alex always has to say something suggestive. The brunettes sly comments always made Piper feel some type of way. Giddy? Something like that.

"I heart you, too."

A/N: Thank you guys so much for the reviews on the last chapter, they really do mean a lot and motivate me to continue writing! I'm hoping this chapter lived up to your expectations(?). Do let me know what you thought of this chapter and please don't be angry at me for taking ages to update! Love you all!