Time

Disclaimer: I own nothing, still, unfortunately.

Spoilers: Previous chapters?

Summary: Mystery person's identity is revealed!

Author's Notes: Thanks for being so patient and for the awesome feedback :) Thanks for taking the time to review! I love to hear what everyone thinks. Sorry it's taken a little bit to get this one out, school is insane right now. Hope you like :)

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"Jeff?" Alex finally managed to squeak out.

She lifted her head a little to look at him. His hair was still jet black and wavy, probably just as soft. Alex noticed that, since she had last seen him, his face had become older: his boyish looks almost gone.

"Yeah." He stepped closer to her, still slightly unsure of himself.

"I really…what are you doing here?" Alex smoothed her hands down the front of her dress pants.

Jeff chuckled. "I haven't seen you in years. Well, two, to be exact."

Alex nodded and looked away, concentrating on the pavement between them. "Yep. Sure has been."

"Are you okay Lex?" He asked, concerned.

She outwardly winced at the nickname. Running a hand through her hair she stared at him. His short sleeve green dress shirt was open slightly at the top, revealing a piece of his still muscular frame.

"I'm fine. I mean, it seems like everyday someone from my past waltzes up to me on the street." She responded, annoyed.

"Fair enough, sorry. I was wondering if you could do lunch?" Jeff stepped closer still, hopeful.

"Um, sure I guess?" She consented, her brain not functioning fast enough at the moment to think up a good excuse.

He nodded and reached out to her. She allowed him to grasp her elbow in an effort to keep her close while people swarmed around them as they proceeded to walk towards the restaurant a few blocks over. Alex watched him out of the corner of her eye. He still had the same swagger he did two years ago: confident, yet inviting. She noticed that he still moved his arm around her whenever people walked too close to her, as if they would steal her away. The memories came swarming into her consciousness as they walked silently toward their destination.

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"So, an ADA for the district attorney, huh?" Jeff asked before taking a bite of his salad.

"Yep. How did you find me?" Alex asked, pushing her salad with her fork.

"I just moved here and I saw you in the paper, winning a case." His green eyes sparkled as he looked over toward her.

Alex could see the admiration and love still in them. Even after all of these years, she still knew him well, there was no denying that. Her usually unquenchable hunger had taken the day off and instead her appetite was completely gone. Her salad was simply there as something for Alex to busy herself with so she wouldn't have to think about the awkwardness of the situation before her. How would she even tell Olivia about this?

"Oh. So, what are you doing for work?" Alex tried to make conversation.

"Corporate attorney for F.A.O Swartz." Jeff smiled at her, taking her in.

"I bet that's exciting." She tried to muster a bit of enthusiasm.

"Probably not as exciting as your job." He smiled before setting down his fork, an effort to give her his full attention.

Alex looked back at him, biting her lip at the anticipation of a serious conversation. The last time they had spoken was two years ago. She thought of all of the things that had happened to her in that time and wondered if she would be asked to talk about it. His expression told her they were in for a long discussion.

"I think we should talk." He said finally.

"About what?" She tried to play dumb.

"You know Lex, about what happened and about everything that has happened in the last two years." Jeff answered honestly.

"I think…" She paused, at a loss. "I really have to get back to work but…here's my number. Give me a call later."

She scribbled her number on a piece of paper and, without considering who was going to pay for lunch, got up and bolted for the door. Once outside she breathed a sigh of relief, the sizeable restaurant had suddenly become too cramped for her to think clearly. Alex looked at her watch: its' hand ticked to 2:35. She looked towards the courthouse and made her decision. Branch wouldn't miss her, she'd leave him a message and if he needed her, he could call. She lifted her hand and hailed a cab, sending him uptown to her apartment.

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"Hey pretty, I decided to head home early today. I know that you said you wanted to have dinner at your place but maybe you could come here when you get off work. It's six now so when you get this, call me back! Love you." Alex hung up and walked back into her kitchen.

Pulling a mug out from on the shelf, she started the process of making hot chocolate. Twenty minutes later she was sitting on the couch, listening to Norah Jones and curled under the blanket, despite the smoldering temperatures outside of her apartment. The sound of her cell phone blasted through the soothing music and interrupted her thoughts. Alex scrambled off the couch to answer it.

"Hello?" She answered breathlessly.

"I hope you haven't started without me." Came the voice of her beautiful brunette.

"No way. Waiting for you of course." Alex smiled into the phone.

"Well wait no longer, open your door." Olivia requested of the blonde.

Alex bounced over to the door, hanging up the phone in the process. She swung the door open and looked out into the hallway. Olivia was stepping out of the elevator as Alex leaned against the doorframe. She watched Olivia walk toward her, carrying a bag of food.

"Finally!" Alex exclaimed, kissing Olivia when she got close enough.

"Me or the food?" Olivia asked when they broke apart.

"You first, then the food." Alex winked as she let Olivia in, closing the door behind them.

"Sounds promising." Olivia winked back and held up the bag. "Italian, your favorite."

"Mmm, my favorite girl and my favorite food, how did I get so lucky?" Alex said playfully as she kissed Olivia again, pulling on her belt loops.

"Food first?" Olivia whispered in question, her eyes closed.

"Okay. You want some hot chocolate?" Alex asked, letting go of the belt loops and walking into the kitchen with the food.

"Sure. But I am changing the CD." Olivia moved over to the stereo, choosing another CD.

"Fiiiiiiine." Alex whined from the kitchen.

Olivia smirked before pressing play. The soft melody of Damien Rice wafted through the apartment. She made her way into the kitchen where Alex was piling the food onto plates. Olivia snaked her arms around Alex's waste, hugging her close. Alex leaned back, molding her body into Olivia's. Olivia kissed her neck, gently swaying back and forth to the music coming from the other room.

"Dance with me?" Olivia asked, gently turning Alex around to face her.

No reply was needed from Alex as they silently began dancing to the music. Olivia's hand rested on the small of Alex's back as she held her closely, leading the way. Alex sighed, leaning in closer and holding on tightly. As she rested her head against Olivia's, memories she had been repressing for months came flooding back.

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"This is nice." His deep voice whispered into her ear.

He was holding her closely in their living room as they danced to their favorite song. They had been together five years today and with constant reminders from her, he had remembered. Alex sighed softly, contently, thinking that this is the way it should always be. This is what made her fall so deeply in love with him that it made her heart ache to think about leaving. She could smell the Old Spice as she rested her head on his shoulder after nodding her response. The dinner they had just consumed, while not Italian, her favorite, had turned out quite nicely and they were waiting for dessert to heat up.

"I could quite possibly stay like this forever." She said softly, closing her eyes.

He rubbed her back lightly, her navy blue dress was backless, and he could feel her soft skin under his fingertips. Alex's blonde hair hung in loose curls a little past her shoulders. He reached up and brushed a lock from her face when it became caught in her eyelashes. Placing a kiss to her forehead, he held her tighter.

"Me too Lex, me too." He whispered into her hair.

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Tears began making their way down Alex's face as she came back to reality. She hoped Olivia wouldn't notice as she hastily brushed them away. Olivia, of course, wasn't fooled and pulled back so she could look at Alex. Concern flooded her features when she saw Alex's watery eyes.

"What's wrong baby?" Olivia asked, running a hand through Alex's hair.

Alex looked away and shook her head, blinking back the last of the tears. She swallowed hard and continued to stare at the wall so she wouldn't have to look at Olivia. One look into those beautiful brown eyes and she would lose it.

"Whatever it is, you know you can talk to me about it." Olivia began rubbing Alex's back in a circular fashion.

Alex nodded, still looking away. Her arms hung loosely around Olivia's neck, her fingers clasped together. Pachelbel's Canon in D began playing loudly which caused Alex's attention to snap toward the living room. She dropped her hands from around Olivia's neck and stepped out of her embrace. Her body still felt uneasy as she walked over to the table where she left her cell phone when Olivia came home. Alex flipped it open, not bothering to check the caller ID first.

"Cabot." It came out wavered, her voice still laced with tears.

"Lex." Came the reply.

"Hi." Her heart was beating so loudly she could hear it in her ears.

Alex turned toward the kitchen with the phone up to her ear. Olivia was standing there, leaning against the wall, watching her. Alex bit her lip as she returned the intent stare Olivia was giving her. When Olivia moved to come closer, Alex turned, shielding herself and the phone.