Norma had kept busy with the motel and researching places for Norman to get help. She went up to Pineview earlier that day but it was expensive and she didn't have insurance to cover the cost. She was out of luck. As she was closing up the motel for the night, a pair of headlights light up where she is standing. She looks back and freezes when she sees Alex's car pulling onto the lot. She turns to face him as he steps out of his car. They both stand there for a moment, just staring at each other sadly. "I-I didn't come to apologize...for the flash drive. I did what I thought was the right thing and it was the right thing and I stand by it." he tells her. He came as Alex the cop. Not Alex, her friend. He didn't come to try to smooth things over between them. He came to gloat about turning in the flash drive. It made her angry. "Okay, thanks for coming by to tell me that." she says deadpan. Her tone seems to tug at something inside of him because his gaze turns sad and he looks away. "I am sorry I couldn't protect you. If I could change that, I would, but I can't. It's done. I wish it was different." he tells her sincerely. Her face softens and she nods. "It's not your fault, Alex. It's bigger than us." she tells him. He liked that she said us. He tried not to think too much about it, especially after she had shut him down last night. "It was my fault, anyway. I tried to hide it. And now it's coming out, and it's just too much to shove away." she tells him, looking at the large hole in the middle of her lot. Her eyes were wet when she looked back at Alex. "I'm not gonna lie. I'm so scared. He's my son and he's broken." she whispers, her emotions taking hold of her. He watches as she tries to stay strong in front of him. That's not what he wanted. He wanted her to break in front of him. He wanted her to feel comfortable enough around him to not feel the need to hide. "And he is the dearest boy that ever lived and...I just can't bare it, if Bob Paris has this thing investigated, if they take him away, if they put him in prison just for defending me." she tells him, her tears finally falling. Alex held on to every word that spilled from her lips, wanting to hear everything she has to say to him. "You know, it will kill me." she says with a firm nod. She felt lonely, trying to help her son all by herself. It was like she was struggling to keep her head above water as well as Norman's. "But I...you know, in some way, I don't even care anymore. Maybe fate wins here." she says, trying to regain her strength. She felt bad for laying all of this on Alex who didn't even ask to hear it. "I don't know, we're all doomed in the end, right?" she ask. He smiles sadly, knowing all too well the loneliness she is feeling. "Maybe." he says softly. "Probably." he adds with a small smile. She wipes the tears from her cheeks, her eyes looking anywhere but at Alex. He was watching her intently, afraid to blink because he didn't want to miss a single thing. He could admit, he was afraid to love her. She was a stunning mystery. She carried things deep inside of her that very few could understand. But Alex...he was like her in that aspect. He had been through a lot but it only pushed him to rise. Her eyes finally found him, their gaze as intense as the night of their heated argument. Alex knew better than to make a move. She was like a deer: one small move and she would go running. So he left it up to her. And he wasn't disappointed when she took a step toward him, her eyes glancing down to his lips and then up again. "I'm going to go up to the house." For a moment, he thought Norma was inviting him up. "But thank you very much for stopping by." she finishes. Alex hadn't felt so much emotional pain since his mother had died. He couldn't catch a break. He did so much for the woman and he couldn't get anything in return. He had so much love to give but she couldn't seem to learn to accept it. There was nothing more he could do for her, nothing he had left to give. It seemed like the best thing for him to do was to move on and try to forget about her. His momentary solution was always a bottle of scotch back at his house. He didn't feel the need to check up on Norma that night like he usually did. She would survive without him for one night. She would have to if he went through on his plan of forgetting about her. She wasn't his problem anymore, wasn't his job to protect her. His job is protecting the town. Norma Bates was no longer on the radar. At least that's what he had assumed. It was his mistake assuming that Norma Bates would ever be off the radar. His phone buzzed and lit up just as he was pouring a glass of scotch. He grabbed it from the table and read Norma's name. He thought about ignoring it but knew better. If he didn't answer this time, she would call again and again and eventually, she would just show up at his house or place of work and he would talk to her then. "Hello, Norma." Alex answers tiredly. "Alex." she says into the phone. The sound of fear in her hushed voice made the hair on the back of Alex's neck stand up. "Norma?" he asks with worry. "What's wrong? What happened?" he asks, setting the bottle of liquor down onto the counter. "There's someone here. I-I-I think it's Bob. Or one of his men." she whispers. "Where are you?" he asks, already getting into his car. "I'm in my room. No one else is home. Alex they're in the house." she whispers. "Okay. Stay on the line. I need you to hide. Okay?" he asks, his lights and siren turning on while his speedometer quickly moves past seventy. "Okay. Okay, i'm under my bed." she tells him. "Okay. Be very quiet. Take deep breaths. Don't try to hold your breath, okay? I'm on my way." he tells her, trying to calm her. "They're right outside my room." she whispers. "Stay very still." he tells her, willing his car to go faster. He listens closely to her soft, ragged breathing. He wished he could protect her. He should never have moved out of the motel. If anything were to happen to her, it would be his fault. "Agh!" she squeals as she is dragged out from under the bed by her feet. "Alex! Alex, please! Help-" she shouts before a rag is stuffed into her mouth followed by a piece of tape, sealing her mouth shut. Tears fall from her cheeks, getting caught between the tape and her skin. One of the large men grabs her by her upper arm and smacks her across her cheek. "Norma? Norma!" Alex shouts through the phone. He can hear her pain filled shrieks through the phone, the sound breaking his heart. "Alex, Alex, Alex." Bob says through Norma's phone. "Bob, don't hurt her." Alex says angrily. "You shouldn't have gotten involved, Alex. You shouldn't have turned the flash drive over to the DEA. You weren't very smart about any of this." Bob says, watching his men drag the small woman down the stairs in front of her house. "Bob, please. Please don't hurt her." Alex begs, trying to stall. He was almost to Norma's house. "The damage is done, poor Alex. You won't be seeing Mrs. Bates again." Bob says, hanging up the phone. He walks to the trunk of his car where Norma lays, her hands and feet tied up with rope. Her large blue eyes stare up at him with fear, a large bruise already forming on her cheek. "Don't worry, Norma. Your boys are safe." Bob tells her. He leans toward her, a wicked smile on his face. "I'm afraid I can't say the same about you, though." And with that, he closes the trunk, locking her inside. By the time Alex arrived at Norma's house, everyone was gone. Alex rushed into the house, calling for Norma. He made his way throughout the house, quickly looking in each room before sprinting back out to his car. He thought things through as he peeled out onto the road. There was one thing Alex knew. Bob was in trouble. He knew about the flash drive being turned over, meaning he knew that he would end up in jail. He was fleeing and he took Norma with him as a punishment for Alex. If he was trying to run and hide, there was one place that Alex had a feeling he might go. So Alex raced toward the docks, hoping he was right about this. He didn't have much time to be wrong. "Put her over there for now. And hide her. We can't have people seeing her." Bob says as he and his men step onto the boat. "That'll be all." he says once they place her on the ground. The two men jump off the boat, leaving Bob alone with his bag of money and his hostage. "Don't worry, Norma. It's sunny where we're headed." Bob says, starting the engine. He walks to the cabin to grab his wind breaker but as he reaches for the handle, the door swings open. "Hello, Bob." Alex says, stepping out from the cabin. Norma sits up with surprise, her screams being muffled by the rag and tape. He looks at her with sadness before focusing back on Bob. "Alex." Bob says with surprise. "You scared the living hell out of me." Bob says casually. He glances down at the place in his jacket where his gun is kept. "No, no- don't, don't, don't. I'll put three bullets in you before you ever get your hands on that pistol." Alex says, reading Bob's thoughts. "Reach for it with just your thumb and forefinger." Alex instructs him. "Two fingers only. If I see any other fingers uncurled, I'm gonna shoot you." he warns Bob. Bob slowly reaches for the gun, handing it to Alex as instructed. Alex takes the gun and slips it into his pants. "What you got there? Run money and fake passports?" Alex asks, nodding to the bag by Bob's feet. "Pretty much." Bob says, grabbing the bag and tossing it at Alex's feet. "How'd you know about this place?" Bob asks. "About three years ago, I ran into Rick Hogshead down at the diner. We were shooting the shit and he told me he sold you his fishing boat. It was one of those moments where you reflect on your life. You know, cause I have always loved fishing but I could never afford a fishing boat. Not on a sheriff's salary. I found myself wondering, why I was the only guy not benefitting from all of the money floating around in this town?" Alex asks, glaring at Bob. "Coming with me?" Bob asks with hope. "No that's not how this is going to go." Alex tells him. Bob nods, realizing how Alex expects this to end. "What were you planning on doing with her?" Alex asks, nodding towards Norma. Bob smirks and shrugs. "I was just going to take her for a trip. I wasn't going to hurt her." Bob lies. Alex smirks and tilts his head. "Come on, Bob. You and I both know that's not true. You should've left her out of it. This was between you and me." Alex tells him. "Look, you take her, I leave. The moment I step off this dock, I'm a new person with a new name. And I have no reason ever, ever, to say something to anybody about my former life, especially...about Norma and her kid." Bob pleads. "The truth is, you're not reliable. You can change your name but you can't change who you are." Alex tells Bob. "I guess none of us can change who we are. We can pretend to be someone else...someone who is doing the right things for the right reasons-" "It doesn't matter what you say, you still killed those two girls." Alex tells him. "We both know why you're doing this and it isn't about those girls." Bob tells Alex. Alex glances at Norma, her wide eyes watching the scene play out with fear. "You know, right now you are more like your dad than you have ever been." Bob says with a smirk. "This is about you and your life. How does that feel? To have spent your whole life trying to get away from someone you hate, only to become them." As soon as Bob finished with his words, three bullets flew from Alex's gun, hitting Bob in his chest, stomach, and throat. Norma gasps and jumps at the loud sound as Bob's hands fly to his neck. The quiet night is then filled with the sound of Bob choking on his own blood. He drops to his knees and then falls back onto his back, Alex's sad eyes watching him the entire time. Once Bob is limp, his eyes vacant, Alex looks to Norma whose eyes are watering once again. He rushes to her stopping when Norma flinches away from him. He slows down, kneeling in front of her, his dark eyes looking into her bright blue ones. His fingers lightly brush the bruise on her face, wishing he could've prevented it. He slowly grabs the tape and peels it away from her face. He grabs the rag and pulls it out of her mouth, tossing it aside. Her tied up hands grab the back of his neck, pulling him toward her. Their lips press against each other, hesitantly moving together. Alex didn't know what to think, afraid that if he kissed her too much, she would push him away. So he pulls back before he gets rejected once again. "I-I don't want to take advantage of you." he whispers. She pulls him against her again, her hands pulling at his shirt with need. "I'm sorry." he whispers, pulling away again. "I just don't want to be pushed away again." he tells her. She shakes her head, willing her mouth to work. "I'm sorry." she finally manages to say. "I don't want to push you away. I do like you, Alex. It's scary and I wanted to run from it. But every time I get scared it's you I call. Every time I hear a joke, even when you're not around, it's you I look for. And i'm sorry I hurt you over and over again. "But I don't want to die without...without having given us a chance. You were all I thought about when they pulled me out from under the bed, when they pushed me in the trunk, when they threw me onto this boat." she rambles, her fingers still wound tightly in his shirt. "Norma, I need to hear you say the words." Alex tells her. He wouldn't be led into another trap that she could slip out of by placing the blame onto him. "I want to try it out. Being with you." she says shyly. "Slowly, though. I'm not good at relationships." she adds. He smiles and nods, placing a kiss on her mouth before moving to untie the rope around her wrists and ankles. "We have to clean this up first." Alex says, helping her up from the ground and turning to look at the dead body. "We're like Bonnie and Clyde." Norma mumbles as they grab each end of Bob's body. He glances up at her, his face serious. "Sorry." she says, knowing now wasn't the time to joke. "Just...just put him in the bottom of the bait well." Alex tells her. They lift him and carry him to the well, dropping him inside. "Now what?" she asks. "Now you get off the boat and take my car to your motel. I'll be there later." Alex tells her, handing her the keys to his car. "What? No, I'll just stay with you." Norma tells him. "Norma, go." he tells her, not budging. He grabs her hand and pulls her toward the edge of the boat near the dock. She sighs, feeling hurt from being pushed away. Alex didn't mean to be so rude, he just didn't like that Norma saw what she did. Before she could step off the boat, he grabbed her chin and placed a soft loving kiss on her lips. He pulls away and places another kiss on her forehead before pulling away completely. "See you at home." he tells her, walking away. She smiles, shakily making her way off the boat, her knees still weak from having kissed Alex so many times in under an hour. Yet she still wanted to kiss him so many times more. Her lips pull up into a smile as she realizes that she will have the chance to kiss him again. As long as he allows her to, she will kiss him for the rest of her life. This thought brought her peace. Thought I would do a fast update. To the anonymous reviewer who said something along the lines of "either shit or get off the pot" I want to say thank you. If you leave some way of contact, I would like to learn more from you and hopefully improve my writing! xoxox