Conflicted

AJ and Dean had gone to visit Punk later that night, and were actually allowed an open visit with no barriers between them. Punk was still in prison blues and was still under the watch of the wardens, but even he could feel that the severity of his situation was weakening. To be honest, he was still a little shocked and confused. He'd tried so hard to prepare for his death, and sitting in that chair, just seconds away from being killed, it was the scariest moment of his entire life. He didn't think he'd be able to describe how it felt to anyone. He was still trying to get over that.

Dean immediately embraced his brother tightly as soon as he saw him. Punk held onto him tightly, burying his head into his shoulder. He thought that he had shared his last ever hug with his brother, and here he was.

"How you holding up?" Dean asked, pulling back as Punk just nodded, not really knowing what to say, turning to AJ who stood. He'd tried to just replay better times they had over and over again whilst he waited on his death. It was the only thing that seemed to calm him down.

"You ok?" AJ asked him, taking a seat with Dean to avoid the question if she should hug him or not, watching as he sat down too.

"Uh… yeah." Punk nodded, even though Dean and AJ could see how almost drugged out he looked. They didn't expect anything less. They couldn't imagine what it was like for him to go through the whole process. To believe that he was really going to die, just to end up being pulled back to his cell. It must have been so overwhelming and confusing. They could see that on his face, "That detective came around earlier… told me everything." He said as AJ and Dean nodded.

"Yeah, the truths out there now." AJ nodded.

"He reckons you could get out soon. Really soon." Dean smiled and nodded as Punk nodded.

"They're still trying to find this Del Rio guy and… Dennis." He turned to Dean, "Do you know what he was doing?" He asked, still horrified.

"Yeah." Dean nodded, "Dirty fucking scum." He spat as Punk just shook his head, "Foster care is hard enough for kids but when you're met with creatures like that." He shook his head, "I'd kill him for that alone, never mind what he did to those girls."

"Well it all pretty much makes sense now. Everyone's parts have been found out… apart from… something about a call, Michael said.' Punk said, "It came from Chicago?"

"Yeah." AJ nodded, "Which makes it impossible for you to even be considered for this. I think a lot of the police station and the state itself is thanking their lucky stars that you weren't put to death before all this came to light."

"Yeah, well I was minutes away." Punk said, having horrible flashbacks and nightmares to that feeling, over and over again. He didn't know if he would recover from it.

"You should be exonerated soon." Dean said, "And we can go home." He sighed to himself as Punk nodded.

"Good." Punk said, "Cause I can't stay here for much longer." He said, running his hand through his hair. He was exhausted and lonely and felt like he was going mad at times. He was just glad that the real killers had been found out, even if it was as shocking as it was to him, "When they find Del Rio and Dennis… you think they'll get the penalty?" Punk asked.

"They fucking better." Dean spat.

"Dennis will." AJ nodded, "Del Rio… I'm not sure. I mean… he pretty much set the whole thing up but… at the end of the day he didn't murder or rape or torture those girls like Dennis did."

"Like people thought I did." Punk sighed. It was tough. Sitting in a cell for 23 hours a day and knowing that outside the walls, people thought he was a killer, a rapist, the worse of the worst. Now he felt a little relieved that people knew the truth. They knew he was innocent.

"Once you're out, we're getting as far away as possible from all of this." Dean nodded, "Let them rot."

"I still don't get why I was targeted. Michael said it was because me and Dennis didn't get along but… that was a long ass time ago. I get the whole… them going after that guys daughter… well, I don't get it, but… you know what I mean." He said, "Why was I put into the equation?" He asked.

"Michael said that…" AJ began, "Because you and Dean… weren't easy to manipulate the way Dennis probably did with other kids… that he got mad about that. I mean, the man is a psychopath… so odds are he's being wanting to get at you all this time, he just didn't have the right set-up for it… which is where Alberto comes into play." AJ said.

"So because I didn't let a paedophile touch me or my brother… he sets me up for murder and puts me on death row?" Punk asked, "It's a bit fucking ironic isn't it?" He shook his head, "If I knew what he was back then I would have ripped his throat out. If it saved the next poor kid who ended up going to him." He sighed.

"Well Michael said that because you and Dean were so adamant… I mean didn't you guys steal from and… and you broke his nose." AJ looked at Punk, "That rubbed him the wrong way, he probably hadn't dealt with that before… put him off his game." She said.

"It's fucking ridiculous." Punk shook his head.

"Yeah." AJ nodded, "Look, we're gonna stay here until you get out. We'll be right here when you're released." She said as he smiled and nodded.

"So I finally get to meet your husband? Properly?" He asked her.

Two Years Ago…

"I'm in the aisle with the soups and stuff." Punk said, walking around the grocery store which he rarely went to, speaking to his brother on the phone as his brother directed him around the store to get whatever necessary things they needed, "Oh my God, do you remember that mac and cheese in a box that mom used to make?" Punk asked his brother, crouching down to the shelf and picking the box up, "I'm having that for dinner tonight. You want one?" He asked, picking two up as his brother of course wanted it also.

"Ok, where is the bread and milk? Do we even need milk?" Punk asked, listening to Dean ramble on the phone about the importance of him having his cereal in the morning before work, "Yeah, alright alright. Where is it then?" He asked, turning the corner, bumping into people, about to apologise when he looked down and saw who it was.

He hadn't saw AJ since they broke up a few years back. He heard about how she was doing, and she porbbaly heard about how he was doing, but there was no contact and seeing her again brought that pain back of missing her.

"I gotta go." Punk said to Dean, hanging up and pushing his phone into his pocket, "Hey." Punk nodded to her, ignoring the man beside her, staring at her only. She looked the same, even since she was seventeen and he was jealous of that. Her hair was darker and she looked healthy which made him happy.

"Hi." AJ smiled nervously to him, not believing that she was seeing him after all that time. Not seeing him made it easier to pretend she was over him, "Uh… how are you? How have you been?" She asked. It felt so wrong, going from how they were, having a love like theirs, to only making small talk like 'how are you' in the middle of the grocery store.

"I'm good." Punk assured her, even though it was far from it, "I'm still at the garage." He said as AJ nodded, "And you?"

"Yeah, good." AJ nodded, "Just back from trial. Not for me… for a client." She said quickly as he smiled. He missed that little super cute wit she had. Truth was, he just missed her completely. All of her.

"A client, huh?" Punk nodded, "So the career took off?"

"Yeah." AJ nodded, "It's going good." She said.

"I'm glad to hear it." Punk smiled to her politely, feeling a little rude as he looked to the man beside her who was looking at him a little too intensely for his liking, "We're being rude here." He turned to the man as AJ shook her head. She'd almost forgotten her fiancé was even standing there, too busy distracted by him.

"Oh… yeah." AJ nodded, "Uh Phil this is Ben… my fiancé. Ben this is Phil… we… we were in high school together." AJ said, not really wanting to flat out say 'this is my ex' to him.

"Nice to meet you." Ben nodded politely.

"Mhm." Punk smiled to him. His heart having massive palpitations at the word fiancé being uttered. He wasn't under the impression that she was out there lonely and not looking for another man to fall in love with, but the realisation that she had met someone else that she loved enough to marry, he wondered if she was really over them, and he felt stupid for not being over them, "So when's the big day?" Punk asked as AJ looked at him. It felt so wrong for him to ask that and be standing on the other side. But she'd moved on.

"Next year." Ben answered, "It's just gonna be small." He said as Punk nodded.

"Well I hope it goes well." He said, staring to sweat a little, needing out of the situation quickly, "I better go." He said as they both nodded, "Congratulations." He nodded, specifically looking at AJ who looked up at him and forced a smile, a smile that tried to represent that she had her life together and that she was well and truly over him. A fake smile. He then walked away as she watched him head down the bread aisle, disappearing quickly.

"He's gone back to Chicago." AJ answered Punk as Punk just raised his eyebrows and nodded.

"Fed up?" Punk laughed a little.

"He's got work to do." AJ said, "There wasn't anything else for him to do here anyway." AJ shrugged as Punk just nodded.

"You can go if you like." Punk said, "It's just waiting around now, right?" He shrugged.

"I… I wanna be here when you get out." AJ said, looking across at him as he looked back. Neither had to say it, they both knew what the other was thinking about. That kiss.

"Ok." Punk nodded as Dean watched them with frustration.

"Did Michael say anything to you about how long it would be until you got out?" Dean asked.

"No. Well he said soon. Given they really get all their facts right. Could be sooner than I think. They know who they're after now." Punk nodded.

"They'll get them. They can't stay hidden forever." AJ nodded.

"Yeah." Punk nodded, "I wanna speak to his wife… the woman who came forward with the information. What's her name?" He forgot.

"Paige." Dean said.

"Yeah, I wanna thank her in person. If she didn't come forward I wouldn't be here." He said, "And… you two… you guys didn't have to help me and go out your way to look for cracks." He said, "Thank you." He nodded.

"Well I didn't have the choice." Dean said teasingly as Punk smiled.

"We knew you weren't guilty." AJ told him, "The truth always comes out in the end." She smiled as Punk nodded, "This should be over for you real soon." She said as he nodded. She desperately wanted to slide her hand over and hold his tightly, but she knew she couldn't, and the more and more urges she had, the more and more she was worried. She just wanted to be here for him, and she knew that she had to be there for him as a friend… but the truth was, she wanted to kiss him again. She wanted to do a whole lot more, because she'd felt that feeling of what it'd be like to lose him and that scared her. It made her realise that she needed him. She needed him all this time.

But she was married.

A/N: Thanks for the reviews! Let me know what you think!