A/N: First, I'd like everyone to refer back to my ORIGINAL author's note, in which I explain that THIS story was the result of reading '50 Shades of Grey' in one day. And I stand by that. So, for the few saying that Letty isn't the same badass that we see in the films: duh. That's not to say that by the end of the story, she won't take charge of her life again. Second, this is an AU fanfiction; this means that the characters and storyline stray almost ENTIRELY from the original films. I'm sure this isn't the first one that some of you have read. I'm just not sure how many times I have to say that. Third, I really appreciate the mixed reviews from the reviewers who can eloquently discuss their warring feelings and, to you, I'd like to say "all will be revealed". The ending of this story is far away, and I intend to keep writing it, as long as the anonymous hate ends now. If you have anything disgusting to say, don't take the coward's way out by being anonymous. At least, allow me the chance to reply to you with my view on how and why the story is being written the way it is. Maybe then, you'd be able to understand. That's not to say all 'guest' accounts are douches. My responses to some awesome guest reviewers who, as above stated, can eloquently discuss their concerns:

Laura D - I can only hope that I continue to answer your questions for you. And yes, it was foreshadowing. Thanks for your reviews!

Kalmia & Bonzgirl - Couldn't agree more. All of the concerns you have about Letty's feelings and Dom walking all over them is exactly how I wrote the story. I want you guys to be concerned and confused. Because... well, let's just say, Letty's going to be taking charge!

Miag - you've got it! Sorry the flashbacks confuse you, but they're part of the story for a reason!

Brianna - eventually you will see the light at the end of the tunnel. Scout's Honor.

Adriadne - you know your shit! I like that! It's like you're in my head!

To everyone else who reviewed, thank you and just know that there WILL be answers. While they may not come immediately or when you want, they will come. My apologies for this A/N being so damn long.

Chapter 25

"Wait, what?" Riley's smirk fell and she leaned forward, arms resting on her desk. "Marital separation? Are you serious?"

"As a heart attack."

"Letty, you two have only been married for a year-and-a-half. Whatever happened, I'm sure it can be worked out."

"Look, Riley, I don't want to end my marriage. I'm not asking about divorce. I just want to be legally separated for awhile. So we can work things out. So, will you help me?"

Riley's exhale was more of a distraught sigh. "Of course."

"Thank you."

"You're welcome." Riley pressed the intercom button on her phone. "Kendra, could you bring us two glasses of water?"

"Sure." A voice chirped back almost immediately.

"So, the first thing you need to know is what type of separation you want. Legal or trial?"

"The difference being?"

"Well, a trial separation is really just an informal agreement between you and Dom. You'll live apart. There are no lawyers or judges involved. Obviously, a legal separation is the opposite. There are legal fees, including lawyers and court proceedings. If you choose the latter, the judge will strongly suggest you both seek professionaly marital counseling. And by strongly suggest, I mean-."

"Make it mandatory," interjected Letty.

"Especially in this instance where you two have only been married for a year-and-a-half." Riley nodded. "Which is a good thing."

Kendra interrupted momentarily to bring either of the brunettes a tall glass of ice water. Once Riley thanked her with a half smirk and a wink, she took her leave again. Letty rolled her eyes.

"Well, what are the biggest pros and cons of a trial seperation?"

"I suppose the biggest pro, and most important, is that it gives you a cooling off period to work through any negative emotions you may have towards your marriage or towards Dom. Then there's the positive of not having to spend money on attorneys. And it also gives most people a chance to examine how they may have played a role in whatever marital problems they're having.

"As far as cons go, any and all financial obligations still exist during the trial separation. If Dom decides to buy a new estate, it's still seen as marital debt, which means you both held accountable for any delayed payments. And also, any work bonuses or lottery winnings or anything of the such are considered marital property and have to be split fifty-fifty which doesn't really pertain to your and Dom's situation because... well, you both work at the same company."

"You mean I work for him."

"Well, I did tell you to buy your own personal stocks in the company."

"Was that an 'I told you so'?" The younger brunette's eyes narrowed.

Riley's eyes reached heavenward. "Of course not. But it should at least be something that you think about during the separation. I've been your attorney for almost fourteen years. I'm only looking out for your best interest. You know that."

Letty sat back in her chair with a 'hmph!', crossing her arms. "I want a legal separation."

"Are you sure?"

"Yes."

"Okay, next thing we'll have to discuss is whether or not you'd like to stay in the penthouse or will Dom? And if you leave, what would you want to take with you?"

"Nothing. I don't want anything that reminds me of him. I want to focus on myself. The only things I'll be taking are my clothes and jewelry. I want my own place."

Riley looked as if she had something to say, but decided against it. It had been a long time since she'd seen 'take charge Letty', and she loved it. "Well, that just made my job one hundred times easier. I'll draw up the petition for legal separation and file it this week if you'd like."

"Yes. The sooner the better."

"Last, but not least, would you like to serve Dominic the papers or have a courier do the deed?"

Letty was quiet for a long moment before she straightened her posture, cocked an eyebrow and smirked. "I'll do it."

"Very well. I'll start the paperwork tonight."

"Thanks, Riley."

Friday, Dom and Letty's penthouse, 6:26PM

Dominic's flight from New York had gotten in around four-fifteen that afternoon and Leticia had expected him home no later than seven. The past two days, she'd gone to work and when she got to the penthouse, immediately spent the next five hours packing her massive wardrobe of clothes and shoes into boxes and garment bags.

U-Haul had been called and by six p.m. that night, the last mover had gone and her possessions were on their way to her old home with Gisele until she found her own place. Riley had pulled a few strings in the legal world and got her petition for legal separation pushed through quicker than it normally would. Friday morning, the packet of papers had been dropped off via courier to Leticia's office.

The brunette's heart began to pound because, as she read over the papers one last time, the announcing DING! of the penthouse's elevator sounded throughout the home she'd made with Dominic. Shuffling of feet. The rolling of a suitcase on the hardwood floor. Keys dropping on the foyer table. Sighing.

Leticia sat, with perfect posture, on the couch, the only thing betraying the cool expression on her face was the rapid beating of her heart. The last time they'd been in this room together, Letty had thrown a crystal tumbler at her husband's head. When Dominic entered the living room, his face lit up and an eye-crinkling smile graced his face.

"Hello, my love."

Letty smiled back, albeit uneasily. She swallowed harshly and patted the couch next to her. Dominic's eyebrows furrowed and his smile slowly faded, but he obeyed her wordless command.

"What's going on, Let?"

With a sad smile on her face, Letty folded her hands in her lap. "How's Sebastian doing?"

"He says he's feeling much better than he did on Monday."

"That's good news."

"Yeah, but I just think he's trying to help his mother worry less."

At the mention of Sebastian's mother, Leticia's lips tightened into a thin line. She cleared her throat and reached towards the legal documents she'd placed on the coffee table.

"What's this?"

"I filed for legal separation."

"Letty, I-."

"Dom, it's not a divorce. I just think we need some actual time apart. I, for one, need to comprehend these thoughts and feelings that I'm having. And I just cannot do that around you. You cloud my judgment, we use sex to "fix" things," Letty used air quotes to make her point, "and the last time we tried for a break, we could barely go a week without sleeping with other people to make ourselves feel better. We got nowhere. This time, we need to actually figure things out in order to fix our marriage."

Dom said nothing, simply waited for his wife to finish verbalizing her thoughts.

"We both need to remember who we were before we met each other. So," Letty finished, standing, "I'll be staying with Gisele until I find my own place. I'll complete the projects I've started at Toretto Enterprises and then you'll receive my two weeks' notice."

Dominic shook his head, still staring at the legal document. "That won't be necessary. You are the best chief of marketing I've ever had. You'll keep your position. I understand you wanting space and I think it is a good idea. You have my word that I won't show up unannounced to your office."

Letty nodded once and grabbed her handbag. "Riley will contact Carter with a court date."

"Okay." Dom stood as well and folded the papers up. "I don't know how we do this." He used the papers to gesture between his wife and himself.

"Do what?"

"Say goodbye. Do we hug or kiss or just smack each other on the ass and say 'good game'." Dom tried lightening the mood, earning a half-chuckle from Letty.

"It's not goodbye. It's a 'to be continued'. And you're my husband. Of course you give me a hug and a kiss."

Without hesitation, Dominic wrapped his arms around his wife's waist, holding her closely for a few heartbeats. Then he pulled back and allowed her to initiate the chaste kiss.

"We'll talk soon." She told him as he walked her to the elevator. Everything felt entirely too surreal and she wondered when it would truly hit her that she was separating from Dominic, legally for an undetermined amount of time.

But as she stepped onto the lift and the doors closed shut between them, Letty smiled a genuine smile. She was going to get her power back.

Long after Leticia left, Dominic stood in front of the elevator's gold-plated doors with his hands in his pockets. The prideful half of him expected her to come back up, run into his arms and take him back. While the other half who remembered who Letty was long before she took his last name, knew that he had to give her the space and time she deserved.

After all, she was right on so many levels. He'd always been manipulative and persistent when it came to his work endeavors, but when had he started to look at his marriage as something to be conquered? When had he began using sex as a means to an end; a way to always get what he wanted? And how did they end up where they currently were?

Many of the answers to the hundreds of questions that floated through his brain was simple: him. Dominic Anthony Toretto, himself, was the reason why so many things in his marriage went wrong. His lies by omission, secret keeping and constant need to control everything was, in the end, his downfall.

He fixed himself a drink and plopped back down onto the couch with a heavy sigh. He wasn't ready to face the bedroom that would no doubt be void of anything that would remind Dominic of his wife. And just like the old cliche went, Dominic really didn't miss what he had until it was gone.

Now, here he was, with a not-secret-anymore love child who could possibly be dying, a wife who filed for legal separation and a baby's mother who was demanding an internal organ from him. One that he couldn't give if he wanted to. He had been told by the doctor that a full grown adult's kidney couldn't fit a child's body, regardless as to whether or not he was a match. Which he had been.

At the hospital, when Dominic was told that he couldn't donate to his own son, Leticia had allowed him to lay his head on her shoulder and brood over how 'unfair' everything had been. She'd done that even though she could barely look at him. And even though she was, undoubtedly, completely disgusted with him. She gave and gave and gave, and it was suddenly hitting him that all he seemed to do was take and take and take.

Had he always seen Leticia as a challenge that had to be won? A woman that he wanted to possess? He truly loved her with every fiber of his being... but then why did he ruin the best thing that had ever happened to him? Where was his moral compass now pointing?

So many questions and so many answers that he sure need to deal with and fix during this separation. He needed to stand up and be accountable for his mistakes and shortcomings. There were so many that he wasn't even sure where to begin.

First, he had to set up a meeting to chat with Carter Verone, his attorney. He wanted to make sure his wife was comfortable, no matter what.

Up Next: The break begins.