This being only my second visit to see Alex at Marysville, I'm a ball of nerves just like the first time. It's not that I'm anxious to see her—that ship sailed after our first visit. It's just that I have a strong recollection to how our last few visits went we did this in New York. I was trying to figure out life on the outside, and she was trying to navigate life within the prison. While it's certainly not easy out here, nothing is more difficult than managing gangs, personalities, and rigged systems in a federal penitentiary.

"I'm here to see Alex Vause." I pause as I recall last Thursday's meeting when there was a three-minute delay because I didn't know her badge number. "Sorry, Inmate 667552."

The guard checks my ID while she nibbles on a brownie. "Wait over there."

I take a seat next to a man holding two infants, both of whom are wailing. If I had any maternal instinct whatsoever, I'd ask if he needed some help. However, after spending several months with Cal, Neri and Goodall, I realize my mothering skills are not up to par with most women who either have or want children.

A loud bell chimes.

"Here we go…Place your personal belongings in the tray before going through the metal detector," a guard announces. "Proceed down every aisle while I count you off and take the furthest table from this spot until all seats are filled."

I stand behind six visitors as we empty our pockets before entering the visitation room. My pulse quickens as the time draws nearer for me to be with Alex. This time, I snag the first table in the second row, so I'll be able to spot her through the glass partition before she even gets inside. I twist my sweaty hands together as I wait for the inmates to file in. There's a sinking feeling deep within me that worries she won't be here, but I quickly banish such a thought when I spot her. My lips tic up and I let out a sigh of relief.

"Hey." She greets me with a long kiss as her arms slide around my waist. For those four seconds, I wish time would stand still. I'd be blissfully happy if all I had to do in life was kiss Alex Vause.

"Hi." I press my luck with the guard standing five feet away as I kiss her a second time. "It's good to see you."

"You, too." She releases me. "Always."

"Did you get my letter?" I sit across from her.

"I did," Alex begins. "You don't have to hide anything about Zelda from me. I mean, I'm never going to like the woman out of sheer principle, but still, you can talk about her."

"I wasn't…I didn't…" I stumble. "Isn't that what I mentioned in the letter? That I'm going to tell you the truth from here on out?"

She looks down. "You probably should've gone to Northampton."

"Why?" I crease my brows. "I knew I didn't want to be in a relationship with Zelda."

Alex sighs.

"Are you doubting my intentions?"

"I don't doubt them." She takes my right hand. "I just want you to live your life."

Every so often, Alex plunges into self-preservation mode and attempts to do what she thinks is best for me even if it's not what I want.

"I am living my life." I bend forward. "You are my life."

"I'm just saying if I'm ever…in the way, it's ok to let go."

"Stop," I demand with a set jaw. "You're never going to be in the way, Alex. I moved to Ohio to be with you. I don't want you to have this sinking feeling that I'm going to leave again."

She stares at me, and I know what she's thinking—I've left her at the shittiest times before. What makes this time different?

"I'm not the same person you met all those years ago," I start. "This is post-prison Piper."

Finally, she grins. "You're older and wiser now?"

I grasp her other hand. "Serving time will do that to a person."

"Tell me about it."

"How are things in here?"

"Not terrible, I guess," she breathes. "I arranged a time to talk to the other inmates from Litchfield. I'm going to try to get transferred to their unit."

"How?"

"I don't know…" She raises her shoulders. "Maybe by intentionally shocking myself pretty badly."

"Alex!"

"What? I'm not going to do it to the point where I need hospitalization."

"That's a terrible plan," I respond. "Please don't deliberately harm yourself."

"I want to be with people I know." She shrugs. "I'll tell them I have experience in laundry. Apparently they're short staffed in unit 3B, and we're overstaffed in my unit. It would make sense if they transferred me."

"There has to be other ways of getting over there," I offer. "Maybe I can do some research."

"We'll see." She squeezes my fingers. "Enough about me. Tell me about your new job. Oh, and did you find an apartment?"

"The job is going well," I begin. "In fact, I made my first coffee drinks this morning."

Alex smiles. "Look at you!"

"They weren't all successful, but no one taught me how to use the espresso machine."

"You learned on your own?"

"It was fun once I got the hang of it." I nod. "Oh, and I attended that webinar by the Women's Prison Association. It was eye opening, Alex. The things people are doing to try to bring a sense of justice and fairness to incarcerated women are astonishing. I guess I never realized there were advocates for people like us out there."

"I guess it just takes a fuck ton of time for change to happen," she comments. "I'm proud of you for taking the first steps."

"Thank you. They won't be my last," I reply. "I also got invited to my first social event."

"By a customer?" she questions.

"No, by my co-worker, Zodiac."

"His name is Zodiac?" she laughs.

"Yes," I state. "He invited me to his fraternity party Saturday night."

"A frat party?" Her lips tug down as she nods, and I know it's her fake impressed look. "You're going to have to practice your keg stands and loud burps."

I tuck a strand of hair behind my ear. "I'm not going."

"Why not? Think of the stories you could tell."

I smile at the memory of Alex telling me that phrase a very long time ago. "I don't know…maybe."

"It might be fun," she starts. "Maybe you'll meet a handsome young co-ed whose dad works at Marysville and you could convince him to smuggle in a cell phone in for me."

"We're never doing the whole cell phone in prison thing again," I say in a stern tone. "Everything you do has to be on the up and up, Alex. I'm serious."

She nods, and I can tell she understands exactly how serious I am. She changes the subject. "What about your living situation?"

"I toured four apartments the first three days I was here," I start. "The first two were in industrial complexes that reminded me too much of prison—no offense."

"None taken."

"And the next two were over budget," I continue. "But the fifth one I saw was the one I took."

"Yeah?"

"It's a duplex in Dublin, just off Highway 33," I state. "There's a bus stop two blocks away, and it's almost exactly 30 minutes to Marysville and to work."

"That's convenient," Alex notes.

"I'm only paying $800 a month and utilities are included."

"How'd you score such a good deal?"

"The woman who lives in the other half of the duplex, Ms. Mabel, is an elderly woman who needs someone to get her groceries and sometimes accompany her to doctors' appointments and stuff. She pays for her groceries, but I buy them for her every two weeks."

"You sure she's not taking advantage of you?" she asks.

"I don't think so." I shake my head. "She's a former elementary school principal, so I have every reason to believe she's an honest woman who just needs a little help."

"Sounds like a good situation then."

"You have one minute left," a guard announces. "Time to wrap things up!"

"You're starting to feel settled." She squeezes my hand. "I'm proud of you, babe."

I tilt my head. "I miss you calling me that."

She smiles. "So do I."

I get to my feet. "Please think of another way to get transferred without hurting yourself."

"I'll try." She takes in a deep breath through her nose. "You smell so fucking good."

"Suave shampoo and conditioner—$1.97 per bottle."

"Piper Chapman living on a budget?" Alex chuckles as she presses her lips against mine. "I never thought I'd see the day."

"I'm working on it." I kiss her soundly, wishing yet again that we could stay like this forever. "I'll see you in two days."

"Time's up, ladies!" the guard calls. "Inmates, file out and sign the docket as you pass the desk."

"I love you," she says, holding onto my hand as long as we can as she backs away.

"Love you, too."

With that, Alex disappears behind the gray wall. God, I wish prisons did conjugal visits.

I should've never told Piper about my plan to get transferred to the other prison unit. Now, she's going to worry herself sick, and if I do mistakenly shock myself, she's going to be furious, thinking I did it on purpose. Maybe I should scrap that plan and come up with something less dangerous.

I return to my cell to read a novel that I checked out of the library the other day, but there's an unfamiliar woman pacing in front of it.

"Excuse me." I move past her.

"You Vause?"

I spin around and face her. "Yeah, why?"

"You work in electrical?"

"Yes," I sigh, getting frustrated by her questioning. "Can I help you?"

"There's another girl in there. Her name is Destiny," the big busted woman with an armful of tattoos announces. "You know her?"

"I wouldn't say I know her, but we work together-ish."

"I heard you been staring at her." She takes a step forward. "Like you want to get with her and shit."

"What?" I let out a half-laugh. "That's insane."

"Is it?" She takes another step towards me until we're inches apart. "I heard you was gay. I need you to back the fuck off of my girl. Understand?"

"Are you fucking kidding?" I hold my hands up. "I'm not interested in your girlfriend—I have my own prison wife."

She shakes her head. "That ain't what I heard."

"She's not in here with me." I show her my finger. "This is our ring. It's a fucking bent paper clip. Why would I wear this stupid thing if it didn't mean something?"

"People cheat." She shrugs. "Prison is a lonely place. Stay the fuck away from Destiny. You got it?"

"Yeah," I respond. "But we work together, so it's not like I can avoid her altogether."

"If I hear you so much as glanced her way..." She pounds her fish into her palm.

"I'm not interested in her, ok?" I shout. "If I look at her, it'll never be in a sexual way."

"We clear?"

I raise my eyebrows. "Yes."

The woman leaves, and I let out a long breath. Prison drama sucks. Now, I really want to get out of this cell block and need to figure out a way to make it work. I leave the room in search of my CO.

"Excuse me, Mr. Eastman?"

He looks up from his desk. "Yes?"

"I was just threatened by another inmate," I begin in my best shaky/scared voice, thinking this is something Piper would try. "She accused me of looking at her girlfriend in a sexual way. I can assure you, I'm not interested, but we work together in electrical so she's kind of hard to avoid."

He sits back. "What do you want me to do about it?"

"I want to get transferred to another unit."

"I can't help you, inmate."

"She threatened to hurt me," I try.

"Lesbian drama isn't my thing." He slips on his glasses. "Figure it out on your own."

"If I get shanked or worse, my blood is on your hands."

He returns to reading a file. "Mmm hmm."

I exit the office, pissed that I even tried that tactic. If he asked me to name the inmate, I wouldn't have provided it. I'm not a snitch, but I thought maybe I could get by with what I told him. Getting transferred the clean way isn't going to work.

I decide to go out to the yard for some fresh air and to think about another strategy. The sun is still shining, though it's getting lower on the horizon, and I'm reminded of watching sunsets with Piper when we traveled together. She never wanted to miss one.

"Will you step away from your laptop for five minutes?" she asked.

I glanced up at her, standing on the porch in a white bikini with a flowy, linen blouse gaping open.

"I know last night's sunset was kind of a dud, but tonight's should be spectacular," she said. "Besides, it's our final night in Pantai Cenang. One more sunset…Please?"

I stood, leaving my laptop open and walked towards her, eyes never leaving her body.

"We only have to go a few feet away from the cabana," Piper said. "There's a perfect viewing area just beyond the palm trees."

I lifted one hand to cup her face, leaning in for a delicate kiss. She responded with a more forceful one. As my hand skirted to the back of her neck, she winced.

"Ow."

"What happened?"

She tilted her neck. "My tattoo is still sore."

"Sorry." I looked at the artwork. "Why'd you decide on a fish?"

"Remember that picture you took underwater when we went snorkeling in Bali and that colorful fish was right in front of us?"

"Yeah."

"I wanted to have a permanent reminder of how good life was—of how good it can be," she began. "It represents magic and beauty…and appreciating beauty."

"The main thing I remember from that snorkeling trip was puking in the ocean and being sick for two days." I took her hand and walked about 15 feet towards this 'viewing area' she mentioned. "But I'm glad it meant something to you."

She stopped and blinked up at me. "Everything we do together is meaningful to me."

I couldn't help kissing her, wishing I could tear myself away from work for a day or two to spend time with her. I never told her that if I slipped up or didn't handle every transaction perfectly, my life could be in danger.

"There's the perfect spot." Piper pointed and continued walking a few more feet to a clearing between the trees. "See, the sun is already dipping into the ocean."

I didn't care about the sunset—I'd never cared about sunsets. I stepped behind her and gently kissed the area around her new fish tattoo. While that snorkeling expedition didn't mean much to me, I'm grateful it left a lasting impression on her. Now, whenever she catches a glimpse of the tattoo in a mirror, she'll think of me—forever. I wrapped my arms around her as she sighed contentedly in my embrace.

"Isn't this nice?" she asked.

"Very." I dipped my fingers into the waistband of her bikini.

As Piper reveled in what she considered the perfect sunset, I explored her folds, slowly but effectively making her cum against my hand.

"Hey, Vause!" a woman snaps me out of my reverie.

Please tell me it's not another fucking inmate accusing me of something I didn't do. "Yeah?"

"I heard my girlfriend confronted you."

"It's Destiny, right?" I ask.

She nods.

"She did and I'm not interested." I fully face her. "I have a girlfriend on the outside, and I wouldn't even consider cheating on her, so whatever you perceived as me checking you out, erase it from your brain."

Again, she nods. "I just wanted to apologize. Dallas is super territorial."

"Tell her to back the fuck off." I turn and walk away, wondering how I'm going to survive three more years of this bullshit.

Sure enough, Josie and I work together on the Saturday night shift and she properly trains me on how to use the espresso machine. She also gives me a lesson on how to froth the perfect cup of milk.

"This was very helpful, thank you."

"No worries." She places a caramel latte on the counter and calls for Sal. "We usually don't train newbies for the first few weeks because so many people quit."

"Really?"

Josie nods. "I'm not knocking college kids seeing as how I am one, but when they find out they have to stick to a schedule and can't regularly call in sick, they drop like flies."

"My livelihood depends on this job," I admit. "So you don't have to worry about me quitting anytime soon."

"That's good to hear." She smiles. "I enjoy working with you."

"Same." I grin. "Want me to put the closed sign on the door?"

She glances at her watch. "Yep. Oh, I heard Zodiac invited you to the party tonight. Want to ride together?"

"I don't have a car." That's about the lamest excuse I could come up with. "And I wasn't planning on going."

"Come on, Piper." She wipes down the tables. "What else do you have to do tonight?"

I sweep some crumbs from under a table. "Nothing really, but I'm a little old for frat parties."

"You could have a cup of beer, then leave." She shrugs. "It's free."

Alex told me I should go to this party, and now Josie wants me to accompany her. Maybe it won't be so bad for a few minutes. I could relive my glory days when Polly and I used to hit up the parties at U Mass, Amherst.

I dump the contents of the dustpan in the garbage. "I guess."

"Sweet! I'll drive."

We spend the next 10 minutes cleaning the store, and Josie tells me about a guy she's crushing on who happens to be a Sig Ep. So that's why she wants to go to the party.

We arrive at the Sig Ep house at 10:15, and there appears to be drunk guys in the front yard already. Back in my day, the parties didn't start until at least 10 p.m. and most people didn't begin feeling the effects of the alcohol until an hour later. That is unless there were shots of Jose Cuervo. The thought of shooting that vile tequila makes me want to puke.

A guy smacks his friend's arm when I walk up the sidewalk. "Dude, somebody's mom is here."

"Is that Gopher's mom?" One of them adjusts his glasses. "I heard she was hot."

"No, no." I wave my hand. "I'm not Gopher's mom. I'm not anyone's mom, actually."

"Hey, Gopher, your mom is here," one of them calls anyway.

"Hi, Ian." Josie smiles at a guy to our right, and I assume that's her crush. "How's it going?"

And just like that, I lost my wingman.

Another boy fills a red Solo cup. "Want a beer, hot mom?"

"Again, I'm not a mother." It's probably no use correcting them, but I can't resist. "My name is Piper. I work with Zodiac at Starbucks."

The same boy who yelled that Gopher's mom was here calls over his shoulder again, "Hey, Zodiac, your Cougar girlfriend is here!"

"He's not my boyfriend." I shake my head. "Like I mentioned, we work together."

Zodiac jogs towards us in his shirt with Greek letters. "Yo, Chapman! You made it." He hugs me and smells like sweat and beer.

"Yeah." I pull away.

"Someone give this woman a beer!"

The boy holding the now full red cup hands it to me.

"Thank you."

"To Saturday nights." Zodiac taps his plastic cup against mine. "Come on, I'll introduce you to that girl I was telling you about."

As soon as I step away, I hear them talk about how hot I am. While I'm a little skeeved out, I'm also flattered that a bunch of drunk 21-year-olds think I'm hot.

"The one you told you were a banker?"

"Yeah." He climbs the three steps onto the porch of the sprawling house. "I fessed up though."

You would have to if you invited her here. I keep that thought to myself.

We step inside, and I immediately flashback to the parties I used to attend with Alex.

"Hey, babe." She'd only just begun referring to me as such a week ago, and I loved the sound of it dribbling off her supple lips in her thick, raspy voice. "Welcome."

I leaned in for a kiss. "Thank you."

"Cheers."

Polly walked up to us, gawking. "This place is insane."

"Great to meet you, Holly."

"It's Polly, actually."

"Right, Polly Hobby."

I was so enamored by Alex I didn't bother to chime in to defend my childhood friend.

A man standing against the wall raised his glass; Alex asked to be excused.

"I came seven times last night," I bragged.

"That's just excessive."

"Come on, let me show you around." I took Polly on a tour of Alex's two-bedroom New York flat, showing her odds and ends that Alex told me about collecting during her travels. Polly seemed suspicious of it all, but I held off her questions with announcing that Alex imported stuff for a living.

Later that night when there were only six or seven people left at the party and I could finally hear the music, Alex set down a bottle of Champagne and walked my way. "Dance with me."

The music didn't have lyrics and the beat was down tempo, but we swayed in a slow dance. She plucked my Champagne flute from my hand and sipped the remainder of the exclusive bubbles. "Want more?"

I shook my head.

"Want me to kick these people out?"

Although we'd only known each other for a matter of weeks, I recognized her tone as half-joking. If I'd have said yes, she would've ushered her friends out in a hot second.

"No, I'm having fun."

"Good." She kissed me. "I like having you here."

"I like being here."

"Then maybe we should make it permanent." Her words stunned me.

"Permanent?"

"I travel a lot, so you'd mostly have this place to yourself." She lowered a hand to my ass. "But when I come home, I want you here to greet me."

I grinned at her. "Just to greet you?"

"And to fuck me." She leaned down for a searing kiss. "Move in with me, babe."

I stared into her piercing green eyes and couldn't turn her down even if I'd wanted to, which I certainly did not. "Ok."

The fraternity house is the opposite of Alex's penthouse—it smells like beer and weed and the furniture is ratty and torn. I couldn't imagine living in this squalor.

"Amber, this is Piper." Zodiac stands next to a brunette with bright pink lipstick. "Piper, Amber."

"Nice to meet you." I shake her hand. "Zodiac has said some very nice things about you."

She looks at him with googly eyes. "He has?"

"Piper's the lady I told you about who works with me at Starbucks."

Is that what I've become? The lady who works at a coffee shop?

"I tried to get a job at Starbucks, but they didn't hire me," Amber states. "Maybe it was because I've never worked before."

"How do they expect you to get experience without giving you the opportunity?" Zodiac asks.

She smiles. "Exactly."

"Well, it was nice to meet you, Amber." I back away. "I'm going to…" I have no idea how to finish my sentence, so I just return to the porch and sip my lukewarm beer.

I wish I could call Alex. It's the first time I've been borderline depressed because of our situation. I hate that I can't text her or call her on a whim. I'm sure she feels the same. I think she'll be proud of me for coming to this party, though I figured it would be as bad as it is.

"There you are." The guy who poured my beer comes up to me. "Need a refill?"

"No, thank you." I drink the last of it. "In fact, I'm going to head home. Do you recycle?"

"Do we what?"

I set my cup on a ledge next to a few others. "Never mind."

"We're about to play beer pong," he announces. "Wanna be on my team?"

All I want to do right now is wash my hands. "Maybe some other time."

"I'm, like, super into older women, so…" He lifts his shoulders.

Is he propositioning me?

"That's great." I climb down the porch steps. "But I'm not interested, thank you."

"You sure? I have a really big dick."

"Eww!" I scurry down the sidewalk, passing Josie who's sitting on a stump, holding hands with her crush. I don't interrupt to tell her goodbye. I simply head down the street in search of the nearest bus stop.

When I'm safely on the bus, I roll my head back and laugh. Alex is going to get a kick out of this—her day is made.

Supposedly, the prison kitchen goes all out on holidays, so I've been looking forward to tonight's dinner all week. Today is Easter Sunday and the special meal is ham that has a green-like tint to it, a stale roll without butter, peas that are tanner than they are green, and lumpy potatoes that someone said are supposed to be scalloped. The tossed salad and vanilla cake aren't bad.

It makes me think back to the days when Red was in charge of the Litchfield kitchen. There were dinners where she made something out of nothing, and we were all impressed with her skills. She could take chicken carcasses and make a delicious chicken noodle soup. I wish she was here with me for more than just her culinary skills.

While I miss Piper more than anything, I miss the camaraderie a few of us inmates shared at Litchfield. Lorna, Nicky, Taystee, Poussey, Big Boo…they were all nice. It was as if we were a gang of misfit toys, but we all had each other's backs. Then I recall Poussey's death and how tragic it was. That makes me think of Trisha's death and comforting Piper during that awful time. There's no one at Marysville I'm close to—at least not yet. I'm not sure if I want to make friends here. Sometimes it's easier to stay on my island, isolated from everyone else.

At the end of dinner, I place my tray on a cart, and then walk to the phone bank. I usually avoid calling Piper at this time of day as there seems to always be a wait. However, I worked most of the day and couldn't step away for even five minutes to call her. I glance at my watch, thinking she might be working the night shift at Starbucks. I don't know if she'll take my call if that's the case.

Ten minutes later, a phone is free.

She picks up on the fourth ring, just before I was about to hang up. "Hello?"

An inmate from Marysville Federal Penitentiary is calling. Do you accept the call?

"Yes."

"Hey," I say through a smile. "Are you at work?"

"Yeah." I hear people talking in the background. "We're not super busy right now, so I can talk for like five minutes. How are you?"

"Fine."

"Happy Easter," Piper says. "Was dinner as good as you were hoping?"

"Hardly." I let out a short laugh. "Let's just say I avoided most of it and ate the stuff that didn't look like it was a month past expiration."

"Sorry."

"I was just thinking about how much I miss Red's cooking."

"As prison food went, it wasn't awful on most days," she comments.

"Did you have a big Easter feast with ham and fresh peas?"

"I had a ham sandwich with iceberg lettuce," she replies. "Does that count?"

"Why not." I chuckle. "When I get out of here, let's make a promise that we're going to go big for holiday meals, including Easter even though neither of us really believes in God."

"Deal." It gets quieter and I wonder if she went into the break room. "So, I went to that frat party last night."

"You did?" My brows shoot up. I didn't think she'd go for fear of being considered an old lady. "How was it?"

"As bad as I thought it would be."

"Come on, it couldn't have been that bad," I chide. "Better than being in here."

"Anything is better than being in prison, Al, but this was bad."

I grin. "I want to know every last detail."

"Besides the guys surrounding the keg thinking I was some boy named Gopher's mom, I guess you could say it was…an experience."

"Gopher?" I laugh.

"The beer was warm and disgusting, and the house was exactly what you'd picture a frat house to look like."

"I've never been in one, so…"

"It smelled like sweat and farts…oh, and pot," she begins. "Lots of pot. The furniture was all ratty with beer and wine stains on just about every surface."

"They drink wine?"

"Maybe it was blood stains, I don't know," Piper continues. "I didn't spend more than two minutes inside, and when I went out on the porch, one of the guys told me he was into older women."

"Excellent," I reply with a wide grin, loving the mental image I have of Piper being propositioned by a curly haired, 21-year-old frat boy.

"He told me he had a big dick."

I haven't laughed this hard in months. "No, he didn't!"

"He did."

I cover my mouth with a hand as I continue laughing so hard it brings tears to my eyes. "Oh my God, you made my night!"

"I knew you'd get a kick out of that." It sounds like someone called her name. "I hate to end this call so soon, but I have to get back to work."

"I wish I could've called earlier, sorry." I come down from my fit of laughter. "I'll call tomorrow at the same time. You're working the early shift, right?"

"Yeah," she responds. "I hope you sleep well. I love you."

"Love you, too, babe."

I hang up the phone and proceed to my cell, still chuckling at Piper's first post-prison party in Ohio. She really did make my night.

Author's Note: Hoping you enjoyed the flashbacks as well as the humor in this chapter. I've always enjoyed the moments when Taylor got to play humorous scenes on the show. She has a gift for comedy and I wished we'd seen more funny Piper scenes on the show. I had a very clear picture in my head of Piper at the frat party, and I hope I did it justice.