Dominick Carisi went as far over the speed limit as he dared. He couldn't afford to waste time getting pulled over. Even if he showed his ADA badge, that would still take time he didn't have.The traffic was light, for the most part. It took him less than 30 minutes to make it to Amanda's apartment. He spent the ride coming up with what he was going to say.

-

By the time he reached her building, he still had no idea exactly what to say. This wasn't the same kind of nerves as when he had his first trial. There were butterflies then, sure, but not like this. Now he knew she had feelings for him. All he needed to do was explain to Amanda that he had finally let her go and tried to move on, but his heart had always belonged to her and really he wasn't in any position to try to give it to anyone else.

-

Carisi was out of breath after running up the stairs to her apartment.

He hadn't wanted to text or call her, this was something he needed to tell her in person.

As he got to her door, he froze. Everything was about to change. His heart was beating so fast he could hear it in his ears. He took a few deep breaths trying to calm himself.

He quietly knocked. It was after 11 and he didn't want to disturb anyone. No answer.

"Manda, it's me". He placed his palm flat against the door. Waiting.

-

Her Jeep was still on the street so he knew Amanda was home, she hadn't gone to her mom's.
He didn't think she'd be asleep. He thought about all those nights he spent lying awake thinking about her, especially when he thought she was with someone else...it made falling asleep near impossible. The look on her face when she realized he was seeing someone...Dominick knew how that felt, the last time he felt that way was when Dr. Al proposed to Amanda in front of him. This time though, it was Amanda's feelings for him.


-

"Manda, please. Open the door. I need to see you".

He heard Frannie's ticking nails on the floor, going away from the door and stopping.

Then he heard light footsteps.
"Carisi...I'm fine. You don't need to check on me". He could hear it in her voice, she'd been crying.

-

"Amanda Rollins, that's not why I'm here, please just open the door before we wake up Mrs. Jenkins". He dared to speak a little louder. Carisi looked over at her nosy neighbors door. She might even be watching through the peephole.

Nothing.

-

"I'm not leaving". He didn't want to have this conversation through a door.

-

From the other side of the door, Amanda held both her palms flat against the door, she'd been crying non stop since she got home. Seeing him now was just too much. She was terrified he wanted to give her a speech about how he didn't want to lose her friendship or his relationship with the girls.

The shock of hearing him at her door stopped her crying. She just sniffled and tried to think of the right words to convince him to leave.

-

"Look, if you don't wanna let me in, I'm gonna talk from out here". He spoke louder, hoping her fear of Mrs. Jenkins would prompt her to open the door.

"Alright, give me 2 minutes Carisi". She rolled her eyes.

-

Amanda walked to the bathroom, her reflection was a mess. Tears had obliterated any makeup she had on, and her face was red. Splashing some cold water on it, then a cold washcloth she hoped she could hide it a little. The annoyance of him not leaving, at least kept her from starting to cry again. He was so stubborn. She just needed to convince him she was fine, they could stay friends, just like they had been. It was all lies, but she could be convincing enough to get him to leave.

-

Just enough powder to hide the redness, she couldn't do anything about how puffy her eyes were, but this was as good as it's gonna get. She smoothed her dress down, took a deep breath and looked at herself for a few seconds in the mirror.

"You can do this". She said, turned and walked back to the door.