Norma and the boys were heading to the grocery store to pick up some things needed in order to have a Christmas dinner tomorrow. She should have come earlier in the week, because the store was hectic and crowded right now.

"Dylan do you think you can grab us a ham from the meat department?"

Dylan nodded and he put his handheld gaming system in the pocket of his hoodie.

"Norman and I are going to try to see if there's anymore cranberry sauce left," she said as she held her youngest son's hand.

"Alright," Dylan replied.

"When you get one, make sure you go to the first register at the front of the store. That's where I'm going to meet you at. Okay? Think you can handle that?"

"Yes Norma. I'm nine, not four," he rolled his eyes subtly and walked towards the meat department.

It was hard to get through the aisles as last minute shopper were practically clearing the shelves. Norma reached the section where the cranberry sauce was at and let out a sigh when she saw there was none left. This was the only grocery store in town, and she doubt any of the smaller convenience stores had any left.

"Excuse me miss, do you guys have anymore of the cranberry sauce in the back?" Norma asked one of the workers who was walking through the aisle.

"No," she answered plainly.

Norma shook her head. "Well do you mind checking? I really-"

"Listen lady, if we had any left, it would have been out here already. It's 6 PM on Christmas Eve and we close in literally 30 minutes. You should have made your shopping plans earlier," the young girl rolled her eyes and walked away.

Norma decided not to make a scene about it since Norman was with her. She sighed and tried to pry her way through the busy crowd gathered on the aisle. When she reached the end of it, she made her way to the first register where she was supposed to meet Dylan at.

She didn't see him and pondered on whether she should wait a couple more minutes or go to the meat department herself. Maybe he got caught up in the crowd or something.

"Mom..." Norman pulled her hand and stared blankly ahead.

"What's wrong sweetie?" Norma looked at her son and then followed his gaze. Her heart dropped as she saw Sam Bates standing there with his hand on Dylan's neck. Norma pushed Norman behind her and tried her best not to panic.

Sam was staring at her with that shit eating grin he used in a public space, trying to pretend like he was a good guy.

"Dylan..." Norma called out. When Dylan moved, Sam kept a good grip on his shoulder and moved towards Norma and their son.

"Hey honey, long time no see," Sam said.

"Sam... what are you doing here?" Norma's heart beat wildly in her chest as she looked at her older son with the ham in his hands.

"Why didn't you come pick me up when I got released a few days ago? Oh, you must have been too busy screwing that cop huh?"

"Dylan get over here, now," Norma ignored Sam and waved her hand towards Dylan, but Sam grabbed onto the boy's arm.

Norma's eyes almost bulged out of her head. "Sam! I swear to God, you let my child go right now or I will yell and scream! You aren't supposed to be anywhere near us!"

"Who the hell do you think you're talking to Norma!?"

"We don't belong to you anymore. You signed the divorce papers. Leave us alone! Boys let's go!" Norma quickly snatched Dylan away from the despicable man and left the store, completely forgetting about the ham in Dylan's hand until she was stopped by a security guard and cashier who had been watching them leave.

"Ma'am!" the security guard yelled to Norma as she made her way to the car.

"Crap," Norma whispered as she turned around.

"I'm going to have to ask you to come back in," the hefty man said.

She thought the guard was stopping her for the altercation she had with Sam. "Oh no no. I'm sorry for the rowdiness I may have caused..."

"Your son is stealing. You need to come back in right now and pay for it, or I'm gonna' have to call the Sheriff's station."

"What?" Norma asked.

The man pointed to the ham in Dylan's hand with an annoyed look.

"Oh! I completely forgot he had that. Dylan, give that to him please." Dylan handed the security guard the ham and looked at him.

"I'm sorry sir. Really, we were just trying to leave quickly and forgot to pay."

"That's what they all say. Moms have their kids take stuff and pretend like they don't know. You're just setting a bad example for him. You pull something like that off again and you'll be banned from the store and arrested."

"Excuse me?" Norma frowned.

The man rolled his eyes and crossed his arms over his chest. "Like I said, if it happens again, you and your little delinquents will never be able to shop here again. And the Sheriff doesn't take to kindly to people stealing from our local businesses," he threatened.

Norma was appalled at this man's snarky attitude. Who was he to even call her boys delinquents?

"You got your ham. Now screw off!" Norma yelled, walking away with her boys. She was tired of dealing with people like this, judging her and making unnecessary comments to make her feel like a bad person.

The man jerked his head back, grabbed Norma's arm as she walked away and she turned around to hit him in the face with her purse. She instantly had flashbacks of how Sam would man handle her, and the thought of him being somewhere near them now had her almost blacking out with rage.

She continued to hit the man with her overlarge purse until another employee from the store had to stop her.

"Someone call the police!" she heard in the distance along with the crying of Norman. Immediately, she went to her boys to apologize and comfort them, and that's when one of the employees from the grocery store grabbed her from behind to detain her.

"What are you doing!?" Norma screamed while keeping eye contact with her two sons. Embarrassment was an understatement. Dylan and Norman had never seen her lose her cool like this before, and now she was probably about to get arrested. Just them, Sam Bates came into view and told the employees and security guard that he was the father of the boys and gave them a story about how Norma was breaking their custody agreement by trying to not let the boys spend his arranged time with them.

Norma was frantic and everything but calm because the employees bought his bullshit story. She saw the police cruisers arrive in the parking lot and hoped Alex was in one of them, as he would be able to clear this whole thing up. Crowds formed as they whispered endlessly about the "bat shit crazy woman" trying to steal a ham and keep her kids away from their good old father.

"Hands behind your back ma'am," a female officer said to Norma with a pair of handcuffs in her hand.

"What? No please, this is a big misunderstanding! I- Please I need the Sheriff here right now. Call him, he'll tell you. My name is Norma Ba- Calhoun."

"You're under arrest for larceny and battery."

"Oh my God!" Norma exasperated.

The cuffs were placed on her and she was patted down by the young woman while the other deputies took statements from bystanders and all involved. Norma tried desperately to explain what happened and when she saw her boys standing next to Sam, her last strength of trying to stay calm flew out the window.

She screamed, cried, and kicked, trying to make her way to the boys before Sam conned his way into taking them or whatever he had planned. She could hear the deputies radioing for Alex to make his way to the scene after she kept yelling his name over and over to the cops.

Some time had passed and her face was red and eyes blurry until she saw Alex jogging his way to her. Norma had fresh tears running down her face when he reached her.

"What the hell is going on?" Alex asked the female deputy.

"Sheriff this woman is being arrested for larceny and battery. Her name is Norma Louise Bates, according to her driver's license."

"What?" Alex asked in a shocking state.

"My name is not Bates anymore!"

Alex looked over at Norma, taking in her state of worry and distress. "Take those cuffs off of her. Now!"

"Sir, you didn't even hear the whole story," the woman frowned.

Alex gave her an incredulous look for back talking him. His deputies knew better, but this one was pretty new. Alex outstretched his arm and demanded the cuff keys. She shook her head, yet complied with his request, handing him the keys to the cuffs and allowing him to remove the metal tightly enclosed around Norma's wrists.

Norma immediately ran to her boys who were sitting in a police cruiser a couple feet away. The officers didn't allow them to leave with Sam because something seemed fishy. When Norma looked around, she realized Sam had bolted. That unimaginable bastard.

Alex walked up to where Norma and her kids where at, ignoring the protests and disapproval he heard from the security guard, employee of the store and his fellow deputies.

"Why'd he uncuff her? She attacked me!" the security guard screamed to one of the deputies. That's when they were made aware that Norma must really be Alex's girlfriend. There were rumors going around about the two of them, but no one knew for sure, until now.

"Norma... can you tell me what's going on?" Alex questioned a little while after letting her comfort Dylan and Norman in the police cruiser. She kissed their heads and closed the door to the car so she could talk privately to Alex.

"Alex, this is a big misunderstanding."

"They say you were trying to steal a ham? And you assaulted a man with your purse. He's claiming he has cuts and bruises, that's why they arrested you for battery and larceny."

"No, no. Alex," she sighed, the cold air forming a fog display her breath. This was not a way to spend Christmas Eve. "Dylan had the ham in his hand. And then I saw him standing there with Sam. I made us walk out and forgot he had the damn thing."

"Sam?"

"Yes. He was here, had his hand on Dylan. He was taunting us and... I didn't know he had already gotten out jail! And now, he's... he's going to find a way to hurt us. I can't..." she was bawling in tears, trying her best not to have a full on break down in the middle of the parking lot.

"How did he know you were here?"

"I have no idea... He must have been watching and following us."

Alex nodded and made a mental note to find the man. "So... how'd that lead to you hitting the security guard with your purse?"

"He said some pretty mean things. Alex, I'm just so tired of men treating me any kind of way, talking to me like I'm trash. Especially when I don't even know them. It was just a reaction I had," she shook her head.

"Okay, I understand," he gently ran his hand down her arm. "Well look, I'm gonna' go talk to the security guard to see what he says."

"Will I go to jail?"

Looking at the blue eyes that he had fell in love with and seeing them so dull and jaded broke his heart. He closed in on her and pulled her into his arms, not caring if anyone was watching them.

Alex let her go and made his way to the security guard and his other deputies who were all standing around clueless and visibly annoyed.

"Hey James, how are you?" Alex greeted. He knew the security guard fairly well, so it felt immensely awkward that he was coming to defend Norma.

"Not so good Alex. What's that all about?"

"What?" Alex exhaled, a little irritated.

"You... taking the cuffs off that lunatic lady. And I saw you touching her or whatever. I get it, she must be your girl or something, but she literally attacked me. You see the cuts her purse put on my face?"

Alex wanted to roll his eyes. The cuts were hardly even visible, but he couldn't deny that they were there.

"James, you want to walk me through what happened?"

"Yeah, but can we go back inside? It's way too cold out here."

Alex nodded and walked inside the store with the man. He sat on the bench by the front entrance while Alex stood in front of him.

"Alright. So I saw that lady arguing with a man in the store, but it ended pretty quickly before I got a chance to intervene. I was still watching her as she was leaving because I noticed her kid had one of the hams we sell in his hand and they didn't pay for it. So I yell after her to stop and she pretended she didn't know her kid had the ham, but that's what they all say. Women... am I right?" he laughed.

Alex saw no humor, and his face expressed such. James shrugged as he looked at Alex. "Anyway, I told her that she better not try that again or she and her kids will be banned. She got mad and told me to go to hell or something like that, so I grabbed her arm and-"

"Wait, you grabbed her?"

"Well yeah."

"Why?"

"Because... I don't know. I just-"

"You were trying to scare her? Because you were already letting her leave, so what reason do you have to be touching her?" Alex squinted at the man and watched him carefully. "It sounds like she was defending herself."

"Oh that is bullshit Alex!"

"James, listen to me," Alex said menacingly. "You try to press charges on her, I'll make sure you live to regret it." Alex wouldn't allow little weasels like James to mess with Norma. He would go above and beyond to protect her and her two sons.

"I can't believe you. I've known you for years man! Isn't she new here? You barely even know her. And isn't she married!? This is against my civil rights!"

"You don't know what you're talking about. Now, do as I say and just leave this incident alone. You know damn well she wasn't trying to steal a ham, and that sexist crap you keep spewing needs to stop. You know that I can burn you James..."

Romero walked away, confident James got his message as the fool wouldn't want his dirtiest secret to get out that Alex had buried years back. He then went and talked to his deputies, telling them to go on and do other assignments. Customers were already dispersing as the night was coming to an end and everyone wanted to be with their families for Christmas Eve. Alex made his way back to the one cruiser Norma and the boys were in and opened the door.

"I cleared it up. You can take the boys home," he said to her. She sighed in relief and jumped out the car to hug him.

"I'm sorry for this," she whispered into his ear before letting him go and hugging her own self for warmth, missing his. "God, I'm so embarrassed. This is not the way I want people to remember me in this town, nor your whole station."

"Trust me, my deputies will know not to breathe a word about what happened. At least not around me. Don't worry Norma."

She nodded and was about to gather the boys when she froze in place and gasped. "What if Sam's at our house waiting for us?"

Alex took her concern to heart and immediately called his deputies, telling them to be on the look out for Sam.

"I got the station on it. They're checking your house right now."

"Okay..." she sighed and rubbed her arms up and down.

"Let's all go to your car and keep warm in there while I wait for my deputies to give me a call on his whereabouts. It shouldn't take long."

Norma, Alex, Dylan, and Norman all went to her green Mercedes with the boys in the back seat and Alex in the passenger. She cranked the car up and turned on the heat to a full blast so that they wouldn't freeze too much. Alex turned around to face the boys who were gazing out each window.

"You guys excited for Christmas tomorrow?" he asked them.

"Yeah! I love Christmas. It's my favorite!" Norman chanted, making Alex chuckle.

"What about you Dylan? What's your favorite holiday?"

"I like Christmas I guess, but Halloween is my favorite," Dylan replied.

"Oh, I change my mind. Halloween is my favorite," Norman put in.

Dylan smacked his lips and rolled his eyes at his brother. "You can't always copy me Norman. You're such an annoying little brat."

"Am not! Mom! Dylan called me a brat!"

"Kids... please..." Norma sighed while rubbing her forehead. Alex looked at her and then back at the boys.

"Norman stop whining all the time!" Dylan yelled at his brother. Norman started crying and kicking his feet. Alex could tell Norma did not have the energy to handle them, as she stayed quiet and shook her head.

"Hey Norman, it's okay. Everybody loves Halloween," Alex tried to comfort.

"He doesn't need to be babied. Sam said if you treat him like that, he'll grow up to be a sissy," Dylan said.

Norma whipped her head around and angrily glared at her eldest son. He was only nine, but too mature for his age and had a mouth on him that she never knew how to control.

"Dylan, don't you ever say that again. Apologize to your brother right now."

"Sorry," he said lowly to Norman.

Norman smiled and then turned to look at Alex. "Do you like Halloween?"

"Yeah. I loved it when I was you guys' age," Alex smiled back. "Who do you like to dress up as?"

"Spider man was my favorite costume!"

Alex laughed at the enthusiasm of the boy and looked at Dylan "What about you Dylan?"

He sighed before answering. "I had a hulk costume I really liked. It had inflatable muscles but Norman messed it up, so it doesn't inflate anymore."

Alex nodded as he listened to Dylan. He could tell the boy was easily annoyed with his younger sibling, which was a little but amusing because Dylan was so much mature for his age whereas Norman was still really young minded and innocent like he should be.

"You know... you guys are lucky to have one another. I was an only child, but I would've loved to have a brother," Alex said.

"It's not all that great," Dylan mumbled while Norman really didn't get what that meant.

"Dylan, as much as Norman may annoy you, you have to remember he's only five. He's a kid, and you seem really smart for your age, but... cmon' he's still your baby brother. You love him don't you?"

"Of course I do," Dylan answered and shot Alex a look.

"Good. You, your brother, and your mom, you guys have to be a unit together. You remember what the program taught you about kindness and discipline?"

"Yeah..."

"Good," Alex turned back around to his seat as the two boys started to engage in their own conversation now. He looked at Norma who had her head resting on the seat with her eyes closed. Alex grabbed her hand, causing her eyes to open.

"You okay?"

"Yes, thank you."

Just then, his phone dinged alerting him of a call.

"Romero," Alex said into the phone. He talked to one of his deputies who informed them that they picked up Sam Bates and charged him with breaking and entering, as he had indeed broken into the house he used to live in with Norma.

"Alright thanks," Alex hung up and look over at Norma. "Sam is at the station. My deputies arrested him for breaking into the house you live in."

Norma looked into his eyes with a pained expression. "He is never going to leave us alone."

"Norma, I promise you have nothing to worry about. He is going back to jail because he committed a crime while on probation. That house was given to you in the divorce settlement papers, so he had no reason going in there. Plus, he is supposed to stay away from you guys."

"And what happens when he gets out of jail again? He'll come back. This will be a never ending cycle..."

Alex didn't want her to think that way, but he couldn't blame her. He was starting to learn that Sam was obsessed, and although he was forced to sign the divorce papers, he wouldn't leave Norma alone. He wanted to control her and treat her as though she was his property. Well, as long as Alex was with her, he wouldn't let that happen.

"I'm gonna take the cruiser over there back to the station and finish some work up there. Can I stop by later? It'll probably be around 10ish."

"Yeah could you?" Norma gave him a faint smile, cheering up a bit at the thought of seeing him later.

"Okay. Listen... I understand how worried you are about Sam, but I promise you have nothing to worry about anymore. I'm taking care of it," Alex looked back at the boys and then at Norma. He didn't know if she had told Dylan and Norman about their relationship yet, so he didn't kiss her like he wanted to. He would have to have that conversation with her later. For now, he squeezed her hand gently and exited her car.

*deviatedrift*

Norma entered her dark house with a heavy, growing Norman on her hip and Dylan following close behind her. She turned on the lights and was thankful Sam didn't destroy the house as a way of expressing his anger. She felt sad all of a sudden. The incident at the store had ruined the Christmas spirit. Norma hoped this year would be a good Christmas since it would be the first time without Sam, yet, the man still found a way to destroy it.

She went to Norma's and Dylan room where she placed Norman in his bed, making sure to remove his shoes and tucked him in. Dylan got in his own bed and reached for his handheld game system. She looked at her two sons, grateful that she had them. They were the first ones to teach her what love was. For the longest, Norma thought she loved Sam when she had an affair with him, but raising her two sons showed her what it truly was.

"Dylan, I'm sorry for today. I still can't believe you and your brother had to see me like that."

Dylan looked at his mother, their similar blue eyes melting together as the sentiment came forth. "It's really not your fault. I forgot I was still carrying the ham. I just- I got scared... seeing Sam there."

"Oh honey, it's not your fault," Norma sat on his bed with him and kissed his head as she embraced him. "I don't want you to worry about him though."

"Is your boyfriend doing something about it?"

Norma let him go and looked at him again. She hadn't really established her status with Alex to her sons yet, but of course Dylan would know something was going on between them.

"Uh, Alex?"

Dylan nodded and waited for an answer.

"He might... so how do you feel about him?"

The nine year old stared at her and eventually shrugged. "I didn't like him at first, but... I think he's smart. And he helped me a lot when I was in the program. I think he's good."

"I'm so relieved Dylan," Norma smiled widely. "Yeah, Alex and I are trying something out. I don't know if I'm considered his girlfriend though," she laughed.

"Do you like him?"

"Yes," she answered quickly.

"And he likes you too. I can tell. And I know you hang out with him when me and Norman go to Ethan's house."

"You're too smart for your own good," she pinched his cheek lightly and giggled at him. "Get some sleep. You know Christmas is tomorrow." She left his room shortly after and got her own self ready for bed. It was only 8 PM now, and she wanted to wait up for Alex, but she found herself growing tired. The events of today really took a toll on her energy. Norma decided to watch TV in the living room in order to keep herself up, but 30 minutes into a bad TV show she fell asleep.