Well, it really was as comfortable as she'd said it would be. Dimly lit now, with a fire as there always seemed to be. His study was always welcoming to her, but right about now this was the only place she could possibly ever let it out if she had to, and things were already set up for that express purpose. There were two large armchairs by the hearth and a whole case full of various very expensive wines resting on the coffee table, along with two wine glasses waiting for them when they reached it. Well, when Braxiatel called for something, suffice it to say the order wasn't responded to in half-measures.

Bernice locked the door securely behind them. Braxiatel didn't quite settle into his chair, he just really couldn't yet. Perhaps this was what he needed too. Allow him to relax. Despite Benny popping in once in a while, they hadn't had one of these talks in over fifteen years. They weren't usually about anything particularly serious, but this was a start, at the very least.

But Benny fell into it instantly, tensed muscles relaxing at the cushioning. Closing her eyes, she let go of a bated breath. "Prepare to be my drunken psychiatrist."

"I'm sure I've been through worse." Braxiatel held out his glass for her patiently.

"Depends on your priorities, Brax." Leaning over to the bottle of Chardonnay she'd personally selected and that the servers had already opened for them to start off with, she poured the golden liquid into both glasses, took a sniff, and raised hers high. "First glass. Cheers?"

"Cheers!" Taking a sip and letting it hit various parts of his palette, Brax nodded approvingly. "Hm. Good choice."

"Thanks!" she smiled awkwardly at the mild compliment, repeatedly combing through her short hair with her finger. After that brief bout of shyness, her features sharpened and she took a swig from the glass, holding it casually and pointing the conversation back at him, staring- challenging. "Now. Let's get down to business. I definitely won't be smashed enough for a good while yet. So... why not we talk about your problems? I'll be able to forget anyway."

He chuckled at the very notion, but she caught onto his deflection right away. "My problems? I don't have any problems. I'm perfect."

"Uh huh." She'd already finished her first glass and quickly poured another. "Really? Well- what about the Doctor?"

He shifted in his seat and knocked back part of his own wine. "Ah... well... that would require quite a little bit more than one bottle to unpack. Things with my brother have always been rather- complicated."

That much she knew. Obviously. So she just took another taste. "Mmm... I guess we're even then- for now..."

"Or did you mean this other Doctor you've been running around with from the alternate dimension that apparently got destroyed?" he inquired.

"Doesn't matter." That comment came nonchalantly with another top-up of white wine. "Either one, honestly."

He grumbled a bit, "I don't have much opinion of the one you've been with. I don't really know him and, as you said, he's not really my brother." The fact that Brax didn't say anything particularly negative after being the one to pick her up where he couldn't twice really spoke to his level of patience. But he did get himself a second glass of wine.

Another fill of Bernice's and the first bottle was empty. Preemptively she picked another from the case and popped the cork. This one was a red vintage- Malbec by the looks of things. She was evidently actually getting a bit tipsy now, using shorter words and sentences. She nodded, to herself and his answer. "Bit cold. And swears at stuff a lot more. Well- for him. And the temper. Very UP and down."

"Hm, well... that doesn't actually sound too far off from his first incarnation towards the end. He wasn't always like that, but... some things I suppose you simply don't get over." Braxiatel didn't clarify what he meant by that, other than that he was eyeing her and the empty bottle before both of them.

"Said he's a lot younger. Could be it. And, y'know. Universe destroying war." She paused, gesturing vaguely. "But you... being like that doesn't surprise me. Even when he's nice everyone- everyone hates him." And with that, the last of the Chardonnay was drained from her cup, the alcohol warming her throat as it passed down.

"Me being cold and temperamental or me not having much of an opinion of him?" he sipped at his own wine as he watched her nearly fumble and spill the Malbec.

Honesty was starting to hit Benny by this point, because now she was making up words. She stared at his lips as he savoured his drink. "Bit of both, I think. Y'know. More... normal Time Lord-y stuff."

At her slightly slurred response, Brax finally registered how much she was consuming compared to him. He was hardly two glasses in. She was- five... six? "You're drinking that awfully fast. You know that's really very expensive wine, right?"

Not like he couldn't afford it, she bluntly said, "Yeah." This was nothing. There'd need to be another bottle at least, probably.

At her earlier question, Braxiatel shifted in his seat and adjusted his cufflinks again- trying to be truthful for once without it going too deep into buried memories that haunted and ate away inside of him- not a burden for anyone else to bear, or to hear and use against him. "Well, Benny... I have my reasons for being the way I am."

"You have strange reasons- but you have them. That's something I like about you, Brax," Benny slurred, sloshing a bit of red wine as her hands fumbled with the bottle. Words were just slipping out now. She doubted it'd be long. But this was really good wine, and she couldn't just back out now.

He ran a hand through his hair and thought about it, eyes sparkling in the dim light as he finally replenished his glass again. "I think a lot of my reasons are rather more straightforward than you might be led to believe, but I'm not sure I own enough wine for us to get into that."

She completely lost all sense of where the conversation was supposed to be at, grinning and flushed, alcohol hitting her system like a hovercar to the face- and him showing off his looks, intentionally or not, definitely lent itself to things going further in some way. "Mmm... heh. Yeahhh... I miss dIGs. An dirt. And I misssedd you -"

Things seemed perfectly normal and casual until the second part hit him. "Well, I can send you on a dig if you... me? You missed me?"

Benny laughed and pointed, just a little. "KneW you werre self loafing- never belleev anyboody give a crap bout yoU-"

This was supposed to be excellent Malbec, but it was beginning to leave an unpleasantly bitter taste in Braxiatel's mouth. He shrugged. "Well, that's simply because no one ever has. Except, apparently, you. And maybe Romana, but that's really just because I was useful to her."

This pour, she fumbled and almost dropped the bottle. Brax leaned in to catch it in the event she did, but she managed herself. Barely. She didn't seem particularly happy anymore. "I alWaays hav. Almos died a lot but hey life got intresting."

He raised his eyebrows. She was a terrible liar to begin with, even worse while under the influence. So she had to think this was true, at the very least. "Really? Well... I appreciate hearing that."

"cAUSe yOU make life intressting, Braxxx-'' Bernice's glass sloshed onto her lap.

Brax scanned her closely. "Please don't give yourself alcohol poisoning." Then he really checked over what she was saying. "And here I thought you didn't like all my schemes."

"Are yOU afraID...? obf knowqwing whhhy i stayed-" she stared closely with the most serious face that could be reasonably managed at this point.

That comment only made him more confused. "I assumed you stayed because I provide a stable home base and at least a chance at a steady income."

"Wellphf- that tooo... YoO-re soooOO STUpidF," she exclaimed. This was the most explicit she'd ever managed. It was her getting embarrassed, intoxicated, throwing all dignity to the wind in favour of getting it over with, and yet he still didn't get it. Her only coherent and put-together thoughts by now were frustration.

"Oh, am I?" If it wasn't Benny, he might have even been slightly offended.

"I'm like tHhis b'CAUSe I LIKE UYOU. iDIoT-" A statement that was painfully true. 'Like this,' though, as many subjects regarding Braxiatel, had very mixed meanings.

This was really rather a lot of effort to say something she'd previously done on the regular. Unless there was something dangerous behind that- it only left him flattered. "Well, thank you, Benny, I like you too."

Her eyes had been a bit moist before, but this was what tipped things over the edge and allowed a single tear to run down her cheek. "...Really?"

"Of course, you're my best friend," he answered, missing the point by a mile... again.

She slammed a hand against the table, making the case of wine rattle and clink, before falling back into the chair. "I licke youUUuu... As in lUove yoU. BWICKhead-"

He completely froze, nearly choking- not quite sure what to think at all. It took a while to get any words out, "You... you what?" Which was evidently not the response she was hoping for, if any.

"I gotta foorget thiiiiiiiis alreeedy..." She grabbed for the half-empty dark green bottle and sloshed it over until some of it managed to make it into the glass. "YoU shount know, I shoulnt knoooow... Weeeeeeee'rrrre iDeeiTts..." She started guzzling like there was no tomorrow. Which, if things didn't go according to plan- the plan Benny really didn't have much of at all, was starting to get rather likely now.

After a long period of silence trying to register it at all, Braxiatel stammered again. "You... love me?"

She grimaced and nodded. "...yesss..."

His breath hitched. Deep down he was really panicking just a little bit. Well, and it was as good a time as any for Brax to be the one reaching for the bottle. Ignoring the flavour for once, he knocked it back and poured more. He didn't try to get intoxicated often. But whatever this was, often it certainly, very clearly wasn't. All he could think of now was coming up with ideas of how he possibly could do that to her. And if the morning came and she remembered, how he could apologize for it.

What came out of his mouth, after all those gears grinding in his head, was "Why?"

"whYYYYY? i dunNO WHYYYY... dass wyy i'm DWUNK." She was starting to cry again, voice cracking more and a few tears running off of her face.

"Oh." He blinked.

"loovve- thaaassssssss wats in dA aair, Brax..." Benny hissed.

"Bernice, that is a terrible decision, really."

She nearly spilled the entirety of what remained as she got yet another top-up. "Ya thHINk I dunt KNOWWW dat? buT i hasss to say iDt envENtly! i was dYYINggg agiain an i hant tollddd youu. iT HuRT, Brax-" With everything she was saying, his name was the one word that Benny managed to keep coherent.

In the most calming tone he could muster at the moment, he placed his glass down and gestured for her to relax. "Okay, it's okay, you're not dying now and you told me." And, after rather a lot of deliberation, possibly slightly tipsy deliberation, finally starting to admit it himself, he added- "And... the feeling is mutual."

She spat out the contents of her mouth and let go of the glass to shake her hands around, making it fall to the ground and shatter, doubtlessly leaving stains on the carpet in addition to a million little shards. "WAT?!"

He stood firm though. No backing out for him either. Face and voice softening with mild flushing in his cheeks and the tips of his ears, he said, "I care for you very deeply. I would hardly be carrying you to bed when you're drunk and tucking you in if I didn't."

But Benny was still flabbergasted. Was he delusional? Was she delusional? Did somebody replace him? Burping, she ranted, "e*XCUSE me?! im hallllukinatingg- yOU'DF NEBVeR SAAY THAT! WAT IS wRONg wIt YOUU, tHIsD cANt hAPPeN?! JUST LIIEEEEE-"

His features were rather unreadable at this point. He must have gone through all five stages of grief and then some. "You really are a very confusing human. I thought most humans like to have their feelings reciprocated?"

Eyes wide and practically climbing on the back of her chair, she shouted at a rather unreasonable volume, "how dwrunk arr youU?!"

"...Barely tipsy."

Dazed and confused with his admission hitting her like a brick, self-deprecation was all she could manage. "im sooo stupiiiddf.."

He shook his head. "You're not stupid Benny, you're just very, very drunk."

He liked her back. She didn't know if that made it better or worse, but she shouldn't have said it, ever, because all those walls she spent years building around this were tumbling down and her eyes were red and runny. "I dont knoww wHYY i regret thisss..."

He paused, glancing left and right, head resting on folded hands. "I... don't. Regret this."

Bernice was practically bawling now. She was not a crier when she had this much normally, but this was different. "whYYY is it somhow wortf youuu like me backk.. itzzSS alll reaLLl annnd iM dwunk-"

He shuffled and adjusted his tie. "Yes, well... you did polish off over a bottle and a half all by yourself..."

There was really only one thing that could comfort her right now. Her eyes weren't faucets anymore, but Benny was still sulking with puffy eyes and the occasional tear. Getting up and steadying herself on the armrest, she had one request. "...hUG? Brax..."

"I... yes, okay. Come here," he gently ushered her over.

What initially was going to be a simple hug, with him getting up and then meeting in the middle... did not end up being that. Bernice stumbled over to his chair and collapsed onto Braxiatel's lap, grabbing onto his clothes as she pulled her feet up and sprawled across him. But she still held him tight and rested her head below his shoulder- and judging by the angle of her ear, doing so to listen to his hearts beat. Now that she was close, he could tell that she smelled absolutely pungent. Alcohol, sweat, tears- but he wasn't mad, he'd adjust. Benny's warmth, though- was making up for it anyway.

She hummed softly and smiled up at him faintly, still grasping like he'd float away if she didn't hold on, still soaking his suit with tears- happy ones now, at least. "hmmmm- fthanks yoU... Braxxx-"

He made an effort to get comfortable again with Benny lying on him, without ruining it for her. "Of course. And Benny?"

"Mhmmm... yeAHH?" she stared up at him pleadingly, hazel eyes sparkling with the tears.

"I'm glad you're home," he gently touched her cheek to wipe away a tear with his thumb, and the hand drifted back up to her hair, stroking it. Tender and soft in a way he hadn't been in a long time, but what seemed a relief to be. Or perhaps he had indeed had too much.

She sighed, only feeling relaxed after the tension right here. "me toooo... mmmmmm..." Benny's eyes fluttered shut and her head slipped back down onto the armrest of the chair. Slowly, she went limp, legs hanging off the other. "Mmmm... zzzzzzzz..." and she drifted off.

Well, it looked like he was stuck now. She seemed so peaceful for the first time in ages, it would be rude to wake her up. Still absentmindedly stroking her hair, he commented, "Hmm... I really should have brought a book..."

Humans slept for how many hours again?