Hey, everyone still hanging in there with this story! As you will be able to tell, it sort of follows the bullet points of Alexis being arrested and the events that follow as well as Sonny's Nixon Falls ordeal, but I take a big creative license on the details to make it more Sonny and Alexis centered. This chapter is a tiny bit filler with some surprises, but if you hang with me, I promise that the next chapter will reveal the foundation of Alexis's drinking problem and move the story along more. There are a few "easter eggs" nodding back to classic Sexis and even one pointing to one that is a tiny homage to my favorite Sexis fanfic. Thank you so much for reading!

Part 4

He'd made the water as hot as she could stand it. Alexis was in more hot water than she could stand lately. So, she appreciated that there was someone in her life at the moment who was concerned with what was overwhelming, not just what she turned to when she was overwhelmed. It felt good to be turning to Sonny again.

She'd pushed everyone away. It would be too hard to do this, to plead guilty, if she let him in again. She thought about calling the girls - maybe they would be worried or maybe they would think she was just sipping a few too many vodka martinis at the Grille. And she should, she should probably let them know she was okay-well, that would be a lie wouldn't it? Another lie to add to the pile. She shook her head in frustration and let her clothes pool at her feet. She stood naked in front of the bath he made her. She knew she would stand naked in front of him because she could never hide from him. She would pull her guts out in front of him this time if she had to - she couldn't live this way anymore. And miraculously or maybe by some "mob"-ular spell, she had her best friend back again and she didn't want anything to pop this air tight surrounding her - breathing in the presence of the one person that knew her better than she knew herself after all these years.

"Hey, Son-Sonny," Alexis called, searching the nearly dark room for him as she walked slowly down the stairs. "Sonny, are you here?"

Sonny stepped out of the kitchen to see Alexis standing on the stairs.

"Hey, honey. I'm here. I was just taking care of a few things." He watched as her eyebrows creased and she tried to focus. "I thought you were going to relax. You ... ummm … you look good in my robe." He flashed her a smile and she tightened the belt around her waist.

"Did you need something?"

"Where … were you talking to someone?" She wasn't looking him in the eyes.

"Alexis, can you look at me please? Lex?"

"Hmmm … " She asked, trying to resist his finger lifting her chin to meet his gaze.

"What do you need - from me?"

She moved his hand from her face and wrapped hers tightly around it.

"Could you stay with ... ?"

Sonny heard the door shut behind him and wasn't sure if Alexis would miss it or not. Right now he didn't care - he was focused on her.

"Alexis, can I stay with you? Is that what you're asking?" He picked up her hand and played sweetly with her fingers. "Alexis?"

He looked up from the beautiful, long fingers he was holding. Alexis's face was frozen in shock and when her mouth melted from that perfect round "O" shape she placed a hand on his shoulder and squeezed on tight like a talon.

"Sonny," she whispered as if she were in the presence of a ghost. He glanced back at the person she was squinting toward, trying to make his shape out even though he was standing fully in front of her. He was staring back, although, as well as Sonny knew his friend, he knew that he was looking at Alexis with care not scrutiny looking for calmness or shake in her body, dark circles under her eyes, the puffiness from her crying - he would notice maybe even before he did because it had been his job to watch her closely for so many years.

"Sonny, I - I left my glasses up stairs .. is that … is he?" She finally looked him in his eyes.

"He's real, Lex."

"What the hell? Is everyone coming back from the dead today?" She stepped off the bottom step and inched closer. "Damn, coffee importers." Sonny heard her mutter under her breath. He stifled a laugh.

"Johnny, could you say something, please?"

"Hello, Ms. Davis. How are you?"

Alexis placed one hand on either side of his face and looked deep into his eyes and then stepped back.

"That's a complicated question these days … I've … I've missed you." Sonny watched as Johnny blushed. "And, Johnny, It's Alexis. You don't work …" She turned to look back at Sonny. "Does he work for you?"

Sonny smiled slightly, "That's a complicated question these days." Alexis quickly turned back to Johnny.

"Well, you don't work for me and I'm not a lawyer or even an upstanding member of society. In fact, in a couple of weeks … I'll be in jail. So, you know, no titles." She reached out her hand and he took it, squeezing it in his own. "Just friends."

Johnny nodded. "Friends. Alexis … I've missed you." It was her turn to blush. She shook her head.

"Who I used to be," she muttered under her breath. "There isn't anyone who has cared about me in the past that isn't angry with me right now. The word hypocrite is thrown my way regularly these days." She looked down absentmindedly rubbing at a lingering pain in her wrist.

"Is your wrist doing much better?"

"Yeah, it just aches at weird times since I broke … You're still watching me. She squinted her eyes toward Sonny. "He's still watching me?"
Sonny shrugged. "Complicated."

"Oh." She took a deep breath. "Well, I just came downstairs to see if my glasses were down here. So, it's incredibly difficult to find glasses when you aren't wearing your glasses, you know? She shuffled a few pillows around on the couch.

Bullshit. She was deflecting and he knew it. She was prepared to be vulnerable and now she was scared he'd been keeping things from her. She was so afraid of losing his trust again, and it seemed that he was the last person in her life that hadn't turned their back on her.

"Sonny, said you were relaxing?"

"Uh, yes. I'm sure that the bath water is cold now and here I am standing in front of you in my - Sonny's - robe. I'll just. I'm going to go back upstairs."

"Alexis, you don't have to go upstairs. Johnny needed to tell me a few things and then he's leaving. He brought some supplies. You're welcome to stay. I trust you to hear anything he might say. You know that."

"Upstairs." She started up the flight of stairs. "Relax. Breathe."

"Alexis," Johnny called after her. "If you don't mind me saying, you look beautiful … tired, scared, but beautiful."

She nodded. A little too emotional to respond verbally, but she mouthed two words, Thank you. Then she pointed to the top of the stairs.

"I won't be long, honey. I promise."

He turned to walk toward the table where Johnny had set two cups of steaming hot coffee when he heard her body hit the stairs. He pushed Johnny back down into his seat as he began to rise and took the stairs two at a time to get to her. She never made a noise, but tears were streaming down her face. He kept his voice low so as not to embarrass her.

"Lex, are you okay?" He asked as he saw her, long legs down the top few stairs and her torso across the landing. She pushed up for a moment and then lay her head back down on the carpet.

"I'm fine. I tripped. I'm fine. Just go … I'm just clumsy. I had a minute of clumsiness. The glasses … I couldn't see well. You know this place is really poorly lit. If this was six months ago, I would sue you."

He put his head down on her back. "Are you hurt?"

"Yes. Everywhere. Everything hurts so much."

"We're going to get you through this …"

"Sonny, you don't have to -"

"I don't have to do what, Alexis? Be your friend?"

"Help me off the steps. Just give me a minute." He kissed the spot on her back his lips had been closest to and rose, helping her into a sitting position.

"You're not clumsy." He paced his words, remembering another time Alexis had fallen and claimed clumsiness instead of placing blame where it deserved to be - with Carly. "And I know that you keep your glasses in the inside pocket of my robe when you wear it." He reached toward the robe folded across her chest, rising and falling at much too fast a rate. He kept his gaze on her as he reached to pull out the glasses. She stopped him, holding his hand to her heart for a beat. When she let go he placed the tortoise shell glasses in her hand. "Besides, I know you only wear these for reading." She smiled a small smile.

"You got me."

She had a small scratch on her cheek where she'd grazed the handrail. It wasn't bleeding but it would bruise. He touched it softly, careful not to hurt her. She leaned into his safe hands.

"Can I help you up?" Her hands were shaking fervently. Her body trembled. He could tell she was afraid - never of him but of what was happening to her.

She nodded.

"Please."

Sonny sipped his coffee a little more quickly than normal. He listened as Johnny caught him up on everything that had been happening while he was gone.

"The five families were restless while you were gone. Your territory was in danger. Carly has been acting as head of the organization while you've been gone."

"Carly?" He said a bit surprised, yet not surprised. "Why isn't Jason taking care of things?"

"He was in jail. Carly came up with a plan to break him out of Pentonville …" Sonny lifted a hand to stop his trusted friend. "I don't want to hear about Carly right now, about the business … What happens, happens … I need to help Alexis. I want to be here for her."

"Sonny, there is one more thing you need to know."

"Make it quick."

"They're getting married. Jason and Carly. They're - they're engaged." Johnny watched him pause the mug to his lips. He sat it down on the table. "It was a decision they made together to show the families that they're serious about forming a strong alliance to run the territory. To honor your memory … to protect your family …" Sonny shook his head.

"I can't think about that right now, Johnny."

"But …"

"Alexis, is hurting. Don't you understand? I've let her down too many times. And this time I could lose her." Sonny placed the bottle of pills he'd slipped off the table and into his pocket earlier.

Johnny simply nodded.

"When I found her earlier these were on the coffee table, she had a bottle of vodka next to her on the floor, and she was rocking back and forth crying harder than I've ever seen her cry." For her mother. Sonny added to himself.

"Diane said, the decision to plead guilty was Alexis's. She's been trying to change her mind for weeks."

"Damn." He spat as he scalded his tongue on the coffee. "Why?"

"I'm afraid she's the only one that can answer that, boss." Sonny nodded.

"Did you get everything I asked for?"

"Yeah."

"No, one can find out we're here, Johnny. No, one finds out I'm alive. I need you to help me keep this safe space for Alexis to begin healing."

"Jason. Carly. Do nothing?"

Sonny shook his head. "Everything remains as is - everyone thinks I'm dead, let me be dead … to that world - I'm gone."

"Okay. How long?"

"Until she can stand on her feet again."