Alex pulled up along side the curb in front of the house she knew all too well. She climbed out her car and made her way up to the front door. She looked at the toys scattered all over the years, Aunt Cindy had always done her best to keep it looking nice.
Alex pressed the doorbell and waited. A few seconds later she could hear some small feet running towards the door. She wondered which of her cousins would answer. The door flew open and there stood Lee Henry, the oldest of the Hermann clan.
"Alex!" He shouted before wrapping his older cousin in a hug.
Alex laughed and wrapped her arms around him. "Hey Lee! I missed you!"
The two cousins part ways and Aunt Cindy turned the corner to see who was at her house. "Alexandra." Her aunt smiled and then embraced her in a hug.
"Hey aunt Cindy." Alex returned her hug.
Cindy then held Alex out at arms length to get a good look at her. She looked her niece up and down and smiled. "You need to eat."
Alex couldn't help but laugh. She was always a bit small and no matter how much she ate she never gained any weight. Her body size was always a blessing and a curse.
"Come on dear I just made dinner."
Alex sniffed the air and could smell Cindy Hermann's famous chili, causing a smile to form on her face. "Smells delicious." The two women headed inside and too the kitchen, where the rest of the Hermann clan was getting ready to eat.
Alex had just finished carrying her stuff up into the apartment above her aunt and uncles garage. She sat down on the bed and looked around. The walls were bare and the rom felt so small compared to the house she shared with Mason. But her she was starting over again in the city she should of never left.
There was a buzzing sound coming from the kitchen table. Alex got up and retrieved her phone to see Mason was calling her. She quickly hit the ignore button and sat the phone back down.
She knew eventually she would have to talk to him but right now she wasn't ready. Another buzz came signaling a text had come through. Alex picked up her phone to read the test.
Mason: I'm coming to Chicago to bring you back. I won't let you go that easily.
A lump formed in Alex's throat, the thought of seeing Mason made her sick to her stomach. She was hoping for a civil divorce but clearly that was not going to be the case.
She turned her phone off laying it on the table before going and curling up on the bed. She held her body close as tears began to form and the shakes set in. Just the thought of seeing Mason scared her because she knew he was going to be furious.
When Kelly had gotten back from the car accident call he had saw Alex's note about texting or stopping by after his shift. He had sent her a few messages through out the night but she never responded which was very unlike her.
Kelly tried not to worry to much but as soon as the next shift came in he was jumping into his car and heading for the Hermann residence to check on Alex.
He pulled his car up behind hers just as Christopher Hermann was pulling into the driveway. As Kelly approached the garage, Hermann caught sight of him.
"Severide?"
"Hey Hermann. Just here to see Alex."
Hermann smirked. "Cindy said she came over last night and should be in the apartment."
"Thanks Hermann."
"Anytime." Kelly headed up to the apartment and Hermann couldn't help but shake his head and chuckle.
Alexandra had been home less than 24 hours and here Kelly Severide was already back by her side. Hermann then headed inside to see his wife and kids.
"Mason please stop!" Alex screamed out as another blow was deliver to her side.
"Who is he Alex!" Mason screamed at his wife as he took a fist full of her hair.
"He's no one! Just a new coworker!" She screamed as she could feel bits of her hair being pulled out. "Mason please stop!" Her tears mixed with the red blood from the cut on her cheek.
Knock Knock
Alex jolted up from her sleep as the knocking on her door kept going. She quickly got up and walked over to the door. Her hand hovered over the door knob scared it may be Mason.
"Alex you in there?" She felt a sense of relief as she heard the voice of her best friend come from the other side.
She then unlocked the door and turned the handle. As the door came open there stood Kelly Severide in his jeans, simple v-neck t-shirt, his leather jacket and boots. "Hey Kelly." She stepped aside to allow him to enter, closing the door behind him. Alex did her best to smile and act as if everything was okay.
But what she doesn't know is Kelly heard her screaming just a few seconds ago. Kelly knew something had happened but he didn't know how to bring it up. He didn't want to push her away but he knew his best friend. He knew she wasn't okay.
The two of them walked over to the couch and took a seat. "Sorry to just come over but I texted you a few times and you didn't respond."
Alex glanced over at her phone still sitting on the kitchen table. "I must of forgotten to plug it in. I'm sorry." Alex kept trying to keep up her fake smile. "How was the rest of shift?" She quickly changed the subject.
"Boring. We actually didn't have any calls all night."
"What?" Alex was shocked. "That's like unheard of. We should go to breakfast to celebrate!"
Kelly chuckled. "Eleven City Diner?"
"Yes! Let me shower and we can go." Kelly nodded as he watched his best friend jump up off the couch to head to the bathroom.
Kelly waited till he heard the door lock before he got up to plug her phone in. It was not like Alex to forget to plug it in. The screen lit up as it began to charge and Kelly couldn't help himself.
He knew Alex would be at least 30 minutes so he quickly turned on her phone and waited for everything to load. He pulled down her notification screen so she wouldn't know he was looking at her messages. That's when he saw 20 texts from Mason.
Mason: I'm headed to Chicago to get you back.
Mason: I'm not letting you go that easy.
Mason: You're mine for forever and always. No one else can have you. I love you. Do you still love me?
Mason: Alex?!
Mason: Bitch answer. me!
There were several more messages but Kelly had seen all he needed to see. His suspicions were confirmed and he would try to talk to Alex. He turned her phone back off and went and sat back down on the couch.
His palms began to sweat as he tried to think of how to talk to her about Mason. Talk to her about why she left him. Kelly knew something terrible had happened, Alex is not one to give up on people.
