6

Much to Nicky's surprise (and everyone else's) the followings weeks were the busiest at Litchfield history. What she had just assumed was a typical dive of shares, turned out to be something more serious. A few of her investors were looking to sell but because she had always been good to them, they were willing to give her a month or so to resolve the issues.

Issues. Where did she even begin? Like herself, Piper had been arriving at the office early in the morning and staying until late. She was grateful to the blonde for trying her best to help and had promised her a day off as soon as things went back to normal.

In and out, she had people all day coming into her office. Most of them had no clue what they were doing and she began to wonder how the hell she hired them in the first place. Well, she thought to herself, in stressful times like these, it makes it easier to pick out the batch in case I have to do some layoffs.

At least three times a day she held meetings with other top executives. The last was reserved for Piper and herself. They would go over the two meetings, discuss their options, and then head back to their own offices to do more revisions.

It was during one of these meetings that Alex had let herself in. She'd stood at the back of the room with her arms crossed and a blank expression. Nicky knew that while Alex looked somewhat uninterested, she was intently listening.

After the meeting was done, Alex had tried giving Nicky advice. Nicky kindly declined by saying that if Litchfield were to bankrupt (something Alex thought was very unlikely), it would be by her own doing and not by outside interference.

"Not that I don't think you know what you're doing," Nicky had said, "but I don't want anyone to think you had anything to do with the decisions I make."

"I know." Alex replied.

"I trust you. But I'll reserve asking for help when I see I have no other choice."

"Fair deal."

That didn't stop Alex from attending the meetings and while she wasn't saying anything, it gave Nicky a sense of relief. Because even though she had prohibited Alex from intervening, she knew if there was truly something out of hand, Alex would mention it.

During one of those meetings, Piper had been going through her own ideas. Alex, leaning against the corner like usual, was looking at Piper as she spoke.

"And the foreign accounts are draining our capitol."

"Are you sure it's a good idea to get rid of them?" Healy asked. He was being calm and friendly. Something that surprised both Nicky and Piper. Then again they were all in this together. What mattered the most was securing their jobs. Once that was done, they could go back to their rivalries.

"They're not bringing customers into the market. I think we should sell them and use the revenue to invest locally. We have an abundance of customers willing to partner up with us here. The only problem is we don't have enough to buy ourselves into them…"

"But if we sell them then we will have enough." Nicky finished for Piper. Nicky took notes and looked over to Alex who had an amused smile on her face and was still looking at Piper. Piper of course, was oblivious to this as she was busy going over some numbers.

"I don't think this is the best way. There is still potential in the foreign market we have yet to tap into," Linda, their purchasing specialist said. "If we hold out we can break through and our revenue will triple within a year."

"We have been waiting to break through for the last three years," Piper said without looking up. She was frowning down at her notebook while simultaneously shaking her head. "I thinks it's time we withdraw. We lost a fifth of our capitol. I say we take our losses and go."

"And leave everything to the Russians?" Linda argued.

"The Russians know what they're doing. That's their territory. From the beginning we had no clue." Piper fought back. She looked up from her notepad to Nicky, "Scrap the foreign market. Reinvest and hope for the best. We should have never gone abroad."

Linda pushed her chair back and stood defiantly. "This is ridiculous. You're going off on what? A hunch?"

Piper held her notes up, "The numbers. I'm going off of numbers." She raised an eyebrow waiting for Linda to respond. Instead, Linda left in a loud huff and hurried out the door almost bumping into Alex.

"Well then," Nicky said as she collected her papers into a neat stack, "it's settled. We will sell our foreign accounts." She turned to Daya who was sitting across from her, "You will take care of this and have Linda help you. I also want you to keep a close eye on the price we're selling these for. And whatever you do," she paused, "do not sell to the Russians. Keep this under the table as long as you can."

Daya nodded before shuffling out with the rest of the staff. Once the door was shut, Alex walked over to the table and took a seat one chair away from Piper. Nicky didn't fail to see that Piper didn't flinch. She seemed to be growing used to Alex's presence. No doubt seeing her in the office was doing the both of them good. Hell, they'd even exchanged a greeting here and there. It appeared they were beginning to let their own rivalry go.

"What do you think?" Nicky asked. At this, Piper sat straight and crossed her legs. Unbeknownst to both Nicky and Alex, Piper was curious to know what Alex thought of her observation.

"You rushed." She said. Nicky seemed shocked and Piper shifted uneasily in her seat. "You could have taken time to go over with your team as to which your accounts are to be sold. Regardless, this was a suggestion I would have given you. Foreign accounts are no laughing matter and unless you have someone overseas, which you don't, then they're a waste of time."

"I had already done that and there were none that were worth saving. Sure there was one or two that brought in revenue but not significant enough to make a difference." Piper said reading through her notes. "I would have taken the time to revise them again but I think we don't have the luxury of time on our hands. The investors have given us limited time. We're approaching the deadline."

"I should have helped you Piper. I'm sorry." Nicky said, running her hands through her hair. "So what do you suggest then Alex?"

"I trust Piper's judgement. I would sell as soon as possible and re-invest here." Alex said. Next to her, Piper seemed to be glowing.

"Well then, I will have one more meeting with you Piper before the week ends. Thank you," Nicky dismissed the blonde. With a slight nod of her head, Piper walked out and softly closed the door behind her.

"She has an eye for these things," Alex said, her eyes fixated on the door.

"You think so?" Nicky asked.

"Hmm."

"Listen Alex, I am so sorry we haven't spent much time together but trust me, I was not planning on this mess happening while you were here." Nicky apologized.

"I don't mind and you know as well as I that if I knew you were in trouble, I wouldn't hesitate to come to your aid. Regardless of where on the face of the planet I were in."

"I'll make it up to you. I promise."

…

The week progressed slowly with meetings taking up the majority of their time. Piper seemed to be overstressing and by Thursday she had but given up applying the thin layer of make-up she wore. Nicky on the other hand, was wearing twice as much make-up, her hair sticking out like a wild mane.

Everyone seemed to be on their toes. From the highest executive to the janitor responsible for shining the floors daily. No matter where you went at Litchfield, you were bound to come across whisperings of possible layoffs. Nicky tried keeping the rumors at bay but no matter how much she tried to stop the office gossip from spreading, she found herself listening to new ones every day.

Alex could only do so much to offer her help but came to find out that her presence bothered some of the executives. She herself was victim of some of the rumors as it was being circulated that she was there to buy Litchfield and soon the company would close its doors. She had chuckled when it first crossed her ears and had the urged to investigate the origins of such lies.

Because of this, she stopped attending the meetings and was left alone for the majority of the day. And while she could hang out with Lorna, the other woman had her own life to attend to. She was busy with her parents and preparations for the baby's arrival. And much like her presence at Litchfield, Alex found herself being in the way.

…

Finally, Friday arrived. Alex spend her morning shopping around for clothes. She had also taken the time to visit a couple of real estate offices in search for her own apartment. While she loved staying with Lorna and Nicky, she was dying to have her own privacy back; just like she figured the Nichols' would.

There was a particular place she had liked and she was waiting to hear back from the owner. The only problem was that while the owner was looking to sell, Alex was only looking to rent.

Soon, it began to get dark. Alex checked her phone but didn't find a message from Nicky. They had made a pact that as soon as Nicky was free, they would head out for drinks and spend some time together. They would vent and release stress, head back home, watch a movie, and probably fall asleep somewhere in between. Except Nicky was still at the office and the possibility of spending time together with her best friend tonight was more like a dream than a possibility.

Shrugging and knowing she shouldn't be too demanding, she headed to the hill she had come upon the week of her arrival. She wasn't a fan of the view but she did find it peaceful and calming.

She drove there by memory and like the first time, she was careful going up so as not to damage her car. When she came upon the clearing, she parked in reverse and walked over to the railing. She jumped over and sat on a small boulder overlooking the city.

Before Alex knew it, her mind began to drift to the last seven months and the preceding events. She thought of her mother and while she was done crying over her death, the hole that was left in her absence was one that would never be able to fill.

How was it possible that one day she had it all, and the next she was alone? Not even a soul to comfort her? No one to talk to; just her thoughts and a lonesome apartment which did nothing to sooth the ache inside her. And so there sat Alex, her knees against her chest, the wind ruffling her hair, wondering if ever, the feeling of being lost would go away?

Diane. God, was it possible to miss someone to the point you wanted to die? Alex's heart clenched and she braced being used to this type of behavior from her emotional organ. She smiled when the numbness began to take over the pain. Maybe she wasn't destined to always live in pain; maybe one day she would master the art of ignorance and learn to turn an eye to her pain.

She was sitting with her legs up against her chest, the air blowing her hair when she heard the sound of feet against the hard dirt. There was panting as well. She quickly rose to her feet and began to walk to her car, when out from the right came out the last person she would have expected.

Piper.

…

She was wearing running clothes, her hair pulled into a tight ponytail. Sweat was dripping in small beads down her temples. At first she didn't seem to notice Alex. Then, ever so slowly she turned her head and seemed genuinely as shocked as Alex had been.

They stared at one another for what seemed like a small eternity before Alex finally moved. She held her hands up defensively and took a couple of steps back.

"Hey." She simply said.

"Hey." Piper replied. She motioned behind Alex, "Mind if I?"

"Not at all." Alex stepped aside.

Piper climbed over the railing with ease and sat on the ground. Alex followed her but stayed behind the railing.

"How did you find this spot? Not many people seem to know about it," Piper asked. She looked from where she was at Alex.

"I was driving about."

"Hmm."

"How did you find it?" Alex asked in return. She had yet to thank Piper for returning her MP3 and thought this would be a good time. First, though, she needed to be friendly.

Piper thought for a second. "The trail I run deviates into the trees and brushes. I always wondered where it led and why it suddenly disappeared into nothing. One day I decided to go for it and took the fork. Turns out it leads up here but because of how steep it is, people have stopped using it. The trail is still there, just people don't want to make the climb."

"How far away is it? From the original trail?"

"About five miles. It's just on the other side. I mean from the main city it's about ten or so but there's a parking lot just over there," Piper pointed in the opposite direction Alex came from. "And from there the main trail is about six or seven. This one is five but it's more challenging."

"Interesting. I might try it out myself sometime."

Piper didn't fail to notice the friendliness with which they were interacting in. She began to wonder if her dislike for Alex was childish and there was more to the brunette she had yet to find out about.

"Do you run?" Piper asked.

"Occasionally. I prefer cross training but from time to time I will run."

"I never understood cross-training. It puts too much stress on the body."

Without thinking about it, Alex climbed the rail and sat two feet away from Piper. "I like a challenge. Besides, when I'm cross training I have to focus so I don't injure myself. Whereas running leaves me time to think."

"You don't like thinking?" Piper asked. She picked at a rock that was buried in the hard dirt trying to loosen it.

"It's been a heck of a year for me, Piper." Alex said, "Sometimes I don't want to think, you know? Just forget."

Piper nodded knowing all too well what Alex meant. "I'm sorry about your mom."

Alex offered her a small smile. "So am I."

"What was she like? If you don't mind me asking." Piper added quickly that last part.

"A kind asshole. She was fair and sweet…but if you got on her wrong side she could make your life a living hell. She just cared about everyone you know? She gave them all a chance and only when they showed her their real colors, would she change her mind about them. Like with my dad, he abandoned us. After she made a name of her own she gave him a second chance and he blew it. That was it for him. He was done.

"With me, she was always there. She cared and at the same time she didn't. She gave me advice and told me not to take it. In the end it was up to me what I wanted to do with my life. Of course she wanted me to succeed, but she wanted me to do so because I wanted to. In other words, she wasn't just my mom, she was like a friend to me."

"She sounded like she was an amazing woman." Piper said. Unconsciously, she added, "I am sure she would have been proud of you and what you have done this past couple of months with the company."

"I hope so."

The rock she had been digging at was now free and so Piper played with it. After a minute, Alex turned to Piper. She thought about thanking her for the MP3 and being on her way but for some reason she couldn't move from her spot.

When Alex had first seen Piper, she had thought she was a stuck up like some of the women with power. She had thought that Piper was a snob and thought herself as better than the rest. And no doubt Piper thought the same of Alex, but here, away from everyone, away from the office, and the titles they each held, they were two human beings.

It wouldn't hurt to try to learn something about her best friend's friend. Hell, if they made a compromise, they could even get along with one another. There was nothing wrong with misjudging a person as long as you corrected the wrong. And so without as much as a second thought, Alex stayed glued to the same spot and broke the barrier that had been raised from their first meeting.

"What about your parents? What are they like?" Alex asked. At first it appeared that Piper wouldn't answer but then she spoke so softly that Alex had to lean in a couple of inches to be able to hear.

"They're more like parents than friends. They had this whole plan laid out for me from the moment they found out they were expecting. I was to get straight A's in school, attend afterschool activities, go to uni and make something out of the Chapman name." Piper looked out over the city and let out a small breath. "Growing up was hard. I had all these expectations I had to live up to that I had no chance to make friends or be who I really wanted to be."

"And who is that person, Piper? That you wanted to be?" Alex asked. Piper noticed she seemed genuinely interested.

"I'm not sure to be honest. I never had the chance to figure it out. I was too busy with making them, my parents, proud."

"I'm going to make a wild assumption here. Correct me if I'm wrong. They're not happy with you right now?"

Piper shook her head. "No. They think I could be running a company myself. Not shadowing Nicky." She shrugged. "They will never be happy so I stopped trying to make them happy."

"I'm sorry." Alex said sympathetically.

"It's fine." Piper waved her hand. "The biggest deception came after the whole Larry fiasco. I'm sure you know all about that though."

Alex shook her head. "I'm afraid not."

"I thought Nicky would have mentioned something about it."

Alex smiled. "She hasn't. She has a big mouth but she is a good friend. She will never mention anything that is not for her to talk about. I'm sure she hasn't mentioned anything about me either."

"Not unless it's already been said on the tabloids." Piper said. "Larry," she began. She looked over to Alex to make sure there were no signs of boredom. There were none; Alex was attentive.

"Was this guy I met while shopping for candles. Yeah, I know: guy shopping for candles. That could mean one of two things. One he is married or two he's gay. Well, Larry was neither of those things. He was just Larry. We began talking and one thing led to another. Before we knew it, we were dating.

"My parents loved him. He was charming, athletic, and an upcoming writer. He had a few of his articles published already and to my parents that was already a success. They would pester me with questions about him. Is he from a decent family? Is he fertile? Is he the one? Has he proposed? All these stupid questions and I'd just met the guy."

"Did you like him?" Alex asked.

"Of course I did. He was funny and he had everything a woman could want. He made me happy and I enjoyed spending time with him. He was this picture perfect guy and eventually I fell for him. I wasn't head over heels for him, but I did care and love him enough to say yes when he proposed down the road."

"I bet your parents were having it," Alex said.

"Oh they were goners. You would think they were the ones getting married to him. They stated planning the wedding and making a list of guests. Their guests, not even mine. It was total chaos." Piper rubbed her thumb against the pebble before throwing it off into the distance.

"Was Larry okay with it all?"

"He seemed to. And if he ever had a problem, he never mentioned it. Then one day he was hanging with my best friend Polly. They would go out to eat together and hang at his house. I didn't think much of it at first because who doesn't want their best friend and boyfriend getting along?"

Alex stayed silent and Piper was thankful for it. She was happy that Alex could read the cues and ask questions at the right time. Or not ask them at all. So far, they were having great pacing.

"Except they were sleeping together by the third week. I was so stupid. I should have known all along. The signs were there but I was too stupid to think they would do such a thing. You know? When you love someone you trust them blindly that when you finally realize who they truly are, you feel stupid and moronic."

Alex could hear the pain in Piper's voice and while she was sure the blonde would not cry, she felt compelled to reach out to her. Piper seemed to have been expecting it as she didn't flinch when the fingertips of Alex's hand grazed her sweaty arm.

"It wasn't your fault." Alex said softly.

"I should have seen it coming." Piper said weakly and offered Alex a small smile.

"No. Like you said, you loved him and trusted him blindly. There is nothing wrong with that. It was wrong of him, of them, to break that trust."

"Have you ever been in love?" Piper asked. When Alex didn't answer, she quickly added, "You don't have to answer."

Alex nodded. "I know but you've been open with me. I think it's only fair."

"You really don't have to." Piper tried reaffirming.

"It's not that but it's hard to talk about it. You know?"

"I know."

Taking a deep breath, Alex began, "I met her during my junior year of high school. She took my breath away and not in the 'ohmygod she is so beautiful' type of way. Not that she wasn't beautiful, but there was something about her that attracted me to her. The way she carried herself, the friendliness with which she treated everyone with, her caring nature. The way she smiled and made me feel like I mattered.

"During that time I had found out the truth about my father so I was feeling rejected. Then she came along and changed all of that. She was like this shining beacon guiding me in the dark back to the light. She saved me in a way."

At this Alex stopped and began to pick at the ground much like Piper had done. Alex took a deep breath and looked up at the sky searching for something, or rather someone. When she didn't find what she was looking for, she turned back towards the city and resumed talking.

"My mom tried her best to help me cope with my dad's abandonment but even she couldn't take the pain away. I began to lie to her. Telling her I was fine and that she shouldn't worry. But not Silvie, that was her name by the way, the girl I met. I told her everything. At least tried to."

"Not long after, she was all that mattered. I was in love with her. I didn't know how she felt about me because the same way she treated me, she treated everyone else. I began to grow distant from her, not wanting to ruin our friendship with my feelings. She began to notice and one day she confronted me about it.

"'What's wrong with you Al? Why are you being so off?' How did I tell my best friend that I was in love with her? Eventually, I blurted it out. I thought for sure that was the end of our friendship. Imagine hearing, 'I love you. I have been in love with you for a long time and being friends with you is slowly killing me!'"

"Must have been a shocker." Piper tried making light humor of it. She wasn't entirely sure how she would react if a friend of hers came up to her and confessed their undying love for her.

"For me at least." A small smile spread across Alex's lips. She grabbed a rock and tossed it. They both watched it disappear into the darkness. "She grabbed me by the face, looked me in the eyes, and said: 'You fool, I have been in love with you from the moment I met you.' We kissed afterwards. Softly, gently.

"I was a goner from that point forwards. She occupied my thoughts every minute, every hour, and every second of my day. When she wasn't next to me, I was dying to have her in my arms. She completed me. We dated for a couple of years. Moved in together, bought furniture, planned our future. It was all a bliss. Time was flying by so fast because of how much I enjoyed myself when I was around her. I would always tell her that I loved her more than she loved me but that it didn't matter because love is love: I loved her and she loved me. Or so I thought." At the next part, Alex's voice broke a little, but not enough for Piper to notice. "But then just like Larry, she cheated on me. Multiple times with the same person."

This time it was Piper who reached out to Alex. "I'm sorry." Piper noticed that despite the hot night, Alex's skin was cool and clammy.

"Don't be. I did that for the following year after I found out. I felt sorry for myself. I humiliated myself, begged, cried, passed the blame around but it never landed on her."

"Why?" Piper asked. There was an edge to her tone. Almost filled with anger. At who, she wasn't sure.

"Because she was perfect. She was my everything and I trusted her blindly. I thought that the person I loved the most, besides my mother, would never fail me. I put her on a pedestal so high that when that pedestal broke I was left shocked and wordless. I couldn't blame her. She was too important. Too perfect.

"It had to be someone else's fault. Surely, the person she cheated on me with had to take full blame. For a while I thought of ways to get back at that person but before I could attempt anything, the blame shifted to me."

"You did nothing wrong." Piper interrupted. She looked directly at Alex's profile until the brunette turned. They held each other's gaze before Alex turned away and resumed her story.

"I must have done something. I must have been too demanding. I must have said or done something to disappoint her. This is all my fault. And so I began to beg her to forgive me; I began to make all these excuses for her. In the process I lost myself trying to find her. You have no idea how much I begged her to realize that it was me she wanted and not..." Alex was unable to finish her thought.

They stayed silent for a minute or two. Neither knowing what to say. In the end it was Piper who broke the silence.

"I didn't know this happened to you. It's never been on the tabloids."

"Of course it wouldn't. This happened before I stepped up into the spotlight. You see, I figured it out. Eventually. I needed to stay distracted and I began to help my mom in the office. Before I knew it, I saw that break up as the best thing that could have happened to me. Had she not cheated, I would have never stepped up. I wouldn't be here."

"But you never really get over it." Piper said.

"No you don't Piper. The pain of betrayal never goes away. I think when you don't know what is going on you confuse the pain for love. It is in this confusion that you lose yourself. I wanted the pain to go away that I tried getting that high from when I was with her but being near her only caused me more pain.

"I wanted her but at the same time I didn't. We engaged in this game of hide and seek. I think we were both trying to make it work but something that has been broken is hard to piece back together. I was too blind and stupid to realize it.

"What made it worse was the fact that I kept trying to find a reason for her cheating. My thoughts were the following: people don't cheat in tests they know the answers to. So she must have been unhappy with me. I must have done something for her to stop loving me and therefore she cheated. It was my fault.

"Then there was the fact that she didn't love me anymore and she didn't want to hurt me because of what we once shared. In other words, it was also my fault and I should therefore forgive her."

"I'm going through that stage right now. I keep trying to make up an excuse for the both of them." Piper agreed with Alex's reasoning.

"Yes, and it is in this that you forget the third and last reason why people cheat: they're assholes. They don't care and they just cheat because that's who they are."

"How did you figure which on it was?" Piper asked.

Alex let out a loud laugh. She stood from where she was and climbed over the railing waiting for Piper to follow.

"I never did. Piper, here is what I came to: The pain is always going to be there but you learn to live with it. Just because it hurts when you remember, it doesn't mean you love that person. No, you hurt because you feel like a fool. You let that person in and they fucked you up."

Alex opened her arms wide, "It's okay to hurt. It's okay to humiliate yourself and beg. It's okay because that is the only way you're going to realize it wasn't worth it in the end. Sure, she may have helped me and given me the opportunity to become something I would have never considered, but that doesn't mean she got the right to keep being in my life.

"It sure as hell didn't mean I had to look for an excuse as to why she did it. She cheated and that was the end of it. Now, I could have gotten angry and told her to fuck herself, but anger and hatred only consume you. They turn you into a person you are not. You are often bothered and are on the lookout for payback. I didn't want to live my life like that."

They walked to Alex's car and leaned against it. The wind was beginning to pick up and by now they had been talking for almost an hour.

"What did you do?" Piper asked. She had been searching for a way to put an end to her Larry chapter that right now she was willing to take whatever advice she could find.

"I forgave her. I genuinely forgave her but I also made it known that one day I would come to despise her. See Piper, it's okay to love and it's okay to have your heart broken. It's okay to try to find an excuse and a reason for the cheating. It's all okay. What is not okay is losing yourself in the process.

"Sometimes there are no answers. And you need to understand that. Sometimes people will come into your life and serve a purpose. Good, bad, it's up to you to decide. But each time, you grow. You make yourself a better person. Don't break yourself trying to fix them. That never works."

"It just…it hurts. It still does. It's been a year and it still hurts." Piper said.

"Piper, it's going to last as long as you want it to last. Only you can make it stop. Nobody will make the pain subside. Only you."

"We made each other promises." Piper stared at the ground, remembering their "forevers" and their "always".

"Those promises don't mean anything once the trust is broken. Promises don't mean anything. Which is why I don't make them anymore. And you shouldn't either. We're all human. We're all bound to fail sometime or another."

"I just wish I could tell him what a fucking asshole he is." Piper said. She let out a loud sigh and pushed herself away from the car. "He could have fucked anyone else but he had to go for my friend?"

"Did you ever tell him this?" Alex asked. Piper shook her head and a smile creeped into Alex's lips. "Why don't you call him right now, why don't you tell him what a douchebag he is?"

"He wouldn't pick up."

"Lucky for you, he doesn't know my number."

…

Six hundred miles away, in a tiny home where a man and woman were having dinner, the man's phone rang. He pushed back on the chair to pick up his cellphone. The number on the screen wasn't one he recognized. He thought for a second whether he should pick up and remembering he had recently submitted an article, he wondered if it could be from the publishing company.

"Hello," he said.

"You are a fucking asshole Larry. Out of all the woman you could have messed with, you had to pick my best friend? Well screw you and I hope your career flops. I fucking hate you but you know what, I forgive you. Despite everything you did to me, despite hurting me like no one else before, I forgive you." Before he had a chance to reply, the woman hung up.

…

"How do you feel?" Alex asked.

"So much better."

"See, I told you."

"You know what, I feel like I can finally stop worrying about it. I feel like I can continue with my life now."

"You feel like you finally let him go." Alex cleared.

"Yes!"

"Now comes the hard part." Alex warned.

Piper had begun to turn on her heel, "Which part?"

"The part you forgive yourself."

…

A/N: I apologize for the long delay but I have been extremely busy. I'm having eighteen hour days (so to the person who said I was being lazy, hey! No!) and living off on protein bars and energy drinks. My creativity has been fluctuating and I was just having a hard time with how I should bond them. This was a spurt of the moment thing.

Thanks for your patience, follows, and comments. I have been reading them and have been feeling like an ass for not updating!

Also, wow this has been a rollercoaster of a year for me.

I cant believe the year is almost gone.