Chapter Two
Moooo
It was chaos for sometime afterwards and it helped Alex to heal. Piper begged Red to give her something cool for Alex's neck. The kitchen staff would go and fix trays and the food was brought to them in the dorm. There wasn't enough guards to allow prisoners to move to and from work. That meant Luschek was forced to work as a guard and he took notice of how Alex was hurt.
Piper wasn't sure what she was going to do when Alex walked carefully with him to the bubble and leaned against the wall talking to him. He nodded some and leaned in really close to Alex. Piper lost her fucking mind and would have rushed him if Red hadn't tripped her and pretty much fell on top of her.
"You will do nothing but end up in the SHU! Let her handle it...don't watch..." Red whispered in her ear. Piper stopped struggling and clenched her jaw hard. She hated that he lusted after Alex. It bothered her worse than the shit he said to her when she worked there. Nicky had always understood him and actually trusted him. He had fucked her over so badly that Piper was aching to make him pay. The thought of Alex touching him made her heave.
"Don't you throw up on my floor, Blondie," Red said as she jerked Piper up and pushed her towards her trashcan. Piper bit it back and sat with her arms on her knees with her back against the wall. She took deep breaths. Morello, Norma and Boo came in and sat down around their space. She knew enough to know that the ranks had closed and she wasn't going to be starting any shit. Their two new roomies were at orientation. They had been marched there, shackled in a row and many of the new guards went with them. They scared Piper because they kept their hands on their tazers and looked scared. More than that, she kept looking to see if any of them were familiar.
Alex walked back and leaned gingerly against the wall of her cube. Everyone was talking about how they were going to open the cafeteria again but you had to eat in strict shifts. Piper looked up at her and tried not to show any emotion. She was good at her lone wolf face. It melted when she saw how tired Alex was...she got up quickly.
"Why don't you go rest? I got some noodles with herb broth...maybe you can keep that down-"
"I'm okay Pipes. Maybe I'll sit down on your bunk..scoot over Boo," she said as she moved to sit on the bed leaning forward as to not hit her tall head on the top bunk. Piper opened her hands and closed them in a helpless gesture that seemed to catch Alex's attention. She looked up at Piper's face and read whatever it was she saw there.
"Thank you Red," Alex said quietly. Red just nodded and Piper frowned because she knew Alex had to have told her what she was going to do and asked Red to keep her out of it. It was hard to conduct any business what so ever under lock down...especially with new people all about. The word had spread that Piper took Stella's date. Red spoke about it saying the girl stole from Piper and was dealt with appropriately but the new prisoners looked at her with immediate hate. Some of them were down for hard crimes and shouldn't have been in minimum security. Caputo was sorting it all out but he was trying to get the old guards back first.
"I want phone priveleges back. I think if we have them already, it shouldn't be an issue. It's been over a week since the Lake Day," Boo complained. They just chose to ignore what Alex obviously just did. People knew she was covering for being attacked. Some thought Piper did it but most figured it was what she was worried about...that it actually happened. Piper felt like a fucking idiot for not realizing that her selfishness was going to get her killed. She was a fish in a small barrel in prison. Alex could have lived a long happy life abroad. This realization was gnawing at her stomach. She wanted to smash her head against the wall sometimes and focusing on caring for Alex was the only thing that kept her going.
"Sit...and here," Red said and she put two bowls of noodles in front of them. Piper had a huge stock of noodles. Red made her own flavor packets with dried herbs, bouillon and some salt she got from Chang. They had been living off of them lately. Piper's stomach twisted and she actually winced. How had she missed Norma cooking these noodles?
Piper sipped the broth and it was good. She looked over to see Alex do the same. She could swallow now without wincing in pain. Piper reached out and moved some hair back to inspect the bruises on her throat. She lowered her cup of noodles as her stomach twisted again.
"Eat it all, Piper. Not negotiable...I can't worry about you and take care of myself. So buck it the fuck up, we have to survive," Alex said softly. Everyone got quiet and Piper dropped her hand.
"I am eating," she said and even to her she sounded like a petulant child. She took another spoonful of broth and sucked up some noodles for comic effect. She slapped Boo in the face with the hot liquid. Red laughed hard at this. She had only just now started to forgive Boo for something she did to her with Vee. It was good to see.
"Not the kind of juice I wanted from you on my face Chapman," Boo replied. Piper laughed with a noodle in her mouth and looked over to see Alex smiling.
"She's delicious, too bad you'll never know," Alex quipped back. Boo snorted and started to talk in the worse Australian accent she'd ever heard.
"Shut the fuck up Boo!" Piper barked.
"You owe me...said you yourself."
Piper moved her head to the side some as if considering. "Once we get back to normal I will be handing the felonious panty idea off to someone else. You can get first bid on it...gotta include all involved now and get your own outside help." The only thing still working was the mail. She sent a letter to Cal telling him things had changed there and she wouldn't be sending him anymore items. The young guard, he quit the day after the Lake Day. Everything was on hold and she couldn't afford anything that took her attention away from protecting Alex.
"I think you may be on to something there," Boo said with a nod...she looked over at Luschek and grinned. Piper got the feeling that maybe Boo had something on him. She hoped she did...Anything to make him pay for Nicky. Piper knew she could probably figure it out if she tried hard enough. Alex nudged her to eat so she did. It tasted like fire to her and it burned all the way down. She kept it down though and cleaned up their small space. Red had to go soon to start preparing lunch. She said it would be sandwiches today, which was great. Caputo made them pay for something out of the budget so at least once a day they got something decent.
"He is a gardener so a few of us will be allowed to go out and tend the garden. Our cabbages need to be weeded. One of the older ladies is having a hard time with her arthritis after they switched her meds. If you rest, you can join us. Not you Vause, I do actually need some work done," Red said with a nod. Piper really wanted to go outside in the sun. She sat up and looked at Red with hope. It was then that she saw a bit mothering in her eyes. She used to see it when she looked at Nicky. Piper felt her stomach twist again and she knew Red missed her terribly.
"Check the garden shed Pipes," Alex whispered. She looked at her and nodded. No one seemed to hear but she understood. She had to go check it for stains. They had sprinkled hay down on the floor but she had to do something to cover it up. Most of it was caught on the tarp paper but it would make them both feel better to check. It did mean that she would be returning to the scene of the murder. Most days she just blocked it all out but it would all come back to her.
Alex seemed to think about it and then she shook her head no. "No don't...stay away from there." Piper reached out and put her arm around Alex. She waited for her to stiffen and pull back. They weren't officially together anymore but she could get close to her now and again. More than once, Piper cuddled her on her bed. Alex just relaxed into her arms and would drift to sleep. Piper didn't try to kiss her...well her lip was healing and she didn't want to hurt her.
"I want to help Red. You know I'm great at weeding,"Lolly said from out in the walkway by the cube. Red walked up to the door to the cube and smiled her not-so-sweet smile at Lolly.
"I'm all full up...he would only let me take out a few ladies from the gardening group. You'll be out cutting grass in no time. Besides, you cut yourself and I wouldn't want you to get an infection," Red pointed towards her bandaged hands. One of the other theories was that Lolly went after Alex and that Piper had cut her for trying. Gossip was a prison's lifeblood. Only good thing going for them right now was that the no one told the new guards anything and everyone blamed Caputo for all of it. No one mentioned the missing guard. His car had to be in the parking lot and it drove Piper crazy waiting on them to start searching for him.
Lolly seemed to be satisfied and she walked on down to her cube. Red watched her go and then darted her eyes back to look at Piper. She met her gaze and Red just nodded. She got ready to go and she saw the guards line up the laundry detail. Apparently, they decided it was time to give the new girls clean clothing. Everyone applauded because they were beginning to smell. Piper walked Alex back to her cube as Soso was complaining about being shackled to walk to laundry.
"This is minimum security-" She began but one of the young new female guards got out a tazer.
"Hey...she's just pointing out a fact, no need to taze us, see...we are meekly allowing you to shackle us together," Tiffany shot back. The girl blushed some and put the tazer away but seemed to enjoy tightening Brooke's wrist cuffs.
"What did you promise Luschek?" Piper asked her once she got her on her bottom bunk. Alex looked up and seemed so tired. Piper knew she was walking on thin ice there.
"What is it any of your concern?" Alex shot back.
Piper took a deep breath. She avoided any real conversation about the state of their relationship. She had done all of this to Alex and there wasn't anything she could do about it. "Please...I hate him so much for taking Nicky away from us. I know he had something to do with the heroin...I am fucking scared stiff he'll get you back on it," Piper choked out. Alex's head darted up and looked at her.
"He won't. He actually refused to negotiate for specific sexual favors. He said I would owe him a few orgasms...it was fucking weird but I agreed. He told me to heal up, he didn't like busted up girls. He did ask me if it was rough sex that got me like this...I said it was a problem with another inmate. He let it drop," Alex shared quietly. They were alone in her bunk but Lolly could see her from her cube. She seemed to be inquiring if she was alright. Alex gave her a thumbs up and she sunk down relieved. She seemed very focused when it suited her.
"I'll do it. Tell him I'll be his willing toy if he doesn't touch you," Piper offered quickly. She thought that maybe she could just switch it off and let him have his way. She had a flash in her head and she shook it to clear her thoughts.
"You'll attack him and get sent away. I can handle it...fuck Pipes, I don't like hearing you say that shit so stop," Alex mumbled.
"It is my mess to clean up," Piper insisted. "Listen, we have to protect ourselves. When I wrote Cal I asked him to get me another lawyer and have my files sent to them. My mother has been asking to do this for years, so I told Cal to let her. Eventually, I'm going to get to see them. I have things I need to get on the record...I may have leverage over him."
Alex sat up abruptly. "No...don't you do it. Keep whatever you saw- or heard keep it to yourself. That is what is protecting you. The only fucking good thing that came out of this is that by testifying I diverted his attention from you. Hear me now, Piper...don't you provoke him. This is the only way I can protect you," she said as she took Piper by the arms and pulled her closer.
"You took the deal to get off and thought that just maybe he'd go to jail. We both know he will not...that he will pay someone else off to lose this or that. I saw something he has no idea I saw. The only other person that knows what happened that night is Fahri and-"
"Aydin killed Fahri in front of me a few months after you left me," Alex murmured. Piper's eyes got wide. " I was still high at the time but I remember vividly how his brains looked on the carpet. Kubra cleaned me up and sent me back to work for him. I made him a ton more money before a sloppy deal brought me down. Not my fault, another of Fahri's recruits got sloppy and turned. He is in protective custody somewhere with a new identity while we try to survive in prison," Alex laughed. She had tried to bring him down too but she didn't reap a reward. No, Alex was a target.
"He probably thinks you're dead and Aydin is laying low," Piper offered. It was a soothing thought that for a moment in time, Kubra wasn't actively seeking to kill her.
Alex nodded but she didn't let go. "Don't do it...don't you dare confront Kubra. He will just kill you anyway."
"Not if what I know will be sent to the authorities. I have proof Alex...I've always had proof. I just washed my hands of my past but I'm not an idiot. I'll do whatever I have to now," Piper whispered so softly that only Alex could hear.
"What proof?"
Piper wasn't going to tell her there. She just shrugged softly and motioned for her to sit on her lower bunk. Piper fussed a bit to get her comfortable. Alex tried to talk her out of contacting the lawyer and she put her finger on her lip. "This is what I'm going to do just in case I need it. It is all I think about now. Until then, you should know something else...I have a cell here..you know that...I um...took some pictures of you while you were sleeping those first hours...before everything got shut down." Piper leaned down and whispered in her ear. Alex stifffened and looked at her. "If it is a choice between protective custody in Seg and death out here...I'll take the punishment for the cell."
"Stop trying to control this Piper...you can't. You fucked up and I fucked up...and we both got each other in mortal danger...again. You once told me I couldn't keep you safe and it fucking tore me apart...but you're right. We can't keep each other safe in here or anywhere. Safety is an illusion we can't fucking afford anymore. We can only hope to help each other survive. Please don't confront him..don't contact Kubra. Promise me..." Alex shook her some as she said it. Piper could feel the desperation pour off of her.
"I'm going to make the arrangement with my lawyer. I'm going to include what happened to you...and I promise not to actively seek him out on one condition," Piper countered. It flashed in her mind and she couldn't let the inspiration go.
Alex eyed her warily. "You shouldn't have conditions, it is common fucking sense and self preservation is something I know you're really fucking good at...so don't try to get something else out of me."
Piper winced at the accusation. She was determined to do something to protect Alex and the only ammunition she had was something she hoped she'd never have to use. "I have a plan already. I was doing you a courtesy in telling you...I want to be better, to do better than we have," Piper countered.
"Fine..what is it?"
"Come back to me," Piper asked breathlessly. Alex frowned and turned her head looking at her. "For as long as we are here together...be mine. You can...I will understand if you want to get me back for the massive fuck up that was Stella." She shifted and looked down. Alex looked up no and rubbed her face.
"I live in a lesbian soap opera and I'm literally held captive inside it. I can't fucking run," Alex mumbled.
Piper had to grin at the description. "You are so right. Is that a yes?"
"I want more Piper...how do I know you won't flake out of me again if I get needy. You don't handle that well," Alex shot back. Piper winced.
"You're right as usual. But you see I saw you nearly fucking dead lying on the floor...and-" Piper started to sob. It was like a dam breaking and it over powered her so quickly. People turned to look at her and Alex had to press her face to her neck.
"Yes...yes I know. I felt that same way when I saw them wheel you out on a stretcher to the SHU. I listened to Taystee tell how you were attacked in a razor in the shower...and how you must have fought back. I kept thinking...you didn't even know how to throw a punch," Alex remembered. She hadn't said any of this before. She didn't even think about Alex seeing her after the pageant. Suzanne had knocked her the fuck out. Piper woke up on her bunk in the SHU with no memory of how she got there.
"I kept thinking, what have I done to her? How can I make it up to her? She chose him...so why should I care? But I did. Then there you were in Chicago and I was so relieved to see you...then it hit me you were faced with having to lie as well...and I had to protect you...but I couldn't really," Alex admitted. Then she added, "We are two star-crossed fuck ups baby." Piper looked up and wiped her face with her sleeve.
"Are you my fuck up though? Please Alex..I know it is silly but we fucking love each other and I promise to get my head out of my ass," Piper asked again.
"Okay Piper but I'm setting the rules this time...all laid out. We keep this between us until I can sort it all out," Alex said and her voice broke some. She spoke more that day than she had in a week. Piper put her hand on her throat and took the okay.
"You think about these rules...whatever you need me to do...you want me to be your sex cow..well Mooooo," Piper offered back in hopes it would make her smile. Alex rolled her eyes but allowed Piper to push her back down in her bunk to rest.
"I'm going to go nap until lunch. I'll make you some tea before I go out," Piper offered. She bent down and kissed her forehead softly. She left her bunk and saw Lolly watching her. She didn't meet her eyes but walked back to her cube with a lightness of heart. Her stomach still ached so but she ignored it. She was going to get another chance she didn't deserve, she was going to see the sun and she was going to try and create some sort of leverage for both of them to use in defense against Kubra. It was all she could do. Piper was out as soon as her weary head hit the pillow.
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