A/N I had a hard time with this chapter so much needs to be said and I have to figure out how to get these very stubborn individuals to say it hopefully you like it as much as the others!

It was 10:00 in the morning on Thursday, Alicia was frantically trying to get herself packed and out of the office. She was due at the hospital to take Will home. She'd arranged everything with Owen. He would stay with the kids until Friday night when Peter had them for the weekend. The plan was that by the time the kids were back on Monday afternoon Will would be adjusted and comfortable enough to go it alone.

When Alicia arrived at the hospital, Will as already waiting for her in a wheelchair in his hospital room, both of his sisters flanking him on either side like an honor guard. Sara and Aubrey weren't very happy with Will or Alicia. Just as she had promised Alicia had broached the subject of Aubrey staying with Will when he was released and after some very tense moments in the hospital room they had reached an agreement. Sara was flying home, she'd been away for long enough and with Will making a full recovery she needed to get back to her husband and daughter. Aubrey would stay on for a few more days so that Alicia could go to work and Alicia would cover the nights when she got home from work. Then once Aubrey was on the plane on Monday, Alicia would be on call in case Will needed anything.

Alicia was beyond ready to have some actual alone time with Will. Time without doctors, nurses, or sisters. They had a lot to talk about. The road ahead of them was going to be bumpy and filled with potholes.

Alicia rushed to Will's house from the office to find him in a standoff with Aubrey. It seemed Will was tired of being cooped up and wanted to go for a walk and Aubrey wouldn't move from in front of the door. Alicia had spent the past week acting as mediator between the two and it reminded her of Zach and Grace.

"Ok everybody to neutral corners." Alicia announced in her best mom voice as she walked into the silent stalemate.

"Why don't we see if we can come up with a compromise here? Will we need to go pick up your prescriptions and as usual you have nothing but beer in your fridge so we need to pick up a few things. So you can come with me and Aubrey, how about you go and have some time for yourself, go have a drink or get some dinner. I promise I won't let him over do it and we'll take it easy. "

Aubrey reluctantly agreed. She never really stood a chance against two of the top lawyers in Chicago. Alicia helped Will get his coat on and they headed out the door to run their errands.

After they'd run their errands, Alicia cooked Will dinner and they were relaxing on his couch watching an old Steven Seagal movie called "Out For Justice" neither was paying very close attention to it though. They were sitting side by side with their hands sliding over each other's. Alicia turned to Will.

"David Lee called today." She let the sentence hang, Will looked at Alicia.

"Apparently Eli intercepted the process server and Peter still hasn't been served. Then Eli called. He wants me to wait a while longer to file." Taking a breath Alicia reached the most difficult part of her declaration,

"I agreed to wait a few months to file in return Peter says he won't contest the divorce, it'd only be a few more months. I still want to be with you. I'm not going back to him, nothing will change just a few dates on paper."

Will looked stunned. He had known that starting anything with Alicia would be complicated, and far from sunshine and daises. But this, he didn't want to ride the same roller coaster they had been riding.

"Go home, Alicia."

Will wouldn't even look at her.

"Will, I-I, Will I love you and I am where I want to be I just need time. I need time to sort everything out. I feel like I'm on a merry go round that's spinning too fast and I can't get off." Tears had started to build in her eyes. She hated this, she was so tired of crying. Only Will Gardner could make her cry this much. Not even Peter had ever gotten to her like this. Even at Georgetown Will had always known just how to twist the knife to bring on the tears."

"The problem is, Alicia, we always come back to it. I would have given you time if you'd asked for it. All I've ever done is given you what you wanted. I waited for you to be comfortable taking the next step, I let you walk away when you said it was too much, I learned how to exist in a courtroom with you as my enemy, while watching you and wanting you. Well guess what Alicia, it's too much for me this time and I think I'd like to take some pain medicine and go to bed so you can just go home."

Alicia felt like she couldn't breathe, she didn't have a clue what to say. She didn't think he'd be thrilled but never in her worst nightmares had she imagined him throwing her out of his house.

"I'll call Aubrey and let her know that I'm leaving, I'll see you around."

With that Alicia headed home, she texted Aubrey and let her know that something had come up and that she had headed home but that Will was going to bed, and reminded her that if she needed anything that she could call anytime.

It was well after midnight and Alicia was well on her way to being wasted. She had finished off a bottle already and she was halfway through the next and she still didn't feel any better although TV seemed to be a little funnier, she knew she should go to bed, but she wasn't ready to let down her defenses and sleeping would leave her completely defenseless, she was starting to wonder if anything in her life would go the way she planned. She got up to peer fruitlessly in to the fridge when she heard a knock. She glanced at the clock and wondered who on earth would be knocking at her door at 12:48 at night.

Whoever it was seemed to be impatient and as Alicia stumbled toward the door she realized just how tipsy she was. whoever was at the door continued knocking. How Alicia made it to the door in one piece remained a mystery as she managed to stub her toe, bump her hip against the counter and bang her hand on the corner of the table in the entrance way. It all just proved physically and mentally that tonight, she was batting zero.

As she opened the door she gasped loudly and jumped backwards.

"What are you doing here?"