Dani's POV
(Nightwing27th)

"Lizzie, why?" Everyone laughed at me as I pulled Lizzie out of her highchair. Breakfast was fine socially. Much better than last night. But...and that's a big but, Lizzie had a little too much fun with her food. She had syrup EVERYWHERE. And I mean EVERYWHERE. Like, she could barley open her eyes.

I held her has far away from me as I could and then hauled her butt upstairs and into the tub. I sat her in the tub and then stripped her, running the water to get the right temp. I kicked on the shower and then held her up, away from me, under the stream. I made sure she could still breathe, of course. But I held her there until all the syrup melted off.

Then I sat her down and shut off the shower, dumping a bunch of soap on her. If anything just to get the smell out. This kid is going to smell like maple for a week. And of course all she wanted to do was play. She was squealing and blowing the suds around.

"Will you please stop?" She looked at me and then flicked bubbles in my face. She instantly burst into an uncontrollable laughter. So much so, that she fell over. I sighed and righted her, turning the water back on. About twenty minutes later, I pulled her out of the tub and dried her off. I wrapped her in the towel and then exited the bathroom.

I walked into the guest room, the room Frank and I were sharing, and to the bed. Frank was standing next to the bed, his duffel bag open in front of him. He looked up at me and smiled, probably cause he heard everything that went on in the bathroom. I put Lizzie on the floor and then went to the dresser, looking for clothes.

"Going somewhere?" I asked him, digging through the drawer.

"I think so," he said. I stopped and turned around. He sat at the head of the bed, pushing the bag farther down. I went back to the drawer. I found pants and a shirt. I shut the drawer and then snagged a diaper. I turned around with the clothes...and all I saw was a towel on the ground. I looked up and the door was open.

"Great." I dropped my arms in defeat, and then tossed the clothes on the bed. I sighed and then sat on the end of the bed.

"Looks like you've got your hands full."

"That I do," I nodded. I looked at Frank. He was looking down, holding something in his hands. I don't know if he knows I know this, but...Frank has been carrying around two pictures with him. One is of his family. The other is a picture of Alison and Chase that I took a year ago. I think I know which one he's looking at now. "You miss her." It was more a statement.

"Yeah," he said, "I do."

"Think she'll take you back? Never mind, that's a stupid question. This is Alison we're talking about, of course she'll take you back." He looked up at me with that look like I was being stupid again. And maybe I was. "She'd be stupid not to." His features slightly softened, deep in thought. He looked back down at the photo.

I hopped off the bed. "Well, I have to go find me a naked girl," I said that just to get a rise out of him. It didn't work. "But, first." I walked around the bed to my bag. I dug in it a second and then pulled out a folded piece of paper. I walked up to him. "Here you go."

"What?"

"Take it," I shoved the papers in his face. "One way to Hell's Kitchen." It was a plane ticket and a passport. Fake, of course.

"Everyone knows my face," he said, looking down at the papers.

"Which is why that's for a private jet. One I have used many times." He looked up at me, seeing if I was pulling the wool over his eyes. "No strings attached, just take it. It leaves in three hours."

"When did you do this?"

"Two days ago."

"Why?"

"Because I knew you'd cave."

"What about you?"

"There's not much in Hell's Kitchen for me," I said and he nodded. "Who knows?" I started backing up to the door, "we may never see each other again."

"I doubt that," he scoffed.

"Why? Gonna miss me?" I teased. He just glared at me. I smiled and then left the room.

Alison's POV
(bellamysgirl)

My feet were dragging a bit, my body too tired to pick them up all the way. I was just thankful I left my duffel bag in the car. Finally I arrived at Matt's door and I rapped my knuckles on it a couple times. "Matt, it's me," I said, stepping back. "I'm here to get my child."

It only took a moment for the door to pull open, revealing Matt standing in the doorway. "Hey. Chase fell asleep a while ago. He's on the couch," Matt stepped back, gesturing for me to come in. And I did, shuffling past him and making a b-line for the couch. After all that's happened in Harlem, I need to see my son. As I got closer to the couch I could make out his small form, curled up against the armrest, covered in one of Matt's blankets.

I stepped around the front of the couch and crouched to be pretty much eye-level with him, then gently ran my fingers back through his dark curls. Out of the corner of my eye and I could see Matt amble through and into the kitchen. I sighed lightly. The past couple of days have been crazy. But I know it was worth it, looking at Chase.

"Wanna drink?"

Matt's voice filtered in from off behind the couch, followed by the sound of the fridge door opening. I stood, exhaling heavily, and walked around the corner of the couch. "Sure," I said, keeping my voice down a notch as to not wake Chase. "Lord knows I could use one." Matt emerged from the open fridge with a beer in each hand. He turned and edged the door closed with his elbow, then took steps toward me.

He held out one of the bottles and I took it gratefully. "So, where'd you go?" he asked, mildly curious. He slid into a chair at his pathetic excuse for a dining table and I followed suit, easing myself into a chair opposite him. I sighed, popping open the cap on my beer. "Harlem," I answered. I took a long pull from the bottle while Matt spoke.

"Harlem? Why were you all the way in Harlem?"

I sat back. "Someone needed my help. A friend."

"This friend…he have a name?" He asked it harmlessly. With a lighthearted, non-intrusive tone and everything. But I knew exactly why he was asking. My eyes instinctively narrowed and I took a deep breath. "Matt…don't think I don't know where this is going," I warned, calmly. "It was a vigilante call, not a social one. So I'm not at liberty to divulge any other information."

"But-"

"I don't go around gabbing about your late night activities, do I?" I pointed out, causing him to sit back in his chair with a deflated sigh.

"Yeah, you're right," he resigned, quietly. I exhaled and leaned back in my chair, taking another drink. I raised an eyebrow curiously as Matt suddenly went rigid. His head tilted to the side. "You're hurt. On your arm, you've got a bandage. You're skin's hot-"

"Okay, remember that one time you promised not to do that?"

"Do what?"

"What you're doing right now—reading me without permission."

"Alison, I'm concerned. You drop your son off at my apartment and then disappear for days without a word, then you come back but you can't tell me anything and you're injured. Do you at least want some ice? That's what you're supposed to put on burns, right?" That last bit was dryly sarcastic.

"Matt, oh my- look, yes, I have a burn on my arm. But I'm okay. No one did this to me; it was a misinterpretation of information. A warehouse exploded. But- uh…this…vigilante helped me out. That's why I'm not completely toast, alright? And yes…I would like ice," I cracked a small smile and he huffed a chuckle, nodding as he stood.

"Coming right up."

"Thanks for watching him, by the way. I hope you know I'm going to pay you—weather you like it or not."

He laughed a little from the kitchen, the sound almost completely drowned out by the clattering of ice. "You don't need to pay me," he replied, just before the freezer door clicked shut. "We had a good time. It turns out he knows more presidents than I do. And he can name almost every element on the periodic table."

He sat down and held out the bag of ice he'd collected. I took it but my eyebrows furrowed. "How do you know that?" I asked, bewildered.

"Eh, we sort of ran out of things to do," he shrugged.

I nodded slowly. "Uh-huh…I see."

I shrugged off my jacket and carefully held the bag of ice to my arm. It caused a slight sting at first and I hissed, readjusting the bag. "So…did it help? The time away?" Matt asked, almost hesitant. I sighed contently at the relief the ice was giving me from the heat on my arm. Then I glanced up at Matt. I shook my head. "I don't know. I think so. I think I've made up my mind."

He exhaled, slumping in his chair a bit. "Alison…"

"I know, okay? You think it's pointless, that it was just a dream. I don't care. Matt-" I sat forward in my seat. "-I don't want anyone else. In Harlem, I thought maybe something else was something I could use, like it was something I needed. But this guy kissed me and—while it felt amazing to be touched again—it wasn't what I was looking for. It wasn't Frank. And I'm not gonna find him with other guys."

He nodded a little, obviously thinking about something weighing heavily on him. Probably Dani. He'd all but refused to talk about her ever since he came back to Hell's Kitchen from being at the S.H.I.E.L.D. base in who knows where. But I knew they'd split. I took a drink from my beer then set the bottle back down on the table. "Looking for a job?"

"Me?" Matt asked, suddenly snapping out of his train of deep thought.

"Yes, you," I smirked, rolling my eyes.

He laughed. "Um, is business at the café that bad?"

"Kind of. I mean, I'm just lucky that Lucy was ready to work by herself in time."

"Yeah. She seems nice."

My smirk turned into a sly smile. "Why? Because she flirts with you every time you bring Chase home from school?" He chuckled, looking down and away, smiling half-heartedly. He cleared his throat and took a long drink from his beer, obviously trying to avoid replying. I leaned back in my seat. "Oh, come on, you can't honestly tell me you haven't thought about it," I pointed out.

"You're right, I can't."

"Then why not ask her out?"

"You know what you said about not finding what you were looking for?" I sat up in my seat a little, nodding. He finished, "I can't find it there. Or here. Or really anywhere. I've been…telling myself it won't last, that any minute things will go back to the way they were but…" he shook his head with a humorless chuckle. "They won't. They won't ever. And I can't even hope that what I'm looking for will ever be found. Because she doesn't want to be found."

I didn't know what to say to that for a long moment of quiet. He hadn't talked about anything like this with me for so long. I almost forgot what he looked like sad. I put the ice bag on the table and leaned on the table top on my forearms, "Matt…you're right. You won't find her. But, keep your mind open, and she just might find you."

"Mom? Is that you?"

I instantly twisted in my chair to see behind me. Chase was sitting up now, rubbing his tired eyes. "Yeah, honey, it's me," I stood and hurried around the couch. "Sorry. Did we wake you up?" I dropped onto the cushion beside him and he crawled into my lap, wrapping his arms around my middle and nestling his face into the crook of my neck. "I missed you," he yawned.

"I missed you, too."

I wound my arms around him snuggly and kissed the top of his head. I could tell it wouldn't be long before he was asleep again. This was the perfect opportunity to get him out of here and into the car. "Come on, let's get you in your own bed, yeah?" I spoke softly, easing him upright.

"Okay…" he slumped to the left.

I slid my arms under his and he latched onto me like a leach as I stood, hefting him up with me. It was a miracle I was even strong enough to hold him up anymore, let alone take to the stairs with him. I carried him over to the table and grabbed my jacket off the chair. "Call me tomorrow, okay?" I said, directing it at Matt.

Chase groggily replied, "Why would I call you?"

Matt laughed a little as he stood, nodding. "I will," he agreed, despite Chase's interruption. "I'll grab his bag." Matt shuffled around me and disappeared into the bedroom. A moment later he emerged with Chase's back pack. He helped me slung it on my shoulder so I could take everything at once. And, with Matt's help in opening the front door, I made it out just fine. Now it's just getting this rug rat to the car in one piece. Challenge accepted.