Pounding on the door to the loft, Elizabeth was not above begging to get someone to answer the door. "Come on Robin, open up. Please be home. Please."

Robin glared at the door, not recognizing the voice and not understanding why anyone would disturb her on the first day off she had taken for herself since her car accident. "Just a second."
Elizabeth could barely make out the muffled voice but realized that someone was coming to the door soon and stopped her pounding. "Come on. Come on." She muttered under her breath. "Just open the door already."

"What?" Robin snapped, yanking the door open. "Oh Elizabeth, I'm sorry." She apologized profusely.

"Oh thank God you're home!" Elizabeth sighed in relief and walked past Robin into the loft. Dramatically, she sighed as she fell back onto the couch. "I have been looking everywhere for you!"

"Well you found me." Robin answered unenthusiastically shutting the door. "What's up?"

"I just made a monumental balls up mistake."

"What did you do?" Robin sat next to her and waited for her to continue.

Biting her lip, Elizabeth glanced at Robin. "Swear you won't hate me."

"I could never..." Robin promised, taking Elizabeth's hands in hers.

Elizabeth closed her eyes and let out a deep breath. Quickly was best, she decided. The faster it was out there the better. "I told Lucky about Patrick's second round of tests before I realized Patrick hadn't told him anything about being exposed at all," she rattled off rapidly. Opening her eye just a smidge, she added. "And I told him you were the one who told me."

"Wait a minute, I'm confused." It was getting harder and harder to keep her smile in place.

"Lucky came to see me after I got off work." Elizabeth began. "And well..."

"And well...what?" Robin prodded, jerking her hands out of Elizabeth's loose grip.

"Well I sorta had to go the director's office for a 'chat' and while I was gone he must have tried
to call Patrick. He was mad when Patrick didn't answer and was complaining about how Patrick had been avoiding him all week. And I kinda said that he was just waiting on his test results. He would be fine in a few days."

"Patrick didn't tell anyone else? Oh. My. God. And I blabbed to you. Oh my God. Oh my God." Robin covered her eyes in dismay.

"Yeah I know. I am so sorry. It just slipped out." Elizabeth moved to touch Robin's shoulder.

"He trusted me." Robin got to her feet. "And I abused it." Biting into her lip, she had to fight back a familiar onset of tears.

"Look it's not your fault. It's mine. I'm the one who opened my big mouth. I shouldn't have said anything."

"I shouldn't have told you. I didn't think--I didn't think and that's the problem. I thought for sure he would have told the Spencers. I thought that's why Laura approached me. They didn't know about my HIV status, not even Lucky? But I thought he had told them. I thought they were trying to be supportive for Patrick. But all of that was a big fat assumption. I had no facts. All I would have had to do was ask Patrick. It all makes sense." Robin felt herself start to sway and had to return to the couch.

"Maybe it won't be that bad?" Elizabeth offered up hopefully. "I mean it couldn't go that bad right?"

"Patrick already hates me." Robin whispered, her heart breaking as she said the words aloud.

"He doesn't hate you. He'll hate me, but he doesn't hate you."

"Our guys react the exact same way to betrayal, Elizabeth." Robin emphasized. "And in this scenario, I caused this fight."

"The 'I love you' thing?" Elizabeth guessed. "You still haven't talked about that?"

"He took it back." Robin answered flatly.

Elizabeth blinked several times. That wasn't right. Patrick wouldn't take something like that back. Would he? "He did what?"

"He took it back. He said it was just a ploy to get me into bed since nothing else had worked." Robin clarified.

Managing a low whistle, Elizabeth reached out to pull her friend towards her. "Ouch. Way to choose the exact right words to hurt someone there."

"At least he was honest."

"You don't know that for sure."

"Please Elizabeth."

"Ok you can call me a romantic sucker but it is possible that he just said that to save his pride." Seeing the incredulous look Robin shot her, she held up her hands in protest. "Guys do and say stupid things in the name of pride."

"I can't go on another assumption or a hope. It's too risky." Robin shook her head.

"Just tell me everything. Why are you so sure he was serious? If I tell you why I was having a chat with my director would it help?"

"Yes." Robin nodded.

"I was hoping to take this humiliation with me to my grave but for you..." Elizabeth sighed and settled back on the couch. "Ok so Lucky surprised me at work right?"

"Uh-huh..."

Elizabeth took a breath and continued. "So he starts talking all flirty like he does. And I become a moron and forget my own rules about no fun stuff at work. And he convinced me otherwise."

"You didn't?!"

"So basically we were making out when I hear my director tapping her feet in my doorway. And I get to go down to her office and defend not only my professionalism but convince her I didn't promote the son because I'm sleeping with his father."

Robin felt her smile return. "I don't know what I'm grinning about, my story isn't any less embarrassing. At least you were fully clothed."

"Oh had it been a few minutes later it would have been completely different." Then Robin's words registered in Elizabeth's head. "Oh my god. What happened?"

"It was the blue jeans and the heat wave, I tell you. I didn't have a chance." Robin insisted.

"Enough excuses. Just explain." Elizabeth cajoled.

"You know how we were avoiding each other at the anniversary party. Well, I went outside to think and he followed me out there. He started talking about how his brother had 'done a real number' on me. The next thing I know, he's got his hand over my wrist and he won't let me go
until I answer his question about whether or not I constantly compare him to Logan." Robin mumbled, still trapped in that moment even as she sat here.

"Being all demanding. Sounds like Patrick."

"I won't lie: It was a major turn-on." Robin blushed but continued, trying to suppress it. "And I finally told him that yes, I do, sometimes."

"That must have sparked the competitive fires."

"He came unhinged and I thought he was going to storm off like he usually does. But then, he's kissing me and I forget why we're fighting."

"And I was hiding in the kitchen during this?"

"Yes." Robin gave an affirmative nod.

"Damn that aunt. This is better than that soap. Go on."

"The whole time, all that's going through my head is how anyone can look out and see what we're doing. You ever need somebody so badly that you kind of stop caring about everything else?" Robin waited for her friend's response.

"Were you just listening to how I spent my afternoon?" Elizabeth wondered. "Mark me down for a yes."

"He must have noticed how uncomfortable I was, because, the next thing I know, with his hand inside my dress, he's moving us to the back of the house so that we're alone. I'm able to block out all the reasons this is a bad idea when he whispers..." Robin closed her eyes. "He asks me if this is what I want, if this is 'how I saw it happening for us' and then he stops kissing me, stops touching me, just stops."

"He just stops?"

"He was doing it all to be cruel. I start yelling at him and he starts talking about how, if Logan had taken better care of me sexually, then maybe he could move onto his next conquest. Basically says that he's tired of wasting his time and effort on me." Robin ducked her head, unable to add in the last part. If she didn't say it, it wouldn't be true.

"That was more than cruel. That was evil." Elizabeth shook her own head. Moving closer to Robin, she took the other girl's hands. "This wouldn't be the reason you are hiding out suddenly is it?"

"I'm not hiding out." Robin argued.

"Robin, girlfriend please. You've been ducking my calls and I about had to pound your door in to get you to answer it."

"I've been volunteering at Morgan's school. I don't want to seem like a dead-beat mother. Patrick was distracting me from what was important. I don't have that problem anymore. Morgan needs me." Robin knew she was overcompensating, but so what? Half of what she was saying was completely true. Why should Morgan feel inferior to Patrick?

"I'm not saying attention for Morgan is bad. I'm sure he loves it."

"What are you saying?"

"I'm saying that you are trying to avoid anything that reminds you of Patrick." Elizabeth squeezed her friend's hands. "I'm slightly familiar with this process."

"Why couldn't he have just told Lucky?" Robin whispered, referring to the reason Elizabeth had stopped by.

"Because he's a guy and sometimes they are just stupid?" Elizabeth offered.

"He barely let me help him. I never pushed because I just thought he had other people to depend on. Why does he think he has to face this on his own? And now this stupid fight!" Robin sighed.

"At the risk of repeating myself here, he's a guy. And I don't know if you've noticed, but he can be a bit stubborn." Elizabeth pushed a piece of hair behind her ear. "Patrick got an idea in his head that he didn't need anyone and well there you have it. The question now is what are you going to do about it?"

"What should I do?"

Elizabeth glanced at her watch. "Well it's been about an hour since Lucky left to go see Patrick so I think it's safe to say he knows by now. I think the best plan is to accept the fact that you will have to face him today."

"Today?" Robin folded her hands in her lap nervously.

"You see Patrick waiting to confront you on this? Lucky did not take the news well and I doubt it was all manly hugs and eating chocolate."

"How bad do you think it got?" Robin asked quietly.

"Considering Lucky drove like a bat out of hell and didn't say a word to me when he left? Bad."

"And just when his hand was finally starting to heal. All right. Chances are, they're at the
studio. I'll try there first." Robin stood up and then stopped. "Can I talk you into babysitting for an hour?"

Elizabeth smiled. "And delay my own dealing with a pissed off Spencer male? Absolutely."