He stared at the broken mirror for quite some time. He was lost in his thoughts. He heard a knock on the door. Without even thinking straight, he opened it.
"Cat"!?
He stared blankly at Meredith.
"Can I come in"? she asked.
"Sure", he said.
When she came inside, she saw the broken pieces of glass on the wooden floor and caught a glimpse of Alvin's bleeding knuckles. "Al, what have you done"?
She took his hand and led him to the kitchen sink. "Where's Caitlin"? she asked as she held his hand underneath the cold running water.
He swallowed and looked at her with broken eyes. "Gone. I ruined everything".
She didn't know what to say at first about that. "You have a first aid kit"?
"Underneath the bathroom cabinet".
She walked slowly through the rooms and headed towards the only available hallway. She passed in front of the bedroom and looked inside. There were a few frames with pictures of Alvin and Caitlin and she smiled at how happy and in loved they looked. As she headed to the bathroom, she was certain that Al was mistaken, things couldn't end between them.
She returned to the kitchen and led Al to the dining room table where she started to disinfect his wounds and patch him up.
"I'm sorry Al. You were right about what you said last night. I should have told you, but to be honest, I don't even know where it's going. We just enjoy each other's company but we shouldn't have blindsided you. I feel responsible for what's happening between you and Caitlin".
"No, it's all my fault. I don't deserve her".
Meredith wrapped his hand in a bandage and looked at him. "Don't say that. It's not true. You are an amazing man and when you love, you love with all your heart. And it's not a question of who deserves who. You belong together Al, it's that simple".
He looked at her. "Was I good to you? Was I a good husband"?
"Oh Al. Why does it matter? Why do you need to know"?
He lifted his eyes, then closed them for a second before looking at her again. "Because I need to know. Because I don't want to make the same mistakes again".
She put her hand on his and looked at him softly. So, Caitlin was the one. She was the one that he loved so much, he would change and marry her. She had often wondered, who would come along and be the one. She would never have thought years ago that it could have been Caitlin, the little girl she used to bake cookies with. But now, she was happy to know that it was her.
"You were good to me Al and you were an amazing husband and father. But then you had a dark moment and you stopped fighting for us, for me and we drifted apart". She paused for a while and then stood.
"If you don't want to make the same mistake, then fight back. Fight for her, fight for what you have together and never stop"!
He nodded and watched as she left the apartment. He walked over to the mirror and started to pick up the broken pieces from off the floor. Meredith's words resonated in his head. He was going to fight for her, he would show her and convince her that there was no one else in his heart!
Caitlin knocked on the door and waited. Seconds later, it opened.
"Hey", she said quietly.
He could tell she had been crying, her eyes were red and blotchy.
He showed her inside. She walked in and put down her duffle bag.
"I'm sorry, I didn't know who else to call that wasn't somehow involved and meddle".
"I'm glad you called", he said. "Even if I wasn't your first choice".
"Oh God Connor, I'm sorry. I didn't mean it that way, I just need to think and not have everyone give me a piece of their mind. It's only for tonight".
He showed her the sofa and she nodded. He grabbed two beers from the fridge and met her in the sofa.
"I guess you don't want to talk about it".
She shrugged. "It's not that. I guess like I said their all too involved either personally or professionally in our lives".
She took a sip of her beer.
"So you and Al had a fight"?
"No. I can't say that it was a fight. But things were said and done that I can't get my head around".
She paused for a moment.
"Look you don't have to talk about it but I'm a good listener and we're friends. I promise I won't give you any advice unless you ask for it", he said as he put his hand on her shoulder.
"Hank showed up last night at the gala with Meredith, Alvin's ex-wife and well, let's just say that Al didn't take it well".
"I can see how that got under his skin. Especially if he didn't know".
"I agree. I too was shocked at first, but it wasn't the time or place to discuss it, and he wouldn't listen to me, he literally ignored my presence and walked out on me, when minutes earlier we were slow dancing and he was saying he couldn't imagine his life without me in it".
"He left you there"? said Connor surprised. It didn't sound like Alvin.
She nodded.
"You said you were shocked at first, you're not anymore"?
"How can I react the way Hank did when he found out about us, when I asked him not to".
"So, you're here because he walked out on you? Look I said I wouldn't say anything but it seems to me as though you're using that as an excuse to run away from him or from something".
"I didn't come here because of that. Trust me that was the tip of the iceberg".
"Go on then".
"He staid out all night drinking, then when I came home later, he almost acted like nothing had happened. We argued and during that time he asked him what was different between our relationship and theirs. To make the long story short he said that Meredith was his wife"!
She looked down at her hands. "He said he'd made a mistake in saying that and that I couldn't understand".
Connor sighed. "You think he's still in love with her, don't you"?
"I know they drifted apart years ago and I know he tried to win her back, to fix things and in the end she didn't let him. It was her decision, not his. He still lived in their garage, maybe he couldn't cut the tie between them, maybe he still hoped".
"Or maybe he staid for Lexi", said Connor simply.
"Maybe. But I can't live with that doubt hanging over my head".
"Love is scary Cat. You know that, I know that. Everyone knows that. It's like bungee jumping. Some stay sitting on the ledge afraid to jump and get hurt, afraid of losing control. Others dare, they jump in head first. The ones that don't jump probably pass aside something extraordinary and they'll never know what they missed", he paused for a second not sure he should say what he was about to.
"You sat on that ledge for quite some time when it came to Antonio and then you jumped and it didn't end well. I get you're scared but it doesn't always end bad. You're going to have to decide if you're going to keep sitting on that ledge or if you're going to jump"!
Her eyes got teary. "I love him Connor. Why does it have to be this hard"?
He pulled her into a comforting embrace. "Because otherwise, they wouldn't call it love"!