Piper POV
Alex walked into my dorm and took a seat on my roomies bunk across from mine.
"Don't want to get to close?" I asked.
"Pipes, I would jump at the chance you know that but first I need you to talk," she said all ears leaning forward with her elbows on her knees.
I sighed. It was time to confess.
" Okay first off I want to sincerely apologize for everything since I've got here. I had no clue that you were going to be here. Even then, it seemed like every interaction we got into turned out to be destructive for you, like dominos- one after the other," I said. She nodded in agreement.
"And I wanted to say that it wasn't fair that I brought up my boyfriend in the library. It wasn't the place or time. You know I speak impulsively sometimes," I continued.
"Pipes, not sometimes, more like every time. I just caught you all those times you were about to slip up," she said.
"Okay. Well still. I knew you were mad at me. So for that i apologize. Then the picture situation, apparently I still wasn't thinking. Then you saw it. That was just completely stupid of me. I should've hid it from you but I felt it was my freedom to have it there." I took a deep breath looking down as I remembered picking up all the shards afterward and seeing that a shard had scraped and destroyed the picture forever. It was one of my favourite photos too. Ironically enough it had scraped the photo in two, dividing me and Larry in half with two jagged lines. I was silent.
The bed made a squeeky sound like someone had gotten off it and gave it air. Alex joined me. She put her hand on my shoulder.
"Are you mad at me for that? Pipes, I'm sorry I was angry, you made it that much more harder for me to accept that you've moved on, I understand if you're mad," she said.
"Well the photo is destroyed if that's what you wanted to know...I haven't moved on yet Alex," I confessed too soon in a bare whisper.
"What?" she asked bewildered looking at me with her big olive eyes.
"I was thinking about what you left me that night you destroyed the photo. That message you left. The but why? Do you remember?" I asked.
"Well Alex the truth is, I haven't known Larry for that long. I haven't dated much since I walked out on you years ago. I tried here and there a few times but it was always too soon. I wasn't over you. I left you for a stupid reason but I was still in love with you Alex. I just hated what you did. I know it looked like I left you so easily after you gave up my passport, but I sat outside your door for half an hour that day thinking to myself that very question you presented to me. I was already late for my flight so what else did I have to lose. I would've ran back to you if you had only walked out during that time,"
"You could've knocked... you had the key," she cut in, but I ignored her.
"Then I met Larry six months ago and he gave me that protection I craved. He helped me forget about you, made it all just be a long lost memory to me. He was hot but he wasn't shallow like the other guys and girls I attempted a relationship with. So it was working out. Plus I was preoccupied with my best friend Polly, you met her, could never get her name right but that's beside the point, yea well she's pregnant now " I sighed at the midpoint.
"Then I got bombarded by officers one morning and was sent to Etherbloom, which was hell for me. I thought my whole life was over. There was so much I was going to miss out on. I requested a transfer and it landed me here, it landed me to you. That first time I heard your voice at the talent show I couldn't believe my ears I had to rely on my eyes. Then I saw you in the flesh and hate started filling me cause I felt I was back into that life that I so badly wanted out of. I quickly assumed it was you that named me. I mean it had to be, who else could have then? So I seethed with anger and wanted you to hurt the way I did so that's when I called up my lawyer to find out the truth,"
"Anyway, Larry comes in today and asks me to marry him. I couldn't quite give an answer because I had to fix the situation with us, explain the pain I've caused myself and you. So I said maybe. Now I do still love Larry, Alex, I can't just forget about him like you're hoping me to, but I do want us to be friends and if it happens along the way to become more than that, so be it. I'll let myself fall to whatever happens, I just can't rush into it again like I did the first time," I stopped talking.
"Wow Piper. I'm sorry. I thought you moved on but you're just as messed up over everything as I am. You're trying to cope even if it is with a guy. I'll let you have that."
She breathed then maintaining her sanity before continuing, "I won't lie though, I never did forgive you for leaving me. The one friend I had that helped me survive through school died, I had no one Piper. It was a bitch I first saw you when you were walking into this facility, I was shocked but I couldn't help the love feeling that arose from inside of me instantly, like a river that flows with no dam in the way. No forcing, all automatic and free. Yes i was at that window, you just needed to look up and you would've saw me. As Taystee put it, I looked like I had seen a ghost. But I'd like to say, I looked like I saw an angel instead. I still love you Piper. We were never friends, but I'm going to take what I can get at this point and hope for something further. Mark my words I will always be trying to win you over, a guy in the way will not be my end. I promise though to never force you to do anything you do not want to do ever again. What happens if you do fall in love again...Huh kid," she asked.
"Well I'll just have to choose from the better two," I said taking her words slowly in.
"Well then that should be an easy one," she looked at me more seriously then and I saw the love in her eyes. The love that has always been there just masked by all the hate I made her feel these past few days. The love I so very missed. The love that even though you were mad at each other it always managed to seep through. The unconditional kind.
"Alex I really hope you didn't name me," I said meaning my every word.
"I didn't." she promised. We were both silent sitting next to each other.
Then she reached across me and took the hand that was in my lap and started to run her thumb in circular motions on my palm. I didn't pull away. Her soft but strong hands were a comfort.
"Alex is it just me or is the temperature rising?" I asked feeling cautious.
"Hah Pipes it's just us. We always radiate this sort of heat when we are excited and in love," she said.
"Gee I didnt notice. But maybe it could also be because the weather is shifting to warm too," I played.
"You need to be much more observant to your immediate surroundings, kid" she smiled pointing out the obvious, me and her. "Hey I wish you could've been here for Christmas, it was fantastic," she said.
"me too but I'll be here for the next one don't worry," I said, it was the end of January.
l bent my head down to her injured hand and kissed the thumb and index finger.
"What was that for?" She asked me.
"I wanted to give it a kiss all better, it was my fault anyway," I said feeling cheesy.
"Okay there miss, but will you allow me to do the same for you?" she asked smiling. Suddenly I hesitated and froze. She leaned in anyway, cleared some hair out of the way, and brought her full lips to the back of my neck. My special spot.
"Oh Alex you little tease, stop that," we both laughed like the old times.
"I knew you'd like it," that I did.
"I love it."
There was one thing I still had to bring up with her though.
"Alex, someone's trying to hurt me for what I've done to you, and I'm fucking terrified," I said holding on to her hand tighter, like it was my only lifeline.
"What the hell Piper, why didn't you tell me sooner! Did you report it?" She raised her voice, "fuck I can take care of my own damn self."
"I know you can Ale, but yes I did report it immediately. I found a note in Emily's book so I think she's behind it, but why would she want to hurt me. It doesn't make any sense. Plus I thought she hated you back then so it wouldn't be right, her protecting you," I spoke.
"Piper we are all bad people here, don't trust anyone right away. Did you give her name to a CO?" she asked concerned.
"I did and they are going to investigate. Alex I never told you this part before but the main reason I left the other facility was because I got threatened twice, I admit, it fucked me up a bit in the head so I had to leave. I can't deal with that here too, I just can't" I told her afraid. She flinched with worry on her face, once again, like it was her fault, and said,
"I'm sorry. You shouldn't have lied to me when I asked. I would've gone a lot easier on you. But don't fright kid, if this person wants to get to you they gotta get through me first, it'll be my sweet revenge," and just like that Alex's protector mode was is full effect.
A/n- Everything is out on Pipers side now. She is listening to Alex's advice and just letting the world happen. Lets hope she doesn't run away after she finds out about Alex's secrets. Also I didn't know weather to go straight for the mouth kiss or neck kiss so don't hate on my decision. Haha. Let me know what you guys think!
