Chapter 11: How I Realized He Was Home.

They had stopped by a Starbucks on the way to work. Ally's eyes were still sore and she felt a bit sick, but Austin said it was her body getting rid of the drug. Austin walked next to her as they left the elevator. She felt everyone's gazes landing on them, but Austin carried on like nothing was wrong.

That's because he's used to the attention.

They walked into the waiting room, and Ally nodded at Austin, then walked over to her desk, and he went into his office. She placed her coffee down, then turned on her computer. She got her glasses out from her bag, then put them on. Everything became clearer, as her headache was affecting her eyesight.

She grabbed her notebook, and began to write some things down. She decided to check her emails, and she saw she had one from her mom. She opened it up, and saw some attached files. She clicked on the link, and appearing on her screen was some photographs. She sighed, and saw a photo of her mom with her new family.

Why is she doing this?

She clicked on the next photo, and her bottom lip suddenly quivered. She swallowed back her sob. She stared at Henry; her mom's new husband, and saw he was wearing the sweater Ally had made for her dad for his birthday. She had sewn his initials into it, and he always wore it around the house. She had left it in her room after he died.

I never knew my mom had taken it...

Ally rubbed the side of her temple, and she quickly wiped the tears away from her eyes. She ripped the piece of paper from her notebook, then walked into Austin's office. He looked up from his computer, then looked away. His gaze immediately snapped back to hers.

"Here," Ally held out the piece of paper, her hand shaking unintentionally.

"Hey, what's wrong," He reached over his desk, and gently grabbed her wrist. He stood up and stepped around his desk, so he was in front of her.

"Nothing, it's silly," She bit her bottom lip, and glanced up at him.

"It's obviously no silly if you've been crying," He said, and she could hear the seriousness in his tone.

"I don't understand what I ever did to my mom. She's seems to be going out of her way to rub things in my face...she gave the sweater I made for my dad to her new husband...then sent me a picture of it...his initials aren't even the same, I-I don't get it," Austin pulled on her arm, and she stepped into his embrace. She wrapped her arms around his middle, and she took in a staggering breath. He kissed the top of her head, and ran a soothing hand down her hair.

"You deserve so much better," He whispered, and she looked up at him. "Have I ever told you that you look really sexy wearing glasses," Ally giggled her mood changing instantly.

"Really?" He nodded his head, then brought up his hand to cup the side of her face. He placed a kiss to her forehead, then one to her cheek, and then hovered his mouth over hers.

"You always look incredibly sexy," His voice was husky, and she giggled. He pressed his lips against hers, and she grinned as they stumbled backwards, until she came in contact with his desk. He pulled his lips away from her, and playful began to kiss her neck. She laughed loudly, and wrapped her hands around his biceps.

KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK.

Austin brought his mouth away from her neck, and his eyes narrowed slightly. Ally's smile didn't fade though, and she stepped around him.

"I have work to do, sir," She walked over to the door, and saw Dallas standing there. "Good morning, Dallas."

He nodded his head in greeting, and Ally walked back to her desk. She removed the photographs from her screen, pushing them to the back of her mind. Austin had changed her mood completely, and she took another sip of her coffee. She grabbed a file from her desk, and she walked into the workroom.

She looked over and saw Elliot sat at his desk. Trish was at her desk typing away on the keyboard. She walked over and sat down on the edge of Elliot's desk. He looked over and flashed her a smile.

"Did you have a good night last night?" He asked.

"It was okay," She lied.

"Why did Mr Moon shout at me down the phone?" He raised an eyebrow at her, and she felt her face heat up.

"Because I was at his apartment," She mumbled under her breath.

"What?" Elliot leaned forward, cupping his ear. "What was that?"

"I was at his apartment," She whispered close to his face.

"Never thought you had it in you," He patted her shoulder, and sat down next to her on his desk.

"What's that suppose to mean?"

"You know," He made a circle with his thumb and index finger, then inserted another finger into the hole. Ally furrowed her eyebrows in confusion, and he stared at Ally's amused face.

"I don't get it-Elliot!" Realization flooded over her, and she jabbed her elbow into his ribs.

"Ow," He grumbled, rubbing his side. "So, what was he like? Was he good?"

"You sound like a girl," Ally smirked, and Elliot laughed.

"I like to know if he lives up to the stories," He shrugged his shoulders, and Ally frowned.

"What stories?"

"Just stories," He replied. "So, did he grab you like this," He grabbed her arm, and pulled her from his desk. She giggled as she collided with his chest. "Then, did he go like this," He wrapped his arms around her waist, and shoulders.

"Elliot," She grumbled, feeling everyone's eyes on her. "Stop."

"Then like this," He dipped her down, and she squealed, latching her hands around his arms.

"Elliot, my blood is going to my head," He brought her back up, and her eyes widened. "Oh," Her eyes locked with Austin's. He was standing by the waiting room door with Dallas. She could see the pure rage in his eyes, and she stepped away from Elliot, who looked over his shoulder, then cringed. He looked back at Ally.

"Whoops, sorry," He sat down at his chair, and she looked at everyone to see they were staring at her. The silence soon ended, and everyone went back to work. Her eyes searched for Austin, and she watched him storm into the waiting room, heading for his office.

"Thanks Elliot," She muttered sarcastically.

"I didn't know I wasn't allowed to touch you," He held his hands up in defense, and Ally turned on her heel, and walked into the kitchen. She opened the cupboards, and she found a box of chocolate cookies. She ripped them open and began to eat it.

She rested her back against the counter, and she sighed. Should I go and apologize...For what? Her inner voice retorted. Ally took another bite of the cookie, and she put the box back in the cupboard. She walked out of the kitchen and collided with someone's chest. She looked up and saw Dez smirking down at her.

"Hey foxy," He winked at her, and she blushed.

"Hi Dez," She squeaked.

"Is Austin in his office?" He asked, and she nodded her head.

"He might not be in the best of moods though." She explained, and he laughed.

"What did you do?"

"What do you assume I did something?" She questioned.

"Well did you?"

"Maybe...kind of...I don't know...he doesn't like my friend Elliot, and he may have grabbed me and dipped me down in front of everyone, and Austin saw. He looked like he was going to rip him limb from limb," She explained, and he chuckled.

"Okay, thanks for the heads up," Dez walked off and headed towards Austin's office.

Elliot walked over to her, carrying a stack of files. "Can you help me?"

"I don't think you deserve my help," She rested a hand on her hip, and Elliot grumbled.

"I was just having fun, and you were enjoying it. Okay, I promise, I won't touch you anymore...whilst he's around," He laughed, and Ally fought of her smirk. "I need to sort these out and put them in the archives, then I need to find some other files as well. Will you help me? It will keep you away from Austin for a while. I'm sure you don't want to argue with him."

"I suppose you're right," She took half of the files from his arms, then they walked into the elevator.

They made their way into the archives, and Ally looked around the gloomy place. There were only a few lights, which flickered on and off at times. The place was filled with dust and she definitely thought she heard a squeak somewhere, I hate mice.

They made their way through the maze of shelves, packed with files. Elliot stopped, and put the files down on the floor. Ally placed the files down next to his, and they both sat down on the floor.

Ally opened the first file and stared at the last name. She began to separate them into piles of alphabetical order by last name. She glanced at Elliot to see he was staring down at his cellphone. His face looked strained, and her face fell.

"Is something wrong?"

"M-My parents were in a car crash," He stammered, and quickly got to his feet.

"Oh my god!" Ally exclaimed, and she got to her feet.

"I need to go to the hospital!" He stared at Ally, panic in his eyes.

"Okay, you go. I'll sort these files out," He nodded in thanks, then pulled her in for a quick hug.

"Thank you," He ran off, and Ally watched him go.

Ally slid down the shelf, and she stared at the giant pile of files. She sighed, but she knew she was doing this for a good reason. She carried on for almost an hour, sorting all the files out. She began to place them all in the correct spots on the shelves. Once she was done, she grabbed the piece of paper, which had the name of the files that needed to be found.

She began to rummage through the never-ending shelves of files. She placed the piece of paper in her mouth, and used both of her hands to quickly search through the files for the correct last name.

Something ran across her feet.

"AH!" She screamed and she jumped backwards, the piece of paper flying from her mouth. Her back collided with the shelves behind her, and her head hit one of the planks of wood. She hissed in pain, then she heard it creak behind her. The unit began to shake, and it began to tip forward. It became wedged between the wall, and the shelf opposite, making all the files fall from it. She fell to the floor, buried in a mountain of brown files.

"Great," She grumbled.

She climbed out of the cave the shelf had created, and brushed the dust from her clothes. She brought her hand up to the back of her head, and felt a lump forming. She coughed the remaining dust from her lungs, then she felt someone watching her. She turned around, and stared at the end of the aisle.

All in black. Face masked. Hands gloved. Ally slowly took a step backwards, her ankles shaking in her heels. They reached around, and pulled a knife from their back pocket. It shimmered in the dim, orange lighting. Ally felt her whole body begin to shake. She was too far down to scream for help.

Suddenly, they ran towards her. Ally screamed, and jumped back into the gap between the two shelves. She scrambled across the mountain of files, and her knees slipped on the papers, and she fell on her stomach. She scurried back onto her knees, but a hand latched around her ankle. She was yanked across the files, receiving multiple paper cuts. She landed on the wooden floor, and they towered over her.

They slowly crouched down in front of her. The knife was slowly edged closer to her, until the sharp end rested underneath her chin. Her breathing hitched in the back of her throat, and she stared at their masked face. They were wearing a black hockey mask, and it reminded her of the one Jason wore in the horror film Friday The 13th.

She whimpered, and hot tears fell from her eyes. They tilted their head slowly to the side, and her chest began to move erratically. She opened her mouth to say something, or to scream, but nothing came out. She was paralyzed.

They moved the knife from her chin, and traced it down the middle of her blouse, travelling down the valley of her cleavage. Their head followed the movement of the knife, and the knife stopped at her stomach.

In the blink of an eye, their hand grabbed a hold of her neck, and she was picked up, and slammed into one off the shelves. Their grip tightened on her throat, and she pried at their gloved hands. She began to see stars, and she pushed at their chest, trying to get them to let go. Her hands quickly moved towards their mask.

She was immediately let go, and crumbled to the floor in a heap. She blinked trying to get the dots to leave her vision. She coughed, and gasped for air, then looked to see they had gone.

Her bottom lip quivered, and she brushed her fingertips against her throbbing throat. She cried out and she slowly crawled back through the gap, and came out of the other side, not wanting to walk in the direction the masked person had gone in. She slowly, and cautiously, walked over to the small elevator. She pressed the button and stepped inside. She stared at the doors until they opened again. She walked down the hallway, then typed in the code. The door opened slowly, and she walked out into the reception.

A few heads turned, but she ignored them. Tears continued to pour from her eyes, and she walked over to the elevator. She got in with a lot of people, and they all stared at her like she was a freak.

The doors opened for her floor, and she dragged herself out. The workroom fell silent, and she glanced at Trish who was looking at her in worry, but she didn't make any move to go towards her.

She opened the door to the waiting room, and she glanced at her seat. She carried on forward, and heard voices coming from inside his office. He had company. Ally reached out her violently shaking hand and knocked on the door.

"I'm busy!" He voice was like a whip, and a loud sob flew from her lips. The voices fell silent on the other side of the door. She reached out and placed her hand on the door handle. She pushed the door open, and stepped in, her knees almost knocking together.

Austin was sat in his chair, and Dez, and Dallas were sat on the leather couch. His eyes landed on hers, and another cry escaped her fiery throat. Austin slowly got up from his chair, and she ran forward, throwing herself into his arms. He wrapped his arms around her protectively, and she collapsed into his embrace, her legs gave out, and Austin placed her on the edge of his desk, keeping his arms wrapped around her. She cried hysterically into his chest.

"Can you leave," He spoke to Dez and Dallas. Ally heard the door shut, and Austin cupped the sides of her face. "What's wrong? What happened?" He asked frantically. Her bottom lip kept quivering and he wiped her tears away, but they kept falling from her eyes.

"I-I was in the a-archives...E-Elliot l-left, and s-someone came...they w-were d-dressed in b-black...they h-had a...they h-had a...they had a knife...strangled me," Her hands flew to her throat, and Austin quickly brushed them off, then tilted her head backwards to get a better look at her neck.

It was bright red, and there was fingerprint bruises forming. Her chest began to heave for air, she felt like she couldn't breathe. I can't breathe. I can't breathe.

"Ally, in through the nose and out through the mouth," He instructed sternly, and his eyes pierced into hers. "Ally, do it!" He shook her slightly, and she began to do what she was told. Her breathing finally settled, but her whole body continued to shake.

"They had their knife under my chin..they brought it down my body, and kept it at my stomach..." She hiccuped a cry. "I-I thought they were going to s-stab m-me."

"Hey, it's okay," He pulled her back against his chest, and she grabbed onto his shirt. "It's okay," He whispered into her hair, and she squeezed him tighter. "I'm taking you home."

"N-No," She stammered. "You missed work yesterday for me-"

"You're more important," He cut her off with a tone that said 'don't question me'. He grabbed his coat, and slipped it on. He slotted Ally into his side, and they walked out of his office. He grabbed her bag from her desk, and they walked out into the workroom.

Heads turned, but Ally ignored them, burying her face into Austin's chest. They walked into the elevator, and his hold tightened on her shoulders.

I just want to go home.

...

"Ally, go to sleep," Austin spoke up from behind her. She shifted on the bed, and lay on her side to face him.

"I can't," She whispered, and he reached out and pushed the hair from her face.

"I promise you, you're safe," He brushed his thumb against her cheek. "I'm not going to let anything happen to you."

"I'm not doubting your ability to keep me safe...I'm just scared to close my eyes," She explained, her voice croaky.

They had spent the rest of the day curled up on the couch watching the television. He let her watch her girly shows, and he just sat there and stroked her hair. It was almost midnight now, and she knew he wasn't going to go to sleep until she did.

Her phone beeped on the bedside table. She turned around, and picked it up. It was a message from Elliot.

Did you have fun in the archives?

Ally responded: Fine. How are you parents.

She went to place it back down, but it beeped again. Oh. They're fine.

Ally: Good, I'm glad to here that they're okay.

Ally put her phone back down, and turned back to Austin. His eyes were narrowed, and she could see anger in them.

"What does he want?" He spoke through gritted teeth.

"He was asking me if everything went alright down in the archives, and I asked if his parents were okay," She explained, but his face didn't softened.

"Why did you let him do it?"

Ally sighed, knowing what he was talking about. "He took me by surprise, and we were just having fun."

"Fun. Watching another man touch you, is not fun," He seethed, and she reached out and touched his jawline.

"Austin, stop being possessive," She whispered, and he grabbed her wrist, pulling her up close to his face.

"You're mine."

"I'm what? I'm not property Austin!" She snapped, and his grip tightened on her wrist. She winced in pain, and roughly pulled it out of his grasp. "I'm going to sleep."

Ally turned her back to him, and moved to the far end of the bed. She wrapped the blanket around her tightly, and brought her knees to her chest. She felt Austin's hand on her arm, but she shook him off. He grabbed her arm again, and he turned her onto her back, gently.

"I'm sorry," He rested his forehead on her shoulder, and she glanced down at him. He placed a kiss on her shoulder, and she felt like putty in his hands. He shifted, so he was lying down next to her. He grabbed her around the waist, and turned her until she was lay on his chest. He let out a heavy sigh, and so did she.

She felt warm, and tingly. She felt at home.

BEEP.

Ally ignored it, and snuggled into his side. She needed the comfort. He began to stroke her hair, and Ally had learnt that it was her favorite thing that he did. It seemed to calm her down, and ease her worries.

BEEP.

Ally grumbled, and buried her face into his shoulder. Austin pulled the blanket over them, and she cautiously placed her leg in between his, and their legs immediately intertwined with one another. She inhaled his scent, and released a breath of air.

Yes, this is definitely home.

AN: Hi! Thank you for the reviews, and they all made me smile. I hope you enjoyed this chapter and review it. In the next chapter, things get a little...you know...'hot' in the office :)

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