When they did finally head home after ending the night on a much happier note, Steve threw Laura over his shoulder at the elevator doors.

"Ahh!" she screamed and laughed.

Steve beat his bare chest with his freehand like a gorilla and grunted like a monkey. "Oo. Oo. Oo. Ooo. Ooo. Ah. Ah. AH!" he crouched low like a caveman and made his way to the apartment.

"Put me down!" she laughed.

Steve opened the door and slammed it behind them. He stood up straight to lock it and put the chain in place. Then he crouched again and grunted his way to the bedroom. He tossed her down onto the bed and climbed on top of her. "I. Steve. You. Laura," he growled.

Laura smiled brightly. "Very good," she purred. "But I have so much more to teach you, Tarzan."

Steve wiggled his eyebrows. "Oh, no. Tarzan know how," he promised. "Tarzan watched monkeys."

Laura laughed loudly. "Oh, my God!" she cackled.

"What?" he grinned. "You think that's funny?" he began to tickle her.

She rolled over slightly as she continued laughing. "Oh, my God! Stop!" she laughed. "Stop!" she kept laughing. "Baby, I mean it!"

Suddenly, there was a loud clunk, and Steve collapsed to the floor.

"Steve?!" Laura exclaimed as she sat up. She looked down at Steve, and then her eyes met the baseball bat behind him. "Alex?" she asked weakly.

He smiled kindly at her. "I saved you from him. You're welcome," he cooed. He reached out to her. "Let's get you out of here before he wakes up."

Laura was shaking as she got off the bed and knelt beside Steve. "Steve," she whispered, shaking him gently with tears in her eyes. "Steve, baby, you have to wake up. Please. Please, you have to wake up." She placed a trembling hand on his neck and felt for a pulse. There was a strong one. He was just unconscious. She rolled him over and stroked his face, looking and feeling for blood. When she was sure he was just in Nappy Land, she looked back up at her attacker. "Why did you do this?"

Alex cocked his head at her. "He was hurting you. He was on top of you, and you were telling him to stop, and he didn't listen. He was raping you, Laura," he said with fear and disgust in his voice.

Laura shook her head. Tears were pouring out of her eyes. "No, Alex," she said. "He was tickling me. That's all. I was having fun."

He crouched beside her. "No. No," he said gently. "See, baby? You've got Stockholm Syndrome. You think you're having fun even when you're screaming for him to stop."

Laura stood up and started to back away, hoping to get to the phone on Steve's nightstand on the other side of the bed. "Alex, you need to leave. This is breaking and entering and assault. You're a law student. You know that."

He followed her, and she realized suddenly that she had let him back her into a corner. "No. You need to come with me back to my place. I need you to be safe… with me."

Laura reached behind her for the phone.

"Laura, put the phone down," he ordered, brandishing the bat threateningly.

Laura froze. "Did you just threaten the woman you love with a bat?" she challenged.

That unnerved him. "N-n-no. I wouldn't… I would never hurt you," he promised, reaching out to her.

She lifted the phone higher and started to dial. 9. 1.

"PUT THE PHONE DOWN!" he screamed, slamming it out of her hands with the bat.

Laura pulled her hand back, shaking it in pain. She looked down at the shattered pieces of the phone on the floor.

He stepped closer to her and took her injured hand in his. "I didn't mean to get your hand. You just can't call anybody right now, baby. Not until we're far away from here."

"Alex, I'm not going with you," she said firmly as she pulled her hand away. "Nothing you could say or do or threaten is going to make me go anywhere with you."

"Laura, I know this is hard for you, but you have to come with me," he said, reaching out to her again.

"Don't touch me," she spat. "Get out of my apartment."

"Laura, I need you to be more cooperative," he insisted. "This'll be good for you."

"Go away," she ordered. "Go away, or I'll scream." She knew these brick walls were too thick for that to mean much, but she hoped he wouldn't realize that.

"Laura," he said as he reached out to her again.

Suddenly, she let out a blood curdling scream and kneed him in the groin. He fell to the ground and cried out in pain. This cleared the path to the door, but she couldn't leave. She went back over to Steve and grabbed his feet. She began to drag him out of the room. Then she heard a familiar click just as she was reaching the doorway and froze. She turned back around to stare at the gun he was pointing at her.

"I wanted to do this the easy way," he grumbled, tears pouring down his cheeks.

Laura set Steve's feet down and raised her hands in the air. "Alex, don't do this," she begged.

"SHUT UP!" he shouted. "SHUT UP AND LET ME THINK!"

Laura sobbed softly to herself as Alex moved to the closet and pulled out several of Steve's belts, never pointing the gun away from Laura's head.

"Tie him up," he ordered. He stepped closer to her and put the gun to her head. "Do it."

Laura stayed still and just sobbed.

Then he pointed the gun at Steve's head. "Tie him up," he growled.

Laura's eyes widened and she got on her knees immediately. She put the belts around Steve's ankles, his knees, and his wrists.

"Put his wrists behind him!" Alex ordered.

Laura moved his wrists behind him and fastened the belt.

"Tighter!" He shouted. "They all have to be tighter.

"Alex, they're all on the tightest setting!"

"Then make a new one," he suggested, tossing her a sharpened screwdriver from his pocket. He had certainly come with a lot of weapons.

Laura picked up the screwdriver and made new holes in all of Steve's belts. She tried to leave the one on Steve's wrists loose, but he forced her to tighten it so tightly that she was worried she was cutting off his circulation. Then she stood as if to hand the screwdriver back, and her arm shot forward in an attempt to stab him in the gut with it, but he grabbed her wrist.

"You stupid bitch," he growled. He took the screwdriver out of her hand and put it back in his pocket. Then he slapped her hard in the face.

"Ahh!" She screamed. "HELP! SOMEBODY PLEASE HELP!" She cried as she started to sob again.

He moved the gun back to Steve's head. "Shut up!"

She did so immediately. She looked down nervously at Steve. She would do anything to make sure he made it out of this alive. Absolutely anything.

Then he began to wake up. First he moaned and wiggled around, trying to come back to his senses. Then as he became more aware of his surroundings he realized he was tied up and began to struggle against the belts. Then he remembered what was going on. "Laura?" he cried, forcing himself to sit up to look at her. She was crying, and her cheek was bleeding, but she was alive.

"Steve," she pouted softly in relief. She desperately wanted to get down there with him and take him into her arms. She wanted to nurse that likely concussion back to health and feed him soup and kiss it all all better, but she couldn't. She couldn't think of anything that could set Alex off more than her kissing or touching or loving Steve right. Laura looked at Alex nervously, which is when Steve's eyes found him.

Steve glared at him. Of course, it was him! "You," he growled. Alex still had the gun pointed at Steve, but Steve couldn't care less. "Get out of my apartment, and leave my wife alone, or I will kill you," he promised.

"Big talk from a man all tied-up," Alex reminded him.

Steve lurched forward, but couldn't do much of anything. Alex hit him with the butt of his gun.

"Steve!" Laura cried.

"Don't do anything stupid!" he growled to her, moving the gun closer to Steve's head.

Steve began this struggle against the belts again. "Leave her alone!" he ordered.

"I tried to make this easy on you," he complained to her. "I tried so hard to help you see the light, but I guess you never will. I guess the only way to protect you from him is to… kill him," he finished softly, crouching beside him. Steve continued to struggle, but in his current position, he was unable to stop Alex from pressing a gun to his temple.

"No!" Laura shouted. "No, Alex, you don't have to do that. I-I… I see it now. I see how bad he is for me. I see it," she promised, stepping closer to them. She reached out to grab the gun from him, but he pulled back and stood up.

"You're trying to trick me!"

"No!" Laura said immediately. "Alex, I never told anyone this before, but he beats me."

"Laura, that's not true!" Steve cried. "What are you doing?"

"He hits me whenever I talk to another guy or talk back to him or turn him down for sex. He beats me."

Alex stepped closer to her, still waving that gun around. "I know," he whispered, reaching out to stroke her swollen, bloody cheek. "Look what he did to you."

Laura froze for a minute. He was so crazy he sincerely believed that Steve had caused this bruising, not the slap he had given to her face. Did he even remember the slap? "Yes," she said softly. "He hit me for talking to you at the party tonight."

Alex smiled softly. "But it doesn't have to be this way now. We can be together. I'll just shoot his brains out, and he'll never be able to come between us again."

Laura shuttered at the thought, her pulse racing in her ears. "No. No, please, don't," Laura begged.

"Laura, let him kill me. Just don't go with him," Steve interrupted.

"SHUT UP!" he ordered. He looked back at Laura. He pulled a roll of duct tape out of his pocket and threw it to her. "Tape his mouth shut."

She nodded and crouched before him.

"Laura," he begged as she started to peel back the tape. "Don't do this. Don't worry about me. Don't play his game. Don't let him hurt you or touch-" He was silenced as she fastened the tape gently over his mouth. He continued trying to mumble underneath it.

"I love you," she mouthed to him before she stood up. "Alex, I know he hurt me, and I know you want vengeance-"

"No!" Alex replied. "Baby, it's not that. I just want to know he can never hurt you again."

"I understand that, honey," she said, stepping closer to him. "I do, but he was my neighbor growing up, and I spent tons of time with his parents. They were always so good to me. They would be devastated if anything happened to him. Please. You can keep me safe. Let's just go."

"I don't know," he mumbled.

Laura smiled softly and leaned into him slowly. She heard Steve scream loudly as she pressed her lips against his and wrapped her arms around his neck. She pulled back after a long, slow French kiss. "Please?" she whispered. She could hear Steve sobbing on the floor. Then she felt him lean forward to rest his head on her feet. She felt his tears hit her soft skin, begging her not to keep doing this to him. Laura swallowed hard, trying to hold back her own tears.

"Ok," Alex said eventually. "I won't kill him. For Mr. and Mrs. Urkel." He pulled away from her slightly and kicked Steve as hard as he could in the back.

"Alex, no!" she yelled.

Steve groaned loudly beneath the tape.

He kicked him again and again. Then he stopped. "NEVER TOUCH HER AGAIN." Then he turned to Laura with a big smile on his face. "Ready to go, baby?"

Laura removed the hand that had been covering her mouth. She took a deep breath. He was alive. That was all that mattered. She had to keep Steve alive. Laura forced a soft smile. "I just have to pack first."

"Baby, we don't have time. I'll buy you new stuff. You know my parents have money."

"Just the essentials," she promised, hoping she could figure out more ways to stall.

He smiled softly. "Ok," he agreed, but hurry.

Laura walked slowly to the closet and pulled out her suitcase. She brought it out to the bed. Then she began to pack just about everything she owned slowly and carefully.

As Alex grew impatient, he came up behind her and wrapped his arms around her waist. He began to kiss her neck. "You're taking too long, baby. I'm getting impatient."

Laura swallowed hard. She could feel herself begin to sweat as she felt the cool metal of the gun gently touch her exposed stomach. "I'm going as fast as I can," she said. "You know I can't leave clothes behind."

He chuckled. "I know, but I don't want us getting caught sneaking away."

Laura turned around and smiled seductively. "So you'd rather I just go back to your apartment and walk around naked for the rest of my life?"

Steve moaned loudly and continued to sob.

"Yes, please," he agreed. He began to pull at the zipper on the back of her top

"Hey," she complained, pulling away from him slightly. "That's really gonna slow me down," she chuckled nervously.

"We've got a little time," he replied.

Laura looked at the gun. "You have to set that down first," she purred, stepping close to him again.

He frowned. "Baby, you know I can't do that yet."

"Why not?" she pouted. "Don't you trust me?"

"Of course," he replied. "It's him I don't trust." He pointed down at Steve who was still sobbing.

Laura nodded. "Ok. Fine. Keep it," she said, rolling her eyes. She grabbed the back of his head and pulled his lips against hers. Immediately, his hands gripped her butt and he pushed her back on the bed. He started to tug on her skirt, and she paused. "Wait. You're going too fast." Steve began to cry louder.

"Baby, I've been waiting for this for months. C'mon. We can take our time next time."

"No," Laura said firmly. "I've only ever been with Steve, and he was always so aggressive. I need someone to go slow with me. I need you to show me what it feels like to be loved, Alex."

Steve was sobbing and screaming at the top of his lungs by now.

He smiled brightly. "Ok, baby. Just relax," he purred as he began to kiss her neck again.

He kissed lower. When he had almost reached her cleavage, Laura pushed him off and climbed on his lap. She smiled down at him. "You're so sexy," she purred, leaning down and kissing him passionately. She began to grind on him just right. Then, when he was totally distracted, she grabbed the gun. She rolled off of him and pointed it at him with a shaky hand. "Move and I'll shoot," she threatened.

He sat up and glared at her. Where had this come from? "What? Laura," he said as he rolled over and stood from the bed.

"I mean it!" she yelled. "Don't move!"

"Laura, you're not gonna shoot me."

"My father's a cop. You better believe he taught me how to defend myself," she growled.

"Laura, baby," he said, stepping even closer to her.

She aimed the gun low and shot him in the knee with incredible accuracy.

Alex cried out and fell immediately to the floor.

"DON'T MOVE!" she yelled again.