Alexis woke before her alarm and sighed. She looked over at his side of the bed, ran her hand over sheets that were too neat, his side unslept in. Being alone was going to take getting used to. But she could do this, she reminded herself. She knew how to be alone. She reached for her robe and got out of bed, headed towards the kitchen. Coffee. She could make her own coffee. She could try to make a cup of coffee that didn't have a charred after taste. She could try to have a cup of coffee and not miss her husband. Her soon to be ex-husband.

She stood at the counter and waited for the pot to brew. A few minutes later she poured a cup, took a sip. It wasn't the same. It was her coffee. Not his. She had been forced to make her own coffee when he would travel. It was tolerable then; it wasn't tolerable now. Not knowing because of her own decision he wouldn't be making her coffee again. "Damn it," she said as she poured it down the drain and left her mug in the sink.

"Mom, are you ok?"

"I'm fine, O." She said as she turned around, bringing her emotions into check. "I have to go into my office today. I know I said you could have the car, but that was before–"

"It's ok. I'll get a ride from Will," he replied. He could tell his mother was struggling with the first morning without his dad there.

"Last day of your vacation. Enjoy today." She could pretend she was ok for her children. This was for their children, she reminded herself.

"I hate to ask, but do you know when we'll see Dad this week? There's mock trial and indoor soccer starts…"

"You don't need to feel badly for asking that. We need to figure it out. I'll talk to him later today, ok?"

"Yeah." He hesitated before continuing, but he needed to know what happened. He truly thought things were getting better. "Mom…"

"There something else, monkey?" She stepped towards her son. She was concerned. He was usually more guarded about how he felt and she could tell he was having a hard time with this new reality.

"You don't have to answer this, but what exactly happened yesterday? I know you guys were fighting a lot, I've been here, but I thought things were getting better. Just the other night we sat and played games and Addie was right, things felt normal."

"Oh, Owen. It's complicated. We just realized some things after the board meeting. That's all." She wasn't going to disparage Ned or his sister.

"But he's CEO again right? Because Krissy…" He wanted to come clean. He hated this secret and he hated thinking this could have contributed to why his parents were no longer together.

"Krissy made some choices she probably shouldn't have yesterday, but your father and I had been walking on eggshells for a while now. It's not anything any of you did or could have prevented."

He nodded, understanding, but saw the hurt in his mother's eyes. "You're sure you're ok?"

"I will be. We all will be." She assured her son as she opened her arms to give him a hug, which he reciprocated. "I love you, Owen. Your dad and I both love you. That's not ever going to change."

That afternoon, Alexis sat at her desk, burying herself in work. There was too much going on to process. Addison, Kristen and what happened at the board meeting, the memories from her own adolescence surfacing, and then there was the divorce. It was overwhelming and she sought refuge in work. Legal paperwork made sense. It was always there. It brought routine and comfort. She was brought from the legal jargon distracting her when the door to the office swung open.

"What's this nonsense about a divorce?"

"Tracy, I appreciate your concern, but this is between me and your son." She said, surprised as she looked up and put down her pen.

"In the time I've gotten to know you, I've seen that you two are a perfect match. So what's this about?" Tracy asked, walking fully into the office, approaching Alexis' desk.

Alexis sighed, as Tracy sat across from her. "It's not like we haven't tried to make it work."

"I'm sure you have. So out with it. Is it about ELQ because when he told me he wanted you as Chief Counsel I told him it was nonsense."

"I don't know whether to be insulted or flattered, you care that much."

"So it is ELQ."

"ELQ was just the catalyst. And I won't lie to you. I do love your son, but what we have…it has to be over. We're destroying each other and it's not good for our kids. Did he send you here? He agreed, but I know him and I know he isn't entirely convinced."

"No, he doesn't even know I'm here. I came to you first."

"What's your angle here Tracy?"

"Can't a mother just want her son to be happy? He had no idea Kristen was going to make that motion at the board meeting. Now, I applaud the effort-"

"Of course you would encourage her."

"Well, don't blame Ned because your daughter acted like the Quartermaine she is."

"I have to file this today. Is that all?"

"He loves you."

Alexis looked at the photo of them on her desk, "I know."

Tracy watched her daughter-in-law twist the rings on her finger as she stared at the photo. "You love him, too."

"I've got to finish this. Thanks for stopping by Tracy."

"Alexis, just think about what I said."

Alexis nodded as Tracy exited her office. She took out her cell phone and texted him. They needed to figure out a schedule that made sense for their kids. They were teenagers, they would have opinions, but they also needed stability; and selfishly, she wanted to see him. He replied almost instantly and they made a plan to meet for a late lunch.

That afternoon, Alexis walked into Kelly's. He was already sitting at their table. Their table. She had to stop thinking of them as a we. As a couple. She sat down across from him and blurted, "So, your mother came to see me today."

"What? Why?" He was taken off guard.

"About our divorce." Alexis was matter of fact.

"How does she even know? I haven't told anyone."

"My money is on Kristen."

"I don't understand where we went wrong. I get that she has the gatekeeper instinct, but she feels this need to take responsibility for us, for every problem someone in this family faces. Has she talked to you?"

"No. She refuses to have a conversation."

"I'm sorry, Lex. I'm trying to get her to see this isn't all on you."

"I'm sure you are. But, I also think she feels guilty and is having trouble owning what she did at that board meeting. It's easier for her to blame me. She's always been your defender."

"Does this mean you're starting to see what happened more clearly?" She didn't answer and he tried to encourage her to face the truth, that maybe this was an impulsive reaction rather than what they both really wanted. "Lex?"

She changed the subject to the real reason they needed to meet that afternoon. "So Owen and Addie go back to school tomorrow…how do you want to manage this?"

He sighed, she was evading, he let her. She needed more time. "It's going to be hard for her. I have to believe it will help to be in some semblance of her normal routine. She hasn't really left the house since the assault. I'm worried about her, and I want to see her, be there to support her…"

"I would never stop you from coming to see her or Owen."

"I know. For now should they spend the week with you and I'll pick them up on Friday for the weekend?"

"Ned, I don't want you to feel like you need to be relegated to weekends only."

"We can see how this week goes. Like you said, Addie will need stability. But you won't mind if I stop by?"

"You can always stop by. We're doing this now because we can still function as a parenting team, remember? Because we didn't want to deteriorate to the point we couldn't communicate about our kids. We may be divorcing but our children need you in their life." She hesitated, but then added, "I need you in my life."

"I'll always be in your life. Married or not." He was certain, no matter what they'd stay connected and not just because of their children.

"Good." She stated.

Her mother was at work, Owen was out with Will, and she was home alone for the first time since the night of the party. She thought she'd appreciate the quiet. She had gotten so tired of everyone constantly checking-in, attempting to distract her. But in reality the silence left her alone with her thoughts. Thoughts about what she could have done differently. Thoughts about what would happen tomorrow when she went back to school. Thoughts about how her own choice to agree to keep quiet for Kristen led to her parents divorce. It was supposed to help keep them together. She'd heard her mother on the phone with Chloe. Kristen let everything go to her head. Her sister's stupid plan pushed her parents farther apart and she was to blame for letting it happen. And now there was more at stake, because if her parents knew their family would be torn even further apart. She didn't know what to do. She was thankful the doorbell rang. A distraction. She opened the door.

"Cam." She was surprised to see him standing there. "What are you doing here?"

"I wanted to see you." He was worried about her. She'd started replying to texts again but her texts were concise. She was clearly struggling with something.

"Oh."

"Can I come in?" He asked.

She nodded, opened the door wider, and he entered. "So what's up?"

"The other night. You. I couldn't stop thinking about how scared you seemed."

"I'm fine…umm, want to stay for a while? We can watch a movie or TV or something?"

"Sure." He said as they walked into the living room. He sat on the sofa. She sat on the opposite side. "You really don't mind that I came here?" There was distance and it was awkward.

"No. I'm glad you're here." She sat crossed legged on the couch and faced him.

"What's going on? You're so quiet."

"Yeah."

"Are you sure you're ok?"

"Not really, Cam." She made eye contact with him.

"I told you, that kiss with Joss. It was one sided. You believe me right?"

"I do."

"Then what's up?"

"My parents are getting a divorce. My dad moved out last night." She could tell part of the truth.

"Oh. That sucks. I know you were worried they would."

"Owen and I saw it coming. It's true. It's just…"

"What?" He wanted to listen. He wanted to help her, but he couldn't until she told him what was really going on.

"I need them both right now. I can't picture what my life looks like now. And then there's the fact that break is over…" She alluded to more, but couldn't bring herself to say it just yet.

"Did something happen? Because Sophie said you might not want to hang out and to give you space if you didn't respond…" Things were starting to piece together. Whatever Sophie knew was about school and he was at PC High and was out of the loop.

"What else did Sophie say?"

"Nothing." He said and looked at his friend, who was playing with the fringe on the blanket that adorned the arm of the sofa. There had to be more than her parents divorce. She saw this coming. They talked about it. "Adds?"

"I'm not ok, Cam. I don't know if I'll ever be ok again." She decided she was grateful he stopped by. No one was home, she needed to talk and she needed to talk about what happened with someone who understood her.

"Do you want to talk about it?"

She took a deep breath. "I know I can trust you. I'm just afraid of what you'll think of me after you hear this…I kind of like you a lot and I'm afraid this will change things…"

"I like you a lot, too, Addison. It's why I was so worried when you saw me and Joss."

"Really?" She wasn't entirely surprised, she thought he might, but she was more surprised he said it out loud.

"Really. What happened?"

"So, there was this party…" She started to explain. She sat and told him everything. He was upset that someone could even think of doing that and the fact that she was the one hurt upset him more. When he heard it was Morgan, when he heard Joss stopped it, he wasn't sure how to process it all. Addison was clearly hurting and had no idea how to handle what happened. She told him about Kristen and the vote. She told him everything, but how she ended up at his house that night. He had no idea how to help her, but he knew he'd be there for her. Whatever she needed, he'd be there. She needed someone in her corner.