"I haven't abandoned love, I still want to find someone. I still think you should try and do that too, though. You said Alexander wanted you to date again when he went to see you at that centre you checked yourself into, right? So clearly he doesn't want to leave you alone-- just lay low for a bit and then you can move on after a few months have gone by. You don't deserve to spend the rest of your life alone because of him," she pointed out, silently frowning at the other's apparent intention to stay single.
 
“... I’ll figure it out, okay?” He reassured after a moment of thought, a small smile on his face. “Maybe I’ll get that Grindr app or something. That’s how people date these days, right?” He confirmed teasingly before lounging back, the wine finally hitting him enough to properly relax.

“I dunno. I think the most fucked up part of all of this is the fact that my own friends used me. I thought the guys down at the station were my pals only for them to go and fuck me up as much as they did. I think that’s cruel, yeah? Like... Alexander was a jerk but he didn’t use me for a scene because I was gay.”
 
"Can we stop talking about Alexander? I know I brought him up but I'd rather just forget about him? I'll be seeing his face in the magazines and on TV, so... so I'd prefer not to talk about him to the only friend I have as well, I suppose. The sooner I leave the city, the better. You should come with me. We could go anywhere, just... anywhere but here."
 
“God, I don’t know... I mean, if anything I’ll go back to my dad’s with my brother - like hell am I letting him stay here alone. I’ll have my neighbors watch over my rats. I’d love for you to meet him, you know? He’s, like... the actual best? Like, I know that probably sound cheesy but he’s definitely a role model,” he proudly admitted with a small smile.

“He was a cop, too, y’know? He was great. I mean, he still is great but he was an amazing officer,” he explained. “I mean, I hope to one day be like that, you know? I want people to trust me and know I’ll peotect them.”
 
"You can go and do that," she smiled supportively, having no intention to really follow after him. It'd be too awkward to just turn up at a stranger's doorstep, and she didn't have the confidence to even consider it. "I'll go to my Dad's place and... and see my family. I think it's what we both need, right? To be with family."
 
“I mean, I’ll obviouslt keep in contact with you. Just because I’m not here doesn’t mean I’m not going to bother you. I mean, what am I supposed to do if I get too drunk and get emotional? You’re the only person I can sob to - where are you going again? Not a different time zone, right? I don’t want you calling me at 2 in the morning,” he scolded as he finished his glass, his voice slurring just a tad.

“When are you leaving? Should I make a little cake for you or something?” He teased. “I’m gonna miss you, even though you won’t be gone very long. You’re my best friend, Sandra.”
 
"I don't know yet. Maybe I'll head south to be with my family, maybe I'll head right across the country to really start fresh-- I just know I can't be here, not if Alexander is going to be flaunting about with his life perfect and back on track. I can't do that, I'm not strong enough to deal with that bullshit," she muttered as she folded her legs. Moving away wasn't ideal, but it was the only real option she felt she had left.
 
“You can prove him wrong by staying,” he suggested with a raised brow of curiosity. “You could stay and make your own living and prove to him that you’re better than all this. I mean, I support you either way, yeah?” He reassured with a light nudge before easing back and daring to lean on her.

“This whole thing is fucked, but... what are we going to do? I dunno. I got s feeling he’ll leave me alone and you too, by default. We only caused trouble, yeah? Now that he got off completely free, why would he care about us?”
 
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"Because he probably still loves you? If there's one thing I've learnt about Alexander after years of working for him, it's the fact he doesn't like letting go of people he falls in love with. Not until he meets someone else who catches his eye. I'm sure he'll move on quick, so just stay away from him for a while and he'll be with someone else before you know it," she reassured, topping her wine up with a confident nod to herself. It wasn't ideal having Alexander free to continue to live in the city with his reputation intact when she knew the truth, but she also knew that he would get wrapped back in his lifestyle and, hopefully, forget all about her and Timothy.

"I could get a new job, something that wouldn't cross paths with him," she decided after a moment of thought. "I'm not rich or fancy, so I won't mingle in his social circle anyway. I could stay here and... not even see him. I can handle seeing him in magazines and online, that's... not great, but I could cope with that, if I had to."
 
“I mean, it’s up to you, yeah? You’re so kind and charismatic, I’m sure you could do anything,” he drawled with a smile before deciding to fully lounge back and close his eyes. “Ugh, Listen. I think you’ll be fine but if he dares to set a finger on you, I’ll uppercut him - though he probably won't. You did nothing wrong, I was the reason behind this mess,” he explained before groaning.

“Oi, are you going to stay over? If you are, I’ll make the couch and I’ll sleep out here, you can take my bed. It’s not very comfortable for me anymore.”
 
"How are you the reason behind it? Stop blaming yourself for his behaviour, Tim, that isn't healthy. I don't think anyone can be blamed but Alexander," she sighed, though a small smile did pull at her lips at the other's promises. She didn't want him going anywhere near Alexander, she had made that pretty obvious, but the idea of him punching the designer on her behalf was a nice one - and she had no doubt that Timmy could do that. He was still a police officer, after all, and she knew he had to have gone through some tough training to get that position. It was why she felt safe being around him, more so than being around anyone else.

"I'll take the couch," she interjected, shaking her head at the offer of the bedroom. "Honestly, I could sleep on the floor and I'd get to sleep quick. The couch is fine, don't be silly."
 
“No, no, I insist,” he replied with a wave. “I’m big and tough and, on the rare chance someone tries to break in, I’ll be there to protect you. Besides, I wanna fall asleep watching American Ninja Warrior,” he drawled before grabbing a pillow to rest his head

“I’m not taking no for an answer so just deal,” he insisted simply with a smile. “I don’t ask for much, I just want to be able to make sure you’re safe. I care about you, you know?” He whispered.
 
For what felt like the first time, Sandra had actually managed to get a good night's sleep that wasn't once interrupted by her jerking awake in fear that Alexander was at the foot of the bed, or outside the apartment. She knew in the back of her mind that she had Timmy just outside the bedroom and, if he couldn't help, his brother was just down the corridor to jump in if something did occur. When she woke up without once waking up during the night, it felt like she had taken a turn for the better; that she could perhaps move on from the Alexander situation and start paving her life together.

So finding a letter stuck underneath the door of Timmy's apartment set her progress right back to zero. While it wasn't Alexander's handwriting, the company's logo at the top of the presumably expensive paper made her feel queasy... as did the content of the note itself.

"He wants you to meet him at his office for lunch," she began slowly when peeking back at Timmy on the couch, offering him the letter to read himself. It was addressed to him and, selfishly, she was almost glad that she wasn't involved. Then her natural protectiveness for her friend kicked in and she almost wished it was for her instead, rather than Timothy. "...God, you aren't going. Don't think about it. Fuck him-- I don't swear normally, but he brings it out of me. I-I won't let you go, Timmy."
 
Unlike Sandra, it was a miracle that Timothy had gotten more than three hours of sleep. With both the stress of protecting Sandra and the fact that the wine wore off leaving him both anxious and with a headache. He had eventually gotten to sleep... only to be reluctantly woken up by Sandra only to be told he was given a letter.

“Fuck... great. I... I gotta, Sandra. What happens if I don’t? He could hurt you - Ben hasn’t come home, right?” He slowly began as he shook off his exhaustion. “I don’t know what else to do. I could not show up and have the possibility of him hurting you or Ben or I could go and only get hurt myself at most.”
 
"Your brother's in the bathroom. He reeks of booze and turned up without his shirt, so I assumed he got drunk and had sex. I told him to take a shower," came the quiet reply. Had the letter not arrived, Sandra would have felt a twinge of jealousy at Ben's arrival into the apartment that morning, but the letter easily trumped that. She couldn't care less if Ben arrived back with the women on his arm; all she cared about was Timmy and his ludicrous decision to meet with Alexander. Frankly, she was close to calling him insane.

"You're just going to wander into Alexander's building and eat lunch with him in his office. A guy who murdered his competition and has no regrets for doing so. A man who knocked me over the head and almost killed me. You're going to pop up to his office and have a sandwich with him. I think you're mad," she grumbled angrily, her hands clenching tight into fists at her side. "...Please don't go, I... I'm begging you, okay?"
 
“I’m an adult, Sandra, I know what I’m doing,” he reassured her, though even he was hesitant about his words. Shyly looking away to hide his nervousness, he decided to at least get up to make himself some coffee, groaning a tad at the fast movement.

“If I go, I’ll have my gun on me. He won’t hurt me, I know that. I mean, we’ll be in an office, the place will be filled with workers and guards. Relax, okay? I mean... I might not go. I don’t know, it’s too early.”
 
Despite his apparent resistance, Sandra already knew that Timmy would be heading out to meet with his ex at midday. It was too predictable that he would, so arguing with him about it when she already knew the decision he was going to make was just a waste of time and energy.

Alexander himself knew that Timmy would show up, or he wouldn't have even bothered having the letter delivered to the apartment. Whether Timmy was showing up in anger to hear what was going to be said, or if he was turning up because there were still feelings there, Alexander didn't care; he was just glad that he would be getting to see him again. The last few days hadn't been great for him. He'd been arrested and, for a while, had the whole country at his throat. When it came out that he was 'innocent', everyone seemed to jump back on board, either apologising for their quick judgement, or claiming that they knew he couldn't be a monster as previously depicted in the news. His business hadn't been badly affected; it had a surprising boom, in fact. Just because everything was back to normal and he had escaped jail wasn't to say he was okay. It had an emotional toil on him, but he knew how to put a face on and pretend, which was precisely what he had done all that morning as he returned to work for the first time.

When Timmy did show up, nobody on the top floor of the company's building really understood why he was there. After all, Timmy was one of the people involved in Alexander's arrest; he was the person who was heralding all the talk of murder and violence, which all seemed to now be false. Nevertheless, he was shown to Alexander's office and greeted by the designer with a wide smile.

"I knew you'd turn up," he smiled, stirring a sugar cube into his tea and gesturing for the other to take a seat, before fiddling with his tie to ensure he looked perfect. Arrogantly, he knew it didn't take much effort to achieve that. "...I'm glad you did, though. I wanted to see you."
 
“Why? Why the fuck did you want to see me? To taunt me? I get it, you won. You got off completely free and now you can continue to run your company while Sandra and I are left to pick up the pieces,” he replied slowly, his eyes narrowing a tad as he took a careful seat across from the other. He knew he would sound paranoid for bringing his gun but, despite that, it was pressed close to his hip just in case. He had seen what Alexander could do if he was truly angry.

“That’s it, isn’t it? You called me here to gloat and brag about how you outsmarted the judge. If it were up to me, you’d be locked up right now, if I’m to be honest, Alexander,” he continued quietly before letting his eyes drift to the large view.
 
"Oh, you should have seen me. The judge fell for everything I said. I was rather enjoying my little performance to be honest. It brought me back to my theatre days in high school. I was in charge of the productions, mostly. I'm dramatic, it suited me. Look, that's not why you're here. I want to offer you a job at the company-- the job you were given before I realised you were a cop," the designer offered easily, placing his hands out on the desk opposite him with a smile, as though the offer couldn't possibly be turned down. He knew that Timmy would probably refuse, but he liked to think that, deep down, he saw the benefits far outweighed the negatives.

"You'll have more money and a career in this business is always enjoyable," he drawled as he straightened out a few papers. "I want you around, too. I'm not going to pretend my feelings have gone away. You deceived me, and I deceived you. I think we could both move on in the knowledge that I'm not going to hurt anyone. I'm over that. I'm going to therapy, like you suggested. I'm trying, Timmy. Try and recognise that, darling."
 
“Why the hell would I want to work for you?” He questioned with a growing frown as he stared at the papers, wincing a bit as the other sorting them. “I have a job at the station, keeping people like you from hurting innocent people. I... am fine financially. I’m on paid leave right now,” he explained softly.

“... besides, do you know how pathetic it would be to start working at the very company of the man who kidnapped both me and my friend? I’d be laughed at more than I already am. I don’t think you understand how this all works, Alex. Sorry. I’m sorry I disappointed you by not jumping back into your arms the minute you called for me. You... fucked me up, Alexander. I don’t think I’ll ever be able to trust men again.”
 
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