You, Love

Chapter 6: Chasing Cars

"Glenn."

Fallyn kept doing the dishes, pretending that she didn't hear Alex. There were headphones over her ears, which was her alibi for why she was ignoring him. Really, she just didn't want to talk to him.

"Glenn." He got a little closer, hanging around the outskirts of the kitchen. Alex had given her a wide berth in the week since he'd snapped at her in the hospital. It was nearly admirable--- at least he had the presence of mind to know that he'd pissed her off.

Still, he must have reached his breaking point, since he intruded even further into her space.

"Fallyn."

She turned around at last. Alex didn't use her first name much, only ever her last if he addressed her by name, which he rarely did. He had to really mean business.

She pulled her headphones off her ears and looped them around her neck, drying her hands with a dish towel hanging from the oven handle. Fallyn slapped on a fake smile. "Sorry, have you been trying to talk to me?"

"Yeah." Alex looked abashed, shuffling his feet awkwardly. It was strange to see him guilty. "But it's fine."

"What's wrong?"

"I was wondering if you wanted to start riding with me again."

Fallyn raised an eyebrow. They hadn't driven together since the incident, Fallyn had started taking cabs to and from work. It didn't feel worth it; she hated taxis, she'd almost exclusively used the subway or the bus back in New York. The drivers made her nervous. But Alex made her nervous too, and he'd been so rude to her at the hospital.

Was she punishing him for it? Maybe. But she was surprised that he seemed to be affected by it, it was honestly a little fascinating. Alex was always someone to watch.

She went quiet for a little too long. "Listen!" Alex snapped. He couldn't handle the silence, but caught himself when Fallyn flinched. Softened, just a little. "I'm... sorry, okay? I'm sorry."

Her other eyebrow raised. Oh. She hadn't been expecting an apology. The words seemed to pain him as they came out.

Fallyn was a little taken aback. She wasn't entirely sure what to say. "Thank you," she decided, because that seemed like the safest bet.

She didn't entirely forgive him— she didn't really like him. They didn't know each other well enough to like each other, and Fallyn thought that even if she did get to know Alex, she might not like what she found. So maybe their weird half–friends relationship was for the best. It was easier than hating him.

She smiled. "And, yeah. I'd like to start driving together again. That would be nice."

It would be something. Alex looked relieved, in spite of himself, and Fallyn briefly wondered if Alex got as nervous talking to her as she got talking to him. But there was no way.

...

Addison paged Fallyn up to one of the offices near Chief Webber's office when she arrived at the hospital.

She showed up anxious, half expecting Addison to tell her she was going back to New York and leaving her in Seattle. They'd never met in an office before.

Her nerves only multiplied when she found Addison sitting with her old friend Savvy. They'd met a few times— Fallyn knew most of Addison's friends, since they had a tendency to visit her at work. Fallyn always thought it was unprofessional.

She'd thought that would all stop in Seattle, though. Hopefully Savvy's awful husband wasn't around too.

"There you are," said Addison. She sat at the far end of the table while Savvy stood near a window. Files were spread out before her. "Savvy, you remember my intern?"