Her Eyes

Chapter 56: YOU'RE NOT ALONE

"Are you just gonna watch me eat?" He glanced up at her as he took a bite. She leaned against the counter, smiling at him. She was in an unusually good mood for Norma Bates.

"I like watching you enjoy my food," she teased.

He raised an eyebrow. "Maybe I've been faking it the entire time."

She rolled her eyes at him. "Shut up." She took the seat across from him at the table. He knew what she wanted to say, but he knew she was too proud to ask. So they sat in silence for a while, each glancing at each other shyly.

After he finished eating, he leaned back in his seat. "She came by to apologize for lying to me. I don't think she came by for anything else." There wasn't ever really anything between them. He needed her to know that.

She shook her head lightly. "You don't owe me—"

"I know." He stared at her for a moment then dropped his eyes to the table. "We were only together for a few weeks. I met her at that bar down by the docks. She was waiting tables."

She sat still, unaffected. He knew she didn't want to know about other women. "Sounds like a love connection."

He glanced up at her then let his eyes drift to the rest of the room. He needed comfort. "She was probably just as desperate for companionship as I was." It was the sad truth. He'd been lonely for a long, long time—longer than he cared to think about. "She never meant anything to me."

She didn't look at him. "Alex."

So he stared at her. "I know it doesn't mean anything to you." It was he chance to explore her freely...without any judgment. "I thought that she could help me forget everything that happened between us. It was stupid. No one ever really forgets." His eyes studied her emotionless expression. He wanted her to feel something. "My relationships don't seem to last. And I don't know how to let people in. But I can't seem to let you go. I'm drawn to you...to your family. I've never depended on anyone for anything but..."

She stared back at him, a slight smile appearing on her face. "Are you always this smooth with the ladies?"

He shrugged indifferently. "I try."

She laughed and settled in her seat. "I finally got that pit filled up."

He stared at her. He hated Bob. He was glad he was gone, though he regretted killing him. But he did what he had to do. He leaned in and rested his arms on the table. "Shoulda buried someone in it."

She smiled at him. "Well if I did I wouldn't be telling you about it."

He raised an eyebrow. "Afraid I'll arrest you?"

She shrugged, keeping her gaze on him. "It's not like you haven't before."

He dropped his eyes to the empty container in front of him. They'd been through so much together. It was amazing neither one of them had left town. "I am sorry about that...even though you did kill someone."

"If I wouldn't have killed him, we would have never met," she shot back.

It was true, but— "It's a small town. We would've met somehow." They smiled at each other. He had often times wished they had met differently. He fantasized about them meeting at the bar, the grocery store—anywhere but that motel. He sighed, knowing deep down that if that hadn't met the way they did, it would have been because of Norman. He was dangerous. He always was. "Have you spoken to Norman yet?"

Her mood faltered a bit. Norman was never an easy topic for her. He knew she loved him dearly, but he was reason she was so broken. She killed herself trying to keep him under control. She couldn't handle him all by herself. "No. I figured I'd wait a few more days...let him get settled in."

He nodded understandingly. He knew her son was the last thing she wanted to talk about, especially with him, but— "Norma?" Their eyes met across the table. "What happened that night you showed up on my doorstep?"

He could see her breath deeply as he gazed at her. She was coming undone. "I really just stopped by to bring you some dinner because I made too much." She was in flight mode...she never turned it off.

"Norma." He didn't want to play any games. He was done fighting. "Why are you so scared?"

Her eyes started to well with tears as she stared at the wall. He knew she hated crying in front of him. Their relationship was constant battle. They never knew which side they were on. "I had just locked up the office. I was going to make dinner, but when I got to the house. I heard someone in the kitchen. I knew it was Norman. But he was talking to someone." Her breath started to catch in her throat as she relived the memory. "He was talking to himself. When I got to the kitchen, he was making dinner...in my dress. I tried to talk to him, but he was completely out of it. He was acting like I was some stranger...like I wasn't myself. So I left. And I had nowhere else to go so I came here."

He stared at her softly. "I'm glad you did."

She smiled at him, completely broken. "Me too."

He got up from the table and brought the container to the sink. "Did you really drive all the way here just to bring me dinner?"

Her laugh warmed him. He cherished these moments. She stood up from the table and walked towards him. "Pretty much."

He turned to face her. "You didn't stop by for anything else?"

She stepped closer to him, making him a little nervous. "No." He knew she was lying. He could always tell. "I knew you'd be making a lean cuisine."

He breathed on her as he leaned in. "I'm trying to eat healthy."

She smiled and closed the distance between them with gentle kiss. She fixed him. And now he would fix her.