extended scene #03

Alex

Her home was her haven. It was where she looked forward to returning after every busy day at work. Coming home to the knowing embrace of her husband, savoring a warm dinner in a quiet nook they could call their own and just simply reveling in the presence of the other. It was easy and though it became repetitive at times, it was hers and she really wouldn't have it any other way.

Now at the thought of her matrimonial home, or rather, what it had become, she just wanted to run for the hills. Hence, she found herself staying away as long as she possibly could and doing overtime at work, even if it was unnecessary, if only to stall her return home.

She'd called it and hence, wasn't too surprised to see her mother-in-law, Maggie, seated in the living room, washed out eyes vacantly staring into space, a duffel nested comfortably by her feet.

Alex took her time slipping off her stilettos and replacing it in the rack. She wasn't in a rush. Anyway, it was a sermon she could repeat off the top of her head. She definitely wasn't eager to be served another dose of calculated insults. The one she'd received yesterday from Maggie's ever long-winded husband had been enough to have her stewing in misery for the rest of her day.

"Mom," she called, padding over in house slippers she'd switched into. "I had no idea you were coming over." She hadn't. Truly. Though there was no telling she'd have returned any earlier even if she was in the know.

Margaret's gaze was stony as they turned on her daughter-in-law, stopping her in her tracks just a couple meters away. "And this is what you have my son put up with?" she scowled, her stern face only turning sharper around the edges with her constantly deepening scowl. "Waiting on you so late into the night."

"I'm sorry, Mom," she said simply, the words dropping mechanically. "Work ran late."

"Is that right?" she sneered, crossing her arms.

Alex recognized that her look of complete willingness to plunge headfirst into battle and she wanted no part in it.

"It's not something I can help," she still forced herself to explain patiently anyway. "It's the same for either one of us. Work's been quite hectic for everyone. I return as quickly as I can."

Her only response was the stagnating silence so Alex took that as her cue to turn into the kitchen for a bite of something. The heavy footsteps following had her shoulders tensing but she focused on peering through the pots.

"Looking for something?" came that same piercing tone, full of endless jeer. "The journey over here was exhausting so I helped myself to bread and some of the leftover tomato soup. Hope you don't mind."

Alex pursed her lips tightly and let the pot close with a clang. No doubt Emmett had left that for her dinner. It wasn't that big a deal. She'd just have some wine instead. "Of course not, mom," she turned around with a tight smile, though that paled in comparison to the demeanor of forced nicety Margaret had changed her castigating strategy to.

"Work wasn't too hectic, was it?" she queried.

Alex frowned at the sudden show of concern. "It was fine," she still responded politely.

"You look wan," Margaret continued without regard for what the response was. "You must be overworking yourself. Shouldn't you be taking a step back this period?"

"It's alright, mom," she still reassured. "It's not anything I can't handle."

The false edge to her smile dropped immediately and Alex guessed she was tired of pretending.

Even better. It hurt to watch that fake smile take root on her face, hurt even worse to watch it linger.

"You're not getting any younger, Alex," the scowl was back and Alex thought it was strangely comforting how it had her relaxing. "Your biological clock is ticking. Work shouldn't be the be all end all for you right now. At least pay attention to your body if you're still to mother a child."

Alex's eyes flashed with anger and she could only force herself to exhale through her nose to temper the emotion. "My age isn't the issue here," she said, hands folding rigidly as the lines in her face pulled taut. "Even if it were, would it really be any of your business?"

"It's well within my interest as your mother-in-law," she spat out, tone caustic. "If you've maxed out your ability to procreate or never really had it in the first place, then maybe take a step back for someone else."

Alex stiffened, eyes stinging. She wanted to bring someone else in?

"The guest room's always tidy for your use," she ended up saying. She really wasn't in the correct headspace to see to the end of what this was sure to become. "You know the way so just help yourself." With that, she turned on her heel, extricating herself from any further barrage of well veiled bullets, coated in lethal poison.

Emmett was sitting against the head of their bed when she pushed open the door to their room.

She surmised he was in a business conference from the looks of his focused appearance and steadfast attention on his laptop screen. Despite his glancing up to at least pay her a greeting, she single-mindedly made a beeline for the wine cabinet before turning to shut herself in the bathroom.

She took a long, warm soak and just stewed in her own thoughts, thoughts not even the strongest wine could clog. Still, she sipped on it intermittently, wanting the slight immersion in intoxication rather than nothing at all.

She didn't know if she was worse off upon stepping out of the tub but still slipped on a robe and headed out.

"Babe," Emmett was waiting for her, perched at the edge of the bed. "What's wrong? Bad day at work?"

"Mom's visiting," she simply informed, bypassing the question and heading to her half of the closet. "Don't know how long she'll be this time around." After rifling through her silk nighties for a full minute, she ended up picking one of Em's work shirts to slip on.

"Did she. . ." he trailed off, helpless at the sight of his wife's cold back view. "Did she say anything?"

"What do you think?" her response was instant.

"I'm sorry, Allie."

Alex didn't know what else to say to that on the face of his needling sincerity so just kept mum as she wrestled out her travel bag.

"Hey, Allie," his tone was soft as he closed the distance between them, wanting to wrap his arms around her. "I'm really sorry. I'll talk to her, okay? Just don't go."

"I'll go stay with my brother for a while," she said, sidestepping him to stuff a couple key items in her bag. "It's about time I started making plans to head back anyway."

Despite having a lot of comforting words on the tip of his tongue, he said nothing and just watched her finish packing her stuff in haste then crawl into bed. Without a word more, he joined her, wrapping his arms protectively around her midriff.

When nothing followed but the evening out of her breathing, he just tightened the hug.

"Alex," the slight ease a night in the arms of her beloved had brought her, however stranded the mood became between them, vanished at the sound of her mother-in-law's piercing tone once she was wheeling her suitcase out the following morning. "Had a nice rest?"

"I'll see you in a week, Em," she simply said instead of rising to whatever fight she was looking for, accepting the kiss he left on her cheek in a flourish and heading out to her car outside.

She called East on her way out of her estate and though her lips pursed in confusion when he related that he was at Cam's, she still acknowledged it and changed her routes.

"Aunt Alex!" the bubbly beacon of light that was her niece called out exuberantly as soon as she let herself in, launching herself headfirst into her arms like she was a canon before Alex had a time to slip off her shoes.

"Hey, Willa," Alex hugged her tight, features softening into a smile despite the slight pang of heartache that touched her. "How have you been?"

While she went on about missing her friends during her sudden break, Alex changed shoes and started for the kitchen, meeting East halfway as he stepped out, spatula in hand.

"Lex?" he called, still surprised despite the fact she'd already called ahead. "Is everything okay?"

"Yeah," she said and when he closed the rest of the distance between them to crush her in a hug, she let herself, just once, be overwhelmed in warmth. "Yeah, everything's fine." It would always be, long as she had herself surrounded by family.

(a/n: 1.5k words. extended scene #03, takes place before the start of the rough draft of the third chapter)