It was late at night and Caroline paid the taxi driver.

„Keep the change" she said while climbing out of the car.

She took in a deep breath, feeling the cold air run through her nostrils, filling her lungs with oxygen. She pulled her dark beige parker a little tighter, since it was cold outside and started walking towards this old house. There were many windows, weak light coming from a few of them.

Caroline knew this house all too well, it made her feel overwhelmed in the pit of her stomach, she was always getting nervous when she came here.

She pushed open the heavy glass door and stepped inside, immediately greeted with the scent of confusion and depression. Caroline didn't like this place at all.

With a sigh she walked towards the reception desk, slightly smiling at the young woman, who looked up at her with a warm smile.

„Hello, how can I help you?" she asked friendly.

„Is Adam here? I'd like to see him." Caroline checked her watch. 10:02 pm.

„He is doing the afternoon visit, but I can call him?"

„Please, that would be nice of you." Caroline smiled.

The woman nodded and dialed Adam's number. After a few seconds she looked up at Caroline again.

„He's on the way."

„Thanks" Caroline whispered and leaned against the counter.

It wasn't long till Adam came walking around the corner, smiling at Caroline. He wore a dark blue overall and white sneakers, his hair was messy, but you could see that he styled it this morning. He held a clipboard in his hand, which he laid down on the reception desk when he reached Caroline.

„Hi there" he said, embracing Caroline in a hug.

„Hi" she said against his neck, breathing in his cologne.

They stepped away and looked at each other for a moment. Adam slipped his hands in his pockets and waited for Caroline to speak. He knew why she was here, she occasionally came by, always late at night, after work. They knew each other for quite a while now. Adam was a nice guy, he was good looking, a few inches taller than her and very caring, Caroline trusted him.

„So how was your day?" Caroline asked him.

„It was busy, the usual though, but nothing drastic had happened." He smiled.

„And uhm, with her?" Caroline looked away.

„She's in the music room, as always, you can see her if you want" he watched Caroline briefly.

„Yeah, please" was all Caroline said. She looked back at Adam, who just smiled.

„You know the way, Caroline, or do you want me to come with?" He scratched his neck patiently.

„No, I'm good, thanks Adam."

Caroline walked passed him, slipping her hands into her pockets. Her heart started beating like crazy, she didn't know why it always happened, she had been here so many times, yet she was hoping for a miracle, deep down inside.

She walked down this long corridor, the walls were filled with frames, she knew all of them. The walls were painted in a soft rosé, a few lights on the ceiling illuminated the corridor. It was the second last door on the left, the wooden double doors that led into the music room, it was 28 steps from the third last door to this one, Caroline knew it. She always counted the steps and with every step her heart started beating faster.

The door was cracked open a tiny bit, light was coming through it and also music, the soft sound of a piano. Every Breath You Take by The Police. Caroline knew this song by heart, the lyrics and also the chords. It was a beautiful song and one of her favorites.

She pushed open the door and stepped inside, the light was dimmed and it was warm inside, the huge glass window front was covered with curtains, white ones. The room was almost empty, just the music was filling it. A woman was sitting at the piano playing it whole heartedly, her fingers swiftly gliding along the piano keys.

Caroline paused for a second, her eyes glued to the woman's back.

„Hi mom" she breathed.

The woman didn't notice nor react and Caroline walked over to a table, the furthest away from the woman, she sat down and just listened to the music. She smiled slightly and rested her chin on her hands. The song was played perfectly, every note was flawless.

Her mother always sat here, late in the evening, playing this exact song. Caroline came here as often as she could, sometimes she couldn't cope with it all, but she loved watching her mother play the piano like everything was alright and she was a little kid, sitting next to her laughing. But times had changed and it wasn't her childhood anymore.

It was ironic, the lyrics to the song somewhat went like this: Every step you take, I'll be watching you. It was ironic, because her mother hadn't been there to watch Caroline's every move, watch her grow up. She had been here for a long time.

Caroline had just turned 17 when she noticed that something wasn't right. She remembered coming home from school, finding her mother sitting on the couch in a complete daze. She had been bluntly staring at the floor, looking pale and exhausted. Caroline had kneeled in front of her, gently shaking her, whispering her name. She hadn't been reacting to anything. Caroline had panicked. She had shook her more harshly, throwing her mother out of her daze. She had jumped up, glaring at her daughter, pure anger in her eyes. Caroline had been scared, she had blinked a few times before she had felt a sting on her cheek. The next thing she remembered was laying on the floor, her mother yelling loudly. She didn't look like her mother anymore and Caroline had no other option, but calling the police.

Since then everything had changed. They had moved her mother into this hospital, in which she could get help and people could watch over her. Ever since Caroline had to take care of herself, there wasn't anyone who could take care of her, her mom was the only one left of her family. She had the chance to move in with a foster family, but she had denied. She had graduated from high school and decided to work in the journalism branch. She had to learn how to live alone and sort everything out by herself.

Her mother was diagnosed with Alzheimer, no chance of healing. She couldn't recognize her own daughter, she was caught in her state of mind. It was 6 years already and Caroline had made something out of herself, she had a great job and a nice apartment. She missed her mother terribly though and she was hoping for a ‚good' day, one of those days when Alzheimer patients seemed to be healed and they remembered everything. You never knew when or if that happened and how long it would last.

Caroline sighed. She looked at her mother's back for a minute and then got up, walking towards to door. Her hand rested on the door knob.

„Bye" she said to herself and stepped out, closing the door behind her silently.

She walked back to the lobby, quickly nodding at the woman, stepping out into the cold night. She breathed rapidly, trying to calm herself down. These visits always hurt her heart deep down, it was her mother, but at the same time it wasn't her mother. This woman only looked like her, but it wasn't her mother inside. Caroline still loved her.

The air was cold, Caroline started to shiver, but she wanted to enjoy the cold wind creeping through the fabric of her parker. She pulled out her phone to check the time, it was a few minutes after 11 o'clock. Caroline rubbed her eyes and started to walk home. It would take her about on hour to get there, but she needed fresh air. She craved Haley's arms around her, she wanted to fall asleep in her arms, nothing had ever felt this good, but she couldn't, she didn't even have her number or address, so she pushed that thought to the back of her mind.

* * *

The next morning Caroline woke up with a throbbing headache. She groaned in pain and sat up straight, slapping herself mentally for drinking half a bottle of whiskey last night. She felt sick and every movement made her feel like throwing up.

„Fuck" she cursed while stumbling into the kitchen to pour herself a glass of water.

Everything was spinning in her head, making her feel like a zombie. She sunk down onto the couch reaching for her phone to text Lily, blinking a few times to clear her vision.

Hey, I'm not able to come to work today. Sorry.

It wasn't long till she received a reply from Lily, the ringtone making her head throb like crazy.

What's wrong? I hope you are okay, will miss you, see you tomorrow.

Caroline threw the phone onto the table and grabbed a pillow, placing it on her face. Shit she thought you stupid bitch. She knew she could potentially get into trouble for quitting work today, but at that moment she wasn't caring. She was hungover, very much hungover, probably still drunk, she felt like death, but she felt like she deserved that after all. Getting drunk on her own wasn't one of her favorite things, but sometimes she just couldn't control it.

She felt empty inside and to her it seemed like only alcohol could fill this hole, no matter how much she always regretted it the next morning.

Caroline forced herself into the shower, letting the cold water run over her body. It made her sober up a little bit, but it wasn't helping cure her headache. After she got dressed, she sat down on her couch, leaning back into the couch, her eyes closed. Her mind was spinning, her vision blurry and she couldn't get Haley out of her head. She had to see her. Today.

Half an hour later, Caroline was on her way to Starbucks. She threw in a painkiller to cure her headache, it was still pounding with every step she took and she was sure she looked like crap, but it wasn't bothering her. This was probably her drunk mind acting and making crazy spontaneous decisions. She wore leggings and an oversized hoodie combined with her favorite boots and huge sunglasses to hide her obvious hangover.

She pushed open the doors to enter the café, the smell of coffee making her want to throw up. She walked over to the counter, spotting Layla cleaning some mugs, chatting with someone. Caroline was hoping it was Haley, but it wasn't. She placed her hands on the counter and cleared her throat slightly. The two girls turned around and Layla stepped towards Caroline.

„Hi, do you want to order?" she asked smiling.

„No, thanks, I was hoping to see Haley." Caroline's head was pounding.

„Well, she's not here today.." Layla said.

„Oh, okay, thanks." Caroline said and turned around, trying to keep her balance.

„Wait, you can maybe visit her at home, it's not a long way from here, a few minutes." Layla offered a sweet smile.

Caroline thought for a second, she wasn't sure if this was a good idea, she was hung over and kind of moody, she didn't even know what she wanted from Haley.

„Sure, I don't know her address though" she said.

„It's 56 East Madison Avenue." Layla smiled.

„Thanks a lot" Caroline said and made her way to Haley's home.

She was getting nervous, because she hadn't thought of any reason why she was here. She was hoping Haley wouldn't think bad of her, since an incident like that had happened once; when they met for the first time Caroline had been pretty wasted. She remembered it all too clearly, she felt like a fool already, but this time her heart was deciding which way to go, her head wasn't thinking sober anyways.

Caroline arrived at the address Layla had given her, the apartment looked nice, Caroline liked it. She stood in front of the door, shaking her head. This was a mistake.

„Ouch, my god" she groaned and held her temples.

Maybe this wasn't a good idea at all. She started to panic a little, but took in a deep breath then. She knocked. She heard movement behind the door and soon it was opened and Haley stood there in a huge hoodie and pajama pants. She looked adorable.

Haley blinked a few times, staring at Caroline in shock, she looked down at her PJs and blushed a crimson red.

„H Hello" she stuttered.

„Hi Haley, I uhm shit, what am I doing here?" Caroline rubbed her eyes under her sunglasses.

„I don't know? How do you know my address though?" she asked.

„Your friend told me, I've been at Starbucks, but you weren't there, so..." Caroline trailed off, not really knowing where this was going.

„Are you drunk?" Haley asked eyeing her suspiciously.

„I, no, well yes, but no, ouch" Caroline held her forehead trying to stop her head from throbbing.

„Come in, Caroline, please." Haley stepped aside to let Caroline in.

She walked past her, hesitantly, smiling weakly. Haley closed the door and followed her into the living room. Her apartment was a comfy homey one. There was a huge couch in the living room and a flat screen TV, also a WII and a playstation. The walls were painted in a warm red, it looked wonderful.

„Take a seat if you like" Haley said and pointed to the couch. Caroline smiled a thanks and sat down slowly.

„Do you want something to drink?" she asked, walking into the kitchen that was only separated from the living room by a sliding door.

„Water please, if you don't mind."

Caroline watched Haley in the kitchen, letting her eyes take in her figure. She looked so cute in her PJ pants, her legs looked toned and her butt was such eye candy to Caroline. She was nervous being here with Haley, especially when she felt like death and she didn't know where they both were standing. They had shared some moments, intimate ones for sure, but they had never spoken about it, they just let it happen and Caroline liked it so far. There was one problem, though; Caroline couldn't be in a serious relationship with anyone.

„Here you go." Haley placed the water on the table and sat down on the couch as well, smiling at Caroline.

„Thank you" Caroline said and took a sip.

„So, why are you here?" Haley spoke after a while.

Caroline tried to avoid eye contact, even though she still wore her sunglasses.

„To be honest, I don't know, I uhm I'll get going now" she got up and almost knocked over the glass of water.

Haley watched her stumble to the door, half amused and half worried. She was fighting with herself mentally. Right before Caroline approached the door Haley walked up to her quickly and placed her hand on Caroline's arm.

„Wait..." she said softly making Caroline pause.

„I cannot let you walk home in that condition! If anything happened to you, I would never forgive myself." Haley started playing with her waistband.

Caroline didn't say anything, she just stood there, her hand still resting on the door knob. The two girls just stood in silence, it was almost awkward, but neither of them knew how to handle this situation, without making it more awkward.

„I - "

„You can stay here" Haley interrupted her „till you've sobered up."