I get out into the parking lot and pull on the car door handle. I curse when I discover it's locked. I pound on the window and I can see I startle Tina who jumps, pulls out her earbuds, and unlocks the door. I get into the car and slam it shut.

"Hey, careful! This is a lease!" Tina barks but there must have been something about my expression because she immediately relents. I don't think I've ever seen someone change gears that fast.

"Are you are okay?" She looks concerned to the point of being scared.

I have so many emotions swirling in my head I feel like I'm caught up in a whirlwind and it's sucking the air out of my lungs. I feel anger that Liam is there, jealous that he and Cat are getting along, happy that Cat is glad to see me, sad that I feel like I've disappointed her somehow, concerned that she may take what Liam said to heart even though it's not true, and I'm back to anger again.

"It's okay," Tina says, trying to reassure me. She puts her hand on my shoulder, "I don't even like this car. It's just all I can afford."

Her belief that I'd that upset because of her reaction to the car causes a maniacal fit of laughter to burst out from me ending with my head falling into my hands and me feeling like I want to pass out. I don't need to see Tina to know she is probably looking at me right now like she's watching her first mental breakdown. At least she can be grateful it's mine and not her own.

"Okay, now you have me concerned on several levels."

"Can we just get out of here?" I beg.

"Sure," she pulls back her hand and starts the car. "Where to?"

"My friend William's. The stuff I need for my assignments is there," I say and give her the directions.

"You got it, Boss."

I wanted to correct her about saying that she works for me, but I didn't have the strength. Tina takes us out of the parking lot and when we reach the road, I put my seat back a little and close my eyes for a moment. I'm just so damn tired.

-----

I'm walking down the alley. The alley where I found my brother dying, but this time the EMT's are already there. I see them about to zip up a body bag. I'm running but the alley just keeps getting longer and longer and I can't seem to reach him. I call out his name and suddenly I'm being pulled towards him, but it's like being warped through a fisheye lens.

I'm now standing next to the gurney and push the EMT out of the way. No, he can't be dead! It's just a nightmare! He's still alive. I unzip the bag and pull it aside, only it isn't Aiden's face I see but my father's. "Noooo!" I collapse on top of him and weep. I feel this powerful tug on my heart. It rips my body from him and slams me into a wall.

------

It takes a moment for my brain to comprehend I'm in a car. Why am I in a car? It takes a second longer to remember it's Tina's car. Slowly the wheels of my brain turn and I come back online to see Tina gripping the steering wheel with a death grip, her knuckles are white and her breathing is labored. The light changes and people are honking and yelling obscenities at her as they drive around us.

"Tina?" I unlock my seatbelt and reach over to hit the hazard light button I find on her dash.

"Tina?" Her head is bowed, and she is staring at her legs.

She won't even glance at me but says, "What the hell was that?!" Her voice wavers and broke a little. Her eyes met mine, and I am hit with the realization of what must have happened.

"Oh, Tina! I'm so sorry!"

"Sorry?! He says he's sorry," she mocks with utter disbelief. "I nearly CRASHED my CAR when you screamed out like that. What the HELL, Alex?!"

I didn't expect to fall asleep only to rest my eyes and then... the image of my father's face pale with death sprung to my mind. I reach up to touch my face and I feel it's wet with tears, but I push the thought away so I can concentrate on the matter at hand.

"Let me drive," I offer. "Will you? Let me drive?"

Tina nods her head and slowly releases the grip she has on the steering wheel. Her fingers left impressions on the soft foam cover she has on it. I unlock her seatbelt and she gets out of the car and so do I and we exchange seats.

When we get back in and buckle up. I glance over at her. She still looks pale and shaken.

"I'm so sorry, Tina," I reiterate turning off the hazard lights and flipping on the turn signal so I can ease us back into traffic.

"You said that." I notice she is sitting with her hands folded on her lap. I can tell she is trying to keep them from shaking.

"What happened?" I ask.

Tina looks at me and shakes her head. "You had fallen asleep. I didn't want to wake you, but I was a little turned around. I couldn't quite remember the directions you gave me. Then you let out this blood-curdling scream. I slammed on my breaks. The person behind me nearly came through the back of my car. They had to swerve to keep from hitting me. Then they almost hit someone else. There was all this screeching and yelling and then you woke up." Tina recounts and she looks about to burst into tears.

I see a place to stop to eat and pull over. I think we both need a moment to regain some normalcy. I park the car and turn to her, "I'm sorry. I've never done that in public before. I'm so grateful you're okay. I can't believe I put you in danger. Tina, I am so, so sorry."

"In public?" Tina takes the tissue I hand her from the box she has in the console in between the seats and she dabs at the few tears that escaped. Now she looks blotchy and shaken.

"I've been told it's possibly a form of PTSD, definitely Night Terrors."

"PTSD? Like people in the military experience?"

"My brother, he didn't just die, Tina. He was murdered."

"Oh, my God," came her hushed response.

"I'm the one who found him and every once in a while I get these dreams that sometimes cause me to yell out or thrash around, but I've never fallen asleep in public. I've come close but never have I done what I did to you, just now. Are you okay? I'm just so..."

Tina puts her fingers to my lips to stop me from saying the words again, and I grin.

She pulls her hand away and gives me a weak smile. "If I can't say it, you can't either."

"Yeah, but you deserved to hear it. You could have been..."

"Stop!" Tina interrupts me. "Yes, something bad could have happened, but it didn't. So we're okay, okay?"

"Yeah. Do want to grab something to eat?"

Tina looks over at the restaurant like she's noticing it for the first time. "Do you think they have anything chocolate? I really need chocolate right now."

I chuckle. "I know they have a brownie sundae that's pretty good."

"I'm in," she says and gets out of the car and I join her.

We get a seat and I order some real food, and she orders the brownie sundae. When my burger arrives, she steals a fry off my plate.

"So that girl at the phone store," she asks taking a bite of the fry. "What's the deal there?"

"Personal life, Tina," I warn.

She cocks her head inquiringly. "You almost killed me today. So I'd say you owe me one."

I take a bite of my burger and consider this. "She is my fiancé, her name is Cat Fischer."

"And the brut behind her?"

"Ex-boyfriend," I tell her right before I slap her hand when she tries to snatch another fry.

She laughs. "I know... I should have just ordered my own, but fries just taste better when you steal them from someone else."

I smirk at this revelation. "Uh-huh." I hand her another fry and she grins at me.

"So the baby, yours?"

Figures that detail wouldn't escape Tina's eye. She is overly observant, I've noticed.

"Not mine."

"Ex-boyfriend's?"

I nod my head yes and she winces. "Harsh. How did you work that out?"

"We haven't, not entirely. We met because she needed a place to stay after having a fight with him. He wanted her to have an abortion and now... now he's threatened to sue her for full custody. Well, actually his father did, and the man has got the money and influence to cause Cat trouble."

Tina raises an eyebrow before stealing the third fry. "Well, why should that be a problem?"

"Cat doesn't have the resources to fight back."

Tina's grin widens as both her eyebrows raise. "She does now."

"She does now?" Her words confused me. Tina stares at me intently while chomping away on her stolen French fry, and then the true meaning of her words hits me. Cat doesn't but I do. My father's money could run circles around Liam's Dad and whatever threat he could make.

"You're welcome," she tells me now that she realizes I get her meaning. But that would mean taking over my dad's business and everything that comes with it.

"That's a rather sad face for someone who can make all his fiancé's troubles disappear."

"I just never considered... it would mean taking over the company."

"Yes and no," Tina says, and then she squeals in delight when her sundae shows up. Taking a large spoonful, she places it in her mouth and sighs. She looks so much better after that one bite.

"Care to explain?" I ask curiously.

"I just mean you have options, choices. You could sell the business, and I'm sure that would still be enough money to take care of whatever troubles Cat might have. Or you could keep the business, help Cat and a bunch of other people too."

"So on the one hand I'm a selfish bastard who only cares about what I need or I'm everybody's hero," I say trying to sum up her statement.

Her lips press together and she shakes her head, "Yeah, pretty much."

I grab my spoon and swipe some of her sundae.

"HEY!" she says, pulling the sundae glass closer to her protectively.

I laugh before placing the spoonful in my mouth. "You know," I say after taking a second to swallow, "you're right, it does taste better when you swipe it."

"That rule ONLY applies to French fries! Try that again with my sundae and I will stab you with my fork. I have warned you," Tina says pointing her spoon at me in a very menacing manner.

I laugh hard, and it feels good. So did the thought that I could be the answer to Cat's problem. Of course, it also made me happy to think in such a scenario she wouldn't have to kiss up to Liam and be friends. We wouldn't have to worry about the outcome. I could protect her from whatever threat may come.

"You've given me a lot to think about," I tell Tina.

We both finish up our food. I pay the check but she insists on covering the tip. We get outside and I toss her the keys. She immediately tosses them back to me. "You drive."

"You sure?"

"Absolutely. One you know where you're going and two if your driving you're not sleeping and I don't have to worry about dying."

"Fair enough," we get into the car and we're back on our way to William's. I have her pull out my phone from the bag and I give William a call.

"Are you home?" I ask.

"Yeah, I'm here. Where are you?"

"Right around the corner."

"Guess you got your phone fixed?"

"I did, and you'll never guess who I bumped into at the phone store?"

"NO!" he exclaims.

"Yep!"

"I bet she was excited to see you."

I pull up outside of his house. I think of how Cat threw her arms around me. How badly I wished to kiss her and then..."Yeah, she was..."

"Uh-oh!"

"Yeah, I'm outside. I'll tell you more when I get in there."

"Okay."

I hang up and look at Tina. "You coming in?"

"Nah, I got some things I've got to check up on," she says, waving her phone at me.

I leave the car keys with her and get out of the car. "Well, should you get lonely? Room 12 is where I'll be."

"Okay, got it."

I head up the stairs to William's apartment. Campus housing can be pretty cramped, but these apartments owned by the campus and were pretty decent. I knocked on the door and William answered.

"Forget your key?" he asks.

"Nah, I got it, I just felt like making you get up to get the door." I grin.

"Jerk."

"You love me!"

"I do love you," William says, giving me a hug to prove his words are true.

"So what went wrong with Cat?" William asks as I go over to my box to see if I can find the items that I need.

"Cat wasn't the problem. Liam was with her," I inform him.

"Liam?!"

"Yeah, I'm guessing she worked things out with him because they were pretty chummy in the store."

"Really?"

There is something in how William says that one word that bothers me.

"What's up?"

"I don't know. I didn't expect it to be that easy. I suggested she talk with him, but I didn't expect them to resolve things that quickly."

"You think there's a catch to this arrangement?" I ask, putting my books in my schoolbag and gathering up a few more clothing items to take with me.

"With Liam involved... always?"

"But what can he do, really?" I ask, thinking again on the proposition Tina put forth and I smile. It would feel so good to put Liam in his place and keep him there.

"Try to win Cat back," William replies, "for a start?"

"You really think he has a shot?" I ask, doubt tries to creep in.

"I'll be honest with you, Alex. I never understood why they were ever together in the first place, but Cat kept holding on with both hands to their relationship. She didn't really seem like she wanted to let him go."

"But that was before. Maybe she was just scared of being on her own. She practically grew up with Liam."

"True, but it wasn't until you came along that she really pulled free. You gave her the courage, but if Liam changes his tune about that baby, I'd imagine it might be hard for Cat to turn her back on them... you know... being a family."

I didn't care for what William was suggesting, mostly because I worried the same. Cat wanted nothing to do with Liam because Liam wanted nothing to do with the baby but what WOULD happen if Liam changed his mind and wanted to play dad. Would Cat really turn him away?

"I'm sorry," William says. He must have read my thoughts. "You've got enough to worry about without me throwing doubt on the subject."

"It's nothing I haven't thought already," I confess. "I just don't like it. I so wish Liam would just disappear."

"You know, with your dad's money you could probably make that happen," William jokes with an evil grin.

I laugh and give him a shove, "You really are the worst friend."

"Not true," William defends. "I'm like that saying... you know the one about I would help you bury the body... or something like that."

I shoulder my backpack and give William a hug. "I gotta go. Tina is waiting for me in the car."

"Tina?" William's eyes narrow. "Slippery when wet, Tina?"

"She gave me a ride back to school is all," I say, annoyed I feel the need to defend myself.

"Uh-huh. Did Cat meet Tina?"

"Yes."

"How did that go?" William asks with that know-it-all look that I hate.

"Not good," I admit, "but I'll explain everything when she calls me tonight."

"Nun-uh? You are not getting back in the car with that woman. She wants you, Alex Bragin, but you are too nice of a guy to see it. Falls into the tub trying to save you from falling in? Yeah, right? You go out there and tell little Miss Slippery I'll drive you home. Then I expect you to call Cat and arrange some face-to-face time to sort things out. I'll make myself scarce so you two can talk. I'll drive you home whenever you're ready."

I thought he was being ridiculous about Tina, but I had to admit seeing and talking to Cat face to face sounded like a great idea.

"Okay, I'll let Tina know."

"Perfect." William looks relieved I agreed.

I find Tina still seated in the passenger side and tap on the window. She looks up at me, smiles, and unlocks the door. I open her door, which surprises her.

"What's up?"

"I think I'm going to stay here a little while longer. I'll head back later tonight."

"Okay," Tina gets out of the car. I back up and shut the door behind her.

"Give me your pack. I'll take it back for you," she says as we walked around the car.

"That's unnecessary you've done enough already."

"It's no problem," she says, opening her trunk for me to throw it in. "It'll give me an excuse to check in on your mom. I worry about her being there all alone."

I frown as I place the bag in the trunk. I hadn't given my mom a second thought when deciding to stay. Maybe I should have? But I'm sure she'll be fine, she's done without me for years.

"Thanks, Tina."

"Thanks for the sundae." Tina gets up on her toes and gives me a quick kiss on the cheek before getting into the car. "See you tomorrow?"

"Yeah." She drives off and I wave. I touch my cheek and think of what William said. God, I really hope Tina doesn't like me.