Ain't No Way

[Scott O'Riley]

Part of what makes his job oh so glamorous was the cleanup. He was surprised at just how many trash bags the pub accumulated on any given hour of the day. Thankfully, his abilities make that part of his job almost effortless. Tedious, but effortless.

It was during one of the times he had to take it out that he almost ran into someone he didn't think he would actually see again. Yes, he realised it was ridiculous to assume that he would never see Alexandra Lawson in as small a town as Kalispell but to find her just as he was throwing trash behind the pub was even more ridiculous.

She was on her phone, her back to him, and he decided it was a whole lot better if he just ducked back into the pub before she saw him. Fate apparently had other plans for him because in his haste to get back through the backdoor of the pub, he didn't account for the crates that were neatly stacked just by the dumpster. Nor did he counter in the fact that cats were also part of the back alley. One misstep sent him stepping on a cat's tail and in the attempt to correct his mistake, he was rewarded with a cat scratches up his leg and knocking into the stack of crates as he tried to escape the deathly claws of the cat.

"Jesus fuckin' Christ!"

[Alexandra Lawson]

Alex had gone rogue. Sort of. Against her better judgement, and that of her boyfriend, Alex had ventured out into the night alone to meet with a couple executives from Dyer Records who were still interested in her and the band she'd joined. The meeting had gone well mostly because she shut up and let her bandmates and their tentative manager do most of the talking and she was able to stave off the anxiety of being downtown again by sticking close to the group. She still had nightmares about walking along the sidewalk in this area but she refused to let her nerves get the best of her, least of all when the stakes were so high. She even went so far as to make up her mind to walk the couple blocks from the restaurant to the Silverlight where she used to work in order to check in with some of her old co-workers before heading home.

A cheerful chime came from the pocket of her large overcoat, signaling a notification on her phone. She paused, withdrawing the device and checking her messages. It was one of her old friends from the club letting her know who was working that night. With a small smile on her face, Alex tapped out a rely message and tucked the phone away. She was about to continue on her way when a loud crash came from the alley behind her. She jumped, issuing a sharp yelp of surprise and pure fear. She moved to the side as the shout that had preempted the brutal attack that kept her in the hospital for the better part of a month flashed through her mind. She ducked away, pressing herself into the wall as her heart began to pound in her ears.

"S-Scott?" She said, her eyes focusing on the flustered young man combating the spastic alley cat. Alex's brow furrowed, her chest heaving as she tried to catch her breath from the scare. There were words other than the name that stuttered its way passed her lips. She merely stood, staring at him in shock as if he was an alien and not her ex... whatever he had been.

[Scott O'Riley]

Scott was still trying to untangle himself from the crates, glaring at the cat that had happily pranced off after doing a number on his jeans, when the small voice he used to want to hear all the time gave him pause. All thoughts of remaining calm anymore were tossed out the window as he tried to push off the crumbling wall of crates behind him.

Dusting himself off, Scott looked up at Alex and nodded in acknowledgement. "Hey. You're out of-" he stopped himself when he realised nobody, especially not Alex, knew that he had visited Alex at the hospital after he found out about the incident. A few times. Practically every day.

Shaking his head, he cleared his throat and nodded again. "Hey. What are you doing here?"

[Alexandra Lawson]

The pounding of her heart in her chest didn't begin to subside as Alex slowly became certain of who it was standing before her. She'd thought, initially, that it was Scott but her mind could scarcely believe it. She remained where she was, stock still and pressed against the wall behind her. With a wide-eyed, shocked expressions she simply stared at Scott for a long while. It was him. It was actually him. She squeezed her eyes shut and shook her head before taking another look. He was still standing in front of her and now was talking.

Alex's mouth worked in an effort to form words but none were to be found. Her head shook again, jaw slack from the shock of seeing him again and the confusing rush of emotions that came with it. Scott was the last person she ever expected to see. She would have been less surprised to see Elvis Presley risen from the dead and performing on the streets of Kalispell before Scott O'Riley.

"S-Scott." She could only squeeze the name out again before her brow furrowed and her head shook yet again. Alex couldn't clear her mind of the cobwebs well enough. "I'm, um..." She pressed the palm of her hand into her forehead and let out a slow exhale of breath in an attempt to compose herself. "I just had dinner." She managed to say without stumbling over any of the word. "I was heading to my old..." She trailed off even as she gestured in the direction she had been heading with a wave of her hand. "When did you get back?" She said abruptly.

[Scott O'Riley]

It was only after his failed attempt at looking chill did he realise that Alex looked like she had seen a ghost. It was also then did he realise that according to what he heard on the news, she was attacked around these parts. That she was brave enough to come back here spoke volumes of her determination. He then pushed away the smile that was forming on his lips.

He was Scott O fucking Riley. A determined pixie of a redhead was not someone he should be proud of.

"A couple months." He responded, mindlessly pushing the crates back into the stack they were in before. "Are you alone?" He asked, looking behind her to see anyone close to her that could have been that dark-skinned giant that was always hanging around whenever Scott came to visit.

[Alexandra Lawson]

Alex nodded slowly, taking advantage of the awkward, almost stilted exchange between the two of them to continue wrapping her mind around what she was seeing. Scott had left with such little fanfare and given their history that suited her just fine. She couldn't recall how long it had been since she'd seen him. Had it been two, three years? They hadn't talked since their break up though even then she knew he was still around. The news of him leaving abruptly had been met with relief as she figured that would be the last she'd ever see of Scott O'Riley. It was funny how life tended to throw curveballs like this.

With a furrowed brow Alex frowned. He'd been back for a 'couple months' and he didn't even try and see her? She shook her head at the thought, silently condemning herself for it having crossed her mind. Scott meant nothing to her anymore and he'd made it clear she'd never meant anything to him. It had probably been good he'd stayed away. "Huh? Oh. Yeah." She gave a slow nod, only now pulling away from the wall she'd been pressed against and gesturing in the vague direction she'd been walking before. "Just going a couple blocks down to meet some friends." She replied weakly. Still completely at a loss for anything to say.

[Scott O'Riley]

"Do you think that's wise? After wh-" Scott paused and cleared his throat. Yes, Scott. Reveal the fact that you knew she was attacked a month ago. She'd absolutely love that.

"Don't you have a boyfriend to keep you company?" He asked, hoping the bitterness didn't actually show up in his tone of voice. No, there was no way he was still holding on to the affection he had on the redhead after all these years.

[Alexandra Lawson]

Alex's brow furrowed as Scott started. She stared at him for a moment, unsure of what he was saying until it slowly dawned on her. He knew. It made sense, though, seeing as how her name had been on far more lips than she'd ever really wanted these days. She'd tried to keep things quiet and just let it all die but so many people seemed to refuse to comply. She didn't want anything other than to forget anything had happened and continue on with her life. "Oh. Um." She lowered her eyes to the ground and she idly kicked a rock with the toe of her sneaker. "You heard about that." She said softly.

Scott's contemptuous remark brought those brilliant, expressive, brown eyes back up to focus upon him. Alex's face was a mixture of curiosity and hurt at his words. She caught the faint trace of bitterness in his voice. She always had the ability to to sniff out the subtle nuances in Scott's demeanor. "Yes." She said almost defiantly. "But he's working." She almost dropped a mention of what Ezra did for emphasis but thought better of it. She wasn't one to get snarky and smug about something someone else was doing. Regardless her arms folded across her chest as she watched Scott. "Isn't Hayley around here somewhere to keep you company?" She shot back. Alex wasn't still bitter at all. Nope. Not one bit.

[Scott O'Riley]

Heard about it, visited you practically every day because of it. Not that you would ever know. Scott reprimanded himself for his thoughts before shrugging. "Couldn't go down the street without hearing about it." He answered, running his fingers through his hair, wondering why he was still standing in a back alley talking to his ex...whatever they were.

The way she responded almost made Scott's smug smirk appear but mention of the girl that he knew ruined everything had him frowning instead. "Oh I'm sorry, are we still bitter about that?" He shot back. "No, moved on to a Stephanie, a Sophie, an April, another Haley, would you believe and then a Carrie. I try to keep myself well-rounded. The whole recycling trash thing didn't work out for me." He shrugged.

[Alexandra Lawson]

Alex nodded slowly. She knew the details of the attack had made their rounds through the city. Even now she still had the occasional reminder when she was watching TV or walking around town. The implications of the incident had been far reaching and there had been so many people taking up arms on both sides leaving Alex in the middle simply wishing it would all go away so she could move on with her life. "Yeah..." Alex trailed off and averted her eyes. She reached up and pulled the ponytail her hair was in over her shoulder and fidgeted idly with the end.

There had been bitterness in her voice that she probably should have thought twice about letting loose. She hadn't meant to hold onto the pain and emotion from that moment all those years ago. She had no reason to. She'd recovered with the help of her friends, learned a lot and ultimately found someone new that she was still with today. Almost immediately she went to retract her accusation when Scott replied. Any and all traces of animosity melted away. She visibly winced with the utterance of each name. Her body tensed and she swallowed hard. She kept her jaw clenched tightly to bite back the tears that were threatening to fall. She sniffed and shook her head. "You're an asshole." She said before turning away, lest Scott see her continued reaction. The only thing on her mind now was getting away as quickly as possible.

[Scott O'Riley]

The way Alex seemed to crumble right before him made him regret everything he said and in that moment, he wished he could just go over and wrap his arms around her and apologise. He didn't know why he romanticised what they had because he had basically manipulated an impressionable young woman and then broke her heart for doing exactly what he had set out to do.

It had been his fault and now he was paying the price.

As she walked off, it took every fiber in his being to stop himself from running to her. Rubbing his face tiredly, he punched the crates he had pulled up earlier, watching it fly a few feet away in a scatter. A cat's shriek made him pause for a bit before he walked back into the pub.