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Twyla was giddy, walking hand and hand with Alexis in downtown Elmdale. Alexis had been called into New York by Interflix to discuss her remote working plans for the company. She had spent the week in the big city, and Twyla had spent the entire time missing her, and worrying that Interflix would deny Alexis’ request to be based out of Schitt’s Creek. Alexis had come back to town the night before, announcing that Interflix had granted her remote status as a PR manager. Twyla had wasted no time in planning a day of celebration for the two of them, driving out to Elmdale to treat her girlfriend to the newest restaurant in the area, some green healthy food place that Alexis predictably loved. They had a lovely lunch, catching each other up on their day. Twyla listened avidly to Alexis’ near disaster in Newark airport, and now they were strolling through downtown to spend some time at Elmdale community park.
“I swear, Twy, I don’t think I’ll ever fly out of New Jersey again, it’s just not worth it.” Alexis sounded annoyed, but after several years of being in Alexis’ orbit Twyla could pick up the fondness in her tone. Twyla rocked up on the balls of her feet to kiss her girlfriend’s cheek, something that she had been wanting to do for the last week.
“Well, I’m glad that you made it here in one piece, Alexis.” She flashed the taller woman a full grin, one that Alexis reciprocated as they entered the park. They settled on a park bench, Twyla moving her way into Alexis’ arms and resting her cheek on her shoulder. Alexis wrapped one arm around her shoulders, the other grabbing one of Twyla's hands to fidget with her fingers.
Twyla felt Alexis sigh as they took in the afternoon park goers. It was a little busier and safer than any of the “nature spots” that Roland had tried to claim as parks, and the nearby pond offered a lot of entertainment as children ran back and forth between the ducks and their parents. Twyla felt Alexis kiss the top of her head, and she grinned, closing her eyes to soak in this moment of peace between the two of them.
“Um, Twyla?” Alexis spoke softly, but the use of her full name pulled the cafe owner out of her wandering thoughts. She leaned away to sit up fully and immediately noticed the anxiety in Alexis’ eyes. “Can we go home?”
Twyla furrowed her brows in confusion. Had something gone wrong? Did she do anything to upset Alexis? She had thought they were having a pretty good date so far, and she had planned to take Alexis to the public library so they could pick out books to read while the other was at work. She was about to tell her girlfriend that much when she noticed the way that Alexis had tensed up. Her eyes were fixated on something over Twyla’s shoulder and her breathing had started to pick up. Twyla instinctively grabbed Alexis’ hand and squeezed it. Alexis finally tore her gaze away from whatever she was looking at to meet her eyes.
“We can go home, my car is back by the restaurant, okay?” Twyla spoke with a soothing voice, like she’d use with her mother during her bad days. Alexis nodded jerkily and stood up, practically jogging back to the car with Twyla in tow. She was looking all around her as they moved the short distance from the park to Twyla’s car. Twyla’s heart was pounding as she unlocked the doors and made sure Alexis closed the passenger door behind her; what could she have seen that made her so panicked?
“Can you drive, quickly please?” Twyla could tell that Alexis was trying to keep her composure as they buckled up, but she could hear the fear running underneath it. Twyla started the car and eased out into traffic, heading out of town and back to Schitt’s Creek. It was nearly an hour long drive if you followed the speed limit, but Alexis must have had something else in mind. “Twyla I’m gonna need you to drive faster than that!” She spared a glance over at her girlfriend in the passenger seat and found her staring incessantly at the rearview mirror.
“Alexis, is someone following us?” Twyla felt her own fear creep into the back of her mind; she listened to crime podcasts when it was slow at the Cafe, so she knew that there were some horrible people out there. “Is that what you saw back in the park?”
“Just drive!” Alexis’ voice cracked through the air like a whip, and it stung Twyla just as much. She pressed her foot into the accelerator, not daring a glance into the mirror.
They hardly spoke for the rest of the drive back into town, and Twyla eased her car into the driveway of her house in record time. She had barely shifted the car into park before Alexis had whipped off her seatbelt and leapt out of the door. She was at Twyla’s side in an instant, opening the car door and tugging her out of her seat. The two quickly made their way inside her house and Twyla slammed the door behind them, locking the deadbolt her uncle had installed for her. She sunk to the ground, feeling relief flood her body now that she was home.
Alexis, on the other hand, was flying around the house, locking every window and door she could find and shuttering blinds over the windows to plunge the house into darkness. Twyla had barely registered her comfort before realizing that Alexis’ breathing had only gotten more erratic, the air ripping through her throat as she tried to shut the curtains over the kitchen window. She got back up to her feet and caught Alexis by the shoulders, stopping her crusade to their bedroom.
“Alexis, we’re okay,” she tried to keep her voice as neutral as possible while the other woman squirmed in her grasp. Her blue eyes were flitting everywhere, focusing on anything but Twyla. “Hey, Rose, can you look at me?”
Alexis finally locked eyes with Twyla, blue meeting green. Her eyes were filled with fear, her pupils practically pinpricks, and it finally clicked for Twyla. She readjusted her grip on Alexis’ shoulders and spoke in a clear voice.
“Alexis, tell me five things you can see.” She watched Alexis furrow her brows, her breath coming in puffs as she snapped her mouth closed. “Come on, Rose, you just gotta give me five things.”
“You.”
Twyla rubbed her thumbs against Alexis’ shoulders, forcing an encouraging smile. “Good, deep breath with me. What else, what else can you see?” She watched as Alexis broke their gaze, looking around the space they were standing in.
“Pictures on the wall.”
“Yeah, those are our pictures, good. Deep breath with me. What else?”
Twyla watched as Alexis’ breath hitched in her chest, felt her tremble under her hands as her eyes fixated something Twyla couldn’t see. “Bullet holes” came out with a sob.
Twyla moved her hands from her shoulders to cup Alexis’ face, turning her head gently to lock eyes again. “No, Rose, no bullet holes here. You see me, you see picture frames, what else, you gotta give me three more.” Twyla hated the way her voice shook as she wiped tears from Alexis’ cheeks with her thumbs. She hated that Alexis had to endure this, and she hated that for so many years Alexis had no one to help her with this. She let Alexis hiccup out a few more sobs, trying to regain her own composure before speaking again. “Deep breath with me. Good. You see me, you see picture frames, what else can you see?”
The breath seemed to have settled her, and Twyla smoothed her thumbs along Alexis’ cheekbones to encourage her. “The front door.”
Twyla cracked a watery smile. “Good, deep breath with me. Two more things Alexis.”
They stood together while Alexis looked around the house, the silence dragging out before them. Twyla could see her girlfriend’s breath coming slower, and she had stopped crying. Well, Alexis had stopped crying.
“Your Schitt self” Twyla had to laugh at that. When Alexis had first seen her house, she was rightly appalled by all of the knick-knacks that Jocelyn had gifted Twyla over the years. They weren’t pretty, and they didn’t quite fit the floral and plant aesthetic that she had created, but she loved those little gifts. Alexis had insisted that they consolidate everything onto one of Twyla’s bookshelves, and David has christened it with that name the first time Twyla hosted a game night.
“Okay, I’ll give you that Rose. Deep breath. Good, one more thing.”
Alexis seemed mostly in control of herself now, so Twyla dropped her hands from Alexis’ face to her hands, lacing her fingers through hers. Alexis glanced down at them before looking back over Twyla’s shoulder. “Your comfy couch.”
“One more deep breath.” The breath came freely for both of them, and Twyla finally felt like she could relax now that Alexis was coming back to herself. “Good. You want to lay on the couch?”
Alexis nodded, and Twyla led her to the worn sofa, pulling one of her old quilts over the both of them as Alexis curled up against her side. Twyla absently traced patterns along her back as they settled against each other. The darkness of the house was comforting, and Twyla could feel Alexis relax against her side. They laid together, letting the general hum of the house fill the silence between them.
“I’m sorry.” Alexis broke the quiet, the words barely ghosting across Twyla's neck as Alexis shifted to bury her face there.
“What are you sorry for?” Twyla drew her hand up her back to tangle in Alexis’ hair, stroking through the golden waves as she kissed the top of her head. “You don’t have to apologize for anything.”
“I know, it’s-” Alexis hesitated, and Twyla waited, never breaking the rhythm of her hand while Alexis gathered her thoughts. “I can be a lot to deal with. When that happens. I think I nearly gave Ted a heart attack when it happened at the vet’s once.” Twyla gathered Alexis in her arms as she spoke, cradling her head against her neck. “It can scare people away.”
“Do you see me running?” Twyla didn’t need to look down at Alexis to know she had started to smile, the press of her lips against her neck was enough. “I’m not going anywhere, Lex. I’m here, through all the scary shit and things that sent other people running.” Twyla looked at her ceiling and released a comfortable sigh, trying to pick her next words carefully. “When your family came here, I really thought you’d just be stuck here until you could sell the town or come up with some money scheme, and then you’d all leave. But then, you stayed, and you kept staying, and suddenly you all were helping to make this town better…” she could feel Alexis’ eyes on her, and she glanced down. “You stayed. And so will I, no matter what comes for us.”
Alexis shifted, shimmying herself to meet Twyla’s lips in a soft kiss. Twyla knew that she was communicating everything that she couldn’t yet, the things that Alexis wasn’t ready to speak into existence. Alexis’s hands were sure as they landed against Twyla’s sides, and Twyla anchored her hands behind Alexis’ neck. They were here, and here they stayed.