Under Blue Light: an Alex Rider fanfiction

Just forget you ever saw me

There went another two days. Soon, it would be over, according to Alex. Abby wasn't sure what exactly that meant but she interpreted it as her being able to go home and not being scared anymore. Were the bad guys dealt with or did they loose interest in Alex or Abby? Or did they never actually pose a threat? At this point, Abby didn't care. She just wanted to go home to her cozy flat. She wanted the privacy of her apartment. Convincing Lou to let her stay over for a bit longer was easy. She told her that she felt lonely and needed some company. Lou had no problem with letting Abby stay, she loved chatting with her into infinity.

Abby was about to leave the gates of the hospital when she heard Piper's voice call out her name. Abby flinched and turned around, Piper was approaching her, also still in her uniform, like Abby.

"Can I talk to you?", Piper asked as she arrived next to her. Abby's gut twisted at the question. She had no idea what she wanted to talk about, they've never spoken to eachother outside of work. All her alarm bells were ringing. She was already imagining the worst: getting a huge scolding or even getting fired.

"Yes, sure.", Abby gulped. Her chest tightened.

"What is going on with you?"
At first, Abby didn't even register the question. It didn't sound like Piper. And yet, she had a genuinely concerned look on her face. Her painfully tight bun and straight posture reminded Abby that it was Piper who she was talking to.

"What do you mean?"

Piper took a breath and stepped closer to Abby.

"I've been watching you. For some time now, your mind seems to be somewhere else. You look deconcentrated and tired."

Abby opened her mouth to reply but Piper raised her finger to hush her.

"Spare me the details. I've come here to tell you that whatever is the matter with you, it needs to stop. Make it go away. You know how important our work is."

Her concerned look was gone, she looked the same old Piper again. Abby felt Piper's eyes pierce her through her face, into her skull and brain. It wouldn't have been surprising to her if Piper was able to hear her thoughts. Thank god, she didn't though.
Abby thought about Alex, the kind of things he told her. Suddenly, she felt a strong urge to stand up to Piper. If she could deal with someone like Alex, she could deal with Piper.

"I will make it go away.", she began, raising her chin to meet Piper's eyes.

"But you're going to have to be nicer.", she continued.

She really said that. There was no turning back now.

"Excuse me?", Piper's voice was offended and she looked almost confused.

"Yea, because you're not nice. And frankly, you don't know what I'm dealing with, so back off."

Piper's jaw dropped slightly and the air got stuck in her lungs. She wasn't used to Abby behaving like this. She never argued with her, she silently did what she was told. Piper unintentionally clicked her tongue, after that there was a long pause. If someone saw them from the distance, they would only see two women facing eachother, unsuspecting to the intense air that built up between them.

"You know what, I don't have time for this. Just...deal with your private problems!", Piper sneered at Abby and with that, she stormed off.

Abby was left there, trying to collect herself. She couldn't comprehend what just happened. She never stepped out of line. Abby was proud of herself on one hand but on the other, she started feeling anxious about the argument's consequences. She changed her dynamic with Piper completely, not just that, she changed it into very negative direction. She asked herself if this will affect her job and she came to the conclusion that it would a bit.