Crashing Waves

30

Walking along the cliff side with my new dressing on my side was relaxing. I still had pains, but for the most part, I couldn't feel a thing.
The rolling waves could be heard atop the cliff, the sea breeze from the Jurassic coast cool in the late summers eve. Closing my eyes I took in a deep breath, taking advantage of how fresh the air smelt.

Without my mobile and the fact that I wasn't home was most probably worrying Alec, but right now I didn't care. I had spent the day relaxing on the cliffs edge watching the people of Broadchurch come and go, buying their ice creams and relaxing at the beach, even trying their luck with crabbing in the harbour.

"Fancy seeing you here." A voice knocked me out of my daze. Making my visibly jump. "Sorry, I didn't mean to scare you." It was Beth Latimer.

"That's ok. I was completely zoned." I let out a short laugh. "Did you want to sit?" I asked, shuffling over to the left slightly.

"Go on then." She said, taking a seat in her jogging gear. "What're you doing up here then?" She asked, her Dorset accent very prominent in her speech.

"Admiring the scenery and thinking how lucky I am to be alive." I said, taking a deep breath before realising what I'd said. "Shit. Sorry."

"No, don't be. It's not your fault." We looked at one another and she let out a small smile, bending her knees and leaning forward, her elbows resting on them. "Sometimes I think this whole town knows me as 'Danny's mum' or 'the mum of that boy who died' and not Beth Latimer. All cause that bastard got away with it." I looked down, not even remotely imagining the grief she must be experiencing. "Sorry, you're going through your own stuff." She snapped out of whatever rage she was in, leaning backwards again. "How's all that going by the way?" She asked, and I shook my head.

"The court case starts tomorrow. I don't know if I can face him." I admitted. "Alec, uh, DI Hardy and I. We sorta... we're sorta seeing each other." I said, blushing. Even though he was being a shit head right now, we still had to keep up appearances.

"DI Hardy? I'm surprised Ellie doesn't know." From that comment I take it once Ellie knows something, so does everyone else.

"She, er... walked in on us this morning." I said, looking away.

"Oh god!" Beth and I laughed, before the pain in my side made my hiss in pain. "You alright?" She asked.

"Yeah. Just my side." I lifted up my top to reveal the dressing, luckily with no blood stains on it.

"Jesus, is that bandage the size of the-"

"No no, she oversized it thank god, but it's a good four inches. Sixteen stitches, and that's just externally." I explained, sighing. "But yeah... he dropped me off at the hospital explaining that he and I can't be seen together before the court case, and then commanded me to go straight home and ring him." I rolled my eyes, hearing Beth let out a laugh.

"Sounds like how Ellie described him." I nodded and shook my head, a silence developing between us.

"When you came over with Mark-" Beth started. I wonder how long she's been waiting to bring this up.

"I was running away from Alec. He-" I paused, thinking back to when he tried to tell Ellie and I that luring Alan out was a bad idea. "We'd had an argument and I ran out the door without realising I hadn't even got dressed, and kept running around every corner I could find, until Mark knocked me out of my daze." I said. "Mark and Nigel were the first friends I'd made in this town. And despite our differences, they were the reason I met Alec." I saw Beth relax a bit more, hopefully meaning the air was clear between us.

"I should get going." She said, standing up. "If you need to talk about what's happened, you have my number, right?" She said, and I nodded.

"I might after tomorrow. Thank you." Waving her off, I looked back out to the ocean, hearing heavy breathing from behind me. "You forget something?" I turn to see black shoes and trousers, men's, and looking up a police badge.

Shit.

"What the bloody hell are you doing up here?!" He yelled angrily, slightly out of breath.

"I took my time, I have a fresh dressing on and it's been checked out, it's healing fine." I replied, looking back out at the ocean. "If you're gonna be a shit head, you can leave. I'll stay in the Traders tonight." I said, seeing him sit down out the corner of my eye.

"You're case starts tomorrow." He argued, heavily sighing and sitting down next to me, but not before he took his coat off and put it over my shoulders.

"Thanks." I mumbled, admittedly I had become rather cold, and his trench coat was incredibly warm, almost like a radiator. "I'm scared, Alec." I looked to him, his almost expressionless face gazing out to the sea. "Terrified, in fact. You're going to get up there and they're going to accuse you of-"

"That doesn't matter. What matters is that he gets a guilty verdict." We both knew he wasn't going to plead guilty. In his eyes, as well as my Dads, he wasn't.

"They're going to show that video of me to everyone aren't they." I couldn't bear to face Alec looking at me right now, the pity you could most likely see in his eyes.

"Most likely only to the jury, and as you know the crown and defence would have both witnessed it after." I nodded, bringing my legs up slowly and wrapping my arms around them. I was behaving like such a kid but I couldn't not right now. Everything that man brought out in me... it was all going to come back.

"I- I took the pill." I changed the subject, turning my head to see him suddenly look at me.

"Oh. Er, good. I mean, thank you." He stumbled over his words, sighing afterwards. "I'm sorry about today." Did he really just apologise? "Bloody hell Alice I just want you safe." That made me smile, those words warming my heart.

"Can I ask you something? It doesn't matter what the answer is. I just- want to know." Alec nodded, his eyes looking like they were searching my soul as his gaunt face looked damn miserable. Taking a deep breath, I composed myself for a probable mistake.

"Do you love me?"