Alex woke up at three the next morning to a steady tapping on the door to the room she shared with Ali. The defender appeared to be asleep next to her, so with a groan, Alex went to open it. The sight in front of her was beyond surprising, and Alex didn't hesitate in squeezing the life out of her best friend. 

Hope let out a whimper as Alex crushed her rib cage, but gratefully hugged her back. "I missed you!" the forward hissed, releasing Hope and beaming up at her. It was only when Alex brought the woman into the kitchen and turned the lights on that she noticed the tears well in Hope's crystal blue eyes and then streamed down her face. 

Alex's first thought was that the woman was just so happy to see her, and these were happy tears, but she knew that wasn't right. Hope rarely cried, and when she did, it was never because of something good that happened. 

"Hope..." Alex murmured, touching her friend's arm affectionately. "What's up?" 

Hope wiped her eyes quickly and cleared her throat. "Ca... Ca... Ca- Carli..." 

"What happened?" Alex asked, jumping to what she immediately thought Hope was going to say. 

"Carli... broke up with me. I think, I'm no- not really sure," Hope stammered, looking at the floor. The forward's eyes widened. Her joy from seeing Hope fled from her body and her faint smile was quickly replaced by a deep and dark grimace. It was still sinking in. She had never expected this. This beautiful, athletic couple who had been so desperately in love with each other for the past three years was now... gone?

"I'm sorry, Hope," Alex started, unsure of how to comfort the older girl. "Do- do you know why?" 

"Yes," she mumbled. "I'm a bitch." 

This proclamation almost made Alex laugh for some reason, but she bit her lip and kept reminding herself that Hope and Carli didn't exist anymore. Just Hope. Just Carli. "What happened?" Alex asked once she had regained some sense of empathy. 

Hope whimpered softly. "I don't know! I mean, I do know, but I also don't-"

"Please spit it out," Alex whispered, hearing a creak come from Allie's room. She prayed that the other two girls wouldn't walk in on them. 

At the word please, a sob escaped Hope and footsteps sounded in the hallway. Hope opened her mouth to speak again, but was overtaken by another round of crying. Alex held up a finger in a one moment gesture and rushed to the hallway, where she ran smack into Allie, Ali not far behind her. Allie clutched her shoulder and let out a tiny groan. 

"What the hell, Alex?" Allie hissed, squinting to see the forward more clearly. 

Alex shook her head. "Guys, please... You don't want to get involved in this." 

"Who's crying?" Ai asked, trying to peer past Alex. "It sounds like Hope. Is it Hope?" 

"Yes, it's Hope, but please don't say anything or see her right now..." 

"What's wrong?" Allie asked, squeezing past Alex before she could stop her. 

"Al..." the forward complained, grabbing Allie's slightly bruised shoulder. "Okay, Carli broke up with Hope, who is now breaking down in our kitchen. I think you guys will only overwhelm her right now, do you understand?" Alex slurred quickly. 

Ali and Allie stood in silence, their mouths gaping open. Finally, Ali whispered, "Carli broke up with her? Why?" 

Alex shrugged in the dim light. "I have no idea, but I need to talk to Hope. Go back to bed, please."

The two girls exchanged a sharp glance before Ali tugged Allie back into her room. "Sorry, Lex," she apologized, disappearing behind the door, where they would most likely stay up for a while, chatting quietly about the fresh news. 

Alex returned to the kitchen where Hope was sipping water from a glass and appeared to have gained a little bit of control over her tears. 

The goalkeeper blinked a few times before looking at Alex. "What do I do?" 

The forward thought for a moment before responding, "Give her some space. I can try and talk to her, if you want. But otherwise, just let it be. She'll come back soon, I can guarantee that." 

"Will you talk to her?" Hope asked. 

Alex nodded, "Of course I will."

"Promise?" she repeated, her hands twitching with nerves. Alex watched as Hope took another sip of water and then swallowed. Her blue eyes were still wet, but she had stopped crying for now. 

Alex nodded determinedly. "Yes, I promise."