This is my first story for Bates Motel. I don't know how I feel about it, but I hope it's not as bad as I think. I just have to get used to writing for these two characters. Let me know what you think! :)

Norma Bates grabbed her three bags of groceries out of the backseat of her car and quickly made her way up the steps that lead to her house. She let a smile grace her face as she thought about how everything was going back to normal. Nick Ford was dead. She was trying to work on her relationship with Dylan. Norman would be home from the hospital tomorrow. Normal, she thought, oh how she missed it. As she got to the porch, she noticed her front door was wide open. A quizzical look graced her beautiful face as she took a step closer. She didn't have to go far before she saw that her living room was a disaster zone. Not even thinking about the bags in her arms, she dropped them then quickly backed out of the house and ran down the steps. Norma was about to run into the office to call the police when she noticed Romero's truck was already parked in the lot.

"Thank God," she sighed as she ran to room 11 and banged loudly on the door.

The door opened with force and there stood Sheriff Alex Romero still in his uniform. "What's-"

"Someone broke into my house," Norma quickly rushed on as she cut him off and barged her way into his motel room.

Alex slowly shut the door and turned to the frantic woman pacing his small room. "What do you mean someone broke in?"

"I just got home and the door was open and the living room is trashed!"

"How do you know it wasn't Dylan? Or Norman?"

Norma took a step back with shock and anger clearly written on her face. "Why do you never believe me? Do you have this much doubt if anyone else in this town comes to you saying their house was broken into? Or do you save the special treatment just for me?"

"Don't even start with that, Norma. I was just asking a question."

"Bullshit. Every time I come to you, you look at me like I'm insane and I'm not! Someone broke into my house. So instead of getting on my case, maybe you should do your job," Norma snapped.

Alex arched an eyebrow at her outburst. He took a step closer and Norma fought hard against taking a step back. She would not be intimidated by him. She refused. "I am doing my job. So when I ask you how you know it wasn't Norman or Dylan, you need to answer my question without getting defensive. Do you think you can do that?"

Norma rolled her eyes. "Of course I can," she snapped again. "It couldn't be Norman because the doctors are keeping him at the hospital overnight and Dylan hasn't been home in a month."

"Doesn't mean he couldn't have stopped by for something."

Norma bravely took a step closer to Romero. "It wasn't Dylan," she whispered harshly. She couldn't believe how infuriating this man was.

"Fine, I'll go check it out. Stay here." Alex backed away and opened the door just as he noticed Norma was right behind him. "What are you doing?"

"I'm going with you," Norma stated in a duh tone.

"Um, actually, you aren't. I just told you to stay here. What part of that don't you understand?"

"All of it, obviously. What if someone is still in there? You could get hurt."

"Norma," Alex started as he slowly pushed her back into the room. "I can handle myself. Thanks for the concern, but stay here until I come back. I won't be long," and with that he quickly shut the door before she could protest.

After five minutes of pacing back and forth and trying to relax, Norma couldn't take it any longer and she ran out of the room and headed towards her house. Right as she was rounding the corner, she collided with Alex, who gripped her arms tightly to steady her. He turned her back around and practically dragged her into his room.

"Are you deaf? Or do you just choose not to listen to anything anyone tells you?" Alex slammed the door shut and swung Norma to the side, finally releasing her arm.

Norma caught herself on the dresser and turned to glare at him. "What is your problem?"

Alex couldn't help the scoff that escaped his lips. "What's my problem? You! You are my problem, Norma! You want help but you don't listen to anything I say to you. Stay here usually means stay here. Why is that so hard for you?" he shouted.

Norma took a step back at his tone. He's been angry with her before, but Alex has never yelled at her like this. "I'm sorry," she said. "I was starting to get worried. You were gone for-"

"Five minutes. That's it." Alex took a deep breath. He had to get his emotions under control. The woman before him drove him absolutely nuts and he was having trouble dealing with it. Her mannerisms, the way she never listened to anyone. Her outburts. The way she treated her son. The way her eyes light up when she smiles. Alex quickly shook his head to rid himself of that last thought and got back to business. "I checked all the rooms," he said in a softer tone, "no one is in the house. There's some stuff thrown around, but I can't tell if anything is actually missing. I also put your groceries away."

"So what now?"

"I suggest you go up there, try to clean up and get some sleep. If anything is missing just let me know." Alex watched as her eyes grew wide. Even though he knew he was going to regret it, he asked the question anyway. "What's wrong now?"

"You really expect me to just go up there and be able to sleep?"

"I checked all the rooms, no one is in the house."

"That's not the point," Norma yelled. "Someone broke into my house! And you just want me to go up there and pretend it didn't happen and 'sleep'? Who's the crazy one now?"

"I understand. If you aren't comfortable sleeping in your house, just stay in one of your rooms at the motel."

"I can't," Norma mumbled.

"Why is that?" Alex asked in irritation.

"Because all the rooms are full."

"All 12?"

"Yes!" Norma took a step closer to him, knowing what her only option would be. "Do you think I could just stay with you for the night?"

Alex felt like his head was about to explode. She could not be serious.

"I won't be any trouble," she rushed on when she saw that he was going to say no. "I promise. It'll only be for tonight and in the morning I'll go up there and clean everything up. It's too dark to do it now. Please, Alex."

A war was raging inside of Romero, and all he wanted to do was kick her out but he knew he couldn't. Just as he was about to answer, there was a knock on his door. His Chinese food was finally there. He quickly gave a tip and took his food and slowly turned back to Norma. "Only for tonight," he said.

Norma's face lit up. "Thank you so much, Alex. You won't regret it."

"I doubt that," Alex stated. He moved to the table with his food and realized that she probably didn't eat yet. "If you're hungry you can have some."

"That's ok," Norma waved him off. "That's your dinner."

"I always have some left over, so sit down."

Norma did as she was told as Alex separated the food and passed some to her. "Thank you, I haven't had Chinese in forever."

"Why is that?" Alex asked, trying to make small talk.

"Dylan isn't a fan, so I just got used to never having it." She took a bite and remembered how much she enjoyed it as a small moan escaped her lips. Alex immediately looked at Norma. "It's so good," Norma stated as she looked up at Alex, who quickly dropped his eyes back to his food.

Norma cleared her throat as she kept her eyes on him. "I really do appreciate this."

Alex looked up and gave a curt nod thinking that would be the end, but she kept talking.

"Thank you."

"Don't mention-"

"No. I know how much you like your privacy and I know how much you don't really like me-"

"Norma-"

Norma raised her hand to cut him off. "It's okay, I get it. I've been a pain in your ass since I moved here and I apologize for that." Norma gave a small shrug. "I don't mean to be, so I'm grateful you're letting me stay here tonight."

Alex couldn't help but be shocked at her admission. He never thought she would ever admit to being a pain. Hearing the sincerity in her tone made him realize this wasn't an act. "You're welcome, Norma." A huge smile spread across Norma's face and in that moment Alex realized he would say or do anything to see her aim that smile towards him. They continued to eat in silence that they were both comfortable in.

"That was delicious," Norma finally said after they both finished. "Thanks for sharing it with me."

"No problem, glad you liked it." Alex went about cleaning up dinner while Norma sat there silently. He finally sat back down and they both avoided eye contact. Neither wanted to discuss the elephant in the room. "What do you want to do now?" Alex asked after a few more minutes passed.

Norma looked up at Alex and knew exactly what she wanted to do with him, but she knew that was never going to happen. Instead of telling the truth, she just shrugged her shoulders nonchalantly. "It's up to you. I'm the one imposing on you, so just go about your business like you regularly do. Pretend I'm not here."

Romero almost scoffed at her words. Pretend the woman who has been on my mind much more than I'd like isn't sitting across the table from me, in my motel room, he thought to himself. Much easier said than done. "If you're tired we can go to bed. It's getting pretty late."

With a nod, Norma stood up and straightened her skirt out. She began to nervously play with her hands. What was wrong with her? She never got nervous like this.

"What's wrong?" Alex asked after seeing the stress on her face.

"Could I borrow the robe in your bathroom, please? I don't want to wear this skirt and shirt to bed."

All Alex could do was nod. He didn't think about her not wearing her clothes to bed. How was he supposed to sleep when she would only be wearing a robe with her underwear underneath? He sighed as he grabbed his clothes out of his drawer. It was going to be a long night, he thought as he headed towards the bathroom. "I'll be right out," he stated as he closed the door behind him.

It wasn't long before he reemerged from the bathroom in a t-shirt and sweatpants. "It's all yours."

Norma locked herself in the bathroom and had to remind herself to breathe. She couldn't get how good he looked in that t-shirt out of her head. "He couldn't have worn a shirt that didn't hug his muscles?" she whispered to herself as she slowly took off her skirt and blouse. Norma silently thanked her lucky stars for wearing a nice pair of lacy black boyshorts and matching bra. Her trembling fingers grabbed the robe off the back of the door and wrapped it tightly around her body.

After a few more deep breaths she emerged from the bathroom and placed her dirty clothes neatly stacked on a chair. Norma turned towards the bed where Alex was perched on the edge and felt herself blush as she watched his eyes roam over her body before he shook his head and quickly looked away.

Why did robes have to be short and silky? Alex thought to himself. What did he do to deserve the torture he was going through? Out of the corner of his eye, he watched as Norma slowly moved to the other side of the bed and he tensed up as he felt the bed dip as she sat down.

Alex moved to lean against the headboard and he found himself smirking to himself as he watched Norma react the same way he did when she sat down. "Are you ok, Norma?"

He watched as she noticeably relaxed as he spoke. "I'm fine," she said softly as she mirrored his pose against the headboard. Alex couldn't help but notice how she was playing with her hands. He never thought he'd see the day where Norma Bates was basically terrified to be sitting on a bed next to a man. Suddenly, a sad thought crossed his mind. What if she wasn't terrified to be sitting on a bed next to a man, but she was terrified to be sitting next to him? That thought crushed him. Although he never planned on acting on his feelings for the blonde, he still didn't want her to be scared of him. Or at least not afraid of sitting next to him.

Before Alex could stop himself, he placed his hand on top of hers and squeezed. "Relax Norma, it's just me," he said softly.

Norma's eyes quickly latched onto his and she saw something in them that she couldn't pinpoint. He's never looked at me like that before, she thought breathlessly. Hell, he's never looked this at home before. She had to remember that she was in his room and he should be comfortable with her being there, so she needed to relax. She was Norma Bates and she could control her feelings and actions for one night. "I know," she finally spoke, "I'm just worried about why someone would break into my house."

Alex knew she was lying, but he didn't call her on it. "I wouldn't worry about it too much. In the morning I'll call someone to fingerprint the place."

Norma nodded at her words, "Thanks."

"Of course," he said as he finally let go of her hands and placed his back in his lap. "Well, it's late, we better try to get some sleep."

Alex moved the covers out from under him and Norma than slid down the bed to settle under them. He help up her side of the blankets and waited until she followed his lead. He couldn't stop his eyes from watching her exposed legs before Norma pulled the robe down.

Norma laid back on the pillow and knew she wasn't going to be sleeping much. She could feel the heat radiating off of Alex and she had nowhere to go, she was already on the edge of the bed.

Romero leaned over and switched the lamp off and the pair was bathed in darkness. Alex felt Norma shift and lay on her side and he chanced a glance at her and made out that she was facing away from him. He couldn't tear his eyes away from her silhouette. It was completely ridiculous and he knew it, but he couldn't look away.

After hearing a car door slam shut outside he finally looked away from Norma and looked at the clock and realized he had been staring at her for 45 minutes. "You're pathetic Alex," he mumbled into the dark. Romero just closed his eyes and was about to drift off into a Norma filled sleep when he heard soft whimpering. He opened his eyes and again looked over at Norma. She was shifting frequently and the whimpering came again when he realized she was having a nightmare.

Frozen, Alex wasn't sure what to do. Should I wake her? Will she be embarrassed if I do? It was a lose lose situation for both of them. He finally said fuck it and rolled over onto his side to face her. Alex scooted closer and put his hand gently on her arm.

"Norma," he whispered. "Norma, wake up, it's just a bad dream." Norma continued to whimper and all Alex could think to do was lay down beside her, wrap and arm around her and pull her closer. His hand rested on her stomach and he was shocked when he felt Norma's hand grip onto his arm. Alex looked down at her face and saw she was still asleep, but she had stopped thrashing around and she seemed to have relaxed.

Alex knew he wasn't going to get his arm back anytime soon, so he just rested his head on the pillow next to Norma's. He was just going to have to wake up before Norma and move back to his side of the bed. There's no harm in laying here next to her, he told himself. Even as he closed his eyes and breathed in her apple shampoo he knew he was lying to himself. This situation was very harmful...to him. But it didn't stop him from moving an inch closer and hugging her tighter as he finally fell asleep.

Alex was having one of the greatest dreams he's ever had starring Norma Bates. And he's had his fair share. She felt extremely real. Alex slowly let his fingers run through her smooth blonde hair before he trailed them down her body. His lips latched onto hers and he grew hard at the small moan she released. His fingers played with the top of her bra but instead of digging in, he decided to just tease her, the same way she always teased him. He slowly fondled her breast through her bra before ghosting his fingertips over her nipple, before he headed further south.

He couldn't get enough of her lips. They attacked his own and he couldn't help but let his tongue run along them. Norma turned in his arms and one hand played with the hair at the nape of his neck, as she brought him closer to her, while she let her other travel slowly down his body and finally connect with his cock. Alex hissed at the feeling, she felt amazing.

Before she could get her hand inside of his pants, Alex pushed her robe to the side and softly played with her core through her panties. Norma was soaking wet. Her hips left the bed trying to get closer to his fingers. Alex used his free hand to pin her hips to the bed. This was his dream and he was going to torture and tease her for as long as he wanted. He placed soft, gentle kisses down her jaw line and couldn't help but nibble on her neck when she got her hand inside his boxers.

"Norma," he hissed as she stroked him.

Their lips connected again as a loud blaring noise interrupted their actions. Norma's eyes flew open to see Alex hovering above her as their eyes locked and she immediately screamed and rolled away from him, causing her to fall onto the floor.

"Fuck!" Norma cried out as her hand covered her forehead.

Alex quickly shut off his alarm and moved to the edge of the bed as fast as his raging hard on would let him as he peered over the edge. How fucking embarrassing! Of course it wasn't a dream! How could he forget that she was there with him? "Are you alright?"

"No," Norma sighed. "I banged my head on the nightstand."

A small snort escaped Alex and Norma turned to glare at him. That small laugh turned to fear when he saw all the blood. "Jesus Christ, Norma, you're bleeding."

Norma removed her hand from her forehead and saw all the blood. "Fuck," she repeated.

Alex grabbed a hold of her by the waist and helped her back up onto the bed. "Here," he said as he made her lie back. "Stay here, I got to clean that up."

He made quick work of getting wash clothes and water. Alex sat back down on the bed at Norma's head and slowly pushed her hair out of the way so he could see the damage better. He began to wipe the blood off gently, as he noticed Norma wouldn't even open her eyes to look at him. "You're never going to believe this," he said as he gazed at her cut in amazement.

"What?" Norma asked with her eyes tightly squeezed shut.

"We have matching cuts now. You hit yourself where my cut was, above my eyebrow."

Norma's eyes flew open. "Shut up!"

Alex chuckled at her reaction. "I'm serious. We're twins."

Norma couldn't look away. After a long moment, Alex couldn't take anymore. "What are you staring at?"

"You just laughed."

Alex raised an eyebrow.

"That's so much different than a smile," Norma said in amazement. "You literally laughed. I don't think I've ever heard you laugh." A long pause passed between the pair. "I guess we need to be injured for you to find any amusement in situations."

He couldn't help but roll his eyes. "That's not true, I laugh and smile all the time," Alex stated in his normal stoic tone as he finished cleaning her forehead up.

"You do not," Norma protested as she jokingly went to slap his arm, but Alex caught her hand in his before she made contact. Norma was frozen in place. For half a second, she forgot about the embarrassing moment that happened between them not even ten minutes ago as his thumb gently rubbed her hand, but then suddenly it all rushed back to her as she yanked her hand out of his grasp. Norma sat up quickly and pulled the robe down as far as she could to cover her legs.

They both sat, just staring at each other, completely at a loss for words. How do you say sorry for something that you didn't mind happened?

Norma was the first to speak. "Well thank you so much for letting me stay here last night, I better get going. I have a lot of cleaning to do." She stood up and grabbed a hold of her clothes and rushed to put her shoes on.

"Norma," Alex started softly, "are we not going to talk about what happened?"

"There's nothing to talk about, Alex. It's obvious what happened. There's no need to make a big deal out of it."

Alex couldn't believe what he was hearing. "Ok then, what exactly happened?" he asked as he stood up and folded his arms across his chest.

Norma turned around to look at him finally. "Well, clearly we were dreaming and we didn't realize what we were doing." With that, Norma headed for the door, but not before Alex grabbed a hold of her arm and turned her around to face him.

"Is that all you think it was?" Alex asked in a low voice as he stepped closer to the woman.

"Yes," Norma said with confidence. "You barely tolerate me. You don't see me like that."

Alex felt his mouth drop open. She couldn't be this blind, could she? "Do you not realize all that I've done for you? I covered for everything that happened with Shelby and Keith Summers. I shot Abernathy. I put up with you still doing my laundry, even thought I have repeatedly told you not to. I've even covered for Dylan! I went and found Norman!"

"Yes, but those things have also benefited you."

"What?" Alex protested. "How did finding Norman benefit me? I didn't even get a thank you from you."

It took a few seconds for Norma to realize that she actually never thanked him. Maybe he didn't do things because he got something out of it. Maybe he was telling the truth. Norma stared into his eyes and willed them to make her see how he felt.

"You're right, I didn't say how much I appreciated you finding Norman. I'm sorry for that. " Before she could think, Norma leaned forward and pressed her lips firmly against his. His hand quickly moved from her arm to tangle into her hair. When her senses came back to her, Norma pulled away and saw the passion burning in Romero's eyes.

Everything was happening so fast. "I'm sorry, I have to go," Norma said as she flung open the door and ran out.

All Alex could do was watch her go. Norma was making it clear that she didn't feel the same way he did for her. Romero slammed the door shut and cursed at himself for letting her get too close. He knew she was going to be crazy the first time he met her. But as he stripped off his clothes as he headed to the shower, he had to admit that the crazy was what drew him towards her.

He was calling this battle with Norma Bates a loss. But as he touched his lips gently with his fingertips, he knew he was going to wear her down and win the war. He wanted her in a really bad way, and there was nothing that was going to stand in his way.