I guess between Lola, Athena, and Hen, this is the women’s wrongs episode

What's your take on the Alex&Mccolough affair?

Remember how many times Laura described Alex as a “survivor” ? Well, I think that had a lot to do with Alex’s affair with McCullough.

I apologize in advance for the long reply. I’ve been thinking about this since s7 streamed and tbh the whole thing initially upset me even more than the Piper-Zelda thing (and that’s saying something bc Piper cheating on Alex in s3 upset me so damned much). After a month of trying to figure out what the hell happened, I came up with what I think is an explanation (or at least, a partial explanation) for what happened between Alex and McCullough...

So, episode 7x01 finds Alex in a terrible situation—she’s stuck in a Max prison with 3 years still left on her sentence, she has very limited opportunities for any in-person interaction with Piper, she can’t even hold or touch her wife, she’s worried about her marriage because of these restrictions...and on top of all that—she’s being blackmailed into dealing drugs by a CO who shoved a condom filled with heroin down her throat. It’s pretty hard to think of a situation where a person has less control then that...and we know that control is important to Alex. She’s not someone wanting blind power... or even a control freak...but control equals power, and in 7x01, Alex was essentially *powerless*. Because of this, I think Alex allowed the affair with McCullough (McC) to happen (and remember McC was the one who actually initiated it, in 7x07) as a way of getting some degree of control in prison, especially after dealing with a creepy, sadistic CO who forced her to deal drugs. Why McCullough? I think Alex’s interest in McCullough was piqued after she saw McC’s tattoo photo on Nicky’s phone, but I didn’t think much of it at the time because Alex had basically the same reaction when she saw that lingerie catalog model (“Lola”) in s3. Alex and McC’s first meeting in the utility closet (in 7x04) is terribly awkward—Alex turns her head when McC starts undoing her CO shirt (slowly and seductively) and she then looks even more awkward when McC unzips her shirt again to retrieve the chargers she “forgot” in her bra. When Alex sees the “Texas” tattoo on McC in 7x06, though, she teases her about it (“Couldn’t you have gone with “Aloha”?) and McC teases Alex back about her “lucky star” tattoo. This gets a laugh out of Alex, a genuine laugh. While McC is fastening Alex’s bustier onto Alex’s torso (in that same scene)—Alex looks uncomfortable, and maybe even a bit….vulnerable??…but she also doesn’t look like she /dislikes/ what McC is doing. And then we have McCullough’s personality—she’s thoughtful (e.g. suggesting Alex buy a case for her phone lol). conscientious… but she’s also vulnerable and has weaknesses (her PTSD, her feelings for Alex) underneath that dour exterior. In other words, she’s the perfect person to manipulate. Timing       Earlier in that episode (still 7x06), things with Piper had shifted—Alex had suggested an open relationship to give Piper some freedom so she wouldn’t break her parole and wind up back in Max…but then regretted it almost immediately afterwards. Later in 7x06, Piper gets a sexy text from Alex while she’s in her NA meeting and texts back “Stop pushing!”, and I always wondered if that kind of bothered Alex and if so, did it affect her behaviour in the bustier scene that followed, or her response to McCullough’s kiss in 7x07 ? Maybe I’m overthinking that and/or I still find it hard to believe that Piper would turn down any form of sex with Alex lol.

At their next utility closet meeting (in 7x07), Alex is a bundle of nerves, thinking about Piper having sex with other people. McC offers some (really bad) marital advice to Alex, but Alex awkwardly dismisses it and quickly leaves the room after she gets the new chargers from McCullough. At this point, their relationship is still all-business, ..which is surprising because at their next meeting (in a later 7x07 scene) McC kisses Alex…and Alex—-very surprisingly— kisses her back. While this is happening, Alex’s cel phone is ringing on “silent” mode, with  Piper on the other end of the line leaving a message telling Alex sadly that the open relationship thing isn’t working :/ Vauseman have always had terrible timing—they’re like a fucking O.Henry story. Taking Control In their next meeting (in7x08), McC apologizes for kissing Alex, Alex agrees that it was stupid and adds that it was also inappropriate because she’s married, etc. and then they get into an argument about the contraband smuggling that McC is still forcing Alex to do. Alex says that she didn’t ask for McC’s help “to become your mule” and I think this is Alex reacting to a lack of control she thought she had with McC. Despite the kiss they shared, Alex was still being blackmailed into dealing contraband for McCullough. She angrily reminds McC that if caught, she could have extra time added to her prison sentence (even though Alex was kind of cavalier abt it when she initially suggested smuggling chargers). I think though, that Alex *really* resented being forced to be someone’s drug mule…again. If you recall, Alex proudly described her career rise in Kubra’s cartel to Badison (in 6x07) as “a simple mule who climbed the ranks to become a top trafficker in a transnational criminal organization” and I think Alex strongly resented McC’s power over her *even more* bc of the high rank she once had in the cartel. Later in that episode, Alex narrowly misses getting caught with contraband in her cell and (by the look on her face) McC realizes just how much danger she’s putting Alex in. She comes by Alex’s bunk later on and tells her she can stop smuggling chargers, apologizes, and gives her a couple of chargers as a parting gift. It’s at this point where Alex could have stopped their relationship from progressing beyond that single kiss—she’s free from McC’s blackmail but she’s still on good terms with her—-but then Alex kisses McCullough once, and then a second time (after McC gently resists, then relents) and slowly pulls her into her bunk. Immediately before this scene, though, Alex is seen composing a text to Piper (“I need to tell you something…”) but then she erases it just before McCullough enters her cell. I think Alex felt guilty about kissing McC in 7x07, but on the other hand, she chooses not to send Piper that text. Why? I think Alex took the relationship with McC to another level in this scene because she wanted to have control over her…and McC was even easier to manipulate now that Alex knew *just* how much McC cared for her. Was Alex hoping that by being in a relationship with McC she’d continue to watch Alex’s back (ie. so she could avoid dealing with Hellman again) ?? Alex knew that McC wasn’t happy being a CO, so perhaps continuing their affair was Alex’s way of ensuring she’d continue working at Litchfield Max?? If so, yes–it’s cold-hearted and mercenary of Alex to exploit McCullough’s weaknesses, but Alex is pragmatic… and she’s a survivor. And surviving prison and not getting any extra time added to her sentence is what she vowed to Piper at their wedding. In their next utility closet meeting (7x09), Alex says she doesn’t want to “stop….selling chargers”, smiles at McC (in a way that indicates she’s not just talking about selling contraband) and continues to turn on the charm. At their next visitation, Piper tells Alex that she had sex with two randoms and met someone named Zelda who was her roommate at a retreat. When Piper asks if  McC is still making Alex sell chargers, Alex says “No”…which isn’t technically a lie (bc it was Alex’s decision to continue selling them)….but it really is lying…and Alex is breaking her wedding vows by continuing the smuggling operation. As bad as that is, though, I’m pretty sure Alex thought it was the lesser of two evils (breaking her vows vs. being able to bend McC to her will and have some form of control/safety in a harsh prison situation). Alex’s pragmatism at work again... Thoughts –Did Alex consciously turn McCullough into *her* mule? Because it seems to me that Alex had the upper hand now, being able to manipulate McC into continuing their illegal activity… –Was there some affection for McCullough on Alex’s part, because of the way Alex comforted her in the next episode (7x10)? As I said in a long reply to a recent ‘ask’, I don’t think Alex is someone who is looking for broken people to make her feel needed and that’s why she comforted McC; I personally think she genuinely felt sorry for McC and that’s why she hugged her after she saw McC’s burn marks.Protecting Her HeartThe shower scene in 7x10 is pretty easy to explain—Alex, after not being able to get in touch with Piper, finds out that Piper and Zelda have been hanging out a lot (thanks to Instagram), Alex is hurt by this so she decides to amp things up and protect herself from Piper by initiating sex with McCullough in this scene. Alex even admits to Piper that this was her reason for doing so in their 7x12 visitation scene (“I was trying to protect myself”….“I was scared that you would leave me”). It’s interesting that Alex has *never* done that before (protecting her heart like that) in any previous season…. because she could have done it in s1 (with the Larry situation) or in s3 (Dark!Piper’s cheating with Stella). In s7, though, Alex is still in prison and Piper is free, and Alex has absolutely no control over what Piper is doing with other people….one of whom is /not/ a random stranger but someone Piper obviously likes. Things Get Better….and Then They Don’t …and Then They Live Happily Ever After :)  Episode 7x11 sees Alex opening up the envelope with Piper’s love notes, and in her next scene with McC, Alex calls off their affair completely and apologizes for making McC think it was a real relationship (even tho Alex told her it was real, in the shower scene). I honestly think Alex was trying to let McCullough down easily by saying “It could be if things were different, but I’m married”. I don’t think she would *ever* choose someone else over Piper. Like never. McCullough is hurt by the breakup and gets Alex transferred to a prison in Ohio, Piper moves there to be with her wife, we see them touching hands (!) during some future prison visitation in Ohio, and they live happily ever after :)       One last thought I absolutely hate what happened with Alex and McC (and btw you will never see me using the term “McVause” after this post because ugh) and I didn’t see it coming *at all* based on Alex’s behaviour in seasons 1-6, so I was completely blindsided and in total shock after watching season 7. Thank god, though, that it was McCullough who discovered Alex trying to put the drugs into Hellman’s locker and not some other CO or we’d have had a very different season 7 and who  knows what would have happened to Alex in Max :/

Thanks for the ‘ask’ and once again, sorry for the long reply. A lot of it could have been said more concisely, but it was also me putting thoughts into written words as I tried to figure out what the hell happened in s7.