Orange Is the New Black Mega Buzz: Are Alex and Piper Done for Good?

When we last saw Alex (Laura Prepon) on Orange Is the New Black, things were not looking so good for her. She had just called things off with a power-tripping Piper (Taylor Schilling) and was about to be ambushed in a garden shed by an undercover assassin sent by a vengeful drug dealer.

The good news (as people who follow Prepon on Instagram can attest): All signs point to Alex surviving the attack and returning for Season 4. Both Prepon and Schilling confirmed the Eyelinered One's return to TVGuide.com at a "For Your Consideration" screening hosted by Netflix this week. So now the question is, what effect does Alex's encounter with Aydin have on her - and are she and Piper really over?

"She was justified in her paranoia," Prepon tells TVGuide.com, referring to Alex's suspicions about fellow inmate Lolly (Lori Petty). "I think that empowers her. In Season 4, we definitely don't see a timid side of Alex."

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And once Piper learns that her ex-lover's been targeted, will that spark a reconciliation between them? "You can't control where your heart goes," Prepon hints. "Alex and Piper will always have a connection, and I definitely think that if Alex needed her or she needed Alex, they would be there for each other completely."

Adds Schilling: "When that bond is real and that kind of connection happens, it never just gets severed. ... I don't know if Piper can [be on her own]. I think part of her journey is going to be learning to stand on her own two feet. And I think probably she didn't realize how dependent she was."

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