Trapped in an unhappy marriage, she sought happiness outside the home. What happens when outside reached back? Twilight has been KANKed. All human, AU. Canon pairings, eventually. REVISED.
Oooh, a cliffy. Sorry about that =)
I noticed something while rereading the last chapter: my omniscient third person way of writing kind of a little bit really awkward. Do you think I should change to switching from Bella, Edward, Jasper, and Alice POVs? I would except, I feel like a writer should be able convey the story without switching POVs often. Usually I think it's tacky to switch POVs so often but I sort of like it for this story...
POLL: Switch to first person for each character's POV or Stay in third person omniscient
xoxo—ei
Disclaimer: All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of their respective owners. The original characters and plot are the property of the author. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators, or producers of any media franchise. No copyright infringement is intended.
Never Say Goodbye
Chapter 2— Just Can't Get Enough
"Bella!" Jasper hovered over his wife as she vacuumed the carpet. "Bella!" He said loudly in her ear. She jumped and looked over her shoulder reproachfully at him.
"What?"
"Turn that damn thing off, we have to go!"
"Jasper, relax-" Bella's mouth formed an 'O.' "Jasper, your pants," she groaned.
He did a double-take. "What?"
"Take them off–-we have to go soon!"
"Right now? Okay!" Jasper grinned, shucking off his pants. He threw them past her. Instead of ducking, she caught them and laid them neatly on the table.
"Bella, hurry up!" Jasper said, stripping off his shirt, too. "A quickie has to be quick, Bella. We'll make time for something longer when we get back."
"What are you talking about, Jasper?" She rolled her eyes and held up his pants. "There was a mustard stain on your cords–-honestly how did you become the CEO of a fashion company? Hand me some club soda."
Jasper's face fell. He cleared his throat and began to button his shirt up again. Bella's cheeks flushed pink, as they always did at the mention of the topic. "Not now, Jasper. Maybe some other time…"
Jasper sighed angrily. "When, Bella? We never get to anymore. Why won't you-?"
"You know why!" She threw his pants at him and grabbed the car keys from off the counter. "Let's go, you're going to be late to the party."
"Bella!" Jasper called, pulling his pants on. "Bella! Can we at least talk about this?"
"No, Jasper."
"It's not your fault, Bella. It's okay." He said, calmly following her in the car.
"It is not okay. We're not doing this again. You just don't get it, Jasper."
"Well, then explain it to me, Bella! I know it's not your fault. I love you more for it anyway."
He looked ready to argue so she quickly said, "You have a weekend off, Jasper, let's not fight."
"What do you want to do then, Bella?" He asked, in a monotone.
"Let's watch a movie? Go out to eat."
"That's not my ideal weekend with my wife, Bella."
"What is then?" She asked testily as she parked the Porsche.
"A movie and dinner and then sex when we get home," He drawled, catching her eye with shameless hope spelled out on his face.
She glared at him. "We've already discussed this. And as I recall, Mr. Hale, you have a meeting right now and then a dinner to attend later. We'll have your ideal weekend some other weekend."
"Why can't you-" Jasper started.
"You know I hate parties, Jasper. Don't make me go."
"I'll skip it and stay home." He said earnestly.
She shook her head. "Just go."
"Fine, but we do need to talk about this, Bella." He said as he got out.
"What? Jasper, what did you say?" Bella said mockingly, revving the engine loudly so he couldn't be heard.
"Really mature, Bella. I'll see you later." He pursed his lips, frustrated, but walked into the building without a backward glance.
-NSG-
"Hang on a second, Mr. Cullen, the doctor will be with you in just a moment," the nurse said. Edward threw himself down on the couch, jostling the woman next to him.
"Excuse you," She muttered under her breath.
"You're excused," He said rudely.
She turned to him, mouth open in anger, and then her eyes softened. "Edward?"
"Do I know you?" He asked, studying her. She looked familiar. From college perhaps.
"Yeah, I'm Bella. Bella Hale? You crashed my wedding?"
"Oh." He hesitated, and it clicked. "Oh." Her.
"Yeah." She nodded, smiling. "How are you?"
"How do I look?" He asked irritably.
"Emmett did tell me that you stopped playing…" Her gaze lingered on his bad leg. "That's too bad, you were quite good, I thought."
"I was." He growled, increasingly angered as he eyed her Cartier watch. Why did she have to come up raking old wounds? "Anyway, how are you? How's your husband? Did you end up getting married after all?"
She laughed pleasantly. "Yes, we're great…" She sighed. "How is your wife?"
Did she have everything he couldn't? "It's our anniversary today," Edward spat, the words tasting horribly in his mouth.
"Congrats," Bella said sincerely.
"She hasn't realized."
"Oh." Her smile faded. "That sucks."
"Does that happen with your husband? I know it's usually the guy who forgets, but Alice…" He shook his head in disgust.
She laughed bitterly. "Hardly. It's the opposite."
"What does that mean?"
"What do you usually do on your anniversary?"
"Dinner, maybe a movie. Sex."
"We used to. But now, we try not to realize when it's our anniversary. Too many awkward discussions."
"Why? About what?" Edward asked curiously. Then, realizing how nosey he sounded, he amended, "Sorry, if it's personal, you don't have to tell me."
"Jasper wants to have kids." Bella said, sighed heavily. "He loves children."
"And you don't." He said; it wasn't a question.
"We can't. Or more particularly. I can't. He's always saying how much he loves me because of that. And that just makes me…"
"Feel more guilty?" Edward offered.
She nodded. "And even though he says, he's always trying to get me to have fertility treatments or adopt...like he was trying to fix the part of me that's broken."
Edward laughed mirthlessly. "Sometimes, I feel like the only reason we got married was for the sex. We did have great stuff, for a while anyway."
Bella laughed too, but quickly sobered. "Hey, you know what? Who cares if she forgot? I'll take you out for coffee for your anniversary. How does that sound?"
"Coffee?" Edward rolled his eyes. "How about some tequila?"
"I can't come home looking like I danced on top of a bar." Edward paused, picturing that, liking the idea. Bella grinned ruefully at the look on his face. "No, Edward. Definitely not."
"Mr. Cullen, the doctor will see you now," the nurse called.
Edward started; he had forgotten all about his appointment.
"Wait for me?" He asked. She nodded and picked up a magazine.
"Welcome back, Mr. Cullen," his doctor said cheerfully. "Have you been keeping up with your therapy?"
"Closely." Edward hesitated. "Is there any chance…that I'll be able to…you know, get back to work?"
The doctor sighed. "We've have already discussed this. Your leg was not only dislocated, but also shattered. You were lucky that we didn't have to give you a brace. There is no hope for a full recovery though eventually, we think you'll be able to walk normally with enough therapy, run even someday."
Bella looked up as Edward came noisily out of the patient's room, fury etched on his face. He threw a few bills at the nurse. Bella gathered her bag and met Edward as he stormed out of the building.
"Are you okay?" She asked quietly.
He didn't answer.
"Your car or mine?" She offered.
"I didn't bring mine. I live in walking distance," he said shortly. "It's part of the therapy."
"What-" Bella began but stopped at the look on Edward's face. "Okay, hop in, then." She said when they reached her car, an old red truck. After a few minutes of deafening silence, she cracked a smile and nudged Edward. "You're obviously bursting to say something. Don't give yourself an aneurysm."
"It happened the day I met you. After my best game ever. Some drunk bastard crashed into me. I suppose I was lucky. They thought I would be the next Chris Reeve."
"Oh my."
"I did so well recovering the first few months, we thought. But then everything went south. Our marriage, my recovery." He coughed. "It's not been going well. We fight a lot. We make up, I guess. But under that, there's a lot of resentment, in me at least."
"Why?" She asked, curiously. "Shall we have coffee here…oh wait, it's closed."
"Come to my house. We've got alcohol."
"Hm." She studied him. "I suppose, that might be necessary soon enough. Alright, lead the way."
"Take a right here…down the street. We're the third in the cul-de-sac." They got out of the car and headed inside.
When they were both situated with generous helpings of champagne and vodka, Bella asked again. "Why resentful?"
"The way I've been raised, I have the urge to take care of my women. I'm not a non-feminist, mind you. I just need to be the person to bring in the money, or most of it, or some of it? You can understand that, can't you? Or at least feel like I'm being useful instead of dead weight."
"Caveman-ish, but understandable, yes."
"Ever since your wedding, I've been sitting at home like a lump while she gets higher and richer." He swallowed his shot in one gulp. "Makes me bitter, especially when she keeps telling me about all the deals she's made, her promotions, when she invites me to her dinner parties. And when someone asks me what I do, I tell them: nothing. She tells me not to be morbid. But how can you not be when everything you've ever done has been undermined?"
"I think I know what you mean. She should be more sensitive about it," Bella shrugged, taking a sip of wine. "Bitter," She sneered. "Jasper tells me not be bitter, too. How can I not be? He's always saying, 'I wish we had kids.' He suggested adoption once. He's so desperate to have kids–-and I'm the faulty one. Still he tries to tell me it's okay."
She put her glass down. "Want more?" Edward asked.
"No, I've got to drive home."
"I was about to seal a five million dollar deal, before the, you know, wedding." Edward said, his eyes downcast.
"Don't worry. I know right now, it seems as though nothing is going right. This is your mid-life crisis. Eventually, you'll find something that fires your passion again," Bella said, her eyes shining. "And your life will pick up again. But for now," She shrugged. "Have hope." She hugged him. "I've to go. It was nice seeing you again; we should meet up sometime." She got up.
"Wait. I have an idea." Edward stood up. "Let's give ourselves six weeks, okay?"
"To do what?" She asked.
"Six weeks to see if we can fix our marriages. Obviously, we can see the faults in the other's marriage better so we'll help each other fix it. I mean, we got married for a reason; we just need to be reminded. After a week, we'll meet up and see how it is from there."
She stared at her. "That's not a half-bad idea. Although, six weeks? That's asking for a miracle."
"Well, at least an improvement? A progress report of sorts?" he amended.
She grinned. "Okay."
They exchanged numbers.
"Good luck."
"You, too."
He watched through the window as her car drove clunkily out of their neighborhood.
He uncrossed his fingers.
-NSG-
"Hey Edward," Alice murmured as she let herself in.
There was an acknowledging grunt.
"I have good news." She said, trying to keep up her cheery tone.
Edward tiredly ran a hand through his hair and dragged himself into the bedroom. "What is it?"
"We finally-–after god knows how many hours-–got our wedding issue out. It just might be our best yet! We might be nominated for a NOMA award, Edward! Isn't that exciting?" She demanded, jostling him as she jumped on to the bed.
"Yes. Riveting."
She snuggled up to his side. "What's wrong with you today? You're so moody." She waited for his answer for a few moments and then, shrugging, closed her eyes.
He lay in silence for a few minutes before answering. "Happy anniversary." But her calm and even breathing told him; she was already asleep.
-NSG-
Jasper unlocked the door and let himself in, glancing at the clock. Two-thirty. He sighed and leaned against the wall for a moment. If he closed his eyes, he'd fall asleep right there. He sighed again and trudged tiredly upstairs.
"Bella?" He called throughout the house. No answer. Odd, her car was in the garage. He continued into the kitchen, stopping short when he saw a bottle of wine uncovered. Not again. Whenever, she took out the alcohol, it meant that she was crying over her inability to have kids.
He was so not in the mood for this.
"Bella?" He called again, pouring himself some wine and downing it quickly. "Bella?" he called out, noticing that the entire downstairs was dark.
"Up here," she yelled back.
Jasper went up the stairs reluctantly. Maybe if she were drunk...but no, alcohol just made her more disinclined.
The doors was closed and the landing mostly dark. When he opened it, the first thing he noticed was that votive candles were lighted all over the room. He pushed the door farther ajar and noticed a dark shadow perched on the bed.
Bella winked at him.
Jasper's eyes however were not watching her face however. He was dragging his eyes up her scantily clad body. She was leaning back on her hands, one leg over the other. Jasper's jaw dropped in shock before it curved into a slightly weary smile.
"Welcome home," she said in a low voice, running her hand from her knees to her neck, emphasizing her curves and almost-new lingerie.
"What's the occasion?" He asked, loosening his ascot and taking off his shirt.
"I love you," She said simply.
"I know," He said, throwing himself down onto the bed beside her. Bella turned onto her side and ran her hands through his hair and on his chest.
Jasper groaned. "You looking fuckin' amazing right now, babe, but please could you hold that thought, Bella, until tomorrow, maybe? I'm dead on my feet."
"You don't have to be on your feet for this. I'll take care of it if you want," She trialed off, breathing shallowly.
"Sorry, sweetheart, I've been running on fumes this whole week. We have an issue to get out midnight tomorrow and I have to go in early." He turned to his side, away from her, so he didn't see the shock written on her face, and with that, he turned on to his side and within a few seconds, fell asleep.
-NSG-
"Edward, c'mon!" Alice whined.
"No, Alice." Edward said, picking up his leg and dropping it heavily onto the antique coffee table.
Alice winced. "Be careful, please. But I need to take someone, Edward. It's a dinner party, a celebration. I can't go alone." She stopped to contemplate the horror of that predicament.
"I can't dance." He said simply. Or do any fucking thing else.
"Please, Edward?" She wheedled, leaning over the couch and ruffling his hair tenderly.
"No."
She opened her mouth, thought the better of it, and stamped her foot. "Fine. Be that way." Her footsteps grew less agitated as she neared the front door. "Make sure you go out for a walk for an hour, sweetie," she called as she left.
"Whatever," His eyes didn't stray from the TV as she walked out, didn't even notice the extra spring in her step as she crossed the threshold.
Who was she supposed to take? What was the back-up protocol for a husband that didn't like parties? Alice grumbled to herself as she drove to work. Oh, the shame, Alice Cullen employ a male escort. She shuddered at the very idea, nearly running into another car as she slowed into the front entrance of her building.
Edward hadn't even bothered to ask her why she was so anxious and excited; she frowned. Tossing her keys to the valet, she trotted off into the building, anxious because Jasper said he had news for her. A promotion? A lay-off? She dared to think. A new sponsor…
She stopped short as she came into the regular conference room, which was festooned with decorative elements.
"Alice!" Jasper called, a look of ecstasy on his face as the others in the room, which looked like their entire team, burst into applause.
"What is all this?" Alice asked, pleasantly surprised.
"It's because of you! The figures just came in. We're is officially one of the nation's premiere fashion magazines. We're right alongside Elle, Vogue, and Harper's Bazaar." Jasper said cheerfully, embracing her and kissing her cheek.
"C'mon, let's celebrate, Alice!" A woman named Lauren called loudly, picking up a beer from the cooler on the table.
"Wait a minute," Alice called, smiling a rare smile at her proud team whose smiles faded. "Everybody back to work!" She put her hands on her hips and glared at them all, albeit with a smile was playing on her lips. "We're only going to celebrate when we become the top fashion magazine in America!" She said, her voice echoing in the room as she paced the room. "That means more late nights, more work, and more coffee. And if your husbands leave you…" Alice paused, thinking of Edward. "Trust me, you're better off."
There was laughter and she turned to see Jasper, laughing freely. "Okay, do as she says: back to work! But help yourselves to the alcohol, you deserve a reward." He said, motioning for her to follow. "Alice. You're amazing. Your appearance at this magazine has saved us all. You are truly a goddess."
Alice blushed. "I suppose, but don't you think this is too soon to be celebrating?"
"Alice." Jasper said seriously, grabbing her shoulders and forcing her to look at him. "Do you even understand the magnitude of your work? We rank as one of the most popular in America!" He laughed weakly. "That being said, there's some time before the party tonight, would you like have coffee with downtown?"
She started, wondering if maybe she shouldn't have said the bit about being better off without a husband although it did seem that way to her sometimes. "No, thanks, Jasper…work, remember?" She said, a little coldly. I hope you're worth it, Edward. I've just passed up a seriously eligible man for you.
To her surprise, Jasper frowned. "You're just like Bella, so uptight sometimes," he said.
"I am not uptight."
"Show me you're not uptight. Cut loose, let your hair down-–"
"What hair?" She teased, tugging at her short spikes.
"It's a figure of speech," he replied with a smile. "Speaking of which, you have to give mine a once-over before tonight. But, come. We're the top dogs. We deserve a break. Get some coffee with me. We'll have to talk business soon enough anyway."
"Fine. By the way, not to harsh your buzz, but I don't know if I can come tonight. My husband's bailing on me, so..."
"Perfect," Jasper beamed. "You can be my plus one. My wife refuses to go as well."
She looked a little surprised and then grinned. "It's a date."
They laughed.
"You should change into party-wear I'm sure Tyler will let you borrow something from the closet for the occasion."
"Maybe the Christian Dior mint green?" Alice suggested. "Valentino's emerald chiffon? Or, maybe the YSL sequined green strapless number? Do you think I could pull that off?" She asked hopefully.
"Personally, I could you could pull Oscar De Larenta's leopard print without looking like one of the Housewives from Orange County, but that's just me," He answered, grinning when she smacked his arm, too flattered to answer verbally.
-NSG-
"The Gianfranco Ferré silk?" Tyler, the dress-maker, repeated suspiciously, looking from Alice to Jasper, wondering if the little pixie who had danced her way into the company to the top spot with hardly a reference had finally forced the boss under her influence.
"Just hand it over, Tyler," Jasper said, tiredly. "I'll take responsibility if anything–-Versace forbid, it's the original–-happens." No one would ever know that Bella had dropped a pea down the inside her red Cavalli number, or that Jasper had ripped the Carolina Herrera sapphire gown when he seduced her in the bathroom of the Waldorf the night of the Clooney-Alamudin wedding.
"Whatever you say, Mr. Hale." Tyler winked at his boss and disappeared into the closet. "Here." He thrust the dress at her as he exited it.
"Also, fetch the Winslet Balmain number, Nina Ricci's mother-of-pearl, the Elie Saab cocktail, that wispy Balenciaga wrap, and is there anything else you might want to look at, Alice?" He asked glanced back at her.
Her mouth had dropped open and she was staring at him. "Oh my god! Oh my god!" She threw herself at him wildly, grabbing him around the neck. "Thank you, thank you. I love you."
Jasper chuckled as Tyler came out of the closet and placed the dresses on the counter with a nasty, "Anything else?"
"No," Alice and Jasper answered at the same time, grinning at each other.
"Good." He spat, striding out of the room, smacking Jasper's butt.
"The things I put up with to keep my people happy," Jasper pinched the bridge of his nose. "He threatened to sue me for sexual harassment if I fired him. But let's face it, he's a master tailor, unfortunately for me."
"I'll be right back," Alice called, making to go into the dressing room.
It was locked.
"Change here," Jasper offered, turning around and closing his eyes. "Or I'll leave, whichever you prefer."
"I don't mind; just keep your eyes closed, Jazz."
Immediately, his eyes flashed open. "Jazz?" He heard the sound of clothes sliding to the ground.
"Do you mind if I call you that? I think it's just the cutest nickname."
He simply laughed.
"What do you think then?"
Jasper spun around and his mouth fell open. "…WOW."
"Good wow? Or bad wow?"
"Definitely good. You look like a…" Alice looked like a model in the dress, which brought out apples in her cheeks and told Jasper that she could still walk runways for a living. Luckily, she chose to run them for him.
"God, I look like a fucking fairy princess, don't I?" Alice groaned. "I knew I should have worn the Dior mint." She started to rifle through the clothes again. "Turn around please, Jasper."
"Alice, no, you look amazing." He managed to say, still wowed to incoherence.
She flashed a halfhearted smile at Jasper, but shook her head. "The tabloids would not let me hear the end of it."
Jasper sighed and turned around. "You're insane, Alice." Again he heard the clothes sliding off her lithe body and was strongly reminded of his wife.
"J-Jasper, you might kill me when you see me in this dress, but I think I should warn you, I would kill to have this dress, too," Alice whispered, tremulously.
Jasper laughed. "Just let me see the dress. I'm sure you'll…" If he hadn't been prepared before, he was defenseless now.
"Well?" Alice asked, as she pulled on black pumps to match her burgundy Fendi dress.
"Second of all, where the hell did you find that?"
"Um…" She suddenly became distracted with the silk. "Well, it's the dress we're reserving for the…model on Tuesday…" She looked up to gauge Jasper's reaction.
Jasper pulled out his phone. "Wait a minute; I'm going to cancel the shoot."
"Why?" She demanded, panicking.
"When I saw photos of the model, I was floored, but you obviously need to be the one on the cover wearing that dress, Alice." Alice started laughing, relief breaking over her face. "You are going to be the model! Forget Giselle."
"Don't tease, Jazz; you nearly gave me a heart attack. Come here and zip me up. What was the first thing?" Alice positioned herself in front of the many full-length mirrors that were stationed around the closet. She smiled at Jasper's reflection as he came up behind her.
"First of all, you look amazing. If your husband ever leaves you, remind me to beat sense into him," Jasper said, weak in the knees, as he reached for her zipper. He sniffed at her shoulder, the perfume seemed familiar. "What perfume are you wearing, Alice?" He tugged the zipper to the small of her back.
"Yvresse."
"My wife wears Opium. But YSL all have the same undertones of sex, we used to joke." He chuckled quietly, without humor.
Thinking about sex was painful; it reminded him of how his marriage was currently crumbling to pieces. Not to mention he was strongly reminded of Bella whenever she asked him to zip her up, back when she used to go crazy over the dresses in the closet. Back when she liked parties. Back when, he still invited her to go with him. Back when, she wasn't moping about being infertile.
Thinking about Bella was painful, too.
"Jazz, are you okay?" He glanced up into the mirror at Alice's concerned face. She turned around, studying his suddenly-tired face. "Is something wrong? This dress? I'll take it off." She hesitantly reached out to gently touch his face, crumpled into a mask of misery and contemplation.
He stared into her flawless face.
Bella used to be this beautiful. She used to take his breath away. Before she wrapped herself up in this entire baby fiasco. She used to wear Yvresse and exist as lust incarnate to him. But now, she was so blinded by her misfortune; she had let it take over her life. Her misery, her opiate, had turned her into a hopeless, desperate woman that Jasper could barely recognize as the woman he'd fallen in love with.
If he squinted just right–-it was Bella he could see back when they were young and in love and not bitter and argumentative like an old married that had been together for too long.
He cupped her chin in his hand and tilted it upward, bending to kiss her jaw. There was a sharp breath and she whimpered, urging him on. "So beautiful," He murmured, tugging the zipper the opposite way. It sent him off the edge. He could vaguely remember himself; kissing her, hard; hands sliding beneath her dress; touching her bare skin.
Suddenly, his pocket was a-vibrate. He pulled back from Bella, no, Alice whose expression mirrored the shock on his. He let go of her, fumbling for the phone. "Hello? Yes, we're ready. We'll be on our way, directly." He flipped it shut and stood there, with his back to her.
"I-I…sorry – I should..," she began to say.
He spun her around and yanked the zipper up, rougher than was necessary. "You should go and get ready for tonight. It's too late for coffee. I'll be right behind you." He said, his voice rough. "I'm going to change. You can leave or just..."
"I'll leave," She murmured, all the jest gone.
He waited until she was outside before tearing off his clothes. In a moment, he had been ready to throw away everything. He pulled on a suit, securely knotted his gray ascot, and walked brusquely out of the room.
"Shall we?" He offered his arm.
She nodded, her face coloring as she took him in. He wasn't completely unaware of how his arm tingled pleasantly for the rest of the night.
-NSG-
"Edward!" Alice came in noisily.
Edward rolled his eyes. "What?"
"Let me tell you about the party. It was just so amazing."
Edward sighed tiredly and ran his hand through his hair. Alice was immediately stuck by how Jasper-esque the motion was. She stuttered for a moment, chiding herself for the comparison, and then prattled on about the guests, the gowns, and of course, their nomination and win.
"Sounds great," Edward said quietly.
She turned away under the pretense of removing her jewelry, as her face colored. How much had she thought about Jasper afterward? It wasn't really her fault, but rather a product of gaiety and alcohol. Besides, it's not like they had slept together. It was just a kiss. It didn't mean anything. Then why are you reasoning with yourself? It had felt so good to feel wanted, to feel sexy, to have a man want her so badly. Edward was so...unresponsive.
"Jasper was simply amazing. We didn't actually have to start getting new advertisers just yet. But when Jasper found out that Cavalli and Nina's execs had dropped by, he went into dazzle mode, you wouldn't believe it, he had them floored." She bounced excitedly in bed to emphasize the point.
Edward frowned. "Great, Just great." He faced her, eying her critically. "Is there another dinner party or something coming up?"
She was taken aback by this and took a few seconds to rack her mind. "Yeah, but you don't want to go, do you?"
"Actually, I do want to go with you." He said, fighting to keep the tightness from his voice.
Alice lay there for a few second, her brain working overtime to comprehend this miracle. "Really?" She dared to breathe.
"Yeah…geez, is it that hard to believe?" He had decided to be fair. He shouldn't leave it Alice to be the enthusiastic one; he had to express interest, too, at some point.
She laughed. "Yes. It's just so sudden. You never wanted to go."
"Do you not want me to go?" He asked testily.
"How can you say that?" Alice said grinning. "Thank you, thank you." She rolled herself on top of him, kissing him fiercely. "You have no idea how much this means…"
"No, I don't." He said, chuckling lowly, "but you should show me."
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