Your Place Or Mine

Alice's last martial arts class of the day had been canceled and she didn't know what to do with herself. She supposed she could go home, see if her mom needed anything. Or she could go to Hatter's, maybe surprise him by cooking dinner while he was at work; there was always a chance she'd get it right this time. At least she wasn't burning things quite so badly now. She'd probably never be as good a cook as Hatter, but she was trying.

Making her decision, Alice headed over to Hatter's. As always, she took a deep breath when she came through the door. She loved the way his place smelled; it was a Hatter smell, and it always made her smile. Alice dumped her gym bag by the front door and made straight for the shower.

The hot water felt great on her back. Whatever Hatter's apartment might be lacking, amazing water pressure was not one of them. Alice could feel her muscles relaxing. She reached for her shampoo and paused. The shelves in the shower were crowded with a mixture of her things and Hatter's – shampoo, conditioner, body wash, razors. She'd never given it much thought when she'd started buying extra things to keep here; after all, half the time after working out the dojo she came here and she didn't want to use Hatter's more masculine products.

Alice shrugged, and got back to washing up. But when she got out of the shower she looked around the bathroom. There were two robes hanging on the back of the door, Hatter's silk paisley robe and her more practical flannel one. Two toothbrushes on the sink, a little basket full of her hair things on top of the medicine cabinet. On the nights she slept over, she and Hatter would stand in here and share the small sink as they brushed their teeth and got ready for bed.

Alice wrapped a towel around her wet hair, and slipped into her robe. Now that she was looking for these little signs of cohabitation she wanted to see more, wanted to see how much of herself she'd left here at Hatter's apartment. She was everywhere, little touches all over.

Her favorite fleece blanket thrown over the back of the couch.

A lithograph in the living room that Alice and Hatter had purchased together – a city view taken from the Empire State Building that had reminded Hatter of Wonderland City.

Her Alice in Wonderland mug on the counter next to Hatter's, which had only a picture of the Mad Hatter's hat on it.

A series of photos of the two of them from one of those photo booths, making outrageously silly faces at each other.

An alarm clock on her side of the bed; Hatter never needed one.

Most telling of all, Hatter had made room in his over-full closet for a few of her things.

An hour later, Alice was sitting on the couch staring blankly at the wall. She hadn't even made a move towards the kitchen for dinner. Her legs were tucked underneath her and she wore only one of Hatter's button-down shirts. On her head was a cream-colored pork pie that Hatter had gotten especially for her; she only wore it at his place, and only then when she was in a particularly fun mood. Alice wasn't feeling fun at the moment, and she barely stirred when she heard Hatter's key in the door.

"Alice!" Hatter was always so happy to see her. She'd never gotten anything less than a joyful, enthusiastic greeting from him. "I wasn't expecting you tonight."

"My class got canceled," Alice said. "I was going to make dinner…"

Hatter grimaced as he joined Alice on the couch. "No need to do anything drastic."

Alice gave him a half smile. Hatter was wearing a black leather fedora today, with a black velvet vest and black jeans. It was all set off by a bright yellow silk shirt emblazoned with large blue circles. He had his own style, and Alice found that he looked good in just about anything. Or maybe she only thought so because she loved him so much.

"Are you okay?" Hatter asked, tapping the hat down on her head.

"I've been noticing that I have a lot of stuff here."

"Okay…" Hatter looked confused and concerned. Alice snuggled up next to him, tucking herself under his arm.

"I was just thinking, I'm getting tired of spending half my time here and half my time at my place." Alice had been thinking of nothing else for the last hour. She'd turned it over and over in her head, and now she needed to know how Hatter felt about things.

"Do you not want to…stay with me?"

Alice jerked back in surprise. She'd forgotten that sometimes her strong, brave, amazing Hatter could also be a bit emotionally fragile. Even after all these weeks together, he sometimes acted like she was going to decide he wasn't good enough after all and leave him.

"Oh, Hatter." Alice pulled his head down and kissed him, hard. "I was just thinking that it might be better if I moved in here. With you. Permanently."

Hatter looked at her for a long moment, then broke out in a bright smile. God, she loved that smile!

"Do you mean it?"

"Only if it's okay with you," Alice said, though she knew it was. Hatter was careful not to push her, but she knew he wanted more. This would be a good step for them, and an important one for her – she'd never even considered moving in with any of her other boyfriends.

Hatter swept Alice into his arms and kissed her quite thoroughly. She was breathless by the time they moved apart. What that man could do with lips and tongue alone, it was downright sinful!

"What about your mum?"

Alice sighed. "I feel guilty about that. It's just been the two of us for so long. But…I need to live my life. And you're the biggest part of my life."

"Just promise me one thing," Hatter said. He'd gotten very serious, and now it was Alice's turn to be worried.

"What?" she asked.

"Stay out of the kitchen."

Alice laughed, and slugged Hatter in the arm. Then he was kissing her again, and she knew she'd made the right decision. She was moving forward with Hatter, and for once she wasn't afraid or anxious. As if she needed any other proof that he was the right – the only – man for her. Her Hatter.

"I love you, Alice," Hatter murmured against her ear.

"Always," she replied.

I had a tough time with this one, I'm not sure it's got good flow. But I don't know what else to do with it, so I submit it for your suggestions and comments. Thanks!