Brittany sighed as the voices were back in her head with full force.

'He has the letter! Now all we have to do is let him read it!' screamed her heart.

'No! Giving him the letter was a mistake. Letting him read it will be another one!' Her mind screamed back. Brittany sighed as she wondered these things. She thought back to what she and Alvin had said. The one thing he told her that remained in her mind:

"Keep it, for me. Will you?" She asked. Alvin's eyes widened. "You can't read it yet. But soon. I promise you, soon. OK? Can you have patience with me, just a little bit longer?" He smiled.

"Of course I can, Britt. I can wait till the end of the world for you. As long as you come and find me."

She smiled at his words. He was waiting. He was waiting for her to be ready. And, was she ready? Was she ready for him to know? 'Let him read it! He wants to be there! To understand all of this! Now we have to let him in, accept the comfort and help he's giving so freely.'

'Everyone's entitled to a secret! And this is our secret!' Her mind yelled, silencing her heart. 'No one is that understanding! Thing's will change if Alvin found out! He would never look at us the same! We've kept this secret for so long!' Tears flooded Brittany's eyes as she processed all of this. Her mind was right. She wouldn't be able to handle all the changes this one piece of information would cause. She liked the relationship she and Alvin had, and she could only imagine the changes being caused by her words in the letter. And her family? She didn't even want to think about that. Let alone, make it happen.

'Alvin loves us...' Her heart said gently, making Brittany gasp. 'Yes, he does. And it's all because of what happened to us. His concern and care made his feelings grow. Because he was worried and saw how much pain we were in. It made him realize he loves us.' Alvin? Loved her? No, Alvin cared, but loved? That was just not right. They argued and fought and none of that leads to love. Does it?

'Alvin's always loved us...' Her mind joined in gently. 'And so did this issue make it more so. But telling him what he doesn't need to know will only make things worse! Leave it to yourself!'Brittany's heart broke and she sobbed quietly. This was so confusing and painful. And now, her heart stopped fighting back. It had no more words of comfort and reassurance. Her mind won the battle.


"Simon...?" Alvin asked softly.

"What, Alvin?" Simon asked, annoyed. He knew Alvin would just say 'nevermind' because this had been going on all evening.

"Nevermind..." He said with a sigh. "Simon...?" Alvin asked again.

"WHAT?!" Simon yelled, Alvin didn't flinch, as his mind was elsewhere. But he had heard him respond.

"...Nevermind..." He repeated again. Simon sighed in pure annoyance and threw his pillow at Alvin. "Hey!" Alvin snapped and grabbed the pillow. "What was that for?!" He demanded and threw it back at Simon. Simon caught it with one hand and put it back in its place.

"For bugging the heck out of me! 'Simon...?' What? 'Nevermind...'" He mocked, getting Alvin's voice pretty well. Alvin blushed profusely and looked back at what he held in his hands. The letter. "She said she'll let you read it when she's ready. Stop tormenting yourself, Alvin. Put it away for now." Alvin sighed and nodded, but didn't move to do so.

"Simon...?" Alvin asked again. Simon rolled his eyes, but understanding Alvin's situation, continued to acknowlegde him.

"What?" He asked, looking back at his book.

"Am I too young to be in love?" Alvin asked. Simon's eyes widened and he looked at Alvin. He blinked, trying to form words, but was still processing Alvin's question. Alvin looked at Simon. "Please, Simon. I need you to tell me..." Alvin said, almost close to tears. He hugged Brittany's letter close to his chest, closing his eyes.

"A-Alvin...I don't know what to say to you. You're never too young to experience the feeling of love." Simon climbed off his bed and onto Alvin's. He pulled Alvin into a hug, triggering tears to form in Alvin's closed eyes. "No one's ever too you to fall in love. Heck, even babies fall in love." Alvin smiled slightly. "Alvin, you've grown closer to Brittany through conversation and trying to help her." Alvin pulled back and met Simon's eyes. "I think you've always loved Brittany. It's just that this one conflict brought your feelings to surface and made them stronger."

"So, you think I'm in love with her?" He asked with a soft sniffle. Simon chuckled softly. Alvin put the letter back in its box and back in his drawer.

"I know you're in love with her." Simon replied, removing Alvin's cap and ruffling his hair. Alvin blushed again and playfully hit away Simon's hand. He took his cap back and put it back on. "You've been in love with her since the first time you two sang together." Alvin looked away shyly. "No need to be ashamed of it." Simon said gently.

"I'm not!" Alvin said, turning to me Simon's eyes, his defense rising instantly. Simon put his hands up as if to shield himself.

"OK. OK. Calm down. I'm sorry." Simon said and lowered his hands once he knew he was safe. He climbed back onto his own bed and resumed his book. Alvin smiled to himself.

He laid down and covered up. I love you, Brittany. Yeah, I like the sound of that. "I love you, Brittany..." He said in a whisper. Simon caught it and smiled.