D.- Almost forgot my author's note again. I've got a lot of reviews hoping they get to the "I love you" stage soon. Bear with me celtic, a few chapters yet. If they're this gun shy now, they need something pretty big to push them along to that stage. To PerfectDisaster22, they most definitely will take dance lessons, I'm just working it into "the plan", scuba, I'd actually completely forgotten about her telling him that, but it fits damn near perfectly in the chapter I cam currently writing, so thanks for the reminder! And Rue, the end of Chapter 10 was the catalyst for the emotional drama that follows, leading up to the "I love you" confessions. It only gets more emotional from here. Hope you like it!

Alice manages to control her sudden urge to cry. She isn't sure what she was hoping he would declare, but it wasn't that he needed a shower. She stands and on her way to the bathroom to clean up, grabs her dress, laying it down on the bed. She can remember the sweet, sensual time they had the night before and it almost brings a tear to her eye again. Frustrated, Alice forces herself to take a deep breath and fiddles with her dress, flattening out the material, anything to keep her hands busy. With a sigh, she grabs the tie up panties and makes her way over to the bathroom, spotting Hatter leaning both hands against the wall and rolling his head back and forth under the spray of water. Alice cleans herself up and ties her panties on just as the shower shuts off. Alice runs the water in the tap and washes the makeup off her face, something she should have done last night after her bath.

The soft, sweet smelling bubbles cleanse away her makeup and she imagines the water washing away her upset as well. She focuses on the positive things. She is going to take Hatter back to her mom's for Sunday brunch with her dad! She's not had Sunday brunch with her dad in over ten years. She rinses her face once more and then blots her face dry with a hand towel. Hatter is still in the process of drying off slowly but she wanders up with renewed and youthful energy, places a kiss on his lips and almost skips out of the room. She slides on her dress, opting to drape the straps over the opposite shoulder and then wrap the rest of the material around her waist and tie it, leaving her dress looking like a cap sleeved day dress instead of the classy frock she'd worn the night before.

Her hair is in no state to be seen in public and she doesn't have an elastic, but she pulls the two silver ribbons from her shoes and ties them around her head like a hair band. She runs her hands through her hair gently to untangle it, managing to make her limp curls look less bedraggled. With the silver accents, she finds that she looks pretty good and feels comfortable returning home. She looks up as Hatter steps into the room with a towel wrapped around his waist.

He smiles shyly and digs into a bag still sitting on a little table between two plush lounge chairs. He pulls out socks and underwear before he moves to the bed to slip them on. That much accomplished, he pulls on his faded jeans and steps into the closet. He emerges with a black long sleeved button down, which he is fastening. He doesn't reach for a tie, or a belt or a vest, and Alice thinks he looks simple, yet stunning. His hair isn't tamed at all, sticking in all directions and slowly coming to rest, curling around his collar. When he slips on the shoes from last night but doesn't reach for a hat, alarm bells start ringing in Alice's head.

"What's the matter Hatter? Why no hat today?" He just smiles a weak smile, waving her off.

"No point if we're going there just for a meal, I'll only have to take it off again when we get there." Alice thinks this is a strange reaction but lets it slide, vowing to pay extra close attention to him throughout the day. Hatter takes her hand, places a kiss on it and leads her to the door, where he checks his pockets to make sure he has his wallet and keys. Alice pipes up to tell him that she's put her cell in her purse before he closes the door.

The walk home is quiet, but not tense. Hatter seems to just have nothing to say. Alice asks him about his plans for the apartment, but he just shrugs and says he'll figure it out after he gets a chance to go look for some new furnishings. Alice nods as they reach the crosswalk. Hatter steps up a little faster, eager to push the button for her, to show off his knowledge. Alice smiles at him, the little glow of accomplishment making her think her earlier concern is unfounded. He looks both ways before crossing the street and walks just a little faster as he crosses, clearly eager to get out of the road. Alice looks at him askew, and he spends the last minutes of the walk to her mom's apartment explaining how he'd almost been hit by a car on his way home the first night. Alice's hand tightens on his, much to Hatter's delight. They arrive at the apartment and make their way up, Alice's nervous energy making Hatter edgy. He stops her before she steps up to her mother's door and pulls her into a tight embrace, finishing with a deep kiss. Alice looks perplexed but he just smiles and explains with a shrug.

"I won't get another kiss for a while, what with your parents in the room. Just needed a little Alice to hold me off til later." His wicked grin makes Alice blush prettily as he knocks on the door. Alice pulls out her key and lets them in warily.

"Mom, we're here!" She steps in and lets her keys fall into the bowl. Carol peeks out of the kitchen, while drying her hands on a tea towel.

"Great! I could really use a glass of that orange juice. Coffee is just too much for me this morning." Alice stares at her mother for a moment before cringing.

"I completely forgot that you asked me to pick up some juice mom! I'll just grab some different shoes and- Orange and Apple right? Yeah, I just need-" Hatter interrupts.

"I can just run down for you Alice, I'm sure the corner store sells juice." Alice turns to look at him, an unsure look crossing her face.

"Are you sure? You don't-" Hatter smiles and kisses her nose, which prompts her mom to duck back into the kitchen with a smile.

"I'll be back before you know it." Alice lays both her hands on his shoulders and stretches up to kiss his lips chastely.

"Thank you so much! I'll just grab a quick shower and change; breakfast should be ready when you get back." Alice grabs her keys and points out which one would open the door downstairs as well as the door to the apartment.

"Right then, be right back shall I?" Alice holds the door open as he steps over to the elevator. The elevator itself is still on their floor so he steps in quickly, keeping his eyes locked on Alice, who is still standing in the door, watching him with a dopey grin on her face. As the elevator closes, Alice is jolted back to her lack of time. She almost slams the door, and bolts into her bedroom to gather her clothes and a towel from the hallway linen closet. Robert looks around the corner after hearing the door slam and just catches his daughter's form running into her room from the corner of his eye. He turns to Carol, who just smiles.

"Still a few teenage hormones left I guess."

Rushing through her shower, all Alice can think about is that her life has taken a dramatic turn for the better in the last three days. She gets her dad back, a wonderful boyfriend and a great big breakfast. Smiling like a lunatic, she dries off and puts on her underwear. Standing in front of the mirror, she combs through her hair and twists it up on her head with a chopstick. She pulls on her tank top and jeans but doesn't slip on her button down striped denim shirt until she gets back to her room to grab the socks that she forgot. Once she's all dressed, she makes her way out to the kitchen, where she watches her parents cooking breakfast together.

Her dad is just standing near her mom, making toast and chatting softly to her about this or that. The mere sight of him there makes Alice's heart constrict in her chest and tears spring to her eyes. She can't believe that he's here, that she gets to share her adult life with her father, whom she secretly feared she'd never see again. She steps back behind the wall that separates the kitchen from the hall and leans against it, trying hard to reign in her tears. When a small sniffle escapes, Alice holds her breath, hoping that she didn't just ruin her parent's moment. When her father steps around the wall to see her teary-eyed and clutching her mouth, he very softly calls her name.

"Alice?" Alice can feel her resolve crumbling, her determination to remain adult in her interactions with her father fading as she remembers all the times she'd wished for her father and he couldn't be there. Robert pulls her slowly and very carefully into his arms, unsure if she will welcome his hug or push him away. His relief when she throws herself into his chest starts his own crying, tears of relief that he hasn't completely ruined their relationship.

Their dual sobs draw Carol over, breakfast forgotten. Robert looks up at her, his large wet tears falling down to mingle in his scruff. He disentangles an arm from behind Alice and offers Carol a part in their embrace, which she rushes into gladly.

Hatter returns soon after, knocking before entering, much as Alice had done. Carol is back at the oven, wiping her eyes gently with her knuckle and smiling gratefully at him as he carries over the juice.

"What's the matter Carol? Where are Alice and Robert? Is everything-" Carol stuns the boy into silence as she reaches over and hugs him quickly and tightly. "Uh, what?" Hatter mumbles, confused but gently returning the hug to Carol.

"Thank you David. You brought me back my husband and my little girl. Thank you so much!" Hatter, clearly uncomfortable, reaches a hand back to tangle in the longish ends of his hair at the back of his neck.

"S'nothing, really." Carol shoots him a look that says 'You know it means the world to me.' So he corrects himself. "Well, I couldn't let 'em get shot now could I?" Carol reaches over to grab more bread for the toast with a sarcastic half-laugh, but Hatter offers his help, since Carol is busy overseeing the eggs, bacon and potatoes. It is exactly 4 pieces of toast later that Alice and Robert come into the room, both have been crying but their smiles are genuine.

Robert shakes Hatter's hand, at least he does once Hatter puts the toast down. Alice slips past Hatter to pull down some serving plates for the food, which she hands to her father. She then sets the table, with Hatter's help. She sits down on one side of the table, patting the chair next to her for Hatter. He smiles and sits himself down, receiving a small peck on the cheek, which makes him look up in a panic at her father. When no glares or beatings come forth, he relaxes a little and smiles at Alice.

"You ok then luv?" She nods.

"Thanks to you, yeah I'm great." Hatter beams and takes her hand in his as Carol and Robert transfer the serving dishes to the table and everyone digs in. Hatter discovers that he really likes bacon and potatoes, but that scrambled eggs are kind of bland. Light conversation fills the room until its time to clean the table. Carol insists she will clean them up, and Robert stays to help so Alice and Hatter cuddle up on the couch with TV and tea.

I love to hear from the readers, good/bad/indifferent, it makes me post faster, no word of a lie. I'm a few chapters ahead and the muse is available so I'll be writing a lot and the further I get done, the more I want to post to see if you guys like it.

5 reviews for the chapter puts me in such a good mood that I have to post, IMMEDIATELY. Just food for thought.