"And that, dear Alan, would be checkmate. How many moves was that Scott? Six? Seven?" Tessa Highlander giggled as her friend Alan's face fell jokingly over their latest chess game.
"I'm afraid you just got served, Alan." Scott grinned.
Several on-lookers laughed in agreement.
"You cheated....you had to..." Alan was perplexed.
"Did I cheat....did I cheat? Let me think......"She scratched her chin. "Nope. You just suck."
"Hmph."
She laughed. Tessa was used to Alan by now. It had been one month almost exactly since she said yes to Jeff Tracy's offer to let her stay with them. She had never regretted her decision to live with him and his 5 sons yet.
"Play again?" She challenged.
Beep, Beep, Beep.....
"Guess not." Alan looked relieved
They all got up, and went over to the set of portraits. The eyes on John's (he monitored the radio waves all over the world in outer space) portrait were blinking yellow.
Mr. Tracy pushed the button on his side of the desk. A speaker flipped up. "Go ahead, John."
"Father," John appeared in live-tv form in his blue International Rescue uniform with the violet sash. "there's been a severe crash on runway 6 on the main London airport. 2 planes didn't see each other. 6 people are trapped beneath rubble."
Slightly shocked, but not entirely, Tessa stood back, as the Tracys did their duty. Scott went through his passage to get to Thunderbird 1, and Virgil went through another passageway to get to Thunderbird 2-his. She watched as Gordon walked out another way, to meet Virgil in the cockpit.
Then she rushed to the window.
She had seen this about half a dozen times before, but she still never tired of it. "Poetry in motion" her mother would say.
She watched as the pool drew back, and Thunderbird 1 launched, lifting Scott higher and higher away from her. She didn't mind though; she had confidence that he would soon be back. If not in a few hours, perhaps within the next couple of days.
She turned her head and saw palm trees bow as Thunderbird 2 prepared to launch. As it did, she couldn't help but feel a strange awe.
Tessa turned back around. "What can I do?" It was so automatic now, she surprised herself. Yet, it was still filled with as much emotion as the first time she had said it.
"Nothing. This is a fairly routine mission, so long as nothing unexpected happens. You just sit tight." Jeff Tracy looked back down at his papers.
She sighed. She knew when she signed up for this that she wasn't going to be out there rescuing people in a sky blue uniform, and being a part of that "who are these wonderful people?" headline, but she still wished she could do more.
She turned and briefly looked our the window. Then she noticed Alan standing there, looking like her-bored, jealous, and slightly depressed. "Sure you don't want to play another game? It'd pass the time."
"May as well. But let's play something different; something I'm actually good at."
"What did you have in mind?"
"Go Fish."
She smiled. "You're on."
He smiled evilly. "I warn you-I'm the master."
"We'll just see about that."
Ten consecutive wins later, Tessa was sure of one thing: he was right about something.
Alan was the master.
"And that, my dear Tessa, would be fish. How many is that now? 11? 12?"
"Eleven. And I wouldn't brag...I've always sucked."
"Oh really?"
She laughed. "Okay, fine, you won eleven games in a row. Big whoop. Did you notice the audience?" She gestured around to prove no one was there. "Scott, Virgil and Gordon are not going to believe you beat me eleven times."
"I don't care what they think. It's the motivation for my ego I love." He laughed.
"Now what do you want to do? I'm bored."
"Up for a swim?"
"Not really. Besides, when Scott comes back, I don't want to be stuck in the pool...again...by the way, that was a rotten trick Alan Tracy. I still haven't forgiven you for that." She gave him a stony look.
"Hey, I never said 'Hey Tess, Scott uses another secret landing place on the other side of the island'."
"No but you did shout out, 'Hey, Tess, up for a swim' when you heard him coming."She rolled her eyes. "I should leave you in the pool sometime when I hear Scott coming...say, Alan, up for a swim?"
He looked out the window. 3 hours had passed, and they were already back. "That has to be a record." Alan stared in awe.
She smiled, and watched as Scott came in for landing, with Virgil following close behind him on the runway.
After a few minutes had passed, Scott came in through the door, Virgil a few metres behind him.
"Hey, did all go well?" She went over and hugged Scott, then Virgil. Virgil seemed slightly more annoyed than Scott.
"Actually, it went fairly well. We didn't loose anyone, and it went along quite smoothly." Virgil seemed surprised.
"That's good." Tessa smiled.
"Guess what? I beat Tessa at Go Fish eleven times in a row." Alan came running, looking proud.
"Oh really? Then I suppose she won twelve times in a row?" Scott folded his arms across his chest.
"No, but I did win!"
Tessa laughed. "I told you they wouldn't believe it."
"So did it happen?" Virgil looked intrigued.
Tessa just made a zipper motion against her lips. Virgil, Scott, and Alan laughed.
Then Gordon came in.
"I hear it went off pretty good," Tessa said, hugging him.
"They claim that was only because they left their younger brother in Thunderbird 2 the whole time." He looked mockingly mad.
Virgil stuck out his tongue at him playfully.
"So, now do you want to go for that dip in the pool?" Alan coaxed Tessa. He had been hanging around her since Kerono and Tin-tin left for a vacation.
"Now that Scott's back, I suppose it would be okay..."
"Why? Were you waiting for me?" Scott said teasingly.
"Well, in a sense, yes, but actually I was referring to the time-"
"Hey, whoa, we had an agreement. I gave you a year's subscription to Vogue so that you wouldn't tell. I can take that back and give it to Tin-tin!" Alan cried, looking desperate.
"Fine." She stuck out her tongue.
"Shall we go then?"
"Okay. Meet ya down there in 5." She turned to head back to her room to change.
Late that night, she lay in her bed thinking. She had spent a wonderful hour and a half in the pool with her 4 friends-the majority of her friends now.
As was mentioned earlier, it had been nearly a month since she had agreed to stay with them. However, she had also agreed to stay on the island almost all of the time, and to remain "missing" on the list of casualties from the shipwreck which had brought her here. She was not allowed to contact family or friends. She had to pretend to be dead to the world. Almost always she was happy with it-she had left poverty-but there were still times she missed her home-like anyone would.
She heard the piano. She smiled. Virgil's awake, she thought. Much as she liked Scott, there were still mixed-up feelings for Virgil.
She grabbed her housecoat, and walked down into the foyer...okay, what she had dubbed in her mind as "the foyer".
Sure enough, there was Virgil sitting at the piano. He hadn't heard her, but he had sensed her presence, and looked up, a beautiful grin on his face. She blushed.
She took her standard seat next to him, smiling at him. When he finished the piece, which he'd written himself, he looked over at her.
"Why do you always come here when I play? Before you came, if I played in the night, no one would come. I would have some time to think. Now, I have someone to talk to, and I like that better, I think." He smiled.
"I suppose I'm just drawn to your playing...you realize that you have a gift don't you? You're very talented, and I like that about you. And the piece you just played...it's beautiful. Where did you learn it?"
He smiled. "I wrote it. I started a couple of months ago, but once you started visiting me, it actually came together."
She stared in awe. "It's very good..."
He smiled. "It needs a title still."
"I have no ideas there. You're the one who wrote it, you should have the honours."
He just smiled at her. You have no idea how lovely you are...he wanted to say.
Instead he began to play again. She smiled.
"You know, Scott really likes you." It was more of a statement than a question.
"I figured as much. I'm not a total flop when it comes to guys," Tessa seemed strangely comfortable talking about other guys with him.
"And you like him?"
"Yes, actually, I sort of do."
He wasn't surprised. Though hearing it made him jealous.
The next morning, quite early, she realized the signal had gone off.
Scott and Virgil had left, and they had taken Alan with them, Mr. Tracy had explained. "It will most likely be his last mission for the month."
"Well, I mean, never say never right? There could be another accident-"
"No. Even if there is an accident, he won't be likely coming. It's his shift next week."
Tessa was confused. "His shift?"
"Yes, Tess. Every month, Alan and John trade places. They take Thunderbird 3 out, and drop him off, and pick John up. By this time next week, you and John will likely be good friends."
"This is quite confusing...you do realize that, Mr. Tracy?" she said half-joking.
"I know, but you'll get used to it. Trust me, you will."
At that moment Tessa realized that it was going to be a long time before she knew her way around this place like the boys.
"Scott, Virgil, and Alan will likely be gone for all of today. They likely won't be back home until tonight." Mr. Tracy seemed to be trying to get her to read between the lines.
If this was a test, she flunked. "Okay...I figured as much. How does this affect me?"
He raised an eyebrow, and then went back to his papers.
She turned away, deciding she was going to find Gordon. She needed something to do to entertain herself.
"You know, Brains is still here." Mr. Tracy's voice startled her, and forced her to turn around again. "I think maybe, you might find talking to him and watching his work more valuable than playing chess with Gordon."
"Where is he?" Tessa was intrigued.
"His lab. Where else?"
She smiled at his gentle humour. Then she turned and began to walk towards Brains's lab. She knocked.
"Who is it?" Brains asked in his usual way.
"Tessa. Mr. Tracy said that I might be able to 'watch and learn'?"
"Come in."
She opened the door and peered around at all the mechanical and scientific things. Shiny test tubes; wrenches, everything. It was always messy yet neat, in a Brains sort of way.
He gestured to a chair for her to sit in and watch. "Now this-this right here that I'm working on- i-it will be able to make Thunderbird 2 fly much faster by..."
This is why Tessa was more willing to sit with Gordon rather than Brains. Brains would babble on about things that-though very important and efficient-were, to her quite frankly, boring. She listened and absorbed most of what he was saying, but some of it went in one ear and out the other.
Though, there was one thing she did love: helping him. Technical babble was boring, but working with stuff like that was great. And, as he handed her a wrench, she smiled. Then she got down to work.
She worked late; Brains needed her to help him with his speed-accelerator-thing-a-mi-jig. They had it nearly done, when she realized it was nearly nine pm. She wanted to be out there when the boys got home.
She wiped her hands on a cloth, and then headed out to "the foyer". She was disappointed when she got there; the boys had clearly been home for an hour or so. Alan hadn't even bothered to come look for her, Tessa could hear him in his room.
She looked around at the rest. She could see Virgil in his room, painting. She looked and saw Gordon out on the balcony, alone, and Scott reading the paper. She walked over, and sat down next to him.
Scott looked up, a grin spreading across his face. "Hey...looks like Brains finally let you leave."
"He's not in charge of me," Tessa mockingly countered, "I was, in fact, supposed to be out of there before you got home. But, well, we just got caught up in work that we didn't hear you-or anything else."
"And what is it you were working on?" He looked interested, but she knew an insult would come.
"Umm...well, it's kind of like, umm...."
"It's a um what?"he persisted.
"It's a Thunderbird-two-accelerator-thing-a-mi-jig!" she blurted out.
He just laughed. "That's probably how I would've described it too."
Then he picked up the paper again, moving closer to her so she could read it as well.
Virgil walked into the foyer. He thought he'd heard Tessa's voice, and he wanted to see her.
He needed to see her.
He looked around, and almost gagged.
She's snuggling on the couch with him. How can she even like him?
He felt he shouldn't refer to his own brother as "him", as though he were the "enemy", but he couldn't help it. He felt that Scott was once again invading his territory.
Virgil felt that he had seen enough. He turned around, and went back to his painting.
Tess waited and waited.
This is ridiculous.
It had been nearly a week since she had heard the sweet sounds of Virgil's music in the middle of the night. Come to think of it, she's barely seen him the past week.
He just seemed to stay in his room, painting.
She had yet to see any of his paintings, but she had seen him in action. He said he didn't really let anyone see them when finished, or nearly finished. He said that the last time anyone had looked upon one of his pieces was years ago. That had been his mother, Lucy.
And then he changed the subject.
She'd often wondered the full story on Lucy, but knew better than to ask. Even Scott would just look upset for a spilt second, then say something along the lines of, "Who do you think will win the election?".
She sighed. He must be mad at her for something. If he was mad at anyone else, he would be there, playing it all away. But he probably realized she'd enjoy that.
He tormented her in so many ways. First, there was the constant mixed looks he would give her; Sometimes he wouldn't look at her at all. Then there were the mixed feelings he gave her.
And then there were her feelings for Scott, which were not mixed at all. They were clear as a bell. If I haven't been clear enough already, she was falling in love with Scott-fast.
She turned over, and forced herself to sleep.
Surprisingly, her alarm didn't go off; it was Scott who woke her up.
"Morning. Me and Dad have a proposition for you."
She sat-up, and covered her top with his Grandma's quilt. She was too shy to let anyone see her top. "I'm listening."
"We were thinking: we know you've been wanting to get out of the house...and well, I know dad told you about Alan leaving. Well, I was just wondering if maybe you'd like along, when we drop him off and pick John up."
A wide grin spread on her face. "I'd love to."
He smiled. "Great."
"Who all is going?"
"Alan, Me, and you. That's the way it always is...well, excluding you, that's the way it is. Is that alright by you?" He looked desperate.
"That's wonderful..." she trailed off.
He bent over, and kissed her softly on the forehead.
She sat up farther, and kissed him on his lips.
Scott's been in there awhile....
Virgil was trying to read the paper, and avert his attention, but he couldn't help be anxious.
Virgil knew he shouldn't be jealous. He didn't make a move on Tessa, so therefore, he couldn't complain.
But he could sulk.
Thoughts were spinning in his head faster than a car engine. If she has absolutely no interest in me, then why does she come at night? Why is it that she really comes by?
Scott came out then. He had a wide grin on his face, like he'd just won a big debate.
I remember when he used to do that at school...it was creepy.
"Hey, Scott, what's up? What did she say?" Alan perked up then. Virgil wondered what he was referring to.
"She said yes." Scott grinned, as he sat on the sofa.
"Oh, so you finally worked up the nerve to ask her out?" Virgil looked amused.
Scott looked like a deer in the headlights. Alan just laughed.
"No, Virg. He asked her if she wanted to come up with us when Scott dropped me off," Alan explained, between laughing.
Virgil was staring at Scott the whole time. "But you asked her out too?"
Scott looked down. "Yes."
"And she said?"
"She'd think about it-but she said her answer was so close to being a 'yes', it would only be a matter of a day or two."
Virgil understood. He shook his head, and looked down at the paper again. "You should be glad Dad's outside. He'd kill you for asking her out....you know how he told us to stay away from her."
"Yeah, well, please, don't tell Dad...I mean if she says no, then there will be no need to bring it up again, but if she says yes...just, don't tell Dad."
Virgil turned the page.
It's nearly 10:30...I suppose it's now or never.
He got out of bed, and went into the foyer.
Sure enough, Tessa was there.
"Hi, Virgil. Long time no see."
"Yes, well..ahem...I suppose..." He sat down at the piano.
He began to play. It was the song he had composed around Tessa; he had finished the music, finally, but not the title or lyrics.
He played until the end, in complete silence. Then, he turned toward her.
"Tessa-"
"Virgil-"
"You go," Virgil smiled.
She laughed slightly. "You know, today, um, Scott...asked me out. You know, to be his girlfriend. I couldn't say anything to him without coming to you first."
He was puzzled. "Why?"
"I don't know...but Virgil, I need to know now: how do you feel about me? If you don't tell me right now, I will have to say yes to Scott."
He paused, and looked down. "I...Tess, I just...this is not something I have a lot of practise with...but, well, let me show you something."
He got up, and beckoned her to follow him. He took her into his room. She'd only been there once, and it was for a short amount of time. He opened up his closet, and she saw a compartment designed to hold paintings.
He pulled out a few, being careful not to show her.
Then he took one, and set it up on his easel. "I painted that one the day you washed up...um, after you hit me." It was a picture of an angel, and a heartbroken man.
"Then I painted this one the day you said you'd stay..." It showed two people looking into each other's eyes happily.
"Then, I painted this one after you'd visited me one night. And this one was well..." It showed two people looking happy together, and another man off in the corner looking jealous and sad.
"You said you never showed anyone any of your paintings..." she looked mystified....and slightly horrified at being shown these.
"I don't." He looked deeply into her eyes-something I despise saying since it sounds so corny.
Tessa turned away. She couldn't bare this. It would have been easier had he not shown her this- had he even pretended that he didn't like her back.
This was a difficult decision for Tessa. She hadn't planned on having feelings for anyone on this island, let alone two brothers. She had no one to talk to...Virgil would say one thing, Scott another. Could she trust Alan? Maybe. Perhaps not, but...was there anyone else?
"I understand that this is hard for you..,"Virgil broke into her thoughts, "but it's up to you."
She smiled at him. "I need some time..."
"If it helps any, I didn't say anything earlier because Dad has banned us from 'pursuing' you. Obviously, we've sort of ignored that."
She laughed. "I better go..."
"Good night..." But she had left.
Tessa was in need of reassurance. She needed to know where to go in life, and how to get there. The decision was hers, but perhaps she could've used some help.
She was sitting on the couch a few days later. On her left side was Scott. She had not quite yet decided , but was awaiting the time to leave. Alan was just in his room, changing.
She was also curious: how was it that Thunderbird 3 was launched? She had seen Thunderbirds 1 & 2, and knew that Thunderbird 4 came from 2, but what about Thunderbird 3? Missions in space were rare, apparently.
Alan then came out. She giggled at him in his uniform. "Where's your luggage?"
"In Thunderbird 3. It'll be down there."
"Okay." He sat down next to her. "Are we ready to go?" she asked.
"See you in a month Alan." The other Tracys all replied at various times. He smiled at nodded at everyone, but waved at Tin-tin (she had flown in a few days ago).
Then Alan turned to her, distracting her, though no one but him and Gordon realized it. "So, Tess-all ready to meet John?"
"Yes, actually...I'm looking forward to knowing 4 mature brothers."
Gordon burst out laughing at what happened next. Soon, most of the others joined. Scott bent over the side, and pushed the button. The couch they were on began to descend.
The look on her face was priceless.
"Holy geez! What's happening?! The floor is falling in! Why is no one worried? Where are we going?!"
She saw the look on Gordon's face, as she descended. "Oh, very funny Alan." She looked more than mad. They were now low enough no one on the floor could see or hear them.
"See, the best thing about that is, even if you were to give me the silent treatment, it wouldn't matter because I'll be gone for a month." She stuck out her tongue.
"You know, that gives me a month to come up with the perfect revenge."
Scott laughed. Alan looked thunderstruck. "I have no idea what you're talking about..."
She raised an eyebrow. Scott was listening. "Do the words 'hey Tessa wanna go for a swim' mean anything to you?"
"You wouldn't dare..."
She just smiled, knowing she had won. Scott just looked confused.
"What is it exactly that you have on him?" Scott asked her.
"Oh, I can't tell...not yet anyways." She was enjoying tormenting poor Alan.
They began to move left. She looked over. There was Thunderbird 3 in all her glory. "Oh my gosh! She's beautiful..."
"Yup, and she's all mine." Alan looked proud.
"Ahem? If she's all yours, how come I have to help you drive?" Scott teased.
"Because I have to please Dad or else I don't get to drive her at all." Alan crossed his arms, and stuck out his tongue.
Scott just laughed.
Then they moved upwards.
The couch appeared soon after in the main room. Tessa only got a few seconds to look around before she was shooed out of the room, while Scott changed.
She paced her small compartment. She didn't have a uniform, nor did she need one...yet. She just sat there thinking.
How can I make a decision? What will I tell Scott? Who will I choose? Tessa was confused.
She weighed all of her options. She could say yes to one, or the other, or say no to the both. There wasn't really a way for her to say yes to both, obviously. And still remain friendly and trusted by everyone, that is.
Scott knocked on her door. That's the signal. She opened it, and came out. He pulled up a seat next to him, and motioned for her to sit down. "I figure you should at least know how everything works. It's quite interesting."
She sat down. She listened very intently to every word Scott breathed. They launched a few seconds later, and Scott continued to talk, though now he was also demonstrating what everything did. He showed her how to speed up the ship and slow it down; he even let her take partial control for a minute.
Too soon, or at least it was to Tessa, they arrived at the space station. She was a little scared when they began to board, but she quickly got over it. They had soon landed, and Alan got up.
"Goodbye for another month, Alan." Scott smiled.
"Goodbye, Alan, I'll miss you." Tess hugged him.
"Bye Tess. Bye Scott. See you in a month." He saluted them in a joking-Alan way. Then he turned and left threw the doors.
"John won't be here for about 15 minutes," Scott said offhandedly.
"Oh," Tess seemed nervous.
She was too shy to tell him her final decision.
She cleared her throat, forcing herself to swallow her fear. Now or never, she thought. Scott turned. "You remember what you asked me the other day? And how I said I need a day or so to think it over?"
"Yes?" He seemed interested, even looking at her.
"Well, I thought over your question of whether or not I would like to go out with you, and I've come to a decision."
He leaned forward slightly. In a completely non-Scott way, in fact. "And?"
She turned away. I love manipulating men, she thought. She spoke in a beautifully offhanded voice, "Why not?"
He smiled, and walked over to her.
She stood up, and he leaned in for that second kiss.
Alan and John were surprisingly close for two brothers in their situation. They only got about half an hour once a month to speak, and then Christmas, hardly anything else. But, they always remained together somehow, in a surprising bond.
"So, John, anything interesting up here?" Alan asked.
John just laughed.
"Thought so." He smiled.
"Everything normal on ground?" John asked.
It was Alan's turn to laugh. "Oh, boy. No way."
"How is that? I heard from Dad that you recruited the girl who washed up-but what else is there? Has she made that big a difference?"
"Oh yes. Her name's Tessa Highlander. The thing is, she's a wonderful part of the team, but man...." Alan shook his head.
"What?" John pressed.
"Well, neither will admit it when anyone's around, but Scott and Virgil are totally head-over- heals...for her."
John just stared. Alan nodded. "Virgil is being very quiet. He will not, under any circumstances say anything about it, but you can tell." When John looked sceptical, he added, "Hey, are we his brothers, or what? I can tell. You'll be able to tell. Scott, however-now, mind you, only Virg and I are aware of this, so don't spread it to anyone but Gordon-"John laughed, "-Scott, our wonderful, caring brother who we can blackmail about it, has asked her out. Even after dad told us to stay away."
"And she said?"
"Something tells me he's getting an answer now." Alan smiled.
"Well, it was great to see ya, I gotta go now. Bye Alan!" John said in a rush, picking up his suitcases. And beginning to sprint.
"Whoa, wait! Tell me what she says! Bye, John!" Alan called after him. John waved and smiled.
Tessa was watching the control board. Well, okay, she was pretending to watch the control panel, but was really watching Scott. Scott was doing the same.
They could not have been more obvious.
John walked in, the disappointed look on his face was priceless. Poor John is always looking for some kind of action; be it two people kissing, or a chicken walking around..he gets very bored in space.
"Ahem!" They both looked up.
"Hey Scott."
"Hi, John! How was space?"
John rolled his eyes. "Incredibly boring, as usual." He turned to Tessa. "You're Tessa Highlander, correct?"
"Yes, I am. Pleasure to meet you, John." She smiled and extended her hand. He dropped his suitcases, and shook it.
"Alan has told me a bit about you. You seem...sweet."
Tessa laughed. "That's not what he said after I trounced him at chess in seven moves."
"Really? You beat him? In seven moves?" John looked excited.
"Sometimes I forget you've been away," Scott said.
"Yeah, me too." John had a joking grin on his face, though, he was slightly upset at not being around more.
Scott pushed out his seat for him. "Actually, Scott, I was thinking I'd sit next to Tessa, I mean, I hardly know her. I'd kind of like to talk to her."
Scott looked nervous for a second. Then he pushed the chair closer to her, and stated, "Suit yourself."
John smiled, and took a seat. Within a matter of minutes, they were off.
"So, who'd you pick?" John had his voice lowered so only she could hear.
"What?" She knew though.
"Did you pick Scott or Virgil? I may be gone, but Alan fills me in."
She looked shocked for a minute, then she looked over at Scott, to be sure he wasn't listening. "Well, since you know very little, I'll give you something to brag about knowing. I said yes to Scott's offer."
"Really?" John looked surprised yet happy.
"Yes. Though, it was extremely hard. Oh, and by the way: Scott knows nothing of Virgil's infatuation as far as I know, and I think Virgil would like it if you kept it that way."
"Fine." John leaned back and smiled. She smiled at him too.
This could be the start of a life-long friendship, Tessa thought.
And she was right.
Virgil watched as they landed. He knew that she was going to make her decision; Tessa had told him last night she would decide. He was just worried.
Somehow, he knew though. He saw the look in her eyes when she walked in. He saw the look she gave him. He saw the look he gave her. He saw the smile on Scott's face.
Virgil reluctantly said hello to John, then claimed he had painting to do in his room. Tessa saw the pain, though.
He walked into his room as calmly as possible, then picked up some paper.
And Virgil did something then that got out his anger, though it both helped and harmed him.
He began to write.
He wasn't the best writing, nor did he claim to be. But he did a fair job. He poured his soul into his work, like many wonderful poets have before him.
And one of the best lines he wrote went along like this, summarizing his feelings:
Though I cannot seem say it,
I want you to know it's true,
No matter what they've said, dearest,
I've fallen in love with you.