Disclaimer: DO NOT OWN. Except a freaking sharp clawed kitty that hurts. Sad face.

So, here's the next chapter! And when I said 'two days' I really meant more. ^^;

Hope you enjoy!


Alice inspected her left shoe as it dangled off of her left foot that was placed over her right leg in the small coffee shop off of 7th Street. Her eyes were downcast as she looked at the dainty watch that adorned her wrist, a concerned look coming over her face as she noted it was forty-five minutes after the designated meeting time with 'Sexy Southerner', as Rosalie and Bella politely named him.

Her right foot tapped impatiently upon the tiled floor for what seemed like the millionth time within the chunk of her hour; the look or worry that was on her face seconds before was washed away when she took a sip of her ice-cold espresso.

"Ugh – where the hell is he?!" Immediately her hand shot to the old purse she had fished out of her enormous closet the night before that was now sitting on the floor by her side and pulled out a cheap, plastic, pay-as-you-go phone. As soon as her fist curled around the device her thumb was flying over the familiar numbers.

"Hello Bella. …Yes, I know I was supposed to be home twenty minutes ago. He hasn't shown yet! Are you sure he said 8? … Ok, I'll wait a few more minutes. …It wasn't a complete waste, I mea I got some things done at the office in the two hours I waited for his specific time. …Ok, I'll see you in a while. Bye."

Pressing the 'end call' button she plopped the extension back to the endless abyss that is her purse and focused once again on the coffee shop she was in. At first when she entered, she thought the décor was alright – but now, after being stuck at the same table for the better part of an hour she thought differently. The sage green wall paint coupled with 'aged' brown tables and work surfaces was a little too not-this-day-and-age for her; she could have opted for crisp, white colouring with rustic orange and brown accents to warm up the detached snowy appearance.

Yet, with this stranger being now fifty minutes late to the meeting he set up made her so mad that even redecorating places in her head didn't calm her down. Her hand reached to her bag once again and fished out the cellular device, this time punching in the familiar numbers of her own phone.

The thinning crowd of late-night coffee goers' attentions were snapped to her tiny table when a loud and irritated cry was let loose from the young girl in the lilac dress, making any conversation being held unimportant as they all eavesdropped on the conversation.

"Hey you! I have been sitting here, in this appointed spot that you chose yourself for about an hour now – and you know what that means? This place is getting ready to close and I am without my phone! I NEED MY BLACKBERRY!"

She snapped the small, defenseless phone shut after she was done with recording her voicemail and indignantly snatched her hunter-green feux-alligator skin purse; her flats slapped the floor with each purpose filled step she took towards the exit then came to a sudden halt when Alice abruptly spun around to look at the few people still in the quaint store.

"Did anyone save or get a puppy yesterday?"

Her random question was met with negative feedback, much to her dismay. Alice faced the glass door and pushed it open, muttering incoherent things about sick puppies and sexy Southerners down the lit streets to the bright and welcoming train station that she never failed to hate.

-

It was about 9.45 when Alice arrived to her stop, 9.55 when she conquered the death-trapped stairs that led to her apartment, 10.00 when she ranted to her mates about being stood up, 10.28 when she turned the television on, 12.50 when she shut it off, and approximately 1.10 am when she crawled in her fluffy bed, her 'fake' phone on her white bed-side table and alarm clock decidedly pointed to the day off position.

She pulled the pink duvet to her chin and snuggled deeper into her bed enjoying the feelings the soft mattress provided her with daily; heaving a contented sigh to the unoccupied air in her room, Alice closed her eyes and welcomed the deep, dark, consuming blanked of sleep that pulled her down with no remorse; until her phone lit up and shook the small table on which it was placed, spewing out the annoying, generic 'ring, ring' tone that she despised almost as much as the person daring to call her when she was trying to sleep.

Her black head appeared from the mound of pillows that had been built for her relaxation to glare at the offending object, letting loose a small smile once it stopped only to grow back twice as pissed when it started to ring again. Quickly her hand latched to the phone and she pressed it to her ear, barking out a gruff 'what-do-you-want' to relay her annoyance.

"Well that's a pleasant way to be received."

Alice sat straight up in her bed, all traces of weariness and exhaustion expelled from her body when she heard the voice coming through the other end. It was the Sexy Southerner.

"It's what you get for calling at 1.30 in the morning, when most people are trying to sleep." Her eyes consulted the clock before reprimanding him about the calling time, making sure that she was correct in her thoughts of what time a late night started.

"O.K., I apologize for the timing of this call, but I just thought I owed you an apology for tonight – I hope you don't mind but I listened to the voicemail left on your phone-"

"I'm glad you did. It was for you."

"And realized that I had missed our meeting time. I had a last minute conference call and meeting that extended from 7.30 to 12.40, roughly, and had no way of getting a hold of you let alone a moment to call you to tell you that I couldn't make it."

Alice pursed her lips at his explanation, choosing to remain silent through his words while her fingernail tapped the outside of her cell phone in time with his cadence of speech, ready to yell at him when his voice ceased its sexy lyrics for his excuse.

"I truly am sorry, Mary. I know how a day in the life of a business person goes without their phone and I wouldn't wish that on anyone, especially a stranger who saved my life, so to speak."

Her finger stopped its motion when the words 'saved my life' met her ear and she crossed her legs, no intention of terminating the conversation being held with a man who said such insane things. Alice's left hand dragged itself through her chaotic hair, pushing the strands out of her now awake eyes staring down at her comforter while she concentrated on her phone.

"Wait – saved your life? Either you're extremely wiped out from your meeting thing whatever or you've never had someone help a complete stranger out before. I mean, it's a pretty common thing, pretending to be someone's girlfriend to help a petrified man escape a crazy bitch."

She was rewarded with a full chuckle from the man on the other end that created a full butterfly circus in her popcorn filled stomach, complete with the light-headed feeling she hadn't felt in months. Through the darkness of her room Alice's smile caught the small rays of moonlight that were permeating the sheer curtains that lightly covered her window.

"Haha, I do owe you a huge favour – she is pretty much the epitome of crazy bitch. Although it was a big mistake of sorts because now she won't leave me alone whenever she sees me around the office and demands for the information of our relationship. Which I always cleverly avoid answering."

"That's good; I wouldn't want to chance a random meeting with her and be met with all these things that were weaseled out of you." She was granted with yet another small laugh, this time joining along quietly. The suffocating silence met both her ears when their chorus ended and Alice was filled with dread at the thought of hanging up the phone, leading her to speak again.

"I lied to you."

"Oh, well, that's something to tell me now, in the middle of our relationship. I'm hurt, Mary."

"That's the thing – my name's not Mary. It's Alice. Mary is my middle name."

"So you really didn't lie – Mary was your name, just not the one you go by."

"I guess you're right. But one thing remains." Alice bit her lip, reclining her body back to the chilled army of pillows she had abandoned upon hearing his sexy voice. "You never told me your name."

"Jasper. Jasper Whitlock. Lovely to officially meet you Alice."

-

Alice replaced the communicator an hour later, the smile upon her face glowing as she buried her body into the mattress remembering the voice of the man she just finished talking to and entered a restful sleep.


Sorry, like I always say, for the grammatical errors and the like. And if the tenses don't really fit together, it's my fault. I've always tended to switch up tenses… yeah. I'm screwed up. Ha!

Tid-Bit Information:
Strawberries are tasty.

Thanks for Reading!

Love to All,

Kat

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