Seven Minutes in Heaven

"When I say, "I love you," it's not because I want you or because I can't have you. It has nothing to do with me. I love what you are, what you do, how you try. I've seen your kindness and your strength. I've seen the best and the worst of you. And I understand with perfect clarity exactly what you are. You're a hell of a woman." ~Joss Whedon

Alvin Seville

My head feels dizzy as I lift myself off of the mattress I'm lying on. The sheets a silky and soft under my skin, almost begging me to crawl right back into them as a headache works its up the back of my skull. I sigh, sitting up. It was no time to sleep… I didn't even have a clue where I was. I glance around the room. The walls are a deep red with paintings and pictures of me or my signature yellow A. The curtains that hang on the giant windows are a rich gold and the bed I'm lying in has red sheets with a comforter on top that has a huge gold A across its front. I wrinkle my nose at the room… It's like my ego threw up all over the place. Some people say that's happened before, but no one from back home has seen this.

I'm about to get out of bed when a soft knock comes from the door. I pause, wondering if I should answer at all. Maybe this isn't where I'm supposed to be… maybe this is some dedicated fan's shrine or something? Creepy, I shiver. I don't think I would ever go for that no matter how big my head got… considering I was in bed and all.

I didn't have time to contemplate this though, because the door swung open revealing a half-naked girl that looked vaguely like my best friend. She wore a strip of fabric for a skirt and what looked like a super decked out bra. Plus her waist line was ten inches smaller while her boobs where five times bigger. I did a double take, unintentionally drooling like the average teenage boy I was. It was like the Megan Fox part of my life all over again.

"E-Ellie?" I stammer. "W-w-what's up?"

"Oh, don't look so surprised to see me Alvie," she purred. PURRED! Like a cat! "I knew you wouldn't be able to stay away for long. The media wants us back together," she makes her way over to the bed, touching my chest lightly. I shiver, unsure of the whole thing. If my goal in life was to make Theodore truly angry, well, I was doing it! "So we should give the people what they want. It's only fair." She leans in for one of those open mouthed kisses, but my head turns sharply to the right, making her lick my cheek. I inwardly gag.

"Why are you acting like this Eleanor?" I yell, wiping the spit off of my face roughly. "Where the hell am I? Where are Simon and Theodore? Where's Brittany?"

"Don't you dare talk about that rat ever again," Eleanor says, her voice growing deeper and more intense. I think I shrunk to half my size, feeling true fear towards a girl for the first time. Well, fear that I would get seriously injury… Brittany didn't have the strength to actually hurt me but words did enough when it came to her.

"What?" I yell back. "But you're her sister! Britt-"

"Don't Alvin," she grits her teeth. She takes a couple deep breaths, moving her arms up and down as she did so. Finally, her face brightens up and she looks at me with a smile that makes me cringe. "I don't understand why you're talking about your family; I mean you haven't even spoken to them in over four years… well, except Theodore."

"What about Theo?" I ask, my eyes going wide. Simon was my best friend in the whole world… a guy to argue with and debate about silly things. But it was the atmosphere that Theodore created that made our brotherhood something special. We were, in all intent and purposes, a group. "Did I make him mad? Did he run away?"

"Don't be an idiot," Ellie says, wiping a quick tear off of her face. I let her gather her emotions like I have to do with most girls… Women. "He killed himself Alvin."

No. My face drains of color and my cheeks become cold with fear. Theodore can't be dead… I-I talked to him less than an hour ago! The realization hits me hard in the middle of my chest… so this is what happened… now that Brittany and I have never met. I gulp down any emotion trying to break free and look up at Ellie with such intensity that she visibly cringes. "Eleanor," I whisper, my voice not sounding as strong as I want it to. "You need to tell me how to find Brittany."

"No," she says, crossing her arms. "You've never even meet her, why would you even care?"

"Because I have met her!" I scream back. Eleanor takes a step back, her brown eyes going wide. I let out a frustrated groan, taking her shoulders with my hands. "Brittany is my best friend! Without her I'd be lost and I am… I'm lost and I need to find her," my voice goes weak, an unintentional tear leaking onto my face. I've never admitted that I actually needed Brittany… I could never make myself say it out loud. "You don't understand," I tell Eleanor. "You don't understand how much I need to make sure if she's okay… I need to protect her."

"You need to lie down," she says, pushing me lightly towards the bed. I watch her concerned expression… she must think I'm crazy. I try to argue with her but it is useless. "Alvie," she says softly. "You sound like you had a little too much to drink last night. A little rest will do you some good… I'll try again tomorrow."

I'm in such a daze that I don't have the energy to run after her before she closes the door, locking it in the process and leaving me completely alone. I eye the windows up and down. I could break out onto the fire escape that is under one of the large windows in the room… but part of me is wary of the rain. The fire escape looks slippery and if I die trying to get out of this damn building then neither Brittany nor I will ever make it home. I couldn't let her do that.

I close my eyes and pinch the bridge of my nose. This isn't good… this isn't good at all. But amongst all of my worries I keep thinking about what I told Eleanor about Brittany. Did I mean it? Well, of course I did! She's my best friend and I would do anything to protect her… but did my caring for her run just a little bit deeper? I shake off the thought… of course it didn't.

I open my eyes and look at the fire escape. But something's different… A pair of orange sneakers are looking back at me. Beside them are a pair of blue ones that seem to be a lot less steady then the other ones. I look up, my face breaking into a wide grin. Standing, in all her wet glory was Brittany.

She presses her hands on the glass, smiling back at me. Warmth flushes my cheeks and I press my hands to hers from the other side of the glass. I notice now, that the person beside her is Simon. I don't understand how he's here, but for some reason her looks sad.

Brittany gestures for me to open the window and I do without hesitation. Brittany falls into my arms, making me shiver due to the fact that future Alvin doesn't wear a shirt. I hug her closely though, relieved that she found me. I run my fingers through her hair and press my face into her shoulder just to make sure she's real.

"Alvin?" I look up and watch Simon over Brittany's shoulder. He's standing there looking awkward as ever. I smirk at him. I want him to smirk back and crack a joke but he just looks at his shoes. I stare at him, dumbfounded. "Alvin… Where you come from… are we really a family?" he looks at me.

I break away from Brittany to encircle my little brother in a hug. He seems surprised at first, but then Simon hugs me tight right back. I hold him at arm's length and watch him, a little teary eyed. His expression really pulled at my heart strings. "We're more than just a family," I whisper so only he can hear. "We are a group of chipmunks… and person… who love each other to no end. But our family never stopped at just you, me, Theo, and Dave," his expression softens at the sound of Theodore's name. "It was about everyone we ever met. Every person that came into our lives was something truly special… Theodore, where we come from, he found Eleanor. They're the cutest couple, even though we make fun of them for being so in love. I don't think either of us realized how special they were. I, well, I found Brittany," I pause. Simon stares, probably thinking of the me that he knows and how I'm supposed to hate the girl standing behind me. "She doesn't know it, but I think, way deep down that I do," I smile faintly. "And, well, of course being related to Alvin Seville, you found someone too."

"Who?" he asks.

"Jeanette," I whisper, a smile playing on my lips. Simon's jaw drops. I laugh a little, clapping my brother on the shoulder. "Now," I whisper right up next to his ear. "I need to speak with my woman."

"No problem," he smiles back. "I might as well go home anyways, I have a feeling things are going to change for me," he winks, making his way out the window and down the latter without another word.

"So," she says. "Looks like that went well."

"It did," I nod, shoving my hands into the pockets of my pajama pants. "Wow," I laugh.

"What?" she raises an eyebrow.

"I never thought I'd end up here," I whisper loud enough to hear. "I never thought I'd be standing here with you, having a completely pleasant moment. The end of the world must be near!"

"The end of this world, maybe," she smirks. After a while, Brittany's smile fades and she looks at the floor. "I don't know how to end all of this… I can't believe I left you at the hotel… without you… it just doesn't work."

"So you're admitting you need me?" I ask her. Her cheeks flush a warm pink, making my heart throb. She looks so cute. Did I just think that… me?

"W-well, no need to read so much into it!" she looks at me angrily. But deep down, in those blue eyes I can see sadness. She wanted me to say it back. "It obviously looks like you were better off without me!"

"How can you say that?" I grab her arm as she tries to make her way to the window. She reals back, staring at me with such intensity that I think I might break. "No one has changed my life more."

"What?" her features soften and her eyes grow wide.

"I," I say, gulping, as I usually do when talking to Brittany, at the prospect of rejection. "I care about you Brittany Miller… a lot. Probably more than you'll ever know. Without you… I'm no one. No matter how big of rock star I could become with everyone else, I would be no one to myself. Not without you Britt," I sigh.

Brittany traces her thumbs across my cheeks, stepping closer to me. I look down as she wipes away a stray tear. What a man… crying over feelings. I watch the floor, ashamed. "Alvin," Brittany says, tipping my head up so I'm forced to meet her gaze. "You're the biggest idiot I have ever met in my entire life," she smirks. I gulp, not sure how to take it. Without warning, she leans in and presses her lips to mine. It's short and sweet, making my blood turn to fire. She watches me… I'm speechless. "You really have no idea how long I've waited for you to say that."

S-she… she likes me back?

I smirk, pulling her waist to my torso. I lean in, closing my eyes, waiting for our lips to meet. A fiery passion runs through my veins, making me feel, for the first time, in love. I can't help it… the rush of emotion must be getting to my head.

"Alvin!" someone screams. Brittany and I immediately break apart only to be found in pitch black darkness. "Alvin, what the hell, get out here!"

"W-who's there?" I ask warily, taking Brittany's hand.

"Simon you idiot!" he opens the door, flooding the room with light. The hallway… the closet. What? "It's called seven minutes in heaven…. SEVEN. Not ten, not twelve but seven!"

"S-sorry," I whisper, in too much shock to register anything he's saying. Simon rolls his eyes and hefts me up, then takes Brittany's hands and helps her up as well. We follow him to the rest of the group who snickers at our tardiness.

"We're home," I hear Brittany whisper.

"Next game!" Macy cheers at our arrival.

"Why not?" I shrug, smirking at Brittany who punches my shoulder. "It was quite interesting last time."

"Sure looks like it," Theodore elbows me. We blush, making everyone laugh at our shyness. G-gotta make up for that!

"Monster movie anyone?"

The End.

Well, that's the end! Hope you've all enjoyed :D This was a short one… hope to have longer stories out soon! Bahh… Alvin's socially awkward! :D Review!