Alice sat, curled up in an armchair that had been pulled up beside the fireplace. It had been weeks since she last saw Connor, or Violet for that matter. Not that she was bothered by it, she just had the worst feeling things would end badly for the Morrison family, similar to what happened with the Harmon's. She had noticed a distance between her and Tate suddenly though, that did bother her. She was afraid that he had seen Violet with the new boy and it had taken away all the progress he had made in trying to be happy with her. A sigh escaped her lips as she stared at the flame that licked the inside of the fireplace.

"Alice, hey, can I talk to you for a minute?"
The girl turned, looking at Tate who was standing at the door. She was surprised at how nervous he seemed about what she could only guess would be a moderately normal conversation. Usually, though, he didn't ask to talk, he just sat down and got out whatever was on his mind. She unwrapped one of her arms from around herself, gesturing for him to come sit with her.
"Is something the matter, dear?"
Tate sat on the sofa off to the side of the armchair, facing the fire more directly. He couldn't help thinking that the way the light from the flame hit his best friend that she looked stunning and it only added to the thoughts he'd had since his conversation with Nora. He knew some part of him would always love Violet Harmon, but this other part he had recently discovered seemed to overpower that. Alice had been the one to tell him that perhaps he needed to try to move on from his ex-girlfriend after all.
"No, I've just… There's something I need to tell you but I have no idea how to." He looked at his friend, suddenly nervous. This was the girl, the one person; he used to be able to talk to about nearly anything but now he could hardly voice how he felt. "You're so amazing, Alice. There's no one in the entire world that could ever replace you and I wouldn't want anyone to. I'm a fucking idiot for not realizing this earlier, but I think I'm in love with you."
Alice had turned around in her seat fully, now facing the boy fully with wide eyes that clearly expressed her shock. She had given up the chance of this ever happening, and now it was. He wasn't over Violet, she knew that, but she wanted to believe that he actually could have more feelings for her than merely friendship. She blinked, trying to form some sort of thoughts that actually made sense.
"Tate, you… what about Violet?" Her voice came out quieter than she intended and she mentally lectured herself for not at least acting stronger. She was looking at him, her eyes full of nervousness and uncertainty. She was afraid to believe his words, no matter how badly she wanted to, because she didn't think she would be able to stand having him leave her for Violet because she had forgiven her.
"She's not going to forgive me. I've spent so many goddamn years waiting for her that I never realized what it was that actually kept me going." His tone was soft, understanding why Alice was so cautious. He knew how hard she tried to avoid letting people hurt her and he knew that this was a huge risk to their friendship, but Nora had been right. He just had to give it a chance. "You're the only reason I even try to keep going. It's always been you, Alice, and I never understood why I care about what you think of me more than anyone else before. All I've ever wanted to do since that moment we met when we were kids was to protect you and make you happy." He paused, looking at the petite girl, her eyes filled with tears, and reached out, grabbing her hand. "I love you, Alice."
Alice took a moment, staring at Tate, sitting on the sofa, and found it difficult to breathe. She had wanted this to happen for so long that it hardly felt at all real now that it was happening. She was barely aware of the hand that was holding hers gently, but she squeezed in response. It was something that clarified that this was indeed happening. He was looking at her with mixed emotions. He seemed relieved to have said it, but at the same time he still kept the nervous look he had before.
"This is real." She exhaled softly, blinking. "Wow, Tate… I – I can't remember a time when I didn't love you…" Her voice was quieter than she had intended and was surprised that the boy had even heard her but his face seemed to light up at Alice's words.

One minute she was sitting on the arm chair and the next she was on her feet with Tate's arms wrapped around her. She stood on her toes, wrapping her arms around his neck. Despite the couple inches Alice had gained by rising to her toes, Tate still had to lean down to kiss her but it didn't matter. The overall situation was far from perfect, but to Alice, it was the closest thing to perfect she had ever experienced. This is what it's like to love and be loved. She felt his hands on her waist move to her back, his fingers tangling in her hair.

Tate pulled away first, grinning down at the blonde. Alice giggled, letting herself fall back onto her feet as she rested her cheek against his chest gently. He untangled his hands from her hair before stepping back, taking her hand and pulling her onto the sofa with him.
"Is my sweater comfy?" He teased, actually noticing what the girl was wearing for the first time in a long time. He put his arm around her shoulder, chuckling as Alice's face turned pink. She put her head on his shoulder, a smile painted on her lips.
"I – I didn't think you would notice…" She mumbled, tugging the sleeves over her hands. She didn't see Tate's smile but she felt his head against hers and heard him chuckle again. Although they hadn't been her favourite, she remembered watching romance movies over the years. They were always cliché, but she understood now what they were talking about. The butterflies in her stomach, how just being with one person seemed to make the rest of the world disappear.
"It looks better on you."