Living Without A Heart

What a night

Alice and Mary had returned home from Prom with smiles occupying their rosy faces.
"What was that?! You and FP!" Mary cheered jumping up and down.
"I know! I can't believe I got to dance with FP! It was like a fairytale M... everything and everyone ceased to exist except us..."
"Alice it looked like you were in a fairytale! The way you both just relaxed into the dance, the way you looked at each other... eek!" She exclaimed like a little kid. "Also the looks on Hal and Gladys' face was hilarious!"

"It was like the perfect ending to our story..."
"What ending are you on about?"
"We've already spoke about this Mar."
"Yeah but now the whole school has seen your chemistry!"
"Even if I did- which I won't - we'll be leaving school soon anyway so it will be pointless."

Mary sighed in defeat and went to make the both of them a hot chocolate. Alice just stretched out on the bed when she received a notification.

Well now you have an incentive to leave that preppy boyfriend of yours. I gave you your Prom King, your Prince Charming... You know he loves you and everyone has seen how you are together now, so there is no sensible reason for you to stay with that mamma's boy... x S

Okay, so someone clearly didn't like the idea of her and Hal being together - what did she care?she agreed with them! Alice obviously had her reasons for staying with Hal but quite frankly she wanted to even more just to spite who ever it was on the other end of the phone.

Mary barged into the room with two steaming mugs of hot chocolate and Alice quickly dropped her phone to the side of her.

"You okay?" Mary asked suspiciously
"Yeah fine," she reassured. "Aww ta."

"Where are you going to stay when I leave for law school?"
"Hal and I are moving in to Elm Street."
"Straight away? Why don't you delay it a bit because when you break up, you won't have a house and you may not even a job either..." Mary suggested with concern.
"Now look who's the optimist!"
"Alice you know I am right, that's why you're evading the question..."

"Personally,  I think my relationship is going to last longer than anyone's that we know.  You all allow emotions to run your relationships so when the love runs out or you grow distant you break up- I don't have any feelings for Hal at all and we've been together a year, planning to move in together,  and are preparing for our business to open!"

"Are you serious right now?"
"What?" She asked genuinely oblivious.
"Relationships are founded on feelings, on love. Alice you just described business partners except a lot of business partners end up having affairs! You don't want to spend the rest of your life with an idiot you don't love- without love and happiness this life is worthless!"

"But you're wrong.  Without love you don't get let down, you don't get the rug pulled out from underneath you. Love blinds you to the truth and to people's faults but I can see them and stop myself getting hurt..."
"It sounds like a lonely life..."
"Mary - you don't miss something you never had..." at that point, Alice's phone rang and her heart leapt when she saw the name on her screen. Forgetting everything, she giggled and bounded on her knees with glee.

"Hello"
"Hi Al, I think we need should talk about what happened tonight..."
"Sure - I mean all we did was dance!"
"Yeah... thats all it was - a dance.  I'm not your 'king', your not my 'queen'. Alice your not mine at all."
"I know but why would you say that? Why would you call me to tell something everyone knows?"

"Gladys she - she is upset and jealous of you and quite frankly I don't blame her... you're amazing."

"I'm getting really mixed signals here..."
"Yeah... nothing I said really makes sense  does it? I guess as true as it is what I just said, I just wanted to hear your voice again. "

"Aww" Mary cooed
"Mary!"
"Sorry -" she snorted.
"Look, my dad is coming so I better go - bye Smith."
"Later Jones..."

"See - love!" Mary chimed.
"See - ending!" Alice replied in a mocking gesture...

*****
"Hal"
"Gladys"
"You saw the way they were together."
"I think everyone did."
"Next time they get close and we find out, we do something about it. Something that will blow holes in their ship and sink it like the Titanic..."
"You say it like there will definitely be another time,"
"Hal don't kid yourself, think of it as a disease - unless you completely eradicate it, its just gonna keep coming back."
"Yeah well, we'll be here to make sure the disease keeps at bay, won't we?" He replied with a possessive sneer...