Light in the darkness

24. Thanksgiving

The Thanksgiving evening in Riverdale was calmer than it usually was. By the one look through the windows, people could see the families gathering for the dinner. The smell of various pies mixed with the sensational savor of turkey was filling the air near every house with a half-opened window.

FP was walking down the Riverdale streets with a bouquet of flowers in his right hand and a mysterious package in the other one. Ever since Alice had invited him to have dinner with her and Charles, he knew it was the least to thank her. She had always loved such small and also romantic gestures but never admitted it out loud.

A smirk started to form across FP's face the second he brought up the memory of Hal surprising Alice with the bouquet of peonies – the only flowers she had been allergic to since she remembered. Seeing Hal's cheeks red from abashment was one of the most priceless sights in the world. But how could've he known about her allergy when FP was the only one who knew her better than anyone else in the whole damn world?

Still grinning like a fool after recalling the memory of Hal's disappointed expression, FP kept on walking down the empty streets. His mind was already in Alice's flat, thinking about how badly he wanted to be there already, helping her with the preparations.

With a quiet sigh, he looked up at the clouds covering the sky and it was the moment he realized, that tonight he was going to take a shoot. He had been waiting for so long to finally make things right. Tonight, was the time. Tonight, he was going to prove, that Alice still had a special place in his heart.

***

In the meantime, Alice was nervously trying to pretend that she had everything under control. The truth was, nothing was as she wanted it to be. Turkey was still in the oven and she was doing her best to keep calm while preparing a salad, she remembered, FP's mother had always been doing for the Thanksgiving dinner.

If she would've left work at the right time, she previously was about to, everything would be fine. But obviously, Hal had to ruin her very first Thanksgiving since she came to Riverdale. The second he dropped the pile of documents to fill right in front of her, she thought it was some kind of a joke. But it wasn't.

The files that were waiting to be filled were connected with the final part of the project. Alice couldn't help but stayed nearly a whole extra hour after her work hours to complete the documents and finally close the deal and finish the project with the Register.

And there it goes. She was about an hour late with everything. There was nothing that could save her right now, or at least she thought she was stuck in this all alone. The second she heard a soft knock on the door, she felt a knot in her stomach. FP shouldn't be here in at least another half an hour. She couldn't help but feel extremely excited that he came earlier than he was supposed to. It meant that he cared, right?

Charlie ran to the door happily and greeted FP with a grin plastered to his pretty little face. His sapphire blue orbs were glued to the man in front of him. FP lifted the little boy up from the floor and embraced him tightly with a chuckle leaving his lips.

Holding Charlie in his arms, FP made his way towards the kitchen, he assumed Alice was in. He turned out to be right. She was standing in front of the oven with her blonde locks tied up in a messy bun. He could tell, that she was everything, but happy while being dressed in a navy dress and her half-done make-up. But for him, she was looking like a goddess.

"They used to be your favorite ones." FP winked and handed the bouquet of red tulips to Alice and earned a grateful smile from her.

Charles smiled even wider once he noticed how his mom's face brightened up at the sudden, unexpected little gesture. He carefully slid out of FP's embrace and came closer to Alice to place a sweet kiss on the top of her hand, wanting to be the reason behind such a bright smile of hers as well.