The Art Of Us

14 • Wanting Control, Losing Control

The sound of his wheels shrieking through the streets would be enough to get the attention of the whole neighborhood, and though Alice thought for a second he was just showing off, she did feel flattered it was all for her. He stopped right in front of her apartment building, where she was waiting at the head entrance.

She looked the same as she always does, dressed in her denim ripped jeans this time, rings on her fingers and a black top. Her blonde curls hang loosely over her shoulders and FP absolutely loved her subtle make-up.

"I'm looking for a beautiful woman to take out on a date. Have you seen her?" He stepped out of his expensive car and smirked brightly when he met her eyes.

"Never said this was a date." Alice corrected him playfully, as she made her way towards him.

"But I am a beautiful woman, so I guess you're here for me." She teased, and she giggled when he looked her up and down.

"You've always been a tease." He said, shaking his head in amusement.

FP opened the car door for her like a true gentleman, before walking to the other side so he could sit down behind the wheel.

"So, this is your car? Looks like it's worth more than my apartment." Alice took a quick glance and chuckled slightly. She didn't think she'd ever been in an expensive car like this one.

"I do love this car." FP said, smiling to himself.

He had worked hard for it. It had been a gift to himself, figuring it would give him a new boost of happiness. It only worked on very rare moments.

He had purposely taken his car to travel to Riverdale instead of a plane, figuring that the roadtrip gave him some time to think and truth to be told, he mostly believed he would change his mind, and his car gave him the possibility to go as soon as he wanted. Fortunately, he had enough reasons to stay, more than he ever thought he would have. His car was a strange metaphor for a quick escape, but FP believed he wouldn't need that anymore.

"Sure, why wouldn't you? A Porsche is basically a sex car." Alice snickered, as she thought of how typically this was for men. It made her a tad more skeptical of what they were doing here.

"Well, this car has never seen any." He told her, which was strangely assuring for Alice.

**

"Can I please eat without you staring at me?" Alice tried to take a bite of her burger, but she felt FP's eyes burning into her very soul.

"Sorry, I was just thinking of how you still eat the same thing you did at seventeen." FP chuckled sweetly, and looked down at her order again. For a little bit, he had seen a vision, one that reminded him of the dates they used to have teenagers.

"You do too." She smiled a little and looked down at his plate.

Everything about them had changed, except for the things they'd like to eat. Nobody would make a big deal out of that, but for them it was a sign that maybe enough things stayed the same to try this again someday.

"Are things any better with Gladys?" Alice asked, after swallowing a bite of her food.

"No, my cards are still frozen. I have one that she doesn't know about, but I need to be careful with that." He told her, feeling his stomach twist as he was reminded about the existence of the one woman that he never wanted to think about for as long as he could.

"So that one is to take me out on a date?" Alice lighted up the mood a little, seeing the frown on his face as soon as she mentioned his wife. She didn't want to be the reason he was upset.