The descent into recovery

The Fall.

Alex's eyes focus on my pink tinted lips and he tucks a piece of hair behind my ear. He opens my apartment door for me.

His lips meet mine and I just stand for a moment before I decide to kiss him back.

I taste the red wine on his lips.

I pull back, and he looks confused.

"Hal, I'm sorry if you didn't want that to hap-"

"Alex no I do. Trust me I do. But I think we need to take things slowly."

"I understand. Is it okay if I hang out here tonight?"

"Of course. Would you like to watch a movie?"

He nods and takes a seat on the couch.

"How do you feel about Almost Famous?" I ask.

"Honestly. I haven't seen it."

"What????" The surprise is evident in my voice.

I proceed to put in the DVD and we watch, both singing "Tiny Dancer" with the band members.

"Well that was a good movie!"

"I know. Penny Lane is one of my favorite characters of any movie."

We sit and discuss numerous Beatles songs and then we talk about our favorite songs and what they mean to us.

We talk about "Fire and Rain" by James Taylor and "I Will Always Love You" by Dolly Parton.

Somehow this turns into me singing "Fire and Rain" for him.

"Hallie. Your voice is so pretty."

"Whatever," I laugh.

"I'm serious. It's just pretty and pure."

"Thank you. My best friend is the only other person who has heard me sing."

"Well. I guess I can consider myself lucky."

"You can."

Alex scoots closer to me on the couch and I rest my head on his shoulder.

We continue to talk about music well into the night; then we both drift to sleep.