More Than Just A Friend (Hamilton Fan-fiction) *Completed*

Chapter Twelve - Maria Reynolds

I quickly give Eliza and Alexander their food. Alexander starts to sweat a little when I come, so I know he got my note. Eliza keeps being nice to me...to nice. So nice, in fact, that I know she'd rather punch me in the face and leave, but she's too much of a wonderful person to do that. Stupid Eliza in all her perfect glory. I sigh, checking the clock. Alex and Eliza leave right before my shift ends. I slide back into my old clothes and pack up my uniform. Midnight tonight is when it all happens. My phone starts to ring, it's James. I let it ring until it stops, adding that to my missed calls. Suddenly, I realize he might be looking for me. I slide a black hoodie over my sweater dress and start walking towards the field. I stand there for a moment and at exactly midnight Alexander comes, all dressed in black. Just like him, to be perfectly on time. To be so perfect. "Alexander, I brought you here to-" He interrupts me by...kissing me. I pull away. Two times this has happened to me before and they ruined my life. The first time I kissed him, the second time we both kissed each other, and now he kissed me. "Alexander...why?" I begin. He looks angry. "Why else would you call me here?" I resist the urge to slap him. "Why do you just asume I only want to kiss you?" I sigh, then continue. "I wanted to say goodbye. I dropped out of Collage and I know you probably won't come back to the restaurant I work at. So...good bye." That felt less satisfying then I expected. Maybe because a part of me knew it wasn't really goodbye. I pull out my phone. There's one goodbye I need to do. I call James and he picks up almost imediently. "Maria, where are you? You crazy little-" I cut him off and whisper, "I'm breaking up with you." Before hanging up. I wish I sounded more confident, more sure of myself. But instead I whisper into the phone and delete his number so it goes straight to spam.

It's been about a year since I last saw Alexander. Nothing much happened in that time, he married Eliza, she had a baby named Philip. I spent my time working and scrolling through Facebook, trying to see how everyone was doing. James still hasn't found himself a  new girlfriend, I haven't found myself a new boyfriend. Peggy and John's on again off again relationship finally came to be on all the time when he proposed, making her his fiance. It's been about a week since Eliza, Philip and Angelica left for a family vacation. Peggy couldn't come because she's fallen ill, according to her account. Which means Alexander's alone. I shake my head. I'm not doing this, not now. He has a wife and kid, it's been a year, he probably forgot about me. But then my phone rings and it's him...I pick it up. He speaks quickly and desperate, "Maria...I'm all alone, I need you..." Before hanging up. And then a text, his adress. I stare at my phone. Everything is moving too fast, but he might really need my help. I head over but pause before opening the door. I've been expecting a body, or a murderer pointing a gun to my face. But I realize I'm the problem. It won't be my fault this time, I'm single. He's the one with a wife...he's the one who'll ruin his own life. I take a breath and open the door. Alexander stands there. He looks nervously behind me. "I came here all alone." I say quietly, stepping forward. I snap back into reality, and find myself standing in front of Alex's door at about 4 or 5 in the morning. The blur of last night came back to me as I realized what I had just done. I hadn't just cheated with Alex, I ruined his life. I didn't really care about that, but then I realized something again. I ruined Eliza's life, and her baby's, Philip. I never cared about Eliza before but then I remembered when James used to beat me, cheat on me...I remember how that felt. And I remember I felt even worse because James didn't even care. So I walk back inside, finding Alexander in the bathroom, and a crumpled up piece of paper in the trash by his desk. I run out quickly and open it while walking through the dark streets. "The Reynolds Pamphlet." I stare at it. With a few edits and tweaks, this could be perfect. Alexander ruined his own life, I finally realize it. Yes, it was a lot of my fault too, but he...he did this to himself. I enter my apartment and begin writing on a blank piece of paper, "The Reynolds Pamphlet."