“Are you feeling okay, Al?” Bette was back to her playful banter as she put the finishing touches on her clothes and went back to the bathroom to finish her hair and makeup. “I know you’re being here for me, and I appreciate it. I really do. I do have a serious favor to ask of you, though.”

“Hit me! I’d do anything right now to keep my mind off of my own romantic issues.” Alice was referring to her hot/cold relationship with Tasha. While Alice knew Tasha was committed to the military, she did not understand how she could continue to support the country’s leaders and defend their decisions.

“Can you please be honest with me about one thing?” Bette was choosing her words very carefully, as she didn’t want Alice to misunderstand a word.

Alice was stopped at a red light right before the office she was meeting Max at. As the light turned green, she placed the phone back onto her shoulder and tried to find a parking spot. “Okay, this sounds serious. I want to give you my full attention…” Alice was stalling while she tried to find a spot for her Mini. “Eureka!” She flipped a u-turn with one hand and snagged a spot across the street from the shoot location. “Porter, are you still there?”

Bette had taken the last couple of minutes to pick out matching jewelry and finalize her look. She had grabbed her purse and briefcase and was headed out the door. “Yes, Al, I’m here. Are you there safe and sound?”

“Yes, now what is this that you want me to be honest about? And I have to tell you, I need to be running in about 20 minutes!” Alice was going to stay in her car until the very last minute. It wasn’t every day, or year for that matter, that Bette asked her for her honest opinion.

“Well, I have been thinking about a lot of things lately, but one of the things that comes back to me over and over again is something that I can’t quite figure out. I know I’ve fucked things up. I know that I would be asking a lot of her. I realize that this would require me to take a leap of faith and make a grand gesture. But do you think-“

“-that there might be a chance that Jodie will take you back? Of course, Bette. And for the record, I don’t think that you fucked up all that much. Could you have been more sensitive, well, yes. But you can always be more sensitive.” Alice was in no way prepared for what Bette said next.

“Um, thanks, I think… but I was actually going to ask if you thought Tina might be willing to give me another chance?”