Dana watched Alice‘s face as she spoke. She watched Alice wrinkle her nose in concentration, and bring her fingers up to the point between her eyebrows on occasion when she had trouble saying what she wanted to. She watched as Alice placed herself in a completely vulnerable position simply to clear Dana’s mind.

“You weren’t the only bitch involved in that conversation Al,” Dana said quietly, extending her arm to grip Alice‘s hand tightly. “I’m sorry for what I said as well. A-And I’m sorry for what I said eight months ago and and for not talking to you in those eight months. I’m sorry for so many things Alice. I really am.”

Dana drew her gaze up to the ceiling above her as the tears began to flow freely down her cheeks. She finally looked back down and smiled weakly at Alice. “T-That was pretty hard.”

Alice laughed quietly to herself at Dana’s comment before looking Dana in the eyes.

“Please give me another chance?” Alice‘s nervous voice was barely audible. She wasn’t begging, and yet Alice had managed to put all of her energy, passion and desperation into the shaky proposition.

Dana felt her heart swell as she heard Alice utter words which she only ever dreamed she would hear again. Even through their fights, even after eight months, Alice wanted her.

“I-I realise why you wouldn’t want to,” Alice continued, spurred on by the silence on Dana’s behalf. “But I want you. I’ve never stopped. I don’t want to hurt you ever again, and if I could get up and leave you, let you live your life in peace I would in a split-second. The fact is I’m a little selfish in that respect because I don’t ever want to let you go I can’t. Please Please Dana, just one more chance.”

Dana’s immediate reaction was to jump into Alice‘s arms. This was what she had wanted. But then she began to think. What if a situation like Alice and Gabby arose again? What if they fought again and this all led to nothing? There was no doubt that Dana wanted Alice in her life, but it came down to two options. Play it safe with a friendship and nothing more, or risk it all for the one thing Dana had wanted more than anything.

“I-I” Dana’s words caught in her throat as she considered her options and as she looked up into Alice‘s eyes, she remorsefully made her decision. She was keeping Alice, even if it wasn’t in the way she wanted, she still had Alice in her life. “I think we should be friends Al. I’d be lying if I said I didn’t want to give you another chance, but I don’t want to lose you. I don’t want to hurt you and I don’t want to get hurt and the only way I see that working is if we are just friends.”

The way Alice was feeling as Dana spoke was indescribable even to Alice herself. The closest comparison she could think of was the way you feel when you’ve heard someone you love has passed away. That sensation of a million emotions rushing through your body at once coupled with complete emptiness; crashing together to a point where you just feel like gagging so that you can drain yourself of everything. That, to an extent, was how Alice felt at the idea of being ‘just friends.’

“I-I’m glad we sorted this out,” Alice replied after a few minutes in a detached tone, her eyes locked into the empty space in front of her as to avoid Dana’s worried expression. “It’s good to know I’ll still have you around.”

Before Dana could reply Alice had risen from her chair and walked out The Planet doors, her head hung in confusion. Dana remained sitting, a look of pure distaste forming on her face as she realised what an idiot she had been. Neither of them wanted this. It was at this time that Dana came to a realisation that all of her friends and Alice’s had come to many months earlier; that herself and Alice subconsciously skirted around issues and created the obstacles in their lives because they didn’t want to be happy. They were scared of being happy. And this frightening yet enlightening idea was what led Dana straight to Alice‘s door.