Snowed In

Alicia let out a long sigh as she sat in one of the countless hallways in the hotel. It seemed like everyone had ended up happily ever after except her and she just wanted out of here. She didn’t want to see Liam’s face anymore and she just wanted to go home, curl into a ball and never be disturbed ever again as long as she lived.

But of course the moment the handsome boy crossed her mind he was walking towards her, his hands stuffed into his pockets as he looked sheepishly at the ground. She just wanted to slap him and kiss him at the same time as he plopped down beside her, running a hand through his hair.

“Look, Alicia…” He started, about to gnaw his lower lip off. “I um… I need to talk to you about something.”

“Liam, I told you I’d think about it.” She said, biting her own lip.

“Well, there’s something you need to know while you’re thinking about it.” He said simply, looking at her. He took a deep breath, closing his eyes before he spoke. “Mia is my cousin.”

“So… you’re a kissing cousin kind of guy?” She asked.

“Can you be serious for thirty seconds?” He snapped, running his hands through his short hair again.

“Sorry.”

“No… I’m sorry. When I saw how disappointed you were when you thought I had a girlfriend I…” He licked his lips nervously before turning to her. “I wanted to make you jealous.” It took a moment for his words to sink in, but when they did Alicia reached out, slapping him as her lower lip trembled. “I deserved that.”

“You asshole!” She hissed, shoving him as hard as she could. “We could fucking die up here and you-” She went to shove him again but he grabbed her wrists effortlessly in one hand, setting the other over her mouth.

“Let me explain.” He pleaded. She sighed, nodding as he slowly pulled his hand from her lips. He looked at her, making sure she wasn’t going to take a shot at his fingers as she glared at him. “I saw that you were disappointed when I mentioned her. And something inside of me knew it was wrong I promise. But I wanted to see if you felt the same way.”

“Why didn’t you just ask?” She demanded, trying to pull her hands away, but he kept them pinned.

“Because like I said before, sometimes it’s just impossible for me to talk to you. I want to say everything on my mind but all that comes out is bullshit and sarcasm. I didn’t know how to tell you I was faking dating Mia until the other night when I knew I might lose you.” He looked into her eyes for a long time, causing Alicia to blush. “Please. I just…”

“If I did that, would you forgive me?” She whispered, looking at him. He winced before pressing his lips together and letting out a long sigh.

“Probably not, but these aren’t exactly normal circumstances.” He tried. “Like you said, we could die any moment. Do you really want to go out holding a grudge against me?” She sighed, running her fingers through her hair as she took a deep breath.

“So, given the circumstances, would you forgive me if I pulled this bullshit on you?” He sighed again, chewing his lower lip. She just looked at him as he sat there, and she had to admit it was a bit unnerving. He always seemed so sassy and always had something to say. So to see him this unsure of himself and nervous was… weird.

“No.” He said finally, his eyes staying locked on the carpet. “I probably wouldn’t forgive you. I might pretend to to make sure I at least got laid one last time before I froze to death, but I don’t think that, deep down, I would actually forgive you.” He then looked over at her, his brown eyes sad.

There was an uncomfortable silence hanging between the two of them, almost like a wall. Alicia wanted to just tear it down, just grab him and tell him she forgave him, but there was something holding her back. If Liam was willing to pull shit like this when they were all on the verge of freezing to death, what would he be like when they got out?

If they got out.

She sighed, knowing that Liam was right. She didn’t want to die holding onto a grudge, and she already knew from Liam’s confession the other night he had a hard time expressing his feelings to her. Besides, if they were going to die here, she might as well enjoy what time she had left.

With that she turned to Liam, who looked like someone had just run over his puppy. “I take it this is my cue to leave then?” He whispered. He started to stand but she grabbed his wrist. He turned to face her and she crashed her lips to his, knocking him off his guard for a moment before pulling her even closer. He grabbed her hip, trying to fuse their bodies into one until a loud cough broke them apart.

The pair flushed as they looked up to see Harry and Sam, chuckling at them. “You know.” Sam said, still giggling. “There’s like, a hundred bedrooms for that sort of thing.” Liam and Alicia laughed along nervously as he helped her up to see Harry and Samantha smiling at them.

“So.” Harry said, smiling at his friend. “You two are good then?”

“Yeah.” Alicia said, smiling as Liam gripped her hand tightly. “We’re good.”