Be Your Everything

Alice was in a good mood. Harry’s comment had caused her spirits to lift considerably, not to mention they were now cuddled up on the couch watching one of her all-time favourite movies – however embarrassing and stereotypical that was.
“I won’t let go. I won’t let go, Jack…” Rose whimpered as she clutched onto her lover on the television screen. Alice had tears streaming down her cheeks and was struggling to breathe through her silent sobbing. This was one of those rare occasions that she was grateful that she cried without noise.
Something wet splashed onto her shoulder, and she turned around to look at the source. Harry’s face was soaked, and his eyes were red and puffy. Alice almost laughed; he was trying to make it look like he hadn’t been crying.
“Babe, you’re not fooling me.”
He laughed, but it came out as more of a sob. Alice tried her hardest to stop herself from smiling as she swapped their positions, pulling his head into her chest and clutching at his hair.
“I feel like a woman,” he pouted pathetically, staring up at her with bloodshot eyes.
“Yes, because only women can put their head in their partner’s lap,” she rolled her eyes and averted her attention back to the screen. Harry, who didn’t say another word on the subject, seemed to take the hint. For the next 10 minutes, the two sat sniffling at the end of the movie.
“I always forget how depressing that is,” Harry commented in a thick voice. Alice patted him roughly on the head.
“Well,” she sighed loudly, pushing him off her body and onto the floor. He lay there groaning for another thirty seconds before he ran out of breath. Alice shook her head with wide eyes, “Have you gone insane? Is that what that was? Was that you letting the last of your sanity leave you?”
He laughed heartily while still lying on his back, “Sweetheart, my sanity left me long before today.”
“I can believe that.”
Their banter was interrupted by Alice’s phone ringing. She jumped over the back of the couch and bounded across the floor to reach it, “Hello?”
“Alice Michaelson?”
“That’s me,” she frowned, feeling abruptly anxious. Something about this man’s voice filled her with dread. Harry was watching her intently from the other side of the room, listening to every word she said.
“This phone call is to update you on the whereabouts of Ricardo Peters.”
Her heart seemed to stop beating. “And?”
There was a silence before the man on the other end of the line relayed the information reluctantly, “he’s been seen in London.”
Alice’s stomach dropped to her feet, “Oh. Right.”
“We’ll be sending over another man to look after you. Double the protection, you know.”
She nodded absent mindedly before realizing he couldn’t see her. “Um, okay.”
“That’s it then. Goodbye.”
The connection was broken, and Alice was left staring into empty space. Her mind was working overtime – what if Rick knew where she was? Who she was with? Who she knew?
“What was that about?” Harry’s voice caused her head to snap up, “You look worried.”
“I am worried,” she replied with a frown. It was the first time she’d said out loud what she was feeling about the Rick problem. In truth, she was terrified. The man often acted dumb, but he was actually very smart. He knew how to manipulate people, to make people think he was better than he was. Whenever Alice and her mother went out with him he would put on the act of caring, loving husband and stepfather. No one in town knew what he was like at home.
“Who was on the phone, Al?” Harry probed further.
“A police officer to tell me Rick’s been seen in the city.”
He blanched, “Seriously?”
She nodded silently. Neither spoke for a while.
“What are we going to do?”
“Act like nothing is happening.”
“That doesn’t sound like the wisest idea,” he told her honestly.
“It’s the only one I can handle right now,” she admitted, looking away. Pull yourself together, a voice inside scolded her, you’re better than this. Aware that she was right, Alice drew herself up to her full height, “Plus, there’s nothing we can do. I’ve got security, which will obviously follow me around everywhere. I can’t exactly stop living my life.”
Harry wasn’t so sure. He thought it would be safer to stick it out indoors with guards outside the door until the prick was found and taken away – but the determined light in Alice’s eyes told him that, no matter what he said, she wouldn’t let Rick ruin her life; she was going to go about things as though everything was perfectly fine.
“Stop looking at me like that,” she snapped, “I know what you’re thinking. You think I’m being stupid.”
“I didn’t say-“
“You didn’t have to.”
This new Alice was beginning to scare him. When he’d met her, she had been quiet and withdrawn, now she was questioning everything he said. She seemed much more aggressive and he found himself wondering what was going through her mind. “I just mean-“ he sighed and ran a hand through his hair, “-I mean that you don’t have to do this on your own.”
Her expression softened and she visibly deflated, “I know. And I’m grateful for that.”
“Could you do something for me?”
She nodded slowly.
“Give me a hug?”
Harry had no clue why he was feeling so bloody clingy, but all he wanted to do was hold her. He was obviously taking everything harder than she was – maybe it had something to do with the fact that he’d never had to deal with anything this horrible in his life, or maybe she was just tougher than he was.
But whatever the reason, Alice only smiled and slid her arms around his neck. Her fingers curled into his hair, holding his body close to hers, and she whispered, “I’ll be okay.”