Alice stood in front of her boyfriend's door, nerves staying her hand from knocking. Jerome said he had needed a few days to himself after their last fight, some 'space' as he had put it. She hated that word, wanting to talk about it, to hear him yell at her, anything but being shut out. But Alice knew he worked differently, processed at a different speed, and respected that.
It didn't make the wait any easier, though.
As Friday rolled around, she couldn't take it any more and made her way over to his apartment. Anymore time and she'd tear her hair out, or kill him, definitely one of the two. Raising her hand to the door for the third time, she brought it back down to her side, before huffing at her own indecision.
"Oh for fuck sakes, you silly girl" she said to no one but her own pride and ego, finally gently knocking on the dark metal door. What were doors even made of anymore? Definitely not wood, but would it be called metal? Plastic? They all looked the same walking down this hallway, like an endless line of ambiguous entrances. Thankfully Jerome answered quickly, putting an end to her spiraling distraction.
He smiled, leaning his tall frame in the entrance, looking down at her. "Hey Wonderland." Alice blushed, hating that stupid nickname he often used for her, more so hating what effect it always had on her face. But he was smiling, a good sign.
She playfully swatted at him, "hey you. Can we talk?" He nodded, ushering her inside as the wooden/plastic/metal door closed behind her, but that inquisitive thought was long gone. Jerome poured them some water, sitting down at the kitchen counter so they were relatively eye level. Good, it helped when he wasn't so fucking tall, making her head spin staring up at him.
"Alice, listen I'm sorry. I overre-" Jerome's apology was cut short by her finger on his beautiful lips, shaking her head at his attempt to smooth things over.
"No, Jerome. I'm sorry. This was my own stupid fault, I didn't think it would upset you so much, but I should have." She removed her finger, resting her hand on his forearm, unable to muster the courage to look into his big brown eyes quite just yet. "I should have just trusted you, not get into my own head, listening to Lisa." Lisa and her stupid idea to 'test' her boyfriend's loyalty, as if that has ever worked out for literally any party involved.
Alice continued, holding on to the faint sliver of confidence she had before it slipped through her fingers. "I just, I don't know. After Derrick, him cheating on me...I just let it get to my head."
"Do you still not trust me after all these months?" He asked, quietly breaking her heart slightly with the look in his eyes.
"No! I do Jerome, I do!" She quickly said, cupping his cheek with her hand, getting closer to him. "I do. It was just a stupid idea that I got swept up in. I'm sorry." He sighed, his big hand holding hers to his cheek.
"You know how I hate being manipulated, Alice. Not being honest." She squirmed, looking down.
"I know..." Her voice was soft, slightly worried about losing him, knowing just how important being vocal and transparent was to him. And to her, enjoying the long nights of conversations they'd had, working through problems before they were ever really problems, laying in his arms.
"It just hurt, you know?" Jerome said, placing a finger underneath Alice's chin, forcing her to look into that stern, commanding gaze.
"I'm sorry. Really sorry." Alice softly whispered, slightly trembling as she apologised. He sighed once more, leaving her in suspended silence for far too long, held in place as he stared into her eyes. Leaning in, Jerome gripped her chin with his thumb, pulling her in for a tiny kiss, the most wonderful thing she had felt in days.
"No more games," he said, the seriousness slowly falling away from his voice, as he playfully glared at her. Alice nodded, reaching out with her arms to wrap around his neck, wanting more kisses. "And no more listening to Lisa." She laughed, giggling at his smirk as she was pulled into his arms, kissing her deeply as she made tiny little happy noises.