Two Proposals, One Wedding

Present Tense: James

James rode to the address where Alice was staying while she was in the city, it was close to her grandmother's house so it wasn't too hard to find. Again, he parked his motorcycle and entered the building finding his way to the elevator then pushed the button to take him upstairs. Before the elevator doors opened, he heard a familiar voice behind him.

"James? What are you doing here?" Alice asked when she saw James waiting for an elevator.

James turned around and saw Alice, it looked like she just arrived as she still had her car keys in her hands. "Alice. I came to apologize, Renald told me where you were staying. I hope that's okay." James walked towards her, keeping a distance between them.

"Where's Renald?" Alice asked.

"I gave him a ride home before I came over, he said he had to work first thing tomorrow morning." James jingled the keys in his hand, he had so many words to say but none seemed to come out of his mouth. "Did you just come in?" James asked instead.

"Yeah, I dropped off my kids at a sleepover with their cousins at Grandma's house." Alice put her car keys in her pocket and took out her room key from the other.

"You got kids?" James asked, surprised that she didn't post this news on her social media.

"My nieces, Adelle's kids." Alice smiled. "What are you doing here James?" Alice pressed on the elevator button again, as they missed the lift when James pressed on it.

"I came to apologize for my behaviour tonight. Should we go somewhere? You got anything planned early tomorrow?" James asked.

Alice paused, thinking about what her plans were for tomorrow, "Well, not really, I need to pick up my brother Andrew tomorrow night from the airport."

"Wanna go out for a few drinks? For old time's sake?" James held his breath in hopes she'd say yes. Alice paced her eyes from the door to the elevator, trying to think of some reason to say no but there was a voice in her head that told her to go, maybe to get closure. Even so, she wants to go, what's there to lose anyway?

Alice left the building and saw where James parked his bike, "You upgraded your ride." James chuckled reached for his helmet and gave it to Alice to wear. "I knew you wouldn't recognize her, it's the same bike from five years ago. I did upgrade a few things, but she's still the same." James threw his leg over the bike and started it, Alice followed then wore the helmet on her head, it was too big for her but she made sure to have the strap on tight because if she truly knew James, he would still care for her safety more before his.

The ride was nostalgic, it was the same feeling she had when she first rode at the back of James' motorcycle, it was exciting and adventurous. The feeling of the wind on her face makes her feel alive after many years of being away from home, and yes, this is her home. She made many memories here, she created a bond with her friends here, she grew up here, and this city made her feel like she could conquer anything, the world even. James brought her to where he had taken her for their fake Valentine's date years ago, Alice recognized the area but both had different memories there, James remembered being nervous while Alice remembered being excited because it was where she got the phone call from Niño, and where James wanted to ask Alice to be his girlfriend. It is a little weird about having a different point of view, it's the same as being the main character of your life and everyone supporting characters.

James helped Alice get down from his bike by holding her hand as she climbed down, James let out a heavy sigh and smiled at the memory, "What are you smiling about?" Alice asked, curious to know what was in his mind. "I just realized that this was the place where I took you on a date once. Funny, it seemed like it was on a different lifetime but it had only been a few years." James walked towards a rail that separates the edge of the area and the soft waves crashing onto the wall.