Maybe It's Been You All Along - Alex Turner

41

  Alex sighed, buttering his sad piece of toast and feeling like utter shit. He felt like he'd ruined her Christmas and had to stop himself from tearing up when he thought about her. The hair on the back of his neck stood up as he felt two warm arms hug around his waist from behind and a familiar scent hit his nose. He closed his eyes briefly, bathing in the warmth and then turned around remembering he owed her an explanation.

  Rosanna wasn't mad at Alex anymore, she was barely hurt either because she knew it was accidental and that he was sorry. As he turned to face her she wrapped her arms around his neck and hugged him tight.

  "Ro..." Alex started but was quickly interrupted.

  "Let's talk outside," Rosanna said and held his hand, leading him out the back door to the patio where it was nothing but furniture and snow.

  Closing the door behind her Rosanna walked Alex a few steps away from the house before she turned and looked at him.

  "Rosanna, I'm so sorry," spilled out of Alex's mouth. "I shouldn't have yelled at you honey, I should've calmed down. I didn't mean to yell at you I was just frustrated with Miles and I'm so sorry I hurt you. I understand that you're upset but I'm so sorry baby, I never meant to hurt you." Alex's eyes were watering as he spoke and a lump was growing in his throat.

  Rosanna's eyebrows were drawn together and tilted up at the centre of her face. She hated seeing him cry. She put a hand on his cheek and moved his face to look up at her. "I'm not mad at you. What did he say Al? Why were you so upset?"

Alex swallowed the lump in his throat. He didn't want Rosanna to hate Miles but he wasn't going to hide anything from her. So he told her what Miles had called him up to say and when he was finished, Rosanna was at a loss for words. She didn't know what to say.

"And as fucked as it is I don't want you to hate him," Alex said. "And I know you should and I should but...honestly...I don't know what to think."

  Rosanna nodded thoughtfully and looked at her feet, trying to gather her thoughts on what Alex had just told her. She'd always liked Miles and now...she didn't know how she was supposed to react. No wonder Alex was so upset. She didn't want to believe that Miles had actually done such a thing and tried to make excuses for it in her head that he just wanted to cover for Taylor or something like that. She always saw him as too nice to do anything like that.

  "I'm so sorry Al," Rosanna said and put a hand on his cheek. "No wonder why you were so upset."

  Alex sighed and sunk his face into her hand, "I'm sorry love, I shouldn't have gotten that angry."

  "But you had every reason to be," Rosanna said and looked up into his eyes, his lips turning purple in the cold.

  "I know but...I should've calmed down like you said and I'm sorry I got so worked up," Alex said remorsefully.

  "Stop beating yourself up Al," Rosanna said and moved closer to him, wrapping her arms around his waist. "I get why you were upset, I don't blame you for getting upset because it's what anyone would've done in that situation. And I'm not mad at you for yelling at me, it just hurt in the moment."

  Alex's heart broke. "I'm so sorry Rosanna," he said desperately. "I'll never yell at you again and I'm sorry I did, I promise."

  "Well don't say that," Rosanna said, a cheeky smile on her lips, "you're allowed to yell at me if say...I'm not paying attention to the road, or...if you're calling out to me from across a venue...or..."

  "I'm not gonna yell at you," Alex said. "I never want to ever again. Under any circumstance."

  Rosanna saw the sadness in his eyes, he really felt like shit. She pulled into his chest and hugged him tight, bathing in the warmth his body provided as she comforted him. Alex let out a deep exhale as he wrapped his arms around Rosanna and held her tight to his chest, not wanting to let go. She was so forgiving and understanding that Alex wasn't sure whether he felt relieved or guilty. As he moved down to look at her he felt immediate safety in the look in her eyes. She placed a hand on the back of his neck and pulled him in for a deep kiss. Their lips were cold to the touch but as they kiss longer and longer, their lips became the most heated part of their bodies.