Chapter Text
Nicholas Oates leaned against the ship's railing, a frosty beer cradled in his hand. It was only his second day aboard this lavish cruise he had splurged on, but the thrill of it all had faded quickly. He had already lost track of how many beers he'd consumed that morning, yet he reached for another from the bar, the chime of laughter and clinking glasses offering a temporary reprieve.
Settling into a cozy spot, he found himself engaged in conversation with a striking blonde, her smile bright and inviting.
"New chapter, new view," Nick was saying to the woman, his smile not quite reaching his eyes.
"Very poetic," the woman responded as Nick turned to her. "Not enjoying the luxuries, are you?"
"I'm just trying to find something that lasts longer than a sunset," he responded, his gaze drifting back out to the sea as he picked up another beer and drank it.
"You know," she said, glancing at him thoughtfully, "whatever pain you're trying to escape from won't just vanish with girls and beer."
"Excuse me?" Nick asked.
"Well, since we have been talking, I have seen you drink two of those and I know for a fact since yesterday you have slept with several woman on this ship," the blonde said, Nick raising an eyebrow to her. "Things get around to the single woman on here... So, what are you hiding from?"
"What are you, some type of therapist?" Nick asked, getting up, but the girl stood to follow him.
"Psychologist, actually," the woman said, as he opened a door and walked off the dock into the ship, itself, and Nick groaned, thinking he picked the wrong girl.
"Look, I…" Nick paused as they passed by a lounge and he heard singing.
"We danced under stars, in different skies. Our love bridged gaps between past and sigh. Through every moment, our bond took hold. In your arms my heart finds it home," the singer sang; Nick didn't know the song but the voice he knew.
"That voice,…" Nick said.
"It's the ship's singer. I heard her earlier. Pretty good. Young though," the woman said.
"Unforgettable," Nick smiled, turning around and not even saying bye to the woman as he went into the lounge, following the sound of the voice,
"You're the anchor in my life's tide. The safe haven where I reside. In your eyes my future's clear. With you my love I'll persevere," the singer continued to sing as Nick pushed his way through the bar towards the voice, coming up to the front as she finished that verse – Nick saw exactly who he expected.
Sitting on a stool with a microphone in front of her, Colton Landry's guitar on her lap, her brown hair flowing down her back. She wasn't looking at Nick, concentrating on the notes she was playing on the instrument, but Nick knew her completely. This was Alice Dhawan. His Alice. He had not seen her for nearly six years, but he would always remember her face and her voice.
"Time may bend, and moments fade. But our love remains, an endless shade. Wherever we roam, we'll find our way. Together, our love will light the day," Alice continued to sing, only occasionally looking up, but not obviously focusing on her audience; Nick was begging her with his mind for her to see him. He had completely forgotten the beer in his right hand as he watched her finish the song. "You're the anchor in my life's tide. The safe haven where I reside. In your eyes my future's clear. With you, my love, I'll persevere."
Alice finished her lyrics and, after a few notes, she was done and then stopped. She gave a smile out to the crowd as she finished, the crowd clapped, but none louder than Nick.
"That was Timeless Heartbeat," Alice said into the microphone. "An original by me Ali Landry," Nick frowned at her using her mom's family name, not her birth last name, "if you enjoyed that, you can see all my original music by following the barcode on the sheets around the lounge," she gave a smile out. "Now, my set is almost done but I have time for one more. Any requests from the audience?"
Before anyone else could say anything, Nick yelled out: "Hit Me Baby One More Time!"
Nick finally got what he wanted as Alice looked to him. Nick was worried for a second that she wouldn't recognize him, but then saw the look she gave him was surprise – maybe even shock – but then her look softened and she gave out a smile. It was different from the smile she had on her face before. That smile hadn't reached her eyes. It was planted on for the audience. This was a true smile, small and simple as she looked at Nick for a second.
"Hit Me Baby One More Time," Alice said. "A Britney Spears smash hit from the 90s. Good choice, sir." Alice tilted her head a bit. "I sang this once for the first boy I ever kissed on the beach..." Nick smiled as Alice added that line before she started to play. She remembered exactly why Nick had chosen this song.
"Oh, baby, baby. Oh, baby, baby," As Alice played the song and the words hit Nick, the music almost transported him back to that day in 99. "Oh, baby, baby, how was I supposed to know, that somethin' wasn't right here? Oh, baby, baby, I shouldn't have let you go, and now you're out of sight, yeah." As Alice continued to sing, he remembered it so clearly: the way he had failed at playing the guitar, Kat suggesting Alice play. Alice crushing it, like she was crushing it now.
"Show me how you want it to be," Alice's eyes remained on Nick now as she sang. "Tell me, baby, 'cause I need to know now. Oh, because, my loneliness is killin' me and I… I must confess, I still believe – still believe. When I'm not with you, I lose my mind. Give me a sign Hit me, baby, one more time…" He had fallen in love with her that moment in the 90s, before they even ran away from the police and all the adventures that followed. As she continued the song, Nick's mind went over their relationship from back in 99 and the early 2000s.
Now was the first time in a long time he had felt happy again.
When the song came to a close, he didn't want it to end, he wanted to listen to Alice sing forever. But of course, the song didn't go on forever and, as Alice hit the last chord, the audience gave her the proper applause.
"Well then, that's it for now and it's my last show here today, but you can look at the times of all my shows for the week on the ships' itinerary. I play a large selection of classic hits, originals made by both me and my grandfather, and even folk songs from my hometown of Port Haven, so every performance is different. I will also be singing with Blue Horizon Band tonight on the main stage as your dinner entertainment," Alice said. "Enjoy the rest of the day at sea!"
Alice got off her stool and took her guitar with her, she then turned to Nick and Nick couldn't help but grin as she walked right over to him. The rest of the audience dispersed at this, some momentarily lingering to see if Alice would greet them, but obviously deciding to do that later, leaving Alice alone.
"Nicholas Oates," Alice said, reaching Nick and giving him a smile, opening her arms up. Nick brought her into a hug, being careful not to crush the guitar as he did.
"Alice Dhawan," Nick said, "or is it Ali Landry?" Nick had grabbed a paper flier with the barcode Alice had been talking about; it also had a picture of her and the name 'Ali Landry' on it.
Alice gave a giggle. "My last name was changed to Landry, but my first name is still Alice," Alice said. "Ali Landry just sounded good for my musical career, especially since I went off the whole small town founding family angle." Nick gave a nod, agreeing Ali Landry sounded nice. "Since dad and Rachel have two kids now, he wasn't too bothered about my changing my name – not that he had a choice in the matter," she gave a chuckle. "I'd suggest we get a drink and catch up, but I feel you had several drinks today?"
"Um… well… I," Nick said, not knowing what to say as he looked down at the beer in his hand. He knew he must have smelled like beer as well. For the first time that day he was embarrassed by that.
"Have you eaten?" Alice asked.
"No," Nick admitted.
"Let's go get some lunch," Alice said.
"Sounds great," Nick said.
-The Way Home-
Alice had brought Nick to the little burger place they had on the ship, once Nick had brought a travel body spray to cover the smell of beer, just in case. The two both got burgers; Alice got fries and Nick, onion rings, while Alice had ordered mozzarella sticks for the table. Nick was almost surprised as Alice got some ship special mixed drink.
"How old are you now?" Nick had to ask.
"23," Alice said as she took a sip from her glass and Nick didn't know why he smirked. "It's been a while. I think since 2025? You never came back to Port Haven."
"Claire decided she didn't want to move there," Nick said. It was the first time he had thought of Claire since he saw Alice and it dampened his mood. He wanted off the topic. "But how did you become the singer on board?"
"Well, when I graduated High School, I decided not to go to college, which really pissed off my dad – another reason I took my mom's last name, considering she's far more supportive of my music career than my dad," Alice said and Nick decided not to pry into that. "I took a job under mom at the paper, but started posting me singing online a mix of classics, grandpa's songs, and my first originals on the side. Through that, I managed to get gigs, then spent some time traveling in a car from place to place, playing little small-hole areas. The right people heard me and here I am my second year into a five-year contract to be the ship singer here on Blue Horizon."
Alice smiled as she grabbed one of the mozzarella sticks and dipped it into the sauce, biting it before she continued talking. "It's honestly great," Alice continued, once she shallowed. "I managed to record several albums and the ship lets me advertise them. I get room and food on board. Pay's not the greatest but it's not bad either, considering everything I get on board is basically free for me. Plus, I get to explore the world."
"Yeah, I get it," Nick had continued to eat his burger as they talked, listening intently to every word Alice said. Alice taking her own bites of her food between sentences as well. "I kind of lost track of everyone in Port Haven, though, even Elliot, but I know he and your mom ended? I never got the full story." Nick pointed out.
Alice shallowed what she had been chewing. "Oh damn, you are that far behind," she said. "They have been over for years. At the time I didn't really get it but now I understand. Elliot didn't really love mom for who she was – he loved the idea of her and being in our family. Mom didn't love Elliot. He was a safe option. They realized they were friends only. Elliot actually got back together with his ex-wife."
"Emma?" Nick said shocked.
"Decided to give it another shot. He said he never really gave her a chance," Alice said. "He's left Port Haven to be with her and last I heard they had a kid together. A daughter."
"Wow, go El – but I feel bad for your mom," Nick frowned.
"Oh, don't," Alice said. "She's happier than ever," Nick was stunned. "Did you ever know of Thomas Coyle?"
"The dude from the 1800s that Elliot was majorly jealous of?" Nick asked with a chuckle, remembering Elliot's reaction back in the day.
"That's the one. The Pond somehow brought him forward in time," Alice said, lowering her voice so they weren't overheard.
"I didn't think that was possible," Nick was stunned.
"We didn't either, but we think the Pond maybe decided to give mom a gift – and that ex-lawyer-turned-farmer, Sam Bishop, somehow knew how to get Thomas an identity in our time. Mom and Thomas married right away," Alice said, taking out her cellphone and Nick figured she was going for picture. He was proven right as Alice turned it around to show Nick a picture of Kat in a white dress with a man Nick didn't know, but figured was Thomas besides her in a suit. Jacob was next to Thomas in a suit of his own and Alice was next to her mother in a purple dress. "I was mom's Maid of Honor and Jacob served as Best Man."
"They look happy," Nick said.
"Very, and they decided they wanted a family of their own so they went for fertility treatments. They now got twin boys," Alice said, searching through her pictures before turning it around to show Nick two young boys who looked identical, besides the different colored outfits. "TJ and CC."
"TJ and CC?" Nick asked.
"Thomas Coyle Junor and Colton Coyle," Alice said, and Nick laughed at that. "They just turned three. They call me Sissy. I don't get home as much as I would like to see them but we video chat a lot."
"Sounds like the Landry Farm is crowded," Nick said.
"Actually, mom used the advance from her first book to buy Elliot's house," Alice said. "Considering he no longer lives in Port Haven."
"Book…?" Nick asked.
"Wow you really have lost touch with home. She published a series of books titled 'The Port Haven Chronicles'," Alice explained. "A historical fiction taking place during the founding of our town where Elijah Landry adopted son gets into trouble with the villainous Cyrus Goodwin but his long-lost sister, the White Witch, goes to save him. The town loves it and it brings more tourist in."
"Oh yeah very historical fiction," Nick said sarcastically, and Alice gave a laugh.
"Well, the White Witch is actually a witch in the book. They have actually gotten quite popular. Honestly, I'm surprised you haven't seen them," Alice said and Nick had to laugh at that too, making a mental note to check out these books. "Oh, and grandma got married as well," Nick was surprised at that, and Alice showed him a new picture of Del now, in a wedding dress with an older man he vaguely recognized. Kat and Alice were in the same dress next to Del, wearing red dresses this time and Jacob and Thomas were there as well. "She's retired from farm life – finally."
"So, who's looking after Landry Farm?" Nick asked.
"Jacob and his new wife. They are expecting their first," Alice said, now showing Nick a photo of Jacob with a woman Nick didn't know. "Jacob is pushing to name the baby Elijah for a boy or Susanna for a girl."
"Well, a happy ending all around for all the Landry's," Nick said. "Well besides… I mean…" Nick didn't know how to phrase his question, but he almost didn't want to know the answer. Was Alice taken? "Are you…? I mean is there…? Do you…?"
"I am going to need more," Alice said, toying with a French Fry and dipping it in mustard before eating it.
"Are you still with that guy… um… Nolan?" Nick said, trying to figure out the name and hoping he got it right.
"Nolan?" Alice asked, making a face and Nick figured he got it wrong. "Wait? Noah?!" Nick gave a nod. That had been it. "Oh lord no! That's been over for far longer than it was a thing. No, I am not with Noah – besides, he was too much like my dad. And, no, I am not with Max."
"There was a Max?" Nick asked.
"There was a Max," Alice said. "Max Goodwin. Eveyln's grandchild. That lasted a bit longer than Noah but the long-distance thing kind of killed it. Come to think of it, he was my last real relationship. No, I am happily single, exploring the high seas. Oh, must make a note of that," she quickly wrote 'exploring the high seas' on her phone, under a category called 'potential song titles'.
"Oh, good," Nick chuckled, smirking before he realized what he'd said. "I don't mean good you are single. I mean… good you are happy." Alice chuckled as she grabbed one of Nick's onion rings off his plate.
"Don't mind?" Alice asked.
"Take what you please," Nick said, watching as Alice took a bite.
"So, enough about me," Alice said. "What about you? What brings you aboard our beautiful luxury cruise Blue Horizon? Just a vacation? Second honeymoon? Come to think of it, where is the wife? I'd love to finally meet this mysterious Claire."
"I'm not married," Nick said abruptly to that.
"What?" Alice frowned. "Your moms told us you eloped?"
"We did, and I thought we were happy. But she didn't want to go back to Port Haven and I thought going back, I might get obsessive over the pond," Nick said and Alice gave a nod, knowing that feeling well. "So, I thought we made a life with each other, and I was over the moon when she told me she was pregnant. I even booked this to be our babymoon."
"What happened?" Alice asked, frowning now. "Did she and the baby…?" Alice trailed off.
"Nothing that dramatic," Nick said, knowing Alice assumed they had both died. "The real father showed up – paternity test proved I wasn't the father. You don't know how crushed you can be, seeing this future, a baby, taken away from you. Well, we got a divorce which I got majorly screwed over in. Lost the house and pretty much anything I didn't own before the marriage. Suppose I'm lucky she couldn't apply for child support, too… but she quickly got remarried," Nick looked at the food left on his plate, no longer hungry. "The tickets were nonrefundable," Nick continued, looking back up at Alice. "So, I figured why the hell not?"
"Should have realized it would be bad when the tickets, booking and everything associated with this were for Mr. – and Mrs. – Oates, though," Nick sighed, not having thought to try and at least change the booking before he went, "but here I am, drowning my sorrows on an amazing cruise ship."
Nick was surprised when Alice took his hand and he looked back to her, his eyes having trailed away when he'd gone into his story; he expected pity in her eyes but all he saw was care. She held his hand tight.
"It's her loss," Alice said. "You are an amazing guy, Nicholas Oates. You are simply wonderful, and you will be an amazing father someday. A girl who had the nerve to cheat on you doesn't deserve the wonderful man you are, and the wonderful father you will be."
"You mean it?" Nick asked, surprised by these words.
"That night at the cove is still what I measure all men by," Alice said quietly, giving Nick a smile. "I know you, Nick. Trust me."
"At this point in my life I am thinking kids are not going to happen," Nick sighed, truthfully. "I'm in my 40s now – well, the same age as your mom, obviously," he mused, having been school friends with Kat and Elliot, "but I don't have the person to have children with…"
"Then that is a crying shame," Alice said, squeezing his hand. Nick looking down at it and realized what she was wearing on her wrist: the bracelet he had made as a teen with the fishhooks!
"Wait, you still have it?" Nick asked, tracing it with his fingers.
"Of course," Alice said. "Best gift a boy ever gave me."
Nick offered a smile in response, his demeanor lightening as they both continued to enjoy their lunch. As they ate, the conversation shifted away from the weighty topics they had discussed earlier, gradually transforming into more casual small talk. Laughter punctuated their exchanges, making the atmosphere feel warm and relaxed as they neared the end of their meal.
"Ali!" A voice called, and Alice turned. There were a couple of men standing there, around Alice's age and Nick suddenly got very jealous. "We need to do the sound check for tonight."
"Be there in a moment," Alice called over to them, and the lead boy waved and the group moved off. "Sorry, the band. I need to get back to work," Alice finished her last fry. "You can take the last mozzarella stick."
"Oh, thanks," Nick said, as Alice went to grab her guitar that had been leaning against the table. As she went to move past him, Nick took hold of her hand. "Will we see each other again?"
"It's a big ship but it's not that big," Alice chuckled. "Besides, I assume you will be at dinner tonight?" Nick gave a nod. "Then yes, Nick, we will see each other again," Nick didn't let go of Alice's hand. There was something else he wanted to ask. "Nick…?"
"That song," Nick said, and Alice looked at him, waiting for more. "The one you were singing when I entered the lounge, before Britney. You said it was an original…?"
"Timeless Heartbeat," Alice nodded. "Yes, I wrote it. A long time ago. It was one of my first originals. One of my favorites too. What about it?"
"What is it about?" Nick asked.
"Oh, Nick," Alice said, coming closer and putting an arm around Nick's neck and leaning in so she was speaking in his ear. "You found Elliot's journal of my adventures. You know who I am. You know exactly what that song is about..." Alice kissed his cheek and Nick relinquished his grip. She then moved away from him without another word.
Nick put his hand to his cheek, stunned for a moment and then he took out the flyer he had taken from the lounge, the one with the barcode for Alice's music. He took out his cellphone, thankful he had paid extra for the WiFi and scanned the code. It led him to where he could buy Alice's music; she had apparently published three albums. One was called 'Landry Farm Music', written by Colton Landry, the next was 'Folk Song of Port Haven', and the third was what he was looking for. It was titled 'Pond Wandering' and Nick knew this had to be Alice's originals.
He clicked on it. There were 10 songs in this album and Nick knew from the titles all of them had to be inspired by Alice's time in Port Haven. The first was titled 'Need to Be', while there was one simply titled 'The Pond', meanwhile 'Timeless Heartbeat' was the 7th song on the album and, from customer ratings, seemed to be one of the most popular.
Nick looked at the title for a moment and then hit to buy album, but he knew he was going to buy all three though. If he could listen to Alice's voice whenever he wanted, he wanted as many songs as possible to listen to.
Once the songs were downloaded, Nick went right to 'Timeless Heartbeat'. He took out his ear buds and then pushed to listen. It was a moment before Alice's voice was singing in his ear: "In the echoes of time, I hear your voice. A whispered promise, a heartfelt choice. To follow the path, where love will lead. Through seasons and years, our hearts will meet." Nick got sucked into the music as he listened and played with the rest of his food. Just wanting to continue to hear Alice's song.
He found himself lost in the music, completely captivated as he played with the remnants of his meal. He didn't want the melody of Alice's song to end.
-The Way Home-
Nick sat alone at the dining room table, which was set for four. Each night, the same group gathered but tonight was different. Having purchased two tickets, he found himself with an unoccupied seat, as only he had shown up. The other two women at the table were friends, both around his age and clearly enjoying their getaway together. Just the night before he had invited them both to his cabin for a wild encounter – a decision he was now beginning to regret deeply.
The dining hall was large and had a big stage where, each night, there was different entertainment. The night before, Nick had barely paid attention to the entertainment and was more focused on booze, food, and the two females with him; making sure they weren't married before making his move. He had no interest in married woman. He would never do to another guy what had been done to him.
Now though he had barely touched the food; he was turned around in his seat to face the stage, his hand on the empty chair next to him. Alice was up there with the band, who were faceless males to Nick though, despite having briefly seen them earlier. Their only purpose, to him, was providing music for Alice's beautiful voice to sing. Personally, Nick would have just listened to her sing without a band – or preferably with her playing her own guitar.
Alice's voice was as beautiful as ever. She was wearing this amazing silver dress that perfectly shaped her body – Nick's eyes going to her breasts, which were perfectly outlined by the fabric.
"Kat is going to kill me…" Nick mumbled under his breath as he realized he was staring.
As Alice continued to sing, she moved around the stage a bit. The dress had a slit on the right side, exposing her leg as she walked. Nick couldn't help but picture running his hand up that leg under the dress.
"…Elliot will help her," Nick mumbled, trying to get his mind off this, but Alice had turned a bit as she sang and Nick could see how the dress perfectly framed her butt. "…and this Thomas will join them." Nick added.
"You know, she's young enough to be your daughter," one of the females at his table spoke, and Nick really couldn't remember their names at all as he briefly turned to her.
"Trust me, I am painfully aware of the age gap," Nick moaned, but kept his eyes on Alice as she continued singing with the band. Nick was disappointed when the Captain came up, knowing that signaled the end.
"Everyone, please give a hand for Ali Landry and Blue Horizon Band!" The captain said, and Alice took a bow as people started to clap and then signaled for the band to bow as well.
Nick watched as Alice left the stage and moved through the tables, heading for the back of the room. She stopped and started talking to another female employee in the back. Nick got up and went towards her.
"Alice," Nick said, once he approached. He saw the other employee mouth to her as Alice turned.
"Nick," Alice said, smiling at him. "Enjoy the show?"
"Amazing as usual," Nick said. "I downloaded and listened to 'Timeless Heartbeat'."
"Oh, did you enjoy?" Alice asked, putting a hand on his shoulder. Nick wondered if she was teasing him with the physical contact.
"Loved it. Listened to it probably a dozen time and then all your other originals – and even the Port Haven Folk songs and Colton's songs. Didn't realize Colton wrote so many," Nick said, surprised there were more than two songs under Colton's originals.
"Grandpa never stopped writing to the day he died. I found all his music in the cellar of Landry Farm," Alice said, and Nick gave a nod, but before he could say anything the girl Alice had been talking to cleared her throat. Nick had forgotten she was there.
"Ali?" She said, indicating she wanted to be introduced – or save Alice from the older man.
"Oh, Nick this is Amy. She's one of the on-board nurses," Alice said. "Amy, this is Nick. He's from my hometown. Grew up with my mom."
"Oh, so you are a friend of Ali's mom?" Amy said.
"I'd like to think me and Alice are friends too," Nick said, not being able to use 'Ali' to refer to Alice. She was Alice. His Alice.
"Yes, we are," Alice said, moving her hand down his shoulder and taking hold of his hand. "After everything… of course we are," Nick gave a smile as Amy frowned. He didn't want to say more in front of someone who wasn't in the know about the Pond or time traveling.
"Can we get out of here?" Nick asked.
"Love to, but…" Alice said and Nick groaned at the 'but'. "I have to stay until the Captain officially concludes dinner – in case he decides me and the band should do an encore."
"Ah," Nick said, a bit disappointed.
"I also have to wander the hall a bit. But stay and you can walk me back to my cabin after dinner," Alice said.
"Of course," Nick smiled as Alice went to move passed him, to start going around the room. Alice placed her hand over Nick's chest as she moved, and Nick turned to look as she walked away. He couldn't help but picture himself rip that dress off Alice.
'They will take me to the 1800s to do it… so, there is no proof of my murder,' Nick thought as he watched Alice start to chat to other guests.
"You are her mom's friend…?" Amy said, breaking Nick out of his daydreams.
"Why does everyone want to caption my horror today?" Nick asked, seeing the look in this nurse's eyes and decided not to try to explain. He had no idea how to, so he moved back over to his table, to wait for when he could be alone with Alice.
-The Way Home-
At the end of dinner, Alice found Nick and the man almost smirked at the shocked looks from his table companion. He held out his arm to Alice, who took it, leaning into him as they left the dining hall and started moving towards the ship. Nick taking directions from Alice on where to go.
"Let's go out on deck for a bit," Alice said, and Nick didn't argue as they went onto the deck. At this time of the night, it was very private. "Oh, don't you just love it? The sea., The ocean air... The rock of the boat…"
"I used to work on yachts," Nick reminded Alice.
"Oh yeah, you did. Whatever happen to that job?" Alice asked, putting her head on Nick's shoulder as they watched the waves.
"Gave it up for Claire. Traveling all the time wasn't good for a relationship," Nick said, remembering how sure he had been when he quit that job; how Claire had pressured him to be home more and he had gone for it. His job now was very dull and soul crushing. "So much for that," he added, more to himself.
"She wasn't good for a relationship," Alice pointed out. "If it's the right person, the relationship should be able to handle a traveling job." Nick gave a smile at that.
"The song is about me," Nick said after a moment of silence as they watched the ocean. Alice turned to look at him. "Timeless Heartbeat. It's about me, isn't it?"
"You know it is," Alice said. "A song about my first love. How I felt about us then. I wrote a song once about having to break up with you but never had the heart to record it," Nick was glad she hadn't; he didn't know if he could handle listening to their breakup in a song.
"So, you did love me?" Nick asked. To this day he had been unsure if Alice had really loved him. At the time she had been a little reluctant to be in a relationship, and after all this time he understood she ended things because of the time traveling aspect, because she realized they couldn't really be together. But he had never actually heard her say she loved him.
"Of course I loved you," Alice said. "Honestly, part of me will always love you."
"Same," Nick said, taking a breath in. There was no more words needed there.
"It's getting late," Alice finally said. "Finish walking me to my cabin?"
Nick put his arm around Alice as they moved back, and through the ship. The two walking slowly as they went towards the private cabins. Nick's own cabin was in a completely different direction, with the rest of the guests, but he didn't care as they moved. Then Alice stopped outside a door.
"This is me," Alice said.
"Oh," Nick didn't want their walk to end.
"Goodnight, Nick," Alice paused.
Before Alice could move to open the door, Nick grabbed her closed and bent down, kissing her. He couldn't help it anymore, but he was pleased – and maybe a little surprised – when Alice returned the kiss, the pair passionately kissing in front of Alice's door. Nick wanted Alice to open the door, to let him in and do this where no one else would see them.
But after a while of a heavy kissing, Alice's hand went to his chest and pushed him away. The two were standing extremely close in front of the door, however.
"Nick," Alice said, lowly.
"It's my age?" Nick asked, wanting more than anything to be the same age as Alice again.
"No," Alice said. "I could get pass the age. Honestly, you've aged beautifully and deep down you are still the boy I fell for," Alice put a hand on Nick's cheek, and they stared at each other, "but you have just gotten out of a relationship – in one of the worst ways possible. And Nick, it's a big ship but small when it comes to gossip. The minute people saw me talking to you, multiple women came up to warn me. For only being the second day of our trip, you have gotten around," she gave a small smile at this, but Nick groaned, almost guessing which women they could be. "And I refuse to be anyone rebound – especially you Nick. I was crushed once by you – I know, not your fault – but still I refuse to be crushed again."
"No, Alice," Nick said, grabbing both of Alice's hands before she could move off. "You are not a rebound. All those other girls, the alcohol… it's true they were used to numb the pain and they made me forget for a second. But only for those moments – and then I was miserable again. Since I saw you, everything has changed. The pain… it's not just numbed. It's gone! You are all I can think about. Because you are the dream girl. The girl I have been in love with since 1999."
"So, wish fulfillment then?" Alice asked.
"No, Alice I am serious. You are the girl," Nick said. "The girl I always wanted. Do you know why I didn't get married until Claire?" Alice shook her head. "Because I was looking for you. Every woman with dark hair, every time I looked at their face, I was looking for you. I wandered the world looking for you. I don't think I really realized it, but I was always looking for you, wanting to see you again, wanting to understand exactly what happened."
"Oh, Nick…" Alice began, but Nick continued, regardless.
"You were there at Lingermore, and I thought it was a dream," Nick bemused, Alice remembering attending that party, too. "When you answered the door that day in 2023, I knew the minute I saw you. I knew in my heart, but my head wouldn't let me put the pieces together. Because it was impossible for you to still be 15. The next year when I heard you singing, my ears and heart knew again but my head would not let me believe it. Not until I saw Elliot's journal and finally knew the truth. When I said you were too young, I didn't mean I was horrified by our relationship in 1999; I was upset you were too young for me now. But now you are an adult. People might not get our age difference, but it doesn't matter."
"Nick–" Alice tried again.
"No, no," Nick said, cutting Alice off once more. "You have me hooked, Alice." Nick put a hand on Alice's bracelet. The one he'd made. "Just reel me in. I will make it simple for you."
"How do I know your words are true?" Alice asked, and Nick could see she wanted to believe him. She wanted to be with him and that was the only chance Nick needed.
"Let me prove it," Nick said.
"How?" Alice asked.
"We go into port tomorrow in the Bahamas, right?" Nick asked, and Alice gave a nod. The ship took day-breaks at various ports, the Bahamas being the first one. "Do you have to remain on board?" Nick had to remember, Alice wasn't here for fun. She was working.
"I am free tomorrow. No point of on-board entertainment when the ship will mostly be empty. I can go ashore. I do need to be back by a certain time, though," Alice said. "I usually spend time with some of my co-workers, exploring."
"Come with me, instead," Nick said. "I will show you that no one else, but you mean anything to me."
"So… a date?" Alice asked.
"A date," Nick confirmed.
"Okay, it's a date," Alice said, moving forward and kissing Nick's cheek. "I'll meet you at the main entrance of the ship ready to depart. Goodnight, Nick." Alice opened her door and walked into the cabin, closing the door behind her.
Nick stared at the door for a moment, a smirk playing on his lips. He had another date with Alice, his dream girl. This time, he was determined to make it unforgettable, eager to show her just how much she meant to him.