Tongue Tied

Nathan watched as Alex laughed with some family members. She was being more social than he'd ever seen. She kissed the cheek of an older man. She laughed at him before her eyes met Nathan's. She smiled at him and looked back to the man she was talking with. She said something, smiling at him as she walked away. She was heading towards Nathan. He took a deep breath. He was still mesmerized by how beautiful she looked. She tripped a bit as she got closer to him. They laughed until she finally got to him.

"Hey." She called as she stopped in front of him.

"Al, you look fantastic tonight. You're absolutely beautiful." He sighed, leaning towards her ear. "Better than the bride."

"I know but don't tell Sab that. She'd freak." Alex teased. "Do you want anything?"

"A drink would be great." He admitted.

"Come on then." She smiled, grabbing his hand.

She held onto his hand as she led him past and around people. Her hand was small compared to his. She had grabbed his hand but if he wasn't holding hers, she'd have lost him by now. They reached the bar. Alex ordered their drinks. She turned, handing him his beverage as she sipped hers. He smiled at her staring up into his eyes. After that, he noticed how glossy her eyes were and it made perfect sense.

"How many is that?" He asked.

"Five or six." She shrugged as she finished her drink. "Here for a good time, not a long time, Nate."

He shook his head. "Right now, you're here for your sister's wedding. No more drinking until after." He said as he took her drink.

"You realize we aren't actually in a relationship, Nathan, and even if we were, you don't control my decisions." She spat as she pulled her glass back.

He sighed. "I'm not fighting so I'll see you back at the room." He breathed as he walked away.

"Always running from his problems. Same old Nathan." She hissed.

He paused and shook it off. She was drunk. She didn't know what she was saying. He walked off and found Jo with Zach. He decided that he'd have some drinks with them and cool off. He didn't need to fight with Alex when they were finally doing okay. He also didn't want to cause a fight at her sister's wedding. His other friends joined them. He was having a good time now. He was calm and wasn't fight with anyone.

Alex was still mad. She finished her drink, watching Nathan from her stool. She didn't know why she was angry. All she wanted to do was walk over and argue with him. It was like she needed it. She sat her cup down on the bar and decided to walk around. She smiled at people as she passed them before she was stopped. She recognized them as some of her sister's old friends. She smiled at them.

"Wow, you're not that annoying eight year old I remember." One of the guys, Eric, smirked.

Alex chuckled. "It's been over ten years. I'd be concerned if I still was."

"You look really good." He reassured her.

She smiled wider. "Thank you." She nodded.

Nathan's eyes scanned the room. He couldn't spot Alex and he didn't understand, considering her being in a bright dress. He heard her laugh, his eyes darting to where it came from. Alex was standing with a guy. The guy wasn't much taller than her, meaning he was shorter than Nathan. The guy looked older. Nathan felt his blood boil. Jo caught sight of Nathan staring. His eyes glanced in the direction. Jo sighed.

"Just go over and throw an arm around her. Everyone here thinks you're dating." Jo whispered.

Nathan was off in a second. He had trouble getting to Alex through the bodies, but he got there in record time. He walked over and wrapped an arm around her waist. He pulled her into him, pressing his lips to hers. She kissed back, her hands resting on his chest. He made sure to make it deep and passionate. He wanted this guy to know Alex was with him, even if she really wasn't. Nathan pulled away slowly. Alex's eyes stayed shut for a moment before she slowly opened them. She looked up at him with a shocked expression while he grinned down at her.

"Uh, Eric," She stuttered, turning back to the guy. "This is my boyfriend, Nathan."

"MacKinnon, right? The allstar kid from the Mooseheads?" Eric asked.

"Yeah," Nathan breathed, wrapping his arm around Alex's shoulders. "That's me."

"He plays for the Colorado Avalanche now." Alex said, her tone flat.

"Impressive." Eric nodded. "It was nice catching up but I should leave you two alone."

Alex waved as he walked off. She spun to look at Nathan. She shot him a glare. He just smiled. He took her hand, leading her to their table. He pulled out her chair. She sat and he sat beside her. He pulled her chair closer, draping his arm over the back. She sat with her arms crossed. She was pissed. Sabrina walked over with a frown.

"Jeez, Alex, could you look like you resent Nate anymore?" She asked.

"Probably." Alex mumbled. She caught her sister furrowing her brows. "Sorry? I'm just getting tired."Alex sighed, unfolding her arms.

She rested her head on Nathan's shoulder. Her hands sat on his thigh. She knew he had a smirk on his face, even if she couldn't see it. His arm wrapped around her and his lips rested on the top of her head. Sabrina smiled before she was pulled away by her new husband.

"They're really good together." Nathan stated as he watched them.

"People said that about us too." Alex shot back.

"We are good together." He rolled his eyes.

She sat up, shaking her head. "We were good together." She corrected. "We aren't together, no matter how much of an act we have to put on for this thing."

"You can act like this whole thing hasn't made you miss what we had all you want, Alex. You actions tell me different." He shook his head.

She pursed her lips. "Can you walk me to our room so it doesn't look like we're fighting? I want out of here."

"Yup." Nathan stood up.

He extended his hand to her. She took it. He walked slowly through the room. They had nothing more to say to each other, or Nathan thought. They got out of view and Alex dropped his hand. She walked ahead of him. He just kept his pace. She reached the elevator before him. She held it open and waited for him to step on. She pushed the button for their floor.

"Nathan, I don't get this." She exhaled. "You want me so much now but you just left me. I don't understand how th,"

"It's hard to explain." He cut her off.

She smacked the emergency stop button. "Then explain it to me now because I can't handle anymore." He stayed silent. "This is how it's always going to be, isn't it?"

"What are you talking about?" He hissed.

"There's never been an 'us', it's always just been Nathan! Everything I've ever done in our relationship was for your benefit!" She yelled.

"Don't put it on me. We've both been selfish." He argued.

"It's always only been about you." She shook her head. "You wanted to go to the world juniors, so I waited around and spent my New Years without my boyfriend. You traveled for hockey and you never had time for me, so I stopped going to school and did my shit online to be with you. You wanted to leave so you did and I got left behind."

"You never asked me to stay!" He defended. "And you knew what my life was like before we got together."

"Because that would've made me just as bad as you." She explained. "And I did know, but I still cared about you enough to give up everything for you and you barely recognized that."

"Why do you always want to fight, Alex? Why can't you understand that it was two years ago and I've grown up since then?" He questioned as he pushed the button for their floor.

"You hurt me! What else am I supposed to do?" She cried.

"Move on! You obviously don't want to be with me so forget about my past! Leave the past in the past and get on with your life, Al. What happened in the past doesn't matter if we don't have a future." He sighed.

The elevator stopped at their floor. They just looked at each other. Nathan took a deep breath. He nodded his head out of the elevator. Alex looked out and nodded. She walked off without another word. He frowned as he watched her. The elevator doors closed and back down he went. Slowly, people started to make their ways home or to their hotels. Nathan and Zach stuck around with Jo.

"The guys want us to meet them at some club." Jo told the guys.

"We're going, right?" Zach cocked a brow.

"If you both want to." Jo shrugged.

Nathan nodded and off they went.

Notes