"Hey, Alex. I have this thing about waking you up, don't I?" she says, sheepishly. That morning, I had been tongue-tied, but not this time.

"Nah, I should probably get up. It's about noon, anyway," I reply. I move away from the door, and allow her entry.

"Alex, I need to talk to you."

Here I am
Broken wings
Quiet thoughts
Unspoken dreams
Here I am
Alone again
And I need her now
To hold my hand

"Sure, Iz, what's up?" I reply. She sits down on the couch in the living room. Hesitating, I sit next to her.

"Alex, I don't think I've really told you what you've done for me, have I? For us," Isabel asks. In an untypical move, she's not looking me right in the eye, but staring at her hands.

"Nope, why?" I ask.

"You saved all of our lives, and we've done nothing in return," she replies.

"I know I pitched in with Max and Michael, but I don't recall ever saving your life," I reply. There was that blood thing with Max, and the stone/cocoon bit with Michael, but when in the heck had I saved Isabel's life?

She's all, she's all I ever had
She's the air I breathe
She's all, she's all I ever had

It's the way she makes me feel
It's the only thing that's real
It's the way she understands
She's my lover, she's my friend
And when I look into her eyes
It's the way I feel inside
Like the man I want to be
She's all I ever need

"God, this is so hard," Isabel says, suddenly. She stands and paces nervously. "Alex, you weren't put off by my little superiority act, you know? I mean, I all but told you to stop caring about me, and you've still been there every single time I've needed you. You've let me treat you like a doormat... I'm so sorry I ever did that..." she trails off, and covers her eyes with her hands.

I stand up, and walk over to her. I gently pull her hands away. Her brown eyes are shimmering with tears.

"Isabel, no matter what you tell me, or how you treat me, you should know I never buy what's on the surface. Especially when it comes to you," I tell her. She starts to laugh softly.

"Alex, believe me I know that. I've used you, you know? I've taken what you've offered, and done nothing in return. I've insulted you, invaded your privacy... I've done so much to you that anyone else would have abandoned me earlier..."

So much time
So much pain (but)
There's one thing
That still remains (It's the)
The way she cared
The love we shared
And through it all
She's always been there

"Isabel, that's ... wait ... invaded my privacy?" I ask. That's a new one. Her eyes look away from me, like it's something I obviously don't know about it, and something she's never meant to tell me.

"Before we told you the truth...after the whole blood thing...I sortadreamwalkedintoyourdream," Isabel says in a big rush. I slowly let the words go through my head until I've gotten them separated.

"My dream? Which one?" I'm not angry yet. It just depends on the one she's seen.

"It was of me..." she says softly. "We were at school...we were dancing...and you said you wanted to know the real me...no one's ever said that to me before...I just knew I could trust you with everything and anything."

I can't speak for a few minutes. Isabel saw one of my most personal dreams. All I can say is thank God she didn't walk into one of the more explicit ones I've had...

"Alex, please don't be angry with me... I don't think I could deal with that," she pleads, the tears spilling over. She looks so vulnerable...crying...

I can't take it anymore. I pull into my arms, and hold her. "I'm not angry, don't worry," I tell her soothingly. "As for everything else...you've done more for me than you'll ever know."

"Like what?" she asks, pulling away slightly.

She's all, she's all I ever had
In a world so cold, so empty
She's all, she's all I ever had

"You've let me see the real you," I tell her, softly. She smiles. She's so beautiful when she smiles. I wonder if she has any idea...

"Alex, I really do care about you. I wish it were more..." she says softly. Does she know that she's just made my entire life perfect?

It's the way she makes me feel...

"Hey, believe me, for right now, it's more than enough," I reply.

She really is beautiful when she smiles. Doesn't matter to me her mascara and eyeliner are running.