Nerves were a new sensation entirely. Frank wasnât accustomed to nerves, especially when it came to Alice. It was difficult to feel nervous around Alice â she was the one person who he could be wholly and completely himself with, who understood him, whom he had known for over fifteen years. Hardly a day had gone by without them seeing each other or speaking to each other. Alice was his closest friend, a person whom he knew that he couldnât live without and nor would he ever want to. On top of that, Frank knew that all of those thoughts were exactly what had brought him to Aliceâs door that night.
The man had a habit of being introspective when life decided to upend everything he had ever known. The overtaking of the Ministry, losing his job. All signs that the war was only about to get worse, and what did Frank have to show for it? His desire to fight and bring justice to every single person threatening the wizarding world was overbearing, but perhaps not as much as the truths that were weighing heavy on his heart. The attack was enough proof, along with his years of being an auror, that life was unexpected and far too short. Spending another day not doing what he was meant to, or not being honest with the one person who made life worth living in the first place, was a day he didnât wish would come.Â
Thus there Frank was, standing outside Aliceâs door with its key in his hand and a deep, stabilizing breath in his chest. He had meant to bring something with him â food, drink, so he wasnât popping in empty-handed, but he had been so wrapped up in the realizations that he apparated to her place as soon as he worked up the nerve. Nerves were foreign to him, sure, but if they finally brought him to the place where he wished to be ⌠they were worth it.
âHey, Al?â He spoke the greeting after a knock on the door to announce his presence, Frank entering Aliceâs place with a heavier chest than he normally did. He left the door open a crack, just in case Alice couldnât see him, but he was sure to bend down to greet Aster who had bound up to him with happy barks and a fast wagging tail. Scratching the dog behind his ears Frank watched for any sign from her. âItâs me. Are you busy?âÂ
âNever too busy for you. Please come in, Frank, Iâm just attempting to cook something for dinner but I might go over to Uncle Floâs because this is turning into a nightmare,â it was just supposed to be some chicken and rice -- Alice figured she couldâve managed that with all the free time she had now but apparently fate had other plans. âIâm sticking to breakfast food from now on, this is a proper mess.â
Being fired from the job of her dreams weighed heavily on Alice. Sheâd barely been able to sleep, sheâd barely been able to eat, she went on her runs for a little too long. The lack of an outlet, the lack of a job -- the job -- was soul crushing. It was all she worked for for the majority of her life, so when she got fired, she felt lost. It was the first time she could fully admit it and believe it -- that she was lost. Before, it had just been some angst, the fact that the war had claimed her youth, that admittance to the Auror Academy while serendipitous also meant sacrifice -- that she was then a vessel for the Greater Good and that only. Her identity was tied to it, her dreams too, and it was all gone. She had to pick up and learn herself away from her now former job, away from what it all meant and it wasnât easy -- especially when the world was crumbling apart.
 Frank, who had been a rock ( when was he not? ), had been one of the reasons the transition hadnât been as grueling as it couldâve been. Sure, they still had the Order but he knew the feeling she felt completely -- to lose what what they had worked for. When Alice was forced to recenter herself, her world, and found that it was the people that made it worth living -- something sheâd lost sight of when being so entrenched into the Aurors -- not the job. A younger Alice wouldâve hit her own self over the head at having to come back to this realization, because it was so obvious, wasnât it? But she had lost sight. It was humbling to admit.Â
Alice went to taste the sauce, before making a face, âgarbage. Absolute garbage.â Finally, she went to see Frank, popping her head out from the kitchen, looking at him. âDâyou want to come with me to Floâs? Heâs always got the best wine and I think we both need some wine right now.â