the words flew out of his mouth like jelly, fast and smooth. peggy froze in shock. she wanted to say yes, there was a baby in her stomach and she wanted john to be the dad, she wanted john to be her husband. but she was so shocked, she just stood there.

"peggy...?" john's voice cracked as he said those words.

peggy pursed her lips together. "yes." she whispered, and laughed. a big smile plastered on john's face as he stood up and spun her around, putting the ring on her finger and kissing her passionately. they sat on the bench near the pond.

"maybe, we shouldn't tell everyone yet, based on, ya know, betsey being so broken at the moment, and alexander, have you talked to him?" peggy bit her lip.

"no. none of us have. i don't think we will until he has a good explanation about this whole thing." john whispered.

"i talked to him, once. he sent me a letter. i sent him one back." peggy said, putting her hand on john's chest.

"what did he say?" john asked, and shifted, holding his breath.

"he might be moving upstate, maybe to albany. but, he also said he regrets it and felt like maria kind of pulled him into it, but i know she didn't. but still, he told me he hasn't slept in a week and he was extremely tired. he only wrote, and wrote are wrote. it was the only thing he did." peggy whispered.

"you were born in albany. i wonder what he'll see there. i heard it was quiet up there." john said, stroking her hair.

"it is. you'll never hear a peep when outside, everyone is respectful. and nice. he told me he tried to write to eliza, but just couldn't make himself too it." peggy frowned.
–

alexander was waiting for nathaniel to arrive. he was late, really late. he thought he blew him off.

he finally heard his door bell ring and stood up, groaning. he didn't care about his looks so he was just wearing a sweatshirt, sweatpants, and his hair was still messy.

the thought of eliza screaming raced through his mind as he went to open the door. he shook out of it and finally opened it, seeing nathaniel there holding tissues and ice cream.

"you look terrible." nathaniel said, pulling him into a hug. alexander just groaned and hugged back. "do you have an explanation?" nathaniel said, flopping on the couch after closing the door next to alex.

alex rubbed his forehead. "i feel awful." alexander said. "i kissed her back. and eliza saw. and now she's not talking to me and john has probably proposed to peggy by now." alex scoffed, remembering the promise ring. eliza never opened his gift.

"why did you kiss her back?" nathaniel asked.

"i knew maria. i knew she had a reason to kiss me, maria is in love with eliza. like, they're bestfriends. atleast, i thought they were." alex groaned.

"they are. they still talk." nathaniel told him.

"i kissed her back, because.... i couldn't say no. i always say no, ive said no to eliza. she had tears in her eyes that night. i felt dead. i'm a terrible person." alexander mumbled, but he was loud enough so nathaniel could hear the whole thing.

"no, you aren't. yes, you did something wrong to eliza. but still, you're not a terrible person." nathaniel put an arm on alexander's shoulder, which caused alexander to lie on his lap and start crying.

"im moving." alexander said.

"what?"

"im moving"

"where?" nathaniel asked scaredly.

"uptown. maybe albany." alexander said, not breathing the whole way through the sentence.

"w-why?" nathaniel stuttered.

"i don't want to be here. not anymore. it's quiet uptown, okay? i don't want to stay here! eliza is leaving for college soon, none of my friends will talk to me." alexander stood up, and rubbed his hand through his hair, he was crying now.

"what about me?" nathaniel asked. he didn't want to be a nobody to alexander.

"i - i don't know about you." alexander yelled.

"what...?" nathaniel asked.

"i don't know about you. you come here while im in the hospital and immediately think we're friends again." alex said. nathaniel stood there in shock. this was not his plan. he did not break eliza's heart for this.

"it's my fault." nathaniel admitted, and told him the whole story. how he planned it. "but you kissed her back!" nathaniel spit at the end.

"YEAH? WELL YOU RUINED MY LIFE!" alexander yelled, picked up his keys and a jacket and a wallet, and stormed out the house.

he was moving.
to albany. he just had one letter to deliver.
–

"you have mail, eliza!" angelica yelled from downstairs the next morning. eliza giggled and ran downstairs.

"from who?" eliza asked.

"doesn't say." angelica responded, flipping the envelope around.

"oh." eliza said slowly and took the envelope, ripping it open and pulling out a piece of parchment.

dearest elizabeth,

            i hope you get this. i hope you are well. i hope you are happy and i hope you're in good health. i regret what happened that night, and since it was your special day as well. i heard you and maria are still okay, and im thankful. i hope you know i love you, and i hope you know im guilty. i also want you to know that i have moved to albany by the time you get this letter. i don't know where to go, and i am probably living on the streets, but i don't care. i just want to get away. i hope you accept that offer to yale. it's important. don't ruin it, don't make the same mistake i did. your little sister has told me how quiet it is uptown. im grateful for the quietness. thank you for everything. have a great time in yale, love.

                                            your dearest,
alexander.

eliza felt a tear roll down her cheek as she finished the letter.

"e-eliza who is it?" peggy asked, scared.

"i- i- i-" eliza stuttered, starting at the floor as the paper fell out of her fingers and flew onto the floor, she dropped to the floor and tightly hugged her legs, as she sobbed heavily.

angelica and peggy dropped down to her level, peggy wrapped her arms around her sister, and angelica read the note.

"oh my- eliza. im so sorry." angelica said like it was her last words.

"what...?" peggy asked. angelica handed her the letter and she read it through. "i- its my fault." peggy said and stared at the letter.

"no, marge don't say that." eliza choked out.

"n-no it is.." peggy said softly.

"no it's not!" angelica responded sweetly, putting a hand on her sisters thigh.

"im so sorry, betsey...." peggy said, slowly standing up and racing out the door.
–

alexander just left the train to albany. he was in albany now, why? he didn't know. he knew eliza was born in albany, what would this help?

alexander stormed out on nathaniel earlier, another thing to be guilty about, awesome, wow.

eliza was raging through alexander's mind. her touch, her love, her looks, her everything. everything she did, everything she said. the way she walked. god. it was like he was drunk on eliza.

alexander apologized to nathaniel, who kindly accepted and they kept talking, alexander ranted to him on the phone. and nathaniel even helped him find a home. alexander lives in a decent - enough apartment on a street right across from a church.

he also started going to church, it was a walk in so he didn't have to pay.

it was currently wednesday morning, and it had been a week since alexander left. he remembered the letter he sent to eliza, and looked for a return letter everyday, and he never got one. he knew he would never get it, but he still checked.

alexander got up and got dressed, he then walked into the kitchen and made himself some milk and toast for breakfast, nothing fancy, but it's food. he put on some fake spray butter stuff that he stored in his cabinet.

alexander knew how selfish he was being. peggy was pregnant, laurens was proposing to peggy and had to get a job, not to mention he was his best friend, nathaniel was confused and abandoned, lafayette was having troubles with angelica and his family, angelica had a bunch of problems with school, and eliza, oh eliza, she was heartbroken because of him, a fool he was to leave. he totally pushed everyone's feelings aside and left. abandoned them all. but at that moment, he didn't care.

alexander finished his food and cleaned the dishes, he took his phone, and his wallet and took off. he liked to walk around the city, looking at all the beautiful trees and mountains and tall buildings, and every once in a while hearing a bird sing a song, or a cricket chirp, which caused him to realize it was finally dark. it started lightly raining at around 6:00, and alexander didn't like getting wet.

alexander walked back home, and entered his apartment quietly. he took off his coat and hung it on the rack next to the door, soon falling on his couch. he noticed it was now pouring hard and the window cracked with rain pounding against it, alex changed into something more laid back and turned on the radio, listening to the smooth jazz trying to be louder than the pounding rain that kept seeping through the saxophone.

alexander was extremely hungry, so he decided to make himself something. he was about to open the fridge when he heard a knock on the door.

no one knocked on alexander's door, because no one knew him. alexander had only met the priest at the church, and a couple grocery clerks. the only person he thought it would be was his neighbors, he knew his next door neighbor pretty well, his name was samuel, and although he was pretty annoying, he was quiet, just like the rest of the city was and he really wouldn't be surprised if he got a noise complaint for his radio being over the volume of ten.

alexander closed the fridge and ran his fingers through his hair in a bit of confusion and annoyment. he rubbed his eyes and made sure he looked presentable, because he didn't want to come off as a slacker and a bad person to the rest of the city.

"one moment!" he reassured them so they wouldn't get annoyed, although no one in this city did, no one who used to live here or did live here, that's why the schuyler family was so patient and kind. atleast, that was why in his mind.

alex finally made himself look presentable and ran towards the door. the impossible happened in that exact moment, so many thoughts filled alexander's brain as he saw who was standing there, the person he cherished and loved, the person he always wanted to be with, the love of his life.

eliza.

what was she doing here? she was extremely wet, they just stood there. staring at each other, they didn't need to talk, their eyes said it all. alexander read eliza like a book and eliza saw right through alexander. they knew each other perfectly, and they both knew exactly what they wanted.

their lips locked.

and everything was right in that moment.

in that moment.
–

CLIFFHANGER AND SMALL CHAPTER IM SORRY ILY GUYS DONT KILL ME >-<

ANYWAYS, sorry late post! im extremely stressed with school work since this is my last week so it's like finals week and stuff and all my final grades are due.

anyways, my brother came in today from utah yAY! but since i have so much to do, please do not expect a lot of writing until winter break, which starts on thursday. but i get to sing wednesday so it's gucci.

i love you ALL!! HAVE a grEAT NIGHT!

xx, emma