Disclaimer: Unfortunately, I don't own any of these characters, although I wouldn't mind owning Noah!

All right…so, this is my first fic. I didn't like the empty spaces between the time that Martha arrived at the house and her departure, as well as the empty spaces that lead to Allie waking up the next morning and discovering the studio. So here's my "deleted scenes," so to speak (since we may never get to see them). This starts off after dinner, with Martha and Allie talking at the table.

Another thing…in the book, one thing that Allie did often was "trace small circles with her thumb" on Noah's hand. She never did it in the movie, but I thought I'd continue with it, because, well, it was so damn cute. So here it is, enjoy!

--

Allie and Martha sat down across from each other at the kitchen table; silently sipping tea while Noah went outside to "collect more wood for the fireplace." In truth, he really had just used that excuse to accommodate the look on Allie's face that said something along the lines of "leave right now so I can talk to Martha." Women, he thought as he shut the door behind him.

Meanwhile in the kitchen, the very feeling of sitting there reminded Allie of yesterday's events in that room. Nothing Martha would want to hear of, she was sure. Martha's voice interrupted her soon to be sensual thoughts. Although Noah, Allie and Martha had shared a few conversations together, the two women hadn't spoken very much in depth alone.

"He's always loved you, you know." Martha said softly, her eyes on her cup. "He's never stopped."

"Excuse me?" Allie looked up.

"I said that Noah's always loved you." Allie crinkled her forehead. "Sometimes when we'd be sitting down, or going for a walk, or even for a drive…he'd get this far off look in his eyes that was always a mystery to me. I know now that you're the only one who could ever understand it, Allie. When I would ask him what was wrong, he'd just shrug and change the subject. Although I'd never heard of you directly, I always somehow knew that you were the dream he was trying to make a reality."

"I think you might be getting it wrong Martha…" Allie replied, her voice nervous. "I mean…"

"I'm not wrong, Allie," Martha interrupted her. Just hear me out for a moment. I see the way he looks at you. He looks at you like you're the only person in the world."

"Then why stick around?" Allie softly asked, now inquisitively enthralled by what this woman was telling her.

"Good question. Loneliness, I suppose. That was a mutual feeling Noah and I always seemed to share...feelings of loneliness. We both needed someone to fill the one thing that was missing in our lives. His thing was you, mine was companionship in general." Martha finished as she quietly sipped her tea. "I never did ask you this, Allie," she started again. "But when did you and Noah meet?"

Allie began to smile, memories coming back to her as if the events happened yesterday. "Seven years ago…it was a summer romance. I was the girl who laughed too loud and talked too much, and he was the boy who worked at the lumberyard and read poetry." She chuckled slightly, memories of seven summers before whizzing through her brain, sending small shivers down her spine. For a brief moment, she didn't care who was listening, even if it was Martha. "He'd read me poetry, I'd paint him a picture…I loved to paint," she noted. "He would come and visit me in between piano lessons and French tutoring, and I'd meet him after work. It was so innocent, yet electrifying and passionate at the same time." Allie looked at Martha, who was smiling sadly. A smile only a woman could understand. "Sorry, I'm not making this easy for you, am I?" Allie questioned.

"It's alright…I knew that Noah and I would never last forever, Allie. I was a temporary filler until you came back into his life. And now you're here. Enjoy it, Allie. You'll never feel this way again. You two have lots to figure out." Noah re-entered the room from the front entrance just to hear Martha say; "I should go."

Allie nodded, a mutual understanding in their eyes as her and Martha took one last look at each other. "It was nice meeting you, Martha!" Allie called out as Martha walked out the door, Noah following behind her after glancing once at Allie.

"Nice meeting you, too. Take care," Martha responded, and exited the home for the very last time. But then again, she realized, she had never really entered it at all, until tonight.

--

Thoughts of Martha's last comment raced through Allie's brain: "You'll never feel this way again…you have lots to figure out." Martha couldn't have been more right. No one could ever awaken her senses like Noah could…not even Lon. But she had decisions to make, and definitely had a lot to figure out. Although the subject of Lon had been put on the backburner since the previous afternoon's events, Allie knew that it would eventually resurface again. But she didn't want to think about Lon right now. All she wanted to think about was Noah. While that was a tad selfish, she decided that she had earned the right to feel that way, after so many years of separation and longing. She smiled again. Just thinking of Noah could conjure a huge grin on her face. All at once, the feelings she had felt seven summers ago came back. "Stop it," she told herself. "You're not a little girl anymore, Allie. You have decisions to make, and your decisions will have consequences." But she wasn't going to think about decisions right now, or the consequences that they would produce. Right now, all she was going to do was enjoy the time that she was able to have with Noah.

--

Noah watched as Martha's car drove further away from his house. He knew he should be feeling guilty…heck, feeling something towards her, but he felt nothing. All the times he had spent with Martha didn't feel like anything compared to the times he had spent with Allie, especially over the past couple of days. But, then again, nothing that he had ever felt before felt like time spent with Allie.

Damn that woman for inviting Martha in! Although he had thought of wanting nothing more than to throw her down on the kitchen table and passionately make love to her all evening, he realized that it was virtually impossible due to a certain soon to be ex-girlfriend sitting beside him.

Allie met Noah's gaze through the window as he turned around to make his way back into the house. She quickly smiled coyly at him and returned to drying the dishes, all while slightly biting her lower lip. She knew that she'd been driving him insane ever since she'd invited Martha to come inside the house, especially with the lack of affection and touching between them. She'd definitely been feeling it, and judging by the glances that Noah had been giving her at the kitchen table, he had as well. Noah entered the house, quietly shutting the door behind him.

"So what the hell was that about?" Noah asked, walking toward Allie.

"What was what about?" Allie asked innocently.

"Well, let's see. You come outside and invite Martha in to share a 'fun filled' day with us? I don't know about you, but that isn't exactly my idea of fun."

"Now Mr. Calhoun, that's not a very nice thing to say to your girlfriend, is it?" While it somewhat hurt her to say it, and brought her back to reality for a moment, it was her subtle way of trying to get Noah to express whether or not things were over between him and Martha.

"Ex-girlfriend," Noah corrected, looking up at her.

"So it would be fair to conclude that it's over between the two of you?" Allie questioned.

"Officially over…yes. But we both knew it was over long before tonight, Allie. I don't think it was ever really 'there,' to tell you the truth."

"I see," was all Allie said in response. Although she quickly let out a small, reassuring smile at him, there was evidently a feeling of awkwardness towards the subject of significant and ex-significant others that neither of them cared to discuss right now. Both Noah and Allie silently came to an individual realization that they should conveniently fail to mention Martha, and Lon, at all costs.

"So that's that, then." Noah said in an attempt to break the silence. What he found ironic, however, was the feeling that he and Allie were probably thinking about the exact same thing right about now.

"Yeah, I guess that's that." Allie replied. Silence again, though the thick cloud of awkwardness hanging above them over the last few minutes was quickly starting to diminish.

"Well then, it was good she came over, I suppose. Even if it just was for sake of closure between you two. And besides, what else did we have planned for the day?" Allie smiled as she dried the last of the dishes.

"I could think of a few things…" Noah laughed, the playful tone coming back into action, as the awkwardness between them seemed to completely fade away. He then wrapped his arms around her waist from behind. At first she flinched, but then slowly relaxed in his strong yet gentle grip. He felt nice, especially after the hours they had spent without any contact. She took his hand in hers and started tracing small circles with her thumb, as he kissed the top of her head.

"Well, I wouldn't want to wear you out…this afternoon you looked a bit spent." Allie chuckled as she leaned into Noah's chest and nestled the back of her neck onto his shoulder, their eyes interlocking.

"What can I say? It takes a lot to please a high maintenance girl like you."

"Noah Calhoun…I am not a high maintenance girl!" She started. "I am a high maintenance woman." She corrected him while laughing.

"Sorry…you were a high maintenance girl who turned into a high maintenance woman."

"I hate you," she teased softly and turned around to face Noah. "I loathe you." The words trailed off playfully. "And I whole heartedly disagree with your last comment."

"I know, I'm terrible," he said as he rolled his eyes. "But who invited Martha in again?"

"What was I supposed to do, tell her to go away? I was just trying to be nice."

"I know, but that's not the point. I mean, didn't you find it uncomfortable in the slightest bit?"

"At times," Allie nodded, thinking of a particular moment when Martha asked her what she was doing in Seabrook. "But, on the contrary, Martha is a very sweet woman, and we ended up having a very nice talk. She told me a lot about your relationship with each other." Here came the dreaded subject again. Hopefully this time the current mood would remain unscathed.

"And…what did she say?" Noah asked, his eyes completely on hers. No luck on the mood…by the second the light atmosphere was turning into an emotional one. However, there was no awkwardness, just sincerity.

"Well…" Allie started, as her glance changed from Noah's eyes to the ground. "She told me that you'd never stopped loving me. Although she'd never heard of me directly, she said she knew." By the end of her comment her voice was merely a whisper. Then, for what seemed like an eternity, silence. Allie was the next one to speak. "Was Martha right, Noah?" She whispered, their faces only inches apart.

"I don't know…why don't you tell me, Alison?" he replied as he glared deep into her blue eyes. Maybe it was the close proximity between them, maybe the vulnerability she felt as he looked deep into her eyes, or maybe the simplicity of the way her full name seemed to perfectly roll off his tongue. Whatever it was, Allie found herself replying: "I think she was right. But I also think that the feeling is mutual."

"Oh yeah?" Noah smiled.

"Uh huh," she nodded, giddy teenage instincts once again taking over. With that, he turned, took the back of her neck in his hands, and kissed her. She sighed into the kiss, whispering his name as his fingers lightly grazed the skin below the part where the cut of her baby blue dress ended. The few hours spent apart had apparently been a few hours too long. Their tongues began fighting each other for dominance, the kiss continuing as they made their way through the kitchen, their bodies pressed tightly together, never wanting to let go. In the midst of their journey across the room, Noah absent mindedly bumped into a chair, resulting in a laugh from Allie against his lips, followed by the voice that sarcastically remarked "Klutz" an instant before their lips came together again. He carried her up the stairs, then gently placed her body on solid ground as they proceeded around the corner to the bedroom, and then…

"Wait," Allie said, breaking away from his lips, her heart still racing from oh-so-intimate groping session. She had a total change of thought…

"What?"

"I wanna take a bath." While making love had seemed like a great idea right about now, she knew that if she didn't stop before things got too far, she definitely wouldn't get a chance to clean up.

"You what?" What was this woman, crazy?

"I haven't had one today, or yesterday. I'd like to have one before the day's over." She smiled pristinely, her breathing still heavy.

"We got soaked in the rain yesterday…doesn't that constitute as a shower?"

"Nice try, but I digress," she leaned into him, tracing small circles on his hand and continued. "It's not the same thing and you know it." Allie rolled her eyes. "Not the same," she reassured again.

Noah sighed impatiently. "You can't just…do that, you know. That's like…pure torture!"

"Do what?" She asked innocently.

"You can't just do this…" he trailed off as he quickly took her face in his hands and surprised her with a passionate embrace. "…And then stop so abruptly while expecting me to be fine with it," he concluded after pulling back in the same unanticipated manner that she had only moments before, now leaving a look of longing on Allie's face. "That, my dear, is just being a pain in the ass."

"It's a women's prerogative to change her mind." She smirked. "And besides…maybe I am a pain in the ass."

"I never said you weren't."

"I never said I was," she teased back.

"Yes you did, right before I told you I never said you weren't."

"You've lost me in your sea of words." She rolled her eyes, "You're not gonna win this, I'm still taking a bath," Allie said as she gave him a matter of a fact glance.

"Care to join me?" And with that, she headed into the washroom and shut the door behind her, eyeing Noah the last second before it closed, expecting at any moment to hear him come inside as well. As she started running the water, she heard the door click open. She was right.

"That didn't take too long," she remarked as Noah shut the washroom door behind him.

"Well, I just figured I'd show you where the bubble bath was, since you probably didn't know…" he said, going into a cupboard to retrieve the container.

"Suuuuuuure," she rolled her eyes as she snagged the bubble bath mixture from his hands and poured some into the water. After a few moments of adjusting the temperature, she let the remainder of the tub to fill, then cranked the knobs to stop the flow. "So…are you coming in?" Silence for a moment.

"I guess. After all, I wouldn't want you to feel lonely or anything," he stated as he started to unbutton his shirt.

"Uh huh," she said sarcastically, looking down at him.

"That would be a tragedy," he said, walking towards her before rolling the shirt off his shoulders.

"I wouldn't know, I've never had a bath with someone before."

"Really?" Well I guess that makes two of us then."

"You've never had a bath with someone before…" she said, more of an observation than a question.

"Nope."

"Not even with Martha?"

"Didn't I just say I never had a bath with someone before woman?" He stopped. "What about you and Lon?"

"I thought I just told you I'd never had a bath with someone before," she mocked as she stuck out her tongue at him. "Besides, Lon and I have never really been…together, so to speak." Noah narrowed his eyes. "He tried, don't get me wrong…but I think that my heart was always with someone else, and I never wanted to let that go by giving a piece of me to another person." She looked at him, both of them knowing who the 'someone else' was. "You know…" Allie continued. "We should probably get in…before the water gets cold."

"Don't worry, it can wait." He said, his arm guiding her closer to him before slowly undoing the buttons on her dress. Their eyes interlocked. While the previous days' similar task had suggested a sense of urgency and anxiousness of passion that had been forgotten over years apart, tonight's was a mutual understanding of patience and gentleness. "Someone forgot to put on undergarments this afternoon…" he laughed as he noted the bare skin beneath his touch. "I didn't think it was proper for women to wear a dress with no 'brassiere', or full slip for that matter…"

"Well, it's somewhat difficult to put everything on after your body's been wrapped up in a blanket for hours and someone rings the doorbell in the midst of something. Plus," she continued, "I couldn't find my slip, or my nylons. And that is not my fault, it's yours. One hundred percent." She blushed as the dress fell to her feet.

"Why is it my fault all of a sudden?" He questioned, unbuttoning his trousers.

"Because you're the one, who took them off," she stated simply and smiled while lowering her body into the bathtub. Noah quickly following suit, sitting behind her and encircling his arms around her waist, her hands instantly resting on top of his as she once again drew small circles with her thumbs on them underneath the soapy suds. For a moment they sat in silence, and Allie leaned into his chest, resting her head on his shoulder, thinking if anything could be more perfect than this. She thought about how happy she was, and how completely content she was feeling. Even the silence was serene; not awkward like some of the moments they had shared the past few days. Then, something suddenly came to her mind.

"The day that I saw your picture in the paper, I was trying on my wedding dress at the shop," Allie started. "I stopped dead in my tracks and literally fainted…and the next thing I knew, I was in a bathtub with my veil still on."

"You fainted?" And for a moment he could picture Allie, having a mixed look of terror, anticipation, longing and surprise in her eyes when she saw that fateful article.

"Uh huh. Up until a few days ago, I could've shown you the bruise on my leg to prove it," she laughed. More silence. "Noah?" she finally said.

"Yeah?"

"I'm really glad I saw your picture in the paper."

"Me, too," he smiled. Oh, how he was glad she had seen it! So many years had he been longing to hold her, longing to kiss her and longing to have them mutter sweet nothings to each other while holding hands and lying together. So many years of not having firm answers about everything that had happened between them, or about how she felt. Now she was finally here, her body to hold and her lips to kiss. On the other hand, while he loved the time they were sharing together, he wondered how long it would last. He quickly shunned the thought away and put it in the back of his mind for storage, while releasing his grip away from Allie's waist and beginning to massage her head. She closed her eyes, enjoying the sensations the perfectly innocent task was creating. Once he was finished, they sat again in silence, and Noah placed light kisses on her neck while running his fingers up and down her arms.

"The water's getting cold," Allie observed, slightly chilled but at the same time not really wanting to get out yet.

"I know. We should get out." The cold air hit their bodies as Noah grabbed two towels off the towel rack, wrapping one around Allie and the other around himself. She dried off as he drained the tub, and they walked to his bedroom together.

"Umm, do you mind lending me some clothes? I really don't wanna put my dress back on." Allie noted. All her clothes were at the Inn, and while somewhere in the back of her mind she knew she should probably go back in case Lon called, the "front" of her mind was telling her she could care less about him. Which she realized she did, right about now. Noah smirked and went into his closet, coming out handing her a T-shirt and some oversized pajama pants. She quickly went into the bathroom and emerged a moment later with them on. "They're kinda big…but they'll do," Allie smiled. "They definitely do smell like you, though. When was the last time you washed these things?" She teased.

"That would be the last time you washed them for me…" He told her.

"…Which would be never." She finished his sentence.

"Well, you just answered your own question," he replied, walking towards her. "It seems," he grasped her back underneath the shirt, "that I don't get all that much done around here without you. Maybe you should stay." He planted a light kiss on her lips.

"Maybe I will…" she trailed off as she kissed him. "Or maybe…you're just lazy," she kissed him again. "Careless…" and again, "unconcerned…" she barely got the last word out before he silenced her for good, planting a hard kiss on her lips as he moved her body to the edge of the bed, holding her closely to his body. She agreed willingly, running her fingers through his hair as their tongues fondled with each other, the embrace full of passion and longing. Noah stopped for a moment…

"Al?" He said in between kisses.

"Hmm?" She answered only on instinct, not really paying much attention to whatever the hell he was saying, and kept on kissing his lips.

"How much did you drink tonight"? He asked her, holding her back so she couldn't kiss him again.

"What?" Her breathing was heavy, her mind disoriented, and her voice suggesting a total lack of patience. "Why?"

"Because I was hoping that you'd be drunk enough to let me take advantage of you."

"Well I'm not drunk, but consider it done. Now shut up and kiss me," she insisted. Their lips instantly came crashing together, like a million roaring waves- the only thing on their minds being each other. And this feeling, they realized, although obscured by seven years of separation and longing, had never really faded.

--

Allie awoke only to find herself tangled in haphazard looking sheets. Half of the comforter was on the ground; half of it sprawled across the bottom of the bed, the sheets underneath her body. Her legs were intertwined with Noah, who had one arm resting gently on her stomach, which was covered by the red wool blanket that concealed their naked bodies. Allie could feel Noah's breathing light on her neck as she let out a sigh of content. Beside them the clock read 2:00 AM. Although they hadn't been asleep for very long, Allie felt herself feeling fully awake. As if sensing that she had woken, Noah began to stir out of sleep as well.

Neither of them spoke, there was no need to. Instead they reveled in their silence, the only noise being their breathing, feeling blissful just lying beside each other. Noah's hand started moving upward as he caressed her skin, resulting in a sharp intake of breath from Allie.

"Noah…I'm trying to sleep…" she lied, breaking the silence with a smile on her face.

"No you're not…that tone of voice is subconsciously signifying that you're enjoying the situation. I know you too well." His hand moved further upward, stopping on her breast.

"Oh yeah?" She replied, feeling somewhat disoriented due to the torture he was causing her with his caress.

"Yeah." He said as he abruptly removed his hand, causing her to turn around and face towards him. They looked at each other for the first time since they had fallen asleep.

"Well good mornin' Mr. Calhoun," she changed the subject upon seeing his face, as she lifted her fingers to touch it.

"I don't see how you can call this mornin', woman, we haven't even been sleepin' two hours!"

"It's okay, I didn't mind," she smiled. With that, she moved closer to him and kissed his lips. His arm braced her back as he guided her closer to him, and soon enough, what had started out to an ethereal kiss turned into a passionate one as she parted her lips, granting him access to her tongue. Noah reached out to touch her face as their mouths continued to mesh together, their breathing heavy. Bodies touched, lips trembled, and once the mutual need for affection was fully fulfilled, they released one another's lips. Allie closed her eyes as Noah tenderly placed a kiss on her forehead, her cheeks, her eyelids, his lips lingering before changing spots. Once they parted, Allie opened her eyes again.

"Mmm, Noah?" She asked, looking into his eyes as her hand joined his, tracing small circles with her thumb.

"Mm hmm?" he replied as he moved to pull a strawberry blonde lock out of her face.

"Do you think that you could read to me, like you used to?" She asked him.

"What do you want me to read?"

"Anything…it doesn't really matter…" she trailed off. All she wanted to do was hear his voice.

He nodded, choosing an appropriate passage from Whitman that he'd memorized. The words flowed freely, just as they once had…just as they always had. "O You, whom I often and silently come where you are, that I may be with you; As I walk by your side, or sit near, or remain in the same room as you, Little you know the subtle electric fire that for your sake is playing within me." He finished, looking back at her.

"Anyone unparticular that you'd be choosing to relate that passage to?" She teased, looking back up at him. Anyhow, that was beautiful," Allie nodded.

"And so are you," Noah smiled.

"Oh gosh," Allie chuckled while rolling her eyes. "Could you be any cornier, Noah Calhoun?"

"Could you be anymore beautiful, Alison Hamilton?" She rolled her eyes yet again. "Well, it's the truth." And it was. Just seeing her there, her body tired, yet angelic and untroubled put his mind at ease.

"I should keep you around, you're a good ego boaster," Allie chuckled, not realizing the depth of her comment. Although Noah was thinking of what she'd just said in a literal manner, he decided to let it slide and not dwell on it. After a moment of silence, he asked Allie, who was slightly smiling while looking at nothing unparticular, "What are you thinking of right now?"

"Huh?" She questioned, returning her gaze to him.

"What are you thinking of right now?" Noah repeated.

It took a moment for her to answer. "I'm trying to think of the last time I felt this content…this safe, this happy."

"And…?"

"I don't know…I think it would have to be our first dance. Just the way you were holding me. It made me feel so…secure, so safe. It's the same way I'm feeling right now…just lying here. But then again, that whole summer I think I was feeling that way. No bullshit." She smiled. "Noah?"

"Mmm?"

"I just gotta ask you somethin'." Her voice went quiet. "Why didn't you ever come to visit me afterwards?" He knew the "afterwards" she was referring to was after the hateful breakup between them a day before Allie left Seabrook.

"Well…" he started, looking perplexed, and trying to think of the right words to say. "Believe me, I thought of it, Allie. But I wrote you…I wrote you letters saying that I was sorry, telling you that I still loved you, telling you that we could work things out together, that distance would never separate us. I thought that you would respond…I thought we would see each other again. But after a while Allie, I thought that you had forgotten 'bout me. Since you never wrote me back, I thought you didn't wanna see me." Allie sighed, and Noah noticed that little tears were starting to stream down her cheeks.

"We wasted so much time…" she continued. "All these years we could've been together…"

"Shhhhh, it's okay." Noah coaxed as he wiped away the tears from her face. "We're together now, right? That's the important thing. We're together in this moment, Allie, and nobody can take that away from us, okay?"

"Okay," she whispered, like a soft child afraid of the storm and longing for her mother to hold her. "Can you just hold me, Noah? I just wanna be held right now."

"Come here…" he trailed off, placing a delicate kiss on her lips before turning her body around so he could wrap his arms around her waist once again. He moved as close as possible to her, then started placing kisses on her neck. It was only after many minutes later, when her breathing became steady that Noah could finally close his eyes and drift into sleep as well.

--

Noah quietly released himself from Allie's sleeping body. She began to stir in her sleep, the warmth that was surrounding her now gone, as she covered more of herself with the blanket. "Mmm, Noah…where're ya going? Her groggy voice mumbled softly. Noah could tell she was still sleeping, her eyes were closed, her body still, her breathing steady.

"Shhh, go back to sleep. I'll be back soon, k?" He replied as he threw on a pair of pants and a button up shirt.

"Mmmkay," she mumbled again as Noah gently kissed her open lips. "I love you…" her small whisper trailed off as she fell silently asleep once more. Allie hadn't even noticed the importance of her last comment, as it came out of her so…naturally. In fact, she wouldn't remember that she'd said it when she woke up in a short time. But Noah had heard it, had smiled, and replied "I love you, too." With that, he placed a note on the headboard for Allie to read when she awoke, and discreetly exited the room with a smile on his face. Maybe things would work out after all.