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So I'm still trying to understand why Alex even brought flowers if he thought that Emma was still in love with Frank...

To quote this guy:

"A man who doesn't fight for what he wants deserves what he gets."

I'm not a fan of boys fighting over girls in stories, but think about it from Alex's point of view.

He and Emma have been friends for who knows how long (HOW LONG? I wanted backstory and world building!). They're business partners. They're literally family through marriage. Alex thought Frank was ridiculous even before any hint of feelings surfaced. Alex came back because he thought Emma was broken hearted over Frank/Jane. I don't think he came back to swoop in and pick up the pieces of Emma's heart. I think he came back to be her friend, and he hoped that maybe - just maybe - there might be a return of feelings. It's one of those things - he hopes he's wrong about Emma's feelings for Frank, but is bracing for them to be true. Alex said he thought a lot about Emma while he was gone. He considered what a confession of feeling might do to their business. He weighed all the possibilities including the fact that Emma might be in love with Frank and he came to the conclusion that he needed to try.

Alex and Emma aren't Lizzie and Darcy. When Darcy shows up in Episode 98 he really has NO IDEA what to expect. He and Lizzie have spent their entire acquaintance misunderstanding each other. One of my favorite things about LBD's Darcy is that he made his romantic feelings very clear to Lizzie; friendship was never going to be enough for him. I think his forthrightness is very much in character with his sense of honor.

Alex is in a different situation. He and Emma have mountains of history. It can complicate, but it can also simplify too. He isn't dumb. We've watched these two have 'moments' for months. Clearly Emma wasn't self-aware about what those moments meant to her, but I doubt Alex was unaware of what they meant to him. Their rapport, their history, and their partnership hovered on that line between friendship and more. Probably Alex was happy to leave it in that space until circumstances made it appear like he was about to lose it. He was going to lose what he probably had taken for granted. Being away only confirmed what he'd known for a while. He's miserable without Emma Woodhouse, and if he doesn't at least declare himself he deserves what he gets. He'll lose her to Frank or some other guy.

There's that great quote from When Harry Met Sally, "When you realize you want to spend your life with someone you want that life to start right now." That's why Alex brought flowers. That's why he decided to risk declaring himself.

I imagine that if he'd found Emma truly heart broken over Frank he wouldn't have done so. He would have been her friend and taken his flowers home. He'd had stolen Frank's hair gel and beat him up (not really). He'd have been the partner Emma needed. And maybe with time he'd have worked up the courage to say something and ask Emma if there was any reason he had to hope.

There's that short story - Gift of the Magi I think it's called - where the married couple gets each other gifts for Christmas. Except she sells her beautiful hair to buy him a chain for his watch and he sells his watch to buy her a comb for her hair. They sell the thing most precious to them to give to the other person something beautiful. It's a lovely story that's over taught and over scrutinized, but the moral remains the same. Love is loving someone else as you would want to be loved yourself.

Alex came back for Emma, but not to win Emma. He came back when he thought Emma might be hurting. Emma walked into Alex's office to hear what he had to say as his friend even though it would hurt her heart. She was going to stand by him because his happiness meant more to her than her own.

Austen is great at the moral education of her characters. We shy away from morality tales in our modern stories, but virtue (however you want to define it) was sexy to Austen. In her stories it's the moral education of her heroes and heroines that matter. There's a reason three of her novels are titled based on virtues: Pride & Prejudice, Sense & Sensibility, Persuasion. Her characters find happiness when they overcome the moral obstacle they struggle with.

In Emma, I think for Knightley it's his pride. In the novel he admires Emma for how well she's handled all his admonishments. He realizes that she's borne his scrutiny with more grace than he deserves. Emma, of course, learns perception. She learns that her own isn't always to be trusted, and that she needs to really listen to the people in her life and hear what they want rather than dictate it. So in EA when Emma sits down to hear Alex she's acting in a new way. She's trying to be what Alex needs rather than deciding what Alex needs. It's fairly subtle (well, not that subtle) but it's there. When Alex says he's grumpy and stuck in his ways the implied statement is that despite all his faults Emma is still there. She puts up with him despite his pride and his stubbornness and he knows that because of that they have a chance. He wants to spend his life making her happy. He can assure Emma's doubts because he knows their biggest obstacle - him and his pride - is surmountable because Emma has been doing it for years. Alex's confession is a change for him. It's a risk from someone who does not take risks. When he bought those flowers his moral education (so-to-speak) was complete. But they couldn't be together until Emma walked into his office and sat down to listen. In an Austen story both the hero and heroine have to find their way if there is going to be smushing faces at the end. EA did a decent job of honoring that in this past episode, and thus we are all rewarded with the smushing of faces, which is the goal in life if you didn't realize.

(Not really. The goal in life is the number 6.)

#emma approved #moral education is sexy #i will fight anyone who thinks different #fistcuffs #Anonymous

Jhene, Jhene, Jhene's leaving me speechless with this brand new teaser for "3:16am" and she's looking amazing with soft-waves, a perfect a smokey-eye, with select close-ups of her incredibly fit body (girl crush? maybe).

As for updates on Jhene, she won't give use another free project. The time has come for a debut release and it's currently titled "Souled Out."

I'm excited to see how Def Jam pulled this together especially No I.D brought her into the musical powerhouse.

@NessaLovesMUSIC

#Jhene Aiko #fistcuffs #3:16am #jhene video teaser