A/n: Yet another 'Sabina-and-Alex-meet-in-the-future' fic that I felt inclined to write. For any Scottsdale State readers, this is why I've taken longer than usual to update. My next chapter is in progress this very moment.
This fic, again, ignore the end of Snakehead cos I didn't like it.
Enjoy and feel free to leave me a little review, I'd love to hear what people think (:
Disclaimer: Obv I'm not Anthony Horowitz, so on and so forth
Mommy's Old Friend
Sabina
The water was luke warm on my bare legs and just about reached my waist. I'd never understood the fascination people had with swimming. Since I'd turned eighteen, I'd been probably four or five times and my disinterest had never bothered me. It was alright, but the water smelled weird, it was a funny colour, and getting dressed after being covered in chlorine for an hour was an absolute bitch.
Thankfully, I wasn't much paying attention to my dislike to the swimming bath; I was trying to watch Kellen as he got further towards the deep end of the children's pool. He was only four years old, but he swam incredibly well for a child so young. I waded through the water, running my hands across the surface as I shouted his name. He turned, standing on his tip toes and giving me a humorous stare.
"Mo-o-om!" He whined, screwing his little face up and dredging towards me, making a show of his reluctance. "It's only, like, a metre high! I swim better than Alex!"
I shook my head, smiling at him. "Your sister's taller than you. She can stand up right down here, you can't."
"But she sucks at swimming!" He argued. By now, he'd reached my side and was looking up at me with his beautiful green eyes, making a good attempt of a puppy dog pout. He took after his father in his face. His cheek bones were already pronouncing and were fast becoming the first thing you'd see when you looked at him. His lips were slightly too big for his small, boyish face, but he would grow into them.
His father, my husband of sorts; Nathaniel, was handsome, but had a temper that I sometimes couldn't stomach – and, I'm sure, vice versa. I could shout when I needed to. I'd met him in Vegas when I was away with some friends for a fortnight and we were hitched before the two weeks was up. I was too immature to take my mum's advice on watching where I stepped in the relationship; we'd simply got married and moved in together shortly afterwards. It'd been seven years since then. We had what you'd call a steamy relationship when we wanted, although, he'd never shown violence towards me. We tried not to let our tiffs affect the kids. I could remember hearing my parents arguing occasionally, and I didn't want either Alex or Kellen feeling like they were the cause of a problem between mommy and daddy. The kids were now of an age where they noticed anything and everything, Kellen was reaching his fifth birthday and Alex was five and a half, so we had to be careful not to upset them. We were the perfect family when they were present, but behind closed doors, times were changing and I wasn't sure which way the chips would fall this time.
"Kel, you know I don't like you being down here. Just listen to me this once and I might give you some money for a chocolate bar on the way to the car, ok?" I smiled, lifting my soaking hand to his shoulder.
His little features brightened. Chocolate solves everything when you're four. "Sure." He was the well behaved one; it was Alex I was worried about in that department. Kel was… young: naïve. It's not that Alex isn't, she quite obviously is, but Kel would just listen and obey. Alex had her dad's mind set; she wasn't afraid to bicker with me if she didn't agree. I knew she didn't mean it, but I was worried about what would happen when she grew up. Would she still be the same? Would she get to eighteen and start lying to me so she could stay out somewhere I didn't want her to? I was scared we'd drift apart; she was my little girl and that would never, ever change.
"Where is your sister?" I asked Kellen as he took my hand and walked into slightly shallower water. Bless him.
"I don't know." He said, simply and blandly, not even bothering to look. I knew how he felt about Alex. She was first born and a girl. The kids got on when they tried, but the majority of the time it was just fights. I didn't enjoy trying to keep the peace, but it was necessary.
"What's she done now?" I asked him, wondering if she'd upset him recently.
Before Kellen could answer me, I heard a high pitched scream from behind me and turned to the sight of my daughter falling face first into the shallowest end of the pool. Her scream morphed rather quickly into a loud giggle as she hit the water and drifted up to surface. My anger flared briefly as I thought through the things that could have happened if she'd miscalculated the distance she'd fallen and hurt herself. Parenting had turned me into a worrier, something I'd never been before, but I was told it did the same to anyone.
Her dark hair flailed out from her head as I approached. She was floating atop the water, breathing heavily. Kellen followed me, still grasping my hand, but I could see the ghost of a grin that threatening to take his lips; he loved to see his sister in trouble. "Kellen, it's not funny." I said blankly to him as we got closer to Alex's body. I dropped his hand and reached for Alex as the life seemed to come back into her muscles. She stood, coming up to about my chest height, and smiled even broader than before. "Alex, what the damn do you think you're doing?" My voice rose and I put on my annoyed face. She was very daring and knew that her antics drove me insane with anxiety. "You're going to give me a heart attack!" She looked at me, the grin still spread across her face, with her hazel eyes and shrugged.
"I'm just having fun, mom." She gesticulated with her fingers towards a boy around her age who was cowering in the corner of the pool. I even scared children who weren't my own – always good to know. "Me and Jake wanted to jump in."
I nodded, although still made a show of my fuming. I knew she wouldn't catch the sarcasm in my actions, but what did she expect me to say? 'Oh well, since Jake wants to do it, go right ahead'? No chance in hell. "Alex, please, play nice. If you don't watch it, I'm gonna send you outside to sit with your dad in the foyer." Her eyes widened, showing me clearly she didn't want to get out yet. "I mean it." I raised my hand to my forehead in a half salute. "I've had it up to here with you today, so behave otherwise we're not gonna come swimming again for a long time."
"You never let me do anything!" She said, her voice reaching in incredibly high pitch. Her squeal was attracting the attention of some of the other mothers in the kids' pool.
I took her forearms in my hands and kneeled slightly so I could look her in the face. The water was around my shoulders and lapping at me hair. "I'm not trying to be a kill-joy." I explained to her. "When you injure yourself because you slip on the pool side or hit the water too hard, I'll be the first person you run to, so just be careful." She surveyed me for a second before she nodded and squirmed a little. "Let Kellen play with you, too, don't leave him out."
Once I let her go, she instantly belted from my side, grabbing her brother's hand and running back to her friend. I took deep breaths, urging myself to calm down.
Alex had been a right moody little so and so this morning. She'd barged loudly into mine and Nathan's room at some ungodly hour to wake us up. After her continuous request, I'd made bacon sandwiches for breakfast, which she'd then refused to eat because it had too much fat on. In true toddler style, she'd kicked and screamed about not wanting to come swimming after Kellen had asked; when I'd suggested she stay at home with daddy, she'd said she wanted to join us anyway. She was tired, of that much I was sure, and she would sleep tonight, even if I had to stay in her bedroom to stop her from running off. I was patient with her, but sometimes I lost my temper. Everyone does occasionally; but I always apologised to her later.
I crawled my way to the pool side and relaxed onto my back side to watch them play. With my spine up against the wall, I laid my head back into the cold, cold tile and closed my eyes. I was absolutely knackered and could really appreciate a full nights' sleep tonight. Parenting is tiring, and incredibly so. I smiled. It was rewarding, though. I loved my family so much and I didn't know what I would do without them. As much as Nathan and I disagreed quite frequently, he was my baby. I'd never felt greater respect and admiration for anyone in my life, and I hoped I could spend the rest of my years with him. Alex and Kellen made my days worth living – to watch them run down the street, to hear them call me 'mom' and to see them growing up… there were no words to describe the feeling.
"Alex, stop it! You're so dumb!" Kellen's whiny drawl filled and reflected off the corners of my mind; I knew my moment of quiet was over. My eyelids separated and my gaze found my two kids stood rigid and glaring at one another. Alex had her arms, rather dramatically, held straight, flaring out from her body.
"Right!" I yelled, catching both of their stares. "That's it; I've had enough. We're going home."
Kellen didn't say anything, he just mooched towards where I sat, with his shoulders slumped. Alex continued to frown in my direction. I stood and outstretched an arm to Kellen's shoulders, whilst Alex still didn't follow. I turned to her and gave her a long, steady look. She glowered back, making me flinch slightly and glance away.
I caught a brief sight of the regular pool and saw it was practically empty. There were a small group of adolescents messing around at the shallow end, groping and feeling each other as they threw one another around in the water. Two other men were doing lengths, one man a brunette with a short pony tail, and the other, blonde with close cropped hair and a really strong stroke. The fair haired guy was swimming just close to my line of vision; I gripped Kellen's body harder and stared directly back at Alex.
"Come on, we're leaving." I told her, lowering my voice without consciously realising. My eyes kept flickering to the man in the other pool, praying he wouldn't look my way.
"Mommy, no!" Alex's shriek wasn't as loud as I knew she could be, but she still raised her voice higher than was necessary. I reached to her and tried to take her hand but she resisted. "I don't want to go; please, can't we stay a bit longer?" She moaned, taking a step backwards.
"Alex, come on, we're going." I repeated, giving her my calmest gaze and holding my arm out for her again.
"No! I'm staying!" She shouted, splashing the water around her with her hands and, as usual, making a scene.
"You are not!" My voice had risen slightly. She couldn't move any further away from me, so I took hold of her body under her arms and clutched her onto my hip. She struggled, causing me to shout and instantly regret it. "Alex, give over!" As I yelled her name, I knew I shouldn't have. I didn't have to glance back to the regular pool to know that Alex was stood, staring at me with those brown eyes of his. I needed to get out, and quickly.
"Kel, darling, follow me." I looked back at him and motioned with my eyes for him to get out. Alex wasn't at all light; ever since she'd been just under one and a half, I'd not been strong enough to carry her. I had weak upper body strength. Kellen trailed me, walking by my side when we reached the stairs.
"Mommy, are you ok?" His voice sounded concerned and I held his eyes for a moment to try and portray to him that everything was fine. I didn't trust myself to speak; I nodded.
Alex was becoming a dead weight in my arms as I continued to hold her and made my way to the female changing rooms. Kellen was still young enough to be accepted into the women's showers without his presence seeming odd.
We were about a metre from the edge when I stopped dead.
"Sabina." Alex Rider spoke my name, his voice smooth and silky, even from the exercise. I half turned, keeping my Alex between the two of us.
Alex was stood by the edge, dripping wet from all over his body, his hair soaked through. His swimming shorts were white and long down to his knees. They suited him with their blandness. He was most certainly not plain; but they helped him blend in.
"Alex." I bobbed my head, my damp fringe falling across my forehead and blocking my view momentarily.
My Alex twisted her head from side to side, looking from me to the strange man in front of her who was speaking her mum's name. "Mommy, why does a boy have the same name as me?"
I stared at her, thinking quickly before I made a request to her, "Alex, honey, why don't you and Kellen go through and start having a shower. Mommy will be through to get the shampoo soon, ok? I won't be long." My Alex gave me a strange gaze before fidgeting in my arms; I assumed that meant yes. I let her down, placing her feet on the floor and watched as she led Kellen away. After a long breath, I brought my eyes back to Alex. "Seriously, I can't stay. I don't trust the two of them alone together for five minutes anymore than I trust them alone in a changing room full of strangers."
He nodded. "I understand." He paused, looking down at his feet and then up at me. "Wow, Sabina, you've got kids?"
I laughed. "Yeah, they're a right pain in the arse when they wanna be."
He sniggered along with me, feeling the awkwardness of the situation. It'd been a good seventeen years since I'd seen or heard from Alex Rider and I couldn't honestly believe he was here – stood in front of me like little or no time had passed. "You named your daughter after me?" His voice was close to silent as he asked me to confirm a link I never thought anyone would register.
Blushing heavily, I nodded, avoiding his eyes where I could. "When she was born… she had a full head of blonde hair and dark eyes. I don't know… you were the first thing that came to mind."
He gave a small, uncharacteristic giggling sound. "I guess I'll take that as a compliment. It's nice to know I made an impact."
"What are you up to these days?" I asked, specifically to drag the conversation away from how I'd acquired my daughter's name.
He scrunched up one side of his face. "Not a lot, to be honest." His voice lowered. "I'm out here on a job, but it terminates at midnight tonight, and then I'll be gone."
I nodded, feeling an uncomfortable silence wrap around my body. It lasted for a few moments before I heard a squeal and a 'Kellen! Go away!'. They were going to kill one another if I didn't get in there. "I'm sorry, Alex, but my kids are gonna tear each other apart; I've gotta go." I waited for him to speak, wanting desperately to swivel on the spot and put my arms around my children to hold them tight. This was horrible.
"Ok, yeah, I get you. It was great to see you, Sabina. I'm sorry I can't stay longer, but I really have to leave town in the morning."
"Erm, yes, its… fine, don't worry. It's been cool, see you… later?" My intonation made my statement of farewell sound like a question, although I didn't mean it that way. I made for the changing rooms, finding Alex and Kellen at separate ends of the shower area. Alex scampered towards me, reaching her hands up to my legs.
"Mommy, mommy," she repeated, "who was that man?"
I took her hands and drew them around my neck, curling my own arms around her back and picking her up. My eyes closed as I embraced my new life.
Seeing Alex had been strange. I can't say I'd thought much about him since I'd been eighteen-ish. He'd been the part of my life I wanted to forget so I'd thrown it from my mind to stop from dwelling on it. I'd got a, sort of, lonely vibe from him. He'd remembered me, after seventeen years of no contact; he'd still recognised me like I knew him. I was genuinely apologetic that I couldn't spend more time with him, but I wouldn't risk it. I needed to disregard him, drive my husband and kids home, and get on with my life like Alex had never affected me. Like before.
"An old friend." I said, after a quiet moment, replying to Alex's question. "One of mommy's old friends. We won't be seeing him again."