I don't own Blindspot or any of these amazing characters…
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This story is a one shot. I have been following CalvinHobbesGatsby's story entitled Remi's Son. He just completed it and asked me if I'd be interested in writing about Alexander. I'm touched that he shared his creation with me and hope that he enjoys the result.
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Alexander didn't know what this feeling was. He was sitting on the couch in he and Avery's new apartment and everything was curiously calm.
Avery was taking their new life in stride, but for him, it was uncomfortably normal.
He'd spent his entire life with blood not only on his hands, but permeating every cell. He hadn't cared, because it was all he'd known. He had nothing to lose. Things were different now. He not only cared about his sister, but his mom and Weller too. That was the problem. He'd allowed himself to care and it had bitten him. His mom was all but gone and Weller…shaking his head he rubbed his neck.
Looking down at the paperwork on the coffee table he threw down the pencil in disgust. He'd been working on his GED, but for what? So he could get some normal job that wouldn't pay enough to live on? He knew he couldn't keep killing people for a living, but what else could he do?
Standing up he began to pace in agitation. He shouldn't have just walked away from his Mom and Weller. They hadn't given up on him. They'd taken him in and fought for him, even knowing who he was…what he was, they had still been there for him. His mom might not be the woman he loved and Weller might not be conscious, but was it right to take the easy road and walk away?
Just then there was a key in the door. Watching Avery come in he walked over and helped her with the bags she was carrying.
"How was class?" he asked her.
"Great!" Avery said, but her enthusiasm was forced.
"Why don't I believe you?" Alexander asked her with a dry tone.
"We shouldn't have left!" Avery blurted out.
Alexander's eyes closed, he wanted to argue, but he agreed.
"What were we supposed to do?" He asked her, "Mom doesn't even remember us and Weller is at death's door."
"But…we didn't even warn the others!" Avery argued, "What if Remi hurts them?"
"What if she hurts you?" Alexander demanded.
Avery looked up at him in surprise, "Is that why we ran? You were afraid for me?"
"Look," Alexander placed the bags on the kitchen counter, "There is nothing Remi could throw at me that I can't handle, but you haven't lived in the shadows, you aren't prepared for just how bad it could get!"
"I'm not weak," Avery argued.
"I didn't say you were weak," Alexander insisted, "I said I wasn't strong enough to risk losing you along with everything else."
"Alexander," Avery grabbed his arm, "You aren't going to be alone again."
"You don't know that," Alexander insisted.
"You aren't a child anymore," Avery reminded him, "You aren't a victim. You have choices and abilities you just need to figure out what it is you want."
"I don't know how to be normal," Alexander sank back down on the couch and rested his head against the back wearily.
"You aren't normal," Avery reminded him, "Stop trying to be. Just figure out what it is you really want and stop trying so hard to be something you aren't."
"What I want?" Alexander was genuinely puzzled. Had he ever even considered that? He certainly never had anyone ask him that before.
"What do you see yourself doing in five years?" Avery tried to help.
"I thought I'd probably be dead," Alexander admitted.
Avery gave him a tragic expression.
"I didn't say I wanted to be dead," Alexander hastily assured her, "It's just that in my line of work, dying was an occupational hazard."
"That's the best reason I've heard so far for changing professions," Avery insisted.
"I'm not going back to that," Alexander assured her, "But what else can I do?"
"You're great with languages," Avery reminded him, "You're an excellent marksman, lethal in hand to hand. Maybe you could open some type of self-defense studio."
"Teach people how to stay alive?" Alexander actually laughed at that.
"What about a bodyguard?" Avery asked him, "Or a bounty hunter?"
"Bounty hunter?" Alexander was intrigued.
"Putting bad people in prison might help you deal with some of your…anger over what happened to you." Avery suggested.
"Very diplomatic," Alexander said with a scowl.
"I also wanted to talk to you about maybe getting some therapy." Avery told him.
"For what?"
"Oh," Avery was the one scowling now, "I don't know. Being abandoned, abused, used, I could go on."
"I think I get it," Alexander assured her.
"Will you?" Avery asked, looking up at him with wounded eyes.
Alexander heard her and knew she was saying this because she cared about him, but the last thing he wanted to do was tell some stranger what happened to him and the choices he'd made as a result.
"I think killing Sheppard was therapeutic enough," Alexander insisted.
"Killing Sheppard wasn't therapy," Avery argued, "It was just more proof that you aren't okay."
Alexander didn't know what to say to that. He loved and admired his sister more than anyone he'd ever met, the fact that she thought he was broken hurt him.
He was trying to change who and what he was, but maybe he was too far gone and couldn't even see it.
"Alexander," Avery regretted her outburst. She knew how hard he was trying to change and being critical of his efforts wasn't very supportive.
"Its fine," Alexander assured her, "I know I'm messed up, but I'm trying."
"I'll love you no matter what happens," Avery assured him, "And I'm not going anywhere."
Alexander was all the more determined to succeed. She believed in him. He'd had to be strong to survive, to be happy he'd have to be strong again. She deserved a brother she could be proud of and he wanted to have that better life she insisted was waiting for him.
"I'll talk to someone," He hated the idea, but just about everything in his life he'd simply endured.
"Really?" Avery smiled at him.
"What do we do about Remi?" Alexander asked her.
"We need to warn them," Avery insisted, "Even if we don't go back."
"I'll call Patterson," Alexander promised.
"You want me to call for you?' She offered.
"No," Alexander assured her. They were twins and the same age, but he felt a lifetime older. He had to take care of her and he would. Even when it was hard and he was tired, because that's what brothers did. He wouldn't let her down.
Avery was every bit as determined to take care of Alexander. She didn't say anything, but he wouldn't have believed it anyway. She'd just have to show him.
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Alexander looked down at the certificate he was holding with a little smile. He'd gotten his GED. It had been six months since they'd left New York. Not only had he called Patterson to warn her about Remi, he'd kept in contact with her and helped when he could. Avery didn't know what he'd been doing, but he had a unique understanding of this side of his mother and the therapist Avery had found him helped him realize it. When he'd accepted that it was the things his mom had been through made her who she was, he'd been able to let go of his resentment. He hated her for doing exactly what he'd done to survive. He hadn't hated her at all, only what he saw of himself in her.
He hadn't told Avery she was right about the therapist, but he figured she knew anyway.
Patterson had been helping him too. She'd provided him with leads on where he could legally use his skills to their best advantage. He was now gainfully employed as an adviser to a company providing security to executives overseas. His contacts and knowledge of the less touristy side of many European cities had been instrumental in getting him the job.
Avery had been overjoyed and she was blossoming in her new environment. She'd made some friends and was even dating one of her lab partners.
She'd always try to include him in their outings, but he really did feel ancient. The last thing he wanted was to bring her down, so he'd initially bowed out. She hadn't let him get away with that for long. Now they frequently went out, alone and with others and Alexander was starting to realize he didn't have to be like the others to enjoy their company. Their differences were what made it interesting. Not that they knew his history, that he only shared with Avery.
That's until he met a woman named Sidney. She'd been rescued from a hostage situation when she'd just been twelve. Now, all these years later, she was still trying to find her way out of the shadows. He recognized the struggle in her eyes. Their shared past and determination to forge a new path had made them fast friends. Trust was a difficult thing for him, but he'd finally realized it was wort the risk.
The call came one day when Avery, her boyfriend, he and Sydney were all having dinner at their place.
"Hello?" Alexander answered the phone.
"Alexander," Jane's trembling voice whispered.
"Mom?" Alexander felt a smile start to form.
"Hi sweetheart," Jane greeted him.
"Did you find it?" Alexander didn't need to elaborate.
"We have the cure," Jane confirmed.
"And Kurt?" Alexander worried.
"He's fine," Jane assured him, "We want to see you both."
"What's going on?" Avery joined him in the kitchen.
"It's mom," Alexander explained, "They have the cure. She and Kurt want to fly in to see us."
"That's wonderful!" Avery's relief and joy could be easily heard.
"When are you coming in?" Alexander asked her.
"Actually," Jane admitted, "We're already here. We just got in."
"I'll come and get you," Alexander immediately offered.
"We can take a taxi," Jane assured him, "We just wanted to make sure it was okay."
"Of course it is," Alexander assured her, "Avery and I can't wait."
He hung up the phone and looked over at Avery with a smile.
"They're on the way over from the Airport," He told her.
Avery gasped before she leaped up into his arms with a little sob of relief.
"Did you know?" She demanded.
"No," He insisted.
It seemed like it took forever, but the bell finally announce their arrival.
Avery and Alexander opened it together, their friends having left to give them the opportunity to reconnect with their parents.
One look was all it took. The four people converged and laughter and tears were found in equal measure.
The pain of the past seemed to fade as new memories replaced old sorrow.
"I'm so proud of you," Jane told them, Alexander's GED still in her hand and approval shining from her eyes. "I know how hard it is to change things you wish had never happened. To accept a past you wish you could forget. I know I haven't always been there to make your path easier, but I hope you know that we're here now." She looked over at where Kurt sat holding her hand, "And we love you both."
Avery cried as Jane held her close, when she opened her arm to include Alexander, he didn't hesitate. With her two children once more secure in her loving embrace she felt Kurt join them. Their group hug started a solid foundation that carried them into a brighter future. One filled with love and laughter, trust and hope, a future that Alexander hadn't even allowed himself to dream of.
Avery's words came back to him.
"What do you want to do with your life?"
Such a simple question and yet so complicated. Alexander smiled. When she'd asked him that he'd realized he'd never considered it. Now, with a bright future and a family who loved him, he realized that his sister forced him to look beyond what was limiting him and find hope. It wasn't until he knew what he wanted out of life that he began to find it. With the help of his family, nothing was impossible. Tomorrow would be what he made it, not a reflection of a past he couldn't change, but a future he'd make for himself. Hearing the laughter coming from the living room, Alexander picked up the bowl of popcorn and headed back toward the sound a smile on his face and love filling his heart.
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I wanted to thank CalvinHobbesGatsby for sharing his character Alexander with me. I hope I did justice to his creation. I know you have a sequel to your story coming, so I tried to be deliberately vague with the details. Hope you liked it!