Beta – Pryer and Ladder
Disclaimer – Alex & Will are my own characters. Adrian unfortunately is not, I'm just borrowing him from Alan Moore.
Rating - K+
Summary – Alex meets Adrian once more, but not in the way she expected.
A/N – A sequel written to my first Watchmen fic, "Revelations" – reading it is not required though :)
It was too late to turn back. The car was only a block away from the destination and so many guests knew I was coming that it would have been odd if I had changed my mind only minutes before the arrival.
"Honey? Alex, are you alright?" Will looked worried in the dark car. I twisted my lips into a fake smile that didn't fool anyone, especially Will. Then he realised the situation himself.
"It's Adrian, isn't it? You still won't dare to confront him?"
"No," I whispered towards the hotel doors. Our car had just slid and stopped in front of the eloquent hotel where the party was held. It was a fundraiser for "New-Clear Research" – I had no idea who came up with such a corny name – which probably meant that the money raised would blow up some thousands of people somewhere in the East in case of a nuclear war.
Eight years ago I had walked away from Adrian's apartment. Yes, it was his apartment all along even though I had lived there ever since he bought it. I was part of the interior, so to speak, as a bed or a desk or any other necessity. But as I later understood, I could not be replaced with a new and better one.
He tried to call me, write me, even meet me for a couple of months after the break-up – though more frequently and determined in the first weeks, I heard. I tried to stay in New York but even the thought of being in the same area as Adrian made me paranoid. Leaving him had absolutely been the right decision, but I was convinced that if I had given Adrian an opportunity to "explain it all", I would sheepishly have followed him back. And if I wouldn't have, some gigantic assassin or possibly Adrian himself would have shot my forehead off in the dark alley in the darkest hour of the night. So, I left for the Bahamas and stayed there for three months. During the last month of my trip, I met Will.
Will was everything that Adrian wasn't; positive, social, understanding, and caring. Adrian's riches and fame were nothing compared to Will's empathy and loyalty. Will knew almost everything about our three-year relationship and probably tried to compensate for it by being even kinder and gentler than he would have normally been. But he could have been totally ignorant or indifferent of my previous relationship; he was so captivatingly different from Adrian that it made me melt. Later, when Will and I celebrated some anniversary, I thought that he was the first man I noticed after Adrian. Anyone could have been there after Adrian and I would have taken him gladly. But I was just lucky that it was just Will.
I took a deep breath in the car and, to my surprise, I felt amazingly cool and calm, but when I stepped outside to the chilly autumn evening, my legs shook. Will noticed my hesitation and put his hands on my shoulders. With him, I could face my ex after all these years.
But no matter how hard Will tried, it was still a huge shock to see Adrian. He was there in the middle of the huge ballroom, surrounded with socialites and social climbers. He hadn't aged a day since 1977. His hair style and wardrobe had changed of course, but his face and body were as unchanged as a statuette's. Before Adrian could see me, I turned to Will, squeezed his hand, and looked into his hazel eyes. He understood, let go of my shoulders and watched me walk to the drink table.
Mine and Adrian's break-up wasn't especially gruesome or bitter. Well, the reasons for it probably were, but the break-up itself had been sudden and quick – maybe not completely painless, but at least there weren't any misunderstandings on how things were. Despite all that, only after I had had my first glass of champagne and had the second in my hand did I dare to peruse Adrian more carefully.
First I looked around him; were any of those beautiful, graceful people his companion, partner, lover? I still didn't know for sure if he was gay or not. He had cheated me with at least one man, but I didn't know about any others, men or women. Nothing in his behaviour indicated his current marital status.
Adrian wasn't an easy person to interpret. I was sure he had noticed me as soon as I entered the room, but he didn't show it until the halfway through the event. Speeches from the researchers, financiers, professors and others silenced the audience except for the occasional bursts of polite laughter. Between speeches there was unnecessarily loud applause and that's when I saw Adrian's intensive, interested look. I suppressed a shudder and turned back to the platform.
It could have been easy to meet Adrian face to face, talk to him and maybe ask a few neutral questions. But every time I tried to encourage myself to do so, I failed and needed to clutch Will's hand harder. Doing this for two hours made me exhausted and anxious. Finally I had to apologize to Will and say I wanted to go home. When I added he could stay as long as he wanted, he looked relieved and kissed me goodbye; several contacts of his were there so he wanted to mingle as long as possible.
I sneaked to the elevators, smiling politely to people that passed. The elevator doors were almost closed when a shining shoe slid between them and the doors bounced open again. My heart skipped a beat when Adrian stepped in and pressed the elevator button again. The doors shut and didn't let anyone in to save me.
"Good evening, Alex," he said plainly. I got a flashback from last decade when he had said the same words on our first date. I swallowed effortfully and just stared at him. He still didn't look angry, contemptuous, malicious… actually, he looked quite blank. But that wasn't strange to me either.
The elevator doors opened silently. I was already taking a step to escape from him, but then I realised that it wasn't the bottom floor. Adrian had taken us to an empty floor somewhere in the middle of the building. I reached for the buttons again, but he took my hand, surprisingly gently.
"Please, Alex, I'd like to have a word with you," he said, looking into my eyes just like years ago. It had the same effect on me as it had back then. I suppressed my objections – if there even were any – and let him lead me to dim corridor. A few steps to the left, then a door on the right side of the corridor; there was an empty lounge with soft couches and armchairs, thick rugs and lamps casting soft light.
He let go of my hand, closed the door and went to the bar cabinet; I stood still for a split second, then moved slowly to the nearest chair and sat down. Adrian came to me with two glasses in his hands. He sat in the opposite chair, and I sipped my drink. Whiskey numbed my lips and tongue; I hoped it would be permanent so that I couldn't speak to him even if I wanted to.
During the first years of our separation I had come up with several lines I could throw to Adrian's face if we would encounter; even childish, dramatic gestures such as throwing my drink to his face had come to my mind. Now all my defiance and resentment had vanished; all there was left was disappointment and confusion.
"It's good to finally see you," Adrian expressed. I looked up to him; he sat in his chair all relaxed, as some sort of feline, examining me with his eyes.
"Is it?" I dared to ask, taking another sip of whiskey. He didn't answer, just stayed still.
"You seem to be satisfied now," he continued after a while. "Sad that I couldn't be the one responsible for that." I had known it would come to this. I had had responses for these kind of sentences; now there weren't any that would be appropriate.
"How long have you been together?"
"About eight years," I said towards the dark windows on the left. His inhalation was a little heavier than normally; that was the only sign of possible turmoil.
"Engaged?" he asked shortly. I only nodded and shifted my ring to its right place. When nervous, I usually moved my rings from one finger to another. During the evening my engagement ring had moved to the middle finger. Adrian watched my fingers move. Silence fell in the furniture, all in the shades of coffee; cappuccino coloured chairs, espresso coloured pillows, rugs with the shade of latte.
"You know, I would have made you happy as well. You could be my wife by now," Adrian said, with an edge in his soft voice. My head twitched back towards him; he looked at me with hurt arrogance. My fingers pressed the whiskey glass a little harder.
"A perfect little trophy wife, that is. I wonder what would have made me such a great candidate, my adaptability perhaps? Or my ability to keep quiet and pretend to be happy?" Obviously this wasn't the answer he expected. His lips tightened and his fingers twitched. I wondered if he had the nerve to kill me.