Two roads diverged in a yellow wood,
And sorry I could not travel both
And be one traveler, long I stood
And looked down one as far as I could
To where it bent in the undergrowth;
Then took the other, as just as fair,
And having perhaps the better claim
Because it was grassy and wanted wear,
Though as for that the passing there
Had worn them really about the same,
And both that morning equally lay
In leaves no step had trodden black.
Oh, I kept the first for another day!
Yet knowing how way leads on to way
I doubted if I should ever come back.
I shall be telling this with a sigh
Somewhere ages and ages hence:
Two roads diverged in a wood, and I,
I took the one less traveled by,
And that has made all the difference.
~Robert Frost
Alex often thought about what his life would be like if his uncle never died and he didn't get blackmailed by MI6. He might have grown up a regular schoolboy, played soccer, and stayed over at friends' houses. Or he might have fallen into MI6 anyways, in a way he came knocking on their door after the stunt at the wrecking yard. Sure, if he hadn't become a spy thousands could have died, but MI6 could have figured something else out if they had to. Alex was sure of that much.
Another thing Alex was sure of was that Jack would still be alive. Julius Grief wouldn't look like him and would have had no need to kill Jack. Alex probably wouldn't have been shot either if he hadn't become a spy. He would have never learnt about SCORPIA, would never looked for them, and certainly would have never learnt about his parents. He would have remained blissfully in the dark.
Alex brought this up to Tom one day after school. Tom brought him some comfort.
"Sure, but at least you know. And maybe you can find closure in there somewhere. Forgive and forget. Live and learn."
That struck a chord with Alex. Sure he might not enjoy what he's been through but it's helped him grow as a person. It helped define him. Sure everything would be different if he hadn't become a spy but he wouldn't have me Sabina at the Wimbledon, or have me Ash. Yes there was good and bad things about working for MI6. He might even like peppermints if not for MI6.
Thinking back on it Alex figures that he had been at a fork in the road after his uncle died. The road to MI6 and being a spy. A unique experience and choice that most people never get. And the road to a normal life. The road to normalcy, ingnorance, and safety. The road most people take.
Sometime Alex wishes he took the road everyone takes, but he tool the road less traveled. And that has made all the difference.