Kapitel 2 – Tunc Curat

Drevins' Private Room, Waterfront Hotel in London

Paul could not sleep, nor that his mind wanted him to sleep. He was lying on what used to be his father's beautiful four-posted bed and he stared at the ceiling. It was evening and he had already done his homework and yet, he could not believe on what he had on this feeling to Alex since their first reunion in school.

What is this feeling? This came out of nowhere and yet, this is something very warm. Alex was very brave and heroic on the outside and yet…despite his battle scars and bruises, he's very fragile on the inside. Why doesn't he want to be a spy, when many boys dream of becoming one? And why did he and I were about to…?

So many new questions were entering to his head and with his eyes wide open, he wondered if Paul and Alex had something in common.

There's something special between us two. I must find that relationship and then…


Alex's bedroom, Chelsea

"Alex!" Jack's voice shouted to Alex, as he was lying on his bed, facing upwards "Dinner's nearly ready, so you'd better come, before the food's going to get cold!"

"Okay! Be right there!"

Even though that his mind told him his stomach was grumbling, he was still lying, thinking about Paul and his reunion in school that afternoon. His thoughts were running wildly about him.

Did Paul and I…? No, that couldn't be possible! That only happens when it involves a boy and a girl! I have some feeling for Sabina and yet…Paul is the only person who knows how I feel. What it feels like to be a spy that is too young to do a job. But then again, why is my heart beating faster every time I see him? I know that we weren't meant for each other and yet...he cares for me…

"Hey Alex! If you don't come downstairs right now, the food's going to get cold by the next minute!"

"Oh right! I'm coming!"

He stopped thinking about the events and went downstairs to the dining room, where only he and Jack were there, sitting on the table, opposite to each other.

"We're eating sushi again, Jack?" Alex asked in genuine surprise.

"Yep!" Jack smiled, knowing that she can sushi in under ten minutes "Anyway, so how was school?"

"It was…fine as usual. No MI6 people trying to drag me."

"Ah, that's really good."

"But…do you remember Drevin's son?"

"Ah! You mean…uh, let me think, his name's Paul right?"

"Yeah and he came into my school today."

"Eh? Really?" Jack stood up looking very surprised, while Alex's cheek were blushing when he had said 'Paul' "But why did he come to your school? Isn't that just a comprehensive? Shouldn't he just go to some private or what you call it, er, public school?"

"I really don't know." He softly replied, while his cheeks were still blushing.

"Hey, Alex?"

"Yes?"

"Why is your cheeks glowing pink?"

"What?" Alex was embarrassed when Jack asked him about his face and he covered then with his hands "What are you talking about? Paul and I are just friends! There's nothing so special between the two of us!"

"Oh, really?" She smiled sinisterly as she looked at him.

"T-there's nothing between the two of us, whatsoever. Jack, why are you saying this?"

"Hmm, maybe you've got a crush on Paul Drevin, haven't you?"

"What? That's not how it is!"

"Oh yes you are! I can't believe Alex is having another crush, but this time, it's a boy!"

"JACK! I'm not turning homosexual!"

"But your hormones are. You dirty little rascal!"

"Jack, stop teasing me! I like Sabina; she even gives me a get-well card when I had this bullet wound several months ago. So, therefore I'm not gay!"

"Really? We shall see about this." With her final wink at the young blushing teenager, Alex had decided he had enough of discussing his love sensitive issue and quietly eating the sushi his guardian had prepared around couple of minutes ago.


Next day, Brookland Comprehensive School

"Morning, Alex." Paul greeted gently to Alex as the fair haired boy sat behind the Russian, before Paul turned to him.

"Uh, morning Paul." Alex greeted softly to him back though his cheeks were lightly blushing.

"So, did you managed to finish your French homework?"

"Yeah, though I still missed a few irregular verbs out. So, did you finish that?"

"Yes, even though French isn't my native language. Do you want to finish yours, before the school bell rings? We've got plenty of time to do it."

"Oh, sure."

Strange, Alex thought as he got out his French textbook and notebook every time I'm with Paul, I feel that there is a natural and calming atmosphere between the two of us.

Whenever I'm around with Alex, Paul thought as he was giving Alex a hand to finish the remaining irregular verbs on the French homework I feel that there is something between us two. Even though that Alex is a spy and I'm just a pawn from my lunatic father. However, that does not mean that the two of us are enemies…and I must find what binds him and me…

"Paul…" The young Russian stopped his train of thoughts as Alex called him.

"Uh, yes?"

"Thanks. You've saved my homework. Now I won't have to get blamed by Mister de Vanne!"

Paul lightly laughed "Well anyway, do you remember at lunchtime yesterday?"

Alex's cheek were lightly blushing again "Uh, yes. Was it that time where you and I were alone in the classroom and…?"

"Yeah, that was very…"

"You don't need to say it any more. I know how you feel and yet, words cannot describe this feeling we've had yesterday…and we're nearly kissed."

Alex's cheeks were blushing, regardless if many students were looking at him "Eh, what do you mean?"

BRING!

"All right kids, get on your seats on the double!" Miss Fiona shouted as she slammed the door behind her "I don't want you to go berserk when I'm registering you!"

After minutes of registration and students heading off to their chosen different subject classes, Alex and Paul went into the art classroom, though these two were the only boys that chose their subject, due to most of the girls choosing and most of the male student were either lazy at creating their imagination or they have no skill at drawing.

"Hey, Alex!" One of the female students shouted as she waved to him "Is that the new boy everyone is talking about?"

"Oh, hey Rosette!" Alex greeted back as he and Paul brought out their art equipment and sketches "Yeah, I'm sure you've heard of Paul Drevin by now."

"Who's she?" Paul asked to him politely "I've never seen her in our class."

"Oh, that. She's Rosette Gilliam. She's not in our class, but she shares the same options as me since last year."

"Ah, I see." Then he approached to the young blonde teenager "Is your name Rosette Gilliam? I'm Paul Drevin and it's a pleasure to meet you." He held out her hand and gave a soft kiss, to which made her blush.

"Oh my!" She exclaimed embarrassingly as her face was turning pink "I never knew male Russian teenagers are so polite in this fashion."

"It's tradition to be polite in front of beautiful English woman such as you."

"Oh, please stop! You're really embarrassing me!"

"Okay, people! Enough chatter!" Shouted a grouchy, but young feminine voice as the female art teacher appeared, dressed as if she was going out to a formal conference. And then she glared at her victim, er, student – Alex Rider "Well, well, if it isn't my most absent student, Rider! Did you do something useful, instead of disappearing from school with ridiculous excuses that I have to endure?"

"Uh, yes." Alex replied nervously, as he got out his black A2 portfolio that he had brought earlier yesterday, even though his art teacher was unaware that his disappearances were just lies to cover up his spying missions "I've made some more sketches and one watercolour piece finished."

"Good, now I don't want any more excuses from you, otherwise, you would have to catch up, BIG TIME!" And then she looked to Paul in a matter of short seconds "And who are you? I've never met you, before."

"My name is Paul Drevin," The Russian announced himself softly "I've just got here yesterday."

"Uh-huh. Well anyway, I'm your and Alex's art teacher, Missus Satella and over the next coming months, I'll turn your hobby skills into your masterpieces. So, what mediums are you good at?"

"I'm good at sketching and shading with several pencils and fine line pens. I'm also good at creating pieces with mixed media and watercolour. However, I'm no good with acrylics, due to the mess I create and with asthma, I have limitations to which glue I should use for the mixed media."

"Ah, I see. Well then, I'll let you use your skills you've created when you're young and put them into the best masterpieces you're going to make. However, if you're behind the work, like my dear boy, Alex and given me the most preposterous excuse I've ever heard, then I'm staying you behind after school and finished the job, until I say so. Is that clear?"

"Yes, Miss."

And following many minutes of girls chattering the latest gossips and Missus Satella getting angry at one of the female students' effort in her artwork, there was peace at the boys' only table; though ironically, Paul and Alex were sitting next to each other.

"Sorry, if Missus Satella was getting angry at you!" Alex blushed as he was stroking the paper "She's angry even in normal fashion."

"It's okay." Paul remarked so calmly as he was sketching with the fine line pens "I'm used to getting yelled at my tutors when my dad was still alive."

"Oh, I see. So, have you ever been alone after your dad pulled out from school, until now?"

"Yeah. Every time I was in the classroom that my father have built, I've felt so isolated and lonely. I didn't have many people who has the same age as I have and it wasn't possible to make friends, either, because my father never had any friends to come over. I couldn't permanently stayed at my mother's side. What about you, Alex? Were you alone when you're not in school and was forced to go on missions that MI6 had set up?"

"…Yes." He sighed and cringed greatly when Paul mentioned the name he despised at "I wanted to live in peace and grow up to be a normal teenager like you. Growing with friends that I want to explore…and yet all this time in the past, my uncle had trained me just to take over the work that my father and himself left when they died. All that time, I hated myself, I hated to be inside the lies that I was forced to tell and now, most of friends to which I was fairly popular, had distanced away from me. Only Tom and Sabina had encouraged me to live on as normal life. I'd just wanted to be ordinary and go to school, instead of going into dangerous missions only to have more battle scars and live in lies. I hate that…" He clenched his teeth and Paul noticed that Alex produced a tiny little tear on his cheek.

"So, you were lonely as well in general?"

"Yeah. I love living in England and experienced what it's meant to live your life to the fullest, but working for MI6 when you're still at school is more like Hell, than getting homework. But when I grow up and get my degree, I'll never want to choose the James Bond path and work peacefully in somewhere that no-one dictates on what I can choose to do. Even Blunt."

"I see, then were you afraid to die? Afraid that all hope seems lost to you?"

"…Yes."

"All right boys!" Mrs. Satella's voice shouted as her body came to the 'boys' only' table "Let's see what you've done so far."

After hours of lunchtime, more lessons, it was time that the final school bell rang for Brookland and Paul was ready to pack his equipment, to which Alex and Tom, his new friends were beside him.

"Paul, do you want to go to my house?" Alex asked "I don't have football practice today, so if it's okay for you."

"Sure." Paul replied softly as he strapped his bag "I've only got one homework to do and my assistant is having an afternoon off, so he won't pick me up."

And they left school together and walked together to Alex's house on the way.

"So, do you live in many places, before you've settled here?" Tom asked while his pace was a little unusual as he was slightly ahead of the two boys, who were at their normal paces.

"Yes," he replied rather sadly "every time when I was with my father. Now, I live with my mother in America."

"Wait, I thought you are now living in here?"

"Well, my mother is a bit fussy when it comes to education and integrating with kids, such as us. She's more concerned with my social life in the future than my father did."

"Ah, I see. Well, here we are! Only a few more steps to Alex's house."

Eventually after minutes of entering, settling into the young spy's house and Alex urging Jack that his friends were not some sort of terrorists or yakuza members, the trio managed to inhabit in Alex's bedroom and they immediately started doing their maths homework.

"Drat!" Tom screamed as his grip on the ball point pen had increased pressure as he was doing his homework on the floor in the lying position "I can't even sort out this bloody algebra problem! I mean, how can 'x' be twenty-five?"

"Perhaps you had muddled up 'x' and 'y' at the same time." Paul answered; that he had already solved one of the harder questions sitting on Alex's bed.

"Ah, now I get it!" Alex exclaimed, on his desk that he jotted down another hard question "At least we know now that we're going to have an early night."

"Well, then," Tom stood up proudly to the duo "this calls for a celebration, but first…I need to go to the toilet! My bladder's screaming after drinking too much coke!" And then he ran quickly to that place, leaving Alex and Paul in the young spy's bedroom.

At first, there is an eerily silence in the atmosphere, until Alex spoke in order to break the silence.

"Uh, maybe I should go check on Jack to see if dinner's ready. She always hate preparing the dishes when it goes beyond ten minutes or so."

"Maybe I should go with you." Paul stood up as Alex was about to go to the door.

"You don't need to. And besides…" he noticed that the Russian's hand was on his shoulder, making his face a little blush.

"No, really I insist."

"But that isn…" Unfortunately by the time Alex was about to get out from his bedroom, he slid accidentally from his socks and consequently caused Paul to fall with him and…

CRASH!

Alex tumbled to the facing upward to Paul in a position that would deemed too hot for the words to describe on the bed. The young spy's face was blushing and so did Paul, though the Russian's expression was more natural and calming than Alex's embarrassment.

My, my, Alex is warm when his face blushes was Paul's first thought. But then he discovered his second thought…then again, Alex is fragile and he needs some comfort after dangerous missions.

However, as for Alex, his mind was racing madly. Dammit! This isn't how it suppose to be! I'm not in love with a boy! I have feelings for Sabina, was the young spy's first thought. On the other hand, his second thought…But Paul understands on how I feel. His face, he's so calming…

And then someone had arrived on the door…


Author's Notes: (Laughs evilly) Bet you didn't see that cliffhanger coming at the end of Kapitel 2 (btw, the title for chapter two means 'then soothes' in Latin and is taken from Carl Orff's Carmina Burana). Yeah, if people are going to ask me why the (bleep) did I piss the Squall/Rinoa pairing from Final Fantasy VIII from the last one shot fanfiction, I'm not a fan of the game. In fact, the only character from that game that I really like is Laguna Loire and that's about it. Seriously, he was the only character that doesn't have anti-social problems like Squall. And don't get me started on the Cloud/Aerith pairing from Final Fantasy VII. They're not really compatible with each other, because Cloud suffered the 'emo disease' and thinks that Aerith is his mother. Plus, he was too depressed when Sephiroth killed her. DAMMIT! Cloud should have gone to therapy for this issue.

Anyway, the reason why I'm doing this Alex/Paul pairing is for two reasons. One, there isn't enough of those shounen-ai or slash Alex Rider fanfictions so I'm bringing them in with the inclusion of my new C2, Boys' Secret Code, a collection of AR slash or shounen-ai fanfictions, along with its forum and two, the Alex/Paul pairing really reminded me of the Daisuke/Satoshi pairing from D·N·Angel and found some amazing similarities with Daisuke and Alex. They were both trained at a young age secretly by their families (Daisuke being the mother and Alex being his uncle in that case) and both found their fate at their fourteenth birthday (Daisuke being the phantom thief Dark and Alex being a spy and yes, those were different, but you get my drift). The only differences between the two are the characters and the plot. I wonder if Anthony Horowitz read a little D·N·Angel when he needed inspiration.

Well anyway, reviews and comments are welcome, but NO FLAMERS from either some homophobes or those crazy rabid yaoi fangirls. I'm a fan of both heterosexual and homosexual pairings as you might know and I'll be pissed off if you insult the two types!