AUTHOR'S NOTE: My apologies for pretty much abandoning this story. I've gotten carried away with writing other stories and my life beyond the world of internet literature that I've almost forgot this one. But let's not get too angry about it; let's continue this fanfic, shall we?
Alex searched the length of the circus train to try and find Vitaly and Gia. He started with the first boxcar behind the flat cars that were behind the steam locomotive, and made his way up until he was at the caboose. The animals who he and his friends were acquainted with- including white horses, tiny dogs of different breeds, and enormous elephants -were the only beings that he found in the boxcars besides his trio of life-long companions. That's when Alex figured that both Vitaly and Gia were back in the circus tent. The reason didn't matter to him; what mattered to him was the mission he was to complete.
It took less than five minutes for him- at least that's what he thought -to return to the gigantic tent. The lion strolled through the open entrance and made his way backstage. All around him were various crates and boxes full of equipment, tall paper screens to give performers a little privacy, and lots of other items that seemed necessary to help everyone prepare for the show. Alex didn't really think that some of the things that the circus had were absolutely important for them to have- most were nonsensical and others were slightly intriguing. He had seen some of the objects that the other circus animals defined as "must haves" and had once debated on why the penguins had bought them. It was highly possible that whoever desired certain items had badgered the penguins endlessly until they gave in. No wonder Skipper's in such a bad mood, Alex thought.
Suddenly, Alex felt his right foot knock into something and he instantly dropped face-first to the ground. The lion cried out as it all happened. Once he landed with a loud thud, Alex struggled slightly to get back up. "Son of a bitch!" he growled through clenched teeth.
It was very unlike him to use swear words, but he did use them whenever no one was around. He didn't want others to think of him as an obscene mouth-breather- Skipper was already providing a good example. Upon getting back up, Alex peered down at whatever object he just tripped on. It was nothing more but a simple jar of yellow paint. He was astounded that he didn't see it earlier. But that didn't matter now. He had to find Vitaly and Gia so he could speak to them. Alex tossed the small jar off to the side and continued on his way.
Eventually Alex passed through the area and came to the entrance of the center ring. Enormous bleachers that could seat thousands of people surrounded him. He wasn't exactly sure how tall they were or how many people each bleacher could seat. None of that really mattered at the moment, anyone could agree to that.
From his perspective, there was not a single living soul inside the circus tent. Thinking that he literally wasted too much time maundering through the tent, Alex was ready to head back outside to continue his search. When he turned around to walk the other way, the lion was startled by the sight of a sea-lion in front of him who said in an Italian accent, "Hi, Alice."
"Whoa!" Alex yelped as he jumped back.
As the lion caught his breath, the sea-lion had a look of slight guilt on his face. "Oh dear, did I scare you?" he inquired quite nervously.
"No, I wouldn't say you 'scared' me," Alex responded. "I would say you more likely made me- you know -jump out of my skin."
"So, I did scare you," said the sea-lion.
"Alright, you did," Alex replied admittingly. "It was good, though."
From what Alex could tell, the sea-lion was starting to feel a lot better. The lion smiled. It seemed to be almost a guaranteed certainty that no matter what ever happens, the sea-lion would always find a way to regain his cheerful manner.
The sea-lion- who was known in the circus as Stefano -was another life-long member in the circus profession. That was a fact anyone could easily deduce, judging by the enthusiasm in his voice and behavior, and the circus frill he wore, which was white with stripes of red and green- the colors of the Italian flag. Just like how Alex and Gia were partners for one of the show's most spectacular acts, Stefano and Marty were the same, only their act was greatly different- they were animal cannon-balls. Much like the human cannon-ball, they would launch themselves from a cannon and perform aerial stunts before landing safely in a net. Such a dangerous stunt to be performed by animals, who would always take all of the right safety precautions before they did anything, was one of the many reasons why their circus was a tremendous success.
Meeting Stefano at the current moment was good for Alex because, since the sea-lion was indeed one of the original performers of the circus before it was remodeled, he was obviously a dear friend of both Vitaly and Gia. Odds are that he was with the tiger and jaguar both he entered the center ring for whatever reason. If that was true, Alex did not want to miss the opportunity to ask.
He looked down at Stefano and inquired, "Say, um, by any chance do you know where I can find Vitaly or Gia? I kinda need to speak with them about...well, something important."
Stefano let out a short gasp, as if he was excited. "What a coincidence!" he exclaimed. "I was with Vitaly and Gia just a moment ago."
Alex's spirits perked up. "You were?" he asked.
"Si!" replied Stefano. "We were walking around and talking about our past shows in our tours, and I brought up that we had a map of the country, so I was going to go get it. I just can't remember where it is."
"Well, where did you last have it?" Alex asked.
Stefano pondered for a moment. "I can't be sure, Alice," he said. "I thought I had it in the caboose, but it wasn't there. So, chances are, it's somewhere here in the tent."
"Want me to help out?"
"Sure! Let's go!"
Alex left the center ring to head backstage with Stefano leading the way. He was really hasty, though- Alex did not want anything to stumble into his path just like that jar of paint, and yet this happened. But the lion had the correct amount of knowledge to understand that allowing his inner emotions about being disturbed at such a moment as this would be critical. How would someone react to behavior like that? How would someone like Stefano even respond? That was a mystery anyone could throw aside.
Once they were back in the backstage area of the circus tent, Alex and Stefano began their search for the map of the country. It was quite a difficult hunt considering the fact that every box and crate in the area was stuffed with nothing but meaningless junk- sure, there were some things that were crucial for a portion of the circus acts, but, for the most part, all of the items stored backstage were simply valueless. With all of the clutter all over the place, it made the search for the map even more tough than it should've been.
Alex was busy with a few boxes filled with nonsensical objects like materials for arts and crafts and the random coffee mugs with various designs painted on them. He hated digging through it all alike every other person, and something like this was sure to leave him with a terrible ache in his back. Once in a while, the lion would heave a sigh and throw the items aside in irritation. He didn't care of anything broke or not- he just wanted to help Stefano with his problem as fast as possible and find Vitaly and Gia so he could finally accomplish his mission.
Just as he had placed all of the items back in their respective boxes and crates, Alex jumped from the commotion behind him. A few moments ago, Stefano was doing his part in the hunt for the map of the country just like Alex. Suddenly, the sea-lion yelped loudly along with the sounds of several large objects falling onto the ground with thunderous thuds. Alex immediately turned around and gasped. Earlier, there was a trio of towers made of boxes and crates stacked on top of one another. Now the three towers had collapsed, right on top of Stefano!
"STEFANO!" Alex cried as he rushed over to the scene. He cleared away the heavy boxes and crates to the best of his abilities, but it seemed like he wasn't getting close to the buried sea-lion.
"Stefano!" Alex shouted again, hoping to get some sort of response. "Hey, Stefano, can you hear me?!"
A cry of "Si!" was slightly muffled by the boxes and crates that were still trapping the sea-lion. Luckily, Alex heard it and moved two more crates off to the side with great strength. At last, Stefano was free.
"Grazie, Alice!" Stefano said before kissing Alex on the cheek.
Instantly after Stefano hopped off of him, Alex wiped away Stefano's kiss as he cringed. "Do you seriously have to do that every time I save you from something?" he inquired, exasperation was clear in his voice.
"I'm sorry, Alice," Stefano replied. "I just got excited- that's all."
Don't you always? Alex thought.
Alex was thankful that he could think before speaking. Whenever he found himself in one of those anger-enducing situations, he struggled to control the fury within him. Sometimes it would escape him but mostly it would remain where it was. When anger allowed itself to be released, the situation Alex was in would become something worse for him by the reactions of whoever he was interacting with. Thankfully, this was not one of those moments when pure rage could break free from the lion and there would be further trouble for him.
"Okay then," said Alex. "Did you see the map by any chance?"
"No, I did not," replied Stefano. "I swear, I thought I put it in a box sometime ago, and now it's gone! What is going on here?"
"Don't ask me. I don't do much of the box and crate stuff. Maybe someone took care of storing the map for you."
"No, that is not what happened, Alice. From what I can remember, Vitaly, Gia, and I were marking all of the states and cities we last performed so we can tally up all of our past destinations. After we marking the last city, we decided to take a break and I placed the map in a box with some other papers and left it there. Someone must've moved it!"
"Why not ask the others if they happened to see a map of America inside a box a while back?"
"Perhaps I could, but who would I ask? One of the penguins? And which one? If I do find one of the penguins, it'll probably be the one who speaks like a total imbecile!"
Alex raised an eyebrow. "You mean Skipper?" he asked.
"Si, that's the one!" Stefano replied. "Just what he says is stupid! No matter where he is or who he's talking to, he's always saying something like 'I don't give a shit' or 'shut the fuck up'! I've heard those words before, I just don't know what they mean!"
"Trust me," said Alex; "it's best if you don't go searching for it online. What Skipper's saying is not for the simple-minded."
Stefano shrugged but he had a look on his face that told Alex that he clearly understood that the words "shit" and "fuck" were not appropriate for the vocabulary of an animal of his standards- the words were inappropriate since they were first said. No one was quite sure when those certain words were created; nevertheless, the words classified as "vulgar" would always find a way to enter someone's diction, whether to release their anger or appear to others as "hardcore".
Alex and Stefano were about to continue searching for the map of America when they heard the sounds of a large circus animal walking into the backstage area. They both turned their heads in the direction of the approaching animal to see Vitaly sauntering towards them. "Stefano, what's taking so long to find one map?" he asked the sea-lion in his gruff Russian accent.
"I can't find it, Vitaly," Stefano replied. "Alice is kind enough to help me, but, still, it's nowhere to be seen."
"Strange," said Vitaly. "You had it in one place and now it's somewhere else. Perhaps one of those penguins know where it is. I just don't want to be the guy who asks them."
"We all can understand that," said Alex, agreeing with the mighty tiger who nodded in response.
Alex was relieved that Vitaly was in a much more likable mood than the everyday bearish attitude he always had- at least that's what the lion always thought since his first encounter with Vitaly. It was still unknown to him but, since the circus' refurbishment, the tiger had loosened some amount of his strictness and became a bit more of a great companion than an unlikable authoritarian. He did keep a few of his old characteristics; nevertheless, Vitaly had changed his demeanor into something everyone could agree with.
It was also reassuring for Alex that Vitaly didn't have some sort of sharp weapon with him. No one knew precisely why but, whether to protect his fellow performers or for the sake of his appearance, the muscular tiger always carried a handheld weapon like a battle-axe or a javelin, and he always had a look on his face that warned everyone present that any wrong action would result in him using it by any means necessary.
Aside from those facts about the tiger, Alex felt more comfortable around Vitaly than he used to- as a matter of fact, so did Marty, Gloria, and Melman. He wasn't quite sure about the other circus animals but finding that out was another activity for another day.
Seeing his opportunity right in front of him, Alex rushed up to Vitaly. "Hey, um, Vitaly, can I talk to you for a bit?" he asked.
"Sure," Vitaly replied. "About what?"
"Well, it's...it's kind of important," said Alex, his fear of what the tiger might say or act when he would tell him about his love for Gia was making him stutter.
"How important?" asked Vitaly.
"Really important," Alex replied.
Alex tried his best not to let Vitaly see his anxiety. But the tiger had one eyebrow raised, clearly signifying that he was becoming suspicious- that's what Alex thought upon seeing the tiger's expression. This caused the lion's level of fear to rise as he forced his mouth to curl into a smile. It would've been believable if Alex had not stretched the ends of his mouth out too much, which obviously gave away his inner anxiety.
Vitaly noticed it as soon as it made its presence known and asked, "You're scared of me, what for?"
"Me? Scared of you?" Alex exclaimed nervously. "Why would you ever say that?"
"Because you are for some reason," Vitaly replied flatly.
Alex tried to think of another thing to say but his mind went blank. He sighed and decided to tell Vitaly about his feelings towards Gia. He summoned all of his mental strength and said, "Perhaps I am acting a bit stranger than usual, but that's because of something that's been in my mind for the past few days."
Vitaly nodded. "What might that be?" he inquired.
"Well, it's..." Alex found himself on the brink of stuttering once again. "It's quite...really...it's complicated, that's all I can say."
"Mm hm," said Vitaly who was grinning at Alex like he actually read his mind. "Complicated as in you're in love with someone?"
Alex's eyes expanded and he felt a sharp pang of fear in his heart, almost as if it was to stop beating from the shock. "How did you know that?!" he blurted out.
Realizing what had come out of his mouth, Alex tried to cover it up. "I mean, well...it...it's not what you think! I...it's just-"
Vitaly placed a paw on Alex's shoulder, causing him to stop babbling. The lion gazed up at the tiger in front of him like a child staring up at an adult in fear of getting scolded. But Vitaly was still grinning. "You can't fool me," he said. "I know all too well what's going on."
Just the way Vitaly said his statement made Alex calm down a little, but not enough to make him completely relaxed. He still felt scared by what could happen next. "You do?" Alex asked nervously.
"Yes," Vitaly replied with a nod; "and believe me, I expected this would come sooner or later."
"You did?" Alex inquired, shaking a little from the fear building up inside.
Vitaly wrapped arm around Alex's back as he guided him through the backstage area. "Listen to me, I know it's hard for you to believe that I am good at heart, but in truth, I am," he said in a benevolent tone of voice; a tone of voice that Alex had never heard before. "I'm sure that you and your friends see me as a strict tiger and that this is entirely shocking; but I'm also sure that you'll get use to it."
"Okay," Alex responded.
"The reason I used to act aggressive around you is because I often saw you and your friends as troublemakers, like you were brought here to mess everything up," Vitaly continued. "But that's all past history. You came and brought our circus back to life. We're all ever so grateful for you and your friends."
"That's really nice of you to say it, big guy," said Alex.
"But, I will admit one thing," Vitaly said in a tone that had to be in-between kindness and displeasure; "I do not like this penguin's vulgar streak."
"Yeah, we're all shocked by Skipper's change in character," Alex replied.
"Does he even know what he's going on about?"
"All I know is that he's stressed out from all of the finances and the promoting, so that should give us all a few hints."
"That actually explains everything. Ever since yesterday, that penguin has been running all over the place, yelling at everyone at completely random things; and just to make things more abnormal, he has added every curse word imaginable in his mediocre complaints."
"Every curse word? Does that include words both racist and hurtful?"
"No, thankfully. He's mostly saying 'fuck', 'shit', 'blow me', words like that."
Using dirty words was bad enough, but if Skipper had actually started saying certain words that described certain groups of people in a negative way, the future consequences would be more severe than simply saying "go fuck yourself" to a random person. Alex began visualizing what could happen to Skipper if he did say any ethnic slurs. In his vision, the penguin was first harassed, then tackled, then beaten, and finally thrown into a small cage labeled "foul-mouthed asshole".
Alex shook his head to clear away his ridiculous yet realistic vision. "Have you thought of anything to try and get him to stop cursing?" he asked Vitaly.
"Nyet," Vitaly sighed. "Even if I did, how would I pull it off? It would probably make it worse."
"Yeah, it would," said Alex.
From behind, Stefano exclaimed, "I found it! I found the map of America!"
Alex and Vitaly turned to face the sea-lion. "That's good, Stefano," Vitaly replied. "Why don't you find Gia and show it to her? She'll be happy you found it."
"Right!" Stefano chirped, and he waddled away to look for the jaguar.
Once Stefano was out of eye sight, Vitaly looked at Alex and said, "We almost lost our train of thought for a second."
Alex looked at Vitaly and replied, "Yeah, we sort of did- only briefly."
"So," Vitaly began; "are you going to tell me about your love for Gia?"
Instantly, the lion's tail, ears, and face dropped at the same time. His heart starting pounding against his chest once again and he lost the use of his voice. When he did seconds later, Alex was able to stutter, "How...how...how do you know that?"
Vitaly laughed since Alex sounded like a malfunctioning robot. "I have my ways, lion," he said coolly.
"Who told you?" Alex demanded. "Was it Marty? Was it King Julien?"
"No one told me," Vitaly answered, cool as ever. "I've been watching you and Gia for the past few months. Apparently, you both are strongly attached to each other. No matter where you two are, you're always seen together; almost unbreakable."
Alex was at a lost for words. All along, the one animal he thought would stand in the way of enjoying a thriving relationship with his lovely trapeze partner was actually aware of their romance and had accepted it. For the entire time he was silent, Alex felt like his was the biggest idiot on the face of the Earth.
"From a love doctor's point of view," Vitaly continued; "it's almost like you and Gia are dating. But, tell me honestly, why didn't you tell me this earlier?"
A dumbfounded Alex replied with: "I was afraid you would disapprove and threaten me with a dagger."
Vitaly shook his head and said, "You know how to think big in some situations, don't you?"
Alex shrugged.
Vitaly thought that was his only response but Alex spoke up. "I just thought that it would be difficult to tell you about it because you're sort of a father to Gia."
"Yes; I've heard a lot of people say that long ago," said Vitaly. "Gia was nothing more than a tiny, endearing cub when she was brought to our circus. She had no mother or father to give her love and attention, so Stefano and I did most of the work."
"You mean Stefano was kind of like Gia's mother?" Alex asked with a funny grin.
Vitaly held back his laughter and replied with a chuckle: "Nyet, a kind woman from Austria was Gia's mother figure- mostly with the feeding and bathing. Stefano was more like her brother."
"I can definitely agree with that," said Alex.
Vitaly walked up to Alex and wrapped an arm around him once more. "I might have told you this once," he began; "but I'll say it again for the hell of it! When you first joined our circus, I regarded you as unwanted pests. But then you revived the entire show and helped me gain my confidence in the business again, and my thoughts about you changed in an instant. Sure, there were some ups and downs with you and your friends, but nothing can change that now- you've saved us from an unknown fate, and we are ever so grateful for your ideas that have brought us to our American Tour."
Alex smiled. "I'm not sure if I told you this," he said; "but it was no problem at all- my friends and I are proud to have brought you so much joy in doing what you do best."
"Speaking of which," said Vitaly; "I think you can bring Gia a lot more joy if you do something romantic with her."
"I'll think about that," replied Alex. "I'm gonna go find her and tell her how much she means to me. Perhaps when we come to a nice town or city with something special for couples, I'll see what I can do. And don't worry, I'll make sure that Gia is both safe and happy."
Alex's face suddenly dropped when he saw that Vitaly was now staring at him with a frown and narrowed eyes that symbolized suspicion. "You better be honestly, lion," he warned him in a deep voice. "Otherwise your neck kisses the blade of my axe."
Alex gulped as fear had a grip on him.
Vitaly then grinned and laughed aloud. "You always fall for it!" he cackled.
Alex rolled his eyes and chuckled, obviously not amusement.
Vitaly started to stroll to another part of the tent. Before he left, the tiger patted the lion's back and said, "Good luck, comrade!"
"Thanks a bunch!" Alex replied, and he sauntered away.
Now that he had learned that Vitaly was well aware of his love for Gia, Alex quickly regained confidence in completing his mission. He was certain that once he got his emotions out, the bond between him and his beautiful trapeze partner would become stronger than it was the first time they met. He wasn't quite sure what would happen if his confession of love was to be rejected, but that didn't matter- Alex wanted Gia to know how much he loved her.
After walking through the center ring, Alex's ears caught the sound of someone humming- someone both female and easily recognized. The tone of the murmured song filled the lion's mind and possessed him, guiding him to the source of the enchanting humming.
Alex turned a corner and found himself at the main exit and entrance of the circus tent, and there was Gia. The jaguar was standing outside with her arms crossed. She was still humming her tune as she waited for rehearsals to start again. By looking closely, anyone could notice that Gia was swaying to her song. It wasn't her entire body, just her bottom portion.
Alex definitely noticed that. He beamed at the sight of Gia's body movements. But he forced himself to snap out of it when he sensed excitement in his lower region- not the same excitement someone would experience like receiving a marvelous surprise on their birthday, but sexually excitement. It was watching Gia's rear end swaying from side to side that was arousing him.
Alex knew that only one thing could save him from an embarrassing body reaction: words. He stepped forward and said, "Hey, Gia."
Gia stopped humming and turned her head to her right side. A hazel eye spotted him and she replied in her enchanting Italian accent: "Oh, hi, Alex."
"What are you doing?" Alex asked.
"I'm just waiting to get back to doing trapeze," Gia responded, fully turned to be in front of her partner.
"That's nice," said Alex. "Look, I wanted to tell you something."
"What's that?"
"Well, it's...it's something that's been on my mind for a while."
Gia began walking back into the tent. "I see," she said. "What might that be?"
Alex thought he had prepped himself for this moment, but it seemed that he had forgotten what was right to say. All he knew was that he was to confess his love for her in front of her. Nevertheless, he decided to do his best and hopefully not mess it all up.
Alex cleared his throat. "Well, you might've known that we have been together a lot," he began. "Vitaly himself said that we're almost unbreakable."
Gia smiled as she made her way to a dresser with a mirror. "I've noticed that, too, Alex," she said. "We are indeed unbreakable."
"And I was talking to him earlier," Alex continued; "and he also told me that he was cool about us being together."
"Really?" Gia inquired. "He certainly has changed."
Gia rested her arms on the dresser. To ease comfort, she stepped back until her legs were able to handle the alteration in weight.
Now Gia was in a pose that had Alex in a trance. Because she was bent over slightly, her rear end was close to him, and the way her tail was curled, the lion felt the erotic sensation return. To avoid it from getting stronger, Alex quickly moved to the dresser alongside Gia. "Anyways," he said; "about what I was about to ask, I wanted you to know that...you know, that-"
"That you love me?" Gia inquired in her relaxed tone of voice.
This caught Alex extremely off-guard. He stuttered, "Uh...uh...well, um..." Alex realized that talking was the key out of panic. He calmed down and said, "Yes. Gia, I love you with all of my heart."
Gia giggled and straightened herself back up. Looking into Alex's blue eyes, she replied, "And I love you just the same, Alex."
Gia walked up to Alex and hugged him tightly. Alex wrapped his arms around Gia and squeezed her gently. They've hugged many times before, but this was unlike the ones in the past. Instead of being the result of success, this hug was the result of love confirmed and accepted. It was quickly made official, but neither of them cared- they were both joyful to be with each other in such a wonderful moment in their lives.
After a minute of being in a long-lasting hug, Alex and Gia looked into each other's eyes. Both of them beamed as they continued to live in their moment of bliss. To them both, looking into the eyes of their companion was like gazing into a beautiful painting of an evening landscape, and they were a part of it.
Eventually, Gia broke the silence with words. "You were afraid of Vitaly's response so you kept quietly, weren't you?" she asked.
"Yeah, I was a big coward," Alex replied. "I never got the courage to speak up and say anything. That's why I've waited so long to tell you."
"Did it honestly have to be over a year for you to confess your love for me?" Gia questioned.
Alex nodded. "Like I said, I was scared for my life," he said. "But that's all in the past now. Vitaly understands that we are in love and that's what it's going to be- for better or for worse."
"Does anyone else know about us?"
"Well, to be honest, Marty, Melman, and Gloria talked me into telling you how much you meant to me and I couldn't deny it. So, I decided it was time to let me feelings out."
"I think that you've been brave talking to Vitaly about your feelings."
"Yeah, I can be brave whenever its possible."
"You may not have strong muscles, but you definitely have a strong heart."
"Did Marty tell you that?"
"I heard him mention something about you and an old woman, but he never told it to me directly. But we shouldn't get worried about that, should we?"
"Absolutely not."
Just then, Skipper voice erupted from far behind them. "Alright, break time is over! Everyone, get your asses back to rehearsals! And don't give me any of your whiny bullshit! Otherwise, I'll blow your fucking head off!"
Alex and Gia let go of each other and groaned. "With what?" Gia snorted. "He doesn't have a gun! What's he gonna use? The cannon?"
"We shouldn't think about that," said Alex. "Skipper's in a bad mood."
"It's a really bad one," said Gia. "He's had it for a few days now."
Alex sighed deeply. "Has he been getting on your nerves, too?" he asked.
"That penguin's getting on everybody's nerves!" Gia roared. "All day long, it's "fuck you" to one guy and "don't be full of shit" to the other! What is that bird's issue!"
"He's just stressed out from managing our budget and commercials," Alex explained. "I don't fully understand why he's gone full blow insane."
"Well, he needs to get help!" Gia replied. "If he doesn't, I'll find a way to persuade him!"
Alex became immensely worried about Gia's statement. "What would you do?" he inquired nervously. "Would it be something anyone else would do?"
"Does a foot in the ass work?" Gia asked.
"No," Alex responded.
"It doesn't matter," Gia said. "I'm gonna do it anyway!"
Gia started to stomp away but Alex rushed up to her and grabbed her arm. "Gia, stop and think about this," he told her. "Skipper's going through a lot and he's obviously struggling to free himself from it all; but do you really think that's going to help him?"
"It'll show him how angry we are about it!" Gia growled.
"Look," Alex began; "I know that we're all disgusted and offended by Skipper's use of foul language, but we shouldn't be threatening him with something large up his butt. I'm pretty sure if we play our cards right, we can get him the proper help he needs and we can carry on with our lives. How does that sound?"
Gia stared at Alex angrily for a few seconds before sighing. "That sounds a whole lot better," she said. "The sooner he gets better, we'll all get better."
Alex smiled and guided Gia towards the trapeze swings. "C'mon, let's get back to rehearsals," he said. "We've got a big performance ahead of us."
