A/N: Hey guys! I think the last chapter was a little boring, but there was a little bit of "Algle" going on at the end. There might be a bit more at the end, maybe. OK, sorry, that couple name sucks. Also, I've been told that the chapters might be a bit too short, so I tried for a bit longer. Thanks for the reviews! Keep giving me feedback, it will help me construct this better. And on with the show!
Disclaimer: Sorry, but no.
"Wolf?"
Grunt.
"I was wondering if I could go out this weekend."
Raised eyebrows.
"Only, one of my friends, James, invited me to a party, and a lot of people are going, so it would be a chance to make new friends-"
"Cub, I'm trying to work! No offence, but I don't care about your social life, so piss off!"
Alex huffed and moved towards the door, but paused. "So I take it that I can go?"
"CUB!"
Alex grinned at her reflection in the mirror. After much persuasion, when Wolf was in a better mood, she was finally allowed to go to the party. James Bell had asked her on Friday if she wanted to come. Alex didn't know what to think of James. He looked arrogant and cock-sure, but he seemed ok at heart. Besides, Alex figured that she would keep with the first friend she made in her new school, if she could help it. Of course, there was Lynette, but she didn't really understand that dizzy, hyper girl as much as James. James reminded her of Tom. And anyone like Tom was alright in her books.
She finally put the finishing touches to her outfit: a silver dress that ended mid-thigh, lots of gold necklaces and chunky bracelets. On her legs, she wore fishnet tights. She gently teased her hair and put a black hair-band on. Alex didn't particularly like heavy make-up, so she used a blue eye-pencil and light mascara, as well as a slick of lip-gloss. The overall effect was stunning, even if she did say so herself.
When she went downstairs, Wolf told her she could come back at any time, as long as she didn't disturb him. Oh, and if she was stoned, she wasn't coming back to his house. Alex just smiled at him and agreed to his terms. As she opened the door to go out, she saw K-Unit coming to visit. She waited for them at the door. "Hey, guys," she greeted. "Hi, Cu- oh, holy fuck!" was Snake's clever reply. They were all staring at her. Eagle's jaw had visibly dropped to the ground and Lynx was blinking and rubbing his eyes. Ben, however, frowned at Alex. "Lex, are you sure you should go out like that? You might attract unwanted attention…" Alex sighed and told him not to worry. She was perfectly capable of looking after herself. Grinning at Eagle and Lynx, she walked down the pavement to the bus stop. She smirked as she heard murmurs from Wolf's front garden: She looks amazing as a girl.
Alex arrived at James' house and took in the grandeur of the place. James soon found her, greeting her warmly. "Alex! You made it. This is my brother, Luke." Alex turned to look at the older boy who was gawking at her. He was a tall blonde, like his brother, but he had sharp blue eyes instead of green. He looked alright to Alex, but he was nothing special. She murmured a greeting to him and turned back to James. "Where are your parents, then?" James grinned. "They're out for the weekend. They left Luke in charge, making sure he promised to be a good little boy, but…" he gestured to the dark house, with music blaring, people dancing and alcohol being consumed at an alarming rate. Alex nodded, her body already jiggling to the catchy music. "Come on," said James, "Come and dance."
Wolf sighed wearily, pouring through his new ward's file as Eagle and Lynx argued over a rom-com or action. So far, rom-com was winning, much to Lynx's disgust. Wolf was extremely angry. He was expected to look after and protect some kid, who he knew nothing about and he wasn't even getting paid! All he knew was Cub's name, age and bits and pieces about his school work. Everything else came with a big, red "classified" before it. For Christ's sake, he didn't even know about how long he had to look after Cub. He guessed it would be whenever his parents came back from their mission, or business trip, or whatever they were doing.
Wolf shifted his gaze towards his noisy unit. They weren't even acknowledging his presence, even after all he did for them, getting shot for them in Iraq… No, Wolf, don't go there. It's not worth it. He got up and silently went to the kitchen. One thing he had learnt in the past is that alcohol makes you forget everything wrong in your life. And if that was what it took for him to make the pain go away, then so be it.
It was nearly midnight when Alex had decided she had enough. She didn't partake in the drinking competitions, knowing full well what alcohol could do to the strongest man. She just danced. She thought that dancing was one of the best things in the world, because not only was it exercise for the body, but it cleared away all your troubles. And the good thing about James' party was the music. It was feel-good, and made you want to get up and just dance. Because no-one else mattered when she danced. It was just her, and that was how she liked it.
Alex said bye to James and Luke, and to the many other friends she had made at the party. She walked outside, mentally berating herself for not bringing a jacket, as it was very cold. She stumbled along the road, only slightly tipsy. If, however, she wasn't as tipsy, she would have noticed the slight movements behind her, as if someone was trying to seem inconspicuous, but failing miserably. But Alex walked on, blissfully unaware. Then, when she turned the corner of the road, all hell broke loose. There was a shout of "get her, lads" and Alex was thrown to the floor in surprise. She immediately got up, her brain reminding her of what to do when she got attacked. She lowered her stance, poised on the balls of her feet, eyes alert and suspicious. There, entering her line of vision was the boy she beat up by the lockers a few days ago, with some of his mates: Ryan Healy. He swung his fist at her and she ducked, trying to kick him round the side, but he caught her leg and threw her to the ground. At once, Alex threw her legs up, kicking him in the balls. He yelled in pain, falling to the ground. Yet Alex didn't loosen up as yet, for more of Healy's minions were coming here way. She knew that this should be easy, until she saw one with a knife. Her karate instincts took over as she performed a roundhouse kick, knocking down a few of them like dominoes. But there were still two left. One screamed, and ran up to her, attempting to tackle her to the ground. She calmly stepped out of the way, but she didn't avoid a healthy punch to the cheek. She was sure that would colour nicely the next day. Satisfied, she turned to leave, but she forgot about the most important one: the one with the knife. He roared as he attempted to stab her, but she ducked, leaving the knife to wound the thin air, and then she ran. She heard something whizzing through the air and felt something sharp on her ear, making her stumble. She drew her hand to her ear and felt something warm and runny. Blood. She looked back, but the guy with the knife had run away.
Alex stumbled on the ground, wishing her life was simple. For fuck's sake, I only beat him up at school! Why'd he have to bring a knife into it? She searched her bag for her phone and when she finally found it, she searched through her contacts. There was one that was still on her speed dial that shocked her: Jack Starbright. There wasn't much use calling that, and Wolf hadn't given her his number. She continued scrolling until she got to "E". There she found Eagle's number. He had given it to her after pestering her for days, claiming it was only for her safety. She sighed and rang the number.
At Wolf's house, Eagle was having a brilliant time watching Finding Nemo. It was the only film that both he and Lynx could agree on. He sighed, content. The only thing he needed now was a beautiful girl to call his. Of course, he had set his sights on a certain Alex Rider. Of course, Fox had scolded him enough about the fact that there was nearly seven years of difference between them, but that hadn't stopped Eagle from trying. As he had rightfully told Fox, it was only a matter of time that Alex saw sense. His train of thoughts was interrupted by the ringing of his phone. And I was like, baby, baby, baby, ohh… Eagle glared at Lynx, who he knew was responsible for that, and answered the phone. "Hello, Matt speaking?"
"Eagle? I really need your help!"
"Alex? What's happened?"
"There was this fight outside the party and I got involved and I really need to be picked up."
"Are you hurt?" The other looked at Eagle, aghast.
"No, I'm ok. I'll text you the address, but I need help. Oh, and can you tell Ben that the fight didn't affect my you-know-what? He'll be worried. Oh, and don't tell Wolf. He doesn't need to know."
"You're you-know-what? What's that? Alex? ALEX?" But the phone was dead. He turned to Ben, who was white with fear. He had heard the whole conversation. Their pregnant silence was interrupted by a ding! of Eagle's phone, telling him where Alex was. HE quickly motioned to the others to follow him, while shouting to Wolf that he was going to get Alex. All he got in response was a deep snore. Eagle gave a dry chuckle. I guess this is the best way to get Alex to like me: be her knight in shining armour…
Alex was lying on the couch in Wolf's living room with four, very concerned SAS men standing around her. She sighed as Ben ranted on and on about how much more careful she should have been, the risks of alcohol and why it should be made illegal for teenage girls to walk around on their own at the dead of night. Alex sighed and made a point of looking at her watch. Ben stopped short and looked at her ruefully. "Sorry. But did you hurt your…" trailed off Ben, unsure of how much he should reveal to the rest of the unit. Alex shook her head. "It's nearly three years old, Ben. It isn't have as bad as before."
"I know, Alex, but I have to check."
"Wait," said Snake, "You have a serious injury?" Alex shook her head feverishly, while Ben nodded. "Cub, what have you got? I'm the unit's medic and you're still one of us. I need to know." Alex sat there stoically, refusing to meet his eyes. Eagle decided to pipe up. "Alex, you better tell us. You told us that you weren't hurt now, but you have many bruises on your face and you were almost knifed! Somehow, I refuse to believe that Ben is lying." Alex's face softened. "Fine. But I don't see what the fuss is about." Ben sighed and walked out of the room. Then Alex did something that none of them expected: she took her dress off. She stared at them defiantly as they gasped in shock. They were army men. They knew that kind of wound when they saw it. "Cub! You got shot in the heart! How are you even alive?" yelled Snake. Alex shrugged and put her dress back on. "It was two centimetres to the left, actually." They shuddered at the casual tone she employed. But Lynx was thinking. "You got shot by the heart. If it was an open fire, you would have more wounds. Then how come…" he blanched as he finally understood. "There was an attempt to assassinate you! But who would do that? You know, you haven't told us much about yourself, Cub. Just who are you?" At that moment, Ben came back. "Guys, we should go. Bye, Lex. Feel better tomorrow." Alex smiled gratefully at him as he walked out, Lynx and Snake behind him. Eagle remained, giving Alex a hard look. She sighed, walked up to him and kissed him on the cheek. "Thanks," she said, before running off, leaving a flabbergasted Eagle in her wake.
Alex was surprised to find that Wolf was more pissed than she was. She caught him nursing a bottle of vodka, muttering to himself, until he caught sight of Alex. "You!" he pointed, accusingly, "You have made my life hell. I never wanted you. The Unit doesn't want you. You just walked in here and expected to be pampered, just like your parents do for you. Well, listen Cub: you might have been born with a silver spoon in your mouth, but don't expect that kind of treatment from me. Stay out of my way, or else." With that, he walked into the living room, roughly pushing past her. Alex groaned and went upstairs. Just another person's life she's fucked up, then.
Oh, poor Alex :( So, tell me what you think, what I should improve on, better length? Also, if you have any scenes that you especially want, then go ahead and tell me. Also, does Wolf seem a bit... bipolar? He does to me, but that might just be the critical author...
Ta ra from your favourite banana x
