100th review has been claimed by ZeZe123! Thank you to everyone else who reviewed too, immd :)
There's nothing I hate more than when someone reviews with a really great question, or a false assumption, and I want to reply but they've disabled PM's. So to all you sillies out there, fix thaaaat! Drives me crazy!
The name of this story is a play on "Life's a Bitch", in case some people didn't get it… But I thought it'd probably be a better idea NOT to put a swear word in the actual title 8D So a bullshitted one and guess what? I got away with it :P & sorry for the long time between the update, say goodbye to weeklies as I've got a little less time on my hands now. Two-three weeks now? :D
Remember everyone… I'm not British. I think my grandpa had some English blood, but I'm Canadian, and I've got Italian blood. If you want to correct me I'm fine, but don't bite me, since the most British literature I've read is Alex Rider and Harry Potter… so far I've learned brilliant, bloody, git, arse, and I've basically got the accent down :D
BTW – ha! This chapter has angst! For all you people out there labeling LAB as crack.
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There was only one Sabina Pleasure in the phone book and, lo and behold, the number Snake had memorized was the same one listed. Her home address was eight-nine-four-two falcon road, Chelsea, so they sat in the living room regrouping and formulating a plan.
"I feel like an idiot." Wolf stated standing up, "This is stupid. I refuse to play matchmaker for the kid."
"No, don't think of it like that. The sooner Cub has a chick to whip him into shape, the quicker he'll stop acting like such a…"
"Teenager?" Snake finished for Fox.
"You guys can do this yourselves," Wolf announced, moving towards the door, "I'm not Cub's friend, I'm his guardian. I'm not concerned, and if he pulls something like that again, I'll just kick his ass."
"Bull. You're not allowed to kick his ass, remember, Wolf?"
"I'll think of something." Wolf pulled open the door, shutting it behind him without bothering to say goodbye to anyone other than a detached, "see you later, Sadie."
"Bye Luke!" Sadie called from her room, where she'd moved the legal papers she was organizing. Eagle sighed, looking at Snake and Fox sadly.
"I guess we're on our own."
"I don't miss the grump." Snake stated. "He was being a killjoy, anyway."
"You can't call Wolf a grump," Fox gasped, "do you know what he'd do to you?"
"He's not even here. Plus, I'm the oldest so I have the right to call Wolf a grump anytime I want to. Anyway, let's head over to Sabina's place and start our stakeout. I doubt she's the type to stay in all day." Snake shook his head slowly, drawing the other two's attention to him.
"This is a bad idea. It's gonna take forever, and Wolf is right. We're going about this the wrong way."
Eagle scowled. "You know what? Fuck it. I'm calling her."
He picked up his phone and punched in the numbers that he'd heard enough times to memorize, ignoring the protests of his two friends. "Damn it Eagle, what did we say about–"
"Hello?" The voice on the other line halted everyone's speaking, and Eagle quickly started talking, trying to cover up for the suspicious sounding silence that settled the moment she answered. He was winging it at the moment.
"Uh, hello, is this Miss Sabina? Sabina Pleasure?"
"… Who is this?" The voice asked slowly, obviously not stupid. Eagle sighed, pulling the phone from his face and putting it on speaker phone so the others could listen, but motioned for them to let him do the talking.
"My name is Oliver Wishart; I'm a friend of C… Alex's–" Sabina's voice cut him off immediately.
"Why are you calling me then? Has something happened to Alex?" Eagle exchanged bemused looks with the rest of his team. It seemed that anytime someone other than Alex contacted his friends, it was assumed that Alex was injured. No wonder he had so many scars – this pattern of events was leading them to believe Alex was hospitalized every other day or something.
"Well, the thing is… long story short, Alex got a message from you like, a week ago, and he's been acting really weird since. Cooking, cleaning, jumping in bed with random girls… it's starting to get on our nerves."
"Alex cooking and cleaning for you has been getting on your nerves?" She asked dubiously, but anyone could hear the subtle sourness at Alex's third offense. Eagle cleared his throat, answering more clearly,
"Well, it's not that – he's staying with our friend, and the guy's getting really annoyed. Alex is drinking, throwing parties, and eating Snake's pizza. He needs someone to… calm him down a bit." Snake glared at his shoes upon the mention of the slice that got away.
Sabina paused before answering this time, considering her answer. "Oh, I see where you're going with this. You think if Alex and I hook up, I'll keep him on a tight leash. Obviously you don't know me very well – why would you go to the trouble of contacting me when Alex obviously has no trouble with other girls?"
There was an edge to her voice now, but it was left with an underlying current of hurt. "Wouldn't it be easier to find someone else for Alex to have his happily ever after? He doesn't want to see me; he never returned the call."
Eagle tried to answer carefully; they were treading on dangerous waters considering they had no clue how far Alex's feelings for the girl ran. "We don't think that's the case," Eagle explained, "we think he's just scared."
"Alex? Scared? That's an oxymoron if I've ever heard one." She stated with a rather unladylike snort. "You're work is cut out for you, boys. Might as well give up."
"Not that kind of scared," Eagle corrected himself hastily, fearing that they might lose their chance, "see, we have reason to believe that you and Alex have a history. You… know about him, don't you?"
Sabina's voice was slightly more hushed. "If you're talking about Alex's day job, then yes, I've been informed."
"Well, you're the only girl he ever told. Alex has had a couple relationships since then, but none of them have ever been really serious, and no girl could really get to know Alex like you did since they didn't have the security clearance to do a really thorough job of it."
"By the way you describe Alex, I really doubt I can still say I know him."
Eagle was grasping at straws. "We know you miss him, Miss Pleasure. And we know he misses you, too. We can assure you that we only want the best for Alex, and he's been freaking since he got your message. If Alex didn't still feel anything for you, then he wouldn't have been so desperate to distract himself from the thought of you, right?"
"If Alex wants to see me, he can call me himself. He has my number – you, whoever, do not. Care to tell me where you found it?"
Eagle ignored the question. "That's not true. Alex wants to see you really badly, but he can't call you."
"Why not?" Sabina demanded, frustrated, "Are they interfering or something?"
"No, nothing like that," Eagle expelled the thought easily, and no one needed to ask who she meant by they, "what's interfering is more likely his feelings for you. The last time you two were together, it was on Air Force One with a terrorist and an assassin, am I right?"
"How d'you know about that?" Sabina hissed.
Eagle carried on like she hadn't said anything. "I know that if my girlfriend Sadie was in danger, I'd do whatever it takes to keep her safe. Would you be able to consider that maybe the reason Alex never returned your call was that he didn't want to get you involved? He's a certified agent now, you know; not only that, but the reason he's staying with our buddy rather than his housekeeper is that he needs to go into hiding until MI6 takes care of a couple organizations that want nothing more than to plant a bullet in Alex's skull right now. Those kinds of people aren't opposed to blackmail or hostages. Hm, sounds like a positively brilliant time to get back together with your ex, don't you think?"
Eagle was breathless after the long explanation. Fox and Snake were staring at him, mildly shocked by the passion in the speech – it was clear that Eagle felt more than a little protective of the kid. He'd been dealt a damn unfair card in the game of life.
"Sabina, we contacted you to give you an actual chance – Alex is convinced that you don't know what you're getting into, even though you've been through all of it before. If you want to see him, you'll have to accept that Alex's presence comes with serious risks. He doesn't want you to get hurt, and no one can rule out that you won't. Are you ready for that?"
Sabina didn't even have to think about it. "Are you stupid? I'm perfectly fine with it. I already know the risks and all that shit, it's just as you said – I was on Air Force One with a terrorist and an assassin. I handled that okay, didn't I?"
The group was speechless. This girl was something else – no wonder Cub liked her. She didn't sound scared in the slightest. Did Sabina Pleasure have a death wish?
She continued on, voice sharp as ice. "That's so… Alex. 'I won't call her back because, uh, she might get hurt. I guess I'll just ignore it completely and hope it goes away. That'll solve everything.'"
Despite the fact that they were supposed to be silent, Fox and Snake burst out laughing at her Alex impression. Eagle smiled and spoke up.
"I think I like you, Sabina. Anyway, Alex is an idiot, so we have to do everything for him. We'd like to arrange an accidental meeting between you two. Would you happen to be at New York Pizza tomorrow at, say, three in the afternoon?"
On the other end of the phone, Sabina was grinning. "I might be."
"Great! Then we're set. Pleasure doing business with you, Miss Pleasure."
They both hung up, and Eagle turned around to meet Fox's dry look.
"You didn't do any business with her." He stated blandly.
"Yeah, but I thought it'd sound good. Pleasure doing business with you, Miss Pleasure? I thought it was funny," he muttered the last part defensively. Fox rolled his eyes and Snake stood up, moving towards the door.
"That went extremely well for a random act with no prior planning," he commented, shooting a glare at Eagle. Eagle only smiled – it had worked out perfectly, so he wasn't about to look cowed. What would the group without him and his impulsive tendencies?
Sadie emerged from the other room, rubbing her face tiredly. "Are we still on for dinner, Ollie?"
Eagle made his way over to the blonde, wrapping his arms around her waist as she slipped hers around his neck. She giggled softly and he responded huskily,
"Of course. When have I ever skipped out on one of our dates?"
"Never," she replied, leaning forward and kissing him. Fox and Snake made gagging noises, turning away and pretending to throw up. Eagle shot them dirty looks.
"You're just jealous!" He said proudly. Sadie grabbed his chin and turned his face back to her. "Are you ready to go then? We have reservations at the White Rabbit."
"Snazzy. I'll get into something a little less casual and then we can go then, okay?"
He glanced back at Snake and Fox. "Okay guys, the plan's all set for tomorrow and we'll discuss it more in the morning. You can leave now," he dismissed them. Fox saluted and walked out the door, followed by Snake. It wasn't until the two were back in the lobby of the apartment when Fox had an epiphany.
"… hey, if Wolf drove us here, then how are we gonna…"
Snake slapped a hand over his face. "Damn it."
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Wolf shut the door behind him, wandering into the kitchen from where the sounds of shooting and screaming were emerging. He could tell they weren't real and only rolling off the TV, but the sounds still put him on edge. He arrived in front of Alex looking tense and irritable.
"Hi, Cub. Move over." Alex made some room and Wolf collapsed beside him, grabbing a handful of popcorn out of the bowl Alex was holding and stuffing it into his mouth. Alex glanced at him out of the corner of his eye before dropping the ball.
"Ms. Novara stopped by today," he said nonchalantly. Wolf predictably froze, slowly turning to look at Alex.
"Are you serious? Why?" He asked suspiciously.
Alex grinned. "She was looking for you, you know. Damn, Wolf, she's really hot. Like, porn star hot."
"What?" Wolf growled, turning to look at him half incredulously and half furiously. Alex held his hands up in a motion to surrender before responding,
"What? She is! I could hardly keep my eyes off her–"
Wolf practically roared, standing up immediately. "What the hell is wrong with you? Get the fuck out of my house!"
Alex scrambled back and away from the seemingly random bout of rage. He didn't think Wolf would react like this. Stumbling away from the couch, his back hit the wall behind him and he swallowed hard. Wolf looked freakishly angry.
"You're one fucked up kid," he snarled, "if you're attracted to that kind of thing."
Alex stared at him. "What? Have you seen that woman? You're the fucked up one," he responded, glaring at Wolf. The woman had been curvy, tall, and positively gorgeous. Didn't Wolf go out with her? Were they even talking about the same person?
"You're fucked in the head!" Wolf told him, turned away. "Ew. Disgusting. You're going to therapy."
Alex's temper flared at that. "You're insane. This does not require therapy, most men out there happen to like women like that."
Wolf reeled back. "If you really think that, we'll skip the therapy and throw you into the insane asylum right away. Now get the fuck out of my house! I don't care what MI6 will do, I'm not sleeping in the same house as you."
"I'm not leaving," Alex snapped, "there's nothing wrong with me, women like that are in magazines and movies for a reason! Are you fucking gay, Wolf? You used to date the woman!"
Wolf froze, eyes locking on Alex's rigid figure. "What?"
"Well, she's your ex-girlfriend, isn't she?" He was panting from the screaming match, and completely blown away by Wolf's reaction. There had to be some kind of misunderstanding here.
"What was this… Ms. Novara's first name?"
Alex was glaring now. "Unless there's another insane, hot chick who stalks you, I'm pretty sure it was Tammy."
Wolf fell back into the couch, looking astonished. When Alex had said… oh, man, he should've known she'd say something like that. That damn woman was the one that belonged in the loony bin, not Alex. He rubbed his face tiredly, saying very slowly.
"Oh my God. Novara is not her last name."
Alex tipped his head to the side, confused. "It's not? Then whose last name is it?"
Wolf leaned forward, fixing Alex with a glare that wasn't really directed at him, but at the woman that caused all this trouble. Tammy needed serious help.
"It's mine, Cub. My name is Luke Novara."
He stared at him blankly for a second before comprehension dawned on him slowly. Shock, horror, disgust and finally uncontrollable amusement crossed his face in the span of three seconds. Wolf still looked like he would've enjoyed the slow death of the redhead, woman or not.
"… holy shit, so when I said Ms. Novara–"
"Why yes, yes I did think you were talking about my sixty-one-year old mother."
Alex burst out laughing, clutching his sides as he tried to choke out a response amid the fit. He gave up as he kept breaking out into laughter half way through the sentences, and Wolf would've walked away if not for the fact that he wanted to know what Tammy had done while she was here.
"Oh my fucking God – I can't believe – and you thought – hahahaha!!"
"Shut up, Cub, and tell me what she said to you!" Wolf growled, crossing his arms over his chest – a habit he'd become known for in K-unit. Alex took a while longer to laugh his ass off, but eventually it came to a stop as he was left hiccupping and grinning widely in Wolf's direction.
"That was hilarious." He stated.
"No it was not." Wolf replied, "Now, get on with it. What happened?"
Alex put a finger to his chin, thinking it over in his head. "Hmm, well, she came to the door and she was kind of rude but I let her in. She mentioned being a chef in Australia–"
"–never happened–" Wolf put in.
"–and then we were watching the cooking channel and she gave me her life story. So I said, 'go home.' And she said, "fine but I'm coming back tomorrow'. Basically, she's gonna be back tomorrow."
Wolf visibly paled. Alex never thought he'd see the day that Wolf looked scared of anything, but the fact that it was his ex-girlfriend making him look that that almost threw him into hysterics all over again. Noticing his expression, Wolf made a face and stood up abruptly, walking over to the kitchen and pulling open the fridge. Alex had to smile when he realized that glaring into the fridge and muttering about stupid teenagers was probably the man's way of pouting. He laughed at the mental image, drawing Wolf's attention to him again.
"You're so annoying," he informed him. Alex nodded sagely.
"Thank you."
"It wasn't a compliment."
"It was from you."
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When Snake and Fox returned to the apartment, Alex was watching Die Hard and Wolf had fallen asleep beside him, his face grim even when he was sleeping. Alex gave him a dry look.
"And to think you're probably doing something involving terrorists and bombs in your dreams right now, when really you're curled up next to me." He said, wondering how he might be able to get a picture of him without standing up and jarring him awake.
"Honestly, who falls asleep during Die Hard?"
There was a knock on the door, but whoever it was didn't wait for an answer before barging in, grinning at Alex and Wolf when they noticed him. It was Fox and Snake, but Eagle wasn't with them. Somehow, it seemed strange to think that Eagle might be hanging out with anyone other than K-unit, even if he did have a girlfriend.
Their footsteps had forced Wolf to stir, but not before Fox whipped out his camera phone and snapped a picture of the sleeping man. Wolf's eyes slowly opened to look around, until he caught how heavily he was leaning on Alex and the blonde's mocking look. He jumped away as if Alex had been a cactus rather than a substitute pillow.
"Huh?" He said intelligently, "why am I…?"
"Cub, I think it's time for your bedtime. The men have things they need to discuss." He told him. Alex looked scandalized at being sent away like some kind of child.
"Hell no. This is my house, and I'll go to bed when I want."
"Actually, it's my house, and I say you get the fuck out of the living room before I forcibly throw you out." There was a storm outside, and the end of Wolf's sentence was cut off by a low rumble of thunder outside.
"You're all talk," Alex muttered, getting up and moving away from the couch despite his dislike for K-unit's blasé attitude. For whatever reason, the blonde had a look of unease on his face, but Fox was the only one who caught it. He'd always been the observant one, after all. They heard him quickly disappear up the stairs before beginning to whisper in quiet voices.
"Alright, we've got that Sabina girl set up for…" He looked to Snake, who finished the sentence for him.
"Tomorrow at three." Snake was not only the team's medic, but he also had an extremely good memory. Photographic, he also had the ability to remember a name or number the first time he heard it. It had been one of the reasons he'd managed to get into the SAS, as it was a rare ability.
Outside, it had begun to rain. Fox looked vaguely worried at the weather – if it rained tomorrow at New York Pizza, then the "date" might not go as well. Not only that, but the windows were dark with only the sheen of the streetlights allowing anything in the yard to be identified.
Just then, the yard lit up in a flash of lightning. Wolf, Fox and Snake all mistook it for a stun grenade, and Wolf grabbed the gun he kept in the coffee table drawer, ready to defend himself. Fox and pulled a gun out of the holster he kept at his side, covered by the large hoodie he was wearing. Snake took a defensive stance.
The next second, the group realized what had happened and laughed nervously.
"Wow, we're really paranoid."
Wolf slowly put the gun away in the drawer. "Storms make for great covers during attacks. Besides, it's only paranoia if there aren't actually mad terrorists after your teenage charge."
Snake nodded, and Fox looked thoughtful. He pointed to the doorway that led into the hallway to which the stairs were built off of. "If Cub's up there alone and wanted by criminal organizations, maybe it'd be a good idea to stay up there with him? Wolf's right, we could be attacked tonight."
"Well, I do have alarms," Wolf argued, despite his earlier statement. Snake shrugged.
"Has alarms ever stopped us?" Wolf sighed, turning towards the archway and calling loudly, hands cupping his mouth to amplify his rough voice.
"Oi, Cub! Can you come here for a second?" Snake shot him a curious look. Wolf glanced at him, reading the expression. "I want to know if he can give any details on the group that might be interested in capturing him," he explained quietly.
They waited a moment, but worry set in. Alex should've answered by now – he couldn't really have been kidnapped already, right?
"Cub?" Fox called, moving towards the stairs. The others followed him, and they stopped outside Cub's door, which was locked. Why would he…
"Hey, open up," Snake said, knocking his fist on the door. Another flash of lightning erupted outside, filtering in through the windows of the hallway. The thunder was rumbling dangerously outside.
"If you don't open this door, we'll break it down," Wolf stated, pounding on it again. There was a pause, and then a shaky voice answered them hesitantly.
"I'm fine. Don't come in."
K-unit exchanged glances. What was wrong? Snake began to mouth his opinion. He could be held at gunpoint. Wolf turned back to the door before taking a step back, motioning for the rest of the group to do the same. One the count of three, they all sent a powerful kick to the door, forcing it open but remarkably leaving the door still functional – though it was unlikely the lock would still work. What they found beyond it however surprised them, to say the least.
The room was dark, lit up only by another string of lightning outside, followed by more thunder. Alex wasn't anywhere to be seen, but the bedspread on his bed was all messed up, and it took them a moment to register the abnormally large lump under all the sheets.
"… Cub?" Fox's voice came out tentative. If they weren't mistaken, then the outspoken and reckless teenager they were looking for was probably the very same quivering mass of blankets on the mattress. Alex's voice was hushed when he answered, trying to sound even despite the evident tremors.
"I'm fine."
Wolf stayed by the door as Snake and fox closed in on him, watching as the ball of covers shrank away from them. Snake had a look of incredulity on his face, but it was mingled with concern. It was Fox who reached out first.
"What are you doing under there?" He asked softly. He had his suspicions, but they couldn't possibly be correct…
"Noth–"
His voice was cut off by another shot of thunder. He didn't try to finish the sentence, even after the noise died down. Snake looked at Fox, gesturing towards Alex. His hand curled around the edge of the sheet, but Alex held it firmly in place. What the hell was wrong with him?
"… Cub… you're not afraid of thunder, are you?"
The reply came immediately. "I'm not afr–"
The storm took this moment to roar once again, and Alex jerked back. The pair turned to see how Wolf was taking the situation, but he revealed nothing, emotionless eyes watching the exchange coolly. Obviously no one expected to receive emotional support from the bastard, but he could at least help them coax Alex out of his bed.
"Hey, come on out of there, there's nothing to be scared of," Wolf's declaration interrupted their thoughts. Alex answered, obviously trying to sound as obnoxious as his usual self, but somehow the little voice he spoke in just wasn't able to capture the sarcasm he was renowned for.
"I'm not scared."
"Alex…" Fox started slowly, using his name for the first time since Australia, "… you've got to get out of the bed sooner or later. Surely you wouldn't let something like a midnight storm get the best of you?"
The sheets rolled as Alex poked his head out from beneath them, revealing only enough for them to see the top of his head to his eyes.
"I'm fine," he protested in a vicious growl, "get out of my room."
Wolf started forward, grasping the blanket and ripping it off the bed. Unfortunately, Alex had three more curled around him, so it didn't do much good aside from earning him a cold glare from the teenager. He looked like he wanted nothing more than to murder his temporary guardian.
"Actually," Wolf started, "it's my room. Get out of bed, and stop being such a child."
"Shut the fuck up!" Alex roared, kicking out was his foot and managing to get the man right in the stomach, sending him toppling backwards. He'd taken him by surprise, but when Wolf stood up again, he looked absolutely furious.
"Oh, you're gonna get it now–" The thunder and the lightning broke in again, bleaching the room and giving Wolf a clear view of Alex's face. He stopped from the look of sheer terror that crossed through his eyes before Alex had buried his head underneath the sheets once again.
Wolf stood there staring down at him. Much as he told the others, he didn't hate Alex – he sort of even liked the kid, although he'd never dare say it out loud. So seeing the normally confident, infuriating spy curled up like a kicked puppy made him stop in his tracks. All urge to smack the kid disappeared the moment he'd seen that look on his face.
"… Hey, seriously, stop it. There's really nothing to get all tangled up about, this place is wired. Nothing can touch you in here."
"Get out of here," Alex mumbled, shutting his eyes hard as another wave of thunder shook the house. "Leave."
Wolf had started forward again, but Fox put a hand on his arm again, forcing him back. Wolf gave his teammate an affronted look.
Leave him alone, Fox mouthed. Snake nodded beside him, and after another second of study, Wolf backed away a bit, followed by the other two. They stopped in the doorway, glancing back at the bed where Alex was still tensed under the covers. They shut the door behind them and Fox whispered to Wolf,
"He's terrified!" Wolf looked away.
"I know. That damn look he gave me said that a thousand times harsher than you ever could, Fox."
"Who would have thought the brilliant Alex Rider's weakness would be thunder?" Snake mused from beside them. Wolf shook his head.
"It's pathetic is what it is." He said with a scowl. Fox took on a wide grin, nudging Wolf's arm with his elbow and mumbled cheekily,
"It's not more pitiful than your fear of heights." Wolf stepped back, glowering fiercely at the man. Pointing at Alex's door, he whispered furiously,
"I'm not scared of heights; I just don't like the prospect of leaping from a moving plane with nothing besides a parachute to keep me from plummeting to my death! At least the thing that I'm sca – nervous around has actual risks. What could thunder ever do to him? It's just a noise!"
"Maybe he had a bad experience with it?" Snake offered quietly. Wolf trailed his eyes along the wall.
"Whatever. I don't care what the kid does during storms as long as he doesn't come and curl up in my bed like a toddler. I'm done looking after the kid – he kicked me in the fucking stomach!"
Fox had an angry glint in his eyes now, though. "You may not like him, but everyone else in the unit does! We take care of our own," he snapped back.
Wolf stared at him like he'd never seen him before in his life. "Are you kidding? The kid is not a part of this unit! The only obligation I have is to give him a bed to grovel in, not to sing him lullabies on rainy days!"
"We're not asking you to sing to him for God's sake, but there's no need to–"
Alex's door opened, and standing in the doorway they could already see that the teen was a mess. His sandy hair was disheveled and tousled while his normally teasing brown eyes were haunted, dark with a torrent of emotions. He even somehow managed to look smaller, tan skin taking on a sick pallor and forcing the dark circles under his eyes to stand out even further. How had he managed to change so much when he'd only been downstairs about fifteen minutes ago?
"I'd appreciate it if you all stopped talking about me behind my back – or my door," he hissed. "I'll spell things out for you, since you're all too bloody stupid to understand it. I just don't like thunder, it's none of your business, and if you'd refrain from gossiping about my life for one damn second I might have a chance of falling asleep tonight. I'm not afraid, I just don't like thunder."
The explanation was ground out harshly, and all three people looked stunned at his words. Alex fixed them all with an impressive glare.
"Now shut the fuck up and go to bed."
He turned and pushed the door shut behind him, collapsing on the bed just as another round of thunder began outside his window. Truth be told, thunder threw all his senses into haywire, and if he did manage to get to sleep his dreams were plagued by nightmares. He was able to see what would have happened to him if he hadn't managed to escape from Point Blanc before the live dissection began, how things would have gone down at Skeleton Key had he never been rescued from the conveyor belt, and each possible scenario Damian Cray as well as all the other villains he'd encountered in life would've put him through had he not managed to escape at the right moment. Each mission brought with it an alarming amount of death threats, and though they were never carried out, nothing stopped his overactive imagination from playing the outcomes over and over in his head on nights that it stormed like this. Alex never usually had nightmares – it was just the thunder.
It was worse when it happened during the daytime, because anyone would notice the change in Alex. Flashbacks hit him like a bag of bricks accompanied by a migraine, and each of his instincts went off at the drop of a hat. He didn't know why, but thunder sent his entire mind spiraling to the brink of insanity.
Of course, the next day he was perfectly fine.
It still made him angry the way K-unit had to meddle like that – acts of concern, calling him childish, defending him from Wolf. They were three very different things, but each of them was needless. He was embarrassed by the weakness, and he always lived in fear of him being caught in an electrical storm during a mission. It would almost certainly end in death for him – and probably others at the rate his missions turned out to affect countries, and a lot of the time the whole world.
Fox and Snake had used all their money on the taxi they'd taken from Eagle's and the tube was no longer an option this late into the night or during the rainstorm. Snake took the guest bedroom after a quick game of rock, paper, scissors – "You picked scissors and I picked rock! That means I beat you!" – "I did not pick scissors, I picked crocodile. Crocodile eats rock." – while Fox took the couch.
Twenty minutes later and three out of four of the house's occupants were asleep.
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