I wonder how many chapters this story is going to have...

Chapter 7

Alice twitched, yawned and stretched, all in the two seconds she woke up. Turning around and cracking one eye open, she noticed Xerxes standing in the doorway and looking at her with an amused smile. Sighing tiredly, she looked directly back at him.

"What?"

"Nothing." He smiled like a cat who got caught and walked in to open the curtains, earning a dissatisfied grunt from her. He smiled and sat down on the bed.

"I guess Glen's home; I ran into him this morning in the cafeteria two blocks away from here." Alice raised her eyebrows. "He didn't know you were here of course. But I guess you should give him a call to tell him you're… out."

She dropped back down on the bed and tugged at Xerxes' sleeve when he moved to leave. "Are you free today?"

"No, but should I take off?"

She shook her head, not continuing and sitting up again, looking at the room lazily before fixing him with a stare and he cocked his head to one side.

Once she was up and in the kitchen with the duo, happily eating her cereal, Xerxes announced that for Liam's birthday next weekend, they would probably have a barbeque, and Alice and her friends should also come just for the hell of it.

Alice was in heaven at this, forgot her cereal and went to hug him for such a fabulous idea. However, in her rush to get to him, she stumbled over her own feet, tripped over some shoes who shouldn't be there, couldn't get a good hold on the table to secure herself and banged her head into the chair next to Liam.

"…A-Are you all right?" Liam gulped, trying desperately not to burst out into laughter. He snickered when Alice sat up with big eyes and a pout. Like a hurt puppy she shuffled closer and grabbed Xerxes' arm, hugging it tightly.

"Yeah." She sniffed, angry as she could feel Xerxes' silent laughter at her pain and hear Liam's not so silent laughter at her pain. Xerxes patted her affectionately and helped her up once she recovered from the shock.

"I never reckoned you as the clutzy type," he accused when she dusted her pyjama's. Alice looked away humiliated but didn't refrain from glaring at Liam, who was still giggling, and walked back to Xerxes' room to get some clothes, before disappearing in the bathroom, pointedly glaring at the duo who still snickered when they saw her. Darn, that was one stupid action. Alice sighed.

She put the water warm enough that her skin turned slightly red; she loved the burny feeling.

Finishing, Alice dried and dressed, walking out of the bathroom, and surprise surprise, tripped over her own feet again. She really didn't had her day today.

"You want to be hospatilized?" Xerxes said after he caught her. He smirked mischievously and Alice huffed at him.

"The bed's there don't proof to be as comfortable," He mentioned. Of course Alice knew that, seeing she spent enough nights in the hospital when she didn't want to be home alone or when her mother was hospatilized for two days and died anyway. She bit her lip at the memory; it has to be gone.

"You can release me now." Alice suddenly remarked, noticing Xerxes still had hold of her arms. He grinned.

"Are you sure? Don't you want me to help you across the hallway?"

Alice response made him whine and rub at the sore spot on his arm.

"I'm going back home today, by the way." Alice said after she succesfully made it to the living room. Xerxes, who walked after her, nodded and glared at Liam for cheering. Alice muttered something towards him and then he was totally forgotten again.

Half an hour later Alice found herself on the back of a bicycle as Xerxes drove her home. He had a license, why not buy a car? Well, she never asked so he never replied anyway. But her butt hurted a lot right now.

"You're taking the wrong way." She pointed out.

"I know." He replied smartly and Alice blushed, happy he couldn't see it. He's such a ditz. Wrapping her arms around his middle so she wouldn't fall off from an unexpected sharp turn, Alice boringly watched the people and houses they drove by.

Once back home, Alice was glad Glen's car wasn't there yet and hopped of the bike, turning to her friend quickly.

"So, ehm, I guess I'll see you later?" Alice asked and Xerxes grinned.

"Yeah, sure. I'll stop by your work."

She smiled approvingly and walked to her door, before turning around again.

"Eh… would you like to come in or something? You never saw my house, I mean." She quickly added and he eyed her for a second.

"I'd love too, but I got work, remeber?" Ah damn, she forgot about that! How stupid! Alice resisted the urge to stomp on her own feet.

"Oh yeah. Well, later, then."

"Bye," He responded sweetly, before leaving. Alice silently walked back into her house. She shouldn't have done that. Darn, she acted all clingy now.

Alice slouched over to the kitchen while texting Sharon she was home. She'd probably receive a call from her later that evening, seeing she was the only one she told about yet. She crouched down at the deep freeze and pulled Ben&Jerry's out, taking a small bite from the cookie dough disaster. Right after that, she snapped her cell phone open again and texted Xerxes the simple number 'Thirty-two'. She smiled happily when her cell phone buzzed ten seconds later with the message ':D'.

'Idiot.'

Alice smiled wider, a blush forming on her cheeks as she snapped her cell phone shut again. She blushed too often lately. Even Sharon told her she looked like a puppy even more when Xerxes would show up. That didn't mean anything of course. Xerxes just made her slightly happy with his behaviour, that's all. She was only glad to have him as a good friend.

"You're home already?"

She nearly jumped when Glen suddenly stood in the doorway of the kitchen, looking at her questiongly. Alice glared at him and didn't respond. He sighed.

"Don't act like such a baby all the time." He remarked and Alice, who had walked right past him in order to get upstairs as quickly as possible, turned around.

"Me, acting like a baby? You're the one that needs to grow up!" She fumed at him. Well, a little lie to Xerxes would never hurt. He didn't have to know that Glen accidentally hit her after they got into a fight. It wasn't a hard hit, and it never bruised, but the fact he did slap her across the face was enough for Alice to leave the house and cool down somewhere else.

"It's only normal for me to go on with my life." He quietly replied and Alice bit her lip, hard. Lacy only died six years ago, it never left Alice's mind. It shouldn't leave his mind too. "And aside from that you shouldn't even interfere with my life."

Alice turned around again. So what if she was unreasonable? Glen shouldn't give up his memory of Lacy so easily. He fucking operated on her, and lost her while doing it! Shouldn't it be more trauma for him than for her, who was asleep in a guest room in the hospital at the time?

"Don't walk away young lady! Where were you this weekend? I was worried sick!"

"Good!" Alice yelled, walking up the stairs.

"Where were you?"

"I'm not going to tell you, stupid!"

"Alice!"

Alice responded by slamming the door to her room and blocking it with her desk, which should only right next to the door. Fortunately, Glen didn't persuade her and she was left alone in her room. With a frustrated hum she lied down on her bed, clutching her pillow. She decided to not move from her room the entire day, even going as far to pointedly ignore Sharon's call. She didn't feel like anyone talking to her right now.

Looking at the ceiling, she wondered how this woman was like. If Glen liked her enough to have this whole fight with her, she had to be something. Could she be better than Lacy? Nah, she couldn't be. Alice wouldn't like her. That's when Alice decided to move out of the house. She was eighteen already, she could live on her own now.

Opening her laptop, Alice started it up and quickly roamed the internet with the sites Sharon had gave her when she suggested moving out earlier.


R&R! :D