The next two days passed excruciatingly slowly, the two occupants of apartment 12D stubbornly bent on communicating as little as possible. It was Wednesday until someone mentioned the elephant in the room.
"So… what are you going to do?" Wolf asked as a tennis ball flew across the room into his open palm. He toyed with it in his hands for a few seconds before lobbing it over the coffee table where it hit Alex's hands with a satisfying thwock.
The teen focused on the small green ball, spinning it upwards and snatching it out of the air as it fell.
"I'll do what I always do," he replied as he threw the ball back to Wolf. "Start the mission with no idea what I'm doing, piss off someone important, get myself out of trouble by the skin of my teeth, and come home in time for supper."
Wolf's eyes narrowed as he flung the ball back. "Just how often does this plan work?"
"Always." Alex winked and grinned confidently, hoping the unease in his stomach wasn't apparent.
He'd forced Wolf to take him to Tom's as soon as they left the Royal and General, and interrogated him about the drug, telling him what he'd learnt. His best friend sworn he hadn't taken any, and that had taken a huge weight off his shoulders. He could only hope Jessie and her friend would be okay, and there was still a small sliver of hope that it could have been something else.
Thwock.
Sleep hadn't been coming easily. He worried. He tossed and turned until his eyelids were heavier than his thoughts. He'd resorted to doing sit ups and pushups last night, the adrenaline keeping him going for a few hours until his throat burned and his abdomen muscles screamed.
Thwock.
He hadn't heard from Ben, and the more he thought about it, the more he regretted dragging the man into a potentially dangerous mission.
Thwock.
Yet Alex still smiled confidently in Wolf's face.
"Shouldn't you be out partaking in disgusting teenager activities?"
"Activities?" Alex snorted, throwing the ball up again.
"Yeah, activities. You'd get invited to them if you had friends."
"Excuse me?" Alex spluttered, staring the man down with hard, brown eyes. "Do you even socialize with anyone outside of K-Unit?"
"Yes!" Wolf growled. "Work colleagues!"
Alex couldn't help himself. He bent over in laughter, lifting a shaky finger to point in Wolf's face from across the room. It took him several attempts to talk through the hysterics. "They don't count!"
"They do so! How do they not count?"
"Because you have to socialize with them. You don't even like them! Admit it. You're a bitter old man." The blond wiped away a small tear of mirth.
"Well if you're so popular, how come you're sitting here watching infomercials with me?"
He had a point there, they both silently concurred, and the bickering died as the two men turned back to watch the screen, tennis ball abandoned as it rolled underneath a couch.
"Is that… is that Chuck Norris and a midget?" Wolf cried in disbelief. Alex's expression was a mirror of his own disgust.
There was a short pause in conversation as both pairs of eyes were glued inexplicably on the screen, the infomercial so terrible it was impossible to look away. Not unlike the scene of a car crash.
"…I need to buy that."
Alex raised a mocking eyebrow. "Ninety nine pounds for a cat you don't even have?"
"I could sell you."
Alex had the dignity to look offended, his young face twisted into a mock pompous scowl. "I'm worth more than ninety nine quid!" He emphasized this with a haughty sniff.
Wolf rolled his eyes and aimed a pillow at Alex's face, glowering when the spy merely plucked it out of the air and put it behind his neck comfortably. His own neck was now digging into the arm of the loveseat.
The rest of the day passed very much the same, and while Wolf inwardly fumed at the fact he was spending his day with a MI6 brat, and Alex silently marveled at Wolf tolerating his presence, it was nice to have a day of complete relaxation without any unnecessary government bullshit.
They were halfway through an episode of The Simpsons until Wolf's stomach interrupted the companionable silence. Alex looked over at him with an all-knowing look of compassion, his own stomach mimicking minutes later.
"So Cub… what'll it be tonight? Pizza? Chinese? Japanese? Mexican?"
"…Pizza?"
"Oh thank God. I would've had to beat the shit out of you if you made me leave the house." Wolf groaned as he reached for the phone, pressing a number on the speed dial and putting the receiver up to his ear.
"Shut up." He said in retaliation to Alex's raised eyebrow and smirk. "Don't judge me kid, or Jesus help me I will- hello, can I please get an extra-large meat lovers pizza with extra chicken and cheese? Yes, and two rolls of garlic bread. Excellent. Yes that was to apartment 12D-"
Alex hid a smirk behind his hand as the soldier gave the address and hung up the phone. The Big Bad Wolf was trying to be nice. How cute.
"Are you trying to give us diabetes, Wolf?" He asked half an hour later as his guardian exchanged money with the awkward, lanky, spotty delivery boy and brought the pizza into the apartment, the smell wafting warmly through the small apartment.
"Shut up and eat your grease." Wolf growled, shoving a plate filled with pizza and garlic bread in his face.
"Do you…" Wolf cleared his throat, sounding uncomfortable before continuing. "Do you want something to drink?"
Alex snorted through a large mouthful of garlic bread, bringing a hand up to stop crumbs flying everywhere. Shaking his head as he chewed, he offered the man a tentative smile. "No, thanks."
It really is nice, Alex reflected as he toyed with the cheese on his plate, to just sit here like a normal person. And that's why, as the clock ticked over to eleven and a yawn fought its way through his chest, he hesitated as he stood up.
"Wolf?" He asked, stretching his arms above his head toward the ceiling.
The man gave an unconcerned grunt without looking at him, absorbed in a documentary about World War Two.
"…Thank you for dealing with me." The teen whispered. But in the split second it took for Wolf to react, Alex had already disappeared and he was alone.
James told himself the feeling in his chest was delayed heartburn from the pizza.
"Tell me what you want, Alex."
Smoking red lips lay to rest on his and eyes turned to fire, suffocating him, asphyxiating. He couldn't see, his eyes wouldn't open fully. There was what looked like a field in front of him, but the image quickly flickered to darkness.
He couldn't see.
He couldn't move.
The picture flickered again, stalling like an old movie. He was standing in a street in downtown LA, completely alone. His eyes wouldn't open again. It was frustrating, his walking was foreign, and he felt like he was riding a camel.
"Tell me what you want, Alex."
There they were, red lips, smoking. But eyes turned to water. Dark, deep like the ocean.
"There's acid in my system, Alex. Lick me, lick me." The voice was deep and seductive, but warbled like a broken radio.
He moved toward her, he couldn't help himself, but before he knew it he was on his back, and his chest throbbed. He was bleeding.
Paramedics were surrounding him, voices moving in and out of frequency. "We've got to take off these legs." One said, sounding bored.
"Nothing a little Pleasure can't fix." Said another, voice familiarly sleazy.
The voices overlapped each other, melding into one until it turned into the slow beeping of a heart rate monitor, which quickly turned to an insistent banging.
"Go away." Alex tried to scream, but he couldn't move, he was stuck. The banging continued, reaching into his brain and pulling him out of sub consciousness.
"Go 'way." Alex muttered, lifting an arm and swatting it as if swiping away the noise, but the persistent and annoying knocking continued.
"Shut up!" He yelled, his face still half buried in the pillow. "Wolf! Wolf!"
No one answered, and still the only noise echoing the apartment walls was the insistent banging on the front door.
Peeling himself off the mattress and wiping at the cold spit covering his face, Alex rolled off his bed and stumbled to the front door.
"Shut up!" He yelled, opening the door uninvitingly.
Ben's face peeked around the door sheepishly, waving a hand in a shy greeting.
"Hey, Cub." He grinned. "Did I wake you up?"
"You could say that." Alex replied sarcastically, rolling his eyes and gesturing to his dishevelled appearance as he moved away from the door to let Ben inside.
"I'm here to pick you up." The man laughed, making a beeline for the kitchen and filling up the kettle. "Wolf called me. He's on the other side of London and asked me to take you considering we have the same appointment."
"Yeah, about that," Alex coughed, digging his toes into the cream carpet. "I'm sorry about dragging you into this-"
"Oh, Cub. Don't even worry about it. Now go," he made a shooing motion with an unconcerned hand, "have a shower and I'll make us a coffee before we go, okay?"
Alex smiled gratefully before walking up to his room and slipping into the shower, and as promised, when he walked back into the kitchen twenty minutes later, Ben was waiting for him with a cup of coffee and two slices of toast topped with cheese and tomato.
Alex sunk into a chair and bit into a piece of toast appreciatively as Ben sipped his black coffee.
The thought that he could have stayed with Ben instead of Wolf crossed his mind darkly, but Alex quickly pushed it to the side of his mind. He didn't know what was coming up in the next few days. Staying with Wolf could be Nirvana next to this mission.
He swallowed his coffee quickly, holding the mug up to his face with a shaky hand. He wasn't quite used to waiting for missions, and was almost starting to wish MI6 had just whisked him away unexpectedly and spared him the stress.
"Are you worried?" Ben asked abruptly as Alex rose from his seat, face serious for once. The blond teen paused, halfway through picking the empty plates and mugs off the table.
There was an odd feeling in his stomach. Was he worried? Did he have anything to be worried about?
"Nah." He grinned, picking up his own hesitation and collected the dishes, dumping them in the sink without bothering to wash them. "We'll be fine."
Of course they would. He was Alex Rider, how could this go wrong?
"Alex. Daniels." Blunt greeted cordially as the two agents entered the grim office, reaching for the pile of papers next to his laptop as Tulip surreptitiously popped a mint into her mouth before folding her hands on the mahogany surface of the desk.
"Sir." Ben inclined his head politely as they both took a seat, Alex choosing to keep surly and quiet. He folded his arms gently, pushing himself to the very back of the uncomfortable wooden chair and wishing he could make himself disappear.
"I'm glad you both made it safely." Mrs. Jones strained a smile before placing two yellow folders in front of them, encouraging them to read with an impatient gesture when neither agent moved.
Alex reached for the file slowly, willing for his hand not to shake as he placed it on his lap and bent over to read.
There was the same mug shot of Rodriguez he had been shown last time, although now he knew the full story, the Hispanics features seemed less handsome and more malicious.
"Rodriguez is dangerous, wealthy, and well protected." Jones listed. "He's been diagnosed with bipolar, Narcissistic Personality Disorder, and anger disorders. From inside information we have managed to gather that he is violent, and carelessly so. This drug ring isn't fuelled by fanatics, Alex. It's fuelled by fear. And if you get rid of Rodriguez, the rest will crumble in the hands of the LAPD."
"We need you to get close to the children he's using as drug mules, Alex. We know the club they most frequent and have organized you both to stay in a hotel right around the corner."
Alex turned another page in his file and found a picture of the club. It was little but a hole in a brick wall, with a neon sign reading Elagabalus.
"You will be posing as eighteen year old James Lukin, and Agent Daniels will be posing as your older brother Nathan. Are there any questions?"
Ben and Alex shook their heads and Mrs. Jones gave another small, fake smile.
"Good. Here are your plane tickets." She handed them to Ben who smiled in thanks. "You leave tomorrow morning at eleven from John Lennon Airport. A car will arrive to pick you up beforehand. Alex, you can leave now. Our assistant Skye is waiting outside to take you to see Smithers and a stylist."
Alex stood and left without a word, closing the door behind him softly, leaning on it and closing his eyes once out of sight, opening them at a small cough.
"Agent Rider?" The assistant asked timidly, clutching a clipboard to her smartly dressed chest and tucking a strand of dark hair behind her ear. "Follow me."
He followed her to the elevator without complaint, ignoring her significant glances and too tired to fill in the heavy silence.
He was glad to reach Smithers' office knocking and slipping in quickly.
"Alex, my boy!" Smithers cried, spreading open his flabby arms and waddling across the room to shake the spy's hand.
"What have you got for me today, Smithers?" Alex grinned, walking around a desk that was covered in small electronics, trying to avoid knocking anything over.
"This way, my boy, this way." Smithers chuckled, placing a friendly hand on his back and leading his towards the back of the room.
"I had a lot of fun with this one!" He exclaimed, opening a rather expensive looking black backpack and reaching in to pull out an iPhone, a charger, and some earphones. "This one is just an ordinary phone, of course. It will alert Jones and Blunt if anything goes wrong, and my numbers also in there if you need it." Smithers said, leaning in and winking, "But if you happen to come across a drug and you need to know what it is, just swipe a sample onto this." He gestured to the part of the charger that plugged into the phone. "And open this app and it'll tell you what you need to know.
"These earphones will let you eavesdrop on other's conversations while they think you're listening to music. Not very original, no, but definitely useful. And this," He chortled gleefully, placing the iPhone on the table and bringing out a large packet of gum, "is Smithers Special Gum. Just chew it a few times like this," he placed a pink strip in his mouth, chewing in a way that made all of his chins jiggle merrily, "and place it on a lock like so," he demonstrated using a padlock, "and voila."
There was a few seconds until a sizzling noise could be heard. The lock melted away and popped open impressively.
Smithers showed him a few more gadgets, including a laser that could cut through granite, disguised as a lighter, before handing him the backpack and wishing him well.
He slipped out of the room and followed the assistant down to the next floor, where he was lead through an impressive white salon.
"Just through that door… Alex Rider." Skye breathed, eyes wide. "I've heard so much about you, but, wow."
Alex stared at her warily as she cleared her throat, looking flustered. "I'm sorry." She coughed again, lifting a hand to her mouth daintily. "That was very unprofessional. It was lovely to meet you." She winked and slipped a small piece of paper into his hand. "Call me if you survive this one, yeah."
Alex gaped at her retreating back, and then down at the piece of paper in his hand, before shoving it into his pocket and pushing open the door. He was immediately greeted by an intimidatingly tall woman with flaming red hair and lips to match.
"Alex, darling, we've heard much about you!" She cried, holding out a hand to usher him deeper into the room. We've had strict instructions to make you look older. Sit down, darling!" She pushed him crudely into a comfortable leather chair and started running her hands through his hair, her fake nails sending tingles through his scalp.
"What are you going to do to me?" Alex asked warily, leaning forward away from her touch.
"Trust me darling, you're going to look fabulous." She replied, tugging him back against the head rest before patting his cheek. "I wonder, would you protest to a nose ring?"
"What? Yes, they're for girls!" He cried, horrified.
"Oh don't be silly, petal; they look very handsome on boys. Would make you seem much older as well. You don't want to get caught, do you?"
Alex just huffed and crossed his arms. He had learned long ago not to argue with MI6 types, even if they were pushy hairdressers.
And it was because of this that he walked out of the salon two hours later with styled dark hair, cut short on the sides and long at the top, and a silver nose ring, which was throbbing painfully. He also had a pile of new clothes and fake ID in hand.
He exchanged a sympathetic glance with Ben at the door of the lobby, and nothing else was said on the matter.
Stupid filler chapter, I'm sorry. This took a long time because it's the first ever chapter I've written sober and well, I really had to push myself. I'm sorry if it shows. I also didn't proof read as deeply as I should have, I'm sorry if that shows too.
I am overwhelmed by the response for the last chapter, and I'm over a hundred reviews! You are all so wonderfully lovely.
I'm so excited for the next few chapters! You all have no idea. They'll be up so super soon, I'm incredibly excited for you to read them.
Love you my little dumplings. xxxxx
