p class="MsoNormal"strong style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"Hey guys, Gh0stwr1t3r here,/strong/p
p class="MsoNormal"strong style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"This is my first fanfiction work on this platform, and the first I've written in a while, so please be nice. I hope you guys like it!/strong/p
p class="MsoNormal"strong style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"Rated T, because there will be cursing and torture later on./strong/p
div style="mso-element: para-border-div; border: none; border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-bottom-alt: solid windowtext .75pt; padding: 0cm 0cm 1.0pt 0cm;"
p class="MsoNormal" style="border: none; mso-border-bottom-alt: solid windowtext .75pt; padding: 0cm; mso-padding-alt: 0cm 0cm 1.0pt 0cm;"strong style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"Enjoy!/strong/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="border: none; mso-border-bottom-alt: solid windowtext .75pt; padding: 0cm; mso-padding-alt: 0cm 0cm 1.0pt 0cm;"strong style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;" /strong/p
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p class="MsoNormal"After everything that happened, it wasn't easy for Alex to adjust. He had hoped for a new start when he moved in with the Pleasure's, but it just wasn't happening. He couldn't let go, no matter how much he wanted to. And the fact that everyone else were living like nothing earth-shattering had happened, somehow made it worse./p
p class="MsoNormal"He em style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"hated/em that he woke up in a cold sweat every night, after reliving Jack's death in horrible spurts of nightmares. The night before wasn't any different./p
p class="MsoNormal"Julius Grief had been laughing. em style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"Wasn't that great? Wasn't that cool?/em He had said./p
p class="MsoNormal"His double had been mocking him. Mocking his grief./p
p class="MsoNormal"He had woken up, gasping, unable to control his breathing and then unable to stop himself from violently sobbing. He didn't attempt to sleep any further./p
p class="MsoNormal"Anyway, it didn't matter. The world was still turning. He was still alive. He should have been happy./p
p class="MsoNormal"em style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"And Jack should have lived./em A voice inside his head nagged. Alex promptly told that voice to shut up. He didn't need to hear that he had failed her every single day./p
p class="MsoNormal""Alex, come on! We're going to be late!" It was Sabina. Alex was thankful for the interruption of his thoughts and quickly pulled his school clothes on and ran downstairs. Liz Pleasure had prepared breakfast, but Alex didn't feel like eating./p
p class="MsoNormal""Morning!" she chirped./p
p class="MsoNormal""Morning."/p
p class="MsoNormal"He sat down and helped himself to a glass of orange juice./p
p class="MsoNormal""Would you like some eggs, Alex," Edward asked. Alex shook his head./p
p class="MsoNormal""No, thanks, I'm not very hungry right now."/p
p class="MsoNormal"Liz stopped and turned to him. "Is everything alright?"/p
p class="MsoNormal""Yes, I'm fine," he replied, hesitating for a second too long. Liz didn't look convinced, but she didn't press any further. She knew what he had been through in Egypt./p
p class="MsoNormal"After breakfast, Alex and Sabina left for school. Neither of them talked, but it was clear that Sabina was worried./p
p class="MsoNormal"The silence between them continued throughout the day and with that, tension started building up between them. It was clear that Sabina had something to say to him, but for some reason she hesitated./p
p class="MsoNormal"On the way home, she finally burst./p
p class="MsoNormal""I'm worried about you," she said./p
p class="MsoNormal"Alex looked at her incredulously. "What? Is that what all of this has been about?"/p
p class="MsoNormal""Well, I don't know what I can say to you and what not, Alex. If I even mention England to you, you become extremely quiet and then I feel like I've done something wrong."/p
p class="MsoNormal""Sab, it hasn't been exactly easy for me to move on, you know," he said./p
p class="MsoNormal""Of course I know that!" she snapped, suddenly angry. "And you don't want to talk about it and it's getting worse!"/p
p class="MsoNormal""Sabina, I'm fine. Come off it, will you?" Alex felt annoyed. He didn't want to talk about it now./p
p class="MsoNormal""No, I won't come off it, you stupid arse!" she growled. "You aren't even trying to make it easier for yourself or for us. We're trying to help you, but it doesn't seem like you want to be helped."/p
p class="MsoNormal""Sabina, em style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"I'm fine." /emHe growled, warning her./p
p class="MsoNormal""You're not, Alex. You haven't been em style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"fine/em since Egypt. So stop pretending. We can see right through you."/p
p class="MsoNormal"Alex huffed and walked on, leaving her behind./p
p class="MsoNormal""And I know you have nightmares," She shouted, running to catch up. "Don't try to hide it from me."/p
p class="MsoNormal"Alex stopped and looked at her. "Sabina, what do you want from me?" He snapped./p
p class="MsoNormal""You need to talk to someone," she said. "If not me, then someone else."/p
p class="MsoNormal""I can't talk about my work, Sab, you know that."/p
p class="MsoNormal""I know, but then we have to figure something out. This isn't healthy, Alex."/p
p class="MsoNormal""I know."/p
p class="MsoNormal""I just want my friend back." She said, quieter now. She looked at her feet./p
p class="MsoNormal""Sab, I don't know what to tell you. I need time."/p
p class="MsoNormal""Alright then."/p
p class="MsoNormal"When they arrived home, they finished their homework and went their separate ways. Alex went to his room and Sabina sat in the living room, watching TV./p
div style="mso-element: para-border-div; border: none; border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-bottom-alt: solid windowtext .75pt; padding: 0cm 0cm 1.0pt 0cm;"
p class="MsoNormal" style="border: none; mso-border-bottom-alt: solid windowtext .75pt; padding: 0cm; mso-padding-alt: 0cm 0cm 1.0pt 0cm;"Neither of them were aware of the man outside, dressed in black, watching them through the window./p
p class="MsoNormal" style="border: none; mso-border-bottom-alt: solid windowtext .75pt; padding: 0cm; mso-padding-alt: 0cm 0cm 1.0pt 0cm;" /p
/div
p class="MsoNormal"That night, at half past twelve, as Alex slept dreamlessly, five men, including the man who had lurked outside their house, arrived at the front door. They were silent. One of them used a device to disarm the alarm inside the house. Another crouched down before the front door and picked the lock. The rest of them looked out for anyone who might have been outside./p
p class="MsoNormal"As soon as the lock clicked, the door sprang open and they all stepped inside. All of them had guns. The mission was to get the Secret Weapon. They didn't need to kill anybody./p
p class="MsoNormal"The leader sent two of the men to check the rooms on the ground floor. A moment later they came back and nodded. em style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"Clear./em/p
p class="MsoNormal"The leader nodded back. He made a fist with two fingers sticking out and motioned upstairs. The others nodded in agreement. With the leader in front, they moved quickly and quietly./p
p class="MsoNormal"They didn't need flashlights. The moonlight that flooded through the windows were enough./p
p class="MsoNormal"One of the men crept into the first room, which belonged to Liz and Edward Pleasure./p
p class="MsoNormal"Liz had woken up seconds before and had shaken Edward to wake up and go check. Edward had stood up and made for a baseball bat, but as soon as the men came in, they shot him and Liz with a tranquilizer dart. Edward fell to the ground with a thump and Liz slumped against the headrest./p
p class="MsoNormal"When they exited, they saw that the girl, Sabina, had come out to check what made all the noise, but she was unconscious before she saw them./p
p class="MsoNormal"Finally, they came to Alex's room. The door opened with a click. They silently stepped inside. Alex was already awake, but he was surprised, and that gave them the advantage they wanted./p
p class="MsoNormal"One of the men aimed the gun at him and Alex lashed out, hitting him on the elbow and then bringing his fist up to the chin. The man went down, and Alex prepared for the next attack, but before he could do anything, a single dart hit him in the neck./p
p class="MsoNormal"The world suddenly swam and Alex lost his balance and tripped over his feet./p
p class="MsoNormal"The last thing he saw before everything faded into darkness, was a man pulling off his black mask and then crouching low to meet his eyes./p
div style="mso-element: para-border-div; border: none; border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-bottom-alt: solid windowtext .75pt; padding: 0cm 0cm 1.0pt 0cm;"
p class="MsoNormal" style="border: none; mso-border-bottom-alt: solid windowtext .75pt; padding: 0cm; mso-padding-alt: 0cm 0cm 1.0pt 0cm;""See? That wasn't so difficult."/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="border: none; mso-border-bottom-alt: solid windowtext .75pt; padding: 0cm; mso-padding-alt: 0cm 0cm 1.0pt 0cm;" /p
/div
p class="MsoNormal"strong style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"Whoop whoop! See you guys soon!/strong/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;"strong style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"Gh0stwr1t3r out/strong/p
p class="MsoNormal"strong style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"This is my first fanfiction work on this platform, and the first I've written in a while, so please be nice. I hope you guys like it!/strong/p
p class="MsoNormal"strong style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"Rated T, because there will be cursing and torture later on./strong/p
div style="mso-element: para-border-div; border: none; border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-bottom-alt: solid windowtext .75pt; padding: 0cm 0cm 1.0pt 0cm;"
p class="MsoNormal" style="border: none; mso-border-bottom-alt: solid windowtext .75pt; padding: 0cm; mso-padding-alt: 0cm 0cm 1.0pt 0cm;"strong style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"Enjoy!/strong/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="border: none; mso-border-bottom-alt: solid windowtext .75pt; padding: 0cm; mso-padding-alt: 0cm 0cm 1.0pt 0cm;"strong style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;" /strong/p
/div
p class="MsoNormal"After everything that happened, it wasn't easy for Alex to adjust. He had hoped for a new start when he moved in with the Pleasure's, but it just wasn't happening. He couldn't let go, no matter how much he wanted to. And the fact that everyone else were living like nothing earth-shattering had happened, somehow made it worse./p
p class="MsoNormal"He em style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"hated/em that he woke up in a cold sweat every night, after reliving Jack's death in horrible spurts of nightmares. The night before wasn't any different./p
p class="MsoNormal"Julius Grief had been laughing. em style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"Wasn't that great? Wasn't that cool?/em He had said./p
p class="MsoNormal"His double had been mocking him. Mocking his grief./p
p class="MsoNormal"He had woken up, gasping, unable to control his breathing and then unable to stop himself from violently sobbing. He didn't attempt to sleep any further./p
p class="MsoNormal"Anyway, it didn't matter. The world was still turning. He was still alive. He should have been happy./p
p class="MsoNormal"em style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"And Jack should have lived./em A voice inside his head nagged. Alex promptly told that voice to shut up. He didn't need to hear that he had failed her every single day./p
p class="MsoNormal""Alex, come on! We're going to be late!" It was Sabina. Alex was thankful for the interruption of his thoughts and quickly pulled his school clothes on and ran downstairs. Liz Pleasure had prepared breakfast, but Alex didn't feel like eating./p
p class="MsoNormal""Morning!" she chirped./p
p class="MsoNormal""Morning."/p
p class="MsoNormal"He sat down and helped himself to a glass of orange juice./p
p class="MsoNormal""Would you like some eggs, Alex," Edward asked. Alex shook his head./p
p class="MsoNormal""No, thanks, I'm not very hungry right now."/p
p class="MsoNormal"Liz stopped and turned to him. "Is everything alright?"/p
p class="MsoNormal""Yes, I'm fine," he replied, hesitating for a second too long. Liz didn't look convinced, but she didn't press any further. She knew what he had been through in Egypt./p
p class="MsoNormal"After breakfast, Alex and Sabina left for school. Neither of them talked, but it was clear that Sabina was worried./p
p class="MsoNormal"The silence between them continued throughout the day and with that, tension started building up between them. It was clear that Sabina had something to say to him, but for some reason she hesitated./p
p class="MsoNormal"On the way home, she finally burst./p
p class="MsoNormal""I'm worried about you," she said./p
p class="MsoNormal"Alex looked at her incredulously. "What? Is that what all of this has been about?"/p
p class="MsoNormal""Well, I don't know what I can say to you and what not, Alex. If I even mention England to you, you become extremely quiet and then I feel like I've done something wrong."/p
p class="MsoNormal""Sab, it hasn't been exactly easy for me to move on, you know," he said./p
p class="MsoNormal""Of course I know that!" she snapped, suddenly angry. "And you don't want to talk about it and it's getting worse!"/p
p class="MsoNormal""Sabina, I'm fine. Come off it, will you?" Alex felt annoyed. He didn't want to talk about it now./p
p class="MsoNormal""No, I won't come off it, you stupid arse!" she growled. "You aren't even trying to make it easier for yourself or for us. We're trying to help you, but it doesn't seem like you want to be helped."/p
p class="MsoNormal""Sabina, em style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"I'm fine." /emHe growled, warning her./p
p class="MsoNormal""You're not, Alex. You haven't been em style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"fine/em since Egypt. So stop pretending. We can see right through you."/p
p class="MsoNormal"Alex huffed and walked on, leaving her behind./p
p class="MsoNormal""And I know you have nightmares," She shouted, running to catch up. "Don't try to hide it from me."/p
p class="MsoNormal"Alex stopped and looked at her. "Sabina, what do you want from me?" He snapped./p
p class="MsoNormal""You need to talk to someone," she said. "If not me, then someone else."/p
p class="MsoNormal""I can't talk about my work, Sab, you know that."/p
p class="MsoNormal""I know, but then we have to figure something out. This isn't healthy, Alex."/p
p class="MsoNormal""I know."/p
p class="MsoNormal""I just want my friend back." She said, quieter now. She looked at her feet./p
p class="MsoNormal""Sab, I don't know what to tell you. I need time."/p
p class="MsoNormal""Alright then."/p
p class="MsoNormal"When they arrived home, they finished their homework and went their separate ways. Alex went to his room and Sabina sat in the living room, watching TV./p
div style="mso-element: para-border-div; border: none; border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-bottom-alt: solid windowtext .75pt; padding: 0cm 0cm 1.0pt 0cm;"
p class="MsoNormal" style="border: none; mso-border-bottom-alt: solid windowtext .75pt; padding: 0cm; mso-padding-alt: 0cm 0cm 1.0pt 0cm;"Neither of them were aware of the man outside, dressed in black, watching them through the window./p
p class="MsoNormal" style="border: none; mso-border-bottom-alt: solid windowtext .75pt; padding: 0cm; mso-padding-alt: 0cm 0cm 1.0pt 0cm;" /p
/div
p class="MsoNormal"That night, at half past twelve, as Alex slept dreamlessly, five men, including the man who had lurked outside their house, arrived at the front door. They were silent. One of them used a device to disarm the alarm inside the house. Another crouched down before the front door and picked the lock. The rest of them looked out for anyone who might have been outside./p
p class="MsoNormal"As soon as the lock clicked, the door sprang open and they all stepped inside. All of them had guns. The mission was to get the Secret Weapon. They didn't need to kill anybody./p
p class="MsoNormal"The leader sent two of the men to check the rooms on the ground floor. A moment later they came back and nodded. em style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"Clear./em/p
p class="MsoNormal"The leader nodded back. He made a fist with two fingers sticking out and motioned upstairs. The others nodded in agreement. With the leader in front, they moved quickly and quietly./p
p class="MsoNormal"They didn't need flashlights. The moonlight that flooded through the windows were enough./p
p class="MsoNormal"One of the men crept into the first room, which belonged to Liz and Edward Pleasure./p
p class="MsoNormal"Liz had woken up seconds before and had shaken Edward to wake up and go check. Edward had stood up and made for a baseball bat, but as soon as the men came in, they shot him and Liz with a tranquilizer dart. Edward fell to the ground with a thump and Liz slumped against the headrest./p
p class="MsoNormal"When they exited, they saw that the girl, Sabina, had come out to check what made all the noise, but she was unconscious before she saw them./p
p class="MsoNormal"Finally, they came to Alex's room. The door opened with a click. They silently stepped inside. Alex was already awake, but he was surprised, and that gave them the advantage they wanted./p
p class="MsoNormal"One of the men aimed the gun at him and Alex lashed out, hitting him on the elbow and then bringing his fist up to the chin. The man went down, and Alex prepared for the next attack, but before he could do anything, a single dart hit him in the neck./p
p class="MsoNormal"The world suddenly swam and Alex lost his balance and tripped over his feet./p
p class="MsoNormal"The last thing he saw before everything faded into darkness, was a man pulling off his black mask and then crouching low to meet his eyes./p
div style="mso-element: para-border-div; border: none; border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-bottom-alt: solid windowtext .75pt; padding: 0cm 0cm 1.0pt 0cm;"
p class="MsoNormal" style="border: none; mso-border-bottom-alt: solid windowtext .75pt; padding: 0cm; mso-padding-alt: 0cm 0cm 1.0pt 0cm;""See? That wasn't so difficult."/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="border: none; mso-border-bottom-alt: solid windowtext .75pt; padding: 0cm; mso-padding-alt: 0cm 0cm 1.0pt 0cm;" /p
/div
p class="MsoNormal"strong style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"Whoop whoop! See you guys soon!/strong/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;"strong style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"Gh0stwr1t3r out/strong/p