Chapter 30:

The next morning Alex was awoken from his slumber by the sound of his phone ringing. Incessantly. He wanted to ignore it, but once his body woke up it generally did not go back to sleep. So he sat up, and kicked off his sheets, picking up the phone and yawning out, "hello?"

"There you are, baby!" Burr's voice came through the line. "I've been worried sick! Oak texted me last night that you dismissed him early, why? I thought you wanted protection?"

"I did," Alex said, sitting on his bed and scratching at the back of his head. Recent memories of John's hands in his hair prompted him to look over, making sure John was still passed out in his own bed. Alex got up and carefully made his way to the bathroom, whispering as he did so, "but John and I came to an agreement, no guests in the dorm for either of us and it wouldn't be fair if I had Oak stay when I was kicking out his friend Thomas, right?"

"Whatever you say babe. So after some careful, careful sleuthing, I think I've found out what happened with your little Lafayette problem. See, my system doesn't allow for anyone local to apply for an account with The Company. Anyone within about a 150 mile radius that searches for the site will just get a 404 error message saying the site doesn't exist, and while that's a lot of people to cut out locally, it doesn't rule out the wholeworld."

"And Lafayette is French."

"And Lafayette is French," Burr repeated. "He's also a very rich socialite who presents as very outspoken against pornography, and various other lewd trades. He just has an image to maintain."

"Then why would he open an account with The Company?"

"You'd be surprised how many rich assholes in positions of power say they aren't for a particular idea or thing, while actively engaging in it behind closed doors. Take any Republican saying they don't stand for gay rights, for example. In the last three years alone I know that there's 10 Senators at least that fancy a lot of the work youdo."

Alex rubbed at his temple, not really wanting to be told this at 6 o'clock in the morning. "So what does Lafayette want from me, did you find that out?"

"Well, my guess is that it's a case of he's more scared of you outing him then he wants to out you."

"You guess?"

"Alex, baby, let's be transparent with each other for a moment; if he wanted everyone to know who you were, wouldn't he have told everyone already? I mean, he isyour roommate's best friend, does John seem to have any inkling of knowing?"

Alex thought about it, about the way John had insisted to his friend Thomas that Alex wasn't a prostitute last night. "Noooo," he reluctantly said.

"Look, Lafayette doesn't want his own cover blown, probably as much as you don't want yours blown either. He was probably just trying to feel out if you'd keep mum about this whole mess for his own reasons. Now I've already narrowed down which account was his, and I can strike it from our site. Are you still against having him deported?"

"Yes," Alex said firmly. "And you're absolutely sure he just doesn't want to be outed? To like, his friends and what not?"

"Yeah baby. He could also want to fuck you himself, which if you're down for that I can have arrangements made. The price will be astronomical of course, as that's not supposed to be a service we provide, and of course he'll have to undergo the usual quality checks before we'd even let him into the office. It would be a good way to make a hefty bit of money, enough to pay your next two semesters, at least. I know tuition is expensive, especially since you insisted on an ivy league school."

He pushed his hair from his face, remembering how Lafayette had seemed to come onto him so strongly at Thomas's house, how he'd seemed to become possessive of John only after he seemed to think Alex wanted his friend. "No, I'm...I'm not comfortable with that...Aaron, he tried to hit on me shortly after meeting me. And then all of this possessive behavior after I wouldn't play along with him...If I went along with something like that then he could get the wrong idea about me and then what am I supposed to do?!"

"You're not gunna do anything Alex, I am. Or at the very least, I'm tryingtoo but you're making it difficult for me, with all your demands. So if you won't let me deport him, and I'm assuming you don't want a restraining order and you're not taking security seriously—"

"I am taking security seriously!"

"—then how about I have a guy tail him for a while? Oak can walk you around campus for a bit, like he did yesterday if you need it, but I'll give my guy orders to apprehend Lafayette if he tries to approach you."

Alex snorted. "Okay, I guess it's the best we can do."

"The best I could do is put you in a secure living situation and actually neutralize this threat once and for all if you'd let me, but for some reason you want to be difficult."

"Do you have any ideaWHY I want things done my way, Aaron? Because the last time I had to deal with a stalker I didn't have ANYcontrol over what was happening to me, okay?! No matter what I did, no matter where I went, my whole fucking life was some novelty to that fucker and he controlled every aspect of it for seven fucking months of my life! When I ate, where I slept, HOW MUCHI slept, I was afraid to be in a public restroom with other people andby myself in case he showed up and no one was around to hear me cry for help! And then last week I find out I was being stalked from inside your own damn company, Aaron?! And that the only reason THAT threat is over is because the guy got shot down while being taken in?! That's Not okay, Aaron! So you call it being difficult but I see it as keeping control of MY LIFE!" Alex gritted his teeth and tried to hold back the sobs of frustration. He didn't want to fight with Burr, he just wanted the situation dealt with in a way he could handle. In a way that didn't make him feel like a terrible piece of shit for getting a man killed, even if that man was a piece of shit himself Alex didn't feel right about the idea that some people just deserved to die. No one deserved death for their own stupidity.

"Shh, shhh, baby," Burr cooed into the phone, over the sounds of Alex nearly crying. "I didn't mean to make you upset, don't cry baby, don't cry..."

"i'm sorry," Alex choked out. "this is just stressing me out, i know you're doing your best, i'm sorry..."

"You don't gotta be sorry baby," Burr told him gently, soothingly. "I'm gunna do things your way right now, okay? When things don't go right then we'll do it my way, but for now you're totally right. We don't have to deport the French man, and you don't have to move out on your own just yet, baby."

"i don't wanna live by myself..."

"Well, what about staying roommates with John? I mean, it potentially keeps a stalker in your life, but—"

"i don't think John and him are friends anymore..."

"Really? Why do you think that?"

Alex wiped away the tears from his cheeks. "Just something Lafayette said when he accosted me on the street."

"Hmm. Okay, well let's see how you feel about your little John at the end of the semester and, if he wants to keep living with you, I'll have a two bedroom prepared, how's that sound?"

"I dunno, can I think about it?"

"Of course, baby."

Alex rubbed at his face, forcing down his worry. "Hey, can I ask you something?" he said, needing a change of topic. "I was trying to get a hold of Maria last night. I think her husband answered the phone, but he said she was taking a break from work. Is that true?"

"It is," Burr told him. "She asked for the time off around the same time you did, baby. Everything okay? What did you need her for?"

"I just wanted to ask if she'd come with me to this show Lafayette gave me tickets for. He wants me to take John, but John doesn't want to go, and I don't exactly have a girlfriend or like someone on hand I could go with."

"Maria is a married woman, Alex."

"I know. I was gunna ask her as a friend. Strictlyfriends. I know you have a policy and all."

"I do have a policy. Well, unfortunately she's out of town with her family. She told me she needed to spend some more quality time with them, so I told her I'd take care of the family's expenses for the month and gave her a bit of an advance on the money she'll make when she gets back. Happy employees do better work, I say."

Alex nodded, thinking back to how upset Maria had seemed with her life the last time he'd spoken to her. He thought the time off would be good for her, and he trusted they'd catch up when she got back. "Thank you, Aaron. For looking out for us. Unfortunately, that still leaves me without a date tho."

"What about Kitty? She's quite fond of you, ya know."

Alex sighed. "Kitty is nice, but we don't have a lot in common….You wouldn't want to go with me, would you?"

"No," Burr said simply. "I'm afraid theater isn't my cup of tea."

"Think it might be Oak's?"

"I doubt it, but you can always ask him yourself." Alex sighed dejectedly. He was beginning to think his inability to find a date to a show he didn't even know about was some kind of karma for something. Maybe he should just give up and show up alone, if Lafayette did have another ticket and planned on spying on his supposed date with John then wouldn't it please the French man to see Alex got stood up? Or was that just his disaster brain thinking?

"So, have you given any thought to what you want your first movie to be about?" Burr asked him.

"What?" Alex said, snapping back into the conversation.

"Your movie, we discussed having you write and star in a few of those, instead of doing the personal sessions? Have you got any ideas for what you want to do?"

"Uhh, yeah, I got some ideas," Alex lied, panicking in the moment because he had absolutely nothing and hadn't even been aware he was supposed to be working on anything. "Nothing good tho. Is...do I have a deadline?"

"No, just whenever you feel ready to move into that. You should give me a script beforehand so we can go over what you'll need for set design. I have a budget set aside for it that you can use, but you can't go crazy."

"Okay, I'll keep that in mind," Alex told him. "Um, I'm gunna go get ready for the day."

"Alright baby, take care."

Alex nodded and gave an acknowledgement of agreement before hanging up the phone. He peeked out into the bedroom to check on John again, his roommate was still fast asleep in his bed. He wondered how long it would be before John would be up, and what he might like for breakfast.

But first, coffee.

Alex shuffled across the room and turned on his desk lamp before he made his way to the coffee maker John had brought and started carefully putting the filter and beans in. It was still dark outside, and he was already going over his day. He'd go for a walk, leave John a note telling him he'd get them food on his way back, shower, dress, eat and then he had three classes nearly back to back. He'd get lunch in the student center today, then study for a bit in the library before his evening classes, and be back to do more studying before he turned in for the night. As he stretched and waited for the coffee to brew, he squinted at the little weekly dry erase board John had put up on his wall detailing what classes he had and when. Alex then realized they had quite a few classes together, including classes John had missed yesterday. He made a note to save John a seat going forward.

The coffee was done and Alex poured himself a cup in one of the styrofoam cups he'd bought at the store. John had told him he didn't mind sharing use of the machine, as long as Alex didn't use his few mugs and made sure to restock supplies and clean the machine once in a while. He'd meant to order himself a reusable tumbler so that he wouldn't have to suffer the mild 'I'm not mad, just disappointed,' look John gave him every time he saw Alex sipping from one of the disposable ones. Well, one more isn't going to break the world, he told himself as he stirred in his sugar and cream.

Fresh warm coffee was maybe his most favorite drink in the world. Alex was genuinely upset that he could not live off consuming nothing but coffee, though there were some times in his life where he'd had to do exactly that. It was his comfort, and god damn he was surprised he hadn't splurged and gotten his own machine before then. The whole last week living with John had been a caffeinated heaven, though he realized that James' teasing about letting Alex have constant access to a steady supply was probably not a good idea. He...was noticing some changes in his sleeping patterns, including that he'd gone to bed late last night, but had no problem getting woken up early by Burr just now, and Alex decided maybe he wouldn't drink half the pot this morning.

He threw on some sweatpants and pulled on his shoes and hoodie before grabbing his cheap and cracked MP3 player and his keys to head out. This was the only exercise Alex willingly engaged in, every morning he'd go for a brisk walk around the sleepy campus while the streets were empty and devoid of most people. He usually he'd spend a minute picking out a song to start on, but this time he just let the music go off from where he'd left it and all but ran out into the chill fall morning. With a cup of coffee in his hand he wasn't exactly doing any cardio, but he loved to just walk the paths and soak the quiet world in. The sky above was just starting its transition into day, twinkling stars slowly fading out from a black to navy blue, and the moon was starting to make it's way to the edge of the world as well. He was especially antsy to get out this morning, as Oak had point blank refused to go trudging around with him yesterday, so Alex had to resort to being cooped up until it was time for his classes. So today he headed north on Plypton St, intending to lose himself for a while in the grassy walkways of Harvard Yard.

Honestly, Oak didn't know what he was missing. Alex was never sure what it was about the world just before it awoke for the day, but the stillness in the air after a long quiet night seemed to hold a magic to it that he never could quite explain to another soul. He felt an intangible connection to something bigger then himself, something like the world or maybe even a god, if ever there was a thing. He reached out a hand toward the sky as he walked, touching stars softly with his fingers and pretending the chill that nipped at his fingertips was their silvery starlight. He wondered if this is what faith felt like, to people who sat in pulpits and prayed to the statues, since he'd never really done that before. The music in his earbuds shifted to some soft jazz song, and he swayed as he walked along, caught up in the velvet shifting night.

He briefly wondered if John would like it out here.

The movement of something light blue caught his attention and he refocused to see Eliza Schuyler go walking past only a few meters ahead.

Alex turned and followed her, curious what she could be doing out and about so early. He followed her down the street as she walked briskly along. At first he just wanted to see if she was going someplace interesting, but then as she turned a corner, and then another he realized she was headed into Lamont Library, one of the few places on campus open 24/7 for students. For a moment he stayed outside, wondering if he was interested enough in following her around inside or if he should just resume his morning walk. After a small muttered debate with himself, complete with a few pacing steps and nervous sips of coffee, he'd made up his mind and went inside.

The thing about Lamont Library was that there were more then a few nooks and crannies inside where students could squirrel themselves away to work, and Alex had lost sight of Eliza so for a brief moment he stood a few steps in from the door, just looking around like he didn't know where he was. Then he caught sight of her light blue jacket, just barely peeking from around a bookshelf, shuffling as she grazed her hands over a row of books. Alex took another sip of coffee, pretending it would give him some courage and made a beeline for her isle. His plan was to walk past and pretend to see her suddenly, ya know, so it didn't feel like he'd been following her for the last ten minutes like a creep, but as he was about to cross the isle, she turned and bumped right into his coffee arm, and warm liquid went spilling all down his front.

"Oh my gosh!" Eliza cried, suddenly. "I'm so sorry, I—Alex?"

"Hi," he said a little sheepishly, patting the coffee into his shirt awkwardly, like he even had anything to soak up what was spilled on him other than his own clothes. "Well, this is awkward…"

"I'm so sorry," Eliza sighed. She started setting books down and went to pull something from her purse. "I, I just didn't see you there, are you okay?"

"Yeah, it's fine. Probably just Karma from when I spilled my drink on someone else last week," Alex laughed softly.

"That's not how Karma works," Eliza told him as she tried to help him mop up the moisture with a handkerchief. "And even if it was, I don't want to have my own coffee spilled on me for spilling yours on you; I can get you another coffee if you'd like?"

He smiled coyly at her. "Are you asking me out on a coffee date, miss Eliza?"

She blushed, slowly letting the hint of a smile slid onto her lips. "I am not, I'm only trying to offer you an olive branch of peace, so that you don't have an ongoing feud with me as well."

"I wouldn't hold spilled coffee against you," Alex told her. "Though I might be a bit hurt if you refused my invitation to a coffee date."

"What, right now?"

"Are you doing anything?"

"As a matter of fact, I am."

"Ah, a hard working woman, I can respect that. Then what about tomorrow evening?"

"You have a hard time with the word no, don't you Mr. Hamilton?"

"Who could say no to this, Miss Schuyler?" he asked, gesturing to his whole coffee stained body and doing a twirl.

She sighed with a bigger smile, but shook her head. "You seem to want me to think you're a prince disguised as a frog."

"Then I'll tell you the truth," Alex said. "I'm just a frog."

"Well, good luck trying to convince any princess to kiss you then."

"The frog wasn't asking for a kiss, princess. Just company and a cup of coffee when she has the time to grace him with such."

"And what could the frog give her in return?"

"He believes he promised her a story?"

"A story about what?"

Alex smiled as if he knew something she didn't. "If she wants to know what the story is about, she'll meet him here at 6:45PM tomorrow night."

"And what happens to the frog if she doesn't show up?"

Alex's expression softened, a tad put off by the notion that even Eliza would turn him down, but he was putting all his eggs in one basket here. "Then, he'll understand she's not interested in him as anything more than a friend, and he'll respect her wishes to be left alone."

"You know, it's not so easy as a yes or no," Eliza told him. "The princess might live with someone who doesn't like the frog."

"Which is why the frog asked her to meet him someplace away from her home. But he stands by what he said, she doesn't owe him a yes if it would put her out." He held out his hand, as if asking for hers and after a moment of consideration, Eliza carefully laid it over his offered palm. "If the princess must be working right at this moment, then the frog won't be taking up anymore of her time. He bids her adieu and will wait patiently for her answer tomorrow night." Then, he bowed and kissed the back of her hand.

Alex let her go, and backed away with a charming smile and hope in his heart. Even if she didn't show up, he knew he'd done everything he possibly could to convince her. For now, the rest was up to fate and if she took his bait he'd work hard to prove he was a man worthy of her heart. If she didn't, well, it wouldn't break his.

END CHAPTER