Alex woke up to an early alarm. Alex had been an early riser since his youth, never content to let the day pass him by. He knew that the streets were the quietest before the early morning light. He slipped out of bed, threw on a pair of tennis shoes, and then slid out of his room and into the hallway. The apartment was small. Three small bedrooms and a bathroom were placed across from one another, leading into a living room and kitchen. The apartment was small, older, and not in the greatest part of town. The family had spent their lives moving from place to place, finding old apartments and run-down houses as they migrated across states.

He stood in front of the door next to his, staring at the wood in front of him. Behind the door was his sleeping sister and a challenge that he didn't comprehend. How was he supposed to talk to his sister after what had happened the night before? After a few moments of contemplation, he hesitantly knocked on the door. After he didn't get an answer, he quietly slid the door open and walked inside. Kat was curled up on her bed and holding her pillow close while trying to sleep.

Alex walked over and sat down on the edge of the bed. He reached over and gently squeezed her shoulder, seeing if she was awake at the early hour. When she didn't visibly respond, Alex stared down at her sleeping face, debating what to say. She had an angelic peace about her, always the opposite of her big brother, but Alex noticed the tear stains on her cheeks.

All of a sudden, he felt his throat tighten and he choked up. "Kat…I'm sorry. I should've been there."

He kept rubbed her shoulder and tried to think of something to say. He didn't have any words for what had happened. He didn't know how to make it better. He had spent his entire life trying to take care of his Mama and sister. As he sat there, he realized that he had never felt as powerless as he did in that moment.

He stared back down at her and said, "All I want to do is be there for you, Kat. And I'm trying. I really am. But I feel like there's nothing I can do to help you…"

Alex wiped the tears out of his eye and slipped out of the room, sliding the hood over his head as he slipped out of the room, apartment, and into the street. As he quietly closed the last door, Kat's eyes slowly opened, red and moist from crying the entire night. She gently pulled the pillow closer, squeezing it tighter before sliding the blanket over her head.

The darkness that covered the streets fit Alex's somber mood. As he ran through the streets to the gym, music blasting in his headphones, he felt his mind drift off to the night before. As he ran, the moment that he saw Chuck holding down his baby sister played over and over in his mind. As he ran through the streets, his anger grew, his fists clenched, his vision went red. Alex stopped running, stared back at the Manhattan skyscrapers where the rich and elite like Chuck got away with their actions, and felt utter anger and hopelessness. Alex stared for a moment, fists clenched, and then began to punch the brick wall over and over again, screaming.

Serena woke up that morning much later than her new friend. She also slipped up in a happier mood, replaying the moment when Alex had slipped his arm around her and pulled her in close the night before. Despite everything, it had been an amazing night. Serena slipped up out of her bed, put on a robe, and stepped out into the living room to get breakfast. Her mother sat there, sipping coffee and waiting up on her. "Well, it's nice of you to finally get up."

Serena gave her mother a sarcastic smile before grabbing a cup of coffee for herself. After Serena said nothing, her mother continued. "So, how was the night with Aiden?"

She gave her mother a look and said, "His name was Alex."

"Well, whatever his name was, I hope that he didn't make you forget about Bart's annual brunch."

Serena rolled her eyes as she sat down at the table with her mother. "I'm not going."

Lily looked up at her in shock. "You're not going to the Bass Brunch? Serena, what has gotten into you?"

"Nothing has gotten into me, Mom. I just don't think that Blair wants to see me right now."

"And why wouldn't she want to see you? She's your best friend."

Serena shook her head and stared down into her cup of coffee, trying to block out the images and memories of her and Nate on that fateful day all those months ago. She softly replied, "Things change, Mom."

Lily shook her head. "Not you and Blair. She's like your sister!"

Serena snapped, "You don't think I know that?!"

Lily replied, "Apparently not."

Serena shook her head, took a sip of coffee, and then headed back to her room to shower, saying as she stood up to leave, "I am not doing this with you right now, Mom."

A few minutes later, she was showered and dressed in jeans and a blouse, storming out of the apartment to go to the Ostroff Center.

Alex stood in front of the punching bag, laying punch after punch on the bag, throwing in kicks on occasion as he slid around the bag, taking out his fury on the bag as he did so. After a few minutes, the door opened, and another soul walked into the gym. Rocky slid off his old fedora and looked up at Alex, who was furiously taking shots at the bag. Rocky remarked, "I haven't had to replace that bag in years. I'd rather that streak not end today."

Alex looked up, glared, and then returned to the bag, taking shot after shot. Rocky looked at him and asked, "You good, kid?"

Alex laid a right left right combination to the bag that took the bag off the chain and dropped it to the floor. He looked back at Rocky and replied, "No. No, I'm not."

The old Italian man stared at him, quiet as he debated what to say next. Alex stared back before moving away from the bag and to the massive mirror that was across the back wall of the gym, where he started shadow boxing, staring back at his reflection in the mirror as he threw punches and kicks at his image. Rocky opened his mouth to say something but closed it moments later. Instead, he simply stepped back to the edge of the octagon at the center of the gym and watched the young man shadow box, not able to shake off the nagging feeling that he had seen the angry young man a long time ago.

Serena sat in the Ostroff Center with Eric, who wanted to know everything about her night. Eric asked her, "So…what was he like?"

She smiled as she thought back to the car ride and said, "You know…he was really sweet. It was a lot different than what I'm used to, you know?"

Eric asked, "What do you mean, a lot different than what you're used to?"

"He was genuine, Eric. He just was who he was. It wasn't like he was trying to put up a different side of himself or pretend he was someone that he wasn't. Alex was just…Alex. It was honestly really attractive."

"Was it?"

Serena sighed and leaned back in her seat, thinking about the night before. "I don't know, Eric. The last thing I need in my life is a new guy. But…he was just so smart, and-and funny."

Eric nodded as he listened and said, "It sounds like you like him."

Serena looked up, bit her lip, and said, "And really nice?"

Eric raised his eyebrow and smiled, singing a mock song, "Someone has a crushhhhhhhhh!"

Serena laughed and threw a pillow at her brother. "Shut up, I do not!"

Eric rolled his eyes after he dodged the soft missile thrown by his sister. "Please. You practically undressed him when you first met him."

Shocked, Serena gasped and replied, "ERIC!"

Eric shrugged and said, "Hey, it wasn't hard to notice."

Alex arrived back from the gym a few hours after he left, not long after Claire had made breakfast. He walked over and gave his mother a kiss on the forehead and a hug before asking, "What's for breakfast?"

"Grits okay?"

Alex nodded and grinned. "Yes, ma'am!"

"I figured you'd like that. How was the run?"

Alex shrugged and shifted his weight as he tried to shift away from the question. "It wasn't that bad. Have you got work today?"

Claire raised an eyebrow as she stirred the grits, not missing her son's pivot but choosing to give him space for the moment. "No, I don't. Do you wanna spend the day with your Mama?"

Alex smiled and nodded. "I'd like that, actually."

Claire smiled and squeezed her son's hand before returning to the grits and asking, "Will you go get your sister? She's not up yet. I let her sleep in since you two didn't get back till late last night, but I don't want her to miss breakfast."

Alex nodded, squeezed his mother's hand, and said, "Yes, ma'am. I'll go grab her."

He walked over to the hallway and knocked on his sister's door before slowly opening it and walking in. "Kat?"

Kat slowly rolled over and slid the covers off her head as Alex walked over and took a seat next to her. He quietly asked, "How are you feeling?"

Kat sighed and replied, "A little better. Last night was rough, though. The nightmares…it was just rough."

Alex nodded and squeezed her forearm. "Can I do anything to help you?"

Kat shook her head. "I'm feeling better, Alex, I promise."

Alex gave her a soft smile and decided to drop the subject, sensing that she didn't want to talk about the previous night. He stood up and said, "Mama said to come get you up for breakfast."

Alex moved to the door and opened it, prepared to walk out, but before he walked out, he said, "Hey…I know you probably don't want to talk to me about it. I get it. I'm your brother. But if you do want to talk to someone about it…just let me know. I'm here to help, however I can."

She gave him a soft smile and nodded. "Thanks, Alex."

Alex nodded, gave her a wink, and slipped out the door, leaving Kat to get up and get dressed.

Serena left Ostroff and returned to the hotel, hoping to change and then go find Alex. How she was going to do that? She had no idea. But she knew after talking with Eric and voicing how she felt that she wanted to spend more time with him. She arrived back at the hotel and promptly started to search through the cardboard boxes that her mother had brought from her room at home, trying to find the clothes that she wanted to wear. As she searched through the boxes, she yelled, "Mom, did you borrow my Michel Perry's? I can't find anything in here!"

Her mother left the kitchen and walked to the edge of the door, saying, "Well, it might help if you unpacked. Look, you're home now. It's your life! You should start living it."

Serena continued to search, frustrated that she couldn't find her property and even more frustrated that she wasn't home where she could find everything in the first place. Voicing her feelings, Serena snapped, "This is not life, this is a hotel! Which we're living in because you decided you didn't like the color of the walls in our real home."

Lily found the shoes and handed them to Serena, who took them and gave her an appreciative look before returning to her feelings and saying, "Mom, I said I don't want to go to the brunch. What do you want from me?"

Lily shook her head and gently grabbed Serena by her shoulders, forcing her to look at her mother. Lily asked, "Sweetie, why are you being like this? You love parties. This is just not like you."

Serena glared at her and replied, "Maybe it is like me. Maybe you don't know what I'm really like."

Lily rolled her eyes and replied, "Oh, okay, tell me."

Serena glared at her again and Lily acquiesced, feeling slight guilt at coming down so hard on her daughter mere days after she had returned from boarding school. Lily begrudgingly asked, "So, did you and Alex have fun at the concert last night?"

Serena bit her lip and hesitantly responded, "We, um, never made it. We actually ended up at the kiss on the lips party."

Lily nodded approvingly and gave her daughter a slight smirk. "Ah. Well, that must have pleased Blair."

Serena scoffed and replied, "Blair? Actually, no, not that pleased. That's why I'm not going to brunch."

Lily was quiet for a moment, trying to find the right words to communicate her thoughts, and then said, "Look, honey, I know how hard it is for you to be back, but the more you hide yourself away, the more people are gonna think you have something to hide."

Serena snapped back at her, "Coming from someone who's keeping my brother in an institution."

Lily sighed, knowing that Serena had raised a fair point, but quietly retorted, "That's different."

Serena rolled her eyes and stormed out, slamming the door on her way out as she left for the city streets, pulling out her phone to call Alex as she did so, hoping that he was somewhere around and would be willing to meet her.

Alex was sitting at the small table in the kitchen with his mother and Kat, eating grits and watching ESPN, catching up on the sports news in the world. Alex felt his phone buzz and looked down to see a call from Serena. A small smile came over his face as he picked up the call and stepped away from the table to answer. "Hey, you."

Serena chuckled and replied, "Hey, you too."

Alex rubbed his forehead and chuckled awkwardly. "So, not my finest answer, I'll be honest."

Serena laughed and said, "Well, it could've been worse. You didn't answer the phone as, how did you put it? Alex the Greek god like Martin?"

Alex shrugged and said, "Hey, you haven't called me enough yet! It's coming sooner or later."

Serena rolled her eyes and replied, "So you're telling me to run for the hills?"

Alex smirked and replied, "You're saying there's something to run from, then?"

Serena bit her lip and smiled in spite of herself. "Well…you've got me there."

Alex didn't press, not wanting to be that guy. He asked, "So, what's up?"

"I was wondering if you wanted to grab some lunch or something? Maybe coffee?"

Alex smiled and nodded. "Yeah…yeah, I'd like that."

"How about Earl's? 97th and Park?"

Alex nodded. "I'll see you in a bit."

Alex ended the call, gave himself a fist bump, and then walked back into the kitchen. "Hey, Mama?"

His mother smiled and said, "Yes, Alex, you can push off our day until tonight. We can rent a movie, maybe get a pizza?"

Alex walked over, gave his mother a hug, and said, "I'll even let you pick a RomCom. Just because I'm making us wait."

"Aw, aren't you the sweetest?"

Alex smirked and responded, "When you put it like that…"

Claire rolled her eyes and said, "Don't push it, mister."

Alex squeezed her shoulder and then walked over to Kat and gave her a hug. As he squeezed her, he whispered in her ear, "Hey, if you need anything, call me, okay?"

Kat nodded and gave him a smile. "Thanks, Alex. Enjoy your date."

Alex rolled his eyes. "It's not a date."

Kat smirked, displaying a little bit of her happy personality for the first time since the previous night. "Sureeeeeeee. Whatever you say."

Alex was walking towards Earl's a few minutes later when he felt his phone buzz. He picked up, answering, "Hello?"

Serena was on the other end of the line. "Hey, I'm so sorry. My cab got stuck in traffic. I think I'm going to be a few minutes behind you."

Alex rolled his eyes before looking at his watch and laughing. "Is it bad that I freaked out and got here way early?

Serena chuckled and replied, "I think it's kind of cute, actually."

Alex smirked and said, "Yeah, I figured you would appreciate that."

Serena laughed and said, "Oh, did you, now?"

Alex nodded and said, "One hundred percent. Hey, I'll see you soon, okay?"

Serena smiled and said, "Can't wait."

Alex ended the call just as he walked around the corner that Earl's was on. He shrugged and laughed at himself. He had rushed over from his apartment, only to get there and find that he may have overestimated travel time. He walked up to the hostess, got an outdoor table on their patio, and had just taken a seat when he looked up to see Nathaniel in a crumpled tux, looking like he had just woken up from the night before. The two locked eyes and Alex begrudgingly got up, forcing himself to be sociable and polite. If he was going to keep hanging out with Serena, he knew that he had to make an effort to be cordial with her friends.

Alex walked over to Nate and nodded to him. "Nate."

Nate calmly nodded back. "Alex. What are you doing at this end of town?"

"Sunday brunch. You?"

At that moment, Chuck Bass walked out of the restaurant. "Nathaniel. There you are. What are you doing?"

Nate shrugged. "Nothing, waiting for you."

Chuck finally looked over towards Alex. Alex caught sight of Chuck's eye, which was nearly swollen shut, causing Alex to grin. Chuck, however, was not pleased. He pushed forward towards Alex, stopped only by Nate, who stood in the middle of them as they began jawing at one another. "Hey, what are you doing here, punk?"

Alex shot back, "I'm here for the smoothie. It's supposed to clear up the skin. Looks like you could use it."

Chuck pushed forward again, Nate still struggling to hold both guys back from one another. Chuck snapped, "Oh, you're real funny, aren't you? Keep it up, wise guy! See what happens!"

"What, you gonna roofie me, you stuck up SOB?"

"I didn't have to do that to get your sister!"

At the mention of Kat and the night before, Alex shoved Nate out of the way and was about to land a punch when three other guys that were sitting at a table nearby managed to get in between the two, stopping Alex from laying Chuck out right there at Park Avenue. Chuck jeered, "How about you go wait on the curb with the rest of the trash."

Alex seethed, "Trash?! Keep it up and I'll knock you around so hard your trust fund won't cover the medical bills."

Nate managed to regain control of Chuck while the three guys the next table over stood in front of Alex, keeping him from shoving forward and going after Chuck. Sensing that this was about to get out of hand, Nate told Chuck, "Okay, man, let's just go."

Chuck angrily replied, "Don't tell me you're sticking up for Serena's new bitch. If anyone's got a reason to kick his ass, it's you."

Alex stared, still furious but now perplexed. Nate shook his head and answered, "He's not worth it. Not here."

Chuck started to walk away but yelled as Nate pushed him towards a cab, "This isn't over!"

Alex clapped his hands and yelled, "Hey, anytime, man. That black eye is looking a little lonely!"

At the mention of his eye, Chuck glared, but Nate covered his mouth and threw him into a nearby cab before he could say anything else. Alex held up his hands and said, "Alright, guys, my bad. Sorry to interrupt your brunch. I'm good."

Serena walked up a few minutes later to see Alex, who despite having calmed down didn't seem to be in the best mood. Upon looking up from the ground and seeing Serena, however, he smiled and seemed to brighten. He stood up, pulling out a chair for her before giving her a hug. "Hey…it's good to see you."

Serena smiled and replied, "It's good to see you, too."

Alex gestured her into the seat and then sat down himself, pulling the menu out and beginning to glance over it, searching for his meal. Serena did the same, but upon finding what she wanted, slowly slid her eyes back up to look at Alex, who was poring over the menu and trying to find what he wanted. She smiled softly before lowering the menu and asking, "So…is Kat okay?"

Alex bit his tongue and shook his head. "I don't know, Serena. I really don't know. I mean…how would you feel? I don't know what to say to her or what to do to help her. All I know is that I want to help her but feel like there's nothing I can do."

Serena listened to the story while thinking back to her moments alone with Chuck a few days ago. After losing herself in memories for a few moments, she noticed the silence and looked back up to see Alex, who was staring off in the distance and seemed to be choked up. She reached over and gently squeezed his hand. "Hey…just being there for her is enough. She knows she can come to you. Just keep being there for her and she'll come around."

Alex grimaced and shook his head. "I don't feel like I'm doing anything though."

Serena shrugged and said, "You can't fix everything, Alex…"

Brunch ended and the two teenagers went their separate ways. Serena left for The Palace, hoping that the brunch with Bart had gone well enough that her mother would be in a noncombative mood. Alex gave her a hug and turned to leave, but after a moment of walking back towards the side street where he had seen several cabbies stopping for smoke breaks, he turned around and chased back after Serena. Serena caught sight of him and managed to tuck in her smile while raising an eyebrow. "Didn't get enough of me yet?"

Alex shrugged and replied, "I could use some cardio."

Serena laughed and replied, "Oh, that five block walk is going to do so much for you, isn't it?"

Alex replied, "Hey, I'll have you know that a block a day keeps the doctor away!"

Serena doubled over in laughter at the dad joke. Alex shrugged sheepishly as Serena stood back up and leaned her head on his shoulder, her face red and tears streaming down her face. After a moment in which Alex lost himself, he cleared his voice and said, "Okay, it wasn't THAT funny."

Serena wiped her eyes and replied, "Okay, maybe not, but it sure seemed like it was."

Alex smirked and said, "For the record, fitness is no laughing matter."

Serena rolled her eyes. "Yeah, I can tell. What do you do to stay in shape, anyways?"

Alex scratched the back of his neck uncomfortably and replied, "Uh, you know. Running and stuff. Some crew every now and then."

Serena was puzzled by the obvious change in tone, but shrugged it off, thinking that she was just overanalyzing her companion. After a few moments of silence, Alex managed to crack a joke and the two were back to laughing, the awkward moment gone. Before too long, they had arrived at The Palace. Serena turned around at the gate and smiled. "Hey…thanks for getting me out of brunch. I had a really nice time."

Alex gave her a soft smile and said, "You know, I have to say, I think that the second date was better than the first."

Serena raised an eyebrow. "So…this was a date?"

Alex chuckled and replied, "Unless you're too anxious to be seen with me, Ms. Socialite."

Serena smiled and replied, "No, actually, I very much enjoyed it. I think I could get used to spending time with you, Alex."

Alex grinned back at her. "You know, I think I would say the same thing."

At that moment, a tall blonde woman bearing a striking resemblance to Serena walked out of the door and straight towards the two teenagers with a pop in her step. Serena shook her head and muttered, "Oh, no…"

Alex gulped, realizing that her mother did not look at all pleased. He managed an uncomfortable smile as Lily walked up and ignored him, looking straight at Serena and asking, "Well, how was brunch?"

"Good, Mom, thanks for asking. Alex and I had a lovely morning."

Alex managed a full smile this time and held out his hand. "Ms. Van Der Woodsen. It's good to see you again."

Lily looked up at him, staring him down for a moment before calmly taking his hand, not breaking eye contact as she did so. Alex refused to back down either, still maintaining a smile but firmly squeezing as he stared back, refusing to back down an inch and cower to the woman. Lily glared at him for a moment before turning back to her daughter. "Well, you missed quite the morning at Bart's."

Serena smiled and said, "I think I would have missed a lot more if I had gone than if I hadn't."

Serena looked over at Alex and gave him a wink. Alex squeezed her shoulder and then said, "Well, I would hate to interrupt any more of your time. I have some errands to run. Ms. Van Der Woodsen, it was good to see you again. I'll see you at school tomorrow, Serena."

He wrapped her in a hug. Serena shifted her head up behind Alex's neck and whispered into his ear, "Check your phone in a few hours."

Alex almost shivered as she pulled away and bit her lip. He managed to give her a soft smirk before walking away, intent on finishing up errands before the movie night with his mother and sister.

A few hours later, Alex walked into the Delphi Gym, not terribly far away from the gym he was training at. The difference, however, was that the owner knew who Alex was. More importantly, he knew who Alex's father was. Alex walked up to Tony "Little Duke" Evers, a tall, now slender African American man who was born to Tony Evers Sr., a talented boxer who had trained Alex's father.

Alex walked up to the edge of the octagon where two men were sparring and dropped a bag next to Little Duke. Alex remarked, "There you go. Check it out."

Duke looked over, glared, and remarked, "What you doing here, man?"

Alex stared at the two fighters sparring in the ring. Two heavyweights. Both were incredibly muscular African American men, sweat glistening as they fought back and forth, training for the one big fight, their one chance to make it in the world. The one fight that they and Alex were all after.

Alex replied, "15 and 0, 15 knockouts."

Duke rolled his eyes and said, "In Tijuana? Atlanta? Charleston? No, bro. That's barroom brawling."

Alex shook his head. "Well, I'm all in anyway. So, I figure we start out local,

just to get our momentum going, then we can move wherever we wanna move.

Duke turned his head and incredulously responded, "We?"

Alex shrugged, expecting loyalty to his father could get him a fight promotion from Duke. "I was figuring-"

Duke interrupted him. "Alex, these boys come in here, this how they survive. They gotta fight for life. Kill or be killed. People die in there. Your daddy died in the ring. This ain't no joke."

Alex stared straight ahead and stiffened his chin in defiance. "I don't know him. Ain't got nothing to do with me."

Duke rolled his eyes. "Okay, you real tough now."

"Yeah, I am."

Duke shook his head. "Nah, I ain't promoting you and I ain't training you. You know I ain't training you. Nobody training you. I'm gonna make sure about that."

Alex stood there, furious as Duke called out to the fighters, "We making champs in the Delphi Gym! We not dancing! We not singing! We fighting! You struggle every day, you fight for something. You damn right!"

Alex stood up and threw open the door to the octagon, holding up his keys as he did so, despite Duke's protesting. "Hey, listen up! These the keys to my 'Stang right here. All you gotta do is land one clean head shot."

One of the fighters stared back at him and asked, "What I gotta put up for it?"

Alex glared back at the man as he dropped the keys and slid on gloves. "Put up your hands. You a pro, right?"

Duke shook his head and said, "No, no, no. You gonna get the shit knocked out of you. You ain't gotta prove nothing to me."

The fighter jeered as Alex slipped his shirt off, "Better listen to your family, boy."

Alex slid in his mouthpiece and pushed aside the head gear that most fighters wore for protection when they sparred. The fighter laughed and yelled, "No head gear?"

The bell dinged to signal the start of the fight and Alex pushed into the center. The fighter opposite of him threw two rapid strikes, hoping to knock the cocky teenager backwards and drive him into the ground, where he could beat him into a knockout or use leverage to get a submission, forcing Alex to tap.

Neither happened.

Alex stood at the center of the ring, ducked the two strikes without even putting his hands up to defend himself, and then twisted around, delivering a strike to the head that put the other fighter out cold. Alex stood over him for a moment and then yelled at Duke, "Killer, right?! He a killer, right, Lil Duke?! Where were you at when I was in group homes?! You ever miss a meal?! Nah! You never did! Which one of your killers in here next?! You pick him! You pick who's next!"

Duke turned his head away, shaking his head as he did so. Alex stared at him, anger filling his gaze as he watched yet another person who had claimed to love his father turn their back on his son. Alex remarked, "Yeah. I didn't think so."

Alex walked by Duke, but as he did, he threw off the gloves and held up the keys. "These are for a crappy 4Runner. I didn't get anything from him. We had nothing. You would know that if you had ever checked in on us, family."