Title: Alex's Bad Day
Summary: Alex has an awful day!
Rating: G
Author: Jean
E-mail: JeanOConnell195@aol.com
Disclaimer: They don't belong to me.



Alex woke up early in the morning, and he looked around his room. Noting 5:30 on the small clock hanging on the wall, he decided that he might as well stay awake, seeing as his mother walked in every morning at 6:00 to see him out of bed and ready for school at 7:30.
Try as he may, sleep claimed him fifteen minutes later. At 6:00, never failing, Evie came in and sat next to Alex.
"Come on baby, last week of school before summer." She smiled, knowing how much he hated Monday's.
Alex woke up groggy, angry with himself for falling back to sleep. He knew it would be impossible to stay awake all day now, and he'd feel tired. He'd done this before, and didn't like the outcome. When Evie figured he was awake, she left him to start breakfast.
An hour later, when Alex didn't come down for breakfast, Rick walked into his room expecting him to be brushing his teeth, and found him still asleep in bed.
"Alex, you're going to be late for school." He grumbled making the boy sit straight up, looking at the clock.
"Oh no! I didn't mean to fall back to sleep dad." He grumbled and Rick laughed as he tried to put his trousers on. He succeeded in tipping himself over and smacking the back of his head on the edge of his desk.
"Alex." Rick rushed over and found a knot, but it wasn't bleeding. "Come on pal." He lifted him gently and righted his son's pants as he slipped the shirt over his head. He helped him downstairs and grabbed an ice pack from the freezer. He all but swallowed his breakfast whole as Evie rushed him out the door and Rick drove him to school.
"I hope you have a better day son. Good luck on your test." Rick smiled and kissed Alex's forehead.
"Oh no! I forgot to study for my test!" He groaned and flopped his head back on the headrest. "Do I have to go to school today? I have a bad feeling."
"Yes son, go on. You're already late, you were late on Friday too."
Regardless of how much Alex hurried, he was still late to class.
"Alex, can I see you after class please?" Miss. Willis asked as he walked in, lying his things on his desk.
He nodded ruefully, and set to the task of getting out his large homework assignment that he'd done over the weekend. It wasn't in his folder, and he groaned. He'd left it on his desk at home, and he knew it.
"Miss. Willis, I left my homework at home, can I turn it in tomorrow?" He asked when she walked over to check him off.
"Alex, I don't know what's come over you. You were such a good student at the beginning of the year, I just don't know. This is the second homework assignment that you've failed to turn in this semester. I'm afraid that you'll have to go to the deans office and explain this to the principal." She pulled him up and handed him his book-bag, sending him on his way with a note in hand.
Alex sat in the foreboding office waiting room for fifteen minutes before he was led in to see the principal.
"Alexander O'Connell...am I right?" At the boy's nod, he sat back in his chair and crossed his arms over his chest. "What did you do son?"
"I don't know sir." He squeaked, making the man laugh.
"You must have done something wrong, or you wouldn't be in here. It says here that you've failed to turn in your homework repeatedly. You know that requires a call home. May I have your phone number please?"
Alex gave Principal Wilkins his phone number, and waited while the phone rang.
"Hello, I need to speak with Mr. or Mrs. O'Connell please." There was a slight pause as the Miss. Susie, the housemaid said they weren't in. Mrs. O'Connell was at work, and she gave him the phone number.
"Evelyn O'Connell speaking." Evie answered the phone formally, and the principal began.
"Hello Mrs. O'Connell, this is Dean Wilkins at West School for Boys. Your son, Alexander, has gotten into a bit of trouble and was sent down to see me."
Evelyn looked at her watch, noting he'd only been at school for half an hour.
"May I ask what happened?"
"Here, I'll let you talk to him." He handed the phone over to Alex, who gulped. If it was his father he knew he'd get a spanking for sure.
"Hello?" He talked quietly into the phone as Evie spoke up.
"Baby what happened?"
At his mother's soft concerning voice, he snapped and began to sob.
"I got to class late...and Miss. Willis said that was the second time and asked me to get out my homework. I...I tried but I couldn't find it...and I got...sent here." He cried and she soothed her little boy. Even at eight-years-old, Alex still considered himself to be Mum's little baby.
"Shhh, its okay baby. Don't worry, you'll be home soon. I'm working late tonight, so I won't be able to pick you up. Daddy's going to be in the upper part of town getting some deals set, so can you walk home?"
"Yes momma." He sniffled, and she smiled at the phone. Alex handed the receiver back to Principal Wilkins, and he finished off a conversation with Evie.
"I've never seen him in trouble before Mrs. O'Connell...he's usually a wonderful student. I'm sure he's just having a bad day." He smiled and said good-bye as he hung up the phone. He handed Alex a tissue, and sent him back to class.
By lunch, Alex was having a miserable day. Daniel was sick, so he wasn't at school, and he didn't have anybody to sit and talk to while he ate. He sat under a tree with his dad's book, waiting for the bell to ring.
"Well, well, well, if it isn't the nerd catching up on some of his book smarts." Bobby Jones commented as he and two other boys walked up to the secluded Alex.
"Go away Bobby, I'm having a bad day." He grumbled and stood, picking up his nap-sack.
"No." the boy snarled, snatching the book from Alex's hands.
"Hey, that's not mine! Give it back." He jumped, but Bobby was at least a foot taller than he was. He was in the sixth grade, and Alex was only in the third.
"Oh, poor little baby without his book." He laughed, making the two other boys snicker at the little boy.
"Here's your book right here. See you after school runt." He growled, dropping the book into a nearby mud puddle.
The group walked off, leaving Alex alone again. He picked up his dad's book, which was now ruined and sobbed.
"Alex, you be careful with that. That's a very old book. Your grandfather gave that to me before he died, and it's the only thing I have left of my family before the orphanage." Rick had told him, but still let Alex take the book to read.
"Great. This day couldn't get any worse!" he cried and his teacher walked over to him.
"Alex, what's wrong?" she asked, sitting next to him under the tree.
"Bobby Jones ruin my dad's book, and it's the only thing that he has left from his family. Now I'm going to be in big trouble!"
She wrapped her arm around him and hugged him, hearing the bell ring. "Well, let's get to class. After that we'll decide what to do about your book." She helped him into the room, and the rest of the day progressed.
Alex stepped out onto the sidewalk, and headed home.
"Hey nerd, because you're a tattle-tale, I got into trouble. You're going to get it O'Connell." He growled, and Alex had had enough. He swung out, catching him in the nose.
A small drop of blood appeared on his face as he stalked toward Alex.
It began to pour ten minutes later as Alex trudged home. A black eye, broken nose and several bruises on his cheeks made him walk slower than usual. It began to rain as Alex picked himself up, seeing that a nearby neighbor had Bobby run so he wouldn't get caught.
"This was the worst day in my entire life." He grumbled, and took a detour, deciding that he needed to see his mother.
Walking up the steps to the library, Joe the security guard met him.
"Alex, looks like you've had a pretty bad day there." He smiled and held open the door, handing him a hankerchief. He thanked him and wiped off his face, seeing blood on the once white cloth.
"Mum?" he called into her office, and saw her working at her desk.
Evie looked up quickly, not expecting to see Alex at the museum.
"Alex! My goodness, what happened?" he exclaimed as she walked over to him, kneeling down as she placed him into a chair.
"I had the worst day of my life mum. I don't want to go to school anymore." He sobbed, and wrapped his arms around her.
"Why didn't you go home honey, you father is there and he would have taken care of you." she pulled him down the hallway and into the ladies bathroom.
"I got beat up after school, and the boy who did it ruined dad's book. He took it from me and threw it into a mud puddle. He's going to be so mad at me mum I can't go home. He'll never love me again." He cried and she hugged him close.
"Come on baby, let's go home. I'm sure that he'll be upset, but it wasn't your fault."
She packed up her things and led him out of the museum, and they drove home.


"Dad, you aren't that upset about the book?"
"It wasn't your fault son, and don't worry. I'll get a hold of this boys parents."
"No dad, he'll be me up again for sure." He begged, but Rick was adamant.
"It's okay son. We've planned a trip to Egypt for you, because you've had such a bad day. Evie has been sent to find the Bracelet of Anubis for the museum, and I'm sure that you'll have a chance to relax."

The End

Authors note: I decided to end it that way because I know most of you have seen TMR. Of course the activities in TMR are anything but relaxing for poor little Alex.