One week later, and Alexander finds himself writing a letter nightly. He would type away, only stopping when he went to fix the few spelling and grammar mistakes. Each time he finished, his eyes would hold a look of satisfaction as he read the final result. After quietly reading it to himself, he ensures it saved before putting his computer away, yawning as he checks the time. The digital lock reads twelve thirty-six, and Alexander frowns softly as he goes over to the bed. He gets comfy and allows his eyes to shut, and he slowly begins to fall asleep.
When he wakes up, he finds his eyes quickly shutting and he lay under the blanket, trying to ignore the light that Lafayette decided to turn in. The blankets were warm and cozy, and he didn't want to move. It couldn't have been ten minutes before Mrs. Washington was at the door, gently knocking. He just groans.
She comes in hearing it and goes over to him, sitting on the bed next to him. Her warm eyes hold a worried. "Are you sick Alexander?" She asks, resting a hand on his forehead gently. Alex nearly finches seeing the raised hand. Quickly, he swats it off of his forehead, wanting the cold to go away
"You don't feel warm," she mutters softly, looking at him with a frown. "Have you been sleeping?" She asks.
"Yes," Alexander replies, starting to get up. He yawns and rubs at his eyes slightly. His head feels heavy, and part of him wishes that he could just go to bed again. The other half was screaming at him, telling him to get up and go to school or he would miss classes and fall behind.
"How many hours have you been sleeping a night, on average?" She asks next, frowning softly when he just stares at her in confusion for a moment, trying to think of a reply.
"Uhm, on average?" He asks, watching as she nods. "Maybe about, I don't know, four?" He says slowly before nodding. "Yeah, about four." Martha was frowning, and Alexander begins to panic slightly. "If you want me to sleep more or less I can do that," he says quickly. She quickly shakes her head.
"We'll talk about it later, alright?" She says softly, "go back to bed, okay? I'll have Gilbert grab your school work for you."
"I can't miss school, I'll fall behind," he says, panicking.
"Today is Friday, you have a shorter day. You can catch up tomorrow."
"But I have schoolwork to hand in," he adds quickly.
"Gilbert can do it for you, where is it?" Martha asks softly. Hesitantly, he goes over to his bag and pulls out a red folder. Martha smiles and takes it from him. "Go back to bed, okay? George is working here today, he'll be home with you." She says gently, going to the door and shutting the light off.
Alexander is quiet for a moment. "Okay..." He mutters, going to the bed and getting comfortable again. Almost as soon as his eyes are shut, he begins to drift into sleep.
When he wakes up, he notices the light shining through his window. He stares blankly before looking at the clock that has been taunting him for the past few nights. It laughs at him, telling him that it's ten o'clock. He gets up and grabs clothing from his closet, quickly pulling a t-shirt on and going to the door, rushing downstairs. He looks around, not seeing George. Maybe something came up and he had to go to work?
He feels his stomach start to growl, screaming at him and reminding him that he hasn't eaten yet. He stares blankly at the kitchen and hesitantly goes in, walking to the pantry. He hasn't been eating much, and he knows how unhealthy it is but he feels as though he didn't deserve it, like he didn't do much to earn the food that the Washingtons are so generously giving him. Alexander's stomach growls as he opens the cupboard, reminding him that he barely had dinner yesterday and that he hasn't eaten today. Without thinking, he grabs a granola bar and quickly opens the packaging, scarfing it down quickly.
"Good morning son," Washington says, taking a seat at the table with his laptop. Alexander freezes up, his eyes wide and mouth full. He tightens his grip on the granola bar and begins to panic. He took food without permission. They are giving you food, you couldn't wait till lunch? Pathetic. You're stealing from such an amazing family. That voice snaps. He couldn't even hide what he had done, as the granola bar wrapper is tightly clutched in his hand. "How did you sleep?"
Alexander forces himself to swallow, but his mouth feels dry and he may have done that out of fear. "I, uhm, I slept well." He says hesitantly, watching his foster father as he checks the time. Lafayette wouldn't be here till about twelve thirty, and Martha wouldn't be here till maybe five thirty. He is stuck in a house with a man who could really hurt him if he wanted to with no one there to help him.
"Come here, son, sit with me." The man says, not turning on his laptop and deciding to move it away instead so it wouldn't be nearby.
Alexander hesitantly walks over, fear coursing through him as he pulls a chair out, sitting down. He watches him, trying to read his body language and trying to get an idea of when the first strike will come. Alexander is tense, and his eyes are darting around. The exits are the backdoor, front door and garage.
"You can finish the granola bar," he says with a small smile. "I just wanted to know why you haven't been sleeping. Martha went to grab you and said that you haven't been sleeping lately. Is something happening at school? Is something stressing you out?" He asks, a concerned look in his eyes.
The concern takes Alexander by surprise, and he stares at the other for a moment. Just a few seconds ago, he had been ready to jump out of the chair to run to a window, worst case scenario, and the thoughts swirled in his mind, the ones that fed his paranoia. The look of concern threw him off, and he is sure that he looks genuinely confused.
"You're not mad?" He asks after a moment, watching him with a small frown on his face as he does so.
"Of course not, Alexander. I'm worried for you. You're in an entirely new environment, in a school you haven't been to; surrounded by total strangers and you have to deal with the stress and drama of having a soulmate and an enemy who you are extremely close to. You were in foster homes where things didn't work out and even ones were you were abused. I'm worried that something is wrong, and I know you likely wouldn't tell me if there really was something wrong. After all, you're scared of me and I understand that you may not trust me. However, I want to help, and I'm willing to take the first step in building a bond between us." He says gently, not seeming too upset that Alexander assumed the worst.
Alexander's eyes are wide as he looks at the other, the confused look not yet going away. He looks at the food he had forgotten about before looking at Mr. Washington. "You aren't mad that I took food without permission?" He asks after a moment. He understands how hesitant he sounds, how he sounds as though he's trying to navigate a field with landmines buried underground, with no map or idea of how this conversation will go.
"I will never be mad about that. Alexander, you are underfed, I can tell. Some of your teachers have sent emails expressing their concern. It doesn't help that you barely touch your food when we're having a meal as a family. If you are hungry, I want you to eat. No one in the house will reprimand you for doing so. If you are hungry and just snack throughout the day, then I want you to do that." He says, looking at him with a bit of a sad look.
Alexander is quiet for a moment before he nods quietly. "Okay." He says hesitantly, allowing his grip to relax on the beyond crushed snack bar. He takes a bit of it, quiet for a moment as he looks at the other. Mr. Washington just smiles gently.
They sit in silence for a moment, although it isn't an awkward silence. It's comforting to Alexander. The other is allowing him to eat whenever he is hungry and isn't reprimanding Alexander for taking food. There's silence. Not a single shout or yell. The air is empty, and Alexander finds that he doesn't miss the sound or the sting of pain that came with getting slapped. There was no sound of his feet slamming down on the ground as he attempts to get away from someone wishing trying to harm him.
It isn't the silence that terrified him either, he finds. He isn't hiding in some sort of small space that he's grown to hate, nor is he holding his breath to try and silence himself as tears begin to prick his eyes and his mouth threatens to open to let out a sob. His hand isn't covering his mouth, and he isn't listening in the silence for footsteps or any hint that someone may find him soon.
It's comfortable. He's eating his granola bar and finds himself relaxing when he reads the other's body language. He's relaxed, his hands resting on the table. And he's smiling. It isn't a sinister smile like what he's seen in the past. It's a genuine smile, one that the other is giving him to comfort him. Alexander begins to relax as he finishes eating the first thing he's eaten that day.
While he likes the silence, he doesn't mind too terribly when the other breaks it. "Son, can you tell me why you haven't been sleeping well?"
Alexander is quiet for a moment. He takes a deep breath. "I am stressed, and I sort of work really late at night on my laptop to try and finish my work ahead of time so I have the time to go over it and actually make it look nice." He admits, leaving out how he has been writing letters that only Thomas and he will see.
"You work all day after school though, Alexander, and Lafayette has said you work during your lunch period." He says with a small frown on his face as he does so. "You're overworking yourself." Alexander shrinks back a bit when he realizes the other is disappointed in him. "You could be doing something worse, I suppose, but you need to sleep Alexander. If you are worried you won't finish something, and then talk to your teacher, alright?" He says softly. "If it helps, I'll get you an agenda so that you can write down a plan so you don't overwork yourself," Mr. Washington suggest as he looks at the younger male.
"I think that would help, actually." He says after a moment.
"I'll have Martha buy one for you." Alexander nods. There's a bit more silence before Mr. Washington speaks up again. "Alexander, I know you don't trust us just yet, and I hope that it will get to the point where you do, but Martha and I will worry for you, and we are never going to be mad if you need help with something, or if you need to talk. If you are struggling with something, I want you to talk to one of us, or the school counsellor. We want to help you, alright?"
Alexander nods after a moment. "Okay. I will." He says, hesitantly getting up and throwing the wrapper out before going to the stairs.
"Alexander, please take care of yourself. Self-care is important." Mr. Washington says, watching Alexander.
"I will." He says as he goes upstairs to his laptop, planning on being productive so he will sleep tonight without worrying about whether or not he has done enough work.