Title: Morning Comes Faster Alone
Summary: She's gone.
Rating: T
Disclaimer: Don't own 'em.
Note: Title from the song Gunnin' by Hedley.
Morning Comes Faster Alone
He knew she was gone before he even opened his eyes. The air felt less charged, the room less bright without her explosive presence filling up every crack and crevice. The space beside him was vacant; the crisp, white sheets cool to the touch. She'd been gone for a long time, he surmised, studying the unused pillow as a dull ache began to throb in the vicinity of his chest. He remembered groggily now that he'd woken up when she'd shifted on his bed, lightly and with a quiet catlike elegance that could only be found in a transgenic. But he also had cat instincts, and had felt her movements even through the thick tendrils of sleep.
Alec sighed and sat up, closing his eyes briefly as the feeling of dread washed over him. Although the sun had risen bright and warm, its rays shining in through the grimy window and throwing lines of bright light across the dingy room, Alec felt chilled to the bone. It had become a morning ritual when he woke up; he was overcome with trepidation at what the new day would bring. Far from his old life, where he'd looked forward to the buzzing of the city and the rough-edged, interesting people he found there, sunrise now only filled him with a great sense of fear.
Fear of what was to come.
Fear that Max would lead them into Hell itself.
Fear that she'd die.
Fear that she'd set them free.
Fear that she'd leave.
He tried to use every morning without her as a way to become accustomed to the pain of her absence. But he knew nothing would compare to the day when she drove off into the sunset on her shiny black ninja, her mission as leader of the transgenic society finally completed. Presumably drive straight into the arms of the posh, rich Logan Cale. Because the virus would eventually be cured, Alec had no doubt about that.
He rose from the bed, slid a pair of jeans up over his hips and snapped the buckle at his waist, and headed out of his apartment. It was sweltering hot in Terminal City, being that there was no air conditioning or electricity of any kind, and as such Alec didn't bother with a shirt. He also loved watching the lovely lady X5's glance appreciatively over his impressive, albeit slightly wiry form. Even if he hadn't looked at one of them twice since Max had inexplicably slid into his bed, presumably looking for comfort and an escape she thought him capable of offering, he was still vain as hell. And he loved to be admired.
As he walked into HQ, which was bustling with activity, he set aside his fear and his dread. It was time to work. This was also a ritual, pushing his feelings down into a deep part of himself where they wouldn't resurface until he let his guard down, until he woke up the next day.
But damn, everything seemed to move so much faster without her. There was barely time to breathe in between all that needed to be done; then she'd walk into the room and everything would slow down. When she was gone, the work, the fighting, the tremendous job ahead of them seemed to weigh so much more heavily.
Morning came so much faster when he was alone.
End