I realise how long it's been since my last post, and I really am sorry that it hasn't been sooner. I will try to make more of an effort to put aside time dedicated specifically for my fanfiction:))
This one will be another two-part story, with hopefully a bit of a twist at the end so I hope you like it:)
Works of Imagination : Part 1
Alex stared dejectedly out of the classroom window through the beaming sun rays that attempted to penetrate his sight. Technically the day had been like any other with classes, bells and teachers that seemed to droll on continuously about the most irrelevant aspects of life.
However on this particular day, Alex felt the gloom settle in more than usual as he pondered about being anywhere else at that particular moment in time. He sighed wearily as the sound of scraping chalk and scribbling pens filled his ears, creating a monotonous sound which grew slowly more irritating by the second.
He was suddenly called back to attention as the teacher politely asked him to read a paragraph from the textbook which he had not yet found the will to open. However his first and only thought as he commenced reading at the teacher's insistence, was that it was definitely going to be one of those days.
At the sound of the bell which signalled a welcoming end to the day, Alex scrambled to gather up his things and make a swift exit before any one of his classmates managed to catch his eye. This day was bad enough without adding further embarrassment to its cause by drawing attention to it.
Deciding that it was probably safer to exit through an unnoticed back door in which he was unlikely to be singled out, he discreetly drew away from the crowd and made his way towards a side entrance. On approaching the door he faintly recalled the principle previously warning them that to divert from the main entrance of the school was strictly forbidden as it led directly onto a main road which was considered unsafe to cross without the supervision of a parent or guardian.
However seeing as these were particularly exceptional circumstances in Alex's perspective, he felt no qualms in taking a chance which was accompanied by a considerably minor risk factor. He was fairly certain that he had a reasonable grasp of how to cross a main road without sustaining fatal injury and on this confirmation pushed out the handle bar of the back door and stepped out into the street.
The first thing that struck him was how busy this route was in comparison to the designated pick up area at the front of the school which was reserved solely for the use of parents and teachers. There appeared to be people coming from all sorts of directions, cutting in and out of traffic and blaring horns in order to avoid the daily rush hours on the tube.
There also seemed to be quite a number of shady looking characters lurking beneath the shadows of shop windows discreetly examining the people walking past, fantasizing of a possible pursuit of valuable assets. Alex noticed these things a great deal sharper than most people as even at such a young age he had been taught to identify the prey from the predator for reasons of personal safety as much as intrigue.
Confidently, as if he had taken this route a thousands times before, he took a sharp left and proceeded towards the direction of the school pick up area. He swerved blindly in and out through pedestrians that swarmed the streets, looking for some sign or confirmation that he was heading in the right direction.
He turned another corner in hope that he would see a landmark of familiarity to strive towards, but before he could take another step, a figure had appeared blocking his path. Alex slowly inclined his head so that he would get a better view of the man who appeared to be smiling grimly down at him, with sharp raser blue eyes and a snide smirk that made him slightly uneasy to look at.
"Lost?" He teased, almost as if he knew something he didn't. " No, I'm fine. I'm just late meeting someone" Alex replied quickly, which wasn't a complete lie as he had promised Jack that he would meet her outside the school for lunch at four o' clock which was slowly drawing to a close.
The Man's grin widened significantly as if he had just been handed an early Christmas present. "Then why don't I give you a lift? It's pretty dangerous around here, you shouldn't be out alone all by yourself." The man, as if being given a signal, suddenly reached out for him and that was when Alex made his move.
Manipulating the adrenaline rush that was now coursing through his system, he dived head first through the narrow gap in the man's legs missing the embrace of his outstretched arms by milliseconds. However this small victory was soon outlived as no sooner had he begun to take off, a black shiny SUV with blacked out windows suddenly screeched to a halt in front of him.
Stunned by the sudden new developments which were now taking place on his reroute to Jacks' car, he took a moment to evaluate the sight which was now rapidly unfolding before his eyes.
Four armed men in Levy's Jeans and shabby looking leather jackets emerged abruptly from the halted car which was already creating a scene of havoc, holding up the traffic which was already rising to hysteria in the midst of the evening rush hour. Alex's eyes widened with sudden alarm and he watched helplessly as the men suddenly made their way towards him, having spotted the scene taking place before them.
Alex immediately tensed, bracing himself as he acknowledged what he knew was about to happen. As if right on cue, he heard someone suddenly cry out and waited for the shattering blow that did not come.
Opening his eyes once again to address the situation, he quickly scanned the area looking for the source of danger but could see only moving traffic and people passing curious glances over him as he stood on the sidewalk perplexed by the normality of his surroundings.
There was no sign of the shiny black SUV with the mysterious looking hit men, or the man with the crooked smile and cruel eyes anywhere within watchful distance. Slowly collecting himself from the shock of what had just taken place, he cautiously began to make his way towards the school gates, taking care not to attract any unnecessary attention.
As he approached the set down parking lot expecting the worst, his fears were soon confirmed as turned just in time to see a fuming Jack marching pointedly towards him, phone in hand at the ready.
"Alex John Rider, where on earth have you been? Do you realise that it's almost five O Clock? You are forty-five minutes late from school! Do you have any idea how worried I've been? I was this close to calling your uncle" She gestured with her hand clutched firmly around the phone, which was resisting the crushing force of her hand. Her tearful rant finally ran out of steam when her breath decided to exceed her expectations.
Alex stood there calmly composing himself, his mind spinning trying to work itself into a presentable explanation as to why he was so late. Then, as if she had suddenly remembered something of vital importance, Jack's eyes widened a fraction and her grip on the phone loosened slightly.
"Happy Birthday" She exclaimed quietly, her voiced laced with undisguised guilt. Alex, grateful for the sudden change in subject reached out to her wrapping his arms around her waist, glad that he was finally able to relax for the first time since he turned eight years of age.
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"Are you sure you don't want anything else to eat? You've barely touched your burger which contains all the necessary requirements for a growing boy, especially the chemically modified beef content and deep-fried vegetables."
Jack attempted in vain to cheer up a visibly anxious eight year old, who appeared to be on high alert, his eyes scanning the vicinity of the indoor restaurant and the street beyond. Fast food restaurants were usually the most efficient way of getting a child's attention but apparently Alex was already immune to its' falsely attractive exterior.
"So, do you want to tell me what happened today that made you so agitated? Were the other kids teasing you about your birthday or did something else happen?" Jack inquired suspiciously, chewing absent-mindedly on the end of a drench fry.
Alex sat hesitantly in the opposite chair, debating with himself on whether or not he should recite to Jack about the events of the afternoon. He knew that of all the people in his life he could solemnly rely on, Jack was top of the list. However at the same time he knew that she was frightened easily and did not want to risk her having an ecstatic outburst in the middle of a public restaurant.
Instead, he tried a different method of communication.
"Jack, what would you do if you knew someone was in trouble but didn't know how to help them?" Alex asked casually, attempting a nibble on one of his chicken dips.
"Trouble?" Jack repeated, her eyes carefully trained on him.
"Yea" Alex replied more confidently "You know, like a conflict of sorts." Alex thought it best to keep the topic at hand open to broad interpretation. He did not want Jack so suspicious that she felt the need to report back to a certain other individual, who will not be so willing to let the subject of conversation drop unnoticed.
"Oh a conflict, I see " Jack replied knowingly with a mischievous sparkle in her eye. "Ok Alex, well the best way to deal with an argument among friends or foes is always to confront it head on" Jack exclaimed wisely, now devouring a second double cheese burger.
As if sensing her overindulging appetite, a waiter suddenly appeared with an extra bowl of chips as her eyes widened significantly at the new arrival. He then turned away scooping up the empty bowl into his already overloaded hands, but not before shouldering Alex with a knowing wink.
"Confront the conflict?" Alex repeated slowly, his eyes trained on his food which suddenly didn't look very appetising anymore.
"That's right. You don't want the problem to linger on and get any worse. That's how situations spiral out of control" Jack recited thoughtfully. Her mind also appeared to be in places other than the food.
"I guess you're right" Alex replied after several moments of in-depth thought. Although the context of the conversation may not have been exactly accurate, Alex realised the sudden truth of what Jack was saying. This was his problem to confront and no one elses. If those men returned again, Alex knew that it would be up to him to figure a way out and the very thought made his already queasy stomach churn with fresh anticipation.
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"ALEX, IAN'S HOME!" Jack yelled from the bottom of the stairs, shortly before a lock turned in the front door and a rattling of keys could be heard making their way towards the landing. Alex had already began making preparations that evening in the event of a break in and hastily shoved all suspicious looking items that his uncle might question out of sight and under his bed.
Suddenly there was a knock at the door and Alex sat down placidly on the end of his bed, wishing that today of all days he did not have to encounter the forthcoming conversation that was about to take place. He wasn't in the mood for a rehearsed style apology.
The door opened and Ian entered hesitantly, examining his nephew from a safe distance before closing the door behind him. "Hey Kiddo, happy birthday" he said quietly, looking down at him with a mixture of guilt and affection.
"Thanks" Alex replied stiffly. He figured that if he had disappeared on a business trip for four months without a single phone call that he would have felt obliged to start the conversation; but then Ian suddenly sighed in defeat and launched himself down on the bed beside him.
"Look Alex, I'm sorry I missed Christmas. I hadn't intended to be away that long." Ian began suddenly looking weary "There were... unforeseen developments" He explained and Alex then noticed the growing lines of worry in his face that hadn't been there before.
As if by a reflex that couldn't be helped, Alex inclined his head into his uncle's shoulder which was gratefully received. Any sense of anger or loss that he felt previously towards his uncle, suddenly seemed unimportant as a familiar sense of warmth and security temporarily disbanded his worries of the days events.
Almost as if reading his mind, Ian suddenly withdrew from the embrace, studying his nephew at arm's length. "Jack mentioned on the phone earlier that you were very quiet coming home from school today. Is there anything I should know about?"
The question wasn't a challenge but Alex was smart enough to know that he wouldn't get way without offering a reasonable answer for his sudden change in behaviour.
"It was nothing. I was just angry because I figured you wouldn't be here but I shouldn't have taken it out on Jack. I didn't mean to make her upset" Alex concluded with his cheeks colouring slightly, mostly because at least part of the story was true.
Ian smiled slightly, knowing that the account was at least half the truth when it made his nephew blush. "I'll tell you what, If you promise to tell me how your feeling in the future instead of adopting the silent treatment, I'll take you and Jack out to the cinema later" he suggested, smiling triumphantly when he knew he had won him over.
"Really?" Alex's eyes came alight at the thought of spending a whole evening out with the two people he cared about most. "Absolutely" Ian replied confidently, moving towards the door "I just have to drop in some papers to the office before we go, but a word of warning - "
Alex looked up expectantly only to see a glint of amusement light his uncle's eyes "I'm claiming the aisle seat."
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Half an hour later as Alex scrambled in the bottom of his dresser looking for a decently matching pair of socks to wear out, the doorbell rang sending a chiming echo throughout the house.
Alex glanced at the clock on his nightstand which read a quarter past nine. Perplexed at who would think to call this late, he wandered out into the corridor in pursuit of Jack who usually takes leave of answering the door. Figuring that she was probably in her room looking for something to wear that wasn't too exotic for a night on the town, he knocked on her door but received no answer.
He was just about to call out to her when he heard the distant hum of an electric generator vibrating through the floor, signalling that the electric shower was on full flow and most likely about to blow a fuse. Jack had a habit of breaking things when left unattended.
Smiling to himself, Alex took the stairs two at a time, his ecstatic mood lightening his step all the way to the door. Finally he wrenched the door open only to be greeted by two cold, smiling familiar faces staring down at him. He suddenly felt his blood run cold and the colour drain from his face as recognition of the two men staring hungrily down at him, registered in the back of his mind.
The man standing to the left of the doorway with a yard of rope attached to his belt assumed the role of the waiter once more by winking at him, only this time the glint in his eye was not friendly but malicious. However it was not the waiter with the curious grin that caught Alex's immediate attention, but the rifle cradled in the arms of the man who had stood waiting for him outside the school earlier that very afternoon.
Alex suddenly realised with a pounding thud echoing inside his chest, that for the first time today his options were very limited, and his fate unknown.
To be continued...
I do hope to post the ending of this two-part as soon as I can. I am doing exams this year so there may be a bit of a delay between entries. Please review and let me know what you think. I haven't thought of an ending yet so all suggestions are welcome:))