Riddle Me This

FIFTEEN - ALEX

"So, what is the plan?" Ash asked Griffen as the five of us stood on the considerably large platform where the bridge connected to the stairs, "we can't all go. it should probably be one or two."

Griffen shrugged. I had noticed that Ashley tended to do most of the talking.

"How about this," Ash said to me and my siblings, "Which of you is the leader?"

That was a funny question. Clearly she did not know how siblings worked. Either the kids all fought to be the leader 24/7 (with no success) or they were from some fantasy world where everything was literally perfect.

None of us really knew how to answer that question, so none of us did. After a good moment of silence, Connor spoke up and said uncertainly, "Um... I'm the oldest,"

"Perfect," Ash said happily, "You come with me then, Griff, take the other two to the guest wings." With that, she grabbed Connor's hand and dragged him up the stairway.

"Um, you guys can come with me I guess," Griffen said. I was sure he was sixteen or seventeen, just a year or two older than us, but he deepened his voice around other people to make himself sound older. He wasn't as intimidating as he put himself out to be. He acted all big and scary around people, but when I had met him before my siblings woke up, he had been a nice guy. We had talked, and he seemed like a normal teenager. I wished he would act like that around my siblings. it would be a lot easier to make friends that way.

He led us through a maze of bridges and stairways and treehouses until we finally reached our apparent destination. It was only about twenty feet off the ground, which was low when you considered how high up we had been not too long ago.

"This is the girls wing," Griffen said to Adelaide, gesturing towards the mentionably large tree house, "or the guest house I guess, there is lots of food and water and stuff already stocked, make yourself at home."

He kindly opened the door for her, and she stepped into the doorway. Before going all the way in, though, she turned. "How long will I be here?" she asked.

"I don't know," Griffen said, "Ash will probably come and talk to you after not too long."

Adelaide nodded, then waved at me before walking slowly into the tree house.

"So where is the boys wing," I asked, slightly annoyed that I was being separated from my sister, the literal one reason I ran away in the first place.

"On the other side," Griffen said, his voice noticeably higher pitched now that it was just us. I smiled. It made me feel good inside that he could at least be closer to himself around me. I had never been good at making friends, but maybe I was improving, because this seemed like a pretty good one.

"Ugh, but that is so far," I complained, dragging my feet as a followed him across the bridge, going the direction we came.

That earned a smile, "You'll be fine," he said. 

He sounded genuinely excited. Happy. I did not have to have known Griffen long to know that was rare. I could not stop wondering what about me had that effect on him.

We walked for a while, and I managed to make some conversation which, in Griffen's case, was a big deal. I even got him to laugh a few times, which was wonderful.

Eventually, we reached what must have been the boy's wing. He stopped and waved towards it, reciting about the same speech as he had with Addy, "This is where you'll stay for a while until we figure out anything better. Make yourself at home"

I turned towards the house and started walking forward, but something told me to stop. I turned around, looked at Griffen, and swallowed. This could either lead to one of those really heartfelt conversations in Disney Channel movies, or him getting mad, walking away, and me losing a friend. Or, at least, I considered him a friend. I don't know about him.

"Griffen?" I said.

"Hm?"

"Your really cool, you know," I said, then cringed at my own words. This really was like a Disney speech. "Why do you act all mean around my siblings? They are really nice, especially Connor. They'd love to be your friends. But, you're different around them. All tough. Why?"

"I don't know."

"You should be yourself," I continued, "I think you and them would get along better then."

"I can't."

"Sure you can."

"I can't, Alex, just, stop." he said loudly. I winced.

Great. The second option.

He walked away with his head hung. I felt my heart pounding hard.

Nice going Alex. You guys were really getting along just now, and you had to go and blow it.

Of course I did. I'm Alex. I'm not strong and tough Adelaide or kind and understanding Connor.

I'm Alex

I'm just Alex.

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Author's Note

Hi guys! Happy Monday! I hope you enjoyed this update from Alex. Griffen is a difficult character to work with, so I would love to hear feedback from you guys on his character development as the story progresses. Not much happened in this chapter, I know, but I hope it was fun to read regardless.

Of course I appreciate all of the views and votes I get. I especially appreciate, however, your comments. Words can't describe how excited I get when I log in to find that someone has commented on my story, even if it is just a simple, 'cool' or 'lol'. All feedback, good or bad, is so helpful on my writing journey. Of course always be kind, but if there are things I can improve on, please let me know. I am here to grow as a writer, and I am open to all advice.

Okay, see you guys on Friday!