Bex

Chapter 24:

  I turned right into the kitchen, trying my best to guide myself through the big house. When I entered I smelt the alluring aroma of food. I sighed happily, and Axel turned his head to smile at. He was currently standing at the stove cooking something in the frying pan.

  "The place looks so... clean."

  "The maids must have came early this morning." He stated, still focused on the task at hand.

  I grabbed my head when another sharp pain shot through it. "Where's the aspirin?"

  "In the cabinet above the dishwasher." He nodded his head in the direction of it.

  I opened the cabinet and almost cried out in joy when I found the bottle of pain relievers. Axel already had a glass of water in his hand, reaching it out  towards me.

  "Thanks." I grabbed the water and took two of the little white pills.

  I took a seat at the dinning table and watched Axel cook. He seemed relaxed and focused. Sunlight streaming through the window above the sink glinted off of the muscles in his arms and the ones along his back. I found myself fantasizing about running my fingers through his soft, messy hair.

  I was brought out of my daze when Axel set a plate of food down in front of me. There was scrambled eggs, toast, and bacon. My stomach grumbled happily at the sight.

  "Bon appetit." Axel smiled. "This'll help with the hangover."

  I grabbed my fork and hastily shoveled some eggs into my mouth. I hummed pleasantly at the taste. "You're a good cook."

  "Thanks. Eggs are Riley's favorite, so I've had a lot of practice making them." He chuckled.

  "Speaking of Riley, where is she?" I asked, before taking a bite out of my toast.

  "She stayed the night with a friend from school. I have to go pick her up later."

  "And where's your mom?"

  "She's gone to take care of her mom for the weekend. My grandmother has dementia; mom tries to visit her as much as possible, but the nursing home she's been staying at has strict rules." He shrugged, taking a bite of his food.

  "I'm so sorry."

  "It's not your fault. I've never really been close with my grandmother, anyway- she's had dementia since I was six."

  "It must be really hard on your mother, not being able to see her that much and all."

  "Yeah, but my mom's the strongest woman I know. She can handle anything life throws at her." I could feel the high amount of affection in his voice as he talked about his mother. I smiled at him, and he looked at me a little taken aback. "What?"

"Oh, nothing. I just find it sweet how much mom's baby bo-" But I stopped at the warning glare Axel sent my way, reminding me what happened last time I called him her baby boy. I smirked around my forkful of eggs.

"Smart choice."

I rolled my eyes at him, and we continued to eat our breakfast in silence. Axel was right that this would help with the hangover; I started to feel better with each passing minute. I was lost in thought; one particular question kept nagging on my brain. I covertly glanced at Axel through my lashes- he was sipping on some orange juice.

"Axel?" He met my eyes with a questioning eyebrow raised. "Why do you go by your mom's maiden name?"

"What?" He sputtered.