This month's extra - Alec's Family Tree (+ Some Info on His Relatives) - is in the Dogs, Bats & Monkeys Series: EXTRAS. Link in the first comment and as an external link.
The knocking on my front door was firm, impatient and familiar.
It was unexpected enough that I raised my eyebrows and demanding enough that the stubborn part of me wanted to ignore it; it warmed my heart as it showed that she cared, and annoyed me as I was too mopey to want to see even her.
I still got up and opened the door for the only relative on the Dayer side of the family that I loved. The first thing she did, before she'd even stepped into my hallway, was to punch me.
The second was to shove a gift my way.
The sweet smell coming from the bag of goodies from my favorite bakery did nothing to raise my spirits and I didn't even reach for the present, opting instead to lazily rub the shoulder Vika had hit, not very strongly, but with enough force to make a point.
Vika, who was still standing under the doorway, with a glare that was soften by the worry in her silver eyes.
After a brief staring contest, she sighed and finally came inside, closing the door behind her.
"So what was that very stupid thing you did that's gotten you acting all weird?" She asked as she undid the buckles of her faux leather summer boots and pulled them off her legs. The Mayflour bag had found its way to the floor and was currently being scrutinized by Luca.
"Yeah, yeah, there's something in there for you too," Vika murmured and the cat began to purr.
Sometimes I suspected he was so affectionate to my cousin in order to piss me off, to spark some jealousy in me, but that never happened. And today, I didn't really care.
Vika straightened up before slipping on a pair of black slippers she wore inside my penthouse when she visited. She then bent over and picked up the bag once again attempting to hand it over to me.
"Seriously? What's gotten into you?" She was frowning and I only just realized I hadn't answered her yet. I shrugged, the I-don't-want-to-talk-about-it not the I-don't-know type of shrug, turned around and walked to my couch, slumping down and lying on my back, forcing my cousin to take a seat on the sofa instead of next to me.
"Alec, what did you do?"
The Mayflour bag landed with a thud on my coffee table. Luca jumped after it, pushing his muzzle inside. Vika reached for the branded paper bag and took out a smaller one from it.
"I shifted in front of a human," I finally replied, my tone completely even. From the corner of my eye, I saw her freeze for a moment before she proceeded to open the smaller bag.
"So?" She asked, taking a treat out and placing it on the table for Luca to munch on. He wasn't used to taking things straight from the table top and not from a dish or a bowl, but the aroma proved too tempting and after a brief hesitation, he bit into the - what I was sure was - sugar-free cookie.
"Why did you do it?" She prompted when I left her - yet again - without a reply.
I just gave her another shrug and she huffed.
"Alec, this is a big deal. You haven't shown that side of you to many people and now you did, to a human, and you let them know it was you. We are talking about it. So spill. Who are they? Why did you do it?"
"It's that human Sentinel I told you about," I answered the first question without delay.
I really had no desire to think about the answer to the second.
I had never seen my cousin this apathetic and... Depressed.
One arm was limply dangling off the edge of the couch, his other forearm covering his forehead, casting shadows over his already stormy eyes. But it wasn't a passionate, raging storm; just dark clouds obscuring the sun, like he'd purposefully pulled a curtain over the so-called windows to the soul, hiding what was in his mind and heart.
I took out another cookie for Luca and placed it on the table, remembering he'd rather have a dish, but I had more pressing concerns than my moody cousin's pet's eating preferences.
Alec wasn't talking to me - even now, in person - and that was a sign something was very, very wrong. The dark circles under his eye only emphasized that.
"How about we go out?" I suggested, hoping to distract him from whatever was bringing his spirits down. "Grab someone to bite. I know this pair of twins who..."
"Not interested," he cut me off in the same monotone voice he'd been using since I'd arrived and managed to get him - with a Herculean effort - to actually speak.
"Then what do you want to do?" I asked, tapping my foot against his floor.
"Nothing, really."
Again, a completely emotionless response.
I sighed for what felt like a hundredth time since I'd entered his penthouse... What?
Ten minutes ago?
I wanted to reach out to him and put a comforting hand on his shoulder or to punch him again; he looked like he'd be annoyed by the former and the latter had had no effect on him previously, so I stayed put and just softly pleaded:
"Cousin, just talk to me."
After a long silence, he spoke, a hint of emotion I could not decipher sneaking into his inflection:
"I wanted to see how he'd react."
"Okay..." I slowly nodded. "Why?"
Although I had a clue.
There was only one reason for smart people to do something stupid and then go into such deep state of I-don't-want-to-care, and even though my cousin was not just your average person, I was sure he wasn't an exception when it came to matters of the heart.
The shrug I expected came as an answer, but Alec surprised me by also adding:
"I don't know."
I leaned back into the sofa, rubbing my forehead.
He had to know.
Or at least suspect.
But... He was probably in denial.
"Okay. Setting aside your crush on the guy..."
Alec's head turned my way quickly enough for me to get a whiplash.
"I do not have a crush on the guy," my cousin hissed, life finally returning to his previously dull eyes and color coming to his cheeks.
Yep.
Denial.
But that was an issue for another day.
"Alright. Setting aside whatever reason you had to reveal yourself to the guy who you do not have a crush on..." I allowed a hint of sarcasm into my tone and got a glare from my cousin. "What now? He's a Sentinel; will he report you?"
"He might be considering arresting me." Another shrug, the careless one he used to hide when he was emotional. The movement was seriously starting to grate on my nerves and the fact that he used this particular version was insulting. As if I couldn't tell he was faking it.
But I had to remain calm and try to help Alec solve the mess he'd gotten himself into.
"Tell me everything," I insisted and Alec went on to narrate the events that had led to his current state and somehow successfully omitting how he felt about each of them.
Bear jumped up and down, excitedly barking at my front door, no doubt since he'd figured out - like I had - who was knocking on the other side. I'd barely opened the door when Sasha invaded my home, red hair carried by the current she'd made with her Dayer speed, like flickers of flame in her wake.
"I brought food." She shook a bag with the Mayflour logo in front of my face, ignoring the way Bear tried to climb her legs. "And since I figured you might not be in a mood to eat, I got what I like, so you can watch me munch while I listen to whatever got you down enough to call in sick and leave that stubble on. And yeah, I brought some for you too." She glanced down at Bear who was switching between barks and whines.
"Maybe I really am sick," I said, too tired to fake any conviction.
"Bullshit." She said simply, making her way to my living room, my dog trotting after her. "Now grab us a couple of beers and tell me who I have to beat up."
I rubbed my face, my head in too bad of a place for me to be touched by her offer or reprimand her as - unfortunately - it was more than just a joke.
"You are not beating anyone up for me, Sasha." I called after her.
"You bring the beer, tell me what's up and I'll be the judge of whether we'd need body bags or not."
With a sigh, I followed her instructions, but only partially, bringing out a single beer. My mind was too much of a mess to trust it even without any alcohol in my system. By the time I'd joined them in my living room, Sasha had placed open a small paper bag on the floor next to the couch she was sitting on and Bear was happily munching on whatever was inside.
I handed my partner her beer and a bottle opener, then slumped on a sofa. She took a long drag from the beverage, her keen eyes taking my pathetic appearance and once the bottle left her lips, she shot out:
"It's Alec, isn't it?"
Hello after the very long break. If you read the messages I post on my board, you'd know I'd taken a break from Wattpad due to health issues. I'm not going to bring you down with the details; I'd rather we talked about the chapter.
What did you think of it?
Who do you think has the better approach - Vika or Sasha - or do you think they are to similar to choose?
Do you think they'd be able to get the boys to admit what they are feeling?
Do you think Adrian is going to tell Sasha exactly what it is about Alec that had him lie to his superiors and call in sick?
Please support this chapter with a vote if you enjoyed it! ❤
Again, the link to the extra is given in the first comment and as an External link.