"You're absolutely right. If you'd gone with your mom, then you'd get to be pushed around by people somewhere else instead of here!" Alec said cheerfully. He didn't even realize he was going to say the words until they were out of his mouth. He hadn't meant to, but now that he had, he chose to stand firm and look at Milo squarely instead of apologizing.
Xander scowled at Alec. "Hey, there's no need for that."
Alec still wouldn't back down as he glared at Milo. "You seem to think that everything is going to be golden and shiny when you get to live with your mom, but guess what? It won't be! Why? Because you will still be the same person there as you are here, and people are still going to be people, and she's not going to be able to change any of that no matter how much you love each other! She is your MOTHER! She is not supposed to be your best friend, and even if she is your friend, you need more people than just your mother! And New Mexico isn't some beautiful, lovely, amazing place that is going to fix all of your problems and make everything good and shiny! Things might be better there, but then again, they might not, and having your mom there isn't going to change jack sh**! You know how I know why? Because you have everything going for you right here and you refuse to open your eyes and see that! In fact, you're probably better off here than with your mom, but you wouldn't know that because all you do is go, 'I miss my mom and I hate it here and being with her would be better especially for her because I'm the only person in the whole, wide world who loves her and she's perfect!' I hate to break it to you, Milo, but your mom isn't perfect and sucks at being a parent!
"I am not doubting that she loves you. I am not doubting that you love her. I'm not doubting that she's a good person. I'm not even doubting that she's changed and will stay clean! I am not doubting any of that! But if you would be honest with yourself for two seconds, who is the real parent in your relationship? Who has made the actual sacrifices for whom? Which of you actually takes care of the other? You can still love her and recognize that she is not and never will be perfect, and loving her doesn't mean that you can't put yourself first! Because she has been downright selfish the entire time! It took a governmental intervention to get her to actually clean up her act and stop dragging you all around the country breaking promise after promise after promise. And maybe that's changed! I WANT THAT TO HAVE CHANGED FOR YOUR SAKE! But that doesn't mean that you weren't still hurt and that she doesn't have to suffer the consequences of her poor choices.
"Meanwhile, your grandparents were scared sh**less when they found out what was going on and tried to help because, guess what, your mother is not the only person who loves you! She is far from the only person who loves you! And, yeah, your grandparents aren't perfect, either, and they make a lot of mistakes, but while you forgive your mother for everything under the sun and put her on a shining pedestal, your grandparents can't catch a break because, GASP!, they are adults who dared to make a decision for a kid! Like that's never happened before! And you say you wish you'd just gotten a say, but everyone knows you never would have agreed to stay with them because you are so completely tied to your mother in a completely unhealthy and toxic relationship that you cannot see your way out of! And here you are in a really good place, but you refuse to see that.
"Before you start complaining how I'm telling you to smile and look on the sunnyside and force yourself to be positive, I am not saying that! All of this sucks! All of it! And I never once said you had to be the optimistic person! I never once said you have smile and be happy! All I said is that MAYBE not everything has to suck all the time! That MAYBE you can be not happy but also not miserable! But instead, you are so focused on what things aren't and what you want them to be that you can't even see the pain you cause the people who are choosing to be by your side. How much you hurt them every time you say things like how the only good thing about being here are a pair of birds!
Alec waved his hand toward Xander, who actually backed up a step, in too much shock to interfere. "He chose you, Milo! Don't you get it? He chose you over me and does so every single day! That hurts, but I could get over it, but it hurts far worse when I watch you treating him like some kind of third-rate, barely tolerated consolation prize! He's never made a friend before in his life, and now the friend he does chose to make can't stop talking about how much he can't wait to leave him behind like he doesn't matter!
"I get that you are anxious and hurting and have a lot you want to talk about and maybe I should be more open! Maybe I haven't been a good friend to you and maybe we just don't match for friends, and that's okay, it really is, but I can't watch you treat him like that anymore! In fact, I shouldn't even be here. You were supposed to be Xander's friend and only Xander's friend, but I saw you and I thought you looked kind of cool and maybe we could also be friends. I was wrong. I never should have butted in. I should have stayed out of it, because then I wouldn't have to watch you tear his heart out every time you talk about how things will be so much better without him! I just thought you were a cool guy hiding under a lot of baggage."
Alec stopped abruptly, breathing hard. "You know what? I don't know why I'm even bothering to tell you all this. For a guy who complains about no one listening to you, you do a piss poor job of listening to other people, and you're probably going to go off somewhere and think about how you never should have even tried because now I've gone and hurt you, and I'll probably keep on hurting you because I dare to try to see the positive side no matter how sucky life gets. So you know what? I am going to fulfill that prophecy you made, and I'm going to leave you alone. As far as I am concerned, we are no longer friends. I don't hate you, and I won't ever do anything bad to you, but you'd better start treating him right! Because even if he is a massive a**hole, he's still my brother. So you two go off and enjoy your miserable life together!"
Alec spun and stalked away, heading away from where they were supposed to be going to class, muttering angrily under his breath as he went.
Xander stood frozen, mouth hanging open, at a complete loss. What just happened?
