How Green Becomes Wood

Xander sighed and leaned forward. "Hey. Look at me just a second." He tried his best to hold Milo's gaze, keeping his voice quiet and as gentle as he could manage. "It is a big deal. I'm not going to scold you or make you talk about it or nothing, but I want you to know that this," he pointed to Milo's arm and neck, "is a big deal, okay? We'll talk about it later if you want, but I think you know as well as me it's a big deal. It's not good. That's all I'll say for now." He leaned back. "Sorry. Bit of my Ba coming out. Think I spend too much time with him. And I'm pretty sure you did break the skin in a couple of places. Want some ice?"
 
He did his best to oblige his friend and hold his gaze, but still ended up looking away before it was over, mumbling, "It's not like I'm cutting myself," but that was all. He genuinely didn't recognize it for what it was, but he didn't argue about it. Maybe he knew it was wrong deep down, maybe he just wasn't ready to face it, "Sometimes it just looks like it, but it's still under the skin. Just wish I had a sweatshirt or something."
 
"Sorry. Didn't wear my coat today," Xander apologized. He watched Milo for a bit. He knew he'd taken a risk saying what he did, but he didn't regret it. Milo didn't get it, not really, but he had a feeling that maybe it was because he didn't want to. It was only a feeling, and he didn't trust his feelings, but it was possible. He didn't say anything further, giving Milo the silence he wanted, waiting for his friend to indicate when he was ready to move on.
 
"It's okay." He shifted, resting his head against his knees again. It wasn't that he felt... better. But he felt less bad. Mostly less bad. After a while, he said, "I'm gonna tell my grandparents I'm sick tomorrow, I think."
 
"Alright. I'll get your notes for you," Xander promised. "And you don't have to give me an answer now, but you can still come over this weekend. Maybe not to crash for the- for a sleepover, but we can hang out and you can play with Ivy. Don't answer now, just know it's open. And don't worry about Alec. I'll deal with him later."
 
"I just didn't want you to worry if I'm not there," Milo told him before sighing heavily, "I don't know what I'll want to do. I'll think about it, I just...I don't want to make things worse."
 
"Thanks for telling me. I would have... wondered." Xander used the toe of his shoe to nudge Milo's. "You don't have to if you don't want to. All I'm saying is the offer still stands. That's all." He checked his phone again. "Are you ready? We still have a few, or we can start walking."
 
"I don't really want to go, but I know that I have to. Otherwise there will only be more trouble." He replied, and although it was the very last thing he wanted to do, he roughly wiped his face one last time, grabbed his bag, and stood weakly on his feet. As soon as he was up, all he wanted to do was sit down and cry all over again, but that wasn't an option, so although he wasn't valiant about it, and would probably crumble if someone called on him in class, it's what he had to do.
 
Xander stood with him and gave him a good looking over. "If you want," he said slowly, "I can walk you to the nurses office. Say you're sick. They usually take it more seriously when there's two people. Just say you were throwing up. They'll send you home, and you'll have an easier time staying home tomorrow. You... actually do look like you're about to barf, so... it's not too much of a lie. If you want to tough it out, I'll stick with you all the way."
 
Milo hesitated, "I don't know. I want to, but I just... I don't want... it to look like... I don't know." He looked around the room for a little while, and then asked, "It doesn't mean I'm just giving up again?"
 
"To me? Nah. To me it looks like you're pausing to catch your breath before going back to a fight, but it doesn't matter what it looks like to me. What's it feel like to you? Do you feel like you're giving up? Do you think you'd go into hiding, or come back stronger? Do you think you would feel honestly and truly better with a break, or if you went straight back to it?"
 
"Come on. Let's take you to the nurse and see if they'll let you hang out somewhere more comfortable than sitting on a bucket," Xander said with a little nod to the door. "Catch your breath. You can't fight if you've got nothing in the tank, so let's go get you checked in and see what happens from there."
 
"Okay," Milo murmured, adjusting his bag. Then, he lowered his head and followed his friend out of the closet and towards the nurse's office. As they approached it, he said, "If we say I'm sick, then you won't get in trouble for missing our class."
 
"Don't worry about me," Xander told him. "I'll be fine. I always am. You just look after yourself." He walked with Milo and made sure the nurse was looking after him, and took the opportunity to wash his hands. He scrubbed harder than necessary, but managed to pull himself away before doing any real harm or going beyond his hands.
 
He wasn't sure if he believed Xander, but he didn't argue. Honestly, he was too tired to argue. So he went to the nurse, and allowed them to let him to lay down and call his grandparents to come and get him. It would be about an hour before one could get to him, but that was fine by him. About halfway through the wait, he did tell the nurse that Xander had been with him when he was sick in the bathroom, and didn't want to leave him for the time being. That's why he wasn't in class, either, and that's why he didn't get someone. So he shouldn't be in trouble.
 
Xander waited until he was certain Milo was okay with being by himself - or as by himself as you got in the nurse's office - and then headed to class. He was a little late and had to take the closest open seat available instead of going clear to the back in his usual seat. Instinctively, he started to look for Alec and then stopped himself. What did it matter? He didn't want to be anywhere near his brother right now. He was probably up taking notes in his usual neat fashion and being bothered one bit. When that class ended, he still didn't look for his brother, but he did notice that Alec didn't sit in his usual seat. Xander chalked it up to Alec being upset with him and didn't think much about it at that moment.

Meanwhile, Alec had been bothered by what he said. Bothered and worried. Why had he done that? No! He'd done the right thing! Kind of. Someone had to tell Milo the truth! Right? What he'd said was true, but... maybe he shouldn't have... but Milo! And then Xander... he maybe should have... WHY! He didn't feel well at all. His stomach hurt like crazy.

Milo knew all the hiding spots in school, but Xander knew how to get out of school, and, incidentally, that meant Alec knew, too. While Xander and Milo were sitting and talking in the janitor's closet, Alec was walking away from the school and following the sidewalk. He had his backpack and his phone and that was it. He'd left school where everyone said he was supposed to be and was probably going to be in trouble for it later, but right now, he just didn't care. He didn't care anymore. He didn't want to care. But he couldn't walk forever. He pulled out his phone and started scrolling through his contacts list. Most of the people in his contacts were fellow students. Cooger? No, Cooger wasn't good for anything other than being the fun uncle and always got squirrely when anything serious happened unless it was about Dark. Alec didn't feel like dealing with Cooger's energy right now. Daizi? A good choice for comfort and she'd probably understand, but she couldn't come pick him up. Dark? He'd be upset and tell Alec he was supposed to at least stay in school, and then be highly disappointed in the rest of how Alec had handled everything. He probably wouldn't scold, but he'd have that look. Aunt Ciara? Too far away, too awkward, and likely wouldn't understand. Uncle Tristan?

Alec hesitated. They'd only worked together for a couple of months now, and he still felt more like a boss than an uncle, but he was always so quiet and calm. Just being around him made Alec feel a little calmer on a regular day. He would have questions, but Alec should be able to answer those without too much trouble, right? Maybe. What was the worst that could happen? He'd be stuck walking more. Holding his breath, he dialed.

Tristan answered on the third ring just before Alec was about to chicken out and hang up. "Hello, Alec. It is a pleasure to hear from you."

"Hi, Uncle Tristan!" Alec greeted him as brightly as he could. "I was wondering, is this Wednesday a flower shop day?"

"No, it's not, but I actually finished my other work up early and was considering going into the flower shop for a couple of hours for paperwork and things," Tristan said slowly. "Aren't you supposed to be in school?"

"Like you, I got out early," Alec told him. "Xander had some other stuff to do, though, so I was wondering if maybe I could come help in the shop?"

"Alright, if your parents are okay with that," Tristan replied.

"They already said yes," Alec said quickly. "I texted them."

Tristan asked where he was and promised to come pick him up in a few minutes. Alec resisted the urge to sit on the ground and hug himself. His stomach hurt even worse now. Everything was all wrong now, and it was his fault, but was it only his fault? Couldn't he blame Milo just a little? After all, Milo was the one using and abusing without a second thought. If it weren't for Milo, none of this would have happened. If it hadn't been for... Alec's greedy desire for friendships that weren't his to have, none of this would have happened. None of it. This was still his fault. But he didn't want it to be.

Tristan pulled up beside him, and Alec got into his car. It looked normal enough until you looked at the steering wheel and saw that all of the controls and peddles were up where he could use his hands to drive everything. Tristan made small talk as they drove to the flower shop, keeping one eye on Alec and seeming amused by his fascination of the hand controls. It took no time at all to reach the shop, and Alec got out first, going around to the front of the car. Tristan pulled himself out with his arms, bracing himself on the roof of the car as he swung his legs out and locked his knees. From there, he awkwardly shuffled to the back, still holding onto the roof, where he used one hand to opened the back door, pull out his wheelchair, and flip it open. Then he lowered himself in, brushed off the sleeves of his suit jacket, and closed the car doors.

"That's really cool, what you did there," Alec said, truly admiring the effort and time that must have gone into that movement. "You have impressive upper body strength."

"Thank you," Tristan chuckled. "Staying mobile makes for a good workout!" He led the way around the side of the building to the back door, which he unlocked and propped partially open after they went inside. He flicked on a couple of lights and rolled farther into the back room. "I'm going to put on some tea. Then how about we make some terrariums for the shop?"

"I've never done that," Alec said, setting his backpack down. He winced as he pulled his shoulder.

"Are you alright?" Tristan asked with a concerned frown.

"I'm fine," Alec assured him. "I slipped and missed a grab during Cyr wheel class and took a nasty fall. It's just a bruise."

Tristan wasn't sure he knew what a Cyr wheel was, but he accepted the reason. "Your folks are truly okay with you being here?"

"Oh, yeah, I called them, and they said it was fine with them as long as you were okay with some extra hours," Alec told him.

"I see." Tristan watched Alec for just a moment more before turning back toward the small breakroom. "If you could get out two terrariums and the usual base stuff for them while I get the tea going? It's all right there in the same spot. Pick whichever containers you want."

Tristan rolled into the breakroom, leaving the door open, and kept an eye on Alec while the water heated up. The teen was clearly avoiding going home, but was it for the usual teen drama, or something worse? Tristan truly could not imagine Dark or Daizi doing anything to hurt any of their children, but he did - while feeling ashamed of himself - want to rule it out first.

He rolled back out with two mugs in one hand and came to the table. "Two squares? A good choice since this is your first one."

"Yeah, I wasn't sure, and I'm just not feeling very creative," Alec mumbled while accepting the tea.

Tristan showed him how to prep the terrarium while watching his normally bubbly nephew. Alec was being attentive, but his eyes were dark, his motions conservative, and his mind clearly elsewhere.

"How's school?" Tristan asked as they put dirt in the bottom of the two small square glass containers.

"Eh. Usual drama," Alec mumbled.

"Ah. Talk to your parents about the usual drama?" Tristan asked.

Alec shrugged then winced. "They're too helpful. I don't want to tell them about it. It doesn't matter and will blow over in a couple of days. No one's getting bullied or hurt, so what's the point?"

"A listening ear usually goes a long way, and so does talking about things even when they don't matter," Tristan said calmly.

Alec only mumbled more and closed down, so Tristan switched back to focusing on showing Alec the basics for how to put the terrariums together. He kept the conversation light and gentle, staying only on what they were doing as they moved slow and careful.

He was interrupted by a call on his phone, and he checked it. "Ah. It's other work. Go ahead and pick out which plants you want to put in, and I'll be right back." He rolled into the break room as it was closer, answering the phone as he went, and closed the door. The call took only seconds, and he was abundantly glad for the interruption because he now had a natural time to quickly call Dark's number. He almost called Daizi but hit Dark's number by mistake. It probably did not matter which he called, he figured, and just hoped they'd answer quickly.
 
Dark didn't answer right away, but he did answer quickly enough that he didn't nearly miss the call. When he saw who was calling, he tried to guess what it may be about, but it was a difficult thing to guess. Tristan never called, at least, he hadn't since those first initial conversations, before they just accepted him as a part of life, "Marhaban? Tristan? Is everything okay?" In the background of the call, Ivy was loudly practicing her vowels and shrieking, because she had learned she could shriek, and liked to do it, but Dark just covered one ear and tried to tell her, speaking in Arabic, that Baba was on the phone and she needed to use her polite voice. This was a sentence Ivy had yet to be able to understand, and just chose to jingle over to her father.
 
Tristan winced at the loud baby noises in the background but spoke quickly and quietly. "I am sorry, I do not have time to answer questions, but Alec is here with me at Peaceful Petals. He looks alright physically, but something is clearly wrong. He called me from school saying they were let out early, and I chose to go pick him up and ensure he was safe before asking questions. The front door to the shop is locked, but the back is open. I need to go before he suspects I called you and chooses to leave on his own."
 
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