How Green Becomes Wood

"I wish this was a cooler hospital. But I guess Dylan and Jaxson don't need a cooler hospital, and if they were there and didn't need it, then babies who did need it couldn't be there." She looked over at her door, "They're actually probably gonna go home soon. The doctors and everyone says they're ready, but my stepmom is saying they're not. I think she's just scared." She looked at Xander with a somewhat sly, somewhat embarrassed smile, "Are you gonna be bored when I'm not here anymore?"
 
"It is a scary thing to be responsible for the life of two tiny, helpless beings that can't fend for themselves," Alec shrugged.

Xander snorted. "So bored! There won't be nobody to pick on anymore or tease. No one to go get cookies with at the cafeteria. But I'm betting Mini in there won't be here more than like a week more."

Alec nodded. "She is getting stronger! Just... not strong enough yet, but maybe next week."
 
"It's good she's getting stronger. My dad said earlier today, when I was at school, he was walking back from the cafeteria, and a whole bunch of nurses were rushing in and there was a beeping noise, so I was worried. But, um, I'm glad that I'm leaving before you, 'cause you've got a brother to tease and get cookies with, if you left first, I'd just be alone."
 
"Ivy's blood pressure dropped badly and they had to give her an infusion," Alec told Alice. "Basically, her body can't quite make enough blood for itself because she's still supposed to be getting it from her mother, kind of, but it's figuring things out. It'll be able to hold up on its own soon."

"You'll have your own little brother and sister to tease and get cookies with soon, too," Xander assured her. "As long as their mum doesn't screw them up."

Alec frowned at Xander. "That's not nice to say."

"No, but true," Xander shrugged. "Kids'll be kids, and maybe no matter what Alice or her folk do, one or both of the twins won't like her, but they've got a better chance of getting along if they don't get spoiled rotten and shown they can be mean to her."

Alec hesitated. "True, but still not nice. I hope for the best. I hope that Dylan and Jaxson overcome their rather ill-considered names and love Alice and maybe even become friends with her despite the age difference."
 
"Oh. That's scary. I hope she's okay," She scratched her arm, "I hope they grow up to be nice. My stepmom doesn't really see me as her kid, and I guess I'm not, but I don't know what it will be like now. Do you think you'll be friends with your little sister? "
 
"A big difference when you're our age," Alec told her. He glanced toward the room. "We should get back in there before they notice we're missing."

Xander heaved a sigh. "Fine. Talk to you later, Wonderland. Gotta go be social."
 
"My dad says it'll be really awkward until I'm twenty five and they're fifteen. So maybe you just have to wait until you're thirty five and she's 20." She said it and then grinned, "You're gonna be old."

Then she rocked on her heels, "Good luck in there. Try not to be mean to them."
 
Xander snorted. "Tell me that when you're twenty-five, Wonderland. See ya."

"I'll keep him in line," Alec told her with a smile.

They let themselves back into the hotel room and tried to slip in without drawing attention to themselves.
 
Inside, everyone had begun speaking in Arabic, since the English speakers had walked out. Zeinab was holding Ivy now and very excitedly chattering to her, and the little baby was as enthralled as she could be. Daizi was talking with her father, Neha, and Fadia, and Dark was in the armchair talking softly with Amira, who was occasionally laughing at whatever it was he was saying.

He was the first one to spot the twins, and his eyes brightened in his little way, "Hello, Xander, hello Alec."
 
Xander wedged himself into the corner, but Alec went straight to Dark, his own face lighting up in response to see how Dark was happy to see them. "Hello! Ivy looks like she's really enjoying things." He smiled at Amira and nodded to her respectfully.
 
"Amty Zeinab is a very entertaining woman," Dark replied, which made Amira laugh.

"Is that a polite way of calling her a joke?" She asked.

"You are too mean to her."

"She knows I'm kidding," Amira replied, "Right, Amty?"

Zeinab snorted, "You have so little in your life my dear Spinster child, if it brings you joy to take your disappointment out on me, I am all too happy to oblige."

"Ya gazma," Amira replied, and both women laughed. Then she turned to Alec and said, "When someone says that, Alec, it's calling them the bottom of a dirty shoe. But I mean it with love."
 
"Oh, I think Daizi made herself. She knew what she wanted really early. Actually," She glanced at Saladin and then leaned forward to whisper, "Zeinab and I were the ones who helped her run away with your foster dad. I don't think he knows. When she didn't show up, I went back to the house to make sure everything was okay, and---" Dark cleared his throat and nodded towards Saladin, who wasn't listening, but was at risk of overhearing them at any moment, "Well. Some other time I'll tell you the story. At a more private hour. But you know, most of the family have come around on Dark's favour, but us four, we started on it. Well, us three. Fadia joined late, but not as late as others. And that's why we're the four who got to come."
 
Alec hid a smile and shook his head. "I think that the Professor should write a book. It would make for a bestselling tragedy and romance with plenty of social commentary. It will fly from the shelves!"
 
"It would be interesting," Amira agreed, "but I still see the kid he was when I first met him. He was so gloomy and scrawny and for the first week or two, I thought he just didn't talk. But even though Daizi swore they were just friends I knew she was in love with him," She leaned over and pinched Dark's cheek, and he side-eyed her, but said nothing about it, "I guess he's still quiet. But he grew up cute, didn't he? Although I wish he'd shave his beard, I miss his dimples."

"Careful, Khalaty," he said in a low tone, "if you keep flirting with me, I shall have to tell your boyfriend."

At this she laughed again, "Oh, I'll tell him myself. Everyone knows that out of all her cousins, Daizi found the handsomest spouse," she patted his knee. Then she looked at Alec, "Why do you call him Professor?"
 
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Alec grinned, and even Xander smirked to himself as they watched the aunty teasing Dark. It was so funny seeing this neat little woman toying with the big, serious, grim man who never smiled or relaxed. And he was taking it, even enjoying it!

"Actually, Xander started calling him that," Alec told her. "He says he - Mr. Dark - looks like a collage professor and acts like one, too."
 
From where Zeinab was sitting, she made a face at that statement and said, "Don't call him 'Mr. Dark,' it makes me feel old. He's still Zalmi."

"You are old, Amty," Daizi said, chiming in after listening to the conversation, "Eve was your niece too."

"Eh? At least she knew how to be respectful!" Zeinab shook her head, but wasn't upset.

Neha, who hadn't said anything for awhile, spoke up then, addressing the twins, "We call him Zalmi because 'zalam' can mean darkness and gloom, and when we met him and he was your age, it felt very strange to call him 'Dark'," she put on a bad American accent for the word, "so we used Zalam. But we like him, so Zalmi."
 
Alec and Xander nodded respectfully. It felt strange to have adults tell them about the adults in their lives. Not bad, just strange. They weren't sure how to respond. Tell other stories about their opinions on Dark? Ask questions? Just keep quiet? They chose the keep quiet option as it seemed the safest and least likely to offend someone.
 
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