How Green Becomes Wood

"...Okay." Daizi said, uncertain of where she had gone wrong in the conversation, but allowing him to exit it. Staying back as her son walked away, she did speak up to say, "Let me know if you need anything, okay?" before turning and walking towards the swing bench.
 
"I don't need anything!" Xander snapped in frustration. "Why does everyone keep acting like I'm sick or something? I'm FINE!" He stormed inside and headed for his room. He completely ignored Dark and Alec as he went up and firmly closed the door behind himself. Grabbing his MP3 player, he sat down in the corner and plugged his ears with the headphones angrily.

Alec watched him go and bit his lip.
 
Daizi sat back in surprise, not used to being yelled at by him anymore, but didn't follow him or demand he speak to her more respectfully. Neither did Dark, although he did stare up the stairs for a few moments before telling Alec, "We should give him some space, I think. You know as I do how sometimes therapy can wake some things up."

Then, with a small sigh, he went outside with Ivy to check on his wife.
 
"Okay," Alec agreed softly. He sat on the couch for a while feeling more alone than he had in a long time. Xander hadn't been like this in so long, he didn't know how to process it anymore. Why was he suddenly so angry? And not just angry, defensive and irritable like an animal in pain. Dark was right. Therapy, especially early sessions, could bring up a lot of painful subjects, so maybe that was it and Xander was fighting against whatever it was that therapy was revealing to him. He wished he could help. He wished he could somehow make Xander feel better about everything. But he couldn't. Unless Xander asked for his help, this was a road Xander would have to walk alone for a while.

Alec waited for nearly half an hour before following Xander upstairs. He found his brother sitting in the corner, wedged into his old space whenever he was upset, eyes closed as he listened to music. Quietly, moving with great care, Alec fetched Xander's journal from where he kept it and set it and a pen next to him on the floor. Just in case he wanted to use it, it was there for him. Then he went to sit on his bed and got out his drawing pad and his own music player. Maybe music could wash it all away.

Night fell, and though he tried to stay awake, Alec fell asleep on his bed. Xander eventually pried himself out of his corner feeling stiff and sore. He put Alec's sketchbook away and looked at his own journal for a moment before tossing it onto his bed. He prowled around his room for a bit feeling trapped. There was nothing here for him. There was everything here. Everything was so wrong! He tried laying on his bed, but the aching, itching feeling in his mind wouldn't go away.

Holding onto something.

The past.

Gripping it so tightly it anchored him.

He couldn't remember what it was! He didn't know what it was!

Finally, hours later, he gave up on sleep and got up. Dark might have still been up, but he normally stayed in the house, so, after a bit of watching out his window, he opened it and silently climbed out, using tiny pieces of the house's architecture to climb down to the ground. It was a route he'd figured out early in their stay here, but he'd rarely needed to use it. Maybe twice to sneak a smoke several houses away where Daizi wouldn't smell during truly stressful days. Now he wandered around, walking slowly up and down the sidewalk. Alec had met his fae who'd changed his life this way. Maybe he could have a turn? But, no. No strange people - or any people at all - appeared to talk to him or give him life advice. Despondently, he headed back home and to his room only three hours before it'd be time to rise and shine. He used the front door instead of climbing up the back and tiptoed up to his room to try to get a little bit of sleep.

Sleep came, but so did the nightmares. He tossed and turned, muttering and moaning in his sleep. Flashes of light. Love ya too, kiddo. The screech of tires. Blare of horns. Love ya too, kiddo. The sound of metal crunching like potato chips in a bag. Love ya too, kiddo. Words of anger.

Alec woke first feeling a little chilly and confused. He didn't normally actually sleep in his own bed unless it was ridiculously hot, and it was a weird feeling being alone. He stood and stretched before looking over to Xander's bed. Xander grumbled, his expression contorted into a frown even in sleep. Oh dear. He went over and caught Xander's shoulder to wake him up.

Xander let out a strangled yell as he bolted out of a sound sleep and caught Alec's arm, yanking sideways.

"Me!" Alec squeaked out in shock and fear. "It's me!"

Xander blinked, realized what he was doing, and let go, shoving himself backward. "Sh**! Alec!" he gasped in terror. "Are you okay? What did I do?"

Alec rubbed his arm and shoulder, wincing a little, but smiled tentatively. "It's okay. I'm alright. Just.. scared," he admitted, his voice trembling.

Xander started to reach out and then pulled back. "I'm sorry," he whispered hoarsely. "I'm so sorry."

Alec came to sit next to him and leaned against him. "I know," he said softly. "I know. Do you want to talk about it."

Xander wrapped his arms around his brother and held tight, feeling as if he was physically holding his world together in that hug. "A nightmare. I don't remember. Just... scared," he mumbled. "I'm sorry."

"I should have known not to try to wake you by touching when you were having a nightmare," Alec admitted. "I'm sorry, too."

Xander snorted and buried his face in Alec's hair. "That's a stupid thing to say to the person who hurt you."

Alec managed a little smile and hugged him back, stroking his back. "It's okay. I promise."

They stayed like that for a long while before slowly getting ready for the day. When they went downstairs, Alec looked his normal cheerful self, but Xander looked like he'd already gone through a rough day and was ready to go back to bed before he made it down the stairs.
 
Breakfast was already on the table when the twins came downstairs. Dark was feeding Ivy some new puree, to questionable results, and Daizi was drinking a cup of tea, her head in one hand, grinning as she listened to her husband plead with their daughter to let the food go in her mouth, rather than on her face, the high chair, and the floor.

At the sound of the footsteps, Dark turned, seeing how worn out Xander looked, and was grateful for his unerring mask. It seemed unlikely, especially after the teen's outburst the day before, that he'd take it well if the first thing his parents did was look at him with worry, but if he was trying to make people think he was doing just fine, he was doing a downright awful job at it. All he said was, "Good morning."
 
"Morning," Xander grumbled. He slid into his usual chair and rested his head on his hand. He was so tired!

"Good morning!" Alec chirped, going to hug Daizi first and then Dark. He paused at Ivy. "You are supposed to eat that, you know, not wear it," he teased lightly, staying out of food range.
 
"That is what I have been telling her," Dark huffed, not even bothering to wipe her face, "Ivy-Qadira, Baba knows you are hungry, and you are too big a girl to only have milk."


"Maybe it's just too close to when she last nursed," Daizi suggested, despite knowing they had the same feeding schedule every single day. "Did you two sleep well?"
 
"You gotta eat it so you can start walking faster," Alec told Ivy with a grin. To Daizi, he responded, "I slept great!"

"Eh," Xander grunted.

"He slept poorly," Alec translated for his brother. He fetched himself breakfast and sat down to eat. Despite the unnerving and worrying events of this morning, he couldn't help a tingle of excitement. Today was the day! His first interview ever!
 
"Don't tell her that!" Daizi exclaimed, not feeling ready to have a walking baby. Her crawling was stressful enough. "Goose, let her try to feed herself, give her the spoon."

Giving a wary look to his wife, Dark said, "I do not know if... that would be... for the best..." He looked back at his daughter with the same cautious look, "I do not even know if she was old enough."

"Just try it, maybe it's what she wants."

Cautiously, Dark handed the spoon to Ivy, who looked at it in her hand, then promptly dropped it onto the floor. With a sigh, Dark picked it up, went to the sink to clean it off, and sat back down, handing it back to her. She dropped it again. Enkidu was thrilled. Dark rubbed his face. Ivy laughed.

"I'm sorry you didn't sleep well, Xander. You should take a nap later." Daizi remarked while the tragedy occurred beside her before asking Alec, "Are you excited for your interview?"
 
"I am very excited!" Alec proclaimed as he watched the journey of the spoon with delight. "I don't know how well I'll do or if I'll even get the job, but this is my first chance! What should I wear? Something professional, right?"

Xander didn't engage with the family as he picked half-heartedly at his food, eating it nearly as slowly as Ivy, but less messily.
 
"Yes, you should dress professionally." Dark agreed, giving up on feeding Ivy for the moment, since clearly she was not in the mood for it, "I would not say you need to be in a full suit and tie, but wear a nice shirt, do not dress in all of your statement pieces..." He bent to pick up Ivy's spoon again, "But he has seen you in your normal attire, and suggested you apply, so I would not say you need to pretend to be someone you are not."
 
Alec nodded quickly, accepting Dark's advice willingly. "How about a nice suit pant and jacket with a fun shirt?" he suggested. "Formal and fun! He was wearing a suit jacket the two times we saw him, so they must be alright for working with plants the way he does it, and I can take off the jacket if I need to."
 
"I think that sounds just fine." Dark replied, and then tried to think back to when they visited the shop, "What was his current employee wearing, do you remember? That gives a better idea of what he expects."
 
"Um." Alec closed one eye as he tried to remember. "An apron with the shop's logo on it. A long-sleeved shirt, colorful with a pattern and her sleeves pushed up. I can't remember what she was wearing on the bottom. I mostly remember the apron. It seemed nice casual. Is there a word for that? Nice casual?"
 
"Business casual?" Dark suggested, "Either way, I think the suit pants and jacket with a good shirt is perfectly alright for the interview."

"Don't stress yourself out too much," Daizi advised him, "It's better to just be yourself, rather than try to make yourself into the person you think they want."
 
"You're right," Alec agreed, "and there's still several hours to go before I even have to worry about getting dressed." He finished his breakfast in a hurry and quickly cleaned up his area. "Who has what plans for today?" he asked as he took his dishes to the sink.
 
""We don't really have any plans for today, I don't think. I mean, I have some work I need to get done upstairs, but that's the extent of it. On Friday I think I'm going over to Spencer's, the bridesmaid dressings arrived and she wants us to see what needs alterations." Daizi said as she brought her dishes to the sink, "Her wedding is barely more than a month away, now."

"I have to give Ivy a bath," Dark grumbled, cleaning Ivy's face, having only decided to bathe her after this breakfast atrocity, "and her laundry. Did you want me to drive you to your interview or is Xander taking you?"
 
"Oh, are you not coming?" Alec asked in surprise.

"It is your interview," Xander pointed out mildly, the first thing he'd said since "morning." "I'll take you."

Alec nodded slowly. "Right. Xander's taking me." It hadn't occurred to him that this wouldn't be a full-family outing, but, then again, why would it be? This was a professional interview for a professional job that he'd be going to by himself. He hadn't expected them to come with him to every work day, so why would they all come for an interview? He shook himself and smiled. "I'll be sure to tell you all about it. Oh, Tom wanted to know if I could hang out today, which is why I was asking about everyone's schedules. Would it be alright if I went to his place for a couple of hours? He said he'd pick me up." He was looking at Xander more than at either of his parents at the question.

Xander gave a little shrug and nodded his agreement to the plan.
 
"We can come, if you want us to," Daizi said, "but I didn't want to invite myself. You're sixteen, I wanted to leave it up to you if you wanted to bring your parents along to your first interview or not."

"My concern would be making your potential employer feel pressured. If we are all in the main portion of his shop and he is in the backroom interviewing you, I would worry how he would react to that." Dark said cautiously, "If we are thinking of him merely as a potential employer, who gets the same courtesy of other employers."

"Then we can linger in the place next door if Alec wants us close," Daizi shrugged. "And of course you're welcome to spend time with Tom after."
 
"Actually," Alec said sheepishly, "Tom was wondering if I could go this morning, before the interview. There's plenty of time, and I don't have anything else I need to do that I'm aware of." He washed his dishes as he considered. "I think perhaps it would be better if I went alone," he stated. "I want you to come, but I am sixteen now. I can't hide behind my parents or drag them along like a security blanket. I think I'm mostly just really excited and used to sharing things like this with you."
 
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