How Green Becomes Wood

"Oh," Claire replied, surprised and trying valiantly not to show it. After pausing for a few seconds, she said, "Well, I'm glad things are doing much better for you both, now, and that you aren't at risk of being expelled."
 
"Me too," Alec said. "It turns out, Xander is pretty good at numbers! No one would have expected it."

"No one believed it, either, especially the math teacher," Xander grumbled.

Alec leaned toward Claire and told her, "His math teacher thought he was cheating because of how fast his grades rose."
 
"Oh no, that's terrible!" Claire gasped, covering her mouth with one hand. "I don't know why some teachers always have to assume the worst of people."

"It gives them something to do," Sloan suggested.
 
"It got straightened out pretty quick," Xander assured her.

"And now our sweet Sloan is all grown up and heading to New York," Alec said, pretending to wipe away a tear.
 
"I can't wait," Sloan admitted, "I mean, it's terrifying, but I think it'll be really good for me. And I'll be able to do so much."

"I'm so happy for you," Claire said, leaning against her friend, "You're going to be so healthy when you're not living with your mom anymore."
 
"Just be careful not to go crazy with all that freedom you have," Alec warned worriedly. "Give yourself time to think about any decisions that might be permanent. Or have a big impact."

"But otherwise have all the fun you can," Xander said with a smirk.

"And be safe!" Alec said, sounding a little choked up.

Xander glanced at him. "She's not leaving yet, you know."

"I know, but now I'm thinking about the future," Alec sighed.
 
"I know you won't be far, but you'll be busy building a new life," Alec pointed out.

Xander grunted. "Oh, relax. She'll stay in touch because she knows that if she doesn't, we'll show up on her doorstep."
 
"Sounds like a good idea," Alec nodded. "You're going to stay so incredibly fit!"

"Sounds miserable," Xander said, thinking of everything he'd seen of the subway and how crowded they were. People everywhere!
 
"I've got to anyway, I'll be on the college gymnastics team," Sloan pointed out, "My whole academic future depends on staying in shape, which is kind of crazy, but that's kind of always been my reality."

"That's why I'm kind of glad to be quitting," Claire admitted, "It's really stressful to always have to be careful."
 
"You are kind of incredible, you both are," Alec told Claire, trying not to let himself look too smitten as he said it, "but it sounds so incredibly stressful!"

Xander nodded. "As long as you've got the passion, you should go for it."
 
"And I am going for it," Sloan said, resting her chin in her hand.

"It's so stressful," Claire said, "And like, once I quit, I think I'll keep running, because I do actually really enjoy it, but it'll be nice to not be so focused on fitness all the time."
 
"And you'll go real far," Xander told her, saluting her with his boba cup.

Alec made a face. "I really don't like running, but I do it. It was a lot easier when Xander and I could run together. Once he gets his boot off, we'll do that again. I'll have to slow down a lot."

"Not for long," Xander warned him.
 
"There was a bunch of little kids playing soccer. The ball got away from them, so I tried to kick it back. Turned out, the sadists were playing with a medicine ball," Xander said blandly.

Alec smirked and shook his head at Claire, indicating Xander was lying.
 
"Oh, that's horrible," Claire gasped, allowing herself to pretend like she believed Xander, "I'm so sorry, that's terrible!"

"You wouldn't believe the terrible luck he has," Sloan told Claire while looking at Xander like she was considering challenging him on that.
 
"The worst luck ever," Xander said, straightfaced. He didn't think Claire was buying this story for a minute, though she might have been, he wasn't 100% certain, but it was harmless enough, he figured. And better than the real story.

Alec nodded. "Indeed. He's hardly ever safe."
 
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