Alex Part 1

I don’t get much sleep, not since the accident.  Of course not many would get sleep after what had happened.  Some of it was because of the guilt, and some of it was because I had survived; but the real culprits were the nightmares.  That’s what the therapist keeps on telling me.  They want me to integrate me back into the real world.  They don’t like me doing that night owl nonsense.  They want me to find someone new and get back to living.

As if that would happen, they weren’t the ones to go through the accident.

So it wasn’t a surprise to me when I woke up at eleven.  I was drenched with sweat, my heart racing again.  I did the math in my head.  Between the few hours I spend tossing and turning before taking my daily dose of nightmares, I had gotten about three hours of sleep.  That was about normal. 

I half tumbled out of bed.  I clambered to my feet and blearily rubbed my eyes.  I slipped on some pajama pants and stretched out.  Yawning, I exited my room.  In the kitchen, she was busy on the phone, listening to someone speak rather loudly in a thick accent.

Coming up behind her, I wrapped my arms around her.  She faltered slightly in her voice.  She shrugged me off, turning about and slapping my shoulder none too gently.  I smiled weakly, and leaned against the counter.  She hated when I did that to her.  I grabbed a mug, and sipped at what was presumably her coffee.  She glared at me while she talked.  I smiled, not drinking too much.  She also hated when I stole her coffee.

She ended the call and slipped her cell into her pocket.  “Dammit, Alex.”

“What?  I’ve done nothing wrong.”  I handed her back her mug, receiving another slap.  “Was that the lawyer?”

“Yeah.”  She took a sip from her mug.

“I knew I recognized that accent.  Can’t distinguish that from the mumble jumble of that electronic music.”

“He’s Welsh, not some machine.”

“Same difference to me, I’m not speaking to him.”  I stifled a yawn.  “So what did he want?”

“There’s a house viewing today in about an hour.”

“So I gotta clear house for a bit.”

“A couple of hours.  I’m sorry, Alex, but I only just found out.”

“It’s alright, Suz.”  I sighed.  “I guess I’ll take a quick shower and catch breakfast in town.”

She narrowed her eyes, but didn’t hit me.  She hated that nickname.  She would only let her sister call her that.  And since the accident, I was included in that circle.  “I have to work late tonight.  I need to finish a few things for the move.”

“Okay.  I’ll watch Danny then.”

“Look, I’m sorry.  I know you need—”

“Don’t be.  I don’t mind spending time with my kid.”  I smiled.  “Get out of here, sis.  I’ll lock up.”

I took my leave then, and headed to the shower.  I wouldn’t take any bet from anyone that she didn’t know; my little sister knew me better than most of the people I know.  She knew that I had only woken up because of the nightmare.  She wouldn’t mention it, not now.  She’s stopped asking about it, and how I’ve been doing.  We know each other well enough by now that I would tell her if anything had changed.

And for a lifetime nothing has changed.

I changed into some jeans, and threw on a tee shirt and a button up shirt.  I grabbed my keys, and jammed my feet into a pair of ratty sneakers.  I stepped outside and locked the door.  I lived in a flat in one of the nicer portions of the city, so I didn’t feel all that concerned for my safety as I took my time to properly tie my shoes.

“I really need a new pair of these things.”  I shook my head.  Maybe I’ll go today.

I went downstairs to my bike, and got on.  It was an old, old model.  Had to be what, at least thirty-five years old?  It was a 1992 Fireblade.  Not the best bike, and it certainly wasn’t the greenest thing on the road, but it was mine.  I had custom-painted it black, cause it matched me so well.  I strapped on my helmet and went out.

There were a few places in town to get free food if you knew where to look.  As for me, I chose the easiest one.  I went back to work.  Now, in this city there are two main divisions that separate the force.  There were the Day Watch and the Night Watch.  I was on the Night Watch, and I had only ended my latest shift that morning.  But I knew I could snag some free food.

It was about a twenty minute ride, including the busy lunch traffic, to get from my sister’s apartment to headquarters where I was stationed.  I was located not at the main building, but rather a side building.  However this side building was almost as big as the main one, as it housed most of the Night Watch force.

I went through the entrance and got into line.  In order to get through into the building, there was a strict security system.  Every person was subjected to a pat down and to walk through the metal detectors.  Now normally we wouldn’t be that vigilant, but the Night Watch has access to a lot of fire power, and we didn’t want anyone to get ahold of it.

I took off my belt and put my personal belongings into the bin they provided.  I stepped through the metal detector and it beeped, loud enough to draw some visitors’ eyes.  The man running the machine looked up and glanced at me.

“Oh, hi Alex.”  He looked back down at the machine window, where he could see my belongings as it went through the x-ray machine.

“Frank.”  I answered.

“Usual reason?”

“Yeah.”

He waved his hand for me to continue.  The next man was a person I didn’t recognize from first glance.  He looked to be Day Watch from the look of things.  His uniform was ironed, and he looked almost perky.  However, Frank hadn’t ironed his shirt or had his third cup of coffee.  While a member of the Day Watch, Frank lived on that gray border between Night Watch and Day Watch.  As so, he knew most of the Night Watch officers. 

“Uh, Frank?”

“What?”

“The machine beeped.”

Frank looked up from his work and at the officer.  “So it did.”  He glanced at me.  “Alex, you clean?”

I smirked.  “Cleaner than you.”

Frank grinned.  “Alright, go on.”

“But--”

“Its fine, Johnny Boy, its fine.”

I slipped my phone and wallet back into my pockets.  I reached for my belt but Johnny Boy got to it first.  He held it away from me, and put a hand to his holster.

“Sir, I can’t let you through.”

I rolled my eyes.  “Look, kid, you should listen to Frank.”

I took a step forward, but the officer in front of me didn’t move.  He put a hand on his gun, and tried to stare me down.  Tried.  The kid had to be not much older than his early twenties.  I was well older than him, with more muscle mass too.  I wouldn’t step down from this kid, even with his hand on his gun like it would intimidate me and make me behave.

“I said that you can’t go through.  Officer!”

“You really shouldn’t have done that.”  Frank muttered behind me.

I reached out with my left hand jerked him towards me.  “Two things, Johnny Boy.  First thing’s first, you shouldn’t threaten people with putting your hand on your weapon, it just escalates things.  Second, you should’ve listened to Frank.”

I lifted him up with one hand and turned around.  I hung him from the metal detector with the back of his shirt, leaving him suspended in mid-air.  He looked at me in disbelief, and kicked me, as hard as he could.  He gasped in pain as his foot connected against my arm.  I shook my head, and wrenched my belt out of his hand.

“Sorry ‘bout that, Frank.”  I called.

He waved me on.  “You shouldn’t have done that.”  Frank muttered again behind me.