Kiss and Sell

Alex had avoided Jack after everything he had said which wasn't any different from their everyday routine except this time Alex was actually trying to avoid him. Usually, the two would drift apart in the morning around their third hour -the last hour they had together -and Alex would return to his two other friends named Danny and Evan who were strictly friends. Besides, neither really liked Alex that way although they did think he was attractive just like every other person in the entire school except for snobby, jealous girls who thought they were too good for the school whore but would hook up with Alex when they were at parties when they were too drunk to keep up their ignorant fronts, they only saw him as a friend really. They both had girlfriends they cared about very much anyways and didn't want to mess up their own relationships with hooking up with their friend. Alex liked them. It wasn't like he was exactly close to them, only occasionally complaining to them about Jack which was pretty much all Alex talked about to them, but he liked them nonetheless and hoped they stuck around as his friend which usually didn't happen.

He had gone through friends over the years -Jack being the only one that actually stayed by his side -and never got close to any of them. Not since his former best friend -the head cheerleader now -Lisa had started spreading rumors about him in their sophomore year and even told a few of his secrets. He wasn't mad -everything she said he claimed as true just to make her mad and prove that nothing she said, like him "having sex with every football player on the team and giving them all genital herpes", actually hurt his feelings. What hurt was how quick she was to betray him because she thought it'd make her popular. Once she grew her breasts she was a completely different girl. Alex didn't mind losing her as a friend. He was happy he found out how shitty of one she was before it was too late.

But now he had Jack -the schools bad boy -and everyone wanted Jack almost as much as everyone wanted the most popular guys and gals. He was mysterious and mischievous and something about that was attractive to everyone. Girls tried to seduce him and guys tried to flirt, but Jack always seemed to wave them off -moving closer to Alex as he did as if he was only loyal to the blond. Alex had always pretty much rubbed everyones face in how he had gotten the bad boy and no one else did, but he never really thought onwhyJack had always secluded himself away. He didn't even have sex with Alex as much as they made it seem like he did. It was for reputation but there was something more to it as well.

There were plenty of times Alex had heard people talking about it -sometimes even Evan and Danny talked about it to himself -about how Jack was in love with the elder, but that simply couldn't be. Alex knew it couldn't. He wouldn't accept that it was. Besides, if anyone saw how Jack treated him much like how he had today they would dismiss the thought of Jack even liking Alex. So, Alex knew it couldn't possibly be that he was in love.

Alex figured it was something like having a secret boyfriend or girlfriend. It wasn't something as complicated as feelings and love.

Jack just didn't want people to know he was actually a sensitive, loyal guy with a ugly girlfriend or boyfriend, right? That's what Alex told himself. He didn't mind the thought of Jack having this boyfriend or girlfriend that he probably met online and is a real sap to. In fact, Alex found it cute -thinking about how Jack must send his significant other long, loving text in the mornings and talked for hours at night. Alex could almost say that he wanted something like that, but the blond would never commit to it. Sure, it'd be fun for a week, maybe even less, but Alex would get bored and give up.

Relationships were too consistent for him. He couldn't stick with the same schedule -call, text, meet up, kiss, fuck, cuddle, go home, call, text, sleep, and then wake up just to do the same thing with the same person all over again. He would absolutely dread the rut he'd be in. He needed spontaneous, new, and variety with his usual fucks. That's why he had so many that were all so different. One person forever? He just couldn't do that.

He was home now, though, so he wouldn't have to worry about Jack or Lisa or even any of his fuck buddies. Well, he was almost home. He was walking since his dumb car broke down on the side of the road and his father refused to pay for it to get fixed or towed back to their house. It was just sitting out there -probably all of his shit stollen from the inside and a million tickets on its windshield he was never going to pay and probably would be arrested for. The wind was harsh -despite it being the beginning of September and not really that cold -but still without even a thin hoody Alex was cold and shivering while hugging himself and silently cursing the wind as it whipped his perfect hair around.

He probably wouldn't have been so cold if he had just grabbed his hoody, but the thing was that he didn't have a hoody. Not one that fit anymore anyways. He knew he had one -a baby blue one -but the thing wouldn't keep him warm because it had holes burnt into the back from when he had gone to a bone fire and was pushed into the flames. Luckily, someone had grabbed him and pulled him out since he was only on the edge of the fire, but his back and hoody had been burnt -the hoody now having three huge holes in the back from where he had landed on embers and burning logs. He figured it could have kept his arms warm, at least, but he didn't want to look like an idiot walking around with holes in his hoody. So, he never used it -thrown to the back of his closet and left to never be warn or thrown away.

He was a little bit of a hoarder, if he told the truth, but he believes he got it from his mother. She had boxes and boxes andboxesof papers, pictures, knick-knacks, clothes, and memories stored around the house -even one of their rooms filled nearly to the roof in her junk. Peter got pissed about it a lot -their living room and kitchen barely being able to be walked through from all of her shit. He'd often yell at her and threaten to pawn everything off for the money they surely needed, but he never seemed to do it. Alex assumed he really didn't want to hurt his mother. Peter was a good man, honestly. He wasn't horribly abusive to the point Alex needed to go to the hospital, and rarely actually hit the boy. Its just sometimes when Alex has made him so mad and that he's shaking and doesn't know what else to do. He just reacts and its usually a slap to the face or grabbing Alex roughly and leaving oval-shaped bruises in his arms or wrist.

The most the man had ever actually done to him was punch him, but it didn't even leave an actual bruise. Peter didn't dare hit his mother and when Alex was younger he never laid a hand on him. It was just that now that Alex was a "man", so to say, Peter knew he could handle when he went out of control or deserved a little slap. Alex understood, in fact, Alex didn't even actually care. His father was actually a very nice father. They could get along -sit and watch television together and talk, even tease each other about little things. They all could sit and have family dinners every once in a while when Peter was in the mood and Isobel actually cooked, and a lot of the time they were all a pretty normal seeming family. It was just sometimes when arguments got loud and turned into fights.

Peter often taunted Alex -telling Alex to fight back -but Alex never did. He wasn't going to hit his old man. He had too much respect for him to do that.

Usually Peter wasn't even around. Like now, as Alex stepped into their yard and noticed his car gone and replaced with another unfamiliar one. He worked two jobs and tried very hard to support his family, but a lot of the time the money was loss in between bills and alcohol. Alex usually got nothing from the money unless his parents wanted him to go to the store and buy them cigarettes. He'd get food then as well. Usually snacks for the house since they never had any food and Alex was pretty much always starving at home. Isobel and Peter never really ate. Sometimes they did but usually Peter ate lunch at work and Isobel did whatever the fuck Isobel did while she was at home which Alex didn't really even have a clue was.

She claimed she was cleaning. Claims she's going to get the boxes and clothes and junk out of their house. She'd ask people to come over and help her. Usually they were her friends, but sometimes they were even Alex's. She had new guys over almost every week. Alex knew, for the most part, they weren't helping her move her boxes or clean, but he kind of kept it to himself. He didn't care, in all honesty.

As Alex entered the house the first thing he saw was his mother in deed actually cleaned a little. Now there was a clear path from the living room straight to the kitchen and, holy shit, he didn't know they had wood floors! He glanced at the couch -it piled high with blankets and clothing -and saw his mother sitting to one side that was actually cleared. She was passed out -head lolled back and eyes closed. He rolled his eyes at the bottle of beer to her side -and moved on to the kitchen. He was heading to his room -since the door that was in the living room that connected to the hall through a closet was blocked by boxes and the closet wouldn't even be able to be passed through because it was filled just as the guest room was -and was going to use the second door that led to the hallway instead.

He paused when he heard shuffling on the other side and stepped back when the door was swung open and a boy with bright red (obviously dyed) hair stepped through with a box on his hip. His dark eyes locked with Alex's but were quickly adverted as he placed the box on the counter nearest to him. He had sharp eyebrows and features. He had to be about twenty and was actually pretty attractive. Alex smiled a little at him who stepped around him with his head bowed and turned to watch him grab another box from off the floor and move it to the table. Alex assumed he was helping his mother sort through everything and watched as he opened it and looked down in it.

The air was tense and awkward but Alex was completely calm. He didn't know why this guy was so awkward around him and smiled at him again when he looked up and the guy attempted to smile back but failed miserably.

"So... Uh... How do you know Isobel?" He asked and Alex had to stifle his laughter because this guy thought he was another kid coming to "help" his mother clean.

"She's my mom." Alex chuckled making the boy's eyes widen. He looked up and almost instantly had an apologetic look on his face -like Alex was mad that he was banging his mom or something. So Alex smiled warmly and waved the silent apology off making the boy's tense shoulders seem to relax the slightest.

"How old are you?" He asked after a moment of silence to calculate how much older Isobel really was compared to him.

"18." Alex answered. Usually, Alex would jump on the opportunity of a nice, young, attractive boy in his house, but with the knowledge that the boy was most likely his mother's fuck buddy being sent to him through the guy's horribly guilty face -probably still worried Alex was upset -Alex decided against trying anything because he really didn't want to start some sort of fuck triangle with his mother. Fuck. No.

"Oh." Was all the boy said -head bowing as his face retorted into shame. Wow, Isobel must look pretty young for her age. He looked up for a moment and quietly asked, "Is she married?"

Alex laughed -the boy seeming to shrink a little and blush in embarrassment -as Alex shook his head and headed to the living room. He looked down at his mother -seeing a used syringe on the slightly cleared coffee table and thought about Jack and what he had said. He knew he wasn't going anywhere -Jack had surely put him in his place -and now he figured, what the hell? His life was pathetic and he was going to do absolutely nothing to change it because he couldn't, so, why not? He shook his mother's shoulder softly and said, "Hey, Ma. Wake up."

"I am awake, you fuck." Isobel grumbled as she kept her eyes closed and her lips pressed together to form a frown.

Alex rolled his eyes and tapped her arm, "Got any left?"

Isobel cracked open an eye at that. She had offered Alex drugs before, but he always turned them down. Well, usually, anyways. He'd smoke weed and sometimes even snort a little coke, or even pop a few pills, but anything with needles and he was pussying out. She smirked a little -knowing her son would do the same as he always did and pointed towards her room, "Yeah. Got a lot left."

Alex nodded and walked to the room -only glancing back to see the boy sneaking a kiss to Isobel's lips before leaving. He rolled his eyes. The poor kid wasn't going to be around here long. When he got in the room he was surprised to see it mostly clean. So, his mother had done a lot more than he ever expected her to do. He remembered the room being almost as full as their guest room. He stepped over to her nightstand and rummaged through the drawers until finding exactly what he wanted. He had to go back to his mother to ask how to do it because even though he's seen it plenty of times he still wasn't exactly sure and when he figured it out correctly he walked back to his own room -grabbing a beer as he went.

He knew getting high and then drinking was going to make him shitfaced and it wasn't the best idea to mix the two. Even one beer with these drugs was going to make him more drunk than he'd usually be, and he could hold his liquor pretty well. But he didn't care. He didn't even see the point in trying anymore. He told himself he wouldn't go to school tomorrow -wouldn't go for a week -hell, wouldn't even go, period. He didn't have a point in going anymore. He didn't see why he should try when he knew he'd never be anything -not a Veterinarian like how he wanted to be or anything even remotely better than a hooker. He sighed as he twisted open his bottle and took a swig -finding the guts to throw his life away and just stick the needle in.

His phone buzzed beside him, but he ignored it as the needle was pushed into his skin and the drug filled his veins like ice. His eyes grew wide as he pulled the syringe away from his now bleeding elbow pit and wiped the blood away slowly while his thoughts grew scrambled. He grabbed his beer and chugged it -flipping open his phone and looking down at the text as he drank.

Hey.

He glanced down at the contact and put the beer down for a second -just reading the name over and over until he could actually comprehend who was texting him at the moment. Who was texting him first.

It was Jack.

Notes

Hi :)

Alex has done something bad :(