The Reckless And The Brave

Jack didn't know what he expected but, this wasn't it. A tall ish boy with his mousy brown hair, pale skin and facial hair answered the door, peeking through it as it was slightly ajar. He looked terrified and nervous all in one. What surprised Jack more was the fact that Alex looked well, Normal. He wore normal clothes and his hair was pretty scruffy and un-brushed

Jack tried to give the kid a small smile but, he just looked to the ground and nervously opened the door for Jack to come through. Jack took in a deep breathe and rolled his suit case into the house. The smell of freshly cooked dinner filled his nostrils and Jack's belly rumbled

"I-I'm A-Alex... It's N-Nice to M-Meet you" says Alex trying not to have an anxiety attack as Jack walks into his personal space

"Jack. It's nice to meet you to Alex... You cooking?" asks Jack following the delicious smell of food into the kitchen

"Oh... Uh, yeah. Want some?" asks Alex nervously as he plays with the hem of his shirt staring at Jack as he walked towards the Kitchen

"What? Oh no, Um... Thanks, I just ate" said Jack feeling the nervous vibes from Alex rubbing off on himself

"Well, Uh... Okay... The bedroom is to the left of the bathroom... T-There's a b-bed in there... If you want it. You don't h-have to" Alex said cuddling into his shirt for comfort

See, Alex wasn't used to people, he had shut himself off from the world, it was safer that way. For himself, and for the people around him... Alex wasn't very sociable and people weren't his forte. If Alex had his way, this house would be just his and he wouldn't be sharing with a guy who was clearly nervous to be around him... Alex however needed a roomie, someone to split the bilsl with as the Landlord put it up and Alex didn't work - No, couldn't work... See, Alex was sick... Very very sick... He couldn't help it though... Past experiences do that sort of stuff to you... So now, Alex was stuck with Jack, and Jack with Alex's awkward little quirks and routines... He knew Jack would find him odd but, Alex had to do it... It made him feel safe and secure

"Thanks, Alex. I'll be off then" said Jack trying to drag his suitcase upstairs

Alex just watched, not knowing what to do. Should he help Jack with his things, or would that just make him even more awkward than he already was being? Or, does Alex just ignore his struggles and go back to sitting awkwardly on his sofa watching some pointless crap on TV, letting his brain overthink every little problem that he's been through?

"Uh... Would you mind... Just grabbing the bottom?" asks Jack as he motions towards the suitcase that had somehow become stuck at the bottom step

Why Jack didn't carry it up he never knew. He just wanted to get upstairs and away from this kid, he was weirding Jack out to no end

Gulping Alex nodded and grabbed the bottom of Jack's suitcase and helped him carry it up the stairs. He hated every second of this- Jack being in his house was making his Anxiety sky rocket through the roof . Alex wasn't used to having contact with anyone, not even his family. Alex cut the world off and he liked it that way... That was until the landlord was a dick and raised the rent for the place, resorting in Jack living with him for a while...

"Oh fuck, shit" curses Jack as he trips over something fluffy at the top of the stairs making him let go of the suitcase making Alex tumble backwards and Jack stumble down the stairs, landing straight on top of Alex... Luckily the suitcase landed behind Alex's head as he fell down

Both boys groaned and Alex squeaked as he was the first to realise that Jack was in fact on top him, very close to his body... Jack had broken the number one rule, don't invade Alex's personal bubble. He quickly pushed Jack off, making him fall against the stairs with a thud before Alex ran off in the direction of the downstairs bathroom

Alex slammed the door shut and locked it behind him so that Jack couldn't come interrogate him on his sudden burst of fear. Alex slides down the door and tries to control his breathing, something he had gotten used to for many years now. Alex looked at himself in the mirror and saw his pale complexion and reddened cheeks... No one's been that close to Alex for a very long time...

"You're fine Alex. Everything is going to be fine. He just fell" he told himself as the red cheeks faded and Alex's cheeks turned back to their normal less paler complexion... Whilst Alex was god knows where, Jack inspects his head and groans in annoyance. He knew Alex was weird, but this added to it. Jack only landed on him because he tripped over something that was at the top of the stairs... Now that he mentioned it, what did Jack trip over? Looking up the stairs, Jack saw the fluffy thing wriggle before he heard a squeaked bark..Slowly, the fluff flew down the stairs and bundles Jack, showering him in a tone of kisses. Jack couldn't help but giggle as the kisses tickled his cheeks

"You're a little cute eh?" cooed Jack rubbing the pups ears making it sit on Jack's lap

"Her name is Snow, like Snow white" whispers Alex avoiding eye contact with Jack

"Cute. How old is she?" enquires Jack as he rubs her fur and she rolls onto her back for Jack to rub her stomach

"Oh Uh... I don't actually know... Nearly one I think" blushes Alex who bends down to stroke snow

Snow was his comfort blanket, something that gave Alex a sense of reality amongst the nightmares that he constantly had. Alex can't actually remember the last time that he even had a decent nights sleep? Was it two or three years ago? Perhaps even more? Who knows, Alex looses track of time these days wallowing in his depression and sea of sadness

"Ah cool, what breed is she?" asks Jack petting her some more

"Oh, Pomeranian. She's so hyper all the time" Alex giggled

"Thought so. She's too cute for her own good" Jack said making faces at the dog letting her lick his face

"And she knows it. She gets away with murder with me" smiled Alex at Jack

This was the first time Alex had felt any sort of connection with another human in a very long time

"Ha, yeah, I bet. Uh anyway, could I leave this down here for now? It's a pain to try and carry it up the stairs again..." laughed Jack awkwardly at Alex

"Oh um, yeah. It's your place to now so, sure... Oh fuck! I left the dinner on!" yelled Alex as he ran into the kitchen to see that it was starting to fill with smoke

Jack ran into the kitchen and had to suppress a little laugh. Alex certainly was a scatter brain, that's for sure

"Need a hand?" offers Jack politely as Alex grabs the tray and throws it into the sink and instantly turns the tap on to cool it off

"I'm okay. This happens too often than I care to admit to" blushes Alex at Jack, who was hunting for some sort of plate or bowl to eat the food off of

"Bottom cupboard" whispered Alex who knew what Jack was looking for

Jack nodded at Alex and went down to the bottom cupboard to be greeted with a very neatly, organised cupboard. All the plates were in size order, as well as coloured correctly. Jack was amazed at someone who seemed to clumsy could be so neat

"Here" says Jack placing the plates on the table, sitting down and watching as Alex plated up the burnt food onto them

Alex blushed in embarrassment as Jack tried to stifle a giggle when he eyed the burnt food up

"Thank you. You didn't have to give me some, you know, Alex"

Alex shrugged at the other boy and sat down before smothering his food in Ketchup. Jack wrinkled his nose at the sight and made a sour face

The room fell with silence, which Alex didn't mind at all. In fact, Alex liked it when there was nothing but the outside noises filling the house. Noises always made Alex jump half to death, especially loud noises. He didn't like them one bit. They sent Alex into a panic attack, which lead to him unable to breathe and no one to help him through them

"So Alex, Uh, tell me about yourself" tried Jack knowing it would probably be pointless as Alex just seemed nervous about everything Jack seemed to do

Alex was awkward, which made Jack uncomfortable. He didn't know how to speak to someone so socially awkward as Alex. He was used to Rian and Zack and people from his High School, not someone like Alex who didn't seem to be able to hold a very interesting conversation, or one which didn't make him stutter

"Oh Uh... Um... I-I'm not a V-Very- I'm Sorry..." choked Alex who was starting to get nervous now that the attention was on him

"It's okay. Take your time" encouraged Jack who piled more food into his mouth now

Alex took in a deep breathe and closed his eyes and tried to calm his breathing and Anxiety down. It was just a question, just one question. Alex talked himself into being calm before he looked up at Jack's face

"I-I'm 21... I L-Live he-here with S-Snow... I l-like D-Disney" he stuttered as his hands played with the hem of his shirt nervously not really knowing what else the boy wanted to know about Alex. Alex wasn't very interesting- at least he didn't think he was anyway

"What are you hobbies? I like to play guitar" tried Jack once again to the nervous boy

"H-Hobbies? I-I don't really - I d-don't know"

Alex cursed himself for being so socially awkward and nervous around Jack, who was just trying to be nice to Alex

"Oh well that's uh, fine. So thanks for dinner... I'm going to have a shower and go to my room... So uh, night" says Jack knowing he won't get much more conversation out of this terrified boy

"Yeah... Night, Jack. Sleep well" Alex whispers looking onto the floor avoiding Jack's eyes

Alex didn't want to see the hurt in them because Alex couldn't hold a conversation with his new house guest. So, Alex looked to the floor and fiddled with his shirt some more until Jack left the room

Alex got off the chair and scooped up snow before taking her into his bedroom. Alex shut the door behind him and slid down it, burying his face into Snows fur and letting out a tiny little sob

''I'm never going to get better, Snow. I'm never going to fall in love and have friends... I'll never live the life I deserve" Whispers Alex into his Pomeranian's fur as he hugged her tightly

Notes

Hey! The end was shit but, I needed to wrap this damn chapter up or it would have been a fucking long chapter!

Note: Thanks for the subs and comments already guys, I seriously appreciate that! You're too kind!

I hope you enjoyed this chapter, though? I have some chapters planned out, and some aren't so please be patient? Thanks <3