xp_logs | (no subject)

After another short, yet different, phone call from Lorna, Alex needs some reassuring from his best friend.

Pressing the button to hang up, Alex just stared at his cell phone in his hand. Thankfully, his room mate was out so he had peace and quiet to think. That had so far been the shortest of Lorna's calls, just a quick, "Hey everything's fine but I have to stay for a while longer." Maybe he was just pathetic, but these short calls just seemed to make his loneliness worse plus, this one sounded almost, well desperate, not the usual apologetic almost-brush-off. Ignoring the physics book open in his lap, he quickly dialed another number.

At the same time, Shiro was in his room, preparing for school. Okay, so he still had another week before classes started, but he wanted to make sure he had everything now so he wouldn't have a fit the night before his first day of college. Most everything was in place, so he wasn't in a foul mood as he picked up his phone. "Moshi moshi."

"Hey dude." Alex couldn't stop the smile at the Japanese hello, suddenly feeling a tad bit homesick for his best friend. "How's it hangin?"

"Low and lazy," he replied, mimicking a response to that question he'd heard on TV once. He had no idea what it meant, but it sounded good. "It's nice that you called at a reasonable hour this time."

Alex rolled his eyes and it showed in his tone. "Geez, I'm sorry. It's not like you needed that sleep anyway..." It was hard to maintain the joking attitude but hearing his best friend's voice helped.

"It's not like your brother likes to near-kill me every time he makes me put on an uniform of grey leather," Shiro retorted, his grin almost audible. "So what is new with you?"

"Classes, classes and oh wait! More classes..." He sighed visibly. "Don't professors know there's an ocean waiting to be surfer out there?"

"You should have picked tanning or beach-bumming as your major, ne? None of this geophysical nuclear engineering management policy whatever-the-fuck that you are taking."

Alex laughed, which felt rather good after his previous conversation with Lorna. "Yes you are right as always bro. But I like this geophysics nuclear engineering management policy what-the-fuck." He mimicked back happily

"You are mad, you know," he quipped, taking a seat on his bed. "Aside from general academic insanity, how is life in Hawaii?"

"Hey better this then the Art History you are going to study. Have they renamed it Nap 101 yet?" he quipped back, before leaning back in his chair. "Life is alright. The roommate, Jared, ain't bad, another surfer in fact. Got someone to hang with anyway."

"Cartooning, baka. They just make me take courses in art history because they want to offer me naptime. Have you had the mutant-talk with Jared yet? Or is that an unapproachable subject?"

"Actually he asked about the suit after the first few days 'Yo, dude, what's with the wet suit all day every day?' So I told him point blank that I was a mutant and what my powers were." Alex shook his head, smiling as he remembered. "Jared was like, "Dude, the school asked if I was alright rooming with a mutant, but I didn't know you'd have such cool powers.' Well, I didn't ruin his imagine of them being cool by going into past details, but it's definatly nice to have someone who thinks its cool and I'm not a monster."

"Sugoi. Wonderful to hear. And he sounds exactly like you. Can we call him mini-Alex?"

After Alex calmed down from laughing, he answer, "No you may not. For one, he doesn't skate so that totally ruins the comparison plus he's part Native Hawaiian and while I'm tan, I'm not THAT tan. So, how are things back home?"

"Things here are as interesting as ever. Alison has these very strange black scars on her back, so once the rumor mill started as expected, the usual people made stupid comments that resulted in the usual bickering. Another day."

Before he knew what he was saying, Alex responded reflexively, "I wonder if Lorna knows about...those." His voice immediately sunk at the mention if his absent girlfriend.

Shiro noticed the change of tone and frowned. "Have you spoken with her recently?" As far as he knew, there was nothing wrong, but Alex's paranoia rubbed off on him.

Alex sighed and took a deep breath before answering. "Yeah actually I just got off the phone from her before I called you. She sounded....different. It was kind of freaky...Don't take offense but it kidn of shook me up so I wanted to call you, to hear someone familiar, ya know?"

"I am not offended," Shiro reassured him. "Different? How so?"

He paused for a good bit, thinking of how to word it. "Before, she seemed more...sure of herself, like everything really was fine as she said. This time she sounded almost desperate and stressed...It kind of scared me."

"Maybe she is having some familial problems that she cannot escape?" Shiro offered, trying to think of some way he could help alleviate Alex's worry.

"She's helping a sick cousin whose husband in overseas, that much I know, and I know she can't get out it, as much as she usually likes the remind me. This time though...it just sounded different. Like, the story wasn't all it's cracked up to be..." He sighed again. 'I think I'm just paranoid....but I miss her." He added the last part quietly.

Shiro frowned. Part of him wanted to fly out to Lorna and throttle her until she agreed to go to Alex. "I'm sure that it is just the tension of having to take care of an ill relative."

Alex again paused to think. "Yeah your probably right. I can't imagine the stress she's under right now." He paused again before asking tentatively, "You don't think I'm being selfish do you? To feel so alone when she’s with someone who needs her more?"

"No," replied Shiro immediately. "You are home and you thought that you'd have your love with you. She is not, so you are lonely. That is not selfish."

Alex nodded to himself before closing his eyes and sighing. "I guess."

"Listen. Go get Jared, get your surfboard, and go out. Lorna is fine, ne? Maybe not all there, but she's not in danger. So just get your mind off it."

"Yes sir." Alex couldn't fight the small chuckle that arose. "Thanks man. You always know how to make this blonde feel better."

"I do my best." Shiro smiled. "Enjoy yourself. I will speak with you again soon."

Alex again shook his head trying not to laugh. "Thanks man and yeah I'll talk to you later."