xp_logs | Alex & Shiro, Monday evening (Hawaii time)

After Alex's post, Shiro takes the Pixie Express down to Hawaii to beat answers out of Alex. Fortunately for him, it doesn't come to that. Also fortunately, at least Alex still has someone who makes him happy.

"I'll call you when we are ready," Shiro said to Clarice as he pulled away from her kiss. She nodded and set off to roam down the quiet, cool beach. Shiro headed in the other direction. He'd asked around, and had been told that Alex had pretty much remained in the same area all day.

Sheathing his hand in flame (more efficient than a flashlight), Shiro spotted Alex and approached him. "I can understand why you might not have seen my e-mail," he said in way of greeting, as was his way. "But the six voice messages? I might think that you are avoiding me if I did not know you better."

Alex was sitting on his surf board, dressed in a board shorts and a hoodie against the cool night breeze as he gazed out at the ocean. He'd been out here all day, hadn't even gone to class. Jared had come out after classes but he had a test tomorrow so he's gone back to the dorm. Crush was out with him and the growing ball of fluff pounced on Shiro's shoes and began chewing playfully on the laces.

It was Crush going over to the other boy more then Shiro's voice that got Alex's attention. He looked over, his eyes and face blank, as it was obvious he'd been crying for a long time as well as surfing. The white band of untanned skin on his hand practically glowed. Sighing once he saw who it was, Alex turned back to look out the ocean, resting his chin on his crossed arms, which rested on his knees pulled up to his chest. "Left my phone in my dorm room. Sorry bro."

Shiro kneeled so he could pet Crush with his non-flaming hand. "So, how is this going to work, Alex? Will you talk to me freely now, or will I have to get persistent and annoying?"

Sighing and rolling his eyes, Alex shrugged slightly and indicated with his head that Shiro could take a seat on the board beside him. "I'll talk. It's not worth getting annoying over."

"Good, because I am not in the mood for that." The flames extinguished, and Shiro joined Alex. He felt the familiar sensation of a power boost as he got closer to his friend, and instinctively pulled his power in so there was no chance of a leak on his end. "Go ahead."

Alex closed his eyes for a few long moments, composing his thoughts as he listened to the crashing waves. A few more tears fell before he finally managed to speak in a soft voice. "She's gone Shiro. She went off to Berkley to look at a program and came back through way of New Orleans. She comes back and says she's not sure she loves me anymore and she can't stay engaged to someone she's not sure she loves. This was all so sudden, I had no idea she wasn't happy anymore...but instead of telling me, she goes off and cheats on me with LeBeau. I...I don't understand...and Scott...Scott hates me because I don't like the X-men. I never liked it but I supported it, what am I supposed to do? He's my older brother and he cares more about that stupid team then his relationship with his brother, asshole won't even listen to me." He choked up for a moment, having to pause as he composed himself. "I lost the two people I love most in under two weeks...how am I supposed to deal with that?"

So now was not the time to tell Alex that Shiro was this close to fully joining the team. "First, you did not lose your brother. He's just being a jackass, ne? And second, Lorna said she cheated on you?"

That made Alex pause as he replayed the conversation/fight/yelling fest that was Lorna returning his ring and realized she'd never said it, but she'd had refuted it either. "I saw the New Orleans stickers on her bag and when I questioned her about it, she didn't refute it." He hung his head with a low sigh. "Why else would she go see *him*? I should have known...it was so fucking obvious and I refused to see it..." He ignored the Scott comment for now, as he'd had time to deal with that. It was Lorna that hurt.

Not quite solid, but the logic made sense to Shiro. Before Remy had left, he'd noticed that he and Lorna seemed close, and Alex had mentioned it on occasion, too. And why else would someone end a relationship like that if not for an affair? "She returned to New York today. So she is leaving Hawaii?"

Alex nodded slowly, "She took most of her stuff and her parents are coming down to pack up the rest of the stuff later in the week. Jared's gonna move in with me in the apartment so I can keep Crush until we can get one of our own next semester." He closed his eyes, his own whole manner defeated. "What if this is my fault? What if I did something...made her unhappy and didn't even notice?"

"And she just went behind your back and broke your heart instead of telling you?" Shiro scoffed. "Even if you did make a mistake, she hardly had the right to react as she did."

"You're right." Sighing again he turned his head to the side, looking at Shiro while still letting it rest on his arms, opening his eyes after stifling more tears. "I just...I don't understand. I thought we were happy..." He turned to look back at the ocean. "I guess not."

"I suppose fooling her to fall in love with you again is out of the question this time," Shiro said lightly, almost teasingly but certainly not flippantly. "What are you going to do?"

"I don't know. Not go back to New York that's for sure. I have a work-study in a volcanic lab for one of my professors and she's offered it to me over the summer as well, so I think I'm just going to stay here. No point in make a bad situation worse." He didn't specify if he was talking about Scott or Lorna but both were definitely implied as he spoke in a flat, tired voice.

Shiro nodded. "So I will just have to run Clarice ragged so I can see you." He blinked, tilting his head in a curious manner. "We are still friends, aren't we?" he asked, more than a hint of concern noticeable in his voice. "Even though I do believe in the X-Men?"

For the first time that day, Alex smiled. It was small, but it was a smile. He lifted his head so he could playfully punch Shiro in the arm. "Of course bro. As long as you can accept I don't and not hold it against me" Then his voice went softer as he grew serious again. "I don't know what I would do if I didn't have you and Jared right now..."

"Good." Shiro smiled, too. Ever since he'd first joined the trainees, he'd been just a little afraid that Alex would hold it against him. And since Alex and Scott got into that awful fight, Shiro was even more worried. It was relieving to admit it and hear that it didn't make a difference. "You would do the same for me."

He nodded. "I would." It didn't matter to Alex that Shiro was a trainee, just as it didn't matter if Lorna or Scott were X-men. If they could accept he didn't like it, he wouldn't make a big deal about it and support their choice. Apparently, only Shiro could do that. "So...I guess you gotta go back now huh?"

"I am in no hurry. My morning class is stupid anyway. I will not shed a tear if I miss it." Shiro lightly jabbed Alex in the rib with his elbow. "You would do that for me, too."

Now that sparked a small laugh from the blonde surfer. "Yeah I would. Some things are more important then listening to a teacher drone on and on." He winked playfully at Shiro, feeling a bit more like his old self in presence of his best friend. But Alex couldn't ignore the bare spot on his finger and the empty bed he was returning to tonight.

But like Shiro, Crush would have none of that and promptly tackled his owner from behind, doing his best to playfully chew on Alex's hair, which had grown almost past his shoulders. "Hey!"

"You need to cut your hair, by the way," Shiro commented, blissfully ignoring the fact that he used to wear his hair long not so long ago. "You look like a bum."

Pushing the Golden Retriever off him and into the sand, Alex scoffed a bit. "I kind of like it this way." Crush, having been pushed off Alex, now went for Shiro which made Alex 's grin brighten. "Plus, Lorna was always telling me to cut it. I think a new look is long past due." And the small dig at Lorna had nothing to do with it, oh no.

Of course not. Shiro snorted to hide a chuckle. That was sound reasoning to him. "Point taken. You know, maybe you should go find that Nurse Annie who was making googly eyes at you, too. New girl to go with the new look, ne?" He winked, and braced for impact.

Alex made a disgusted face. "Ewww! No way! My butt hurts just thinking about her!" He shuttered remembering how many times that evil woman had pinched it. "Plus she was older then Scott and had a kid! Dude, so not going there." But then he got a thoughtful look. "You know...there is this chick who surfs with us, Vida. She's from New Zealand and a major hottie..." A small part of Alex felt bad thinking of another girl soon after Lorna, the love of his life, had left, but if she was going to move on, then damnit so was he. Another small part tried to remind him that it wasn't fair to Vida either, but Alex didn't give a damn at the moment. Any small dig at Lorna, even if she didn't know it, felt enticingly good.