aleksander brookes

Alex Brookes - 38 - Blacksmith/Animal Handler

[laceyyu]

full name: aleksander brookes, goes by alex

age: 38

gender & pronouns: male - he/him

time living in redwood: arrived beginning of august (~3 months)

occupation: blacksmith & animal handler

occupation pre-outbreak: horse rancher

sexuality: heterosexual/heteromantic

relationship status: single

Aleksander ‘Alex’ Brookes is the third-youngest of Jack and Elena Brookes, the youngest boy. He grew up in Pilot Point, Texas on a ranch that raised quarter horses with his two older brothers, sister, parents, and maternal grandmother. From a young age Alex interacted and loved horses, and was able to learn about the business side of things from his mother as he got older. He learned about his Romanian heritage and culture from his grandmother, becoming fluent in the language and carrying his heritage with pride into adulthood. Alex never found a true passion outside of the business like his sister. He loved the horses and any other animals that he was able to interact with, and he loved watching his parents run the business. He would often try to come up with fun new ideas to try that he hoped would expand the ranch and clientele, from special showcases to word-of-mouth advertisement.

After high school, Alex was accepted at A&M, majoring in Equine Sciences and minoring in Business. He came home as much as possible due to the relatively short drive between campus and home. During his last year in college, his sister Cassandra entered into a relationship with his good friend Steve. He was hesitant to accept it at first. He valued his relationship with both of them, and didn’t want it to change because of this new development. Over time, however, it became clear that they were happy together and he came to accept and support them. Everyone in his family loved them together. A little over a year into their relationship, things began to change in subtle ways, though nothing that Alex put much thought into. When Steve and Cass broke up, Alex was sad for them, but it didn’t occur to him that there was something more to the story. After Alex graduated, he spent the next couple of years on his family’s ranch, using his new degree to help his family and gain even more experience.

Finally he got a job offer in Terrell, Texas to work for a small ranch that had recently been inherited by someone who had never worked with horses. Alex was able to show the new owner how to care for the horses, run the business that had been left behind, and everything in between. Even though the job didn’t pay buckets of cash, he was incredibly happy working on the ranch and for the people who owned it. He had a romance with the owner’s niece, even getting ready to propose to her. Unfortunately she later dropped the news that she was cheating on him with an old flame, and the two parted ways.

However, it had to come to an end. Alex’s boss began declining in health due to dementia, and soon became unable to work on the ranch. As capable as Alex was, he simply couldn’t handle the workload all by himself with minimal help, and there weren’t enough funds to hire another helper. The difficult decision was made to shut down the ranch after Alex had worked there for several incredible years. He sold all but one horse, a foal that had been born a couple of months after he had arrived at the ranch that the owner had let him named Cici. She had always been his favorite horse, and he couldn’t bear to let her go.

Wanting a fresh start, Alex decided to head north to visit his sister in West Virginia at her own ranch. Just as Alex thought things were looking up, rumors of a deadly virus began to make their way to West Virginia. Within a month of his arrival, Alex and Cass were making plans with the rest of their family to congregate in West Virginia in order to prevent the worst from happening. Things were actually alright for a year. The world slowly began to fall apart, but he had his family and that was what mattered. He tried his best to remain optimistic. Then a group of raiders came to steal the horses. His parents were killed in the chaos of trying to defend the horses, along with the raiders managing to capture a few horses, Cici included. It became much harder to be optimistic.

Things once again took a turn for the worse when Alex and his brothers were out on a short supply run while Cass stayed to watch the horses. Nathan ended up with minor injuries after a close call with a group of walkers, leaving him unable to walk for a short period of time. Though Alex and Andrei were hesitant to leave their brother alone, even for a short period of time, Nathan convinced them to continue searching for supplies while they were outside of the ranch. Alex and Andrei took a couple of hours to continue their mission before coming back to camp, immediately knowing that something was wrong. They were met with the horrific site of Nathan’s cold body and one less bullet in the shotgun he’d had for protection. Clearly their run in with the group of walkers hadn’t been as close as they had thought. Just as the brothers were attempting to process the scene, Alex felt a bag being pulled over his head and a blunt object against his skull.

By the time the two brothers were able to escape the group that had captured them, they were over a hundred miles away from the ranch from what they were able to discover about their new surroundings. They had nothing except the clothes on their backs. It was a miracle in itself that they were able to survive the first few nights attempting to get back to the ranch, much less that they ran across a small commune in the middle of nowhere. A small area with about 50 residents, the commune was more than happy to share their food and protection in exchange for Andrei’s medical knowledge and Alex’s physical labor. He was adamant that their stay was temporary, but one month turned into two turned into three. His desire to go back to the ranch and find Cass never left his mind, but it was easy to continue pushing the trip later and later. It became more difficult as he grew to care about everyone in the commune, considering many of them family.

It was Cass’s birthday when Alex decided that he was leaving the commune, and he wouldn’t let anyone stop him. Even Andrei.

He had known that Andrei would find it difficult to leave the commune, but he had never thought that his brother might refuse to go when they needed to find Cass. Yet no amount of persuasion would change his mind. Alex had said nothing was going to stop him, and he meant it. After gathering up the necessary supplies, he headed off back into the wilderness without his older brother.

Cass wasn’t at the ranch. It was clear that the ranch had been abandoned for at least a year. Thankfully, the letter that she had left was still in their home, though nothing else of value had been left inside. Copying the note onto another piece of paper so Andy could have it if he ever decided to leave the commune, Alex left and began to make his way to Redwood.

TLDR: Alex is my brand new little cowboy babe who is Cass's older brother (and very close with her) who is working as a blacksmith and animal handler when needed. He's kinda jaded and defensive right now given all he's been through (who isn't), but he's very much a good, genuine guy who is trying his best and most of all trying his best for Cass.

[laceyyu]

with @lxighmadxson; leigh's home Alex gets some big news.

Alex

It had been a couple of days since Alex had first seen Leigh and realized she was in town. They had been talking at the stables while they worked, but he had yet to see her home or meet her daughter. He would fully admit that he was curious to meet her daughter along with a few tidbits about her that he was never going to ask outright. It would come in time. After all, it had only been a few days. Alex had told Leigh he could stop by that evening a couple of hours after work was officially over. It might not be a date or anything, but he wanted to clean up a little bit. He could hear his mom scolding him if he'd gone over in his usual worn clothes as a guest. Before the outbreak he would have gotten her some flowers or perhaps a bottle of something, date or no date, but he'd been short on time and those sorts of things weren't all that common nowadays. Alex didn't want her to feel he thought it was super serious, or worse, romantic in nature. So he came with just himself. Knocking gently on the door, he waited for Leigh to open it, taking a deep breath as he told himself there was no reason to be nervous.

Leigh

"Alli-gally, put Luna-belle down. She's trying to eat, sweetie." Was Leigh a little anxious about this? Absolutely. When Alex said he could come by that day, she went into full on panic clean mode. Which was hard, considering there were still a few rooms in the house she was still renovating and cleaning and boxes of stuff piled in the room that shall not be seen to take to the supermarket or junkyard. It wasn't that she was worried about Alex seeing the house in the state it was - it was that he was about to meet her daughter. Their daughter and she wanted everything to be perfect. Although she was still worried about his reaction. Her pot of chili was on the stove simmering as she did another sweep of her living room to make sure she had picked up everything off the floor. Allison was still carrying around Luna, who looked as if she had resigned herself to her fate. She'd make it up to Luna later. Leigh heard the knock on the door and breathed in deeply as she stepped up the door, although any nervousness she had was completely masked the moment she opened it and spotted Alex. "Perfect timing. Just put the chili in a simmer." She stepped aside and waited for him to come in before closing the door. "You look snazzy. If I didn't know any better, I would think you were trying to impress me."

Alex

The little bit of the house he could see was in perfect condition, and he wondered how much help Leigh actually needed with it. Not that he cared if she didn't and she had only used it as an excuse to try and get him to come over. It simply meant he wasn't sure what to think. Now he was left with overthinking about his outfit. Did she have any inkling of how nervous he was? Was she as anxious as he was? If so, she didn't show it. Alex was trying not to show it, but he had never been a good liar. The whole situation was more awkward than he wanted it to be.

"I think my mom might come back from the grave if I wore my work jeans over to a pretty girl's house for dinner, and I didn't think you'd want ghosts making everything cold," he said, smiling. He'd meant for it to be a joke, but the topic of what had happened to either of their families hadn't come up since their first conversation. They'd stayed on overly neutral topics. He didn't want to depress Leigh by mentioning his dead mom for the first time, but at that point it was too late. Instead he tried to change topics. Alex cleared his throat and looked back to her. "Chili smells good. Thanks for inviting me over. I shoulda said that earlier. I wasn't sure if I should bring something over, since a nice bottle of merlot isn't exactly easy to find around here. But I'm happy to be put to work if you need anything else. Feels kinda backwards for a newly-arrived mom to be inviting people over for dinner when everyone should be helping you." Yes, the gentleman in him wanted to help her, but he also just wanted her to be comfortable and happy. Admittedly she seemed to be doing pretty damn well by herself, not that Alex doubted her either.

Leigh

Whether Alex knew it or now, Leigh could see that there was something stiff about him as he walked into her place. Was he....was he nervous? Why the hell would he be nervous? He shouldn't be nervous. If either of them should be nervous, it was her because she was about to drop a piece of news on him that was going to change his life forever. "Ahhh, mothers are terrifying, in life and death. I guess that's fair. But seriously, you don't need to dress flashy for me, Brookes. Unless you are trying to impress me, in which case, then yeah, always dress like this." She had noticed how he commented about his mother being dead and as much as she wanted to know more, she wasn't sure if he was ready to talk about that. Hell, she wasn't sure if she was ready to talk about what happened to her family, but if he asked, she would share.

She led Alex into the kitchen and over to the stove. She smiled as she lifted the lid and looked into the pot. "That's sweet of you. You didn't have to bring anything, but I appreciate the thought. But if you're offering some help, I was going to get some pudding made for dessert. Think you can handle making some pudding?" Leigh opened the drawer and pulled out the box of old chocolate pudding jello and tossed it to him. "Might be easier than me showing you my project room that I'm about ready to burn to the ground. I swear, thinking about it gives me anxiety." She laughed a little as she heard the footsteps of Allison in her playroom. "Unless....you wanted to meet my daughter first?"

Alex

Alex still wasn't sure why he was so nervous. Maybe there was some part of him that wanted to impress Leigh. Maybe he was worried Leigh was upset with him about the way they had ended things before the outbreak. Maybe he did want to impress her. There were all too many possibilities to think about. The one thing he knew was that he wanted things to go well between them. He wanted their friendship to be able to heal and go back to how it had been before, minus the sex. Alex made no comment on wanting to impress her, simply smiling and nodding in acknowledgement.

Catching the box of pudding, he briefly held it up to read the box and confirm it was indeed pudding. How she had gotten hold of it he had no idea. "Talk about impressing people. I don't think I've had pudding since a few years before the outbreak." It wasn't a huge loss - Alex had never had much of a sweet tooth. While he might take a bite or two, he was pretty sure there were other people who would enjoy it more than he did. At most he might take a small portion to take to Cass, knowing she would be much happier having it than he would. Between everything he'd forgotten that he was supposed to meet her daughter. "Uh. It's whatever you think would be best? I'm good with whatever. Don't wanna bring Allison out just to meet me, I doubt she's that worried about meeting her mom's... co-worker." Old friend. Ex. Co-worker seemed the safest option.

Leigh

Leigh laughed as he examined the box. "I was able to bring some of these with me from Texas. Allison loved them and our storehouse had an abundance of them. I'm hoping some more pops up in the future, but if not I'm working on alternative measures to make it." She laughed a bit as she stirred the chili. And give her a minute to weigh her options on when she wanted to reveal to him about Allison's parentage. Part of her wanted to get it out sooner rather than later, even if it meant that their dinner got cut short. She could wait to tell him until later in the night, but then if you was excited about the knowledge, he would have missed out on some ample bonding opportunities. "Well, the chili might be another couple minutes, and Allison is a great assistant when it comes to putting. How about we go check on her and see if she's torturing our poor Luna Belle some more." She put the lid back on and wiped her hands on the towel as she turned to Alex. "Luna is her Kitty that we brought with us. She loves her to death." She nodded her head to follow her as she left the kitchen and walked into the side room where Allison was playing dolls while Luna watched from the bookcase. "Ally-gally, come here sweetheart. There's someone I want you to meet."

Alex

"Alternative measures? Consider me interested. It was a major deal when our previous compound was able to whip up our version of a cake, but Redwood seems to be able to find more stuff than we had." Somehow someone always managed to be able to pull through with finding hard-to-find things. "No worries, I can be patient." Alex was fine going with Leigh's lead. She was the one who knew her daughter best after all. It would likely be a quick and uninteresting meeting, probably not even worthy of interrupting the girl. There was no reason for Allison to be interested in him when he was just some guy to her, not that he cared. He smiled at the thought of Leigh and her daughter with a cat. Sure enough, the cat was patiently watching the little girl in her playroom. Leigh called to her daughter as Alex leaned against the doorway, waving at the girl as she looked towards her mother and him. "Hey, Allison. I'm Alex. Your mom has told me quite a bit about you." It was good that he'd spent time with Oliver and Henry recently, reminding him a bit of what kids were like since it had been so long beforehand. Allison peered up at him with big blue eyes, seemingly curious. "Hi!" She set down the two dolls she had been holding and turned more towards him. "What kind of things did she tell you about me?" Alex laughed at her bluntness, kneeling down to get on her level. "Well," he trailed off, pretending to think of what Leigh had mentioned. "She told me that you like your cat a lot, for one. And chocolate pudding. And you're curious, and excitable, and ask a lot of questions," he teased.

Leigh

Leigh kept back, observing the two of them with pure interest. She wondered if he would notice a familiarity or not in her. Like how her eyes were the same shade of blue or her ears mirrored his own. But it seemed to go unnoticed so she let them interact. In fact, it made her smile and laugh a little at her little one's bluntness. "Sweetheart, why don't you go clean up and then meet us in the kitchen so you can show Alex how we make pudding, okay?" Allison smiled and got up to run down the hall to the bathroom. "She keeps me on my toes. Luna too. But she's been doing that since she was born. She was a month early and I didn't think she was gonna make it. Hospitals were shut down and we were holed up on my aunt's ranch when she came."

Alex

Soon Leigh was telling Allison to go wash up, and Alex stood back up to let the girl get ready before he was back next to Leigh. It had been the first time he had actually seen Allison, and the sinking feeling in his stomach only got worse when he watched her run to wash up. Alex internally shook his head and chided himself for thinking the thought in the first place. If he went down that road it would be a very awkward, miserable dinner. "I'm... sorry to hear that. I know that had to be a difficult time, but I'm glad both of you made it." He gave her a soft smile. Still no mention of Allison's father yet, which only made that sinking feeling worse. "Guess she was excited to be here." Five years ago the sentiment would've made sense, but it was hard to think of being excited for much of anything in their current world. Yet he still wanted humanity to prevail. Allison was resilient, though - in a lot of ways it was better that she didn't know the world before she was born. The two adults made their way back into the kitchen. Alex leaned against the counter, not sure what to say in the couple of minutes they had before Allison would come back. "Allison seems to be doing pretty well, despite being a preemie, at least. Not that I'm an expert in childcare or anything like that, obviously," he tried. The words came out fumbled, but he was fairly sure she knew what he was trying to get at.

Leigh

Leigh takes a moment to watch her daughter leave. Not just her daughter. Their daughter. Cass' advice rings in her ears and she prepares herself to tell him. "Yeah, I am too. She's a fighter, kind of like her dad." If she was going to drop this bomb on him she wanted to lay some groundwork down first to soften the blow. Well, maybe not blow since Cass assured her that he wanted kids. So hopefully this would be good news to him. She takes in a deep breath and turns back to Alex, the most reassuring smile she could muster. "I'm sure you're interested to know who that is, especially with her age. And don't pretend like you haven't been wanting to ask because I know your tell. Cass told me I should come right out and say it so I will and I know it's going to be a lot so....brace yourself." She pauses as she chews on her lip to give him the second but not too long that he would be freaking out. "Allison she's.....she's your daughter. You're her father and I thought you might want to know. Before you ask, yes, I'm sure." Her fingers were dancing together nervously as she waited for his reaction. Oh God, she hoped he wouldn't freak out too much.

Alex

It was the first time Leigh had mentioned Allison's father, yet it wasn't exactly much to go on. Then Leigh started talking about her father - really talking about him, and the sinking feeling in his stomach went deeper and deeper. All he could do was stand there in silence while he waited for the blow. She's your daughter. Alex was doing everything in his power to not be sick. He didn't know what to do or what to say, not that he knew what to think in the first place. He had a daughter. An actual flesh-and-blood child. A tiny human that had been made with a part of him and a part of Leigh. The next few moments seemed like hours and yet only a millisecond since he still hadn't said anything when Allison was walking into the kitchen after having washed up. Allison was his daughter. If it had been up to him, he would've scooped her up into his arms to press her close to his chest and hold her there until he felt ready to put her back down. He had missed so much of her life already. Three of the most important years of one's life, and he hadn't been there for a single second of it. If he hadn't already felt sick to his stomach, he definitely would've become so at the thought. Yet as much as he mourned knowing he would never get that time back, the optimistic part of him said that he needed to appreciate the fact that they were here now. He was there for her now, and that was what mattered.

"I'm ready to make pudding!" Allison announced, confidently striding up to the two adults and waiting for her mother to commence the pudding-making. Alex couldn't help but wish Leigh had told him when he would have more time to process everything. How was he supposed to get through the dinner now? He felt ready to pass out. But now more than ever he needed everything to go smoothly. Most importantly, he needed Allison to like him.

Leigh

Leigh stood there, patiently waiting for him to say something. Do something. Anything, really because right now, the silence and lack of reaction was starting to worry her. She didn't move towards him because she didn't want to freak him out more than he already was. "Alex?" she asked, hoping that she could break his trance and get a word out of him. She was preparing to approach him but Allison came running out, her dirty blonde curls bouncing with each bounding stride she made to them. "Oh you are, are you?" Leigh asked, scooping her off the ground and holding her. "I think we should go make some pudding then, huh? Why don't you go sit at the table and Mommy will be right in to start. Okay, Ally-gally?" Allison nodded and Leigh planted a kiss to her cheek before setting her down. She waited for Allison to run into the kitchen before turning back to Alex. "I know it's a lot and I will not blame you if you decide to run out that door right now. It's crazy but I just thought you should know sooner rather than later so that way if you wanted to be there for her, you could. But like I said, I will not blame you if you decide to walk out."

Alex

Alex was too dazed to do much or say anything while Leigh had Allison go into the kitchen, but it gave him time to get out of his trance enough to watch the interaction between mother and daughter. He wanted to be the one to pick Allison up and kiss her cheek and call her cute nicknames. Once Allison was out of sight, Leigh turned to him and said she would be okay if he walked out. That got him out of his trance. The dazed look on his face was replaced by one of surprise and then upset. "What? No, that's not.... I'm not going to leave. I'm never going to leave, I - it's just a lot to process. I don't know what to say or do right now, and I'm freaking out, but I can definitely tell you I'm not leaving." Alex had been through hell and back during the apocalypse, but even when he had been torn down he had gotten back up eventually. The only thing that could destroy him was not being able to be there for his daughter. He swallowed, shaking his head as he looked at her with sad eyes. "Allison is my daughter, and I would die before leaving her, okay?" It sounded dramatic, but it was the truth. Within a minute Alex now had a completely different set of priorities. He would do anything for his daughter. No matter what happened between him and Leigh, or whether Allison ended up liking him, or anything else that might come between the father and daughter - nothing would ever change that. "I don't know how to do this right now. I need her to like me, but I'm not sure I can put on a good enough act to try and make things seem normal. Dammit," he said, swearing under his breath as he attempted to take a couple of deep breaths and think of the best plan of action. "We need time to talk, and she's right outside, and for all I know she's already wanting for me to just leave. I'm just some guy, y'know? God, I don't know if I can do this."

Leigh

Leigh felt like she could breathe when he said he wasn't leaving. She didn't want to  go but if he had decided to, she wasn't going to stop him. Just learning that you had a three-year-old daughter was a lot to take in and process and some people needed the space to do so. But he seemed pretty adamant that he wanted to be there and be a part of Allison's life and to Leigh, that was more than enough. "I understand....how about I put on a movie for her and while she's watching it we can talk, yeah?" Alex's worry that Allison wasn't going to like him was almost endearing but she understood the fear. She remembered worrying about being a terrible mom and her daughter growing up to hate her through her entire pregnancy and even now. "She doesn't want you to leave. That I can promise you. In fact, when I told her you were coming over for dinner, she was very excited to meet you. If I had she doesn't know yet because I wanted to be able to tell her with you there. But I also wanted you to meet her first." Finally she stepped forward and put a reassuring hand on his shoulder to squeeze. "It will be okay. I'll help you through this."

Alex

The idea of not spending more time with Allison wasn't one he loved, but at the same time Alex knew he and Leigh needed to talk so he felt more comfortable going forward. If nothing else, he wanted to know if she had a plan when it came to telling Allison about her parentage. He didn't have any experience with telling a toddler some random man they had barely met was their other parent. Alex nodded. "Yeah, I guess that would be best." He began calming down a little more as Leigh reassured him, nodding. He waited for her to put on a movie for Allison, once again wishing he could go up and hug his daughter. Patience, he told himself. Leigh was clearly open to Alex being a part of Allison's life; he didn't need to worry that he wouldn't be allowed to spend time with his daughter. It sucked that he didn't magically have a relationship with their daughter, but with a little time and effort he wanted to believe that he and Allison would work up to that.

Within a couple of minutes Leigh was back in the kitchen, now leaving a more substantial block of uninterrupted time for the couple to talk. Alex wanted to hug her, to somehow show he appreciation for everything she had done and everything she was doing, but it still felt too soon and too risky in case it made her uncomfortable. "So...." Alex trailed off, no longer having zero topics in mind but so many he didn't know where to begin. "There's so much I wanna get to, but I'll be anxious the entire time if I don't have some idea of what you're thinking. On anything, really." He forced his body to relax, looking towards her. "I meant what I said before, of course. I want to be here for her. I want anything you're okay with to be honest. Whatever you're willing to give." As much as he wanted to immediately get to be a happy family with Allison, he knew it wasn't that easy. Allison's comfort and happiness were the most important thing. He trusted Leigh to make the best decisions for their daughter.

Leigh

Leigh gave Alex a moment as she walked into the kitchen. "Honey, I forgot that Alex and I need to talk about important stuff. Once we do, we'll make pudding, promise. Why don't we go watch Finding Nemo?" Allison pouted but gave in and it didn't take long for Leigh to get her set up in her bedroom and the movie playing. She gave her daughter a kiss on the forehead before joining Alex back in the kitchen.

She wasn't sure if she should sit down or stand up or offer some form of condolences or apologies. She opted to stand by the stove in case she needed to check on the chili and give him a moment. Her hands rested on the counter as she waited for him to start because she could see the wheels turning in his head. "I honestly want you to be here for her but I don't want to push you into anything you're not comfortable with. If you want to watch her or take her for a bit or anything, I'm okay with it. She's your daughter too and if I had had it my way, I would have wanted you involved since day one, but obviously things happened that were out of our control." She shifted a little, leaning back against the counter. "You're not a total stranger to her, y'know. She doesn't know your name or that it's you, but I've told her all about you. How you were my best friend and we worked together on the ranch. That you loved to ride horses and were almost as good as me. How you're kind and sweet and funny. That you had to move away to go take care of other horses and would love to get to know her. So you're not a complete stranger."

Alex

Slowly but surely Alex was beginning to process everything and what it meant. He nodded as Leigh explained what she was thinking. "It's not so much what I'm comfortable with as what she's comfortable with. I don't want to force her into anything she doesn't want. As much as it sucks, I'd rather take my time to make sure she'd comfortable." He couldn't imagine any three year old would be thrilled with the thought of some strange guy picking them up and taking them for a few hours, especially without Leigh being there. "I'm not upset about everything you did, just so you know. I mean, I'm upset that it turned out this way and that I missed so much of her life already, but I don't blame you. Not everyone would've told me so soon. I'm kind of a mess right now and don't think I can come up with some grand speech, but I appreciate everything you've done." It wasn't Leigh's fault that the world had gone to shit. She had done everything she could have done. She was a good mom, and their daughter was happy and healthy and here. That was what mattered.

The mix of emotions was so much that Alex didn't feel he could cry, otherwise he would have as Leigh told him what she had told Allison about him. It was going to be one of his next questions - how much Allison had asked about her father, if she even realized she was supposed to have one. His heart broke at the thought of the two girls by themselves, Leigh doing her best to keep them alive and still telling her about him. Finally he broke down and moved to hug her. Physical touch felt like the only way he could possible convey what he was feeling in that moment. How much he appreciated everything Leigh had gone through and done beforehand. Careful not to have either of them touch the stove, he brought her body close to his and wrapped his arms around her. "I'm so, so sorry I wasn't able to be here before. But I'm here now. I want to be there for everything. For both of you," he murmured.

Leigh

"Of course, and I want to work with both of you so she can get comfortable with you. But I think you're not giving yourself enough credit. How could she not love you? You're Alex freaking Brookes. You're incredibly loveable." Plus, she didn't want to miss out on watching Alex bond with his daughter. The idea was completely adorable in her imagination and she wanted to witness every moment of it. Why wouldn't she want to see her daughter bond with her father? She relaxed a bit but felt even moreso when he said he wasn't mad for her not telling him sooner. His appreciation warmed her and she smiled at him. "Thanks, Alex. That means a lot."

Part of her worried about telling him about what she told Allison about him but she felt like it was important to her that he knew that she wanted to keep Alex alive to Allison even when she didn't think he would ever get to meet her. She didn't move when he walked up to her and she was shocked when he enveloped her in a hug. She froze before wrapping her arms around him and hugged him back. "Hey, you don't have to apologize," she muttered as she rubbed soothing circles on his back, "None of this was your fault. I'm just glad you're here and can get to know her and that she can get to know you too." She kept a hold on him and without really thinking she turned her head and kissed his cheek. "Everything? What, you trying to ask to move in?" She was teasing, of course. "If so, I got a whole room for you to clean up before you do."

Alex

Obviously Allison was the most important thing at the moment - for the rest of his life, hopefully, but there was also a new surge of feelings for Leigh as well. Alex wouldn't have blamed her if she was mad at him for how they ended things, and perhaps there was still some bitterness there that he couldn't see. For the most part, though, it felt all too easy for things to go back to how they had been despite everything that had happened in the past four years. So easy that it scared him a little bit. He looked down so she couldn't see the tiniest hint of pink appear across his cheeks, grinning to himself. "I think you're a little bit biased there. But thank you." Whether it was true or not, the words meant a lot to him. He could only hope that it was as easy as Leigh seemed to think it would be to start kindling the relationship with their daughter.

He wasn't sure if the hug would be too much, if she wouldn't want to hug him back, but Leigh ended up with his arms around him as well. Physical touch felt like a boundary they shouldn't cross. Alex still felt the urge to pick Allison up off her chair in the other room and hold her close to him for the entire rest of the evening. Even if he and Leigh weren't together anymore, she was still the mother of his child and he wanted to protect her. Both of his girls. Leigh's kiss on his cheek didn't help his overwhelming emotions any. She was teasing on him moving in, which made him worry about being honest with her, but he wanted her to know that he was all in. "I mean... I would. If you asked," he admitted. He paused for a moment, shaking his head. "I'm sorry, that's probably too much. I can't imagine it would be good for Allison to have me move in or move in at the farmhouse when everything is still so new. We can think about all that later when it comes to it. I don't want to force things to go too fast with Allison. Right now my focus is her," he assured.

Leigh

Leigh had absolutely been joking about him moving in because, well, she didn't think he would take it seriously. He had his siblings and was living in the big old farmhouse and they had only just reunited and he had just found out he had a daughter with her. Yet when he said he would, she was actually taken aback by it. But in a good way. She wanted to be a family with him, even if they were just friends raising their daughter together. "Really?" She asked, pulling back just a bit so she could see his face and thus, his reaction. "If you wanted to, I wouldn't say no, but yeah, why don't we finish fixing up this place and get you more acquainted with her. I'm sure she'll be trying to draw on your face in no time." She laughed a little as she stared at Alex. "Damn I've missed you." It slipped out before she could stop herself. It might have been too much so she quickly followed it with, "How are you feeling?"

Alex

It was once again presumptuous to practically offer them to move into the farmhouse when he had two other housemates to think about. At the same time he couldn't imagine Sol and especially Cass saying no to having Leigh and Allison moving in when they both would know how much Alex wanted to bond with his daughter. Just before Sol had moved in he and Cass had talked about how big and empty the farmhouse felt sometimes. There was more than enough room to have the five of them there. "Of course, really. I hate thinking about missing anything with Allison. Whether you wanted me to move in here or you and Allison to move into the farmhouse, I would make it happen." Speaking of Cass, another thought dawned on him. "Wait, you said something earlier about Cass saying something. Does she already know?" It hurt to think that Cass might've known about his daughter before he did, but in the grand scheme of things it didn't matter that much. One less person to break the news to. Alex tried not to think about the way his heart beat a little faster when Leigh said she had missed him. "I missed you too," he said. Even if Allison wasn't a thing, he had missed her. He'd never wanted things to end between them the way they did. It had all happened so fast. "Good, I think. Overwhelmed, but good. I have a daughter." He couldn't help but grin with the last sentence. He had a daughter. It still felt surreal, and he imagined it would for a while. "After everything that's happened, I honestly thought I would never be a dad even though that's always been the one thing I'd wanted since I can remember. And now you're here telling me that adorable little kid out there is ours.... There's nothing in this world that could repay that gift even halfway." The desire to protect and love his daughter was overwhelming in itself. "What about you? I can't imagine what you've been thinking and going through this past month."

Leigh

When she told Alex about Allison, she never would have guessed that he would immediately want them to be housed together so quickly. But here he was offering and she couldn't deny that the want was there. "I mean, I wouldn't mind moving to the farmhouse with you so that Allison could be close to her family. But wouldn't you need to check with your sister first?" She didn't want to intrude. 

"Yeah, I told her earlier," she admitted, "I wanted her opinion on how best to give you the news. Figured she'd know how best to tell you." And boy was Cass right. She was so relieved that he was happy with the news and she could see it on his face. She laughed and shrugged as he asked about her. "It's been an adjustment but I think I'm finally settling in here. And you're here so it makes things so much easier."

Alex

"Yeah, technically, but I'd be more surprised if she said no than I am to find out Allison's my kid. Trust me, we'd be happy to have you two move in. There's more than enough space, and Cass loves kids," Alex assured. Maya was planning to go back to her own place, so soon enough it would be the three adults alone in the farmhouse. Alex hadn't outright asked Sol how he felt about kids, but he would be surprised if the older man made a fuss about it. It was easy enough to ignore people with how big the house was anyway. Not that he could imagine Sol being anything but welcoming to Cass's (and his, if he wanted) niece.

He nodded, understanding Leigh's reason. Alex couldn't imagine being in her shoes and having to tell someone that you hadn't seen in several years that you had their kid. "I'm glad you're settling in. Everything I said before stands. Now more than ever. If there's anything you need help with, I'm here. I want to be here for Allison, of course, but I'm here for you too, okay?" She was his friend and the mother of his kid - her comfort and happiness was right below that of Allison in terms of importance. Plus there was the fact he felt guilty that he hadn't been able to be there when she was pregnant and the first few years of Allison's life when she needed his support the most. Yes, the circumstances had been beyond his control, but guilt was rarely rational. For Leigh it meant he would go above and beyond to try to feel he was making up for the time lost. Not just for Leigh and Allison, but himself as well.

Leigh

Cass did seem quite thrilled to be an aunt to Allison so she did believe Alex. Plus it would be good for Allison to be around her family and it would be a lot easier for Alex to get to know his daughter and Cass her niece. "Well, if it's okay with Cass then I'm okay with it." In Leigh's eyes, there wasn't anything that could end up going bad in this situation. And it would be nice to be around family again, considering she had just lost hers.

Alex's sincerity in wanting to help her with whatever she needed was so sweet. In fact, she was pretty sure her heart was melting. "I appreciate that, Alex. I really do. You can help me with a couple things right now, actually." She let go of him so she could gently hold his face in her hands. "One - don't feel guilty about this. It wasn't your fault and you're here now. You can't change the past so just be there for her now. And two...." She lets go and nods in Allison's direction, "Go get to know your daughter."

Alex

"Good. Guess I'll hold off on getting you settled in here then. I'll talk with Cass and we can think about when to start everything." Alex couldn't help but think about Allison and her comfort first and foremost. It would be a big change to be living with her mom all the time to being in a relatively new town and living with three other people, all new family members that she'd never met before. It was a lot for anyone, much less a small child.

His eyes briefly went to her lips before they were back making eye contact. "No promises on the guilt, but I'll try." It was a lot easier said than done. In all likelihood he would feel some sort of guilt about it for the rest of his life, though over time he would stop thinking about it. Eventually it would become only a small passing thought. "The second one I can definitely promise, though." He grinned, winked, and they parted in order to start the long process of making their family whole again.

[laceyyu]

with @cassbrookes; redwood prom Alex and Cass are good siblings who put up with each other's bullshit <3. Featuring the usual of Alex overthinking and mentions of Sol and Cass being obnoxiously cute.

Alex

-Alex has had the question in the back of his mind for the past week, and after talking with Maya he knows he needs some advice. Unfortunately, he only feels comfortable sharing this kind of thing with Cass, not that he wants her in his not-actual relationships. Once he and Maya are separated, he quickly finds his sister (alone, thankfully) and approaches her. No use beating around the bush.- Do you think I'm leading Maya on?

Cass

-Cass smiled when she saw Alex make his way up to her, but her expression quickly turned into one of confusion- Uh... I don't think so? -She didn't really know much about her brother's relationship with Maya, other than they were good friends. She assumed there was a little more going on, but she'd never asked- Why do you think you're leading her on?

Alex

-It's the answer he wants to hear, but at the same time not the answer he thinks he can believe.- I mean, I feel it's a bit obvious. Y'know. Our... stuff. Plus going to prom together, despite it being a more mutual decision and less one asking the other. Letting her stay over in the farmhouse. Which, to be fair, I would still do the same thing over again. I want her to feel safe. At the same time I feel like lines are being blurred even though that was never my intention. I tried to make it as clear as possible that I wasn't ready for a relationship. -This entire thing was why he never did friends with benefits. It never worked out in the long run like everyone wanted it to.-

Cass

Ah. -That confirmed her suspicions. Cass leaned back against the wall they were near and thought over what Alex had said.- Well, okay... First things first, you're not the kind of guy who would ever lead anyone on intentionally. I know that's not what you're askin', but I wanna be clear about it. Second-- how clear are we talking? Do you feel like she's expecting more?

Alex

I mean, she's never said anything about expecting more. She still has her ex that I think she still has some sort of attachment to. It's not so much as I think she's outright in love with me or anything, but it's the feeling, y'know? That she is closer to wanting more than I wanted either of us to be. I don't want either of us to get hurt, and I wouldn't care so much if I was the one pinin' for her. I can handle whatever happens. -He sighed, still wondering if he was making complications where there were none. After all, if it weren't for his gut feeling, he wouldn't believe Maya had any desire for something more with him. But he couldn't ignore that gut feeling as much as he wanted to.- I never should've started anything with her to begin with. -Sexual, at least.-

Cass

I think it's smart to trust your feelings most times. -She nibbled on her lower lip in thought, trying to think of the interactions she'd seen between the two of them, and tried to think of how she might feel if she were in Maya's shoes if Maya did have feelings- I mean, you're both adults, and Maya doesn't strike me as the unreasonable sort. You guys were friends first, so I think you should be able to just sit her down and be honest about your worries. Have you outright told her that this is strictly a friends with benefits kind of thing?

Alex

-Part of him still felt bad for bringing her into this, but he was glad she was willing to try and help out with his mess that he was probably overreacting on.- Yeah, you're right. She's more than reasonable. I'll try to talk to her soon. I guess I felt we were pretty clear on the friends-only part of it, but I don't know anymore. I just really don't want to hurt her. -He wished he hadn't thought only about his own feelings before starting things with her. Usually he was the one more prone to falling for someone hard and fast, and perhaps in a different time he would've done so. This wasn't that time, as great as Maya was. He looked back to Cass, sighing.- Count your blessings that you have Sol and everything is all perfect flowers  and rainbows for the two of you. -God did he miss that.- You been having fun so far at least? Sol take you out on the dance floor yet?

Cass

Has she said something to make you think she's catchin' feelings? -It could all just be in Alex's head... in fact, Cass was pretty sure it was in his head. He had a tendency to overthink things at times.- I wouldn't say everything is perfect. -Although it was pretty damned close, if she was being honest. She knew they'd have fights eventually, or annoy each other in some way. But they were only human, and right now they were in that honeymoon phase.- We've had a few dances, yeah. Mostly before I got up and sang. You guys been havin' fun? I mean, besides your overthinking.

Alex

No, I don't guess so. -Even if he was feeling slightly embarrassed about the entire thing now, it was good he had talked to Cass about this. She knew when he was overthinking things, which wasn't unusual. He rolled his eyes at 'less than perfect'. Really, he was happy that it did seem so perfect for them. Perfect was what Cass deserved. Hopefully the honeymoon phase would last as long as possible.- Pretty damn close to perfect from how I see it. Nothing wrong with that. I'm happy for you. -He gives her a small smile.- Good. You were great, despite the nausea-inducing love radiating off you two. -Obviously he's only teasing; the fact that she was able to write something again and perform it was something he was grateful for. It had been a while since he'd seen her perform, much less with others in the audience to appreciate her talent.- Yeah. No dancing, Maya wasn't gonna force me onto the floor after I told her about the dangers that presented. I wanted to tell you that we're heading back to the farmhouse.

Cass

I won't lie, it feels pretty damned perfect. Thanks. -Alex's opinions meant a lot to her and she was grateful that he and Sol seemed to get along. Which she figured might be in small part thanks to Alex saving Sol's life, but not entirely because of it. His teasing made her laugh, and she didn't even bother arguing that point. More than likely, her song and Sol's reaction to it had made several people 'nauseated'. And she didn't give a damn.- Probably a wise decision on both your parts. And okay, Sol and I probably won't be too far behind you guys.

[laceyyu]

with @lxighmadxson; beckett farmhouse stables Leigh and Alex see each other again for the first time after the outbreak; Alex shows her around the stables.

Alex

So far the Brookes' luck had been bordering on impossible to believe. Not only had Alex been able to find Cass after she had left their previous ranch, but Renee and the boys had been in Redwood too. Then there was the fact that Andy had somehow made it to Redwood from not just beyond state or even country lines, but across an entire ocean. Alex wasn't religious, but there was a part of him that felt there was some sort of higher power at work. He wasn't so self-centered to think that any potential powers were causing all of this for his sole benefit.

Except maybe this. Her. Leigh. "Holy shit. Leigh? Is that really you?" She looked a little different, a little older, but they all did. He hadn't seen her since before the outbreak; Alex had no idea what she'd been through up until that point. It had been ages since he'd thought about his previous life in Terrell. Anna and Leigh and Lonnie and Jess. Seeing Leigh in front of him was a shock he hadn't been prepared at all. Apparently the Brookes' luck continued.

Leigh

Leigh had to admit it - she was downright nervous. She kinda had been since she got to Redwood. The place reminded her of her old ranch back in Texas and brought up some pretty hurtful memories of what had made her leave. It was why she had holed herself and Allison up in their new home for as long as she had. Give them a chance to adapt and adjust to their new surroundings. 

It also gave her a chance to find out some things about the people that were here. She met a few people - Adriana who worked at the daycare and would be watching Allison while she was working. Renee, the doctor who did their intake. She was interesting. Not only that but she was Alex's sister in law. And it was Renee who told her that Alex was here in Redwood. Working at the farm with his sister. So as she made her way to the farm, she felt incredibly nervous because it would be the first time in years since she had seen him. The father of her daughter. 

She was waiting for him once she arrived and she heard him before she saw him. She turned and smiled, her hands crossed across her chest. "As I live in breathe, the rumors are true. Alex Brookes. It's good to see you!"

Alex

He grinned back, surprised but still happy to see her. Their relationship had ended abruptly. It was possible that she might have some sore feelings over it, but it didn't occur to him to be worried about that. Everything in Terrell had happened so fast - Lonnie's health going downhill and his announcement that he was closing the ranch, leaving Anna, starting a relationship with Leigh. "Yeah. Yeah, I - it's good to see you, too. I'm just... wow. Surprised," he said, still processing everything. "You look great, though. Alive, more importantly. How long have you been in town?" She seemed more comfortable in the stables than he had been when first arriving in town, making him believe that this wasn't her first day. Alex had been terrible at keeping track of who came into the city. Part of him still felt like the newest one there despite Andy coming in shortly after him, along with a few others that he'd heard about. 

Leigh

Leigh couldn't help herself and walked up to him and gave him a hug. It really was good to see him. Yeah, sure, the memory of their fling ending and the ranch closing still kind of stung but she was really happy to just see him alive. "So do you. You look amazing. The zombie apocalypse was kind to you. " She let go and shrugged. "About a month now. I brought Jasmine with me and I was just checking up on her." She pointed to her horse in the stable next to her. "What about you?"

Alex

The hug was another surprise on top of seeing her, but he returned it nonetheless. Alex laughed with her comment on his looks. It was his first meeting with someone from his past that wasn't scarred with horrible news and near death experiences, and he appreciated her ability to joke around. He couldn't stop staring at her even as they broke apart. As if she was some sort of hallucination. "A month? Wow. I'm sorry I didn't know that you were here before, I wish I had. I imagine you've got things pretty well under control, but if you ever need help with anything, don't be afraid to ask. And I'm not just saying that to be nice. I know it came be hard getting used to things around here. I want you to be able to be comfortable. Where are you staying?" Perhaps it was premature to want her to stay in Redwood, but no matter where she was he cared about her still and wanted her to be safe and happy. "I thought it might be Jasmine, but I had shrugged it off as impossible. Shoulda known better," he admitted, laughing to himself. Nothing was impossible in Redwood. "A little over three months. It's a long story, but Cass - my sister - is here, along with my sister-in-law and nephews. My older brother actually made it over here from South Africa, too. So, y'know. Lots of Brookes to meet." Alex had no idea who she had and hadn't met after a whole month in town.

Leigh

"Oh, don't be. I've been spending most of my time in my place and getting Allison settled." She hadn't really thought about not mentioning her daughter - it was bound to  come up. "But I appreciate that, Alex. I'll try not to bug you too much, though. I'm in the house just down that way, actually." She turned and pointed to the house, "I wanted to stay close to Jasmine." 

Leigh laughed a little as Alex went on. "Yeah, I met Renee. She was the one who told me you were here. She's incredibly sweet. But I can't wait to meet your sister and your brother. And hopefully I can introduce you to Allison. She's my daughter."

Alex

Leigh answered his question on who Allison was before he could mention his question. He wasn't sure what to think about the fact that she had a daughter. Allison had to be young - even if Leigh had gotten pregnant shortly after their relationship, she would've been born during the outbreak. He couldn't imagine how had that would've been. It was hard enough imagining Renee and the boys without Andy. Alex wanted to know about Allison's father and his potential whereabouts, but he knew it was too much of a loaded question to bring up at that point. He could be patient and piece things together. "All the more reason to bug me. Neighbors helping neighbors and all that. Redwood is all about the community," he joked, though it wasn't a lie. Redwood was very close knit. Perhaps a little too close knit sometimes.

"Yeah. That sounds great. I'd love to meet her. I'm sure Cass will be excited to meet you. Andy's a bit of a recluse, so don't be too offended if you don't get to see him for a while."

Leigh

Leigh gave him a genuine smile. She wanted to tell him that Allison was his but they had only just reunited and she felt like now wasn't the proper moment. "Maybe you could swing by one of these days, then. There is a room that I need help with. Looks like some of the furniture needs to be moved and I am not as strong as I once was. I could make you dinner too." 

She clapped her hands together excitedly. "So I was told that I'm supposed to get shown around so I know the place. I'm one of your new stable hands. I guess you're the lucky one to show me 'round?"

Alex

"I'd like that," he answered, smiling, because he would. Perhaps the world was giving him a second chance with Leigh - not in a romantic way, of course, but a second chance to make things up to her after his abrupt departure. To give her a friend while she settled into Redwood, though hopefully she didn't have anything holding him back like he'd had at the beginning.

"Oh, right. That. Welp, it's pretty self-explanatory. Most all of the equipment is over here." He lead her over to one corner of the stables where the wall was full of shelves of various horse care items. "Hay is over there, and we have extra bales right outside the door to the left. I'm sure you'll get to know everyone's horses pretty quickly. I still got Cici here with me, and there are a few other people in town who have their own horse. Otherwise they just kinda belong to Redwood in general," he said. "Right now the main thing is trying to conserve the feed that we can. Don't starve them, of course, but we can't afford to go wild with it. Winter's gonna be tough."

Leigh

Leigh nodded, feeling a wave of relief course through her as he agreed to help her out. She was more than happy to find out that he was alive. It was a big relief and she didn't know how she got lucky enough to see him after the world fell apart. Just having him back around was good enough for her. She just wondered if that was gonna change after he met Allison.

But first thing was first - business. If she was gonna stick around and help out, she needed to know everything about her new home and the place she would be working. "Aw, you still got Cici? That's amazing! I'll have to say hi and see if Cici still remembers me." She had always been fond of Alex's horse. Leigh took note of where everything was and nodded along. "Don't worry, Brookes, I know a thing or two about rationing feed for the horses."

Alex

"Yup. I'm sure she remembers you. Memory like an elephant," he joked. "I'm sure she's happy to have Jasmine back, too." He showed her around the stables, ending up in one corner with the equipment as the conversation turned to work and feeding. "Fair enough. Most people I've showed the ropes to haven't known near as much as you do, in my defense." Though he hadn't shown that many people around in Redwood in general. Most of the time it had been in Iris when other people were helping out on occasion without any previous experience working with horses. "Where were you living before here? If you don't mind my asking." It could be a sore topic for some folks, and he didn't want to upset her by mentioning something she didn't want to share with him. At the same time he was curious what had happened in the time between their sort-of break-up and her arrival to Redwood. Asking her about her previous situation felt like the most socially acceptable question considering the other ones he had.

Leigh

The stables were pretty straight forward. It wasn't going to take her long to figure where everything was and how things worked. As they got back to the back corner she leaned against one of the stable walls. She figured at some point he would ask about where she was before this - it was a topic that was the new "where are you from" question. "I was on my aunt's ranch in Fredericksburg," she explained simply, "they built up a bit of a compound there. Lots of people and land. I'd probably still be there if one of the infected got through the walls."

Alex

Alex nodded along as he listened to her story, not giving too much detail but that was fine. There was always more to the story when it came to post-outbreak things, and he was willing to wait before hopefully being trustworthy enough to get more. "I'm sorry to hear that. I was in a similar situation, though I left of my own accord to find Cass after we got separated after a couple of years. I know it's hard, but for what it's worth I'm glad you made it here. I don't know what kind of amenities you had, but Redwood's practically a town for royalty if you ask me." Leigh and Allison wouldn't have to worry about food or shelter, and they had people watching out for them every hour of the day for protection. It was about as good as it could get in their current world.

Leigh

Leigh was glad that Alex wasn't delving too deep into things just yet. It wasn't that she didn't want to tell him about what happened. More it was just she didn't think now was a good time to tell him everything. After all, it was just about four years since they had seen each other. But there was plenty of time for catch up and she wanted to hear about his escapades. "Yeah, it seems like this place has just about everything. It's nice that you were able to find your family after everything. How is your sister?"

Alex

"Our luck does seem pretty damn incredible. Bordering on mythical when I think about it sometimes. You showing up on top of it." She might not be family, but at this point anyone from Alex's past felt like it was far beyond a coincidence. "She's good. Her boyfriend, Sol, lives with us in the farmhouse. Partner. Soulmate," he said, batting his eyelashes and pretending to swoon over the man. "I only joke, he's a good guy and I'm glad she found someone. I'm contractually obligated to make fun of them every so often." Alex tried to think of questions that weren't too nosy, which was easier said than done. He wanted to be able to catch up with her without bringing up anything she didn't want to talk about. Unfortunately the outbreak had happened shortly after his departure from Terrell.

Leigh

"Yeah, it's a little uncanny. I would almost be jealous if I didn't benefit a little bit from it." The way Alex spoke about his sister's boyfriend made her laugh, especially as he batted his eyes at her. He was ridiculous, but she was also aware of all the shit her guy friends used to give her and her boyfriends over the years. Including the time she and Alex were sleeping together. "Guess love still does exist. That's nice to know. But you should be nicer to your sister. You might end up with another in law if they really are soulmates." Part of her wanted to ask if he had anyone but now didn't seem like an appropriate time. "You know, I was thinking about taking Jasmine out for a ride around the town. I wouldn't mind some company, if you're up for it. Jasmine needs the exercise and you still owe me a rematch from our last outing."

Alex

He smiled. "Well, fingers crossed you have twice the luck I've had." He laughed at her next comment about Cass. "I'm to the point I already kinda consider Sol my brother-in-law, as fast as it's been. I would bet money that he's already thought about marriage, though I'm not entirely sure what marriage even means nowadays. Not like they're waiting til marriage for anything, nor will they receive any tax benefits." Not that he was against them getting married if that's what they wanted. He wasn't against marriage for himself if he found someone that wanted that with him. He simply felt there was little long-term benefits of 'marriage'. Who was going to stop Sol and Cass if they just started saying they were already married? Grinning, Alex stepped over to take a pair of reins off the wall and tossing her one. "Alright, you're on. Although I question the 'rematch' part considering I remember you winning last time."

Leigh

"I don't know, I think I'm already pretty lucky. I got Allison and now I get to bug you for the rest of time." That, in and of itself, was a win to her. She really did miss Alex, and not just because he was the father to her daughter, but because he was such a good person and she enjoyed being around him. Whatever had brought them back together, she would thank them a thousand times over. "Oh, see, now you have to be extra nice. He's part of the family, after all. And you're stuck with him." Leigh watched him grab the reins and caught them with ease before walking over to Jasmine. "That's because we both know I'm the better rider. No, I'm giving you a chance to earn your honor back. You do have the advantage this time."

Alex

"I didn't realize the privilege to annoy me was so special, but I'll take it as a compliment," he said, grinning. While he was happy with the little family he'd made in Redwood so far, he couldn't deny there was something different in a good way about having Leigh there. It was all too easy to get back into their easy banter they'd had before the outbreak. There was something nice about having someone there that had known him from before - something that made him want to live up to that man he had been in the past. Happier, more easy-going, more playful. Alex would never be that man again, not really, but he missed that part of him that wasn't so worried about life or death. That part of him that had always been optimistic and so sure that everything would fall into place. Despite everything he'd gone through and the way the world was, he wanted to have at least a small piece of that part of him back. "What backwards world have you been living in, Madison? Him being part of the family and stuck with us means I don't have to be nice anymore. He can't leave. That's the whole point. Besides, he kinda owes me his life. Cass has to put up with me because we're siblings. So from my standpoint I can get away with just about anything." Not that he would actually want to. "Damn. First day seeing me and already hitting where it hurts." Leigh caught the reins as he knew she would, and the two began setting up their respective horses and gear before leading them both out of the stables. Alex didn't take any extra time before mounting Cici. "See ya in ten," he shouted to Leigh and winked, then saying Cici's instructions and speeding off around the perimeter.

Leigh

"Oh absolutely. You should." Leigh was glad that they seemed to easily slip back into that friendship they had established all those years ago. She hadn't known if he was going to be happy to see her or had missed her and here, now, it seemed he was. Just as happy as she was to see him again. *Well, if that is the case, then I guess I need to tag team with Cass. It sounds like you've gotten a bit too big for your boots, Brookes." She saddled up Jasmine, an amused smile on her face. " Oh, Brookes, I'm just getting started. I have four years to make up for." Leigh led Jasmine out and pulled herself up into her saddle just as Alex galloped off. " Oh, you son of a bitch, " she laughed as she nuts jazzing forward and took off after him. Oh yeah, she was so glad to have been reunited with Alex.

[laceyyu]

with @mxyacho; redwood prom Alex and Maya have some cute prom fun.

Alex

-Drinks in hand, Alex weaves through a few people before getting back to Maya and handing her the cup.- For you, m'lady. -He grins, settles back down next to her near a corner of the room.- So, having fun so far? I mean, it's not the absolutely spectacular prom that my class of 40 put together, but I have to hand it to the raiders and Council. And I know my nephews are excited, so that's good. It's nice to have something like this, as cheesy as I may think it is. Although I hope nothing so dramatic as my arrival happens in the next week.

Maya

-Maya waits for Alex where he left her to get drinks. She was watching out just to make sure she didn't see the guy who threatened her. But when she sees Alex she smiles and takes the drink from him- Thank you. -she takes the drink and has a sip- Yeah, I'm having fun. It's definitely different than my high school's. -she gives him a look of amusement- Class of 40? There was no way your class was that small.

Alex

-He knows she's been stressed, and he's doing his best to take her mind off things. Though he wouldn't mind if she wanted to point out the suspect, assuming he'd be here.- Yeah? What was your prom like? -He takes a sip of his drink.- Alright, you got me. I think it was 43 if I remember correctly. Pilot Point isn't exactly Dallas. But it was still nice. I might have a picture or two in the photo albums we brought back from the ranch, I'll have to show you when we go back tonight.

Maya

43....Jesus, I couldn't imagine being in a class that size. Our class size was like....900 or something. Which, of course, made our prom huge. We had most of our proms offsite because of the number of people we had. It was insane. I kind of like this smaller crowd better. -she smiled as she thought about seeing his prom pictures- I would love to see them. I bet you're handsome as all hell in them.

Alex

-Alex laughs.- Yeah, I think for both of us it might be hard to imagine a class with that difference. Could be nice not having everyone knowing everyone's business, I guess. But I suppose that was always part of the charm. I always thought smaller crowds were better. -He nods and smiles, thinking back to the memories of his own prom.- I'm sure my mom would totally agree with you.

Maya

-Maya laughed as she took a sip of her drink- Well, only one way to find out. You're gonna have to show me those pictures. -She paused for a moment- Thank you again for coming out with me tonight. I know this isn't everyone's thing but I didn't want to come by myself.

Alex

'Course. Nice to get out every once in a while. The whole prom might be a little silly, but I still want to support the fact that Redwood is even doin' this for all of us. The Council and raiders and everyone didn't have to put this together.

Maya 

-Maya smiles as she nods - Yeah, it is but it's also kinda normal... Well, as normal as a prom during a zombie apocalypse can be. I never thought I'd get a chance to dress up like this ever again.

Alex

Maybe a little more normal if we had a couple of high school senior around the place, but I agree. There were a couple of times we dressed up in Iris, but nothing like this. Dunno if Redwood will ever stop feeling like some sort of rich, gated community with everything we have. -He chuckles, trying not to go down the path of past memories.- You look great, by the way. I should've said that before.

Maya

Rich gated community....God, you're so right about that. I never really thought about it like that before! But if it really was a rich, gated community they'd be serving lobster and caviar. -she laughs a little at her own comment. His compliment catches her off guard and she looks down at her dress- No, it's fine. I literally just sewed some sheets together and made it. It's nothing fancy at all. But thank you. You cleaned up rather well yourself. -she smiles as she gives him a gentle nudge- I almost didn't recognize you.

Alex

-He laughs.- Hey, give the raiders a little bit of time and they might just be able to pull through on that. -The voice inside his head once again worries about leading her on, but it's not that easy for him to turn of the 'gentleman' part in his brain. Shouldn't every girl get complimented at prom?- Almost didn't recognize me, huh? I'll take that as a compliment, though I find it hard to believe changing into a semi-formal dress shirt and slightly darker jeans than usual changes my appearance that drastically.

Maya

Oh god, could you imagine if they found that? The lobster might be easier but the caviar? God, I bet that stuff is disgusting now. -she laughs as she stuffs her hands into her leather jacket's pockets- Well, I mean, I'm used to seeing you in front of the forge covered in ash and soot and sweat.

Alex

Caviar always sounded pretty disgusting to me in the first place, so I can't say it'd be much worse. -Caviar or not, he was always surprised with what the raiders managed to find given they were five years into the apocalypse.- Fair enough. -He grins.- I wanna ask you something, but, uh, I actually have a bit of a confession to make.

Maya

-Maya was taking a drink and quickly swallowed the liquid in her mouth - Yeah, of course. You know you can tell me or ask me anything.

Alex

-He laughed as she became serious.- Sorry, sorry, nothing that serious. I shouldn't have worded it like that. My bad. -He leaned against the wall, giving a faux-serious grimace.- I was gonna ask you to dance with me, but the truth is... I have two left feet. Honestly, the two left feet thing still feels like it's undermining how bad I am. You can ask Cass. It's really bad. Potentially dangerous, even. So I don't want you to think I'm... I don't know, trying to get out of dancing or anything. This is for your safety. Everyone's safety.

Maya

-Maya hummed a laugh- Well, jeez, Alex, here I thought you were going to admit some deep, dark secret. -she nudged him playfully. - Well, I appreciate the intent, but I don't want to be the reason the community center catches fire. -She looks around and shrugs- If you want to sneak out, I won't hold it against you. I know this isn't the most exciting thing.

Alex

If it makes you feel any better, I'm pretty sure you already know all my deep, dark secrets. -At least the ones that still partially mattered.- I'm down. Let me tell Cass we're bouncing and I'll meet up with you outside, yeah? Have the house to ourselves for a bit.

Maya

Yeah, sure. -she grabs his arm and squeezes his bicep real quick- I'm going to head to the bathroom real quick and then I'll meet you outside. Try not to get trapped out there. I won't be able to save you if you do. -she laughs as she heads down the hall to the bathroom and leave him to find his sister-

[laceyyu]

@cassbrookes; farmhouse The two youngest Brookes siblings both want to check with the other about changing living situations.

Cass

-Padding into the kitchen after her morning shower, Cass smiled when she saw Alex already awake and sitting at the small table in the kitchen- Morning, frate.

Alex

-Alex looked up upon hearing his sister's voice, returning her smile.- Morning. Sleep alright?

Cass

Yeah, I did. You? -She went over to the barely functional coffee pot and poured herself a cup before turning around and leaning against the counter as she waited for her brother's answer-

Alex

Mmhmm. -He nods distractedly, knowing he needs to ask her his question but not feeling it's something for the second she wakes up.- Sol's not still in your bed, is he? I need to work on some stuff at the forge and I don't wanna wake him up.

Cass

-she waved a hand before taking a sip of her coffee, needing the caffeine before she answers- Nah, you're fine. He actually slept at his own place last night. But I actually wanted to talk to you about that... -After pushing herself away from the counter, she walked over to the table and sat across from him, setting her mug down and off to the side- Don't just say yes cause you feel like you have to. This house is your house, too. But I wanted to know what you'd think if I asked Sol to just move in with us?

Alex

-Now she has his attention. He looks up from his breakfast to give her his full attention. The question isn't a surprise, though.- I'm fine with it. He's practically been living here the past few weeks, anyway. I know it's more difficult since it's not like I can just build another house on the property like the ranch. It was your place first, and obviously I don't want to get kicked out or anything, but I understand if you become uncomfortable with me being here. As long as we use doors and keep the noise at a reasonable level, I'm fine with everything though. -Cass is an adult, and it's not like he expects his sister to stop her life just because they live together. It makes more sense for Sol to live with them than vice versa.- Speaking of people moving in.... Would you be okay with Maya staying here for a few days? Just temporarily of course. -He already told Maya yes, but he supposed it would be best to double check with Cass.-

Cass

It's home, but it's also hard to feel like it's mine. I don't know if that makes sense. Everyone considers this place mine - ours now. But there's just... There's so much room and empty spaces we're not using.  And it is ours as far as I'm concerned. You'll never make me uncomfortable and I'll always take your thoughts and feelings into consideration. I hope you know that. -She hadn't brought up the whole idea to Sol yet, but talking about making things smooth for everyone was top of the list if he agreed.- And hell, just cause he stays a lot doesn't mean he's actually gonna want to move in, y'know? -Her brow arched up at the return volley, wondering what he might have in mind, but as soon as his question was out, she nodded and smiled- Of course! She can stay as long as she needs to. Just let me know if she's not an early riser and I'll try to be more quiet in the mornings. -Her mind immediately went to work, thinking of empty bedrooms that hadn't been stripped bare- Is she bringing anything with her?

Alex

I appreciate it. -He smiles.- Yeah, I know what you mean about the empty space, but I'm not sure there's much we can do with it. -The space had clearly been meant for children, Cass had to know that, but he wasn't sure what to say about it.- I guess it's good to have something for Andy and Renee and the boys just in case. -He shrugs.- I'd be very surprised if Sol says no. Pretty sure he'd say yes if you asked him to marry you at this point. -Alex returns her smile, knowing she would say yes but still glad to hear it.- Thanks. I think we'll be fine as is. I'd assume some spare clothes and toiletries, but that's about it. -It hadn't occurred to him that Maya might not want to share his bedroom given he always slept in hers when he was over, much less that he should automatically prepare a spare room for her.-

Cass

-She couldn't help the smile that crept over her face at Alex's comment about Sol. She always got warm and fuzzy thinking about him and how well he treated her. But she shifted the focus on Maya- Okay. We can set up that room just across the hall from yours. It's been cleaned recently, so it won't take much to get it set up. -She didn't really know the state of Alex and Maya's situationship, so she wasn't going to assume anything one way or another. At least with a room set up, Maya would have someplace to call her own.- Is everything okay with her?  Do you know how long she's staying?

Alex

-It was probably for the best for Maya to get her own room, so Alex nodded. He was fine getting things ready.- Sounds good. -He isn't sure how much he should say given Maya's reluctance to talk about it in the first place.- Not really. I don't know how much I should say since she already didn't want me getting involved. Basically she pissed some guy off before Redwood, and he found out she's here and threatened her so she doesn't feel safe at her place. I offered to stay with her if she needs, so.... I'm not sure how long she plans to stay, though. I told her she can stay as long as she likes.

Cass

-Cass's brow furrowed at the thought of someone threatening another member of Redwood to the point that Maya didn't feel safe at her own home. That was the whole point of Redwood - for people to have at least some sense of normalcy and safety.- Jesus... yeah, I second that sentiment. No one should be afraid to go home. Maybe we can talk her into bringing it up to a council member? Whoever it is needs to be knocked down a peg or two if they think they can just threaten people around here. -At least whomever it was would most likely think twice about going after poor Maya here. Not when the guy would have to contend with Alex, Sol, and Cass as well.-

Alex

I already tried with the council stuff. She's not budging so far, at least for now. I'm just hoping she'll mention the guy's name soon. Surely it's not someone I really know, but that doesn't narrow the list down all that much. If nothing else I wish I could know if it's one of the guys I've heard rumors about, y'know? That would make the most sense, but you never know. It's not like I'm real familiar with most of the guys around here. It could be anyone for all I know.

Cass

I can't imagine anyone I've met here making someone feel that uncomfortable, but... -Her mind was drifting to the same guys Alex was likely talking about. The ones that had rumors swirling around about them and their attitudes. Cass preferred to give people the benefit of the doubt, but threatening someone to the point of fear?- Well, as long as she feels safer here, that's what matters. I don't want to push her, but maybe she'll drop the guy's name at some point, once she's comfortable.

Alex

I don't know most the guys around here well enough to say. -He pauses, thinking to himself for a moment before coming back to earth.- Anyway, thanks for letting her stay. We both appreciate it. And let me know when you pop the question to Sol.

Cass

I feel like I know most of them, but I'm still thrown. -She took a sip of her coffee before giving him a small smile.- This place is yours as much as mine now. It's why I wanted to get your thoughts and feelings before I actually asked Sol. -Her grin brightened- I'm thinking of asking him for his birthday, actually. Too cheesy?

Alex

Oh, didn't realize his birthday was coming up. Cheesy, maybe, but I don't see why not. I imagine there's a severe lack of cheese in the world right now, you might as well try to make up for it. Sol'll be happy whenever you ask.

[mxyacho]

Beckett Farm

where Maya tells Alex about what happened with Cole (sort of) and asks Alex for a place to stay because she doesn't feel safe. Alex is the hero and tries to think of how to help outside of staying with her at night. @alexbrookes

Maya Cho

Maya was terrified. Absolutely and 100% terrified. After what happened with Cole she hadn't been able to sleep. She tossed and turned all night, afraid that Cole would burst down her door and demand more from her as recompense. She didn't feel safe. Which was why the next day she went to find Alex at the farm. "Hey, you got a sec?" She asked. She was sure she looked terrible and exhausted and he was bound to find out why very soon.

Alex Brookes

It was unusual for Maya to be there just in the middle of the day while Alex was still working bailing hay for the winter. Something was off, but he had no idea what. He raised his eyebrow in concern. "Yeah, what's up?" he asked, hoping the whatever it was it wasn't too serious. Given how she looked, he wasn't holding his breath on that though.

Maya Cho

"Do you think I could stay with you for a few days?" she asked before biting down on the inside of her cheek. She debated if she wanted to tell him the whole story or if it might be better for him not knowing. But just in case.... "There's a guy here that I pissed off before coming to Redwood and I didn't know he was here but now he knows where I live and I....I don't feel safe by myself."

Alex Brookes

The story was vague to say the least, but he nods. "Yeah, of course." Technically he would need to ask Cass, but it wasn't as if she hadn't had Sol over there all the time. She had little reason to say no. "I get you're trying to be vague for a reason, and I respect that, but I'm here if you want to talk about it. And I understand why you'd want to keep things a secret, but I feel like this is something the council needs to know about. Did he threaten you?"

Maya Cho

Maya knew Alex would listen and maybe she did need to talk about it but it all happened so fast she was pretty sure she was still processing it. Or trying to and failing quite miserably. "He said he'd be watching me," she answered, not sure if it really constituted a threat or not but to her, it felt like one. "He was at the laundromat and he recognized me. Before I found my way here I was hungry and looking for some supplies and I came across his hideout...I didn't know anyone was there but when I saw him, I grabbed his bag and ran." Her hand went to rub her neck, remembering Cole's hand squeezing it. "He made me take him back to my place to get his stuff back."

Alex Brookes

While Maya may have been in the wrong for the first encounter, the man's reaction to seeing her was completely inappropriate. He was in Redwood now anyway, where all of his needs were taken care of and then some. Perhaps it was best Maya didn't tell him who it was considering Alex already wanted to punch the guy. Not that he actually would unless he or someone else was in immediate danger; there were enough shady people in Redwood at the moment and he didn't feel like being added to the list. Alex frowned. Maybe not a direct threat, but he clearly wanted Maya to feel scared and unsafe. "Bastard," he murmured. "You can stay at the farmhouse as long as you need, and if you want me to stay with you at your place I'm happy to do so any time. Maybe we can get some hard evidence on him at some point. The Council seems to be taking the 'better sorry than safe' route with some people, I'm afraid."

Maya Cho

She never thought he was going to say no but still, when he said she could stay as long as she wanted and offered to stay with her, she felt relieved. Just having someone with her would be a great relief and considering Alex was her best friend, she trusted him more than others. "I'll try not to stay too long. I don't want to put you or your sister out." Leave it to Alex to think about gathering evidence. "I don't know if that will help any. It might make matters worse and I don't want you getting caught up in my mess."

Alex Brookes

"Oh, I should tell you that Sol might be moving in too, not that it really matters what he says either way since he's been staying over so much anyway. Just so you know." Alex didn't think it would make a difference, but he thought it would be best for her to know beforehand. "Stay as long as you want, seriously. As I said, Sol's been staying over all the time. The house feels empty as it is." The house was huge. All the empty rooms and corridors made it feel barren at times. Alex wasn't happy with her answer about the hard evidence gathering, but he understood. That didn't mean he was happy about it. Nonetheless, he would do as she wished. For now, at least. Perhaps he could try to gather more information on the situation as a whole. He didn't know if he could idly sit by if Maya was truly in danger, even if she wanted him to. He sighed but nodded. "Fine, no evidence. But don't you dare start with the 'not getting me caught up'. I'd much rather you tell me than not. You shouldn't feel unsafe here. I don't care if I get tangled up in this. I don't care if things get messy. I want to know, and I want to help," he insisted.

Maya Cho

It wouldn't bother Maya if Sol was staying there as well. It wasn't her place to care, anyway. It wasn't like it was her house. "Thanks, Alex. Really, I appreciate it. More than you probably know." There was a warm blush that filled her cheeks as he went on. Alex was amazingly sweet and she felt incredibly lucky to have him in her life. Really, she didn't know what she would do without him. He was very much the best thing to happen to her since she arrived at Redwood. "This would be the point in which I would kiss you and remind you how fucking amazing you are, you know." She really did want to but she didn't want to overstep. She knew she was already asking a lot by asking to stay with him.

Alex Brookes

Alex wasn't going to pressure her to talk about it anymore, at least for now. Hopefully she would give him a little more information to go on as time went on. He gave her a soft smile, tilting his head and raising his eyebrows so she knew he wasn't being serious now. "I mean, I'd take both." He was happy he could do something to make her more comfortable and safe, even if she wasn't willing to tell him anything more about what was going on. Patience was a virtue. All he could do was hope that her unwillingness to tell him more didn't end up getting her hurt when he could've helped. It was her decision, though, and he respected that.

Maya Cho

Maya's face relaxed a little as she noticed his change in demeanor. The breathy laugh felt natural as she stepped forward and gave him a long kiss because she wanted him to know how much she appreciated him with more than just words. Consequences be damned - she wanted him to know. When she pulled away she was biting her lip and rocking back on her heels. "You are the greatest. I don't know what I would do without you." She didn't know how lucky she had gotten to have him as her closest friend but she was glad he was and that he was in her life. he made the darker days in Redwood a bit brighter. "I'll let you get back to work....and thank you, again."

[mxyacho]

Maya's Home

Where after sleeping together, Maya and Alex discuss the night before and where they stand with one another. @alexbrookes

Maya Cho

Maya was awoken by the rays of the sun poking through her curtains and kissing her face. Her mind was still in those early morning cobwebs where everything felt groggy, but even through the haze she vividly remember the night before. Not that she could forget with Alex asleep next to her. Not just next to her - she was draped around him. He looked so peaceful and she didn't want to wake him so carefully, she untangled herself from him and slid herself out of bed as slowly as she could so he wouldn't wake.

Now out of bed she found one of her oversized shirts to put on before walking into her little kitchenette. She didn't have coffee (not that Redwood seemed to have an abundance of it) but she did have water and some tea leaves so she could make some tea. It would help occupy her mind as she waited for him to wake up and prepare her for the conversation that was bound to occur. And she didn't know why but she was nervous about it. She didn't think he would but her biggest fear would be that he would regret it and it would be a one night thing. That she would have ruined their friendship because of last night and lost the closest person she had here in Redwood.

But she wouldn't know until he woke up and so she made a pot of tea and sat at her desk by the window, drawing idly to keep her mind distracted while she waited.

Alex Brookes

The other side of the bed was cold when Alex finally awoke. He was slightly disappointed that she wasn't there next to him, reveling in both her body heat and the closeness of another being, but he knew she was still in the house. After stretching his neck, Alex pulled off the covers and got out of Maya's bed. Unfortunately his clothes were all still in her living room. Once he had freshened up in the bathroom, he snuck out to the living room to put his clothes back on. He had assumed Maya would be in the kitchen since he'd heard the kettle beginning to boil on the stove, but she was sitting at her desk and looking out the window. Thankfully he had been quiet enough that he at least had his underwear back on before he got her attention. "Morning," he greeted, giving her a soft smile as he pulled his pants on. "Did you sleep alright?" He'd still had some nightmares, but not as bad as he'd been prepared for given he'd literally just killed a man less than 48 hours before. Fully clothed again, he stepped over to her desk to look over her shoulder at her drawing pad, gently brushing his hand over her back. "Whatcha drawing?"

Maya Cho

Maya had thought about staying in bed and just laying there with him until he woke, but unsure if that was something he would have wanted or felt comfortable with, she had gone with the safer option of waiting for him in her living room. And it allowed her to distract herself with her comfort activity so she didn't overthink about what was going to happen when he rejoined the land of the living. Her pencil was gliding across the page as she drew the sun rising over the lake. Or at least attempted it - it was still in it's early stages so it looked less like the picturesque view and more like a rough doodle. But like many things, good art took time. She was so engrossed in her task she hadn't heard Alex get up and grab his clothes until she heard him greet her.

She sat up a bit and turned, giving him a smile as she watched him pull on his pants. "Morning," she greeted back, going back to her drawing for just a minute. She figured she'd let him get dressed without her oogling him with her eyes. "Good....maybe better than I have in a while. You?" She had felt him toss a little last night but she didn't think to mention it. If he wanted to share then she would let him but she wouldn't pry. They had already shared quite a bit last night. Maya was only aware of him behind her when his hand touched her back and she smiled as she looked over her shoulder. "Just the sun rising over the lake. It's still a work in progress so don't judge it too harshly," she replied, joking as she nodded towards her kitchen. "I made tea if you want some....I don't know if you're a tea person but I thought you might want something when you woke up."

Alex Brookes

"Same here. A few nightmares I think, but nothing too bad considering the past 48 hours." Though he was still vulnerable and reeling from his time at his family ranch, he was happy to feel safe and comfortable back in Redwood in Maya's home.

Alex was first in line to admit he knew next to nothing about art, nor did he have an artistic bone in his body for the most part. Photography had been the only creative thing he'd ever enjoyed or been good at. Even then he didn't feel it had been a creative hobby for him. He simply liked looking at things in the world and took pictures of those things. It hadn't been until his best friend had asked him to do wedding pictures that Alex had looked into how to use his camera beyond the basic functions and things like photography composition and color theory. The vast majority of it still felt way beyond his understanding. There was no doubt in his mind Maya had infinitely more creativity than he did. While he hadn't done it often, he enjoyed getting to watch her draw. Her expert hands clutching the pencil as she thought about and made each line. He would've loved to see some of her pieces from before the outbreak when she'd had all the materials she wanted at her disposal and infinite inspiration at her fingertips. Her current drawing was far from complete, but he could still see it was a landscape of some sort. "Never," he promised, grinning. "It already looks good now, and I'm sure it'll be amazing when you're done." He wasn't used to morning afters with girls he wasn't in a relationship with. Would it be weird to kiss her? They hadn't talked about any of it. "Usually I'd say yes, but I'm not enough of a tea person for you to waste any on me. I'm good with just some water." He wasn't sure what kind of tea she was making and how abundant it was. Alex paused as he tried to think of the best way to say his next words. "So.... I guess we should maybe talk about things? Last night and all that, I mean." Still as smooth as ever.

Maya Cho

Maya was glad that he seemed to be honest and a little open about why he had tossed some in the night and she took that information as a good sign that things were still good between them. "I'm glad. You definitely deserved some good sleep after everything." She mostly meant because of the ordeal he had gone through but after what they did together while he still had some injuries, she couldn't blame him for needing extra sleep.

Her cheeks filled with a hint of a blush as he complimented her work and she sat her pencil down to get up and make herself a cup and get him some water. She didn't take it personal that he didn't want tea - tea was not for everyone. When she passed him she thought about kissing his cheek but she didn't know if it would be appropriate. Was it or would he see it as too much? That was something she would have to figure out later.

She got him a glass of water and was pouring her tea when he mentioned last night. Oh God....now she knew they needed to talk about last night but she would be lying if she wasn't nervous about what he would say. "I guess we should...." She muttered, trying not to sound nervous as she handed him his water. "Did you want to go first?" She felt like if she tried to guess what he was thinking she'd say the wrong thing and ruin their friendship and she didn't think she could handle that. That was the last thing she wanted.

Alex Brookes

Taking the glass of water, Alex nodded, hoping that Maya would say something more substantial first to no avail. He understood, though. He was fairly sure that neither of them wanted to ruin things by saying the wrong thing. While he certainly didn't regret their night together, he would if it meant their friendship ended. "Right. Um...." Alex had no idea what to say, how to explain every little warring emotion inside of him. "You know that I like you. A lot. And I definitely don't regret anything last night, if that's what you might be thinkin'. Last night was amazing." How honest should he be with her? He'd never held much back from her before, but now if felt like there were more feelings on the line. The last thing he wanted to do was to hurt her inadvertently. It was possible that maybe Maya felt something romantic for him, though he hadn't thought about it until then. He didn't know if he could give her what she wanted. She had her own ex that she was trying to get over, or so he thought. "I don't want to hurt you. That's the last thing I want. But right now... I just don't think I'm ready for a real relationship. If that's even what you would want, I don't know. What I'm trying to say is I care about you so much, and while I'd be happy to continue doing this sort of thing on a regular basis, I also understand if you don't want to. If you have even the slightest inclination that I could hurt you by not being ready for a relationship if we started something regularly, then I don't think we should do this. Our friendship comes first before anything else."

Maya Cho

Maya had to admit that she was completely terrified about what Alex was going to say. Her mind was reeling with all the possibilities. Last night was a mistake, they couldn't be friends, he needed space to think.... every bad thing was in the forefront of her mind. At least, until he spoke. It started off good and a blush covered her face when he said his last night had been amazing. But she was waiting for the but because normally when something started off good it was always followed with a but.

And then it came and what it did, Maya felt.. relieved? Because the but was not a bad but. Her shoulders relaxed and her face lighting just a bit but she took in what he was saying."Oh thank God," she breathed out with a relieved laugh, "I was worried you were going to say that we shouldn't do this again." It was a great relief to know he didn't want to not see her after last night. "I care about you too, Alex. I was worried I might have overstepped a bit and I would never want to put you in an awkward situation."

Alex Brookes

The awkward morning after was one more reason Alex was hesitant to hook up with anyone when they hadn't made clear boundaries first. Sex was already such a big boundary for him. He already didn't want to hurt Maya, but it always made it worse when they'd already been together physically. All he could do was wait to see what she said and what was on her mind.

He internally let out the mental breath he had been holding. She wasn't upset. "Overstep? Hell no. I feel like I'm the one who practically jumped you," he joked, though it wasn't as if she had seemed to mind. Obviously he never wanted to push her into something she didn't want. "So... we're good, then? On the same page and all that? I'm good to keep this going if you are." It had risks with it, yes, but Alex was willing to take those risks as long as Maya was willing to as well. He already cared deeply for her, but he couldn't imagine himself being ready for another relationship anytime soon. There was still a guilty part of him for even sleeping with Maya so soon after leaving Rosalie despite knowing there was nothing wrong with sleeping with her. Rosalie had given him straight up permission. Unfortunately, his feelings weren't that easy to sway. If feelings came into the mix later... well, he would deal with that when the time came.

Maya Cho

Maya breathed out her laugh, feeling her cheeks twinge a little shade of pink. "I mean, you kinda did, but I was not complaining." Not that she could complain about a single thing last night. Night was incredible. "Yeah, yeah we're very good." Alex meant the world to her and she had been ready to bend over backwards to apologize if she had let things go too far. Much like Alex had said, Maya wasn't ready for a relationship. Honestly, she was terrified of one. What had happened with her and her ex had really messed her up and she didn't know if she could let herself feel like that again, even though she would be lying if she didn't think she had felt something when she was with Alex. But again, like Alex said, their friendship came first. It always had and it always would. "After last night, I am quite happy to keep this going. Last night was....incredible." She wasn't lying. Not that she ever would with him. But she wanted him to know that she enjoyed last night as much as he seemed to as well. "I was actually hoping we could do it again but I didn't want to put you in a weird spot."

Alex Brookes

Alex still wasn't quite sure what Maya's feeling were on starting a relationship, but she seemed happy in the moment and he supposed that was all that mattered. Given their conversations, he'd assumed that she wasn't ready for one either after the way she'd always talked about her ex. If they needed to break things off later on, they could do so. Only time would tell. He would try to remain hypervigilant to make sure neither of them ended up getting hurt. "Good," he said, grinning. "I'm happy to hear that. And happy to hear things were incredible." Alex was as human as any other guy; obviously it was nice to hear that their night had been good for her too. "I think we can arrange something." He shrugged nonchalantly in a joking manner. As if he had a line of girls outside his door and she was the privileged one to be with him. It wouldn't surprise him if she had been with others in Redwood, not that he minded. That was her business, and he knew that most people were more willing to have casual sex than he was. For now, all that mattered was that they knew what they wanted and he could let some of the worrying go to the back of his mind. Dropping the joking act, he grave her a more genuine smile and leaned in to bring their lips together for the first time since waking up.

[jakehawk]

Starter for @alexbrookes Setting: Community Centre

Jake had dropped the Hawks off at school earlier that day and had completed a number of errands. He wasn't due to go out hunting until tomorrow so until the kids got out of school, this time was his own. And while it was tempting to go back to his place and have a nap, Jake decided to go to the Community Centre to see who else was out and about.

He visited the kitchen and said hi to Ember as he got himself some lunch. He was going to sit inside but decided to sit outside instead and make the most of the warm fall afternoon.

Jake had just sat down when he noticed Alex Brookes walking towards the Community Centre. Now, it wasn't as if Jake had been purposefully avoiding the Brookes family since he had brought Andy back to Redwood but he had been careful to not be in the same spaces as them. He was a huge fan of Cass but after everything that happened with Renee, Andy's wife, it was easier to not be around the Brookes clan.

But Redwood was a small place and Jake couldn't avoid the Brookes family forever.

"Hey man, how's it going?" Jake said to Alex as he got closer.

[laceyyu]

Though Jake had been the one to bring Andy back, Alex still knew next to nothing about either the man or the encounter. He was grateful, of course, and he knew that Jake was close with both Renee and Cass so clearly he was a decent guy. Alex had simply not found the time or a huge reason to talk to him, and it seemed Jake was alright with that as well. It wasn’t as if Alex didn’t want to talk or meet with him, sometimes life just got in the way of things sometimes. Either way, it was surprising for the older man to greet him in the community center. “Oh, hey, Jake. Goin’ alright. Nothing much to say, I’m afraid.” At least nothing that he felt was appropriate to say given he and Jake weren’t close. It didn’t feel like his business to mention Cass and Sol unless asked directly, nor was he going to mention the whole thing with Maya and her mysterious attacker. He couldn’t even give an update on Andy since there wasn’t one. “How about you? Kids doin’ okay?” Besides Jake’s earlier career, it was the closest thing Alex had to personal information on him, and he figured it was a safe topic to bring up as well.

[laceyyu]

What character from a movie/stage musical would you be?

Marius Pontmercy - Les Misérables

[laceyyu]

Ask me anything

Let's see how this goes

[laceyyu]

You're not looking for a new relationship, but are you open to hooking up with more women than Maya?

Ha!

Short answer - Probably not, but never say never?

Long answer - Sex makes things messy emotionally. I already dislike feeling like I'm bringing Maya into my shit as it is. Then there's the fact that hooking up with two people at the same time (well, not at the same time, you get what I mean) is foreign to me. Believe it or not, I'm not trying to make everything messier for me. I don't know if there's anyone else in town I feel close/comfortable enough with to consider hooking up, anyway.

Is there someone in particular asking, or....?

@mxyacho

[laceyyu]

What's your type? Be specific.

Umm... Well. Someone nice who understands me (and I understand her) and that I feel comfortable with. Someone that I'm friends with first and foremost. Romance and sex are great and all, but I want my partner to be my best friend. Those are the main things. Bonus points if she likes animals, especially horses.

[laceyyu]

Ask me anything

Let's see how this goes

[mxyacho]

.

The second his fingers felt the warm, wet lining of her lips, a shockwave shot through her and she breathed out a needy whine. Her fingers were digging into his back muscles and she felt how he held her even tighter to him while his fingers teased the soft opening. And when his thumb was added to the mix and she felt just how close he was to that nerve that could turn her to jello, her hips bucked just a bit as she tried to move so his thumb could find it. But he was teasing her. Toying with her. Making her want more. And man, was it working. He knew what he was doing and she was resisting the urge to dial this up. After all, she had to be mindful of his injuries. The last thing she wanted was to hurt him more because she got a little too eager.

The desire between them was rising. She didn’t think she was going to be able to hold back much longer. Not that she wanted to, but at the same time she didn’t want to aggravate his ribs any more than they already were. His words resounded in her ears and her mind was racing so much as she thought about what she wanted. All the things she wanted. She wanted him, of course, but there was so much more. She wanted him to explore every inch of her body. To know the feeling of his tongue as he spelled his name with it between her legs. She wanted to know the feeling of him buried completely in her and to have him make her scream his name as her body went into overdrive from him. But of course she didn’t know how much of that they could do, but she did know one thing….

“I know what I want,” she started, her voice more airy than tone, “but I don’t want to hurt you.” She paused for a moment, pulling away just a bit so she could spot his beautiful blue eyes staring at her. “But for sure I want to get these pants off,” she breathed out, letting go of his shoulders so she could slide them down towards the waistband of his pants. She fiddled with the button and zipper, her eyes watching his face as she loosened the restrictions that were caging his dick. Now Maya knew she could climb off of him, even though she really didn’t want to, and take that moment to finish pulling the rest of their clothes off so she could ride him on her couch, but again, her eyes spotted the bandages on his chest and pondered it for a moment. “Maybe we should move this to the bed, yeah?” Surely it would be more comfortable and they could easily just rest there afterwards.

[laceyyu]

Alex let out a breathy laugh when she said she wanted to get his pants off. He let her mess with the button and zipper, never taking his eyes off her face as she finally undid the fastenings. Just as he thought he was going to get his pants off and get her hands where he really wanted them, she pulled away and began speaking. He kept himself from groaning in frustration. It was sweet that she was so worried about his injuries and didn’t want to hurt him, but at that point he was ready to say that blue balls were his main worry about his physical form at that moment. Other injuries be damned. But he knew that moving to the bed would be best for both of them in the long run, so he nodded. “Yeah. Yeah, good idea.” Alex let out the breath he had been holding in anticipation for her hands on his dick.

He kissed her once again as he lifted himself up, then finally got off the couch once she got off of him. His skin was already mourning the loss of her body on top of his own. The two lovers made their way into Maya’s bedroom. While Alex had been in the room, it was more common for them to talk and hang out in her living room. He had never looked around the space much, nor was he going to take the time to do so right then when the only thing that mattered was her bed. Alex didn’t waste any time going to kiss her again once they were in her bedroom, stumbling over to the bed as he fumbled to get his jeans and underwear off. Once he was completely naked save for his bandages, he went to work getting Maya’s clothes off as well, though he took his sweet time squeezing her butt and sliding his hands across her hips. As if he hadn’t already had his hands down her pants. Finally, he slid her own clothes off to join the pile of fabric on the floor. “So fucking gorgeous,” he murmured. As much as he wanted to be on top and fuck her into the mattress, he knew that it would be better for his injuries if he was the one lying down. He didn’t allow himself to think about potential future times with her where he could make it up to her and do more of the work. “I hate to have to ask you to do the work, but would you be okay with riding me?” Though he was fairly sure she was more than fine doing so, he wanted to check. Alex leaned forward to press their upper bodies together, his hands on her hips as he got a few centimeters from bringing their lips together. “You get to join the 'Save a Horse, Ride a Cowboy' club if nothing else. Very exclusive. And,” he paused to press a few kisses up her jaw before reaching her ear. “You can always ride my face, too. If you want.”

[adrixnadelgxdo]

Adriana was quite impressed by everything that Redwood had to offer. The homes, the vetting process - even the full functioning clinic for their initial intake. The doctor, Renee, was kind and sweet and it seemed her oldest son, Oliver, had quickly adopted Bruno to be his friend. Something that Adriana was quite grateful for. Being the new kid had always been hard, especially nowadays. So to have kids be friendly like that to Bruno was almost a God send. One less thing she had to worry about here in town. It was almost like this town was too perfect.

After the initial intake, Adriana had decided to go to the clinic and see if the good doctor had anything as far as a makeshift first aid kit for her to keep around her house. It never hurt to have small things like bandaids or ointments for burns. You know, small things that might happen at home. Adriana didn’t want to think that any small bruise required a visit to the clinic. That seemed like overkill. She probably should have asked about that when she had brought Bruno by before but the thought had slipped her mind. Her focus was elsewhere.

Adriana stepped in, the door creaking open as she pushed her way inside. “Hello?” she called out softly. She did hear someone but she didn’t know if it was Renee or anyone else that might be in there. Turns out, it was someone else who was buttoning up his shirt. He obviously hadn’t been expecting her to walk in and she laughed softly as she noticed how frantically he was buttoning up his shirt. “You’re okay,” she spoke, half turning so it didn’t look like she was staring at him as he got dressed, “I was here to see if she had anything that I can keep around the house. Like a little first aid kit. I didn’t know you were getting dressed…I probably should have knocked. I’m sorry.”

[laceyyu]

In all fairness, Alex seemed to be much more embarrassed than the woman was. She didn’t seem to care in the slightest that she had seen him shirtless. There was a small part of him that was offended that this gorgeous woman had no interest in seeing his body, but he knew it was a dumb thought to have in the first place. Everyone in town had better things to do than look at his physique. Not to mention his chest was still covered by a massive swath of white cloth serving as a bandage. 

“No, no, it’s on me. Really. It’s a public space, I wasn’t thinking.” For the most part, everything had been pretty empty every time he came in to see Andy. He’d forgotten that the clinic wasn’t actually a building for their family and their family alone. Alex quickly finished buttoning up his shirt, ignoring the pang of pain from his overly hurried movements. “Sorry. You can look now. Hopefully we’ll both still be keeping our honor intact,” he joked, trying to lighten the situation and not stay embarrassed the whole time. He had never met the woman after all. There was no trait that he could immediately discern that would tell him who she was if he had heard about her from others.

Turning back around to her, he was able to look at her better. Still nothing that would tell him who she was. “You don’t happen to be new, do you? I don’t remember meeting before. I’m Alex.” They were still a bit too far away for a handshake to make sense, and he didn’t feel the need to close up the space between them. He elected for a friendly nod instead. If she was new like he was thinking, it would be the first new person in Redwood that he would meet (not counting Andy, who obviously he’d known beforehand). Someone who didn’t know about him and how he’d saved Sol, who hadn’t already gotten a first impression of him before they’d even seen his face.

[ijemmaokafor]

"Hey there, blue eyes! I think it went pretty well! Belle is the sweetest fucking creature, I can't imagine a better horse to be doing this with."

She was surprised to find him walking right up to her, striking up a conversation. But then again, she'd been able to see it over the last couple of weeks. He was warming up to folks around here, finding his groove. It delighted her. Nothing made this kind of work feel more fulfilling than seeing a person start finding their place in the community. It was a shame some of that progress had come at the cost of what happened to him and Ike and Cass and their family farm. But still, everyone was alive and home and recovering from the ordeal. That was nothing to be disappointed about.

"Oh! Well thank you. Doesn't feel like all that much has changed, really. I mean, I rarely ended up having to vote on anything, council's pretty good about coming to a compromised agreement. But the circumstances behind this promotion are much happier than the last one, so it's a good thing all around. Thank you so much for helping connect them back together. I know how much it weighed on him--it really was like he'd lost his children."

She'd accidentally reminded herself of something more somber she'd been meaning to tell him. She was loathe to bring the mood down at all, but it was well past due.

"And while I'm thinking about it...I never thanked you for bringing Sol back to us. And for...well, not dismissing Ginny. You didn't know either of them, and while saving Sol might have felt like a no-brainer, taking the risk in all that rubble to get eyes on Ginny. It brings me some kinda peace, anyway."

[laceyyu]

There was something about the ‘Blue Eyes’ nickname that Alex liked. It had been a long time since anyone had given him a nickname like that. It was one more thing that made Jemma so sweet. He nodded along with her update on the horse riding, happy she was enjoying it for the most part. If nothing else, the fact that she liked Belle was enough to make him happy.

“Understandable. Yeah, I may not have been around for long, but it definitely seemed like you were a Council member in everything but name,” he said. Perhaps it was because he knew her better than he knew David or Ermano, but he’d felt she was doing more ‘council’ things than they had, not to diss either of them. David was only there temporarily for one, and Alex didn’t really care what he did during his short stint as member. He had nothing against Ermano either, clearly he was doing alright as a leader considering how well Redwood was doing. “Hey, I’m glad I was actually able to do something. It’s a miracle in itself that I knew Lily and where she was. I’ll admit it wasn’t the easiest decision on whether to go back or not, but I’m glad I did in a lot of ways. I know how much it means to be able to be connected with family again.” Alex wasn’t sure what kind of ties Salem had in Redwood, but he hoped he would transition easily into Iris. It was an amazing place even if he was biased.

Jemma’s upbeat manner dropped as she mentioned Sol and Ginny. It felt like ages ago that it had happened, though he knew it was still difficult for those that were close to her of course. Alex still never knew what to say when people thanked him for saving Sol. “Of course. I mean... maybe it’s not what everyone would do, but it wasn’t a hard decision for me. I wish I had been able to save Ginny, I hope you know that. I didn’t realize you two were close.” Sol and Ike he knew, but otherwise it wasn’t as if he had gone around asking who she had been close with. He never knew her. “If there’s anything I can do to try and make things easier, please let me know. If you need to talk about it or want to ask something or, I don’t know, anything that I might somehow be able to help with, I’m here,” he offered.