A D Tier's Breaking Point

Chapter 31

The strangest part about watching Alex go through his hoard after not seeing him for a year was how normal it was. Morgan had expected excitement when going through the various knick knacks and treasures after reclaiming what had been lost to him for a year. But, aside from his initial reaction, Alex was acting...normal. It was his normal contentment and concentration when tracking what should be in the pile, and if something was in the wrong place (how it can have a "wrong place" when its literally a random pile of stuff Morgan will never know). If Morgan didn't know any better, they could fully believe that they had gone back in time just to watch the old Alex do this. Or that they were dreaming.

Morgan curled up on the throne, hugging their knees to their chest. Watching Alex move through the piles of stuff. Listening to the random shift of gold as he pulled out something else to examine. Running their hand along the polished wood of the throne, feeling for the knots that hadn't been fully buffed out. Everything's fine , Morgan told themself. Alex is back, he's here, everything is okay.

A few coins spilled away from the pile and rolled over the floor. One ran all the way up to Morgan's seat before stopping. Morgan slowly unfolded, stretching down to pick up the coin, examining it closely. Gold, at least in colour, and in an odd currency. It was cool in their hand, and Morgan traced their fingers over the embellishments on either side. One depicting a partially faded face, and another depicting a watermill. Morgan twisted it in their fingers, watching the light catch on the metal. Lightly tapped it on the arm of the throne to hear the dull thud of metal on wood.

Looking up, Morgan counted the other coins that had scattered. Alex was currently shuffling their hand through an old dented tin box, checking the bits of paper inside. He smiled and closed the box, resting it back on the pile before turning towards the next thing. The tin slid slightly, clinking against a dusty mason jar and a gear from an old engine before landing on something soft and satin. Alex's hands ran over a pair of small oven gloves, various knitting supplies, a crown he then picked up and placed on his head. Morgan smiled at that, looking away. They didn't need to stare. It was fine, they were fine. Alex was fine. Their eyes found the scattered coins, counting them again as they tapped the coin in their hand against their leg.

'You okay?' Morgan jumped at Alex's voice.

They spun around, and saw somehow Alex had gotten deeper into the pile. I forgot how fast they can move , Morgan thought, and smiled at the concerned look Alex was giving them. 'I'm fine. Just thinking.'

Alex frowned, 'About what?'

Shit! Morgan smothered their panic and tried for a nonchalant shrug, 'You mentioned Mario Kart earlier, it's been a while since I kicked your ass. Or we could watch a movie. Or, there's this show that came out based on that game Clan of Champions, you'd think it would be weird because it's based on a video game but it's actually incredible. The-' Morgan halted as Alex suddenly appeared next to their seat. He flicked out something thick and knitted and wrapped it around Morgan's shoulders. They grabbed the edges of the blanket on instinct and tugged it closer, looking at Alex in confusion, 'What are you doing?'

Alex looked at Morgan, his gaze soft but concerned, and Morgan had to swallow against a stab of guilt in their chest, 'Thought it might help.'

Morgan ran a thumb over the stitches in the blanket. They were uneven, some loose and stretching while others were impossibly tight. There were lumps in the thread that, based on the quality of the wool, probably shouldn't have been there. When Morgan pulled it closer it barely covered their legs, 'It's a little short.'

'Yeah well,' Alex shrugged, 'it was my first attempt at knitting a blanket.'

'So it went in the hoard? Sorry, collection?' Morgan smirked at Alex's scowl, making themselves comfortable.