Twisted Past

Chpater 4

Alex was sitting on the couch with Emilia in his arms. Her face was buried in his chest and his arm were around her and caressing her hair.
"It's nice having you back, man. We missed you." Alex didn't say a word. Everyone looked at him with eager eyes. No one knew what he could do or say next. Alex has surprised the friend group in more than one way that night. "Oh come on say it. Alex, say it. Fine. But I know you missed me." Alex didn't claim the contrary. "By the way I heard about the banana float bachelor party. And because you owe me one and actually I want you to have a nice bachelor party too, I have something planned out." Every man except of Josh hid their smile. Even Alex hid his smile in Emilias hair. Raul turned to Josh. "So decide if you want the bachelor party you planned in the morning because then I have him after or at night so I will have him sooner."
"Why would you have him longer than me?"
"That's a stupid question, my friend. Because you celebrate one bachelor party and I celebrate with him two bachelor parties and something he owes me also-"
"Absolutely not." Alex stepped in. "The bachelor parties- fine but the third thing is a big no." Everyone wanted to know what that third thing was.
"Come on you owe me."
"No!"
"I'll get you to do it anyways, why not just agree to it now. Do you really have to put up a fight before losing?" Emilia chuckled, while everyone else's eyes drew wider. He dared to talk like that to Alex? And he dared to say Alex was going to loose?
"I don't lose." Alex growled. Now with that everyone was comfortable.
"Hey, you stop now, you are not taking the bachelor party away from me! He is my best friend and I am his best friend! You can't take that away from me!" Josh whined.
"Alex said you are jealous but I didn't think you'd be that jealous."
"Raul..." Alex got his attention back. He rolled the r with his tongue. He warned Raul with a look. Christian just had to step in.
"He is even jealous of me." Raul's eyes grew big.
"No way! Christian? Really? You are jealous of Christian? I'm going to kill this poor man." Raul pointed at Josh with his hand. Christian chuckled and Alex had to hide his amusement in his cousins hair again. And Jules? Yeah Jules loved every moment of it. Bridget was amused and the other two girls were simply worried about Josh because it really seamed like Raul and Alex had a long history.
"Anyways, whose bachelor party is the first ones.?" Alex asked Raul. Josh was shocked and deeply hurt. How could Alex just have more bachelor parties with that stranger? Fine, he was married to his cousin but still. Josh was not okay with this.
"Mine of course. I married first."
"Then what is my bachelor party?" Raul grinned big.
"You will see and you will love it. You know what mine will be, right? Of course you do, you don't forget. How's your insomnia by the way?"
"Why the fuck do you know about his insomnia." Josh hated this night with every second more and more.
"Because he loves me so much."
"Raul."
"Yes, Alex?"
"Shut up."
"Shut up. Yeah, yeah, I know." They said at the same time. This was nostalgia for Alex and he loved every moment of it. He tried to hide it but he wasn't sure if he hid it successfully. Alex has explained everything to Ava in private soon after Alex promised Emilia that he would be back in a couple of minutes. Even though Ava was jealous and annoyed of both of them in the beginning, she now understood and was even happy for her fiancé. He finally had a part of his family back.
"How did you know, what he would say? I can't even do that and it doesn't matter how often I try and I am his best friend, not you!" Josh was getting really angry.
"If you are his best friend then I am his-"
"Raul!"
"Fine, just because I love you so much, dove." Dove?
"Thank you, darling." Did Alex just call that guy darling?! It slipped out before Alex could even think about it. Josh was freaking out. Alex would have died before he would call Josh darling. Okay, fine, Alex said it with a sarcastic and teasing tone but still! Emilia was laughing on Alex's chest,
"Okay, I just have to step in again. Who are you and what have you done to Alex?" Jules asked. She spoke for everyone. Everyone else was thinking it too.
"I just brought him back. You haven't met the Alex I and Emilia know so well. He's actually a delight. You missed out." A delight? Alex Volkov? Not even Ava could believe that someone apart from her referred Alex as a delight.
"I have a reputation to keep, Raul."
"Sure so bachelor party, just you and me then? Ou that will be so much fun because you can let loose then." Alex was shaking his head. He really did miss Raul.
"Excuse me?! Alex is the most loose with me!" Josh was furious. Who the fuck did that guy think he was?
"Actually-" Jules started.
"Don't." Ava stopped her. In the end Josh would explode. Bridget, Rhys, Christian and Stella stood up and made their way to the door. They felt like it was time to go. Christian shook Raul's hand and told him, it was nice seeing him again and Christian would pay him a good amount of money, if he drove Josh crazy.
Josh was determined to stay the night. He couldn't trust that stranger. Jules didn't even try to change his mind. She wanted to enjoy the show. After Alex asked Raul to move their bachelor parties sooner, so Josh won't be whining the whole time, Raul agreed and was handling a couple of calls. While Raul did that, Josh wanted an explanation.
"Alright, so, what do you want to know?" It was easier to just answer his questions then to deal with Josh's reactions after he told the whole story.
"Who is he?"
"Emilias husband named Raul." If they were a cartoon there would be coming steam out of Josh's ears again.
"Alex, I want to know everything about your relationship with this guy." Alex sighed and started telling the story.
"So my parents had best friends. They were best friends even before my family moved to the US. And those best friends are Raul's parents, so I know him since we were born."
"What do you mean, since you were born?"
"His birthday is two days after mine. Anyways so we grew up together and-"
"Were you best friends? I don't understand, you told me you had a hard time making friends and almost didn't have any." Josh felt somewhat betrayed. How could Alex lie like that?
"And that was true, I did have a really hard time making friends. Raul was my only friend."
"Your best friend?" Alex sighed.
"Yes, my best friend." Saying it out loud made Alex's heart clench. He never had to say it out loud, everyone always saw it. Some people actually assumed they were related. "He moved away a year before my family was killed. His family found out after my uncle took me in or else they would have taken care of me. I broke off contact with them. I saw him again when we were fifteen. His parents got killed by a mafiosi, so I visited as soon as I found out about it. He didn't have anyone who could have taken care for him, so he went to boarding school. He had the money. After a year I applied for that same boarding school and we became roommates."
"Why did you attend the boarding school?" Ava asked. Initially, she wanted to stay out of the conversation but she didn't understand why he would do it.
"Because he needed his best friend. After we graduated l, I told him to go a year to get the education for safety, so he could become a bodyguard and know all about safety measures."
"Why?" Now Jules was the one who asked.
"Because That was the time I found out about my cousin and I wanted to be in her life and that meant she would need someone to watch over her."
"And he just did it?" Josh asked.
"He'd do anything for me." It was almost a whisper.
"As would you." Raul was back.
"As would I." Alex nodded slowly.
"You sound like brothers just without the bickering."  Jules said.
"Oh they bicker." Emilia said. It was the first thing she has said in the group.
"They are not like brothers." Josh insisted. If anyone was Alex brother it was him. At least, that's what Josh thought.
"That's right, that would be an insult. Brothers, pf, can you believe that? We are like twins. I know him in and out and he knows me in and out." And just like that steam came out out of Josh's ears again. Alex smiled gently. It was true. They were like twins.