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Chapter 2: _Alex

He saw her, one day, at a distance, and became filled with rage. She looked happy, it was almost as if she'd already forgotten about him. Maybe she did that when she left him. Maybe she did when she found that kid, Daniel Mathers, low income family, his house a few blocks away from mine. Of course, what Anna obviously didn't know is that he cheats on her with a friend of hers, it's not hard to trace two different social media accounts to the same phone. Seriously, this kids password is 'I1uvch1cks123' on both of them. It's absurd... she could've chosen someone with a greater intellectual ability, like Alex. 

Unless, of course, she wasn't in it for the brains, gentle-manliness, or the relatability. Maybe she was in it because the guy was cute. And you had to admit, this guy did have good looks. But nothing else. And soon, Alex would make sure she found out. First, he copied all the pictures on his private account, and uploaded them on his normal account. Then he hacked into the camera on Daniel's phone, and took some very incriminating videos, late at night, when everyone was asleep except Daniel and the girl, who were acting more like adults than anyone underage should. If you understand his point. He uploaded the videos as well. He didn't keep tabs on Anna, he wasn't thinking about her as he tried his best to destroy this mans credibility, one byte at a time. 

He relished in this awesome power that he had, some kind of rush he'd never felt before. He had complete control over a mans future, relationships, dignity, trustworthiness... He had it all. With just a touch of a button, Daniel could be destroyed forever. Some things he posted would prevent him from ever getting employed.... basically anywhere. Some photos he took could be used as blackmail. Hell, the entire account could be used as blackmail. And the best part, for Alex at least, Daniel would no longer be seeing Anna. Anna was his. And only his. Then he stopped for a moment and looked back at what he was doing, what he was thinking. He recognized how insane this was, one man, waging a personal vendetta against someone he couldn't prove even... liked him. At least, not anymore. He gave up trying, and instead, he devoted his attention to something else distracting, trying to take his mind away from the pain of losing her, losing Anna, without telling her how he really felt. 

To him, she was the most amazing person in the world. If there was one person who was chosen to ascend into heaven from this earth, and Alex was mistakenly chosen, he would offer her his position in a heartbeat. She was the sweetest person he had ever met, understanding, kind, and mature. She didn't laugh at him when he said something incorrectly or stuttered. She smiled and responded when he said hello. And she'd told him that he was actually cute, underneath the disheveled hair and glasses which covered most of his striking features. She was the only person to see him as who he was, not who everyone else made him out to be. And he loved her. 

But like she always said, find hobbies. Draw.  Knit. Sing. Do something distracting. Try to be happy. And he did. He read a book series she'd been begging him to read for a very long time, the Harry Potter series. He was never a big fan of wizards and magic, it just wasn't logical enough for him. But he loved this series, it was so well written. J. K. Rowling became his idol, and he began to write as a distraction. He became the biggest fanboy of the Harry Potter fandom, cosplaying, writing fanfics under a pseudonym (RonaldoWeasley), whittling pieces of wood to make wands, and reading and re-reading the books, watching and re-watching the movies, listening to the soundtracks. He knew everything about Harry Potter. He began to push thoughts of Anna to the back of his mind. She was still there, but Harry, Ron, and Hermione came first. 

He did a little bit of research and discovered Rowling was helping to create a new story, more of a script really, entitled Harry Potter and the Cursed Child. He was excited, he was finally a part of the franchise, part of the excitement. What would it be about? Would it be as good as the rest? He researched some more and found that his local library was holding a midnight release party for the book. He signed up to attend, it was the Saturday that was coming up. He was excited, reverting slowly back to the happy person he used to be, a long time ago, before he was met with insults, bullying, and intolerance. The person that Anna was helping him to be again. The real Alex.

He began to smile again, he cut his hair, he switched out his glasses for contacts, he got himself cleaned up. He looked in the mirror and his smile faded. He didn't recognize himself. He didn't know the person who was standing in the mirror, and in anger he punched the glass, making it shatter and slice open his knuckles. But that was enough. He was able to vent a little. His anger level started decreasing, but it was still there. Nothing can erase so many years of hatred and disgust. Except Anna. Oh Anna, how much he missed her, how much he wanted her, how much he needed her. 

Saturday was approaching quickly. He began getting his outfit ready, making a new wand that reminded him of her, picking out his hufflepuff robes because that was her house. He knew he had to stop thinking of her, but he was going because of her. Harry Potter was because of her. His ability to distract himself came from her. He wished he could be with her, tell her how he really felt. And closed his eyes, trying to imagine her. At first, the thoughts of her were blurry, but then he clearly saw the room in which he slept most nights, when his father was drunk and ready to beat anyone in his path. He saw Anna, curled up in the couch where he would sit, pulling his blankets close to her, and crying. He wondered if this was his fault, if he made her feel this way. Then he wondered if this was just his imagination. He looked down towards her, she seemed so alone, so sad, so helpless. He whispered to her: "Anna, I love you." Her head perked up, and he stepped backwards, afraid. She looked around once, startled, then started to cry again. 

Alex, unsure what was happening, picked up a pen from his pocket and wrote the information for the release on a sheet of paper. Even if it was just in his imagination, he hoped she attended. He really needed to talk with her.