Alex

TWO

"John, Gilbert, Thomas, Aaron, James, and Hercules, I'd like you to..."  Mr. Washington was doing his best to introduce the other boys to me, but I couldn't focus on his words.  My mind kept flashing back to what had happened in the bathroom earlier that morning. 

I was in the shower, minding my own business and thinking about life, and more specifically, where mine was headed, when all of a sudden I was interrupted by the sound of stampeding footsteps.  I thought nothing of it, at first.  How could there not be periodic stampedes in a mansion that was hosting six other boys?  So I shrugged it off.  That is, until the door slammed open.  I'd flinched, but before I could do much more than that, I was doused in freezing water.  My attacker and I had stood there, staring at each other.  He had curly, shoulder-length brown hair and too many freckles.  We were broken out of our weird staring match when he suddenly blurted, "You- You're a girl!" And any hopes of friendship with this prankster were basically out of the question.

"Alex.  Alex!" 

I snapped out of my memory to see Mr. Washington and the six boys staring at me.  "Ye- yeah?"

"Did you hear a word I said?"  Mr. Washing was scary when he was stern.  Regretfully, I shook my head and he sighed.  

"This-" He pointed to a tall, muscular guy with dark skin and a crazy afro. "-is Thomas Jefferson.  He's one of the four foster kids, along with Aaron Burr-" he pointed to a shorter boy with beautiful, chocolate skin. "-Hercules Mulligan-" a muscular guy wearing an old grey beanie. "and James Madison."  Mr. Washington finished by pointing to a smaller boy, half-hidden behind Thomas, who wore glasses and an oversized purple sweatshirt.  

Then Mr. Washington turned to the other two boys, and I felt the breath catch in my throat.  One of the two boys, presumably Mr. Washington's sons, was the freckled boy who'd attacked me with the ice water.  I felt my heartbeat speed up as Washington pointed to him.  

"This is John Laurens-"

"I'd like to apologize."  The freckled boy, John, interrupted Mr. Washington.  "I shouldn't have run in there like I did, and I shouldn't have dumped the water on you."  John glanced at Washington, who looked one part confused and one part pissed.  "As well as..." John glanced at his lap.  "As well as the thing I said to you earlier.  I'm sorry..."

I tilted my head, ready to accept his apology- there are so many people here, I figured it might be to my advantage to have at least one friend- but Mr. Washington cut me off.  "John, you and I will speak soon."  He gave him a stern look before finally pointing to the last boy.  And boy, was he worth the wait. 

When Washington pointed to him, he bowed.  Actually bowed, then offered to shake my hand.  I let him, and he introduced himself.  "Hello," he began, his voice heavy with a thick French accent.  You may call me Gil, if you'd like- it's much shorter than my full name."   He smiled, and I took a moment to study this French boy in front of me.  He wore a dark blue sweatshirt and ripped white skinny jeans, but those clothes could not cover the fact that he was built.  He was more than a head taller than me, and his dark curls were pulled back into a ponytail.  His teeth were abnormally straight, and I stared at his smile for a second before he stepped back.  I let out an awkward cough and waved. 

Rocking back and forth on my toes, I hesitated, trying to decide what to ask next. "So..." I glanced at Washington, then back at the boys gathered in front of me.  "Hi." I shoved my hands in my pockets. "I'm Alex.  Alex Hamilton.  I, uh... my parents died in- in a hurricane, so I'm... here." 

Inexplicably, my gaze flashed to the French boy- Gilbert.  He offered an encouraging smile, and I took a deep breath.  "So, um... that's my story."

I felt Washington's gaze boring into my back, and John's confusion was easily noticeable on his face.  But for now, that was all I needed to say.  And that seemed enough for Gil, at least, who held out his hand. 

"Nice to meet you." 

[a/n: good lord this is not the first story i expected to update when i came back. i was planning on burn, or peace of mind or, you know, any story that's actually popular. and yet! after managing to come out as non-binary to most of my friends, this was the one that came most easily. easiest? i don't know english anymore. ♥]