For Honor or Glory

Interrogation

Chapter 9

When they made it to the apartment, Angeal immediately took Alex's bags to his bedroom while she looked around. The place wasn't large, and it was spartan. Not that it shocked her. Her brother was definitely of the mindset that less is more. Plus, he was a bit of a cheapskate. Not that she blamed him. She had learned a long time ago to get the most for the money she did spend.

He was back before she had a chance to do more than look around the living room. As soon as he joined her, he gestured to the tiny kitchen she could see through an arch at the end of the room. "You said something about lunch, right? Why don't you help me, and we can sit and catch up."

Alex smirked at him as she answered. "And here I thought I was going to get a free meal. Ah well, I suppose it's close enough if I only have to help."

Angeal rolled his eyes at his sister's antics as he gave her a gentle nudge toward the kitchen. "You best keep that attitude to yourself if you plan to eat any time soon."

She scoffed at him but let him lead her into the other room before she responded with a doe-eyed look. "You wouldn't let your sister starve, would you?"

When Angeal caught sight of the look, he started laughing so hard it was a few seconds before he could respond. "You might as well give up. That look won't work on me. I'm not- I'm not like other pushovers."

Even though her brother had stopped himself, Alex knew exactly what he had been about to say, and it sobered her immediately. They both knew Genesis had never been able to tell her no when she gave him that look. Still, she was grateful to Angeal when he ducked into the fridge to pull out several vegetables and handed them to her. "Why don't you start with these, and I'll prep the pan."

She didn't say anything as she took the handful and looked around for a cutting board. That was one thing she knew her brother would have, and it didn't take her long to find it. Neither of them spoke again for the next fifteen minutes as they got everything ready to cook. Thankfully, Angeal had picked something quick and easy, so it wasn't much longer before everything was ready.

When they both sat down, he smiled at the fact that Alex had found the glasses as well, and they both had water on the table. The next few minutes were filled only with the sound of eating until Angeal finally put his fork down next to his half-eaten meal and looked over.

Alex sighed when she caught sight of the look, but she still smiled. "I know, I know." When he raised a brow at her, she chuckled but sat back so she could face him better. "First, I want you to know that Mom was the one that told me I should have left a year ago, so don't think I left her high and dry. Everything but the monthly bills has already been paid off."

Angeal raised a brow at that. He had known his sister had been helping with everything, but he hadn't realized she had sacrificed so much of her earnings to take care of their home. It made him smile, but it also made him worry. That couldn't have left her much to travel on, which explained her answer when he asked about the trip.

Even though that did give him something to think about, that wasn't what he wanted to know. "I'm glad to hear that, but what I really want to know is why you are here now? Why didn't you tell me you were coming? You know I would have had something in place to help if I knew you were ready to move to Midgar."

Alex had to fight not to frown for more than one reason. One of them she still had no idea how to tackle, so she latched onto the other. "I appreciate your worry, but I can handle that on my own. You and- you didn't have help when you got here, and you managed fine. I wanted to surprise you, so I did."

"Then why did you look like you were ready to start bawling when I first saw you. You can't lie to me and tell me it was just because you missed me. This is me you're talking to." Angeal didn't want to fight with Alex, but he had a feeling it was worth him pushing. No matter her stubborn streak, she never acted impulsively.