[20]: the ambush

________________________ 20 the ambush "It’s all fun and games, all laughs and smiles, until it’s not, until you turn it around again.” ________________________ Alexander released an exasperated sigh as he ran a hand through his hair. He hadn't meant to say what he said or to make it seem like he's picking a fight with one of his best friends, but when the guy starts saying things that obviously shows he's flirting with her, he just can't seem to help it. The old feeling of wanting to drive away any guy who makes a move on her resurfaced in that moment, and with what he said, he’s pretty sure he just made it abundantly clear that he still cares for Aurora a whole lot. Even if he tried to deny that claim (the claim that he’s pretty sure his friends would throw at him), he doesn’t even need to be a psychic in order for him to know what their retort to that denial would be. And when that happens, he’s confident as well that he would already be too at loss for words to even say anything remotely coherent.  He sighed internally. Why did he even allow these people to invade his life and permanently stay there for all time? If he knew that it would cause him this much trouble in the long run, he wouldn’t have even bothered—except that dealing with their persistent tries at befriending him would have been more of a pain to deal with, rather than just letting them be and allow them to talk his ear off. Alexander tried to regain his composure before looking at the woman beside him and asked, "How does it work then?" Aurora stopped in her place for a few seconds before she lowered her phone and slowly turned her head to look at him, an eyebrow raised in question and wonder, as well as eyes that currently have an unfathomable glint in them. "Who knows?" The sounds of both their phones pinging continuously was something that they ignored. Alexander knows that Aurora has a lot of questions she would like to ask him but is contemplating whether she should or she shouldn't. He feels the exact same way, except he's not really sure if he wants to hear her answer. It would only arise a more intense feeling inside of him that does a lot more bad than good. And right now, he needs more of that good side than the bad. Not to mention that they both know that when either of them starts questioning the other, it would end up yet again with yells and arguments. So instead, Aurora let out a sigh and focused her gaze back on the pool for the longest time before she looked back at the guy looking at her in wonder. "Do I really look like a homeless hobo-troll?" "Do I really have to answer that?" He grinned, feeling somewhat relieved that she decided to steer in that direction instead of the one that he was sure she was contemplating to take. Alexander had no idea what could have made her make this decision, but whatever it was, he knows that he owes that certain reason a great deal. Just how he would exactly repay that debt, he has no clue as well. "It would be quite biased you know if I happen to answer that." "How in the world would it end up being biased?" Aurora asked, her eyebrows scrunched together as a sign of confusion. With his grin still etched on his lips, Alexander cleared his throat slightly before facing Aurora with his confidence overflowing from where he stood and said, "Because I would only end up saying that you look more beautiful than ever." She gave him a blank stare. Despite the fact that she was already half-expecting him to make a comment similar to what he said, the fact that her gut-feeling guessed correctly made her silently think that maybe it has something to do with how she previously knew the guy so well and she just remembered how that whole thing went. Why can’t she just try and forget about him peacefully? Why must she always remember them at the last moment? “But you just agreed that I looked like a homeless hobo-troll." He winked at her. "Exactly. Then why bother asking a question that you already know the answer to?" Rage was the one thing that she constantly feels without fail whenever she's with him. No matter the circumstance, that always seems to be the end result of their interaction, whether both parties like it or not. It honestly fazes her how such emotion could always be associated with him, but she's not surprised. What with his annoying antics and stupid retorts, it's really hard not to. She breathed in a deep breath and released it right after, a look of contempt clearly palpable in her face. She reached out for the water in the pool and splashed him a good amount of it, the latter closing his eyes from the impact and a gasp of surprise to escape his lips. "You stupid jerk." She told him in the most calm voice she could muster. Well, as calm as she can get. RIght now, she’s just merely restraining herself from shouting at him more than she  already has. Shouting at him with all the frustration she’s feeling wouldn’t help matters at all, nor would it manage to appease the anger building up inside of her. Still, how could she stay visibly calm when she’s with the one guy who makes her want to pull all her hair out? It’s just a feat that seems impossible for her to do.  "Not like I haven't heard that before but…” He slowly opened his eyes and wiped the water away from his face, a bland smile etching its way onto his lips. "thanks for the insight." Rolling her eyes at his words, she grabbed her phone and stood up from her place to go and check on the napping Theo, thinking all this time how she can go on and get her revenge on her stupid so-called "master". Alexander shook his head in amusement before he followed suit and casually wrapped an arm around her, positioning his phone in front of them and quickly taking a picture. And just like on the poolside, Aurora didn't come prepared. The sudden action took her by surprise but it didn't stop her from pushing him away from her and giving him a glare. He really needs to stop doing all that annoying stuff that he does because Aurora is going to end up killing him—one way or the other. It’s still going to be a problem, however, when she comes to that point, because by how the stupid idiiot is acting, it really does seem like he doesn’t fear his sudden and early demise at all. If anything, Aurora would have to say that he’s encouraging it by constantly trying his absolute best to piss her off. "What the hell is wrong with you?" She screeched. Without looking at her and settling his gaze on his phone, he said, "Nothing. Just wanted a bit of a remembrance." Then he sent the photo in their group chat, feeling like he won the lottery and was standing on top of the world when their friends instantly reacted to it. He looked at her with a grin when he was sure that it garnered the attention it needed. "You might want to check our group chat." Aurora slowly narrowed her eyes at him as she crossed her arms, "What did you do again, you asshole?" He hummed a happy tune and told her, "Check it out yourself." before walking towards Theo's room to check up on the little boy, as well as to escape the woman’s wrath--not that he would openly admit that. After all, he’s positive that Aurora’s reaction to what he just did would not be a pleasing one, and he sure as hell wouldn’t want to be the first person she sees when she finally gets a grasp of the situation at hand. The way the woman would physically and verbally attack him is just not something that he would want to deal with at the moment. If possible, he would like to avoid that. Alexander just hopes that whatever she sees wouldn’t bring her to the brink of insanity because that’s definitely the kind of Aurora that would be a trouble to handle--and that’s saying something since he could pretty much deal with almost all of her moods. As she followed Alexander's retreating figure with her eyes, Aurora quickly snapped out of the trance she was in and instantly got out her phone to check on their group chat just to sate her curiosity. A part of her was already expecting what she saw but she still can't believe that he actually went and sent it. It wasn’t that hard to tell, after all, since the guy just went to the trouble of taking that picture with her. What with the surprised look on her face and the jovial yet sardonic smile plastered on his lips, she can't help but visualize how she's going to smother and bury the guy in his sleep. BROKE(N) HEARTS Alicia: Okay Sue me but I can't help it AWEEEEEEEEEEEE WLSUSJSJSJSJDHSJDHAHSJSSND Kent: I have to admit The both of you still look damn great together Hey Dex How's your heart? Do you hear it breaking yet? Dexter: Fuck off Kent My heart is not breaking And even I agree that they look good together Kent: Only good? Not great? Aurora: All of you are highly misguided Alexander: She's right But then again For a homeless hobo-troll she's not half-bad Alicia: I am really starting to enjoy this group chat Hey Aur Alex Remember us here Kent: Oh please As if they would They're too busy with each other to bother talking to us Dexter: What did you expect anyway? They are managing Sally's bakery after all Alexander: Ever the optimist Aurora: Nothing's wrong with being an optimist Alexander: Didn't say there was Hey Aur Where did you put Theo's Nerf gun? Aurora: Why the hell are you looking for his Nerf gun? Alexander: A good and smart assassin would never reveal his true intentions Kent: I agree Dexter: No wonder Aur's such an easy target when it comes to assassinations Alicia: I know If I were a killer I would kill her first Aurora: I'm thinking that I should probably start hiding from all of you Alexander: I think we already established the fact that you can't hide from me I can still find you Aurora: And you're way over your head again Alexander: But not way over yours Still interested in knowing why I'm looking for Theo's Nerf gun? Aurora: Well knowing you, it would no doubt be something stupid So never mind Only a few seconds have passed since she pressed send and not even a second later, she felt something hit her shoulder, something that made her wince from the impact and the force. She looked down and saw something disc-like resting on the ground covered in colors orange and white; something disc-like that is completely familiar to her. With a glare and a scowl already etched on her face, she turned her head to the left to gaze at the no doubt smirking face of the guy who always manages to piss her off and the amused expression of her now awake little brother. Alexander rested the Nerf gun against his right shoulder as he held on to it, ignoring the glare that she sent his way. "Seriously? That's why you asked me where the Nerf gun is because you planned to ambush me?" "No, we," He gestured to both him and Theo. "planned to ambush you." Aurora transferred her gaze to her grinning brother. He threw his hands up in the air and exclaimed, "Ambush!" As cute as her brother looks right now, the irritation that was threatening to blow up inside of her overpowered any other emotion that she’s feeling at the moment. If it weren’t for the fact that she wanted to strangle the smug-looking man standing beside her brother, she would have already cooed over her brother whilst gushing about what a cute little villain he is. Alas, she just doesn’t have the luxury to do that. Well, she actually does, but she doesn’t want to do that in front of the guy who enjoys taunting her as much as he enjoys those verbal quips he never fails to deliver. She let out a sigh and slowly walked towards the pair, but they were quicker; they fired their armed toy guns towards her and she felt the impact of another disc-like ammo—not one, but two. She honestly felt like screaming and yanking all of her hair out. She's exhausted. What with the kitchen incident from earlier and the constant annoying antics she's received from Alexander, she just wants to freshen up and lie in her bed all day and not deal with the annoying guy that she has to deal with for a month. If she has to stay here and spend one more second with him, she’s definitely going to combust. "Alex, did you wake Theo up?" She asked in an irate manner, resting her hand against her hip as her eyebrows furrowed together in question. He snorted like what she asked him was the most ridiculous thing he has ever heard today--which is saying something, since he did hear a whole lot of ridiculous things today. "Of course not. When I walked in his room, he was already awake, playing with his toy cars." She turned to look at Theo for confirmation, but the little boy just kept his grin and threw his hands in the air once more while saying, "Ambush!" Again, as cute as he is, she's still trying her hardest to grasp the situation at hand. Even though Alexander has explained what happened, she's still finding it hard to believe. Why would she even believe right away the things that come spouting out of that mouth of his? The probability of him lying to her just to spite her (or to not make her anger for him heighten further) is very high and she’s definitely not taking her chances. She would lose more than gain if she lets her guard down around him. The sigh that escaped her lips and the way she kept her hand rested against her hip made the pair in front of her raise their defenses and get ready for whatever outburst that she's about to send their way. But before she could advance any further though, to begin her plan of retaliation, Alexander and Theo rounded her and ducked her hands that tried to get a hold of them, laughing all the way as they ran towards the backyard. "Aury, over here!" Theo hollered, amused by the fact that his sister still hadn't caught them from the moment him and Alexander shot her with his Nerf guns. He may not know much (right now), but according to his calculations, she would have been able to do just that. However, the fact of the matter is that his sister was too slow to move, so that gave him and Alexander enough time to escape her grasps. She heard the cute voice she always hears everyday. But despite that, she knows that she can't go to the backyard empty-handed; they would completely torture her by bombarding her with the Nerf ammos they have in their hands. So as a result, she looked around the kitchen to try and see what sort of harmless weapon she can use against her lovely brother and her annoying past lover. In the end though, she found nothing—even when she looked under the cabinets and the sink. Just how much did they ruin the kitchen that she would end up finding basically nothing? Surely, not everything would have been ruined by that certain incident, right? Oh who is she kidding? Everything is completely ruined and thrashed.  "Just great." She muttered under her breath and cautiously made her way towards the direction both Theo and Alexander just took off to. In the backyard, the pair hid behind the bushes, waiting silently for Aurora's arrival. Alexander grinned down at the little boy beside him as he held his own Nerf gun in his hand. "Hey, kiddo." Theo looked at him. "When Aury walks out that door, shoot at her and run towards the other end, alright? That way, you won't end up being seen and avoid being hit by whatever retaliation she's going to make. We both know your sister is insane when it comes to retaliations." Theo indeed did know how crazy and way over the top his sister gets when she wants to get her revenge, so he decided that listening to Alexander’s words would fare him better than acting out on his own. So as a result of all those things going on inside his mind, the little boy nodded his head enthusiastically and gave him a mock salute. "Roger." Alexander ruffled Theo's hair with a smile. He hasn't done anything like this in a long time and the familiar feeling of nostalgia is slowly creeping up on him. He didn’t really mind having a moment like this once in a while. When he and Edward were still children, they never really have gotten the time to ever do anything like this before, what with them living in different towns and being too busy with their studies, it just seemed impossible to do it all the time. But who he was always able to do this with though is Aurora—the girl that has been with him ever since they were kids; his constant. Aurora never once complained about how this sort of game was guy stuff; she just happily picked up her weapon of choice and started shooting at him with a big grin on her face—and he would do the same. He guesses that Aurora is just happy to finally be able to play with him and do something productive other than just arguing all the time. The change it brought was definitely refreshing and he knows that Aurora feels that way as well. Who wouldn’t get tired of conversations that just consist of nothing but arguments here and there? No one, of course. Because no matter how much he actually enjoys riling the woman up, he does want to do something else other than the banters they usually participate in. And despite him being naturally indifferent to people and his face always having this permanent emotionless look, he does know how to smile. And those times were one of those moments that made him smile endlessly. He was so wrapped up in his thoughts that he didn't notice that Theo had already made his move and Aurora was already making her retaliation. A burst of water hit him in the face, stumbling in surprise right after and effectively showing her his hiding place and what she had accomplished. She guffawed as she took in the sight in front of her, her hands still holding the hose. "Oh God, you seriously fell for that again?" He glared at her, the determination to get his own retaliation burning up inside of him. "This is like play days all over again." He slowly stood up, his toy gun still held tightly in his hand. He aimed at her and Aurora was quick to notice, aiming her own weapon not a second too soon. "Don't think you've won, Crover." He said, the smugness he felt now rolling out of him like waves. "I already have, Giovanni." With a smirk, he said, "No, not yet." He looked at his right. "Now, Theo!" In Aurora’s eyes, everything turned in slow motion. Theo and Alexander simultaneously shooting at her, Aurora desperately shooting them with the hose she held in an attempt to defend herself, until finally, she took one too many steps backward and fell into the pool. By the time she emerged, Alexander and Theo were already laughing their asses off while she continued giving them a glare. Honestly, they were enjoying this way too much. Although, she supposed that if the circumstances were reversed, she would have been the one enjoying the scene unfolding in front of her as well. Still, it just irritated her that they were the ones who got the last laugh. Not to mention that even if she was the one who got the last laugh in the end, it wouldn’t have lasted all that long. She’s positive that her two companions would find a way to still make her the loser--the disadvantage of being a solo player.  "Oh that was classic." Alexander said with a laugh as he clutched his stomach, his face showing nothing but pure amusement--the kind of genuine amusement that she hasn’t seen for a long time. Truth be told, it took her aback quite a bit, but she willed herself not to let it show on her face. If she did, she would only end up getting teased even more and she definitely didn’t want that. "Aury, you should have seen your face!" Theo exclaimed jovially. “Oh right, because seeing all of that was actually enjoyable to you both.” Aurora muttered sarcastically as she slowly moved to the side to try and get out of the pool. At that moment, Aurora’s attention was so focused on how she’s going to get out that she didn’t notice Alexander moving from his place and slowly made his way towards her. With a smirk plastered on his face, he watched as Aurora took a step to get out of the pool. However, the instant his face was the first thing she saw as soon as she looked up left her stunned in her place. It was clearly a mistake for her to do that, but by the time she realized it, it was already too late. The sardonic smirk etched on Alexander’s lips was still present as he told her, “Not a chance.” before pushing her back down the pool again. Alexander and Theo shared a laugh as the surprised scream that left Aurora’s mouth filled their ears, the former wrapping his arm around the latter with amused grins never leaving their lips.  The moment Aurora resurfaced once again, she directed all her glare to the man wrapping her brother in his arm in an affectionate manner. She ignored how adorable they look together and focused on trying to get her point across the amused-looking man. “What the hell, Alex?” She screeched. He laughed. “You’re welcome. You looked like you needed the help.” Aurora gritted her teeth in annoyance as she said, “I needed help getting out, and not how to get back to the damned pool.” “Really?” He replied, feigning innocence and confusion. “It looked to me like you needed help on how to get back to your habitat.” Theo gazed at Alexander questioningly. “Habitat?” Hearing that, Alexander grinned down on his former lover’s brother, ignoring her demands on stepping away from her brother and the like, as he told the little guy, “Your sister’s actually a fish. Did you know that?” “Do fishes live in swimming pools?” The genuine curiosity and confusion that could be detected in Theo’s words made everything even better.  “Your sister is a special fish.” He replied, his grin growing when he heard the frustrated scream that erupted from Aurora’s lips. With those innocent, doe-like eyes now trained on his seething sister, Theo gave her a grin as he said, “Aury, teach me how to be a fish too!” That left Alexander laughing for the next few minutes, while Aurora was left feeling perplexed about how she’s going to handle the situation.  “Your brother’s begging you, Aur.” The wicked gleam that appeared in Alexander’s eyes didn’t leave Aurora’s attention. “Are you really going to turn the little guy down? Or would you rather teach him how to be a homeless hobo-troll instead?” The excitement that appeared in Theo’s eyes didn’t escape Aurora’s attention as well. “A homeless hobo-troll?” Theo’s eyes locked with hers once more. “What’s that, Aury? Can you teach me that too?” Alexander guffawed. “Oh God, this is going better than I thought.” “Aury, come on!” Theo grinned. And although she didn't really want to, she allowed the small smile tugging at the side of her lips to appear and processed how this day turned out to be quite fun after all--even if it did involve a lot of teasing from the one and only Alexander Giovanni.