A New Song [mxm]

4. Drinks

Alex spent a couple of hours cleaning the living room, bathroom, and small kitchen.  But when he saw the bedroom, he wanted to cry.  It was even worse. Clothes were piled on the floor, magazines were thrown everywhere, and a couple of gaming consoles were scattered in front of the TV. It was an overwhelming mess.

What was worse was the fashion sense.  Cargo shorts and drab shirts with that seemed to swallow his frame.  It was as if Alexander wanted to fade away completely. He knew that this body had the capabilities to wear luxurious and tactful styles to garner adequate attention, but it seems that Alexander had no one to teach him these things, or he just wanted to hide. Just by looking at the clothes, he knew that the agency had fallen short.

He examined the body he was in now and determined the best clothes that would compliment him. He dealt with enough stylists to know what he wanted in order to fill this wardrobe. Slim-fitting pants, shirts that exposed his clavicle and chest, and subtle jewelry would be perfect for him.

Alex started to load the horrible clothes into bags to discard. He left the subtle shirts with tactful designs, slim and plain pants, and all the workout clothes that did not look depressing. He was pleased to see a couple of untouched suits in the back of the closet.  The shoes were also acceptable, so he didn't have to worry about replacing everything. 

He started to organize the much downgraded wardrobe and folded the rest of the clothes.  This alone took care of most of the mess.  And then, like before, he removed the items that were not needed.  He wanted to start over as simplistic as possible.

However, he paused while going through the nightstand. He found a bottle of pills that were unmarked. He searched through Alexander's memories and felt an ache inside of him as he realized that these were stashed away for when Alexander finally gave up. The pain of failing and isolation was becoming too much for him, and he was slipping into a dark depression.

Alex took the bottle and tossed it into the trash. He will stand up on the stage not just for himself but for the young and broken Alexander.

Alex sighed and continued with his deep clean, breaking down the things that held Alexander down. The room took as long as the rest of the dorm combined, but Alex smiled with relief when it was completed.  He had a number of bags piled in the living room now, but he would have Chen donate all of the clothes and items and then recycle the obscene amount of magazines.

He then went to the bathroom and examined his long hair.  A part was shaved already for the stitches from the fall.  The Alexander in the past, always wanted his hair long in order to cover his eyes, as if he was ashamed of them. His choice of clothing and hairstyle was an obvious defense mechanism. He thought it was a shame because the dark eyes under the monolid were truly beautiful.

He found the electric razor and scissors.  Using mirrors and his phone camera, he started to trim his hair, finally shaving the sides to a smooth and close fade to blend with the part already shaved from his stitches. He had the fade meet a textured top, making it long enough that he could style it if he wanted to but short enough to stay out of his eyes. When his hair was unstyled, he looked like a lighthearted youth, but he was a strong, charismatic man when he slicked it back. 

He showered and let the water fall on him, careful not to fully soak his stitches.  He was still trying to get used to the situation.  He was still trying to accept his death as Preston but kept feeling like his mind was becoming overwhelmed.  He kept assigning himself tasks to stop him from breaking down - write a song, clean up the house, cut your hair.  However, he already knew that this life was too hard to accept right away. 

Next task.  Eat.

He climbed out of the shower and dried off. He threw on some grey joggers before he went to the kitchen and examined the ingredients. He started pulling out a few items for a quick omelet and whisked the eggs when Chen came in. He didn't know where to look at first.