Red, White, And Royal TWO

Chapter 3

"Wake the fuck up!" are the first words Alex hears Thanksgiving morning, his room noticeably turkeyless, unlike last year. What his room isn't lacking, though, is his sister, June, holding a Claremont 2020 mug full of coffee. He slides out of bed and over to his sister, grabbing the mug of coffee and downing half of it in seconds. After a dramatic gulp and sigh, he finally replies, "Well good morning to you, too, sister." She walks over to his closet, quickly pulls out a navy blue suit and pants, chestnut brown dress shoes, and a button up in a similar shade.

"Get dressed."

"What time is it?"

"8:00."

"In the morning?"

"Yes, Alex, it's 8:00 in the morning. Get dressed."

"Dinner is at 4:00. That gives me five more hours of sleep. Now get the fuck out and don't bother me 'til then." Then he looks down at the mug in his hands and realizes. He's already had half a cup of coffee. "Fuck."

"Now, get dressed and meet me down in the Kennedy Garden in 10," she says with a grin. "Don't make me wait."

And with that, she's off. Alex, however reluctantly, finishes his cup of coffee that June so kindly tricked him into chugging, and changes into his suit. Fugly brown button up, Alex thinks. He takes off the jacket and button up and changes into a button up with subtle, muted stripes that are white and a lighter shade of blue than the suit pants. He puts the suit jacket back on and looks in the mirror. Better. He opens the drawer on his dresser and reaches in to grab a pin. He pulls out the turkey pin his father, Senator Diaz of California, gave to him as a tacky gift last Thanksgiving. Jesus.

He walks out of his room, down the steps, out the back door, and into the Kennedy Garden. As he approaches the garden, June whips around, and Alex can now see that Nora is seated on a bench behind her. "I told you not to make me wait," June says icily. Alex rolls his eyes and takes a seat next to Nora.

"Alright, why was I tricked out of bed hours before necessary?" Alex asks.

"This is why," Nora says, and pulls a calico kitten out of her purse. Alex gapes at her and June chuckles at the sight.

"Where the hell did you get that?!" Alex asks, incredulous.

"I found him on the street right outside my apartment. He had no collar and looked hungry, so I went to the pet store," she pulls a bag of cat food and a new brown leather collar with a medallion on it out of her bag.

"And who gave you that bag of endless feline products, Mary fucking Poppins?!"

"Don't curse in front of my baby!"

"IT'S A CAT!"

"Enough! Jesus Christ your endless bickering about something as dumb as a cat is triggering my migraine!" June shouts.

"I just don't understand. How are you gonna take care of a cat while working that job at FiveThirtyEight? They're hardcore. You have to work for days on end to get ahead there!" Alex exclaims.

"Cats are very independent. As long as you remember to feed them, they're fine to be on their own for days at a time."

Since the story broke that Nora figured out the manipulation of Alex and Henry's relationship by the Richards campaign last month, FiveThirtyEight accepted her application to be on their voter demographic podcast: "Demographics With Democrats." She'd be a co-host.

"I guess," Alex responds. "Have you at least named the thing?"

"Mary."

"What kind of Christian conservative ass name is that?"

"Shut the fuck up!" she says with a giggle.

"Don't bring that thing any closer to me. Henry can't get within six feet of cat hair without his throat closing up."

"And I'd expect he needs his throat for the activities you have planned tonight, huh?" Nora replies. Alex laughs hysterically while June fake vomits into the bushes.