Well, I… I found him on the side of the road, all drenched and muddy. He was scared and didn’t have anywhere to go," Alex explains, "so I offered him a place to rest. Later on, when I asked him if he'd like to stay, he said yes."
Doppio frowns, clearly perturbed by this new information. "The side of the road? That's unusual… sounds more like a place I'd end up. I don't remember going there with him."
Alex is quiet for a moment, scratching at the back of her head and ruffling her short hair. "Hey, can I ask you something kinda personal?"
"Oh, um, sure." Doppio is a little concerned, but he isn't opposed to simple questions. "What do you want to know?"
"Do you have a dissociative disorder?"
Doppio winces. Jeez, that really is personal. Not only that, but it’s beyond his own realm of knowledge; most of the things he’s dealt with in life have been short and sweet, relating to either the Boss or dealing shit out for Passione. He hesitates to respond, because it's quite a complicated subject. "The boss and I are really close," he simply answers. "I don’t know. It's always been this way. It’s normal to me."
Alex smiles apologetically, but she doesn’t push for more info. Thank god. "It's cool of you to tell me. Sorry if I went too far by asking that. I was just curious."
"It's okay…" Doppio slips his hands into his hoodie pockets, frowning and looking down at his feet. "Usually, Boss would've called me by now. I don’t know why he hasn't. Is he mad at me?" Maybe Boss has mentioned it to Alex. Who's to say he hasn't? Sitting down on the comfortable couch, Doppio looks at the woman with questioning eyes.
Alex shakes her head. "I don't think so. It's possible he doesn't know you're here, though."
Now, that isn't something Doppio would've expected, but then again, his soul was torn away from his body. "That's… possible, yeah. Hm."
For a moment, he's silent, trying to process everything. He looks around at the living room, glancing at the cute cat tower and noticing the sleeping kitty atop it. This place is so peaceful; it’s the exact opposite of that coliseum.
After a long pause, he asks, "So… I live here now?"
"Yeah, you do. For now, at least. Is that okay?"
"I haven't lived somewhere in a long time," Doppio admits shyly. "Boss and I were always going from place to place. But, you know, I kinda like it here. What's that guy's name?" He points at the cat.
"His name's Pebbles," Alex tells him with a grin. "Do you like cats?"
"I do. I like all kinds of animals and creatures. How'd you get him?"
As if on cue, Pebbles perks his head up, standing and stretching. The way he arches his little back is reminiscent of an accordion compressing, and his jaws open wide to let out a big yawn. He jumps off of his tower, stretching lengthwise, before trotting over to Doppio. When Doppio holds out his hand, Pebbles eagerly sniffs it before shoving his head into Doppio’s palm. It brings out a faint smile on Doppio’s lips.
"I found him as a kitten. He was rolling around in some gravel and pebbles around the apartment complex, super friendly. The poor baby was flea-ridden, so I had to bring him to the vet for treatment." Alex sounds nostalgic as she describes what happened. "After that, we were basically inseparable."
Doppio’s weary little smile grows just a bit. "That's so cute. There are a lot of stray cats around Italy. In Venezia, I saw a lot of them hanging out around the water once. I was too busy with work on that day, but I wish I could've stopped to pet them all…"
