The Time Taken to Understand (BoyxBoy)

Chapter Five~ Alec

Alec woke up to the sound of ringing. His eyes opened, and he laid there for a minute, wondering where he was and what that noise was. He was in his own apartment sleeping in the living room and that noise was his phone. Scrambling to find his phone, which he quickly discovered was right next to him, a hoodie that didn't belong to him slipped off his shoulders. Only one name came to mind. Mark.

He answered his phone. "Hello?" He cleared his throat, annoyed with how low and drowsy his voice came across.

"I'm sorry, did I wake you?" It was a woman's voice that he most definitely couldn't place. Women didn't call him often. Only Mark's mother and sometimes his sisters, but this voice didn't belong to any of them.

"Um, yeah. Who is this?" Alec asked, trying not to sound rude but that was hard for him when he was tired. The voice on the other end of the phone chuckled and he found it to be a familiar sound.

"It's Penny, from The Lattachino. You know, the place that just hired you yesterday?" Alec did know, and he assumed she knew he knew, so he didn't respond. Taking his silence in for a moment, she spoke again. "Sorry to wake you, it's just, one of our baristas called in sick this morning and we need someone to cover... was I wrong to think of you?"

"No!" Alec said quickly, because he needed the money. He then realized he sounded too eager. "I mean, not at all". Penny laughed warmly.

"I know I just woke you, but do you think you could get here as soon as possible?"

"Of course," he said, about to hang up on her, and then stopping. "Is there anything special I'm supposed to wear?"

"Well, we'll give you the hat when you get here, but other than that, just dress like yourself," she said, and then Alec overheard someone talking to he in the background. She laughed at something he couldn't hear. "Okay Alec, I'll see you soon".

The line clicked dead. Alec quickly climbed out of bed, going to all of the boxes that we just stacked in the middle of his living room. He couldn't find the one with his cloths. "Fuck". Alec quickly unlocked his phone, opening up his messages with Mark to ask him if he had any idea. Halfway through typing he noticed the last message sent. It was from Mark to him telling him that he had taken the car last night. "Oh, fuck". Alec finished typing the message and sent it before pulling up his recently called list and clicking on the number Penny had called from.

A different girl answered this time. "Hello, this is The Lattachino, what can I get for you?"

"Hi," Alec said, rather frantically, "I need to talk to Penny...." he didn't know her last name and closed his eyes tight. Williams he thought, her father's name tag has said Greg Williams. "Penny Williams! I need to talk to Penny Williams," he repeated.

"One moment please," the woman said, just as Alec's phone binged in his ear. It was from Mark.

Why? Are you going somewhere?

"God dammit, Mark, this is important," he snapped, beginning to type his reply. He was interrupted by the sound of Penny's laugh coming from his phone and hastily pressed it to his ear. "Hi. Mark took the car so I have no way to get there". The line was quiet for a moment.

"What's your address?" She asked, and Alec took a moment to think before giving it to her. "Okay, be ready in five minutes. I drive a red Honda". She hung up. Five minutes seemed like a very short amount of time. Alec swore again, the words sounding foreign coming from his innocent mouth, and then he called Mark.

Mark picked up right away. "Good morning sunshine".

"Where'd you put my cloths?" Alec asked, once again digging through the boxes. "Penny called and asked me to work".