Neighbors in LA (Alex Hirsch X Reader)

Chapter Ten: Windows to the Soul

A knock sounded on the front door. You scrambled to put away the pencil vomit that was your new art skill. After a few more knocks and some impatient doorbell ringing, you finally managed to pull yourself together enough to answer the door.

"Hey (Y/N)-" Alex stopped in his tracks, noting the less-than-appealing sight of you. Your hair was a rats' nest. Your clothes were stained in coffee, sweat, graphite, ink, and whatever else you had managed to smear on yourself. You looked starved, as your cheeks were pushed in and your eyes sunken. You hadn't eaten much in days, hardly ever went to the bathroom. The smell wafting from you was enough to tell that you hadn't had a shower either. "What happened...?"

You coughed and wiped your nose, showing off your disgusting sleeve. "Nothing. Just... working hard. That's it," you yawned as the lack of sleep caught up to you. "Why are you here? Something bothering you?"

Alex shook his head, trying to regain his composure and not comment on your appearance. "Uh... no, surprisingly... I-I was just coming to say that Bill hasn't bothered me in nearly a week. Plus you haven't come out of your house in a while, so I wanted to check up on you," he mumbled, avoiding contact with your bloodshot eyes.

Chuckling lightly, you waved your coffee mug slightly like a good natured sheriff. "That's good. Glad to know you've drowned your demon. You should probably get back to work or... whatever you do. I don't want to bother you," you said, blowing a stray hair out of your face.

Alex frowned and pushed past you, wincing slightly as your coffee spilled onto him. "Well, you aren't bothering me. I'm sorry to say, but you look absolutely disgusting. What happened?" he insisted, taking off his now-soaked jacket.

You tried to steer the conversation away from what it would inevitably lead to with a laugh. "Quite rude to call a lady disgusting, don't you think?" you chuckled, putting the coffee mug down on the end table.

"I know but... you aren't usually like this. So I know something had to have gone really wrong," Alex persisted. If there was one thing the demon and the man had in common, it was their refusal to take "no" for an answer.

You scoffed, "I already told you. I'm just busy working. That's it."

Clearly, that answer was not enough for Alex, as he walked close to you and grabbed your face. You were surprised for a moment, preparing for a kiss as he brought you closer. He stopped just before your lips touched, however, and instead looked deep into your eyes. You uncomfortably glanced away as he continued to examine the windows into your soul.

It took a while for him to pull away from you, looking angry and upset. You froze, thinking it was because of you. A dinner date and a kiss, that's all it took for you to lose a boyfriend.

"He showed up in your dreams, didn't he?" Alex asked, a sympathetic frown on his face.

You looked away, being a terrible liar. "No..." you mumbled quietly, and unconvincingly.

"Tell me. Now. What deal did you make with him? What did he take from you?" Alex demanded, taking your hand and squeezing it.

"I... He... H-he told me he would leave you alone if I gave him my art skills, instead of you giving him yours..." you answered, feeling ashamed for not telling him before.

Alex let go of your hand and immediately began to pace the living room. He muttered under his breath angrily. "Of course he would twist your arm like that... Why didn't I see it coming... All those stupid 'visions' were just a distraction from what he was really doing..." he grumbled and grabbed at his hair.

"Visions?" you questioned.

"He showed me so many things, (Y/N)! He messed with my head! He showed me going crazy and killing you! He told me he would possess me and kill you if he didn't get what he wanted! I'm such a gullible idiot! How could I forget I would need to willingly let him in?! He doesn't want the skills back, not anymore! He wants me to suffer! And I dragged you into this and now you've lost everything!"

You went to console him.

Alex immediately shrunk back from you and slapped your arm away. "No! Don't try to say it isn't my fault! It is! I dragged you into this! I should have never told you..." he said, sounding as if he had killed you.

"Hey... it sounds like we both need sleep... Why don't you come upstairs with me and we can just sleep...? Calm down and think this through tomorrow," you suggested.

Alex thought for a moment. "Well... I suppose... not much can happen if we're in the same place together... I really didn't sleep much last night..." he muttered.

You smiled and took Alex upstairs, deciding to change for the first time in a while. Alex blushed and tried to play it politely by locking himself in the closet. You laughed. "Oh I see. Need to come out of the closet, then?" you joked, getting into bed.

Alex jumped out, red in the face. "N-no!" he stammered.

You simply laughed as Alex crawled under the covers. "I can really see the resemblance between you and Dipper," you hummed, closing your eyes.