A tough woman

"Still, I think you went a little harsh on her." Max said, putting an arm around Alex.

"She's a tough woman. She can handle it." Alex replied, laying his head on Max's shoulder and closing her eyes.

A tough woman, Max wondered how many times Alina had been called that. She was a tough woman, there was no doubt about that. But Max was sure that there was still a little girl somewhere inside of that tough woman, who was just looking for someone to smile and tell her that they were proud of her.

"What are you thinking about?" Alex's voice broke into Max's reverie. He looked down and shook his head with a smile as he wrapped his arm tighter around Alex's frail body.

A couple of hours later. . . .

Max walked in through the front door pushing Alex's wheelchair to the delicious smell of freshly cooked dinner. "Mmmhhhh . . . . It smells delicious." Alex purred as Max's own stomach rumbled due to the smell. He quickly parked the wheelchair next to the couch in the living room and went to the kitchen.

Sure enough, the dinner had been prepared and was ready to be served. But there was no sign of the beautiful but moody cook. "Alina? Alina!?" Max called as he walked out of the kitchen, wondering where his sister-in-law could be. "Maybe she's in her room." Max mumbled to herself and was about to go upstairs when the person in question emerged from her mother's old room, the room Alex and Max shared now-a-days.

"What are you hollering about now? Lost another one of your fancy city toys?" she snapped, walking into the kitchen. Max sighed and said as he followed her, "It happened one time, and it wasn't a toy. It was anime merchandise."

"Anyways, what were you doing in our room?" he asked, leaning against the counter as Alina roller her eyes. She turned around and handed him some plates, motioning for him to start setting the dining table. As Max walked out, Alina said, "This is my house actually, I can go wherever I want to." "And what I was doing, was cleaning the room. It's not my fault the two of you live like dogs." she added, putting a bowl of soup on the dining table with a thud.

Max, who had opened his mouth to reply, closed it with a wince upon the sound. Alina was in a bad mood. And Max had learned not to bicker with her when she was in a bad mood, this had been the first lesson he learnt when he started living with her.

"Why are we setting the table for four?" he asked, changing the topic. Alina's face visibly brightened as she said, "Steve is coming over for dinner." Max noticed that though Alina didn't really smile as she said this, her eyes twinkled a little. He nodded and said, "Oh nice. I like that guy. He's a good person."

That seemed to do the trick as Alina stopped snapping at his every word. She nodded proudly and said, "That he is. Now go and get Alex. I'll finish setting the table."

"And Max?" Alina called out as he walked towards the living room.