Ch.24

After the Christmas debacle, time seems to go on with everything returning to relative normalcy. However, as the SATs come closer and closer, Alex seems to have become more and more stressed. No matter what I try to do, Alex just seems ready to snap at any moment. 

Her family told me they were planning a small birthday party. Though from what I could remember and noticed with Alex I knew that would trigger her. So, I decided to confront Alex before she blew up at her own party. 

"Alex…Alex!... ALEX!!" I say to her as we are 'hanging out' at my house since no one is home. Though really Alex is too absorbed in her studies to be wanting to really do anything. 

"Uh, what?" Alex says finally looking at me after calling her three times. 

"Can you put the textbook down so we can talk," I say to her as she sighs but puts it down. 

"Yes?" Alex says with irritation in her voice for being interrupted in her studies. 

"I'm being serious here," I say to her with my most serious voice making her become slightly nervous. 

"What?" Alex says with a more worried voice now. 

"You've been more and more irritable nowadays, which I understand is due to the SATs just around the corner. I understand they make a huge difference in whether or not you can get into Harvard or any other Ivy League school. But if you just study all day and don't take some time to relax you will go insane," I say to her as I feel I've had this conversation dozens of times with her, but since I know I love her I am willing to keep having this conversation as long as it takes for her to understand. 

"Yeah, I know! But how can I relax when there's a sixteen-year-old science prodigy studying cancer research at Johns Hopkins, and what am I doing?!!" Alex says blowing up finally as all her stress is being let loose, though it just happens I am the target. Which I am fine with, as I was like this in my past life. 

"You are stressing yourself to death is what you are doing. You can't keep judging yourself based on other people, that will only lead you down a path of stress, pain, disappointment, and regret. I am not saying you are worse than that 'prodigy' but do you think it is fair to yourself to compare yourself to that person?" I say to Alex who looks on the verge of melting down. 

"YES!... NO!... I don't know!!... Gabe, I just… want to show everyone… what I can do… I feel like… if I fail… I will… disappoint everyone," Alex says as she begins breaking down and crying from all the stress she has been putting herself through. I just hold her as she cries in my arms. 

"If you think in any way you will disappoint, you are crazier than I thought. Everyone knows just how smart you are and how much you put yourself through. Everyone couldn't be more proud of you, especially me, I have a hot and smart girlfriend what else could I ask for," I say to Alex with the last part more teasing than the rest, as she laughs and cries while while I hold her. 

"I guess," Alex says after a few moments as I am still holding her. 

"If it makes you feel any better, I don't think that 'prodigy' will be making much difference in the field," I say to Alex as I think about how far this world is in making the 'cure' for cancer. While I am only one step away from finding the cure, which I believe I have, I just need to have the equipment and resources to prove it. 

"Yeah, guess so," Alex says with a slightly bitter chuckle. Then we sit there in comfortable silence as Alex snuggles further into my arms. 

"Now, don't take this the wrong way or anything. As I say this with love," I say to Alex who looks at me. 

"Say it," Alex says while giving me a suspicious and curious look. 

"Maybe you should see a therapist about your stress-handling issues. Imagine you breaking down in public or during your birthday party," I say to Alex who gives me an annoyed look, but nods her head seeming to agree with me. 

"Maybe… Fine, I guess you are right," Alex says while sighing, but then relaxing in my arms again. 

Alex then makes her appointment with a therapist and her birthday party comes with much fewer issues than in the show. As she already blew up and understands she is putting too much pressure on herself. After a few visits, it seems Alex is starting to see her problems and now Claire seems to be understanding the pressure Alex is feeling. All of this helps Alex tremendously as she is slowly appearing more and more relaxed as time goes by and not as stressed by the little things anymore. 

Finally, the dreaded day comes for the SATs with many students panicking and doing final last-minute studying. Even though Alex is doing better, she is still stressed and I am trying to help her do some last-minute studying too. We both then walked to the testing area. 

"I'd say good luck, but with all the effort you've been putting in I doubt you need it," I say to Alex giving her a hug as she hugs me back. I can feel all of her stress from this hug as she sighs with her face buried in my chest. 

"Thanks… I'd say good luck too, but you have a life hack with that brain of yours," Alex says to me as I chuckle and nod my head. 

We then take our seats with the test proctor entering the room and going through the motions. Once the first part of the test begins, I fly through it within twenty minutes doing one double-check to make sure I missed nothing. Even though I am very confident in myself, I do want to go to Harvard again in this life. I then hand in my first part before anyone else making them all stare at me with surprise and some with jealousy like Sanjay. Alex just smiles at me before going back to her test. 

The whole day felt like it was longer than usual since I flew through the tests. With Alex almost using up all the time available for each part. She did that since it appeared she was checking everything five times over to make sure she was one hundred percent happy with her answers. I handed in the last part, though I waited it out for Alex to finish even though we could leave once handing in the last part. 

"So, feel better now that it is over?" I ask Alex once she hands in her final part and we are walking to my car to go home. 

"Yes and no… Yes because it is finally over, but no because I am worried about my score," Alex says with a sigh as I pull her under my arm to give her a side hug. 

"I am sure you did fantastic… or not???" I say to Alex who gives me a stressed-filled look hearing me, which makes me change my answer to no. She just sighs as we continue to walk. 

"I hope," Alex says as we get into my car. 

"Is anyone at your house right now?" Alex asked me as I checked the time which was just past noon, since the test ended before the school day, letting everyone who took it out earlier than normal. 

"No, unless they got off early. Why?" I ask Alex who gives me a smirk. 

"I think we should let off some stress," Alex says to me with a suggestive look and I smile now understanding her. With the test coming up we haven't really been intimate due to Alex's stress, so this was a very welcomed invitation. 

A couple of weeks after the test ended, the scores were sent out. Mine arrived with a perfect score and a letter telling me I was one of the few people to do that in the country these last few years. Alex scored a 1510, meaning she was still in the 95th percentile giving her a very high chance of getting into Harvard. 

"Of course, you got a perfect score… fucking cheater," Alex says to me with an annoyed sigh as I laugh. 

"Can't help I am a genius," I say to Alex who just rolls her eyes. 

Then we hear Haley scream and run out of the basement where she lives now. No one else was home, as they were all out doing whatever. Alex and I rush downstairs to see Haley trying to look for something desperately in the garage. 

"Haley! What are you doing?" Alex says as Haley looks over at us and runs over to us. 

"There is a giant rat in the basement!! It almost got me!" Haley says pointing down to the basement. 

"What?! Didn't Dad trap the basement?!" Alex says now worried too, as it seems both sisters are not a fan of rodents. Not that I am a fan, but it's just a small animal, and worst case someone gets bit we go to the hospital for a rabies shot. 

"I thought that too, but this thing is way too big for a small trap!" Haley says while grabbing a baseball bat from the garage. 

"Haley! What are you going to do?! Smash it?!" Alex says seeing Haley look ready to bash some rats, just like Charlie from Always Sunny. 

"If only Charlie was here," I mumble while laughing to myself remembering one of the best TV shows from my past life. 

"What?" Alex says looking at me as I shake my head. 

"Yeah, I am going to smash the shit out of it!...WAIT!! Gabe! You can smash it! You're a guy! And this is a guy's job!" Haley says while pushing the baseball bat into my hands. 

"What?! No way! Gabe no bashing! We are going to capture it and set it free somewhere else," Alex says wanting to not kill the animal while Haley gives her a crazy look and I shrug holding the bat, while thinking of being the King of Rats like Charlie. 

'Kinda want to smash a rat now,' I think to myself while feeling the bat in my hands. 

"Whatever! But that means you have to catch it then!" Haley says while pointing to Alex who nods her head. We then all head downstairs, Alex holding a broom to make the rat run to me as I am holding an empty trash bag and Haley has the bat as she will kill it if it comes close to her. 

"I don't see anything… Where is it?" Alex says as we slowly walk down the stairs while looking for it. 

"It was over there, guess it moved," Haley says pointing in the corner of the basement across from her room down here. 

Alex and I head in that direction slowly looking around for the rat. Haley stayed on the stairs holding the bat close ready to swing it at a second's notice. 

"THERE!!" Haley says yelling at us and pointing to her room as she screams in fear and anger. 

"It went into my room!!" Haley says running over to her room as we quickly come over too. 

"Haley that is not a rat!!" Alex says with fear in her voice and backing away from the door. 

"What?! What is it?!" Haley says as I look over them both to see a possum sitting on her bed and hissing at us. 

"That's a possum! Not a rat!!" Alex says running back upstairs with Haley quickly following after her, as I stare at the possum which is staring back at me. 

"Uhm… hey," I say to the small animal which is staring at me warily. Then make my way back upstairs too, but first close the door to Haley's room so the animal can't leave to somewhere else.