Alex's Happy Little Secret

The next day when Claire was at work Alex surveyed the outside of the pharmacy as usual. He liked watching over everything from the roof so he could see in all directions.

He hadn't mentioned this to her but there had already been one incident of someone trying to snipe her through the window. There was no reason to trouble her more than necessary when she was already so stressed out about dying.

Oh look, there was another one who jumped up onto a neighboring building trying to get a clear shot. He took that guy out easily and left him up there. It wasn't like anybody was going to go onto the roof and find him anytime soon.

Alex knew Claire didn't like it when he killed people but it really was easier than leaving them tied up for the police to find. They had already snooped around her workplace enough, resulting in her calling out sick for two full days after leaving early.

He needed to take care of this faster but wasn't sure how to go about it. Without knowing who was after her, they were at a dead end. All he could do was continue to stop the hitmen as they kept coming.

He didn't like it any more than she did. He wanted to spend his time playing games, watching anime, and learning new things from Claire rather than having to deal with constant danger.

Alex was so over that. He would be happy if he never saw another gun again after this. It would mean he was finally free of his life as a Number.

He didn't come down from the roof until it was time for her to come out and escorted her to the car before conducting his usual inspection for car bombs. Thankfully there was nothing so they could go home.

However…he couldn't shake the feeling that something big was about to go down. His only hope was that he would be able to stop it and protect Claire at the same time.

A world without her in it would be completely empty. He was sure that no one else would have been able to accept him the way she had considering the way they met. If she was gone…who would be his friend then?

Alex didn't even want to think about it. He had to keep Claire safe. He had to.

She had said before that Daisy was all she had left. Her only family. He didn't understand what family meant and couldn't comprehend love but he couldn't help but wonder if what he was experiencing was a more subdued version of that.

He didn't know how to feel affection but it was true that Claire was all he had. He could not afford to lose her.

Did that make her family? Did family consist of the people you felt that you couldn't lose no matter what? She said before that family wasn't necessarily tied together by blood. She said bonds of love could be as strong as or even stronger than bonds of blood.

Alex wanted to ask but he didn't want to make her uncomfortable again. Sometimes he could tell when he had asked a bad question. He had a feeling that this would be one too.

So he kept his thoughts to himself all the way home. When they arrived, he asked if they could play UNO as if he wasn't going slightly crazy wondering whether they were a family or not.

They hung out together for a while until it was time for Claire to make dinner. He sat at the kitchen table and looked up 'family' on a dictionary website.

To his surprise, they were seven definitions. Only three seemed relevant. It was really confusing that the same word could mean so many things but he ran into that problem a lot. English was a strange language.

The first focused on the traditional definition of a unit consisting of parents raising their children. The second was a group of people with common ancestry. The third seemed the most fitting to his situation: 'a group of individuals living under one roof and usually with one head.' It had a side note with the word 'household.'

Alex supposed going by the household definition that he, Claire, and the cat made up a family of sorts. Though his staying here was meant to be temporary from the start. Did it still count? He felt like it did.

Claire probably wouldn't think it counted though. She thought of family in terms of love rather than technical definitions. That was something he wasn't sure he would ever understand but he did like the idea of being a part of her family.

How strange. He had never once longed for a family of his own living in headquarters. Even after staying with her for a while he hadn't cared. What exactly had changed his mind?

"Food's ready," she called as she turned around and set a plate with some sort of chicken dish on it in front of him, smiling warmly.

Happiness flooded through him at the sight. Alex supposed this was what had done the trick. Claire made him happy so wanted to have a concrete link to her. She thought highly of family so it might be because he figured being a part of her family was the best way to continue enjoying her warmth long term.

He smiled back at her. "Thanks, Claire. It looks delicious."

"You're very welcome. Dig in!"

She opened a can of wet food for Daisy and set it down on the floor near their chairs. In that moment the three of them ate peacefully together as if they truly were a family. Alex was perfectly content.

Claire did say he needed to think for himself. He was allowed to think of the three of them as a family even if she didn't using whatever definition he wanted.

She had taught him that his thoughts were his own and did not have to be influenced by anyone else. That was exactly what he would do…even if he had to keep it from her so he didn't make her uncomfortable.

But that was fine. This could be Alex's happy little secret.