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As the extended families of Huntsberg and Duclerc were called by the matriarch of the former, Alexandros saw the lack of attention that she was getting by those in the foyer, surmising that either they were too immersed in their own conversation to give her the time of day or she simply didn’t speak loud enough. For a moment, Alexandros was unsure what to do. He was a stranger in their house, so it wasn’t like the appropriate thing to do was be the first one to heed her call. However, there was also a part of him that felt bad for her.

A long minute went by and no one did nothing. Alexandros’ mind was telling him to move despite none thinking the same thing as he. Before he would even get the chance to do what he was going to do regardless, the familiar chirpings of a dainty brunette sounded off once more. The screeching sounds like a mouse with a megaphone repeated what her aunt said. Thanks to that, everyone took notice. 

The families all walked into the main dining room. Alexandros couldn’t help but respect that cousin of Audrey’s. For such a little person to have such a loud voice and make people notice her, she was definitely related to Audrey. She demanded attention and whether or not people around her approved of her way going about it, Delilah Duclerc didn’t care. She had pride in her voice (as she should be). Alexandros respected that, though it wasn’t without consequences. He, once again, found himself struggling to hear. It didn’t last longer than a few, long moments. By the time he joined the others, he could hear.

After waiting only a few minutes for Elisabetha to decide the seating arrangements, most of the seats had been filled by the people in attendance. Alexandros couldn’t help but notice the absence of his darling brother. Knowing him, he was off elsewhere not giving any care to how it made their mother look. Alexandros took the time to subtlety look over to her and, though she appeared to be unaffected, there was a shine in her eye that Alexandros knew exactly what it meant. Eli was toast.

Alexandros felt bad that he was going to enjoy seeing his brother get it good, but at the end of the day, it was his own fault for bringing it upon himself. Whatever hell was pulled out of Pandora’s Box, he knew Eli wouldn’t be able to sweet talk his way out of it.

Food had been served and the families proceeded to eat and converse. The volumes were surprisingly calm with all of the people around. Truth be told, Alexandros thought these bunch would be a bit louder. Everything he had heard about hispanic families made him believe they were a rowdy bunch. But, as he had a keen ear on those who surrounded him, aside from a few, they were generally tame. Disappointment was obvious on his face, though perhaps that was what he got for making assumptions.

A mental note had been made. It would be cut short, of course, because Alexandros heard Audrey’s father speak directly to them. He made some comment about how they spoke earlier and Alexandros saw how that threw Audrey for a loop. He shouldn’t have been enjoying this, but the way she had to think of a bullshit excuse was priceless. Would she tell him about them or find some other reason to explain their acquaintance?

What indeed, Audrey?

When she finally started talking, Alexandros had this amused look on his face. He wasn’t sure where she was going with this. She could tell her father a bunch of things. She could say that he was the school womanizer and that they had slept together. She could’ve told him that they had just done it in her room a few times before coming down to join the rest of the guests. But no, she obviously couldn’t bring herself to do it. Alex saw it. She was going to choose the coward’s way out. 

He had to hide his chuckle by subtly covering his mouth with his hand, though, he noticed that Ava saw what he was doing. She gave him a suspicious look. He gave one back, though it was to non-verbally tell her to shut up whatever she was thinking. Their eyes kept a deep lock on each other for the longest Mossos moment ever to exist. The only reason it was broken was because Arthur had addressed Alexandros after hearing what Audrey had to say.

[color=dodgerblue]“Yes, this is all true.”[/color] He confirmed what Audrey said, [color=dodgerblue]“but what your daughter failed to mention..”[/color] As Alexandros spoke, it seemed that every eye at the table was on him, though for the longest, brief moment, his eyes went elsewhere. The sight of his brother and Delilah’s sister caught his attention. They had just walked in and though no one at the table would know, Alexandros could tell exactly what was wrong with the way they talked and the way they seemed to be smiling. Even without hearing it from their mouths, he could tell they were high. 

As the family would look at Alex curiously, as if wondering what he was going to say next, he collected himself and continued, [color=dodgerblue]“as I was going to say, when I had my first day at the school, she was the best guide. She showed me...exactly what I wanted to see.”[/color] He told Arthur, giving Audrey but a single look. 

Both of them knew exactly what he meant. His family knew what he meant, but her family didn’t know. At the very least, that was a saving grace for Audrey. Perhaps now she would know he was entirely serious about them. Embarrassing her in front of her entire family would’ve been the one thing the old Alex would’ve done. But this wasn’t the old Alex. He was a new, understanding Alexandros Mossos. Whether that would stay the same throughout the dinner remained to be seen, but right now, Alex didn’t give Audrey any reason to doubt him. And better yet, he gave this image of him to her family that he was a good boy.

If only they knew...
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