A/N: Right, so I know you were all looking for another Kane chapter or another on Magically Delightful but Alex was bugging me with the very first line of this chapter and I just couldn't stop typing. This is the start of Alex's and I figured we should start with a bang and see where that leads us. As you know, we've already started Alex's story once and had to kill it because it seemed so… wrong. Do we like this one or what? Let me know?

Razorblade Story # 4 - Inking My Way to Your Heart - Alex

Chapter One

He may have looked like a twink, but the way he stood up to the guy that had a good forty pounds on him said differently.

Alex leaned back against the bar where he was seated on the barstool. He had come here tonight with the intention of having some sort of casual sex what he had gotten once he stayed awhile was two for one wings on top of a few beers. Oh, he'd had plenty of offers but none that sparked his cock the way he was seeking and no one that really held his interest enough to want to call them later at the numbers they stuffed in his pants. The night was truly beginning to look hopeless.

And then he had peeked across the room at then commotion over at the pool table to see him. The guy wasn't terribly short but sure as hell looked it when he stood nearly chest to chest to the big guy he was currently arguing with, his body wasn't particularly muscled but he was hardly skinny either. He looked rather ordinary, truth be told, and had it not been for the big mouth to came with that clear temper he had, Alex would never have taken a second look.

But he was looking now, eyes a bit wide when it looked like the bigger guy was going to go off the deep end and hurt the fellow - even went so far as kicking the pool table - but the smaller man never stopped running his mouth. Alex saw where this was going and knew it was none of his business if the kid got punched in the mouth he seemed to love to run so much but it just seemed such a shame for all the bravado he was showing to be ended by an embarrassing tumble.

Besides, it took a lot of guts to stand up to someone three times your size.

When Alex stood and walked over there, he had no idea. All he knew was that all of a sudden he was there, getting in between the two. "Cool it, guys," he said, wondering where the hell the bouncer was to handle this shit and more, just why he felt the need to get into something that was clearly none of his damned business.

"Fuck you," big guy said, as expected. "Why don't you go play bouncer somewhere else before I slap you like I'm gonna slap this bitch."

"I'd like to see you try, you fat bastard."

That actually had Alex smiling as he stared down into the man's angry face. The big guy was two seconds away from kicking the smaller man's ass and he still had the audacity to instigate him. "Calm down, sweetheart," Alex said to the man, "He's not really worth all this trouble, is he?"

"I dunno, why don't you ask my brother over there. The one with the busted lip," The man growled, finger pointing to a even smaller, cuter version of himself. "No one hits my brother and I'll be damned if he just-"

Alex had to strain himself a moment holding the big guy - the son of a bitch really was huge - back when he went for the other. "Back off, man," he warned. He had come over here to save a twink from getting his ass kicked but the added incentive of an abusive boyfriend had him staying.

"You back off. If he wants to get slapped around like his slut brother then-"

Alex was shocked as hell when the little guy dodged around him and lit into the bigger man. He was so damned stunned, he couldn't even be bothered to grab one or the other and pull them apart. That big guy may have topped the loud-mouthed twink by a good six inches but damned if his height wasn't cut in half where the man had kneed him right in the dick. The punches that followed to the guy's face and head were just a sight to see and they had Alex wondering just why he had bothered to come over here at all because the guy clearly didn't need help, if any one did it was the big guy who was currently laid back on the floor covering his face with his arms.

"Haden," a soft voice called out as the even smaller man came to pull his brother away. "Haden, come on, leave him alone."

"Fuck that, Kit! Look what he did to you." Haden, Alex assumed from what his brother called him, stopped despite his words and stood from atop the man. His hands were red, clenched tight and shaking from both anger and the thorough pummeling of the bigger guy, face still drawn tight but he was clearly trying to calm his breathing and get himself in check.

Alex was still wondering where the bouncer was or the owner or someone and just how the hell big badass had ended up on the floor whimpering like a bitch over a guy that should have been squashed like a bug.

"Come on, Haden, let's get out of here before they call the cops or something," Kit said softly to his brother, his head tilted so the room could see it wasn't just his lip that was busted all to hell. The whole left side of his face was one big bruise, stitches sticking out from his cheekbone.

No wonder big brother had been so pissed, Alex mused.

"Yeah," Haden breathed out and even started toward the door before turning back and meeting Alex's eyes. "I know you were trying to help so I guess thanks… but no thanks," he said lowly.

Alex shrugged, "I thought you were the one who was going to get your ass kicked. I see now that I didn't have that to worry about."

"Why would you worry one way or the other? You don't know me."

"No, I don't," Alex said simply.

Haden stared at him a long moment and as the man's face unwound from a bit of his anger, his expression softened and Alex felt a peculiar hitch to his breath. The man still wasn't gorgeous in any sense of the word. Truth be told he was barely cute and was more plain than anything else and yet Alex found him to be so incredibly sexy. It was probably from the adrenaline and the amazingly one-sided fight he had just witnessed but it still had Alex raising a brow.

After all, he'd only had sex three times total since Ronnie left him and the fact that his body was obviously attracted to this man when no one else had even caught his interest in months had Alex wanting to yank him into the bathroom and drop to his knees. He couldn't, of course, as the man was currently being tugged from the room by his brother and away from the scene. He'd probably see him again around the area if the guy's brother was dating big, bald and bleeding and that probably meant they lived locally too. He could certainly hope.

When he lost sight of the two men, he went back over to the table and tossed some bills down on it before heading to the door and out to his car that was parked just across the parking lot. The low voices from just a few moments before had him stopping.

"Hade, we can't keep doing this."

"Shut up. You want to get home, don't you?" A slight sound of tinkering and then the sound of the engine trying to start as the man no doubt tried to wire the car. "This is the only way we have to get back to the Southside since your asshole boyfriend sure as hell isn't going to pick himself off the floor to drive us, Grant's not coming back this way and I don't have any money. Get in."

"Haden, I don't want you to get in trouble again. If they catch you as an adult, you'll go to jail."

"Who said they'd catch me?"

Alex, who had been walking nearer to the voices since he heard them, could do little more than burst out laughing at the sight. Was this fate or what?

Haden was laid across his driver side seat tinkering while Kit was standing watch and doing a shitty job if it if Alex's sight of them was any indication. "You could have just asked for a ride home," he said, knowing he should be pissed but just couldn't find it in him to be at the man's words.

Both brothers immediately jumped, Haden hitting his head against the steering wheel before bounding out of the car to stare at Alex with wide eyes. "Look, I…" he started, unsure what to say even as he crept over to grab his brother's hand.

"Was trying to steal my car?" Alex supplied as he crept a little closer.

"Look, man, you caught us, we're sorry," Haden shifted under the newcomer's view. "No harm, no foul, right?"

"Is that right?" Alex said, raising a brow at the wires peeking out just beside his ignition switch.

"What's he gonna do, Haden? I don't want to have to move again," Kit's voice asked with a bit of panic to it. "I don't want to go to jail either."

"You didn't do anything. If he calls the cops, it's on me. So just chill out." Wrapping an arm around his brother, Haden hugged the smaller man to him, "I wont let anything happen to you, I promise."

Alex hated to interrupt the touching moment but felt the need to put the boys minds at ease. "I'm not going to call the cops. Like you said, no harm, no foul. Just try to stay away from any black mustangs you may come across from here on out, eh?"

Haden nodded and started walking away, tugging his brother behind him when Kit's voice stopped Alex when he went to get in his car. "How are we gonna get home now, Haden?"

"I'll figure something out, Kittie, I promise. I'll… Well, I'll visit Lincoln if I have to and-"

"Hey, guy," Alex called out, moving to walk towards them. Stopping a few feet away when Haden pushed his brother behind him and took a familiar stance. Alex was a bit taken aback but didn't particularly care to try the little quick stepped fucker. "I'm heading in that direction if you guys want to catch a ride." He wasn't but he would change his course in order to get the two home without trouble.

Haden snorted, "What direction is that? To the police station? Fuck that."

Kit stopped him when he would have turned. "Haden? He may be our only way."

"We don't know anything about this guy!"

"We know he was trying to stop the fight in case you got hurt," Kit said matter-of-factly, "And we know he didn't call the cops when he caught us."

"I'm just going to take you home. No funny business and I'm not some fucking snitch to take you to the cops."

"Why do you want to help?" Haden asked suspiciously. "You looking for a blowjob or something?"

Alex snorted, "I can get blown on my own without doing people favors, thanks. Now just get in the damn car if you want to go home." He went and got in the car himself, annoyed as hell for some reason that the man would just throw such a thing out there like that. And truly, he was wondering in the back of his mind if Haden would have given him one just for taking them home. Why the thought annoyed him he had no idea, it just did.

There was a brief pause before two doors opened and Haden slid in the front, Kit in the back. The former of the two mumbled the address and asked if Alex knew it. He did, though he had to admit to a certain dislike to going to the neighborhood in the daytime much less at night. There were too many drugs and fights for Alex's blue blooded liking.

Parking the car just before the crumpling townhouse he was directed too, Alex felt the need to keep driving and take the two men somewhere else. Somewhere that didn't look like it would fall on top of their heads. "This is your place?"

"Yeah, you got a problem?" Haden snapped.

"Not if you don't," Alex said with a shrug, though a frown marred his face.

Haden stared at Alex for a long moment before sighing and ordering his brother out of the car and into the house.

"But you don't have to, Haden! He said he didn't want-"

"Just go," he cut off his little brother and watched him with a hawk-like gaze as he scurried out the car and into the house. He turned back to Alex then, "Just lean back in the seat and try not to make a lot of noise, some of my neighbors aren't too homo friendly."

Alex blinked. "What the fuck are you talking about?"

"I don't have any money to give you for gas and you're obviously a fag since you were at that bar, so just sit back, shut up and let me do this." Haden reached for his crotch then and glared at Alex when his hand was caught.

"I didn't bring you home because I wanted a bj. I can get one of those without the hassle of driving to the Southside and risking a robbery in the middle of the night," he ground out with a frown.

"Then what the hell did you do it for?"

"Because I wanted to."

"Bullshit. No one does something for nothing."

Alex stared at the male for a hot minute. The street lamp seemed to highlight his face showing attractive amber eyes below straight black hair that just covered his ears. His coloring striking even if his face wasn't and said coloring was a pleasant contrast to his pale skin as well. But while not striking or even handsome, really, Alex thought his expressions and the way he held himself to be so damned arousing. Had the man not just tried to offer up a blowjob as payment for the ride, Alex would have tried to get Haden to lean back let him give him one. But that the man had even asked creeped Alex out a bit.

"Well, I guess I'm some one then because I don't want a fucking thing."

"Look, I know I'm not…" he sighed, "I know I'm not as good looking as my brother but he's been through a lot and his mouth is too sore to get you off. It's me or nothing."

"There is nothing wrong with you," Alex heard himself saying. "I just don't want to get blown in the middle of Southside."

Haden's cheeks burned a bright red at first his words then Alex's, obviously assuming he wasn't good looking enough for Alex to want him to suck him off. "Then I'm sorry. Thanks for the ride." That said, he got out the car and made a beeline for the front door.

Alex waited until he was inside before pulling off and heading home. He wasn't sure why he felt like such a dick but then, he wasn't sure he wanted to find out either.

-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

"So you took them home - after they tried to steal your car?" Canvas' voice let Alex know just how much of an ass the blonde seemed to think he was at that move. "What if they had tried to take your car there instead of a busy bar?"

"They didn't," Alex replied, leaning back to prop his feet up on Canvas' coffee table. "And I couldn't just leave them there on the street to hitchhike home after one had just gotten smacked around."

"I thought you said the taller one kicked the guys ass?"

"He did, he kicked the guys ass at the bar because the guy slapped his brother around."

"This is confusing."

"I know," Alex said but he wasn't thinking about the happenings as he said it. He was thinking about those sharp amber eyes that seemed to catch everything and nothing at the same time. The flush that covered the man's face when he thought he was too ugly to catch Alex's interest even just to pay him back with a blowjob and more, that shoddy so-called house they were staying in that looked more like it was going to fall on top of them than keep the rain off.

"What's got you looking so serious? Pissed about having to take your car back to the shop because you don't know enough about it to put the wired and paneling back in?" Canvas laughed, shoving the man.

"Fuck you, man. If the shop wasn't three blocks over, I wouldn't have even bothered to come over to let you insult me," he mock-glared at the man.

"Whatever, asshole. You wanted to chat about thing one and thing two and I was here. You used me, you dick," he poked Alex in the chest before getting up and heading to the kitchen. "You thirsty?"

Alex got up and followed him. "It's just fucked up, you know? You should have seen where they live, it's really fucked."

"So call the city or something, have them condemn the place and move on."

"They'd be out on their ass then."

"And on to finding a better place to live."

"You're such a snob," Alex scoffed. "They look like they're used to hard times. It's sad to see people live like that."

Canvas sighed and handed his friends a glass of teas. "Look, I know you think I'm being a dick, but you can't help the world. And you can't help people who don't want to be helped and more, don't fucking know you to ask for help. You met them once and now your boohooing about it. You said the guy asked to blow you, you should have let him and killed it as a good deed."

"I thought you used to go do that charitable shit as a kid," Alex asked, annoyed by Canvas' words. "How can you be so cynical."

"I went to Africa and Eastern Europe, even Asia but when we tried to help the lower class people in the U.S. just after we moved here from England, all we got was a bunch of shit. Hell, even when I tried the soup kitchen out in VA Beach all I got was mouth so why bother with them?"

"Were you this condescending with them as you are with me?" he wanted to know.

"Ha ha, funny, Alex."

"I'm not laughing, Canvas." And he wasn't. Alex may have come from parents who put a silver spoon in his mouth from day one but he was never taught to look down on someone because of their circumstances involving money. "I think it's fucked up that you can be like that just because a few bad apples."

"They tried to steal your car, I'd say that makes the two of them bad apples as well."

"Haven't you ever had to struggle? They were broke and no way to get home."

"You've never had to struggle either," Canvas reminded him.

"No, I haven't, so I have no idea how hard it is and neither do you. And let me tell you something else since I'm already fucked for my own self-righteousness, charity starts at home, not overseas. When you moved here this became your home, you should buck up and see to the issues here instead of looking everywhere else but under your nose." He set his glass down, frustrated with this whole conversation. "Thanks for the drink but I think I'll wait at the auto shop."

"Alex, wait," Canvas grabbed his shoulder and sighed. "You're right. I… I don't know why I was being such a dick, but I'm sorry. Of course, I don't know where you suddenly have this 'help the needy thing' going either but I wont question it. Just, well, I guess let me know if I can do anything."

Alex grunted, ridiculously annoyed when he knew he shouldn't be. Canvas was just expressing his opinion. It didn't have anything to do with that amber-eyed fellow and his cute little brother. And Alex didn't have anything to do with them either so why was he so taken in every time he blinked his eyes and saw Haden? Was he that guilty for not being poor or was he that attracted to the plain-faced man? It was confusing and Alex didn't like the feeling.

"Yeah, I'll check you later, man," he finally said and headed back to await his car.