Chapter Text
After taking the final photo, with no red eye, no Michael, and Clarissa just as imposing and present, as usual, Alex leans on Jonas’ side while they walk to take a seat.
“I told my mom I was at a friend's house.”
“Okay. And?”
“Which friend do I tell her I stayed with?”
Everyone Jonas knows is back in Westedge, dead, or on the ferry with him. He’s her ‘fresh as a daisy step-brother’, so how could he know who to say?
“Um, Nona. But she’s not like a friend to you, is she?”
“She’s not. But, she did give me an invite to her birthday party in a couple of days. I can ask her about plus ones for you!” Alex smiles, just a little, with a kind of knowingness impossible from someone else that hasn’t lived this night before. He winces at thinking about how all of them have lived this night before.
“I’m gonna hold back on parties for now... especially ones so personal.” Jonas lovingly chuckles at her, excusing the fact that she would even consider another party after this disaster. “Hey!” Alex laughs, “Out of all the parties I’ve gone to, this is the only one where anyone got possessed. None have been as bad, except for that one time when Ren had to jump out of a window at Kendall’s party–”
Ren turns around, stopping his eyes from being completely fixed on Nona, and begins work on burning a hole in Alex’s forehead. “Alex!! You promised that would go to Forever Secrets Land!” Ren gets extremely flustered and continues to ramble, “That’s like, worse them you telling him about Captain Nibbles!!!” Clarissa buts in, “Captain Nibbles, wait what happened to him? Wasn’t he that one guy’s guinea pig, Jake, right?” Nona tucks her fallen hair behind her beanie and blinks up at Ren, “Okay, did I miss something about a, um, guinea pig celebrity?”
“Well, only because everyone asked since someone,” Ren glares at Alex, “had to mention it–” “Ren, YOU mentioned it!! I only said the window thing!” Alex throws her hands up in the air and brings them back to hold her hands on her chest. “Whatever, anyway my sister Allison had to mow the lawn…” Ren begins, ignoring how Alex has put the pieces together already and is trying not to toss her cookies over the railing.