Day 25: Breakfast

[uncage]

Kuja was, in fact, quite surprised to suddenly find himself in bed. An odd turn of events, as he previously remembered investigating the contents of a closet. If the genome hadn't known any better, he would have thought he hadn't even left the room. However, the items he was still holding obviously proved such thoughts untrue; he had left his room

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[thehellismycar]

The man's face contorted into a scowl as the intercom sounded. A gradually calming expression, eyes still shut, grew a smirk as its host heeded a blunder in the Head Doctor's chatter.

Good reputation my ass...

"Ugh," he couldn't help groaning, discontent and tossing the sheets off his body. He shielded his gaze from the beam on the ceiling like every other morning, swiftly moving up from the bed. The powers that be had perfect timing, didn't they? In the middle of a pleasant expedition with a newfound ally, and as though Martin Landel himself had snapped his fingers, he'd awoken again in M38. Dean glanced impartially at Kasady prior to opening the closet and inspecting the overcoat's pockets. Pain-killers: check. Butter knives: check. Although he had to take one out and look at it quizzically, wondering what the hell had gotten into him, why he'd stolen these things. Use them with brute force, of course. The utensils were blunt, but that didn't necessarily mean they weren't weapons of their own cluster. Shoving it into someone's gut was gonna hurt no matter how you observed it, this way or that.

The nurse appeared noiselessly by his side, giving him quite a shock when he turned from the closet.

"Breakfast time!"

Have a medal, lady. Jesus Christ.

Ill feelings toward the worker dissipated as they headed for the Cafeteria, a familiar scent wafting into the corridors. This day took the record of being the first day Dean willingly selected food for breakfast. The simplicity of satisfying an appetite was enough to keep his mind dulled on subjects of consequence; Sam, for starters, then Re- no, first Elena - a check-up on her status. For now, the hunter was comfortable at an empty table, ripping into an English muffin. Tasted good.

[transgenix]

Max was annoyed. Very, very annoyed. For one thing, she felt as if she'd wasted an entire night. She'd learned almost nothing about this place and had convinced herself that whatever tales she'd heard about the day before about the terrors that lurked were just the other patients' ways of pulling newcomers legs. She'd certainly seen nothing of the sort. All she and Susan had come across were a bunch of clearly unstable - or at the very least, very, very strange - patients, and an ancient filing room that looked as if it hadn't been touched in ages, with a file full of made-up information on her. Apparently her 'husband' was a real ass, since he considered this the best place to put her to 'fix' her psychosis. Whenever she found who was running this place, she'd show them what she thought about their senses of humor.

What was really troubling her at the moment, however, was a single comment made by the intercom a moment before she'd awoken in her room once more, wondering if the whole thing had been some crazy dream (but she had the file still, so that canceled that option). The phrase kept ringing in her ears, moreso because she didn't understand what it meant. He'd been talking to someone named Jack, and she was fairly certain she didn't know anyone by that name, but the other...

Years of research, this place took, I'll have you know. I'm sure Alec could tell you all about that, of course...

That was what he'd said. And the name had washed over her like a bucket of cold water. It was highly unlikely he meant her Alec, of course, but just the mention of the name had stopped her in her tracks for a moment, and she found she wanted answers all the more.

Of course, answers were going to have to wait for a little longer, she found out, as she was escorted into the cafeteria once more by her cheerfully prattling nurse who Max really wanted to strangle quite cheerfully in return. At least the food smelled good, she decided as she grabbed a plate and glanced around for a familiar face.

...And found one, she realized, as she froze again, shock rippling through her. Sitting there casually scarfing down a breakfast sandwich.

Relief and exasperation and annoyance swept through her abruptly, replacing the shock, as Max recognized Alec, and she stormed in that direction with single-minded determination.

"What are you doing here? When did you get here? What the hell is going on, Alec?" she demanded, smacking her tray down on the table beside his own.

[thehellismycar]

Dean directed a stern stare on... an attractive female. Austerity melted away as the tray was slapped beside him. Mouth full, he stopped gnawing on the rations as he listened, looked straight ahead for a second, and then back at the woman.

OK, she obviously had the wrong person. For a minute there, it seemed the event of a past bang's discovering him was due to unravel. Good thing his name (and several aliases) wasn't Alec, or he'd have been the bearer of bad news in saying he couldn't remember her face. Body, though...?

A small smile found a means of display as he chewed some more.

"Sorry?" The word came out, slightly muffled by food.

[transgenix]

"For what? What have you done this time?" she retorted, propping her hands on her hips and gazing down at him in exasperation. "I should have known you'd turn up. Things go all screwy and you're inevitably close by. What's going on?"

[thehellismycar]

He laughed quietly.

"Well, y'know, I'm flattered, but I can't take credit. Think you've got the wrong guy," he said after finally swallowing the morsel. "Please -" He motioned nonchalantly at the space next to him, smirking - "Feel free to sit." Not that her current stance intimidated him in the least; it just wasn't cool having a chick lecture you when you didn't rightfully deserve it.

[transgenix]

Typical. Not that she expected him to own up to anything, not that easily. "This isn't funny, Alec," she replied, rolling her eyes and sinking down into a chair next to his. "This place is bent! They're trying to tell me I'm someone else. And that I'm married. What the hell's up with that? Does Logan know about this place? Do any of the others know about it? Or that we're here? And why are we here, exactly?"

[thehellismycar]

God, it was like she'd mistaken him for his long-lost twin. What the hell. Frustration wasn't among the emotions he was experiencing at the moment, however, so he shifted his chair around a fraction to study her copiously. She was pretty hot, misunderstanding aside. If he had tapped that, it wouldn't have staggered him. Resistance was the best method to go by with this kind of woman.

"I'm Dean," he answered simply, leaning back in his chair and folding one leg over the other. "I wasn't kidding, y'know. I... really don't know you." He propped an elbow up on the arm, head resting in his palm.

[transgenix]

That stopped her in her tracks, and she stared at him in surprised bewilderment for a moment. "What?"

[thehellismycar]

Hoo boy. An acquiescent air glazed over his face before it broke into a friendly grin.

"Who's Alec? Boyfriend o' yours?" He snickered, eyebrows elevating and crossing his arms. "'Cuz, I mean, that's the impression I'm gettin'."

[transgenix]

Max's gaze narrowed. "If you're not Alec, then what's your designation?" she asked instead; the chances of coming across a third model in her lifetime was getting to be a bit too ironic for her tastes. Although this one's personality was much more like Alec than Ben's had ever been.

[thehellismycar]

"... Come again?" He tilted forward in his chair as emphasis he had no clue as to what she was going on about. She didn't catch on quickly, did she? "Listen, I'd remember you if we'd met. Trust me."

[transgenix]

Max rolled her eyes at the line and then reached out to push his head forward against the table with an easy strength that looked quite at odds with her petite frame. She stared at the back of his neck - and the lack of barcode - in quickly returning astonishment. "Where's your code?"

[thehellismycar]

The man raised his hands to both sides as though he were being taken into custody, his cheek gently meeting the cool table top. He wasn't frowning at all, like one would expect at perceiving a complete stranger attempting to assault another.

"Hey, we just met, but seein' how keen you are..." He jested, beaming wider at her next words. "'scuse me?"

[transgenix]

She released him, sinking back down on the chair and staring at him in complete bewilderment. Finding another X5 model lookalike was even less surprsing than finding a human lookalike. Was that even possible? "Holy crap, you're really not..." she trailed off, muttering, then realized how completely insane she must appear.

"I'm sorry," she apologized, still eyeing him in confusion. "You're really not... I mean. I shouldn't have done that. Are you alright?"

[thehellismycar]

"No worries," he chuckled, straightening in the chair as he waved off her apology. He was more than pleased that an absurd error had led to physical contact from the opposite sex, let alone meeting a sweet lady who communicated with him like a sibling. "Aah, you're 'right. Least you're sharp." Starting to wonder what route the conversation could've gone had he pretended to be Alec, he dismissed it with a shake of his head. "I'm great."

[transgenix]

"You just took me by surprise," she admitted, looking a bit sheepish. "I've never met anyone who wasn't... You look a lot like someone I knew from back home," she finally managed to explain, a bit innanely, since any explanation of 'Alec' was fraught with secrets and veritable land mines of things best left unexplained.

"I'm Max," she introduced herself - a bit late, but better than never - and held her hand out to him. "You said your name was Dean?"