Beep, beep. Beep, beep.

"Alex, turn that God awful thing off," John groaned, voice muffled due to the pillow he buried his face in.

"It's your phone," Alexander replied, his voice raspy from sleep.

"You're closer to it," John pointed out.

"Oh, right," Alexander untangled himself from John and rolled over to grab the buzzing phone off the nightstand. He typed John's password into it, trying not to cringe at the overly loud beeping hurting his ears, and pressed the button that turned off the alarm. "You really need to change the tone to something a little less hostile," Alexander said, putting the phone down, rolling back over, resting his head on John's chest.

"You know, when the alarm goes off, you're suppose to get out of bed," John informed Alex, jokingly.

"Killjoy," Alexander grumbled, reluctantly pulling himself off the younger boy and rolling off the bed. His feet made contact with the cold hardwood floor, and he padded over the John's closet and pulled open the door. He grabbed a nice white button up off its hanger and a pair of black slacks off the shelf where John kept his pants. Moving to John's dresser, he grabbed a pair of boxers from the appropriate drawer. John, who was now sitting up and checking his phone, watched Alexander amused.

"You own the place now, Alexander?" He chuckled.

But Alexander wasn't paying attention to him anymore. His attentions were on the picture sitting on the dresser that had drawn his attention the very first time he was in John's room. The only personal photo John had in his entire house – save for a goofy selfie of Marquis, Hercules, and him stuck to his refrigerator probably as a joke. "Who are they?" Alex used a clothing filled hand to gesture to the four other people in the picture with John. He was almost certain they were his family; you had to be blind to not see the similarities in their curly hair and wide smiles.

"Siblings," John answered, swinging his legs over the edge of the bed and walking over to join Alexander. He wrapped one arm around his waist and used the other to gesture to each smiling face in the photo. "That's Martha," he pointed to the girl with long black curls and both of her arms wrapped around John's midsection in a side hug. "She's the second oldest, two years behind me. That's Henry, but we call him Huck. He's the rambunctious one and a year younger than Martha," John pointed to the grinning boy with bright hazel eyes that was pictured on his right. "And then our parents took a break or something, cause, this one," John paused to point out the boy, "James, is ten years younger than me, and he's practically my mini-me, minus the freckles. Somehow he didn't get them like the rest of us. And that's little Mary," he pointed out the little girl standing in front of him, her hands clasped in front of her, with a smile so big her eyes were closed and her wispy curly hair poofed up in a frame around her chubby face. "She was born when I was twelve. I'm nineteen in this photo. Martha, Henry, and I liked to think James was an accident and then they had Mary after to make it seem not so obvious," John finished his little explanation of his family, chuckling nostalgically at his last comment.

"Growing up must have been fun for you," Alexander could feel a twinge of jealousy growing in the pit of his stomach. "What about your parents?" The arm around Alexander's waist disappeared as John spun away from him.

"I have a parent now, but our relationship isn't exactly in a good place," John spoke, his voice emotionless and harsh. He was fluffing his pillows, somewhat angrily, and smoothing out the duvet, Alexander slightly smiling at the way John always made the bed; he didn't know college students even knew what making a bed was. "What about you, Alexander? You never talk about your family," John changed the subject quickly, shifting the focus away from him.

"I don't have a family to talk about," Alexander said, noticing how John paused from organizing the pillows for a split-second as he took in the gravity of Alexander's words.

"You told me once you had a brother - what about him?" John placed the final pillow and turned to face Alexander, who was leaning up against the side of the dresser.

"There's nothing to talk about," Alexander tried to get John to drop it. He looked down at the floor to hide the distressed look in his dark eyes.

"Actually, I know nothing about your life prior to when you were 19 except where you were born. Its like the Alexander Hamilton standing here right now didn't exist up until 5 years ago," John continued to prod the older boy for more information. He took a step towards him, trying to get close enough to reach out and touch Alexander's arm.

"Because he didn't," a pained look passed over Alexander's face before he turned on his heels and walked towards the bathroom. "I'm taking a shower," he added before pulling the door closed,loudly, behind him, leaving John stunned in his wake.

"Well, I'm making breakfast," John yelled at the closed door to make sure Alexander could hear him. His answer was the sound of the shower being turned on, water pounding down on the tile.

John tried not to huff as he strode to the kitchen and went through the process that would result in a brewed pot of coffee. He pulled open the door to the fridge, the slight cold touching his cheeks, and scanned the rows of food for something to make for breakfast. His eyes passed over milk and orange juice, eggs and butter, random condiments and salad dressings, and drawers filled with fruits and vegetables. He took a deep breath and sighed deeply, nothing seeming interesting enough to make. Alexander probably wouldn't eat anyway because he refused to eat when he was mad at John, no matter how many times John called him a brat - mostly jokingly but sometimes not at all. John kicked the door shut; he'd just grab a bagel from the bakery across from the facility he worked in and leave it up to Alex to find food for himself.

Back in his room, John had half a mind to just lay back in bed and wait for Alexander to get out the bathroom; he needed to get in there to wash his face and fix his hair so he could continue to get ready for his day. However, patience was not exactly a virtue John possessed, so instead of waiting he walked up to the door and knocked, loudly so that Alexander could hear it over the shower water. With one hand on the doorknob, John leaned in to press his ear to the door in hopes to hear a response. He knocked again, louder this time, and still no answer. Well, either Alexander was deaf or he was ignoring him, so John just went ahead and let himself into the bathroom.

"I've just gotta wash my face and tame my hair," John let Alex know why he was in there.

He grabbed a washcloth of the counter, soaked it in water, and squirted soap onto the saturated cloth, so he could wash his face. After rinsing the soap off and grabbing a hand towel off the ring holder to dry his face, John was a little confused that Alexander hadn't said anything, not even a little "okay." It wasn't like Alexander keep quiet.

"Alex, you can stop ignoring me now," John hoped that would get Alexander to say something or at least huff at the comment. John was answered only by the running water. "Well, fine." He turned to face the mirror, staring back at himself. He pulled his hair out of the low ponytail it was in and ran his fingers through it to untangle it a little bit. John reached over to grab the forming cream that would help him smooth his hair back into a work-exceptable bun when he heard a low sobbing noise emitting from the shower. "Alexander?" John spoke softly, setting the container in his hand down and slowly stepping towards the shower.

"Yes?" a measly reply came from behind the curtain accompanied by a sniffle.

"You okay?" John knew the answer was no and that Alexander would undoubtedly say he was fine, but John asked anyways.

"I'm fine, quit worrying about me," there was enough of the subtle abrasiveness that John had grown accustomed to in Alexander's tearful voice for him to decide Alexander was probably alright.

"I'm gonna leave soon, okay? Just letting you know, so you don't freak when the apartment's empty when you get out," John figured, from personal experience, Alexander was probably pulling the ole 'go in the shower to cry' trick, so he'd just get out of his hair.

"Wait, John?" Alexander called, his voice rising in question to make sure John hadn't left the room.

"Yeah?"

"Can you wait till I'm out to leave?" Alexander asked in a small voice.

"Of course. Just don't take too long or I'll definitely be late."

"Could you also make me some eggs for breakfast?" he asked, this time in a sweet, hopeful voice.

"Yes, babe," John answered. "Brat," he added in a low tone, as he walked out the door.

"I heard that!" John heard Alex call from the bathroom, making him laugh to himself.

Fast forward fifteen minutes and John was fully ready for work, right down to having his shoes on and bag packed, and was eating his scrambled eggs at the counter. Alexander's plate sat beside him, getting cold. He had called back a few minutes ago to let Alex know he needed to leave soon or he'd be late and Alex had replied back he'd be there in a second. Well, it had been a lot if seconds since then and if Alexander wasn't going to come to John, John would just have to go to Alexander. Shoving the last bite of eggs into his mouth, he pushed his chair back from the table, so he could get up to make his way back to the bedroom.

Without bothering to knock, he pushed his bedroom door open to find Alexander sitting on the bed in his underwear completely absorbed in whatever was on his phone screen. At least he had bothered to dry his hair and actually put on his underwear.

"Already obsessed with the phone I see," John laughed at the older boy.

"Shit. Breakfast, right. Sorry. This game is really fun," Alexander looked like a chastised child as he locked his phone and set it aside.

"Honestly, how old are you?" John asked and then had to quickly add "It's rhetorical," when Alex opened his mouth to actually answer him.

"Oh, right." Now both boys were laughing at Alexander.

"Anyways, I came to tell you I have to go now and your breakfast is on the counter, but you might have to warm it up becau-" John started but was cut off by two arms wrapping tightly around him and a warm body pressing up against him.

"Just be quiet for a second and hug me please," Alex said, and John gladly complied with his request. After a minute or so, Alexander pulled back, but not before he deeply inhaled the smell of John's hair. "Okay, I feel better now," he announced. John just gave him a quizzical look. "We can talk about it later, okay? You need to go to work," Alexander continued.

"Saved by the bell, I suppose," John placed a quick peck on Alex's lips before turning to leave the room. "Go put your clothes on and finish getting ready before you play on your phone again," he said with a smirk as he walked through the door.

"Yes, mother," Alexander called to him.

-

"Good morning, sir. Here is that letter you asked me to write about Puerto Rico's debt crisis," Alexander set the papers on Congressman Washington's desk. He was pleased to see no signs of his coworker Thomas Jefferson and the letter Washington had asked him to write. Always better to be first.

"Thank you, Alexander," Washington said, giving him an appreciative nod.

"Congressman, here is my paper on the Syrian Civil War!" Speak of the devil; Thomas Jefferson came strolling into the office, papers in hand. Alexander was pleased to only count three papers in Jefferson's hand, while Alexander's had been four.

"Thank you, Thomas," Washington took the papers from him, but without the nod he gave Alex. "Now, before you both leave, I have something to talk to you about. It's convenient you're both here now so it saves me the trouble of calling you both in here," Washington began before he was interrupted by his phone ringing. "Never a moment of peace," he laughed, "Hopefully you boys don't mind waiting a minute," he said with a polite smile as he picked up the receiver.

Meanwhile, Thomas turned to Alexander. "Hopefully he reads mine first, so yours doesn't put him to sleep first," he said, in a joking tone, but it pissed Alexander off all the same. Always the same foreign policy versus finance fight with Jefferson it seemed. Washington probably wanted to talk to the boys about their bickering, a constant background noise in the office. It was all Jefferson's fault, of course; he was the one that got Alexander riled up. Alexander would never apologizing for defending himself, which he was doing constantly.

Honestly, Alexander had almost cried when he found out Thomas Jefferson would be the other summer intern for Congressman Washington. It seemed Alexander could never get rid of the other boy. In his personal opinion, Alexander thought Jefferson should fuck off back to Virginia since he seemed to love the state so much. (Another common argument between the boys was New York versus Virginia.)

"Don't start with me today, Jefferson," Alexander huffed, crossing his arms. "Domestic problems, especially our nation's finances are just, if not more, important than our nation's foreign policy views."

"Domestic problems mean nothing if a war destroys them all, Alexander," Jefferson argued back. This was probably a record, arguing already a solid two minutes into the work day.

"And where will you get the money to finance that war?" Alexander questioned, a snarky look on his face.

Before Jefferson could answer, Washington cut in. "The way I see it, it's a blessing to this nation of two have such differing views and interests. Jefferson, you can become Secretary of State, and, Hamilton, you can become Secretary of the Treasury. Then everyone's happy, and you do not have to compete against each other for the spots."

"Always so full of wisdom, sir," Jefferson remarked. Butt kisser.

"Anyways, as you are probably aware, the summer is drawing to a close, and with it, so are your internships," Washington began. "Now, I see in you both two extremely talented young lawyers and politicians, and I don't want anyone else to have you. So, I would love to have you both on my staff, as paid staffers, once your internships are up," he finished up his offer, giving both boys a kind, but excited look. Both boy's eyes went wide as they registered what he had just said.

"Of course, sir, I'd love to work for you," Thomas managed to get out, firmly shaking the hand that Washington extended to him.

Next, the hand was extended to Alexander. "Thank you for this amazing opportunity, Congressman," he shook his hand with a humble smile.

"I look forward to having to you both at my office after the summer ends and I look forward to paying you both," he added a wink with the last part, to which Alex and Thomas both cracked smiles to make him feel better. "That will be all for today, boys. Have a great day."

After walking out of Washington's office, the two walked down the hallway and up the flight up stairs to the small office they, unfortunately, shared.

"Seems like we can't get away from each other Hamilton," Jefferson remarked, setting his bag down and pulling out his Mac Book to set down on his neatly organized desk. In contrast, Alexander had to push papers, sticky notes, and a couple highlighters out of the way to set his laptop down on his desk.

"Wonderful," Alexander said with an obvious sarcastic twinge. Before he powered on his laptop to get to work, he pulled out his phone to send John a text to tell him Washington had just offered him a job. He knew John wouldn't get the text till he took his break for lunch because of his lab's strict to cell phone rule, but he didn't wanna wait to share the good news. He couldn't wait to see what John would say; he'd be so proud of him.

"It's a little chilly in here, don't you think?" Alexander was interrupted with Thomas' complaining.

"Yes, because I turned the temperature down before we left on Saturday so it would be colder when we got in here today," Alexander replied, starting to type on his laptop.

"So I guess you're not gonna want me to turn the A/C down?"

"Not a chance."

----------

OMG YALL I UPDATED! its been many months but i think i'm gonna be continuing the story cause a lot of y'all read it and i feel bad just stopping it when i have it planned out so nicely in my head.