(BL)Alpha Made
Chapter 196: Culture shock

Chapter 196: Culture shock

Andrew spent the Sunday that he and Maxwell had free panicking about the doctor’s appointment that they had the next day, and also being flooded with messages from the whole Gates family, as well as Kim and Jenny.

Turns out, May, bless her soul, reached out to Kim through her work channels and brought up Andrew’s name so that they could meet.

Andrew got sent a photo of Ford, May, Kim and Jenny at coffee in the A & D firm offices with May giving a peace sign. She sent a lengthy message explaining that she and Kim hadn’t spoken since his Mom’s time in the hospital but both women remembered each other. She was glad that Andrew had mentioned her, and was even more surprised to find out that Andrew hadn’t told her how well his Mom had done in business. May had chastised Andrew for not telling her everything, but told him that it was probably the right call.

They had all had a lot to process that night, but she was still pissed at him for not telling her through text when he’d gotten home. She told him he owed her something in return from prevent Rose from looking up their address and storming their house to yell at him. Andrew had laughed so hard from the combined photo and several messages after that Maxwell had come to check on him.

Maxwell was working on some things he wouldn’t be able to on Monday because of the Doctor’s appointment, but they had planned to look at places online in the evening. Maxwell was making sure that if there were any problems that his Doctor brought up, he had time to address them without feeling like he needed to be rushed.

While Andrew was working himself into a panic, and feeling like he couldn’t speak to any of the people around him. But, getting messages from May and Kim right after he had visited them for the first time did make him feel not as alone. He didn’t want to reveal any of Maxwell’s problems to anyone, even if it worried him deeply.

Maxwell hadn’t even told his family, so being reminded that Andrew wasn’t all alone anymore really soothed him. Especially when Rose sent him a photo of her and Jordan at an art exhibit that clearly must have been for Jordan, giving him the middle finger.

Richard had sent an outline of the safest neighbourhoods in the city, which places had the best security, and a breakdown of how those two things correlated.

He was being loved in ways he had lost when he’d moved away, and it warmed a part of Andrew he thought would have remained dormant after his Mom died.

Either way, because of his nerves, Andrew was working on some baking while Maxwell did his catch up work, both trying to take their minds off of the upcoming meeting with the Doctor.

The rest of the day passed quickly, and after a dinner that Andrew had whipped together quickly, Maxwell hooked his computer up to the t.v. and the two of them scrolled through a basic real estate listing site, on Andrew’s request.

Maxwell wanted to jump into getting an agent right away, but Andrew pointed out that they had a very specific set of things that they needed, and it would be good to get an understanding of neighbourhoods before they considered moving. He also wanted to use the gift that Richard must have spent the whole night making, and when Andrew brought that aspect up, Maxwell begrudgingly agreed.

So, they scrolled through houses, Andrew looking at the prices and feeling his heart drop as they had a vast difference in what they wanted to spend.

He understood that Maxwell came from wealth. He knew it from the way the doorknobs in this house looked. Andrew had moved into an apartment complex that was in what he considered a ’rich’ neighbourhood. All the other homes in the area were single family homes, giant, with huge plots of land attached to them in a neighbourhood that had its own school. It was a picture perfect neighbourhood that Andrew would have wanted to move into if he had gotten married to someone normal, who worked a job at a similar pay level as him.

Maxwell? Well, his parents had several estates. One was on a private island that his eldest brother got married on and they flew in on a helicopter.

He didn’t want to say it, but they had more money than sense. And he liked to believe that they had a lot of sense, so he just found him overwhelmed.

Maxwell actually was surprised by how cheap some houses were, and was surprised when they actually looked nice. When Andrew told him how much May and Ford paid for their house, he was astounded. It seemed to be a cultural difference for the both of them, so Andrew was incredibly happy that they had taken this moment to look over houses.

After an hour or two of looking at homes, they disconnected the laptop from the t.v. and moved to the dining room so that the two of them could make a list of things they wanted, and things they did not want.

They both agreed that they would not list prices, for Andrew’s peace of mind, and so that Maxwell wouldn’t put some ridiculous number and they argued about it. Andrew had shown him that houses didn’t have to, baseline, be 2 million dollars. Maxwell didn’t fully agree, but he was willing to compromise since Andrew was also willing to compromise on the amount he had in his head as well.

They hadn’t factored security into the price of the place, nor the safety of the neighbourhood. They would have to do that after they made their lists and compared.

Andrew felt like he had a pretty standard list, with a few add ons.

He wanted a home that had an open concept. While he liked having the kitchen enclosed, he would like it if the kitchen, living room and a small dining room were within sight. If they also had a more formal dining room, he didn’t mind, he just wanted the space to feel intimate for them when Maxwell was working so that they could be around each other. He also wanted new appliances, or good appliances. With an island to work at that was at his height. This was important to him, since he knew how much he was bending over and that could hurt his back.

He also wanted a gym. He knew it wasn’t particularly safe for him to go out, so he would like one for his home so that he could maintain his body to the levels he liked. Andrew also wanted a similar make up for their bedroom as they had now, but with maybe a bigger closet. He knew that Maxwell liked keeping up his appearance, and he didn’t care about that in the slightest, but they might need a his and his type of closet situation. He also liked having a big tub, and a shower that had a seat in it. Again, the counters were an issue, since there was such a height difference between them. Maybe they could look into something that could raise and lower them? He thought he’d heard about them on a home improvement network before.

Andrew wanted to move into a place that they wouldn’t have to move out of anytime soon. Maybe a place with a few bedrooms, so that they would be able to host parties and have people spend the night? He also wanted Maxwell to be able to have an office at home, and one that he actually used if he wanted to. He liked having a backyard, since he did like being in the sun in the summer, but maybe one with a better fence line, or a more serious fence?

Heated floors, for Maxwell of course, since he was always cold. Maybe a walk-in pantry? A bigger laundry room? A room to store all of Maxwell’s scotch and whiskey? He didn’t know, but he just wanted the next place they moved to be something that Maxwell didn’t feel bad giving up this place for.

Andrew had very little attachment to his apartment, but he did want to take his chair with him. Beyond that, he was pretty sure his list wasn’t too crazy. He didn’t really care how many bathrooms they had, probably two? A few extra rooms? He knew it was going to be bigger than anything he’d ever lived in before, and he was terribly worried about the price, but he was honestly more worried about what Maxwell had come up with.

Maxwell was grinning widely when Andrew finished writing, and the two exchanged papers.

Andrew felt his eyes widen as he stared at what Maxwell had written, while Maxwell laughed at what Andrew had written.

Maxwell, the cheeky man, had only written one sentence, and Andrew thought he was going to cry.

Whatever Andrew wants that he thinks will make the next place feel like a home.

Andrew was stunned, shocked, and Maxwell reached over.

"Oh, and one thing." Maxwell said, turning the paper back towards him. He jotted something else down, and when he turned the paper back to Andrew, Andrew did laugh then.

A bedroom with a plain wall to add mirrors to.