"Something like that," Alex said, "And legit? It started as a joke and then I decided to take it seriously. Then the person I was gonna joke on—basically, I shouldn't do things that put me into situations where I gotta be responsible." He sighed and then tilted his head at her, "What about you? You leave and come back . . . I-D-K, different. It's your birthday, you know. Or are you gonna be full vamp and only celebrate the day you died."
Unless you were James and could celebrate both at once. It was good timing on his part. More reason to celebrate, right? "Or . . . are you gonna just keep me in the dark about everything and continue to remain a recluse to everything?" Because it needed to be said and Alex and/or Haylie would be the ones to point it out. He'd already called her out on her reclusive behavior, but that was over a network. This was face to face.