Parasitic Love Redux - 22. Allies

They reached Tampa at 4 in the morning and Connor took over driving since he knew the area.

He took the familiar streets slowly, his hands clenching the wheel in a death grip. Now that they were actually here, Connor felt like he was developing cold feet or something. He was afraid of everyone finding out the truth about M, the baby, and the agent.

He remembered Jamie and Nathan coming out with their pregnancy weeks ago. He remembered the violent backlash…

"We're so close to Julie's house." M jumped up and down in his seat. "I can't wait to see Jamie and my puppy!"

Connor sighed. "OK, listen, M. I know you're excited and everything, but maybe we can hold off on mentioning the baby… until we get settled in at least."

M pouted a little. "But I want to tell Jamie right now."

"No, M, c'mon. Can't we wait a little?"

"Don't be such a drag, Connor," Bradley spoke up from the backseat. "Let him share his good news."

"'Hi, everyone! Remember me? I know I disappeared in the middle of the night, but I'm back now, and I have some new friends. Oh and my boyfriend… Did I mention he's an alien? Well, he's pregnant now. Get ready for grandbaby number two, mom!'"

The car was silent.

"What! Did that sound fucking stupid?" Connor asked with an eye roll." We can shock everyone once the sun is up. Let's not scare them off first thing."

Nobody argued and Connor relaxed his grip on the wheel a touch. They were turning into Julie's neighborhood and M cheered and bounced some more.

"I've missed Jack sooo much," he said. "But I get to see him… Right now!"

"Who's Jack?" Bradley murmured in the back.

"Their dog," Hannah whispered back.

Connor ignored them. He was busy thinking about how he'd explain their presence to Julie.

Hannah was harmless enough, but Bradley was a total mess since the attack.

Her face was bruised in random places and generally swollen all over. She looked creepy, all black and blue… Her broken arm had turned out better than her face at least. It was encased in a bright orange cast and was already covered in doodles and positive sayings M and Hannah had added with a spare pen they'd found in the glove compartment.

Unfortunately, by the time they reached the house, Connor had yet to think up a good excuse for his 'friends' tagging along. Still, they were here. They'd made the journey from South Dakota to Florida for a second time and the Chrysler was running on fumes.

Connor parked the car in front of the closed garage door and sighed.

"Nice place," Bradley said casually.

"I grew up in a trailer park," Connor said before the lesbian started labeling him as some sort of "rich kid". "I had no idea my mom ran off and left me for this."

She cringed. "She sounds horrible."

Connor shrugged. "I used to think that. But she's alright. She had her reasons for leaving me behind."

Bradley looked skeptical. Her eyes were glued to the big, fancy house before them. Connor realized she didn't believe him… he figured it didn't matter, but it did kind of bother him. He was afraid Bradley was going to pity him. He felt so weird and uncomfortable about the current situation… he could literally feel his skin crawling.

Everyone got out… M wanted to run around back and see the dog first, but Connor grabbed his shoulder and held onto him with a firm grip.

"Hold up."

"Let me go, Connor!" M cried.

"Shhh!"

The blond squirmed and strained to get away. Connor thought of the dumb little kids at Walmart who could barely contain themselves in any situation they found themselves in. He didn't like that M suddenly reminded him of them…

He steered the rowdy boy to the front door against his will. Hannah and Bradley followed behind them in the dark. The porch light wasn't on…

Connor stopped M on the doormat. He leaned in to whisper: "We need to come in the front, M. If the dog starts barking, my mom or a neighbor even may call the police on us. We look really suspicious sneaking around in the dark."

M huffed, but he finally stopped squirming.

"Ring the doorbell, sweetie."

M glanced over his shoulder and smiled wryly at the endearment. Connor smiled back at him until the blond finally came back to himself and he turned to press the bell.

They waited as the sound reverberate through the house… the tense moment was horribly familiar and Connor hoped after this, they wouldn't have to ring anymore doorbells in the middle of the night.

Lights came on in the front hall and Connor held his breath as the lock turned on the door.

Julie cracked the door open and peeked outside, her eyes wide with apprehension.

"Mom," Connor said, and Julie's eyes jumped to his face. "It's me."

She opened the door wide. "Connor?" She blinked. "Connor, where have you been?"

"Mom, I…" Connor moved M to the side and in the process, he managed to lose his grip on his shoulder.

"I'm going to see Jack now!" he cried and he slipped past Hannah and Bradley and ran around the side of the house, disappearing from sight.

Connor huffed, but decided to let it go. Who was he to keep M from his doggy?

"Jack's upstairs," Julie said cautiously. "He's been sleeping in the kids room since you two vanished. He's been moping around for days now."

Connor frowned.

"Where did you go?" she asked. "We've been so worried about you…"

"Mom, we've got a lot of things to tell you," Connor said slowly.

"The dog's gone!" M yelled suddenly, flying around the opposite side of the house. "The chain's still there, but Jack's not!"

"He's upstairs," Connor called to him and M rushed over immediately.

"Hey Julie," he greeted casually. "Where's the dog? I want to say hi."

Julie flapped her jaw. "He's… he's in Nathan's room—"

M pushed past Julie and walked right into the house. Connor closed his eyes and groaned when he saw him jogging up the stairs behind his mother's bathrobed-figure.

Julie pressed a hand to her chest. "This is a dream, right? Who are these people?" She gestured to Hannah and Bradley.

Connor glanced over his shoulder. Hannah was smiling in a failed attempt to appear non - threatening and Bradley stood at parade rest, her arms pinned behind her, feet apart, her face emotionless…

"Those are friends from South Dakota. I had to bring them along," he said sheepishly,rubbing the back of his neck. "I can explain—"

There were screams from upstairs…

"Hold on just a second," Julie gasped out. She whirled around and rushed inside, up the stairs. Connor was left pinching the bridge of his nose on the doorstep.

"This is going well," he said to no one.

A casted arm patted him on the shoulder. "This was bound to be awkward. It's 4am." Bradley said.

Connor sighed.

The panicked cries from upstairs calmed almost immediately, at least. Connor shrugged and ushered Hannah and Bradley inside. He came in behind them and shut and locked the door.

Once they stood under the light, Connor was able to take in their combined levels of road-wornness.

Their clothes were wrinkled. All of their hair was a mess. Connor could smell the sweat on everybody… He knew he hadn't washed, put on deodorant or brushed his teeth in days…

They all stood around and waited for Julie to come back down… Connor wanted to go upstairs, but he had more class than stupid M. None of them had been invited inside yet and they were already standing in the foyer. He didn't want to break anymore dumb rules, he felt like he had to be on his best behavior.

Suddenly, Jack ran down the stairs. His collar jangled and clicked on the way down and his tongue hung out, drool splattering across the beautiful, polished wood floor. He seemed to be heading for the back door, but spotted Connor instead and leapt at him with a pathetic whine.

"Oof!"

The dog charged Connor and he stumbled and fell back. Jack started licking him as he sat on his ass, stunned, the wind knocked out of him…

"Jack?" M called from the second floor hallway. He peeked down into the foyer as he passed the stairs. He saw the dog laying kisses on Connor and he grinned down at the silly scene. "There you are boy! I thought you were going outside for a bathroom break?" Laughing, M came down the stairs to stand with the rest of the ragtag group. He called the dog off Connor and Jack scrambled over and laid between then with a doggy grunt, his tail beating the ground in his excitement.

Julie and Nathan appeared next.

The woman's bathrobe had fallen open since they'd seen her last and her silky pajamas underneath were exposed. She put an arm around Nathan, but he shrugged her off immediately.

"Connor." Nathan grinned. He was shirtless and wearing boxers. His hair was mussed. He looked behind Connor, at Bradley and Hannah, and his grin widened. "And you brought girls," he said lecherously. "One's a little beat up, but that's OK."

Bradley scoffed.

"They're lesbians," Connor said quickly, trying to cover up Bradley's disgust. "Don't bother."

Hannah made a tiny sound of protest, but Nathan was already pouting. "Aww," he said. But then he perked up and started down the stairs. "Maybe I'll get to watch them make out or something… That would be fun. And it wouldn't get me in trouble with the fiancé, either."

"Gross," Connor sneered.

"Yeah. Gross," Bradley said. She pushed forward and stuck out her non-broken hand. "Bradley," she said to Nathan. "Officer Bradley to you, punk."

"Officer?" Nathan scratched his chin. "Like, police officer?"

Bradley took her hand back, unshook. "I'm on vacation," she said loftily.

"Do you mean bed rest?" Nathan snorted. Bradley frowned and put her flashy orange cast behind her back. "Connor. Seriously?" he chuckled. "I mean, I guess you're lame enough to have a cop buddy, but... Really?"

"Thanks fucker," Connor flipped him off.

Nathan smiled.

"Wow," said a soft voice from the top of the stairs. "They really are back."

It was Jamie. She was in pj's too; short little cotton shorts and a tight t-shirt that showed off her slim figure.

As she came down to join the others, Connor noticed she was showing. She was small enough that the tiny baby bump appeared dramatic. She smiled brilliantly at Connor and then pulled M into a sideways hug.

The blond hugged her back and squealed with excitement. "Jamie!"

"You really freaked us out," she giggled. "When I saw you standing over our bed in the dark, talking to the dog, I thought you were a maniac for sure."

She and M separated at last. The blond, to Connor's delight, was blushing.

"I'm sorry," he said, hanging his head. "I was so excited to see Jack, I didn't notice anything else."

Jamie snorted. "That's OK, I guess." She seemed distracted though. She was looking shyly over M's shoulder at Hannah and Bradley… Everyone was eyeing them with curiosity, actually. Connor sighed and figured now was the best time to start explaining.

"Mom. Can you come down?"

Julie was the last one still upstairs. She closed her bathrobe, tied the belt, and then started down the stairs.

"Guys, I've got to explain a couple things," Connor said to his brother and his young fiancé. The two of them looked at each other in confusion. "Can you wait in the living room for me?"

Nathan folded his arms and a petulant look crossed his face. Luckily, Jamie elbowed him in the side and his whiney expression died down a little. "Sure," he said grudgingly. "C'mon Jamie."

As the teens left the front hall, M tapped his hip and got the dog to heal. "He's got to pee," he said. "I'm going to go let him outside." He made stupid, encouraging kissy noises to get Jack to follow and he and the dog trailed after the others, heading towards the sliding glass doors and outside into the back.

Connor sighed. He wished M would pay attention to the important stuff… Surely, the group conversation they were about to have was more important than the dog's potty break!

Julie reached the last step and looked pointedly at Connor.

"I want to know where you've been," she said firmly. "And what on earth was so enticing you left us without even a warning."

Connor felt the need to hang his head and apologize. He didn't though. He simply gestured for Julie to go into the living room. "Everything will make sense once we start explaining."

Julie raised an eyebrow, but she let it go for now. She too went into the other room and Connor was left alone with Hannah and Bradley.

"How much are you going to tell them?" Hannah asked.

"You should tell them everything," Bradley said. "We're looking for support, aren't we? Allies? Then we need to be honest."

Connor groaned. "I wish I didn't have to do this right now."

"Well, we need their help," Bradley said under her breath. "We drove all the way out here because you said it was a good idea."

"I didn't say it was a good idea," Connor scowled. "Fuck," he muttered. "I don't even know how I'm supposed to explain why you guys are here. How am I supposed to even get started telling them all this crazy shit?"

"I think the easiest course of action is to tell the truth. The whole truth," Bradley said, squaring her shoulders and narrowing her eyes in a serious fashion. "It's pretty hard to put a team together when you can't trust each other."

"Yeah," Connor said awkwardly. "For the most part, I kept everyone in the dark the last time we was here. It got me in lot of trouble," he said, thinking of Greg. He groaned again, dreading the conversation that was about to unfold. He shook his arms out and rolled his shoulders and neck. He felt super tight all of a sudden and he loosened up as best he could.

"Alright," he said when he finished stretching. "Let's get this over with."

The three of them went into the living room.

Julie sat primly on the edge of the couch with Nathan on the other side of her. Jamie was in his lap, idling stroking her baby bump. They were all being incredibly patient for the early hour and the rude wake up call they'd just been put through. Connor was vaguely impressed.

Suddenly, the glass door slid door open and M appeared, alone, but smiling.

"M, c'mere," Connor said in the calmest voice he could muster. He held his arm out and looked at the blond expectantly.

M strolled up to Connor, curiosity shining through his impish little face.

Connor put his arm around the boy and drew him in close so he could whisper. "Forget what I said. We need my family's help now, more than ever. We have to tell them everything."

M's eyes widened. "OK. Whatever you think is best."

Connor couldn't help himself. M looked so sweet and vulnerable. He stared deeply into his sparkling green eyes, thinking they must be full of magic or something, because he felt so entranced…

He swayed on the balls of his feet, hesitating, but then, as M lowered his long golden lashes, his cheeks pinkening shyly, Connor leaned in and kissed his tempting lips.

M sighed into Connor's mouth. His tongue came out timidly and Connor touched it boldly with his own.

Electric shocks sparked through his body.

M and Connor kissed tamely at first, but when M gently passed his tongue across Connor's bottom lip, Connor went a little crazy at the delicious feeling. He gripped M's chin with the fingertips of his right hand while he squeezed the blond's bicep with his left. He sucked the boy's sweet tongue deep into his mouth and kissed him passionately, him still and clutching close the entire time.

Connor felt M's tiny little body sagging against his and he easily held the boy up with a single arm around his middle.

M gasped into Connor's mouth… his breath was so hot.

Connor was getting hard. The room and its occupants had long since faded from his mind… He deliberately pressed his burgeoning erection against M's crotch and hissed softly into the blond's delicate ear. M whimpered in his arms and searched for his lips again. Their kisses were growing frantic… Fuck, it had been way too long since Connor had got off…

"Are you guys going to fuck right here in front of us?" Nathan spoke up. "Is that why you asked us to sit down?"

Connor released M instantly and pushed him away for good measure.

The blond staggered back, but managed to get his footing again. He looked around the room at everyone, his lips wet and his eyes wide.

Connor burned with embarrassment. He wiped his mouth with the back of his hand and surreptitiously adjusted his erection by pulling on his jeans. He felt like he and the tent in his pants were the main attractions, so when Jamie suddenly gasped, jumped up and pointed across the room, Connor feared he'd been spotted.

It was M she was staring at though. And her eyes got real big. "Oh my God, M has a baby bump too," she said quickly.

All eyes turned to M and the little alien smoothed his hands down his torso, cradling his belly in a protective gesture. He looked to Connor for direction, but there was no use trying to hide it anymore.

"M's pregnant," Connor said weakly. "Obviously, it was a complete surprise—"

"A surprise?" Nathan started cackling. Beside him, Julie had a hand over her mouth. She looked completely shocked and she stared across the room at M, her eyes glazed.

Suddenly, Bradley cleared her throat. She and Hannah were both standing awkwardly off to the side, waiting for some sort of orders, while Nathan continued to laugh uproariously, killing any attempts at conversation.

"C'mon guys," Connor said with a heavy sigh, trying to ignore the grating sound of Nathan's laughter. He lead the two girls closer to the couches and pushed Hannah onto the loveseat catty corner to the three-seater. Bradley took Connor's poor directive and quickly found a seat beside the student teacher.

Connor looked towards M once the girls were seated.

The blond was fidgeting in the same place as before. He hadn't followed when Connor had called the others.

Connor went to him and slipped an arm around his waist. "It's going to be a boy," he said to the room at large, an sliver of pride creeping into his tone. "We had an ultrasound a few days ago."

Jamie had been sitting quietly for the past few moments. She smiled tightly at the announcement.

"We're having a girl," she said. "We just found out, too." Her smile faded completely though and was replaced by a look of deep contemplation. "How come you didn't tell me you were trans, M?"

"I don't know what that means," the blond said, but Connor cut him off.

"He's not trans," he sighed. "He's not even a boy, technically. He's an alien."

Nathan laughed some more. Connor glared at him, but the teen was far from caring.

"Are you fucking serious?" Nathan cried. "Bro, you've been smoking some dope ass shit. You've gotta share."

"Shut up, Nathan. Let him talk," Jamie said, elbowing the obnoxious boy in the chest. "Maybe he'll start making sense if he keeps talking." She cracked a smile at the end of her speech however. Even she thought Connor was high.

On the other end of the spectrum, Julie sat very still and quiet. She hadn't said a word so far and looked more confused and tired than anything.

Connor felt a spike of guilt stab into his gut. This was going to be harder than he thought. He needed to make his every word count…

He started into his best explanation yet, including almost every detail from the beginning.

He hadn't wanted to overwhelm everyone, but he had to give the long explanation. The short one was too unbelievable.

"Prove it," Nathan said rudely once Connor finished explaining why they'd disappeared in the night and how they'd ended up back in South Dakota. "Prove he's from another planet."

"The baby's the proof," Connor snapped. "M's AI mothership stuck a womb in his stomach and he's fucking carrying an fetus now."

"How do we know he's not secretly a girl," Nathan said. "It's happened before. There's already been a pregnant man." Nathan Googled something on his phone and tried to show it to Connor, but he wouldn't even look.

"I've been abducted," Connor said impatiently. "I've fought the agent on more than one occasion…" He paced the carpet in front of the TV. He honestly had no idea how he was going to prove his wild claims… "I've seen some crazy shit lately and all of it revolves around M."

The blond stood back from the rest of the group. He'd been listening and now he came forward to stand beside the couch.

"This is some pretty unbelievable stuff, M," Jamie said, eyeing the blond nervously.

"It's true," M said easily. "I don't remember it, but I was born in another world… I've been orbiting your planet for 50 years, longer than all of you have been alive."

"Uh, M, I think my mom might have you beat," Connor said lightly.

"Excuse me?" Julie spoke up weakly. She cleared her throat. "I'm only 48," she said.

Bradley chuckled. "Those two years make a difference, Connor. She is 48 years young."

Julie smiled. "That's right."

M sighed. Nobody was paying attention to him, nobody but Connor. Suddenly, the boy crouched beside the couch and grabbed the little wooden leg underneath. Connor held his breath. He knew something interesting was going to happen.

M glanced up at him just in time … Their eyes meet and M winked at him. Then he lifted the entire right hand side of the couch with ease. He didn't even break a sweat. He pushed the couch up and over his head like it was a barbell while Julie, Nathan, and Jamie yelled and clutched parts of the airborne furniture for support.

Connor's mouth dropped open. "M… Put them down," he said slowly.

"I'm just proving a point," he said calmly. He gently set the couch back into place, however, and Connor's family finally stopped screaming.

On the other half of the sectional, Hannah and Bradley watched M's show of strength with shock and blatant fear.

"How long have you been that strong, M?" Hannah asked.

M straightened up and came to stand a few paces away from Connor. He looked completely unruffled by the incredible feat he'd just displayed.

"Since before you knew me," he said with a shrug. "My kind has the ability to manipulate time and space to a degree. It's a mental skill, so we get to take it with us when we switch bodies."

"Do you switch bodies often?" Jamie asked uncomfortably. She rubbed her belly.

"No. We only get one life per planet. It's a rule," M said. "But this is the only body I've ever inhabited. There are other places I could have gone. Other experiences I could have had… I think you guys call it fate… me being here..."

The room fell silent as everyone processed M's otherworldly claims… But they weren't claims, were they? M had said the other day that he was stronger than he looked… Connor didn't doubt him anymore. He'd seen it for himself… just moments ago…

"I think this is bullshit," Nathan said suddenly. "You're a superhuman tyranny. So what?"

Connor snorted. "That sounds so much stupider than 'he's an alien'."

"I think 'alien' sounds fucking dumb as shit, bro," Nathan sneered.

"OK." Bradley stood up halfway and waved her orange cast like a traffic flag. Somehow, it had the desired effect and everyone shut up. She smiled. "I don't care if you believe me, but I am a police officer and I did investigate M over there." She paused for dramatic effect or something before continuing. "His legal name is Michael Thomas and he was born male. There was nothing in his medical records, as lacking as they were, that indicated he had a female's internal genitalia or that he could bare a child."

Nathan snorted.

"Oh, and he was declared dead awhile back, too," Bradley said. "Michael Thomas shouldn't be walking around right now, he should be ten feet under."

"I don't believe it," Nathan said loudly. He covered his ears and jumped up, sending Jamie tumbling into the couch cushions. He ignored her cry of indignation. "You're all whacked out of your heads, that's what!"

He rushed to the door. "I'm going back to bed. School doesn't start for another 3 hours. Coming Jamie?"

Jamie righted herself on the couch and fixed her hair fussily. "I'll catch you later. I want to hear this," she bitched.

Nathan shook his head and stormed out of the room.

Julie pressed her lips firmly together and looked very seriously at M.

"I don't know how you just lifted us all off the ground like that, and I don't know if I even believe you're pregnant. It certainly looks like you are, and the last time I saw you, you were suffering a severe case of morning sickness."

"He still has that," Connor said quickly. "He puked yesterday morning in a parking lot."

M glared at him, but Julie was nodding.

"Some girls suffer nausea the whole pregnancy."

"I'm not a girl," M pouted.

"Er, sorry," Julie said awkwardly.

"So, mom, we need help," Connor said briskly, sensing an end to the never-ending conversation. "I got these two in trouble because they were helping me. I brought them along—"

"What kind of trouble?" Julie asked, her eyes widening. "You said this Man in Black guy broke our windows and trashed Nathan's car. What happened to your friends?"

Connor hesitated.

"He attacked me," Bradley said casually, drawing Julie's undivided attention. She waved to her bruised face and her busted arm… "And he possessed Hannah, read her mind and crashed her car—"

"Bradley," Hannah hissed. Connor shot her a nasty look.

"What?" Bradley snapped. "I told you guys. We need to be completely honest with your family, Connor," she said firmly. "You can't pull the wool over their eyes and expect them to risk their lives without question."

Connor didn't respond directly. He looked up nervously at his mom. Julie's expression was frozen in fear. Connor felt his stomach drop.

"Does the man know you're here?" she asked.

Connor hesitated again, but one look at Bradley made him choke out the truth immediately.

"Probably," he said. "He seems to find us easily no matter where we go."

Julie took a deep, shaky breath. "Are we in danger?"

M spoke up, thank God. "I won't let him touch any of you—"

"Hello!" Bradley waved at M. "Where were you when I needed help."

"I got there as soon as I could," M said sadly. "I'm sorry."

"Unless we're attached to you at the hip, we can't depend on you for protection," Bradley said, her bruised lips turning down at the corners. "I'm sorry, too, but none of us are safe."

Julie slowly shook her head. "I'm glad you two are OK, Connor, but maybe you shouldn't have come back."

Connor was wounded. He turned his gaze downwards and he stared hard at the plush carpeting. "I didn't have a choice… We got robbed and then we ran out of the rest of our money really fast," he said. "We had no one to turn to."

Julie sighed. "The guest room is empty. Jamie and Nathan convinced me they needed to sleep together a couple weeks ago," she glared a little at the naughty girl in question. "Your two girlfriends can sleep in the there at any rate."

"Thanks, ma'am." Bradley cracked a grin. "Could you show us up to the room now? I know I'd like to get some sleep before the sun comes up."

"Oh, sure," Julie said, standing up abruptly. She was frazzled and it seemed to take her a moment to orient herself. "This way!" she said, heading back out into the front hall. Bradley got up and followed her. Hannah stood to follow along too. She sent Connor a look of bewilderment… as if to say 'this is your family?'

Connor was a little embarrassed, but he wasn't responsible for any of these people. He tried not to let it bother him.

Suddenly, Jamie, Connor, and M were alone in the living room.

"Have you felt the baby move yet?" Jamie asked.

M cocked his head to the side. " What do you mean? Will I be able to?" He absently rubbed his stomach.

Connor wanted to face-palm. "Jamie? Since we're back and everything, can you start giving M some baby classes?"

Jamie clapped her hands together and her face filled with pleasure. "I'd love to. I know lots about babies."

Connor sighed with relief. M probably didn't even know what labor was… He desperately needed some instruction.

"I guess we should go up to bed now," Jamie said when the room fell silent.

"Do we still have a room in the attic?"

"Julie was up there dusting the other day. There's clothes in your dressers and sheets on the bed…" Jamie smiled gently. "Your room's almost exactly the same as you left it."

Connor and M glanced at each other, similar looks of excitement on their faces.

"Let's go check it out," Connor said.

"OK!" M bounced up to stand next to Connor. "Oh, wait, I forgot about Jack." He spun around like a mini tornado and squeezed through the sliding glass door, disappearing into the night.

Connor frowned. He looked to Jamie with his eyebrows raised. "Why are all the outside lights off?"

Jamie shrugged. "They all burned out."

"At the same time? "

She shrugged again and got off the couch, shaking her hair out. "There was a really bad storm the other night," she said. "That's when they went out."

Connor frowned. "Maybe I should help Julie replace them."

"Maybe," Jamie said vaguely. She turned to look at Connor and after an uncomfortable moment of staring, she smiled at him. "That was a lot of crazy stuff you told us. I've got to process everything…"

"Um, alright," Connor said.

Jamie started to leave the room. "I'll probably see you after school. Unless you want to get up at the crack of dawn to say hi. " She winked at him before disappearing into the hallway.

Connor was left waiting for M. He looked around the quiet living room, taking in the warm lighting and the comfortable furniture. He'd missed this place…

The sliding glass door opened and M and the dog came into the house.

"He can sleep upstairs with us, right?" M asked.

"On the floor," Connor said, smirking when M made a cute little sound of protest.

"OK," he agreed sadly.

Connor led the way out of living room and up to the third floor. Jamie had been right. The bedroom was exactly as Connor remembered it.

He went to the set of drawers built into the far wall and opened the top compartment. He was impressed. Stacks of clean underwear and socks were inside. Neatly folded t-shirts were in the next one down and cargo shorts and jeans were below that. Pj pants were in the bottom drawer and Connor pulled out a comfy pair.

Across the room, M looked through his chest of drawers as well.

"Yes! I got my shorts back!" M said, digging through the items. The dog watched him patiently from his spot near the bed, wagging his tail with enthusiasm.

Connor stripped and then stepped into his sleep pants. The soft fabric felt amazing against his cock and balls and he hurried to climb into bed.

The blankets were lightweight and cool and Connor fell onto the springy mattress and breathed in the fresh scent of cotton.

It took a couple minutes more for M to get ready for bed. He hummed a cheerful tune as he selected a t-shirt from his drawer and nothing else.

Connor watched, his anticipation climbing sharply, as M got naked, displaying his pale, round little butt to Connor's interested gaze.

Then he slipped the t-shirt on and Connor realized it was one of his own from back at the trailer… It fit M loosely and the bottom hem of the shirt touched the upper part of his thighs, 4 or 5 inches above his knee.

Connor was shocked M's cock and balls were covered… he was probably pretty close to exposing himself though. The shirt was so very short on him…

M left his dirty clothes on the floor and scratched the dog behind the ear. "Stay," he told him. "Lay down."

Jack laid in M's discarded clothes. He buried his nose in the fabric and settled into a comfortable sleep position.

M was coming to lay down next… in bed… right next to Connor.

Connor held his breath as M slid under the top sheet. He was under that cover too, so when M wiggled his legs around as he got comfortable, Connor felt nothing but bare skin.

"Can I hold you?" Connor asked.

M looked over his shoulder. His face was lit by moonlight and Connor studied him. A lock of long, pale hair shielding one of his eyes and as Connor watched, he smiled gently.

"Yes," M said and then he turned on his side.

Connor spooned up behind him, pressing his groin into the small of M's back. He hissed, the soft cotton of M's t-shirt had ridden up and now the only thing separating M's skin from Connor's was Connor's pj pants.

Connor pulled M's body flush to his own. He curled up to his back and wrapped both his arms around his middle.

M groaned a little. "Mmm, Connor."

"I missed this bed," Connor said, sighing deeply. "Fuck, I missed my mom's place. How lame is that?"

"I love it here," M said wistfully.

Connor held the blond close to him, breathing him in.

"I missed this," he said. "I missed you."

M hummed with pleasure. Connor kissed the back of his neck and smiled blissfully. He let his weary body settle in for sleep then… he'd been horny just a bit ago, but now he felt so damned relaxed laying in bed.

His eyes slid shut and a wave of warmth and comfort swallowed him up.

***

Connor sat up suddenly, his heart hammering in his chest. His skin pickled and there was a faint static buzzing in the air.

He was alone in the bed…

"M?" he twisted around, looking for the boy. "M!"

The blond stood across the room, in front of the window seat. He was looking out the window, his figure still and calm.

"What are you doing?" Connor came up behind the boy. He looked over his shoulder.

The agent stood on the patio below, his face lit by the blue light coming from the pool.

"What the fuck…"

"He sent scanners over the house," M said. "He wanted to know how many people we had."

"That's… a creepy way of saying it."

"Did you feel it? The pickling on your skin."

Connor nodded. He felt like he was dreaming. None of this seemed real.

"Is he going to come in?" he asked.

"If he was going to do that, he wouldn't have alerted me with the scanners," M said. "I don't know what he's doing, Connor. My head's so empty… I know you said the agent destroyed Mother, but… I keep trying to reach her." M sobbed and turned into Connor's embrace.

Connor held him close, stroking the back of his hair as he continued to stare at the agent by the pool. His sunglasses concealed his eyes, but Connor knew the freak could see them. He was looking straight at them.

"C'mon," Connor pulled them away from the window. "There's nothing we can do. Let's just go back to bed."

M cried softly as they got back into bed…

"How long was I out?" Connor asked, trying to distract the blond.

"Not long," he said. "I don't know when the agent got here, but… I'm just glad Jack isn't outside anymore."

They both glanced to the side of the bed, at Jack, who still slept soundly in the pile of M's clothes.

"I wonder if that woke anybody else up?" Connor asked.

M bit his lip. "I hope not."

It was still dark out and the two boys sat in the middle of the bed, their arms around each other.

M stopped crying after a while and Connor gently leaned in and kissed his tears away.

M looked up at him, his eyes shining even in the dark. He was so very beautiful in that moment…

"I love you, Connor," he whispered.

Connor leaned in and kissed him firmly on the lips, groaning into the boy's mouth at the delicious warmth and sweetness that met his tongue.

They kissed heatedly for several moments.

Connor felt his head spinning, his cock growing hard in his pj's… and then M started to pull away.

"I'm really tired," he sighed, rolling off Connor at last. He smiled a little and licked his lips. He seemed to be testing Connor's resilience…

Connor swallowed and redirected his thoughts… He thought about Bradley's busted up face, his mother's frilly pj's under her bathrobe… the fucking agent standing outside the house… Anything to distract himself from the erection in his pants.

M smiled innocently and rolled over onto his side again. Connor followed his direction and laid beside him, throwing an arm over his hip.

"We'll start planning tommorow," M said, as they settled in.

Connor hummed with agreement. "Seems like we should. That guy's never going away."

"But there's a way to kill him. He's not always invincible."

Connor wondered how sure M was about that statement… he decided they'd just have to find out…