Joel looked intently at his command console. Glaring red flashes taunted him. They silently spoke of death and destruction. The Watcher complex was being heavily damaged and many Watchers were being killed, wounded or captured. The medical center was swamped. His heart grew heavy, but his resolve grew stronger. Quickly rerouting the weapons console to his own, Joel unleashed a vicious attack on the Talon forces. He relentlessly pounded them with surgical-like precision. Each Quantum Pulse strike resulted in devastation for the Talons. Many of their forces died at his hand before they finally turned and ran. Their vessels were damaged, but not enough to keep them from leaving. Even in their retreat, Joel continued to strike, killing many more. Only when their ships were out of range and every Talon left in the complex was dead did he stop. Joel looked up with tears streaming down his face and screamed out in frustration and sadness. He stumbled back from the console with the full knowledge that he had just killed dozens of men. It was that knowledge that sent Joel to his knees, sobbing openly. The door opened and two officers walked in with another man. Joel looked up and his eyes widened. "Commander,
look who we found down in Section D. He must have escaped during the
battle," one of the guards said gleefully. Joel quickly pulled his
weapon and pointed it at the man. "Stand back!" Joel shouted. "Commander! Are you crazy? This is Paulik! Lower your weapon!" one of the officers shouted. "Stand back
I say!" Joel shouted forcefully, never lowering his weapon. The
officers moved back against the wall, leaving the man standing alone.
Joel looked the man squarely in the eyes. The weapon remained aimed.
The man stood still, then slowly bowed his head. Joel smiled slightly
to himself, for he knew he was right, and then he addressed the man. "Under
different circumstances, I would say it's good to see you, but not on a
day such at this," Joel said. Without letting his eyes break contact
with the man that appeared to be Paulik, Joel directed the officers.
"Take this man into custody, for this is Kibbeth, leader of the
Talons." There were several gasps of disbelief around the room. The
officers hesitated. "Take him!" Joel barked. The officers quickly took
Kibbeth into custody. "You are too wise to be a Watcher. You should have become a Talon long ago when you had the chance," Kibbeth said. "What have you done with your brother?" "He is being
well treated. I want no harm to come to him. His is my brother after
all, and he is your, ah, best friend dear Joel." "That's
true, and I wish you no harm. You also will be well treated. Please
escort Kibbeth to our best isolation chamber and be sure that he is
well fed." Kibbeth bowed again and the officers escorted him away. Joel
couldn't help but think back to his childhood days and the fun times
that Paulik, Kibbeth and he had shared. And now, here he was ordering
his former childhood playmate to be locked away in an isolation
chamber. Combined with the loss of life and the damage to the complex,
Joel's emotions were stretched to their limit. He openly sobbed again,
still worrying about Paulik. He knew that Kibbeth would not harm his
brother, but he wondered about the Talon forces that were now in
command. Reports of women and children being killed during the battle
showed that whoever was now in command could care less about anything
but winning. It was indeed turning out to be one of the darker days of
Joel's life. He drew a deep breath, conjuring up enough strength to
continue, and turned to the grim task of damage control, including
counting and identifying the dead and missing. Crews were already
starting to work on damaged sections of the complex. Water was being
pumped out. View ports were being repaired or replaced. The medical
center was still swamped, but everyone was receiving treatment. Joel
directed the work into the late evening hours and refused to leave his
post until every missing Watcher was accounted for. A now thoroughly exhausted Joel sat at his console. An officer walked into the room and approached him slowly. "Sir?" "Yes," he said still looking at his console. "We have
accounted for all except for eighteen. There's a total of three hundred
forty-two dead and a hundred fourteen injured. And, sir," the officer
paused and Joel looked up. "Jevic and Cameron are among the missing." "Oh dear God." "Sir, that
leaves two possibilities. They were either captured or their bodies
have yet to be found. There was an enormous amount of damage near their
suite and ..." "I know,"
Joel said sternly cutting him off. "I know," this time much softer. He
looked up at the officer and continued. "Please concentrate your search
efforts around the dignitary suite. Jevic is my son ... my dearest
friend's son, and I have become very fond of Cameron." The officer
nodded. "Jevic is
highly regarded among our people and great things have already been
seen from Cameron. I hope for all of our sakes that they are safe." And
with that, he turned to continue his grim task. "You will do as
I say or you will wish you were never born, you Watcher pig. Now kneel
before me and kiss my feet!" I slowly lifted my eyes and looked up at
the ugliest man I had even seen. He stood at least seven feet tall and
must have weighed well over four hundred pounds. The scraggly beard
barely covered the ugly lines in his face. His hair was like a mop.
Unkept and nasty dirty. The clothing he wore was no better. Stained and
torn. And his smell reminded me of a dumpster on a sweltering summer
afternoon ... repulsive. "Fuck you
Talon asshole," I screamed. His smile grew wide and he bared his gnarly
teeth as he slowly pulled a giant sword from his belt. Someone pushed
me from behind and I fell to my knees, wincing in pain. Hands on my
shoulders made sure that's where I stayed. The rope that held my hands
behind my back cut into my skin, but I continued to glare at the big,
ugly Talon. "Very well,
have it your way," he hissed. At that very moment two more Talon guards
pushed another prisoner into the room. He hands were tired behind his
back like mine were, but his head was covered in a black sack. They
pushed him roughly down in front of a stone block. The guards made him
lean forward on the block. Then the giant ugly Talon spoke. "Pull the
sack from his head. I want our friend to see his face." The guards
pulled the sack off his head. "Jevic!" I cried out. "Cameron, oh God not you too." "Now you will see the wrath of the Talon," the ugly giant said as he started to raise his sword over Jevic's neck. "NO WAIT!" I screamed. The Talon only laughed. The guards laughed. Everybody in the room laughed. "Take me
instead. Let Jevic live and kill me. Kill ME you ugly bastard. Kill me
instead." Then his smile went away. He slowly raised his sword over his
head. "Please, take me instead," I begged. Jevic's face was severely
beaten. He was crying softly. "I love you Cameron," whimpered Jevic. The ugly Talon sneered and looked at me. "I'll kill you. Sure, I'll kill you. Right after I finish beheading your friend here." "No please.
I'll do as you ask. I'll do anything you ask. I will serve you till my
dying day, but please let him live." The ugly swordsman thought for a
moment and then looked down on me. "You
Watchers are a strange lot. I'll be glad when you've all been killed."
He turned his ugly stare toward Jevic and swung his sword down with a
mighty force. "NO!" I
screamed, waking up in a cold sweat. My clone hugged me tight and told
me that it was just a dream. Here I am sleeping with myself, or rather
a clone of myself, and I'm waking up from a dream? Jeez! Maybe this is
a dream within a dream. "Cameron,
you were just having a bad dream. It's OK now. You're awake and I'm
here. It's OK." I suddenly heard my mother's footsteps approaching the
bedroom door. I glanced at my clone, not knowing what to do. "On the
floor ... far side of the bed," he directed. I moved quickly to my
hiding place just as mom opened the door. "Cameron, are you all right dear?" she said softly. "Yes mom. Just a bad dream," I heard my clone say. "OK, try to
get some sleep," she said sleepily as she pulled the door closed. I
slowly got up from the floor and sat on the edge of the bed. My clone
looked at me, trying to assess whether I was all right or not. He
paused for a moment and then asked me to tell him about the dream. I
leaned back on the pillow and recalled all of the detail that I could.
He sat quietly and listened intently. "Cameron, I
don't have mental powers like you do. I am a machine and incapable of
that, but I am in constant communication with the central computer at
the complex. I have learned of a massive attack by the Talon." I sat up
and looked at him, eager for any news. "Hundreds were killed and the
complex was severely damaged, but they did manage to hold off the
attack, but I-I'm afraid that Jevic is among the missing." Paulik could
only imagine the battle that had taken place. He found comfort in the
fact that Joel would be in charge. His oldest and dearest friend would
wage a perilous assault on the Talon forces. He feared not for his own
personal safety, but for that of his people, his friends and his son.
Spending time in the confines of the Talon isolation chamber gave him
time to collect his thoughts. He pondered over all that his brother had
said about the earth and the humans that inhabited it. He considered
the Talon point of view. He consulted his memory of times past and of
the history of the Watcher people. Memories of tales told by his father
and by his father's father flooded his mind. Every scrap of information
that he could muster was considered before finally reaching the
conclusion that he was indeed acting properly for the best interest of
the Watchers, for the best interest of his people from far away, for
the best interest of even the Talons and for the best interest of the
humans that inhabited the planet. He knew this all along, but felt
obligated to consider all the information, no matter what the source.
And still in the end, his heart was in the right place. The door to
his world suddenly opened and someone was rudely thrown in. The body
crumpled into a pile in the middle of the floor. Paulik jumped up and
went to its side. Rolling the body over, he openly gasped. He pulled
his son into his arms and comforted him. Jevic had been beaten badly
and was unconscious. "Kibbeth!
You will pay dearly for this!" he screamed into the emptiness of the
chamber. Paulik's rage grew by leaps and bounds. The confines of the
isolation chamber shielded him from communication and from travel, but
they did not shield his insight and vast years of experience. But right
now, he was concerned for his son. How could Kibbeth have allowed such
an atrocity? Jevic was his own nephew. To confine his own flesh and
blood in an isolation chamber was one thing, but to allow the brutal
beating on an innocent child was inexcusable. While comforting his son
in his arms and listening to his rattled breathing, Paulik formulated a
plan. In the end, his intellect proved to win out over emotion. He knew
what had to be done and he knew how to do it. It was almost time to put
his plan into action, but first, he needed the help of his son, who lay
unconscious in his arms. Paulik wept tears of love for Jevic, tears of
love of his own misguided brother and tears of sorrow for his people.
In time, he would put his plan into action and no Talon alive would be
able to stop it. It was one of
those days that only happen in the movies ... gray, overcast, and
chilly ... the perfect setting for a final farewell. The family had
insisted that he sit with them on the front pew during the service and
he obliged them more for their sake than his. The words spoken passed
in one ear and out the other, until the minister mentioned the name.
Then the tears welled up. They were uncontrollable. The mere mention of
his name brought on a new wave of emotion that resulted in more tears.
Scott tried his best to be strong, to be a comfort to Greg's family,
but the pain of his loss was too great. Even though he sat in a
standing room only chapel, he was more alone than he had ever been in
his entire life. He mindlessly played with the golden necklace that he
wore. It was to have been a gift. He had planned on giving it to Greg
the night of the shooting. It was their second anniversary. It was
difficult to look at, but it was beautiful at the same time. The
mahogany coffin before him was carrying his heart, his soul ... the
center of his universe. The minutes blurred into an hour and the crowd
gathered amid the beautiful oak trees. The color of their leaves was
golden and the air was crisp, but Scott was numb. He walked like a
zombie and sat in the front row for the last goodbye. Just across
the street a group of people had gathered. They were carrying signs.
The signs spoke of the hatred in their hearts. 'Faggots burn in hell.'
'Death to the sinning gays.' 'You got what you deserve.' Scott tried
his best to ignore the signs and the insensitive yells of the crowd.
Police officers held them at a distance. Other officers escorted the
grieving family to the gravesite. The crowd of
mourners gathered in closer to hear the minister as he made his ashes
to ashes and dust to dust speech, but it was of no comfort to Scott.
All he knew was that everything that mattered to him, everything he
cared about, his entire world was in a mahogany box in front of him.
The minister finished and slowly made his way across the front pew
offering words of comfort to the family. When he came to Scott, the
minister paused and knelt down. He looked Scott in the eyes and smiled
slightly as he took Scott's hand into his. Scott looked at the minister
through the freely falling tears. He saw a face of compassion and of
understanding. Nothing was said, but Scott felt that his pain was
understood. The family
began to get up and greet their friends, to thank them for coming.
Scott remained seated and gazed upon the coffin. Slowly and carefully,
he got up and walked over to it. Some of the family and friends turned
to watch. No one dared approach him, and few understood the gravity of
his grief. Those that did respected his time and left him to say his
final goodbye. They watched in silence as Scott slowly removed the
golden necklace from around his neck. He kissed the necklace and then
gently placed it on the wooden surface. "I love you Greg, and I always
will," he whispered in a choked voice. His tears fell and rolled off
the coffin's shiny surface. Scott moved back to his seat and then
watched as the coffin was slowly lowered into the ground. With each
jerk of the process, his emotions flowed freely down his cheeks until
at last, the coffin disappeared into its dark, cold crypt. Scott
continued to sit and watch as the men moved the dirt back into its
place. The earth seemed to wrap its cold arms around the coffin and
welcome it to its final resting place. He still remained seated as the
men tamped down the last of the dirt. Then the flowers were spread over
the freshly dug soil, perhaps to hide the fact that the cemetery had
welcomed another into its midst. And at long last, Scott rose from his
seat and began his long walk home ... alone ... truly alone ... except
for the tears that would keep him company for weeks to come. Brandon tossed
and turned in his bed, trying every possible position he could, but
sleep was just not an option. His mind turned to all the evil that he
had been living with. The painful memories of his father's beatings
still haunted him. The very thought that someone of his own flesh and
blood could commit such a senseless crime made him sick. That fact that
it actually happened brought on the tears, tears of sorrow, tears of
remorse, tears from finally understanding what it was all about. He had
attended the funeral, but only from a distance, for fear that someone
would recognize him. He watched as his father's friends carried signs
and shouted words of hate. His tears were true tears of sorrow. Brandon
watched as Scott walked over to the coffin. He held his breath as he
watched Scott put the necklace on the coffin. It was more than Brandon
could stand. He turned his head and walked slowly away. How he longed
to hold Scott in his arms and comfort him, but he realized that was
only a fantasy. Scott could never feel for him the way he felt for
Scott. Not knowing that it was Brandon's own father that had taken
Scott's world away from him. Brandon was so alone, with no one to
comfort him .... no one. So this is what it's like. To be the scum of
the earth. To be the very person who he had hated the most. It was his
darkest day. Jevic moved
slightly and moaned. His father comforted him, gently stroking his
golden hair. He had stopped the bleeding and had cleaned his son up as
best as he could. The only bed in the room seemed like the logical
place to make him most comfortable and it was there that he now rested.
Now all the father could do was wait for his son to wake up. It looked
like his wait was just about over. Jevic moved again and slowly opened
his eyes, looking up into his father's face. "Dad," he groaned. "It's OK son. You're going to be all right. I know it hurts, but it will get better." "Where am I?" "We're on the Talon flagship in an isolation chamber. Do you know anything of the battle?" "No, I was
taken just after the alarm sounded and dad ... they killed Pelma. He
didn't have a weapon or anything. They just shot him in cold blood,"
Jevic said as his eyes teared up. Paulik lowered and shook his head. "Son, I need
you to be strong for me. I need you to be strong for our people. I need
you to be very strong. I know that you have been beaten, but you've got
to try to turn the pain into strength." "I will dad. What do you want to do?" Paulik took a deep breath. "We've got to try to contact Cameron." "But dad, we're in an isolation chamber. Communication is impossible." "You're forgetting son, Cameron has already contacted me here." "That's right! But do you think we can contact him?" "That's
where I'm counting on your strength son. Your powers are very strong.
Combined with mine, I think we can reach Cameron. A lot of my plan
depends on Cameron at that point. He will have to mind travel here to
us." A worried look came across Jevic's face. "I know you have concerns
about Cameron using his powers, after all, he is still quite a novice
at all this, but I have faith in him and you must too. His growth in
power has been the fastest that I have ever seen. He's a special boy
Jevic, and I think you know that." Jevic looked down and another tear fell. Then he looked back up at his father. "I've hurt
Cameron badly. Pelma played a trick on me and made me think that he was
Cameron. We ended up, ah, intimate and Cameron walked in on us. I'm so
ashamed." "Jevic, you
were deceived. It was not your fault. But this whole thing could work
to our advantage. Cameron will no doubt have you constantly on his
mind. It will make communication easier. Once we make contact, let me
speak to him." Jevic nodded. "OK, are you ready to try?" Once again,
Jevic nodded and then sat up on the bed, and turned to sit on its edge
beside his father. They joined hands and closed their eyes. "Jevic is m-missing?" I asked. My clone nodded. "I'm afraid
so. There was a terrible battle, but the Talons were driven away and
the Watchers are still in control, but the cost in life is staggering.
More than three hundred are dead and more than a hundred have been
injured." "Oh my God,"
I whispered. I dropped my face down in sadness, but then quickly looked
back up. "I've got to try to contact Jevic!" The clone smiled and
nodded. I took a deep breath and let it out slowly. Then I closed my
eyes and started to concentrate. The cloak of darkness immediately
surrounded me. More concentration and then ... static? The same static
I had encountered while trying to contact Paulik. That means Jevic has
been captured. At least he's alive. I concentrated harder and the
static slowly got quieter and quieter. "Jevic!" I called out. "Jevic!
It's Cameron!" "Cameron, thank God we reached you," said Paulik. "Is Jevic there with you?" "Yeah, I'm here." "Cameron,
listen carefully," directed Paulik. "I want you to try to mind travel
to us. It will be difficult, but I believe in you and your power. Will
you try?" "Paulik, it
was hard just to push my thoughts through the chamber's static and
pushing me through will be even harder. I don't know if I can, but I
will try." "Cameron, I miss you," said Jevic. "Jevic, we need to talk, but not now. Please concentrate on me. Perhaps that will help me punch through. OK?" "We believe
in you Cameron. You can do this," said Paulik. The static returned as I
started to relax and return. I blinked my eyes open and looked in the
eyes of myself. "I know
everything about you, but still, it's really weird," I said. My clone
grinned. "I'm going to try to mind travel to Jevic and his father.
Hopefully, I'll disappear shortly. But before I try, I wanted to thank
you for ah, for being me." "Your thanks are not necessary, but they are accepted. Good luck Cameron." "Thanks
Cameron." We both grinned at each other and without even thinking about
it, I quickly hugged my clone tightly. Then I sat back on the bed,
closed my eyes and started to concentrate. The cloak of darkness
welcomed me back, but I immediately felt the resistance of the static.
I pushed harder, but it would not budge. I pictured Jevic and Paulik
clearly in my mind and pushed even harder. Still nothing. I pulled back
slightly, gathered my strength and pushed forward as hard as I possibly
could. Suddenly the static gave way, the weightless feeling came and
then I tumbled on to the floor of a room. "I knew you
could do it," called out Paulik as he came and helped me up. I gave him
a big hug. "Someone else is here too," Paulik said nodding over toward
the bed. Jevic was grinning at me, but his face was horribly beaten. I
rushed over to him and took him into my arms. "Oh my God. You didn't tell me you'd been hurt. Are you OK?" "Physically,
I'll be fine. But Cameron, I feel so bad about us. I love you more than
anything else in the world and would never do anything to hurt you." "But you did hurt me Jevic," I reminded him. "Cameron,"
interrupted Paulik. I turned toward him. "I know you two have a lot to
work out, but we have more pressing issues to deal with. If it means
anything coming from me, Jevic would never intentionally hurt you." I
smiled and nodded at him. "Now, we have to combine our powers to get us
all out of here. Cameron, you'll be the lead and Jevic and I will give
you backup." We helped Jevic off of the bed and all three stood arm in
arm. "OK Cameron, concentrate on Joel. Picture him in your mind. Really
concentrate this time. You're traveling three people at once. It won't
be easy. Just remember to concentrate and let nothing break that
concentration." I nodded and took a deep breath. "Here we
go," I said as I closed my eyes. The darkness came quick, and so did
the static. I put all my efforts into picturing Joel in my mind. Then I
heard voices and shouting. I knew we had just moments to spare. I
concentrated directly into the center of the static. The tingling
sensation came and I threw it toward the static with a great force. The
static exploded in a giant white flash of light and the weightless
feeling came quickly. "Paulik!" I
heard someone yell. I opened my eyes and saw that we had made it to the
command center and one very happy Joel was there to greet us. "Jevic!
Cameron! How did you get here?" a bewildered Joel asked. Paulik simply
nodded at me. "I don't know how you did it Cameron, but thank you,
thank you for getting them out safely." "I have a
feeling that their isolation chamber's grid will need to be repaired,"
chuckled Paulik. "Cameron blew it up!" Joel laughed and slapped me on
the back. "We need to get Jevic some medical attention Joel. They beat
him badly." Joel looked over at Jevic and I could see the fury building
in his eyes. "Paulik, they're absolutely covered up. There's well over a hundred injured there." "Oh God," Paulik stammered. "How many dead?" "Three
hundred forty-two," Joel said sadly. Paulik suddenly appeared dizzy and
we helped him to a seat. "Easy Paulik," he said trying to reassure his
friend. Paulik's tears streamed down his face. "It got ugly my friend,
very ugly. Sections D and E are flooded. Sections G, H, and B are
heavily damaged too. But, we have a special guest." Paulik looked up. "Kibbeth?" Joel nodded and then turned to me. "Cameron, do
you think you could help Jevic down to the medical center. At least
they could look at him." I nodded. "Good, I'll let them know you're on
the way." I lifted Jevic's arm over my shoulder and we walked ever so
slowly toward the door. "Cameron," said Paulik. I paused and looked back at Jevic's father. "Thank you," he said softly. "Thank you for everything." "Any time
... dad." I winked at him and then turned back to help Jevic. We made
it down the corridor without any conversation before he stopped me. "This is
killing me Cameron. We've got to talk and we've got to talk now. I have
to explain." He pointed to a bench at the corner of the corridor. So I
helped him hobble over to it and we sat down. "You cheated
on me Jevic. There's nothing to explain. You just plain and simple
cheated on me. How am I supposed to forget that and just move on?" He
hung his head sadly, letting me get it all out. "I gave you my heart
and you kicked it to the curb. You lied to me about Pelma. You said he
was your best friend, not your ex-boyfriend. So you've cheated and
you've lied. I can't trust you Jevic. And if I can't trust you, how can
we ever continue to be boyfriends?" "I am truly sorry Cameron," he said softly, his head still hung low. He looked pitiful, but my hurt ran deep. "Sorry? I'm just supposed to accept your apology and pretend like nothing happened?" I said hotly. I could see his tears. "Pelma's dead." "H-he's dead?" I stammered. "The Talons
killed him. They attacked just after you left the suite. I told him to
go straight home and lock the door, but they caught him in the corridor
and shot him over and over again." "Oh Jevic, I'm so sorry." "He didn't
have a weapon. He didn't have anything. He was just a kid trying to get
out of the way and they just killed him." Jevic was openly sobbing now.
"I was so mad. I fought with them and killed a few before the others
ran. I ran the other way and was captured. You know the rest." I
couldn't help but feel sorry for Jevic. I still loved him. I'd never
stopped. I was just mad at him. Here he was sitting beside me in
anguish. What am I supposed to do? I'm supposed to do what I want and
need to do. I put my arm around him and hugged him tight. Jevic sobbed
for quite some time. We just sat there, my arm around him, and gently
rocked back and forth. To me, I suppose we were a strange sight, but no
one gave us a second look. The expressions on the faces of the people
passing by told of their own grief and shock. Some were angry and some
were sobbing too. "Cameron," Jevic said as his tears finally started to subside. "Yeah Jevic," I said softly. My anger now subsided as well. "Cameron,
I'm going to tell you something you probably won't believe, but it's
the truth. It will explain everything that happened." He looked up at
me with pleading eyes. "OK Jevic, I have an open mind." "Pelma had a
unique talent. He could change his appearance. I mean he could really
change ... change into anyone he wanted to be. That day, he chose to
change into you and trick me. The relationship I had with him was
nothing compared to our relationship. Pelma and I had a relationship of
lust. Cameron, we have a relationship of love. I honestly thought that
I was making love to you. And it was wonderful I might add. Pelma
changed back into himself when you showed up. I was just as surprised
as you were. I still can't explain why he did it. Perhaps he was
jealous. Maybe he just wanted to play a trick. I don't know, and now
we'll never know." I thought about what he said for a moment. I thought
about what Paulik had said to me back in the isolation chamber. This
strange new world that I was now an intricate part of certainly has
many strange and wonderful things in it. I guess that someone changing
into someone else isn't too far fetched. Then I had an idea. "Jevic, I
think the best thing we can do is get you down to the medical center
and make sure you're all right. Then we'll go back to the suite and, if
you're feeling up to it, you can find out what it's like to make love
to the real Cameron." The look of surprise on his face quickly changed
to delight and then to lust. "I love you Jevic. I know you would never
intentionally hurt me. Even your father knows that." "He knows what happened with Pelma too," he said once more hanging his head. "You told him?" "I tell my dad everything." I just smiled and shook my head. "That's why I fell in love with you." "Because I tell my dad everything?" "No silly.
Because you always do the right thing. Now come on, let's get you
looked at." We slowly made our way to the medical center. It was pure
chaos, but we did manage to find the doctor that had worked on me. He
took one look at Jevic and pulled us into an examining room. "What happened to you?" he asked. "I was captured by the Talons and they beat me up." "How did you get way?" he asked as he started his examination. "Cameron got me and dad out." The doctor quickly glanced at me and smiled. "I knew you
were special Cameron. I guess I just didn't realize how special you
really are." I smiled and he continued his exam. After a few moments,
he finally spoke. "This will tingle a little," he said to Jevic. Then
he held a device in front of his head. It hummed a little. Then he
moved it down to Jevic's chest. It hummed again. Then down to his sore
leg, where it hummed again. "Well now, give that about a hour and
you'll be in perfect shape." We thanked
him profusely and made our way back toward the suite. Jevic's leg was
already feeling better and he walked without my help. The corridor had
been repaired from the weapons fire and appeared normal. We walked into
the suite and found that it had been thoroughly cleaned. I was hungry
and suggested we get some supper. Jevic was more than ready. "I want some
more of those vegetables in that cream sauce you fixed for lunch the
other day. That was delicious. And while you're at it, show me how to
use that darn contraption. The last time I tried to get hot chocolate
out of it, it took three tries." Jevic laughed and pointed out the
intricacies of the food processor. After our wonderful meal of
vegetables, we retired to the living room and sat on the couch. There are
times for lovemaking. There are times for down right animalistic sex.
And there are times for cuddling. I had figured that much out, even
though I hadn't experienced a whole lot of any of them. I had my
favorites mind you, but I knew that tonight was turning into one of the
times for cuddling. We had both been through a lot. I was exhausted and
I knew that Jevic was too. Taking him by his hand, I led him to our
bedroom. I helped him take his clothes off and he helped with mine.
Then we slid between the crisp clean sheets and snuggled together in
our warm nakedness, my back to his chest. I could feel him 'knocking at
my back door,' but attributed that to teenage hormones for it wasn't
long before both of us had fallen into a deep, restful sleep. On to Chapter Eight "Beginnings" Back to Chapter Six "Broken Trust" Chapter Index I'd love to hear what you think! Email me at jevic@tarheelwriter.com This work may not be duplicated in any form (physical, electronic, audio, or otherwise) without the author's written permission. All applicable copyright laws apply. All individuals depicted are fictional with any resemblance to real persons being purely coincidental.
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