A Knight on a quest for new armour for his Kingdom stumbles into the seduction of a Siren on a quest for lunch.
Slash Fiction Genre: Romance
Slash Fiction Rating: NC-17
Pairings: M/M
Kinks: Human/Monster
Read “The Siren and the Knight” here
 

Kink Warnings

This slash fiction contains sex with a humanoid monster, and the penis is described as being a bit different from a humans. There’s no other particular kinks aside from (the expected) gay sex.
 

Recurring Characters

These characters are not recurring, and they don’t appear in any other slash fiction on my site. If you want to see more of them, you can always comment on the story itself to request it or use the smut suggestion box!
 

Slash Fiction Excerpt

The Knight’s brown eyes scanned the path ahead of him as he walked through the swamp. He grew up listening to warnings about the swamp that sprawled between the two kingdoms, and he wasn’t so naïve that he thought they were merely moral lessons for children thinly veiled as fairy tales. He knew things lurked in the swamp, but with his hand placed on the grip of his sword and his years of experience, he felt confident he could face whatever monstrosities lurked through the swamp that wouldn’t let him pass.

And knowing that he could die just as easily if he stayed in the Kingdom helped motivated him.

He heard rumours that the neighbouring kingdom had discovered a new metal that would serve as stronger armour without weighing the men down to the point that it hindered their movement. His King told him to ignore them, but he couldn’t pass up the opportunity to help protect himself and the other men. War was on the wind, and the Knight wasn’t about to ignore a potential asset just to save a few days of travel. He hardly needed more training, and he knew a blacksmith in town. The King suggested he send a messenger to him to inquire about the rumours, but a messenger would take twice as long as he would, and he expected to see soldiers come over the hill any day now.

Read the rest of the slash fiction story, “The Siren and the Knight”, here
 

NSFW Image Warning

The Siren and the Knight

The Knight’s brown eyes scanned the path ahead of him as he walked through the swamp. He grew up listening to warnings about the swamp that sprawled between the two kingdoms, and he wasn’t so naïve that he thought they were merely moral lessons for children thinly veiled as fairy tales. He knew things lurked in the swamp, but with his hand placed on the grip of his sword and his years of experience, he felt confident he could face whatever monstrosities lurked through the swamp that wouldn’t let him pass.

And knowing that he could die just as easily if he stayed in the Kingdom helped motivated him.

He heard rumours that the neighbouring kingdom had discovered a new metal that would serve as stronger armour without weighing the men down to the point that it hindered their movement. His King told him to ignore them, but he couldn’t pass up the opportunity to help protect himself and the other men. War was on the wind, and the Knight wasn’t about to ignore a potential asset just to save a few days of travel. He hardly needed more training, and he knew a blacksmith in town. The King suggested he send a messenger to him to inquire about the rumours, but a messenger would take twice as long as he would, and he expected to see soldiers come over the hill any day now.

The people they fought with were better armed, more experienced, and better trained, and the Knight knew that the men he fought alongside with needed every bit of assistance they could get. They certainly had the benefit of being behind the Kingdom’s walls, and less bulky armour could easily mean victory instead of defeat.

So the Knight left against orders, assuming he would return before anyone noticed his absence. He walked with confidence despite the thick swamp air causing his blue tunic to cling to him with sweat. The blue looked darker beneath his armpits and along his back and chest, but the gold trim stayed bold despite his sweat. His long, wavy, brown hair already began to weigh down with perspiration, and he wondered when his beard would begin to feel the effects. He was thankful he left his armour behind, or else the trip would be a painful one.

A cool breeze suddenly washed over him, sending a slight chill through his body. He heard a song on it, a soft masculine voice singing in a language he didn’t recognize. He passed a pair of sirens on his way in, but their song didn’t quite catch his attention like this one did. The two ladies at the entrance waved and giggled as he passed, and he said, “Another time perhaps,” with a smile.

He wondered how so many men had been lost to them as he walked by the first two, but now he found himself searching out the source of this new song. He told himself he walked by the other two, so he could walk by this new one. There was no harm in taking a peek at what this particular siren looked like.

The Knight saw the creature lounging in a larger pool of water, absently singing to himself and combing his long teal-blue hair between his webbed fingers. He almost hadn’t spotted the creature between all the like-coloured reeds. The Siren’s skin was more of a greenish teal, lighter than his hair, and it helped him blend into the surrounding area. Teal-blue scales and freckles spread across his skin, gathering in tight bunches around his shoulders and near the light blue fins spreading down his arms. The Knight noticed, too, how the Siren’s ears came to a point, frilling out into more fins.

The creature’s gold eyes locked onto him, and the Knight absently thought about how the gold matched the King’s gold perfectly.

The Siren stopped singing, and the Knight blinked as he realized how close to the Siren he was. His boots sunk into the moist ground that almost pulled him into the pool. He took a step back.

The Knight sheepishly laughed and said, “You must have better luck hunting at night.”

The Siren smiled, and the Knight suddenly noticed all the gold jewellery adorning his body. He wore several arm and wrist bangles, countless rings, several chains draped across his neck, and a matching pair of fish hooks in his earlobes. He wondered how many people the Siren killed to acquire this loot, and he took a step back as he realized he moved closer to him again.

“Do you say that because I don’t look human?” the Siren asked. His voice sounded silky without sacrificing its depth and masculinity.

The Knight simply nodded.

“Some people like that I’m not human,” he replied, smiling with his teal-blue lips.

The Siren raised just enough out of the water for The Knight to see his thin frame, and he noted the creature’s nipples matched the colour of his lips. The Knight was suddenly self-conscious of his boxy frame, and he hoped the Siren would think his larger gut was more muscle than fat.

Submerging his body back into the water, the Siren swam closer to the edge of the pool where the knight stood. The creature asked, “What do you like?”

“Living,” the Knight said, smirking.

Throwing back his head, the Siren laughed. “Don’t we all,” he said. “I like the braids in your beard. Would you mind leaning closer to me so I can see them?”

“Not a chance.”

The Siren laughed again, and the Knight frowned, trying not to be enchanted with him. He liked making the Siren laugh, but he wasn’t about to admit it. He watched the Siren’s long hair curl across the water’s surface and took a step back from the pool’s edge. The Siren said, “I suppose you don’t want to be friends then.”

“Not at the risk of my life,” the Knight said. “I’m sure you understand.”

The Siren merely smiled this time. He hummed softly to himself and drifted away from the water’s edge. When the Siren raised his body to float on top of the water, the Knight’s brown eyes ran across the creature’s naked form. His torso and legs were human enough, with perky nipples and a bellybutton dip in his stomach, but the Knight noticed the fins on the back of his legs as the Siren swam away from him. He peeked, too, at the creature’s penis. It sprawled out of a slit between his legs, and it was farther from human, with shallow ridges across its thick shaft and small fins on either side of it. The Knight wondered what the Siren’s cock would feel like moving in and out of his ass. The creature’s testicles were, presumably, still inside of the slit.

The Siren submerged his body again, swimming closer to the Knight. “I think one part of you does want to be friends,” he purred. “I can see he’s quite excited about the possibility of it.”

The Knight had hardly noticed his own erection pressed against his leg, and heat rushed to his olive-coloured cheeks. He hadn’t realized how much the Siren had enchanted him until that moment. The Siren’s smile spread, and the Knight could see his sharp teeth through his lips.

The Siren said, “I’m usually fairly forward with new friends. I like to give them a little kiss, if they don’t mind. I’m not opposed to shaking hands, but a kiss is always my preference.”

The Knight hesitated, trying to ignore his throbbing cock.

Leaning against the pool’s edge, the Siren said, “You don’t even need to come into the water. Just stay right there, and I’ll give my new friend a kiss. I only need you to take him out so we can be properly introduced.”

Swallowing, the Knight pulled down his trousers enough to free his erection. The Siren raised himself out of the water by gripping the ground at the pool’s edge. Kissing the head of the Knight’s cock, the Siren’s gold eyes watched him intently. The Siren then closed his eyes as he kissed just past the cock’s head on his shaft.

Lightly touching the Knight’s leg to keep himself balanced, the Siren murmured, “I think my friend likes the attention. Should I give him some more?”

The Knight couldn’t remember the last time someone touched his cock, let alone kissed it. He wanted more. “I’ll stay here, right?” the Knight said.

“You don’t need to move an inch,” the Siren purred.

His pointed, dark blue tongue licked the head of the Knight’s cock before he enveloped it between his lips. The Knight gently touched the Siren’s head, stroking his silky hair as the creature began to suck him. With his tongue teasing the underside of his shaft, the Siren took more of the Knight’s cock into his mouth. Gripping the Siren’s hair, the Knight bit his bottom lip and gently bucked his hips into the Siren’s mouth.

Tightening his grip on the Knight’s leg, the Siren sucked him harder. His lips moved quickly along his shaft, and his nose nuzzled into the thick pubic hair at the base of the Knight’s cock. He listened to the Knight pant as he continued to suck. When he tasted the man start to finish onto his tongue, the Siren pulled away, dropping back into the water.

With the Siren’s long hair still between his fingers, the Knight stood blinking for a moment, realizing that something was missing from the exchange. The Siren started untwisting his hair from the Knight’s loose grasp while the man gathered his thoughts. “You’re not going to let me finish without getting in the water, are you?” the Knight asked.

“It’s only fair,” the Siren replied, finally freeing his hair. “It was getting too hard holding myself out of the water, and friends help each other. I got out of the water for a little while, and now it’s time for you to come into the water for a little while.” He paused and added, “Pun not intended.”

The Knight told himself to jerk off and go home. Jerk off. Go home. The Siren’s gold eyes watched him carefully. The Siren didn’t hum or make a sound. The Knight realized the creature wanted to see what the Knight chose without his supernatural help. If he said “No,” would the Siren sing and pull him back anyway?

And if he escaped, when would he feel something like this again? It had been a long time since the Knight had felt physical pleasure like this, and he suspected he wouldn’t get it again, especially with a war on his doorstep. And he was getting older and heavy. He wouldn’t be able to move quite like the other Knights under all the heavy armour. How long would he survive? Would he even last through the first battle? There might not even be new armour in the other kingdom. He could make this journey for no reason and promptly be killed afterwards.

Maybe it was best to just disappear. The others might think he fled. His King would think he sought out the armour and never returned. No one would miss him. His Blacksmith friend would likely never even hear about his death.

“All right,” the Knight said, pulling his tunic off from over his head. “If I’m going to die, I might as well go with you. It sounds like you’ll make it fun.”

The Siren’s eyes widened for a moment, and the Knight turned away as he took off his belt with his sword and removed his boots. The Siren asked, “What would you and my friend like to do? Would you like more kisses?”

The Knight pulled off his trousers, checked his money-pouch, and stepped into the warm water. When he found no bottom, he stumbled, and it took him a moment to tread water. Before he could wonder if the pools were all interconnected, he realized the water felt slick, heavier than regular water. It took him a minute to realize that the Siren had changed the consistency of the water to make it a stronger lubricant. Some of the more travelled traders sold “Siren Water” as a lubricant, claiming it was real water sirens had bathed in and bragged of its benefits, but he thought it was just a name. He supposed now he knew the truth, not much he could do with it.

When he caught the Siren looking at him, the Siren asked, “Well?”

The Knight pulled the Siren into his arms, feeling the creature’s hands press up against his chest. He kissed the Siren roughly, parting his lips with his own and slipping his tongue into his mouth. The Siren twisted his fingers into the man’s chest hair, kissing back with matched zeal. When the Knight broke the kiss, he murmured against the Siren’s lips, “Make love to me. I want to know what that cock of yours feels like.”

The Siren smiled and kissed him gently, and he felt the creature’s hand change his position. The Knight gripped the grass at the edge of the pool to keep himself from sinking, and the Siren held onto his thighs, keeping his legs spread out on either side of him. His cock pressed up against the creature’s stomach while the Siren pressed a finger into his ass. The Knight briefly wondered how the Siren stayed afloat with his hands busy – could he stay upright simply by paddling his feet? – but the Siren’s finger knew where to put pressure and clouded his thoughts with pleasure. Pumping his finger quickly in and out of the man’s ass, the Siren gently bit the Knight’s lower lip before kissing him again.

When the Siren pressed a second finger in, the Knight broke the kiss to pant. The creature moved his fingers faster and harder, intently watching the Knight’s expressions change. Drawing one hand away from the pool’s edge, the Knight ran his hand across the Siren’s smooth chest. He pulled the Siren’s body closer to his own, clenching his teeth as the creature thrusted his fingers rougher in response. Pressing his thumb against the Siren’s nipple, the Knight regretted not taking more time to explore the Siren’s body with his lips.

The Siren pulled his fingers out of the Knight’s ass and edged his thick cock into him. The Knight gripped the pool’s edge again, feeling dirt sink under his nails. He clenched his teeth as the Siren’s cock pressed deeper into him, feeling every ridge and fin inside of him. But the pain he would have felt wasn’t there. The Knight thought maybe it was the water or even the Siren himself, but whatever pain he should have felt was replaced by the sensation of the smooth ridges sliding against him. Only his erection ached for attention, but the Knight feared he’d climax too early if he jerked himself off.

When the Knight let out a gasp, the Siren murmured against his lips, “Everything feel okay?”

“Perfect.”

The Knight leaned upwards, kissing the Siren. The creature’s gold eyes locked onto the man’s as he pumped shallowly in and out of him. He pressed his body against the Knight’s, brushing his stomach against the man’s cock. “May I go deeper?” the Siren purred against him.

“All the way,” the Knight replied.

The Siren kissed him in response, biting the man’s lower lip as he pulled away. Digging his nails into the Knight’s thighs, the Siren thrusted his cock as deep as it could go, grinding his hips against the Knights ass. The Knight let out a gasp and the Siren pulled nearly out to slam into him again. The man shuddered as the Siren’s large cock filled him completely before sliding out of him again. The Knight bucked his hips back against the Siren’s rhythm, urging him to stay deep inside of him. The creature’s finned cock teased him, sending shakes of pleasure through him. With his own cock aching, the Knight gripped the ground tighter, feeling himself reaching his peak.

“Not yet,” the Siren whispered against his ear.

With the Knight squirming, the Siren quickened his pace, brushing his stomach against the man’s cock while he slammed in and out of him. The Knight wanted to come; his legs felt weak, his cheeks felt hot, and his toes curled in the water. He thought he should have shot his load by now, but something kept it knotted inside of him. He panted and moaned freely, wrapping his legs around the Siren’s back while the creature continued to slam into him. He moved his hips back against the rhythm, eager to feel the thick cock slide inside of him. He didn’t want it to end.

The Siren bit the Knight’s shoulder, sending pangs of pleasure through the man. Slowing his pace to hold his cock deep inside of him, the creature broke the Knight’s skin with his nails. The Knight groaned and clenched his teeth, and the creature began to kiss his neck. Smiling, the Siren returned to pumping quickly in and out of him, kissing just under the Knight’s jaw. The Knight shuddered and squirmed, groaning as the Siren’s slicked ridged cock teased him. His own cock throbbed and ached, desperate to orgasm. He bucked back against the Siren, feeling the creature’s grip tighten on his thighs. “Finish inside of me,” the Knight gasped.

With several, deep hard thrusts and his stomach pressed against the man’s erection, the Siren came with a grunt, shooting his load inside of the Knight while the Knight climaxed into the water, groaning.

As the Siren pulled out of him, the Knight found himself unable to move. No matter what the Knight mentally ordered his body to do, his entire body stayed stiff in its position. “Sorry,” the Siren murmured, pulling his cock out of his ass. Wiping semen off the Knight’s stomach, he kissed the Knight’s hairy chest and said, “My semen paralyzes whoever it comes in contact with. It’s generally really handy, but it makes dating a bit awkward. It doesn’t last too long though, unless it’s ingested. It can last a good hour if you swallow it.”

Smiling, the Siren ran his fingers through the Knight’s chest hair, teasing one of his nipples between two fingers. He then felt the two braids in the man’s beard, leaning close to examine them. The Knight wondered if the creature always played with his food in this manner, but he supposed this was the death he chose. He had just hoped it would be swift and in a romantic afterglow. The spot on his shoulder where the Siren bit him throbbed despite his paralysis.

“I’ve been thinking,” the Siren said, “that maybe someone who is willing to die just to have sex with you might be worth keeping alive. I mean, it’s hard to make friends when you keep eating them, and if you let them go, they never come back to you despite what that old proverb says. So I thought, perhaps, since you chose to be with me despite what it meant, that maybe you would come back from time to time and, you know, stay friends.”

The Siren gave the Knight a hopeful smile, showing his neat rows of sharp teeth, and the Knight laughed. With the movement in his face returning, the Knight said, “I would love to stay friends, but my Kingdom is going to war. I’m afraid I might not be alive for much longer.”

The Siren, still holding up the Knight’s body in the water, asked, “Are you fleeing the Kingdom? Are you one of those cowards I hear so much about?”

“No, no,” the Knight said. “Though I suppose I might be, since I chose death with you rather than death on the front lines. But I originally left to seek out this new, lightweight armour I heard about in our neighbouring Kingdom. I went through the swamp since it’s so much shorter. I thought I could win a fight against any creature I came across.”

“And you did,” the Siren replied, still smiling.

The Knight tried leaning his head forward and the creature, seeing what the Knight tried to do, gently kissed him. Again, the Knight parted the creature’s lips with his own, flicking his tongue against the Siren’s. The Knight drew a soft moan from the Siren’s mouth before ending the kiss. The Siren nuzzled him, kissing the corner of his lips and then his cheek. He said, “Well it is a pity that my new friends will die by the hands of a war rather than my own, but I suppose I can make the most out of our friendship in the little time we have. You’ll have to journey back through the swamp, am I correct?”

“You are correct.”

“Then you must see me on your return,” the Siren said, “and I’ll try not to paralyze you.”

“What if I like being paralyzed?”

The Siren laughed and hugged the Knight to him. “Then you are a fool,” he purred. Nuzzling the Knight, the Siren kissed him lightly again. “A very lovely fool.”

The Knight found his arms obeying him again, and he wrapped them around the creature. He teased the fin on the creature’s spine between two fingers, surprised at how it made the Siren purr and rub against him. He considered never leaving the water, but he decided that, to have survived the Siren’s encounter, he must be destined to deliver the armour to his Kingdom.

“Has it worn off?” the Siren asked.

“Seems that way,” the Knight said, gently moving his legs in the water.

“Then you must go,” the Siren said, lifting the Knight onto the ground at the pool’s edge. “The quicker you go, the quicker you will return.”

The Knight laughed, and the Siren rubbed his hairy legs before kissing his thigh. The Knight grabbed his tunic, but before he put it over his head, he caught the Siren looking at it. Sheepishly smiling, the Siren said, “I love the design.”

“You should have it.”

“No, no,” the Siren said. “It looks nice on you.”

“It will look nicer on you,” the Knight said.

“You cannot move through the swamp without a shirt.”

“I disagree,” the Knight said.

He already put the tunic over the Siren’s head, lifting his hair out from underneath it. The creature put his arms through the sleeves and looked at himself in the tunic. Between his fingers, he examined the gold embroidery. Without smiling, he looked back to the Knight and said, “Thank you. It’s beautiful.”

“You’re welcome,” the Knight said. “At least you will have something to remember our friendship with.”

The Siren leaned on the grass while the Knight dressed. He said, “You will come back once more though, right?”

“Once more,” the Knight replied. “And then we shall see what Fate has in store for us.”

“If the choice is between the tunic and you, I think I would prefer to have you.”

“I’m flattered, but I don’t think it’s your choice to make,” the Knight said. “I will be back. I’ll try to bring you something else from the market as well.”

“Get a new shirt too,” the Siren said. “It could be cold in the other Kingdom.”

“I will,” the Knight replied.

He leaned down and cupped the Siren’s cheeks in his hands. The Siren frowned and avoided the Knight’s eyes. He asked, “Would it have been worth it? If I had killed you, I mean.”

“It would have been worth it for the kiss,” the Knight murmured.

He kissed the Siren before the creature could smile, and the Siren’s arms wrapped around his neck, pulling him into a deeper kiss. When the Siren released him, the creature dropped back into the water and the Knight took a step away from the pool. “I’ll be back soon,” he said.

As he walked away, the Siren leaned out of the water and said, “Don’t tell the others I let you go! You’ll ruin my reputation!”

“I won’t!” the Knight shouted back, laughing. “Your secret is safe with me!” As he ventured deeper into the swamp, he put his hand back on his sword’s grip. With the Siren out of earshot, the Knight murmured under his breath, “Your secret will die with me.”

Art by Hoolygun.
Click here for more information about the artist!

| Slash Fiction Story Index |

Slash Fiction Short Stories Previews

• A knight fighting a siren
• An administrative assistant crushing on his sexually forward boss
• A budding journalist interviewing a typecasted actor desperate to do something new
• A dirty cop interrogating a burglar
• Stories with group sex
• Stories with sex toys and sex machines
• Stories with non-consensual sex
• Stories with voyeurism

Stranger than Slash Fiction’s Return

Stranger than Slash Fiction will return in either August or September. I’ll likely give you a heads up once it gets closer to its return. I just want to make sure I’m not scrambling to update it while juggling a lot of other things, and I don’t want an episode to be interrupted with a short story. I’ve been feeling like the quality of Stranger than Slash Fiction keeps suffering because I’m rushing, so I’d prefer to just avoid putting myself in a situation where I’ll continue to sacrifice the quality of the story due to my poor planning.
&nsbp;

You can find more of her work (and her commission information) on her tumblr.
 

All of Hoolygun’s xisney.net Work

Episode Four: Act VI

Adrian first awoke to the feeling of Ben’s nose on his own. One of Ben’s hands twined together with one of Adrian’s while the other pulled him closer. Ben breathed against him. His glasses pushed up against Adrian’s cheeks. Adrian feared the worst. Ben had died, and this was all some dream of his spirit moving on. Ben kissed his lips lightly, pulling away quickly as if fearing he would get caught.

“Good morning sunshine,” Ben purred.

Adrian opened his eyes, but of course Ben wasn’t there. The morning light that the hotel curtains dulled illuminated the room. The mirror on the other bed that Ron’s legs kept propped up revealed Ben’s back, and the figured fidgeted with life. Ben’s fingers rubbed Adrian’s hand.

“You’re okay?” Adrian asked.

“I’m sore, but I’m fine,” Ben said.

Ben sat up, pulling away from Adrian. The other man watched as Ben stretched while facing the mirror. The towel duct taped around his waist hovered in mid-air. Ron stirred, but he didn’t wake up. Adrian watched Ben’s reflection for a moment, and then he sat up as well, blinking away the sleep that weighed down his mind. He tried to comprehend why Ben was all right.

“Has this happened before?” Adrian asked.

“Yep,” Ben said. “Why do you think I have so many scars?”

“You scared me half to death,” Adrian said.

Ron mumbled in his sleep, hugging his magazine to his chest. Adrian sighed. “Sorry,” Ben said. “I should have said something yesterday, but I don’t remember much after I made it into the lobby. At least now you know.”

“Now I know what?” Adrian asked. “I don’t know how you healed.”

“Is this duct tape?” Ben asked, looking at the towel around his waist.

“We didn’t know what else to do.”

“Can you find me some scissors? I’ll show you what happens when I get injured,” Ben said.

Adrian climbed off the bed, finally feeling Ben’s sticky blood from the night before on his clothes and body. Despite being unable to see it, he could certainly feel it congealed between his fingers. After Adrian found a pair of scissors in his bag, he turned around to see Ron watching him. Ron said, “It looks like he’s up and moving.”

“He is,” Adrian said.

“He can see the towel?” Ben asked.

“And the duct tape,” Adrian said.

“I suppose you’re talking to him,” Ron said.

Adrian rubbed the bridge of his nose. “I suspect this is going to get confusing fast,” he said. “I’ll use names while I’m talking, okay? So we know who I’m talking to.”

“Who are you talking to now?” Ben said, smirking.

“Both of you,” Adrian said, frowning. As an afterthought he added, “Ben.”

Adrian quickly explained to Ron that Ben told him to cut off the towel to examine the wound, and that’s why he was cutting the towel off. When Adrian finally pried loose the gooey towel, the once gaping wound now looked pulled together. Adrian led Ben’s waist closer to the mirror so he could look closely at the wound.

The edges of the skin looked a little pink, but aside from that, there was little-to-no sign of infection. The taught skin looked like it was stitched together, with miniscule holes neatly surrounding the wound, but there were no actual stitches on his skin.

“Ron, it looks like someone stitched him up.”

“So his body is still probably alive in this plane,” Ron said, rubbing his eyes with the heels of his hands. “Does this mean they’re still joined somehow?”

“I guess so,” Adrian said. “But then how does one body die while the other lives on?”

Ron asked, “Has Ben ever had any mysterious injuries that he couldn’t explain?”

“Once,” Ben said.

“He says once,” Adrian said.

“Is he telling us about it?”

Adrian smiled and looked to Ben’s reflection. Ben said, “It felt like I was being stabbed in the side – a whole lot of times. Hold on, I still have scars.”

Ben lifted the other side of his shirt, and Adrian relayed the information to Ron while he ran his fingers along Ben’s skin. There were at least six distinct scars that looked similar to a stab wounds, but many of the scars overlapped with other wounds, as if he had been stabbed more than six times, but the knife entered the same place or nearly the same place when he was stabbed again. Adrian knitted his brows, wondering how or why the Ben in their plane would get attacked like this.

“Hurt like hell,” Ben said, “I thought I’d die there, but I woke up like this, with everything neatly fixed up.”

Adrian gave Ron the new information and described the scars to him, still running his fingers across the wounds. When he looked up at Ben, he caught a small smile on the man’s face. Adrian pulled away sheepishly.

“How long ago does he think he got stabbed?” Ron asked. “Maybe we could look into reports of street muggings or hospital records of patients who were brought in for that injury.”

Ben shrugged. “I don’t really keep track of time here. Maybe a couple of years.”

“He’s not sure, but he thinks maybe a couple of years ago,” Adrian said. “But we could check hospital records of someone coming in with a major stomach injury last night. We’d just have to check, well, the whole country, I guess.”

Adrian sat back on the bed and rubbed his temples. “It’ll be a lot of work,” Ron said, “but we’ll find him. At least we have a few leads to go on. The hotel records. Hospital records. Police Reports. He can’t be completely off the fucking grid.”

“You’re right,” Adrian said, exhaling.

“If you two are okay, I’d like to shower and check on things downstairs – maybe see if there’s any damage that needs to be controlled,” Ron said. “Hell, maybe we’ve gotten lucky and the storm’s lifted.”

“Sure,” Adrian said. “I’ll meet with you in an hour or so.”

“If I’m not in the hotel’s restaurant, I’ll be at the police station.”

“All right,” Adrian said.

Ron gave him a nod and started to leave. As an afterthought, Adrian shouted a “Thanks” to him, but only got a wave in reply. Forgetting Ben was there, Adrian let his mind wander about Ron. He hadn’t expected the man to be dependable or caring. He certainly hadn’t expected Ron to help him in this way. Adrian understood why Sam liked him. Sam liked to feel cared for, and he wanted people around him he could depend on in a crisis. As annoying as Ron was, he was one of those people. And he had the feeling Sam had a lot of crises in the past.

When Ben sat on the bed beside him, Adrian nearly jumped out of his seat, startled by Ben’s presence. “Sorry,” Adrian said, laughing to cover up his embarrassment. “I’m not sure I’ll ever get used to you.”

“But that doesn’t mean you like me any less, right?” Ben purred, touching the front of Adrian’s shirt again.

Adrian stood up, slipping out of Ben’s touch. “Right,” he said. “I have to shower and meet Ron. You’re welcome to follow me around for the day.”

He spotted Ben’s reflection frowning. “Do you want me around?”

“Well, if I have to go to the police station, I’ll be leaving the hotel. I’d rather you stayed safe.”

“Just give me the remote,” Ben said, sharply. “I’ll watch television.”

“Do you want to try grabbing it and see if you can still touch it?”

Ben stood up and grabbed the remote with no trouble. He flicked on the television set and gave Adrian a smile. “We’re all set,” he said.

“When I get back, we’ll order up room service and see if you can eat.”

“Sounds perfect.”

The weather took several more days to die down, but Adrian managed to contact Bigfoot and relayed the new information he had on Ben. Bigfoot assured him Section V would be investigating what they could, and they already had obtained hotel records to check for any sign of Ben’s name.

With the news of Adrian getting upset about nothing in the hotel lobby, Sheriff Morgan pried the information about Ben from Ron. She assured both of them she would do everything she could to co-operate on her end while they said they would keep an eye out for Jennifer Price on their end. Search parties still went out to look for the Price girl a couple days after, but there was still no sign of her. The foul weather mixed with the other missing person cases weighed down on their spirits, and the search parties gave up within the week.

Ben and Adrian spent the majority of their time plotting how they could get him out of the hotel, and what they would do if they couldn’t. Adrian made arrangements with Sheriff Morgan so Ben could deliver written messages to her if he would be staying in the hotel. Their food tests were much less interesting than Adrian expected. Ben could eat fine, but his stomach felt full, and the food was tasteless. As good as the food smelled to him, eating it ruined his appetite.

Quinn tried to find out information about Ben, but Ron, Adrian, and Sheriff Morgan all acted as if nothing had happened at all. Quinn complained that when Adrian and Ron left abruptly, they left him with the bill. Ron and Adrian ended up treating him to several meals afterwards, just to keep him from asking too many questions and complaining too much.

Adrian kept his relationship with Ben from moving forward. Aside from cuddling and a few kisses Adrian cut short, the pair proceeded no further. Ben didn’t confront Adrian about it, but he showed his frustration by keeping quiet or hiding from Adrian for a few hours once and a while. Adrian, however, savoured the silence and the solitude.

When the weather finally cleared, Ron and Adrian decided to try to drive to the airport and risked getting stranded there instead. Quinn said he’d hold up in the town for another week or so, which was a relief for the pair. Ron feared Quinn would try to hitch a ride with them, which would make the special precautions they were making for Ben more difficult.

Adrian packed up his things and watched Ben pace in the reflection of the blank television screen. The man pushed up his broken glasses, and scratched at the stubble on his cheeks. Adrian said, “It’s going to be okay. No matter what happens.”

“I don’t want to go back out there,” Ben said. “Not after what happened last time.”

“Ben, we talked about this.”

“I don’t want to go. No. I’ll stay here. You don’t know what’s out there. You don’t understand.”

“I’ll keep you safe.”

“You don’t know if you can do that, Adrian. I changed my mind. I’ll stay here, okay?”

“What happened to the man who wanted to risk everything and go through the mirror despite of the risks?” Adrian asked, trying to figure out where Ben actually stood.

“Something tried to eat his liver, that’s what happened to him. Nope. I’m done. I can’t do it.”

Adrian opened his arms. “Come here,” he said.

Ben stepped into his grasp, stooping to tuck his nose beneath Adrian’s chin. Adrian hugged him tightly. “You’re going to be here the whole time, okay? I’ll carry you out, and if anything grabs you, I’ll hold tightly onto you.”

“And my leg will get ripped off.”

“If you think you’re in that much danger, I’ll bring you back to the hotel.”

“What if your island isn’t like here?” Ben asked. “What if there are monsters there all the time? You can’t hold me forever.”

“I can.”

“You don’t want to.”

Adrian sighed. “Is that what this is about?”

“Not completely,” Ben said. “I’m scared. I had forgotten what was out there. I must have forgotten or else I never would have risked being there again.”

“You risked it because you thought you would get your life back,” Adrian said. “And if you get your life back, you don’t have to be afraid anymore.”

“Will you still be with me if I get my life back?”

“You don’t know what’s in your life,” Adrian said. “I can’t promise that if your circumstances won’t let me.”

Ben pulled away from Adrian slightly while still staying in his arms. Adrian loosened his grip. Ben said, “Did you kiss me because you thought it might be the end?”

“Did you kiss me because I’m the only one you can kiss?” Adrian asked.

Ben laughed. “I may not have been able to talk to anyone for nearly a decade, but I’m not so desperate that I’m going to go around kissing the first person I can talk to. What do you want me to say, Adrian? Isn’t it going to creep you out if I say I was checking you out before I realized you could see me? That you saw me in the mirror because I didn’t want to stop looking at you?”

“It’s a little creepy,” he replied, smirking. “But flattering.”

Ben didn’t return the smile. He hugged Adrian tightly to him. “I’m so afraid of pushing you away.”

“Then you have to come with me, Ben.”

“I’m more afraid of dying,” he weakly laughed.

“We have to try,” Adrian said. “If the island is full of your monsters, we’ll take you back to the hotel. My number one priority is to keep you safe so we can get you home. But it’ll be easier to get you home if you’re with the rest of us. We can do more tests. I’ve heard a few people talking about trying to make a plaster face cast for you. We can’t do that if you’re not with us.”

“You could bring everyone here.”

“We don’t have all our tools here.”

“You could bring them too.”

Adrian sighed. “We’ll try that if you can’t leave, but we have to try to leave.”

“You’re not going to let me chicken out, are you?”

“I’ll drag you out of here if I have to.”

Ben pulled away from Adrian. “All right, all right. Let’s do this before I lose my nerve.” Holding Adrian’s hand, he continued, “And I don’t want a kiss this time. I’m beginning to wonder if kisses from you are bad luck.”

Adrian laughed, but he didn’t tell Ben that he wanted nothing more than to kiss him.

Ron parked directly in front of the hotel entrance, and Ben waited in the mirrored entranceway while Ron and Adrian loaded up their luggage into it. Adrian lifted Ben back into his arms, and Ben wrapped his arm around Adrian’s neck to keep himself firmly attached. Ben squeezed his eyes shut as Adrian left the building.

Adrian felt no change in Ben as he slipped into the back seat with him. He manoeuvered Ben into the middle seat directly beside him, buckled him in, and then held his hand. “You both in?” Ron asked.

“I’m good,” Ben said, exhaling.

“We’re all set,” Adrian said.

Ron pulled out and started to drive. Ben whispered to Adrian, “Don’t let go of my hand.”

“I won’t,” Adrian said.

He looked into the rear view mirror to see Ben’s eyes were still squeezed tightly shut. He waited several moments before asking, “Are you going to open your eyes?”

“I’d prefer not to.”

“You don’t have to.”

“It’s weird only hearing one half of a conversation,” Ron said.

Ben opened his eyes anyway and glanced around. Ben leaned against Adrian, hugging the man’s arm to his chest. “Everything looks normal,” he said. “Maybe leaving the hotel with you changed things. Maybe I’ll be okay here.”

“He says everything looks normal,” Adrian said to Ron.

“That’s a relief,” Ron said. “Fighting an invisible monster isn’t easy, especially if I can’t even touch it.”

Smiling, Ben relaxed against Adrian. “You’ve completely changed my life.” Ben looked at Adrian and said, “You’re too embarrassed to say anything back, aren’t you?”

Adrian didn’t reply and looked out the window.

“I’m going to give you the biggest kiss when we get back to your place,” Ben said. “You’re not even going to know what hit you. I’m going to kiss you so hard your shoes will go flying off – like in the cartoons.”

Adrian laughed, causing Ron to ask, “What’s he saying?”

“He’s hitting on me,” Adrian said.

Ron laughed as well. “It sure sounds like he’s going to be okay then.”

Smiling at Ben’s reflection in the rear view mirror, Adrian replied, “I really think he is.”

Also, the short story index has been updated so that it’s easier to navigate (in theory). Each short story has its own description post so there’s more information about them and a few more kink warnings in case I post some kinky stuff. So hopefully it helps! Or it’s not worse. The old one is still kicking around, so you might stumble onto it.
I plan on updating the Misc. Fanfiction and Man from UNCLE Fanfiction pages to look like it, but it’ll be a little while before I get that.

You can find her on DeviantArt and tumblr.

All of Longer Pigs’ Stranger Than Slash Fiction Work

(Clicking on the image leads to a larger version.)
 

Episode Four: Act V

Adrian simply went about his business after Ben disappeared. He couldn’t afford a complete mental breakdown, and he tried to assure himself that Ben was somewhere safe. He navigated the mirror plane before, so if he hadn’t made it home, he could navigate the mirror plane again. The snow worsened, and the phone lines continued to be dead. Sheriff Morgan guessed that one of the cell towers were down. “We’re usually one of the last towns to get things fixed,” she said. “We’re small and we’re in bumfuck nowheresville. We’re not exactly a priority.”

The power flickered off and on over the next several days, and the hotel had its own generator in the event that the power died completely. It didn’t. Nonetheless, they asked if their patrons would do their best to conserve power, and the O.P.S.I. agents obeyed. The flickering lights added a spooky element to the hotel when Adrian walked down the red, geometric patterned hallways. He constantly thought he could see Ben in his peripheral vision, but the man never called out to him or touched him.

Ron and Adrian’s relationship stayed strained, but Adrian explained how Ben went missing. Ron seemed to sense – or perhaps just guessed – that Ben being missing upset him, so he avoided asking too many questions. Ron tested the waters and then quickly pulled out. Adrian didn’t know if it was because Ron didn’t want to upset him further or if it was because Ron didn’t want to comfort him in any way. Either way, he didn’t waste too much time thinking about Ron.

Ron told Adrian about his own personal investigation into the lights, but since the weather turned nastier than usual, the lights disappeared. Ron still went out most nights to search, but he found nothing at all. Sheriff Morgan assumed the storm was too thick even for the Visitors (though she used the term “space assholes”) to get through or, she hypothesized, that they created the storm so they could vanish and cover their tracks. Ron laughed at the hypothesis and asked if she wanted a job at O.P.S.I.

She surprised Adrian by hesitating before laughing along with Ron.

Adrian also reported how his interviews with Jennifer Price went to Ron. Her memory quickly returned in bursts. Sometimes even asking the right question illuminated something new. She didn’t, however, remember being naked and decapitated in the snow. She didn’t remember leaving her house and disappearing. She didn’t even remember being in the trunk of their rental car. So none of her memories were particularly helpful to Adrian or the investigation, but he found it fascinating to watch her search for her lost memories. Her long black bangs nearly covered her black eyes as she searched the ground or the ceiling for answers. She chewed the corner of her lip as her small stubby fingers scratched at her arm. And her eyes would suddenly widen and a smile would form on those chapped lips as she recalled an event from her past.

Quinn refused to skip an interview, but he basically sat around looking bored. Adrian decided not to waste energy wondering about him either.

During Adrian’s third interview with Jennifer Price, she rose to shake his hand as he left. She slid a folded piece of paper into his palm, but made no mention of it. He slipped his hand into his pocket after the handshake and dropped the note there to be read later. He gave her a smile and she returned a somewhat nervous one.

As soon as Adrian ditched Quinn, he took the note out of his pocket and read it. Excitement bubbled inside of him as he realized the note requested a secret meeting between them. It stated nothing else aside from a place, a time, and a date. Maybe he would find the break in the case. Adrian went to Ron to ask if they should keep an extra eye on her, but Ron said no.

“If she’s afraid of someone, us following her around in the shadows isn’t going to help reduce paranoia,” Ron said. “And if she’s afraid Quinn’s up to something because I’m sure he is up to something, we don’t want Quinn to notice we’re paying extra attention to her. If she thought she needed protection, I think she would have said so in the note.”

Adrian nervously thinned his lips, but he nodded. It seemed reasonable enough.

“Do you want me to come along?” Ron asked.

“I think she’ll be more comfortable if it’s just me,” Adrian said.

“But do you need back-up?” Ron asked. “If you’re going in nervous, you’re just going to make her more nervous.”

“I think I’ll be fine,” Adrian said. He hesitated before continuing, “I wish we had any sort of reception so I could call in an emergency. Do you mind waiting in the hotel restaurant? It should be easier to reach you there if I need something quickly.”

“Yeah, sure,” Ron said. “I will.”

“Thanks.”

Ron just gave Adrian a half-assed smile.

Adrian killed time until the secret meeting with Jennifer by responding to his e-mail. Despite the phone lines being out, the cable internet (and television for that matter) hung in. He managed to get a message to Notus asking about Ben, but Notus received no news at all aside from the fact that Ben had been dubbed “the invisible friend” around Ogygia. Adrian decided he liked that better than “the mirror man.”

Javier’s e-mail was still marked unread so Adrian would remember to reply to it. He just couldn’t decide if he wanted to open that door again. He liked that they were apart and not speaking. It meant Javier’s tight hold on his brain was loosening. So he left the e-mail alone.

He had three e-mails from Sam checking up on him. The first was saying he would call as soon as he could. The second was that he couldn’t get through on the phone lines, so if Adrian wanted to talk, they could try over e-mail or use another method of communication online. The third e-mail noted how Adrian replied to Notus, but not to him. Sam asked if he had done something wrong and if his text had to do with Ben missing.

Adrian didn’t have it in him to reply to Sam. There was too much he wanted to say, and he couldn’t decide how much about Ben to disclose to Sam. Should he tell him he kissed Ben? Should he tell him he was more upset because he knew he might not kiss Ben again? Plus, the question of whether or not he was upset with Sam frustrated him. He had legitimate reasons to be upset with Sam. Sam shouldn’t need to ask what they are. So stubbornness and indecision reinforced Adrian’s silence.

Adrian’s high spirits returned as he went to the library to meet Jennifer Price. He went early to search for the aisle in the stacks that Jennifer requested to meet him in. The size of the small town library surprised him, though he decided it shouldn’t since a small town that was snowed-in for half of the year probably needed a lot of books.

The lights flickered on and off as Adrian squinted to read the shelf numbers, and the uneasy sense that he was being watched returned to him. He wasn’t sure if it was an empty fear that horror movies reinforced, or if he had a legitimate reason to be afraid.

The shelves stretched out endlessly in every direction, and the lights were never on long enough for Adrian to see clearly down the aisles. Shadows clouded his vision, and fear knotted in his shoulders. Wind and ice rattled the windows, and ephemeral patches of cold air brushed against him, like someone breathing on the back his neck.

When he found the aisle, he darted quickly into it and kept his back up against the bookshelf. He unlatched his gun from his shoulder holster and kept his hand in his jacket against it. The lights wavered, and the uneasy feeling in his stomach grew. His arms started to hurt from the tension. He tasted bile in the back of his throat.

When another cold breath brushed up against his bearded cheek, Adrian cursed under his breath. He looked at his watch. Jennifer Price was half an hour late, but she underlined the time and the words “sharp” twice. It didn’t feel right.

Adrian charged out of the library and went to her house. One of her sisters told him she snuck out about an hour ago even though her parents had told her she wasn’t supposed to leave the house. She had left anyway to deliver Adrian the message.

But he didn’t know what the message was.

Stopping by the hotel to grab Ron, the pair went to see Sheriff Morgan. She arranged a search party that consisted of the majority of the town. Adrian supposed they were sick of losing people. The search party, including Ron, Adrian, Sheriff Morgan, and even Agent Quinn, checked the library completely and then moved onto other public places.

As a last resort, they ventured out into the snow and checked the perimeter of town – about as far as they could go without losing sight of the town in the distance.

Jennifer Price had vanished. There weren’t even any footprints of her movement.

By the time Ron and Adrian returned to the hotel room, they were tired, sore, and an uncomfortable mix of sweaty and frozen. The hotel clerk told them the phones were back working and that he had tried Jennifer Price’s cell phone. Apparently she left it behind, and one of her sisters answered the phone.

“Great, so there’s no way to fucking trace her,” Ron said. “We need to start tagging people as soon as we meet them so we can find them later.”

Adrian had no good humour left in him. As far as he was concerned, he was cursed. He lost Ben. He lost Jennifer. He was supposed to shock everyone with his sudden new information about Visitors, but instead he lost the only leads they had.

As they returned to their hotel rooms, Ron said, “Hey, kiddo, you’ve barely said a word since we got back.”

“There’s nothing really to say.”

“You know it’s not your fault, right?” Ron asked.

Adrian didn’t say anything and slipped into his hotel room. He supposed it was actually Ron’s fault for convincing him he didn’t need to keep an eye on her, but he doubted he would have done that if he was in Ron’s position anyway. His hotel phone started to ring as he peeled off his sweaty suit jacket.

He unbuttoned his pants as he answered the phone, “Hughes here.”

“Okay, what the fuck is your problem?”

Sam.

“I’ve been worried sick out here, and the fucking owl tells me he’s been talking to you, and you seem fine, just worried about your invisible friend. So why can’t you take a minute of your god damn precious time to e-mail me back? You’ll talk to the god damn owl, but god forbid you talk to your partner.”

“I lost Jennifer Price today, Sam.”

Adrian sat down on the bed, listening to the silence on the other line. When Sam didn’t reply, Adrian asked, “Is this what our jobs are? We find people we care about and want to help, and then they slip out of our fingers just when we can help them the most? Because if that’s what we’re supposed to do, I don’t think I can do it, Sam. My shoulders aren’t broad enough to take all the blame.”

“I’m sure it’s not your fault.”

“She handed me a note in private and then disappeared. I could have done something. I sat on my ass for sixteen hours waiting for that meeting. Sam, I could have done something.”

Sam didn’t reply, and Adrian realized he wished his partner was here. He could picture the way Sam would watch him carefully as his feelings just spilled out. Even if he was at a loss of words, Sam’s face hardly hid how he felt about the situation.

Adrian suddenly didn’t care that anyone could be listening in on the other line. He needed to talk to Sam. He needed to hear him listen, he needed him to reply and tell him everything would work out in the end. He didn’t care who listened in or judged him.

“I kissed Ben,” Adrian said. “The invisible friend. Before he left he said something like, ‘You can kiss me goodbye,’ and I did and it was – it was fucking unbelievable.” He sighed and said, “And now he’s gone too. God knows where.”

Sam still didn’t reply. Adrian imagined him scratching his stubble. He could hear him breathing on the other line. The story of Ben spilled out. How he met him. Why he left. How he left.

“I understand why you reacted the way you did when Morales disappeared,” Adrian continued. “I’m not condoning your behaviour – I’m still angry, to be honest – but I get it. Maybe after a decade of doing this, I won’t hold together so well either. And then you can judge me the way I’m judging your now.”

Sam sighed. “I called you the other night to apologize for that. You know I’d never do anything to hurt you – in any way. And I’m sorry I – I don’t know, I’m sorry I broke your trust, I guess.”

Adrian thinned his lips. The anger started to boil again. He needed to talk to someone, and the only thing Sam could say was a half-assed apology? Maybe part of him hoped this was the moment they would click. Maybe Sam would admit that he had grown attached to Tony the same way he did with Ben. Maybe they would just be friends after, and that would be okay, but he needed Sam to give him something – just a personal story to give him some insight into his life, some insight into why he is the way he is.

“Ace? You there?”

“It’s not enough,” Adrian said.

“So what? I’m just supposed to sit here and fucking grovel until you forgive me?”

“I don’t know.”

Silence sat on both lines of the phone until Sam said, “Your mom told me to protect you. I’m not going to let you push me away because I said something stupid when I was drunk.”

“Being drunk isn’t an excuse,” Adrian said, “especially not when you’re so drunk you tear apart your hotel room an expect O.P.S.I. to foot the bill.”

Somehow the thought of his mom only fueled his anger. Was it because he missed the Visitors here? That he was secretly hoping to stumble into her in the snow? Or was it the implication that Sam only paid attention to him because his mother asked him to? That he couldn’t be his own person outside of her shadow?

Or was it simply that Sam barely talked to him all?

“Can you at least tell me if this is a big part of the job?” Adrian asked. “This part where you lose people you start to care about.”

“Happens all the time, Ace,” Sam said. “We lose Strangers, we lose O.P.S.I. agents, we lose people with information, we lose civilians and police officers. It’s easy to lose people. You learn that pretty fast in our line of work.”

“I guess so,” Adrian said. “I’ll talk to you when we get back to the island.”

As Adrian started to hang up the phone, he heard Sam calling after him. He pulled the phone back to his ear to hear Sam saying, “Ace?”

“Still here,” Adrian said.

“Don’t quit,” Sam said. “You might feel like it, especially right now, but remember you got two people to care enough about you to confide in you, to trust you. And that’s half the battle right there. You didn’t betray them. You didn’t let them down. You did your job.”

Adrian found a tired, half-hearted smile on his face. “I’m not going to quit,” Adrian said. “This job is all I have.” He paused before adding, “Thanks though. I’ll talk to you later.”

He hung up the phone quickly before Sam could drag out the conversation further. And then he took a shower.

A couple of days later, Adrian and Ron sat in the hotel’s restaurant drinking cups of hot chocolate. Quinn joined them, but a cup of coffee sat between his fingers, hovering close to his mouth. Quinn read a dated newspaper. Ron read a magazine. Adrian read his eReader. The power continued to cut in and out, and the storm refused to let up. The phone lines were unreliable at best, and cell phone signals were gone completely, but Ron informed Adrian that he managed to get what he needed from a phone call with Madeline. Adrian rolled his eyes.

The lights didn’t return, and, after Jennifer Price disappeared for a second time, no one else went missing. Ron still went out most nights to search, but he came back without any new information or even a sign of the lights. Setting down his magazine, Ron asked, “Quinn, were you here in time for the lights?”

Quinn nodded.

“What were they like?” Ron asked. “Did they effect the area around them in any way?”

Quinn absently said, “It felt like the whole town shook when they came through.” He finally took a sip of his coffee and set it down. “It was as if it controlled the wind around it, fiercely blowing the weather away from them. And they were so bright it was as if day came again.”

Quinn smiled to himself, pleased with his answer. Adrian, only half-listening, thought he caught a glimpse of Ben in his peripheral vision. He had gotten so used to thinking he saw Ben, he tried to ignore it. But when the image repeated, he sat up straighter, turning his head in the direction of where he thought he caught a glimpse.

“If the ships can control the wind,” Ron said, “why would the storm stop them?”

Mirrors covered the walls of the front entrance to the hotel to give the illusion of a wide, grand entrance. Adrian twisted his back around to face it. He stared at the space until his eyes watered. Unknowingly, his grip on his cup of hot chocolate weakened.

Quinn shrugged. “Maybe it’s just too strong.”

Clutching his stomach, Ben hobbled into the front lobby. Blood oozed from his mouth and spilled between his fingers. Adrian heard his heart pounding in his ears. His cup fell from his fingers as he stood up from the table. “Ben!” he shouted.

Ben looked up. His glazed blue eyes searched for Adrian, and Adrian started to run towards him. “Ben!” he repeated.

He didn’t realize everyone saw him run towards nothing in the lobby. Ben dropped to the ground, and, watching the mirrors, Adrian lifted him into his arms, pressing his own hand on top of Ben’s to keep pressure on the wound. Ben’s shirt was ripped at the cut – something sliced through his shirt into his skin. He hadn’t thought Ben could get any paler, but now his skin was a sickly white – almost a dull grey. His mind whirled for the best course of action.

He couldn’t take an invisible man to a hospital. He looked at himself in the mirror and saw the blood spilling onto his clothes and hands – he could feel the warmth spread across him – but when he looked down at himself, he was clean. As if Ben had never been there.

“What do I do?” Adrian weakly asked.

Ben smiled weakly at Adrian. “I said I’d come back. You don’t want to kiss me again though. I seem to be bleeding.”

Ben started to cough, and Adrian felt the blood splatter across his face. Adrian couldn’t think. He froze up. “Ron!” he shouted.

“I’m here,” Ron said.

“He’s hurt,” Adrian said. “He’s really hurt.”

“Can you move him? I don’t think we want to make more of a scene than we already have. We don’t want Quinn asking too many questions.”

“Keep pressure on your wound,” Adrian softly said to Ben, “I’m going to carry you to my hotel room.”

Ben nodded, his eyes closing. Adrian managed to heave Ben up in his arms, checking his grip on him in the mirrors. Ben simply rested his head on his shoulder, making no move to get a tighter grip on Adrian. His hand stayed on the wound, but blood continued to ooze out. Adrian followed Ron to the elevators, concentrating mainly on keeping Ben in his arms. He was heavy and gangly. Luckily, Ben didn’t squirm, but it did make Adrian fear Ben wasn’t staying conscious.

Ron, with some clear discomfort, took Adrian’s hotel room key out of his back pocket for him and unlocked his door. Adrian sat Ben down on the bed and quickly propped the full-length mirror up on the other bed. He saw Ben’s chest rise and fall with steady breaths. He saw Ben’s blood all over his own clothes and hands.

“How do we stop the bleeding?” Adrian asked.

Ron already handed Adrian a towel. “Do you have any duct tape?” he asked.

“I think so,” he said, pressing the towel against Ben’s wound.

A hiss escaped from Ben’s lips. Adrian pressed the towel harder against him. Ron managed to find duct tape in Adrian’s backpack and started to unravel it. “Tape up the wound,” Ron said. “It’ll keep pressure on it.”

Adrian started wrapping the duct tape around Ben, and the towel and duct tape seemed to float in mid-air. “Give it to me,” Ron said, taking it from Adrian. “I’ll bind it tighter. Your hands are shaking.”

“Sorry,” Adrian said.

“Try calling Josie,” Ron said, wrapping the duct tape tightly around Ben with ease. “I don’t even know if this is right.”

Adrian lifted up the phone, but there was no line out of the hotel. He checked his cell phone, but there was still no reception. “It looks like we’re on our own,” Adrian said.

Ron cut the duct tape, and Adrian helped Ben lay back down on bed. Ben’s silence was unsettling. Adrian wasn’t used to the chatterbox staying quiet, even with other people around them. Curling up with Ben on the bed, Adrian pressed his hand against where he thought the wound was, and he listened to Ben’s haggard breathing. Closing his eyes, Adrian breathed Ben in. He stroked his hair with his free hand and nuzzled the side of his face. Ben lightly pressed his hand on top of Adrian’s while the other lightly gripped the front of his suit.

“Stay with me,” Adrian whispered.

Ben didn’t reply. Adrian said to Ron, “He was bleeding out of his mouth – that’s internal bleeding, right? We can’t do anything for that, can we?”

“I don’t know, kiddo.”

Adrian didn’t reply. He hugged Ben tighter to him, desperate to feel the other man’s life against him. He needed him to stay.

“I can see him,” Ron said, almost laughing.

Adrian opened his eyes to look at Ron. With a gentle smile, Ron said, “By the way your hands are on him – I can see where his body is. I can tell you’re touching his hair. And your nose squishes when you’re against him. He must be grabbing you, too, because the fabric of your shirt is all bunched up.

“And I felt him. When I was trying to put the duct tape around him, I could feel him. He’s cold, isn’t he?” Ron continued, stammering slightly, “I mean, I know he existed, I didn’t doubt you, but to see it like this – I just didn’t expect it.”

“Neither did I,” Adrian said, smiling at Ben’s reflection.

“It’s okay, you know,” Ron said.

Adrian’s eyes drifted up to Ron. Maybe it was the darkness of the room, but he somehow looked softer, gentler. The creases beginning in his forehead were smoothed out, and the severe angles of his chin were toned down. His smile wasn’t a sneer or full of arrogance. He saw concern there as if Ron smiled too widely, the world would shatter.

Trying to keep his voice steady, Adrian replied, “What’s okay?” He feared Ron was trying to tell him it was okay if Ben died. It wasn’t okay.

“That you’re gay,” Ron said. “I don’t know if you were trying to hide it before – and I didn’t really realize it until now –“

“We weren’t together before,” Adrian said. “We’re barely together now.”

“I’m just saying don’t hide who you are from me,” Ron said. “You’re an asshole and I don’t particularly like you, but I respect the fact that you’re honest and you let me know you don’t like me either. If you’re worried I’m going to make fun of you because you’re gay, I’m not. I’m dating a lizard girl, so I’m not going to judge you for liking who you like. I get it, okay?”

Laughing, Ron added, “Plus Charlie would kick my ass if I ever said anything homophobic. My masculinity can only take so many hits – it wouldn’t survive being beaten up by a woman barely over four feet. Not that I would, I’m just saying-“

“My mom doesn’t know,” Adrian said, quietly.

Ron didn’t respond right away, and Adrian closed his eyes to nuzzle Ben again. He could still feel him breathing. Ron said, “She won’t hear it from me. No one else will either. Okay, maybe Madeline will, but she won’t tell anyone either.”

“I appreciate that,” Adrian said.

“Who have you told? Have you told anyone?”

“Charlie,” Adrian said. “I told her first. Then Dana. Then Sam.”

“Is that why you and Sam are fighting?” Ron asked. “Or is it just because he’s drunk off his ass? He does that sometimes.”

“No,” Adrian said. “Not really.”

“Sam’s weird about relationships,” Ron said. “I don’t know if he just doesn’t like being in them or if he doesn’t think he can have one and this job at the same time. And he’s weird about other people in them too. I don’t get it, but it’s not the sort of thing we talk about together, you know?” When Adrian didn’t respond, Ron laughed and said, “And I think he had a thing for Madeline. He trained her, and then I swept her up from under his nose, and I don’t think Sam talked to me for a month – her either, I asked her.”

“Maybe he’s worried about losing his friends,” Adrian said.

There was a beat of silence as Ron considered it. “Maybe.”

Adrian said, “Listen, I understand that you’re trying to distract me, but I can’t do this right now.”

“Sorry,” Ron said. “I just don’t know what to do.”

“Me neither.”

“Do you want me to stay?” Ron asked. “Do you want me to leave?”

“I don’t know.”

Ron said, “I’ll go get a magazine, and then I’ll come back here. I’ll just sit on this bed and read. I’ll leave you completely alone unless you need me, but I’m here if something goes wrong. Sound good?”

“Sounds fine.”

“He’s hanging in,” Ron said, standing up. “I can see your arm moving as he breathes.”

Adrian didn’t reply, and Ron left the room. Adrian hugged Ben tighter to him, nuzzling into the stubble on his cheek. He whispered, “I’m not ready to lose you. We don’t have to be romantic. I just want to get to know you, and I want to get you out of here.”

He waited, expecting to feel Ben smile or laugh or squeeze his hand, but he didn’t. He just kept breathing, and Adrian decided that was something.

Episode Four: Act IV

The four went out to three different sites where people disappeared and the lights appeared, but they found no evidence of an abduction or landing. The snow whipping across the flat landscape would have covered any tracks, but even with some digging, they found no materials that suggested a spaceship had fallen apart nor did they find any clothes from the abducted people.

Jamie Quinn seemed to do very little. He simply stood around the site, hugging himself to try to keep warm. Ron and Adrian did more digging and exploring, but aside from the waves of white snow, there really wasn’t much to see. Adrian wondered if Quinn had the right idea.

“Would I be able to take one of these fuckers out tonight alone?” Ron shouted to Sheriff Morgan over the howling snow.

Adrian glanced over at Ron, but he couldn’t read the man’s expression since a scarf covered his mouth and a pair of ski goggles covered his eyes. Adrian could feel his nose dripping beneath his own heavy scarf, and despite how sweaty he felt under his jacket, he was beginning to lose the feeling in the tips of his fingers.

Sheriff Morgan shouted, “Sure! If that’s what you want to do, I can’t stop you. If you go missing, your company is bound to reimburse us for another snowmobile.”

“They will!” Ron shouted back, laughing over the sound of the snow.

Ron slapped Quinn’s back, and Adrian wondered if it was all a plan to make Quinn one of the disappearing men. If Ron went out, surely Quinn would want to as well for the sake of his organization. But Quinn didn’t respond much. Maybe he couldn’t hear them.

Ron and Adrian puttered around a bit more in the snow, but Ron eventually decided to head back to the station empty-handed. Adrian was thankful. His legs were sore and stiff from wading through the heavy snow, and even with the scarf, his cheeks had started with tingle with numbness. He hugged Sheriff Morgan as he sat back on the snowmobile, and the woman felt warm under his grip. He supposed she was used to this weather.

After they reached the station, Quinn excused himself. Sheriff Morgan handed Ron the jar containing the potential alien as well as the address for Jennifer Price. Ron and Adrian parted ways so both could shower and change into a fresh, dry pair of clothes. They regrouped at the hotel restaurant for lunch.

Adrian, giving up on a suit and wearing a heavy teal sweater, found himself thinking about Ben as he sat at the table with Ron. He hadn’t seen the man in his hotel room, and he wondered where else he’d be.

Ron, with his dirty blond hair looking fluffier after a shower, cursed under his breath and said, “I can’t believe we didn’t find anything today.”

He wore a heavy sweater as well, and despite the snowman on it, he pulled it off better than Adrian. The sweater hugged every chiseled muscle, whereas Adrian’s sweater was simply bulky and made him look smaller. Adrian tried not to be self-conscious. “Why are you going out alone tonight?” Adrian asked. “I can go with you.”

“Kid, I’m fucking invincible,” Ron said, looking at his menu. “Once I got thrown into the ocean and swam my way back to shore, though I caught a hell of a cold afterwards. I don’t even need to breathe if I don’t want to. If I get captured, I can fight my way out and crash into ground and walk away without a scratch. If you get captured, well, I get my ear chewed off for letting you go and you probably die.”

“I think I like being alive,” Adrian said.

“So I’ll go alone, okay?” Ron said. “We’ll just say I snuck out at night and did it without you knowing, okay? Boomer’ll be pissed at you for letting me go, and I know how fucking buddy buddy you two have been getting.”

“He’s my partner,” Adrian said.

“Well, he’s my fucking best friend,” Ron said.

“Exactly.”

Ron raised his eyes to meet Adrian’s, his brows knitted in confusion. “What?”

“He’s your best friend,” Adrian said. “He’s just my partner. He has to be friends with me.”

“You fucking know that’s not the case,” Ron said.

“Are you seriously jealous of the fact that I work with your best friend?”

Though Ron’s childish tone suggested otherwise, he said, “No.”

He folded his arms across his broad chest and sunk lower in his chair. Adrian tried to hide a smile, both frustrated and amused with Ron’s behaviour. He said, “Let’s change the topic.”

“Let’s,” Ron said, though he offered no suggestions.

Adrian thinned his lips and delved deeper into the menu. The waiter came by to take their drink orders, and both men decided on hot chocolate. Ron offered Adrian a small smile after, and said, “So how are things with your boyfriend?”

“What?” Adrian asked with his mind shooting to Javier.

“You know, the guy in the mirror,” Ron said. “I heard you talking to him all night – like, not the exact words, but I could hear you mumbling away to him. What’s his deal?”

“He’s not my boyfriend,” Adrian said, trying to keep heat from rising in his cheeks.

“I fucking know that. I’m just fucking with you.”

“Oh,” Adrian said. “Well, uh, he has no memory of his previous life, but after talking to Bigfoot, it sounds like he might have another body here – on our plane – that has a demon inside of it. So we somehow have to switch their bodies back, if we find his real body. If his body dies in his plane, he can keep living in his own, so he might not be able to come back.”

“Well that fucking sucks,” Ron said.

“Yeah.”

“So, what, you’re the only guy that’s been able to see him and talk to him?” Ron asked.

“Seems like it,” Adrian said. “I hoped if he came back to the island, maybe more people could.”

“Why do you think you’re the only one?” Ron asked. “Like, do you have any connection to this place? I thought you didn’t have any Enhancements like we do.”

“I don’t,” Adrian said. “I honestly have no clue. Maybe we have some other connection – maybe I met him before and don’t remember it. Whatever it is, I don’t know what it is yet.”

Ron sat up straighter in his chair and folded his hands together on the table. “Well, hopefully we can figure it out quickly so that he can talk to other people,” Ron said. “I couldn’t imagine only talking to only one person for the rest of my life – especially you.”

Adrian noticed Quinn step into the restaurant and look around. “There’s Agent Quinn,” Adrian said. “Should I try to hide?”

“You stick out like a sore thumb,” Ron said. “He’s going to spot us anyway.”

Sure enough, Quinn waved to Adrian and approached them. Adrian awkwardly waved back, and Quinn pulled up a chair. “Have you two had something to eat yet?” he asked.

“We just ordered drinks,” Ron said.

“Perfect,” Quinn said. “It’s fine if I join you, right? I don’t think these people like strangers. I’ve been eating alone in my hotel room for days.”

Ron sighed. “It’s fine.”

The three sat in silence until the waiter came and took their orders. Adrian noticed a reflection pass through his cutlery, but when he turned around no one was behind him. He casually moved his spoon and caught Ben’s reflection in it. He smiled softly, and Ben sat down on the fourth chair at the table.

“So, Quinn,” Adrian said, trying to casually show Ben the A.B.E.L. agent, “what’s it like working for A.B.E.L.?”

“It’s perfect,” Quinn said. “You wouldn’t believe how much they took care of me after I lost my memory, and everyone is so supportive of each other. Plus, it’s wonderful getting paid to travel and see new things that I wouldn’t see otherwise. And it’s good to always feel like I’m doing the right thing.” He offered Adrian a polite smile before saying, “Though you probably know that feeling as well.”

Ron rolled his eyes. Adrian simply said, “It feels good supporting what you believe in.”

Quinn nodded eagerly. He unfolded his napkin in his lap and said, “So what are you two investigating next?”

“We’re going over to interview one of the women who disappeared,” Ron said, absently.

“Oh?” Quinn said. “I hadn’t realized anyone was left.”

Ron blinked and realized he made a mistake. He looked to Adrian who thinned his lips. Ron said, “I guess she just popped up last night.”

“Sheriff Morgan never told me,” Quinn said. “I don’t think she likes me.”

“Did you do anything to upset her?” Adrian asked.

Quinn shook his head and then shrugged. “Some people just don’t like me. They think I have a weasel face.”

“You do have a weasel face,” Ron said. “And I have real reasons not to like you.”

“I suppose that’s true,” Quinn said, shifting uncomfortably in his seat. “So you are going to interview this girl later?”

“Uh huh,” Ron said.

“May I join you?” Quinn asked. “It would save her the trouble of going through two separate interviews. Honestly, I don’t even want to keep up with these things, but if A.B.E.L. finds out I was ignoring all these events, I could lose my job.”

“Why don’t you want to keep up with these things?” Adrian asked, trying to veer the conversation away from Quinn joining them.

“I actually took this mission because I thought it’d be like a vacation,” Quinn said. “You know, completely isolated from real work. I just have to look at a few snowdrifts and interview a few people, and then I can sit in my hotel room with the heat cranked up and watch television.”

“I see you’re really dedicated to your job,” Ron said.

“Usually,” Quinn replied. “I just wanted one small break, but I used up my vacation time when I lost my memory.”

A hand on Adrian’s shoulder made him jump. Ron and Quinn stared at him, and he apologized quickly. “I just got a chill,” he said, laughing.

Ron laughed as well, but Quinn gave Adrian a curious look. “Sorry,” Ben said. “I didn’t mean to startle you.”

Adrian couldn’t respond, but he smiled into the spoon where he saw a warped Ben watching him.

“There’s something off about that Quinn agent,” Ben said. “I’ve see him around a lot, and he’s been doing some serious snooping around. It’s like he’s looking for something, but I’m not sure what he’s looking for.”

Adrian tried to give Ron some sort of warning signal when Quinn said, “So what do you say? Can I tag along for the one interview?”

“Sure,” Ron said, and he frowned when he spotted Adrian shaking his head. “I mean, no.”

“What?” Quinn asked.

“No,” Ron said, quickly looking away from Adrian. “You can come with us, no problem.”

“I don’t understand,” Quinn said, glancing at Adrian.

“Sorry,” Ron said. “You can come to the interview with us.”

“He wants to keep an eye on this Quinn fellow,” Ben said. “That’s my guess, anyway. He seems the type to want to keep his enemies close.”

“Thank you,” Quinn said. “It’ll be nice to have company for a change.”

The waiter dropped off their meals. Adrian tried to ask Quinn questions to keep him talking. Ron mainly kept his mouth shut. He couldn’t talk about his lizard girlfriend, and even if he could, Adrian doubted Ron would bless Quinn with the knowledge of his sexcapades. Adrian was a little jealous of Quinn for that.

Ben continued prattling into Adrian’s other ear. Adrian realized that even though Ben had no memories, he certainly had opinions. He told Adrian all about Quinn’s sneaking, and he noted that Ron called out on his phone line several times only to get increasingly frustrated when the person he was looking for didn’t answer. Adrian assumed Madeline was out on a mission, which would mean Ron couldn’t talk to her.

So Ron was stuck with Adrian and Quinn, probably his least favourite people. At this point, Adrian wouldn’t be surprised if Ron wanted to get abducted by aliens.

Ben made observations about Quinn’s and Ron’s characters. While Ron struggled to hide any of his emotions, Quinn seemed like a fluent, elegant liar. Ben heard him tell several different stories to housekeeping and to several patrons of the hotel. Adrian could hardly blame Quinn, though. As any sort of agent, it was usually best to keep your real job covered up, especially when your job was something that people wouldn’t believe.

After lunch, the three agents headed out for the interview. Ben stayed in the hotel, but he squeezed Adrian’s arm before the agent left. Adrian tried to give him a smile, but couldn’t quite figure out where he was.

The interview illuminated nothing in their investigation. Neither Ron nor Adrian had prepared any questions beforehand – Adrian was used to Boomer taking the lead on it and Ron seemed just as uncomfortable as Adrian was. However, Jennifer’s memories were shot anyway, and she was still learning about who she was. Adrian noted that memory loss seemed to be going around a lot these days. She agreed to another interview in a few days, and she was optimistic it would return quickly.

“Everything reminds me of something,” she said. “I’ll figure this out, trust me.”

Quinn tried to hang around with Ron and Adrian after the interview, but Ron snubbed out his hopes of that happening. Ron made an excuse with a conference call, saying that Adrian needed to be there as well. Adrian tried to hide his thankful expression. Quinn had spent the interview with Jennifer Price looking bored and contributing nothing. He suspected that Quinn might be just as desperate for conversation as Ben was, and Adrian could only tolerate that from one person. Ben being stuck in another plane gave him priority.

With Quinn gone, Ron stopped Adrian at their hotel rooms. “I’m just making sure you understand there is no conference call,” Ron said.

“I assumed as much.”

“Good,” Ron said, “because I don’t want to spend time with you either. I’m going to try calling Madeline again and hope she’s interested in some phone sex.”

“I didn’t need to hear the last part.”

Ron rolled his eyes. “We’re adults. I can say I want to have phone sex with my girlfriend.”

“I’m just saying I should have enough agency to not have to hear about it.”

“You’re a real prude, you know that?”

“Oh my, am I really?” Adrian asked, added just enough sarcasm to be insulting. “What a terrible thing to be. Forgive me. Please tell me again what your girlfriend’s split tongue can do to your amazing cock again.”

“Fuck you,” Ron said. “I was trying to be pleasant for Boomer’s sake.”

“If you were trying to be pleasant, you would respect the fact that I don’t want to hear about your sex life.”

Ron scoffed. “It’s not like I was going to give you every detail-“

“It’s bad enough I’ll hear it through these thin walls-“

“Oh so I have to hear you talk to your invisible boyfriend all night, but poor you for having to listen to me murmur sweet nothings to my girlfriend-“

“He’s not my boyfriend-“

“Jesus Christ, I know that,” Ron said. “You know what, forget this. You’re doing the interview with the Price girl from now on. I’ll try to figure out what these fucking lights are. As far as I’m concerned, I don’t need to see you until we drive back to the airport.”

“Fine,” Adrian said.

“So you can go off and fuck yourself,” Ron said, struggling to open his hotel room door.

“Well, I hope you enjoy fucking your hand,” Adrian snapped back as he walked to his hotel room door.

“I will,” Ron shouted, opening his door. “You know how adept I am at jerking myself off. Did you know you can turn a ribbed condom inside out and get more pleasure? Plus it means less clean-up afterwards.”

Ron slammed his door as he left, and anger made Adrian struggle with his electronic door key.

“I hadn’t thought of doing that before,” Ben said.

“Well you lost your memory,” Adrian said, trying to key again. “You probably just forgot about that trick.”

Adrian cursed under his breath, and he flinched as Ben touched his shoulder. “Could you just not touch me for a second,” Adrian said.

“Do you want to go down to the restaurant and calm down?”

“And sit talking to myself like a fucking idiot – no,” Adrian said.

Adrian’s cell phone started to ring, and he cursed again. He absently handed Ben the hotel key and pulled his cell phone out of his pocket. “Adrian,” Ben gasped.

Adrian pushed Ben away and said, “Hello?” into the phone.

“Adrian,” Ben said.

The phone line was muffled. “Ace?”

“Sam?” Adrian asked, covering his other ear to block out Ben who was grabbing at his shoulders for attention.

“Ace? You there?”

“I’m here,” Adrian said, brushing Ben off of him.

Static overwhelmed Sam’s voice until he heard Sam say, “Hello? Hello?”

“I’m here,” Adrian repeated. “I can barely hear you.”

Through the static, Adrian gathered that Sam was going to try calling the hotel. Adrian hung up the phone, and he saw the key card floating in front of him.

“Ben?”

“I can touch it!” Ben said. “I can hold it!”

He clutched the front of Adrian’s sweater and continued, “Adrian, you handed me something and I could hold it. It didn’t pass through me. We have to try with other things – a pen and paper. I could talk to other people – or write to them at least!”

“First, we have to get into the hotel room,” Adrian said, smiling. “My partner is going to call me back, and then we’ll figure this out, okay?”

“Okay, okay,” Ben said. “Here, let me open the door for you.”

Adrian saw the keycard press into the slot and then come back out. The light flashed green to tell them it was unlocked. Adrian quickly opened the door before the light stopped. Ben patted Adrian’s chest as he squeezed into the hotel room first, and then Adrian closed the door behind him. Ben said, “That explains why things firm up around you. Like when you first ran away from me, I couldn’t pass through the door. I had to use a wall instead. You made the door real for me. Give me something else.”

Adrian handed Ben the hotel notepad and pen and then sat on his bed to pick up the phone. He called down to the front desk, but they said all outside lines were dead. The weather must have knocked down a phone line, and it likely disrupted most cell signals. Adrian could hear Ron shouting in the other room – either at a poor hotel clerk or trying to hear Madeline through his cell phone.

Adrian thanked the hotel clerk and hung up the phone. He heard his cell phone buzz with a text message from Sam. It read:

Adrian smiled and quickly texted back that he was fine as well, but he received an error that it didn’t send through. He set his cell phone by the window, hoping the text would send itself as soon as it could. The notepad pressed against his hand, and he took it from Ben to look at it. The notepad read in a messy scrawl:

“My cute what?”

“Son of a bitch,” Ben said. He took the notepad back and fixed it before passing it back to Adrian. He said, “It’s been a while since I had to worry about that sort of thing.”

“You must have been a doctor with this kind of printing,” Adrian said, laughing.

He tried not to think about the message. Ben liked him, but was it just because he couldn’t physically be affection with anyone else? Either way, Ben didn’t press further and asked, “What else can we try?”

“The remote,” Adrian said.

“Oh thank god,” Ben said. “Yes, the remote.”

Adrian tossed the remote into the air, and he saw it caught in mid-air by nothing. Ben said, “Well, I can touch it.”

The television flicked on.

Ben said, “And I can use it.”

“If you set it down, can you pick it up again?” Adrian asked.

Adrian noticed the bed shift as Ben sat down on it. The remote control rested on the bed, and then it rose itself into the air again. Ben said, “Apparently I can. Maybe it won’t last forever, but at least if I drop something, I can pick it up quickly again.”

“That’s something.”

“When you order room service for dinner, I’ll try to eat,” Ben said. He flicked off the television set and said, “How did the interview go?”

Adrian retold the events to Ben, but he admitted there wasn’t much to talk about. Leaning back on the bed and covering his eyes, he said, “And now I’m going by myself – this isn’t what I’m good at. I never know what questions to ask.”

“What are you good at in the agency?” Ben asked. “Do you have a speciality?”

“I don’t know,” Adrian said. “I don’t think I’ve worked with them long enough to come up with a speciality. I want to be a Visitor specialist – like my mom was. That’s why I’m here.”

“Well then isn’t this a great opportunity to prove yourself? I mean, with Ron out chasing rainbows, you have the really strong lead. It’s just asking the right questions, isn’t it? And hoping she has enough of her memory to answer them.”

“What if Ron finds something out there? What if he finds my mom?”

“Then you get her back,” Ben said. “Or you get whatever information he has.”

Adrian sat back up, searching to find Ben in the mirror. Ben sat beside him, watching him. Adrian asked, “What do you think you were in your past life? You have a lot of insight.”

“Maybe I was a prostitute,” Ben said.

“With those looks?” Adrian asked, smirking.

Ben shoved Adrian. “You’re trying to insinuate that I was a therapist or something, right?”

“Maybe.”

“I have no clue, Adrian. I like listening to you, and I want to help you, but that could easily just be for the selfish reason that I want you to stay around.”

“I’m not going anywhere,” Adrian said. “You don’t have to suck up to me. It’s my job to make sure you get home – or at least to find a way that you can live a comfortable, safe life where you are now.”

Adrian noticed Ben watching him intently, a small, shy smile on his face. His head started to hurt and he thought of all of the reasons why Ben and he wouldn’t work out. “Do you want to help me pick out which questions to ask the girl?” Adrian asked.

“Yes,” Ben said. “I would love to help you any way I can.”

The two men worked together composing a list of questions, and then tried to add more in-depth questions depending on what her answers might be. Adrian admitted he had a hard time coming up with questions on the spot, so Ben tried to play out every way the scenario could go and come up with questions for it.

When they felt like they had exhausted every option, Adrian tossed Ben the controller so they could unwind with some television. Adrian slid up on the bed and Ben joined him. Ben wrapped Adrian’s arm around his shoulders, and, despite Ben being taller than him, Adrian rested his head on top of Ben’s.

Adrian quickly learned that Ben had an opinion about everything. He told Adrian what he thought about the news, what he thought a reality show contestant could have done, what was a more realistic way to present humour in a sitcom, and so on. Adrian listened with interest, but the past two days weighed down on him. He closed his eyes and listened to Ben, feeling the man move with animation beneath his chin as he talked.

The words started to blend together and fade. His grip on him slipped.

Adrian pried his eyes open.

“Ben,” Adrian said.

“What?”

Adrian looked into the mirror to see Ben staring at him. Ben asked, “Are you okay? I think you were falling asleep. That’s fine.”

“What if the reason I can see you is because I’m so tired?” Adrian asked. “I had been awake too long when I first saw you, and now I haven’t slept at all. What if I wake up and you’re not here?”

“I’ll be here.”

“But what if I can’t see you?”

Ben frowned.

Adrian’s thoughts moved quickly. Watching Ben carefully, he said, “That’s why you didn’t want me to sleep last night, right? You didn’t think you’d vanish, you thought I wouldn’t be able to see you when I woke up.”

Ben nodded, somewhat shyly. “I realized you didn’t understand me, but what was I supposed to say? Don’t sleep for me?”

“Did you keep me up on purpose, Ben?”

“No,” he said. “No, I swear. I liked listening to you, and maybe I was afraid of the silence, but you kept talking, and I kept wanting to know more. Adrian, I’m not going to lie, it was still selfish of me. You’re the first person I’ve been able to talk to in years – I didn’t want to feel like no one noticed me again. I didn’t intentionally keep you awake, but I didn’t want the conversation to stop.”

Adrian sighed and rubbed the bridge of his nose. He wouldn’t have blamed Ben if he had kept him awake on purpose, but it still stung knowing that Ben only listened to him because he had nothing better to do. Ben rubbed his chest and said, “Listen, I have an idea. I’ve been thinking about it since I caught that key card.”

“I could probably stay awake until we got you to the island,” Adrian said. “Or I could sleep for a day and then wear myself out again.”

“No,” Ben said. “It’s not about that.”

Adrian waited for Ben to continue. Ben sat upright, but Adrian kept his arm around him. Ben said, “Maybe you could help me go through the mirror to take my body back. I mean, that mirror in the bathroom is the one I went through to get here. Maybe if we both touch the mirror at the same time, I can pass back through it.”

“But what if it doesn’t work? What if you go somewhere else?”

“What if you fall asleep and never see me again? What if as soon as you take me out of the hotel, I vanish from your sight? What if I disappear while we’re on the plane? The what ifs never end, Adrian. We’re going to have to try something.”

Adrian thought of what Javier told him, but he still replied, “We should wait until we have more agents to observe what happens.”

“What if I disappear before then?” Ben asked. “Listen, if I get back into my body, I’ll call your agency. I’ll send you a text message. If I get back into my body, but I don’t have any of these memories, you’re bound to find me anyway. And then you can make sure it’s me and not some demon, okay? You know me well enough to be able to tell.”

“You really want to do this?”

“We have to try.”

Adrian nodded and slid off the bed. Ben followed suit. “I want you to know I’m not happy about this,” Adrian said. “But you’re right, we have to try something. And nothing might happen.”

Ben smiled, and the two men walked into the bathroom together. Adrian took a deep breath and stared at their reflections. Ben’s smile only emphasized the wrinkles at the corners of his eyes and the creases in his forehead. He wasn’t sure if it was that confidence sat in the blue eyes behind Ben’s cracked glasses or if it was fear. Maybe it was desperation.

“You can kiss me goodbye, you know,” Ben said.

Adrian laughed. Ben hooked his finger through Adrian’s belt loop and ran his hand down Adrian’s chest, smoothing out his sweater. Adrian watched Ben’s reflection for a moment, and then he carefully draped his arms around Ben’s shoulders. He closed his eyes and twisted his fingers through Ben’s blond hair.

Ben pulled Adrian closer by his belt loops, and Adrian brushed his nose against Ben’s. He felt the soft skin and the glass of his glasses. Ben’s arms wrapped around his back, and his breath touched Adrian’s lips. Heat rose to Adrian’s cheeks, and their hips pressed together first. Adrian tilted his head and kissed Ben lightly.

Ben drew out the kiss and made it deeper. With his hand on the small of Adrian’s back, he curved Adrian’s body against his own. Adrian breathed in Ben’s homey smell that stood out in the stale hotel room air. He focused on the feeling of Ben’s fingers against his back and the feeling of his own fingers in Ben’s hair. When Ben broke the kiss, Adrian kissed Ben’s lower lip, lightly tugging on it before releasing it.

They pressed their foreheads together, neither eager to end the embrace. Adrian didn’t know Ben watched him through his eyelashes. Adrian knew if he opened his eyes, he wouldn’t see Ben. And that scared him. “We have to try this, Adrian,” Ben murmured.

Kissing his forehead, Ben gave him a tight squeeze before slowly pulling away from him. Adrian thought it was cruel of him to both initiate things and end things. He released Ben and opened his eyes once he faced the mirror. “Okay,” Adrian said. “I’m ready. Are you ready?”

Ben merely nodded.

Adrian gently held Ben’s hand before pressing his own hand against the mirror. Ben pressed his hand against the mirror, and Adrian saw it ripple at Ben’s touch. Ben exhaled and gave Adrian a weak smile. “I’ll see you on the other side, Adrian.”

“I better,” Adrian said, laughing to cover up the fear in his voice.

Ben’s smile turned strong and he started to push himself into the mirror. Adrian tightened his grip on Ben’s hand as Ben climbed onto the sink and crawled through the mirror. Ben gave Adrian another smile before his head disappeared through the glass. Adrian watched as the mirror swallowed Ben’s arm, and it stopped at Adrian’s fingers. Adrian’s hand wouldn’t pass through the glass. Ben gave his hand a squeeze before releasing it.

Adrian took a deep breath.

Adrian let go.

With his other hand still on the mirror, he counted to ten. He looked around to see if he could see Ben. He counted to twenty. He squeezed his eyes shut and counted to thirty. He looked around the room again.

“Ben?” he shouted. “Ben, if you’re here, talk to me.”

No one talked back. He couldn’t even hear Ron in the next room. Adrian wondered whether or not to pull his hand away from the mirror. Would Ben try to walk back through it? Why hadn’t they discussed this? His heart pounded in his chest. Exhaustion weighed on him, making him dizzy. Keeping his hand on the mirror, Adrian sat down on the toilet lid.

How long could he wait?

He closed his eyes and propped his head up with his other hand, debating how to act next. He thought perhaps time had frozen; he couldn’t hear it passing.

Adrian hadn’t realized he fell asleep until he woke up again, falling off the toilet. Both of his hands were off the mirror, the only thing left on the mirror was a handprint. Cursing, Adrian stood up off the floor. The lights in the bathroom were out. “Ben?” he shouted.

There was no response. Wherever Ben was, he was on his own now. Stretching, Adrian stepped into the main room, flicking the light switch. So the power was out. Great. Ice pellets rapped against the window, and the windows creaked beneath the strain of the wind. The hollow sounds of the wind only emphasized the emptiness of the room.

He went to the windowsill to check for missed calls. His text hadn’t even sent. He deleted the text he originally planned to send Sam and typed up another one. It read: