Goodnight

With drink splattering his direction, Jeff’s eyes went wide. “Ahh! It’s not time for my shower yet!”

Clint, still wearing the bowl, snickered. “What? You usually shower in Pepsi and lemonade?” 

Jeff struck a pose and ran his fingers through his hair. “Oh yes. It does wonders for my complexion and it makes my hair so shiny!” He gestured with a limp hand and batted his eyes. “You should see what ginger ale does.”

Jade clamped a hand over her mouth. “That’s just so wrong on so many levels.” 

Dylan hiccupped again between his snickering as he tried desperately to shuffle and deal the cards again. 

Hunter grabbed his cup and chewed on a piece of ice, his eyes just continuing to smile along with his lips. It was good to be back. It was good to be here with this family. And it was good to see Ryan laughing. 

Things calmed down…a little bit, as the game continued. Eventually though, eyes were growing heavy, despite the desire to keep going. Jeff was the first to leave - though he liked pretending to be a kid, he wasn’t, and he was more tired than anyone else there. After that, it was Clint, who knew he should get home to Wendy. And soon… everything was cleaned up, and the lights were being turned off. 

Stepping down from the porch, Hunter took in a breath of the cool night air, and looked up at the stars as he walked with Ryan towards the bunkhouses. “Mm… that was fun.” His abs still hurt from all the laughing. “I’d say you’re officially part of the family now too,” he mused, glancing over at her as they slowly walked. He grinned. “Anybody who can put up with Jeff and Clint in the same room has it made.”


Travis really did almost fall asleep, but as the others started filing out, he knew better than to stay. He and Ashlee had pushed things far enough today – and as much as he wanted to rebel, he knew now was not the time. He did at least walk Ashlee to her bunkhouse though, getting in every moment he could. 

Stopping at the bottom of the steps, he took her hands in his as he faced her, and smiled. The moonlight bounced off her face, and his eyes took in every little feature. “Thanks,” he mentioned softly. “For a fun day. Now that we’re not in quite as hot water, maybe it’ll be easier to… spend time together.” 

He smiled and lifted one of his hands to cradle the side of her face, his thumb just caressing her cheek. “I’ll see you tomorrow.” Leaning down, he placed one final, soft kiss to her lips. “Goodnight.” 


Gage swallowed hard as he glanced at Garret, then let his eyes drop to the floor before bouncing back up again, now startled to see Garret’s outstretched hand. He accepted it, but very cautiously. “Yeah… we’ve met.” 

Garret nodded. “A time or two. Weren’t you the-”

“Peon,” Gage finished. “That’s all I ever was.” His eyes dropped again.

“Hey.” Garret’s voice came out a little more sternly. “We’re not in the Agency anymore. So quit looking at the floor.”

Gage glanced up, then at Sapphire, then back to Garret. He still wasn’t so sure. “Yeah well… that’s gonna take a little getting used to.” He looked to Sapphire once more. “You’re… working together?” She hadn’t mentioned it before. He knew she usually worked alone, so this was news to him. The fact that it was Garret did bother him just a little, even if he wouldn’t say so.


It had been over an hour. Aaron had kept track. His eyes glanced up to the wall clock, then back down to Justin – who had hardly moved a muscle since sitting down in that stupid chair. He prided himself in being able to withstand all sorts of torture – but Justin’s silence was wearing on him. It was actually making him more nervous than if Justin had been trying to get him to talk. His stubbornness won out for now though, and he turned another page in his magazine.

Another hour. This was getting to be ridiculous. Finally, Aaron couldn’t take it any longer. Tossing his third magazine down, he crossed his arms and glared at Justin. “So what on earth are you doing here?”

Justin looked at him with little interest. “Didn’t think you cared.”

“I don’t.”

“Then why ask?”

“Because you’re irritating, that’s why.”

Justin finally straightened up a little and shrugged. “Usually my job is to be irritating. Makes for a long day, but pays well.”

Aaron blinked. Was this guy for real? The last two visits, he’d hounded him with questions, trying to get into his psyche. Today he was just…there. Silent. Annoying to say the least. “Let me guess. You get paid by the hour. Sit here long enough and it’ll be worth your time, right?”

Justin shook his head. “Naw. I just like staring.”

Aaron shifted uncomfortably.

A grin creased Justin’s lips. “Don’t worry. I have a girlfriend and I’m perfectly content.”

Aaron smirked a little, and sat back, grabbing his latest lego creation to tear it down again. But again, he couldn’t stand the silence. “So what do you really want?”

“Me? I don’t want anything.” Justin shrugged again. “You’re the one that wants something.”

“Do tell.”

“You want control. That’s all you’ve ever wanted for most of your life. That’s why you joined the Agency and why being here – despite these rather plush accommodations compared to prison – is driving you nuts.”

Aaron scowled. “Think you got me all figured out, huh?”

“Not hardly. I’m working on it though.”

“So you can break me? Is that it? Figure me out so you can find my weakness, then the Elite can have their way with me.” Aaron’s fingers kept working with the legos as he talked. “Well you won’t succeed.”

“No one wants to break you, Aaron. In a way, you’ve already been broken by the Agency.”

“They did no such thing.” Aaron pointed a lego at him. “They took me in when no one else cared.”

“And… they made a robot out of you.”

“They helped me reach my potential.”

“As a killer?”

“As a soldier.”

“With what purpose?”

“Taking out the riffraff.”

Justin cocked his head. “As in… killing off people Medridge thinks don’t have a right to live?”

Aaron rolled his eyes. “As in making a clearer path for his plans. People get in the way. You get rid of obstacles. It’s war.”

“Against what?”

“Against people who are too dumb to survive.”

Justin sighed. “Ever thought about doing something else?”

Aaron scoffed. “Like what? Be a short order cook?”

“Nah. More like… engineering.” Justin eyed the legos. “You know… designing how things are built.”

Aaron’s eyes rolled once more. “As if.”

There was something there though, and Justin caught it. But he let it sit for now. And he fell silent once again, simply sitting, thinking and watching Aaron build a new vehicle out of his limited supply of bricks, gears and wheels.


Scott sank down on his couch after getting home from his very short visit to work. Frustrated, he didn't even pet Domino as she joined him with a slobbery squeaky toy. All he'd wanted to do was say hi to Dalton. Maybe Hope. He knew they were all mad at him.... and honestly, he just wanted to know how bad it was so he could figure out how to get back in their good graces. But he hadn't planned on running into Justin. He hadn't planned on getting thrown out of the only place he felt safe. 

Feeling a wet tongue on his hand, he jerked away. "Quit it," he growled. 

Domino shrunk back with a little whimper, before getting off the couch and going to curl up in her bed in the corner. 

Scott immediately felt bad and patted the couch. "I'm sorry... Come here..." But Domino stayed where she was. Scott tucked his feet up on the couch and curled on his side. Was being miserable part of Justin's plan too? Because if it was, he was doing a good job of it.