Listen To Your Heart

By: JoannaKuwabara

Category: Primeval

Pairing: Stephan/Connor, Danny/Connor, Stephan/Connor/Danny

Full Summary: A month has gone by since Nick died and Danny took over the team. Danny decides to tell the techno geek his feelings when, Stephan comes back! Things get tricky as Stephan is also in love with Connor. As the two men fight over the one they, both love Connor's feelings towards both men blossom.

Short Summary: Danny has been leading the team for a month and has fallen for Connor. However, Stephen is alive, rejoins the team, and has feelings for the techno geek. As they fight for his love, Connor's feelings towards both men blossom.

Warnings: A/U, OOC, M/M/M, M/M, Language, Suggestive Dialogue, and violence. (More might be added as the story continues)

Disclaimer:

I do not own Primeval, nor the characters from the show. That privilege is reserved for the creators of this awesomely kick ass show. I am not making a profit from writing this story and am doing so for fun and only that.

I do not own Quantum Leap nor am I making a profit from mentioning this show in this fic.

I do not own Stargate and I am not making a profit from mentioning it in this fan fic.

I do not own Kensington Gardens nor am I making a profit from mentioning this location in this fic.

The disclaimers listed above apply to this and all future chapters.

A/N: Hey, this is my first time writing in this category. I am a huge fan of this BBC show and was happy that they brought it over to America. At the time that I am writing this, they are only in the beginning of the third season. It is right after Danny was chosen to be the leader. I am a huge Connor fan and I was a huge Stephan fan until his death in the ending of the second season. Although, I still am a fan of him. I didn't know it was the second season that he died in, that was only because here in America they decided to show both seasons as one so I saw all 13 episodes and they didn't even re-number the third season episodes. They are calling them 14 and up.

Anyway, I had finished reading some fanfictions about Danny/Connor, and Stephen/Connor. As I walked to my job, I began to ponder: 'what if Stephen came back to the team? He was alive with Helen at the end of season two. So why not? And oh!' I thought, 'Why not have Danny love Connor and why not have Stephen end up loving him two; but Connor is oblivious to both of them! Yeah, that would be awesome!'

Yeah, I really thought that haha. Sooo, that's how this was born. I think it's original, I didn't see anything like this, although I could be wrong. I mean anything could happen in Primeval. I also hate that, so far anyway, they haven't brought back Stephan when he is obviously still alive…or he could be a clone; I have no idea. I haven't seen the whole third season yet, so anything could happen. (So I don't know why I thought Stephen was alive with Helen...I swear I thought I saw that. But after re-watching the show, that never happened. If someone else remembers that scene please tell me so I know I'm not crazy...)

Anyway, as you can tell, I ramble. So, enough of this let's get this story going, shall we?

UPDATE:I'm going through the chapters before I post chapter 4 (which I'm in the middle of writing). I'm trying so hard to update my stories/finish them. I hope you all like the updated version of the story as well as the new chapter that will be out shortly. I also fixed the OOCness of the characters. They could still be a little OOC but I have no excuse as I've re-watched the show 3 times so far and on my 4th cause I'm showing a friend haha. So I hope you enjoyed this re-written chapter.


Chapter One:

A man leaned against an office desk observing the people around him. He wore tight navy blue faded jeans and a white t-shirt. His sandy blond hair was short and just a bit messy. His blue-green eyes looked around the room.

In a glass room, there was a girl, with platinum blond hair styled in a short spiked haircut. Her bright blue eyes were outlined in black eyeliner, making them even brighter. She wore short khakis and a white sleeveless t-shirt. It appeared she was working on a garden, although it was with strange plants.

In another room, was another girl with long brown hair tied back in a low ponytail. She wore shorts and a light blue blouse. She sat over a microscope with her brown eyes staring at a stone. She would write something in a book before going back to the object.

The man's eyes continued to scan the people in each room until his eyes locked on to a young man. The young man was asleep in front of one of the four tellies. The young man had black short hair that was messy and hiding under a hat. His faded jeans appeared to be wrinkled as well as his gray long sleeve shirt and white hoodie over the shirt. He also wore finger less black gloves, which were folded under the sleeping young man's head.

The man smirked, amused at the drool that dribbled from the corner of the sleeping man's lips. His smirk faded as he gave a sigh, letting his mind ponder over the young man.

Danny had been leading this team of a zoologist, a mythologist, and an anthropologist drop out college student for a short period. He had joined the team barely four months ago, and had already led at the least twenty-five missions. It was never a dull day at the ARC. Danny had learned that the moment he met the team. He smiled as he remembered the first time he had met Connor. He was fascinated with the young college student.

Danny never really understood much of what Connor said, but he was never the type to care about the technical part of anything. He learned that Connor could be a bit annoying at times. However, something about the young man made it hard to be mad at him or even hate him. Connor was like a lovable puppy dog where you couldn't punish him even if you wanted. Connor even had the look down where it melted your heart with one look into those chocolate brown eyes of his. He had something about him that made you have to love him.

If you didn't know him, you would expect him to be the first one to run away from the beasts and monsters that would come out from the anomalies. However, that wasn't the case. He was the first one to jump into danger if it meant saving his friends. If Danny believed in those Chinese Zodiac stuff, he'd swear that Connor was born in the year of the Dog.

As Danny worked on missions and got to know each member of the team, he found himself growing more interested in Connor. At first, it started out as admiration at how brave the young man presented himself. From there, it turned into a fondness that quickly turned into a small 'man crush' as Abby would say. Before he knew it, Danny found himself falling in love with the young man.

At first, Danny thought it was just the man-crush, however, as the missions grew more dangerous, the more Danny felt he needed to protect Connor. It wasn't so far fetched that Danny could love the young man; he was bisexual. However, he didn't want to believe Connor was whom he loved.

Danny thought he had found love with Jenny. She was a spunky brunette who he had fun teasing and loved watching her get angry with him. However, after watching her almost die and have her call out another man's name while 'he' was the one holding her hand; well, that made him realize that she would never see him. Her heart would always love Nick Cutter; the former leader of the team he now led.

It had hurt him when she decided to leave the team. He felt somewhat responsible. He felt that if only he could have protected her more, she would still be with the team. However, he realized that there was no way he could have prevented it from happening. Eventually, Jenny would have left. It seemed that her passion for the ARC had died along with Cutter.

The pain of Jenny leaving had long been gone. So there was nothing stopping Danny's heart for wanting to chase after Connor. However, just because his heart wasn't in his way didn't mean there weren't other obstacles stopping him. Connor had a close relationship with Abby. They were living with each other for quite a while until Abby's baby brother came to live with her. There wasn't enough room for both Connor and Abby's baby brother in her small flat. So, Abby asked Connor to move out; although she swore it would only be temporary. It had been five months and her brother was still living with her. Connor was staying at a friend's house, according to Connor that is. No one knew exactly where and with whom he was staying, not even Abby.

If he could, Danny would have already offered Connor to stay at his flat. In any other situation, Danny would have already gone up to Connor, express his feelings towards him, and ask the young man to live with him. However, he hadn't done so for the fact he was afraid that Connor would reject him. He had already been rejected by Jenny, so he didn't think his heart could take another shot like that so soon. So here he was standing from afar admiring his 'sleeping cutie' and wishing he could tell Connor his feelings.

Danny's thoughts were interrupted as Connor began to mumble and move in his sleep. Danny scrunched his eyebrow together and walked over to the slumbering young man. He stood barely two feet from Connor. He blinked at the sweat that glistened on his face. His face was also twisted in some form of pain.

"No…please…" mumbled Connor.

Danny tilted his head to the side.

"Please…don't go…don't leave me…." He whimpered in his sleep.

Danny took a closer look at his face and found it to be paler than usual. There were some bags under his eyes as well as if he hadn't slept. This made Danny furrow his forehead in concern. His hand gently rested on Connor's shoulder and he shook him. Connor only shifted in his sleeping position.

"Hey, Connor. Wake up." Danny whispered, moving his face closer to Connor's face.

"Don't…" Connor whimpered again.

"Hey, wake up. Come on mate." Danny said a bit louder and shook him harder.

This seemed to stir the young man. He made a small groan from his lips before yawning wide. Danny couldn't help but snicker as chocolate brown eyes slowly blinked open. Danny couldn't help but chuckle at the next thing that happened. Connor stared into Danny's eyes, blinked for a few moments before making an 'eep' noise and fell backwards in his chair, bringing it down with him.

Danny's laugh was uncontrolled as he stared down at the young man, whose legs were up in the air, as he still sat in the chair. His eyes wide and blinking up in a daze like state.

"What the…Danny?" Connor said, his brain seeming to recognize the man above him.

Connor groaned, as he felt sore on his bottom. He rolled to the side, having his legs fall off the chair and where he landed on his knees. He sat up onto his knees before standing up.

"You okay?" snickered Danny.

"My bum is sore." Connor says, rubbing it to prove his point.

Danny couldn't help but give a sly smirk, which made Connor raise an eyebrow at the older man. However, before Connor could comment, the anomaly detector went off. The two men stood there for a moment before Connor picked up his chair. He sat down giving a wince. He rolled up closer to the keyboard and began to type.

"Where is it this time?" came a dry voice from behind.

Danny turned around to see the boss of this entire operation standing behind him. He wore a business suit all in black and a white shirt underneath. He wore a black silky tie around his collar and stood with his head held high. His brown eyes were looking at one of the four tellies. His brown hair combed back nice and neat as usual.

"I'm checking that right now." Connor said not evening glancing back at his boss.

He typed a few more keys before a map appeared on one of the four tellies; a red circle surrounding a particular area on the map.

"Ah, it looks to be at Kensington Gardens." Connor said looking up at the screen.

"Let's go then." Came a female voice.

Abby and Sarah were standing behind the group. Connor turned around and nodded.

"Right."

Connor stood up and grabbed his anomaly container, which he had made into a compact version of his first. A man dressed in a black military uniform quietly walked behind the group. He had a gun holstered at his side. His black hair was short and slicked back in a 'cool' style, as his hazel eyes looked as if they were always analyzing. He followed closely behind Connor as he walked to the car. They all entered two cars before driving off.


~~~~~~~~~~Twenty Minutes Later At Kensington Gardens~~~~~~~~~

Two cars stopped on a trail. In front of them was what appeared to be many broken mirrors floating in a cluster to form a circle; light seeming to be reflecting from every angle of the mirror looking object. This was known as an anomaly. This was where creatures from both the past and future used as a way to come into the present.

Connor came out of the silver van with Becker right behind him. Danny came out of the other van with a whistle. He walked up to the anomaly and tilted his head as he looked at it. He had seen many different sizes and shapes of anomalies, but nothing that formed an almost perfect circle.

"I wonder if anything came out yet.," pondered Sarah.

"We'll find out soon enough." Danny said, as he watched Becker help Connor setup the device he brought.

Danny furrowed his eyes as he noticed how Becker seemed a bit…friendly? Yes, that was the right word. The military man was nice, although he was a bit sarcastic. Well, when he spoke. He wasn't much of a conversationalist. He would talk a lot with Connor, or so Danny noticed. He felt a bit jealous at times like this. A small knot formed in his chest as Becker patted Connor's back. Connor had gave the military man a warm smile. Danny wished he would get one of those smiles.

Connor had finished setting up the device. He held the remote in his hand, taking a step backwards. He was proud of his creation. Lester had told him that it was ridiculous to bring all that 'junk', as the man would put it, to contain an anomaly. There, with that in mind, Connor found a way to condense the electric field.

Becker took out his gun and gave some silent orders to a few men that had come with the group. Connor gave the military man a smile, who gave one back. They had become great friends as they worked on more missions. Connor found that even though Becker was sarcastic, he was a great guy. They had hung out a few times outside of work, just a 'guys night' out. Who knew that the military man liked Stargate? Although, Connor was forbidden to share that little bit of information, providing he still wanted to keep his tongue in his mouth.

"It doesn't seem like anything came out…" Abby said, noticing there weren't any tracks around the anomaly.

"That would be lucky." Sarah said with a smile.

"Too easy." Danny commented as he studied the anomaly.

"I don't like this…" he mumbled.

For some reason, he didn't like this anomaly. It wasn't as if he liked any of the other ones. However, this one felt different to him. He wasn't sure why, but he had a bad feeling in his gut.

"I'm ready to close this thing." Connor said.

Danny gave the anomaly one last look before standing behind Connor. The young man open and closed his fingers above the remote, that was in his other hand. He began to count down from three.

"Three...Two...O"

"Wait, it looks like something is coming through." Abby said, stopping Connor's count down.

Abby slowly walked over to the anomaly, squinting her eyes.

"Abby, be careful!" Connor said, worry in his voice.

Abby ignored him and continued to look. She could see a shadow. It looked almost...human? Yeah, like there was a human on the other side of the anomaly. Becker brought up his gun and was prepared to shoot. Sarah held her breath and shifted to where she was hiding behind Danny. Danny felt even more uneasy. He could sense the brunette behind him. However, his eyes never looked away from the anomaly. He thought he saw a shadow getting bigger from within the anomaly.

Abby's eyes widened as she jumped back. The sound of guns being cocked was the only noise.

"Wait!" Abby shouted, holding up her hands.

At that moment, a man stumbled out of the anomaly. He had torn, dirty blue jeans. His white t-shirt was almost in pieces and was barely white. His shoes had some holes in them but barely protected his feet. His black hair was slightly long and shaggy. He had a beard that was also shaggy, but not too long. The man's icy blue eyes were filled with relief as he fell to his knees.

Everyone was silent as they stared at the heavily breathing man. His hands rested on his thighs as he stared down at the ground.

"Finally..." he whispered.

Connor was the first to snap out of his shock. However, his brown eyes widened.

"Stephen?" Connor asked his voice shakily.

He looked different, but Connor would recognize those icy blues anywhere.

Abby's own eyes were wide, also realizing the same thing.

At hearing Connor's voice, Stephen looked up, a glaze over look in his eyes. He gave a small smile.

"Hey." he said before his eyes rolled back into his head and he fell forward as everything turned to black.


~~~~~~A Few Hours Later…~~~~~~

His head felt like it was about to explode. He could hear voices surround him. Could it be? Had he finally made it? He stirred slightly which seemed to quiet everyone in the room. His icy blue eyes opened slowly, wincing a bit at the light. He blinked his eyes a few times before they were fully open. He looked around finding a few familiar faces and a few that he didn't recognize.

Abby let out a happy cry and held onto Stephen's hand. Connor was on the other side of the makeshift bed. He looked ready to explode with joy. Stephen looked at the two. It felt like he hadn't seen them for years. He looked at Abby, giving her hand a gentle squeeze. She squeezed back with a wide smile. He gave her a small smile before turning to Connor. Connor had unshed tears in his eyes.

"I can't believe it, you're alive!" Connor said.

"A bit more hairier then I remember, but alive!" he added with a soft laugh.

"You try and find a barber shop in the triassic period." Stephen said with a chuckle.

"Good point." Connor said as he wiped away a few tears.

Abby had a few happy tears in her own eyes.

"We've missed you so much…" Abby said.

Sarah was at the end of the bed. She felt a bit awkward. She never met Stephen. She only knew about him from stories Abby and Connor told her. Well, more so Connor than Abby. The two seemed to be close by how much Connor would talk about him. She cleared her throat, bringing the trio's attention to her.

"Hi. I'm Sarah. I've heard so much about you. I'm happy to finally meet you." She said with a smile.

Stephen looked at her with his icy blue eyes and gave her one back.

"Oh," Connor said, bringing Stephen's attention back to the young man.

Connor took a step back, revealing Becker.

"This military looking mate is Becker."

Becker nodded in Stephen's direction, who nodded back.

"And," Connor said pointing at Danny, who stood by the door.

"This is Danny."

Danny looked at Stephen with a sick feeling in his stomach. The two seemed to have a spark go through them as they looked into each other's eyes. There was silence in the room as the two men stared at each other.

"Uh…you guys okay?" Connor asked as he looked between the two men.

Danny gave Stephen a suspicious look, as Stephen gave Danny one of his famous cold looks.

"It's a miracle you're alive. From what Connor and Abbs told me you were dead. But here you are; a bit scratched up but here alive and well. How is that, Stephen?" Danny said, emphasizing the man's name in a way as if challenging the man.

Everyone was silent.

"He's right." Abby said, breaking the silence.

"I was actually wondering the same thing…" Connor said, looking at Stephen "Cutter told us that he saw you die…so how did you escape?"

Stephen sat up, wincing a bit as he did.

"That is a long story."

"We have time." Danny said in a cold voice.

Connor looked at Danny confused. He was sure that if the two met each other that they would like each other. But here they were. Face to face, and yet they looked ready to kill each other. It made no sense to the young man.

Stephen sighed. He used his good hand to comb through his messy longish hair.

"I thought I was going to die. I was ready to die to tell you the truth. But then an anomaly opened up right behind me. I didn't hesitate to jump through it and ended up somewhere in the past. From there, I've been trying to find a way back home. But every anomaly I went through sent me to another time in history." Stephen said with a sigh.

"Kinda like Quantum Leap! Well, minus you jumping into people's bodies." Connor said, making everyone look at him.

"What?" he said, not sure why he was getting the looks he was getting.

Stephen chuckled.

"I guess it was like that." he said before letting out a sigh.

"But every time I went through an anomaly, it ended up being somewhere else in the past. If not the past than the future. After a while, I was starting to think I would never find my way home. To tell you the truth, I was about to give up. But then I decided to try one last time. And it was the right one." Stephen said with a soft smile.

Connor and Abby looked in awe at their long lost friend. Sarah looked and felt a little pity for the man, trying so hard to get back home. Becker seemed a little impressed. Danny was the only one that wasn't buying his story. There was just something not right.

"That seems a bit too convenient, don't you think? I mean, that anomaly just appearing in time to save you at the last second? And what about Nick Cutter telling Connor and Abby he saw you die, hm?"

"Convenient or not, that's how it happened. And Cutter...well" Stephen began to say before growing pissed.

Stephen turned to Connor, pointing at the ex-cop.

"Who is this guy? And where is Cutter?"

Connor's face began to turn white. Stephen furrowed his eyebrows. He began to feel a little sick in his gut. He turned to Abby. She couldn't look at him and seemed upset.

"What?" he asked, a bit worried.

"Stephen..." Abby began, now able to look at the man.

However, she couldn't continue. She looked towards Connor. Stephen followed her gaze. Connor looked as if he was getting sick. There was pain in his chocolate brown eyes. The entire room was silent.

"What is it? Where is Cutter?" Stephen asked.

Connor looked into Stephen's eyes with so much pain that it made the man flinch. He hadn't seen that look since Connor's best friend, Duncan, died. Not since Abby had been thought dead. This didn't make the unsettling feeling in the man's gut lessen; it made it get worse.

"Professor...Professor Cutter is dead…" Connor choked out.

It still plagued his thoughts and his dreams. Connor couldn't forget Nick's words or how he could sense Nick's very soul slip away. Connor felt it as Nick leaned against his shoulder. He could remember how still his mentor felt, as Connor carried him out of the burning building.

His hand instinctively went to his chest. His heart was beginning to hurt, again. He wanted to cry. He was trying so hard not to cry. He promised his mentor that he would be strong. That he would continue the work. That he would find the answers to that artifact.

However it was so hard. It was hard to see that empty locker, which still had his name on it. It was hard to walk past his office and see it full of boxes. Some of them having the professor's stuff while others just random items.

Stephen was stunned. His eyes widened as he stared at Connor. It couldn't be true, could it? Connor had to be wrong. His best friend couldn't be dead. Not after his sacrifice. Not after all he had gone through to get back. Everything he did was for him. He did it all for Nick. But Nick Cutter was dead. All he did was in vain it seemed.

His hand went to his forehead, trying to alleviate the headache that was starting to form.

"When?" he asked in a soft voice.

Abby opened her mouth.

"Four months." Connor said, his voice shaky.

However, the young man took in a deep breath and put on a brave face. He cleared his voice.

"Professor Cutter has been dead for four months."

"Four months?" Stephen whispered.

'I was too late...' he thought before looking at the young man.

Connor's eyes met with Stephen's icy blue. Both men had pain reflecting in their eyes. Connor closed his eyes.

"I'm so sorry." Connor whispered as he turned away, his fist tightened over his heart.

He tried so hard to hold back those tears. However, it was so hard. He cleared his throat again, trying to clear it from it's tightening feeling.

Stephen was confused. Why was Connor apologizing?

"It wasn't your fault, Connor." Abby said, her voice soft.

She knew how much pain her best friend was in. He wasn't too good at hiding his feelings. But he was pretty good at acting like he was okay. She felt her chest hurt for him. She really cared for him. She loved him, but not in the way he loved her. Abby had told him that he was like a brother to her. He took it as well as one would expect. However, she knew the longer she waited to tell him, then the more it would have hurt him.

"Abby's right. I mean, you were the only one brave enough to go in after him." Sarah said, her heart aching at seeing the young man in pain.

She had liked him, as a friend. Actually, she liked him more like a little brother. She never had siblings, being an only child. But if she did have siblings, she would want Connor as a brother.

Stephen was even more confused, however before he could ask, Becker had pulled the young man into a hug. He rested his head on the young man's shoulder.

"Just breath." Becker whispered before resting his head on top of Connor's head.

He tightened his hold on the young man, making him tense up. However, Connor let out a long breath before relaxing in the military man's embrace.

Becker knew of the young man's pain, more than anyone. Connor had a low tolerance for alcohol. He tended to be more touchy, not to mention more open about his feelings. Becker knew much more about the young man than even Abby. He knew of his broken home. How he always looked up to Nick Cutter, even before he took his class. He had followed the professor for as long as the man was a professor. He shared how hard he worked to even be in the man's class. Although, he didn't go to the professor's classes as much as he should have. However, Connor told Becker it was because he didn't want to be one of his many students. He wanted to prove to the professor that he was more than a college student. That he wanted to work alongside the professor, like Stephen had been.

The room was silent as everyone stared at the too. Sarah and Abby both looked at the pair with warm smiles. It was such a beautiful friendship; in the girl's eyes. However, Danny and Stephen frowned at the hug. Neither man liked what they were seeing.

Connor let out a sigh leaning back a bit. Becker loosened his hold and looked down at the young man.

"I'm better now, thanks Becker." Connor said as he looked up at the man, with a smile.

Becker nodded, but had a small smirk on his lips.

"Sorry to interrupt such a 'touching' moment,"

Everyone looked to the doorway. There stood Lester, his arms folded and looking a bit annoyed; as usual.

"But it's four o'clock and even though I'm 'thrilled' that you are all willing to stay after hours and possibly do some work; I'm afraid I can't afford overtime. So if you could all finish up here?" Lester finished, his eyes landing on Connor.

Connor pushed away from Becker and looked at Lester. The young man noticed the look Lester was sending his way, as if hinting at something. Connor looked thoughtful for a moment before a smile crossed his lips.

"Hey, why don't you stay with me, Stephen? I mean I'm sure you don't have a place to stay now that you're back." Connor said, turning to Stephen.

"Absolutely not!" Lester growled.

This had caused the group to look at him funny, everyone excluding Connor.

"Why not?" asked Sarah.

"You may be the boss but that doesn't mean you can boss us about things outside of work." Abby said with her hands on her hips.

"I agree with Lester, for once." Danny said, not liking the idea of Stephen living with Connor.

"Please Lester? I promise it won't interfere with work or anything else." Connor said as he walked over to Lester.

Lester continued to give the young man a disapproving like glare.

"Connor, you don't have to beg him to let you have Stephen live with you." Abby said a bit taken aback by Connor's action.

Lester looked into those chocolate brown puppy dog like eyes. It was so hard to say no to them. He sighed before putting his hand to his forehead. He could already feel a headache coming on.

"Oh, alright..." Lester said.

Connor grinned and made a victory motion with his fist.

"But," Lester whispered as he leaned close to Connor's ear, "we'll discuss this at home."

Connor's smile widened more before he nodded happily.

"Thanks Lester!"

Lester snorted before turning around. He rolled his eyes but couldn't help the small smirk that crossed his lips. He went off to get ready to leave.

Connor turned back to Stephen, who was standing up. Abby was handing him a jacket, a smile on her lips. Stephen nodded and gave her a smile back as he put the jacket on.

"We better get moving, yeah?" Connor said, a bit excited.

He couldn't wait to get home and show Stephen Sid and Nancy. Not to mention, tell him everything that had happened since he left. Well, everything except for Nick's death. He didn't want to think about that. Connor shook his head before smiling at Stephen.

Stephen nodded before giving Abby a hug. He nodded towards Sarah who smiled back at him. He gave Becker a look but got a respectful nod from the military man. He nodded back. Connor smiled before heading out of the room, Stephen close behind. However, when the man walked by Danny, the two shared another spark filled glare. It was quick but only those with eagle like eyes could catch the brief interaction.

"Coming?" Connor asked, sticking his head back in.

Stephen looked at the young man before nodding. Connor smiled and left, with Stephen right behind him.


~~~~~~~~At Lester's flat~~~~~~~~~

"So this is where Lester lives?" Stephen asked as he looked around the flat.

It was nice for a government official's flat. Not to mention someone who was a bachelor.

"Just don't tell anyone that we're living here, or Lester will kick us out." Connor said as he walked over to a small closet.

Stephen rolled his eyes.

"I know. I heard the rules on the way here." Stephen sighed.

Connor had hung up his coat in the closet. He took Stephen's coat and hung it up as well.

"I know, I'm just checking." Connor said before taking his hat off.

He tossed it over his shoulder towards a hat rack. The hat landed with a spin on one of the hooks before stopping. Stephen couldn't help but smirk at the hat trick.

"I'm going to bed." Lester said as he locked the front door.

"G'night!" Connor said with a wide smile.

Lester gave the young man a small smile as he dropped his mask just a bit.

"Night." Lester said, before turning to Stephen.

"Thanks Lester." Stephen said.

Lester nodded and gave the man a small smile. Stephen gave the man a smile back. Lester went to his room and closed it. Stephen stared at the closed door for a moment.

Stephen was a bit in shock at Lester having a bit of humanity in him. He always seemed so cold and uncaring. However, he had been wrong about the man. Nick had told Stephen Lester wasn't the bad guy. To trust Lester. Nick's gut was always right and Stephen should have trusted his best friend's gut.

Stephen sighed as he thought of his best friend. Nick had been one of the two reasons he had fought so hard to come home. He wanted to apologize to him. He wanted to just go back to how things were. Before everything went to shit.

The other reason was Connor. Connor had been a bit annoying at first. However, as Stephen worked with the college student, he began to like him. Abby would have called it a 'mancrush'. However, it was more than that. He didn't realize how much he liked the young man until Connor's best friend died. The look in his eyes as he watched his best friend die in his arms. Well, he never wanted to see that pain in those beautiful chocolate brown eyes. That was when he knew he loved the young man.

Nick figured it out quicker than Stephen wanted. However, Stephen never acted on his feelings. He knew Connor loved Abby. He also figured Connor was straight. Well, having feelings for Abby would most likely mean that. Nick told Stephen that wasn't fully true. However, his best friend wouldn't tell him more than that. It was as if he knew something Stephen didn't know. That annoyed Stephen the most. However, he made two promises while trying to find his way back. He promised himself that he would reconcile his relationship with Nick. And secondly, he would confess to Connor.

That second one was going to be harder to do. Or he thought it was until he found out Nick was dead. So now he had to find a way to confess without losing Connor as a friend.

"So,"

Stephen's thoughts were interrupted. He turned his attention to Connor.

Connor had some blankets and a pillow in his hand. He put them on the couch with a smile.

"I'm sure you are tired and what not. So I'll sleep here," Connor said, pointing to the couch, "And you can have my room."

Connor pointed to the room next to Lester's room. Stephen raised an eyebrow.

"I'll sleep out here. You should sleep in your room." Stephen said as he shook his head.

"Yeah, but you've probably been sleeping in caves and in grass or something like that. You should sleep in a bed on your first day back." Connor said with a smile.

Stephen thought about it. It was true. Stephen couldn't remember the last time he had a good night sleep. A full sleep without worrying about being eaten in the middle of the night.

"I have missed sleeping in a bed…" Stephen said a bit in thought.

"Besides, the walls are thin. And Lester snores like a brachiosaurus." Connor said with a goofy smile.

"I heard that!" came Lester's voice from his room.

Connor winced.

"I meant it in a good way?" Connor said hoping that Lester believed that.

He turned to Stephen.

"See? Thin walls." Connor said with a laugh.

Stephen couldn't help but laugh with the young man.

"So I'll sleep on the couch." Connor said with a yawn.

He plopped down on the couch. He fluffed up his pillow before grabbing the blanket. Stephen watched with a smirk.

"We should go to bed now. Lester likes getting to work early, so no one sees me riding in his car." Connor said as he began to get comfy on the couch.

"Are you going to sleep in your clothes?" he asked with a raised eyebrow.

Connor froze before looking embarrassed.

"Give me a moment." the young man said before jumping off the couch and running to his room.

Stephen couldn't help but shake his head as he laughed.

It wasn't long until Connor came back out. He wore a white tank top and black trousers.

"If you need clothes, there are some in my closet. Some of them are Lester's so they'll probably fit you." Connor said, yawning before plopping back down on the couch.

Stephen smirked.

"What?" Connor asked blinking.

"I usually sleep naked."

Connor's face flushed slightly.

"Ah...well never mind then." he said.

Stephen chuckled at the response.

"Well, nity night then." Connor said, laying down and pulling the covers up.

"Night." Stephen said with a snicker.

He began to head towards the room.

"I'm…" Connor started, making Stephen stop and turn towards the young man.

Connor had his back to Stephen as he laid on the couch.

"I'm happy you're back." Connor said, before turning around and giving Stephen a warm smile.

Stephen felt his heart skip a beat. He couldn't help the smile.

"I'm happy to be back too. Good night Connor."

Connor smiled before getting back into his comfortable position.

"G'night."

(End of Chapter One)


So, that is the end of the first chapter. I know, very long. I am going to make each chapter long. I figured the show is an hour long, why not have long chapters? Well, I have this story outlined and so that being said; I know what I'm doing for once. I hope you guys enjoyed this and please review!