Kick up the leaves and the magic is lost

by Onigami Nanashi

Follows the group through the series and after. Warnings for some gore, slash, threesomes, Helen bashing. StephenNickConnor. Spoilers through ep 6

Title: Kick up the leaves and the magic is lost

Author: Onigami/Lorne

Fandom: Primeval

Rating: Mature- language, threesomes (m/m/m), some gruesome bits.

Warnings: Threesomes, slash, Helen bashing.

Nick scanned the newspaper article title quickly and sighed as he handed the clipping to Stephen.

"Monster Hoax or Truly Beastly?"

Stephen met Nick's disbelieving glance with one of his own, which the young student misinterpreted.

"Oh, nononono, this- this is the real thing," Connor snatched the article back.

"Connor, you should get out more, go to a bar, meet a nice girl." Nick said, not unkindly. "Life'll seem a lot less confusing."

"I've already got a girlfriend… sort of. It- that's not really the point." Connor insisted. "There's an eyewitness who claims to have seen it."

"People claim to have seen the Loch Ness monster, who doesn't mean to say it's there."

Connor frowned. "Not now, obviously. Cause it died years ago. The government took the body away and they covered the whole thing up."

"This is just a hoax. Forget it." Nick turned away.

"Your wife wouldn't have ignored it." Connor threw back, grasping at straws.

"Nick Cutter, don't you dare ignore me!" Helen ran after the tall man.

"And what, pray tell, will you do if I continue to ignore you Helen Cutter?"

"Now, I might get distracted and decide that I really don't like Cutter as my surname." Helen arched an eyebrow at her husband of three days.

"Oh, you might get distracted?" Nick swept the woman up into his arms and leaned in close. "I'll just have to think of ways to keep you interested then…"

"My wife was a serious scientist. She wasn't some gullible… monster hunter." Cutter snapped, memory fleeing.

"Sorry." Connor muttered, sheepish.

"It's okay."

"I just thought you might… might check it out, that's all. It's not like the Forest of Dean's far away, though," the student tried again unabashedly.

"The Forest of Dean?" Nick repeated, shaking his head at the overly innocent TA standing off to the side.

"If we leave now, we can be there by lunch." Stephen offered helpfully, grinning at his mentor.

Nick sighed and resigned himself to investigating the allegations of monsters in the Forest of Dean.

Connor scampered ahead of the older men and reached the edge of the parking lot, only to turn sheepishly back to follow Nick to another lot and his truck. As Nick unlocked the doors, Connor stood by the front door and smirked at Stephen.

"Shotgun."

The TA rolled his eyes and bodily yanked the other man back to stand by the backdoor. "Not a chance."

Connor hopped in the backseat, not really caring one way or another which seat he was in, and resisted the urge to run fingertips over the shoulder that Stephen had grabbed.

The other man brooded out the front window as Nick drove.

"Helen, don't tell me you're serious."

"Am I ever not serious?" Helen glanced over at her passenger, eyes sparkling.

"Do I even need to answer that? You really want to go to the Forest of Dean for a picnic? The bloody Forest of Dean for a picnic?" He stared at the woman, half amused, half worried.

"Are you really so against going? We don't have to- if you really don't want to." The car slowed, and Stephen shook his head quickly.

"No, love, I'm just taking the mickey." Stephen kissed the woman on the cheek. "I think it sounds …interesting, to say the least."

Helen shot him a bright grin that almost dispelled the uneasiness that the woman herself brought.

Connor watched the two men, so self assured and confident in their actions. Stephen could make one move, and Nick would be there at his back to cover his six, or the other way around, and there'd be no hesitations. Connor watched them watch out for each other, every so often turning their heads a little too much so they could make sure the other was safe.

Once separated, however, accidents seemed to follow the two men around like the plague. Stephen had been concussed by the Gorgonopsid in the schoolhouse, and Nick by Captain Ryan in the Permian era. Connor watched them again, pretending not to see the way Nick's hands fluttered helplessly around Stephen's head, trying to make sure the other man was okay.

Nick nursed the lukewarm tea between his hands. What a day… Past, present. Helen, Stephen… He shoved aside that thought before it could begin to take hold. That was not something he should be thinking. He was jolted out of his thoughts by a noise somewhere in his office. Frowning, he picked up the mug and carried it with him into the main room.

"Hello?"

A slightly squishy noise caught his attention, making him frown more and look down. He blinked. Then stared. Then blinked again. An ammonite… a live ammonite… was sitting on his desk. He stared some more. Then another noise made his head whip up. Nick dropped the now-cold mug of tea, ignoring the smash of broken pottery as he turned and ran up and out into the night.

"Hello? Who's there?" Nick kept running, following the footsteps he could only just hear.

He came to a sudden stop, nearly colliding with the railing that arced over the footbridge. He gripped the railing tightly, scanning the dark as best he could. An ammonite… He still tried to wrap his mind around it. Then his mind almost shut down. Helen…

She stood under a street lamp, arms folded across her chest. And Nick knew, he knew, that she would be smiling that smug smile. The one that told him that she knew he would come running to her.

He shook off the slightly bitter feeling and ran back to his office. Hurriedly, he pulled out his cell phone and dialed Stephen's number.

"Stephen? It's Nick."

"Ni- do you know what time it is? Is everything ok?" Stephen rolled over in bed, scrubbing at his face, wondering if the tentative hold his advisor had on reality had completely slipped.

"Everything's fine Stephen. Helen's alive. She was here, in my office." Nick paced back and forth, frantically searching the dark windows for another sign of his wife.

Stephen sat up, heart pounding. "She's alive? She went to see you?"

"Yeah, she was in my office," Nick said again, excitedly. "I was right. She is alive!"

Stephen tried to ignore the slow burn of anger at Nick's words. Helen had gone to him, to Nick. The husband she had belittled and mocked, even as she decried any bad word from others about the man.

"…Stephen? You still there?" Nick asked.

"Yeah. I'm here. That's great Nick. I'm glad Helen's back. But I've gotta go." He hung up, shutting Nick's happiness in the phone. Not that he was mad Nick was happy, but the source of the man's happiness irked him. Helen- who'd fucked with the man's head and made herself the center of his world. Helen who'd laughed at Nick from Stephen's bed, who'd left Nick so suddenly that even three months after her disappearance, he still called her cell to ask what she wanted for dinner.

Nick had looked for years to find the woman, fully convinced she was alive. Even eight years after her disappearance he looked, never convinced that she was dead, never convinced that she could have left him of her own free will.

Stephen looked too, as quietly frantic in his own right. They'd never found her, but maybe they'd found something better.

"Look, Ni- he's got to be trapped, okay? I'm gonna go back there." Stephen paced frantically, still high from the adrenaline rush.

"No one goes anywhere until we know what we're dealing with." Claudia folded and unfolded the map and stared at it uselessly while Stephen and Abby ran in circles waiting for permission to do something useful.

"He could be injured."

"I don't want to leave him down there any more than you do." Claudia said even as she imposed measures to keep Nick trapped down in the sewers. Stephen and Abby argued futilely with the stubborn woman until she stalked off to confer with Captain Ryan.

"I can't leave him in there." Stephen said tightly to the blonde woman.

"You can't go down there without backup."

"Watch me." With that, the man dashed off to the sewer entrance, with nothing more than the map Claudia had stuffed into his hands, several half-formed plans, and a strong desire to find Nick.

Abby paced at the surface level, stewing as Claudia told her off for not keeping Stephen under control.

"Connor!" She ran towards the laptop-bearing student and hugged him fiercely. "Stephen and Nick are in the sewers and no one knows where they are, and we need you to identify a monstrous centipede."

Stephen looked up to find Helen looming over him, shining a flashlight onto and off of his face.

"H- Helen…" he stammered, reaching a shaking hand out to the woman. "'m I dead?"

She laughed, though there was little humor in her voice. "No. You're not dead. More's the pity for that."

He frowned and tried to sit up, to reach her and cried out as the centipede bite throbbed. Helen laughed again, and backed away.

"Tut tut, now Stephen. None of that. You're not dead, so it's not fair to try and take me for yourself." She wagged a disapproving finger at him.

"Stephen!!" Nick's yell echoed faintly through the sewer.

Helen glanced up towards the source of the noise, and quickly turned her attention back to the man lying on the floor. "Tell Nick… Tell Cutter that I'm on the other side of the anomaly. Tell him that if he wants to know the truth, he'll have to come and find me. I'll be waiting for you." She blew the shocky man a kiss and left.

"Stephen!!"

The assistant fell back, coughing as Helen disappeared and Nick rushed into view. The older man immediately made his way to Stephen and cradled his head gently.

"What happened?"

"I had an argument with the bug… the bug won." Stephen forced through gritted teeth as he convulsed, trying to make light of the situation.

"Where is it though?" Nick watched helplessly as his student trembled and jerked on the floor, venom wreaking havoc on his body. He didn't say anything as Nick waited for an answer. "Alright, let's get you out of here."

"Hey! I can't feel anything in my legs." Stephen gave in to panic as Nick reached down to haul him to his feet.

"Yea-that's shock. Here, take this." The professor thrust his torch into the other man's trembling hands as he steadied them both and staggered to the exit.

"There's something I have to tell you."

"Ah, you're not dying. It can wait." Nick retorted, a thousand things running through his mind.

"Helen's alive!" Stephen exclaimed, trying to wrap his own mind around the concept. "She was here. She gave me a message."

"What's the message?"

"She's waiting on the other side of the anomaly. She said…" Stephen swallowed painfully, "She said if you want to know the truth, you'll have to go and find her."

Nick whirled around in a blaze of actions and emotions, trying to both ignore and make sense of this new revelation. A small action of the event filtered through to a conscious level as Nick sat in front of the anomaly and brooded on his life. A flash of Connor attacking the Arthropleura with a bar stool and sending the giant centipede into an electricity main played in the shimmering light of the anomaly. He wanted to both comment the student for his actions and shake him for putting himself in danger- espeically when there was no need. Captain Ryan would have been perfectly able to handle the situation had he been given the chance.

He shook himself and thought back on Stephen's words. Helen was alive, and not some figment of his imagination. She wanted him to find her, to bend to her will, as he had done throughout their marriage. The anomaly beckoned to him, whispering that Helen could be found just beyond it's surface.

His concentration on the anomaly, and Helen broke as Connor approached, awkwardly and raised a hand in greeting. "Hi." He sat next to the older man without waiting for an invitation and breathed a deep sigh.

Nick looked over, and waited for Connor to speak.

"I… um… does this mean I'm back in?"

"Any way we can keep you out?" Nick asked, teasing slightly.

"I just wanna help." Connor said earnestly.

"You did a good job." He watched in amusement as the student turned away for a victory moment, and scoffed at himself as an affectionate smile slipped onto his face.

"Oh, god. You know what, all me life I've wanted to be in a crime busting gang. And now I am. So… I don't suppose you'll consider giving me a cool nickname would you?" Connor watched the older man out of the corner of his eye, hoping to see the brooding look dissapear.

"No." Nick relaxed at the familiar banter.

"I thought not." Connor smiled brightly and left the man to his thoughts again.

And such thoughts they were. Helen was back, but the eight years he should have had to build a relationship with her were spent building a relationship with his lab assistant, who in some ways was closer to him than Helen had ever been. Or the young student who took the role the lab assistant had taken, eight years ago.

Connor whistled jauntily as he exited the station and made his way back to the hospital. If making a fool out of himself could get half a smile from the older man, he'd stay a jester for the rest of his life. He pushed aside any personal feelings about the relationship between Abby and Stephen as he located the man's room. He found Abby still holding vigil at Stephen's bedside, though they all had been assured the man was no longer in danger.

He approached the bed and looked for a long while at Stephen, Abby asleep in the chair next to his bed.

"Abby," he said softly. "Abby, you should go home and get some sleep."

She stirred in the chair and blinked at him blearily. "Connor? Wha-?"

"Come on. I'll take you home." Connor knelt next to Abby's chair and rested his fingertips on the hem of her pants.

"You don't have a car."

Connor frowned. "Details… Details…"

"You can drive my car, just answer some questions for me." Abby uncurled from the chair and winced as blood flowed again to numb limbs.

"Yeah, anytime. What do you need to know?" He led the two out of the hospital and down to Abby's car.

Abby sat slumped in the front seat of her mini as Connor navigated the peak hour traffic. Connor occasionally flicked his eyes away from the road to look at her. Abby lifted her head and met his eyes.

"He called me 'Helen'," she said softly, voice slightly hurt, and hugged her knees to her chest.

Connor blinked, then swore as the car behind him honked, "Helen? But… isn't that Cutter's wife's name?"

Abby nodded dispiritedly, thoughts on Stephen, and told Connor about the delirious hours between Stephen's admittance to the hospital and the activation of the antivenom.

"He kept talking in his sleep… I thought he was awake. He was looking right at me. Kept…" Abby blushed and dropped her voice, mumbling into her knees. "Kept telling me he loved me, but then he would call me Helen."

Connor shook his head. "I… I'm probably not the best person to ask about this. I usually end up putting my foot in my mouth…" He swung into a parking place in front of Abby's building and shut the engine off.

Abby sighed. "It's okay Connor. I was just… venting. Thanks for the lift." She flashed a tired smile and climbed out of the car.

"You're welcome." He shifted from foot to foot as Abby eyed him.

"How were you planning on getting home?" She asked, taking her house keys out.

The dark haired man opened his mouth to reply, realized he didn't have an answer, and shut his mouth again to grimace sheepishly.

"Come crash on the couch. I'll take you by your flat tommorrow and you can get clothes."

Connor smiled gratefully and took her at her word, flopping on the sofa, asleep in minutes. Abby followed suit a few minutes after that, and both spent a dreamless night grateful to be horizontal in bed.

Stephen, a few miles away, wasn't having the same luck. He shivered, wide eyes darting feverishly around the room as vivid recollections of his time with Helen came back to haunt him

"What?!" Stephen looked at Helen incredulously, "You can't seriously be asking me to do that?!"

"Why is it so hard to believe? You love me… I know you do," she traced her hand up his cheek.

"But…" Stephen could feel his resolve weakening, "But… it's Nick's office!" he protested weakly.

Helen leaned in close, body pressed up against Stephen's, making him shiver, and whispered in his ear, "If you loved me… you would…" she pulled back, eyes wide, "Don't you love me, Stephen?"

"You know I do Helen," Stephen mumbled, eyes unhappy. "He's my advisor. That's his office. It's just… a little weird, you know?"

"I do know, love." Helen said, turning to pick the lock and smirking while one victory turned into two as the young man, her lover, followed her into her husband's office and the door clicked shut behind them.

Abby and Connor returned to the hospital the next morning to find the older man awake and packing his few belongings.

Connor shoved down a wave of irritation as Abby twirled around, showing off the completely impractical but thoroughly feminine skirt she had taken the better part of an hour to decide on, and both stared in shock at Stephen as he left.

"Girlfriend? Since when? Girlfriend?" Connor mouthed at Stephen's retreating back.

"Well, so much for the girl thing," Abby sighed and hoisted herself up onto Stephen's now-vacant bed.

"I… I think you look nice." Connor said slowly, compliment awkward in his mouth.

She huffed half a laugh at him, and he was suddenly reminded why he didn't compliment women. He stared out he window and watched people pass by.

"That's it." Abby announced, standing up suddenly. "I am going to go get drunk off my ass. Coming?" She looked over her shoulder and raised an eyebrow.

The dark haired man nodded and followed her through the store and back to her flat, gathering cups and digging a bag of pretzels out of her cupboards. She plonked the full bottle in the middle of the floor and sat cross-legged in front of her couch.

"Cheers." They toasted, and set about the serious business of drinking for the sole purpose of getting completely sloshed.

"I may or may not be in love with Stephen." Abby slurred slightly.

"Ask me what it's like, I'll be able to let you know what it feels like."

Abby blinked. "I think I may be more drunk than I think I think I am, but I think you just told me you were in love with Stephen?"

"The fuckin' Captain Kirk of the starship Evolutionary Zoology."

"What?"

"What?"

"Did Stephen sleep with Nick's wife?"

"Ask him yourself Abby." Connor giggled. "-by. Ab-by."

They both sat, caught in a fit of the giggles for a few moments until Connor recovered enough to say, "I don't know."

"Know what?"

"Well, there's not much I don't know."

"What don't you know? Don't confuse me. I'm drunk."

"If Stephen slept with Helen."

"Oh."

"I want to. Not sleep with Helen, I mean," Connor amended hastily. "Sleep with Stephen. Why aren't you in love with him? You should be."

"I don't know… He reminds me of my older brother. It's kind of weird, actually. I don't think I'm in love with him. Have at it. He is good looking, though."

"Thanks," Connor retorted dryly.

"Anytime."

As Connor and Abby worked their way steadily through their bottles of alcohol, Nick brooded into his own glass.

Stephen had called him just before his release from the hospital, just to reassure the other man, and perhaps himself, that though the world had shifted on its axis, it hadn't ended. Helen had done what she always had done… Shown up at the most inopportune moments, wreaked havoc and left.

Nick looked up from his paperwork as he saw Helen's familiar form looming over his desk, "Helen, sweetheart, please…" some part of him hated the pleading note in his voice.

"But Nick," came Helen's smooth voice, "Husbands are supposed to treat their wives right. Supposed to wine and dine them. You haven't done that in weeks, Nick."

"I know, love, I know…" Nick raised his eyes to Helen's, where she stood looking down at him like he was a naughty dog, "I'll make it up to you, I promise. But the grant applications need to be in soon…"

Helen bulldozed over the top of him, "I'm starting to think I'm unloved, Nick."

"No, sweetheart, you know I love you," the pleading tone was back in his voice.

"Do I, Nick?" Helen looked down at him, before bending down to his level, "If you really loved me, you'd treat me like a queen."

"Damnit Helen!" Nick snapped, at the end of his rope. "You know I do! You know it."

Helen stared at the man, hands coming up to cover her mouth.

"Three days I needed. Three days to write the applications so I keep my job. Why choose now of all times to demand my full and undivided attention?"

"I- I'm your wife, Nick. I thought I deserved better." Helen said with a sob. She whirled around and ran out of the room, tears streaming down her face.

"Helen, wait! Helen!" Nick ran after the woman, grant applications abandoned on his desk. With Helen's back to him, he also missed the sly smile that curved her lips, even as the tears rolled down her cheeks.

Stephen snickered as Helen and Claudia had it out in the stadium's kitchen, warring with words, each trying to claim dominance over the situation. Helen won the final hand, and the soldiers stood at ready as Nick and Ryan prepared to open the fridge doors. As they opened, all those on the other end tensed and prepared for any eventuality. He lunged for Connor, grabbing a pot just before it connected with the shorter man's head as the anomaly exerted its pull.

He smirked again, mentally wondering how many times he could pull the student out of danger before he couldn't anymore, and told Connor, "This is where you duck," before releasing the pot.

The soldiers relaxed marginally as nothing came through the anomaly, but a flurry of motion preceded Helen's mad dash to the anomaly as they scrambled to extract all the meat pies that would have otherwise acted as bait for the cats.

Stephen and Nick shouted, lunging towards the woman, but she danced nimbly through the shimmering anomaly and was gone.

Ryan ran through after her, gun at the ready. Several more soldiers grabbed Nick as he tried to follow the pair. He struggled in their grasp, but they held tight to the professor. Stephen met his advisor's eye for a moment, and nodded imperceptibly. Nick nodded back, and the younger man dashed through the anomaly after Helen and Ryan.

Stephen stood in awe as anomalies shimmered all around him. Ryan nudged him, and they returned back to give their reports to the rest. Stephen kept his eyes down, unable to meet Nick's eyes after failing to bring Helen back. The older man squeezed Stephen's shoulder briefly.

"You tried. She made her choice," he murmured quietly. "Thank you."

Stephen looked up in surprise and nodded. "I'm sorry, though."

"So'm I. Let's go find the others."

All the scientists were unable to keep stupid grins off their faces during the big Dodo roundup, as the birds squawked and scrabbled their way through the kitchen. Nick had the group herded to a small office, where he sat playing with them until the last were returned. As the last Dodos were brought in, the rest of the group watched the birds explore.

Connor and Abby stood at the front of the group and watched Nick laugh. Stephen walked up after finishing a final sweep of the kitchen, and casually rested a hand on Connor's shoulder. The dark haired man looked back in surprise, but accepted the touch, leaning ever so slightly into the other man's touch.

Nick looked up from playing with the Dodos and saw Stephen and Connor standing too close together and felt something in his chest clench. He frowned at that, and turned all his attention back to the birds.

Abby glanced back and did a double take, smiling at the two before the group dispersed to herd the Dodos back through the anomaly. She found herself next to Stephen, and glanced at him curiously. He glanced back before turning to divide his attention between the bird in front of him, and Connor, standing across the room, playing with one of the kitchen's pots.

"I see Connor's moved in." He murmured.

"Just until he finds a new place," Abby said hastily, not sure who she was reassuring, herself or the man.

"Stephen. Just because, um, me and Connor stripped to our underwear, doesn't mean there's anything going on." She blushed as he looked at her like she'd grown a second head.

"…That didn't come out the way I meant it." She mentally kicked herself.

Nick worked through the search, mind half occupied by the task at hand, and half occupied by Helen's predicament. Connor worked feverishly to find his friend before the parasite killed him. Stephen worked alongside, just as hard, unable to offer moral support, but hoping that if he worked hard enough and fast enough, he wouldn't have to.

All three men tore to the lab, where Abby was performing an autopsy on the large bird only to find her and the Dodo missing. They, and the military contingent raced to the stadium following the transmitter, and found Abby pinned to the ground by Tom.

Connor ran down to the field and stood defiantly in front of the guns defending Tom as he talked to his friend even as the others yelled for him to get out of the way. Stephen swore under his breath as Connor forced himself into a bad situation and in front of his gun.

"Tom, Tom… Let her go, mate." Connor said, afraid for both his friends' lives. He focused all his attention on the two people on the ground, oblivious to the problems he was causing for the people in the stands.

"Easy.. easy.. easy.." he soothed as Tom made another attempt to infect Abby. He looked down and started talking, anything that came to mind, thoughts of his personal safety gone.

"You remember Thursday nights, don't you? Battlestar Galactica… Blake 7… Pepperoni pizza." He laughed, sadly as Tom looked up, eyes blank.

"Connor?" Tom asked, recognition dawning in his eyes.

"Yeah. They were good times, weren't they? You can fight the Dark Side mate. You really can."

Tom looked at Abby, drawing in on himself as he listened to Connor's words, releasing Abby so she scuttled away and ran up to stand with Stephen.

"You too Connor, move away. He will kill you." Ryan ordered, gun still trained. Stephen aimed his gun as well, hating every moment that Connor was in his line of fire.

"No he won't. He's my friend." Connor said, tears in his eyes, kneeling next to Tom.

"You come with me. We can …uh. We can help you." Connor insisted, as Stephen and Nick watched from the stands, a gruesome parody of a spectator sport.

"It was a conspiracy, wasn't it Conn?" Tom asked, realizing the extent of his fate.

"Big time. Right to the top." The dark haired man answered, swallowing hard, trying to validate his friend's life.

"Is it any mind control?"

"Yeah."

"Brilliant. Brilliant." Tom murmured, more to himself than to Connor.

From the stands, Nick watched as Connor tried to pry one from death's hands. Watched as Connor talked his friend down from a twisted suicide attempt.

Tom's eyes glowed and he lunged for Connor. "Connor, back away!" Nick yelled, terrified that the student would be infected by Tom, no matter how hard the man tried to hold off the effects of the parasite.

"It's okay. You're okay." Connor soothed again as Tom sobbed silently into his shoulder, needing human contact. He rubbed circles on his friend's back, hating being so useless.

Tom pulled back. "They tried to take me over, but I fought them Conn. I fought them."

"You did a really good job." Connor said, fighting back tears, and trying to reassure his friend unconsciously echoing the words Nick had spoken to him in the sewers not that long ago.

"I'm a hero." The redhead nodded.

Connor nodded back as Tom shut his eyes tightly and died.

Nick ran down the stairs as everyone stood cluelessly, not having expected Connor to talk his friend down. The dark haired young man stood as he approached, a lost look on his face.

"I can't do this anymore." He said tightly, and Nick's heart broke at the anguish on Connor's face.

"Come here," Nick took his arm and led him away from his friend's body. "We need you."

"If I hadn't been involved, Tom would still be alive." The student denied.

"No." Nick shook his head. "There's a handful of people in the whole world who know what's going on here, what we're grappling with. That would have made his day. He'd've loved it. So you can't bail out now. Okay?" Nick searched Connor's eyes. You can't leave me, he added silently, willing him to see the message. We need the jester.

"Okay." Connor said, recognizing the truth. Tom would have loved hearing about his job, but even the thought of the redhead devastated him.

"C'mere." Nick pulled Connor into a hug. The student latched onto the comfort and breathed deeply, trying not to cry, but broke down as Nick rubbed his shoulders, offering more sympathy than he was prepared for and more human contact than he was used to.

Stephen watched Nick and Connor, watched as Nick hugged the young man close, something Stephen had never seen. Abby sniffed into his shoulder, and he patted her hand absently. Slowly he flicked the safety on his gun on and seriously contemplated his fleeting desire to shoot Nick. The older man had gotten everything that ever meant anything to Stephen. Everything that Stephen had ever wanted, whether he knew it or not. Nick had married Helen, had gotten the right- the privilege to live with her as her husband, to be open with his relationship. Stephen had gotten stolen kisses in dark alleys, and whispered endearments that Helen had laughed at.

And now it looked like Nick had gotten Connor too. Stephen watched Nick lead Connor out of the stadium hand still on the younger man's shoulder. Connor sniffed and nodded at something Nick said, as the professor looked up into the stands and immediately found his assistant standing there, watching him. Stephen smiled bitterly and resigned himself to the fact that he'd have to again steal kisses in dank alleys. Only, from Connor it wasn't just kisses that he wanted.

Stephen made his way out of the stadium, studiously not following Nick and Connor. He wanted the student, body and soul, which shook him deeply. Listening to his footsteps echo in the tunnel leading to the parking lot, he cursed Nick and Connor and Helen to every hell he could think of. And, unbidden, Connor's face flashed through his mind, the usually smiling face wracked with pain as he watched Tom's body being carried away.

Tom… Connor. The student had just lost his best friend, and there Stephen was, resenting the man who had the courage to comfort him. He scoffed at himself, and yet found himself standing on the stoop of Abby's apartment hours later, telling himself that he was a concerned colleague.

He knocked, and waited for the chirps of Rex to die down and Abby to answer the door. She scowled until it registered who was at the door.

"Oh, it you. Go on then. He's in the kitchen." She disappeared upstairs and Stephen picked his way through the apartment.

"Hi. Look," Stephen said awkwardly, "I just wanted to …make sure you were alright. See if you needed anything."

Connor stood at the sink and stared at the other man in shock.

"I'm not …the best at the," Stephen gestured vaguely. "At the talking thing. I just wanted to make sure you weren't alone or anything."

"I'm rooming with Abby…" Connor's hands trembled slightly.

"Ah, right. I knew that. I just didn't know… if she'd be here. But she is. So I guess I'll be going now." Stephen turned.

"I- I'm glad you came." Connor gave a half smile. "Means a lot."

Stephen waved a hand. "See you tomorrow."

Tomorrow turned into next week as Connor skillfully avoided both men, hiding at Abby's and annoying her while trying not to think about anything. Tom. Stephen. Nick.

The third day of Connor's self-imposed exile Nick sat in his office and brooded over the files relating Tom's death. Connor accepted his help, but disappeared straight after. He heard a noise from the back of his office and Helen strolled into view.

"Hello Nick," she said throatily.

"Helen." Nick acknowledged, looking up briefly from the papers.

"Awful what happened to that Terry… Tyler… Trevor kid." She remarked, moving around to the other side of Nick's desk and sitting on the edge too look over the files.

"What do you want Helen?" Nick asked, flipping to the next folder. Helen fingered the picture clipped to the folder of Connor, Tom, and Duncan and canted her head at her husband.

"I think I'm being replaced. It was always you and Stephen, but now instead of me, it's Connor. You replaced me with that annoying brat. Nick. You replaced me!" She shouted, slapping him across the face. "I'm your wife and you replaced me with a selfish snot nosed brat who at this very moment is probably trying to get into that blonde tramp's pants."

Nick stood and stared at his wife. "What did you want me to do Helen? I looked for you for eight years. For seven and a half of those years people told me I was looking fruitlessly. That you were dead. And I kept looking. And then… And then I found you."

Helen ran her fingertips gently down Nick's face, the side that she slapped. "You found me, and you can have me forever. "I'll come back. And we can go through the anomaly together."

Nick gaped for an answer, but a knock at the door saved him from having to commit one way or another, and in the short time that it took to admit the student, Helen had disappeared.

Across town, a couple of nights later, Stephen sighed as he picked up his carry-out order of Chinese and made his way back outside to his car. Unlocking the doors, he started and dropped his box of chow mein on the driver's seat as Helen smiled up at him from the passenger's seat.

"Helen- what the hell? How did you get into my car?" Stephen shoved his dinner to the floor at Helen's feet and slid into the driver's seat.

"Why, Stephen, I'm hurt. I come all this way to see you, and you don't even say hi. The first thing you say is an accusation." Helen pouted.

"Sorry lo- You just scared me is all." Stephen glanced out of the corner of his eye at the woman who had her feet propped up on the dashboard. "Why are you here, though? Out of genuine curiosity."

"I can't just come to see you?" The woman studied Stephen. "I really did come just to see you. And to say that, when I come again, you can come back with me. Just the two of us. Wherever- whenever we want to go, we can. We'll leave all this behind and just go live."

Before Stephen could look over and judge her seriousness, Helen had opened the car door and slipped out into the night.

Nick and Stephen kept a tense truce between the two, neither suspecting that the other was dealing with the same issues. As the reports of a new anomaly came down, the two men moved in complete opposite directions, still knowing exactly what the other would be doing despite the unease between them.

Nick phoned Connor and gathered the supplies they'd need from the office while Stephen stocked the truck and pulled up in front of the building just long enough for Nick to walk the last few feet and belt himself into the passenger's seat.

Once at the golf course, both watched, fearful for Connor's life as he attempted to outrun the flying lizard. Nick's fear for the student and his latent desire to keep all the creatures alive warred as he watched the red-crested dinosaur draw closer and closer to the human. His gut instinct and amazement at the lizard got the best of him, and he shoved Captain Ryan to the side even as Connor dove for a bunker and hunched down, inches away from it's claws.

The small group squabbled within itself and Connor jogged back up the length of the fairway, laughing in stark contrast to the foul mood the others were in.

He approached Nick and Stephen first, still high from the effects of the near miss and laughingly rested a hand on the man's shoulder.

"You silly arse." Nick growled at him and stalked off.

Abby followed him, and Stephen rounded on the student, who was looking around for Rex.

"What the hell were you thinking?! When we call you and tell you there's a new anomaly, you do not go wandering about in your stupid fucking hat with a lizard the size of an appetizer!" Stephen yelled, shaken more than he would have liked to admit that he thought he was witnessing Connor's last moments on earth.

"I- I'm sorry." Connor said, jovial mood gone, staring at the other man's feet. Not thinking about Tom or Stephen or Nick had led to a lot of not-thinking in general.

"You're sorry? Is that all you can say?" Nick demanded, returning from his chat with Abby. "Oh good lord Connor. You told me you wanted to be on this team more than anything else. Why the hell don't you start acting like it?"

"I- look- I'm really sorry. And anyway," Connor paced a few steps in front of the men. "I didn't want to come back this soon anyway!" He yelled back, anger giving him the courage to give as good as he got.

"You can't hide-"

"No. Just shut up for a minute." Connor said, rounding on his professor. "I am not hiding, nor did I want another couple of days off because I want to keep hiding, as you put it. My best friend just fucking died in my arms because of this job. So excuse me for not wanting to be here for a couple of days. Just because I'm keeping this job doesn't mean that I want to be here right now."

The dark haired man glared at the other two and stalked off to find Abby and join the hunt for the winged lizard.

"What the hell were you thinking?" Abby demanded as he caught up with the woman. He sighed in resignation and looked over.

"No, I am done with being yelled at today. So we are going to pretend that my name is Connor Temple and I am the stupid idiot who let Rex out, and nearly got him eaten by a flying dinosaur thing. We are going to ignore completely the fact that I actually am Connor Temple, the idiot who just lost his best friend, and who is in love with two people completely out of his reach. I am going to flirt badly and not think." Connor stalked over to a tree and banged his head against it a few times before sighing deeply looking back over to Abby. "Sorry… I don't… I'm not usually like that."

"It's okay. Really." Abby smiled over at him. "I expect to see really bad flirting."

Connor smiled despite himself, and the two tromped off into the woods to search for Rex.

Stephen breathed a sigh of relief as Connor took off into the woods to look for Rex, and he and Nick raced to find the Pteranodon. They regained some of the banter that had been missing for the years since Helen had gone missing, and Nick tried not to stare too much as Stephen sacrificed his undershirt to attract the attention of the giant lizard and pulled his long sleeved shirt back over bare skin. Both men smirked as Claudia took a Pteranodon beak to the face and Nick found himself smiling a little too long at the other man. Hurriedly, he knelt next to the woman and made sure she was still alive.

Nick took a seat in his apartment after the release of the Pteranodon through the anomaly and thought hard about the complexities of his life. Namely, the people revolving through it. Connor, Stephen, Helen, Claudia.

With Connor, there was no fear that every word would be recorded and sent back to Home Office, or that every action would be used against him. There was no fear at all, really. Claudia had been a stark contrast to Helen, and he allowed himself to use that, to get himself through the latest crisis. He'd kissed her, maybe to convince himself that he could go back to a normal life. That he didn't want to be in love with Stephen and Connor.

Both men knew his darkest secret, and neither held it against him. They'd both met his darkest secret, who in fact didn't appear to be missing, and outwardly, neither still held it against him.

Claudia. He didn't truly want Claudia, but he did worry for the woman's safety. She and Connor weren't trained for the types of things they were dealing with. Connor never panicked, though. Maybe took a little too long to act, but never gave in to blind panic as the woman had. Nick scoffed at himself, and tried to stop comparing them to one another. Helen had saved Claudia, for whatever twisted reason.

Which led to more problems as the woman kissed him in front of Helen, Stephen, and Connor, putting some sort of twisted territorial mark on him. Granted, he'd kissed back, but the woman was a really good kisser. Nick glanced over at his wife and caught a dark grin and knew he'd be getting the third degree when they made it through the anomaly. Which, in Helen's roundabout way meant making the whole situation about her. Nick grinned and trounced that belief- it had been a long time since he'd been kissed.

But Claudia and her kisses, as good as they were, weren't the reason Nick was going back. He let Helen think so, to fit her convenient thinking, and perhaps the two of them would finish each other off.

Helen followed the man through the anomaly, Nick dirty and exhausted from burying Captain Ryan, and trying to fend of Helen's advances and offers to stay.

"Captain Ryan didn't make and all his men are dead." Nick announced, heart twisting at the thought. "Whatever happens, nobody goes back through."

"Well, I'm sorry to break your new rule so soon, Nick, but I'm not staying." Helen made her way to the middle of the small group.

"So what did you come back through for?" Nick asked, entirely sure he wouldn't know the answer.

"Oh, just a little unfinished business." She eyed Stephen and smirked. The dark haired man stilled completely and hoped against hope that she was not going to bring up their past.

"You see Nick, it was just one of those things, I was lonely, and you didn't seem to care about me." Helen looked back and forth between Stephen and Nick, knowing she was lying between her teeth. "And Stephen was so… sweet and attentive." She mocked the younger man even as she used his actions against him.

"Shut up Helen." Stephen shook his head and mentally calculated the time it would take to reload his gun and shoot Helen and the time it would take the Special Ops teams to fill him full of bullets. Though, at the time, it seemed the prudent solution. Kill Helen and die in the process so he wouldn't have to face up to Nick.

"Oh, you mean you never told him? Oh, dear." Helen said, half laughing, sounding not at all concerned.

"What an extremely awkward moment." Lester remarked, completely oblivious to the tension in the air.

"You see, I don't want to be on my own anymore." Helen turned to focus solely on Stephen. "You once said you'd do anything for me if I gave you the chance. Well here it is. Come with me."

"Don't do this." Stephen pleaded, trying to look anywhere other than at the woman. Looking elsewhere, however, meant looking at Connor, who stood stock still absorbing the information. Stephen tried to send comforting thoughts to the young man, but his attention was diverted as Helen ran fingernails up his chest.

"Well, falling for one of your students is never a good idea. But, um, sometimes these things just happen, you know?"

"How could you keep that from me for so- so many years?" Nick demanded, shutting Helen out of the conversation completely.

"There was no point in saying anything. It was a long time ago. In the past." Stephen moved towards Nick, willing to do anything to be worthy of the man's forgiveness or the man himself.

"The past has a habit of coming back these days, doesn't it?" Helen intruded on the conversation. "Well? Are you coming?" She demanded of the taller man.

Stephen walked towards the woman and the anomaly, trying to ignore the stillness and silence from Connor and the betrayed look in Nick's eyes.

"You know, I'd forgotten Helen, sometimes you can be a real bitch." He moved close enough to see hope flicker in Helen's eyes, then scoffed and retreated back, shaking his head.

Helen turned and stalked through the anomaly, cast out by the rest of the group, though shattered, banded together enough to shut her out.

The departure of the woman seemed to be the cue for the stunned silence to break and everyone moved at once, Special Ops teams backing away to absorb the knowledge that they'd lost their Captain and three others.

"You had an affair with my wife?!" Nick whirled around and yelled at his lab assistant, grabbing him by the shirtfront and slamming him against a tree.

"I- Nick… I'm sorry." Stephen murmured, not looking at the angry man threatening him, but at his feet. "I didn't know"

"You didn't know she was my wife, or you didn't know you were having an affair?" Nick shook the taller man roughly and rather than feel satisfaction, felt a wave of remorse as Stephen's head smashed into the tree trunk.

"I was eighteen and stupid! She was a professor and gorgeous and took my ideas seriously and I didn't know better!"

"Hey! Stop that!" Connor ran up to the two men and tried, unsuccessfully, to pry them apart. Abby ran up beside him and each grabbed one of Nick's arms and pulled him away from the assistant. The blonde woman placed a hand against Nick's chest and walked him backwards away from the younger men. He went complacently, watching as Connor turned back and knelt next to Stephen.

"What the hell are you doing?" Abby yelled.

As the woman yelled, Connor tipped Stephen's head back gently. "Stephen? You alright, mate?" He watched as the shaggy head shook and dropped back down. "Hey, Stephen, look at me. Are you concussed? I need to check your eyes.

He blinked as Stephen opened his eyes, and the eyes revealed were full of tears. "That's not what I was looking for." He watched warily as Stephen stared up at him.

"I didn't know what was going on." He whispered hoarsely.

Connor nodded wordlessly as he absently ran his fingers through Stephen's hair checking for blood or any significant lumps.

Nick watched over Abby's shoulder as Connor murmured to Stephen and ran tender fingers through his hair. The woman followed his gaze, and her mouth fell open as she watched Connor run his fingers from the other man's hair to lightly brush over his cheekbone. She covered her open mouth with one hand, the other still holding Nick back, and broke into a pleased grin.

A noise behind made all four whirl around. The anomaly pulsed and their military contingent, forgotten in the drama, scrambled to take up defensive positions as the first signs of life started to come through. Connor offered a hand up to Stephen.

"You alright?"

Stephen nodded, back in the capable assistant, self-confident mindset. "Try not to get yourself killed, okay?" At Connor's nod, he ran off to the makeshift armory and took a position with the other armed men. Connor and Abby took a vantage point on top of the truck where they could see the creatures that came through and offer insight on whether they could be dangerous or not. He would have told himself that the vantage point was not so he could keep an eye on Stephen and Nick, but long ago made a promise not to lie to himself.

He pulled his laptop out as Nick armed himself and joined the group. As the first creatures entered the light of the landing zone, Connor strained to see what type of reptile they were dealing with. The first few, spaced out so he had time to examine them, required a short call of "herbivore" or "carnivore! Shoot it! Shoot it!" to alert the military members. Nick and Stephen needed no call, either shooting or backing off even before Connor could call out to the rest.

But as the minutes wore on, and the creatures kept coming, Connor had no time to distinguish between the creatures to warn the men with the guns. He could only watch in horror as the sheer mass and number of the creatures prevented the military from bringing their full force to bear and as man after man fell.

He was focused on Nick, watching as the man reloaded, mouthing "hurry, hurry, hurry," as a four-legged creature charged down on the man. Abby screamed, and he whirled around to find Stephen, only to not see the man anywhere.

"Where is he?" Connor grabbed Abby's arm and shook it. "Where is Stephen?!"

She pointed off to the edge of the light circle, where another of the smaller creatures crouched. It trilled a victory cry as a crumpled figure stirred slightly as it's feet. Connor felt his blood run cold as the creature grabbed the man by the legs and flung him into a tree twenty feet away.

"NO!" Connor yelled, jumping from the back of the truck, and winced as the landing jarred his back. He ran to the boxes full of guns and ammo, quickly selecting a rifle and dodged men and beasts alike to run to the other side of the clearing and Stephen. "Back off him, you great git! He's mine!"

The normally meek student aimed the rifle by pure instinct and fired, fuelled by adrenaline, bullets hitting home in the reptile's forehead and neck. Emptying the clip, Connor dropped the rifle and ran to Stephen.

The older man was stirring feebly again as Connor dropped to his knees. "I thought it was implicit in that agreement that you were not to get yourself killed either." Connor said, brushing stray hairs off Stephen's forehead. He surprised himself with the gestures, always wanting to be physically close with people, but not able to make the first move.

"Oh. Now you tell me." Stephen smirked. He opened his mouth to say something else, but something caught in his chest and he coughed, deep and hard, as he writhed in pain on the forest floor.

"Hey, hey, easy…" Connor hovered anxiously, now entirely unsure what to do. "Easy… Just try to take deep breaths, okay?"

Stephen shot the student a 'no duh' look as he struggled to bring his breathing under control. His eyes flicked up as a powerful flashlight shone onto the two men.

"Oh, my god," Abby breathed as she saw the full extent of Stephen's injuries. Connor frowned and scanned the rest of the injured man's body. What he saw hit him like a kick to the gut.

Stephen's jeans were ripped to shreds, giving a grisly preview of the skin below. Stephen's right kneecap was exposed as was most of his left shin. Connor gingerly peeled back Stephen's shirt and revealed a gash across the man's stomach and deep bruising on his ribs. He winced in sympathy even as he shimmied out of his own shirt to press against Stephen's stomach.

"Check…" Stephen swallowed. "Check femoral artery… Need to know… Been punctured?"

Connor ran his hands up and down the man's inner thighs, hating himself for enjoying some part of it, and held his palms up to the light. "No blood." He reported, putting pressure back on the worst gash again.

Abby stifled a sob as she watched Connor work. "We need to get him to a hospital." She said, voice remarkably steady.

"Yes, but we can't just leave," Connor protested. "Ni- There's still people here. Not to mention the dozens of dinosaurs that might cause a general panic if they get into the general public."

"We can take him, and drop him off at the emergency and then come back if we need to." Abby shook her head. "We have to take him."

Connor opened his mouth to protest again, when something grabbed his wrist. He started and pulled away, tipping Stephen on his side. "Oh my god! I'm so sorry."

The man shook his head, forgiving Connor despite being curled up in the fetal position, clutching his stomach. "'s okay. Nick can take care of himself. He'll be okay on his own for a while… And I won't mind admitting that I could use a shot of morphine."

The student nodded. "Okay. Okay." He eased a gentle hand under Stephen's shoulder and helped the other man up as gently as he could. "Abby, I need you to go get the truck, and bring it over here, as close as you can."

Abby shot a terrified glance over her shoulder where the men and the beasts still did battle.

"Abby. Here." Connor leaned Stephen back against the tree and darted to pick up Stephen's abandoned rifle. "Just point and shoot." He raided Stephen's pockets for the keys and handed both over. She took them and nodded resolutely and darted across the field. Connor watched her, terrified, for a moment, then turned back to Stephen.

He knelt again next to the man and checked the shirt. It was soaked through with blood and Connor cursed, wringing it out in a gross parody of a housewife. He reapplied the makeshift bandage and looked up for the first time to see Stephen watching him intently. "Nick's going to be okay, you know."

"Right now, it's not Nick I'm worried about, it's you." Connor retorted tightly. "Nick's not the one lying on the ground, making up orifices to bleed out of."

"Making up orifices to bleed out of?" Stephen repeated incredulously.

"It was the first thing I could think of. I don't react well under pressure." He looked back down to find Stephen still watching him.

"What? Have I got something on my face?" He swiped the back of his hand over his face, trying to remove any foreign substance without smearing blood at the same time.

Stephen shook his head very slightly. "You're fine under pressure," he said suddenly.

The two men waited in a companionable, if not quiet, silence, Connor keeping a wary eye on the battlefield as well as pressure on the other man's wound.

"Here!" Connor sat upright and waved frantically. "Abby's brought the truck over. I can't get you into the backseat by myself. Can you stand?"

"We'll see," Stephen retorted dryly. Connor tucked himself under Stephen's arm and braced the other man as they struggled to their feet.

Stephen's face was pale, and his jaw clenched as he swayed on his feet. Connor half dragged, and mostly carried the other man to the truck and propped Stephen up against the bed while he climbed into the backseat. He reached out and grabbed the injured man under the arms and hauled him up into the truck.

"Go!" Connor shouted at Abby, who obeyed without question, despite the fact that the back door was still open. He stared at the man at his arms, and his stomach clenched at the sight.

"Is he still alive?" Abby called back.

"Oh my god," Connor scrabbled for a pulse. "Yeah, he's alive Abby!" He swallowed back tears of gratitude. "I think he's passed out."

"Yeah, okay." The blonde woman gunned the engine as soon as she cleared the wooded area. "Hold on!"

"Shit, fuck. Hold on to what exactly? In case you hadn't noticed, I'm trying to keep Stephen from flying out of the car!" Connor yelled frantically.

"And I'm so grateful." Stephen said with a groan.

"Aren't we full of pleasantries today? Can we just get to the hospital in one piece please?"

Abby's only reply was to pull up in front of the emergency entrance and throw the truck into park. She ran inside and emerged, trailing a parade of nurses and doctors. They opened the door behind Connor and only a quick grab from a particularly beefy nurse saved him from a fall out of the truck.

The doctors gently untangled Connor and Stephen, the former unable to work him limbs properly, and the latter unconscious again from the sudden movements. The dark haired man watched helplessly as they loaded Stephen into a stretcher and took him away, leaving even the makeshift bandage on the floor.

Abby stood next to the student, and gripped his hand tightly.

"I don't want- I can't go back." He said brokenly. "I- but Nick." She nodded.

"I know." The woman hugged him tightly, just as desperate for comfort. "Look, I'll go get Nick, okay? Stay here with Stephen. While we were driving, it looked like things were almost done."

Connor pulled back enough to meet Abby's eyes. "You," he swallowed hard. "Thank you."

She stood on tiptoe and kissed his cheek gently. "I'll find you."

He watched the truck drive off and walked slowly into the emergency room, passing the crumpled heap of his shirt still on the floor. The last vestiges of him, tossed onto the floor, no longer helping to keep Stephen together.

"I… uh… I'm looking for Stephen. Stephen Hart. Can anyone help me?"

"The poor sod they just brought in? Ripped to hell?" A passing nurse stopped and watched Connor with worried eyes.

"Stephen Hart," Connor repeated firmly. "Not the 'poor sod', not the 'unlucky bastard'. Stephen Hart. Eighty times the man I will ever be. Where is he?"

"He, ah, he'll be in the back right now. Doctors'll be having a look at him. Why don't you sit down? You look like you could use it."

Connor nodded numbly and found an empty chair.

"Nick! Nick Cutter! Nick!!" Abby yelled, searching the crowd. "Nick Cutter! If you value your life at all, you will get your ass out here!"

"What Abby?" Nick asked irritably from behind.

"You have to come with me." Abby grabbed the professor's arm and dragged him over to the truck.

"No, I don't." Nick pulled free of her grasp. "I have things to take care of here."

Abby set her hands on her hips and glared. "If you want these relationships with Stephen or Connor to do anything except crash and burn, you will come with me.

"Stephen…" Nick breathed. "Connor. Are they alright? Where are they?"

Abby felt a momentary flash of triumph at the look of near panic in Nick's eyes.

"Connor's …fine. He's waiting at the hospital. Stephen.. We need to go." She pulled on Nick's arm again and stumbled as he willingly followed her to the truck.

"Connor. Are you okay?" Stephen rushed to his student. The dark haired man looked up, eyes dull, and Nick couldn't stop himself from cupping Connor's cheek. "What happened?"

"You attacked Stephen." Connor said, sitting perfectly still, not accepting and not pulling away from Nick's touch. He let his hand drop, awkwardly.

"I was angry Connor… I didn't mean to hurt him."

"But you did! So what are you going to do about it now?"

"Apologize. A lot. Hope he forgives me. Will you forgive me?" Nick held out a hand to forestall any comment. "I was mad, but it wasn't something I really should have been mad at Stephen for."

Connor stared straight ahead, as something unclenched, and he swallowed hard several times. "He- it- there was so much blood…" he whispered hoarsely.

"Are you hurt?" Nick asked gently, turning Connor's bloodstained hands over and examining them for injuries. "Why hasn't anyone looked at you yet? Gotten you cleaned up?"

"Abby." Connor blinked and peered up at her. "When did you get here? Nick?"

"I'm going to get Connor cleaned up. Will you…?" Abby nodded, understanding all the unspoken questions.

"Connor?" She knelt in front of his chair, and brushed the hair out of his eyes. "Nick's gonna take you to get cleaned up, and I'm going to go fine out about Stephen, alright?"

Connor nodded. "Alright." He accepted Nick's hand up and allowed the older man to guide him to the public restrooms. Both men stood around one of the porcelain sinks and Nick studied them in the mirror. Connor stared at his feet, or anywhere but up.

Nick took one of Connor's hands and rubbed it gently under the faucet, sluicing blood and dirt down the drain. The younger man stared, transfixed at the pink liquid, and Nick realized with a start that the student was crying silently. "Connor?"

He looked up, eyes red and tears still tracking down his skin. Nick's heart broke at the sight, so similar to the scene after Tom died. He reached out and again cupped Connor's neck, relishing in the feeling of a strong, if a little fast, heartbeat. Connor sighed and closed his eyes, shoulders shaking. Nick pulled the other man to him, soothing best as he knew how as Connor sobbed into his shoulder, hand at his side, fingers still dripping pale pink.

Abby paced in the waiting room, throwing nervous glances at the men's room periodically. Nick and Connor emerged after long minutes, Connor red eyed, but clutching Nick's hand like a lifeline. She stopped in front of the pair and eyed Nick. Her glare softened as she looked over to Connor. He smiled tremulously, and she reached out to squeeze his arm.

"The surgeons said that Stephen's going to be fine. It's going to be a long recovery, but he should recover fully."

Connor sagged in relief against Nick. The older man closed his eyes and sent a quick prayer to the skies.

"Can we see him?" Connor asked quietly, half afraid of the answer.

"For five minutes at a time only." Abby replied. "They don't want you 'tiring him out.' Not that I see how you could, but their rules… He's in a drug induced coma." She added quickly.

"A drug induced coma?" Connor looked up. "Isn't that used for traumatic head injury? Stephen didn't have a traumatic brain injury. Right?" He looked between the others. "He was lucid and talking to and- oh god. I thought he was acting weird. He's got a head injury, doesn't he?"

"What do you mean by 'acting weird'?" Abby demanded. "He was acting fine when I saw him last. Maybe finally coming to his senses, but otherwise, completely fine.

Nick frowned.

Connor stared at Abby. "Don't you realize that Stephen coming to his senses was the major sign of the head injury?"

Abby rolled her eyes. "Connor, I love you like a brother, but you're so dense sometimes."

"Stephen doesn't have a brain injury. They put him in the coma because there's so much damage and they decided that it would be safer to put him out completely than try and work pain medications. Anyway, just go see him. Talk to the nurse on duty and she'll tell you where to go."

Nick shot Abby a grateful look and gently pulled Connor towards the back. He spoke briefly with a matronly looking nurse and led Connor to a small room.

Both men watched in amazement as a machine breathed for the man and another kept track of his heartbeats. Connor was the first to react, breaking out of Nick's grasp, and darting inside the room only to stand in a corner and watch silently.

Nick followed at a more sedate pace and took up a position by Stephen's bed. Both watched desperately for some sign of life independent of the machines. As they watched, Connor slowly ventured out from the corner to stand at the end of the bed.

"Come sit down," Nick pulled another chair up. The dark haired man shook his head, fingers worrying the hem of the bedsheet.

The two stood vigil through several angry nurses and one spectacular argument between Abby and the head nurse. The blonde woman cajoled, sweet talked, threatened and flat out stubborned permission for the two men to stay.

And the men stayed. Three days while Stephen lay completely unconscious on the bed, and two more while he was slowly weaned off the drugs and went through periods of relative lucidity. One or the other would slip away for half hours at a time to shower, or eat, but neither liked being away from the other men for long.

Stephen groaned and opened his eyes slightly, and blinked as they started to water from the harsh brightness of the fluorescent lights. He looked from side to side, not recognizing the pale walls, but recognizing the shaggy head pillowed on a jacket on the edge of his bed, and the bright eyes looking back at him.

Nick looked up quietly as Stephen groaned and looked over, the younger man had been going through periods of seeming-consciousness for the past two days but never staying awake for long. He smiled softly as Stephen focused on him.

"Hey," he said quietly, not wanting to disturb Connor, who'd finally gone to sleep after five days. The amount of coffee in his system was likely to do permanent damage to his kidneys.

"Hey," Stephen ended up mouthing back, intubation tube and lack of use taking their toll on his voice.

"Hang on… I should… You know, here." Nick gently shook Connor. "Hey. Connor, hey. Stephen's awake. I'm gonna go get a doctor. You stay here and talk to him." The professor shot a troubled smile at Nick and left the room.

Connor shifted so he was resting his chin on his hands, still half lying on the bed. "You gonna stay awake any longer this time?"

"What happened?" Stephen asked, voice still nonexistent. He rolled his eyes and huffed in annoyance and grimaced as the motion jarred injures.

"What happened?" Connor guessed, and answered at the man's nod. "Well, I guess that depends on what you remember. Cause there's a lot that happened." The student rambled, not wanting to broach any number of subjects. "There was the anomaly-"

He broke off as Nick entered the room, trailed by a doctor. "Well, Mr. Hart, it seems that you may be staying with us this time for a bit longer than we've been used to." The doctor bustled around the room taking readings and blood samples, and handing Nick a small cup of ice chips. "Don't let him move too much and if you need anything else, just let us know. Everything seems to be in tip top shape for now."

Connor made a face at the doctor as he left the room. "Tip top shape?" he repeated, sounding disgusted. "I think my grandmother said that in the dark ages."

Nick approached with the cup and clumsily fished one of the chunks out, offering it to Stephen with the least amount of contact that he could.

"Thanks." Stephen forced out, voice still mostly gone, but a strange combination of not-there, rasp, and croak. "What happened?"

"What's the last thing you remember?" Nick asked, voice flat as if he was giving a lecture.

"The anomaly…" Stephen croaked, mind racing. He accepted another ice chip. "How long have I been out?"

"A week? Almost a week?" Connor guessed, looking at Nick for verification. The other man only nodded curtly. "A week or so, then." He finished awkwardly.

None of the men made any move to speak after that, until Connor jumped up, startling both of the other men, Stephen hissing as he jarred his leg again, and Nick jumping as well. "I'm gonna go call Abby… Make sure she knows…" He waved his hands around vaguely, realizing that the other two men needed to talk.

Stephen stared at the departing man like he was a lifeline, almost afraid to be alone with Nick.

"Look, we'll talk when you're better, alright?" Nick let out in one breath when the door shut behind Connor.

"Sure." Stephen said dully.

In the hall Connor slumped against a wall, cell phone forgotten, as he thought back on the looks passed between Nick and Stephen and wondered how the two would get past this… If they ever did.

He sighed and pushed himself off the wall and walked outside to call Abby. Phone call duly finished, he tripped back into Stephen's room, startling both men again. "Sorry," he said, face red and bent over to tie his shoes properly.

He missed the looks both men shot him as he retook his chair, shoes securely fastened.

"It's okay," Nick answered, studiously not looking anywhere near the others.

"Abby says hi and she'll kill you later for worrying her to death." Connor passed on to Stephen. "But she says to get better first, so it'll be a challenge when she has to kill you."

He shrugged at the look Stephen sent him. "It's Abby. So… You know, get better alright?" The assistant nodded, eyes on Connor and blinked slowly. "You should get sleep, real sleep."

"So should you. You should go home Connor. Get more than three hours of sleep. In a bed." Nick said from his side of the room, still not able to look at Stephen.

"If I should, so should you," Connor replied mulishly. Nick sighed and Connor took part of Stephen's bed as a pillow again, using his jacket and arms to get comfortable. He watched until Stephen fell asleep before doing the same, fingertips scarcely touching Stephen's through the sheets.

The next morning, Abby ganged up with the nurses and threatened to bodily remove Nick and Connor from the room, now that they knew Stephen was awake.

"You can come back later. Go home, take a long shower, sleep, eat something other than coffee, and you can come back. Tomorrow." Abby raised an eyebrow at the two men and put her hands on her hips.

"Abby, coffee is a drink." Connor pointed out, trying to divert the woman from her topic.

"My point exactly. Now go." She grabbed Connor by the arm and used him to bulldoze Nick out of the room. "Go home," she said pointedly to Nick.

He sighed and complied, with Abby shadowing him to his car before shepherding Connor to hers.

"Why don't you just say something?" Abby asked once they'd made their way out of the parking garage.

"Something about what?" he asked, curled up in the passenger's seat.

"You know what. Something to Nick and Stephen. Now's the best time."

"Because there's no point. It would just make a fool out of me and their friendship would be out the window."

"You stupid arse," Abby said fondly. "You think I would be telling you to go for it if I didn't know it would work out?"

"Yes because you're cruel and unusual like that." Connor retorted immediately.

Abby eyed him. "Really, though. Do it before you lose them. Nick and Stephen are about to fall apart. That thing with Helen… Talk to them. Try and make them talk to each other."

Connor muttered a vague agreement and Abby continued the drive to her apartment, mollified.

Several days later, Stephen had been moved out of the intensive care unit and into a private room and everyone seemed to take that as a cue to visit less frequently. Stephen stared at the ceiling of his room, bored out of his mind when a light knock at the door jerked him out of his daydreams.

"Stephen?"

"Helen? What the hell're you doing here?" Stephen struggled to raise himself to look at Helen from a level field.

"I came to see you. Why else would I be here? You know I hate hospitals." She shuddered and rubbed her hands up and down her arms.

"But you went back through the anomaly. Why are you here?" he asked again.

"I told you. I came to see you. I still want you to go back through the anomaly with me. I understand that you couldn't say anything back there in the forest, but we can just disappear now. You and me. Just leave." Helen leaned forward and ran her fingers through Stephen's hair. He jerked away, uncomfortably reminded of Connor doing the same.

"I didn't say 'no' because there were others around," he explained slowly, as if to a child. "I said no because I don't want to be stuck in the middle of fucking nowhere with you."

Helens' face clouded and she frowned. "But why not? You'd have followed me to the ends of the earth before."

"Like you said, that was before." Stephen snapped. "This is now. After you left! You left us Helen. Broke Nick's heart. Fucked up my life."

Helen stared at him, a gleam in her eyes. "What is this 'us'? And why so concerned about Nick's heart?" She cocked her head to one side, looking for all the world like a concerned psychiatrist.

"He's my friend. And, also, if you hadn't noticed Helen, you left me too."

"So I did… So I did…"

"No. None of this 'so I did' bullshit! You bloody well know you did. So no, I am not going with you, no matter how privately you ask me. Get out Helen," Stephen said, anger deflating, "Go back through the anomaly."

"He doesn't love you," she hissed as she rose gracefully and made her way to the door. "He's mine. Always has been."

"You were gone for eight years. Things change, Helen." Stephen grinned ferally as the woman looked back once before exiting in an outraged huff. Once the woman left, he sank back against the bed and stewed over the mess she had created.

Connor entered, looking back over his shoulder nervously. "That wasn't- was that really? Helen. Helen was just here?"

"She's leaving," Stephen said shortly. "Anyway, what are you doing here? I thought you had class right now."

Connor eyed him, an odd look on his face. "It's Saturday."

"Oh. Right."

"But that was Helen, right? Why was she here? And she was leaving…." Connor looked back over his shoulder again.

"She was trying to get me to go through the anomaly again." Stephen said heavily.

Connor frowned.

"Don't." Stephen warned. "I don't need to hear it."

Connor eyed the other man. "Look, mate, I'm not going to say anything, but if you want to… y'know… talk, I'm here."

"Yeah, thanks for that." The older man sighed. "Why are you here, even though it's Saturday?"

"Thought… You might like the company. I dunno." Connor shrugged. "I can leave if you want."

Stephen shook his head. "Nah, the company's good." The two sat in silence for several minutes, Connor obviously wanting to bring up a subject, but not able to bring himself to do so. Stephen had no idea what to say to the younger man, and in silence they sat.

"Have you talked to Nick yet?" Connor blurted.

Stephen started, jolted out of his thoughts. "Have I what? No, not yet, not really. Why?"

The student shook his head, but Stephen could see the disappointment in his eyes. "Nothing."

The two spent another hour talking about meaningless things until Connor stretched and popped several vertebrae.

"I should go." He said, rising and searching for his bag.

"Yeah," Stephen agreed, not really wanting the man to go.

"Look…" Connor paused by the door. "Talk to Nick. I- just… Think, okay?"

Stephen nodded and Connor slipped out into the hall. Abby was right. Nick and Stephen were about to fall apart, unable to repair the mess that Helen had left. Walking back to Abby's from the hospital, Connor pulled his cell phone out again and dialed Nick.

"Cutter."

"Hey, it's Connor. Look, professor, I know you have issues with Stephen right now, but at least go talk to him." Connor said in a rushed breath, before Nick could get a word in.

"Connor… what… there's so much you don't know. It's not that easy."

"Abby told me, and now I'm telling you. Go talk to him."

There was silence on the line, prompting Connor to bluster on, "Not that you have to follow my orders... you kinda outrank me by like... millions... but... I still think you should... and... yeah..."

"Yeah Connor. I'll talk to him." Nick said heavily. Connor nodded, though the other man couldn't see him and exchanged farewells. The next couple of days, he avoided the hospital, waiting, hoping to hear that Stephen and Nick had hashed out their problems.

The fourth day, Abby kicked him out, saying she needed time for herself. He managed to snag a book before Abby beat him out the door and wandered to the university, finding a relatively secluded area in front of the zoology building.

He'd just settled into his book when a foot kicked at the book. He jumped and looked up to see Helen Cutter looking down at him.

"H- Helen. What- what are you doing here?"

"I've been watching you, and that worthless excuse for a husband and lover." Helen cocked her head and studied Connor. "You're trying to get in their pants. They're mine. You'll never make it."

"I- I'm really not trying to get in their p-pants." Connor stammered.

Helen smirked. "Right. Just thought I'd let you know."

"Yeah, okay, thanks." Connor turned back to his book, more rattled than he let on, and when he'd finally worked up the courage to look up again, Helen was gone.

Across town, Nick was working up a different kind of courage, standing outside Stephen's hospital room, hand hovering over the thin wood door. He took a deep breath and entered without knocking, launching into a mostly pre planned speech.

The sight of Stephen lying on the bed shook most of the words away, and Nick fumbled for an opening.

"No… Look… You had an affair with my wife. That's not something that can be water under the bridge." Nick paced around the small room. "Goddamnit Stephen! She was my wife."

"'Was' Nick?" Stephen asked mildly from the bed. "Why're you using past tense?"

"She's still my wife!" Nick slammed a fist against the wall.

"Nick, I know this is going to sound petty and childish, but believe me when I say she started the whole thing." Stephen said earnestly, not really thinking Nick would believe him.

"I don't particularly care who started it." Nick snapped, slamming a fist into the wall. "But damnit Stephen."

"I expect you wont' want to hear anything bad said about Helen, but… I loved her. I think." Stephen started, staring up at the ceiling. "She used that to her advantage every day. At first I didn't know she was married. Then she told me, and she told me that her husband was gone all the time, and uncaring, and cold and distant. I just wanted to take care of her… To get that smile." Nick nodded, unwillingly, as the smile Stephen spoke of flashed in his head. The one that Helen gave out sparingly but was worth moving continents for.

"I was eighteen. It was my first real relationship with anyone. I thought all the subterfuge was normal, that she just didn't like to be affectionate in public. I really didn't know until it was too late to leave." Stephen maintained eye contact with the roof tiles, not able to look down, to look at Nick.

"She had this habit of using your love against you. She'd get you to do the worst things. Things you never thought you would." Nick continued hoarsely, clinically. "Things you never wanted to do."

Stephen frowned as Nick spoke, he'd known that they'd both been with Helen for years, but never realized they'd been through the same experiences. He hoped to hell that they hadn't been through completely the same experiences.

"Stephen!" Helen screeched from the doorway. "Don't you dare leave!"

The student turned around and shook his head. "I can't do this anymore Helen. It's not working." He emphasized the last three words.

"What's not working? Me? Do you not love me anymore?" the woman pouted, folding her arms across her chest and drawing in on herself.

"I just can't do this. My friends are asking who my girlfriend is, and I can't tell them. Not seeing you in the daylight…" Stephen shook his head helplessly. "I… It's not enough."

"Look, Stephen. Just come back inside and we'll talk." Helen cajoled, reaching out to the young man. "I can't help anything if I don't know what's wrong."

He sighed and nodded. "Yeah, okay."

The minute they entered Helen's house, the woman turned viciously and pointed an accusing finger at Stephen.

"What the hell were you thinking, leaving?!" She demanded. "That's no way to treat your lover."

Stephen opened his mouth to reply when Helen flew at him, hitting him with open and closed fists backing him against the door.

"What were you thinking?! I love you! When no one else would!" She punctuated her words, her tears with hits, drawing closer until she was fully pressed up against the student. She changed her angle and gripped his shirt, drawing him down for an open mouth kiss. Stephen gave in, tilting his head down and returning the kiss with as much fervor as she was giving it.

Just as the kiss was reaching a point that left Stephen breathless, Helen pulled back. In more ways than one. She rocked back on her heels, smirking at him, then pulled back her fist and slammed it into his cheek. Stephen hissed, completely shocked. One hand came up to cover his throbbing cheekbone. He'd have a black eye tomorrow, for sure.

Helen smiled serenely at him, smoothing down his shirt. She leaned in and pressed a soft kiss to his lips, completely at odds with the vicious punch she'd just thrown him. Then she lead the still-shocked Stephen to the door and unceremoniously pushed him out.

"Don't forget who loves you, Stephen..." she called out the door after him, wiggling her fingers in a little wave, closing the door behind her.

He stared in shock at the closed door and slowly turned to walk back to campus, hand still cupping his cheek. It throbbed under his palm and he sighed as he plotted a route back to his apartment that would stop by a store so he could pick up an icepack.

"Stephen? You alright?" Nick was looking at him oddly and Stephen realized that the hand free of his IV had come up to cover his cheekbone.

"Yeah. Fine." He said distractedly. "There was a lot of stuff in that relationship that I never wanted to do, that I never wanted to know. About me and about her."

Nick nodded. "Like I said, this isn't something that can be swept aside. But…" He trailed off.

Stephen waited to see if Nick would finish his sentence and raised an eyebrow when the older man's cell phone went off. Nick patted his pockets sheepishly. "Forgot I had it on. Cutter." He answered the phone.

"Connor? What? Slow down. Take a breath. Okay, okay. Take a deep breath and say that again. She what?! Are you okay? Did she do anything?"

Stephen sat up, straining to hear Connor's side of the conversation as well, but only hearing Nick's responses. "What?" He demanded. "What?"

"Okay. Okay, stay there. I'll get there as soon as I can. Just stay put." Nick snapped the phone shut and turned to Stephen.

"That was Connor. He said Helen went to see him."

"Is he okay? What happened?" Stephen tried to swing his legs over the side of the bed and hissed in pain, unable to move more than a few inches.

"Stay still for christ's sake." Nick said crossly. "I told Connor that I'd go pick him up. I'll bring him back here." He tore out of the room, leaving Stephen sitting in shock.

"Connor." Nick parked in an illegal parking zone and jumped out to find the bench where Connor sat, hugging his knees to his chest. "Hey." He approached from behind, wanting to make sure Connor knew he was there.

Connor raised his head. "Hi."

"You okay? She didn't do anything?" Nick sat on the other end of the bench and leaned over so he could meet the student's eyes.

He shook his head. "No. She just …talked and left." He hugged the book to his chest even harder and attempted to smile.

"Okay. Look, I told Stephen I'd bring you back with me- back to the hospital. You ready to go?"

Connor nodded and rose, muttering unkind things under his breath as tight muscles were forced to work again. The two spent the ride back to the hospital in silence, Nick concentrating on the road and Connor opening his book again.

Stephen was asleep when the pair returned, and by unspoken agreement, they settled side by side into chairs at his bedside. Connor curled up, feet barely touching Nick's knees and buried his nose back in the book. Nick looked over, an amused look on his face.

"I would never have figured you for a Crichton fan." He remarked quietly.

Connor grinned wryly. "Jurassic Park. It seemed fitting. Mostly I just like to laugh at the mistakes."

"You would." Came a groggy voice from the bed.

"Morning sunshine." Connor grinned at the look Stephen shot him.

"Are you okay? Really?" Stephen asked seriously.

Connor nodded kind of awkwardly. "I'm really fine. I'd just like to not-see Helen anymore."

Stephen nodded. "I know the feeling."

Nick shot them both a sharp look before nodding slightly as well.

"Ah, look. I know we haven't always been on the best terms. And this mutual …irritation at Helen's not the best ground to start anything with."

"She'll be here, a burr between our toes until someone manages to keep her in one place." Stephen said darkly.

Connor watched the two as they exchanged significant glances, the meaning behind which was lost on him. They'd always done that- had their own language of looks and actions. He tilted his head, envious of their easy manner, even with the problems the two had had.

"Helen." He blurted out. "Helen came to see me today. At the uni. She told me that you both belonged to her."

"No." Stephen gave a sharp shake of his head. "Maybe once I thought I had, but no." He sounded almost disgusted at the thought.

"Why? Why did she find me?" Connor asked plaintively.

"Helen… Helen had a habit of…" Nick began slowly. "She liked… alienating the friends of those closest to her." His voice had the dry, somewhat droning tone he took when lecturing to students.

"I imagine that's why she's kept coming back."

"Then why hasn't she gone to Abby or Captain Ryan or Claudia or Lester?" Connor demanded, sitting up straight. "Why us?"

Stephen met Nick's eyes again. "She knows the both of us- intimately," The dark haired man blushed slightly. "She knew… what our tastes would be… And she's been watching us for, I would assume, the past eight years."

Connor frowned, still trying to piece all the information together. "She kept you away from your friends? I hate to say guys, but that sounds awful …abusive."

"Not friends. Colleagues, friends, she was friends with all of them too." Nick said.

"We had," Stephen swallowed hard, flicking a glance at Nick. "We had our affair, and then she left. And I tried getting on with my life. Girlfriends… boyfriends. But after a week or two weeks, they'd start avoiding me. Telling me that they'd call the police on me if I kept going round. I never figured out why."

"Helen." Connor said flatly. "She's doing the same thing here. Telling me that you're hers and being menacing and frightening." He blinked as realization smacked him upside the head. "She thinks I'm… you're… She warned me off both of you!"

Nick chuckled to himself at the idea of Helen warning Connor off him and looked around the room as Stephen glared at him. "What? Oh my god."

Stephen blushed at Nick's pronouncement and sighed as deeply as his injuries would let him.

Connor sat very still in the corner and hoped that neither man would take notice of him as he prayed to not be thrown off the team.

"You… And you…" Nick turned to Stephen and Connor in turn, not expecting an answer. "Oh my god, I'm too old for this."

Some of the tension in the air crept back out into the hall as Nick cracked half a joke in his usual fashion.

"I've never had… a relationship… with anyone." Connor began awkwardly, hesitantly, drawing his knees up to his chest. "I would say better old- not that you're old- than completely inexperienced."

Nick shook his head. "I think it's fair to say that the rest of us haven't had a real relationship either."

"There's no freaking out. Why is there no freaking out?" Connor looked back and forth between Nick and Stephen. "I as good as admitted that I fancied- if not more- the both of you, and here you're not freaking out."

Stephen blinked. "Well, I don't know about Nick, but that was the first I'd heard about anybody fancying anybody."

Connor groaned. "Oh god. I've mucked it up. I'm sorry. I'm sorry. I'll go. There's got to be another dozen geeks out there who can help with the anomalies. I'll leave my information with him."

"Connor breathe." Nick said firmly. "Nobody's leaving."

"Why? Why is there no freaking out?" Connor demanded again, tensing in anticipation of the other's answers.

"After Helen... and the anomalies... Do you think fancying two guys would really rank up there on the freak-o-meter?" Nick asked, again lightening the mood.

"And dinosaurs, Conn. We deal with dinosaurs on a regular basis." Stephen added.

"Conn…" Connor whispered. "Tom called me that."

"I can not, if you'd prefer." Stephen said immediately, not wanting to hurt the younger man.

The student grinned shyly. "No… I like it. So… no freaking out? Are you sure?"

Nick and Stephen nodded, knowing it would take longer than that for the young man to be totally convinced.

"To be honest, I think I always had a thing for Nick." Stephen said suddenly. "But, in case you haven't noticed, it took a herd of dinosaurs for me to figure that out, hence the lack of relationship there."

"This. How is this going to work? I mean, we're three. How…" Connor waved his hands around.

"It'll work. It might be ugly, but it'll work." Nick reassured him. Reassured all three of them.

Connor nodded, and was cut off by an enormous yawn that cracked his jaw and had Nick and Stephen laughing.

"Sorry," he muttered, abashed.

"It's been a long, what… week? Ye gods, has it only been a week?" Stephen looked disgruntled. "I didn't even miss midterms."

Connor snorted and yawned again, an odd combination that had all three laughing.

"You should get some sleep." Nick remarked. "You've been doing enough. I don't think Stephen will mind if you crash here again for a while."

The man in the bed shook his head and patted the bed beside him. "I'd offer to move, but…" he wrinkled his nose.

"Thanks." Connor pulled his jacket off to ball under his head. A moment later, his eyes sprang back open. "No freaking?"

"No freaking." Nick reassured him and Stephen ran his fingers through Connor's hair in lieu of a response.

"Okay." Connor mumbled, lulled by Stephen's fingers.

Abby trotted down the hall to Stephen's room after getting Connor's delayed text about Helen finding him. She cracked open the door in case the man was asleep and gasped at what she found.

Connor was asleep in a chair at Stephen's bedside, using the bed as a pillow, and his jacket as a blanket, and Stephen had a hand gently tangled in the long dark hair. Nick was asleep next to Connor, letting the younger man pillow his head on an arm, hand clasped tightly with Stephen. She inched closer and peeked over the bed to see Nick resting a hand protectively on Connor's leg.

Grinning like a loon and muttering under her breath about stupid men who need a deadly situation to get them to pull their heads out of their respective asses she retreated and left them to their devices.

Helen- when she's in the interrogation room asking for Nick, have her ask for Stephen first, and then have what'shis face Lester say something, and her go "Fine. Bring me Nick. I don't care if you bring me the fucking Prime Minister. Just get me someone."