2nd Series 01/1 - Making Contact

by Sapphire1

A thirteen year old boy breaks into the home of a world famous magician- and both their lives will be changed forever

Making Contact
by Sapphire

Summer in Electro City. For the last two weeks the weather had been warm, almost too warm, and sunny. Many of the citizens used the cooler evenings to spend their time in street cafes or just walking through one of the many parks the city had to offer, until is was cool enough to go to bed.
One man however had no eyes for the couples and families spending their time outside, though it already was after midnight. He was walking through the streets aimlessly, with his head low, as if deep in thought.
He was a tall man, in his late twenties. His dark, almost black hair had three distinctive white stripes, one on the top, the other two starting on the temples to join on the back of his head. His clear, gray eyes were darkened, the focus inside. He was wearing evening wear, a red lined, black cape over his shoulders. The cape was moving around him as he was walking, almost as if it had a life of its own.
Ace Cooper had dropped his black panther Zina over an hour ago at his home, the Magic Express, and had decided to go for a walk, needing it actually to steam off some excessive energy. Though he had had an invitation to attend the opening of a new club that night, he had declined, claiming he was tired. In a way it was true, he was tired. However it wasn't so much the tiredness of the body, but that of the mind. In the last few years he had achieved so much. He was the most famous magician this side of the Atlantic, each and every of his shows sold out, with long waiting lists for returned tickets. He had more money than he could ever spend. He knew a lot of famous people, and a lot of people wanted to claim that he knew them.
He had everything.
So, why did he feel so empty?
He sighed. He knew what was wrong with his life. He was lonely. Yes, he knew many people who called themselves his friends. But, ultimately, there was no real friend. The only person coming close to that label was Derek Vega, but the Lieutenant had a lot to do and Ace hadn't seen him for a while.
And then there was Mona. He loved her, and he was fairly sure BlackJack's daughter also cared about him. But BlackJack and his hatred for Ace would always be between them. Ace saw Mona about every other week, when they went out for dinner or lunch together. Though he wanted more, he knew he had to be content with what he could get.
He was deep in thought when he finally returned back at his home. It took him a second to realize something was wrong, when the door to the Express didn't open automatically as he came close enough for Angel to detect him.
Frowning, he held his hand against the sensor plate, waiting to Angel to scan his print. But the expected beam never showed up, the plate dark and quiet.
"Angel?" he asked, seemingly into thin air.
There was no reply from the sophisticated security computer that ran the Express.
Now seriously concerned, Ace pulled out the door key. He was glad he had still held on to it Normally he didn't have any real need for it anymore, since he had activated Angel. Quietly he opened the door and slipped inside.
He listened for sounds, but heard nothing. Still, he had the distinct feeling somebody else was inside the Express. That was the reason he refrained from switching on the lights, relying on the faint light which came in through the windows from the street lamps outside.
"Zina?" he whispered into the semi-darkness.
A soft growl led him to a walk-in closet close to the entrance. Opening the door, a black shadow bolted outside, almost bowling him over in the process. The black panther whirled around and wound herself around Ace's legs, purring at extra strength.
The magician bent down, stroking the powerful head. "How did you end up in there, old girl?" he asked under his breath. "Is somebody here who shouldn't be?"
The panther butted her head against Ace's hand, then she turned, walking softly towards the computer center. Ace straightened, then he followed Zina.
The door to the Express' heart was closed, but there was light shining through from underneath it.
Only now Ace realized that perhaps it would have been a better idea to leave the Express and call the police. He had no idea how many people were inside the computer center. He didn't know if they were armed or not. He didn't know what their intentions were.
All he knew was that a person or persons unknown had somehow managed to get inside the Magic Express without triggering the alarm system, which would have informed him of the breaking and entering over his link. Something Ace would have thought to be impossible. The stranger or the strangers had locked Zina inside the closet without hurting her. Also an impossibility. And now they were inside the computer center, possibly tampering with Angel.
He had not time to waste.
Placing his hand on Zina's shoulder, he keyed the door open.
Whatever he had expected, it certainly wasn't a red-haired youth, bent over Angel's control board, working furiously on the keyboard.
"Hey, what are you doing here?"
It was definitely not the brightest thing to say, but Ace was too astonished to think of anything better.
The youth jumped up from his chair, pushing it back until it bumped against another part of the horseshoe shaped console. He whirled around, eyes wide, fearful. It took a second before he pulled himself together, but then he straightened out of his attack posture, a stubborn expression on his face.
"What do you think I'm doing here, dude?" he asked bravely.
"Step away from that console," Ace commanded, his voice tightly under control.
Ace was not really sure how he should react in this situation. With goons and criminals he knew what to do. He could fight them, had done so before, and with great success. But with this teenager he was at a loss. He needed outside help.
He lifted his wrist com to his lips, ready to call Derek Vega. However, before he could place the call, the youngster bolted out from behind the console, aiming for the door behind Ace. The magician lifted his arm, swirling the folds of his cape in the way of the teenager, intercepting him before he could reach his target. The youngster tried to evade the cape, but Ace was too fast for him. The folds wrapped themselves around the boy, enveloping him completely. He fell to the ground.
"No, let me out!" the boy screamed in protest, his voice muffled by the smothering cloth. He struggled against his confinement, futilely fighting the folds. "No!" He struggled more, his screams taking on a note of panic. "NO!"
For a second Ace, was too confused to react as the youngster's voice rose higher and higher in pitch, losing any resemblance of coherent speech. This was way beyond angry at being caught. This was panic, caused by blinding, terrifying fear. Fear of being enclosed. Fear of being caught.
As suddenly as the screams had started they broke off, only to be replaced by a quiet whimper.
It was a sound that cut straight through to Ace's heart. Shaking off his shock, he hurried to get the youngster out of the cape. Freed, the boy immediately scrambled away, crab walking backwards, until his back bumped against Angel's control console. His eyes were wide in shock, glued to Ace's face. Tear tracks ran down his cheeks.
Ace followed the boy, until he was only a step away.
The boy lifted his arm, as if to fend off a slap, at the same time curling into an as small target as possible.
"Please, don't hit me. Please," he whimpered, almost too low for Ace to understand.
Ace crouched low, holding out a hand to the boy, but careful not to touch him.
"I won't hit you," he said gently, scuffling a bit closer.
However, the only reaction he got from the boy, was that he was curling himself even tighter, wrapping his arm around his head.
Damn, what should he do? Something was obviously very wrong with the boy. His whole reaction pointed to previous abuse, and Ace felt cold anger rise inside of him as he thought of the people doing something like that to a child. For a moment he had totally forgotten that the boy had broken into the Express and had tampered with Angel. All he saw was somebody in desperate need of help.
Zina took that decision away from him. The great, black panther slowly walked up to the boy, sniffing shortly at the hair, ruffling it in the process. She was purring softly, almost soothingly, as she gently butted the boy in the side. For a moment Ace didn't know if it would be better to pull the panther away from the boy before she could cause some more damage, but then the boy suddenly uncurled, and, with a sniffled sob, wrapped his arms around the panther, burrowing his head in the fur at her side.
Ace allowed the boy a moment to calm down, then he gave a subtle command to Zina to back off. The panther rose, made a step back, then she wound herself around once, to plop down at the boy's side.
"Hi," Ace said with a smile, hoping the boy had calmed down enough so that they could talk. Again he crouched low to be at eye level with the him.
The boy sniffled, then wiped his nose with the back of his hand. "Hi," he returned quietly.
"My name is Ace. And who are you?" Ace probed carefully.
"Cosmo," the boy replied, slowly getting up to his feet, pushing himself away from the console in the process.
Ace followed suit. "Are you okay?"
Cosmo nodded. "I'm fine." He didn't sound fine, but Ace accepted the statement for the moment.
For the first time Ace had the opportunity to give the boy - Cosmo - a thorough look over. Cosmo was twelve, maybe thirteen years old. He had fire-red hair, worn rather longish on the top, shorter on the sides. The hair would have covered half of the face if not for a head band, which kept it out of his eyes. His clothes were drab, and not particular clean. The T-shirt had a tear on one side, and the well worn jeans was way too short, so as if the boy just had had a growth spurt, but nobody had cared to replace the now too short clothes.
The most prominent features however were a pair of bright gray eyes, almost too huge for the small face. In those eyes a multitude of emotions chased one after the other, none lasting long enough to be identified and analyzed. Fear, distrust, confusion, and some more, changing at lightning speed.
"Do you have another name beside 'Cosmo'?"
Mutely Cosmo shook his head.
"What about your family?"
A stubborn expression appeared on the youngster's face. "I don't have no family!"
A run-away. Figured. Only, what had a run-away to do with Angel? Why had he broken into the Express and shut Angel down? And, almost as important, how had he managed to do so?
An uneasy silence settled between the two. Cosmo starred challenging at Ace, while the older man wondered what he was to do with the boy. Sighing quietly, Ace stepped back, lifting his wrist com once again to his mouth, all the while watching the boy closely for signs of him bolting.
"Please, don't call the cops." The plea was almost too quiet to be heard.
Ace interrupted the transmission before the call got through. "Why should I not call the cops? You broke into my home," he asked, his eyes seeking contact, as he challenged the boy.
Cosmo looked at his feet, at Zina, at the floor. Anywhere but Ace. Nervously he shifted his weight from one foot over to the other and back again, before he finally looked up.
"I'm sorry," he mumbled, fighting very hard to hold back a tear threatening to fall.
Ace had to work hard to hide a smile. "'I'm sorry' doesn't cut the cheese, Cosmo," he replied seriously, carefully schooling his voice to not sound threatening in any way. "Breaking and entering is still considered a crime among most people, and though you might be a bit young to go to prison for it, I just can't let you go."
"I didn't mean…I mean, I didn't want to…I …" the boy began to stammer, but broke off after only a few words, when he realized he wasn't making much sense. Again his gaze dropped to the floor.
"Why did you break into the Express?" Ace probed, careful not to apply too much pressure. 'And how?' was a question he also wanted very much to have an answer to, but he didn't voice it.
"Star said nobody could do it. I wanted …" Again the boy broke off before he finished the sentence.
Ace wondered who 'Star' might be, but thought another question to be of more importance. "You wanted…what?"
"If I got the files, he would allow me to stay. With the gang." Cosmo looked up again, a pleading expression on his face. "I didn't break anything, I swear."
"What about Angel?"
"Your computer?"
Ace only nodded.
"The computer should be okay. I only made a copy and didn't deleted any files. I could reboot it and it should work like before."
"Prove it!"
Gray eyes met gray eyes, and some unspoken communication passed between the two. Cosmo was pleading to be allowed to go, while Ace made that possibility dependend on Cosmo's success in proving what he had just claimed.
Slowly, the youngster nodded, acknowledging the silent deal, and made his way back to the control board of the computer. His fingers basically flew over the keyboard, switching on one unit after the other. Ace had to admit that he was impressed. He was no slouch where computers were concerned. Angel, one of the highest developed computers in the world, was his brainchild, the product of long hours of programming and twigging the last out of her processors and controls. She was not quite an Artificial Intelligence, but pretty damn close. Too close, as Derek Vega had once remarked, when Ace had demonstrated Angel's abilities. Ace had shown the lieutenant Angel's security features, and after that Derek had held his peace. He knew, as did Ace, that the Magician had many secrets that better didn't fall in other hands. He needed an ultra high tech security system, one that was impenetrable.
Only, there now was that twelve year old boy, who had seemingly slipped through this impenetrable security system almost as if it wasn't there in the first place. And now he worked on putting it back on line, almost as if he had never done anything else.
In no time all of the controls were lit and the bluish/purple multi-edged diamond that was Angel came to life above the holograph unit.
"Angel?" Ace called out concerned. Though he believed the boy that he had caused no damage to the computer, he wanted to make sure.
It took a second, then the computer's gentle voice replied, "Yes, Ace?"
"Run a full diagnostic, Angel."
The light of the computer dimmed for a brief moment. Ace imagined millions of tiny switches flip, electrons running along given paths. Naturally he knew that Angel worked differently, that a modern computer had very few switches, if at all, and that there were many different things involved in making her work. It just helped him to have a visual image.
"Diagnostic completed. I'm fully functional."
Relief flooded him. And it was not exclusively relief that Angel was working - though he had a certain attachment to the computer, he knew she was just that, a computer. Another part was that the kid had spoken the truth. Though Ace didn't quite understand why it was important to him to know that Cosmo had been honest with him. After all, Cosmo was no business of his, besides the fact that he had broken into the Express.
Lost in his thoughts, it took him a moment to notice that the boy was watching him expectantly.
Damn, what was he to do with Cosmo? Though the boy obviously expected to be let go, he couldn't allow him to be off the hook so easily. Besides, where had the boy to go after that? Back into the hand of this gang that obviously had less than legal pursuits?
No, he couldn't allow that.
"You want something to eat?"
It was a difficult question to decide who was more surprised, Ace or Cosmo. Ace hadn't been really aware that he was going to ask it, until the words had left his mouth.
The boy was about to open his mouth, when the loud rumbling of his stomach made an answer superfluous. Zina looked up in surprise from her position on the ground where he had waited until the humans had sorted out whatever they had to sort out.
Still, the boy shook his head. "Sorry, mister, I think I should better go."
"I'm not a great cook, but they say I can make one mean sandwich," Ace baited the boy further, reeling in the line very, very carefully.
Again, the boy's stomach loudly announced what he thought of the idea. Cosmo still hesitated, but finally his body's need overruled his fear.
"I guess I could stay a moment longer," he mumbled, as he picked up his back pack.
"Okay, let's go to the kitchen," Ace said, leading the way. He was grinning, but hiding the fact from Cosmo. He was feeling kind of warm all of the sudden, in a good way. Helping the kid was the right thing to do, he just knew it.

The kitchen of the Express wasn't particularly large, though it was equipped with everything needed in a normal kitchen. Ace was a bachelor by heart, and it showed. There was only one woman who might have the chance to change that, but between him and Mona always stood – or rather sat – her father, and as long as this was the case, he would live alone and wouldn't need a bigger kitchen. Anyway, more often than not he went out to eat and the other times he made do with what he could cobble together from the things stored in his fridge.
When he had told Cosmo he could make a mean sandwich, Ace hadn't been bragging. In no time the boy had basically inhaled two large ones, and was now eyeing the third which Ace was preparing with anticipation. Ace had had to grin when he had seen how Cosmo had dug into the food. He had the feeling the young boy hadn't had anything decent to eat in quite a while.
He pushed the sandwich over to Cosmo and started with the next one.
It felt good to do something for the boy, and as he reached for another slice of bread, he tried to analyze his feelings.
Why did he want to help the boy? Why did it feel so good? For crying out loud, Cosmo had broken into his home and had tried to steal Angel's files. The sensible thing to do was to hand the boy over to the police, or at least to social services. Instead he fed Cosmo and he planned to make the boy stay over night, so that he didn't have to sleep out on the streets, or wherever he usually spent the night.
With even strokes he began to spread the mayonnaise on the bread.
He wanted to give that boy a chance.
Like somebody had given him a chance twelve years ago. He had been sixteen when Derek Vega had taken him underneath his wings. He had been on the best way to turn completely criminal, and if it hadn't been for Derek, today he would either be in prison, dead or the greatest crime lord Electro City had ever seen.
Derek had taken care of him, had brought him into contact with Anna LeFrez, and it had changed his life. And he had been a friend when he had needed one. He could never pay him back for this.
But maybe here he was given an chance to pass this gift on to somebody else. Cosmo still had a chance, and maybe he was here to give it to him. The boy was a genius where computers were concerned - that much was clear. With that talent he could cause a lot of damage – or he could do a lot of good.
And there was something else. Something he couldn't define with words. It was as if there was some kind of invisible connection between them, a link, as if something had made 'click' when their eyes had met for the first time, though he hadn't been aware of it then.
Watching the boy, he noticed how he stifled - rather unsuccessfully - a mighty yawn. Cosmo blinked, then blinked again. He had to get the boy into a bed.
"You know," Ace started, "if you want to, you could stay here over night."
Cosmo all but jumped out of his chair. At the last moment, he got a hold of the back, preventing it from toppling over. For a second he just stood there, as if frozen, and Ace wreaked his brain what he had said that had elicited such a startled reaction. Then it clicked and he had to stop himself from hitting his head against a wall. So he opted instead to blush faintly, hoping the boy wouldn't notice his reaction.
"I have an extra guest room you could use," he said, trying to sound as casual as possible.
He took the chair out of the boy's hand, and placed it back where it belonged. Cosmo had gotten hold of his back pack and was clutching it to his chest. Any moment he would bolt.
Though Ace could not be sure how long Cosmo had been living on the streets, it stood to reason it had been a while. Long enough to learn about some facts of life. Ace knew that too many run-away kids couldn't get a decent job, as they neither had the papers nor the right age to work legally. So, for many of them there was only one way left to earn some money, unless they decided to turn to crime. Maybe Cosmo had been forced to sell his body as well, though Ace somehow doubted it. Though the boy tried to look tough, there was still some kind of innocence left, an innocence he surely would have lost if he had gone hooker.
"It has its own bathroom, if you would like to take a shower," he offered again, carefully, gently.
That finally did it. Slowly, the boy nodded, lowering his pack, but still holding on to the straps.
"Thank you," he muttered, looking at the ground before him.
Ace smiled. "It's no trouble, Cosmo, trust me."

'Trust me!'
As Cosmo followed the older man to the Express' guest room he pondered those words. Mr. Cooper had been pretty nice to him so far - especially considering he had broken into the his home. He *could* have called the cops, or social services. Actually, Cosmo wouldn't have really blamed him for doing so. Of course, this would have meant he would be sent back to his father, and that was something he wanted to avoid at all costs.
For a short moment, when the magician had caught him in this cape of his, he had thought he was back at the place he once used to call home. His father shoving him into that small space underneath the stairs, locking and bolting the door, knowing fully well how scared he was of that place. Alone in the darkness, surrounded by strange, unfamiliar things, waiting until his father would pull him out again, looming over him with his belt at the ready, asking if he had finally learned his lesson. Only that he never explained what that lesson was supposed to be.
Cooper hadn't hit him. Instead he had held out a helping hand, reaching out to him. And that panther of his had come up to him and offered comfort. The next thing he knew, he had been sitting in the kitchen, munching away those really great sandwiches and drinking lemonade, never wondering why Cooper was so nice to him.
There had to be a reason. If there was something he had learned in his short life, it was nobody *ever* did anything for free.
So, why was Cooper so nice?
When Cooper offered him to stay over night, he finally thought he had found it. Cosmo had been out on the streets long enough to learn about pimps and hookers, male and female. Tony, one of the boys he used to hang out with, had gone with older men once in a while. He hadn't liked it, but he had needed the money to buy uppers and stims. When Cosmo had asked why Tony needed that stuff, Tony had said he needed them to forget about those men. The logic wasn't really clear to Cosmo, but he thought he had no right to meddle in the life of others. After all, he didn't want other people to meddle in his.
Cosmo hadn't quite understood the pang of disappointment that had stabbed through him, when Cooper made his offer. He almost had started to like the man. That he should have done all this just to get him into his bed, had been a big disappointment.
Then he had realized Cooper hadn't meant what he had said. Or at least, what Cosmo had thought he had meant, and for a moment he had wished nothing more than to sink through the floor in shame. He had covered it up as well as possible, but then the damage had been done.
Now Cooper opened the door to the promised guest room and stepped in. Cosmo followed him gingerly. Maybe he was walking into a trap after all. It never paid to be careless. But everything seemed to be okay. The room was warmly decorated in brown and beige colors. There was a large bed in the center, a table to the right hand side, with a chair. Beside the table a door opened to a small bathroom with a shower stall, sink and toilet. On the other side was a walk-in wardrobe, the mirrored door reflecting the lights of the bedside lamp.
"If you want, I can see if I find something for you to sleep in tonight. I should have some old T-shirts that should do fine."
Cosmo looked up, startled. For a moment, he had felt almost at home, almost secure. Then all his fears rushed back at him, and he realized once again who he was and where he was. That was, in the home of a stranger, who might after all want something from him, no matter how nice he was . If there wasn't that prospect of finally getting a chance to take a proper shower and sleep once again in a proper bed, without rats and cockroaches as company, he would take off as fast as he could.
The temptation of those little comforts however was too great.
"Thank you," he said, looking up just in time to see Cooper smile at him. It was a nice smile and instinctively Cosmo smiled back.
Cooper winked, then he turned around, walking down the corridor, obviously to his own bedroom to get the promised T-shirt. Before the door clicked shut, the big, black panther slipped through the closing gap. It looked up to Cosmo, purring softly, before it moved further into the room. It peeked shortly into the bathroom, then it curled up in front of the bed, making itself at home.
Cosmo couldn't help but grin. He didn't understand why he didn't fear the big cat. He just didn't. When he had entered the Express, he had had a pretty good scare when the black shadow had shown up out of the darkness. But for some strange reasons the panther had greeted him like an old friend, winding itself around his legs just like any other cat. On principle Cosmo liked cats a lot, and after he had gotten over his first shock, he couldn't help but petting the panther. He had locked it away, just so it wouldn't trigger any alarm, or disturb him as he was working. He had almost felt sorry.
Now he walked over and sat down beside the black form. As he stroked over the dense fur, he marveled how soft it felt. He was rewarded by a rumble, emitting deep from the panther's chest.
A knock at the door made him look up and quickly he scrambled to his feet. Damn, he couldn't allow himself to become too comfortable here. It wasn't his home after all.
Again a knock, and a muffled voice calling from the other side, "Cosmo, is it okay for me to come in?"
Too late he realized Cooper waited for him to give him leave to enter.
"You can come in," Cosmo called out, stepping closer to the exit.
The door slid open and Ace Cooper stepped inside. He was carrying a white T-shirt, now holding it out to Cosmo.
"It might be a little big, but for sleeping it should be okay."
"Thank you, Mr. Cooper."
"Call me Ace," the magician replied.
Cosmo swallowed, but didn't say anything. He just couldn't get himself to call the older man by his first name. It was almost as if in doing so, he would admit to something, though he wasn't sure what that 'something' was.
Instead he held out his hand and waited for the other man to place the shirt there.
For a moment, an uncomfortable silence stretched between them. Then Cooper made a noise that almost sounded like a sigh.
"If you need anything, Cosmo, you can contact me through Angel anytime," he said, then turned back to the door. "Good night."
He hesitated for a fraction of a second, then he left. The door closed silently behind him.
"Good night … Ace," Cosmo whispered. Then he turned towards the bathroom and the much needed shower.

Ace got up early in the morning, much earlier than usual. By nature and by his profession he was a night person. During season he was doing two shows a day, except Mondays and Tuesdays when he only had one show in the evening. The evening show ended at 10:30 PM and after that he had to take care that everything was stowed away safely for the performance the next day. Usually, he left the Ring Theater at around 11:30 PM, and more often than not he went out afterwards, coming home in the wee hours of the morning. Consequently he usually slept rather long, often enjoying a breakfast in bed, while he was reading the newspaper, or watching the news.
This morning however he had gotten up before 7 AM. Not that he had slept very much anyway. Maybe it was the presence of somebody else in the Express, though Ace didn't think so. It was more that he couldn't decide what he should do with this situation. The facts had not changed. The most logical thing to do was to call social services and let them take care of Cosmo. The boy wasn't his responsibility. He should be glad to get rid of him as quickly as possible. There was no room in his life for a thirteen year old boy.
But this just felt so totally and absolutely wrong.
As much as he was attempting to deny it, there was some kind of connection between him and the boy. Was it the fact that he himself hadn't been so much different when he had been Cosmo's age? Somehow lost, with no-one to turn to but those people who would have pulled him down? If it hadn't been for one man, who had reached out and helped him getting out of that mud hole he had worked himself into, he wouldn't be where he was today.
Derek Vega had seen something in this young boy with that unbelievable talent of magic. Something worth helping. And now Ace thought he saw something in another boy with an unbelievable talent with computers.
Yes, he would help Cosmo, that much was sure.
The question now was: How?
Was Cosmo willing to allow somebody to help him? Was he willing to take the hand that was held out to him?
One thing was certain. Cosmo didn't trust anybody easily. Ace couldn't be sure what the reason for that was, however he had a pretty good feeling it had something to do with his family. After all, most kids didn't run away from their homes for no reason at all. A lot of people might think otherwise, however Ace wasn't among them.
So he had gotten up after several hours of tossing and turning and had started a background search on the boy. He knew, it wouldn't be easy - just the name 'Cosmo' was a shaky starting point to say the least - but he had to try. Maybe there were some records with that name attached. Or he could find something if he searched for computer wiz kids.
He had worked on the computer for an hour - wishing strangely enough that Cosmo was there to help him, as he didn't get very far and had the feeling that with his help he would have had more success - when Angel alerted him that there was movement in Cosmo's room. With a sigh, he abandoned his search, and went to the kitchen. It was time to make some breakfast.
He was just flipping over a pancake, when he noticed a flash of red in the doorway.
"Cosmo?" he called out. "Wanna come in?"
The boy hesitated, then he slipped inside, taking the chair closest to the door. Zina came in after the boy, walking to the bowl with her breakfast. She must have spent he night in Cosmo's room. It was amazing how easily the big cat had accepted the boy as her own. Zina belonged to a rare sub-species of panthers which preferred to live in groups of ten to twenty animals. Often enough, Ace had worried Zina was a bit lonely, living only with him as her family. Maybe Cosmo had reminded her of her heritage and that was the reason she had taken him in. On the other hand, maybe it was something else.
"Good morning, Mr. Cooper," Cosmo said, with a half smile, as he settled at the table.
Ace noticed that he had tried to wash out some of the worst stains in his T-shirt, however there had been nothing he could do about the tear in the side. The shirt was still a bit damp, but this shouldn't be a problem, as it was another warm and sunny day, and it should dry up in no time.
"Do you want some pancakes?" he asked with a smile. "And, I told you before, you can call me Ace."
The youngster mumbled something that could have been an affirmative, and so Ace started to pile pancakes up on a second plate. Placing the plate in front of Cosmo, he sat down as well with his own plate.
"Do you want some maple syrup with that?"
"Thank you," Cosmo said, and reached for the jar.
Ace watched as Cosmo began to pour the syrup over his pancakes. Then he came to a decision.
"Where are you going next?" he asked, gently.
The hand with the syrup jar froze in mid-air. The syrup continued to cascade over the pancakes, covering them generously, then spilling over the side and onto the table. Cosmo didn't seem to notice.
The moment stretched out into infinity. Then, like a rubber band someone had expanded almost beyond durability and then released, time snapped back to resume its normal pace.
"Oh god!" Cosmo jumped up. "I'm sorry, I'm really sorry." He put the jar down with a thump, then backed away from the table, almost stumbling over Zina, who had come up behind him. The boy looked terrified, his eyes wide, his shoulders slumped, his body halfway turned away from Ace. His hands were lifted up in a warding gesture.
The sight cut into Ace's heart. What a world was it where boys like Cosmo panicked just because they had spilled something on a table? Why was Cosmo so jumpy? What had happened to him to make him to act so violently every time something unexpected happened? This was just not normal.
Ace rose as well, moving slowly in order not to scare the boy any more than he was right now.
"It's okay, Cosmo. No damage done," he said, as he moved over to the sink to pick up some paper towels. Quickly he cleaned up the mess, then sat back again, as if nothing out of the ordinary had happened.
"You better sit down again, before your pancakes get cold," he said, pointing with his fork at Cosmo's plate.
For a moment it looked as if Cosmo would just grab his stuff and run. Ace held his breath, though he tried not to show how anguished he was feeling inside. But finally, the boy took the chair again and sat down.
Ace saw it prudent not to ask any more questions, and so they ate in silence. Ace wasn't really tasting his breakfast, though Cosmo seemed to like his.
Only when they had finished, and Cosmo had picked up their plates to take them to the sink, Ace spoke up again.
"You know, you don't have to go out there again. You could have the guest room, if you want." He spoke conversationally, so as if he was talking about the weather report or something else equally boring. But inside he was wound tight as a spring. "There are no strings attached, I promise."
Cosmo's eyes widened, though for a change it was not with fear. He opened his mouth, then shut it again without saying anything. He made a small step forward, and Ace hoped the next thing Cosmo would do was to accept the offer. Somehow he doubted it. Cosmo didn't trust him enough for that. Yet. He hoped this would change in the future.
"I have to go," Cosmo whispered. Quietly, he reached for his back pack. "I'm sorry," he added in an equally low voice.
And then he was gone.
Sitting in the kitchen of his home, Ace Cooper wondered if he had just made the biggest mistake of his life. He could have stopped Cosmo without any difficulties. It was all a question of telling Angel to lock the Express' exit, and then going after Cosmo before he could find a way around the lock. He still could call the police or social services, claiming Cosmo had broken into his home, trying to steal Angel's files - which wasn't a lie after all.
But he wouldn't lock the door, and he wouldn't call anybody else. In letting Cosmo go, he had hopefully opened a door for the youngster to return to him on his own accord. If he had forced him to stay, he would have shattered the fragile bond he knew had developed between them. Like a cat that can't be forced to stay where it didn't want to be, but could be lured in with a bowl of milk, he hoped Cosmo would remember what he had found here, and hopefully would return.
Zina butted her head against his thigh, demanding to being petted. As Ace complied, he looked at the empty space Cosmo had occupied moments before.
"I hope you find your way back here," he whispered, then he rose and started to clean the kitchen.