Disclaimer: Primeval does not belong to me, this is fan fiction, not for profit.
Any references to people, places, businesses etc is entirely fictitious.
3.7-5 Male Bonding
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Connor looked up from the anomaly detection device console. From the chair he was sitting in, he could see Lester was still in his office, working late… again. Connor sighed. He was knackered. Lester's posh flat was half way across London. Connor had hoped to get back to the flat and go to sleep, but without a ride, or a key for that matter, it wasn't likely.
The young technical assistant for the night shift was standing beside Connor. The man shifted impatiently from one foot to another.
"I've got it," he assured Connor "now can I have the seat?"
"Yeah," Connor replied. "When Lester comes down, would you let him know I'm in the break room."
"Sure thing," answered the technician cheerfully. The young man slid into the seat Connor had vacated, staring at the console eagerly. His hands reached out towards the device.
"And don't touch anything," scolded Connor "unless an alert comes up."
As he headed down the hall towards the break room, he hoped the young man would really remember to tell Lester. Connor didn't fancy having to sleep on the break room sofa again.
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Connor was already on the third level of the new video game when Becker walked in to the break room. The captain glanced at the game Connor was playing and did a double take.
"When did you start playing this game?" asked Becker sounding surprised. "I just brought it in today."
"I just started playing," answered Connor, "while I'm waiting for Lester." The soldier frowned at the response.
"So how long have you been waiting?"
"Dunno," replied Connor. "Not wearing a watch. What time is it?"
"Almost seven," answered Becker. Connor's shoulders slumped.
"He's forgot me," sighed Connor.
"No," answered Lester from where he was standing in the doorway. "I did not forget you. The minister called and I had to explain to him why we had sword wielding lunatics smashing up a bar earlier this week in downtown London."
Lester frowned. "It's bad for the tourist industry," he added. Looking at Becker quizzically, Lester asked "What are you doing here still? Aren't you off this weekend?"
Becker shifted his stance. For a moment, he looked somewhat less than perfectly composed. "The neighbor's keep exotic pets… feed the creatures exotic food… some got out. So, my flat's being fumigated," he answered. Glancing at the break room sofa he continued "I can't go back until tomorrow. I was planning on sleeping here tonight."
Connor looked appalled. "You don't want to sleep there," he said "trust me."
"Come on you two," Lester said with a long suffering sigh.
"What?" asked Becker "Where?"
"Connor's been staying in my flat, using my son's room," explained Lester. "You can use my daughters' room tonight."
"Really Lester, that's very generous, but…," began Becker.
Connor was already standing up, turning off the game console and ejecting the game. He slid the disc into its case, and held it up for Becker to see.
"Lester's got a huge HD telly," said Connor with a grin "and the most amazing gaming console. It will be wicked!"
Connor's enthusiasm was contagious. And truthfully, Lester's offer of a real bed sounded much better than sleeping on the tiny sofa in the break room.
"Wouldn't that keep you up Sir?" asked Becker, hesitating.
"Certainly not," sniffed Lester "I'm going home for the weekend."
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The echoes of Lester's admonishments as he left Connor and Becker at his flat had long since faded. Neither man remembered the long list of what the two of them had better not do.
They had restarted the game to play against each other, instead of solo. Frequent stops to explain some of the different moves each used had slowed their progress somewhat, but by two in the morning they had completed level three and had emptied Lester's bottle of whisky.
While they were waiting for level four to load, the talk turned to ordinary things.
"So why don't you wear a watch Connor?" asked Becker.
The young scientist shrugged his shoulders. "Seems silly," Connor replied "I mean really… time is an artificial construct… we work with anomalies which prove time can fluctuate…"
Becker chuckled at Connor's response. "Bit useful though," he replied "especially when you want to watch a favorite show on telly or catch the tube."
Connor nodded his head in agreement. "What about you," he asked "why do you always wear black?"
Becker looked surprised at the question, as if he thought the answer were obvious. "Black hides dirt," Becker said shortly "and blood."
Looking at the young scientists hands, Becker asked "Why do you wear the fingerless gloves all the time?"
Connor flushed. He raised his glass to his lips, to take another sip of Lester's fine whisky. The glass was already empty. Connor set the empty glass back down on the table beside the couch. Becker was still looking at him, waiting for an answer.
"Mainly for warmth," replied Connor.
Becker snorted in disbelief. "Right."
"What? London's cold, wet, rainy," began Connor.
"Not all the time Connor."
"Yeah," agreed Connor. "I started wearing the gloves in secondary school. There was this girl with long fingernails… she liked to grab me by the wrist."
"So why do you still wear them?" asked Becker with a chuckle.
"A couple years later," answered Connor "when I was at uni, me mates… Tom and Duncan… they were trying to cheer me up. I'd been dumped…"
"Personally, I think you would be glad to have that girl dump you," said Becker.
"What?"
"I wouldn't want someone grabbing me, scratching me," started Becker.
"Ew, I never dated that one," exclaimed Connor, "the other girl, we dated all through the end of secondary school, wanted to go to uni together… I really thought I loved her and… I thought she loved me too."
Connor sighed. Becker looked at him in sympathy.
"So this other girl… she dumped you," Becker prompted.
"Yeah," replied Connor "well she left for the Gambia, and quit writing me shortly afterwards. Tom, Duncan and I… we all went to see one of the Lord of the Rings movies together. Afterwards, we got pizza, beer…"
Connor smiled at the memory. "Lots of beer… and then we got tattoos."
Becker started coughing. He had swallowed the last sip of his whisky too fast in surprise at Connor's remark. Connor started pounding him on the back, looking at Becker in concern.
"Stop Connor," said Becker raising his hand. "I'm all right… just surprised…"
"Why?" asked Connor "Lots of people have tattoos."
"Yeah," replied Becker "I've got one."
"Really?" Now it was Connor who sounded surprised. "Where?"
Becker shifted on the sofa uncomfortably. "Private," he hissed, sounding almost like Abby.
Connor's face lit up with glee. "I'll bet I can guess where," he chortled.
Becker blushed. He pointed at the television screen where the next level of their game was now waiting for them to begin. "Ready?" he asked.
"Yeah," said Connor as he settled back against the sofa.
The warrior and the wizard began the next level of their quest.
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A/N Connor's tattoo is seen in Transitions Too, described chapter 19. Becker's tattoo is briefly seen in last chapter A Journey Begins and revealed Detour chapter 5.