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Chapter 2: Getting to Know You

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There was complete silence in the room for what seemed like an eternity. Finally Connor spoke.

"How'd you know.... or did you? I didn't just give myself away, did I?" Lane shook her head and spoke with great care.

"No, no, I... I had an idea. I don't really know how... it's just that you look so much like my dad... and, I don't know, I just feel it.... like I'm supposed to know you or something." Connor shook his head.

"Well, I guess it's better that it's out now, rather than me having to lie about it." Lane walked over and timidly went to hug him. He responded likewise.

"So, you're like, my brother than," she said, starting to cry happily. Connor smiled and nodded.

"Yeah, I always wanted a little sister and now I have one. I couldn't wait to meet you once Phil and Di told me about you." Lane wiped her eyes and smiled.

"I'm glad you're here.... and Dad will be too." Connor sighed.

"Let's just wait and see about that," he said. Lane shook her head.

"No, you don't know him like I do. He will be thrilled... he loves you. He talked about you all the time when I was little... I never really understood, but you made him happy." At this Abby, who had remained silent until now, took the opportunity and spoke up.

"She's right, you know," she said, locking eyes with Connor. "When we were little he always talked about you. We always thought it was kind of creepy, the way he was almost obsessed with you, but my dad explained that, just like if one of us was gone, he just wanted to remember you. I know Uncle Max will be thrilled.... you'll see." She paused, not knowing if she should say what else she was thinking. "And I'm glad you're here too.... now there's four. We always felt like there should be four." Nathan nodded in agreement, as did Lane. Connor silently thanked Abby in his mind, all while continuing to stare into her eyes. He did know why, but she seemed to be the most amazing person he had ever met. Eventually, under his constant gaze, she blushed and looked away.


"Well," Nathan spoke up, clearing the air, "Phil and Di are probably wondering what happened to the four of us, and we really need to rescue them from Alex, so...." Connor nodded, noting Nate's emphasis on the word "four." He could tell he was going to like him. Connor escorted Lane out of the room and was followed by Nate and Abby. He was glad this part was over, now he had to deal with meeting his father.

Within an hour Max and Isabel were home and Max was easily able to see that Connor was truly Zan, the son had given up for adoption shortly after birth. The reunion between father and son was an emotional one, with Max being both amazed and upset to discover that his son was, in fact, not human. He was quite the contrary actually, having even more alien characteristics than his daughter, Elena. Tess, Connor's mother, had committed one more evil before dying, separating father and son with a lie, knowing the goodness in Max would persuade him to attempt to give Connor a normal life since he thought his son was just that, normal.

Unfortunately, Connor had been anything but normal, and had suffered for it. Although his adoptive parents, Denise and Sam Anderson, had given him a wonderful life, he always felt he had something to hide, which was made worse by the fact that he didn't know what it was that he was hiding. His powers developed at a young age and, unlike his father, aunt, and Michael, he could harness them easily and developed them more fully. Not only could he heal, like his father, but he could sometimes read minds, had an ESP connection to people he was close too, and could often see the future thorough pre-destination dreams, which he could do nothing to control. One such dream had been the one that had told him his parents would die in a car accident, which they did shortly after his eighteenth birthday. This event caused him to seek out his past, leading him to Phillip and Diane Evans and, eventually, to Max.

After Connor had been thoroughly interrogated and accepted by the clan, not just Max and Isabel but also Liz, Michael, Maria, and Kyle, it was decided he would stay with Max and Liz. He had applied to and been accepted at Boston College in high school, before his parents' deaths, but had taken a year off in his search for Max. He planned on attending this fall and Max was more than willing and eager to allow his long-lost son to live with him while doing so. Liz was happy to see Max so happy and Lane was thrilled at the prospect of finally having her big brother home. After the jubilant shared dinner that evening, everyone went home with a new sense of amazement.

Later that night, Connor lay on his new bed and thought about his mother. From what his father and grandparents had said, she was a horrible person. His new goal, now that he had a home and a family, was to learn about his mother and, in doing so, maybe learn more about himself. He was particularly interested in meeting Ava, his mother's duplicate. She lived in the area but was often away, as she was right now. Connor believed that he might be able to discover something by meeting her, seeing as how, biologically, she was also his mother.

Other than his mother, the only thing he could think about was Abby. She was, he ascertained, the most beautiful creature alive. And the sweetest, and the kindest, etc. He had never been quite so crazy over a girl, especially since he felt like he knew her from somewhere before. He felt a strong pull toward her and didn't know why. At least he was content in knowing that, since she was his sister's best-friend and a fellow Czechoslovakian (he had laughed when he first heard the use of the word), he would be seeing a lot of her. Sighing, he slept peacefully for the first time in a year and a half, knowing he was safe in his new home and being happy for the first time in a long time.

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Early the next morning Connor and Lane left the house to spend a day getting to know one another. They planned on shopping for clothes to last Connor until his belongings arrived from New Mexico and Maine, where he had lived with his adoptive parents. Lane also planned on showing Connor around the town and finding out as much as she could about her new older brother. Connor planned for the same and was amazed with what he discovered about his little sister. By the end of the day, he felt he knew her entire life story, and, though he was a little more guarded, she his. He knew her favorite color was light yellow, which she liked because of her dark hair and eyes, that she and Nathan had been dating for two years, that she was a very smart girl with aspirations to be an author, and that she loved her parents dearly, even if her father was somewhat uptight and her mother was a little too conservative.

In fact, it seemed, Lane was the free spirit of the family. She was only 16 but was very self-assured and knew exactly who she was and what she wanted. But she also knew how to have fun. Connor was delighted with her; she was exactly what he had always wanted in a little sister. He was only three years her senior so they had many things in common, as well as their inherent alien tendencies. By the end of the day they were great friends. Connor, a little more reserved but equally as intelligent and fun-loving, found his little sister charming, while Lane enjoyed the quiet, shy exterior to the great guy inside, who was just like her father, only much more fun.

A few days passed and Lane and Connor grew closer, as did Max and Connor. Max tried to do everything possible to make-up for lost years with his son. Lane was happy because this kept Max off her back about her late outings with Nate and Liz was happy because the inner turmoil Max had been having for nineteen years was finally healed, allowing them to be closer than ever.

As Lane and Connor became more like siblings, Connor was included more in the time she spent with her best friend and boyfriend. This allowed Connor to get closer to both Nate and Abby. He and Nate were good friends within a week, as he had predicted, but he was still shy around Abby and couldn't figure out how to break that wall down. Abby herself was doing everything possible to fight the attraction she was feeling. It was uncharacteristic for her to fall for a guy so deeply, and with the alien complications she never did. But this was different, not only because he was also an alien, but also because of what she was feeling. She felt pulled to Connor magnetically and didn't know how to handle the new situation. This was complicated by the fact that the two were often left alone while Lane and Nate spent time alone. Most of this time was, however, spent with the two working for opposite goals. Abby was fighting her attraction to Connor and, while they were becoming good friends, Connor was starting to want more. He felt driven to have more, as if it were a necessity.

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About a month after Connor's arrival, it happened, and their relationship finally changed. Max and Liz were out on a romantic evening, while Michael and Maria were spending time together at home, requiring their two children to be gone. The four teenagers were relaxing at the Evans house, watching a movie. Abby and Connor sat on the couch, a pillow and popcorn bowl between them, while Nate lay on the floor with Lane's head in his lap. Eventually those two began making out. Abby chucked popcorn at them.

"You two are disgusting... can't you keep your hands off each other for an hour?" Lane started cracking up as Nate tickled.

"No," he laughed, looking up at his sister. "We go back to school in three weeks and we've got to enjoy each and every moment we've got left." Abby sighed and Connor looked at her and laughed. She responded by chucking popcorn at him. He grabbed a handful and prepared to retaliate when Lane stood up and dragged Nate up with her.

"We're going to go somewhere more private," she explained. "You kids have fun." Connor and Abby smiled as nicely as they could muster, waiting patiently for the pair to leave. When they were gone, Connor chucked the handful of popcorn at Abby. Pretending to look shocked she turned away innocently and then, after a few moments, dumped the whole bowl on his head. Connor laughed and, after wiping the popcorn off, they went back to watching the movie.

Within a few minutes, however, Abby caught Connor watching her out of the corner of his eyes. She shut off the movie, turned on the light, and smiled at him.

"What?" she asked innocently. He laughed.

"You've got popcorn in your hair," he responded, actually thinking about how beautiful she was. She blushed, wiped it away, and then looked angry.

"Well if I do, it's your fault, jerk," she shouted, allowing the tension to brew for a few minutes before bursting into peals of laughter. Connor laughed with her.

"I hate when you do that," he said. "I can't read you when you play with my mind like that." Abby moved an inch closer and leaned toward him a bit.

"Well, maybe I don't want to be read," she whispered. Connor, overwhelmed by the beautiful, seductive creature in front of him, moved another inch closer.

"But I always read people.... it's my gift. Why won't you let me read you?" Abby blushed and looked down.


"I... I just don't want people to know what I'm thinking," she stuttered, and then laughed.

"I've got to remain a woman of mystery, you know?" Connor laughed with her.

"Well, you are a mystery, at least to me... that might be why I like you so much." He stopped at this and looked in her eyes, waiting for a response. Abby suddenly got uncomfortable and inched away.

"You're trying it again," she said. Connor scooted closer, trapping her with the arm of the sofa.

"I'm sorry," he said, placing a hand over hers. "It's just natural for me to want to know what the people around me are thinking. I think I try so much with you because you can resist it. You can put up that wall... I want to take it down and see you..." Abby blushed and smiled.

"Maybe you will someday," she said. Connor smiled. Then it happened. Abby felt like something was controlling her, but she didn't fight it. She leaned in and kissed him. It was soft at first, but, as they moved closer, it became harder and more passionate... neither wanted it to end. Their bodies together felt like the most natural thing, and Connor could see Abby. Not what she was thinking, but her past. He saw her childhood with her brother and felt how much she loved him. He also saw how much she was hurt when Nate and Lane left her to do things together. This made him love her more, and all he wanted was to protect her. His arms already around her, he tightened his embrace as they kissed more deeply.

Then, all of a sudden, Abby pulled away. She stared at Connor for a second and he looked confused. Flustered, she tried to compose herself and stood up.

"I'm... I'm sorry," she said, grabbing her things. Connor stood up after her.

"No, no, don't be... it was incredible. I..."

"No!" she interrupted. "It shouldn't have happened and I'm sorry. Tell Nate I went home." Without looking back she marched out the door, ignoring Connor's calls so he wouldn't see the tears forming in her eyes. He just stood in the doorway and looked confused.