Alex bit into the hotdog and savouring the taste. Here he was eating on a street corner with a boy who had lived in Manhattan all his life, but had never sampled this particular New York institution. The vendor chatted with Paul's bodyguard, both men immigrants from Venezuela and seemingly already firm friends. Alex finished the sausage and grinned. Paul was unsure of this snack, as he did not think of this as dinner suitable for a date.

The younger boy looked over Central Park and asked "So, why me, Paul?"

"I was a mess after that school. After about three weeks, I wished I'd talked to you. Gotten to know you. I contacted James, but he did not have your details. Finding out Dimitry was your BFF and he never let on to us you were alive, is just hard to stomach. You were our hero, but in a half forgotten abstract sense. I was not thinking of anyone that way. So, time skip, you went to live with Joe. A guy that does communicate with us all. I got to know about you via his emails and phone calls. I talked to you briefly, watched you on the news and I was a bit obsessed and confused. You were a guy and I liked you, more than as a friend. Totally at a loss, I told by Gran and she thought it was cute, got the fact I was sweet on you and decided to play matchmaker to get us together" Paul knew the odds were stacked against this being anything beyond a couple of dates, considering they lived in separate cities and the long list of issues Mimi had laid out. "She does not know about the bad stuff that happened in Russia, you and that bastard in Siberia. She's under the illusion you're a sad untouched virgin like me."

"Sad? No, we slept in the same bed last night. More than boyfriends, not quite lovers. We moved way past dating already. I felt your boner this morning. So, is it merely infatuation or are you just gay for me, or really into guys like I am. Just a warning, I knew I was a lost cause after I fancied an absolute bastard called Cossack. I don't want nice or kind or lovey-dovey. I want controlling, hard and brutal. Be a shit to me and I'll love you all the more."

"So, no dates to the zoo, just throw you on a bed and have my way with you, like a very bad romance novel?"

"Romance is not me. Touch, sensation, pleasure; those are things I understand. Live for the now, Paul, cause knowing me it'll all go to shit tomorrow." Alex wondered if he was being too honest. Love was obsession and Paul just had to take what he wanted.

Paul binned his half eaten hot dog, knowing he would only ever eat one again if Alex insisted on such a unappetising snack. "So, everyone else is out to lunch, lets go back since we've eaten. I need instruction, as I've just got the hang of snogging."

….

Paul's room was neat and clean. Housekeeping had already changed the sheets. Alex stood and then asked "Did Mom do the whole talk with you?"

"Talk about boundaries and understanding you don't have any considering the abuse and then the full detailed description of safe sex. How does a heterosexual middle aged woman know about homosexual oral and anal sex? She also bought me lube and an industrial size box of condoms." Paul was blushing bright red, remembering the trip to the pharmacy. "Is all that necessary because of your TB?"

"Shit, maybe. TB is completely shit, but I'm not contagious anymore. Just for the record, I'm clean, no STD's. They tested me for everything in Turkey, considering I only mucked about with Kolya. He was careful, shit scared of the clap. One reason he only fucked virgins." Alex then started to strip, he was going to have a bath with Paul, to get him comfortable with his body and to confirm if he was really gay. "Lets play doctor in the bath. Then we can snog all afternoon in the den." The sixteen year old smiled cockily, at Paul's nervous demenour "You are not going to disappoint. I felt your package this morning, you are well endowed and I can't wait to touch you."

…..

Mimi arrived aback at 3, a touch merry from three glasses of champagne. She missed New York, her friends and even though she loved public service, she missed corporate law. She heard the familiar music and sounds of one of the Star Wars movies playing in the den and peeked in, to see her son and his boyfriend snuggled up close, wearing loose scruffy clothes and totally unaware of anything except each other. Alex had obviously gotten his way, no fancy restaurants, no art or up market date, just getting comfortable together. Alex was settling in, comfortable in his own skin, allowing himself to be happy as he was.

Alex smiled and kissed Paul, and stood up asking "Wanna drink? I'm thirsty. Tea?"

"Sparkling water with lime, no ice." Paul then saw Mimi by the door "Ma'am, how was your lunch?"

"Excellent, I'm going for a bath. Enjoy your alone time. I still do with Charles."

Paul Roscoe thought on that, the Canterburys had been a couple for over thirty years. His grandmother had become a widow after 27 years of a tumultuous union, good and bad. His own parents had only managed 12 years and had been separated for the last two years. His mother had not divorced as her prenup had been airtight and she liked the lifestyle, even if her husband lived like a monk. Carpe Diem as Alex insisted, happiness was fleeting.

Joe and the gang arrived home to see his brother asleep on the sofa, Paul stroking his hair and his mom watching some BBC drama. A pizza box on the coffee table. The lanky teen smiled, Alex was not a downtown guy and Paul was slumming it to make his boyfriend happy. Maybe this wasn't going to end in disaster after all. Two guys healing each other.

Dieter and James had gone to pack. Cassian brought in mugs of cocoa with marshmallows, the California playing mom tonight. Joe sipped his drink and would be blogging tonight on this most excellent holiday.

….

The contact report was boring. Better than his last job in Fallijah, this was just recon, no cleaning involved. Why the Bank was interested in a bunch of privileged rich kids he would never know? The Roscoe heir had a serious security set up, so it had meant he had upped his game, keep back and just note anything unusual. There had been another tail at the beginning of the week. PI, he guessed. Probably hired by Sprintz, he was another paranoid bastard, keeping close tabs on his kid. What a circus, when one billionaire had hired in an ex-cop to make sure the other billionaire's security was up to scratch.

He was sick of sitting in cars, walking for hours and staking out a building from the rooftop opposite with shitty lines of sight. Nothing was happening, nor was going to happen. Behind him someone lit a cigarette with a zippo lighter. The SAS man turned slowly onto his back, his hands clearly in view, to see a guy dressed in a grey suit with a garish stripped Brooks Brothers tie. He was obviously stepping on the Firm's toes. "OK, I'm just doing surveillance. Scope, camera, no hardware, honest."

The man shrugged and blew smoke out of his nose. "You have 12 hours to leave the country. Consider yourself persona non grata. Tell Ms. Jones that the kid is off the books. We have agreed a full medical disqualification with the Russians, no exceptions. If you continue this survellience, you may end up drawing the attention of the kid's very psycho protector, Cossack. You may have heard of him. He doesn't play nice."

The guy stubbed out his cigarette and left. The twelve hour window gave him just enough time to clear house and use his agreed escape route to get to Canada.

…..

Alex woke early, the nightmare about Point Blanc had been disturbing, a slight variation on the recurring theme, tonight he had been getting dissected by his friends not the clones. The sixteen year old picked up his journal and wrote down all the details. Then decided to reread his self help book "How to win Friends and influence People" considering this edition was ancient, it was helping Alex communicate and empathise, not just think everyone was out to get him or wanted something from him. Paul had declined sex, several times. They had bathed together, but whatever Joe and Mimi had said had spooked his boyfriend into being a very good boy. He'd wanted to get Paul communicating with him. Now, he had way much more than just an ally, he just had to keep him sweet and learn to tolerate dating. He decided to write Paul a letter.

I have no idea about dating or relatinships. I can only stay what I like. Walks in the Park with you. Swimming, sunbathing and drinks by the pool. Reading together. These are things I find cool. Watching TV is better than the cinema. Forgive me, but I need a shit load more therapy before I'll relax in any dark enclosed spaces. Music, classical is better than jazz, but I have no idea about pop, rock or chart stuff. Yes I like opera and ballet. Sport is good. I like baseball, but I'm still learning the rules. Soccer is the only form of football I recognise. Love hockey, go Dynamo. Food, you need to come to the Farm and eat Grandma's food. Sandwiches in their many forms from hamburgers to quesadillas are my favourite food. So, what rocks your world?

Like a ninja, the teenager put his note under Paul's door then went into the den. He set up the chessboard and started a game. He had kept himself entertained this way for hours in Russia, when insomnia kept him awake. He missed the chess solutions printed in the Paper in Russia. He was not the boy he had been, his time there had shaped and changed him. It had not all been bad. Dima had been an arse, but his reactions had been understandable. Alex was still an outsider, he was allowed to be one here, encouraged and accepted dispute the fact he was not normal, had never been normal and was never going to be that type of person.

He was mulling over his opening move when Joe stumbled into the room and grunted "Thought you'd snuck into Paul's room. Can't sleep?"

"Ya think, Sherlock? Want to play?" Alex said cheekily

"Sure I bet I can lose in five moves or less."