Manchild

Title - Son of Angel, the Sequel to Manchild. Part one.

Author - Rina

Feedback - here or rina762003@hotmail.com

Rating - PG 13, swearing. Will be NC-17 in later chapters.

Warning - Slash, sex. If you read the first fic, you should know what you're in for! And I really recommend reading the first part before Son of Angel or it's not gonna make sense.

Note - This is for the people who wanted a sequel and didn't hate my original character Sebastian. Thank you, guys! Your comments mean a lot to me.

Summary - One year later. Has Connor forgotten about the crossdressing gay guy he rescued from a vamp attack? Because Sebastian sure hasn't forgotten anything...


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PART ONE

Twenty six year old Sebastian Christensen passes the front of an inner city motel with a neon sign in the smudged window which reads ROOMS AVAILABLE. Underneath that in smaller letters is: NO QUESTIONS ASKED. The door is red and the paint is chipped and scratched from years of use. To him, it seems like one of those seedy places that would have roaches in the rooms, cracks in the ceiling and stained mattresses on the beds.

“Classy,” he mutters, thinking that people must be pretty desperate if they go there to have sex. He would rather go to a nice hotel with clean sheets and a mint on the pillow. Not that he’s hoping to get laid tonight, even though it’s been a while since he had a one-on-one encounter with another man. Trouble is, it’s so hard to find anyone that he clicks with, anyone that really stands out from the herd, anyone that captures his attention for more than five minutes. Guys that he meets are either self-obsessed, bitchy fashion victims, arrogant assholes or just plain not interested in a serious relationship. He never comes across anyone decent at work; other male models are nice to look at but lack something in the intelligence department. The dude that he’s meeting tonight seems fairly brainy – being a systems analyst, whatever the hell that is - but they have only met once and that was at a mutual friend’s birthday party. It’s too early to say if he’ll end up being another bitch or another asshole. Well, time will soon tell. Sebastian knows he probably has to kiss a lot of toads before he finds his prince. And he will never find his prince if he sits at home thinking about someone he can’t have.

Trying not to dwell on the past, he runs his fingers through his loose, shoulder-length black hair, the shiny curls springing back into place as he walks. His green gaze sweeps the street and the people on it, searching for any signs of danger, checking out the faces of drivers in cars, pedestrians on the sidewalk, patrons in outdoor cafés, everyone. You just never know where your next attacker will come from. His tall form is dressed in low-waisted black pants and a white open-collared shirt with a long leather coat over the top. Motorcycle boots reach halfway up his calves underneath the trousers, the rubber soles thick and sturdy – good for running.

As he’s covertly looking around him, a prickle of awareness touches the back of his neck and he attempts to hone in on where the sensation is coming from. It’s as though he’s being watched. He continues walking purposefully down the pavement like he’s got somewhere to go but with each street light he leaves behind, that feeling increases. In fact, he starts to feel not only watched, but followed and the farther he walks, the more he’s convinced that somebody - or something - is tracking him. And conveniently, the vicinity he’s in is becoming vacant; no shops, no people strolling by, no cars whizzing past. He’s heading into an industrial area, lots of big, ugly concrete structures, factories that are shut down for the night. Dark and deserted. A nice place to get killed where nobody will see anything. He takes a corner into a narrow lane between buildings and the sense of being followed is no longer a sense but a certainty. Straining his ears, he can hear the whisper of careful footfalls, the brush of clothing against brick. Soon, he’s sure that the stalker is right behind him, in the shadows where he can’t see.

“Okay, I know you’re there,” he announces, spinning around and scanning the area, seeing nothing in the darkened lane, not the ideal place a man should be at this time of night. But Sebastian isn’t afraid.

“What the fuck do you want, huh?” His tone grows more demanding. “Come on out and show yourself instead of skulking around like a filthy rat.”

No-one answers. There is no sound but distant traffic and muted music from bars and nightclubs a few blocks away.

Sebastian’s hand discreetly goes to the deep pocket of his coat where a secret object is located. The item is constructed of wood and one end has been sharpened to a point. It’s a stake and Sebastian crafted it himself out of pine, sanding back the handle to remove splinters. Since his almost fatal encounter with vampires a year ago, he’s been more aware of the undead populace of the city and isn’t taking any more chances with his safety. He carries this sharp stick around with him everywhere and it has saved his life twice already. The first time was when a female bloodsucker tried to take a bite out of him in a parking lot a few weeks after the initial attack. At first she was cute with her short platinum blonde hair and pink bubblegum lips but then her face changed. Sebastian recognised those yellow eyes and bumpy brow immediately and stabbed her before she could give him a lethal hickey. He was surprised at how easily the pointed stake sank into the white flesh of her chest and how quickly she turned to ashes, floating in the air around him like grey snowflakes. It felt good killing that demonic bitch; satisfying and an immense rush. The second vamp he killed, an Asian male, was just as satisfying and Sebastian curls his fingers around the smooth wooden handle in his pocket, ready to pull it out and dust another one tonight if need be.

“Come and get me, motherfucker!” he calls out daringly. “I will send your ass straight back to hell where you came from.”

“You could try.”

The sarcastic voice comes from above and Sebastian looks up in surprise. He sees a dark silhouette squatting like a gargoyle on the roof of the tall building beside him, five stories up. That dark silhouette pushes off the roof and Sebastian instinctively backs away, his apprehensive gaze fixed on the falling figure. Instead of splattering blood and guts all over the sidewalk like a normal person would, the figure comes smoothly sailing down feet first, tucking one leg under at the last moment and landing in a spectacular kneeling crouch, their right hand slamming flat against the ground, the head bent, long red-brown hair hanging forward and covering their face. The body of the stranger is slim and covered in baggy jeans and a navy long-sleeved top; Sebastian unable to ascertain whether the person is male or female at this stage or even if it is human. All evidence points to it not being of the human species and he pulls his hand out of his coat pocket, the stake held tightly in his fingers, aiming it at the thing on the ground.

Slowly, the figure lifts its head, the curtain of glossy auburn strands parting to reveal a pale face with delicate features and red lips. Underneath straight dark brows, feathery lashes lift and intense sapphire eyes flick up to Sebastian, who gasps in instant recognition.

“Connor?”

“Hi.” Connor grins impishly as he gets up from his awesome landing, brushing dirt off his jeans. “Thought that would be cool. Did it look cool?”

“I...you...Jesus,” Sebastian stutters, overwhelmed by the kid’s astonishing appearance, laying his hand over his heart which is pumping four times its usual rate. “That was incredible! Not to mention scary. How on earth did you do that?”

“You fall. You land.” Connor shrugs. “It’s easy.”

“Of course it is. If you’re a goddamn CAT,” Sebastian retorts, still reeling over that multi-story dive.

Connor just grins again, displaying small, pearly teeth and Sebastian is stuck by how brilliant it looks. Last time he saw Connor, the boy only seemed to have three main expressions: suspicion, anger and sadness. Sometimes a mix of all of those, the pain clouding his bright eyes and turning his pretty mouth down. Sebastian hardly saw Connor smile at all back then but here he is grinning as though he’s high on life and it really suits him.

“Nice stake,” Connor comments in amusement, glancing to the sharp stick still in Sebastian’s fist. “Were you really gonna use that on me?”

“If you were a vamp, sure.” The older man drops it back into his coat pocket. “Wouldn’t be the first time.”

“You’ve killed a vampire?” Connor almost laughs in incredulity, remembering the other guy’s total lack of fighting skills last time they met. “Actually killed one? As in dusted?”

“As a matter of fact, I’ve killed two,” Sebastian returns haughtily, straightening his spine in indignation. “Since you rather embarrassingly rescued me in the alley behind that club, I’ve learnt how to defend myself. I’ve been taking lessons in martial arts AND in the use of pointy weapons. I am now a qualified ass-kicker.”

Connor’s eyes widen in disbelief, hugely impressed at what he’s hearing.

“So if you’re here to protect me, kid, don’t bother. I can take care of myself now.”

“I’m not actually here to protect you,” Connor states, irritated at being called, ‘kid’ especially since he’s going to be nineteen in a few months time.

“Then why are you here?” Sebastian tilts his head scrutinisingly at the smaller boy. “Hey, wait. Have you been following me?”

“I wasn’t following you,” Connor objects hotly, even thought it’s sort of true. “I was out hunting when I saw you walking along and-”

“And you just decided to drop in?” Sebastian interrupts.

“Something like that,” Connor responds testily, beginning to feel as though he’s made a huge mistake by showing himself to the other man. “You got a problem with me being here?”

“Absolutely not, pixie,” Sebastian quickly replies, trying to diffuse the dangerous fire growing in Connor’s eyes. “You just shocked the hell out of me, that’s all. I mean, Christ, it’s been a year since I’ve seen you. And then you fall straight out of the fucking sky? How did you expect me to react?”

Suddenly feeling stupid, Connor glances away and mumbles, “I thought you might be...I don't know...glad.”

“Oh, I AM glad,” Sebastian reinforces, grinning to confirm it. “Like you wouldn’t believe. I thought I was being stalked by a vamp. But you can stalk me anytime, sugar.” The dark haired man’s green eyes twinkle like emeralds.

“You can stalk me all the way back to my place if you want to.”

Connor’s blood pressure unexpectedly jumps up a few degrees at the cheeky remark and he flushes and lowers his head, trying to hide his pink cheeks behind his hair, not expecting to get so excited about the idea of following Sebastian home.

“I really am glad you’re here, Connor,” Sebastian repeats in a gentler tone, stepping closer, trailing his gaze up and down the boy’s figure. Since the last time Sebastian saw him, Connor appears to have matured more, gotten a little taller, his shoulders a little wider, his jaw a bit more defined. But he’s still as slender as ever and his hair has grown longer, the coppery-brown strands framing his face and reaching down past his shoulders in a straight sweep, emphasising the paleness of his skin and neck, the redness of his mouth and vibrant colour of his blue irises, fringed with dark lashes. A small chocolate dot sits under the left corner of his lips as the finishing touch to a fine piece of art. Even the dim light of the street lamps can’t shadow his shining beauty and Sebastian drinks up the sight of Connor, imagining that looking is all he’ll get to do with the stunning waif.

Getting his heart rate under control, Connor glances up to find Sebastian gazing at him interestedly with those Gummi Bear-shade green eyes.

“So, what’ve you been up to lately, Superboy?”

“Oh, you know. Wasting vamps. Decapitating demons.” Shrugging casually, Connor concludes, “The usual.”

“The usual, huh?” Sebastian drawls with one eyebrow raised. “You make my life seem boring as shit. All I do is walk around in other people’s clothes and pose for pictures in them.”

“Are you still in your band?”

Pleased that Connor remembers something about him from their last conversation, Sebastian answers, “Yes, I am. Thank you for asking. We’re still waiting for that big record deal but hey, it’ll happen one day.”

“And your motorcycles?”

“Still have those.” Sebastian offers,” I can take you for a ride one day if you want.”

A hint of a smile touches the teen’s lips at the thought of sitting on the back of a shiny bike, zipping though the streets of L.A. like lightning, the wind rushing though his hair, hanging onto Sebastian’s waist so he doesn’t fall off.

“That would be fun,” he says, secretly thinking that the hanging-onto-Sebastian part would be the best bit.

“Totally,” Sebastian agrees, visualising pretty much the same thing, Connor’s thin arms wrapped around him, the boy’s chest and stomach pressed enticingly against his back. “Pity I don’t have one with me tonight,” he says regretfully. “I got a cab into the city.”

For the first time, Connor realises that Sebastian is dressed for going out and he must be holding the guy up from whatever it is he is meant to do. “Are you on your way somewhere?” he ventures hesitantly, gesturing to Sebastian’s stylish black and white outfit.

“Ah...I was supposed to be meeting someone. At a bar,” Sebastian answers uncomfortably, rubbing the back of his neck.

The younger one’s eyes grow sharp and piercing. “A date?”

Wincing, Sebastian replies, “Kind of.”

“Right.” Connor returns this stiffly, feeling unwanted and rejected, even though he knows he has no claim on Sebastian’s affections whatsoever. It’s been twelve months. He can’t expect the man to remain single and celibate just because they had sex once. Really good sex...but still, that doesn’t mean anything in this world. Humans don’t mate for life. Connor knows all about that first hand.

“Well, have a good time,” he tosses out flippantly, turning away and acting as if he’s not affected by Sebastian seeing someone else. “I’ve got some more vamps to dust anyway.”

“Screw the date,” Sebastian pronounces dismissively, halting Connor’s departure. “I’m not that into him. He’s nobody special.” Looking pointedly at Connor and picking up on the boy’s well-hidden emotions, he ends sincerely, “Not like you.”

Handed such a compliment, Connor seems lost for words and stands there looking at Sebastian, unable to believe the guy would give up a date just for him. Connor doesn’t think that he’s anything special but Sebastian definitely does. Sebastian thinks that there’s not another single human being in the world quite like Connor. Which is probably because the kid’s not quite human.

“Okay, what exactly are you?” Sebastian demands, crossing his arms over his chest. “I want to know the truth.”

Playing dumb, Connor questions, “What do you mean?”

“C’mon. I’m not an idiot. I know how strong you are,” Sebastian proclaims, specifically referring to how Connor carried him back to his room when Sebastian was out cold after the vamp attack in the alley. He must have been like a dead weight in Connor’s arms but the skinny little boy managed to haul his unconscious ass six blocks and up a ladder without dropping him and still had enough energy left to carve stakes on the windowsill.

“You can kill monsters bigger and stronger than you without even breaking a sweat. And on top of all that, you just jumped off a five-story building in front of me and didn’t even break a bone. What’s the deal?”

Connor stares at him, trying to figure out why Sebastian is so interested in his abilities but the second male doesn’t seem to have any ulterior motives. It’s not like he’s one of those scumbags who work for Wolfram and Hart or anything. He’s just generally curious. Maybe he can be trusted with the truth. As the Powers That Be know, Connor would love to be able to share his secret with at least one other living person on the planet.

“I don’t know what I am,” he finally answers.

Sebastian squints at him. “What do you mean, you don’t know?”

Swivelling his head around to make sure nobody is near them, Connor motions for Sebastian to come with him. “Let’s walk,” he suggests, not keen for anyone to hear what he’s about to reveal. The taller man follows Connor back onto the street, strolling beside him so they can walk and talk in private, away from any creatures that may be lurking in the darkness.

When he’s sure that they are completely alone, Connor looks down and says quietly, “My parents were vampires.” He waits for Sebastian to recoil with horror or even say something in disgust but the first man doesn’t do either.

“You said vampires killed your parents,” Sebastian points out in puzzlement.

“I lied.”

“Oh.” Looking perplexed, Sebastian remarks, “I didn’t know they could make babies.”

“Well, apparently I’m the exception.” Connor smiles humourlessly. “Lucky me.”

His forehead creased, Sebastian studies Connor’s fine-looking but very normal and unbumpy face. “But you’re not a bloodsucker. I’ve seen you eat food. I’ve seen you awake in the daytime. And you never tried to bite me even though you had plenty of chances to do so.”

“Somehow I skipped the worst parts of being a vampire and got all the good stuff,” Connor discloses. “Strength, speed, super-senses. Not burning when sunlight touches me.”

“So, you’re like some kind of half-breed. No offence,” Sebastian adds, shooting Connor an apologetic glance.

“I guess.” The eighteen year old merely shrugs his shoulders. “I gave up trying to figure it out a long time ago.”

“Exactly how strong are you?” Sebastian quizzes, greatly intrigued by this revelation.

Connor looks at him speculatively. “You want a demonstration?”

Sebastian nods eagerly.

“Okay,” Connor replies easily, taking up the challenge. The kid saunters over to the nearest brick building and pulls his arm back, snapping it forward and smashing a sizeable chunk out of the corner of the structure with his bare fist. Orange bricks and grey mortar go flying, clumps clattering to the ground. He returns to Sebastian, smirking triumphantly.

“Enough of a demonstration for you?”

Gob smacked by the display of power, Sebastian just grabs Connor’s wrist, inspecting his delicate hand for damage. There is not even a scratch on the skin over his knuckles.

“Holy fuck,” the twenty six year old blurts in amazement. If he tried to do what this stick-thin boy just did, he’d end up in the emergency department of the hospital needing a plaster cast up to his elbow.

“Told you I was strong.”

“Unbelievable,” Sebastian exclaims, finding it hard to fathom that this is what happens when two vampires get groiny and don’t use a condom.

Not shaken in the least, Connor begins walking off and Sebastian chases after him, even more fascinated than before.

“Your parents...where are they now?”

“My mother staked herself when she was pregnant with me. She turned to ash and left me behind.” Connor sounds sad for a moment but then the unforgiving hardness comes back into his voice. “She deserved to die. She was bad. Killed a lot of people. And my father...well, he used to be a killer too and then he got a soul from some gypsies. He’s still evil but not ‘EVIL’ evil...Long story.” Connor sighs, as if it’s too complicated to talk about.

“Anyway, he’s still around but we don’t really see each other much. Every time we do, we end up fighting. Literally,” he clarifies. “A lot of glass gets broken.”

“Does he hit you?” Sebastian asks, frowning.

“More times than I can count.”

“That bastard,” Sebastian interjects angrily, furious with anyone who would want to harm this precious, beautiful young man.

“Don’t worry, I hit him back,” Connor announces dryly. “Ours isn’t exactly a normal father-son relationship. He’s a vampire and I’m a hunter. Sparks are gonna fly.”

“But still, he shouldn’t treat you like that,” Sebastian declares firmly.

Sighing again, Connor confesses, “He doesn’t always. Most of the time he tries to be nice to me. I mean, I know cares about me but the past just gets between us. It’s hard for me to even talk to him without feeling uneasy.”

“You can’t trust him because he’s a vampire?”

“It’s not really that. He’s got a soul so technically, he’s not bad anymore. He doesn’t kill innocent people. He only kills demons.”

“Like you.” Sebastian glances sideways to gauge Connor’s reaction.

“I suppose,” Connor grudgingly admits, thinking that he is more like his father than he wants to be. “Except he does it for a living. He gets paid to do what I do. To hunt. To help the helpless. Has his own business card and everything. I guess Angel’s trying to make up for all the people he’s murdered over the years.”

“Angel?”

“That’s my father’s name. Short for Angelus.”

“Ah, I see,” Sebastian answers, reminded of how Connor got pissed when he called the boy an angel as they were together in bed. No wonder he didn’t like it.

Being simply honest, Connor says, “I can’t trust him because he wasn’t there for me when I was growing up. Which was in a hell dimension, by the way,” he throws in matter-of-factly. “Full of demons and slime and some horrible smell that you never forget. Took me days to get it out of my hair.”

If Connor were any other person, Sebastian would think he’s utterly nuts and start sprinting away for his life but the older male knows first hand that there are vampires in the world. Heck, he’s staked a couple of them. And right now he’s talking to the supernaturally strong human son of two bloodsuckers. If vampires exist then there are many other paranormal anomalies out there that he’s never seen. If Connor says that hell dimensions populated by stinking, slimy demons are real then it’s a fact.

“That’s where I learnt to hunt. In Qor’toth. I was there for sixteen years. You have to hunt and you have to kill or you don’t survive there. My foster father taught me how.” Connor’s face grows gloomy. “But he’s dead now.”

Not knowing what else to say, Sebastian replies awkwardly, “Oh. I’m sorry,”

“Sometimes, I still feel like he’s my real father. Not Angel.” Resentment colours Connor’s voice. “Angel wasn’t there for me then and now that I’m back, he still hasn’t been here for me. There are times when he’s let me down, abandoned me, left me on my own.”

“Did your dad – Angel – did he send you to the hell dimension?”

Almost looking startled, Connor exclaims, “He didn’t send me there. I was taken away from him when I was a baby. They took me to Qor’toth where he couldn’t find me. It was for my protection. People thought he was going to kill me.”

“Why?” Sebastian is aghast at the notion. “Did he try to?”

“Well, there was an ancient prophecy,” Connor begins to elaborate. “The Father Kills the Son. But it didn’t come true...or they were wrong... I don’t know.” Shaking his head, he gives up the confusing explanation.

“Angel has never seriously tried to kill me. Every time he’s hit me, I started it.” Muttering, he adds, “I always start it.”

Trying to understand the mystifying situation, Sebastian repeats, “So, he’s not evil like other vampires because he has a soul. And the others don’t.”

“Well, there is one other vampire that has a soul. His name’s Spike,” Connor elucidates, picturing the cocky, peroxided Brit. “He and my father go way back. But as far as I know, they are the only ones who have been given souls.”

“If your dad has a soul, does that mean he is capable of love?”

“I guess so,” Connor reluctantly acknowledges.

“Has he ever done anything to prove it?”

“Yeah, actually he has,” Connor ascertains, thinking of all the times Angel has guarded and defended him, taken shotgun blasts in the back for him and stood in front of Connor to shelter him from harm, always diving in at the right moment to deflect a sword blow or a crossbow arrow that would have otherwise hit Connor’s body and killed him. Connor may be part vampire but he’s not immortal and Angel has saved his life over and over again. The most recent time was when Angel found him with a bomb strapped to his body. That was right after Connor punched a hole in Jasmine’s maggoty head and went psycho. He was going to a do a suicide bomb and take a lot of innocent people with him but Angel talked him out of it. If by talked, you mean beat the crap out of him and stuck a knife in the back of his leg. But it worked. Angel stopped Connor from blowing himself up.

“And then he gave me a normal life. He wanted me to have what I missed out on so he erased all my memories and sent me to live with a family in a real house.”

“Hold on,” Sebastian cuts in, holding up one hand. “He erased your memories?

Connor nods. “Magic spell. A really powerful one. It wiped the minds of everyone I knew so that they didn’t remember me. The spell also made the family that I was placed with believe that I belonged with them, that I was born there and had always lived there.”

“And you didn’t remember anything from before?”

“Not a thing. As far as I knew, I had two regular parents, a brother, sister and even a dog. I went to school, played hockey and lived like any other teenage boy in suburbia. I passed my final exams with top marks and could have gone to any college I wanted.”

“Wow. He did all that for you?” In spite of his earlier reservations, Sebastian starts to respect Connor’s father. Handing your only son over to complete strangers so that he would be happier, so that he wouldn’t have to deal with the fact that his dad is a vampire and the world is filled with terrible, violent evil. Giving him peace and normality and the chance to become anything he chose to. Giving him a loving family even though Angel wouldn’t have one with Connor gone. To give up your own blood...That’s a pretty big thing to do. If that’s not love then Sebastian doesn’t know what is.

“But if you had such a great family life, Connor, and all those fabulous opportunities then why are you back on the streets looking for things to kill?”

“Because I started to remember.” Connor gazes off into the distance, his face set in a blank, unreadable expression which Sebastian believes is meant to prevent anyone from knowing how he really feels.

“And I knew that my life was fake. I tried to pretend that it didn’t matter, but it did. These people weren’t really my family. They didn’t really love me – they were made to with a spell. I knew that if they found out who I really was, they wouldn’t want me around.”

“So, what did you do?”

“I left. I came back here. And then I made my father reverse the spell on them so they wouldn’t wonder what happened to me. Now they don’t even know that I exist.”

“God. I’m so sorry, honey,” Sebastian says sympathetically, hurting for all the losses, heartaches and disappointments this poor boy has had to endure in his short lifetime.

“Don‘t be. I’m all right,” Connor insists. “I know who I am now and I know what I’m meant to do. I’m a hunter and a slayer and that’s why I was born. To destroy evil.” He half-smiles. “Besides, chopping off a demon’s head with an axe is a great way to get rid of pent-up anger.”

A gruesome image popping into his head, Sebastian grimaces and exclaims, “Jesus. Remind me never to piss you off.”

Glancing at the handsome older man, Connor thinks that that will never happen. Sebastian is way too nice to piss him off. The main person that pisses him off right now is Angel and his futile attempts to act like the father that he never was.

Sensing this, Sebastian says in a gentle, comforting tone, “Connor, I don’t know your father but if he was prepared to sacrifice his relationship with you so that you could have a normal life then I’d say he really cares about you. I bet he never thought he’d have a son. Ever. He probably thinks you’re a miracle.”

“Miracle. Right.” Connor snorts. “More like a pain in his ass.”

“I know you have your issues with Angel and I know it’s none of my business,” Sebastian hastily assures him, “but you shouldn’t blame him for not being there when you were a child. You said that you were taken from him as a baby and raised in another dimension. How could he be there for you when he didn’t even know how to get to where you were?”

Connor is scowling at the ground, hands shoved into his pockets all defensively, not wanting to hear this so Sebastian places his hand on the boy’s shoulder, making him look up and pay attention even if it is with a heated glare.

“He didn’t abandon you, cherub,” Sebastian tells him, removing his hand before it gets bitten. “You were stolen from him. Don’t hate him for someone else’s mistake.”

The irate expression on the teenager’s face gradually lessens as those wise words sink in.

“It sounds to me like he’s trying to make it up to you,” Sebastian reasons logically. “It’s not too late to mend things. He’s your father – the only family you have left in this world. Maybe you should give him another chance or you might regret it for the rest of your life.”

Realising that Sebastian is one hundred percent right, Connor kicks an empty soda can on the ground and mumbles, “Okay, I get it. Can we stop talking about my father now?”

Turning to the younger male, Sebastian questions, “What do you want to talk about instead?”

“How about you?” Connor proposes, eager for the topic to switch away from him and his family troubles.

“Okay. Let’s talk about me.” Smiling teasingly, Sebastian says, “Here’s a fun fact for you, Connor: Did you know that I have thought about you every single day for the last year?”

Connor swings his head around that fast that his long hair almost whips Sebastian’s face. “You’ve been thinking about me?” he asks, his blue eyes large with amazement.

“All the time,” Sebastian confesses honestly. “I’ve been wondering how you were, what you were doing, if you were okay. I wanted to see you to make sure you were all right.”

“You could have seen me. You know where I live,” Connor reminds him. “You’ve been there.”

“Yes, but I didn’t know if you’d WANT to see me,” Sebastian debates. “It’s not like I can send you a text message or anything. You don’t even have a phone. I didn’t want to turn up unannounced only to have you tell me to go the fuck away.”

“I wouldn’t have said that,” Connor protests, a small frown on his smooth forehead.

Focusing attentively on the boy walking beside him, Sebastian inquires, “What would you have done if I had showed up on your doorstep one night?”

“I would have...” Connor starts and then falters, his mind teeming with all sorts of wicked thoughts, all of them to do with seeing Sebastian naked again.

“Would have what?”

“I...” Connor opens and closes his mouth, unable and unwilling to answer that. To his shame, he feels his cheeks redden again, feeling as though Sebastian can see right through him into the sinful cravings that he has kept locked up inside himself for the last twelve months.

“Would you have let me in?” Sebastian prompts.

Abashedly, Connor looks away and nods jerkily, as if admitting to some crime he’s not proud of.

“Don’t be ashamed, sweetheart,” Sebastian says, affection softening his voice. “If you came to my place, I would have let you in too. Hell, I wouldn’t even let you leave.”

Timidly, Connor lifts his head, peeping at the other man with eyes that are at once shy and bold. “But I don’t know where you live. You never told me.”

“Shit, I wish I had,” Sebastian answers ruefully, thinking of all the time they could have spent together instead of fantasising about it. “But it doesn’t matter. You’re here now." He smiles at Connor. "And did I tell you that I love your hair like that?”

Connor shakes his head, red-brown strands around his face softly swaying, the ends brushing the top of his chest above his nipples, which Sebastian can see pebbled under the fabric of the kid’s navy-coloured top, due to both the cool night breeze and the electric tension humming between them. The twenty six year old reaches out to touch that luxurious hair, slowly, waiting to see if Connor will smack his hand away or punch him in the face. But the younger male doesn’t do any of those things. In fact, he stands perfectly still, as if expecting this, even wanting it, a gleam of unmistakable adult knowledge in those pure blue eyes of his. It seems the child is a child no longer, Sebastian muses, and he carefully separates a lock of Connor’s rich auburn tresses from the rest of the mass, letting it slip between his fingertips, all the way to the ends. It feels like silk.

“God, I’ve missed you, darlin’,” Sebastian tells the boy huskily.

Tingles race down the back of Connor’s neck at the slight tugging sensation on his scalp and he suppresses a shudder of pleasure. He lowers his eyelids, swallowing with a dry throat when the older man’s fingers brush his ear as they pass through his hair in an intimate caress. Nobody has touched Connor like this for many months. He hasn’t let anyone touch him like this but he lets Sebastian, remembering how good those fingers felt on his skin such a long while ago. When the caress moves to his cheek, he raises his lashes, finding Sebastian’s face very close to his, the second male’s gaze dark and needy. Those green eyes are captivating and magnetic and Connor once thought they belonged to a woman with long blonde hair and no memory. Not tonight, though. Tonight Sebastian Christensen is all man with his leather biker boots, musky cologne, jet-black hair and stubble to match.

“I want to kiss you, Connor.”

Sebastian’s murmured desire makes doubt flicker in the teen’s face. “You don’t care that I’m part demon?”

“I actually think it’s sexy.”

“Sexy?” Connor wrinkles his nose, wondering how the other guy can find his demonic side appealing. Not that he has fangs or yellow eyes or anything visible pertaining to his vampiric heritage but he still possesses unnatural talents that no teenage boy should ever be capable of.

“Yeah, sexy,” Sebastian affirms, looking up and down Connor’s misleadingly slim figure with a sultry gaze. “Just knowing that you have the power to kill me with one punch...it’s a turn on.”

Still incapable of believing that this very attractive man, who could have anybody in town, actually wants the son of evil, blood-drinking creatures, Connor queries, “You’re not scared of me?”

“Of course not. I know you won’t hurt me. You’re still human. You’re still a boy,” Sebastian stresses and Connor doesn’t mind when he says it.

One good thing about Sebastian is that he doesn’t know about all the awful things Connor did in his past. He never saw that side of Connor because if he did, he wouldn’t be there with him right now, wanting to kiss him. Besides, Connor isn’t like that anymore. Granted, he’s had his insane moments over the years but he’s a damn sight more balanced these days because he’s accepted who he is and where he came from. When Sebastian looks at him, he isn’t seeing Connor back when he called himself Stephen, wearing animal skins, a grisly necklace of kill trophies and a homicidal attitude; he only sees the person who Connor is tonight – a mature eighteen year old with a high school diploma who chose to forgo college for a career saving humanity. And apparently Sebastian likes what he sees because he’s staring intently at Connor with those deep emerald eyes.

“And boys have needs,” Sebastian continues suggestively. “Needs that I can help you with. I know you don’t have a lot of time for dating what with the expanding vampire population in L.A. but I’d still love to see you once in a while.”

Taken by surprise, Connor echoes, “You want to date me?”

“Oh, I want to do a lot more than that,” Sebastian decrees seductively, outlining the teen’s ruby lips with the pad of his thumb. “Are you going to hit me if I kiss you now?”

Connor lifts his chin up in an invitation and replies breathlessly, “What do you think?”

“I’ll take my chances,” Sebastian utters before leaning down and claiming the boy’s tempting mouth.


***


To be continued...if you ask me! I want to hear from some Connor fans before I give you the steamy scenes just so I know I'm not alone with my boy-crush. ;) Tell me what you want to see happen next. I'm open to all suggestions...