SYNCHRONICITY (The Lone Wolf)

11

Sebastian walked downstairs and stopping in front of the apartment, he reached up and knocked on the door. Not half a second later, both Craig and Jeffery had opened it and both boys grabbed at each of his hands and pulled him inside and barraged him with questions:

Where are you going?

"Don't know?"

Just not McDonalds!

"Oh definitely not."

Have you seen her yet?

"No, I only just got here," he chuckled.

She's real purty!

"She always is!"

Are you gonna ride her on your bike?

"Erm...Of course."

I think she has a dress...

"Oh?"

Craig ran to her bedroom door, opened it and got screamed at by Alison (causing Sebastian to snicker) and ran back to him.

"Nope. No dress."

His brow knitted. "What is she wearing then?"

"Her Under-roos and almost bare boobies!"

Knowing exactly what Under-Roos were, Sebastian slapped his hand to his mouth to keep from laughing, his face turning scarlet...he could only imagine...Lucky little bugger, he thought. He thought about it for a moment as he tried to figure out which was more erotic: a woman in a barely there bathing suit or a bra and panties, as they called them in the states.

Definitely the lingerie...even a tee shirt and knee socks would be a turn on at this point...he thought. Gods forbid...I want her to make the first move.

Five minutes later, she emerged from her bedroom with Mary trailing behind her, watching them intently. Alison's hair was in a tight French braid and she wore minimal makeup. Her white sundress boasted the occasional tiny red rose bud and showed off her tan spectacularly...and the low heeled strappy sandals showed off her dancer's legs quite nicely, he thought. He felt like a teenager himself, but for the life of him, he couldn't help but stare at her as she approached him, and he was only barely aware that the boys were talking to him.

She stood before him and smiled, her cheeks flaring pink. "Hi again."

"Hi," he said unable to stop smiling at her.

She looked toward the boys. "They're talking to you."

"Hmm? Oh! What's up guys?"

Craig looked up at him, quite annoyed and Jeffery attempted to mirror his brother's demeanor. Craig cleared his throat. "These are the rules..."

Okay right. Here we go...Sebastian instantly wore his poker face and nodded his head reverently. "Alright?"

"Ali's not allowed to play outside after dark. She has to be home when the street lights come on and she has to go right to bed and..."

"No," Mary corrected. "Those are your rules."

Craig sneered. "I can't wait to be a grown up. Nobody tells you when to go to bed, or what to put on or eat more because there are starving kids in Africa..."

"Yeah," Jeffery agreed.

Sebastian knelt down on one knee and motioned that the boys move in closer. "You know? I used to think exactly the very same thing. But you know what?" He eyed both boys. "There are far more rules when you're an adult. And they're not decided by your parents...they're decided by strangers. Strangers who don't care about you and me, or your parents, or even Ali here..."