Chapter 14

Zach is panting, unable to reconcile what happened, falling on his back. He can hear Aron moan and sense him shift on his side. Aron’s panting too and, when Zach looks, he can see Aron’s closed eyes. They aren’t scrunched closed and there isn’t tension in his body anymore. On the contrary, he seems overly-relaxed.

With a click of his fingers, Zach activates the cleaning protocol on his bed. The sanitizing mist is as annoying as ever, but it’s only for a few seconds. Then Zach grabs the tub, puts it on the side table, and goes back to watching Aron.

And Zach knows that he should just let Aron be but he can’t do it. He doesn’t recognize himself, it’s like he’s obsessed. Zach doesn’t want to go against anyone’s wishes though, and he’ll leave Aron alone if Aron asks him, but Zach also can’t make himself stop.

“So they have facial recognition as part of the locking mechanism and as part of the security system,” Zach says, hesitantly and still a little short of breath.