My Only Familiar Is Me[A Late-Blooming Evolution Story]

I stood in the doorway of my own apartment, one hand on the knob, studying the scene before me with cold curiosity. Stephanie was storming the threshold. She could barely stay on her feet, clinging to her companion and beaming a blissfully drunken smile into the hallway.

The sight was nothing out of the ordinary, but it did not surprise me. Stephanie was the kind of girl who dyed her hair bright blue, dressed according to the latest Instagram trends, and was constantly chasing her next thrill. What really struck me as odd was that we had been studying Spanish together for almost a month, and I had never once seen her like this. Sure, she flirted with me, but as far as I was concerned, our lessons had always been strictly about studying. No exceptions.

What really caught my attention was how she was being held, and by whom.

Leon was openly pawing at Stephanie. Colonel Stuart, as I knew him. An Awakened, head of the Corps' intelligence division, and a man whose appearance in my neighborhood had absolutely no chance of being a coincidence. I met his gaze. Leon's eyes looked glassy, but that act was only convincing enough to fool an idiot.

“Steph, have you looked at the time?” Maggie stepped out from behind my shoulder and planted her hands on her hips, giving her friend a stern look from beneath her pink bangs. “Do you have any idea what time it is?”

“Oh, come on, Meg. Don't be such a buzzkill.” Stephanie put on a guilty face, which immediately gave way to a smug grin. “I just couldn't wait until morning. Meet Leon. My new boyfriend. He's a colonel! And... he's Awakened. Can you believe it?”

Still wearing that predatory grin, Leon made his fingers intangible. His hand lost its solidity, turning semi-transparent as it slipped through the fabric of Stephanie's skirt and ran along her thigh. She dissolved into a stupid, shrill giggle.

Maggie raised her eyebrows and pursed her lips slightly, putting on the classic expression of an ordinary person seeing superpowers for the first time. Excellent performance. Her pulse had not quickened, her breathing had not changed, and there were no telltale microfixations of a cornered animal. After her evolution, her hormones remained in perfect balance. She was made of stone. With that kind of composure, she could breeze through Green Beret training.

“So how long are we gonna stand here like a bunch of teenagers?” Leon's deep, smoke-roughened voice boomed through the stairwell. “You gonna invite us in and pour us a drink, or what?”

Maggie's eyes flicked toward me for a moment, silently handing me the initiative. Her unspoken message was perfectly clear: You handle this. This is your department.

“Come on in, since you're already here.” I stepped aside, clearing the way. “Just keep it civil.”

“Pfft, Mr. Goody Two-shoes.” As she walked past me, Stephanie stuck out her tongue. Childish. “Meg, why are you dressed for a workout? Do you sleep in that?”

“We were getting ready to go for a run,” I replied evenly as I followed them into the kitchen and took my usual seat at the head of the table.

“God, you athletes are a piece of work,” Leon chuckled.

He dropped onto a stool like he owned the place and pulled Stephanie onto his lap, then immediately pressed his lips against hers. There was nothing passionate about it. It was pure, demonstrative dominance. He looked like he was trying to shove his tongue down her throat.

I looked at Maggie. Her face showed the same disgust I felt myself. Stephanie, meanwhile, was breathing heavily and looking perfectly pleased with life by the time the colonel finally pulled away.

“This is Maggie, my best friend,” Stephanie slurred, while Leon's heavy hand shamelessly squeezed her waist. “And this is Tom. He serves in the military too, by the way. Just like you.”

“I knew it the second I saw you.” Leon raised his thick eyebrows, giving my shoulders a cynical once-over. “You don't build arms like that working in an office.”

“Oh, come on. It's barely even the military!” Stephanie waved him off. “Tom's our, uh... accountant. Or warehouse manager. Whatever. Basically, he's a paper pusher.”

“And he actually got you to believe that crap?” Leon roared with laughter, his voice loud, rolling, and hoarse enough to fill the kitchen. “Sweetheart, you don't build arms like those just to shuffle papers. With a build like that, you kill people.”

Stephanie blinked, trying to process what she had heard. Judging by her glassy eyes, though, the conversation would dissolve into the alcohol haze long before morning.

Leon fixed me with a heavy, unblinking stare. He was waiting. Waiting for his little performance to get under my skin, for me to start fidgeting, clench my fists, and do something stupid to protect my cover.

A month ago, I might actually have tensed up.

But after my evolution, any emotional flare-up was snuffed out in my brain before it could even take hold, breaking down into pure analysis. Right now, I felt as though I were standing in front of a cage containing a large, foul-smelling predator that was growling and raking its claws against the bars. I saw the threat. I saw the fangs. I could calculate the risks perfectly. But there was no panic. No anger.

I wanted to say, Keep going, Colonel. If Leon was itching to play at exposing me and spill Corps secrets to civilians, more power to him. At the end of the day, he was the only one whose ass would end up in front of a court-martial for disclosing classified information.

“How did you two meet?” I settled into a relaxed position, crossing my legs and leaning back slightly.

“Oh, it was...” On her third attempt, Stephanie finally managed to unlock her phone. “Exactly one hour and forty-three minutes ago. I was sitting at the club, all alone, bored out of my mind... Then Leon showed up, and I just fell in love...”

“One more martini and you'd have fallen in love with a lamppost,” Leon said with a smirk. “Are you guys gonna pour us something already?”

“We don't keep alcohol in the house.” Maggie raised an eyebrow, giving her friend a reproachful look. “If you're planning to keep partying, go back to the bar.”

“Yeah, it's tough being friends with athletes.” Leon snorted and reached into his shirt pocket, pulling out a crumpled pack of cigarettes.

“If you're gonna smoke, do it by the window.” I cut him off as I rose from my chair. “I'll help you open it.”

“Then Stephanie and I can catch up on some girl talk.” Maggie caught my knowing glance and immediately played along. “You know, woman to woman.”

Leaving the women in the kitchen, we moved into my room. I walked over to the window and threw it wide open, letting cool night air and the distant hum of the highway into the stuffy apartment.

“What was that whole performance about?” I leaned back against the wall. “It’s in your best interest to have a damn good reason for acting like an asshole.”

Leon did not answer right away. He sauntered over to the windowsill, braced himself on his hands, held the cigarette between his lips, and flicked his lighter. The flame picked out his hard, angular features from the darkness. Only after taking a couple of deep drags and blowing a thick stream of smoke outside did he turn his head toward me.

“Ross. You remember what we talked about last time?”

“I have a perfect memory.” I folded my arms across my chest. “We spent half the damn day talking in the car on the way to the Pentagon. Be specific.”

“Specific, huh?” He snorted and blew a perfectly formed gray ring of smoke into the air. “You talk like a fucking computer, but that’s exactly what I like about you. The intelligence division could use more robots like you.”

“I remember every argument you made for transferring me to your team.” I nodded slowly, briefly replaying that conversation in my head. “So what does Stephanie have to do with it?”

“It has everything to do with it, Ross. You still haven’t said yes. You keep stalling, waiting for me to make the offer more appealing. Goddamn careerist.” His grin vanished, replaced by a heavy, leaden seriousness. “I’m like a pit bull. Once I sink my teeth into someone’s ass, you couldn’t pry my jaws loose with a crowbar. I’m not getting off your case until I see your name on the recruit list.”

“And what’s your strategic plan?” My voice remained even. “Seduce every woman in this apartment?”

“Blue-haired little tramp is just the warm-up.” A nasty, eager glint flashed in his eyes. “I can take it further. Rent the apartment next door, show up at your place every day with some damn apple pie and a wholesome smile. Or... maybe I’ll make a move on your mother. You did a hell of a job with Maggie. Young, athletic, ass like a peach. Makes me wanna take a bite.”

Leon smacked his lips like the crude, disgusting bastard he was.

For a second, I considered activating [Demoralization] and simply sending him out the window. Unfortunately, it would be a waste of resources. The bastard would just phase through the pavement and be standing here again five minutes later with the same greasy grin on his face. Petty tricks did not work on intelligence colonels.

To permanently neutralize an intangible person, you had to dump him in the middle of the ocean or out in the desert and let him keep phasing until dehydration finished the job.

“Leon, I’ll be perfectly blunt. Your little performance is getting on my nerves,” I said coldly. “Cheap threats and psychological games aren’t going to get you anywhere with me. And if you try dragging the people close to me into this... Tell me, do you really think it’s smart to trust your back in combat to someone who’ll genuinely want to put a bullet in the back of your head?”

Leon was silent for a few seconds, studying my face. Then he gave me a short nod, genuine respect in his eyes.

“Decent answer. Didn’t crack, didn’t piss himself, and put an overreaching superior back in his place. That’s exactly what I’m talking about. With a brain like yours, you belong in intelligence. You’ll be running your own team before long. All right, forget it. Consider tonight’s little stunt a reminder. Think it over again.”

I gave him a curt nod. No promises, but there was no reason to escalate things further.

Suddenly, Leon let out a low, choppy laugh as he stared down at the cars parked in the courtyard.

“What’s so funny?” I glanced down, trying to figure out what had amused the army dog.

“It just hit me. You were baring your teeth when you were defending Maggie. You jumped to Selina’s defense the second I went after her. Even threatened to beat my face in. I respect that,” he said with a smirk. “But I spent the whole evening grabbing your ex by the ass and treating her like a cheap whore, and you didn’t give a damn.”

“Because that’s exactly what she is,” I replied with mild indifference. “Stephanie was never my girlfriend. We were strictly studying Spanish. So her personal life doesn’t concern me in the slightest. Besides, she seems more than happy with your company.”

“She’s happy because I’m Awakened.” Leon spat out the window in disgust. The heavy smack against the pavement rang through the quiet night. “She played hard to get at first, but the second I phased my hand through the bar right in front of her, she spread her legs. What do you think, does she suck cock?”

“Ask her yourself. Are you done with me, or do you have any other business proposals?”

“You trying to get rid of me already?” Leon tucked the pack into his pocket and straightened his shirt. “We’ll talk later. I’m not leaving town.”

We returned to the kitchen, but it was empty. A quiet whisper drifted from the bedroom. Stephanie had already passed out right on top of the bedspread, and Maggie was carefully covering her with a blanket.

“You boys sure took your sweet time,” Maggie said quietly, turning at the sound of our footsteps. “Steph couldn’t hang and passed out.”

“Then wake her the hell up.” Leon frowned as he stepped over the bedroom threshold. “I didn’t buy her all those cocktails at the club just to watch her sleep with her face in a pillow.”

“Stephanie is staying here.” I stepped into his path, putting as much steel into my voice as I could. “And you’re leaving. Now.”

Leon fixed me with a predatory stare that grew darker by the second, exactly like a lion having a piece of meat pulled out from under its nose. I met his gaze calmly, without moving an inch.

“To hell with you people,” he finally muttered after a second, waving a hand in annoyance before turning toward the door. “City of endless opportunities, my ass. I’ll find myself a decent bitch who doesn’t fall asleep standing up.”

He walked into the hallway and slammed the front door so hard that the glass in the frame on the wall rattled.

“And what the hell was that?” Maggie asked as she stepped out of the bedroom, rubbing the bridge of her nose wearily.

“You could say he’s a fellow soldier.”

She shook her head and narrowed her eyes skeptically. “Get yourself some normal friends. With friends like that, who needs enemies?”

I said nothing. On that particular point, there was absolutely nothing to argue with.