"I'm serious guys," I protested as my friends chuckled at my proposition. "What if they're not all that bad? Don't you at least want to see one?"

Luke scoffed, "I've already seen one." I stared at him with my mouth hanging open, "Really?" I asked, bewildered.

"Well, yeah," he began, "in a textbook."

I groaned aloud and I heard Ashley snicker to my right. "I mean in real life! Wouldn't it be cool to see one up close, to touch one?" I exclaimed, my growing excitement showing by the rising volume of my voice.

Ashley put her arm around me and pulled me in close. "You're such a xenomorphie, Landon!" She giggled lightly and pecked me on the forehead. "It's all right, though," she teased, "we love you anyway. Isn't that right Luke?" She released me in favor of hanging off of her boyfriend's arm. He gave a small 'hmph' then grinned and lightly punched me in the arm. "Of course dude."

I smiled back and brushed my blonde bangs out of my face and pushed my thick, black-rimmed glasses up my nose with the heel of my hand. A chilly breeze rolled by and rustled the color-changing leaves of the nearby trees. Shivering slightly I pulled my black hoodie tighter around myself.

Suddenly a gunshot sounded high above us and we all froze. Simultaneously, we each looked up to see the Wall towering over us.

"One must have tried to climb the Wall again…" Ashley said shakily and held onto Luke tighter. In turn he brought his arm around her and went to steer her away, looking to me when he said "Let's get out of here, yeah?"

My eyes lingered a bit longer on the intimidating form of the Wall. Finally, I turned to follow my friends. I walked behind them while Luke tried to cheer Ashley back up by reassuring her and making jokes. As I walked, I thought.

I was having a sort of inner war with myself. One part of me knew that I should fear these alien creatures. They had killed so many, easily reducing the human population from seven billion to just one-point-three million in just over a week. We named the event the Darkest Nights after the midnight black color of the Xenomorphs.

I don't remember it because I was only a baby at the time. Maybe that's why I couldn't bring myself to hate the aliens, because I hadn't seen first-hand the horrors they were capable of. But then again, both of my parents were ripped away from me and my sister. So maybe I should be like her and despise them with every fiber of my being.

I shook my head, I can't think like that. I can't really hate something when it killed parents I didn't even know…

That last thought may have sounded a bit heartless, but it was the truth. It's like when you watch a movie and some guy the main character knew gets killed. You as the watcher don't feel anything for them really, because he wasn't onscreen that long and you didn't get a chance to get to know him. He was just a face and a voice.

I sigh. "Guys," the couple turn to look at me, "I'm gonna head on home, okay?" They nod and we part while saying our goodbyes over our shoulders. I walked for a couple of blocks, the wind whistling and dancing around me with every step. I finally reached my small house I shared with my older sister, Sarah. I jogged up the concrete steps and walkway to our front door. I retrieve my key and unlock it. Sarah was at work at the Xeno Center and I knew she wouldn't be home for a couple more hours. I stood at the threshold for a while, contemplating.

I finally made my decision as I ran to my small but comfortable bedroom and grabbed a small black leather backpack. I stuffed it with my Nikon D50 digital camera, another lens, a flashlight, and an extra hoodie. I pulled on some fingerless black gloves and grabbed a bottle of water as an afterthought. I looked down at my feet. My last pair of hiking boots was sorrowfully deceased. I shrugged; my black converse would have to do.

I locked the front door behind me and trotted back down the steps. As I walked I checked my watch; I still had three hours until sunset, the town curfew. I tried to act inconspicuous as I made my way to the woods nearest the Wall's base. The towering trees were like ants compared to the massive height of the Wall, making me feel like a grain of sand. After close to half an hour of traveling through the underbrush, I found was I was looking for.

It was a small Watergate, a passage that allowed the east river to flow through the Wall. As far as I knew, there were only three others, one to the west, north and south. However, because of the Xenomorphs' acidic blood, we had to place thick metal bars over each waterway entrance. That was also the reason why we built the Wall a mile high and about three hundred feet thick with brick; so they couldn't burn through it. But I knew something neither the Guard Corps nor the Xenomorphs knew; how to get in and out of the Wall.

I had discovered it about a month ago, but I never had the courage to pass through until that day.

I started stomping down on the ground near the base of the Wall, searching for it. After several stomps, my foot finally made a creaking sound. Excitement grew in me as I bent down and used my hands to search for the latch. My right hand brushed over cool metal and I grasped the handle. With a small grunt I hefted up the doorway. I stood up and stared down at the old wooden steps leading into the dark tunnel. My heart pounding, I reached into my backpack and retrieved my flashlight. I clicked it on and shined it down the tunnel. Then I steeled my nerves and carefully stepped down the stairs that moaned under my weight.

My feet made contact with the ground and I reached my left hand out to guide me, feeling nothing but dampened earth under my fingertips. I pushed my glasses up and scratched my nose, things I do when I'm nervous or excited. I started forward then paused looking over my shoulder up into the daylight through the doorway. Maybe I shouldn't do this. What if I'm wrong about the Xenomorphs and I get caught and killed? Or worse, used as a host? Sarah would tear herself apart with guilt. Quickly, I whipped my head back forward. No, I thought, renewed determination making me walk on, I have to prove that there is more to the aliens. We don't have to keep living in fear of them. They aren't just mindless killing machines. They can't be.

I pushed my thoughts away and focused on where I was going. Since I had never been through the tunnel before, I didn't know what to expect. So you can image my disappointment when I ran into a dead end. There has to be a way out. I looked up and started jumping so I could hit the roof of the tunnel. Frustration was probably evident in my caramel eyes as my efforts were futile. Finally, my hand pushed open the latch a little bit. It wasn't much, but it was enough to allow the sunlight to creep through. I put my flashlight back into my backpack and put all of my efforts into jumping and opening the latch further.

Finally, after I thought my legs would give out on me, the latch fell back. Staring bewilderedly and panting, I jumped one more time and grasped the ledge. Grunting and cursing I pulled myself up. I tiredly rolled into my back beside the opened latch and fought to catch my breath. I looked up to see the Wall towering over me, like it always did. But I knew that this time I was looking at it from the outside and with that realization came a sense of freedom. All my life I had been locked inside that damn Wall, and there I was finally free from it!

I basked in my newfound freedom. I laid there slowly regaining my breath and strength with my eyes closed and a small smile on my lips. However, I knew I had to close the latch again and get a move on before someone or something found me. I got up off the grass and brushed off my clothes before turning and closing the latch. I looked around me and found a fairly sized stick. I picked it up and stabbed it into the ground near the latch so when I came back I knew where to find it. Looking up at the Wall one more time, I turned and started walking through the thick forest.

There wasn't much of a difference between the forest I just left on the other side of the Wall to the one I was in. Trees and bushes were all around me, creating a vast shadow that I walked through. Out of the corner of my eye I spotted some color. I turned my head and saw yellow lilies. I hurried over, grabbing my camera out of my pack as I did. I bent down and examined the flower before realizing it was a Canada Lily characterized by its brown spots.

I brought my camera to my right eye and centered the flower so that the sun created the perfect shadow. I took several different pictures from different angles.

When I was taking the last one, a butterfly landed on my lily and I smiled, thinking it to be a perfect shot. Just as I was focusing my camera, however, I saw something in the background that I hadn't noticed before. When I recognized the black figure though, I froze, still looking at it through my camera lens.

The butterfly flew away, I noted distantly, as I slowly lowered my camera to stare at the creature. Now that I look back, I wondered why I didn't take the picture. The Xenomorph was actually quite majestic at that moment. The sun created a glimmer on his skin and made it have an almost blue tint. His body was facing away from me and he was crouched, his long tail curled around him. His head, however, was tilted in my direction. It was almost as though he had been previously preoccupied with something before happening to notice me, same as I did with him.

We stared at each other for a long moment, both of us still. Nothing seemed to exist except for just us, the forest quiet and seemingly watching our exchange.

Then he charged.

I'm soooo sorry! I know I should be working on School is in Session, but this idea would just NOT leave my head! I promise to update SS soon though, don't you worry my lovely readers. Until then I would love it if you guys could tell me what you think of this story. And before you ask, yes it will be a yaoi if you haven't already guessed. I'll rate it M in case I decide to do some interspecies lovin if ya know what I mean *wink wink nudge nudge* Again, thank you for reading!