67Indigo gripped the crumpled papers tightly in his hands, both palms sticky with nervous sweat. He was nearing the front of the line now, and the thought of what came next made his insides painfully twist into an anxious knot. He'd been waiting in the seemingly never-ending line for a good five hours, and although his feet ached and his throat was dry with thirst, Indigo decided he'd gladly wait another five hours just to prolong the inevitable. Only about a hundred people were in front of him now.
"Scared?" the person behind him rasped. Indigo turned his head slightly so he could catch a glimpse of the guy out of the corner of his eye. He was tall and skinny with a pointed nose and a wild mop of brown hair. He wasn't entirely unattractive, but whoever was paired with him wouldn't be overly thrilled.
"No," Indigo lied, turning back to face the front of the line.
"I hope I get a girl with great knockers," the guy continued, shuffling forward so that he was just a bit too close for Indigo's liking. Indigo rolled his eyes. He was tired of hearing every guy talk about the assets they hoped for in their future match. They would get what they got, so it was pointless to sit around fretting about breast size and other physical traits.
Ever since he was a young Indigo could remember the other boys in his class talking about this day, the day they'd all be matched with their future mates. Everyone was excited and eager, but also worried they'd get someone who didn't meet their expectations. All the apprehension was silly, Indigo thought darkly. If one filled out the questionnaires accurately (which everyone did) then the matching was downright predictable. Intelligent boys were matched with intelligent girls, attractive boys with attractive girls, creative boys with creative girls, and so on. All imaginable aspects of a person were recorded and the match-finding supercomputer spat out the name of the person they'd be paired with. It was logical, mathematical, and precise.
Indigo stepped forward a pace or two as the line in front of him gave way. He could see the supercomputer now. The massive metal machine perched ominously on a stage, more lights than necessary flashing on and off simply for theatrical effect.
He glanced down at the papers in his hands. It had taken weeks to complete the tiresome questionnaires. They had arrived in the mail months ago, sent by the government to all nineteen-year-olds in the registry. Indigo had toiled over the papers, filling in questions so personal that he'd taken to locking the forms in his desk drawer for fear his parents would look at his responses.
He'd heard of some people who refused to fill out the forms and never showed up for the day they'd be matched. It was uncommon for that to happen, but it still occurred. People had the freedom to refuse finding a match, although that meant they'd never be legally married or legally allowed to procreate. Those people who refused to become matched—those unmatched people—they were considered to be thorns in an otherwise productive society. What man didn't want to meet the woman of his dreams and produce the allotted two children per family?
Indigo took another few steps forward as the line shrunk even further. How many were left in the queue in front of him? Seventy people? Sixty?
"Check out that babe," the aggravating raspy voice behind him remarked. Indigo looked up to see a gorgeous leggy blonde stepping across the stage to stand next to her match. The two looked perfect next to each other, tall, blonde, and attractive. They smiled at one another and held hands, clearly happy with the supercomputer's output.
Indigo snorted in disgust. He didn't want some brainless overly tanned blonde for a match. He wanted... His mind drew a blank. What did he want?
He watched the next guy step onto the stage as the previous couple left. The boy handed his papers to a man dressed in a dark suit with a white lab coat over top. The man looked like a doctor of some sort, but who knew, the lab coat could simply be for appearance's sake. After making a show out of shuffling the papers, the man inserted them one by one into a slot in the computer. The machine beeped and flashed and made all sorts of other appropriate noises before a receipt slid out a second slot a minute later and fell gracefully into the man's waiting hand.
"Amelia Katie Rutherford," the man said, speaking into a microphone that was located in the center of the stage. On the other side of the room there was a slight commotion as a girl, presumably Amelia, separated herself from the crowd of females and made her way to the front of the amphitheatre. As with the previous couple, the newly matched pair clasped hands and then quickly made their way off the stage, probably eager to get to know one another.
Indigo felt a bead of sweat on his forehead. He couldn't go through with this, it was too much! The line was shrinking again, and numbly he stepped forward. Fifty people left.
Soon there were forty.
And then thirty.
After wiping the sweat from his forehead, Indigo tried to smooth out his papers without much success.
Twenty.
He ran a hand through his hair, unknowingly causing the straight black strands to stick out messily, defying gravity and the product he'd used earlier that morning to slick his hair neatly into place.
Ten.
Indigo's nerves were getting the better of him, and he shifted uneasily from one foot to the other, eyes glued to the stage. Another happy couple stepped down from the platform causing his stomach to flip nauseatingly as his turn approached.
As the man in the lab coat called out the next girl's name, Indigo shut his eyes. He tried to block out the scene before him and imagined he was back at home eating pancakes in bed and watching Saturday morning cartoons. His whole life would change the second his match was called. It wouldn't simply be 'Indigo' any longer; it would be 'Indigo and Amy' or 'Indigo and Cheryl.' He would henceforth be known as only half of a perfect whole.
"Move up will ya?" the tall guy behind him elbowed him in the back and Indigo's eyes flew open, his hand jerking reflexively as he hastily stepped forward. Looking down at his papers, he realised with some amount of horror that he'd accidentally ripped the corner of one of the pages.
It's just the corner, it doesn't matter! But Indigo couldn't entirely convince himself that it was okay. What if his forms were ruined now? He'd spent weeks working on them! He peered down at the neatly filled in circles and confirmed that none had been marred by the slight tear in the corner. It'll be okay, It'll be okay...
There were only two people in front of him now, and Indigo's hands began to shake as trepidation ate at his gut. Did the other guys feel this way? Was he the only one? He tried to swallow the lump in his throat but his mouth was too dry and the lump remained lodged in his esophagus.
He was up next. Indigo watched as the guy who had stood in front of him for the last five and a half hours climbed the stairs of the stage and handed the man in the lab coat his papers. The seconds seemed to trickle by as if they were individual grains of sand in an hourglass. They fell too fast, everything was happening too quickly!
The newly matched couple walked off the stage and at last it was his turn. Indigo stood, frozen to the spot as all eyes turned to him.
"Move," the guy behind him gave him a shove and for the first time Indigo was thankful he'd been stuck in front of him. He stumbled forward, somehow managing to stay on his feet, and then slowly made his way up the stairs and onto the stage.
The overhead lights were bright and hot, and he stood blinded for a moment before remembering what he had to do. His hands shook as he gave his papers to the man in the lab coat, who smiled at Indigo as if to say "I understand you're nervous, but it'll be okay." Even if he was a fake doctor, Indigo was glad the man was there to give him that smile, that small amount of comfort.
His papers were fed one by one into the machine, and there was no turning back now. He held his breath, hands clenched at his sides.
When the little receipt popped out of the supercomputer, Indigo thought he might die of anticipation. Was that possible? No, likely not. That little piece of paper held the name of his entire future, his entire life. The man in the lab coat was staring at the paper, reading the name. He couldn't look, he decided, and instead tried to focus on the crowd of females seated on the left side of the amphitheatre. It was hard to see past the blinding lights, but he could make out the girls in their pretty dresses, each one watching him and wondering if he was their match.
After a minute of silence Indigo let his eyes wander back to the man on stage with him. He seemed to be confused, thick dark eyebrows knitted together as he stared at the receipt. The tension in the air was palpable, and everyone seemed to be holding their breath wondering why a name hadn't yet been read aloud.
"Uh..." the man stepped forward and grasped the microphone, which screeched painfully. He looked momentarily back at Indigo, his expression a mix between confusion and anger.
"Aleck Stephan Harrison?"
There was a moment of utter silence before the entire amphitheatre burst into a synchronized gasp followed by the deafening roar of confused murmurs. Indigo stood, equally confused as everyone else. Wasn't Aleck a guy's name? The supercomputer didn't match two males together. That just wasn't possible. It hadn't happened ever, to Indigo's knowledge, in the centuries the computer had been used. The man in the coat was attempting to get everyone's attention again, and after an ear splitting squawk of the microphone everyone quieted down.
"Is Aleck here?" there was a commotion in the line as someone pushed forward.
Indigo watched, apprehensive, as a young man stepped up and onto the stage. He was taller than Indigo, slender with dark brown hair and intense hazel eyes that tilted slightly upwards at both corners. He must be part Asian, Indigo thought to himself as he admired the young man before him. Aleck, he recalled. Aleck was very pleasant to look at, despite the fact that his lips were currently turned downwards in a frown and his eyes kept avoiding Indigo's.
"This is not right," Indigo could hear the man in the lab coat muttering. People in the audience were starting to talk again, and the noise level quickly rose to a dull roar.
The man grabbed Aleck's forms and fed them into the supercomputer, not bothering with the showy shuffling of pages. When the little receipt popped out the man's expression took on surprise and then anger as he read the name.
"Indigo Eric Westman?" the man yelled in his ear in order to be heard over the crowd. Indigo nodded.
"Indigo?" he saw Aleck silently mouth, eyebrow raised. Indigo scowled and looked back to the fake doctor.
"There must be some mistake in your questionnaires," the man yelled into his ear again. "Dr. Philips will take you two back to the lab so we can sort out what's wrong."
As if on cue, Indigo noticed another man in a lab coat standing near the stage's far exit. Dr. Philips? He was shoved along, hardly aware of what was happening. The crowd was thunderous, the situation confusing. As he stepped off the stage he could sense everyone refocus their attention on the next available match. They were understandably more concerned over their own match than with the strange glitch in the matching process that had paired him with a boy. It was human error, of course. The supercomputer didn't make errors.
"Follow me, please," Dr. Philips turned and walked ahead, and Indigo was forced to practically jog to keep up with the man's long strides. He soon realised that Aleck was walking beside him, also following the doctor.
"Strange, huh?" Indigo commented, looking over at Aleck. He thought he saw the brunette tense. "Imagine the computer matching two guys. This is so crazy! I wonder what we did wrong on the forms? I was sure I had everything right..." Indigo lapsed into silence for a moment, observing Aleck while he waited for a response. The guy sure was quiet. "I mean, I don't even like boys!" he attempted a pitiful laugh and wished he hadn't immediately afterwards.
"Just shut up," Aleck growled, staring ahead. Indigo frowned, hurt. He understood that Aleck had probably looked forward to today as the day he'd meet his perfect match, but it wasn't like it was his fault that their results had come back flawed. Aleck's forms had produced his name so they'd clearly both messed up. He shut his mouth, glaring at the back of Dr. Philips' head.
It took ten minutes for them to reach their destination, and at the sight of the water cooler Indigo immediately brightened. The room looked like a typical waiting room for any doctor's office. The walls were a stylish olive colour, the carpet a deep forest green. The chairs lined up along the walls looked comfortable enough, and there were magazines scattered on the low table in the middle of the room.
It wasn't too surprising that such rooms existed behind the amphitheatre. The facility had been constructed specifically for the supercomputer and the matching ceremony, and enough researchers and doctors worked in the facility to warrant such rooms. The research had initially focused on building the supercomputer, but that had been centuries ago. Now scientists were trying to discover the exact algorithm the machine used to create such perfect matches. The supercomputer had taken on a brilliance of its own. A graduate student by the name of Harvey Overfield had programmed the machine and then he'd tragically died shortly after. No one knew the formula the young man had used, and his lines of code were so numerous and so poorly organized that it took the top minds to even realise it wasn't gibberish they were looking at. The actual mathematics involved were far, far beyond difficult.
"Wait here," Dr. Philips ordered before walking past the reception desk and disappearing.
Indigo watched the man leave then instantly stepped over to the water cooler and grabbed a paper cup. He was downing his second cup of water when he heard Aleck loudly clear his throat.
"What?" Indigo asked, turning around to look at the young man. Aleck stood by the doorway, leaning lightly against the frame. He's gorgeous, Indigo thought, running a self-conscious hand through his own mussed hair. He wasn't muscular and tall like Aleck, and his blatant inadequacy only confirmed his suspicions of the match being horribly wrong... Even if it were possible for two guys to be matched—which it wasn't.
"What?" Indigo repeated when Aleck simply stared.
"What if the computer is right?" Aleck finally responded, regarding Indigo with a sombre look.
"You're kidding?" Indigo laughed and threw the cup in the trash then flopped down on one of the chairs. Aleck's eyes followed him and something in his gaze told Indigo that he wasn't joking around.
"Look, the forms must've been filled out wrong. The computer is always right and the computer always matches females with males. The whole point of the matching process is procreation," Indigo was adamant. "Have you ever, in your entire life, heard about two guys being matched together?"
Aleck shook his head, his eyes narrowing at the black haired boy.
"Well there you go. Human error," Indigo smiled and picked up a magazine. He was feeling much better now that he wasn't standing in that god awful line.
"There's a first time for everything," Aleck muttered, stepping into the room and taking a seat a few chairs away from the other young man.
"I'm sure the doctor will fix the problem. I mean it's not like you'd want to be stuck with me as a match," Indigo chuckled then shifted his gaze to the magazine, completely missing the longing look that passed over Aleck's face.
A good fifteen minutes passed before Aleck spoke again, regarding Indigo with the same sombre expression as before, "What if I do want to be matched with you?"
Indigo looked up from the magazine to stare at Aleck, completely shocked by the brunette. Is he serious? He can't be. Aleck was surely way out of his league... Besides, I don't like guys! Even if the guy happens to be extremely attractive.
His response, if he had ever managed to gather enough coherent brain cells to formulate one, was forgotten as Dr. Philips returned to the waiting room.
"You're both going to fill out the forms again," the man stated, holding two very familiar looking booklets in his hands. "If you'll follow me I'll direct you to separate rooms."
"Doctor..." Indigo began, causing the man to pause and send him an annoyed look. "Those forms take hours to fill out."
"I'm well aware. Do you have somewhere else you need to be, young man?" the doctor shifted the booklets so that they were lodged under one arm. He adjusted his wire rimmed spectacles as he watched Indigo shift uncomfortably under his gaze.
"No, but-"
"We're hungry," Aleck supplied, his tone irritated as he slouched in his chair.
The doctor made a grumbling sound in the back of his throat. Indigo was sure that he could literally see the gears turning in the man's head as he mulled over Aleck's complaint. Finally, he ceded. "Fine. I'll have someone send lunch in momentarily. Let's just get this started so you two aren't here all night."
The doctor turned away and began walking down a short hallway behind the reception desk. Aleck and Indigo quickly stood and followed the man, neither looking forward to filling out the questionnaires again, but both eager to get it over and done with.
Dr. Philips practically shoved the young men into two separate rooms, one directly across the hall from the other. Indigo was given the questionnaire booklet and the response forms, as well as a viciously sharpened pencil. The door promptly closed and Indigo slowly blinked before turning around to stare at the claustrophobic space.
The walls and floor were blindingly white and the fluorescent lights overhead didn't help with the clinical atmosphere. There was nothing else in the room besides a desk and a chair that seemed as if they had been hastily shoved into one corner. With a dour expression he sat down at the desk and opened the booklet, pencil ready. Indigo cringed when he realised he was only on the first of two hundred and eight glorious question-filled pages. This was going to take a while.
###
"Jesus, you took a long time," Aleck impassively remarked as Indigo stiffly shuffled down the hall and emerged in the waiting room. He'd spent close to seven hours cooped up in that stuffy, horrible room. He ignored Aleck in favour of trying to work the kinks out of his neck. Dr. Philips had already taken his completed forms and vanished somewhere, presumably to inform their new female matches that they'd been paired.
"When'd you finish?" Indigo asked, popping his neck then working on cracking each individual finger.
"Two hours ago."
The dark haired boy cracked another finger. "Stop doing that, it creeps me out," Aleck barked.
"Sorry," Indigo muttered and instead began pacing back and forth across the room. His joints and muscles were sore from sitting so long; he had to do something to ease the stiffness. He was also beginning to get butterflies in his stomach again. What if Dr. Philips brought their matches back with him? He could meet his future mate any minute. Indigo sucked his lower lip between his teeth, gnawing at the flesh as his heart began beating faster.
After five minutes of worried pacing Indigo was abruptly stopped by a loud bang as Aleck slammed down the magazine he'd been reading.
"Stop. Pacing."
"But-" Indigo began, wary of the angry look Aleck shot him.
"Come here," Aleck demanded, uncrossing his ankles and leaning forward in his seat. Indigo gave the young man a sceptical look. "I'm not going to hurt you," Aleck sighed heavily. "Just come here. Please."
He surrendered and stepped close enough so that Aleck could grab his wrist. He was tugged to the carpet where Aleck directed him to sit between his legs, his back towards the brunette. Firm hands descended upon his shoulders, expertly kneading and massaging tense muscle.
The massage was fantastic. Indigo leaned into the touch, his eyes drifting shut as nimble fingers worked the knots out of his muscles and left a pile of jelly in their wake. Any previous uncertainty he'd had evaporated as Aleck's hands traveled across his shoulders and down his back then up to his neck. He groaned as a particularly deep knot was massaged away. The hands ventured forward, skilfully working at the muscles of his upper chest. Indigo had no idea that tension could be massaged away from pectoral muscles, but Aleck's fingers soothed the muscle and the pull on his shoulders lessened then disappeared.
He had sunk into a deep state of relaxation when he felt Aleck's fingers brush over one of his nipples through his shirt, making it stand on end. He gasped when Aleck repeated the gesture, his mind too foggy to register anything besides the pleasurable sensation. He could feel Aleck's warm breath against the shell of his ear, and in that moment he felt as if he had found his match. Right after the thought struck him, he felt uneasy. Aleck couldn't be his match.
His eyes flashed open. What am I doing? Indigo surged forward, knocking Aleck's hands from his shoulders and escaping that tingling breath against his ear. He desperately crawled forward then used the low magazine table to push himself up until he was standing. Indigo glanced back at Aleck, heart racing as he tried to decipher the expression on the other's face. Did he look disappointed, or was it all in Indigo's head?
"What were you doing?" Indigo hissed, trying to ignore the dissipating traces of pleasure still cursing through his body.
"Giving you a massage," Aleck snapped, clearly annoyed at him. He leaned back in his chair and glared at Indigo, arms crossed tightly over his chest.
"Dr. Philips could've returned any moment! And that wasn't a massage... That was–that was..." Indigo sputtered angrily, not quite sure what he felt about the massage. Those hands elicited feelings from him that he'd never felt before. Erotic feelings. Unacceptable feelings.
He took a calming breath before turning to face Aleck fully. "Look, I know you were trying to help and I appreciate it, but Dr. Philips is probably finding out who our matches are and I can't have you touching me like... Like that. I'm sure he'll be back any minute."
"Whatever," Aleck growled, looking away.
Indigo felt a mix of frustration and anger, both feelings held in check by a peculiar sense of unbridled desire. He was beyond confused, so he did the only thing that felt appropriate for him to be doing; he sat down in one of the chairs and waited.
He was sure he was only feeling these strange emotions because of the messed up results from the supercomputer. He'd been raised almost religiously to believe in the matching ability of the machine. It was only understandable, then, that he'd feel attraction towards anyone the computer paired him with, even if the person happened to be male. That had to be it, simple conditioning. If was only a matter of figuring out who his actual match was and these misplaced feelings of attraction would be correctly directed towards her. Indigo smiled, relieved to have figured out what was going on with him.
He glanced over at Aleck who appeared to be sulking behind a magazine. Indigo was sure that when Aleck's true match arrived he'd snap out of his foul mood. Pretty sure, at least. Dr. Philips couldn't return fast enough.
Finally the doctor reappeared, his expression grim. Indigo tried to look around the man to see if his match was standing behind the doctor, but the man was obviously alone.
"You two. Come with me," Dr. Philips commanded. He turned on his heel and began walking down the hallway, not looking back to see if the two boys were following. Indigo was forced to trot to catch up. Did this man ever walk at a normal pace?
The hallways were like a labyrinth, and at every turn they made Indigo felt increasingly lost. "Where are we going?" he finally asked the back of Dr. Philips' head.
"You're going to see Dr. Renolds-Smith," was the curt response. Indigo grumbled in frustration. It wasn't like he'd know who Dr. Renolds-Smith was.
"Who is that?" Dr. Philips abruptly stopped and Indigo nearly ploughed into him.
"The world's leading expert on the algorithm."
Indigo was startled. He was going to meet the one man who was close to figuring out the algorithm? The algorithm? It wasn't like it needed any further explanation. Everyone knew about the algorithm—that elusive mathematical code Harvey Overfield had invented all those years ago.
Dr. Philips hastily knocked on the unmarked door he stood beside.
"Come in," a muffled voice beckoned. Dr. Philips opened the door marginally and stuck his head inside. Indigo tried to peer around the man but to no avail. He glanced back to Aleck, who was standing behind him, scowling. Cheerful guy...
"The two boys who were matched are here," Dr. Philips informed his colleague.
"Send them right in," the voice, now far less muffled, said. Dr. Philips stood back and pushed the door open fully. He looked to Indigo and Aleck, clearly impatient as the duo stood hesitantly in the hallway.
It was Aleck who shoved forward first, knocking Indigo out of the way as he entered the doctor's office. Indigo followed, wincing when Dr. Philips practically slammed the door shut directly behind him. The office was large and impressive, but the most striking feature was the mess of papers that dominated the room. Stacks upon stacks of loose leaf paper were piled around the floor. The desk was covered in paper, and all four walls had numerous pages pinned to them; so many, in fact, that Indigo couldn't have guessed the wall colour beneath them. He even noticed two or three papers tacked onto the ceiling.
"I have a system," Dr. Renolds-Smith commented, then laughed heartily as he witnessed the awed expression on Indigo's face. The man was old. Probably the oldest person Indigo had ever met. His hair was pure white, but clipped short and neatly styled despite the receding hair line. His face was immensely wrinkled and age spots dotted his cheeks. The large bags under the old man's his eyes drooped heavily but the blue eyes themselves were bright and sparkling with life.
"I'm Dr. Renolds-Smith, but please call me Reggie," the doctor said, smiling at the young men before gesturing to the two chairs situated before his desk. "Please, sit, then tell me about this peculiar match."
They had to remove a few papers from the offered chairs before they could sit down. Indigo was stupefied when he happened to glance at one of the sheets, his brain practically whimpering at the complex looking symbols and mathematical equations crammed onto the paper.
At last they were seated and Reggie stared expectantly between the two, the fingers of both hands pressed together under his chin. The silence stretched on awkwardly as the man continued to stare with an expression that was friendly but curious.
Aleck cleared his throat and the doctor seemed to snap out of whatever thoughts he'd been entertaining.
"Oh, yes, the matching... I have your forms here, and... You're both probably very confused... Matching is an interesting process, you see..." Reggie was staring at the ceiling as he jumped from topic to topic, gesturing slightly with his hands as he tried to explain the situation to them but failed miserably. Suddenly the old man looked at the two young men, his hands dropping to his desk. "This has happened before, you know."
"What?" Indigo almost leapt out of his seat. "When?"
"Oh, my, it must have been sixty years ago. I was just starting my work on the algorithm back then. That's what sparked my interest in the field initially, to be honest," Reggie got a distant look in his eyes and a grin spread across his face.
"So what happened?" Aleck prodded, glancing over at Indigo.
"It caused quite the uproar back then, as you boys can imagine. Two males matched? It was unthinkable. The researchers at the time told the media it was human error—that the boys had simply filled out their forms wrong. The hubbub around the incident went away quickly enough after that. According to the public's knowledge the computer's record was still unblemished," the doctor shot them both a guarded look then licked his thin lips, leaning forward as if he were about to tell them something important.
"But it was a lie," he continued, his voice lowering dramatically. "The boys filled out their forms time and time again, and every time the computer matched them together. The researchers didn't understand what was going on, but they most certainly did not want to cause widespread panic. Everything was covered up. The boys were told to live unmatched and were forced to sign documents that prevented their disclosure of the incident. It was forgotten, lost to history. But now..." Reggie's eyes lit up like an overjoyed child in a candy shop. "Now that you two are matched, I can compare my own algorithm with your form data and see if it produces the same result. This match is one in millions, if I can replicate it..." the old man's eyes grew distant yet again, but the smile never left his lips.
"Glad we could help," Aleck quipped, "but where does that leave us? Unmatched?"
Indigo whipped his head towards Aleck, eyes gone wide at that possibility. He couldn't be unmatched! What would his parents think? Indigo was late getting home as it was—he should've been home by now, introducing his parents to a nice girl and planning wedding arrangements. How was he going to explain that he'd ended up unmatched? His father was going to kill him, or kick him out of the house at least.
"Calm down, calm down," Dr. Renolds-Smith chided. "I've still got to run some more tests before we jump to any sort of hasty conclusion. Besides, times have changed," the doctor smiled reassuringly and picked up a sheet of paper from his desk. The page looked suspiciously like-
"Your form indicates you have never been intimate with a woman, Indigo."
Indigo cringed and felt his cheeks redden with embarrassment. The doctor was going to go over his form? In front of Aleck? He shot the young man a glance, squirming uncomfortably in his seat when he realised the brunette was smirking at him.
"Well, no..."
"Are you homosexual, by any chance?" the doctor continued, unaware of Indigo's discomfort.
Indigo felt like crawling under his chair and dying. He'd never really thought about his sexuality before. He didn't need to. He had always assumed the matching process would pair him with the perfect woman and as a result he'd feel sexually attracted towards her. It was true he'd never made out with or even kissed other girls before, let alone had sex with any of them. The opportunity had presented itself on a few occasions and every time he'd managed to come up with some sort of excuse to justify his decision to remain abstinent. Then there'd been Cody Bergrahm; tall and lean with gorgeous green eyes. But that hadn't been sexual attraction, couldn't have been. It had been more like admiration. Certainly he wasn't gay.
"No..." Indigo responded, his voice small and uncertain. Aleck snorted loudly and both Indigo and Dr. Renolds-Smith turned to him.
"Oh come on," Aleck said after a moment, waving a hand towards Indigo. "He's clearly a fag."
"Interesting..." the doctor mumbled, jotting something down on Indigo's form.
"How would you know?" Indigo glared at Aleck. The boy couldn't just accuse him of being gay, it was a groundless allegation.
"I'm not an idiot," Aleck continued. "You were checking me out earlier, and I know you enjoyed the massage I gave you. You're so damn transparent. I can't believe you haven't figured it out yet," he rolled his eyes at Indigo's shocked look. The doctor was frantically writing notes.
"So you're homosexual, Mr. Harrison?" Dr. Renolds-Smith looked thrilled at the possibility that the two boys had been correctly matched. Indigo wanted to kill him.
"Yes," Aleck answered crisply, watching Indigo out of the corner of his vision. "The computer made the right match and there was no human error. I knew when I saw him that he was my soul mate."
Indigo felt his mouth go dry at those words. Aleck was his soul mate?
"Yes..." the doctor murmured, unknowingly confirming Indigo's thoughts. "Somehow the computer knew it couldn't pair you with a woman. There's something in the algorithm that sums your traits... It doesn't just read them individually; it merges them and forms a picture of each person as a whole. Amazing!"
Indigo buried his face in his hands. He couldn't believe this. What was he going to tell his parents? Not only would he have to come out as gay, but he'd have to introduce them to his newly acquired... Boyfriend? Fiancé? He couldn't do it. He felt the beginning of a headache form behind his eyes.
"I need to think about this," the doctor suddenly declared. "I want you two to stay in the facility; Dr. Philips will find you a suitable room. I need time to contemplate this new approach to the algorithm," with that said, the doctor stood and Indigo realised they were being dismissed.
"I can't just stay here," Indigo protested as he and Aleck rose from their seats.
"Your parents will be contacted and told an appropriate falsity. Clothes and necessary supplies will be brought for you. Now, please, leave me to my thoughts," the doctor pointed to the door, his tone verging on desperation.
Indigo looked to Aleck, who shrugged in response and led the way out of the office and into the hall.
"I'm not gay," Indigo hissed as the door closed. Aleck turned towards him, his gaze unwavering as he studied the shorter boy. He took pleasure in looking over the nearly feminine features Indigo possessed. Thick black hair was endearingly mussed and the long strands fell into pale blue eyes that were framed with long dark lashes. Before he knew what he was doing, Aleck had stepped closer to the young man before him, quickly closing the distance that separated the two and causing Indigo to back up into the wall behind him.
"You're not?" Aleck purred, watching Indigo swallow hard and turn his head to the side to avoid looking at him.
"Kiss me," Aleck demanded suddenly.
"What?" Indigo glanced up at Aleck, slightly panicked at the command.
"Kiss me. If you don't like it it'll prove you're not gay and I'll leave you alone."
Indigo bit his lower lip, contemplating his options. If he went through with it then Aleck might leave him be. But that meant he'd have to kiss the brunette. His heart fluttered unexpectedly. What if he enjoyed it? No... That wouldn't happen. Would it?
The decision was made for him as Aleck stepped forward, pressing his body against Indigo's. His wrists were grabbed and held loosely at his sides as Aleck leaned forward, soft lips brushing ever so lightly against his own. Indigo didn't pull away and that was all the incentive Aleck needed to deepen the kiss.
It felt as if the brunette was trying to conquer his mouth. The kiss was powerful and sensual, only escalating when a demanding tongue gained access to his mouth and claimed him entirely. Indigo's knees were weak as he breathlessly tried to reciprocate the caress. He felt passion like he'd never felt it before. Lust traveled through his veins and he felt himself flush hotly when Aleck worked a leg between his thighs, holding him up. Emotions poured out of his heart: desire, want, need, and love. But above all was an overwhelming sense of it being right, of Aleck being right. He let out an involuntary throaty moan, swimming in the new sensations as blood rushed towards his stiffening member.
Aleck ground his thigh into Indigo's groin, enjoying the gasp of pleasure that escaped the boy. He finally left those supple lips to explore the tender area beneath Indigo's jaw line. He sucked and nibbled, drawing unintelligible sounds from the breathless young man. It was almost more than Aleck could take. He wanted to ravish Indigo completely, to take him in the middle of the hallway. He knew he'd have to wait, though. With effort he finally pulled away, releasing Indigo's wrists in the process.
Indigo remained pressed against the wall, eyes closed tightly while Aleck watched and waited.
Finally Indigo let out a shaky breath, gaze downcast. "I'm gay," he whispered, nearly in tears.
"It's okay," Aleck pulled Indigo into his arms, embracing him tenderly. He knew all too well the dreadful feeling of discovering one's sexual identity differed from the vast majority.
"Aleck, please..." Indigo whispered after a minute. Aleck had been gently rubbing his lower back, trying to reassure him. The touch had been stimulating, however, despite its innocuous intent. Indigo pressed his body forward, letting Aleck know his earlier arousal had not dissipated. "Please..." he repeated, not really sure what it was he wanted.
Aleck seemed to understand his need and after glancing down the hall he dragged Indigo towards the nearest door. The room was blessedly empty, an abandoned office or unused conference room filled with an assortment of tables. As soon as the door shut behind them and the lock clicked into place, Aleck was shoving Indigo against the wall, tearing at the boy's shirt as he fought to control his own desire.
Indigo groaned at the touch. There was something about the feeling of Aleck's hands on him that made his blood boil with lust. Finally his shirt was gone and Aleck made quick work of his pants, removing them even as he undid his own belt.
"You're beautiful," Aleck breathed when Indigo was fully naked before him. The black haired boy flushed before his lips were captured in another mind blowing kiss. This time the kisses didn't stop at his neck, but trailed down to his chest. Aleck captured one pink nipple in his mouth, lapping at the hardening flesh before nipping lightly and repeating the process with the other nipple.
"Aleck..." Indigo gasped, his voice pleading. Aleck smirked and knelt down to take Indigo's weeping cock into his mouth. He could tease his new match some other time but their foreplay would have to be cut short for now. He could feel his own self restraint failing miserably.
Indigo was making those same cute unintelligible sounds as before while Aleck bobbed his head, swallowing the young man's member whole. Indigo fisted his hands in Aleck's hair, lost in the pleasurable sensation of the brunette's warm mouth surrounding his cock. When Aleck sensed Indigo was close to climaxing he stopped and pulled away. Indigo groaned in disappointment, leaning heavily against the wall as he watched Aleck sort through his pockets.
"I don't suppose you have any lube?" Aleck asked offhandedly.
"My pants. Back pocket," Indigo breathed. Aleck quirked a brow at the boy then grabbed the indicated pants off the floor and pulled a small tube of Vaseline out of the back pocket.
"Why-"
"Chapped lips," Indigo answered, his gaze captivated as he watched Aleck massage the greasy substance onto his arousal.
"Come here," Aleck ordered. Indigo pushed himself off the wall and stepped close to the other boy. Aleck grabbed him by the waist and deposited Indigo onto one of the many tables in the room. He grinned as he stood between Indigo's legs, kissing the young man briefly before lowering him to the table top.
"We don't have to do this if you're not ready," Aleck said, his actions halting.
"I want it," Indigo insisted immediately. He was beyond stopping now. He wanted Aleck inside him, filling him. He'd never done this before, but Aleck was his match, the one person he wanted to be mentally, emotionally, and physically connected with.
Without further hesitation Aleck slid a slicked finger into Indigo's entrance. The intrusion was uncomfortable but didn't hurt, and even the sense of discomfort went away as Aleck worked the finger in and out, making sure to be gentle with his new lover. When the second finger slid in there was a slight amount of pain but Indigo ignored it as the fingers inside him stretched his opening.
It was a process that tried Aleck's patience, but he wanted to make sure Indigo was well prepared and would feel very little pain when the time to finally take the young man's virginity came.
Indigo was withering on the table, moaning loudly as Aleck worked three fingers into him while simultaneously jacking him off. When he could take it no more, he removed his fingers and pulled Indigo towards the edge of the table, hooking the young man's legs over his shoulders.
"Are you ready?" he asked, already aware of what the answer would be.
"Just make love to me already."
Indigo cried out as Aleck pressed the head of his cock into the willing entrance. He used all of his will power to hold still as Indigo adjusted to the feeling of his member inside him.
"Do it," Indigo moaned. Blue eyes locked onto hazel. Indigo's pupils were dilated with desire, and Aleck couldn't wait any longer. He pushed forward, plunging fully into the tight hole before withdrawing and repeating the long stroke.
Indigo barely felt the discomfort as pleasure overwhelmed all his senses. His hips thrust upwards to meet Aleck's own thrusts. The sound of flesh smacking against flesh filled the room, both young men frantically trying to find release.
"Oh, god!" Indigo shouted before the largest orgasm of his life hit him. He'd been on edge for a while now, and as the intense pleasure of his climax raced up and down his spine he clenched down on Aleck's arousal. Aleck grunted as the increased tightness brought him over the edge as well and he came deep inside his lover.
###
Indigo sat in the first row of the empty amphitheatre and curiously surveyed the supercomputer before him. The scientists in the facility who were studying him and Aleck were getting nowhere with the algorithm and he had a feeling that they'd both be allowed to leave soon. The government had formally approved the match between the two young men despite several protests. Dr. Renolds-Smith had been right when he'd said times had changed.
When the news had come that their match had been legally accepted, both Indigo and Aleck had been elated. Neither wanted the title of being unmatched. Being matched meant they could marry and spend their lives together, free of persecution. It still brought tears to Indigo's eyes when he thought about it.
Indigo stood and stretched wearily. It was late and he had to return to the room he and Aleck shared. The corners of his mouth turned upwards as his thoughts lingered on Aleck. He had never loved anyone as much as he loved the brunette. They complemented each other perfectly, exactly as the supercomputer had predicted. It was amazing, really. Who knew a mathematical formula could find one's soul mate?
"Good old Harvey," Indigo smiled at the computer as he headed for the exit. "Thanks for finding Aleck for me," he pushed the door open and left the amphitheatre, humming quietly as he left.
"You're welcome," Harvey Overfield said, the mechanical lilt of his voice echoing in the empty theatre. The lights of the supercomputer twinkled brightly before they dimmed for the night.