Brendon was so worked up at the sight of the police that he jumped a little when the girl placed a hand on his shoulder. Whipping around to face her, eyes wide and face red with embarrassment, and did his best to calm down. Once he figured out that she was not anything to be afraid of he sighed and bowed his head apologetically.

"Heh, sorry," He said with a tired kind of smile, "I'm just a little jumpy i guess. Thanks though..."
He sighed, a bit more calm now that his little freak out was over and done with, and looked over to the door curriously.
"Wonder what their doing in there..." He said, thinking out loud.

Shekinah

Shekinah nodded and her hand went back down to her side, giving him space again. She never had saw another clone, or person for that matter, act like that... but maybe it was just something like a phobia? She sighed mentally, still having so much to learn. Hearing his answer, she pondered for a moment before saying, "Perhaps it is because of the accident with that clone earlier... but then.. it may not be that.." She finished, and sort of looked at the dorr like him. She was a bit curious, but they seemed like thay could be a bit dangerous if she got too close, so staying right here was fine with her.

[ iMom, if you mean the accident with Annalicia's father, he's not a clone. :3 ]

Dr. Reynolds stepped out of his office with the two men, smiling like they were old buddies. "Goodbye, gentlemen." He said, and checked his list. "Shekinah, are you still here?" He peeked around the room. "Ah. Come with me, dear." He made a motioning gesture with his hand.

-------~-------

Annalicia watched the two off to the side of her. She opened her mouth to ask a question and her mother shushed her. She sat and waited, thinking of what had happened earlier with the two men. Speak of the devil... The two men left the building, and she watched them as they left. "Mother.." she started, but was hushed.

"Accident?" Brendon asked curiously, but was interrupted by the two men and Dr. Reynolds exiting the office. Well that was a relief. No one had come out in handcuffs. No arrests, no nada. Brendon gave a little sigh of relief. Brendon didnt know what would happen if the doctor was arrested or if the building was shut down or something like that. This place was all he knew, and the apartments. Outside of this he had no one and nothing to live by and that thought scared him more than anything.

Brendon relaxed a pit then in his seat and watched as the girl he had been sitting with was called on. 'Ah, so shes a clone too...Should have guessed that...' He thought to himself, mentally slapping himself for being so clueless to that.

Annalicia decided to pay no attention to her mother as she kept filling out the forms. She scooted closer to Brendon, tapping him lightly. "Do you know why those men were here?" She asked softly, in that twelve-year-old voice that had not left her. She knew she could even pass as eight, which was irritating to her when people called her a "cute little girl." I'm FIFTEEN, she wanted to scream to the world. Fifteen and only four-eleven. She sighed and looked up at Brendon, trying to meet his gaze. Was he different, like so many people were here? Just last night she'd overheard her parents talking about Annalicia, saying something about check-ups and malfunctions and some kind of process. She'd known before that she was different.. but...

Brendon looked down at the girl blankly, feeling kind of bad for ignoring her while he had his little outburst of paranoia but smiled at her warmly anyway.
"No actually I dont, But that girl that went in earlier said that there was some kind of accident earlier, they were probably just checking up to make sure that everything was alright or see if someone was doing something they shouldn't. Something along those lines I'm guessing," He said with a shrug, trying to sound calm and not like a raving lunatic. Honestly, when the girl had mentioned an accident he thought of something along the lines of vehicular manslaughter or shooting or something, but being around a little girl, about ten or so he guessed, calmed him down and made him think of less over the top scenarios.
"Nothing to worry about..." he said more to himself than to her.

Annalicia sighed. "I bet she means the accident with my father." She said, dropping her gaze. "He may have to have stitches soon... It was a car crash, someone driving the wrong way down the road. When they found the guy, my father started shouting for him to go to hell. It was pretty funny, actually." She said, raising her eyes again. "What's your name? I'm Annalicia." She smiled, her feet swinging. It was another of her childish habits, her being short and all. She stopped swinging her feet and smiling too widely.

"Really?" He said, surprised that they had come back here after having a car crash, "Some people just have no idea how to drive. Your dad looks pretty good though for just getting back from a head on crash," Brendon said, craning his neck to catch a glimpse of her parents. He felt a little prang of jealousy rise from his chest as he looked at them, wishing he knew what it was like to have actual biological parents. But the feeling past as soon as it had come as he smiled at the girl cheerily.

"Nice to meet you Annalicia, I'm Brendon," he said and held out a hand to her though he held back a chuckle, seeing how it dwarfed her own hand in comparison. Brendon was nearly 6'3" and towered over her even on the bench.

Annalicia took his hand and frowned, smile disappearing. He was so tall, and even her hand got lost in his. She sighed. "How tall are you, exactly?" she asked, letting her face go blank as she looked up. She was guessing about five-eleven, maybe six feet. Everything was so huge to her, and it sucked when someone towered over you while you were sitting down. "I'm four-eleven, and a lot of people think I'm eight or something because of my height and my childish face. Big eyes, puffy cheeks.. the whole deal. Being part Asian doesn't help the matter." She grumbled.

"Im six two...ish," he said with a shrug, "I dont bother checking anymore, I was five nine or something when i was..." 'Born' he almost said, and then realized that that was not exactly normal.
"Younger..." He corrected himself and gave a little internal sigh of relief after running it over a few times in his head. It was kind of weird talking to people who werent clones, he had met a few of them. But then again he had never talked to a clone before today ether so... But it was weird, and difficult. He had to remember that not everyone was born in a lab, or however he had been brought to life because for the life of him he couldn't remember.
"Well dont worry. Youll get taller when you get..." he stopped then, "Wait your not eight!? How old are you?"

Annalicia listened as he started talking about his height, noticing the pause, and then the "when you get older" speech starting up. She sighed as he started to freak out. "Fifteen." she stated flatly, looking away. She knew what came next. The "No way!" and the "Really? You look so young!" comments that were very common. Hello, world. I'm Annalicia Catchlove and I'm seven years older than I look. "I think I look so young because of Dr. Reynolds. He's been my doctor for as long as I can remember, and all that I really remember was from eight and up. He gives me these weird pills that-" Once again, shushed by her mother, who was looking crazily at her. "Sorry about my daughter. She's just, um..." And then her mother looked away.

Brendon listened quietly to Annalicia's speech, still reeling a bit because of the sudden realization that she was only a year younger than him and he was almost three feet taller, and noticed more than a few things that reminded him of his own situation.
'Pills, memory loss, and Dr. Reynold now where have i seen this before...' He thought rather sarcastically to himself. He looked suspiciously at her mother as she suddenly spoke up and turned away. 'Thats kind of rude..' He thought.
"No, shes fine mam," he said even though she had turned away and then looked back at the girl, "Ah, so it stunts your growth i guess," He said even though he had a nagging suspicion that he took similar pills and had been growing like a weed ever since. This did, admittedly, freak him out and made his imagination flare up that he would grow forever until he reached the space station and Anna would stay a six year old forever. But he shook the thought away once he realized how rediculous it was.
"Well its not so bad," He said in a comforting voice, "you know, think about it, If you look like ten or something now, you'll look twenty when your...forty or something! Some people would kill for that."
'But youll never be able to go on the big rollercoasters at amusement parks,' His brain suddenly threw in sadly.

[ LOL ! xD Poor Anna. ]

Annalicia smiled. "Maybe so." She looked him over. "How old are you, then?" She asked him, picking up his hand and comparing it to her own. "Geez, you're huge. No offense or anything. It's just, everything's so big when you're down here," she said, putting her hand an inch off the ground. "My mommy says I'm different," she said in a childish voice, a few octaves higher, before rolling her eyes. "Ugh."

"I'm sixteen and still growing," he said with a laugh, smiling as she lifted his hand up to compare it with hers, and chuckled at her reaction.
"None taken. And trust me its not just you, I'm on the tall side for pretty much everyone. And i still have the appetite of a starved animal so I'm probably going to grow some more. By the time I'm twenty ill be eight feet tall or something. Ill be able to ride a giraffe like a horse!" He said with a chuckle, "Maybe you and i can run away and join the circus. We would make a great act together. Worlds tallest and smallest kids," he said grinning, "Theirs nothing wrong with being a little different, dont let her get you down about it"

[[ Err, timeskip time! xD ]]
Annalicia snorted. "I'm not that short," she shot at him, being easily offended as she was. She looked back up at Brendon. "Though, running away doesn't sound too bad." She looked over and saw her parents talking to each other, and imagined herself running out the door. Oh, so lovely. She grumbled, shifting in her seat.

-----------~------------

Dr. Reynolds finished up with Shekinah, and after sending her on her way grabbed his clipboard. Ah, Brendon. He walked out into the main room, spotting the boy on point. His height was remarkable, especially compared to -- wait, Annalicia? She, one of the shortest people he'd ever known - created, more likely - was talking to the tallest. "Brendon," he said, getting the boy's attention and waving. He retreated back to the office.

"No," he said with a laugh, "And I'm not that tall, but still its a fun idea."
Brendon sighed and thought about it for a second, chuckling at how ridiculous the idea of running away to the circus was.
"Why would you want to run away Annalicia?" He asked quietly, "You have parents that obviously love you. And you are only fifteen, where would you go? I know you were probably just joking, but im just saying, dont take it for granted."
Brendon smiled at Annalicia again when suddenly Dr. Reynolds voice startled him, making him jump rather comically and turn to face him still a little bewildered. When he noticed who it was he relaxed a bit and waved back before he went back to the office.
"Hi..." he added, but just like that he was gone again.

Annalicia had to suppress a giggle when Brendon jumped and stared at Dr. Reynolds. He looked almost... scared, if you would call it that. She looked at Dr. Reynolds. Could he be scared of Dr. Reynolds?

---------~----------

Dr. Reynolds motioned to a chair across from his and closed the door behind Brendon before sitting. "Alright, Brendon. Time to get started, ey?" He winked, as if there was some secret between the two of them. Which there was, but Alexander Reynolds liked to keep his secrets to himself. "Alright. Regular doctoral questions: Any sexual activity, drugs, alcohol, et cetera, et cetera..." he trailed off, raising an eyebrow at Brendon.

Brendon sat down almost as soon as he had asked him to and sat himself rigidly down into the chair, not particularly afraid of the new surroundings but not comfortable ether. He wasnt really sure how to react to the little wink that Dr. Reynolds gave him, though he had to admit it made him a little uncomfortable, and just smiled awkwardly in return.
"Uh no," Brendon said, addressing the doctor's questions, "To all of them. I dont get out very much so you dont have to worry about any of that"
He chuckled at that, though it made him feel kind of pathetic and sad to know he did nothing on nearly every night of the week. He really needed to get out more...

Dr. Reynolds nodded and jotted down a 'no' on every single question. "Has your body been reacting.. differently than you would like? Anything unusual thing happening? And what about your growth? Did those pills I give you stop your growth?" He asked, turning slightly in his chair. He bit the cap of the pen, waiting for an answer. He set the clipboard down for a moment. "Brendon, random thought, but when's the last time you've had an actual conversation? Not to be rude, but some of my Clones seem to be anti-social." He cocked his head.

"Nothing really, its been pretty normal. But the pills are helping a little, Im still growing but slower i think," He said with a shrug and looked at the floor rather than the doctor himself. When he asked about his more personal life, Brendon couldnt help but tense a little bit, knowing that he really hadnt been very social lately.
"Well...Me and that girl out there, Annalicia i think it was, talked for a while. Shes nice," he said and smiled apprehensively, "Other than that just small talk with people i meet when i have to go get something to eat or something..." He sighed, "Ok, yea i dont talk to people that much, but its not that i dont want to, Its just...complicated i guess..."

((btw, how long ago from this point were the clones "born"?))

[[ Hmm. I dunno, say, three, four, five years? That could explain why they're still "experiments" and why Brendon keeps growing way too much? Most of Annalicia's memories aren't ones her body experienced but the memories of her parent's actual daughter, Anna, had before being diagnosed with cancer. ]]

Dr. Reynolds nodded. "Annalicia. She's also a Clone." He smiled warmly. "If you want to start making friends, picking someone like her is a good idea. Talkative, fun, mostly happy." He paused, stealing a glance at Brendon. "Complicated? Would you mind talking about it? I give pretty good advice for a man of my age." He said, closing his eyes.

((Huh, for some reason i thought it would be less. Its not really important though, i was just curious. And yea, i assumed that was the case for Annalicia, poor baby!, im guessing thats how it is for most of the clones. And a foot in five years is not all that weird for a boy Brendon's age XD. I saw my brother do that in less than a year and inhale our entire kitchen in the process. Im guessing from Anna that the clones dont actually age so its not really relevant, but still. XD Also, do they go to school or are they home schooled or something?))

"Really?" He said, surprised a little at the new revelation. He had to mentally slap himself again at the obviousness of it all. 'Well that explains why her parents acted so weird...and why she looks like a elementarily school kid. How did i not guess this again...Pretty much everyone who even shows up here is a clone. God Brendon your such a DUFUS' He thought to himself.
"Ah, yea shes very nice. Jumped right into the conversation," He said with a smile. When the Doctor brought up the subject of his "complicated" relationship with people in general his face flushed with embarasment.
"Well...I-Its not that their not nice and all but..." he scratched his neck nervously, "Well I'm the equivalent of a highschool kid, I live in an apartment all by myself with no parents, i shop for myself mostly, and well...dont get out much so they...." He bowed his head in almost shame, "They think I'm a runaway or drug dealer or something."

[[ Three years. Yeah. Make it that. xD And wow. ]]

Alexander Reynolds blinked. "Then go to high school." He nodded. "I could enroll you as your guardian. Annalicia's parents have her in a high school. Maybe you two could go together, if you wish. Besides, you can't get too smart. It'll be like a thing to do so you're not sitting on your rear every day. I do want you to get good grades, but what matters to me is your health."

Brendon tensed a little at the idea of school not because he didnt want to learn or anything, ok that was only part of the reason after all he liked his couch potato lifestyle, but more so that he would be forced to be around people his age. He had pretty much only met the people on Dr. Reynolds staff and a few people that lived in the neighborhood, other than that he had been a complete nomad for the past three years. He wasnt exactly sure that he wanted to be dumped into a building where just getting through the hallway meant running into a sea of kids. The idea kind of scared him actually but at the same time he couldnt see any reason why not to.
"Well...I guess I could enroll..." he said apprehensively, "And at least id kind of know someone. I do need a guardian or something to get into school so i guess that could work..."

Dr. Reynolds nodded, approving of the big step Brendon had taken. "Alright then. Just tell me when, and I can enroll you. Would you like to be in tenth or eleventh grade? Sophomore or Junior, I should put it." He jotted a few more things down on his clipboard, circling 'enroll in Annalicia's high school' a few times. "If you ever change your mind about it, I can always take you out of the school with an email or two."