Humans Alone (G/T)

Chapter Two

Staring with wide, fear-filled eyes up at the Masonin looming over him, Michael could barely breathe. "I-I..."

"I know you're scared." Heath outstretched his hand to the human to help him up. "But I really won't harm you. I know it seems unlikely, but I won't."

"Scared i-is an understatement. I-I'm terrified. I don't w-want to wake up one morning locked in a box and being buried alive." Michael watched the offered hand closely, imagining it shooting out and wrapping its strong fingers around his neck.

Realizing Michael probably wasn't going to accept his hand, he stooped down and lifted the human off the ground, his hands secure around his waist. And he was a little offended that he was already being thought of as a ruthless killer despite his efforts to calm him down. "Look. You are making things kind of difficult for me. I'm offering you a place to stay. Food. Water. For practically nothing. Are you going to accept? Or are you going to make me send you back out there with others of my kind who would not hesitate to skin you like an animal from a meat hook?"

Michael fought against the strong hands holding him several feet off the ground. Listening to Heath talk only made him even more scared than he already was. "Y-You guys do that?'

Heath had to take a moment to internally yell at himself, then sighed and lowered Michael to his feet safely on the ground. "I didn't mean....you know. Let's get back to the house and wait for my son."

"You mean the one that was talking about killing me, and you whacked him on the head?" 

With a nervous chuckle, Heath glanced down at the human that barely stood above his knees. "Yeah. Don't worry. If he puts a violent hand on you, I'll take care of him."

Michael still wasn't sure how well he could trust him, but taking a deep breath, he began to walk back in the direction of where he ran from the Masonin's home.

Heath watched the human walk past his legs. It was comical. Almost cute. Not wanting to spook him too badly, he followed behind. Taking gentle steps and walking slowly to avoid passing Michael. 

"So...what happened to your wife?" Michael asked quietly, trying to make conversation so everything wasn't so silent.

"Hm? Oh...I didn't have a wife." Heath responded with a quiet chuckle. "My son is adopted, I took him in a long time ago. I've never even had a real girlfriend to be fair." 

"Then would you do wherever you guys are from? Like...did you have video games? D-Did you have T.V.?"

"Yes, we had most of those things. We'll have them again. Our kind just need to get used to the way Earth rotates and works. Now, what about you? Your family?" 

Michael took a moment to recollect that day. When the Masonin's invaded and everyone began running to find places to hide. "I lost my family in the chaos of your kind coming to Earth. I had my little girl's hand in mind but...before I knew it she was gone. I've been trying to find her." Michael took a deep breath, wringing his hands together as he looked over his shoulder at the giant man behind him. "My wife passed of Cancer a few years before that."

"I see. I'm terribly sorry for you. How old was your daughter? My son is a decade and seven years." Heath spoke gently, remorse in his voice for the human's losses. 

"You mean seventeen?" Michael asked. The Giant's race sure talked differently than the humans did. "Huh. My daughter's only eleven. I'm just hoping she wasn't captured and is being tortured. Or worse." 

"Eleven? You mean a decade and one year, don't you?" Heath hummed. The humans' ways were much different than to his own. The way they describe ages of their people, the electronics they have, and their eyes. 

Once again, he held the door open for the human to step inside his home. "Alright, now, are you hungry at all? After you get something to eat, and maybe a little bit of rest, I'm putting you to work."

"Work?" Michael asked in a slightly confused tone. He used to work at his daughter's school before all of this happened. It was great, he had gotten to see her every day. 

"Yes, work. Picking fruit, grooming the horses, feeding the animals. Simple tasks even a human could do." Heath looked down at him as he took an orange delicately from a basket and handed it to the human.

"Oh, thank you," Michael muttered softly, taking the orange and began to peel it. "Where's your trashcan?"

"We don't throw orange peels away. Honestly. You humans destroy your planet. Throw the peel out into the tree grove. It feeds some animals and also decomposes into the ground, making the soil a little healthier for the trees to grow sweeter fruit." Scowling only slightly, Heath sat back in his chair and watched the human with curious eyes. 

He was surprised at how stern this Masonin was about keeping things healthy. But he was more focused on the 'work' part. Pick the fruit? he usually gathered what he could fresh off the ground. Is he going to have to climb the tree? Feeding and taking care of the animals isn't too bad at least. 

"Dad, I'm back!" A familiar, younger male voice said, and Michael turned to see the younger Giant carrying a leather bag which was dropped onto the floor. Then the dark brown eyes landed on Michael and darkened dangerously. "What's a human doing here?"

Staring into the cat-like eyes, Michael felt his blood run cold. He found himself shifting closer to Heath, more for protection than anything else. 

"Donnie, you will be kind to him. Do not harm him in any way. His name is Michael, and he is our guest. He will be helping us with chores in return for shelter here." Heath sternly spoke to his adopted son, a little shocked that the human was now at least a foot away from him. 

"Dad, are you-"

"Donnie." Heath rose from the chair, raising an eyebrow questioningly. "Are you going against my orders?"

"No, sorry sir." Donnie sighed and picked up his bag again. "Where's he going to sleep?"

Smiling at both his son and Michael, Heath clapped his hands together. "We'll work that out when the time comes. For now, let's all just take a moment, and get to know each other better."