"I'd like that. So-- he can meet you, at least if sleepers can hear things said to them, even if you can't meet him."

"Yeah." Kiss. 

"I should talk to Marlo too, probably, once you've agreed to be his anchor. So I can be-- friendly to him, and not just reliable."

He thinks about that for a moment. 

"I think — what he needs is reliable, mostly. He gets plenty of friendly. 

Which is not to say that you shouldn't talk to him, just, not for that reason." 

"Well, you'd know, but-- I think if you're dating someone else I should be friendly to them. Although now that I think about it I actually don't know if you're planning to date him."

"...I'm not planning on not dating him. And — I don't think you're wrong, but friendly is — less important. Which I know you know, but." He turns his head and nuzzles Lev's shoulder. "Why did I set that sentence up to need a second clause." 

"I love you. --You don't have to date people if you're their anchor, although it's easier to get high-intimacy relationships that way, if you're not family." 

"I love you too. If he can figure out how to tell when he actually wants to sleep with someone I'll probably wind up dating him, and if he can't then I'll be his friend who yells at him when he's making bad choices." 

"If you're not fucking Chris will try to test his theories of high-intimacy relationships on you two, be warned."

"Oh no. What are the theories?" 

"So we know kissing works for intimacy four, and we know fistfights where you're actually trying to hurt the other person work. That suggests it might be something about bodily fluids. If you donate blood to him, would it work? What if you spit on him? And is there something other than sex that will get you to intimacy five? --So beware Chris trying to come up with emotionally important opportunities for you to spit on him."

"A girl I knew in school used to lick things to claim them," and he's laughing too hard to finish. 

"Well, try licking him to claim him as your own and see if it works!"

"I think that probably I will not!"

"You," he says solemnly, "are showing a tragic lack of interest in science."

"Or maybe I will, you never know!" and the obvious thing to do after that is to pull Lev forward and kiss him, still laughing. 

The obvious thing to do after that is to try to take off some of Sasha's clothes.

"I love you so much."

"And I love you," kiss, "so much," and between the two of them they can get all of their clothes off. 

Sex with Sasha is nice but sex with Sasha where he can say 'I love you' whenever he wants is even better.

Sex with Lev is just really, really good. 

And afterward they can talk about Animorphs!

(He looks much less stressed than he did when Sasha met him.)

(Good. Good.)

When it gets late Sasha curls up against Lev's side and closes his eyes. 

Lev tucks him in, kisses his forehead, and says, "I love you, good night."

"I love you." He kisses whatever part of Lev is closest to his face. "Good night." 

He's so happy.