"I'm Johnny. Wanted to talk to you about your class."

"Oh. Well, it's…um…over. The class."

"Yeah. I'm aware. MIT and all that." Johnny taps the side of his head to indicate that he's probably at MIT for a reason that has nothing to do with his smile or his ability to seduce his way through an entrance exam. Not that Reed's thinking those sorts of things. Just because Sue walked out on him in possibly the most humiliating way possible - really, did she have to pick the moment he was in the middle of a breakthrough that would prove to Victor and Ben that the use of instable molecules would completely reinvent the formation and use of clothing as the time to slam the bedroom door and the front door and set off what amounted to a small explosion that left all three men in little more than singed tatters?

The point though is not Sue or the way she left him, but the fact that she did doesn't mean that he should be looking at this child. kid. BOY and wondering about his powers of seduction.

"I'm just wondering if maybe you have office hours or something."

"Syllabus. My office hours. They're in the syllabus."

"Because I have some questions about your theory."

"My…"

"Yeah. Your theory."

"Theory."

"Yes." Johnny nods, his smile still firmly in place. "So, office hours would be the best time to discuss them?"

"Your questions."

"Yes."

"Well, there's…the class."

"Yeah, but I'm not sure that my questions are really…meant for the rest of the class."

"If you have questions about the theory, it's possible that the rest of the class does, and we should address those."

"Yeah, we should." Johnny sits on the edge of Reed's desk, hitching one leg over the side. "But maybe I should go over them with you first? You know, in case I'm totally off base and it's something I just misunderstood."

"So it could be a misunderstanding?"

Johnny smiles again and slides off the desk, the movement bringing him far too close to Reed for anything resembling Reed's peace of mind. "Yeah. Maybe. You never really know."

The problem with Johnny is that he's too damn smart for his own good. Reed was clear on that the second Johnny stepped into his office.

It was the pile of books - quantum physics and particle theory and subatomic sources - first, all far too advanced for Johnny's questions, all of which Reed refuted in moments, but that led to further debate until Reed realized he was late for his lab and had to run out of their discussion with his lab coat flapping behind him.

Secondly, everything Reed came up with, Johnny seemed to have an argument against or for, whichever would set Reed off the most. It was like Johnny had a button directly to whatever would annoy Reed the most, but the interaction was worth every second of it, both of them giving and taking. Johnny's research on heat and light on flight patterns was intriguing and he actually seemed to pay attention to Reed's theory on molecular formulation of cosmic storms. But no matter how often Reed thought he'd gotten the last word, Johnny had something else, something more. Worse, something Reed hadn't thought of.

Thirdly, Reed stayed up nights trying to keep up, get ahead. He had to find the things that would trip Johnny up, the arguments he couldn't refute. He had to, like it was a compulsion, and it was probably for the best that Sue wasn't around anymore, because Reed would have spent even less time with her than before. None of that would have mattered, except that Reed heard things. Vague things about some guy named Johnny, possibly not even in context and possibly not even him, except it's hard to take things like being a playboy, being out every night with this girl or that girl or both girls and a few friends as well out of context and, having met Johnny, hard to imagine they're talking about anyone else. Which means Johnny is besting Reed at everything and he isn't even trying.

"Hey." Johnny pokes his head into Reed's office. "Got a minute?"

He wants to say no. Say no because he's exhausted and too on edge to actually do anything more than pay lip service to Johnny's arguments. Another experiment had literally blown up in his face, and Ben had pretty much informed him that he needed to find another guinea pig, as Ben had a fondness for his eyebrows and other less exposed parts.

"Not really…"

"Won't take long at all." Johnny saunters in, dressed in an unbuttoned blue shirt and a bright red t-shirt that's tucked into worn, faded blue jeans that do things to Johnny's body that Reed tries desperately not to notice.

"I really don't have time today, Johnny."

Johnny leaned forward, his gaze narrowing, studying Reed carefully. After a moment, he smiled and laughed, his voice somewhere between mocking and amused. "Why don't you have eyebrows?"

"I have eyebrows. They're just sort of…on the floor of the lab today."

"Ouch." Johnny sinks into the chair opposite Reed and sprawls, spreading his legs out in front of him. "It's about the project."

"It's been assigned, Johnny. Everyone has a partner. And, as much as I'd like to say that I'm as sympathetic as the next guy, I can't make any exceptions."

"Not even for me?"

He sounds like being him should be reason enough, which takes Reed's mood from tired and frustrated to irritated and annoyed. "No. Not even for you."

"Huh. Wow."

Johnny smiles and it's suddenly more than Reed can take. "I have to go."

"I have to talk to you."

"Office hours on Monday." Reed grabs his books and his bag and shakes his head, running a hand through his hair as he makes his way to the door. "As of now, I'm gone for the weekend."

There's a short, sharp message from Sue on his machine informing him that she's tired of trying to meet up with him to get the rest of her things, which causes him to respond to the machine that she should have thought of that before throwing her metal key into the middle of a delicate experiment. His own voice blocks out the second half of the message, so he rewinds it, forcing himself to keep quiet and hear it all.

"…and since I'm seeing someone else now…"

He blinks unseeing at the machine, unable to process the words that come after. His mind separates the words into their linguistic parts, brain informing him of their etymology but nothing makes any sense. He hits the rewind button again and again until it sinks in, the final segment of the message hitting him about the time the front door buzzes.

"…so my brother's going to come over and pick up my stuff. He should be there tonight. I'm sure you'll be home."

He knows it's a dig at his lack of social life, lack of life in most aspects, but it fails to sting. She knew who he was before she got involved with him, so any fault in that direction falls at her own feet.

The door buzzes again and he nods, shutting off the machine before making his way to the door. He opens it and starts to say something, freezing at the sight in front of him.

"Johnny."

"Hey there." Johnny's smile is incandescent, a little kid pulling something over on an adult. He's mischief mixed with brains, a lethal combination as far as Reed can see, especially mixed with the impulsive, impetuous nature that seems to be Johnny's stock in trade. "Nice digs."

"No they're not." Reed's brow furrows. "I told you I'd see you during office hours on Monday. What are you doing here?"

"I'm here to pick up Sue's stuff."

"Sue's…But she said she was sending her…"

"Brother." Johnny's smile widens, grows impossibly brighter. "Johnny Storm, at your service."

"Johnny…"

"Storm."

"Storm."

"Yup."

"Sue's…"

"Brother."

Johnny's grin gets even bigger and Reed closes his eyes. "Brother."

"Yup. In the flesh." Johnny moves into the apartment, brushing against Reed as he goes. "Is your couch on fire?"

"Yes."

"Why?"

"Can't put it out. Some weird chemical reaction."

"Hmm."

Reed opens his eyes to watch Johnny tilt his head and observe the flame that doesn't actually burn the couch, but shimmers along the surface. "Your sister did it. Inadvertently."

"That's Sue for you."

"So you're…"

"Here for Sue's stuff." He runs his hand through the flame, hissing a little at the flame, but not pulling back. Reed watches, unable to keep from being fascinated. "Huh. It's almost cool."

"Temperature-wise?"

"Fire's always cool in the other ways, Reed." He runs his hand through it again, blinking as he holds the flame on his fingertip for a moment. "Oh, very cool." He presses his fingers together to extinguish the flame then straightens. "Sue left all this, huh? You must suck in bed."

"I…what?"

"Sue gets off on this geek stuff. So you must be horrible in bed."

"I don't…What?"

Johnny laughs. "Where's the bedroom?"

"I don't see that that's is any of your business."

"Sue said her stuff was in the bedroom."

"Oh." Reed nods and blows out a breath. He's off balance and reacting instead of acting. "Right this way."

Johnny follows at a respectable distance, careful not to touch anything. Reed shoves his hands in his pockets, working out the algorithms of motion in his head, trying to figure out what to do and where to go. Sue's items are mostly on the left side of the bedroom, all haphazardly thrown in boxes and then left behind when Sue left in her fit of pique. He goes to the right as he walks in, surrounded by the few personal objects he has.

"You like sports?"

He looks up, startled. "Something gave you that impression?"

"No." Johnny laughs and grabs a box off the floor and sets it on the bed. It's overflowing with lingerie and Reed looks away from it quickly, more than aware that it doesn't seem to faze Johnny in the slightest. "Just trying to make conversation."

"Why on earth would we need to make conversation?"

"Well, it's awkward, right? I'm here in your bedroom instead of my sister. Probably not how you were hoping to spend your Friday night." Johnny looks at him suddenly, something different in his blue eyes. "Right?"

"I hadn't actually planned on spending my night in my bedroom. I mean, of course, I had…" Reed blows out a rough breath. "Why do you do this to me?"

"Do what?" Johnny looks away, grabbing another box and setting it next to the first. A hint of perfume cascades into the air and Reed swallows hard.

"This. All of this. In class, during office hours, here. Why are you tormenting me?"

"Tormenting you?" Johnny's eyes narrow and he puts a foot on the bed, pulling himself up on it and walking across the mattress. He steps off, his body far too close for Reed's comfort as he leans in, the slight sway of his body forcing Reed back against the wall. "You think I'm tormenting you?"

"A-aren't you?"

"No." Johnny leans in more, one hand braced on the wall beside Reed's head. "Not yet."

"Oh." Reed swallows hard, his breath stuck somewhere in his chest. "You should get Sue's things."

"I should." Johnny looks at him, eyes shadowed and dark. "Do I bother you, Reed?"

"I don't know what you mean."

"No. You probably don't." Johnny huffs a soft laugh, the breath of it warm against Reed's lips. His voice is lower, huskier and something deep in Reed's R-brain wakes up, hungry for something that MIT has yet to feed. "Probably don't have a clue."

"I'm your sister's b-boyfriend."

"No," Johnny licks his lips, shifting so that his thighs are against Reed's. They're lean muscle and smooth denim, hard and tense as he rolls his hips forward, thrusting slowly against Reed's body. "You're not. You're my sister's ex-boyfriend."

"That's not…actually helping." Reed swallows and watches Johnny's mouth.

"Helping what? You push me away or me get closer?"

"Either. Both. Um…"

Johnny braces his other hand on the wall, the hard length of his body pressed against Reed, pinning him there. "You're a genius, right, Reed?"

"Yes."

"So what would a genius do right now?"

"This doesn't happen to geniuses." Reed confesses, licking his own lips as Johnny smiles. "Geniuses are notorious for not having this happen to them."

"Does that make you not a genius?"

"No. But I think it might make you an evil mastermind."

"Oh." Johnny closes his eyes and touches his nose against Reed's, his breath fanning across Reed's mouth. "I like the sound of that."

Reed swallows hard against the soft, possibly hysterical laugh burning at his throat. "Why am I not surprised?"

Johnny laughs, the sound husky and warm against Reed's skin. "I think you are surprised, Reed. By me. By you." He takes one hand off the wall and lets it trail over Reed's shoulder, down his chest to the waistband of Reed's jeans. "By this."

"This? There is no this. You're here to get Sue's things." He doesn't sound convincing or convinced, but it's the best he can do, throwing Sue's name out like a barrier against the assault Johnny's waging against his senses. He doesn't remember this with Sue, this overwhelming heat that makes his higher brain functions cease, lets his id wreak havoc. "Remember?"

"You like my sister?"

"I love your sister."

"So." Johnny's mouth is dangerously close, his lips parted just above Reed's. They're pressed against one another and there aren't any secrets, no need for the question that he senses is on Johnny's lips. "I shouldn't do this."

"No." It's the weakest protest Reed can imagine, but the most he's capable of at the moment. He can almost feel the curve of Johnny's smile and he can definitely feel everything else.

"Or this." Johnny rolls his hips again, letting his erection slide against Reed's. Reed has quantified sexuality down to electrons and neurons and synapses, so it doesn't bother him that he's reacting to Johnny on a scientific level - he's well aware that everyone has the capacity for arousal on different levels with all genders and beyond if the situation is right, the conditions are properly prepared - but he's almost certain that in the bedroom he shared with Sue with her lingerie spread out on their bed is not the ideal circumstance for him to be having carnal thoughts about her brother, so he's trying to reevaluate his data at the same time that he's terribly aware that Johnny's tongue is dangerously close as he licks his lips, the movement dampening the hint of air between them.

"You should get Sue's things."

He hates to factor in emotion, to admit that he's lonely or that he's horny because neither of those are scientific, they both skew the results and the process. They're impossible to quantify.

"She's right." Johnny pulls away suddenly and Reed's very keenly aware of the loss. Johnny's voice is thick, though the desire Reed would have sworn to now sounds like disgust. "You don't ever stop, do you?"

"I…what?"

"Don't ever give that hamster in your brain some time off." He shrugs and moves over to the bed, grabbing one box and dumping it into the other. "Sue thought maybe you were gay, but you're not. You're just a brainiac."

"I…"

"You're not dead, I'll give you that, and maybe it's a combination of the two, because you sure as hell reacted, but nothing happens without thinking." Johnny shakes his head and grabs another box, shoving it on top of the one he's filled to overflowing. "She's definitely better off with Victor."

"Victor?" The word is out before Reed can stop it. He doesn't even recognize the sound, a mixture of hurt and surprise and anger.

Johnny looks up, a twisted smile on his face. There's a viciousness in him that Reed hadn't noticed, a little boy pulling the wings off flies, pushing to see how far he can go. "Yeah, sweet little Susie's opted for something more than brains, Richards. Something to keep in mind."

Reed feels realization like a lead weight in his stomach. "And you…all of this was a test? The…the office hours and the discussions and the…everything?"

"What? Don't tell me you thought I was hanging out with you for your conversation skills?"

Johnny's voice stings and Reed feels his face flush, anger and embarrassment warring across his skin as a fine sense of betrayal works its way beneath it all. "I studied for that. I worked for that. I thought you and I were…"

"What? Friends?" Johnny sneers and shakes his head. "Why on earth would you ever think that?"

Reed deflates, his anger gone in an instant. "Of course. It's the same argument, isn't it? Why would Sue date a guy like me? Why would you be friends with a guy like me?" He nods and moves over to the bed, turning his back on Johnny and sitting on the edge. "People use me for what they want and then go. I don't know why I thought that would change."

There's a long silence and Reed can almost believe he's gone. But the door hasn't closed and the bed hasn't shifted from the weight of the boxes and, most of all, thanks to some strange hyperawareness of Johnny, Reed can still feel him in the room.

There's a soft exhale behind him, and Reed shivers as the air of the room seems to change, warm up after the sudden chill. Johnny's mercurial temper, the one Reed had witnessed to a lesser degree during all their arguments, rearing its head. "I got accepted to NASA."

Reed glances up and back over his shoulder. "I'm not surprised."

"Your buddy, Ben, is there, isn't he?"

"Yeah."

"He and I aren't gonna get along."

Reed can't help the small smile that curves his lips. "No. You aren't."

Johnny nods then nods and then moves around the bed, sitting next to Reed. "For what it's worth, I don't see what she sees in Victor. I mean, he's just handsome and rich and charismatic and…" He stops, smiling at Reed's expression. "Stop?"

"Stop."

"Right." Johnny nods again and then his brow furrows for a moment before he closes his eyes and leans in, stealing a soft kiss from Reed's mouth. It's the barest hint of a touch, neither of them pulling away. Reed blinks and stares at Johnny for a moment, his thoughts in a holding pattern. He closes his eyes before that can change and closes the distance between them, kissing Johnny again. Johnny makes a noise that sounds dangerously like a purr of satisfaction and Reed pulls back, wondering when was the last time barely kissing someone made him so breathless.

Johnny's own breathing sounds rough and erratic as he looks at Reed, eyes dark and hot, lips parted. "You're not thinking now, are you?"

"No." Reed leans in and huffs the denial against Johnny's mouth.

"Good." Johnny's hand settles on Reed's shoulder, guiding him back down to the bed. He moves over him and kisses Reed again, his voice muffled against Reed's mouth. "Let's keep it that way."