It seemed to Jack that the only times his parents communicated with him was either because they had to, or they wanted to talk about their expectations for him.

Last week, Jack was dragged to some lame social gathering and forced to interact with some stuck-up rich kids. Only one of them was into robotics, and it was solely to make money. Jack, well he was interested in the money that could be made, and the robot army that could only be taken down by those pesky Xiaolin Monks, he was just a guy who loved robotics. Jack and the robotics kid didn't get along too well, but well enough to where he knew where to go if he needed a socialite friend, or a Plan B. Afterall, if he controlled all the robots in the world, he would rule the world. But that was too discreet for his taste.

Although Jack wasn't bored out of his mind, he still wished he were somewhere else the whole time. The only reason his parents took him places was either to put up a facade of a perfect family, or to find him a spouse (preferably a cis-woman of high status, but anyone high-ranking enough would do). Of course, there was networking, but Jack wasn't interested in what his parents wanted. He only put up with it so he could keep his robotics lab.

Jack stared at his phone and sighed. His parents were pushing him to date either stuck-up and arrogant heiress Mina Yeung; or self-centered actress Trina Cantor. Neither were into science, seeing it as boring nerd stuff. Even though the only reason phones and computers were a thing was because of said nerd stuff. But his parents didn't care. Both were of high status, and all that mattered was that they got along in public.

Jack put his phone down. He had almost nothing in common with his parents picks. Nothing to talk about. He wished his parents would approve of his picks. He had dated Le Mime and two of his cousins, but his parents didn't approve of any of them. Especially Le Mime and his cousin Charles. Mime's cousin Amiee was at least seen as tolerable. There was also Catnappe's friend Joan, who was kinda approved of. He did consider dating Tubbimura, but Jack only viewed him as a friend.

Needing some space, Jack decided to go for a walk. There was a wooded area near his house that his parents owned. While he walked, Jack took in the breathtaking beauty of everything. Spring and fall were his favorite seasons, and it was spring 2008.

Suddenly, Jack noticed something, or rather, someone. Leaning against a tree, slept a scaly broad shouldered teenager wearing gray glasses, a light gray finger-tip-length tunic and dark gray pants. Jack didn't mean to stare, but seeing a random person sleeping on his parents property was something to be curious about, also, Jack had no idea if they were male or female. The teen's broad chest, Jack couldn't tell if they had small breasts or large peaks. And the way they were sleeping and how the tunic was shaped, Jack couldn't see the crouch. Not that he was interested, he was just curious and wanted to know the gender.

The teen started to wake up. Jack quickly hid behind a bush.

The teen stretched and looked around. Their gray eyes looked at the bush Jack was hiding in, and seemed to see through it. They smirked, then slowly approached it. Jack felt nervous, but also glued to the spot.

"I'm not dangerous." The teen said in a voice that was both masculine and feminine, "Nor am I a wild animal in a zoo or sanctuary."

Jack was caught off-guard. Thinking quickly, he said, "I'm sorry! I was taking a walk, and saw you, and got curious..."

The teen sighed and shook their head. "It's alright. I've gotten stares before. Hermaphrodites aren't the most common thing humans see."

Jack peeked his head. "Hermaphrodites?" Jack asked. He was familiar with the term, but was drawing a blank.

"When someone is biologically both male and female. Another name is 'Intersex', but the general public seems more familiar with the term 'Hermaphrodite'."

Jack nodded. So that explained it. There was still the question of why they were here, but Jack decided to be polite. "So, what's your name?"

"Kaz."

"I'm Jack." Then he struck his hand through the bush and offered it to them. With a smile, Kaz shook it. There was a sudden, undescribable sensation that filled both of them. Jack stared into Kaz's eyes, one was light gray, the other dark gray; and their pupils, they looked like those of a reptile.

"I also was taking a walk." Kaz said, breaking the silence, "Not exactly sure how I ended up here, but, I did and got tired. So I took a nap."

"Against a tree?" Jack asked in disbelief.

Kaz shrugged their shoulders. "It's comfy."

"Really?"

"Yeah." Kaz answered, "I can make anything comfy."

"Oh."

There was an awkward silence.

"Soooooooo why ya here?" Jack asked.

"I had some time to myself, and wandered." Kaz answered. "You?"

"I live here." Jack answered, "Well, not here, here. I don't live in the bush, or the woods. I-I live in a house nearby, and this is like my backyard."

"Oh. I see." Kaz sadly said as they backed away, "I didn't know. I'm sorry for trespassing." They made to go, but Jack stopped them.

"No! Don't go! It's fine, uh, would you like to come inside?"

Kaz raised an eyebrow. "I just met you."

"Oh, right. Sorry." Jack felt the heat rising in his body. He was so nervous. "Uh, we can hang out here. If you want."

"Ok." Kaz answered.

Then the two moved to a more comfortable spot and started talking.

"So, your eyes are pretty cool." Jack said, "Contacts?"

"No, I was born like this." Kaz answered. "Get it from my Dad."

"Really? Who's he?"

Kaz suddenly felt nervous. "Oh, just some rich dude who goes after whoever takes his fancy." They said in a tone that was both nervous and nonchalant.

"Rich?" Jack asked. His parents knew almost every rich family in the world, and they made sure their son knew as well. Even though he could care less.

"Yeah, but he's not due to inherit anything for a while." Kaz replied, "And I'm not his oldest. My half-brother Leo is. (Technically)"

"Technically?"

"It's a long story." Kaz replied, "Anyway, enough about me. What about you? What are your parents like?"

"Rich and busy." Jack curtly answered. "The only time they're home is when there's some party going on, or to give me something. But it's ok, I have staff to help out."

"My mom has staff." Kaz stated, "My dad does too, but not as much. His family is so large, we don't need it."

"How large?" Jack asked.

"Well, my dad has 22 kids, by 15 different women." Kaz started.

"Wait, what!"

"It's true! I also have a lot of cousins. We all pitch in to help run the place, we even have our own school."

"Really?" Jack found Kaz more and more fascinating by the minute.

"Yeah. We're divided into three groups, which define our general schedules. There's the Morning Larks, which are mostly male and have their chores and lessons in the morning and early afternoon; Night Owls, which are mostly female and have their chores and lessons in the afternoon and early evening; and then there's the Noon Sparrows, like myself. There's not many of us, and most of us are intersex and/or gender-non-binary, and we have our chores and lessons from late morning to mid-late afternoon. I'm done for the day."

Jack took it all in. "Wow."

Kaz chucked, "I know. A lot of people are like that when they first find out. But for those who grew up in it, we're used to it."

"Sure, I bet." Jack answered, "I kinda wish I grew up like that."

"How did you grow up?"

Jack felt slightly nervous. "Well, I went to some fancy-pants preschool, then to an expensive private elementary school. Skipped a few grades, got in trouble. I graduated high school last year."

"How old are you?"

"15." Jack answered, "You?"

"Same."

"Sweet!"

"Yeah. Although after my birthday, I'll have to live with my mom and be groomed to be her successor." There was a noticeable bitterness and resentment in their voice. Jack couldn't help but feel for them. His parents treated him in a similar way.

"You know, my parents also want to groom me." Jack said as he leaned closer. Then he told them all about his parents expectations for him, how they wanted him to be what he clearly wasn't.

Kaz also shared more of their story. Their dad didn't place much if any expectations on them. They were simply another one of his kids. But their mom and her family, expected them to be a good leader and responsible.

The two talked for hours, finding that they had a lot in common. It wasn't until sunset that they realized how much time had passed.

"It's getting late." Kaz noted.

"Yeah. Are you ok getting home?" Jack asked with concern. He knew they were in the middle of nowhere.

"I'll be fine." Kaz replied, then they pulled out a strange device. "I have this. Can I come back tomorrow?"

"Sure. I like being with you."

Kaz smiled. Then they tapped some things, aimed it in front of them, pressed a trigger, and a green portal appeared. "See you tomorrow."

"See ya." Jack managed to get out.

Then Kaz stepped through the portal and both disappeared.

There was some sort of heaviness in his heart.