Programming

Failing at Faking it

You:

Hank didn't look okay when they left and I made a mental note to check on him when he got back. I spent the day awnsering the backed up emails before Lisa would be here all night picking up the slack, literally as she was an android and didn't sleep. I took a break to get coffee, trying to avoid working, these emails always putting me in a bad mood. With everything that happend with Connor, the revolution, the horrible emails I'm going through and my brain tearing me down, I was starting to want to just hole up in my apartment for days.

Luckily I don't have to awnser the really rude emails but that doesn't mean it stops my brain from racing. I sighed as I stirred the creamer in my cup, staring at the dumb painting above the coffee machine and thinking of Connor treating my burns in the bathroom.

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Connor:

I hoped to see the heartwarming smile of my favorite front desk agent as we got back but she wasn't at her computer.

Hank had helped as much as he could on the long car ride to the precinct, trying to get me to stop crying, saying things like 'we'll get these deviants', 'you'll finish your case' and 'maybe you can stay after we captured their leader, to help keep them at bay' until I burst out telling him I was a deviant. Telling him every detail of what happend with his best friend, now in the safety of his car, metal playing in the background. He patted my back, saying he was proud.

It helped a lot.

I walked into the precinct ready to pull her aside and hug her until this feeling went away but didn't get that so instead I sat at my desk just trying to go into Detective Connor mode.

"Anderson!" The cheif called after us from his office. Hank and I shared a look and he shrugged his shoulders, getting up with a groan and I shot up to follow him. Sliding the glass door behind us closed as we entered Fowlers office.

"Whats this about jeffery?" Hank said plopping into a chair across from the Cheif, who sighed, looking between us.

"You guys are off the case." I tried not to show the shock on my face as I processed what he said. "Hank, you're back on homicide and Connor goes back to Cyberlife tonight." Fear filled my system and I stared at the floor, trying to ground myself.

"What!? No, you cant fucking do that, Fowler." Hank yelled, sitting forward and grabbing the desk.

"I'm not doing it, Hank!" The Cheif yelled, causing me to look up at him. "It's out of my hands at this point, the feds are takin over." The Cheif sat back in his chair, throwing his hands in the air and Hank looked back at me with worry in his eyes.

"Fuck the fuckin feds." He said, his face turning to anger and looking back the Cheif, "You gotta be able to do something Jeff," Hank pleaded.

"I can't do shit. We're on the brink of a civil war." Hank groaned and stood from his chair. "Those androids demanded rights and it's put everyone on edge."

"Goddammit! You gotta be fucking kidding me. This is bullshit!" Hank threw his hands in the air with anger as he spoke.

"Enough Hank!" The Cheif yelled, standing from his chair. "Don't fight me on this. You're off! He's gone!" He ordered, pointing to us as he yelled and ending by pointing at the door. Hank left in a huff, trying to slam the door but the hydrolics stopped it with a hiss closing it slowly.

The Cheif looked at me with sadness in his eyes and I left without a word.

Hank sat at his desk, slumped over with his head in his hands. I walked over to sit on his desk next to him with a plop.

"Back to Cyberlife huh?" He said, looking up at me though his arms. I sat for a moment, thinking.

"No. They'll deactivate me, try to find out why I failed." I began, feeling strange knowing cyberlife would success my memory. "I-I will hide in Jericho." I said slowly, planning as I talk.

"Oh Jesus, not there. It will probably be attacked. I can't let you go and get yourself killed." He sat up and patted my knee, getting close and whispering as quiet as he could, "You'll stay with me. You can hide at mine, with sumo, until all this blows over and we-we'll figure it out."

I nodded, wanting to find the warm arms and comforting smell I was enveloped in this morning. Tell her what's happend, kiss her like I won't be able to again.

"I'll be back," I said to Hank, beginning to walk towards the front desk, hoping maybe she reappeared.

I was filled with releif to see her, the lobby dark now as the sun set an hour ago, and the heavy snow layers on the glass.

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You:

I didn't notice him come up, my headphones playing loudly in my ears, but I noticed when he blocked the light on my coffee cup I was staring at, lost in thought.

I looked up to see him the most disarray I ever had. I could tell he'd been crying, his eyes slightly red and puffy. His hair was soaked from the snow, curly now, and a messily swept to the side. Panic shot through me as I saw his right shoulder, looking like it was grazed with a bullet and his sleeve was covered in blue blood. I gasped loudly, covering my mouth and standing from my chair.

"Oh my god! Are you okay?" He walked around the desk, ignoring my wuestion and I scrambled out of my chair to him. Lowering my voice and getting close so others couldn't hear. "What the fuck happend?"

"I was shot," He said, clearly not the whole story and grabbed my hand, rubbing the back for a moment before dragging me along to the same bathroom he took me to after the coffee incident.

The door swooshed shut behind us and he pinned me to the wall, sliding his hand into my hair and the other to rest on my hip and pulled me into a crushing kiss. So much emotion flowing from his lips as he gasped and gripped at my clothes. I held his face in my hands softly and only pulled away when I felt tears touch my cheek that weren't mine. His eyes were still closed when I pulled away and when he slowly opened them to look up at me, more tears fell.

"Oh dear," I said, wiping them with my thumb and pulling him into a hug.

He buried his face in my shoulder and slid his hands around my waist, holding me so tightly. I ran my fingers through hair, trying to be comforting as he cried.

"I'm off the case." His voice broke through after he slowly stopped crying, still holding me close. I stopped massaging his hair and he lifted his head to look at me. "They're going to take me back to Cyberlife... I-I have to hide."

"Where will you go?" I said, holding his cheeks wiping the remanents of tears off his face.

"Hank said I could stay at his until this all blows over." He rubbed his face into my hand and sighed.

"W-what if... you stayed at mine?" He looked up at me as I said that. All my fear of letting myself get attached gone as I held his tear streaked face in my hands and wiped his tears. Seeing the look in his eyes as he faces death. "I mean they-they know Hank is your partner, but they don't know about us. If they tried to look for you they wouldn't find you immediately."

He grabbed my face and kissed me again, I felt nothing but love pouring from his lips.

"I would love nothing more." He said, kissing me again.

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(A/n nothing more)