You didn't mention that small moment you had with Connor to anyone; And it was as if it had been erased from Connor's memory entirely. He didn't even flinch when he was beside you, unlike you, who could hardly keep yourself from fidgeting. You knew you were being strange. You had only been working together for barely more than a month. Connor, Lieutenant Anderson and you had been tracking down Deviants everywhere, solving cases, and rising in the ranks at the police department. Yet it brought you no closer to finding out what was causing the high amount of androids turning deviant in the first place. At every scene, there were always the words 'Ra9', written on the walls, carved into floorboards, sometimes spelt out on paper. You could tell that these thoughts also persisted Connor's mind. Though for much of the time, your mind was elsewhere.
'He is just an android,' You told yourself. 'And I am just a human.' Yet you couldn't stop thinking about the handsome police android who worked with you on case after case. You knew that this placement was only training for your future. You wouldn't always be working with Connor, as much as you may wish to. You knew you would have to accept that truth before it could destroy you. Trying to pull the thoughts of him out of your mind, you focused on the case at hand.
You looked around. You stood in an elevator, with Connor in front of you and the Lieutenant standing beside you. There was a disturbance in an a vacant apartment room, and it was thought to be caused by an android. You told yourself that you would stay focused on the case, and not let your mind wander to other matters.
The case was going very well. You discovered many things, confirming that the disturbance was certainly cased by a Deviant. You found blue blood in the sink and a LED which the Deviant presumably tried to hide. But that was not the main part of the scene that stood out.
"Ra9..." You turn. Connor stood behind you, also noticing the words. "Written 2471 times..."
"The same thing again..." You murmured, writing it in your notebook. While Connor continued to look around the bathroom, you investigated more of the main room. The disarray of the furniture made it look like the Deviant tried to leave in a hurry. In a hurry...
You looked around. If your suspicions were right... then the Deviant heard your group enter. And if he didn't have time to escape...
"Connor..." You started to say but he nodded.
"I know." Connor looked up at a loose tile in the roof.
Suddenly, a movement came from the roof. The android was off, sprinting for the door. Connor took off after it, practically flying. You and the Lieutenant looked at each other in shock, then ran after him, as fast as you possibly could.
You and L.T. Anderson finally managed to catch up to the Deviant and Hank went in for the arrest, but not before the Deviant pushed him away. You were shocked for a moment, torn between grabbing Hank before he fell or grabbing the Deviant. The android locked eyes with you, and it was as if it wanted to tell you something. Then Connor ran over and the moment was broken. You went to help the Lieutenant, and the android raced off again. You expected Connor to continue to run after it, but he crouched to you both instead. Hank looked at Connor, clearly exasperated.
"What are you waiting for? Catch it!"
Connor looked in the direction of the Deviant, but it was too late.
"Dammit! We had it!!" Hank snapped. Then he sighed, brushing a hand through his hair.
Connor didn't respond. You knew that if you had grabbed the Deviant, then you could have caught it. If you had just reached out. Yet you had been distracted by the android's curious look at you. What was it trying to tell you? These are the thoughts that raced through your mind as you stood in Captain Jeffrey Fowler's office; And he didn't look happy.
"[F/N]... perhaps these Deviant cases are not suitable for you." You watched the Captain pace behind his desk a little. "You haven't had proper police training. Perhaps you could work on a case that's closer to your trained skill level..."
"I'm sorry sir... we just need a little more time. We've gathered so much information about the Deviants, we just have to put it together and..."
The Captain held up a hand and you fell silent. He gestured to a file on the desk, and continued. "Investigator Reed needs an assistant. Perhaps that would prove a more suitable task for your current skill level... what do you think [F/N]?"
"No!" He raised his eyebrow at you and you coughed. "I-I mean..." You paused for a moment to gather your thoughts. "I assure you sir, we are very close to finding the information we need. I promise, if you let me stay on this case, I'll be able to give you proper results by the end of this week."
"That's quite a statement... do you think you can handle it?" You nodded in agreement. You would give anything not to work with Reed.
But as you stood in front of your desk looking at the case files, different thoughts spun through your mind. There were so many similarities between the cases, and yet none of them made any sense. You wondered if you'd bitten off more than you could chew. You felt eyes on you, and looked up. Connor stood idly beside the Lieutenant's unattended desk, gazing at you curiously. You looked down again, thinking that it is just your imagination. When you raised your head again, he still stared. You walked over to him.
"Waiting for Lieutenant Anderson?" You asked. Connor nodded. This time he wasn't looking at you. He simply stood idly beside the desk. You leaned on the desk, thinking over a question you had been considering asking him, but he spoke first.
"What did Captain Fowler ask you?"
You sighed. You didn't want to think about that. "Well since you asked..." You muttered, "Captain Fowler doesn't think I'm suitable for the Deviant cases. He was considering making me an assistant for Investigator Reed..." You tried to hide your disgust.
"Are you going to accept the job?"
"I don't want to..." You finally looked at Connor. "But... I agree with what Captain Fowler said. I don't have police training like you and L.T. Anderson do." You glanced away again, and paced a few steps from the desk. "If I had just grabbed that Deviant, then we could have caught it... If it were me making the decisions, I don't think I am suitable for these cases either..." Connor didn't say anything.
"Connor..." You started, "Teach me how to shoot..." You waited quietly. Connor didn't reply, so you continued. "I know I'm asking a lot... you're probably not allowed to use the training room. But... But if I could just know that much, then I could help out much more; And Captain Fowler wouldn't take me off the case..." You felt metal pressed in your hand. You flinched, looking down at the gun Connor pressed in your hand. You cautiously put it in your pocket.
As Connor led you to the police training room, you told him how you had only used a gun very briefly, during your android studies, and just before joining the case for training. You may have known about androids, but you didn't know anything about capturing them.
You followed Connor into a room with a target, and upon entering a code, several different guns appeared, hung against a wall. You started off with the gun he gave you. He took another one for himself.
"Connor..." You murmured, "Weren't you waiting for the Lieutenant?"
"Lieutenant Anderson always arrives late. If he arrives at all..."
Connor proceeded to show you the different parts of the gun, and how you use it. Then he taught you how to properly aim, and fire. You started off slow, hardly being able to make the target. But you kept practicing whenever you could and Connor patiently watched. After training with Connor for a few days, you managed to successfully shoot in the middle of the target, which impressed you deeply. But Connor pushed your arm down slightly.
"When you're aiming to shoot a Deviant, your aim is to slow them down. If you destroy them we won't get any information."
You felt your heart sink. You had been proud of that shot. Though Connor was right. You aimed again, at a target on the wall shaped like a person.
Connor continued, "Aim for the legs. Or non vital components... Don't destroy it unless there is no other option." Your arms were shaking. You fired, but it completely missed. You looked down at the gun in your hand. You couldn't help but feel disappointed. Connor suddenly moved behind you.
"Connor what are you..." Connor stood behind you and put his hands over your hands holding the gun. You felt your face grow hot. You hoped he wouldn't see the furious blush across your cheeks. Connor moved your arms holding the gun, and demonstrated where you should aim to slow down a Deviant, not destroy it.
"Keep calm and focused when dealing with a Deviant. Especially if they also have a gun..."
"How on earth am I supposed to stay calm and focused like this...?" You thought. But you still managed to stop your arms from shaking, and aimed at the non vital components, shooting each one perfectly, with the help of Connor. You turned your head to smile at Connor, but gasped at the close proximity of your faces. You could feel his synthetic breath on your face. A part of you wanted to run away, but you couldn't. You didn't want to. You stared into his deep russet eyes. He stared back into yours. There was nothing between you. Connor's hand was still over yours as you stood there, time seeming to halt. You felt yourself wondering if androids always were this human-like.
The gun slipped from your hands, and loudly clattered on the hard tiles, breaking the moment. Connor quickly moved away, straightening his tie. He didn't even look flustered.
"That'll be all for today's training." You still stood there, the gun lying on the floor at your feet. You wondered what would have happened if it hadn't slipped. Connor turned quickly to walk away.
"Connor." He paused. Then he turned to look at you, a smile spreading across your lips. "Connor... thank you..."
You could've sworn you saw his lips curve into a slight smile also.