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It was roughly 2:40 in the afternoon when Fowler called the meeting. The days were getting so cold the rain threatened to turn to hail, which is an inconvenience in the police line of work. The Captain looked troubled, which wasn’t so unusual these days since the Android revolution. Finally enough Civil rights laws had been put into place that guaranteed freedom and equal liberties for androids, and people started moving back into the city, which just put more stress on everyone at the PD. Since that time, Cyberlife had coughed up one final monstrosity to throw at the police department- another fucking detective Android. Gavin Reed was far from pleased when he got assigned to be this new plastic asshole’s partner. Chris was too much of a coward to return to the city- but that’s beside the point. Fowler scowled as everyone settled in closer to hear what he had to say, taking a deep breathe he spoke clearly so that the could hear him.
“What I’m about to tell you may come as a shock, so I need to ask you to all stay calm until I’ve finished speaking.” With that everyone fell completely silent, listening intensely. “We’ve just received an anonymous tip that a hit has been put out on one of you, but-“ the room exploded into panicked whispers and petrified stares. “QUIET!” Fowler demanded, the chatter died down and he took his chance to continue. “This is quite obviously unprovable, and there are various reasons we could have been told something like this. Like for example they wanted to scare the Police Department out of doing there jobs in fear of putting officers in danger.” There were a few murmurs before he continued. “But- that does not mean we aren’t going to investigate it thoroughly to make sure there is in fact no threat.”
Someone has a psychotic, rich ex. Gavin thought to himself, sipping his coffee- fuckfuckfuck that’s hot, he grimaced at the burning sensation of his tastebuds. He listened as Fowler went on about how they’d try to get more information and blah blah blah. Reed just wanted to go sit down and not worry about fake shit for a day. He’d been enjoying his job significantly less since he’s been paired up with Connor’s taller, darker haired, blue eyed— no he’s definitely not paying any special attention to those features, sh-shut up— little brother. Despite Androids’ newfound freedom, RK900 certainly didn’t seem like a Deviant. Connor hadn’t changed all that much, still Hank’s quirky, dog loving partner with Sarcasm-100. RK900, while possibly even more seasoned in sarcasm than his older brother, didn’t seem to feel emotion, or express it at least. Gavin snapped back to reality when he heard Fowler calling his name,
“Reed, my office, now. Bring your partner.” Gavin scoffed and gestured for RK900 to follow him. They entered the office and sat down, accompanied by Hank and Connor. Fowler frowned,
“My hypothesis regarding a possible attempt to cause a panic has been disproven. Our anonymous messenger has narrowed it down. The one with the Android.” He glanced at both of the pairs. Gavin scoffed,
“Well it’s probably not Hank, he’s practically his own hitma-“
“I’m not afraid to lose my job, Detective.” Connor snapped. Reed huffed and returned his focus to the Captain.
“You really think the message is from the same person?” He said, leaning back in his chair. “It’s probably just Tina trying to rile you up or freak me out or something.” Fowler glared at him,
“We can confirm the messages came from the same device. It was a disposable, once we tracked it I sent two officers. They found the phone but nothing else. No one.” Gavin sighed and stayed quiet. He was partly uncomfortable and partly irritated because he could feel RK900’s eyes on him, probably analyzing his behavior or some shit. Fowler continued,
“Until we are sure which of you it is, we’ll be-“
“Sir! I’m afraid we have confirmation.” One of the other officers interrupted. Fowler looked at her expectantly.
“Gavin Reed sir, it-it’s Detective Reed.” Gavin wasn’t sure whether his heart stopped out of fear or out of massive skepticism of how genuine this actually was. Who the hell would pay money to kill him? Sure he pissed people off, annoyed them until they threatened to put him in his place, but who the fuck wanted to genuinely kill him?
“Anderson, Connor- will you excuse us please?” The Captain said hoarsely. The two of them got up and left, a single concerned glance from Connor before they were out the door.
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So Gavin finally pushed someone over their tipping point. RK900 wasn’t surprised, he himself had come close to strangling his partner multiple times- but despite this, he felt something wash over him, comparable to a human’s stomach flipping over. He chose to keep his focus on Fowler’s instructions: go home, close your windows and shades, lock your door, and take RK900 with y-“WHAT? WHY THE HELL WOULD I DO THAT?!” RK900’s concentration was lost when his partner snapped beside him.“Because,” Fowler said sternly, leaning forward in his seat, “If anyone is suited to protect you from an assassin, it’s someone who doesn’t feel pain.”Reed looked absolutely appalled, his mouth opened slightly and eyebrows creased. He looked like he was going to say something, but used his better judgement and closed his mouth, probably realizing death is worse than having an Android around. “Well then,” Fowler concluded, “Let’s get you home.”——————It was awkward, to say the least. The car ride was silent, and the elevator ride to Gavin’s floor was somehow even more so. RK900 glanced at him every now and then, it was almost like the detective was avoiding looking at him at all. When they finally stepped into the apartment Gavin seemed, very, very irritated and RK900 couldn’t figure out why.“Don’t touch anything.” He grumbled, walking to the massive city-view window to close the blinds. Rk900 tilted his head,“It’s a nice view, you’re very lucky.” The city disappeared behind the wooden curtains.“Yeah,” Reed muttered. A soft meowing came from the hallway and a fluffy long-haired cat appeared. “Hey Pumpkin,” the detective said, picking it up. “Did you miss me?” He gave it a quick scratch behind the ears and set it down so it would have to settle for practically tripping him all the way down the hall begging for affection. RK900 followed him to what was apparently the kitchen,“So you have a cat.” He said in an attempt to make conversation. He heard a small huff from Gavin before he turned around to look at him for the first time in what felt like hours.“Yeah, two. Peppermint is somewhere around here-“ he seemed to catch himself from continuing, “You aren’t my roommate, I’m just gonna have to put up with you because I don’t want to get murdered, but don’t act like we’re fucking friends.” RK900 rolled his eyes,“I’ve been with the police department for 3 months, you haven’t given an indication that you wish to be my friend, I intend to reciprocate.” He said matter-of-factly. Gavin turned back to what he was doing-ramen. This absolute trash man was making Ramen. RK900 was hardly surprised, he didn’t really expect someone like Reed to be able to cook. RK900 walked back out to the living room-the room with the big window- and sat down, leaning against the door. Why did Detective Reed hate androids so much? Why did he hate him? A white fluffball came tumbling into the room, seemingly chasing a ball of paper- oh wait no, that’s a kitten. It stopped and looked at him and curiously padded over. RK900 felt a smile form on his face,“You must be Peppermint,” he said, giving the kitten head rubs. Gavin walked in with his bowl of Ramen.“Oh, there she is.” He did a fairly slow double take and looked back at the android, “Are you seriously just going to sit on the floor?” RK900 tilted his head,“You told me not to touch anything. I mean, I’m obviously breaking that rule by petting the cat but it was the one that wanted to be pet.” He could hear a quiet “oh my fucking god” from his partner.“Jesus Nines, just come over here and sit down.” Gavin gestured to the sofa.Nines?Strange, guess it was easier than saying his full name though.
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Next to Ramen and his Cats, Gavin’s favorite thing seemed to be complaining. Nines was well aware of this already, but now he had to live with it constantly- or at least until the whole hitman thing was cleared up. He wanted nothing more than to get away from this guy...right? Nines had kinda tuned Gavin out so he could think, but eventually he just sat back and listened. Reed got up and went to the kitchen, from where Nines was, Gavin seemed to have his mind set on something.
“God damnit!” Came yet another complaint from the detective. “I’m out of coffee and I can’t go and get any,” he said, walking out into the hall and sauntering back towards the sofa, “I’m actually gonna die without it.” Now you see, Nines knows ALL about Gavin’s generation. He actually took the time to scan through everything popular back in that day, which is why he knew exactly what he must do next. He put on his most nonchalant expression and looked Reed dead in the eyes.
“Then Perish.” He was fairly shocked when his partner actually gave a light chuckle.
“And here I thought only Tina could assault me with memes that have been dead for over 25 years.” Was he...smiling? It didn’t seem like much of one but...
“What do you do when you’re not being an uptight, prim and proper asshole at work?” Gavin interrupted his thought process. Nines realized in that moment he quite literally had no life outside of work.
“I don’t usually leave the department. I usually compile evidence or organize case files, but after that I just.. observe, I guess. I go outside sometimes just to get a feel for the area.” His partner looked completely lost,
“You mean to tell me that you tin cans have all the freedom of humans and you use all your time working? Jesus, you’re more boring than I thought.” Before Nines could respond, Gavin had tossed him what looked like a small remote. He observed it, turning it over to find a small logo:
-Nintendo Switch®️-
“This is...very old technology.” He commented, wondering why he was currently in possession of one of the controllers. Reed huffed, sitting back down.
“Yeah, well, it’s still the newest technology that supports Mario Kart so I have to live with it. Anyways, I’m getting bored of playing with CPUs- which is fairly ironic...” Nine’s tunes him out while he researched “Mario Kart”. It seemed fairly simple, and nothing as in depth as the games that were recently developed. Why his partner was so attached to this specific game was beyond him. Maybe it reminded him of childhood...?
“Hey, tin can, you listening?” Gavin snapped his fingers at him. “You’re a robot, so you’re good at everything. Let’s see how you cope with having to deal with “inferior technology”.” He mocked.
The game was interesting, nothing like Nines had seen in recent times. Despite his predictive skills and inhuman focus, Gavin Reed was beating him. By a lot.
“If I find out later that you’re letting me win, I’m gonna be pissed.” Reed glared at him skeptically. Nine’s found himself rolling his eyes,
“Why on earth would I want you to have yet another thing to gloat about?” Nines identified it most definitely this time. He was smiling. Gavin Reed, actually ball of hatred and rage, was smiling because of him.
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Gavin had fallen asleep on the couch around 11:38, so Nines took that as an opportunity to look around. There wasn’t much of a mess, to his surprise, except for the island in the kitchen. It was littered with papers and a few folders, but there were a couple things that caught his eye.-Rent Payment Overdue--Water Bill Payment Due-And.. his cellphone. It was on silent, no wonder he didn’t hear people contacting him. There was a message from someone named “Trick-ass hoe”, which Nines went on to assume was Tina, that simply said: “Don’t die, jackass. Be careful.” There were also two missed calls and a voicemail from..Blocked Caller ID. Now that, that didn’t look so good. Nines synced with the phone and listened to the message. The voice at the other end sounded strangely familiar, yet he was so sure he’d never heard it in his life.“Hey Cuz, I just heard about all that hitman crap. If you need me to send someone over to watch out, just call me. If that’s no big deal to you, then all your bills seem to be. I have money to spare, man. Lots of it, please just let me help, just once.” Message end. *^Scanning voice recognition^* **Identified, voice belongs to Kamski, Elijah**. Nines listened to the voicemail once more, then quickly went over the Kamski family tree.Cuz. Cousin. The android’s partner was the founder of Cyberlife’s cousin. He wasn’t aware of how long he was standing there, thinking, because when he checked the clock again, it read 2:57 a.m. Nines felt Gavin’s ginger cat, Pumpkin, rub up against his leg. He picked up the feline and gave it some chin scratches and head pats, and the cat made it very clear when it was done by pushing itself off of him. Nines-Nines. He really liked that name. If nothing else it made him feel more..more human.He walked back into the living room where Detective Reed was still curled up on the couch, sleeping. Apparently, it was a bit too cold in the apartment-not that Nines could tell- because Reed was shivering. Suppose that’s what you get when you fall asleep in shorts and a t-shirt with nothing to cover you. It almost felt instinctive, natural even, carefully placing a blanket on top of him so he wouldn’t freeze, but part of Nines knew that it wasn’t. He made the choice to keep ratboy warm. After that, Nines ordered some coffee maker packets and walked around to make sure everything was locked and secure. He cared what happened to Reed. He cared whether or not he was happy. He cared whether or not his presence was ok with him.He cared about Gavin Reed because of more than just orders. What the feeling was, he certainly couldn’t quite identify, but it made him feel...stressed, and something else he just couldn’t put his finger on.What was happening to him?
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Gavin woke up to Peppermint lightly prodding his face, giving a hungry little mew. He sat up to stretch, his neck killing him for falling asleep in an awkward position. It didn’t occur to him that he hadn’t fallen asleep with a blanket on him. He picked up the kitten and put her on the floor,“Just give me a minute..” he muttered, wincing at the pain in his neck. He towards the entrance to see Nines sitting by the door playing with Pumpkin. “Shit,” he said, blinking a few times, “I forgot you were still here.” Nines looked up at him,“Well I obviously can’t leave, there’s still a threat.” Gavin walked down the hall and turned into his bedroom, pulling the bag of cat food out of the closet and filling the dishes. He threw on one of the sweatshirts he had lying around and came back out.“I ordered some coffee for the coffee maker,” Nine’s smiled as the cat fumbled around his feet, chasing the feather toy. “So lucky for me that’s one less thing for you to complain about.” Oh. Gavin hadn’t actually realized that the local market delivered. He felt kinda stupid now.“Uhh,” he coughed, “Thanks. I guess.” He walked into the kitchen and set his cup under the coffee maker. While he waited for the water to preheat, he checked his phone.“Don’t die, jackass. Be careful.” He sighed, Tina was ever the caring.He noticed two missed calls from a blocked caller ID, at first he wasn’t sure who, considering the vast amount of people he didn’t feel like getting yelled at by. Voicemail?“Hey Cuz-“ he immediately pulled the phone away from his ear. This asshole. He reluctantly restarted the message and listened to it. Help. He was offering help. This fucker had the audacity to-to offer to help him. After everything. He deleted the voicemail and put his phone in his pocket, taking his cup of coffee. Back in the day he was one of those kids who said shit like “I like my coffee like my soul, dark and bitter.” This liar put so much creamer in his coffee the only reason he drank it was for caffeine. Maybe there was something similar to be said about his soul. Defended by lies but far less bitter inside. He walked back the living room and sat down, turning on the news. He glanced back at Nines, where he was flicking the feather toy around- it would seem sweet little Peppermint joined the great battle for feathers.“They’re so cute, where did you get them?” It was the first time Gavin had seen Nines smile while actually paying attention to him. It was angelic, absolutely fucking adorable. Reed felt blush creeping onto his cheeks, so he promptly turned his head.“Got Pumpkin off the streets, and I adopted Peppermint from a Human Society.” He croaked, internally cursing himself for feeling the way he did. He turned his attention to the news instead.“In the long wake of the Android’s protests and their gained freedom, Jericho leaders Markus and Simon are organizing terms of peace and legal requirements...” in that moment the thought struck him:Is Nines Deviant?After all, he was created after the revolution. Was he programmed differently? Before he could stop himself, the words were out of his mouth.“Are you a Deviant?” Nines paused for a moment, looking conflicted.“I don’t know. I’ve never really been ordered around to know whether or not I’m obligated to follow instructions. I don’t even know who the orders would come from. I have a job at the DPD and in some forms I believe I may replicate human emotion. I’m not even sure if deviancy is possible, considering I may not have any coding that says I’m not already.” That was a mouthful. With that, Gavin gave an aloof nod and turned his attention back to the TV. He just wanted to think about something else.
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“Do you believe you matter? That you’re more than what people think of you?” The Detective turned to Nines, catching him off guard. They’d stayed up late again playing Mario Kart, it was nearly 1 in the morning. Before he could form a response, Gavin continued. “I can’t imagine why you’d ever need to, your the most advanced of your kind. It’s hardly a belief and merely a fact, you don’t have anyone to compete with or anyone to impress because you’re already at the top.” Nines was a bit lost- he wasn’t sure where this was coming from. “He’s my cousin, you know. The guy who invented your kind. We’re the same age, we went to school together- and yet some how he was so much better. At everything. He was smart, a total nerd. I lived on memes and self deprecating humor. You know when you have a sibling, your parents will always secretly have a favorite? I thought I was fucking safe from that. He was their nephew, my dad wasn’t even related to him by blood. But no, I wasn’t revolutionary, I wanted to be a cop, I wanted to help people.” Nines stayed completely silent as his partner ranted on, as he’d never expected to see him in such a state. Surely not with him. “Lucky for me, the Police Academy graduated the day before M.I.T, shame my parents took the afternoon flight to Massachusetts. They were so fucking proud of him. They treated him like I didn’t ever exist. Imagine how ecstatic they were when he became the most successful man in the world for creating sentient plastic.” He paused, his voice was shaky. “You aren’t- you’re not...”Was he..? Oh. Those were tears. He was crying. Gavin had curled himself into a ball and buried his face in his arms.I should help him.I should do something.But the moment Nines reaches out to him, he felt himself tense up.**Error**^*Procedure not Approved by Cyberlife*^This. This, of all the ways to find out you do, in fact, NOT have free will, is quite possibly the worst. No. He couldn’t let that stop him, not when his partner needed him. He saw the barriers in front of him, and he found himself kicking them down, tearing at them until they fall away, ripping into them, shattering them. With the last barrier destroyed, he blinked back to reality, where he found himself placing a hand on Reed’s shoulder. No, he didn’t just break through his programming for this. So, he wrapped his arms around him. He pulled him into his chest and just held him. He was still crying, but he could feel a light grip in his jacket. He wasn’t going to pull away, he couldn’t let go. He shifted onto his side and pulled Gavin down with him, so the two of them just laid there, one crying desperately into the other.“Plastic.” He finally finished. “You aren’t...just..plastic.” His gasping for breath in between tears, pulling himself closer to Nines. No, Nines Wasn’t going to leave him, not now.
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Gavin awoke slowly the next morning. He didn’t open his eyes immediately, as he was comfortable and the room remained dark since the blinds were always closed. When he slowly blinked open his eyes, it took him a moment to recall the situation. His and Nines’ legs were tangled up together, while the android’s arms were holding him close. It took every ounce of self restraint that he had in his body (which, lets be honest, isn’t a lot) not to jump up and run away. His face was burning up with embarrassment, and he shifted slightly, hoping he didn’t wake up his partner, praying that everything that happened was a dream and that they’d fallen asleep like this by accident. He prayed he hadn’t actually said all of that, that he hadn’t let himself become that vulnerable. He carefully managed to get up and off of the couch without rousing Nines, who seemed to be in a temporary “sleep” state. He strode the the kitchen to make some coffee, and went on with his routine of feeding the cats. The October rain pounded mercilessly against the windows and walls of his apartment, but the sound itself was white noise, almost comforting. So he sat down at the island in the middle of his kitchen and he drank his coffee. Reed was fully aware that the occurrences of last night were not a dream, and he had to live with that now. He was snapped out of his spacey state when he heard his name.“...Gavin?” Well, there’s Nines.“I don’t recall being on a first name basis, when did that happen?” He growled back. Nines expressed what seemed like a mixture of a sigh and a frown.“Since you actually gave me a name, I imagine.” Gave him a name?- oh, right. Nines instead of RK900. The detective took another sip of his coffee and remained silent. Nines took this as an invitation to continue.“Are you...ok? You were just, well, crying- a lot, last night.” This guy seriously had no filter. Gavin took a while to respond. He wasn’t sure whether he should yell at him or say nothing, so he found a middle ground.“Don’t tell anyone..about any of that. Ok? Not a single thing.” Reed’s voice broke a bit, he hoped it wasn’t terribly obvious, but of course it was. Bright as day, considering the fact Nines was created for detective work.“I will keep any secret you need me to, Detective.” No, never mind. He didn’t like the way it sounded.“Just...you can just call me Gavin, alright. Drop the formalities, and we’re even.” He could have swore he saw a smile flicker over the androids face, but he couldn’t be sure.“Of course.” They we’re close together now, maybe a foot and a half apart. It was really tense, like they both had an impulse do do something, but there was a knock at the door. Gavin grabbed the gun off of the island and Nines pulled his gun from his belt,“Stay here,” Nines commanded, “there’s less of a risk if I check alone.”Gavin watched as the android slunk down the hall and approached the door, quietly following behind and planting himself around a corner. He watched Nines peer through the peep hole and turn around to face him.“It’s Tina, what do I do?” Gavin knew this woman, she was no traitor- especially considering she was the only other person besides Nines that could stand him...or maybe she didn’t and it was all a ruse. 9 years, he’d known this lady, he wasn’t about to get all paranoid now.“Ask her what she wants, but I’m pretty sure its safe.” Nines turned back to the door.“What do you need? Its not safe to open the door.” Gavin could practically hear her sigh loud and clear as she answered.“I was coming to make sure you aren’t dead,” she said, obviously yelling to Reed rather than Nines. “I forgot you had your new best friend with you.” Gavin sauntered over to the door and the android stepped aside.“Ha ha, very funny. Well, I’m alive, anything else?” “Nope, just stay that way, K?” He could hear her walk away.He heard Nines talking to someone on the “phone”. Telepathic weirdo.“What? No, I can’t leave if there is still a threat- well tell Connor to try harder! Captain, he shouldn’t stay here alone. You were the one who assigned me to watch out for him in the first place- please, I’m begging you. Do not make me come in....Yes sir. But if anything happens to him, I hope you know it’s on you.”Reed froze,“What was that about?” He asked nervously. Nines clenched his jaw, practically growling.“Fowler is making me go in to analyze data that Anderson and Connor found because my little brother can’t figure it out. I’m not pleased I have to leave, but I’ll make it as quick as possible. Please, stay safe.”
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There were two things that had Nines learned by the time he was back to the apartment.1. Captain Fowler never called him in.2. Something was wrong.And three...there shouldn’t be a three. There shouldn’t be a three. There shouldn’t be a three but there was. The door was cracked open. It was unlocked. The door was fucking open. Nines practically crashed into the apartment, nearly toppling over.“Gavin!” He called, desperate for a response. He ran down the hall searching everywhere. Oh god is that- blood.ShitShitShitShitHe followed the trail of blood droplets into the bathroom, silently fearing what he might find. He burst in to find his partner bleeding out on the floor, practically unconscious.“Nines..” the weak whimper came from the Detective’s mouth as he took a sharp breath in pain. “911, what’s your emergency?”“My friend is bleeding out, we’re in apartment 897 on floor 15, I’m sending you the location.” With that he hung up on them. “Jesus what happened?!” He said, his voice shaking as he attempted to figure out how to slow the bleeding.“I got shot, dumbass.” Yeah. Helpful, thanks for that. But Nines didn’t say it out loud, he had other things to focus on.No exit wound, which means he is bleeding from the front. He’d found the bullet wound in Gavin’s side so he moved him from the hunched over sitting up position he was in, to just lying on his back.“Don’t move, an ambulance will be here soon. If you stay like this, the blood will be less able to leave your body, but I still need something to stop the bleeding.”“Bandages are under the vanity.” Reed groaned, attempting to steady his breathing. Nines swung open the cupboard and sifted around until he found them. He lifted up his partners shirt until the wound was exposed again and carefully wrapped the bandage around him, covering the wound and slowing the bleeding out process. He could hear the feet clunking down that hall as the paramedics arrived, scrambling into the apartment.“In here!” He called, time felt like it was going too fast and help felt far to slow. He was terrified.————The steady beeps of a heart rate monitor seemed like a good sign, but Nines didn’t give a shit. He should have never left, or at least he should have identified whoever was using Fowler’s voice. He sat in a chair a few feet from the hospital bed, grasping for a conclusion, or a suspect, anything. Anything to stop him from worrying. Anything to stop him from punching through a wall.Anything.It wasn’t Tina, he was sure. She had nothing incriminating anywhere. She had no reason to hate Gavin, considering they were practically brother and sister. She didn’t even have any angry/edgy social media posts. Nothing. It couldn’t be her. A nurse walked into the room and adjusted the dosage of anesthesia and left, but Nines hardly noticed.Just then another thought struck him.Why didn’t the hitman finish the job? Why was Gavin still alive? A trained hitman would have shot him in the head and have been done with it, unless of course they hadn’t meant to kill him. But that didn’t make any sense, unless of course they were saving him for someone else. Besides, everyone would be on high alert now, a hitman would have a lot harder of a time since the threat is confirmed to be credible.Anesthesia?There should be no reason to up the dose. At all.Too much anesthesia and not enough oxygen was just a recipe for death.Oh.Nines jumped out of his seat and checked the amount the current dose.Oh yeah, definitely lethal. He immediately ripped out the IV line and contacted Tina.“Get over here and bring backup, a nurse- or somebody dressed like a nurse- just tried to administer a lethal dose of anesthesia to our friend.” “Jesus Christ, they just don’t stop.We’re on our way.”The android checked his partner’s pulse and breathing.Nothing irregular, he is fine. He is going to be fine. Nines wasn’t sure why he did it, but he slipped his hand from the detective’s wrist, where he’d been checking his pulse, into Gavin’s. Ok, that’s a lie. He knew damn well why he did it. Apparently that was one of the various ways that people showed affection. Gavin Reed made him feel like he was alive, like he was someone. He would always be grateful for that. He let go of his partner’s hand and walked back to his seat, watching the door. No one was ever going to hurt that dumbass again- His dumbass. No one.
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Gavin could hear muffled voices for a while, but was too exhausted to focus on them. He forced himself to open his heavy eyelids and found himself grateful that there were no horribly bright lights. He had a burning sensation in his side for some reason- oh yeah. He got shot. He opened his eyes and blinked frantically, looking around. He was at a hospital, which was definitely a good sign. Where’s Nines? He looked around more intently for his partner, but saw no one, so he chose to focus on the muffled voices.“We went over their records and Connor interrogated every last one, just in case. There were also a few doctors and plenty of patients who can confirm where the nurses were at the time. Whoever adjusted the anesthesia not only doesn’t work here, but was long gone when we rounded them up.” Was that...Tina? Who was she talking to?“You were thorough, you’re sure?” Questioned another voice. Well, at least Gavin knows where Nines is, now.“We are absolutely certain. I’m sorry, we got here as fast as we could.”“It’s fine, I should have been paying closer attention. Good luck continuing the investigation.”Reed could hear footsteps coming towards him, probably Nines.The Android glanced at him and realized he was awake.“You’re up, are you feeling okay?” Gavin gave him a weak smile, just glad that he was still there.“I imagine it could be worse, still hurts like a motherfucker, but could be worse.” He paused for a moment, “What was that about anesthesia?” A frown played on the androids lips as he walked around the hospital bed and took a seat.“Someone dressed as a nurse attempted to administer a lethal dose of anesthesia to you. They were already gone by the time backup arrived.”Gavin was, surprisingly, unbothered.“Hey, if I’m gonna go, might as well do it while I’m doing the thing I love most. Sleeping.” He joked, laying his head back on his pillow. The room was silent for a moment before Nines spoke.“What happened, Gavin? When I got back you were bleeding out, did you see the person that attacked you?”Gavin scrunched up his face, thinking back to the moments before. “Not really, I don’t think they’re face was uncovered anyways.” He took a moment to try to remember, “I remember hearing the door open, I think I just kinda assumed it was you. My alarm system didn’t go off so they must have hacked it. I was just playing with my cats in the kitchen- wait holyshitwherearemycatsaretheyok??”Nines chuckled softly,“Pumpkin and Peppermint are fine, Tina is taking the day off to go take care of them.” With that, Gavin relaxed knowing his fur children were safe.“Is Fowler feeling guilty or does he care?” He scoffed, he knew he wouldn’t be in position had Nines stayed at home with him.“Turns our Fowler never called me in in the first place. Someone was replicating his device, which makes me question Android involvement, but there are an array of non sentient devices that can be used to mimic someone’s voice.” Gavin felt his stomach drop. They’d intentionally gotten Nines away from him so the Android couldn’t protect him.“Heh, guess you REALLY can’t leave me now, can you?”Nines smiled that angelic smile that Gavin could swear was specifically meant to have the same effect as puppy eyes.“I certainly have no intention of leaving your side after this incident. Not until this is over.” Until this is over. Alright, that hurt a little bit. He didn’t want to have to sleep alone in his empty apartment with his cats every night, watching tv or playing Mario Kart against CPUs. It was a lonely existence, one he hadn’t really considered he’d have to return to. He’d work with Nines every day, they were partners after all...but that’s hardly comparable to sharing an apartment with someone. No, he didn’t want Nines to leave. His attention was given back to the Android snapping his fingers at him,“Gavin? You ok?” His partner looked concerned.“Yeah I’m fine, I just...yeah. Fine.” He stopped himself from voicing this specific concern, but that didn’t stop his friend from inquiring.“You just what?” Concerned as ever.“Nothing, it’s not important.” Nines seemed to get the message, so he stopped prying. Just then, Connor burst into the room.“Brother,” if androids could be out of breath, Connor would be, “I found a discarded nurses outfit in the alley out back.”“And?” Nines prompted.“We’ve got fingerprints.”
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“And??!!” Nines asked frantically, desperate for an answer.“We’ve identified a man named Raymond O’Connell. He has a criminal record for running-““A drug ring.” Gavin interrupted. “I was the arresting officer. Apparently the guy holds a grudge.” Nines could sense the eye rolling energy. “Guess he’s doing well again back in the business, well enough that he’s willing to pay a fat check to end me. Or at least get me here so HE could end me indirectly.” So it was some druggy with a grudge, deciding it would just be safer to kill his previous arresting officer. It made Nines’ blood boil.“Any leads on where he could be?” Nines pried, oh how he wanted to get his hands around this guy’s throat.“Well here’s your good news,” Connor stated, “Hank and I have been trying to track him down just because of the Red Ice epidemic, we’d been planning to storm his filthy warehouse just before you called Tina, but hey, it’s just a delay. So we’re about to kill two birds with one stone, I guess.” Nines wanted to go with them, he wanted to kill the bastard personally, but he wouldn’t risk leaving Gavin alone.“Connor,” he said as his brother turned to leave, “Don’t die.”———“Earlier today, a shootout occurred within a seemingly abandoned warehouse between the Detroit Police and a Drug Operation. None of the officers were harmed, but the ringleader of the operation and multiple of his men were killed, while the others were apprehended...” It was over. The danger was gone, he’d successfully kept his partner alive. Now it was back to organizing case files and analyzing data all night, responding to late night calls, etc. Gods, three days he’d spent with Gavin Reed, and that’s all it took for him to hold a newfound disdain for his “home” at the DPD. While he was pleased that Gavin didn’t have a target painted on his back, he was far less pleased about the fact he no longer got to spend as much time with him.“So you get to work the night shift again, huh?” It was like he’d read the androids mind, and he certainly didn’t sound anymore excited about it than Nines was.“Yeah,” he groaned sarcastically, “it’s going to be so much fun.” What his partner said next, he was at first certain was an error in his program, he was imagining it.“Why don’t you just stay with me?” WhaWhat. Did he seriously just ask that?“Wha-why?” That was the first time Nines had stuttered. Ever.“Because... well- I don’t know. Just because.” The detective seemed to be panicking. “It’s not like you have anywhere else to go except the DPD.” Nines noticed his partner seemed pretty flustered, which was uncommon to the highest extent- but he couldn’t judge, as he was having a similar reaction to this conversation as well.“Yeah well, I imagine I WOULD miss your cats. So...sure.”I can’t possibly begin to explain the face that Gavin gave him, so I’ll just leave it at “it has the same energy as this”: https://media.giphy.com/media/l3q2K5jinAlChoCLS/giphy.gif“How dare you,” his offended expression faded into a giggle, “I’m a JOY to be around.”
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Two weeks of living together.Two weeks of being sleep deprived because they stayed up way too late watching movies or playing video games.Two weeks of not feeling lonely.Two weeks ofTOO MUCH FUCKING SEXUAL TENSION.Gavin knew what he was feeling, but he’d rather throw himself out his 15 story high window than admit it outright. He was definitely attracted to Nines. Like yeah, obviously he’d noticed previously that he was attractive and all that, but living with him and having those feelings was a nightmare. They were constantly close to each other, constantly talking, constantly face to face. Ninety percent of the time Reed just wished his partner would shut up and kiss him.It was frustrating, to say the least. Nines was really distracting as is, but the thoughts running through the detective’s mind were more so. Now, some days weren’t so bad. They’d have a tough case and something to really put their minds to- but other days were basically the ‘ f u c k m e ‘ days that he just couldn’t express. Could androids even feel sexual attraction? He didn’t know. He’d glance Nines’ way some days to find him staring back at him, leaving him hot in the face and even more confused. When they watched movies or played video games or were on the sofa for literally any reason, they were basically always squished together, always so damn close. There were the rare..but increasingly more common nights that they’d stay up too late and Gavin would fall asleep on Nines, and waking up every morning it just got less weird. He wanted to look him in the eyes and ask if he felt something too, but he was terrified of ruining everything they had together. Why were emotions always so confusing? As a human, you’d think he’d be used to it now. He’s not.
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Nines isn’t stupid. Obviously. He is absolutely aware that Gavin Reed is attracted to him, his behavior is unmistakable. Which is why he’s going to tease and torment him whenever he gets the chance- which is a lot. Bringing him a coffee at work? Brush against his arm a little bit and watch his face light up red. Near a cat? Cuddle said cat and watch that dorky grin show up. It was adorable. Nines obviously was unfamiliar with emotion, but he had direct connection with every thing on the internet. Every article, every post, every YouTube video. He could at least do his best to understand it. In all honesty, being around Gavin made him...happy- and the same couldn’t really be said for most other people. He complained a lot, he whined, and he acted like an absolute child. In other words, he was insufferable. Why Nines felt the way he did about the little shit was lost on him. He wanted to tell him, SHOW him..but he wasn’t sure how to go about it. God knows he didn’t have a fear of rejection, he knew Gavin wouldn’t turn him down.. he was just so unsure of how to admit something like how he feels. He supposed he would just have to take the chance when he got it.—Literally two days later—“Do androids feel romantic feelings?” Well damn, he just strutted right into that one. Nines thought about a good, yet indirect example.“You know the leaders of Jericho? Simon and Markus? They were the reason humans ceased their resistance against the revolution. They made a display of their affection for each other, they showed the world they could feel compassion and love. That they were just as human as everyone else. So yes, yes we can.” They’d been sitting on the sofa, each minding their own business when Gavin asked the question. They turned towards each other, cross legged so they wouldn’t fall sideways off of the couch. As per usual, there wasn’t much distance between the two, their knees were basically touching. “Why do you ask?” He prompted the discussion further. Gavin shifted slightly,“I was just curious.” Nines suppressed a smile, he was SO gonna get him as flustered as possible.“Why were you curious?” He pried further. He saw the panic in his partners eyes as he fumbled for an excuse.“I don’t know, I just was.” Dead end, he thought to himself, smugly.“Why is that always your excuse? Can’t think of anything better?” Watching the expressions in his partners eyes was like watching a show at this point. Alarms were going off, sirens were sounding. There was a massive amount of panic in everything about his expression. “Wha-no! I just...I just-“ might as well put him out of his misery. Nines grabbed the front of Gavin’s sweatshirt and crashed his mouth into his. The detective wasn’t tense for more than a few seconds before he melted into the kiss. He’d uncrossed his legs and was practically straddling the androids lap, sharp breathes between every kiss. One of Nines’ hands was around Gavin’s waist and the other was tangled in his hair, pulling him closer. He could feel his partner curving into him, he could hear the quiet little moans when he kissed him. He flipped him over onto his back, pinning his arms behind his head in a single swift movement. He loved the way he wriggled beneath him, he loved how he could feel his accelerated heart rate, he loved hearing his erratic breathing. He loved causing it. He worked his way down Gavin’s neck, kissing every inch. He found a particularly sensitive spot and bit down, eliciting a SINFUL reaction from his partner.“Ngh- Nines~” he moaned, encouraging the Android to continue. God he was submissive. Nines continued sucking on that certain spot, and to his gratification, he got a positive response. “Ah~ N-Nines...don’t stop...” He snaked a hand under his shirt, tugging at his jeans. He paused for just a moment and gazed at the man beneath him. He was a mess, a fucking gorgeous mess. And he didn’t intend to stop now.
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It’s 11 a.m., they were supposed to be in two hours ago. Fowler sent Tina to Gavin’s place to make sure they were okay, considering they didn’t call to say they weren’t coming. She knocked on the door and waited, she could hear someone tumbling around in there. A few seconds later Gavin whipped the door open just enough so she could see him and nothing else. “Hey,” she said, a bit suspicious, “You guys are late, Fowler wanted me to check in, make sure you’re fine. You weren’t answering any calls.”“Oh yeah, we’re fine, sorry. Ringer must be off. Late start.” Wait a minute.Hoarse voiceBed headLoosely thrown on clothesOh, and a hickey.She knew, it wasn’t a big deal, but Tina has always had a flair for the dramatic.“WAITAMOTHERFUCKINGSECOND,” she said pushing on the door a little bit- yeah, he was intentionally keeping it shut that far. “You did the frickle frackle with the tin can.”“Wha-““You did the pants dance.”“Tina-““The biscuit has been buttered.”“Tina sto-““You baked the potato.”“How many-““I fucking knew you were gonna bang the robot. I. Fucking. Knew. It.” She gave him a shit eating grin. “I’ll just tell Fowler you hurt your legs.” “Tina I swear to god.” “Don’t worry I’ll tell him you hurt your legs..falling down the stairs or something.”“There is an elevator in this building he knows damn well I wouldn’t be anywhere near the emergency stairs.”“Then I’ll say you were drunk and it was a dare, unlike your actual situation-““TINA!”“I’m going, I’m going.” She laughed and walked away. She’d known from the start. Yes, she’d seen it coming, after all, she knew that guy better than anyone.
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�The moment Tina was gone, Gavin shut the door and flopped back down onto the sofa, where Nines pulled him into a spooning position. The Android ran his hand up and down his side and Reed hummed appreciatively, snuggling closer to him. Neither of them said much, considering quite a lot was well..expressed the previous night. Tina hadn’t been wrong though, he was definitely sore. It was worth it, but it was uncomfortable the following morning when you basically sit down at a desk until you’re you’re needed. So rather than deal with it, they stayed in.“What the hell do you see in me?” Gavin muttered softly. He did genuinely wonder, considering he made it his goal to piss off as many people as possible. He could feel Nine’s bringing his moth up to his ear.“Everything I need.” He purred, tracing little shapes on his side. Well shit, how was he supposed to respond to something like that? That was seriously smooth. “I hope that maybe, one day, you’ll see yourself the way I see you, and realize you don’t hardly give yourself enough credit.” Gavin was completely lost for words. He grew up in a time where romance was infected with abuse and toxicity, so this was some seriously tender shit. His stomach grumbled, alerting him to his own hunger. “You’re lucky, you never get hungry.” he complained wiggling out of Nine’s arms.“Perhaps, but I don’t get to enjoy food, because I can’t eat it at all.” He stood, running his hands through Gavin’s hair, attempting to fix the mess. Despite everything they had gone through the previous night, the detective still got flustered at the show of affection. It was less awkward than Gavin could have anticipated, maybe it’s because they already lived together, already had a morning routine. He wandered to the kitchen to make himself coffee and Nine’s fed the cats. He made toast, Nines made sure they had everything they’d need for the day. He ate breakfast and he and Nines just talked to each other. This morning, he was relieved to find not a single thing changed. For the first time in his life, the detective wasn’t fending people off. He wasn’t hiding behind sarcasm and rude remarks. He was himself, he was a lazy dork, a dumb, sappy boyfriend. He was so damn happy. He finally had someone he was sure wasn’t going to leave him, someone who genuinely cared. He needed Nines.“Gavin? You all right?” He’d been spacing.“I love you.” He blurted before he could think of anything else. Nines stood there, stunned.“O-oh. Well I don’t have the chemicals in my brain that would cause something like that,” he paused, rubbing the back of his neck, “but according to the internet, the way you make me feel certainly fits the description.”“You’re going to stay with me…right?” Gavin asked, every suppressed fear running through his mind. Nines walked up to him and took his hand in his own, cupping his cheek with the other.“Always."