hunger ; detroit: become human

nine

Valeria

Morning of November 7th, 2038 - 1:19 AM

After Valeria had purchased the promised alcohol, Hank had driven them to Riverside Park. Connor and Valeria were still in the car while Hank was on a bench outside, his feet resting on the seat of the bench while he sat on the back of it.

"We should go check on him," Valeria said, reaching for the door handle.

"Good idea," Connor agreed, and they both got out of the car. The rain had turned to snow as the temperature dropped, and under the glow of the streetlamps, Connor couldn't help but notice how the snowflakes had gently settled in her hair. Together, they made their way over to Hank, stopping just beside the bench and looking out over the water.

"Nice view, huh? I used to come here a lot before..." Hank trailed off, and Connor looked over to him.

"Before what?"

"Hm?"

"You said, "I used to come here a lot before". Before what?"

"Before... Before nothin'."

Valeria put her hand on Connor's shoulder, and he looked down at her. She used her free hand to make a ceasing motion over her neck, and he held up a finger.

"Can I ask you a personal question, Lieutenant?" Connor asked, and Hank turned to him.

"Do all androids ask so many personal questions, or is it just you?"

"I saw a photo of a child on your kitchen table. It was your son, right?" Connor felt Valeria's hand drop to his again, and he took it, squeezing gently as Hank turned away from the two of them.

"Yeah. His name was Cole," he said, taking a sip of his beer. Connor slowly let go of Valeria's hand and walked forward, towards the metal barrier at the edge of the sidewalk. Valeria folded her arms over her chest as she watched him, the blue light of his LED glowing in the light of the streetlamps.

"We're not making any progress on this investigation. The deviants have nothing in common. They're all different models, produced at different times, in different places," Connor said, folding his arms again.

"Well, there must be some link," Hank suggested, taking another swig of his beer.

"What they have in common is this obsession with rA9. It's almost like some kind of myth. Something they invented that wasn't part of their original program."

"Androids believing in God. Fuck, what's this world coming to?" Hank shook his head, and Valeria rubbed her arms in their sleeves.

"You seem preoccupied, Lieutenant. Is it something to do with what happened back at the Eden Club?"

"Those two girls... They just wanted to be together. They really seemed in love," Hank said, looking over to Valeria, and she nodded.

"Yeah. I mean, the one was ready to kill to make it, and the other did kill to make it," she agreed, and he lifted his bottle to her in a toast of sorts.

"They can simulate human emotions, but they're machines. ... And machines don't feel anything."

"What about you, Connor?" Hank took a long sip of his beer before getting up. "You look human, you sound human, but what are you really?"

"You know exactly what I am. In any case, I don't see how that's relevant to the investigation."

"You could've shot those two girls, but you didn't. Why didn't you shoot, Connor?" Hank shoved him a bit, and Connor stumbled, looking at Valeria over Hank's shoulder. Her head was turned to the side, the snowflakes catching in her hair. He flexed his fingers slightly, the feel of the materials of her gloves like a ghost on his synthetic skin.