Dickory

Making Plans

"Finding out that you're Aaron's listed next of kin must have been quite a shock." Gavin outright scoff at the assertion. A shock? You got that phcking right! He felt a little guilty that he actually resented him for it. What had he been thinking, listing him for such a tremendous responsibility without saying anything? Gavin had Tina and Fowler listed as his next of kin, and before that, it had been Jack. All three times he'd checked with them first and asked if it was alright. He'd never dream of just dumping that responsibility on anyone, and he'd made it as easy as possible for them. His will had been written up years ago and was kept tucked away in his bottom drawer at home. He also had a life insurance policy, which would be enough to cover the cost of a simple burial.

"You could say that..." He still couldn't come to terms with the fact that he was the only person Aaron had thought of. He'd had no one listed before him. He would have died, his body been scrapped as cheaply as possible, and all of his possessions would have gone to the state. Notes, photos, portfolios, everything would have been tossed in the trash. The saddest thing was that so few people would have noticed his disappearance. All those people he must have known and met, and only his boss had messaged him while he was missing to tell him he was fired. No one had reported him missing. No one had known or even cared. Some friend I was! I didn't even know he was gone!

"And how are you managing?" Marr prompted encouragingly, watching as Gavin huffed a long breath. How am I managing? How the phck am I managing? A weight hovered in his chest. The honest answer would probably be that he wasn't. Not really. He'd barely be functional at all if it wasn't for Nines and Connor keeping on top of things. He really didn't know what he'd do without them.

Over the past three days, since he'd gotten that call, Nines had taken him to the apartment twice to tidy a few things into piles and take some things home. He'd gotten in contact with the lawyer and set up a meeting for them. Connor had contacted Chloe, who was meeting with them later that day so they could bring her up to speed and start making proper arrangements. Connor had also been in contact with Markus and asked if he could help with storing Aaron's remains until they could get things sorted. Markus had been more than understanding, even eager to help. He'd gone to the morgue personally to oversee the retrieval and get Aaron's body stowed safely at Cyberlife Tower until decisions had been made.

"I don't know...Nines and Connor are helping with everything..." Gavin wasn't sure what else to say. Marr seemed pleased with the honesty at least. He was doing much better than his first session. She'd heard about his altercation with Connor in the gymnasium. It usually wasn't something she'd advise, but it seemed to have worked for Gavin. He was a very physical individual and responded the most to tactile sensations. "I probably wouldn't even be here if Nines wasn't chasing me around like a little kid." He was relentless. Gavin could almost feel his scanners watching him with each glance. He made sure he ate, ordered him to rest when he was tired even if he couldn't sleep, and he'd reduced him to two cigarettes and one coffee a day. He still had cravings, but his energy levels were so low he barely had the focus to think about it anyway.

"So, you're relying on your partner." They'd come quite a way from his prior frustrations about being assigned a new partner. With his previous prejudice and the earlier misunderstandings with Nines, she'd originally wondered how well they would bond. She was pleased to see the progress he'd made. He'd gone far beyond tolerating Nines. He trusted and valued him. Gavin doubted he would have gotten through the past week without him. He probably would have crawled into bed and stayed there, staring at nothing until he was too weak to move.

"Is that bad?" Did Nines say something? Am I leaning on him too much? He would have said something to me, wouldn't he? Marr shook her head.

"Not at all. It's good that you're finally letting someone in. Relying on someone isn't the same as becoming completely dependent on them." Gavin watched uncertainly as she made a few notes on her pad. Is it really alright? It was hard. He'd let Jack and Aaron in, and they'd both been killed. It was weird to think he was actually a lot closer to Nines than he had been to Aaron, despite their more physical relationship. If the Hickory Killer had been watching close enough, he probably would have chosen Nines...What if he's waiting? What if Nines is already on his list? What if he's next? Gavin took a steadying breath as his thoughts began to spiral. It was easy to let himself follow that train of thought. "It's also perfectly natural to worry about those you're close to," Marr added as she noticed his increasingly stiff posture.