Dickory

Reconcile

Sandy had gone along with a little coaxing. It seemed she'd calmed down after spending a few hours with Reed, and Dr Marr was a matronly and reassuring figure. Reed had been too busy staring at Nines to really notice, but the minute they left, he felt a pressing vulnerability. Before Nines could take more than a step towards him, Reed was already on his feet, dodging around Hank and Connor's desks to make a quick getaway to the breakroom. Since it was Christmas Day, they were on skeleton staff, so the small room was actually empty. Probably not the best place to hide, idiot! Reed chided himself with a sigh as he opened the cupboard and grabbed his mug. He hadn't had a coffee yet, so he technically wasn't breaking any rules. Though, those rules don't mean shit if we're not partners anymore...

"Good morning, Detective Reed." Nines' greeting seemed almost hesitant as he hovered in the empty doorway. Reed paused before he'd even pressed the button, something inside twisting at the formality. Were they really back to that? Detective Reed and what? Terminator? Nines? RK900? He didn't have an official name besides Connor. Like phck I'm going to call him that! Despite that, it felt odd to call him anything else at the moment. Nines was being formal. Did that mean that he was supposed to do the same? Something must have shown in his stress level. Gavin's eyes fluttered shut as a cool hand closed over the back of his neck. So they were close enough for that sort of contact?

"Hey...Are you...okay? Connor said you were a little stressed when you got back last night." Gavin sidestepped the name issue for now as he leaned into the touch on his neck. The fingers softened and slipped away. Gavin's jaw tightened slightly at the loss of contact. Fuck, he didn't know how to do this. Talking wasn't what he was good at. He was better at showing things physically. Lashing out. Scratching. Biting. Kissing. Anything that didn't force him to use words. He turned from his place by the coffee machine, still not touching it.

"I am fully energised," Nines replied simply as he reached across Gavin's body and rested a bare white hand against the sleek machine. Gavin watched, his green eyes tracing all the delicate joints of his long fingers and the gentle blue glow beneath his palm. The coffee machine whined to life, black liquid pouring out in a cloud of steam in a way it only did for Nines or Connor. Nines drew his hand back as the cycle finished, allowing Gavin to lift the hot cup and cradle it in his hands. He didn't drink it as he looked at the slightly bubbly black shimmer within the cup. He leaned closer and breathed in the rich scent. Nines' coffee...

"But how do you feel?" Gavin pressed, knowing full well that fully energised wasn't the same as okay or anywhere near it. Nines seemed to pause and contemplate the question, perhaps asking it in his own head. How did he feel? Was he angry? Hurt? Frustrated? Gavin watched his LED spin yellow and shifted his cup to one hand. He let go of his lingering hesitation from the night before as he rested his fingers against the spinning ring. He stroked the area in gentle circles, watching as the light flickered between yellow and blue. Nines' eyes closed briefly as his head leaned further into the warm touch, almost chasing Gavin's fingertips. Gavin felt his heart thud as those ethereal eyes opened to meet his own.

"I am...experiencing..." Nines trailed off, his tongue darting out to lick his lips nervously. His gaze dropped, darting around as if searching for the right word. He seemed frustrated as he pressed his lips together in a thin line. His LED blinked yellow briefly as he continued to puzzle. "I believe...I can show you," he added finally, stepping closer as Gavin nodded. He reached up and took Gavin's wrist in a gentle grip, sliding his fingers up to almost caress the hand that had been touching his temple. His thumb stroked across Gavin's palm in small circles as he tugged him against his chest and leaned his head down to rest on his shoulder as his other arm wrapped around his waist.