Tick Tock Part Two - Dickory

The Clock Struck Eight

Reed looked pensive as he sat at his desk, dirty green eyes staring blankly at the empty mug he was toying with. It wasn't a bad result. A few months back, he would have been thrilled. They'd ended a cult without a single human casualty. The kids were all being treated at the hospital and, as far as Allen had told him, they were all stable and likely to make it. It was also unlikely they'd be charged if the psychologists working with them had anything to say about it. Just half a year ago he would have been celebrating the win with a coffee and a cigarette while shooting the breeze with Tina on the roof or some shit.

This time it was different. Every human had been saved, but five androids had been neutralised. Killed...Five androids were killed. The taste of the thought was almost bitter in his throat. It would be so much fucking easier if they were still just machines, if he could just see them as mindless automatons. His jaw tightened almost resentfully as he sat back. If he hadn't met Nines. If he hadn't let Connor force his way in with those damned puppy eyes. If he'd never met Chloe or Colin or Niles or Simon, and if he'd never gone on that first date with Aaron, then he wouldn't be in this fucking mess.

"You're stressed." Nines' silvery blues regarded him with an air of caution as he looked up from his terminal. They were supposed to be working on their incident reports, but Reed couldn't quite bring himself to do it just yet. He'd had Nines bring him a decaf. Mulled and brooded over it, brow furrowed as his grip on the cup tightened and loosened. It had been a while since Nines had seen this side of him. It wasn't really that he was brooding, he often did that. It was that he was conflicted. He could tell by the almost guilty look he wore whenever he glanced across. Reed dropped his gaze, unable to deny it. "I would suggest a trip to the gymnasium, however..." Nines trailed off as he touched his chest in explanation.

"Yeah..." The sting of the slash was still sharp as he squirmed restlessly in his seat. Nines' brow pinched slightly at the sound of his voice. He didn't like it when he was like this, especially when he didn't have an outlet. "I know. I should be typing up my report." Nines shook his head slightly in response. He didn't mean to pressure him. He wanted to soothe him and ease the tension. Reed rolled his chair closer to his terminal and set his mug aside, bringing up one of his saved templates to fill in with a sharp sigh. What was the case number again? He turned his attention to the disorganised brown files scattered across his desk, fingering through them to check the numbers.

"You may find it easier after a walk..." Reed paused at that. He didn't want to type the report. He wasn't in the right headspace. He didn't have the right focus. It would probably come out as a disjointed mess if he did it now. He didn't need to ask if Nines was going to join him. He rarely left his side in public these days, especially at night. The only time he might is if he was with Connor or Hank. It made sense with all the shit they'd gotten into over the past few months. Phck! Two serial killers, and we're just phcking waiting for another body to drop! It was frustrating. "The conclusion of this case was...mostly satisfactory," Nines began as they left the station.

"Mostly? Not a single human life was lost!" Reed's tone suggested he should be satisfied with that, however, Nines had come to read him better than that. He could tell he was troubled by his own lack of positivity. Nines nodded his agreement. The lack of human casualties was a definite plus. He wouldn't take away from that. It was regrettable, however, that five androids had been killed during the incident. He knew it bothered him. He also knew it was still a new feeling for him to contemplate.

"However, five androids were killed." Reed's jaw tightened as he nodded his agreement. Part of him wanted to argue. He wanted to disagree, to say that androids couldn't be killed because they weren't alive in the first place. He couldn't bring himself to actually believe that now though. Not after all the time he'd spent with Connor, Nines, and Chloe. He couldn't pick and choose. Either all androids were alive or none of them were, and he couldn't look Nines in the eyes anymore and say he wasn't a living being. He couldn't even think it in his own head. Nines was alive.