Comfort Zone (Connor x Reader)

Seventeen

[This should be simple. They seem simple. But I am grasping for answers blindly.]

Head leaning on his hand, the android did his best to answer the questions given to him. They were open-ended; you only wanted to know what he knew already. Since he'd only ever worn something different from his usual one time, Connor essentially knew nothing about blending in. He'd never had to before, at least except in Jericho.

[I do still have those items. It may help. ... I think.]

Beside him, Hank cast a glance towards the android occasionally. Connor really did look like he was taking a high school exam if you ignored the precinct surrounding them. "You all right, son?" he asked under his breath.

"... Hank, I don't have any sufficient answers for these."

The human shrugged. "That's the point, ain't it? She needs to know where to start; you can't exactly fail this."

Falling quiet, your trainee did not say that he felt like he was failing you, specifically.

The last page was easier: he was to rate each situation given on a one-to-ten scale, based on danger, difficulty, and ability to escape. All hypothetical scenarios, but Connor was having a tough time trying to understand how some were considered dangerous.

When you'd finished organizing a meet up with a friend, you stood and wandered over to check the Roomba's progress. "Almost done?" you asked softly, laying a hand down for support so you could lean and peek at his writing. Not that it mattered; he had the perfect and clean sans serif android font.

"... Yes, Detective, but... I am admittedly lost. Many of these situations are foreign to me, as I'm sure you know... and this final page does not strike me the way you seem to want it to." Connor finally sat upright again, turning the exam around so you could see. "These in particular confuse me, I'm afraid. Being in public can be troublesome, but..."

You'd lifted a hand to gently quiet him. "Those aren't what you're thinking. When I say someone on the streets, it isn't referencing civilians. Not even those that ended up homeless."

There was a deep rut between his brows. "Then... please elaborate."

A moment was taken to breathe and consider it. "... those have to do with one of the first undercover jobs I had to do in my career. Do you honestly want that story?"

The android nodded, and even the lieutenant seemed to be listening. But you shifted on your feet, not meeting the gaze of either of them. "... would you like to sit, Detective?"

"No, no, it's fine. Actually it's probably better that I tell you now, so you know the kinds of things we have to do as a whole." Swallowing, you allowed yourself a sigh before speaking again. "This was... pretty early on in my career. I'd been taught by someone with undercover skills, like I'm doing for you now. And you've seen my attitude; I was eager to prove myself." Hank smiled a little, peering at the android as you went on. "There was a case we were having some trouble with: a woman was killed, pretty brutally, but we couldn't get any information because the other girls were scared into silence."

Connor was, on top of many other things, a perfect listener. Only when you'd taken a small pause did he speak up. "Other girls...? If there were witnesses, they could be protected."

Shaking your head, you knew where his confusion lay. "No, not like that. There were no witnesses. Connor..." You laid your hands on his desk, leaning down so you could speak more quietly. "Street walkers." In the corner of your eye the lieutenant slowly uncrossed his arms, but the android remained clueless. "... people labeled street walkers are prostitutes."

That certainly got his attention. Sitting up straighter, the RK800 couldn't seem to wipe the alarm from his face. "...... you didn't...?"

"Most of them don't trust cops. Aside from what they do being illegal, a lot are also taken advantage of, sadly. So I used that to my advantage, said I could get information if I mingled like I belonged." Your mouth worked. "For the most part the girls were leery, but that's their view on a new girl. I did manage to get some vital details from one that seemed to like me more than the rest, but even then it wasn't a whole lot. All I learned was that whoever slaughtered that girl always seemed to wear a suit."

"That ain't much to go by," Hank chimed in, grumbling under his breath.

"Maybe not, but she also said something about his tie clip. Said it stuck out against the black tie, that it looked like a sword. I had the feeling he'd been picking them up one by one until he found one he really liked." You had to take another pause, and you could feel their gazes burning. "A really nice black Lincoln pulled up, and I could tell the girls weren't too willing to approach. So I did instead."

Under his desk, the android had grabbed the small calculator from his drawer. Ridiculous, giving one to an android, but it had been left for whoever took that desk. It just so happened to be the android sent by CyberLife. The device in his hand crumbled in his grip, though Connor barely noticed. "Detective... please tell us nothing happened."

You gave him a pointed look, and he turned his head away for a few seconds. "I walked up, the window rolled down, and I instantly saw the sword clip. But I knew if I didn't volunteer, he'd probably kill one of the others. So he ended up driving me to some random hotel on the edge of downtown. I had a tracker button on me, and I pressed it as soon as I got into that vehicle." This time you exhaled loudly. "They got to me quick, but not before he decided I'd be next. I made damn sure he didn't touch me like that, but I think he put two and two together, that I was a plant." Your hands lowered to pull the hem of the slacks down: from your hip down to your mid-thigh, there was a nasty scar. "Could've been worse. But they broke the door down to arrest him, and also had to rush me to get stitches."

Head leaning back into the chair, the lieutenant let out the breath he didn't realize he'd been holding. "Least you're all right. But fucking hell, lady. I don't need to tell you how fuckin' risky that was."

Your smile was strained, mostly because you just wanted to put it behind you. "I lived, didn't I? I just have a gross scar. But the Chief felt the same, I think: proud and pissed off. Not so much at me, but also definitely because I was alone. Ever since then I've always had a partner. Actually the guy that helped tend my wound also drove me to the hospital. He and I were making conversation and it just felt so easy. Ended up being partners after that."

Despite wanting to leave some of the past in the past, Connor had gotten to his feet while you spoke. As soon as you were done, you were pulled close. "You have my word that while we are out on duty, you will not be harmed."

Managing a soft laugh, you didn't exactly pull away. Your trainee was... warm. "Are you sure it won't be me protecting you?"

"I know you are heavily independent, but get over it. I will protect you."