Nebula (Andromache×fem!OC)

II

"How have you been, Booker?" Nile asked as she leaned against the wall outside the house. Andy was watching them not too far off, Nicky and Joe at her sides. She shooed them away once they tried to ask her the million dollar question of how she could possibly know the stranger, both giving up and approaching Booker who was struggling to keep his expression blank.

"I've been... As well as you might imagine." She sent him a look and he tensed up, tearing his eyes away from her and upwards to the sky as he gruffly admitted, "I tried to kill myself a... A bit."

"How much is a bit?"

"I dunno... Stopped keeping track after a while. Thought it might work eventually if I just kept chipping away at my immortality... I mean, I am the oldest after Andy. And I'd certainly deserve it. Unfortunately, death doesn't care about right and wrong, sinner or saint. It never has."

"I agree. A shame it didn't take-"

"Joe, stop it. It is not his time and what he did doesn't mean it should be!" Nicky frowned at his partner's careless words, turning to Booker with saddened eyes when he cleared his throat.

"He has every right to be upset, Nicky. I almost got us all stuck being living toys for a greedy, stupid infant for the rest of our lives. To be murdered again and again, tortured and drained for tests. Almost got Andy killed. Shot her myself, even. No one could hate me more but... I didn't know what to do about the girl so I figured you all could help me with that? Make thr smart choice when my mind has been running on empty for months? I considered just killing her but she... She's innocent. Fragile. Reminds me a bit of one of my boys so... I couldn't. I couldn't do it."

"When I said take care of it, I didn't mean- my goodness. You've been alive all this time and still know so little, Book. Do you care about human life at all?"

"I did, once. I've lost everything now so... I suppose you can key into my answer from that?" They all frowned at him for varying reasons, prompting him to raise his hands in surrender. A small, bitter smile grew across his lips because as upset as they were at him, he'd missed being around them all. Even Joe, bless his quick-to-temper heart. "Look. I wasn't thinking. Or maybe I was thinking too much. Just tell me someone has a plan. Andy? I know you're listening over there... You have a way out of this that doesn't involve more death, no?"

"As good a plan as one can come up with in ten minutes. We'll tend to her  seeing as she's already here. Make sure she doesn't know we're a threat in the process and release her back into the wild where she belongs but you? You're leaving. Now. It hasn't been long enough to start missing you, yet."

"And yet, you do. I hope you do." Andy stared at him, an emotion he couldn't quite decipher in her eyes for a moment before she turned away to head inside. He smiled softly, then nodded his head. He'd expected to be thrown around more, quite frankly. Yet, that would be a punishment he wanted. More attention. The lack of response hurt much worse, doing more damage to him than her fists could have done for long. Dusting off his knees, he made to leave, Nicky patting his shoulder as a quick goodbye while his other half scoffed and returned to the house.

Nile alone went after him, however, blocking his path.

"You're just gonna leave...? You won't even fight this?"

"I've got no fight left in me, kid-"

"Why the hell not?! A hundred years is a long time! Anything could happen! What if time runs out for you? For Andy, Booker? Don't let us go so easily..."

"I'm lucky they didn't increase my sentence after this. Go back to the house, Nile."

"Not without you! This is fucking ridiculous! Yes, you fucked up bu-" He reached out to her and tugged her into his arms, sighing into her shoulder when she sniffled, then cleared his throat like it had never happened at all as he pulled away, expressionless.