METAL GUARD DOG ⊳ connor x reader

Ch. VII

It was silent, and wonderfully so, Connor had to admit. Only small waves hit against the side of the small boat, causing the old wood to emit fragile creaks. A symphony of splashing and squeaking, yet he couldn't remember ever witnessing something this peaceful.

(Y/n) was laying on her bed, curled up in a fetal position to be able to fit in it, Xylo cuddled up against her stomach.

Connor was standing, hands glued to his sides, posture as straight as a Buckingham palace guard. He had no need for any sort of comfortable positions to be able to go into sleep mode, but then again, he wasn't tempted by unconsciousness. At least not at the moment. He wanted to savor the peaceful moment for a little while longer. Times of tranquility had been rare before the revolution, mainly because of his occupation as a detective, he concluded.

Besides, watching over (y/n) was interesting. Connor hadn't observed humans sleeping before, and he had to admit that there was a certain, fuzzy something twisting in his chest whenever he glanced at her peaceful expression. She was so vulnerable, barely even knew him, yet trusted him.

Sure, she did hold him hostage at first, but maybe she wasn't so bad. Maybe she was just a human, desperate for survival, that saw him as a chance to help her do so. And she was his. She was the one that had found him, and taken him to someone that could fix him. She was the very reason he was alive, too.

It felt like he owed her this, at least. Watching over her. Protection.

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"Where are we headed?" Connor asked, bringing his hands behind his back and carefully watching (y/n) as she paced around the small boat, erratically followed by Xylo.

"Well, today is— is, um—"

"Wednesday, I believe."

"Wednesday, yeah. Right." She stopped in her tracks, the small dog accidentally bumping against the back of her legs, letting out a small, yelp-like ding!. "Shit. Okay."

"Is something the matter?"

"Yeah, I need to be somewhere by noon." She sighed, crossing her arms over her chest, tapping her soles against the old, wooden floor. "It'd be great if you tagged along. Maybe I could— No, I should talk to Odin first. See what he thinks of it."

"Odin?"

"My boss." (Y/n) explained, shook her head and, with a big step, already arrived by the cloth hanger, right beside the door. Hastily, she slung on the black, long coat.

"So...coming?" She asked after putting on the clothing article, drumming her fingers against the small doorframe.

Did he really have a choice? Connor doubted it.

"Yes."

"Good. We're taking the bus." She nodded towards the entrance, and waited for Connor to step towards it. "And— And do something about your neck."

Connor could only stop in his tracks, confused, brows furrowed deeply. "My neck?"

"The wound. You can't have anyone seeing the blue blood on the bandage. Otherwise they'll know you're and Android. And maybe...um, maybe take off the LED? Some people like to use it as an accessory, especially those that like the thirties, but you don't look like that kinda guy. Besides, it'd help staying out of trouble."

Connor grunted, rubbing his palms together as he thought. For some reason, the thought of taking off his LED left an...uneasy feeling inside his gut, and caused his insides to churn strangely.

(Y/n) was right, and perfectly rational, but...it felt like giving up a part of himself. Then again, many other Androids had too, at least during the Android revolution. If they could, then so should he.

"Could you get me something...sharp? That should be enough to force it out."

(Y/n) nodded curtly, and closed the small door again, then rushed inside her home, to the small cabinet that served as her kitchen.

Seconds later, she returned with a screwdriver, handing it to Connor.

"Need help?" She asked carefully, moving to be able to see what he was doing properly.

"No." Connor answered with a grunt, clenching his fingers around the handle of the tool, and bringing it up to his temple. He wanted to do this by himself. Even if it seemed trivial, it was a part of him. He should at least be the one to rid of it, right?

He took a deep breath, forcing the tip of the screwdriver into the slit between his synthskin and his LED. A short, skull-rattling crack sound rang inside his head, and the next thing he knew, (y/n) had caught the small object mid-air.

He placed his fingers over the exposed area, only to realize that synthskin had already covered it.

"Do you want me to throw it away, or-"

"Nonono—..." Connor wrapped his fingers around her wrist, only them realizing how intense his reaction was. Why...why had he done that? "I...I want to keep it."

"Of course. Here." (Y/n) turned her hand around to drop it in his palm, only to stop brusquely. "Wait, I have a better idea. Give me a sec."

"I don't-" Connor stuttered, only to see (y/n) had already moved away, making her way towards her bed, lifting the mattress.

Connor was about to stop her, only to realize that she was taking out a box. She popped it open, and searched through it for a few seconds, taking out something Connor could only guess was...a ball of yarn?

She returned back to him, holding a string by both ends with one hand each, sympathetically smiling at him.

Only when she was almost uncomfortably close did Connor notice that she had slipped his LED onto it, like a charm.

"Lean down." She said, though it didn't exactly sound firm, nor stern. Her intentions were anything but ill, Connor concluded as he lowered himself a tad. She hurried to tie the piece of yarn around his neck loosely, creating something similar to a necklace. The girl let a satisfied smile slip, fidgeting with the LED before lifting his shirt and tucking it inside. "That way you won't lose it."

She pat his clothed collarbone, and Connor couldn't help but return the friendly, lopsided smirk as he followed her to the exit of the small boat.