Stop interrupting my thought proc-

Day 2

A massive thanks to @honkforhankcon who beta'd this chapter too!

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Connor opened his eyes. He was in his apartment, lying down in bed. His internal clock told him it was past noon already but he only snuggled further into the nest of blankets and pillows.

Yesterday, after that third corrupted message clouded his vision, Connor had to soft reboot. Understandably, it freaked Hank out. The Lieutenant was ready to call the trusted technician they met on one of the cases but Connor managed to convince him not to.

Hank took good care of him. He drove him home, ensured he was comfortable and put a bottle of thirium on the nightstand, just to be safe. It was with great reluctance that he went back home, unwilling to leave the android alone. He's such a good friend.

Connor couldn't help but sigh dreamily and squeeze his fish plushie closer to himself. He wanted Hank to be more than just a friend.

There it was again, that buzzing in his head. It seemed to appear whenever he was thinking about Hank (which, admittedly, was very often). He scowled into the pillows.

He probably should go to a technician but...he was afraid. Trust didn't come easy to him, especially when it came to people who knew how the androids worked. Yes, there was this one tech he and Hank had met a few months ago that helped them a few times, however Connor still had that deep-rooted fear, a phobia really. He didn't want to go alone, yet; he also didn't want to rope Hank into this more than he had to.

With a huff he got off the bed. He placed Dewey reverently in the middle of the nest of blankets and went about changing his clothes. He pulled on dress pants over his boxers and some simple black socks but hesitated before taking off his oversized sleep shirt.

The very first time he slept over at Hank's he neglected to bring any sleepwear so he borrowed this particular shirt. He was surprised at how comfortable it was and opted to buy more oversized tops for lounge wear. As soon as he changed into Hank's shirt that day he resolutely declared that Hank is never getting it back. The Lieutenant sputtered and blushed, mumbling something about "couple-y shit" but Connor was far too captivated by the material to pay attention to human hangups. He couldn't stop trailing his fingers across the shirt or bunching it up in his fists, revealing the pale skin of his thighs. Hank excused himself to his bedroom rather quickly, he didn't even finish watching the movie with Connor, just told him to watch the rest on his own.

Connor wished he scanned his vitals then. He was too absorbed in the newness of everything and now he wasn't sure whether Hank left because he felt self-conscious or disgusted.

The android decided to leave the shirt on, feeling like dressing smart casual today. He put on black sneakers with silver studs on the sides and left the house.

It might have been past noon but Connor still intended to go to work. Hank said he'd put in word with Fowler and get him a day off but Connor didn't really know what to do with himself if he wasn't working. Hank reluctantly agreed to take the afternoon shift instead.

As he was locking the front door, Connor remembered he was only wearing a short-sleeved shirt. He didn't get cold, not really, but he still decided to backtrack and snag a light coat from his coat rack. It was a really nice coat, charcoal gray with black buttons. Slightly feminine cut but everything is unisex if you don't care and Connor certainly didn't. It looked nice, he liked it and that's all that should matter.

***

Hank and Connor were at the precinct for no longer than an hour when they got called in. A dead body was found in a rundown block of flats near the old industrial district.