𝐁𝐑𝐄𝐀𝐊𝐈𝐍𝐆 𝐂𝐎𝐃𝐄

Chapter 14

 You instinctively rose your twitching hands to the level of your eyes. A horrible habit to pick up when you found yourself constantly in the presence of cops. You could hear the movement of the Traci's halt behind you. The rustling of the chain-link fence ceased. Choosing to squint your eyes shut instead of facing the stressful scene, you instead tried to focus on the heavy rain that beat down onto the pavement, thundering in your audio processors.

"(Y/N)? Move aside."

Blinking away at the raindrops, you watch Connor gesture his gun to the side. He didn't even have to raise his voice. You both knew the power he had over you. You don't know why it took you so long to admit it. There was something about him that screamed at you to obey. It had always been that way, you supposed. You were probably just becoming weaker to it.

It was like you were caught up in an invisible conveyor belt as you found yourself dragging your sopping wet feet across the pavement, out of Connor's way.

But you froze at the last second. The LED on the side of your skull now a swirling orange; not quite yellow, not quite red. Somewhere in between. 

From the angle you had subconsciously moved into, you were now staring down the barrel of Connor's pistol. A glance behind you clued you in on your position right between the would-have-been crossfire aimed right for the Traci's. You were the only thing between them and a few bullets to the skull.

"No."

Hank mumbled something in the background that sounded suspiciously like 'Connor put the fucking gun down.' But the android before you didn't plan on backing down. He persisted, just as he was programmed to do. "Need I remind you of our agreement? Of the consequences?"

An involuntary shudder ran down your spine. The only consequence he could be referring to was death.

"They've suffered the same things as me. The same abuses, the same treatment from humans. Why aren't you pulling the trigger on me, huh? Why are they any different than you or I?" Your voice shook and you waited a moment. A beat dropped in the form of a thin crack of lightning that touched down a few miles behind you. For a split second, Connor's face was completely illuminated and you could see the cogs twisting and turning in his brain just behind his eyes. Was he contemplating it?

The same source of light cast a dark shadow of the fence onto the alleyway. The two figures of the Traci's crawled down the fence and stood side by side with you. They didn't speak. They didn't have to. "Because they want to be free? Is-Is that it? Because they dared to love each other and the humans just weren't ready for that?" Your (Y/E/C) eyes bore into his chestnut colored ones. He was finally giving way.

When you first met Connor, you thought of his eyes like black-holes. Like voids of space and time that you got sucked into and lost in whenever you looked into them. But now you realize that they are just as hollow as the millions of other eyes they have sitting in a storage bin somewhere up at Cyberlife.

Silently, Connor lowered the gun and clicked on the safety before tucking it back into his pocket. He looked defeated, but not ashamed. You waited until Hank gave a nod of approval before smiling wide and grabbing the two Traci's by the wrists. The skin slid away from all three of your arms and your eyes fluttered shut. 

You allowed images of Jericho pour out of your mind's eye and into theirs. 'Find Jericho' you said, using your non-verbal communications. You didn't need Connor finding out about your little secret. 'Consider it a parting gift.' 

'You aren't coming with us?' Blue-haired Traci pleaded one last time. You smiled.

'Someone has to keep this puppy on a leash.' 

The last view you had of the Traci's was of them running hand in hand into the night. Into their freedom. Into the welcoming arms of Jericho.

__

Just as soon as the night began, it was over. Hank sighed and dug into his pocket to fish out his car keys. "If you need me, I'll be in the car. If you're not there in 10 minutes I'm taking off without ya."

You watched as the Lieutenant walked back through the 'Employee's Only' door and made his way toward the main floor. Stepping out to follow him, you were held back by a pull on your drenched sweater sleeve. Turning completely around, you saw Connor. His iron grip was still clenched around the fabric of your arm. The look on his face was a cross between guilty and borderline curious. Little droplets of water still clung to the brunette strands of hair that fell in front of his eyes.

Still a little pissed at him for holding a gun to your head, you decided that you would wait and see what he had to say before giving him any leverage.

"Can we talk about earlier? Just for a moment?"

"How earlier are we talking?"

"In the crime scene. When you ducked out. Your thirium regulator spiked. It was almost as if..." He paused. He looked to be calculating something in his head. "It was almost as if you were experiencing a mild anxiety attack."

The pins-and-needles feeling crept over your arms and legs. You had a sudden urge to shake them off like insects.

"When..." You started. Connor tilted his head to the side. He was eager to learn. To understand. You took an unnecessary gulp. "When Gavin touched me...I had this vision. A-A vision from my past. I don't remember what it was or when it happened, but there's something so achingly familiar about it. I'm frustrated with myself for not being able to remember."

Connor's touch fell away from you like he was suddenly afraid of causing you harm. After sharing this story with him, you didn't know how he would react. It felt good to get that off your chest, even if it wasn't the most pressing issue weighing you down.

"Don't beat yourself up. I'm sure it will come to you eventually. In the meantime, take it easy. You had me worried there for a minute."

You didn't think to fathom a response when a rustic car beeping sounded from outside. A warning from Hank that read loud and clear.

"You? Worried? You're the toughest android I know. You're really going to let little old me keep you down?" Suddenly in a much lighter mood than before, you allowed yourself a smile as you waltzed out of the storage room, leaving Connor in your wake. Once you were out of earshot, the stoic android huffed to himself and let his head hang low on his shoulders.

"If only it were that easy." 

(A/N: Update now, edit later. Sleep now, read over and regret everything that happened tonight later. This is rushed and short and not at all what I planned but it WILL be undergoing major editing! Kamski to look forward to in the next chapter! If you haven't checked out any of my other books (especially my new poetry book) make sure to do so! That's all for now. If you see anything wrong with the chapter please let me know so I can fix it right away. Love ya~)