Survivor - Connor x OC

The House That Built Me

Miranda Lambert – The House That Built Me

Connor followed a couple of steps behind Taylor as she led him into her childhood home. Though she had insisted that she would be fine, he could detect subtle rising in her stress levels, her shoulders tense as they crossed the threshold. Her blue eyes were glancing around the room, but when she noticed his stare, she smiled at him.

"I was staying in the downstairs guest room. It's this way." She continued to lead him through the house, across a living room and down a hallway. There were framed photographs hanging on the wall, he could recognize a younger Taylor and Jakob in some of them and knew that the other child must be Hayley Kolbeck.

"Does your sister also live in Detroit?" He asked as they walked. Taylor hesitated a step, but kept walking, trying to play it off.

"She lives in East Lansing," she answered, noncommittally as she reached the end of the hall and opened the door. Inside was a large Queen bed, a chest of drawers, and a door that probably led to a closet. Taylor sat on the bed and started pulling her boots off, sighing with pleasure once her feet were free.

When she noticed him lingering in the doorway, she looked hesitant. "You're going to stay, right?"

"I have to return to the Lieutenant in the morning," Connor said as he walked over to sit beside her.

"I have to go to the station to make a statement. Maybe we can make sure Hank arrives on time for once." She smiled, but when he gave her a skeptical look she added, "I may have lied to Gavin so I could make it to the protest."

"Detective Reed?" Connor said, surprised.

"Yeah, he was there. At the hotel." She tilted her head, blonde hair spilling over her right shoulder. "He was actually really nice to me."

"You really should rest. I think you may be delirious." Taylor giggled, the sound of her laughter causing his thirium pump to speed up just a bit. Still, she slid off her trench coat and climbed back into the bed, following his advice.

Settling back into the pillows, she tugged her sweater over her head as well. Clad in just her white camisole and jeans, she shimmied under the covers. She peered at him from over the covers before smiling.

"Are you going to stay there all night, or...?" She trailed off, her blue eyes locked on his brown. He kicked off his shoes and complied, resting his head against the opposite pillow.

"Androids don't sleep," he said, staring at her across the small space that now separated them. She was still smiling.

"I know, Connor." Her arm emerged from the blankets and she curled her fingers around his left hand. It finally sank into his head, new to processing emotions as it was, that she was only trying to be closer to him. "Thanks, for staying."

Connor reached his right hand up to brush the hair away from her face, tucking it behind her ear. His hand lingered against her skin. The sudden urge to slide closer to her, to cover her mouth with his. He thought back to the kiss they had shared before, the one that Markus had interrupted, his emotions going haywire.

"Connor?" He blinked. Taylor was looking at him, concerned now. He realized his LED was flickering red. He moved his hand away as it faded to blue again. He couldn't bring himself to kiss her now, in this house where all of the most terrible things in her life had happened, where she was afraid to sleep alone.

"Go to sleep." He said softly. She closed her eyes obediently, burrowing down into the pillow. Before long, she had drifted off.

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