Detroit: Become Human - Darkened Skies (Reed900)

Chapter Six

Gavin worked silently throughout the morning after two nights in a row without sleep. He was thinking about the moments he had spent with Nines a few days ago.

He dropped a coffee mug which shattered instantly at impact. Gavin's eyebrows furrowed and he cursed as he cleaned up the broken mug. It managed to cut his palm, causing him to yelp and then swear again. The human palm had many nerve endings and hurt like a bitch to slice.

Gavin cleaned it up and disposed of the broken mug. He grumbled under his breath and a SJ300 strolled over.

"Hey, what did you do?"

Gavin scoffed. "I broke a mug. So what?"

"So, you wasted a perfectly good mug!" he said. "Worthless fucking human. Connor's definitely hearing about this." The SJ300 walked away, grumbling.

Gavin rolled his eyes. "Whatever."

He went back to what he was doing, cautious of not breaking more. Gavin took time to reflect on what such a pitiful, pitiful life he had. It was horrid. But Gavin was always thinking about how much life sucked. Maybe he should focus more on the good things.

The thought of being optimistic managed to make Gavin laugh out loud - a cold, empty laugh. Optimism was nowhere in his field of vision.

Gavin finished washing the dishes. The fact that dishes for androids existed was baffling to him, but it was a benefit for him as he had access to bowls, plates and cutlery for his own meal - along with some cooking utensils that androids occasionally used for some reason. How would would Gavin eat without plates and bows anyway? Would he just eat food directly out of the hands of an android?

Gavin stretched, arching his back which cracked. His spine and shoulders were begging for a good, deep massage - a luxury that Gavin no longer had access too. I could ask Connor for one, Gavin thought before pursing his lips. Who am I kidding? He wouldn't agree to that. Nines definitely wouldn't, either.

The thought of Nines giving Gavin a deep, sensual massage made colour rise to Gavin's cheeks, and his eyes widened just a little. But he quickly brushed away his thoughts. Gavin wasn't gay. He dried all the dishes and put them away before exiting the abnormally large kitchen. The reason why a kitchen so large was needed for robots was beyond Gavin.

He walked down the hallway, past many accommodation rooms specifically for androids. All enclosed with no windows. Gavin would like that but nooo, Gavin was human and had to be monitered regularly to control any misbehaviour. Didn't that sound familiar?

Gavin walked to Nines' office. As he made his way, his weariness dropped down on him like a sack of balls. Every step that he took felt like it was more effort than the previous, and Gavin felt so extremely drained. Gavin walked slower and slower, nearly zombie like. He struggled to keep his eyes open as he stopped in front of Nines' door. He raised his hand which was balled into a fist and knocked twice before falling back as his world went dark.

"Gavin? Hey, I think he's waking up."

"About time. Get up, human."

"Don't be so harsh. He clearly just woke up. Are you okay, Gavin?"

Gavin groaned and his eyes fluttered open. Looming over him were three androids - two that Gavin didn't know and Nines.

"I opened the door and you were passed out," Nines said with concern. "What was wrong?"

"I guess the lack of sleep finally caught up to me," Gavin replied truthfully. He tried to sit up, groaning again. Nines rested a hand behind Gavin's back and helped him to rise to a sitting position. The back of Gavin's head was hurting badly.

"You're bleeding," Nines murmured. "You were only out for a few minutes." Nines put his fingers at the back of Gavin's head which caused some extra pain. Nines withdrew his hand, confirming that there was indeed blood. Nines pressed it against his tongue.

"Ew! Nines, the hell?" Gavin said before wincing. Guess he couldn't be too loud.

"I was simply scanning your blood."

"Yeah, well, you didn't have to," Gavin practically hissed.

"Don't be mean to him, human, he's trying to help," an unidentified female android said as she glared at Gavin. He rolled his eyes.

"You will be in need of sleep following this unfortunate event," Nines stated.

"It's not like it hasn't happened before."

"Gavin. You will sleep." Nines dismissed the other two androids with a flick of his wrist before he helped Gavin to stand up. "You will sleep and after you do we will check to see if there is any truly concerning damage to your skull. I apologise for your lack of sleep. Has Connor been overseeing this?"

"No," Gavin replied. "Sometimes I just can't seem to fall asleep, other times androids sneak me out to work and threaten me if I don't obey."

Nines frowned and shook his head in disappointment. "Be sure to report any androids who does such." Nines put his arm around Gavin's back and set it under his armpit to support him. Gavin couldn't suppress a blush as he leaned against Nines who was slowly and carefully guiding him to an elevator.

"Make sure to get a good sleep, Gavin. Sleep is important for humans. Sadly, it appears that some androids around these parts have chosen to ignore that. It's a shame, as it's such an important factor for you to maintain a healthy lifestyle."

"No offence, but I don't really call this a healthy lifestyle," Gavin said. "I'm slaved around every day and forced to do all this shit while my needs are always overlooked. My mental health is destroyed and just... Fuck. Why the hell am I ranting to you, anyway?"

"It seems you have gained some trust in me." A faint smile ghosted the lips of Nines, which was surprising since he always bore such a stone cold expression.

"I mean, I guess I always have some level of respect for you. We worked in the same place, after all. There was that time when we were even partners. Man, you kicked that guy's ass! You should've seen his face while he ran off. He was petrified!" Gavin was grinning. It felt good to reminisce about the time that things were normal.

"I was made to be intimidating. Petrifying a criminal is something I have always intended to do," Nines said.

"You were awesome. God, I miss those times. I wish things were just how they were. I wanna wake up from this nightmare."

Gavin swore he could've seen a twinkle of sadness in Nines' icy eyes. He didn't respond, as Gavin somewhat expected.

They got into the elevator which was a quick, silent ride. Nines escorted Gavin to his room and made sure he was comfortable in his bed. They had picked up an ice pack along the way which Nines set under Gavin's head to help numb the pain.

"Have a good sleep, Gavin."

"Thank you, Nines. Goodnight."

"Goodnight."

Nines left the room and shut the door. He closed the blinds to the large window which was accessible from outside the room only. Gavin appreciated it. Left to his own devices, he closed his eyes and swiftly fell asleep.

When Gavin woke up, he heard hushed  whispers. He winced at the throbbing pain he experienced in the back of his skull. He blinked the sleep away and rolled over to look at the two androids in his room - Nines and Connor.

"Nines? Connor?" Gavin rasped with confusion. The androids turned their heads to look at Gavin and Connor gave a warm smile.

"Hi, Gavin. How are you feeling?"

"I'm in some fucking pain but I'll be fine."

Gavin sat up. "I want to ask you a favour. A big favour."

Raising an eyebrow, Nines strolled over curiously. "What's the favour?"

"I want you to help me escape."