Chapter Text
The next two months were very busy for you. You reorganized the workshop completely, set up a project plan for your support to New Jericho, put some additional interviews and lectures into your calendar and slowly started to get back to work. Your knee was still bugging you from time to time, but it was nothing too serious and it wasn’t stopping you from work anymore. Now that the orthosis was gone you almost felt back to normal.
Your classes at the university started again, students approaching you with congratulations and words of support. It was a new and weird feeling, but also pleasant in a way. You were also happy to notice that some of the androids decided to come back to work in the building. Tina, an android you remembered well from the cafeteria, could be seen behind the counter again, smiling at the customers and making the most amazing coffee once again. She smiled warmly when you approached and added additional marshmallows to your cappuccino.
You were glad to see that more and more participants visited your lectures. Those open to the general public became very popular, usually filling the audience in seconds. You kept answering questions and explaining ideas and the fact that people actually wanted to learn was your best reward.
There were still some hateful comments on the Internet, but Connor usually had those under control and tracked every single person threatening the safety of you or any other activist. He was relentless in his pursuit of the adversaries, ultimately becoming the most feared individual in the force when it came to online crimes.
You did feel much safer than before. Not only due to Connor’s actions, but also due to the fact that more and more people shared your point of view. There were entire talk-shows dedicated to coexistence of humans and androids where the hosts would interview representatives of both species. More and more legal changes were being introduced, punishing crimes against androids in the same way that those against humans would be. There were discussions about providing housing for the androids and to pay for the work they do. The future did seem a little brighter after all.
And then there was Simon at home with you, helping you with repairs, plans and workshop supplies. He was loving, caring and sweet, making you feel like you had a partner for the first time in your life. His smiles were different now - wider, more genuine and reflecting in his eyes too. He would basically smile with his entire body. He seemed to be absolutely fine with the fact that there were more people in your house now - both android and human, depending on what you were working on at the moment. Markus, North and Josh visited from time to time, bringing injured androids for repairs or just to chat with you and Simon. As it was much calmer now and they didn’t have to worry about their lives anymore, they would sometimes enjoy the comfort of your home to just unwind and relax. It was pretty lively during the day, but you didn’t mind - you enjoyed their company and you actually started thinking about them as friends at some point.
But the nights, the nights were always reserved for just the both of you. You would lay in your bed, bodies flush against each other, exchanging kisses, touches and just enjoying each other’s presence, whispering words of love and adoration, mapping each other’s skin with fingertips to memorize every single inch. You enjoyed those lazy evenings so much, Simon’s strong arms wrapping around your waist and pulling you close, his lips pressed against your neck, blonde hair nuzzling your chin. Sometimes it would be you who would embrace him first, arms around his neck, chest against his, your kisses innocent at first, but turning passionate in the manner of seconds whenever he would moan against your lips. He would always make you feel so good, so wanted, so incredibly hot and loved. The way he made love to you was the sweetest thing ever, words of praise running down his lips every single time, turning into whimpers whenever you would focus your attention on him in return. You wanted to make sure that he experiences nothing but pleasure with you and by rA9, did you succeed. There was nothing he wanted more than you.
And you were so, so eager to give.
One morning he was making breakfast and you snuck up on him, pressing soft kisses to his shoulders. He purred as you pressed your chest against his back, wrapping your arms around his waist.
“Good morning,” he said, relaxing into your touch. “Are we feeling okay today?”
“Sure we are,” you whispered against his skin. “How’s breakfast coming?”
“Two more minutes. The eggs are still a little runny and I know you don’t like them that way.”
You kissed his cheek, poured yourself a cup of coffee and sat on the kitchen counter.
“Connor sent me a message,” you said, sipping on the coffee. Was it hazelnut that you were tasting? “He’s going to drop by around noon. Apparently he has something important to discuss.”
“And he couldn’t have just done it on the phone?”
“I guess not. Maybe it’s too important.”
You ate fast, knowing that you have a lot to do that day. As soon as you were done with breakfast you put on your working uniform and checked the timeline displayed on one of the walls. A lady was coming over with an android with heavy structural damage to his right arm and after that you were supposed to take a look at a YK500 with skin coverage problems. It was still early so you should be able to finish before noon, but you had to plan carefully because you had a lot of paperwork to deal with after that. So as soon as the lady arrived in your workshop, Simon made some tea for her while she relaxed in the garden and you started the repairs on the arm.
You were glad to notice how much the weather was changing. It was starting to get warmer, flowers were blooming here and there, trees were already covered with green leaves; it was finally spring at its finest. Ralph offered to help you with your garden and he visited from time to time, trying to come up with some arrangements that you would like. Seeing how eager and happy this work made him you actually never wanted him to be done with it. He kept bringing new flowers, plants and decorations and you had to admit that he had an amazingly minimalistic taste that you appreciated very much. So you just let him do whatever he wanted, very glad to see how much it pleased him.
When you sat down in the kitchen to eat lunch around noon, Ralph was also there. He sat down with you to talk about a new flowerbed he was planning as you ate. Your discussion was interrupted by a doorbell which you assumed announced Connor’s visit.
“Excuse me for a second, Ralph,” you said, standing up to open the door. “Connor was supposed to visit today and I believe it’s him.”
“Oh, sure, no problem. Ralph will just get back to work. Please tell Ralph if you need anything!”
You smiled and waved a hand at him as he disappeared back in the garden. It was actually fun to have him around. It was cute how much effort he put into working on your garden.
You opened the door and saw Connor standing there. Seeing the look on his face actually made your heart sink a little.
“Hey Connor,” you said, looking at him. “Are you okay?”
“No,” he answered. “And that’s what I wanted to talk to you about.”
“Oh, sure. Come on in. We can sit in the living room.”
You sat down and it brought back the memory of Connor and Hank visiting you earlier to ask about deviancy. You smiled to yourself. Who would have thought that half a year from then you would be sitting here as colleagues, Connor actually being the one responsible for the greatest thing that happened to you in your entire life.
It was him who brought Simon to you after all.
“What’s wrong, Connor?” You asked, sitting next to him on a sofa. He blinked a few times, the expression on his face still pained and uncertain.
“I… I did a lot of thinking recently. And I realized that while I was hunting deviants I greatly hurt some of my own kind. I’m trying to make up for it in a way, but there are some things I can’t take back myself.”
You sighed. You actually felt sorry for him.
“Connor, it’s not your fault. CyberLife is responsible for these actions, not you. You were following orders and very strict programming. I’m actually surprised you were able to grow so much, considering that some learning mechanisms have been disabled for you to make sure you don’t learn the way other android models did.”
Connor looked at you then, a sad smile on his face.
“I know. I can explain all this rationally too. But it doesn’t change the fact that I was the one who actually did all those things. And I really want to make up for them.”
“I understand. I will help you as much as I can.”
“I was hoping you’d say that. I don’t want to abuse your kindness, but there is one specific case that I’m not able to work on myself. It includes extensive repairs on a very damaged android body.”
You wanted to ask more questions, but Simon came into the living room at this exact moment. Noticing Connor, he smiled and came closer, greeting him. As he placed a soft kiss on your lips he sat down next to you.
Connor looked puzzled.
“Are you…?” He asked, not really knowing what words he should use.
“Oh. Oh, ” You just realized that he had no way to know the details. You blushed. “We’re together, yes. If that’s what you wanted to ask about.”
Connor’s smile suddenly became warmer and more sincere.
“I’m very happy to hear this,” he said. “I heard Markus talk about you as close friends, but I didn’t know there was more to this story.”
“Now you do.” You smiled at him too and then turned to Simon, kissing his forehead affectionately. “Still, you were talking about a very damaged android. Can you tell us more? Simon is helping me with repairs now, so he’ll need to hear this too.”
Connor closed his eyes for a second. You were sure he would sigh heavily if he could.
“At the beginning of my career as a deviant hunter, I was sent to retrieve a hostage from an android who wanted to hurt her. He was going to be replaced with a new model, so he got scared and killed the father in shock, threatening to kill a little girl too. When I arrived at the scene, he was already panicking, obviously ready to hurt her in confusion. In order to save her, I had to promise him that everything was going to be okay if he let her go. Unfortunately…” Connor paused for a second. “Unfortunately I didn’t know that they were going to shoot him anyway. As soon as the girl was safe, the snipers started shooting. Long story short, I had to reactivate him at some point during my investigation and when he accused me of lying, I couldn’t forget the look on his face ever since. I still think about it. He’s still detained in the police facility and turned off. I… I would like to ask you to try and repair him. I want to give him freedom in return for all the suffering.”
You looked at Simon and he nodded slightly, but you already knew you were going to say yes.
“Of course, Connor,” you said, placing a hand on his shoulder. “We’ll do what we can. You can bring him in. Can you tell us more? How are his limbs, what model is he, how extensive the damage is?”
“Pretty extensive. His jaw is broken, his arms and legs have been torn off. I will provide you with all the parts of course, just tell me what you need. I guess you will have to examine him first. He’s a PL600, just like Simon.”
“Well, at least we have experience then.” You smiled, squeezing Simon’s hand with your own.
“Can I bring him over today?”
“Sure. I can survey him and give you a list of parts.”
“Great. Thank you so much.”
When Connor left, you both went to the workshop to prepare schematics and system overviews for PL600s.
“I feel so sorry for him,” Simon said at some point. “The damaged PL600, I mean. There are so many situations where we’re the victims.”
“I know,” You sighed, looking through your tools. “It actually makes me feel uneasy. But I’ll do what I can to help him. Both because I want to help Connor ease his guilt and because I believe this android deserves a second chance too.”
Simon moved closer to you and smiled, wrapping his arms around your waist and placing his forehead against yours.
“That’s one of the reasons why I love you so much,” he whispered into your mouth, kissing you sweetly. “There are many more, of course, but your sensibility is a very admirable quality.”
“Oh, stop it,” You said, feeling a blush starting to bloom on your cheeks. “I’m sure you would do the same if you were in my place.”
“I would. It doesn’t make me admire you any less.”
You rolled your eyes, but couldn’t stop the smile that showed up on your face. Simon kissed you then, chasing the smile with his lips and tongue. The kiss was slow and passionate, making your legs weaker and weaker with every passing second. Just when you thought they were about to give in, Simon pulled away from you and buried his face in the crook of your neck.
“I love you, Simon.” You whispered, wrapping your hand in his hair. “I love you so much.”
“I love you too.” He kissed your neck and moved away, obviously conflicted about the fact that you both had to get back to work. You smiled at that and gave his cheek a quick peck.
You did need some time to prepare the workshop for such extensive repairs, mostly because you haven’t used the entire table for work in a while. When everything was ready for Connor’s arrival, you decided to go back home and get something to eat.
Connor came back late in the afternoon, driving a police van into your backyard. When he opened the back door, you gasped at the sight. The android, or what was left of him, was in a terrible state, much worse than Simon was when he arrived at your workshop. He was strapped to a huge panel and it was actually easier to carry him back then. Connor and Simon took him into the workshop and placed him on the table so that you could examine him.
You reached out a hand to touch his face, feeling tears well up in your eyes. He was an absolute wreck. Just as Connor said his limbs have been torn off. His jaw was damaged with a bullet from a sniper rifle and so was his body. And he looked so much like Simon.
“Can you fix him?” Connor asked, worry obvious in his voice.
“I can,” You said, trying to swallow the lump forming in your throat. “But it will take some time. Why is he deactivated?”
“He was like that in the evidence room. I can activate him if you have an audio processor we can swap.”
“I do, actually.” You went to the adjacent room and reached for a box with a new audio processor stored on one of the shelves. “I was supposed to use it for another repair, but oh well.”
You replaced the audio processor and Connor interfaced with the android; you were surprised with how soon he opened his eyes.
Looking around and unable to move, you could see that he was both scared and extremely uncomfortable, his LED cycling between red and amber.
“Where… am I? Where have you brought me?!” The android shouted, looking at Connor.
“Daniel, I brought you here to be repaired. This is Y/N, she’s our best engineer. She will give you back your life. Simon will be helping her.”
“No,” Daniel spat, obviously getting angrier with every passing second. “Just let me die in peace. I don’t believe you. You lied to me.”
You approached Connor and placed a hand on his shoulder, urging him to move away from Daniel. He did just that and you approached the android, making sure to stand close to him so that he could see you well.
“Daniel,” You said, looking him straight in the eyes. “I know you’re scared, but I want to help you. I have already repaired a PL600 android that was badly damaged. I can do this, but only if you let me.”
Simon approached the table as well, standing next to you.
“She’s telling the truth,” He said, making sure Daniel saw him as well. “Please trust us, Daniel. Many things have changed and humans no longer pose a threat to androids. After we repair you, you can start a new life and choose to do whatever you want.”
Daniel’s eyes darted between you and Simon, obviously processing what he was hearing.
“I’m very sorry, Daniel,” Connor spoke suddenly. “I didn’t want this to happen to you. There’s no single day I don’t regret what happened. That’s why I brought you here. I want to give you another chance. I want to make this right.”
“But I don’t have anywhere left to go,” Daniel said suddenly after a while of remaining silent.
“You can worry about that when we repair you,” You said, tentatively reaching out to touch his face. He was surprised with the gentle touch, but didn’t flinch. As you brushed his skin with your palm, he actually leaned into it, closing his eyes. “But you can start thinking about it while we’re here. We will help you. There are so many options to choose from! You can help other androids, help people, find a job you feel comfortable with. I’m sure you’re going to like this new world.”
“Or you can go to New Jericho,” Simon spoke. “Many androids went there to find out their true purpose in life. You should give it a try, just to calm down after everything that happened to you.”
Daniel gave him a puzzled, but much calmer look.
“New Jericho? Is it a safe place for androids?”
“Yes, Daniel. Androids live and work there, talk to each other, interact with people, learn to live new lives. It’s a wonderful place full of hope. I’m sure you’re going to like it.”
Daniel smiled. It was a sad smile, but one that did show some hope hidden underneath. Even if just a little, it still made you feel better. If he lets you help him, you will do everything you can to give him a new start in life.
He looked at Simon and then at you, nodding slowly. Without thinking much, you reached higher to brush his hair away from his forehead. When you noticed him leaning into this gesture too, you smiled.
“Nobody will ever hurt you again, Daniel. I promise.” You spoke, still stroking his hair. “We’ll take good care of you.”
Opening his eyes, Daniel looked at you, his gaze still a little uncertain, but a little bit warmer.
“Thank you. That would be wonderful.”
Simon came into his view again, giving him a reassuring smile.
“I can promise you that you will be taken care of by the best engineer I’ve ever met. And the kindest human being, too.”
You chuckled at his words, nudging him in the arm.
“Stop with the compliments and prepare him for thirium veins replacement. I’ll go grab some thrium and start mapping the veins.”
As you turned away from the table, you noticed Connor still standing there with an unreadable expression.
“Don’t worry, Connor. We’ll take good care of him and I’m sure he will forgive you at some point. You just have to be patient.”
“Thank you,” he said, his voice heavy with worry. “It doesn’t matter if he forgives me, I just… I just want him to be able to live.”
“He will. You’ll see.”
Connor left then and you went in the back to bring the necessary components to the table. You stood beside Simon and looked at Daniel again.
“As I was saying,” You heard Simon talking. “They will help you at New Jericho. You don’t have to decide right away, you know. You have all the time in the world now.”
Daniel looked at Simon, his expression much calmer now.
“And you? Have you found your purpose in life?” He asked, his voice laced with hope.
Simon looked at you then, reaching out to hold your hand.
“Yes. I have.”
Feeling the brush of his skin made you realize that so have you.
I can hold you all together
You wont fall with the troops that we assembled
And the bond we've forged
Though this sketch is getting old now the cracks don't show
Time wont change a thing when i'm gone
Don't grip the wheel too tightly my son
Everything you need is done, I woulda thought we'd won by now
but oh no
I have known no other method
So don't presume there's wisdom
When all that I am is time now
And the cold
The fruition in the detail is all that drives me
I am not the picture now
I am the frame