Chapter Text
The days following Techno’s system failure were awkward. Phil kept asking him if he was alright, if he wants to talk or has something he wants to get off his chest. He also kept mentioning that it’s okay to cry and that he didn’t need to feel embarrassed or bad about it. Techno just kept rebutting him, explaining that it was just cooling protocols. He wasn’t upset, it was his system's code trying to handle some overheating.
Kristin was the only normal one, giving him space. Still though, she wasn’t completely void of the worry he’s caused them. Sometimes Techno would catch Kristin on her laptop reading about how androids experience emotions. He never sticks around long enough to give her a reason to talk to him about it.
Tommy was by far the worst one. Anytime Tommy was at home instead of college, he was hunting Techno down like some kind of cop in a police chase. Always bringing up things he learned in class about androids, computers and programming. Always forcing Techno to make choices. Like right now, as they look through the shelves of android cooling liquid.
“All I’m saying is if you had a preference in fuel, which would you choose?” Tommy continues on, ignoring the look Techno was giving him.
“I've already said I’m fine with anything you buy me.” Techno sighs. He looks over at Phil for help, who’s looking at the prices for new cooling liquid. Turns out Techno’s crying the other day drained his storages and now they needed more.
“Hypocritically if you had to choose one over the other, which would you choose?” Tommy eggs on, lifting up the two bottles. They didn’t need more fuel, Phil was always on top of it. This was just one of Tommy’s stupid choice games he’s been doing to annoy him.
Techno looks at the two, giving up on trying to wait the other out. Phil wasn’t going to be done looking at the cooling liquid anytime soon. “I guess the red one.” Techno points to the one in Tommy’s right hand.
Tommy grins with his success, looking at the red one as if it was some kind of video game prize. “Why this one?” Tommy asks, playful tone still heavy in his voice.
“Because it’s the one Phil already buys.” Techno says easily. He hides the smile he wants to let out as Tommy smiles drops.
“Wait no, that’s cheating. You have to pick one you want to try!” Tommy splutters, shelving the red fuel where it’s not supposed to go.
“It's not my fault you don’t know what I drink.” Techno comments as he turns, walking away from the blonde.
Phil notices him then, giving him a frustrated smile. “I have no clue what I’m supposed to be looking for, mate.” He complains, gesturing to the shelves. “I never knew there were so many different types of cooling liquid. You never cried before so I never needed to restock.” Phil says as he takes one off the shelf, holding it up. “I have no clue what any of this information even means.”
Techno snorts, ignoring the way Phil’s smile turns less frustrated at the sound. “It’s dependent on the build of the android, if it easily overheats, it’s storage space and if the android…uh, cry’s a lot.” Techno explains, looking over the canisters. “I’m built for house security, so you want to look for ones that start with H.S.” Techno says as he points to a group of canisters further down the aisle.
Phil hums as he puts the one in his hands back. Phil goes to look at the H.S canisters and Techno goes to follow, only for his arms to be grabbed before he can move. Tommy holds onto him, pouting. “I’m not done with you yet.” Tommy huffs, tugging on his arm. He doesn’t even budge. “Oh come on, Tech, you don’t want to be looking at fake tears with Phil do you?”
“It’s not fake tears.“ Techno deadpans as he lets himself be pulled towards a new area of the store. “It sometimes acts like tears, but it’s more than that. It’s also like an android's version of sweating.” He tries to explain, Tommy ignoring him as he brings him over to a section he hasn’t seen before.
Colourful fake hair strands line the wall, alone with pictures of eyes in all different colours and looks. Some of which were upgrade options, others were purely cosmetic. “What is this?” This was to be new, Techno doesn’t remember seeing this here. And he’s been here a lot over the years with Phil, before he was sent to the field. Phil was horrible at remembering what to get. It was easier to bring Techno along and just ask what he needed to buy.
The store was purely for androids and their needs. Completed with a high price range and technicians ready to install any new upgrade needed to function. He’s tried to get Phil to buy from a cheaper place but the man refuses. Looks like they do more than system upgrades now.
“If you could pick a new hair colour, what would you choose?” Tommy asks, pointing to the wall of hair colour options.
Techno frowns, eyes narrowed at the other. “This is all cosmetic.” Techno points out, not understanding the reason. There was no reason to change his hair colour. The only time Techno’s hair was changed was while he was on the field. He used to have long brown wavy hair that went just past his shoulders.
He didn’t remember which officer cut it, but he knew it was because having long hair in the battle field was a death wish. It could get grabbed and or caught. Techno didn’t need his hair being the reason he died. So he didn’t fight it when an officer holding a pair of scissors said to sit down on a chair and let him cut it to a more ‘manly hairstyle’.
Techno remembers something in him twitching as his hair fell to the ground in long stands. If he had to put a word to it, it would be saddening. It wasn’t that however, because he couldn’t feel things. It was probably just the beginning of his annoying glitch showing itself.
“No shit, man.” Tommy rolls his eyes, letting his arm go. “Dying your hair is just something fun to do. So if you had to choose, what colour would you change your hair too? And you can’t pick brown.” Tommy grins.
Techno looks over the options. “This is a waste of time.” He comments, eyes scanning the colours. There’s all types of shades, even hair strands with multiple colours. There’s some words beside a couple of them, explaining the type of style it was made for. He lands on the words ‘rose pink’ and pauses.
< Information Recall Accepted >
There were wild roses on the battlefield. In all different shades of pink. They quickly went red and blue as blood was split, both human and androids. Techno still remembers how they were at first, though, how beautiful they were. He was scouting once, gun in hand as he trudged through a flower field. The cold crisp on the horizon, threatening to turn thr north into a snow wasteland in the next month or so.
The rolling hills were pink, the sunset gracing his eyes with something beautiful. Oranges and pinks scattering across the horizon. Like the flowers themselves chose to follow the sun into the sky. His cooling system tries to activate, but upon finding no cooling liquid left in his storages it shuts down, presenting him with a warning.
“Rose pink.” Techno blurts, eyes stuck on the colour. It was a light pink, not so in your face but not boring either. It was perfect. It was a strange thing to cross his mind. He didn’t complete an order, or fulfilled some unsaid task, but for some reason he felt good at the idea of having pink hair. Like something about it fixed him. Made him feel…like himself.
“I honestly thought you were going to dodge that question.” Tommy says as he takes a step closer, looking slightly surprised. He looks down at the fake hair strand, then over at him. Something in his eyes shifted and suddenly Tommy was smiling. Not his shit eating grin he does when he gets his way, or his awkward smile he gives when he gets caught doing something he knew he shouldn’t be doing.
This smile was softer and held a sort of melancholy Techno didn’t understand. “If you want I’ll ask Phil about it. He can probably schedule you a hair appointment or something.” Tommy says as he looks more intensely at him.
For some reason Techno didn’t think much about his reply, blurting it out before he could fully understand it himself. “Could I have long hair again, too?” Techno asks. He drifts his fingers across the fake hair, heart aching for something lost.
“Sure.” Tommy replies, patting him on the shoulder. “You can have anything you want.” Before Techno could say anything further he hears Phil calling for the two of them. He turns, missing the contemplative look Tommy gives him behind his back as he makes his way back to his primary.
Techno hates getting Internal refills. He’s sitting on a metal table at the back of the store, shirt laying beside him as the technician opens his refill panel in his back. Phil was standing in front of him as Tommy was trying to peek at what was going on with his back. He didn’t like it when random people were poking around his insides, even if they were professionals. It was uncomfortable.
That was alright to think, right? It wasn’t an emotional response to stimuli like happiness or sadness. Plenty of androids felt uncomfortable with their insides plain for everyone to see, with their shirt off and the rest of the store able to spy on him. Techno spots a kid staring at him, pulling on what seems to be his mothers arm. The kid was pointing at him, yapping his poor mothers ear off.
Yep, totally normal android reaction.
“How old is Techno?” The technician asks, looking over his shoulder as if he wasn’t even there. He forces himself to keep his face neutral.
“He’s nine. Why?” Phil answers. He was holding Techno’s hand as if this was some type of doctor’s visit. It sort of felt like one, if he thinks about it more.
The technician hums, moving back to focusing on refilling Techno’s cooling storages. “Might want to think about replacing some of these Internal parts soon. Some of his gears look to be stressed. It’s common in androids who do a lot of physical activity.” The man explains easily.
“Techno used to be in the service.” Tommy pipes up, looking over at him. Techno gives him a look, the other ignores him. “We were told he was a scout.”
“Ah, an army man then. Thank you for your service.” The technician pipes up as he grabs the canister Phil bought. “Explains it then. It’s nothing to worry about as of right now. Though if you start to feel like you have arthritis, it’s time to replace some parts.” With that the technician pushes the barrel of the canister into his back and Techno feels a chill run up his spine as the cold liquid is dumped into him.
Phil looks more worried then he should be, his hand squeezing Techno’s. Tommy drums his fingers on Techno’s knee as they wait for the canister to be emptied. “People are watching.” Techno huffs, giving up on keeping his mouth shut. It was uncomfortable, okay!? He didn’t like it.
Tommy and Phil look over towards the rest of the store. People were staring. It’s not everyday you see an android getting a refill of anything, really, their storages are made to last a while. “Just ignore them, they have nothing better to do.” Tommy says, turning back to him. Techno watches as Tommy pauses, mouth opening slightly. Before he can ask about it his cheek is getting poked. “Oh my god, you're blushing.”
…What.
“I am not.” Techno frowns, swiping Tommy’s hand away from his face.
“You are, actually.” Phil speaks up, looking at him. “Your face is all blushy, mate.” Phil gestures to his own face, as if to show where Techno’s face has decided to betray him.
Techno’s frown deepens as he looks away from all of them. “It’s not my fault I’m being stared at while being…” Vulnerable? Is that what he was feeling? It wasn’t so much about the shirt, more so with the fact his whole back panel was open. No one could really see it from his possession facing the rest of the store, but they could. That was the problem. He lets out a deep sigh. “Nevermind.”
“Don’t just say ‘nevermind’, what is it?” Phil speaks up, squeezing his hand again. Techno bites the inside of his cheek. The ground looks very nice, maybe he should focus on that.
“It’s common for divergent androids to feel uncomfortable with their back panels open.” The technician, no, traitor, breaks into their conversation. “I’ve been trying to get the store manager to buy some kind of curtain, but I’ve had no luck with it.” He adds, sounding apologetic. Yep, this ground is the perfect thing to stare at. What wonderful dust on the ground with its shoe prints.
“Oh.” Phil replies, looking over at Techno with an apology in his eyes. “I had no idea.”
“That’s it.” Tommy grumbles, both him and Phil turning to face the youngest in their group. Tommy turns to the rest of the store. “Hey creeps, stop looking over here and mind your own fucking business! How would you feel if someone was staring at you with your shirt off and skin practically removed from your whole back, huh!?” Tommy shouts, startling more than one person. It does the trick, though.
“Tommy…” Techno dips his head back now.
He expects Phil to scold his son, but he doesn’t. Techno scrunches his nose as he looks over at the man. “What?” Phil asks, catching his eyes. “They were being creeps.” Phil defends his son, shrugging.
After Techno’s cooling storages are refilled and his back was closed up, Phil ushers them outside. The sun was setting, bathing the sky in oranges and dark blues. Techno gets into the backseat as Tommy gets in the passenger as Phil starts the car.
“This was a successful day.” Phil comments as he looks out the window as he pulls out of the parking lot.
“All we did was roam around the store for an hour and refill Techno’s tears and sweat.” Tommy says. Techno cringes at the way Tommy puts it but he didn’t have enough energy to comment on it.
“We also learned something.” Phil says back as he pulls out onto the main road. “Techno can blush.” Phil explains, grinning.
“Are you still on that?” Techno groans, shifting in his seat. “I think you should erase that from your memory drive.” Techno speaks up.
Tommy snorts, looking way too happy to know of his despair. “I’m telling Mom when we get back so she can make fun of you with me.” Tommy says as he puts on the radio. Rolling his eyes, Techno shuts his eyes, going about checking his systems. “Are you falling asleep?” He hears Tommy ask.
“No, I’m checking my systems.” Techno replies.
< Scanning Code >
< Cooling Protocol Online >
“My cooling systems are working again.” Techno says, opening his eyes. Phil hums, focusing on the road ahead of them.
“So you can cry again.” Tommy asks, looking back at him. “If you need to.”
“I can cool myself down if I begin to overheat, yes.” Techno snips back.
Tommy puts his hands up, smiling evilly. “Alright alright, no need to give me attitude, little bro.” Tommy grins, earning a glance from Phil.
“Heh?” Techno sits up in his seat, narrowing his eyes on the other.
“You're nine years old.” Tommy shrugs, pointing out something obvious. “That means I’m your older brother.”
“We’re not related.” Techno addresses, not knowing where Tommy’s got that information from.
“Phil basically adopted you, which means we’re brothers.” Tommy replies easily, nothing he’s saying making any sense.
“I’m not…I’m programmed to have an adult mind, Tommy. Human age doesn’t apply to me. And Phil didn’t adopt me, he bought me.” Techno says confused. Where is he getting this stuff from? It’s obviously nonsense.
“I don’t know mate, I think your brother is right.” Phil joins in, chuckling. “People have to buy to adopt anyways, what makes you any different? You have a birthday and everything.” Phil adds, stopping at a red light.
“That's my manufacturing date!” Techno yells, looking between the two. “It’s not the same thing.”
“Your mother, Kristin, would think differently.” Phil shrugs, the light turning green.
“What!?” Techno yells, his voice chip cracking. Tommy and Phil burst into laughter.
It’s the middle of the night when Phil knocks on his door. Techno wakes up, his battery reading fifty percent as he looks over at his closed door. “Techno?” Phil whispers, creeking the door open slightly.
“Hmm.” Techno mumbles, head squished against his pillow.
Phil chuckles as he closes the door behind him, walking over. Phil sits at the side of his bed and doesn’t say anything, not for a bit. He just sits there, looking at Techno with kind human eyes. His eyes roam to his head, hand moving to run his fingers through his hair. Techno remembers seeing fathers do this with their children in tv shows. He wonders if this was part of the joke Phil and Tommy were laughing over in the car ride back today.
“Phil?” Techno yawns, shifting in his bed. “I’m at fifty percent battery.” He states, eyes drifting in and out of vision.
“Sorry.” Phil pulls his hand back and settles it in his lap. “It’s just…I couldn’t sleep, I wanted to check up on you after today.” Phil says, sounding apologetic. Techno forces his eyes to adjust to the darkness, watching Phil’s expression.
“Is something wrong?” Techno voices as he pushes himself into a sitting position. He’s careful not to pull on his charging port.
Phil shakes his head, looking over towards the door. “Tommy told me you wanted to do something different with your hair. It made me think about…your glitch.” Phil explains. His voice struggles to get out the word ‘glitch’, like he didn’t believe the word needed to be uttered.
“Did you find out how to get rid of it?” Techno asks, a little too energetic at the idea of finally being rid of it. Phil quickly shakes his head, Techno frowning at the action. “Then what about it?” He asks.
“I want you to try going to group therapy. The one I showed you.” Phil brings up quickly, before Techno could start to overthink it Phil burrells on. “I’ll be there with you the whole time. I called them and they said I was allowed to accompany you. I just need you to try it, please. At least for a month. If you still hate it then you don’t have to keep going.” Phil pleads.
Techno wishes he couldn’t see well in the dark as he looks at Phil’s face. His eyes were pleading as much as his voice. “I-I…” Techno takes a deep breath, voice growing shaky.
Phil grabs his hands, squeezing softly. “I’ll be there the whole time, I promise. I really think it’s going to help you.” Phil rambles, his thumb rubbing circles into the palms of his hands. It felt grounding.
“If it doesn’t work you have to tell Puffy I’m not going to her anymore.” Techno rebuttes.
He takes a calming breath in, watching as Phil’s face changes. “Techno—“
“No more ‘Techno please’ anything! She’s a waste of money, Phil! I’ll go to this group therapy but you have to promise me that if it doesn’t work, you stop trying to make me accept this divergent glitch and find a way to fix it instead. That’s the deal.” Techno states, taking his hands away from Phil.
Phil doesn’t say anything for a while, staring at him with sad wide eyes. Like Techno was breaking him just by stating what he wants. That’s what Phil wanted, so he can’t even complain. He wants him to voice his opinions, his ‘feelings’, so now he is. Take it or leave it, Phil. You can’t have it both ways.
Phil clears his throat. “You have to generally try.” Phil says, voice turning stern. “No half assing it like you do with Puffy.” Phil adds, setting his hands in his lap.
Techno thinks it over, then faces away from the other. “Deal.” Techno huffs, scooting down to lay back on his stomach. “Goodnight, Phil.” With that Techno pushes his face into his pillow, cutting the conversation there.
He hears Phil let out a sigh and get up off the bed. He doesn’t leave right away, instead he presses a soft kis to Techno’s head. “I care about you, you know that right?” Phil asks, sounding slightly upset. “It’s important to me that you know that.”
“I do.” Techno whispers, hands curling into his sheets. “Human emotions are faulty like that.”
Phil chuckles wetly, patting him on the back before he walks over to the door. Before he leaves though, he looks back at him. “Goodnight, son.” Phil whispers, voice so quiet Techno doesn’t even think he hears him right. Phil closes the door behind himself, leaving Techno alone.
< Battery 52% >
< Port Detected >
< Shutting Down >
…
< Information Recall Denied >
< Data Analysis Start >
< Memory Replay Active >
“Goodnight, son.” Phil whispers.
< Memory Replay Complete >
< Memory Backed Up >
< Sent To Emergency Drive >