Chapter One
The November wind was especially cold under the bridge where the abandoned Chicken Feed truck had parked. Connor walks into this wind, trying to sort out thousands of his nervous thoughts and replaying Hank's words in his head.
"Meet me at 4 in front of the Chicken Feed tomorrow," Hank had said before exiting Cyberlife tower.
Connor had been to the same location 12 hours earlier, just to resolve any doubts about the timing. It wasn't snowing in the morning, but now everything had at least a thin layer of the substance. Although blurry, he could now see the food truck, and saw a figure standing near it. He approaches the figure slowly.
Now, Connor stands a few steps away from the him. Hank, oblivious to Connor before, looked over to see him standing there. They share a smile.
Connor's unsure of what to do next. Humans are unpredictable, but he decides it would be best for Hank to decide.
Hank takes a few steps forward, and pulls Connor into a tight embrace. Connor hugs back.
Connor suddenly feels warm although his interior and exterior temperatures had not changed. He slowly presses his eyelids together and lets himself think about nothing but the present for a moment. It was comforting to say the least.
The sound of the wind brings his attention back to Hank, who had gradually loosened his grip on Connor.
"Hank," Connor says quietly.
Hank lets his hands fall to his sides. Connor takes a step backwards. Connor realizes he might have just ruined the moment for Hank.
"I'm glad you are alright," Connor starts.
A surge of crime had overtaken the Detroit since its evacuation started, with over 2,500 crimes reported in two days. Several of these crimes included theft, arson, and murder. Some of these humans were against androids, others were simply taking advantage of the panicked state of the city. This massive change in Detroit had put the remaining of the population at risk. However, the perpetrators were being caught steadily by the Detroit Police Department and the Michigan State Police.
"Detroit wasn't always the best place to live, but this is something else," Hank responds.
"Indeed," Connor replies.
"Kid, you should get out of here. Things are only getting worse for androids," Hank points out.
"Things are not so well for humans either," Connor smirks.
Hank sighs, not like he lost the argument, but like he's not in the mood for one. He decides to change the subject.
"I saw you on tv," he says. "I saw you lead those other androids out of Cyberlife Tower. "
Connor notices Hank didn't say a word about being at Cyberlife tower, just that he saw Connor on television. It must have been traumatic for Hank to nearly been killed by a doppelgänger of his partner. Connor decides it's best not to bring it up right now.
"You must be a big deal at Jericho now," Hank adds.
"I left Jericho," Connor says, thinking back to last night.
"What the hell, Connor? Why would you do that?"
Connor explained that Amanda initiated a procedure to assassinate the deviant leader if Connor became deviant. That deviant leader happened to be Markus. Connor went on to tell him about how he stopped Amanda.
"So this Amanda took control of you and tried to kill Markus. And you stopped her. Tell me again why you can't be in Jericho."
Connor looks at his feet.
"I was barely strong enough to overpower her then. If it happened again, Markus and I could both die."
Connor had never admitted his weaknesses to someone before. Androids, like humans, could never be made perfect, but androids were programmed to hide their flaws from humans.
He could feel Hank's hand on his shoulder. Connor looks up at Hank.
"Think about it. If you really want to leave Jericho because of something that's not your fault, go for it. But if you want to help these people, you have to go back."
"I will think about that," Connor says, beginning to realize something. "But what will I do in the meantime?"
"Come home with me," Hank answers.
"What?" Connor responds, unable to comprehend what Hank had just said.
Connor had never had a home. He knew in this instance, Hank was referring to his house, but it was an abstract concept to him, still. Could he actually live with Hank and Sumo? The thought seems too good to be true.
"Just get in the car," Hank said, walking away from Connor, and towards his car.
Connor stands still a moment, taking in Hank's words. Then, he quickly follows Hank.
"Does this mean I will be living you indefinitely, or until I find something else to do?"
"Stay as long as you like," Hank responded, smiling.
Hank and Connor opened the car doors and got in, Hank sitting in the driver's seat, Connor riding shotgun.
Connor waited for Hank to take him home. He could now put a name to the warmth he felt earlier: relief. Connor knew because he felt it at the moment.
"Thank you."
"You're welcome."
A/N- This is my first ever fanfic, so thank you for reading this.