"Carry me."
"No."
"Why not? You carried Hank!"
"No."
"What?"
"No."
"Come on, carry me!"
"No."
"Please?"
"No."
Gavin was pestering Nines, wanting to be carried by him. He liked being close with his boyfriend, and he also didn't like walking.
"Carry me."
"No."
"Do you love me?"
"No- wait, wait! I meant yes!"
"Connor, did you hear that!? Nines said he doesn't love me!" Gavin exclaimed, jogging forward a few steps to be walking next to Connor.
"Top ten anime betrayals," Connor said.
"Holy fuck. Have you been learning memes too?"
"Yes. Memes are a very interesting aspect regarding human comedy and psychology," Connor replied.
"Uh, yeah, that. Hank, how much further do we have?"
"I don't really know, I've only been to the mansion once," Hank said.
"How do you know if you're going the right way?" Gavin asked.
"Because if I didn't, I wouldn't be leading us all there."
"Can't argue with that."
"How about I connect to a GPS and lead us?" Nines suddenly suggested, an unexpectedly cold tone present in his voice.
It was as if Nines had just decided that Hank was incapable of leading them. This caused Gavin to frown. Nines trusted Hank, it was out of character for Nines to suddenly distrust his judgement. Even if Hank had only been to the mansion once, he said it himself - he would not be leading the group if he was not confident to be leader. Why was Hank's knowledge suddenly being questioned? "Isn't it safer to follow Hank?"
"Yeah," Hank said, glaring at Nines. "It's a lot better if I lead us and you know that."
"It was just a thought," Nines said. "Forget that I brought it up."
As Hank muttered something incoherent under his breath, Connor said, "More androids would probably begin to appear soon. We should try to find somewhere to spend the rest of the afternoon."
"I have a connection in the area," Hank replied. "I'll be able to get us a hotel room for the night. Don't expect anything much, as they can only do their best with what rooms are available on such short notice. Would you want to go there, or keep moving?"
"The hotel sounds like the safer choice," Connor said.
"Yes, but travelling throughout the afternoon and the night will get us there quicker," Nines pointed out.
Hank turned to face Gavin. "Gavin, what do you think?"
Oh God, oh fuck, a decision, was Gavin's initial thought process.
"We should, er…"
Gavin looked from Connor to Nines. They both put forward valid points. But in the end Gavin decided that it was too dangerous to go the risky way. The group had come too far to even consider doing something that could result in their downfall. Plus, Gavin didn't know if he was truly ready to be face-to-face with a whole group of people.
"We go to the hotel," Gavin said. "What's the name of the people that can help us?"
"Aspen," Hank said.
"Okay… And the other people?"
"What do you mean? Oh, Aspen is one person. They're non-binary so they use they and them pronouns," Hank explained.
"Oh, right, okay," Gavin said. "I kind of forgot that that's a thing."
"Well, remember," Hank replied sharply.
"Er, alright. How long until we get to the hotel?"
"Eh… around half an hour. Luckily it's near these outskirts of Detroit, so it's safer to get there," Hank said.
Gavin, Nines, Hank and Connor spent the next bit of time walking through the empty streets. They did pass some androids; the roads couldn't be a complete ghost town, but no one took notice of them.
They made it to the hotel and walked inside. Hank went up to the front counter. "Hey, is Aspen around?"
"Yes," the android receptionist responded. "I'll go get them for you."
The android left, then came back about a minute later with another android. The newcomer who Gavin presumed was Aspen had short, black hair and freckles.
"Thanks, Synthisa," the android said. "May you leave us alone for a few moments?"
"Strange, but sure," Synthisa replied before leaving.
"Thanks, Synth." They turned to Hank and grinned. "Hey, Hank! It's been a while."
"Sure has, Aspen." Gavin watched as Hank and Aspen engaged in a quick yet caring hug.
"What brings you around?" Aspen asked.
"My friends and I are passing through, and need somewhere to crash for the night. Think you can get us a room?" Hank asked.
"Let me see what I can do," Aspen said. They walked behind the counter and began to type away at the computer. "Hmm… I can give you two rooms, side by side. One with a double bed and one with two singles. Will that be sufficient?"
"Definitely, thank you," Hank said. "I owe you big time."
"Nah, I owed you anyway," Aspen said. "Were even now, but you're still welcome here anytime. Okay… Your rooms are 68 and 69. Enjoy your stay." They gave Hank two room keys.
"Haha, 69," Gavin said very maturely.
Hank rolled his eyes. "Come on, idiots." He, having been at the hotel before, led the group to their rooms. Of course, Gavin and Nines took the room with the double bed.
"It feels weird to be in a hotel again, especially with what happened last time we stayed in one," Gavin said as he grabbed a glass. He filled it up with water which he downed quickly. "Ah… polluted Detroit water, my favourite."
"I am not sure if that should be your favourite drink," Nines replied. "Perhaps it shouldn't be."
"I literally don't care." Gavin had another glass of water. "Love you."
Nines smiled gently. "Love you too."
Nines walked over to Gavin and put his arms around his waist. Gavin responded by slinging his arms around Nines' neck. Nines gave Gavin a kiss on the forehead.
"This is gay," Gavin said.
"Indeed it is. We are both men."
"You're right. Very homosexual." Gavin set his head on Nines' shoulder, but due to Nines' height, doing that strained Gavin's neck by a small amount which caused some aching. "Stop being so damn tall. Can you shrink?"
"I am incapable of shrinking, my deepest apologies," Nines replied.
"Apology not accepted. Illegal and how dare you."
Nines let out a single laugh. "You can be so silly." He buried his face in Gavin's hair before pulling away and starting to pepper Gavin with kisses all over his face, which caused Gavin to blush and grin. Nines picked Gavin up randomly, his hands going on his back and ass for support, and carried him to the bed.
"Careful, you're holding something very important," Gavin said.
"I have never heard you say something so kind about yourself."
"What? I was talking about my ass," Gavin replied.
"Oh, okay. I suppose that's a great package that comes with the bundle deal," Nines winked. Gavin felt a small blush creep onto his cheeks. Nines set Gavin down on top of the blankets, and he remained standing in front of him.
"What in the hell and fuck does that mean and imply?" Gavin asked.
"Whatever you want it to."
Gavin felt Nines' hands go to his sides, and before he knew it, Gavin was being tickled mercilessly. Gavin jolted and jerked, falling backwards onto the back so he was now laying down. This motion caught him completely off guard, and Gavin began to laugh. Tears quickly sprung to his eyes as Nines just kept going, and he felt like he was going to piss himself.
"Fuck off!" Gavin laughed out, struggling to breathe due to the bouts of laughter.
Nines tickled harder.
"I will piss on you, stop!"
Nines purposely pulled a thoughtful expression, like he was considering and weighing out the pros and cons of listening to Gavin, then he shrugged and stopped tickling Gavin. Gavin gasped, breathing air heavily in and out. He reached forward and grabbed Nines' shirt collar, pulling him downwards so Nines was suddenly pinning Gavin to the bed. Nines was surprised, but quickly went along with it.
"You're a motherfucker, but you're sexy so I forgive you," Gavin said.
"Thank you, but I feel no regret whatsoever," Nines replied.
"Shut the fuck up."
"I would show you one of the many Uno cards, one with a reverse symbol in order to deflect that order back to you, but as I have none in my possession I shall do the next best thing." Nines leaned in and kissed Gavin.
Gavin instantly kissed back, ignoring and forgetting the confusing sentence Nines had just crafted. The kiss began deep and loving, but things got heated very quickly. Gavin suspected that there was more than love behind this kiss, but he was totally into it.
Nines broke the kiss to gaze into Gavin's eyes. He gave Gavin a quick but deep kiss, then moved on to nibble on his jawline and neck.
One thing led to another. Nines and Gavin spent the rest of the night basking in each other's presence, and a night that Gavin would never forget.
The next morning, Gavin woke up in fucking pain. His wounds, which were healing rapidly and were mostly only visible under his shirt, were giving him pain, along with another form of pain due to certain activities.
He rolled over to look at Nines, who was holding onto Gavin as he rested.
"Yo, dumbass, wake up," Gavin said. Then he realised he may be ignored. "Oh wait. I mean… Nines, please wake up. I'm in a ton of pain and I need painkillers."
Nines opened his eyes. He kissed Gavin's head before letting go of Gavin, and sitting up.
"Wait! Why did you let go of me?" Gavin asked.
"To get your painkiller pills," Nines replied.
"Nines, can't you keep holding me? Please?"
"No, I cannot. Not if you wish for me to fetch you your painkillers," Nines said.
"Yes you can," Gavin said insistingly.
"I cannot." Nines got up and out of the bed.
"Haha, I can see your penis," Gavin said. "Such a nice view."
Nines responded to this by putting on boxers.
"Hey, rude!" Gavin complained. "Hey, still not complaining though."
Nines put on a pair of pants.
"Fuck. I should stop," Gavin said to himself. He didn't whine any further, and instead looked at Nines' hot torso.
Nines walked to his bag and Gavin stared after him, watching his every move - he had some eye candy to enjoy. Nines grabbed Gavin's painkillers, then got some water from the tap.
"Hah! You're using the polluted Detroit water," Gavin exclaimed.
"I never said to not drink it," Nines pointed out, "I just said it probably should not be your drink of preference."
"You say everything so fancy and weird."
"Not everything." Nines brought the painkillers and water over to Gavin, who very swiftly swallowed the pills, along with the water to lubricate his throat.
"Thanks," Gavin said. "Let's cuddle some more as I wait for these to kick in."
Nines took the glass from Gavin and set it on the bedside table before getting back into the bed with him. Nines pulled Gavin close to his body and kissed his forehead. Gavin cuddled up closely to Nines, resting his head on his chest.
As Gavin enjoyed the tranquility, the door randomly slammed open. Hank was standing at the door.
"Time to leave," Hank said.
"Fuck off, let my painkillers hit me first at least!" Gavin yelled, pulling the blanket over his exposed body. "And don't come in unexpectedly like that!"
"I can do what I want. We'll leave in fifteen," Hank said. He left the room, closing the door behind him. Only sociopaths leave the door open.
"Ugh, his vibes are so yuck," Gavin said.
Nines shifted and let go of Gavin carefully. "I am going to get us both clothing," he informed Gavin.
"Where are you going?" Gavin asked.
"Not far, just to our bags," Nines said. He sat up and then got out of the bed. He went over to his and Gavin's bags, and took out a change of clothing for Gavin and a shirt for Nines. Nines walked back to the bed and set down the clothing before picking up his android jacket off of the floor. Nines put on the shirt he had selected for himself before putting on his android clothing.
"Hey Nines, could you please grab a shirt for me to change into?" Gavin politely asked. "It shouldn't be hard to get into a shirt."
Nines replied with a nod instead of verbally, and picked up the black shirt that he had selected for Gavin. He walked over to him and handed him the shirt. Gavin, with some struggle, managed to wriggle and eventually slip into the shirt.
Nines grabbed out a can of tuna and a fork from Gavin's bag and then walked over to Gavin.
"Eat this," he said.
"Yuck, tuna? Is it even in date?"
Nines checked the can and found a best-before date. It was still good to eat. "Yes. Now eat up."
"Ew, fine."
Gavin slowly sat up and he took the can and the fork from Nines. He opened up the can and reluctantly began to eat the tuna that was inside of it. It tasted strange, probably due to the age and Gavin's general disliking for the food. Gavin ate all of it, and he gave the tin back to Nines once he had finished eating the food.
"Thanks," Gavin said.
"Of course."
Nines threw away the can of tuna in the trash can provided in the room. As he did that, Gavin was forcing himself to stand up on his feet whilst ignoring and trying to avoid all of the pain that he felt in the different parts of his body.
He wobbled, as gaining balance proved itself to be a little bit of a challenge, be he eventually managed to stand up properly on his feet. Gavin glanced over to Nines who was searching the hotel room for useful items they could bring along with them.
"Hey Nines, can you carry me?" Gavin asked. "I be hurting."
Nines looked over at Gavin then had a disapproving expression. "Gavin, sit down. I'll come and carry you once Hank gets back."
Gavin nodded and he sat back down on the bed. He watched Nines preparing for their leave. As Nines was reaching out to grab something, he suddenly paused. He turned and looked at Gavin.
"Once we reach our destination and you get settled in, I need to leave," he said. "I have been away for a suspicious length of time."
"That's yuck," Gavin said. He sighed deeply. As much as he didn't want Nines to leave, he knew that it had to be done in order for suspicions to not raise too much regarding Nines' disappearances.
"I have to go down to the reception and speak with Aspen," Nines suddenly announced.
"Um, why?" Gavin asked.
"You'll see." Nines left the room without another word, leaving Gavin's mind full of questions.
Gavin sat in silence, twiddling with his thumbs as he waited for his boyfriend to return to him to carry him and love him. As he was simply vibing, growing bored quickly, he suddenly heard gasping and screaming from the room over.
"Damn, those gays are kinky," Gavin muttered to himself.
Hold on. Those screams were of pain and fear, not pleasure. Gavin felt his blood run cold - those sounds were all too familiar. Connor and Hank were in danger.
As Gavin quickly jumped up onto his feet, the door slammed open and androids entered the room, armed with guns pointed right at Gavin.
