Hello everyone! I'm so sorry this update took so long. I thought that I had updated but apparently I have not. So you're getting three chapters, enjoy!

After the astonishment had faded from Gavin, he cast an awkward glance at Hank, who seemed more joyful than ever before. It made perfect sense - after nearly losing his life, and having to deal with a bunch of idiots (well mostly just Gavin and his dumbassery), Hank was finally home. Hopefully this place could become like a home to Gavin as well.

"So, uh, what now?" Gavin asked in a raspy voice. His throat was still severely damaged due to the harm inflicted on him by Nines.

He still hasn't explained what the hell happened back there, Gavin thought. It was terrifying. The thought of merely being near Nines sent a shiver down Gavin's spine. He didn't make it obscure that he was avoiding being near Nines.

"Now, we wait." Hank raised his chin, and took a step towards the door. The group were all on the balcony of the mansion, with Aspen on the top step.

Some silent moments slipped slowly away. The tension clinging to the air was nearly enough to choke someone from the inside. Just as Gavin was about to complain, the front door slowly opened. A girl with blonde hair, no older than 15, poked her head out.

"Who are…" She trailed off as her eyes landed on a certain human. "Hank!"

The young teen ran forward and pulled Hank into a tight hug. "Hank, you're alive!" She exclaimed. She drew away. "Oh darn, you're pretty hurt." The girl walked back inside the building. "Hey, Hank's back!"

After the announcement was made, and with Hank not being able to get a word in, excited people streamed out of the door. Hank seemed to be popular in Human Jericho (the only place that could ever be possible. This place must truly be a place of opportunity!). But the sudden overwhelm of people heading right towards where Gavin was standing set off something inside of him.

Gavin's breathing began to quicken, and his eyes pricked with slight tears. His legs felt weaker and he could barely focus on anything visually or audibly. His hand was brushed by a stranger.

Gavin turned and ran down the stairs, stumbling in a blinded flurry. He heard footsteps behind him, and he ran faster. He skidded around the corner and tripped on the ground around the side of the mansion. Gavin sat up and curled into a ball defensively, tears streaming down his cheeks as he gasped for air. He felt so weak, so vulnerable. His throat damage made breathing a lot harder, and a lot more painful.

He barely processed as two people knelt down in front of him. Gavin registered their familiar faces - Connor and Nines.

"Hey, hey, Gavin, just breathe, okay?" Connor said. He carefully reached out to touch Gavin, but he flinched away and continued to panic. Connor quickly realised that touching Gavin wasn't a solution. "I have some water."

Connor handed Gavin a water bottle. Gavin took it and sipped at the water, which helped only a little bit. The bottle was shaking in his hand.

"Let's breathe together, okay?" Nines said. He began to take deep breaths in with matching exhales.

Gavin shook his head. "L-Leave." He saw Nines' eyes cloud with dejection, but at that moment Gavin could barely even recognise the pain he had caused Nines. He stood up and left.

"Breathe with me," Connor said. "In, and out…"

With the help of Connor, Gavin eventually managed to calm down. He looked at Connor guiltily.

"I'm so fucking sorry, Connor," Gavin said. "Thank you for helping me."

"Of course. I hope that you're okay."

Gavin stood up, wobbling but quickly gaining balance on his feet. He walked with Connor back to the balcony, where everyone had disappeared from. Connor walked with Gavin inside of Human Jericho, where curious faces approached them. Gavin was still shaken up, so his body stiffened.

"Can someone get us a room near Hank, Nines, and Aspen?" Connor asked. "Gavin isn't talking to anyone right now. There will be plenty of time to meet him later."

A gorgeous woman wearing a dark dress and heels stepped forward. "Third floor, two doors to the left. So, what's your type?"

Gavin stared blankly at her before speaking, "Men." He turned around and walked away, with a slightly smiling Connor stuck to his side.

Connor swiftly located Gavin's room. Hank was waiting outside the neighbouring bedroom.

"They gave us two rooms," Hank said. "Turns out Aspen knows people here, so they left to crash with their friends. Acquaintances. I don't know. However, I'm going to be staying with you lot.

Gavin peered into his room. Nines was sitting on the double bed and looking towards the window, with his back to Gavin. The window was dusty and the walls had a few cracks in them. The wallpaper was a faded lime colour with flower patterns, and was obviously very old. It was strange; some of the mansion looked modern, other parts appeared to be practically ancient.

Gavin's lips transformed into a sour frown at the thought of sharing a room with Nines, which was implied due to Gavin being seated on the bed. He didn't even bother trying to hide his distrust as he said, "There is no way I'm sharing a room with him."

Nines turned to look at Gavin. "Gavin. I need to tell you about what had happened at the hotel."

"Oh yes, I know," Gavin said icily, a rasp evident in his voice.. "You choked me. I know."

"But, Gavin–"

"There is nothing more to say."

Nines' eyes flashed with pan. Gavin had always seen Nines' eyes as icy. They stuck out against his skin, and were easily noticeable. But before, there was warm water rushing beneath the depths. Now all that Gavin could see was complete and utter frost. A frost that was always there that Gavin had refused to see.

"I'm going to crash with Connor. He's the only one I feel safe with," Gavin said curtly. Hank gave an offended look from the doorway as Gavin continued. "Our arrival at this place has been very anticlimactic for all we've been through, not gonna lie."

Nines stood up and left the room. As soon as he left, Gavin closed the door and collapsed on the bed.

"I'm gonna take some time for myself," he told Connor. "Then I'll go meet the other humans.

Other humans. Actual people. It's been so long, Gavin thought. Hank doesn't count. He's a rat. And I barely got to talk to Angelica. I do suppose I saw all those people earlier, and that lady, but I didn't really talk to them.

The memory of Angelica flashed through Gavin's mind. He had lost her life for talking to Gavin. He hated the memory of her throat being slit and her crumpling down to the floor. She was used as an intimidation method to scare him. Her death could never be justified.

"I might go," Connor said.

Gavin quickly shot out his arm and grabbed Connor's sleeve. "No. Please, stay with me," Gavin said. "I don't want to be alone."

Connor nodded and sat down on the bed. Gavin let go of him. "Okay, Gavin. I understand. Sometimes, through anguish, loneliness can be the worst pain of all."

"I just have some bitch fuck anxiety, I don't give a fuck about your philosophical shit."

"Okay."

"Must you be so kind and accepting of what I say all the time?" Gavin asked. "You're a deviant. It's weird."

"I don't have any disagreements or resentment, so that'd technically just be me lying or being a dick."

"... Bye, Connor." Gavin shifted before grunting and getting up. He pulled off his shirt and felt Connor's eyes burning into his tattered and scarred torso as Gavin got under the blankets.

"... Bye? But Gavin, neither of us are going anywhere," Connor said, his response delayed due to Gavin's scars catching him off guard.

"I'm going somewhere."

"Where?"

"The fuck to sleep."

"Goodnight, Gavin."

"Yeah… ciao."

Gavin closed his eyes. Sleep did not come easy, but after a prolonged period of absolute silence, a slumber succumbed Gavin. He fell limp.

Gavin opened his eyes. He was dreaming. He looked around at his surroundings, taking him in as he scanned everything. He was in a meadow with long, green grass accompanied by flowers. The plants were swaying in the gentle breeze that was passing through. Gavin was completely aware of it but he couldn't entirely feel it.

Gavin began to walk around, looking all around at everything he saw. Near the edges of his vision were some large oak trees, casting dappled shadows onto the ground.

"Gavin," a voice whispered in his ear.

Gavin, startled, whipped around. No one was there.

"Gavin," the voice whispered again, now in the other ear. "Always do what you think is right."

"The fuck?" Gavin looked around, completely and utterly confused. He stepped forward, but now he was tumbling down a tunnel. Darkness surrounded Gavin, but he couldn't scream or stop this from happening.

He fell down, unharmed, beside a large pool glittering with starlight. Gavin got a deep urge and acted upon it; he dipped his hands into the pool and pulled out a glowing orb. Inside it was a looped image and audio of Nines saying 'I love you' for the first time.

Shocked, Gavin dropped the orb, and it barely made a splash as it sunk beneath the surface. The starlit pool broke off into separate streams and rivers all around. Some had only a small water flow, and some were completely drained of water. Some streams had gentle trickling whilst others had angry, storming water. Some were pitch black whilst some were lit with stars.

Gavin couldn't believe what he was seeing. Multiple lines of destiny, right before his eyes.

This can't be real.

Gavin was overwhelmed. His head dipped and he was now staring at the stone ground. Suddenly, the water crested a wave and fueled around Gavin. He gasped as he was suddenly hauled towards and into the water. Gavin began to thrash about as the dark water swirled around him, pushing him towards a stream he couldn't identify. He was dragged further under and his vision faded. Echoing throughout his mind sounded distant and distorted screams of Nines, Connor, and Hank.

Gavin woke with a gasp. He sat up and he began to heave and gasp, as if he was trying to cough water out of his lungs. Connor, who had been on charge with a proper charger Human Jericho supplied, instantly woke up and went over to Gavin. He sat on the bed beside him.

"Gavin, are you alright?" Connor asked with concern.

Gavin didn't give Connor an answer. He didn't know. He slung his arms around Connor and began to hug him tightly. Connor hugged back, holding him close to his body.

"Nightmares suck ass, Con," Gavin croaked.

"Was it about Nines and… What he did?"

Gavin shook his head. "Surprisingly not. I wanna fuckin lowkey die, not gonna lie."

"Please don't die," Connor said. "I enjoy your company."

"Cool, thanks." Gavin broke the hug and lay back down, getting comfortable under the covers. "Bye."

"Goodnight, Gavin."

Gavin closed his eyes and before long, he was slipping into another sleep. He felt Connor get off the bed just as he was almost unconscious. Not caring enough to do anything, Gavin fell asleep.

Gavin woke up with a start. His vision was blurred as he slowly opened his eyes. He blinked confusedly at the strange ceiling.

Where the fuck am I? Oh wait, never mind. I remember, he thought.

"Fucking life," Gavin grumbled to himself. "It really be out here sucking." He cleared his throat before running fingers gently along it. His bruising was still extreme and he was in a lot of pain, but at least Gavin could speak and he didn't show any signs of life-threatening internal damage.

Connor was charging in the corner of the room, seeming as if he was asleep. Of course, androids don't truly sleep, but they can definitely appear to be able to. It was one of the many, many human activities they can freakishly mirror. Gavin walked over to Connor and poked him a few times until he opened his eyes.

"Hello, Gavin," Connor greeted him.

"Hey. I'm just letting you know that I'm gonna go get Hank and get a formal introduction to Human Jericho."

"Okay," Connor said. He stepped off of the charging platform. "I'll join you."

Eyeing the charger port, Gavin said thoughtfully, "I wonder how they get their electricity here."

"You'll be able to ask when we meet everyone," Connor replied.

"You're right," Gavin said. "Let's get going, then."

He led the way out of the room, going to the bedroom shared by Hank and Nines. Not bothering to knock on the door, Gavin barged into the room. It looked more modernised than the one that Gavin had gone into.

Hank, who was sitting on his bed reading a book, looked up at Gavin. He looked annoyed. "Gavin's here," he announced flatly.

"You seem pleased to see me," Gavin sarcastically said.

"Don't patronise yourself," Hank replied, unimpressed.

A door in the room that Gavin only just noticed opened and Nines stepped out of it. Gavin saw a glimpse of the smaller room beyond. He saw a pristine white tiled bathroom and a bathtub.

"You get an ensuite!?" Gavin gasped. "That's no fair!"

"If you weren't so quick to push Nines away, you would have this," Hank pointed out.

"Shut the fuck up," Gavin said.

"Hello, Gavin," Nines said.

Gavin completely ignored him. "So Hank, Connor and I are going to see the people of Human Jericho. Come with us. I obviously don't know anyone here and I'd feel better if you came with me, since you do actually know them."

"Only if Nines come too," Connor interjected, causing a dismayed look from Gavin. Connor went on, "He needs to meet all of the humans that live here as well." He looked at Gavin meaningfully.

Gavin realised he'd have to face Nines sooner or later. Now was not that time.

"Bye sluts," Gavin said, doing a full 180 turn with a plan to go back to his new room to sulk. A hand landed on his shoulder. Gavin turned around again, ripping his shoulder away, and he saw Hank in front of him and glaring at him. "Hey!"

"Pull yourself together, dickhead," Hank said. He didn't have any patience let for Gavin anymore. "Whether you like it or not, Nines is a part of our group. He's your boyfriend, for fuck's sake! Obviously he would not hurt you on purpose!"

"He choked me!"

"And you didn't give him the chance to explain yourself!" Hank retorted angrily. "You could have tried, but no! Look outside yourself!"

Gavin knew that Hank was right. He hated that. Hank's words stung Gavin's pride, which made him really want to return to his room and sulk. Gavin watched Nines cast a grateful glance at Hank, who was seething with rage.

"... Let's just get this whole meeting people thing over with," Gavin grumbled.

Nines' eyes rounded. "But-"

"Leave it," Hank said, cutting him off. "Obviously, Gavin doesn't value enough to care about what you have to say.

Gavin grit his teeth. He was starting to get angry too. "Let's go."

Connor nodded, seeming to be relieved at an opportunity to escape the conflict. Hank pushed past Gavin and Connor and silently led them down the hall and down the staircase. Hank walked through the room beside the door, and entered another room.

It was huge. The ceilings reached about eight metres tall, with chandeliers hanging from the top. The room was alive with activity - people were talking, playing games, and eating, along with other activities. Gavin's jaw dropped as he looked at the place.

"This is the main hall," Hank said. "Meetings and most of the activies throughout the day happen here. Eat, read, game - you can do whatever you desire. There's also a library and a cinema, I think."

"That… That's amazing," Gavin said with astonishment. "How do you get power?"

"Electricians use natural sources," a new voice said. Gavin looked over to see that same woman from the previous day that had asked Gavin for his type. "They, along with a few others, have lived here since the very start of our organisation. We couldn't leave this place completely unattended. Some of them and some of those in the old location posed as androids to smuggle in resources from the main society, with the help of actual androids."

"You didn't tell me this much about Human Jericho," Gavin said.

The woman turned to Hank, looking done. "Do you really use that silly nickname as the title of this place?"

Hank blushed from embarrasment. "Er. Yeah."

She rolled her eyes. "We are actually called Verum. It's Latin for real, and also the best sounding title I could find on Google Translate."

"Mood," Gavin said.

"Anywho, I'm Lillian, but you can call me Lily. What's your name?"

"His name is Gavin," Hank answered for him. "The RK900 is named Nines, and the RK800-"

"- Is Connor, I know. He's the notorious deviant hunter that turned out to be deviant himself," Lillian said.

"Something along those lines," Connor mumbled.

"By the way, Gavin, when I asked what your type was, I didn't mean romantically," she said. "I was just asked about what background you had come from - like, living in an abandoned house until one of us found you."

"I was an android slave."

"Oh dear," Lillian frowned. "We have a couple of people who were slaves. They're the ones who are among the most damaged of us. What type of slave?"

"I did their chores and shit," Gavin said. "I wasn't really fed much which sucked. I barely got water and I barely got to sleep."

"Much physical harm?"

"Yes, but not too much."

Lillian nodded. "I'm sorry you had to go through that. You might see Thomas if he's out of his room today, he was a slave too, but try not to talk about it. His work was more… physical." She shuddered.

"I don't want to think about what that means," Gavin said.

"Go mingle," Lillian encouraged. She turned to the androids accompanying him. "Tell me about how you came about helping Gavin."

As Connor delved into an in-depth explanation, Gavin began to walk around the seas of people alone. The room was somewhat crowded, but not uncomfortably so. Some people looked at the newcomer curiously as he explored the room. Gavin ended up in a corner with a television and some gaming consoles. It was surrounded by three couches with a fluffy rug in front of them, with a few neatly scattered beanbags on top. The couches all had people sitting on them, and so did two of the beanbags. Gavin took a seat on the beanbag in the very centre of the rug. As soon as he sat, as if on silent cue, the people all turned towards him and t-posed.

Gavin felt freaked out. He shot back up to his feet, and he looked panicked. The people stopped.

"Sorry," a guy with brown hair sitting on the beanbag beside Gavin said. "It is a tradition to t-pose at whoever sits on the middle beanbag."

"Please don't," Gavin said. "T-poses are cool, but now isn't the time for that.

"Alright. I'm Mike, by the way."

"I'm Gavin."

"Are you gay?" Mike asked.

Gavin stared at him with wide eyes and a red face. How the hell did he know!? "W-What?"

"Are you?"

"... Yeah. How the fuck did you know?" Gavin asked, bewildered.

"Mike has a freakishly good gaydar," a woman sitting on one of the couches said. "Gaydar, trans scan, bi spy… You name it, he knows. He knew I was asexual with just one look at me. I'm Mary, by the way."

"Okay… Bye." Gavin felt unsettled by that whole interaction, so he stood up and left. He didn't want to deal with psychics at that moment.

"Gavin, wait."

Gavin turned around to face a guy who was sitting on the couch.

"My name is Mason," he said once he had Gavin's attention. "Mike said you're gay? Well, I'm gay too. I think you're handsome."

Mason took Gavin's hand in his own. Gavin felt himself blush deeply as he stared with wide eyes. Mason was hot as fuck - he was shockingly handsome,he had hazel eyes and curly brown hair.

Gavin tried to speak, but he couldn't spit out anything and could only manage spluttering gibberish. He was overwhelmed with what could only be labelled as gay panic. As soon as Gavin got a grip on himself, he disconnected his hand from Mason's.

"Thanks, you're sexy as fuck," Gavin said with no thought. "But uh… I have a boyfriend. Kinda. I dunno. He tried to kill me the other day so I'm trying to weigh out my options."

"He what!?"

"Yeah. Well, bye." Gavin walked away from Mason and went to other people. He met new people which he had more normal conversations with - as in, Gavin chose not to share the fact that he was choked by Nines and the trauma that came with that. When people asked about the bruising on Gavin's neck, he wouldn't answer.

At around midday, Gavin went to the dining hall where there were tons of people getting food and eating. Gavin got some pasta and he slipped out of the room. That place lowkey gave him highschool vibes. Gavin returned to his room and sat on the bed where he ate his pasta. Just as he was thinking about jealousy towards Nines and Hank's new room, the door opened and Nines walked inside.

"Gavin, don't kick me out. We need to talk about what happened."