IMPORTANT!

Sloth: After getting Disney+ and rewatching Lab Rats, I decided I wanted to rewrite this story to be more compliant to the series. I still wanted to make it an introspective of Marcus as a bionic human living with his more upbeat family. But before I get to the rewrite, I realized it would be completely unfair to just leave this story as it hanging. Over the years I still see people reading this and it really makes me feel like I'm doing something good. So I got down and wrote.

The original plan for the story was for it to be 30 chapters, with the last 15 chapters focused on a mystery aspect. I decided to cut that and focus on family and important days within Marcus's life. So these final chapters will be on that. It might feel jarring, but its better than a failed mystery in my opinion. So look forward to reading the final chapters. And if you still like the idea of Marcus joining the Daven-Dooley clan, I hope you'll be interested in the rewrite.

ps: I don't normally like to put warnings, but I understand the importance of them for some reasons. So fair warning this chapter has to deal with death and coping with it.

If I Die Young

"I still can't believe you let that walking night terror go in my room," Leo as they entered the high school. The youngest member of the Daven-Dooley clan was trying to unwrinkled his homework. He sniffed it and frowned as the smell of last night's pizza lingered on it. When Leo turned his glare at him, Marcus just laughed.

"To be fair, I asked Chase to entertain Spin while I cleaned the dishes," Marcus countered as he bit into his apple. Nothing tasted better like fresh fruit stolen from the neighbor's tree.

Chase made a face, stopping in the hall to defend himself.

"I did. Its not my fault his underdeveloped mind couldn't comprehend simple physics. It was really motivational stuff."

"Yes. So motivational, you motivated him to run around our house," Bree said sarcastically before turning her attention to her phone. She made a face before sitting down on the circular seat in the middle of the hall.

"Owen still not texting you back?" Chase asked as they all joined in, each finding some space to sit around. Adam sat at the top of the sit, munching on toast while using his height to sneak a peek at Bree's phone. Leo and Chase sat on either side of Bree while Marcus leaned against the seat.

"I don't get it," Bree sighed in frustration. "He's stopped texting me since Friday. He never not texts me. He even sends me pictures of blank canvas on sale."

"Maybe he's ignoring you," Adam theorized through a mouthful of buttered toast. Leo stopped his hunt for missing homework to swat at Adam.

"Maybe he's sick," Marcus said with a shrug.

"Who wouldn't be sick of Bree?" Adam asked innocently. The comment got him a swat from both Leo and Bree.

"Would it kill you to be a little sensitive?" Bree asked with an annoyed glared.

"Please, it would kill him to put on clean pair of underwear," Chase joked.

Marcus smirked at the joke before taking another bite of his apple. As the bionic siblings argued and traded insults, Marcus's mind drifted back to the weekend. He got to hang out with Kim, helping her babysit Spin. It was surprisingly fun doing something not destructive for once. Which is something when you live with four of the most destructive teenagers in the world. Plus, Spin was a good kid. He was energetic and witty. Not to mention, he annoyed the living hell out of Leo so that was bonus in his eyes. Marcus might have dialed back on tormenting Leo ever since his bionics were disabled, but that didn't mean it wasn't funny seeing the younger boy lose a battle of wits to a 9-year-old.

As the insults between Bree and her brothers escalated, Principal Perry walked into the hallway.

"Hey, Brenda, my office, now," she called out to them. Bree rolled her eyes before standing up.

"It's Bree."

"Just get in here," the woman said with an unusually defeated tone.

With an annoyed sigh, Bree walked over to the short principal and entered the office, leaving the boys to their own devices. Chase saw this opportunity to once again brag about his little project with Sebastian. Hearing the name of Chase's new BFF, Marcus rolled his eyes. This time when he bit into his apple, it tasted bitter.

While Spin was great, his brother Sebastian was another story. Sebastian was creepy. He was like this bubbly, bright eyed baby that wanted to compliment everything. Not to mention the creepy way he liked to just pop up behind Marcus. When Sebastian had been over on Saturday, the boy popped up behind Marcus while he had been trying to make a sandwich.

….

…

..

"Hi, Marcus!"

"Gah!" Marcus spun around, mayo-covered butter knife in hand. Sebastian was standing in front of him, a big, bright-eyed smile plastered on his face. For some odd reason, Marcus felt the urge to punch Sebastian in the face, but he held off on following through. The last thing he wanted was for Chase to complain about Marcus hurting his friend.

"Hey, Sebastian. Thought you weren't going to be here for another hour," Marcus said as he looked to the living room. Chase's bag of science gear was on the floor next to what Marcus assumed was Sebastian's bookbag.

"My dad dropped me off early. My sister had cheerleading practice, so he killed two birds with one stone. Ooh is that turkey?"

Marcus nudged the plate away from Sebastian's greedy fingers. That was his sandwich, and he wasn't going to share. There was an awkward silence, Marcus standing guard with the dullest knife in the house and Sebastian just standing with a big goofy smile on his face.

"So, nice place," Sebastian said, trying to change the subject.

"Thanks," Marcus said slowly. He watched as Sebastian looked around the kitchen. It was like watching a puppy explore its new home. Marcus watched as Sebastian moved from the kitchen to the living room, his gaze taking everything in. Marcus could vaguely hear Sebastian spouting some nonsense comparing Davenport's home to Sebastian's. He just went back to making his sandwich. He only took his eyes off Sebastian for a second.

"So, what's it like living with the Davenports?"

"Gah!" Marcus cried, jumping slightly as Sebastian had popped up right next to him. How in the world did he go from the living room to the kitchen so fast? "Would you, please not sneak up on me?"

"Sorry. Force of habit," Sebastian said with a big smile. "I used to do that on my brothers all the time."

"I thought Spin was your only brother," Marcus said as he tried to focus on anything other than Creepy McSmiley. Sebastian must have found the question funny though because he let out this laugh that Marcus could have sworn sounded fake.

"Oh no. I had two more."

"Had?"

"Parents separated."

"Oh. Well sounds like you have a bigger family that I thought."

"Oh, you have no idea."

This time Marcus knew there was something off with the way Sebastian said that. History as a bionic spy aside, Marcus didn't make the drama club because he half-assed his way into it. He knew how to act, and he was starting to realize why Sebastian unnerved him so much. It was like he had slipped up when he said that last sentence. There was an underlining hate behind those five simple words. But when Marcus looked away from his sandwich, all he saw was a sweet innocent smile of someone who could do no wrong.

The grip on his knife suddenly tightened.

"Sebastian!" Chase's exuberant voice drew Marcus's attention.

"Hey, Chase!"

Marcus felt his eye twitch as the two boys greeted each other with a stupid, overly complex handshake. It was bad enough that he had to deal with Chase's annoying habits, but now there was someone who was just as equally annoying. Shaking his head, Marcus went to grab his sandwich, only to find it missing. Searching for it, he found it with Sebastian. The other boy offered half the sandwich to Chase, to happily took it.

An electrical pulse shot from his neck and blew out one of the lights hanging above him.

"What was that?" Sebastian asked.

"Uh…probably just faulty wiring," Chase said, leaning around Sebastian to glare at Marcus. "Right, Marcus?"

"Yeah. Faulty wiring," Marcus agreed through gritted teeth before turning around to make another sandwich.

….

…

..

Marcus finished his apple, his bitter thoughts about Sebastian fading with the last bite. As much as Sebastian irked him and unnerved him, he wouldn't let the guy ruin his day. And unlike Leo, he wasn't going to investigate this any further. Marcus had two bionic assassins after him, he didn't need to deal with a teenager with an Annie Wilkes complex.

"Later tonight," Chase went on, manic glee plastered all over his face, "Sebastian and I are going to design our own video game to go with the VR system."

"Oh cool. Maybe this time you two will actually not blow up the game console," Marcus said with a sarcastic smile.

"Sure. As soon as you stop stealing fruit from the Rosenblatt's yard," Chase countered. Marcus just tossed the apple effortlessly into a nearby trashcan.

"What fruit?" He asked with a mischievous grin on his face. Before Chase could say anything to him, Bree returned from the office.

Her movement was slow and unsteady. She seemed confused, which they boys found odd since the only thing to ever confuse her was Adam's way of thinking.

"What's wrong, Bree?" Leo asked. "Did Principal Perry show you her photo albums? I know the image of Grandma Gertrud in a tutu is terrifying, but I know the perfect way to unsee it."

His joke got no reaction from her. Instead she just stood there, her breath shaky as she tried to speak. The four boys looked at her, any humor gone. Adam even put down his toast.

"Is everything ok?" Chase asked.

"I…I just want to go home."

"Bree, what's wrong?" Adam asked, stepping forward. She stood there for a minute, mouth open and unable to form words. Adam placed a hand on her shoulder, trying to help steady her. But once his hand was on her, the tears started to fall.

Bree fell into Adam's arms, a loud cry escaping her lips. The boys were unsure what to do. They'd never seen Bree break down before. Adam stood still for an awkward moment. Confusion was quickly replaced with a protective concern. He wrapped his arms around her, allowing her to cry.

Her cries continued for a few seconds until Perry came into the hall.

"Attention, students," she shouted, getting everyone's attention. "Look, I'm not good with the whole feelings thing or letting people down easy. But now's a good time to start, right? Ugh. Students, I'm sad to say that fellow Dingo, Owen Stillwell, passed away this weekend. I'll give you all a moment."

With those words still lingering in the air, Principal Perry returned to the confines of her office. Students talked amongst themselves, their conversation now somber and quiet. But none of that mattered. Only one person's anguish was noticeable. Bree cried in her brother's arms, the world becoming muted as she let out the pain.

….

…

..

That night, Marcus found it hard to sleep. At first, he had thought it was because of how cold it was that night. He was covered under a comforter and a blanket and it was still cold. At one point, he hoped some music could do the trick. But after listening through the majority of his playlist, Marcus was still awake, staring up at the ceiling in the darkness of his room. As the instrumental to the next song began, Marcus's mind started to drift. His thoughts rolled back to when they all returned home.

After the announcement about Owen's death, the five teens returned home. It wasn't like Perry cared if they left. Plus, school was the last thing on any of their minds. Instead, they went home together, the walk silent safe a few short, broken breaths. Bree had tried her best to keep it together, but once she was met by Tasha and Davenport's concerned looks, she lost it.

Death might not have been a new concept for them, but from what Marcus observed, this was probably the first time it hit so close. The two adults tried as best they could to help the teens understand it. They were all gathered in the living room, Bree nestled protectively between Tasha and Davenport while the boys gave them space.

"When Leo's father died," Tasha began, her tone soft as she held onto Bree. "Things were…difficult," Tasha continued. She turned to her son, her hand resting gently on his hand. "Leo was only a year old. I could barely hold onto a job. Waking up was the hardest part. I always expected him to be there when I woke up, and when he wasn't…"

This time it was Leo who placed a comforting hand on his mother's hand. She smiled at him, inhaling a shaky breath before continuing.

"Bree, loosing someone you love, it hurts. And I'm so sorry you had to go through this. And I wish I could tell you it gets easier, but sometimes…It'll just take time, Sweetie."

"When does it stop hurting?" Bree had asked.

"That's the thing about loss, Bree," Davenport said quietly. "Loosing someone you love. It doesn't. Yes, time will make it better things better, but it'll still hurt. It's what makes you guys human. Knowing loss and learning how to deal with it. How you deal, coup, and move on after, that'll be your toughest challenge."

"What if I can't?"

"You can. We'll be with you every step of the way."

He didn't know why, but there was a part of him that had agreed. The thought felt…foreign to him. It wasn't like he didn't understand the concept of death. People died, that was the fact of life. Part of him, the part ruled by bionics and controlled by an outsider, told him that he had no reason to care. Not about Owen or Bree's feelings. Getting emotional about was a sign of weakness. And weakness was how you ended up dead. But then there was another part of him, the part hidden deep beneath all the bionics, that felt like he should mourn. That it was ok to be emotional and that it was ok to care about someone else's pain. It was the human thing to do. The right things to do.

Maybe living with the Davenports had made him too soft.

With a sigh, Marcus turned over in his bed, his eyes falling on the empty capsule next to his. Checking the clock on his phone, he saw that it was almost 11:30 at night. He had thought Chase would have come to bed a while ago. Marcus sat up, headphones still blaring music in his ears. He looked around curiously and when he didn't fine Chase, he just shrugged.

"He's probably just doing some college calculus again," Marcus said to himself. He pulled himself out of bed and walked out of the room on a hunt for his roommate. The last thing he wanted was for a tired Chase to come stumbling into their room in them middle of the night. Stepping into the hall, Marcus was met by a bitter chill. He rubbed his arms quickly before walking down the hall.

He barely made it down the hall when he found Chase.

To his surprise, Bree's bedroom door was open, giving him few of the chaos within. Scattered on the floor were broken dolls, torn clothing, and a photo album. But Marcus's attention was more focused on the pile of bodies around Bree's capsule. Bree was nestled between Adam, Leo, and Chase, the boys forming some sort of weird human shield around her. Adam and Chase were on either side of her with Leo draped over Adam. Marcus stood at the door dumbfounded. He wondered when the guys decided to do this.

Watching them sleep, he felt more like an outsider than before. Here they were, helping Bree sleep, while Marcus just laid in bed listening to music. A bitter laugh escaped his lips.

He stepped away, his feet moving before his brain caught up with it. He walked down the hall, past his room, and kept going until he came to the linen closet. Opening it, he looked around until he found the perfect blanket. It was a large grey blanket, thick and made of soft wool, and just big enough to fit over a king-sized bed. It was just about the perfect size for the siblings. He walked back to Bree's room and carefully tried to lay it over them. He was just about finished when he accidentally brushed up against Bree.

"Marcus?"

"Oh. I'm sorry. I didn't mean to wake you up," he said as quietly as he could. He didn't want to wake anyone else. "You guys just looked cold so I…I'll leave."

A soft hand grabbed the hem of his pajama pants. He looked down to see Bree's puff eyes looking up at him.

"No. Stay. Please."

Marcus blinked. Once again, he felt like two parts of him were warring. One part told him he had no right to even answer her. He should just go back and leave her with her brothers. But another part, the one buried under logic and reason, wanted to agree.

He started to argue with himself when he looked down at her. Brown eyes met red, tear stained eyes. His heart fell. His walls started to crack. Time seem to go still as he stood there. In the end, he hung his head.

"Yeah. No problem, Bree," he said with a soft smile.

Careful not to wake anyone else, Marcus stepped around until he found a spot to lay down. He laid down on the carpeted floor, trying not to wake up Chase. Once he was settled, he tugged on the blanket. There was just enough to cover his torso. Yet for some reason, as he laid down next to the others, it didn't feel as cold.

"Must be their body heat," he said to himself.

Marcus waited until Bree fell back asleep before he too allowed sleep to take him.