"You know you don't have to wait for us."
M21 looked up at Tao. The hacker was drying his hair, his white strand of hair blending with the dark tufts on his head. The shoulders of the white t-shirt he usually wore after a medical checkup was damp from the water dripping from his hair.
Tao smiled at M21's confused stare. "You don't have to wait whenever we are going through our medical tests."
M21 glanced back at the large medical tubes that usually held his companions. Takeo was still suspended in the liquid, his eyes closed with the breathing mask over his face. Frankenstein was on the far side of the room going over whatever data he was collecting.
"I know," M21 said softly. He leaned his head against the glass tube that Tao had once occupied. From where he was sitting, he could still watch Takeo. Hugging his knees to his chest, he sighed. "It just makes me feel better."
Tao cocked his head, watching.
Medical presigers and checkups always evoked a sense of fear in M21. He would watch his companions in the Union enter labs, only to come out in body bags. They would be suspended in liquid, and M21 would wait, hoping that everyone would come out alive and survive the next experiment with him. Oftentimes, the tubes were empty, never to be refilled again.
Frankenstein never did any experiments that would jeopardize their lives, and M21 trusted him. Still, it frightened him whenever he saw Tao and Takeo's still forms in the liquid, their eyes closed and their bodies limp. He couldn't help but fear that the next time they left the lab, M21 would be leaving the lab alone.
So instead, he opted to watch. He never strayed too far, often curled up right next to the medical tubes or sitting nearby, his gaze never leaving his companions.
Tao moved to sit down right next to M21, the towel tossed casually over his shoulders. With a grunt, the hacker wiggled around until he got comfortable. He rested his head on M21's shoulder, sighing.
M21 grunted. "You're wet." He flicked a strand of Tao's dark hair.
Tao chuckled, straightening up. "I'm clean."
M21 looked away, focusing his attention on Takeo. "You don't have to wait with me."
"Sure I do. We'll wait together." Tao squirmed. "Maybe I'll get some cushions for the future as well. My butt is getting sore. Is your butt sore?"
M21 sighed. "You've only just sat down." Still, he smiled, finding comfort in the company of his companion. Perhaps he watched them in the lab because he also liked being near them as well. The fear was never gone, but the companionship never left him.