Time frame: Directly following Part 5
Disclaimer: I don't own any of these characters, etc. etc.
Dangerous Games 6: Advice
Straightening up, Max walked away with a swing in her stride. Reaching the door, she turned back to Logan with an unholy grin. "See you later."
Logan watched the door close behind her. He stopped trying to control his own grin, and wheeled himself over to his computer. He got a few minutes into his research before his mind started to wander.
//Dinner. Dinner and... And I never talked to Max about the shots. Pills, that's it, I should track down the pills. That's a little easier to explain. Or easier to swallow. Logan, stop making bad jokes to yourself and get moving.//
Logan picked up the phone and started calling his way through his medical contacts. And then his black-market contacts. Viagra, it seemed, was harder to locate than a Manticore escapee. Finally a contact of a contact offered a deal. "I need a disc," he said. "Somehow I, let's say, accidentally locked it in my old office. Simple security system, no guards, but it's on the eighth floor and my old bones aren't up to climbing the stairs. I give you the address, and we exchange the disc for the pills." Logan grabbed a pen.
//And my not-so-old bones aren't up to climbing the stairs either. Damn.//
"Give me the info and let me see what I can do. I'll get back to you if the pickup goes through." Logan wrote down the addresses and hung up the phone.
//And I can hardly send Max. Maybe Bling is up for a little walk.//
Logan put the situation out of his mind for the moment, returning to his research. Not much to go on before the meeting the next day, but it was always best to have the groundwork finished. He was saving a few final files as Bling arrived. "Bling, good to see you, let's get to work," he said, shutting down the computer and heading towards the therapy area.
"Your mood has improved since the last time I saw you," Bling observed. "Made up with Max, did you?"
"You could say that." Logan tried to keep a straight face and failed utterly.
Bling looked at him for a second and raised an eyebrow. "So Max finally got you to give it up, huh?"
//Look at him all happy for once. I was starting to wonder if he had it in him.//
"That's one way to put it," Logan grinned. "And now I believe we have some therapy to do?"
//Max'll kill me if I say anything else about last night. Although getting Max upset could be interesting...//
"Since you have some extra motivation today, let's do some work on the parallel bars," Bling said. Logan winced. This was the part he hated most, using braces and parallel bars to hold himself in an upright position and "walk." Learning eventually to stand and ambulate on crutches. Later, he would be wired to a machine that would send electric shocks to his muscles, and essentially do the walking for him. After all this work, he would find himself right back in the chair where he started. No real walking, no difference to the way his lower body felt once the equipment was taken away. He needed the standing therapy to maintain muscle tone, improve strength, and keep all the rest of his systems functioning. But still, he hated it.
//I'm getting used to the perspective from down here. Rather not be reminded of what things used to look like.//
"Do we need to do this today? I get dizzy," Logan said. "I'm afraid of heights."
"You're not that tall," Bling replied. "The vertigo will pass in a few minutes. Besides, you want to keep your legs looking pretty for Max, don't you? As well as keeping the rest of your lower body working at it's best..."
Logan got the point. And got himself into the braces and onto the bars.
"In fact," Bling continued, "you should be getting as much practice with the braces as possible. I'm sure Max would help out, if I showed her what to do."
"No way," Logan retorted. "Not in front of Max. Keeping my legs in shape is fine. But other than that, Bionic Boy wasn't exactly the look I had in mind."
"Why, you think a genetically engineered female is going to object to a bionic male?," Bling asked. "Max has more technology in her body than even you can afford."
Logan shook his head. "That doesn't mean she's got a thing for metal and plastic."
//And it doesn't mean I've got a thing for letting her see me struggle. The blood transfusion was enough. Never again.//
"I think you need to give Max more credit than that," Bling stated calmly. "She's a good girl, she's been battling her own body all her life. She's not going to run away from you over something like this."
//Bet Max had to haul him into the bedroom. Always liked that girl.//
Logan chose not to respond, focusing instead on the exercise, with some effort keeping his mind on his own body and not Max's. He pushed himself, working up a sweat, until Bling called for a break. Logan decided it was time to bring up the question at hand. "Bling, I managed to track down some of that Viagra you've mentioned."
Bling nodded. "That's hard to find. Black market?"
"Kind of," Logan replied. "Actually more of a private trade. This guy needs me to pick up something for him in exchange. And Bionic Boy just isn't up to the challenge. I was wondering if you could spare an hour."
//I'll just sit here looking wistful and pitiful and maybe he'll do it.//
Bling just looked at him, not buying the puppy dog face. "Pick up meaning 'pick up,' or meaning 'disarm the security system, climb the wall, crawl in through a window, and then pick up?'"
//All this time and he still thinks he can pull one over on me by looking helpless.//
"The latter," Logan said carefully. " Not a high-risk situation, but not exactly legal either."
Bling laughed. "So ask Max to do it. Legality's never been her strong suit. Besides, she's got a vested interest in the outcome."
"Uh, no," Logan disagreed. "Let's leave Max out of this one."
"Then you can leave me out of this one, too," Bling countered. "Leaving Max out is a mistake. Let her help you out for once. You, Logan Cale, not Eyes Only."
"And why would she want to do that?" Logan asked.
Bling shrugged. "She's female."
//And this guy was married?//
Logan was getting annoyed. "Bling, I think at this point you can stop reminding me of that."
Bling shrugged again. "Apparently not."
Logan chose to ignore him. "So I'll find someone else to get me the pills. Let's just get back to work, I've got a few more reps in me."
Bling figured Logan had other things to take care of today. "Love the enthusiasm but don't tire yourself out. We'll work again tomorrow. Tonight you have a date."
//Now's when he says "It's not a date."//
"It's not a date," Logan said automatically.
"I'm going to assume that was a reflex," Bling replied. "It is a date and you know it. Speaking of which, you are not throwing on a pair of jeans and handing her a plate of food, are you?"
"Why not?" Logan asked. "This is Max we're talking about here. She doesn't like fuss. Besides, I don't want to make a big deal about it. It'll make her uncomfortable."
//Although she's cute when she's uncomfortable.//
"I can't believe I have to say this again." Bling enunciated, "She's. Female."
Logan raised an eyebrow. "So you're saying that because she's female, I should send her to steal a disc, exchange it for my pills, and then dress up and greet her with champagne and black-market strawberries?"
"I think you've finally got the idea," Bling said approvingly. "And I'll leave you to get to work." Logan watched Bling collect his things and walk out the door before he turning back towards his desk.
//Fine. I'll ask her to do the pickup but I'm not telling her why. This is not a conversation I want to have over the phone.//
Champagne and black market strawberries and black market pills. Maybe Bling had a point. Logan picked up the phone and dialed Max's pager number from memory. Listening to the familiar beep, he smiled.
Disclaimer: I don't own any of these characters, etc. etc.
Dangerous Games 6: Advice
Straightening up, Max walked away with a swing in her stride. Reaching the door, she turned back to Logan with an unholy grin. "See you later."
Logan watched the door close behind her. He stopped trying to control his own grin, and wheeled himself over to his computer. He got a few minutes into his research before his mind started to wander.
//Dinner. Dinner and... And I never talked to Max about the shots. Pills, that's it, I should track down the pills. That's a little easier to explain. Or easier to swallow. Logan, stop making bad jokes to yourself and get moving.//
Logan picked up the phone and started calling his way through his medical contacts. And then his black-market contacts. Viagra, it seemed, was harder to locate than a Manticore escapee. Finally a contact of a contact offered a deal. "I need a disc," he said. "Somehow I, let's say, accidentally locked it in my old office. Simple security system, no guards, but it's on the eighth floor and my old bones aren't up to climbing the stairs. I give you the address, and we exchange the disc for the pills." Logan grabbed a pen.
//And my not-so-old bones aren't up to climbing the stairs either. Damn.//
"Give me the info and let me see what I can do. I'll get back to you if the pickup goes through." Logan wrote down the addresses and hung up the phone.
//And I can hardly send Max. Maybe Bling is up for a little walk.//
Logan put the situation out of his mind for the moment, returning to his research. Not much to go on before the meeting the next day, but it was always best to have the groundwork finished. He was saving a few final files as Bling arrived. "Bling, good to see you, let's get to work," he said, shutting down the computer and heading towards the therapy area.
"Your mood has improved since the last time I saw you," Bling observed. "Made up with Max, did you?"
"You could say that." Logan tried to keep a straight face and failed utterly.
Bling looked at him for a second and raised an eyebrow. "So Max finally got you to give it up, huh?"
//Look at him all happy for once. I was starting to wonder if he had it in him.//
"That's one way to put it," Logan grinned. "And now I believe we have some therapy to do?"
//Max'll kill me if I say anything else about last night. Although getting Max upset could be interesting...//
"Since you have some extra motivation today, let's do some work on the parallel bars," Bling said. Logan winced. This was the part he hated most, using braces and parallel bars to hold himself in an upright position and "walk." Learning eventually to stand and ambulate on crutches. Later, he would be wired to a machine that would send electric shocks to his muscles, and essentially do the walking for him. After all this work, he would find himself right back in the chair where he started. No real walking, no difference to the way his lower body felt once the equipment was taken away. He needed the standing therapy to maintain muscle tone, improve strength, and keep all the rest of his systems functioning. But still, he hated it.
//I'm getting used to the perspective from down here. Rather not be reminded of what things used to look like.//
"Do we need to do this today? I get dizzy," Logan said. "I'm afraid of heights."
"You're not that tall," Bling replied. "The vertigo will pass in a few minutes. Besides, you want to keep your legs looking pretty for Max, don't you? As well as keeping the rest of your lower body working at it's best..."
Logan got the point. And got himself into the braces and onto the bars.
"In fact," Bling continued, "you should be getting as much practice with the braces as possible. I'm sure Max would help out, if I showed her what to do."
"No way," Logan retorted. "Not in front of Max. Keeping my legs in shape is fine. But other than that, Bionic Boy wasn't exactly the look I had in mind."
"Why, you think a genetically engineered female is going to object to a bionic male?," Bling asked. "Max has more technology in her body than even you can afford."
Logan shook his head. "That doesn't mean she's got a thing for metal and plastic."
//And it doesn't mean I've got a thing for letting her see me struggle. The blood transfusion was enough. Never again.//
"I think you need to give Max more credit than that," Bling stated calmly. "She's a good girl, she's been battling her own body all her life. She's not going to run away from you over something like this."
//Bet Max had to haul him into the bedroom. Always liked that girl.//
Logan chose not to respond, focusing instead on the exercise, with some effort keeping his mind on his own body and not Max's. He pushed himself, working up a sweat, until Bling called for a break. Logan decided it was time to bring up the question at hand. "Bling, I managed to track down some of that Viagra you've mentioned."
Bling nodded. "That's hard to find. Black market?"
"Kind of," Logan replied. "Actually more of a private trade. This guy needs me to pick up something for him in exchange. And Bionic Boy just isn't up to the challenge. I was wondering if you could spare an hour."
//I'll just sit here looking wistful and pitiful and maybe he'll do it.//
Bling just looked at him, not buying the puppy dog face. "Pick up meaning 'pick up,' or meaning 'disarm the security system, climb the wall, crawl in through a window, and then pick up?'"
//All this time and he still thinks he can pull one over on me by looking helpless.//
"The latter," Logan said carefully. " Not a high-risk situation, but not exactly legal either."
Bling laughed. "So ask Max to do it. Legality's never been her strong suit. Besides, she's got a vested interest in the outcome."
"Uh, no," Logan disagreed. "Let's leave Max out of this one."
"Then you can leave me out of this one, too," Bling countered. "Leaving Max out is a mistake. Let her help you out for once. You, Logan Cale, not Eyes Only."
"And why would she want to do that?" Logan asked.
Bling shrugged. "She's female."
//And this guy was married?//
Logan was getting annoyed. "Bling, I think at this point you can stop reminding me of that."
Bling shrugged again. "Apparently not."
Logan chose to ignore him. "So I'll find someone else to get me the pills. Let's just get back to work, I've got a few more reps in me."
Bling figured Logan had other things to take care of today. "Love the enthusiasm but don't tire yourself out. We'll work again tomorrow. Tonight you have a date."
//Now's when he says "It's not a date."//
"It's not a date," Logan said automatically.
"I'm going to assume that was a reflex," Bling replied. "It is a date and you know it. Speaking of which, you are not throwing on a pair of jeans and handing her a plate of food, are you?"
"Why not?" Logan asked. "This is Max we're talking about here. She doesn't like fuss. Besides, I don't want to make a big deal about it. It'll make her uncomfortable."
//Although she's cute when she's uncomfortable.//
"I can't believe I have to say this again." Bling enunciated, "She's. Female."
Logan raised an eyebrow. "So you're saying that because she's female, I should send her to steal a disc, exchange it for my pills, and then dress up and greet her with champagne and black-market strawberries?"
"I think you've finally got the idea," Bling said approvingly. "And I'll leave you to get to work." Logan watched Bling collect his things and walk out the door before he turning back towards his desk.
//Fine. I'll ask her to do the pickup but I'm not telling her why. This is not a conversation I want to have over the phone.//
Champagne and black market strawberries and black market pills. Maybe Bling had a point. Logan picked up the phone and dialed Max's pager number from memory. Listening to the familiar beep, he smiled.