1. Belongs: The universe and characters of Detroit Become Human belong to Quantic Dreams and David Cage.

2. Rating: "T" in general, but might be "M" for cursed words, graphics contents such as violence, injuries, or sexual scenes.

3. Summary: Nines drives them back home right after their meeting with Markus at New Jericho. As the two lovers are finally alone together, Gavin confesses his worries about Nines' behavior, and the android tells him the truth about what had happened in the archives' room at the precinct. Exhausted and emotionally unstable, Gavin just gives up on his composure and lets Nines take care of him.

Note: Hello there ! I managed to be back a week later ! I can't promise I will keep that rate, but I'll try ! Thanks for everything and enjoy this chapter !


CHAPTER 24
« Promises. »

- May 15, 2039, 04:47, Corktown Ring Road -

Nines decided to drive back from New Jericho because Gavin was physically incapable of doing so, cause he was really exhausted. Obviously, the human had protested and said he was perfectly fit to drive up to Stradford Tower.

When Nines had explained Collin's plan, the Dolphin Attack, and the Stradford Tower to him, Gavin had felt a surge of adrenaline and a sudden motivation to resume the case.

But Nines knew his human too well, and that unexpected motivation had drained all of the detective's remaining energy in a matter of minutes, and currently, Gavin was asleep against the window in the passenger front seat.

Nines had no intention of driving them to Stradford Tower, as it was way too late first, and Collin wouldn't act at such a time of the night. If he wanted to reach the deviants, Collin would have to wait until he got an audience, and for that, he would have to at least wait for the hour of the first shows, which usually aired early in the morning. Then Jocelyn had clarified that Collin had also been affected by the Kamikaze virus, so there was little chance that he would also take action in the coming day. And because he also needed time to recover from this failure.

No, Nines knew tonight wouldn't be the big night, and Gavin mostly needed a rest.

After driving a few more minutes, Nines parked the car in the parking lot of the residence where Gavin lived, then turn off the engine. The sudden silence gently woke his human, who blinked for a few seconds before sitting up and observing his surroundings so he could locate himself. When he didn't recognize the large parking lot at Stradford Tower, Gavin glanced at Nines, confused.

"He won't take action tonight, Gavin…" Nines said, understanding his question without even the human needing to open his mouth. "No one is up at this hour to listen to the signal being broadcast by the antenna, because there is no program at the moment, precisely. And he was also affected by his attack on Jack, he won't do anything tonight or the next day. "

"But we should take advantage of him being weakened to intercept him..!"

"Gavin… can you hear yourself ..?" Nines said softly, a worried look on his face. "We can't intercept him, we don't know where he is. You would know if you were sufficiently rested, and have a clear mind. Waiting so early on his next attack's place could scare him away and cause him to completely change tactics, and then it will be back to square one for us, and we just don't have time for that. But we have it now so that you can sleep and recover from this evening which has been very trying for you. Try to be reasoned ... Please ..." He fixed his gaze on his, filled with concern but at the same time tenderness. "Gavin..."

Gavin sighed and rubbed his eyes before nodding. Nines was right, and he was far too tired to think rationally. Jack's involvement made this personal, and Gavin knew that if he allowed himself to be overwhelmed by his emotions, he would no longer be able to act professionally and the case might be taken from him. He would never forgive himself for such a thing just because of a lack of sleep. He didn't want to lose his badge for such a stupid thing either.

"Okay… let's go home…"

Nines let out a sigh of relief and smiled before leaning over his lover to kiss him tenderly on the surface, but long enough to leave Gavin slightly panting.

"On one condition," Gavin resumed, fixing his gaze on the vigilante. "That you sleep with me and stay against me all night..."

Nines smiled more before kissing him again more openly, letting his feelings pour through the kiss. Gavin smiled softly against his lips and slowly pulled away to catch his breath.

"Alright then..."

And they both finally got out of the car to enter the residence and take the elevator to the fourth floor, where the detective's apartment was located. Once inside, and the human closed the apartment behind them, he finally dared to ask the question that had been itching for a while now.

"Nines," he began, removing his jacket. "I would like you to answer me honestly. Ever since you came back from the archive room, you've been acting weird. Then when we left New Jericho, everything seemed to be better but ... I'd wished to know what had happened. You didn't say anything during the drive down the District, I'm sure that has something to do... "

Nines nodded, realizing that Gavin was worried about him. Lying to him, even by omission, didn't help, because he knew that Gavin was stubborn and that he would have found out for himself at some point. Better to be honest from the start, because he didn't want to see his lover feel betrayed or feel like he had played on him in any way.

Then Nines also didn't like when Gavin lied to him or forgot to tell him some things, so he wasn't going to do that to his lover either.

"Well, um…" the vigilante began looking down, still ashamed, "searching into Jack's memory when I was alone downstairs, I got affected by the virus through his recordings, because I am deviant… "

"W-What ..?" Gavin wanted to burst out in anger but he didn't even have the energy to do it anymore. So he just looked at him unarmed, the urge to cry suddenly pressing and inevitable. "Fuck…" he said, pinching the bridge of his nose. "W-Why are you… C-Come on, N-Nines ..!" His voice broke and his throat tightened in emotion. "Why .. didn't you tell me ..? "

"I didn't want to worry about anything. My system immediately quarantined the virus, so I was not in danger. But Jocelyn, the TA900 I told you about earlier, took care of removing it from my system. "

Gavin moved closer to him to take his face in his hands and fix his eyes on his.

"You're out of danger, right ..?" His android nodded. "Promise me..."

" I promise you… "

Gavin took a deep breath, his breath was ragged, but nodded before putting his fingers on either side of the mask to remove it. He put it on his kitchen counter before turning back to his android to put his arms around his neck and come to kiss him tenderly, closing his eyes, and pressing his body against his.

Nines readily responded to the hug and kiss, letting his hands slide down in the small of his back, and gently snapping his lips between his.

Silence reigned in the apartment, but their breaths and the faint, damp sounds of their kisses bore witness to their presence and their feelings for each other.

Gavin slid his tongue between Nines' lips to explore his mouth, which the android accepted without resistance, also letting his tongue join his twin in a passionate dance. Everything suddenly seemed to intensify from the wet, electrifying contact, as their breaths staggered, their kisses intensified, and their bodies desperately sought to squeeze more together.

Gavin must have reluctantly parted ways with his completely panting lover, his cheeks on fire and his heart pounding in his chest. He closed his eyes and pressed his forehead to Nines's, the two of them trying to calm themselves down to better ground themselves in reality.

"Don't hide anything from me, please…" Gavin whispered, placing a chaste kiss on Nines' lips, his eyes still closed. "Don't lie to me anymore ..."

"I promise you, Gavin…" His lover replied in the same tone and kissing him as a promise. " I am sorry… "

Gavin gently shook his head, his eyes still closed, then lifted his forehead from his to relax a bit. The human took his hand and guided them to his room, before closing it behind them. They undressed each other, looking at each other's eyes shining with tenderness and emotion.

They slipped into the cool sheets of the bed, and immediately Gavin snuggled up in Nines' arms, who hugged him gently.

"We're going to manage to stop Collin, right?" Gavin whispered, his head against Nines' chest.

"We'll stop him, I promise ..." His lover whispered against his hair before placing a kiss on the top of his head.

"And Connor ..? "

Nines broke off the pettings he had unconsciously started on his human's back when he realized he hadn't really thought about Connor.

"If Connor is deviant, it'll be like… murder, right? Especially since he's innocent, unlike Collin ... "

"Because you think killing him is the only way ?" Nines asked calmly but still surprised that the detective hadn't thought of going through the conventional court process.

"Do you have another solution?" Gavin said, lifting his chin to watch him, eyes glistening with fatigue in the dark. "He's a machine, and androids rights apply only to deviants. Then imprisoning a machine would be pointless. Because of the longevity of your batteries, you can run for over a century if you don't suffer any damage. Collin would just wait in a rusting cell, waiting for his battery to stop working and everything else to seize up. Then who knows, in a hundred years an idiot could release him from his cell not knowing why he was there in the beginning, and Collin would start over again ..? "

"Hm, I understand yes ..." Nines conceded. His blue LED dotted with yellow was the only real light source in the room, and Gavin had his eyes locked on it. "Could I try to reach him and deviate him?"

Gavin sighed before repositioning his head against Nines' shoulder, burying his face in the crook where his shoulder and neck met.

"Machines cannot be judged for the crimes they have committed, because they are considered objects in the absence of the RA9 virus… You don't put a coffee machine on trial, you get the idea?" Nines nodded, understanding the image without being offended at all. "If he becomes deviant, then he will be judged as a human would be if he is the victim of a psychological disorder. In a way, he wouldn't be fully held responsible, but he would end up in a psychiatric penitentiary anyway. "

"There has never been such precedent with androids ..." Nines remarked. "There is no psychiatric penitentiary for androids ..."

"It's true," Gavin replied, pursing his lips. "Whether he remains a machine, whether he is patient in a cell until the end of his days, or whether he pretends to be an insane deviant, in any case, he will end up deactivated ... And I don't see any solution for Connor, I admit… "

"Maybe transfer Connor to another body?"

"Did you see how complicated it looked with North already, and how it's going to be a challenge for Jack too? Then if Collin has been corrupted by Connor, who says that by extracting Connor, he won't have a part of Collin still clinging to him ..? It's the snake that bites its tail, over and over again... "

Nines let out a long sigh. He was so hopeful, deep inside, that he could free Collin from his programming, or free Connor from Collin's grip, but the situation seemed far more complicated than he thought.

He still wanted to try and deviate Collin when the opportunity arises, and if the RK800 realizes his actions and regrets them, then maybe Nines would help him escape and disappear to survive.

Nines sighed again, slightly discouraged but not beaten. He tightened his arms around his lover before kissing his forehead.

"We'll see later… In the meantime, try to get some sleep…"

"Hmm..."

Pressed together, arms around their waists and legs tangled together, Gavin began to fall asleep, exhausted from the events. The warmth of Nines's body made him feel like he was in a bubble of comfort, secure, in which he could let go without fear.

For a moment, tears resurfaced thinking of Jack, but Markus was going to do whatever he could to save him. The worst part of it all had been Nines. He could have lost him in seconds, too, and the thought clenched his stomach as his breath caught in his throat.

It had been months since he had loved the vigilante, only a couple of months that they had actually come into contact, only a few weeks that they had worked together, and only a few days had they been openly engaged in a romantic relationship.

Gavin was already very attached to Nines, and he absolutely didn't want to lose him. No. Never. Nines was his everything now, his anchor, and he gave meaning to his life. He hoped deep down that the android would love him too, for as long as possible.

Gavin squeezed into Nines, who readily responded to the hug.

"I-I love you, Nines…" Gavin whispered between sobs he couldn't hold back anymore. "A-And I don't w-want to l-lose you ..."

"I'm here, Gavin…" Nines started to draw circles in his back to comfort him. "Nothing will happen to me ..." He kissed his hair as his lover was curled up in his arms. "I love you too… I will do anything to make sure everything goes well… I will stay with you…"

"F-Forever ..?" Gavin asked in an innocent little voice, sobbing softly.

Nines tightened his arms around his body more tightly without hurting him, realizing how very emotionally fragile his human had become and that he needed to protect him at all costs.

"Forever, yes ..."

Gavin let the pressure suddenly release as he let his sobs double but finally breathing deeply, the anguish having been replaced by deep relief.

It lasted a few more minutes, but he needed to let go, and the only place he felt secure enough to do so was right where he was now: in Nines's arms.

After a while, his tears had stopped running down his face to leave only wet furrows on his cheeks, and the fatigue, as well as the tears, left Gavin numb. He eventually fell asleep, completely stunned from his tumultuous emotions and past events, his body pressed against his android, as if to keep him from leaving.

But Nines obviously stayed there, holding him through the night to reassure him and make sure he was getting enough sleep. He stayed there to cuddle him, kiss his face, caress his body so that his lover would feel safe and loved.

Especially the latter.

Nines had no idea he could love Gavin this much.