As he sat beside V, leaning over, Vik tucked the blanket tightly around her, simulating a hug to help put her to sleep.
"You gotta go back to the clinic tonight, don't you?"
It didn't matter that her eyes were cybernetic, they looked puppy-like to him all the same. He realised the time, it was the slow hours on the slowest day of the week. The shop was locked, no bookings for another 2 days, walk-ins be damned.
"I don't have to, why you ask?"
"Was thinking, maybe we could chill? Could tell me about your past?"
"There's nothing interesting back there, trust me."
He tousled her hair away from her eyes again,
"The good parts of my life are now, here. The best are yet to come."
Surprisingly V didn't falter in eye contact, even when he witnessed the wave of crimson flow through her cheeks this time.
"Didn't take you for a poet, except I find everything about you interesting, so you can't say that so objectively here.."
Her words, manner of speaking even, sparked a thought, he halted her with his index finger,
"Gimme one sec,"
He rose from the edge of her bed, back to his doctor's bag once more, this time to retrieve his diagnostics terminal. As he stood in the middle of the apartment, in a triple XL borrowed band T and comfy oversized ladies sweatpants, he realized how tired he was of sleeping in the clinic, on a sofa instead of an actual bed. Alone.
It also dawned on him this was the first time since Jackie's ofrenda that he'd been outside the clinic, and that before then it'd been a few years as well. Though still not a fan of the mass of people on the streets, not living like a cave-locked hermit 24/7 did him well.
He gazed at the woman lounging in her bed, shyly waving at him, looking back at him as though he was attractive to her, desirable and intensely desired. The expression she directed at him had a certain train of thought start chugging through his head, raising hopes he never expected to have. At least, not at his age. Never before either did he beg for them to not get crushed. With leaden feet he returned to her, sitting down on the edge again, a different question than yearned for burning on his lips.
"Last one of the day. Can I have your wire?"
Hoping V would withdraw it for him, he was a little dazed to be presented with her open palm instead. His subconsciously sheepish stare was met by a heartwarming smile,
"It feels nice when you do it instead."
"I uh-, I'm flattered, V." The man held her dainty hand, wrist once more, took ahold of the plug with 2 fingers and pulled it out slower than he had before, hoping it'd lessen the effect she described earlier. Yet when he saw the intensifying blush under her averted gaze, Vik realized it might have inadvertently increased it instead.
Nervously looking away, he muttered,
"Sorry about that."
"Don't ever apologize for giving a girl a good time." Her eyes smiled along with her lips, it had him bite the inside of his cheek.
Browsing through her bio chem status analyses left him befuddled, none of it made sense before and even less so now. It'd only been a bit over an hour since he arrived, half when he sedated her. It wasn't supposed to fade this fast.
"Apparently, Miss V, you are stone cold sober."
"Why do you sound so surprised?"
Her grin was taunting him in a way, but he remained focused.
"Because once again, you've defied logic and science. Can I pass on these reports to my buddies in the R&D department of this drug? Think it'd be very important for them to know this about an already approved and published 'medicine'."
She released an utmost content sigh,
"If I can help science progress, fuck yeah, give them my love and gratitude."
As he was about to press send, she placed her hand on his wrist, adding on,
"Tell them to keep the high though… They'll make lots more Eddies with this as a party drug or marital aid, rather than a sedative."
Viktor wasn't sure yet if he regretted looking into her eyes. How was it possible that she kept on blindsiding the poor guy with information like this? Smiles like those? It seemed as a longer term aftereffect of the intoxication, the 'sedative' had shaken the woman loose somewhat. Curious to see, document, but mostly experience how lasting the effects were, he pushed himself forward,
"So, uh, Actual Sober V,"
"Yes, Dr. Vektor?"
"Considering you're stable now, pretty much back to normal, you're no longer my patient. If you'd like we could discuss some of those topics?"
Her smile faded, brow furrowed somewhat,
"I need to confess something first, Vik, about what really happened today."
"Will I get angry?" He semi jokingly queried, but her sincerity had her miss his raised brow this time.
"Maybe, I hope not. I'd deserve part of it though."
"Alright, the suspense is taking years off my life, please spill it already." He put the diagnostics terminal on the shelf by the foot end, now sat with legs crossed on the bed.
She took a deep breath as she watched him lean in for the news,
"Johnny caused the lock up against my will, he'd been digging around in my subconscious, found a few... fantasies, that I have. About us."
V got too afraid to keep eye contact halfway through, skin running hot again but less than before, heart racing with anxiety and shame.
"Okay, I'm glad you're honest with me now, and… well, not to blow my own horn but you're not the first pretty and young woman fantasizing about yours truly. Actually had a stalker at some point."
His attempt at lowering tensions bore fruit as she relaxed, even snickered a bit.
"But something is telling me this ain't all of it."
For a brief moment a smile tugged at the corners of her lips,
"Johnny also found out that it's my birthday today, thought it'd be a nice surprise to help realize one of those fantasies. So far today's only brought me more stress and regret than usual though."
V covered her face, spoke through her hands for a bit,
"Can't believe I went with his lie, I'm sorry Vik. You're the last person who deserves to be fooled like that!"
She met, captivated and held his gaze with her confession.
"Not gonna lie, you'd make a pretty good actress. Apology accepted. Humor me though, would you?"
"Sure, owe you nothing but truth." She shrugged, relieved he held no grudge, grateful for his understanding instead.
"When did those fantasies of yours come into existence? You've been hiding any attraction pretty well. Was there something I did that made me attractive at some point?"
She couldn't believe the skepticism in his demeanor, his confusion,
"You're fucking kidding me, right? The moment Jackie introduced me to you, I thought 'Damn, that guy is fucking preem. Rad tats, patient, funny as fuck, built like a brick house, athletic, hol' up. Bastard's a Ripperdoc? With that voice? Such bedside manner. No way he's real. Too. Fucking. Perfect.'"
V's honest rambling had him laugh, something she hadn't enjoyed in a while.
"Then when I didn't 'wake up' in the chair, I figured, shit, I'm not dreaming."
His laughter died out naturally, except her expression and glossy eyes had him die inside.
"Wasn't until I saw what my terminal diagnosis did to you that I felt something... different? It hurt you and I hated myself for that. Never thought a man that godly could get so human over a silly girl like me."
A tear rolled onto her pillow, looking away she wiped the trail before he could,
"Then Jackie's ofrenda, that's when I gave in to the fantasies. You were such a wreck with his death, couldn't imagine how my death would hurt you if we were even closer. Then again, never thought I'd stand a chance with you. Nothing I could manage in life would make me deserving of your affection."
Her words expressed her innermost feelings, unaware they reflected many of his too,
"Ooh V, you sweet summer child." He placed his hand on hers, hoping to keep them from fiddling and to re-establish eye contact, which worked,
"Your body may hold only a handful of secrets from me, but even after 3 years I feel like your mind is still a mystery to me. Have I been that bad a friend?"
Now his eyes glistened, a ripple in his voice she'd only heard twice before.
"No, silly! Absolutely not!" She shot up straight, taking hold of Vik's hand with both of hers now, squeezing it reassuringly,
"You've been amazing, if anything I've been a secretive piece of shit."
"Get reckt, V. You've been doing the best you can, busy doing actual good around this hellhole city. I've pretty much secluded myself from it, from my own friends. I even forgot it was your birthday, you never forget mine."
The Doctor returned the squeeze, looking away himself now...
"Hey…" she lifted his chin, his eyes to meet hers,
"Don't fret about that, I've celebrated it exactly once in my life and that was because Misty forced Jackie to organize something."
"Only once and I missed it… I remember the e-vite, didn't come because it meant going outside. I'm sorry for that, hope I can make it up to you." He admitted to his shame, his bravery personally liberating and soon rewarded.
"None of us blamed or hated you for that, we knew. 'Sides… You've already more than made it up to me, you're here now. You came to my rescue." Her tiny, sad smile was hopeful, as honest as he was about to be.
His words surprising both of them,
"I came here because you needed me, V, but, I'd rather be in a place in life where I come and go because you want me to."
The woman was taken aback, again doubting whether what she was experiencing was reality or otherwise,
"Viktor Vektor, a-are you saying what I think you are? I mean, I just… am I dreaming again?"
She'd crept dangerously close to the edge of crying, feeling a disconnect grow between her body and her psyche. Johnny appeared on her sofa,
'Kid, if you don't kiss that guy right now, I'll take over your body and do it for you. I know that's not what you want.'
Vik caught her eyes dart from him to the other side of the room, but not back. It wasn't until he brushed a tear or two from her cheeks that she realized that not only he'd been touching her face, cupping her cheek, she'd been crying somewhat.
"V, whatever he's saying, don't listen to him. Don't let him make you lose your mind."
She snapped back to their conversation,
"B-but he said-"
A taste of her own medicine was what she got, when he held her chin, thumb on her lips for silence,
"Doesn't matter what he says, only what we say... to each other. And I guess what I'm saying to you is, V, may I kiss you?"
His thumb barely brushed her lower lip as it departed her face.
'Y'know what? Guy's right, ignore me. This is way more romantic.'
"Shut the fuck up, Johnny," she snapped at the grinning engram on the sofa with a smile, then looked back at the chuckling man sitting on her bed,
"As for you?"
Her glare killed his chuckle but fueled his grin, it didn't necessarily scare or frighten him, but he was definitely a little anxious to find out where this would lead. V's hands moved on from his, finding their way to the sides of his head. He could feel her heartbeat through her fingertips, her grip on him delicate yet firm, her aura fiercely determined. With burning cheeks and pounding chest he watched her move closer, feeling himself get pulled in as well. The man would gladly go any distance she'd point to, as long as she'd be there with him.
And there she was, purring under his own fingertips, her lips put to his, positively shocking him. So much for Anti-Static Shower gel… Vik may or may not have had the occasional stray thought over the years, such as, what do her lips feel like? Taste like? How would they move with his own? He was ecstatic with his findings, being heavenly, delectable, and harmonious respectively. This moment created such a high in Vik, with not only his serotonin but oxytocin spiking as well. Fuck, did he miss those chems. Leaning on his left hand, right hand in her hair, he made his way to her on his knees. All whilst she'd been pulling him farther onto the bed, onto her as she laid back down.
The Doctor felt insanely powerful, as despite being fully 'ganic he now straddled the most dangerous woman in all of Night City, trapped under a blanket and between his well defined thighs. Glad to notice she seemed to enjoy the developing situation just as profoundly. The last time he was this exuberantly lustful, he was a teenager, and being with her brought all those delicious feelings back. Neither wanted to close their eyes but with them shut, everything else felt so much more intense.
With the young woman's wrists now held captive, her mind captivated, he took her breath and smile by breaking off their kiss.
"So, tell me Viky, what are some of the secrets my body still holds from you?"
"Well there's a few less now, but one is how several other parts of it taste. Another is how it feels on the inside, and also," he moved in a little to taunt her,
"what sounds could I have it make when I am feeling it on the inside?"
"I could let you know right now what sounds it makes from just being close to you like this."
"Ooh? Do tell, please."
V beckoned him close enough for more than just whispering into his ear,
"Take me wherever you want, but it better be right now."
A man like him didn't need to be told twice, he tore the blankets off of her. Seconds before they started tearing her place apart, he held and halted her, whispering back before stealing another kiss,
"Happy birthday, V…"
