Standing behind the couch with his arms resting over the top of the furniture Hank looked down at Connor as the unconscious deviant remained silent and motionless while he laid over the length of the couch. It wasn't a graceful motion but Hank had managed to pick Connor up from the floor long enough to lay him down on the couch to rest more comfortably, and hopefully wake up after collapsing. It had been four hours since Connor went down and there was no sign of change from the deviant. Barely breathing and with his L.E.D. still glowing an angry red color Connor looked like he was either sick or comatose. Neither outcome seemed ideal, but as long as Connor's L.E.D. was still glowing any color whatsoever, and as long as he took in any breath. Hank couldn't exactly complain too much at the moment.

Steadily losing his patience with Connor and not wanting to wait any longer Hank pulled his phone from his pocket and gave Abby a quick call. It was the second time he had to contact her over any emergency situation that night, and if there was any mercy left in the world then it'd be the last. After explaining the situation to the technician and of Connor's current state Hank ended the call, let Sumo back inside the house, and began waiting for Abby's arrival.

Waiting by the front door as the evening turned to night and it neared ten o'clock Hank ignored the sound of Sumo's sad whimper as the old dog pawed at Connor's limp left hand as his left arm remained motionless and outstretched at his side. The right hand resting atop his abdomen made Connor look casual, as if he had chosen to lay down for a nap, but the red L.E.D. instantly shattered the false image in Hank's eyes.

"He'll be fine, Sumo."

The urge to go out and buy a beer, pop off the top and down the entire thing was painfully tempting in that dreadful moment. Reminding himself to stay sober because he's useless when he's drunk, and because he made a promise Hank remained by the front door, and let out a deep breath to calm his nerves.

"...At least he better be fine. Otherwise I'm back to square one of being a jackass with no one look out for, and you're stuck laying on your pillow all damn day."

A small blue car pulled into the driveway behind the Oldsmobile and Hank felt the tension in his shoulders begin to less only so slightly. Watching as Abby exited her car and walked up the somewhat snowy walkway with her emergency technician's satchel slung over her right shoulder the senior detective hoped that e made the right choice. Abby reached the front door of the house quickly and didn't even have to knock as Hank pulled it open for her, and invited her inside.

"Thanks for coming." Closing the door behind the technician Hank watched as she immediately honed in on Connor on the couch and went into full technician mode to assist the downed deviant. "Sorry about the late call."

"No worries, I was on my way home anyway. You can just get me some coffee and we'll call it even." Sitting down on the lounger section of the couch next to Connor's head Abby took a penlight from her satchel and gently lifted up his eyelids one at a time to check his pupils. "Normal reaction from his ocular units which means there's nothing wrong with his visual processors... That's a good sign."

Listening to the assessment as he walked into the kitchen Hank tried to not think about how Connor was suddenly sick and in need of an emergency house call. He tried not to think about Connor being sick at all. One of the hardest parts of being a parent was taking care of a sick child, and while Connor wasn't his child or a child in any capacity Hank couldn't help but compare Connor's age, naivety and lack of experiences to that of an innocent kid just trying to find his place in the always changing and confusing world.

Back in the livingroom Abby continued her assessment over Connor's condition with an expert eye and attention to detail. Loosening the knot on Connor's black tie she pulled the dressy garment from around the deviant's neck, then worked to carefully remove his gray blazer from around his upper body. Moving his arms one at a time through the sleeves Abby managed to remove the layer and place it with the tie on the coffee table beside her, Sumo taking interest in the garments with curious sniffs, and then focused on the gray vest.

"Man, you look good in a three piece suit but it's a pain in the ass for technician's to remove when you're completely passed out."

"I told him that vest thing was overkill, but he insisted on wearing it." Handing a white mug with fresh coffee to Abby from over the back of the couch Hank watched as the technician accepted the caffeinated beverage and took in a covetous sip. "Wasn't sure if you need anything added to it, so I left it black."

"Nah, as long as it's caffeinated then I'll drink it. I'm not that picky." Putting the mug on the end table next to the untouched bottle of Thirium Abby resumed removing the gray vest from Connor's person. With the final layer removed and laid out on the coffee table beside her Abby then unbuttoned the white dress shirt beneath to get to his chest to continue her examination. "So he said he felt 'wrong' and then collapsed?"

"Yeah. He hasn't been drinking his Thirium and I know he hasn't been sleeping well as of late."

"That helped narrow down my possible diagnosis. I just need to check a couple more things." Placing her satchel down on the floor beside her left leg Abby pulled out the audioscope, put the ear buds into place, and then gently pressed the metal bell against Connor's bare chest between the few buttons on the shirt that she had popped open. "Okay... Normal pump rhythm and it's beating in a stable rate and speed. Ventilation..." Moving the bell up slightly higher on his chest she moved it from left to right, then positioned it a little lower and repeated the left to right motion. "is normal as well. Slower than usual but still stable and is working at the proper rate to keep him from overheating."

"Not sure if it's important or not," rubbing his right palm over the back of his tense neck Hank gave Abby one other curious detail about Connor's condition as she worked to narrow down the cause of his collapse. "but he was crying just before he dropped. It wasn't from an emotional reaction or meltdown, or anything like that. He was just crying and then passed out."

"Crying? That's strange." Returning her audioscope to her satchel Abby retrieved the Thirium pressure cuff next and proceeded to unbutton the cuff around Connor's left wrist before rolling the sleeve up high enough to get to his bicep. "And he wasn't sad or angry or laughing hysterically?"

"No, nothing."

"If I'm right then I think I can fix the problem without needing to take him to a facility for treatment."

"What's up?"

Wrapping the Thirium cuff around Connor's now exposed bicep Abby waited for it to automatically tighten and give her a display of Connor's current Thirium pressure and volume. The digits on the display were amber in color as opposed to a healthy green, which indicated low pressure and volume, but it wasn't in a critical range. "Got it. Low Thirium pressure."

"From not drinking his Thirium when he needed it?"

"Bingo." Removing the cuff Abby sighed and pressed her left fingertips to Connor's glowing red L.E.D. as she pressed her right fingertips over the artificial skin in the bend of Connor's left arm to retract the skin manually. "I can give him a Thirium I.V. to bring him out of low power mode, and he can drink the rest of the Thirium he needs to recover."

"How long will that take?"

"The more advanced models usually take less cycles to process new Thirium, but with Connor being a prototype... I can't give you an exact time frame. Maybe an hour or two."

"I can work with that." Watching Abby open the panel in Connor's left arm to expose a main line Hank sighed and gave the deviant a somber glance. "What's with the crying?"

"Normally when an android cries..." Speaking calmly as she managed to easily secure the transfusion couple from the I.V. bag to the line in Connor's arm to give him the Thirium he desperately needed. "It's from sterilizing fluid removing debris from the surface of their ocular units, just like tears do to remove crud from our own eyes. But with deviants," squeezing the I.V. bag twice Abby watched as the Thirium began running from the bag, down the lines and into Connor's arm at a steady pace. "crying is connected to emotions just like humans, and can theoretically betray pent up emotions that deviants are trying to hide."

"Wait... What? Theoretically?"

"Deviancy has only just recently been recognized as a real phenomenon and not a glitch, which means studies on its effects are still scarce." Taping the line into place with medical adhesive Abby held the I.V. bag up and hooked the small support nodule over the lamp on the end table next to Connor's head to let gravity do its thing to keep the Thirium flowing. "It's been theorized that deviants who struggle with their emotions will refuse to acknowledge them and hold them in, kind of like teenagers who are struggling to deal with a sudden influx of hormones during puberty. In the end they have a physical response in the form of crying that helps them reduce their stress levels. Since Connor was already running on low power I imagine his stress levels were reaching critical levels and his collapse was the result of emergency stasis mode kicking on to keep his processors from overheating, and to prevent self destruction."

"Self destruction?" The memory of seeing their imposter suspect's final act of self destruction, and the memory of the suspect in the Carlos Ortiz murder that brought Connor and Hank together attempting to self destruct until Connor reasoned with him in the interrogation room, were all very vivid and unsettling. "I guess him passing out isn't so bad after all..."

"I know today was pretty stressful for you guys, but I'm guessing there's more stress that I'm unaware of."

"Something like that." Nodding at the deviant Hank tried to give Abby some additional details. "The kid has recurring nightmares and they tend to fuck him up from time to time when they get too real."

"Deviants and nightmares..." Giving the concept a little thought Abby pressed her right palm down over the center of Connor's chest to count his pulse while the additional Thirium was processed by his system. "I'll do some research into that and see if I can't figure something out for him."

Noticing the pulse check Hank gave Abby a worried stare. "Should I be aware of something with his pump?"

"No, it's just the only way to check a pulse on deviants." Removing her hand Abby took another sip of her coffee and set about packing up her satchel to leave now that she knew for certain Connor was stable. "Well, most deviants anyway."

"There's another way after all?"

"Only on Lucas."

"...Oh. Uh, why's that?"

"Lucas is officially the most advanced final design of the 'RK' series that CyberLife ever completed. As a result they managed to give him more humanoid features such as pulse points and the ability to grow facial hair."

"If Lucas grows a goatee or some shit then he's definitely going to get a reputation as Connor's 'evil twin'."

"How is Lucas doing? I haven't seen him since his initial check-up."

"Don't know. He's gone dark and is seeking isolation. All we do know for sure about him is he picked up playing the saxophone and is still in Detroit." Peering down at Connor's face and to the red L.E.D. glowing in his right temple somberly Hank tried to not think the worse of the deviant's potential fate. "What about him? How's he doing?"

"He'll wake up soon enough." Standing up from the lounger portion of the couch Abby slung her satchel back over her shoulder, gave Sumo's ears a gentle rub and then made her way toward the front door to leave. "Give him at least two hours to wake up, then get him to drink the Thirium he needs. If he stays out of it longer than that then give me another call."

"What if he doesn't drink the Thirium out of his sheer stubbornness?"

"Then call me over and I'll hold him down while you force that Thirium down his throat."

"Sounds like a plan. Thanks." Seeing Abby to the door Hank locked the door behind her and returned his full focus to Connor still unconscious on the couch. Walking over to the coffee table Hank picked up Connor's jacket, vest and tie to neatly hang-up in Connor's closet on the deviant's behalf. "Alright, kid. You just rest and I'll make sure nothing stupid happens to you while you're asleep. You need the rest."

Despite the late hour and being physically exhausted Gavin couldn't sleep. Every time he closed his eyes he saw the bloodied face of the deviant who chose to self destruct rather than face justice, and their opened and unseeing eyes were somehow boring holes into his mind. The horrid image was officially burned into his psyche and the abrasive detective had to admit that he wasn't invincible or immune to the macabre world around him. Sitting upright in his bed Gavin looked at his alarm clock still blinking in blue digits at midnight since he failed to reset the clock after the power returned the afternoon before, and decided to get up and find something to do until he finally passed out from exhaustion.

Wandering down his hallway Gavin noticed that Lucas, who had stayed in the warm apartment as he had been requested, was also still awake and sitting upright on the couch with his blanket wrapped around his shoulders and Lucky contentedly nestled on his lap as she managed to get some much coveted sleep. Almost surprised by the sight of another person awake in his apartment Gavin scoffed to subtly announce his presence before he trudged into his kitchen to grab a bottle of water from the refrigerator.

"Can't sleep?" Speaking up as he peered inside the refrigerator Gavin gauged how alert a sleepless deviant could be without getting too nosy. The glow of the light from within the refrigerator was the only light beyond Lucas's pulse blue L.E.D. throughout the entire apartment, and it made everything feel eerie.

"Evidently not," Lucas replied in a low tone as to not awaken the neighbors through the paper thin apartment walls. "and neither can you."

"You got that right." With his water in hand Gavin closed the refrigerator door and flipped on the livingroom lights with the switch against the wall. "What's keeping you awake?"

"You."

Almost choking on his sip of water Gavin gave Lucas an odd glance before finishing his drink and twisting the cap back onto the bottle. "...Me?"

"Yes."

"Why?"

"When you returned to the apartment I noticed that your stress levels were abnormally high, your pupils were slightly dilated, your irises were gazed over and your physical actions seemed more autonomous than being performed by any conscious decision."

"Meaning... what?"

"You are dangerously stressed out and in need of proper rest."

"Oh. Fuck, I could've told you that without any fancy-schmancy scanner." Walking over to the couch Gavin motioned with his free hand for Lucas to move over on the couch so he could sit down beside him. "Make room."

Lucas gave the abrasive detective an odd look but moved to the right and away from the center of the couch so Gavin could sit down on the furniture beside him, and managed to move without disturbing Lucky in the process.

"When did the power return to the apartment?"

"This afternoon at two forty-four. You fortunately didn't have any perishable food in your refrigerator that needed disposal. It's almost as if your poor diet was planned in advance for handling unfortunate circumstances regarding poor weather and extended power outages."

"Don't go snoopin' in my fridge. There's no android food in there."

"I've noticed. I ordered my necessary Thirium replenishment once delivery services were reinstated, and I took the liberty of ordering Lucky food that is far more beneficial to her developmental needs."

"Don't spoil my cat, either." Glancing at the kitten napping on Lucas's lap Gavin shook his head as if he had been betrayed by the ball of fuzz. "I don't want her to like you more than she likes me."

"I assure you that I'm only trying to ensure she is healthy, I'm not attempting to play favorites."

"Whatever you say..." Watching as Lucas subconsciously rubbed at the sleeping kitten's ears Gavin knew that the deviant was getting attached to the kitten. It seemed like all deviants preferred the company of animals over humans, and that was something Gavin could actually relate to. "So after this shitty winter ends where are you going to go?"

"I'll return to my empty lot on Baker Street and resume playing music to earn money."

"And then what? Play until you're the richest deviant in all of Detroit?"

"That's a very improbable and illogical choice for a means of consistent financial income."

"Then what're you going to do?"

Lowering his eyes to the livingroom floor Lucas noticed the poorly vacuumed carpet and chronicled all of the loose human hairs, cat hairs, dust mites, dirt, and dead skin embedded in the fibers. "...Unknown."

"Ha!" Removing the cap from his water again Gavin took a smug sip and gave Lucas an amused sneer. "So you plastic freaks don't have all the answers!"

"We never claimed such an impossibility."

"Uh-huh, whatever." Sighing a little Gavin located his laptop tucked protectively under the couch so Lucky couldn't lay on it or chew on the charging cable when he wasn't looking. Opening the device up he sat it down on his lap and opened up a browser revolving around available apartments in the city and sighed at the lack of positive options. "Shit..."

Noting the dour tone of frustration coming from Gavin's words Lucas cybernetically tapped into the laptop and tracked Gavin's recent search history. "It seems there are very few available apartments that meet your current search criteria."

"Hey!" Turning the laptop so the screen was at an angle and away from Lucas's line of sight entirely Gavin scolded the deviant for connecting to the device without his permission. "Don't do that shit to my laptop! You're a snoopy little bastard..."

"My apologies."

Giving the deviant an odd look an interesting question popped into Gavin's head. "...Do androids have problems with apartments?"

"I do not know."

"Why not?"

"I do not associate with other androids."

"So even plastic finds other plastic annoying! Man, I'm learning all kinds of satisfying shit tonight..." Sipping at his water again Gavin resumed his search for a far better apartment to move into, and found that all of the currently available apartments were either in a bad neighborhood or were far too expensive for a detective's salary. "Fuck me. I can never find anything when I search at night. Other people with normal day jobs and time off can go grab up the good ones while I'm busy saving their lives."

"If you'd like I can continuously monitor the housing market in the city and inform you when an apartment becomes available."

"Doesn't that seem like a waste of energy and time to you? I mean, you're a different version of Connor and I know that Connor was CyberLife's shining knight in plastic armor until he went deviant. Seems like your time could be better spent doing something more productive than finding me a not-so-shitty apartment."

"True. There are approximately two billion, six-hundred and fifty-three million, two-hundred and seven thousand, nine-hundred and six different activities I could be actively doing with my free time that would be far more productive than apartment hunting. And yet, I have chosen to to aid you in your search."

"...Why?"

"Because you have undoubtedly saved my life. As much as I've calculated the odds in regard to surviving on the street during this current winter in my favor, I mathematically cannot do so. I would have succumbed to the extreme cold and would have suffered permanent damage to my processors; if not shutdown entirely."

"And you think finding me a decent apartment is going to pay back the favor of saving your life?"

"I believe that this could be a suitable way to begin repaying that particular debt."

"Alright... If you want to find me a single bedroom apartment with a gym, a pool, is pet accommodating, doesn't have an elevator full of piss or vomit, and isn't on the more bullet-riddled side of the city, then I'll consider that an adequate down payment on your debt."

Nodding a little Lucas happily accepted the terms and began cybernetically scanning the city for the appropriate location. "Consider it done."

As it neared two in the morning Connor's processor began to reboot and his eyelids began to flutter. As his glazed over soulful brown irises returned to the waking world at last the deviant was met with numerous error reports regarding his recent collapse, the time he spent in emergency stasis mode, his increased Thirium volume and of the Thirium I.V. still attached to the exposed line in his left arm. Glancing down at his left arm Connor noticed that he was laying on the couch in the livingroom and he had the navy blue blanket draped over his person to help him keep warm. Lifting his head up from the couch Connor sat upright slowly on the couch and gazed about the dimly lit livingroom in time to see Hank walking back down the hallway with a worried look on his face.

Hank was holding his phone in his left hand and was scrolling through his contacts as he trudged down the hallway. The tired look in his blue eyes and the tension in his posture spoke volumes of his current stress and intense emotional worry.

"...Lieutenant?"

"Connor!" Hank's tense shoulders slumped with relief and he walked over to the back of the couch to speak to the deviant directly. The sound of the deviant's voice was a welcome change from the cold silence of the house as Hank slipped his phone into his jean pocket. "Shit, I was about to carry you out to the car and take you to a facility. You were out of it for a long time."

"...I don't understand." The lack of memories and lack of damage to his body was very perplexing. "What has happened while I was in emergency stasis mode? I was not physically harmed or rendered unconscious due to a glitch or electrical interference."

"You went down just after we got back to the house. I called Abby over and she confirmed your Thirium got too low."

Pulling back the blanket from his left arm Connor saw the I.V. line attached to the limb and ran a scan over the line confirming its purpose. Removing the now unnecessary line from his arm Connor closed the plastimetal panel and allowed his artificial skin to regenerate properly over his arm. "...I've noticed."

Glancing past Connor for a moment Hank explained things as casually as possible in the aftermath of the very tense moment. "She said you also need to drink that other Thirium when you woke up so you fully stabilize."

Following Hank's gaze to the Thirium bottle on the end table behind him Connor acknowledged that he needed to increase his Thirium volume to a higher number in order to be fully stabilized, and to ensure his system recalibrated properly. "...I will do so."

Sitting down on the couch beside Connor as the deviant picked up the Thirium bottle, moved his legs so he was sitting upright with his feet on the floor, and finally began to drink its contents, Hank tried to keep Connor talking and get him to finally talk about whatever it was he was holding inside and trying to ignore for far too long. "Good thing we have tomorrow, I guess technically today, off. After a case like that we deserve a break, especially you."

"I'm well, Lieutenant." Drinking a third of the large bottle Connor's L.E.D. finally returned to yellow and his voice regained some strength. "I'm fine."

"Then why were you so stressed out that you collapsed and went into stasis mode?" Challenging the claim Hank refused to back down on the conversation no matter how uncomfortable it got. "No one, human or deviant, just passes out for no reason."

Trying to feign innocence Connor attempted to lie about his condition despite Abby already telling Hank the truth while she ran her exam over Connor's system while he was unconscious. "...It was my low Thirium."

"No, you don't just start crying and pass out because your Thirium got too low. Something else is going on and I want to know what it is."

Embarrassed a little by his physical reaction Connor stopped drinking the Thirium and looked away from Hank and toward Sumo sleeping on his pillow as a faint blue blush graced his face. "...It was a glitch on my part. It won't happen again."

"Kid, stop." Combing his left fingers through his locks of gray hair Hank was clearly losing his patience with the stubborn deviant. "You seriously think I don't know when a detective is getting emotionally flustered and in need of a break? I've been dealing with this shit for most of my life now, don't even try to bullshit me on this."

"I'm fine."

"You're NOT fine. You've had some pretty fucked up nightmares recently, you weren't sleeping well for the past two night and then you let your Thirium get so damn low you blacked out! That's NOT fine. That's 'a detective going through an emotional breakdown 101'." Softening his tone Hank tried a new approach on the subject. "I'm not judging you or looking for a reason to keep ya' away from the precinct. As your friend I'm just trying to figure out why you're so closed off and acting like you don't feel pain or sadness, or anything for that matter. You CAN feel, kid. You DO feel, and you're ALLOWED to feel."

Connor's yellow L.E.D. flashed to red once before returning to yellow. Turning his gaze back toward Hank beside him the deviant silently studied the senior detective's behavior closely as if looking for an excuse to stay quiet. There was utter sincerity in Hank's eyes and words, and yet there was something there that Connor just couldn't seem to bring himself to trust.

"Being numb isn't a good way to go through life, Connor." Owning up to his own past mistakes Hank sighed and turned his eyes away from Connor as if ashamed of himself. "I tried to numb myself with whiskey and denial, but it only made the pain worse when it wore off. Don't make my mistakes. Don't push people away when they offer you a helping hand and ask what's wrong. Please." Taking a chance Hank put his left hand on Connor's right shoulder and held his palm in place even when he felt Connor tense up under his touch. "Let me help you in the same way you helped me. I am your friend, son. I'm your friend first and your partner second."

Remaining silent Connor's right hand tensed as it began seeking his coin to fidget with, but he had nothing to channel his tic at the moment. There was no way to distract himself or dismiss the conversation as a needless exchange of dialogue.

"Connor. It's okay to not be fine if you don't feel fine." Shaking the deviant's shoulder a little Hank kept his tone low and kind. "And it's okay to not be okay."

Those final words struck a cord with Connor. The reaction wasn't verbal but it was notable in the deviant's soulful brown eyes.

"You don't have to be okay just because you think that's what everyone around you wants. You going to feel whatever it is you NEED to feel, regardless of what you think it is you're 'supposed' to be feeling. I know for damn sure that I'm not okay, and I know you're not either. You're in pain and I want to help you feel better so you really will be okay. Just... don't shut me out. I want to help you just as you helped me. That's what friends do."

The comment managed to reach Connor on a level he hadn't expected and again his heart began to ache and his eyes began to burn. Tears welled up over his soulful brown irises and against his will Connor began to quietly weep where he sat despite trying to hold the pain inside.

"Talk to me." Pushing gently Hank encouraged Connor to finally talk about his strange flux of emotions. "What are you thinking about?"

Closing his eyes Connor's yellow L.E.D. flickered to red as his voice spoke up just barely above a whisper. "...Everything."

"Then we'll talk about everything. Where do we start?"

Dragging his right hand over his eyes Connor sighed and managed to recompose himself fairly quickly. "...My nightmares."

"What do you see in your nightmares? Why are they fucking you up so much?"

Shrugging off Hank's palm to get some modicum of space Connor shook his head a little, and leaned back into the couch cushions with a heavy slump. "They used to just contain Amanda and the blizzard that nearly killed me. They were both completely false; taking place in fictitious settings and times that I could dismiss when I awoke from rest mode. Now they... They seem to be grounded in reality. They're now using my own personal experiences against me."

"Your memories are getting worked into your nightmares?"

"Yes." Nodding a little as he spoke Connor confirmed Hank's suspicions. "The memory of our confrontation at the bridge when you pulled your gun on me. It... It became a nightmare. Only in my nightmare you didn't back down. This time you pulled the trigger."

Leaning back into the couch as well Hank crossed his arms over his chest and let out a deep breath of regret. "You dreamt I murdered you in cold blood. No wonder you were so damn jumpy around me."

"...It's not just that."

"Then keep talking to me. What's up?"

"That nightmare seemed so real and so plausible that it actually... hurt when I woke up."

Brow furrowed and eyes narrowed Hank gave Connor a curious stare. "You felt like you were really shot?"

"No. It wasn't a physical pain it was... more personal."

Now falling silent Hank remained entirely intrigued by Connor's story and waited for him to continue on without being prompted.

"It was a sense of what I can only describe as... betrayal. I thought I could trust Amanda, I believed she was truly looking out for me, now I know it was all a lie to keep CyberLife appearing honest and trustworthy. Seeing you and her together, seeing you shooting me because that's what she said I deserved and you didn't even try to fight back as he pointed the gun at me... It was like you betrayed me, too."

"I'd never shoot you, Connor. For as long as I still manage to live I promise I'll never intentionally try to hurt you, let alone kill you!" The words weren't as comforting as Hank had hoped, but at least Connor was listening to him. "And a nightmare will never be able to hurt you in the real world. Ever."

In response to the honest reply Connor shook his head a little and pressed his left palm over his eyes to hide the tears that were beginning to roll down his face as he again lost control over his emotions. "...Sorry."

"Hey, don't do that. Don't hide." Lightly grabbing onto Connor's left hand Hank pulled it away from Connor's face without being aggressive. "Keep talking."

Taking in a slow breath Connor opened up his teary eyes and stared blankly at the wall ahead of him with an intense focus. "...During the investigation into finding Markus's imposter I synced my mind to his, and he showed me his memories of what he was doing at the time of the murder. I had done to prove his innocence and find an alibi, but what I saw... It wasn't what I was expecting."

"What did you see? Where was Markus during the murder?"

"He was at the park near the bridge where my nightmare had taken place. And he was alone. Crying."

The last detail made Hank's brow arch inquisitively. "Crying? Why?"

"...North betrayed Markus."

"Whoa, betrayed him how? What did she do?"

"...When she came to the precinct to tend to a deviant victim during the holidays she also came to see me. Without any invitation she... kissed me."

"She kissed you?"

"It wasn't a friendly gesture it was intended to be more romantic," as he spoke Connor pressed his right fingertips to his lips where he swore he could still somehow taste her kiss. "But I felt nothing toward her, and I believe she felt the same. But the fact that she did it all was enough to cause Markus horrendous pain because of her inappropriate behavior."

"Shit. A broken heart will make even men of stone breakdown and cry."

Closing his eyes again Connor tried to remain as emotionally composed as possible. "The pain he felt after she broke his heart was the same pain I felt when Amanda tried to kill me, the same pain I felt when my own counterpart in CyberLife Tower tried to kill me, and it was the same pain I felt when Markus actually succeeded in killing me. He now understands how much I hurt when he betrayed me and ended my life."

Hank knew that Connor was about to have a breakthrough of his own and gently pushed him to continue speaking. "Keep talking son, it's alright."

"That's what I wanted." Letting out a deep sigh Connor finally admitted what he was feeling and why he was feeling it. "I wanted Markus to know suffering and pain in the same way I had felt it. But now... It just seems so cruel to wish such harm onto another person, regardless of the reason!"

"Now you feel guilty because you know how much he's hurting."

Nodding a little Connor confirmed Hank's assessment.

"But you didn't make North kiss you. She chose to do that and she just happened to choose you as her target of misplaced judgment. It's not your fault that Markus is in such pain. It's her fault, and her fault alone."

"It doesn't undo the fact that I wanted him to feel that pain. I truly believed he deserved to feel the same type of suffering that I had felt, and now... I just feel as if I'm being petty and cruel for the sake of being petty and cruel. I hate myself for having those thoughts."

"That's the problem with emotions, son. They make you feel and think in strange ways that you're not always going to be proud of."

"Despite all the pain his betrayal caused me I refused to offer Markus any condolences, or accept his apology toward me. Why do I feel horrible for my decisions despite knowing that I'm in the right? I have the right to be angry and to hate Markus, I have every right to want to distance myself from him and refrain from any form of alliance with him and New Jericho, and yet I feel as if I'm doing something wrong."

"Remember what I said about you being empathetic? It makes you far more in tuned with emotions, consequences and everyone around you. You're feeling so conflicted and confused because you still care about the world even after the world essentially turned its back on you."

"I don't want to be empathetic."

"Too late, kid."

"I can't function like this."

"What do you mean?"

"Conflicted. Confused. Constantly thinking and... feeling. It's distracting."

"Let me tell ya' something about empathy." Leaning forward Hank rested his elbows atop his knees and clasped his hands together as he stared at his faint reflection on the glass surface of the coffee table before him. The aged blue eyes and shaggy gray hair made Hank look as old as he felt on his worst days. "It's a rare trait and a dying emotion in humans. Apathy is replacing empathy at a painfully rapid pace, and soon the entire world is going to be full of selfish, cynical assholes who only care about themselves and their own personal wants, while waving a middle finger in the faces of other people in desperate need. Don't give up on your empathy, son. It's what's going to keep you alive and remind you that you are in fact truly alive and have a heart."

"You're saying that I need to feel pain in order to appreciate life?" Rubbing his left thumb under his left eye Connor wiped away a rogue tear before it had the chance to fall. "That doesn't sound like much of a life worth living."

"No, you don't need to be in pain to live. You just need to let yourself feel pain when it happens, otherwise you'll stop feeling everything and you'll stop living."

Turning toward Hank with fresh tears in his eyes Connor gave him a lost stare. "I don't understand. Why do I need to suffer if I want to live?"

The desperate plea sounded like a frightened child. As the question resonated through the house Sumo was awoken from his slumber and was suddenly compelled to press his chin and right paw down atop Connor's lap in a comforting manner. Whimpering a little and wagging his tail the loyal dog picked up on Connor's emotional despair and tried to comfort him to the best of his ability.

"You don't need to suffer at all, son." Trying to explain his reason a little further Hank found himself speaking in a paternal tone that he hadn't used since he needed to help Cole overcome his own nightmares. "I'm just trying to help you see that if you stop feeling everything to keep the bad emotions away from you, then you're going to end up keeping all of the good emotions away, too."

"But all I seem to feel are bad emotions. Anger, hatred, fear, loneliness... I don't think I've ever been happy. I don't know what happiness even feels like."

Returning his hand to the deviant's shoulder Hank understood exactly what Connor was going through and didn't want to see the deviant stumble through the dark of his own mind and heart. "You will know happiness, Connor. You just need to keep letting yourself grow as a person and soon you'll find what it is to feel happy and what it's like to be happy."

"You sound so certain about me."

"Because I am. You've already overcome so much and you've dedicated yourself to helping the world become a slightly better place with every day you clock-in at the precinct. Just keep doing what you're doing and you'll find your happiness someday."

"...I hope you're right."

"You will." Patting Connor's shoulder twice Hank rose from the couch and smirked a little as the deviant slowly wrapped his arms around Sumo's neck to give the massive fluffy dog a hug in response to his gentle nature. The gesture was just further proof of Connor's empathy. "It's late. Finish your Thirium and go to bed so you can sleep properly and not just lay blacked out over the couch. Trust me, I'm on expert when it comes to actual sleep versus passing out..."

Silently agreeing to the request Connor loosened his hug from around Sumo's neck as he heard Hank's bedroom door open and clicking shut down the hallway, and stared at the massive dog's giant brown eyes. Despite being unable to speak Connor believed Sumo was trying to tell him something about being alright.

Picking up the bottle of Thirium at his side on the end table Connor finished off the crucially needed blue blood and pet Sumo's ears lightly for a moment as he contemplated Hank's advice and sat in quiet isolation on the couch.

"How do humans live with so many complex and contradictory emotions?" Speaking to Sumo as he finished the Thirium at last Connor still sounded confused about everything he was going through. "It's no wonder humanity's growth as a whole is so... stunted."

Grumbling a little Sumo licked at his nose and wagged his tail slowly as he looked up at Connor happily.

Standing up from the couch Connor's system confirmed that his Thirium reserve was up to a far more stable ninety-four percent and that all of his systems were functioning at optimal parameters. Cybernetically Connor turned off the lights in the livingroom and walked around the couch to get down the hallway to enter his own bedroom for the night to rest properly.

Opening up the door to his bedroom Connor looked back to the livingroom where Sumo was still sitting and called out to the loyal dog in a low voice.

"Sumo?"

Standing up quickly Sumo trotted over to where Connor was standing pressed his cold wet nose into Connor's left hand seeking more attention.

"It's very cold still. You should sleep on my bed so you feel warmer."

Stepping into the bedroom Connor patted the foot of the neatly made bed and watched as Sumo climbed up onto the soft surface to snuggle down and spend the rest of the night on the bed next to his favorite deviant in favor of laying on his old pillow alone in the livingroom. The sound of Sumo's tail thumping atop the bed echoed through the bedroom with a steady rhythm.

"Good boy."

Changing out of his dress shirt and jeans into his clean black t-shirt and gray sweatpants Connor pulled back the quilt and laid under the warm covers for the rest of the cold winter night. Sumo snuggled in closer to Connor's legs and pressed his chin down over his ankles in an affectionate manner.

"Thank you for helping me feel normal, Sumo. It almost makes me feel like I actually belong here."

-next chapter-