"F-fuck winter," Gavin zipped up his heavy woolen coat. "Fuck Detroit," he nuzzled his lower face into his scarf as he scooted closer to his terminal. "I fucking hate this," he coughed into his elbow.
"I told you you'd get sick if you didn't wear your winter jacket yesterday," Richard sighed as he leaned against the detective's desk.
"Yeah, yeah," Gavin waved, "I'm an idiot and you're the smart one," he glanced at the android, "Happy?"
"I'll be happy once you've recovered from your illness," the machine grazed his partner's cheek with a finger.
The brunette's eyes snapped open as he quickly grabbed Richard's hand. "Hey," he whispered, "We're at the station," he stared at the machine with pink cheeks, "Knock that shit off."
RK900 froze for a moment before lowering his lids. "I was only checking if you had a fever," he smirked.
Gavin dragged the corners of his mouth into a defeated frown and let out disgruntled mumbles as he let go of his colleague's hand. He slumped into his seat with a sigh before shaking his head and looking to the ground.
The android pressed a hand against his partner's forehead while scanning the detective's vitals. "What's on your mind?" the machine's eyes drifted from his hand to his colleague's perturbed features.
"I hate the idea of that fucker being loose out there," Gavin pointed to a window that showed a snowy street. "It's been over a month since his last murder," he grit his teeth, "And now Fowler's forcin' us to move on."
Richard let out an elongated sigh, "You're running a high fever, Gavin." He inched closer to the brunette who was deep in his thoughts. "You have the flu. You need to go home and rest," the machine advised in a worried cadence.
The detective turned to face his colleague. "Doesn't it bother you that that stupid son of a bitch is still roaming the streets?" he drew his brows together. "Fuck," he cursed as he placed a hand on his forehead, "I wanted to catch that—"
The detective interrupted himself with a series of wet coughs. He brought both hands to his mouth, his brows arching as his chest ached in pain. "Ugh," the brunette titled back into his chair, "My head," he sniffled.
"Please, let me take you home," RK900 placed a hand on Gavin's shoulder.
"I can't," the detective slowly shook his head, "I promised John I'd see him in an hour," he looked to Richard while rubbing at his eye.
"Have you taken any medicine to ease your symptoms?" the android crossed his arms over his chest.
"Don't have any," the shorter of the two murmured.
Richard brought a hand to the bridge of his nose and pinched the skin between his brows. "You're telling me you don't have cough syrup at home?" he glanced at his light-headed partner.
Gavin shook his head before heaving forward and almost hacking up a lung.
"You need to cancel with John. I'm taking you home and buying you a year's supply of medication," the android straightened up, adjusting his uniform.
"I'm fine," the brunette placed a hand on his knee as he took a minute to compose himself. "I can't postpone this. It'll be the third time I'm blowin' him off," he rubbed at his chest.
Just then, the detective's phone buzzed. "See?" he glanced at the android, "This's probably him right now reminding me of our meet up," he reached into his pant pocket. The brunette pulled out his phone and tapped on the lockscreen. His eyes rounded as he was greeted by several texts from Travis. "Damn it," Gavin muted his phone and shoved it back in his pocket.
"Is it him again?" Richard asked in a hushed tone.
"It's fine," the brunette dismissed with a hand wave, "He'll fuck off eventually."
"It's been a month, Gavin," the android expressed in a stern tone. "We can arrest him for harassme—"
"I said it's fine," the detective articulated in a slow, angered manner.
Richard squinted his eyes, "If you don't take action against this, then I will." He leaned closer to his partner, "Next time I see him call or message you, I'm arresting him."
Gavin clenched his jaw and crinkled his nose, "I don't need your help, damn it." He sluggishly stood from his chair, "I can take care of myself."
The android eyed his swaying partner from top to bottom. "Clearly, your definition of 'care' differs from mine," he expressed with a slight frown.
"Fuck you," the detective pressed a finger into RK900's chest, "I'm not a kid. I can handle myself just fine."
"Oh, so is there a particular reason you don't have basic medicine in your apartment then?" the android cocked a brow.
The brunette paused, his breathing a bit erratic. He looked up at his colleague through narrowed eyes, "You're a bastard."
"Correction," Richard gingerly gripped the vexed brunette's hand, "I'm a bastard who cares about his lover."
Gavin's eyes shot open as he blushed ear-to-ear. He looked to the ground, evidently embarrassed, "D-don't call me that you fucking weirdo."
The android smiled as his partner's reddened face caused his thirium pump to flutter. "I'll stop by in the evening with medicine and groceries to make you some chicken soup," he inched closer to Gavin's burning face. "How does that sound?" he asked with hooded eyes.
"Do what you want," the detective tried to push the machine away.
"I'll be at your apartment by seven then," RK900 stated with a warm smile.
Gavin grumbled as he found himself once again defeated by his suave colleague's tender affection.
The detective parked his car by the curb belonging to a bar called Solaris. Gavin sighed as he heard yet another advertisement over the radio about Kamski's Valentine's Day masquerade ball. He stayed in the car as he listened to the ad once more, drawing his brows together as anger started to seep into his veins. Almost all radio stations, TV channels and social media platforms were actively advertising the event as its date inched closer and closer. Gavin removed the key from the ignition and slowly got out of his car, coughing a few times in the process. He locked the vehicle and approached the bar, looking up at the neon orange sign. "Damn," he gazed in awe, "Haven't been here in a while," he chuckled while approaching the entrance.
The door opened with a little jingle as the brunette walked in. The bartender looked up from wiping down the counter, "Gav?" he smiled.
"Hey, Mikey," the detective smirked just enough to show some teeth. "Long time no see, huh?" he scratched the back of his head.
"Hot damn, I can't believe it's really you!" Mike let out a laugh, "It's been a while since I've seen you in my bar," the blonde came to hug the cop.
Gavin motioned Mike to not approach, "I'm sick, Mikey. Don't wanna give you what I have."
"Ah, fuck you," Mike waved dismissingly as he embraced the detective anyway. "Good to see you, hotshot."
The brunette let out a sigh, "You too," he patted the tapper's back.
"I take it you're here for John?" Mike asked while pulling away from the cop.
Gavin nodded, "Yeah. He in the back?"
"Yep," the bartender pointed to the very end of the bar, "Last booth as usual."
"Got it, thanks," the detective started toward the booth.
The brunette walked down the bar and slowed down as he approached the last booth. "Hey, John," Gavin greeted with a faded smile.
"Well, well, well," Miller glanced at the weary detective, "Look who it is," he laughed before attempting to hug the brunette.
Gavin brought a hand up, "I'm not feeling too good, Sergeant," he coughed into his elbow, "Don't wanna get you sick."
"Oh, no," John drew his brows together out of concern, "It's this fuckin' winter season," he shook his head. "Can't remember the last time it snowed this damn much in Detroit," he motioned the younger officer to take a seat across.
"Yeah," Gavin scooted further into the booth with a small grunt, "It's been pretty brutal. Almost froze my ass off comin' here."
"Well, I'm glad you were able to make it," the sergeant smiled with kind eyes, "Means a lot."
"Of course, Serg," the detective nodded, "I'm only sorry that our meet ups aren't more frequent."
"Ah," the retired cop tapped on the table, "Don't worry about it, kid. I know you've been real busy lately with the murder cases you were tellin' me about."
"Ugh," the brunette looked to the side in frustration, "Don't fuckin' remind me."
"What? This bastard givin' you a hard time?" Miller cocked his head to the right.
Gavin let out a hushed chuckle, "He's gone quiet, John," he furrowed his brows. "He's gone quiet and it's gnawing at me knowing that this fucker is still out there and we're as clueless as ever."
The older of the two scanned his ex-partner's distressed features before letting out a sigh. "Look," he pressed his elbows on the counter, "As shitty as it may sound, stuff like this happens a lot," he explained with gestures, "You're not gonna be able to catch all the bad guys, Gav."
The brunette frowned but continued to listen.
"We weren't able to find all the guys assigned to us, remember?" Miller tried to comfort his mentee.
Gavin brought a hand to his forehead. "It just bothers me because I know for a fact that if this bastard was goin' around killin' people," he stressed the last word, "Fowler would've given me and Richard more time and more resources."
Miller retracted his head, startled by the detective's comment. "Wait," the older man shut his eyes in disbelief, "Did I just hear you right or am I losing it?" he shot a confused look at his younger counterpart. "For a second it sounded like you actually gave a damn about androids gettin' killed."
"That's because I do!" Gavin raised his voice, offended by John's cold remark.
Miller's eyes rounded as he took a moment to analyze the brunette's irritated expression.
The detective's eyes snapped open as he realized what he'd just stated. "Uh—um," Gavin averted John's gaze, "S-sorry," he coughed into his forearm, "I don't know why I got angry. Probably just the fever gettin' to me or something."
John remained silent as he continued surveying the younger officer.
After a few seconds of awkward silence, Mike came by with a set of beers and dropped them off at the booth. "On the house, boys," the tapper smiled.
Gavin straightened up, clearing his throat, "Thanks, Mikey," he nodded.
The bartender gave a thumbs up before heading back to his counter.
"S-so uh…why Solaris?" the detective rubbed the back of his neck. "We only ever come here for special occasions so what's up?" he asked, desperately trying to change the subject.
John took a moment to answer. "No real reason really," he began, "Guess I was feelin' a little nostalgic so I wanted us to meet here."
Gavin let out a hushed laugh as he picked at one of his cuticles. "This is my favorite bar," the detective sniffled, "You brought me here when I graduated from the academy." The brunette brought a hand to his cheek. "Man, I really do miss those days sometimes," he glanced at the retired officer. "You know," Gavin started, "I still hope that one day you'll get bored of retirement and…" he shrugged, "I don't know, come back to the DPD I guess."
John drew his upper lip between his teeth before opening his mouth. "So that Richard guy is still your partner, huh?" he asked in a serious tone.
Gavin cocked his head to the side, taken aback by his mentor's question. "Yeah, he is," the brunette curtly responded.
Miller slid his tongue over his teeth. "I gotta ask something personal, kid," John stared at the younger officer with a cold expression. "Now, I know how you get and I'm asking you not to get mad, understand?" he folded his arms over his chest.
"Depends on what the question is," Gavin smiled, jokingly.
"Has he…" the sergeant paused, "done things to you?"
The brunette's eyes widened as he retracted his head. "Wh-what?" Gavin stuttered, struggling to understand the words that came out of his superior's mouth.
"Look," John gestured, "Calm down, I'm just worried is all," he quickly explained. "After seeing what happened to you with Travis, I can't help but ask, you know?"
Gavin stared at his mentor as he tried his best to remain in control. "I appreciate the concern, John. But it's nothing for you to be worried about. I can take care of myself," he expressed with a cough.
Miller took a sip of his beer before wiping at the corners of his mouth. "Quite frankly, it is something I need to worry about," he leaned forward. "I don't know how you remember yourself after what happened with Travis, but you were a fucking mess," he pressed a finger into the table. "You weren't eating, weren't sleeping" he hissed, "You couldn't focus on the job," he continued to look at the irate brunette. "I had to do most of our investigations alone. It took you months to snap out of—"
"Stop," Gavin warned, fury gleaming in his eyes. "I don't have that kind of relationship with Richard," he gazed at the retired officer.
The sergeant paused before scratching his nose and sighing. "Kid," he looked to the younger officer with suggestive eyes, "Who the fuck are you trying to fool?" he lifted his shoulders. "I know you and the android have some kind of thing goin' on. I've known ever since that night Hank and I found you and him foolin' around in the fitness room."
The detective glanced at the table as a light red hue spread across his cheeks. He had no counter against his superior's claim.
"To be honest, I'm pissed that you'd even consider getting involved with a machine," the sergeant brought a hand to his cheek.
"Excuse me? I didn't know I needed your approval for everything I do," Gavin remarked, clearly agitated by his ex-partner's words.
"What?" Miller scoffed. "I can't believe this," he shook his head, "Weren't you the one begging me to come back like two months ago because you got paired up with that robotic jackass? Are you really protecting the same guy you wanted dead just a couple weeks ago?"
The detective drew his brows together as he glared at his superior. "I get that you hate androids," Gavin gestured with a hand, "And honestly, I'm confused about how I feel about them right now," his eyes darted across John's features, "But Richard isn't as bad as you think he is. It'd be a fuckin' crime to compare him to a disgusting heap of shit like Travis."
"Oh Christ," Miller brought a hand to his forehead, "Are you even listening to yourself?" he asked in a bitter cadence. "I mean, for fucks sake, I can't believe you're saying this shit," John let out a sarcastic laugh.
"I'm not saying I've become their number one advocate, okay?" the brunette coughed into his forearm. "All I'm saying is that maybe they're not as bad as we think," he lowered his voice.
"They are going to fucking replace you like they replaced me," John growled through pressed teeth.
"Damn it, they were never going to replace you, John!" Gavin shouted at the older officer. "The only reason they paired me up with Richard in the first place is because you'd already left!"
Miller pursed his lips as he slowly nodded his head. "You think I wanted to fucking retire?" he glanced at the fiery brunette. "I retired so that I could leave before the goddamn department had the chance to humiliate me," he articulated, hatred evident in tone. "Before they had the chance to give me 'the talk,'" he air quoted, "and introduce me to the machine that'd replace me."
"They wouldn't have replaced you," the brunette arched his brows, "You were one of the best cops the DPD ha—"
"I was old news, Gav. I was a washed up fifty somethin' year old that hadn't brought anything new to the table in a long while," John interjected.
"Then explain to me why Hank is still there," the detective sniffled before placing a hand on the table.
"They paired him up with an android, didn't they?" John chuckled.
Gavin's eyes darted to the table as frustration rattled his features. His fever wasn't making the situation any better either. The angrier he got, the more light-headed he felt.
The sergeant leaned into his seat, "Kid, I appreciate you tryna cheer me up and all," he shuffled around his coat pocket, "but this conversation ain't about me," he continued as he took out a pack of cigarettes. The retired cop offered the younger officer a cig but Gavin turned it down.
A few quiet minutes passed as the brunette watched his superior light a cigarette and take a few puffs. The muteness of the bar was slowly getting to the detective as the awkward tension came close to unbearable.
"I want you to stay away from that android," Miller pointed to his subordinate before taking a sip of his beer.
The younger man's eyes rounded. "What?" he asked, knowing full-well what the older officer had said.
"I don't want you going near Richard. He's not a good influence on you, you hear me?" John rephrased with a more pressing cadence.
"I'm a grown-ass man, John," Gavin hounded his ex-partner. "I don't report to you nor do I have to listen to what you have to fucking say," the brunette expressed, obviously vexed. "You're not my dad, and frankly even if you were I'd tell you to go fuck yourself," the detective bitterly retorted as he grew more and more furious with each passing second.
Miller licked his lower lip, his gaze shifting from the table to his mentee. "He's fucked you, hasn't he?" he stared at his heated counterpart.
The younger officer's eyes snapped open as he could no longer tell if this entire conversation was real or a fever dream. Up until this point, Gavin really tried to remain level-headed but that last question caused something to utterly snap in two within the detective's mind. Fury and rage clouded by a high fever combined into a dangerous cocktail of emotions as the brunette began to shake. To say that he was angry and saddened by Miller's behavior would be an understatement. "My God, he has," John lowered his lids in disappointment.
Gavin slammed his hands on the table.
Miller tilted his chin slightly upward but continued glaring at his counterpart. Both men remained quiet, the only audible sound being the detective's erratic breathing.
"You're not feeling well," Miller stated with malicious eyes. "Your fever's gettin' the best of you. Go home and get some rest," he advised in an angered tone.
"I have my fucking reasons for hating androids, believe me," Gavin barked with shaking fists, "And I have never been this damn confused before," he knit his brows.
John remained quiet as he observed his emotionally compromised mentee with an unfavorable expression.
The brunette gnashed his teeth, "I have my reasons for hating them and yet," he looked to his superior, "I'm finding them to be more human than us."
"Gavin," John stood from his seat, "This conversation is over."
It took the detective forty minutes to reach his apartment complex. The snow and traffic were enough to drive any man insane. The last time Gavin was this infuriated was when he discovered the bite mark Richard had left on his neck during his drunken episode two months ago. He was trembling the entire ride home, the anger making his head feel hazy and vision blur at times. The brunette couldn't comprehend why or how the conversation between him and John ended on such a sour note. He was supposed to meet his mentor to have a good time and relax but instead ended up more agitated than ever. Gavin sighed as he reached his complex, pulling up beside the usual curb he would typically park in the evenings. "Can't fucking believe this shit," he whispered before coughing into his shoulder. "Richard was right," he locked the vehicle, "I should've just gone home earlier."
The detective walked up into the lobby and pressed the button that called the elevator. He began tapping his foot as he waited for the lift to arrive. The elevator doors opened with a ping before Gavin stepped in and took out his phone to dismiss his notifications. After a few seconds, the doors opened to the third floor and without looking up from his phone screen, the detective walked out and down the hallway. The last thing he did was check the time which displayed 6:12 PM before he glanced up to see Travis leaning near the apartment door.
"Hey, sweetheart," the heftier man smirked.