AN: Thank you for the kind-hearted reviews! I really appreciate them!
"Connor," Hank takes one look at his son the moment he walks in from the backyard, "you're filthy."
Connor had been in the soil today. He had been taking care of his garden of vegetables until the late afternoon. He looks like a mess when he comes back in. His face was covered in dirt and his clothes were in desperate need of a wash. Connor was unaware of his appearance until Hank had pointed it out. He brings up his arm to check his sleeve and sees it soiled in dirt. Hank was right. Connor was dirty. Connor, who felt himself the prime example of cleanliness, did not enjoy how he seemed to be treading dirt into the house.
"That I am," Connor agrees, "I suppose I will have to take a shower."
Hank raises a brow. Connor had never taken a shower ever since he first arrived here so he could understand the cause for such an expression. Androids didn't typically need showers. They didn't need to get rid of dead skin nor did they start smelling. Connor honestly never found the need to take a shower until now.
"You know where it is," Hank says, "and make sure to bring a clean change of clothes with you. There'd be no point if you just took a shower to put back on something filthy-..."
Connor smiles to himself as Hank rattles on from his spot on the couch.
Finally, Hank finishes, "And I don't think you need help… do you?"
Connor deadpans, "I'm not a child, Hank."
Hank humors the idea and claims, "Really? It always seems to me that you act like one. You're like - what - a year old? Wouldn't that be the standard age for a child?"
Connor can't keep the truth to himself. He states, "I'm actually ten months old."
Hank gives Connor a long stare. The two look at each other until Hank bursts out into laughter. It's a fit that Connor's never seen before and… it made him feel conflicted. He knew Hank was laughing at him so it wouldn't be wrong for him to feel insulted, but at the same time, Hank was genuinely laughing. Connor felt himself feel... Happy.
"How does that make it any better?" Hank gasps in between laughs, slapping a hand on his knee, and hunching over in his amusement.
"I am not human, Hank," Connor reminds him, "I cannot be a child because I have already reached the capacity of my growth."
Hank wipes a stray tear that escapes the corner of his eye. His laughter starts to die down but there's still remnants of his laughter lingering behind when he tells Connor, "You don't have to prove anything to me. I know, I know. It's just - the way you said it." Hank snorts.
Connor tilts his head in his confusion.
Hank, seeing this, waves his hand in the air in dismissal, "Go take a shower, already!"
Connor presses his lips together in a thin line as Hank tries to calm himself. Deciding he's finished talking to Hank, he goes to the shower and relieves himself of the dirt that plagued his body. His shower is quick. Connor stays in as long as he needs to. Once he's finished, he dries himself off efficiently and puts on a set of slacks. Knowing that he wasn't going outside, he understands that he doesn't need to dress up in a traditional suit, but when he looks in the mirror he sees someone completely different. It was amazing how much clothes can change a person.
When he leaves the shower he drapes the towel he used to dry himself across his shoulder. He ditches the bathroom for the living room and settles himself right next to Hank.
Hank gives him one glance, returns his gaze to the television, and then gives him another glance once more. Connor didn't have a clue of what he was thinking but he gets the gist of it when Hank snatches the towel from his shoulder.
"Can't you at least dry properly?" Hank huffs, using the towel to dry off Connor's head. He's not forgiving when he ruffles Connor's hair with the towel. He does it so violently that Connor thinks his head might just pop off from the pressure.
"I am capable of drying myself," Connor tells him, reaching up to grab the towel from Hank's hand, but Hank isn't having it. He keeps drying Connor's hair and ignores Connor's attempts to retrieve the towel back from him. Once he's finished, he leans back and takes a look at the results. Nodding in satisfaction, Hank throws the towel back at Connor and the android catches it with ease.
"There. That's how you do it," Hank is smug when he says it.
"You didn't have to do that," Connor brings up his hand to curl some of his hair around one of his fingers. His hair was now a complete mess thanks to Hank.
"Yes, I did," Hank sniffs, "And I would have done it anyway."
The two decide not to say anything beyond that. A question lingers in Connor's head but he finds it best to refrain himself from asking. At the moment, all he wanted to do, was enjoy his father's company.