Song watched as the city moved around her- people walking by, cars driving past. Once she and V left Vik's clinic, she sat down on the sidewalk, where she remained for long enough that she lost track of time. With everything that had happened in such a short amount of time, she just needed to stop and… digest it all- or try to, at least. Since she hadn't spoken since they left, she presumed V was doing the same thing.
"So…" Song said, finally breaking the silence. "Better or worse than how you thought it'd to go?"
V's construct appeared, and she started pacing around in front of her. "Honestly? I'm not sure what I expected going in there," she admitted. "Like I said, thought I'd only been gone a few months- can't help but feel like it woulda been a helluva lot easier if it had been. But…" she trailed off, and her pacing slowed- eventually deciding to sit down beside Song. "I mean… they thought I was dead. How is anyone supposed to react to that?"
Song nodded in agreement. "I'm… I'm sorry that I can't do more for you. Seeing you so disheartened by all of this… it hurts to know there's nothing I can do."
"Hey, you bein' here with me is more than enough," V told her, smirking slightly before adding, "Even if neither of us really have a say in the matter. But… spending the last two years away from you- without even knowing whether or not you were alive- I think that drove me crazier than the Relic or Johnny ever did." She leaned her head against Song's shoulder and wrapped her arms around her in an awkward side hug. "I don't ever wanna lose you like that again."
"Never imagined you as the type to get so clingy," she teased V with a smirk that vanished just as fast as it appeared. "But… in all seriousness, I- I feel the same way, V. When they told me I'd been out for two years after I woke up, I was terrified- terrified that you were dead and that I couldn't do anything about it. So… I'm glad that I was able to do something after all, even if it's hardly ideal for either of us." She paused for a moment, and once V stood back up, Song's gaze followed the construct. "By the way- been meanin' to ask…"
"Yeah?"
"What's It like? Y'know… being a construct and all?" she asked, watching as V tried to process the question.
V exhaled sharply, shrugging her shoulders. "To be honest, I'm not sure anything I say could properly explain it," she replied. "Y'know that feeling where your body's tellin' you to do… something- anything- so you just end up bouncing your leg? It's little things like that- the things that I don't get to experience anymore- that I end up missing more than anything else. And that's not even mentioning what it's like to literally be in someone's brain. The way that I can sense everything you do without actually having any input, it's kinda…" her voice trailed off.
"Weird?" Song tried to help her finish the thought.
"Terrifying, more like. Best way I can explain is that it's kinda like a BD that I can't get out of- or like my mind is paralyzed. Truthfully, though? I just wanna have a body back."
"Don't worry. We'll get you there- eventually, anyway," Song promised her. "Speaking of which, we should probably head back; start on a plan to deal with all this."
"Waitwaitwait, hang on," V insisted. "You're starving, I can feel it. I know a place- not too far from here. In fact, it's actually right out in front of the Megatower I used to live in. C'moooon."
Song followed V's directions, which, sure enough, led her to the base of Megatower H10. V was practically beaming with pride as she stood in front of one of the stalls set up on the sidewalk- Asian food. Song approached hesitantly, knowing that this was either going to be one of the best things she'd ever tried or suicide for her taste buds because there was absolutely zero medium in Night City. She sat down on one of the stools, and V appeared on the one next to her, grinning expectantly as the man running the stall handed her a cup of noodles. The thing looked absolutely repulsive, but she'd eaten enough to know that looks aren't everything in food. Unfortunately, they were in this case.
"What?" V asked in disbelief as she watched Song spit it out almost instantly. "You can't be serious, that was delicious!"
Song wiped off some bits of food stuck to the corners of her mouth. "V, I know you mean well, but I am telling you right here and right now that I could cook better food than this with one arm and no optics."
V smirked. "Never woulda guessed Song So Mi of all people to be a food snob. You sound like a choom of mine," she teased her host.
"It's not being a snob if my food is just objectively better!" Song protested, resisting the urge to stamp her foot to further get her point a across. "Mark my words, V, sooner or later I'm gonna cook something, and you are gonna have your mind- er… our mind?- absolutely blown away," she promised.
V chuckled. "Hey now, those are some pretty strong words. Better not set an expectation you can't live up to." She paused, looking at the radio sitting on the counter of the food stall. It was tuned to Morro Rock Radio, blasting a tune that was unfamiliar to both of them, but it still sounded… familiar.
Song rolled her eyes. "Ugh, they'll let just about anyone on the radio these days," she grumbled.
V gave her an incredulous look. "First the food, now music… girl, I'm starting to think you just have shit tastes," she teased Song with a smirk.
"Oh, come on, don't tell me you actually like this scop?" she asked. "The kid sounds like he's barely 20, and he's trying way too hard to be the next Silverhand." She paused, leaning in so she could squint at the radio as it displayed the song's title and author. "I mean, he's even calling himself Ronin for fuck's sake."
V quickly disappeared and reappeared on her feet, pacing back and forth. "Look, you can be a critic all you want, but thanks to Johnny, I know a thing or two about music, and because of that, I know that this kid's got heart." She scoffed. "I mean, hell, that's more than the rest of the fuckin' industry has these days."
Song rolled her eyes. "God, he really did rub off on you." She paused as a sudden realization hit her. "Do you think that's gonna happen to us?"
"Doubt it," V replied with a shake of her head. "What happened with me and Johnny was a special case- courtesy of a bullet to the head from a fat, backstabbing prick." Song flashed her a concerned glance as the merc's avatar visibly tensed at the memory. "Besides, technically, we're already in the same brain. The way I see it, if it were gonna happen, it already would've."
"Maybe…" Song replied. "Still, I'd rather not take any chan- AGH fuck!" she cried out as another burst of pain made its way up to her head. She tried to say something- vocalize her distress, but all that came out was a groan.
V ran up and squeezed her hand- or gave the illusion of it, at least- as Song soldiered through the pain. "Attagirl, you're doin' good. It'll pass in a sec," she reassured Song in a soft, gentle voice. She glanced up at the sky, looking at the orange hue that signaled twilight's approach. "C'mon, let's head back. Think after the day we've had, a bit of shut-eye might do some good."
Song nodded as she took in a deep breath through her mouth. Today had gone on for so long that she was almost struggling to call when it actually started. Just the mention of the word sleep nearly sent her falling to the ground. "Some wheels sure would come in handy," she murmured, rising to her feet.
V scratched the back of her head. "Er… about that…"
"Why can't things go right for once?" Song asked with an exasperated sigh.
"Hey, it's not my fault," V protested indignantly as she followed her host back toward the metro station. "If I had known that it'd been two years, then I wouldn't've gotten your hopes up, but to be honest, I can't imagine any of my cars would still be in their garage after this long. We're just gonna have to make due, I guess."
"Interesting way of putting it- considering we don't have a single eddie to our name and we've only got so much time before my brain explodes or somethin' ridiculous like that," Song replied bluntly as she took a seat, waiting to pull away from the seat.
V appeared sitting on the seat next to her, her arms folded across her chest as she looked down at the floor. "For what it's worth, you're already doing better than I did. When the Relic brought me back, I was down for the count for a good week. Hell, I probably would've died a second time if not for Vik, so we could definitely be doing a helluva lot worse. We'll figure it out."
Song hoped that V was right, and quite honestly, she admired her optimism. But she just wasn't sure- about anything, really. Everything was so much simpler back when… her train of thought trailed off as she kept going further and further back in her life to think about when it was ever easy. It hadn't been easy or simple since before she got dragged into the FIA, and she hated that. After everything that had happened and all the people that had died, she just wanted to live a normal life, or as close to one as she could get. Was that too much to ask?
She let out a heavy sigh as she stepped off the metro. All she could think about was what she could do differently. Maybe if she hadn't roped V into this mess, things would've turned out differently- better, even, but… did she want that? The way that V made her feel- the way she filled a hole that Song didn't even know was there- she wouldn't trade that for anything. She looked around as she approached the alley that her hideout was in. Upon making sure that the coast was clear, she hurried inside.
"Finally," Song murmured, sighing with relief as she meandered around the hideout. "After today, I feel like I could sleep for a month."
She took off her jacket and tossed it haphazardly in the corner. Try as she might, though, she just didn't have the energy to take off her netrunning suit. Fortunately for her, though, she had proven many times over that it was plenty comfortable enough to sleep in, so she planned on doing just that. As made her way over to the bed, she passed by the mirror and stopped, gazing into her reflection. She looked the same- or at least, the same as she did earlier today- and yet, she felt so… different. She also felt like someone was watching her rather intently.
'You know I can feel you staring, right?" Song asked.
"I- er… sorry," V stammered, too flush to make a physical appearance. "But I- I haven't gotten to see you- the real you- since back on the launch platform. Worst thing about looking through your eyes is that I don't get to look into them." An awkward silence set in that the construct was desperate to break. "You're, uh… have I mentioned that I think you're really beautiful?"
Song smirked. The mental image she painted of V getting so flustered amused her. "You said it with your eyes quite a bit- especially at the Black Sapphire."
"Can you blame me? You were fuckin' stunning in that dress- literally. I'm not exaggerating when I say that my jaw dropped when I saw you up there on the mezzanine. Besides… the new look suits you; I think."
Song nodded. Most of her cyberware was gone now- replaced with parts that were all but identical to her organic body. And although she missed her old chrome, especially the benefits it gave her when she was running, this just felt right to her. "I like to think of it as a way to mark a new start- some much-needed change. I just wish you were able to appreciate it in-person."
V let out a heavy sigh. "Me too, Song… me too. But hopefully I'll be able to soon."
As she crawled into bed, Song felt a wave of relief wash over her as the mattress rested all of her aches and pains of the day- all except the most crucial one in her brain. All she could think about as her mind grew more and more weary was that she had and V had a chance now- a chance to be together properly, and she wasn't about to let it go to waste. That much was certain to her.