Chapter Eleven: Figure It Out
"Get your scrawny ass back here!"
"Catch me, you pretty-boy molester!"
X groaned as he covered his face with a magazine, his boyfriend and self-proclaimed adopted 'son' ripping apart his dorm room in an effort to both get away and catch each other. When Axl had walked in on the two necking each other, he had a prompt overload and was frozen in place, his mouth slightly agape, for a good two minutes. Once that ended however, with, of course, Zero gleefully poking him, Axl screamed bloody murder and launched himself at Zero, declaring he must 'defend his adopted father's innocence'.
It was fun to watch for the first few minutes, but X had gotten bored and picked up the magazine.
"Molester?" Zero cried. "How can I molest my own boyfriend?"
That made Axl stop, and Zero gave a triumphant sound before pinning Axl's arms to his sides and lifting him up. Axl kicked and struggled with every bit of spunk he had, which was quite a bit, all things considered.
"You lying piece of crap!" Axl tried to kick Zero's head, but missed.
"X, tell him before he goes Maverick or something!"
X sighed, letting the magazine drop from his hands. "Yes, Axl, Zero and I are dating. What you saw is what is called 'the birds and the bees'."
Axl stopped in mid-kick, and Zero dropped him right on his bottom. Axl yelped and glared at Zero, who promptly smirked and flopped onto the bed, wrapping his arms around X's waist and nuzzling his neck. X swatted at him with the rolled up magazine, but Zero just laughed it off.
"Don't scar him anymore than he already is," X scolded.
Axl stared, unblinking and blank-faced, at the pair as a small argument ensued, which consisted mostly of Zero complaining that he shouldn't have to watch himself when wanting to give affection. Several moments ticked by like this before Axl's voice, and his question, brought X into peals of laughter and Zero yelling in protest.
"So if X is my dad, is Zero my mom now?"
~*~
Hey Iris,
Sorry about the delay in e-mailing, been busy here at HQ. I'm sure you've heard of the humans now attempting to colonize the moon and the mass-production of new-generation Reploids. They've more or less hired us Hunters to act like police. It's almost insulting really; all I am ordered to do is sit on my chaser and direct traffic like some human cop. But, whatever, right?
Sooo, I guess before you hear rumors and heresy, uhm, how to say this… Look Iris, you're a great girl. I have no doubt you'll find a guy and make him the luckiest guy on earth, and I'm sorry I wasn't that guy… Okay, I'll come out with it.
X and I came out, so to speak. We're dating. And thanks to Axl, the newest brat and my new 'adopted kid', all of HQ knows about it.
So, uh… yeah… I hope you're still willing to be our lady-pal? Umm… Say Hi to Colonel for me. This is too awkward to write a second time.
'Remembrance,
Zero'
Zero hit send and exited the interface, returning to manual mode. As he opened his eyes and glanced down, he smiled as he saw X's still-sleeping form curled up against him. For being still unsure of his feelings, X was more than willing to forgo the burden of sneaking around and had publicly came out to everyone in the cafeteria during dinner hours after days of rumors and whispers. A lot of people sent them odd looks, some good and some bad, but if X was willing to put up with it, so was Zero.
He snuggled closer to X, trying to close any spaces between them as he remembered the scene in the cafeteria. Several girls had moaned in despair while others squealed in delight, many men staring or scoffing. No one could really look away as X and Zero strode to their usual corner table, holding hands. The only person who would actually speak to them was Axl, who bounded over like nothing happened. In fact, on the way out, Axl actually walked between them with his arms linked with theirs and was like some happy little child on an outing with his parents.
Zero sniffed indignantly then. He refused to let Axl refer to him with any sort of 'motherly' term, stating that if the boy had to think of them as his parents, then Axl would 'have to accept he just became a part of a fucked-up family and had two dads'. Axl seemed happy enough with that and chattered on, oblivious to the stares from others. Zero would have to take a few lessons from Axl—it seemed nothing fazed the kid for more than five minutes before he made a quick rebound.
"What do you look so in thought over?"
Zero blinked, not realizing he had spaced out enough that he hadn't realized X had woken up and was staring at him. With a grin, X kissed the corner of his mouth.
"Not much," Zero answered after gathering his wits. "Just Cain wants to see me in an hour and you've got unit training."
"Mm. That's an hour away."
"Do you intend to sleep the entire hour?"
X's grin became a leer, and before Zero could process the information, the blond found himself lying on his back with X straddling his hips. X ran light fingertips along Zero's chest, first over his shirt, then slipping underneath to excite the skin underneath. Zero gave a light sigh that turned into a breathy moan as X shifted his hips in an exciting way.
"No, I intend to dominate you for an hour."
"What if I don't want to be?" Zero sat up, wrapping his arms around X and pressing their foreheads together. "What if I want to dominate you?"
"You can later. My turn first." Before Zero could protest, X kissed him.
X was a saint and a pacifist – anyone could tell you that. But X wasn't perfectly a saint, and he had his moments of random acts of violence, spawned out of anger. Knowing he could press X's buttons and bring out the 'uglier' side excited Zero, and as he smirked against X's mouth and slid his hands to his lover's pants, Zero decided he was going to press every button he knew…
An hour later, both of them far from satisfied, overly teased and just so close, a flashing menu popped in Zero's periphery. He tried to ignore it, instead focusing on how X's hands were moving as he kissed him, but the menu flashed and flashed, soon followed by his e-mail box going off, quickly followed by someone calling his internal cell phone…
"Goddammit," Zero gasped. "Cain is calling."
X glanced up, his lips grazing Zero's bare stomach, and he frowned. "Already?"
"He's fucking insistent… texting, instant messaging, e-mailing, calling…"
The frown became an evil smirk. "Guess you better go," he said as he gave Zero a pat between the legs, making the blond jump. "I'll see you after training."
Zero sat up, eyes wide. "What?"
"Duty calls, love." X got off him and the bed, grabbing his shirt and pants, straightening his boxers as he gave Zero a quick kiss. "I gotta get to my dorm and get in my jumpsuit and my helmet. Go see what the old geezer wants."
When X turned, Zero did draw some satisfaction that X obviously felt the same strain he did. "You might want to take a cold shower," Zero remarked.
"I'll deal," X muttered as he got dressed. "Get dressed and get going."
"Yes wifey," Zero muttered, earning a stern thwack! across his head. He grinned sheepishly.
~*~
Zero stared at Cain with wide eyes. "Wait, what?"
Cain hobbled over to him, glaring at him. "You heard me," the old human said, a bit threatening. "X is like a son to me. You hurt him and I'll disassemble you. And make you unrecyclable! You'll be melted down!"
Zero held his hands up. "I got it, I got it…" Holy shit, Dr. Cain makes a scary mother hen. "So, uh, you're okay with it?"
"Okay with it?" Cain raged. "You corrupted X in a way that can lower his good but still shaky standing with humans and you ask if I'm okay with it! You pigheaded, egotistical…"
"Hey, hey, I did not corrupt X!" Zero frowned. "I told him the truth and he went with it. I didn't pressure him."
"…chauvinistic, conniving, flamboyant…"
"C'mon, doc, is being with me that bad?"
"…corruptive piece of…" Cain threw his hands up and huffed. "Yes, Zero. I'm okay with it."
"I mean, you're so—what?" Zero paused.
"I'm okay with it. You keep him happy and alive on missions, and then I'm fine." Cain shrugged. "That's all I wanted to say."
"That's it?"
After further convincing of Cain that Zero was madly in love with X, going as far as to eternally pledge himself to the blue-armored Reploid (why did Zero feel like he should go buy a ring just to be on the safe side?) and getting pissed that this had been all Cain wanted, Zero finally left his office, still in one piece and still frustrated.
Zero scoffed as he shoved his hands into his pockets, walking down the hallway toward the lifts. He felt like grabbing X and going into a closet for a few hours and then going for a high-speed drive before clocking in to patrol duty, but unfortunately, patrol duty was in two hours and X's training lasted a good four. So, no shoving X into a closet.
"Daaaaaaaaad!"
Zero jumped a bit as Axl landed on his back, arms around his neck and legs around his waist. He was pushed dangerously forward, both from the momentum (how did Axl run at him without him noticing?) and the fact Axl was fully suited up in his armor, making Zero feel as if he'd broken his spine. This, of course was impossible, as Zero's spine was made of some wickedly tough stuff.
"Hey, kiddo," Zero winced before sighing in defeat, tucking his arms under Axl's knees. He wasn't going to slide off, obviously wanting to be carried. If it weren't for X being so damn protective of the kid, Zero would have thrown him off (strict parenting?) and told him not to do it again.
Then again, it was Axl for crying out loud. "Where you goin', Dad?"
"Out. Aren't you on duty?"
"If you're going to the lifts, you can take me there with you, yeah?" Axl happily kicked his feet out, careful to avoid hurting Zero.
Zero rolled his eyes, but obliged him. Maybe he was spoiling the kid—so was X… by God, they were just like a married human couple with a two-year-old—but Zero had started to really like Axl. Sure, they got along, but now it seemed like Axl was really the only person who didn't give a damn about Zero and X's relationship. Well, Alia didn't either, but she squealed too much and made Zero overly uncomfortable. Besides now becoming good friends, Zero was also extending his protectiveness from X onto Axl, and honestly didn't mind being referred to as 'Dad.' Man, he was getting soft.
Axl hummed to himself as Zero carried him piggy-back, even waving at people from his new vantage point and smiling that overly innocent but mischievous smile. Axl was sort of what Zero pictured a kid between him and X would be like—annoying as hell but the sweetest thing when he calmed down. Of course, to get to the calmed down stage, one had to endure the annoying as hell stage.
"So where are you goin' out to?" Axl asked as they approached the elevators.
"Electronics store. Iris asked if I'd get a holographic phone so we can talk face to face."
"Iris?" Axl frowned. "Who's Iris? You're not double-timing Pops are you?"
Zero laughed before shaking his head. "Iris is our lady friend… not a girlfriend, but somewhat closer than one. Every guy has one."
"I don't…"
"You're not a man yet. When you are, you'll get one."
Axl grabbed some of Zero's hair. "You're callin' me a kid?" He gave a threatening yank.
Zero winced. "Yes I am. You're my and X's kid."
"Oh." Axl relaxed and was back to being happy. "Okay."
Zero let go of Axl, who finally jumped down off his back. Although his spine didn't shatter, Zero knew his back would have a pretty ugly bruise on his synthetic skin, and he rubbed his lower back a bit.
"Back to your job, kiddo. I'll see you later." He patted Axl's helmeted head before going into the elevator, pressing the B key for the basement lot.
As the doors closed, Axl waved. "Bye, Dad! Have fun!"
Zero got to the lot and got into his car, making sure the top was up and secure before driving off into the city. As he drove one-handed, the other hand checked behind his passenger seat for his extra jumpsuit and helmet, Zero humming along with his radio and letting his mind wander. To be perfectly honest, aside from the more intimate hugs and kissing and sleeping together—actual sleeping, nothing naughty just yet—it was as if X and Zero were back to normal. Hanging out at every possible chance, pulling strings to get the same days off or missions, even letting Axl tag along… It was so right. Being this close to X just made his entire being calm and happy, and since their official coming out, he had no headaches. In fact, Zero had actually shut down those extra cooling fans and, lo and behold, not a single migraine. Not even a dull ache. It was glorious bliss.
Zero bought his phone on credit, as Cain was still taking his paychecks, and went ahead and changed into his jumpsuit in the men's room. Right before he put his helmet on, Zero looked at himself in the mirror.
I look a lot better, Zero noticed. His skin now did not fluctuate between healthy and sickly pale, his eyes were a more vivid color, and he looked a lot less stressed and tired. Who knew simply dating someone had this profound of an effect?
Zero combed his hair back and put his helmet on, then gathered his locks with a blue ribbon before sealing the back. As his hair fluttered down in its trademark ponytail, he activated his helmet and summoned his armor. Zero did a few stretches to make sure it fit well, and then checked the battery on his saber. All ready to go, he picked up his bag of normal clothes and his phone and exited the bathroom, much to the shock of incoming men.
Throwing his things into the back of his car and climbing in, Zero groaned as he had to re-adjust his seats for to make up for the added size of his armor… not to mention his boots now made his feet twenty times bigger. On his way to the station, Zero had to be careful exactly which pedal he was pressing down on.
As soon as Zero was there, he was clocking in and speeding off on his chaser to the giant elevator that led to the moon. Why the humans had to use an elevator, Zero didn't know, but really, he hardly cared. He took the roadways to go up, and was soon parked at his designated spot, pretending to watch traffic.
A menu flashed and Zero pulled it up. It was an instant message from Iris.
// Zero! You there? //
/ Hey Iris. Aren't you supposed to be working? /
// It's a desk job. All I have to do is look cute and smile at people. How about you? //
/ Staring at traffic like a hippie. /
Zero grinned a bit to himself as he settled onto his chaser comfortably, the bike having a rather plush seat all considering.
// So how's X? //
/ He's all right. /
// Just all right? I'd assume since you two are together he'd be more than that! //
/ D'oh, you read that e-mail already? /
Zero could imagine Iris giggling while trying to look like she's working.
// Of course. I'm happy for you two, and of course I'll be your… how'd you put it, 'lady-pal.' Brother says congratulations, but he of course mumbled, 'So THAT'S why you and he didn't work out.' //
/ Oh jeez. But hey, I got that phone. When do you get off work? /
// Oh, you did? That's great! Uhm… I'll be off work in about six hours, but I don't know what that time is over there… //
/ I should be off by then. I'll give you a call. Better get back to work. /
// Of course! Talk to you then, Zero! //
Zero was glad he had disconnected just then, because as he became aware of his surroundings again, he had only four seconds to move out of the way as a car came right for him. Zero leaped to the side, activating his boots to stick to the ground as he hung sideways. His chaser was totaled as the car rammed right into it.
"You piece of shit!" Zero shouted, getting up and running over to the stopped car. "The hell's your problem? Get out of the damn car!"
Zero grabbed the driver's side door and pulled it off its hinges, and then yelped as the Reploid driver dove at him, hands around his throat. Zero grabbed one of the Reploid's wrists, his other hand reaching back for his saber. With a cry, he freed his beam saber and slashed at the berserk Reploid's arms, severing both at the elbow. He rolled away and jumped to his feet, ripping the sparking appendages off his person. Zero stood in a battle stance and steadied his breathing, even as the Maverick circled him with no arms. Who knew what weapons this thing developed in its delirium?
"Maverick Hunter Zero, eh?" it spat. "It's entirely your damn fault."
"Don't blame me for your insanity."
The Reploid suddenly went enraged, screaming as it charged at him. "You brought the Maverick Virus upon us, you son of a bitch!"
Zero waited until the Maverick was nearly upon him before dashing forward, low to the ground, his saber sticking out to his side. Zero skidded to a stop, still in his low position, even as the Maverick fell into two separate pieces onto the ground. Zero swung his saber horizontally as it powered down, then returned the handle to its sheath on his back. He straightened and glanced over his shoulder, then brought his wrist up near his face.
"This is Zero. I've had to deal with a Maverick on Sector 35D of the Jakob Project. Send in a cleanup crew and bring me a new chaser, please. We have one destroyed chaser, a damaged car, and a destroyed Maverick body."
Zero clicked off the communication device and looked back at the Maverick's remains, its words echoing in his mind. For some reason, the words made him shudder inside, as if they were a truth he longed to forget. He wanted to see X, but he couldn't leave until the crew came. So Zero busied himself by setting up laser lines and directing traffic from the accident, hoping the mindless work would calm him down.
By the time the crew showed up, they revealed no chaser for him. Instead, Zero had to walk the entire way to Sector 20D to the teleport pad. Unfortunately, that took a good six hours – six hours of nothing but his own mind trying to both think over and forget the Maverick's words. Eventually, Zero got frustrated and turned on his internal music, letting himself go on auto-pilot as he rifled through his internal files for something to take his mind off the incident.
Eventually X rang him, and as soon as Zero heard 'where are you and what the hell is taking so damn long?' from his beloved, the night was looking up.
<--- PREVIOUS CHAPTER NEXT CHAPTER --->
"Get your scrawny ass back here!"
"Catch me, you pretty-boy molester!"
X groaned as he covered his face with a magazine, his boyfriend and self-proclaimed adopted 'son' ripping apart his dorm room in an effort to both get away and catch each other. When Axl had walked in on the two necking each other, he had a prompt overload and was frozen in place, his mouth slightly agape, for a good two minutes. Once that ended however, with, of course, Zero gleefully poking him, Axl screamed bloody murder and launched himself at Zero, declaring he must 'defend his adopted father's innocence'.
It was fun to watch for the first few minutes, but X had gotten bored and picked up the magazine.
"Molester?" Zero cried. "How can I molest my own boyfriend?"
That made Axl stop, and Zero gave a triumphant sound before pinning Axl's arms to his sides and lifting him up. Axl kicked and struggled with every bit of spunk he had, which was quite a bit, all things considered.
"You lying piece of crap!" Axl tried to kick Zero's head, but missed.
"X, tell him before he goes Maverick or something!"
X sighed, letting the magazine drop from his hands. "Yes, Axl, Zero and I are dating. What you saw is what is called 'the birds and the bees'."
Axl stopped in mid-kick, and Zero dropped him right on his bottom. Axl yelped and glared at Zero, who promptly smirked and flopped onto the bed, wrapping his arms around X's waist and nuzzling his neck. X swatted at him with the rolled up magazine, but Zero just laughed it off.
"Don't scar him anymore than he already is," X scolded.
Axl stared, unblinking and blank-faced, at the pair as a small argument ensued, which consisted mostly of Zero complaining that he shouldn't have to watch himself when wanting to give affection. Several moments ticked by like this before Axl's voice, and his question, brought X into peals of laughter and Zero yelling in protest.
"So if X is my dad, is Zero my mom now?"
~*~
Hey Iris,
Sorry about the delay in e-mailing, been busy here at HQ. I'm sure you've heard of the humans now attempting to colonize the moon and the mass-production of new-generation Reploids. They've more or less hired us Hunters to act like police. It's almost insulting really; all I am ordered to do is sit on my chaser and direct traffic like some human cop. But, whatever, right?
Sooo, I guess before you hear rumors and heresy, uhm, how to say this… Look Iris, you're a great girl. I have no doubt you'll find a guy and make him the luckiest guy on earth, and I'm sorry I wasn't that guy… Okay, I'll come out with it.
X and I came out, so to speak. We're dating. And thanks to Axl, the newest brat and my new 'adopted kid', all of HQ knows about it.
So, uh… yeah… I hope you're still willing to be our lady-pal? Umm… Say Hi to Colonel for me. This is too awkward to write a second time.
'Remembrance,
Zero'
Zero hit send and exited the interface, returning to manual mode. As he opened his eyes and glanced down, he smiled as he saw X's still-sleeping form curled up against him. For being still unsure of his feelings, X was more than willing to forgo the burden of sneaking around and had publicly came out to everyone in the cafeteria during dinner hours after days of rumors and whispers. A lot of people sent them odd looks, some good and some bad, but if X was willing to put up with it, so was Zero.
He snuggled closer to X, trying to close any spaces between them as he remembered the scene in the cafeteria. Several girls had moaned in despair while others squealed in delight, many men staring or scoffing. No one could really look away as X and Zero strode to their usual corner table, holding hands. The only person who would actually speak to them was Axl, who bounded over like nothing happened. In fact, on the way out, Axl actually walked between them with his arms linked with theirs and was like some happy little child on an outing with his parents.
Zero sniffed indignantly then. He refused to let Axl refer to him with any sort of 'motherly' term, stating that if the boy had to think of them as his parents, then Axl would 'have to accept he just became a part of a fucked-up family and had two dads'. Axl seemed happy enough with that and chattered on, oblivious to the stares from others. Zero would have to take a few lessons from Axl—it seemed nothing fazed the kid for more than five minutes before he made a quick rebound.
"What do you look so in thought over?"
Zero blinked, not realizing he had spaced out enough that he hadn't realized X had woken up and was staring at him. With a grin, X kissed the corner of his mouth.
"Not much," Zero answered after gathering his wits. "Just Cain wants to see me in an hour and you've got unit training."
"Mm. That's an hour away."
"Do you intend to sleep the entire hour?"
X's grin became a leer, and before Zero could process the information, the blond found himself lying on his back with X straddling his hips. X ran light fingertips along Zero's chest, first over his shirt, then slipping underneath to excite the skin underneath. Zero gave a light sigh that turned into a breathy moan as X shifted his hips in an exciting way.
"No, I intend to dominate you for an hour."
"What if I don't want to be?" Zero sat up, wrapping his arms around X and pressing their foreheads together. "What if I want to dominate you?"
"You can later. My turn first." Before Zero could protest, X kissed him.
X was a saint and a pacifist – anyone could tell you that. But X wasn't perfectly a saint, and he had his moments of random acts of violence, spawned out of anger. Knowing he could press X's buttons and bring out the 'uglier' side excited Zero, and as he smirked against X's mouth and slid his hands to his lover's pants, Zero decided he was going to press every button he knew…
An hour later, both of them far from satisfied, overly teased and just so close, a flashing menu popped in Zero's periphery. He tried to ignore it, instead focusing on how X's hands were moving as he kissed him, but the menu flashed and flashed, soon followed by his e-mail box going off, quickly followed by someone calling his internal cell phone…
"Goddammit," Zero gasped. "Cain is calling."
X glanced up, his lips grazing Zero's bare stomach, and he frowned. "Already?"
"He's fucking insistent… texting, instant messaging, e-mailing, calling…"
The frown became an evil smirk. "Guess you better go," he said as he gave Zero a pat between the legs, making the blond jump. "I'll see you after training."
Zero sat up, eyes wide. "What?"
"Duty calls, love." X got off him and the bed, grabbing his shirt and pants, straightening his boxers as he gave Zero a quick kiss. "I gotta get to my dorm and get in my jumpsuit and my helmet. Go see what the old geezer wants."
When X turned, Zero did draw some satisfaction that X obviously felt the same strain he did. "You might want to take a cold shower," Zero remarked.
"I'll deal," X muttered as he got dressed. "Get dressed and get going."
"Yes wifey," Zero muttered, earning a stern thwack! across his head. He grinned sheepishly.
~*~
Zero stared at Cain with wide eyes. "Wait, what?"
Cain hobbled over to him, glaring at him. "You heard me," the old human said, a bit threatening. "X is like a son to me. You hurt him and I'll disassemble you. And make you unrecyclable! You'll be melted down!"
Zero held his hands up. "I got it, I got it…" Holy shit, Dr. Cain makes a scary mother hen. "So, uh, you're okay with it?"
"Okay with it?" Cain raged. "You corrupted X in a way that can lower his good but still shaky standing with humans and you ask if I'm okay with it! You pigheaded, egotistical…"
"Hey, hey, I did not corrupt X!" Zero frowned. "I told him the truth and he went with it. I didn't pressure him."
"…chauvinistic, conniving, flamboyant…"
"C'mon, doc, is being with me that bad?"
"…corruptive piece of…" Cain threw his hands up and huffed. "Yes, Zero. I'm okay with it."
"I mean, you're so—what?" Zero paused.
"I'm okay with it. You keep him happy and alive on missions, and then I'm fine." Cain shrugged. "That's all I wanted to say."
"That's it?"
After further convincing of Cain that Zero was madly in love with X, going as far as to eternally pledge himself to the blue-armored Reploid (why did Zero feel like he should go buy a ring just to be on the safe side?) and getting pissed that this had been all Cain wanted, Zero finally left his office, still in one piece and still frustrated.
Zero scoffed as he shoved his hands into his pockets, walking down the hallway toward the lifts. He felt like grabbing X and going into a closet for a few hours and then going for a high-speed drive before clocking in to patrol duty, but unfortunately, patrol duty was in two hours and X's training lasted a good four. So, no shoving X into a closet.
"Daaaaaaaaad!"
Zero jumped a bit as Axl landed on his back, arms around his neck and legs around his waist. He was pushed dangerously forward, both from the momentum (how did Axl run at him without him noticing?) and the fact Axl was fully suited up in his armor, making Zero feel as if he'd broken his spine. This, of course was impossible, as Zero's spine was made of some wickedly tough stuff.
"Hey, kiddo," Zero winced before sighing in defeat, tucking his arms under Axl's knees. He wasn't going to slide off, obviously wanting to be carried. If it weren't for X being so damn protective of the kid, Zero would have thrown him off (strict parenting?) and told him not to do it again.
Then again, it was Axl for crying out loud. "Where you goin', Dad?"
"Out. Aren't you on duty?"
"If you're going to the lifts, you can take me there with you, yeah?" Axl happily kicked his feet out, careful to avoid hurting Zero.
Zero rolled his eyes, but obliged him. Maybe he was spoiling the kid—so was X… by God, they were just like a married human couple with a two-year-old—but Zero had started to really like Axl. Sure, they got along, but now it seemed like Axl was really the only person who didn't give a damn about Zero and X's relationship. Well, Alia didn't either, but she squealed too much and made Zero overly uncomfortable. Besides now becoming good friends, Zero was also extending his protectiveness from X onto Axl, and honestly didn't mind being referred to as 'Dad.' Man, he was getting soft.
Axl hummed to himself as Zero carried him piggy-back, even waving at people from his new vantage point and smiling that overly innocent but mischievous smile. Axl was sort of what Zero pictured a kid between him and X would be like—annoying as hell but the sweetest thing when he calmed down. Of course, to get to the calmed down stage, one had to endure the annoying as hell stage.
"So where are you goin' out to?" Axl asked as they approached the elevators.
"Electronics store. Iris asked if I'd get a holographic phone so we can talk face to face."
"Iris?" Axl frowned. "Who's Iris? You're not double-timing Pops are you?"
Zero laughed before shaking his head. "Iris is our lady friend… not a girlfriend, but somewhat closer than one. Every guy has one."
"I don't…"
"You're not a man yet. When you are, you'll get one."
Axl grabbed some of Zero's hair. "You're callin' me a kid?" He gave a threatening yank.
Zero winced. "Yes I am. You're my and X's kid."
"Oh." Axl relaxed and was back to being happy. "Okay."
Zero let go of Axl, who finally jumped down off his back. Although his spine didn't shatter, Zero knew his back would have a pretty ugly bruise on his synthetic skin, and he rubbed his lower back a bit.
"Back to your job, kiddo. I'll see you later." He patted Axl's helmeted head before going into the elevator, pressing the B key for the basement lot.
As the doors closed, Axl waved. "Bye, Dad! Have fun!"
Zero got to the lot and got into his car, making sure the top was up and secure before driving off into the city. As he drove one-handed, the other hand checked behind his passenger seat for his extra jumpsuit and helmet, Zero humming along with his radio and letting his mind wander. To be perfectly honest, aside from the more intimate hugs and kissing and sleeping together—actual sleeping, nothing naughty just yet—it was as if X and Zero were back to normal. Hanging out at every possible chance, pulling strings to get the same days off or missions, even letting Axl tag along… It was so right. Being this close to X just made his entire being calm and happy, and since their official coming out, he had no headaches. In fact, Zero had actually shut down those extra cooling fans and, lo and behold, not a single migraine. Not even a dull ache. It was glorious bliss.
Zero bought his phone on credit, as Cain was still taking his paychecks, and went ahead and changed into his jumpsuit in the men's room. Right before he put his helmet on, Zero looked at himself in the mirror.
I look a lot better, Zero noticed. His skin now did not fluctuate between healthy and sickly pale, his eyes were a more vivid color, and he looked a lot less stressed and tired. Who knew simply dating someone had this profound of an effect?
Zero combed his hair back and put his helmet on, then gathered his locks with a blue ribbon before sealing the back. As his hair fluttered down in its trademark ponytail, he activated his helmet and summoned his armor. Zero did a few stretches to make sure it fit well, and then checked the battery on his saber. All ready to go, he picked up his bag of normal clothes and his phone and exited the bathroom, much to the shock of incoming men.
Throwing his things into the back of his car and climbing in, Zero groaned as he had to re-adjust his seats for to make up for the added size of his armor… not to mention his boots now made his feet twenty times bigger. On his way to the station, Zero had to be careful exactly which pedal he was pressing down on.
As soon as Zero was there, he was clocking in and speeding off on his chaser to the giant elevator that led to the moon. Why the humans had to use an elevator, Zero didn't know, but really, he hardly cared. He took the roadways to go up, and was soon parked at his designated spot, pretending to watch traffic.
A menu flashed and Zero pulled it up. It was an instant message from Iris.
// Zero! You there? //
/ Hey Iris. Aren't you supposed to be working? /
// It's a desk job. All I have to do is look cute and smile at people. How about you? //
/ Staring at traffic like a hippie. /
Zero grinned a bit to himself as he settled onto his chaser comfortably, the bike having a rather plush seat all considering.
// So how's X? //
/ He's all right. /
// Just all right? I'd assume since you two are together he'd be more than that! //
/ D'oh, you read that e-mail already? /
Zero could imagine Iris giggling while trying to look like she's working.
// Of course. I'm happy for you two, and of course I'll be your… how'd you put it, 'lady-pal.' Brother says congratulations, but he of course mumbled, 'So THAT'S why you and he didn't work out.' //
/ Oh jeez. But hey, I got that phone. When do you get off work? /
// Oh, you did? That's great! Uhm… I'll be off work in about six hours, but I don't know what that time is over there… //
/ I should be off by then. I'll give you a call. Better get back to work. /
// Of course! Talk to you then, Zero! //
Zero was glad he had disconnected just then, because as he became aware of his surroundings again, he had only four seconds to move out of the way as a car came right for him. Zero leaped to the side, activating his boots to stick to the ground as he hung sideways. His chaser was totaled as the car rammed right into it.
"You piece of shit!" Zero shouted, getting up and running over to the stopped car. "The hell's your problem? Get out of the damn car!"
Zero grabbed the driver's side door and pulled it off its hinges, and then yelped as the Reploid driver dove at him, hands around his throat. Zero grabbed one of the Reploid's wrists, his other hand reaching back for his saber. With a cry, he freed his beam saber and slashed at the berserk Reploid's arms, severing both at the elbow. He rolled away and jumped to his feet, ripping the sparking appendages off his person. Zero stood in a battle stance and steadied his breathing, even as the Maverick circled him with no arms. Who knew what weapons this thing developed in its delirium?
"Maverick Hunter Zero, eh?" it spat. "It's entirely your damn fault."
"Don't blame me for your insanity."
The Reploid suddenly went enraged, screaming as it charged at him. "You brought the Maverick Virus upon us, you son of a bitch!"
Zero waited until the Maverick was nearly upon him before dashing forward, low to the ground, his saber sticking out to his side. Zero skidded to a stop, still in his low position, even as the Maverick fell into two separate pieces onto the ground. Zero swung his saber horizontally as it powered down, then returned the handle to its sheath on his back. He straightened and glanced over his shoulder, then brought his wrist up near his face.
"This is Zero. I've had to deal with a Maverick on Sector 35D of the Jakob Project. Send in a cleanup crew and bring me a new chaser, please. We have one destroyed chaser, a damaged car, and a destroyed Maverick body."
Zero clicked off the communication device and looked back at the Maverick's remains, its words echoing in his mind. For some reason, the words made him shudder inside, as if they were a truth he longed to forget. He wanted to see X, but he couldn't leave until the crew came. So Zero busied himself by setting up laser lines and directing traffic from the accident, hoping the mindless work would calm him down.
By the time the crew showed up, they revealed no chaser for him. Instead, Zero had to walk the entire way to Sector 20D to the teleport pad. Unfortunately, that took a good six hours – six hours of nothing but his own mind trying to both think over and forget the Maverick's words. Eventually, Zero got frustrated and turned on his internal music, letting himself go on auto-pilot as he rifled through his internal files for something to take his mind off the incident.
Eventually X rang him, and as soon as Zero heard 'where are you and what the hell is taking so damn long?' from his beloved, the night was looking up.
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