With David's new lease on life, and the subsequent revelation that his Sandevistan was not only frighteningly more powerful than he could ever even imagine, but it was also driven by an ever evolving AI system?
It was like walking through life with a cheat code when it came to combat.
But like any gamer would tell you, if you play with cheat codes too often, when you're finally forced to play the game naturally… you suffer a fairly expansive loss of skill. Thus why David didn't use Sandy every single time they went on a job. Only ever when there was an emergency, or Maine gave him the order to go. Sandy hadn't understood at first, but thankfully, that learning program had made it so within a day or so, it understood even the smaller complexities of his desire not to just use it for every little issue.
That did not however mean that he didn't regret it at times.
For this gig, Maine had given him And Becca the go ahead to handle this one on their own as the payout would have been fairly pathetic with a larger group. With just him and Becca? 5k each was a decent chunk of change. It hadn't been too big of a deal at first, just clearing some Tigers from a building A client of Falkins wanted to acquire.
Unfortunately….
"Fucking Netrunners!"
He snarled in frustration as his optics flickered, and he had to dive behind a Tyger vehicle before he was completely blacked out.
"Dimples! You alright?"
"I'm fine Becca! You just focus on your end while I try to shake this off!"
Easier said than done before as he realized that despite all his speed, he couldn't kill what he couldn't see.
(Help!)
What?! How can you possibly help?
If he wasn't already freaking out from losing his optics, he might have been worried about Sandy seemingly wanting to do something to help with the firefight.
As it was he was desperate enough that he would take any help offered.
(Trust…?)
….. fuck. Ok.
Ok Sandy. I trust you.
And as soon as he had that though, he could feel…. Something. It was a sensation that was hard to describe. Like someone else thinking his thoughts, or someone else using his limbs all accompanied by a light squeezing sensation on his neck.
(Ping.exe active)
Whoa. Fucking… whoa.
He still couldn't see.
But he could SEE.
It was hard to describe how the world suddenly filled his mind's view. It was like… seeing only the very basics of existence. Lines with little substance. It was as disorienting as it was illuminating.
(Help?)
Yeah…. Yeah this helps.
He smirked as he kept his eyes closed, still able to see the digital representation of the building around them… and the rudimentary approximations of human forms.
He could see two in front of him, advancing upon his position while… whoa. He just realized that this gave him a… kind of a full 360 degrees view of his surroundings.
Overwhelming for sure as a human was never meant for it. But other than giving him a minor headache, he was able to set up his shots.
Popping up, and once more not making use of Sandy, he squeezed the trigger of his Unity twice per head, dropping them before they could even comprehend the danger they had been in.
Yeah… gotta admit. That was fucking NOVA!
(PRIDE!)
Heh… alright now…
He blinked as his optics flickered back on, the lines combined with his sight restored giving him a bit of a headache.
Could you kill it for now?
(Acceptance)
The lines disappeared, and his sight returned to normal.
"David!!! Are you fucking alright? If you die I'm gonna fucking kill you!"
He snorted even as he moved forward to try and get a glimpse of the Netrunner.
"As much as I'd love to see just how you'd pull that off, I'm good now. You got sightline on that fucking runner?"
"Not yet! They must be using the building's cameras to get a read on us to throw those hacks at us!"
"Well, they just got done using a bunch of Ram on taking out my optics so if we move quick, we can take em out before they get enough to start messing with our systems proper."
"There a reason you're not using that Sandy of yours David?"
She said curiously as they regrouped in front of the building's entrance, on opposite sides of the door.
"Sandy is basically an I Win button."
He responded as they covered each other's back slowly ascending the stairs.
He was about to continue when 3 Claws popped out of cover, their rifles at the ready. Cursing, he threw a frag over at them all clustered together as Becca used her twin pistols to keep them distracted until…
Boom!
The explosion blew the Tygers off their feet… and also blew off their feet in some cases.
Pausing only to double tap them as they lay groaning and slowly dying, he continued what he'd been about to say.
"Sure, if I used Sandy all the time, we'd get these jobs done instantly, probably barring needing expertise I don't have. But that won't help me learn how to manage a firefight in real time, or learn how to handle split second decisions. Plus… you guys would probably lose your edge. "
He smirked then at the fat assed gremlin, whose eyes were wide and eager as they cleared the building.
"Besides… you'd probably kill me if I kept stealing all your kills."
"Heh… you know me well choom." She said with a bright feral smirk as she hip checked him gently, and he nudged her back.
Taking a breath David focused back up as he looked around.
"Alright Becca… how you wanna handle this?"
She blinked and a softer smile than he ever expected to see come from her when they were in the midst of a job.
"... Fucking hell Dimples."
She mumbled, just barely loud enough for him to hear. But before he could ask her about it, he hissed as he saw a pop-up in his HUD telling him that he was being hacked.
"Becca we gotta move quick, fucker is hacking me and I don't know what with."
Becca snarled then as she looked around and lifted her pistols, shooting the camera which had given away his position.
Which, ok yes helped them going forward but…
"Hacks still progressing!"
Her eyes narrowed and she holstered her pistols, slinging Guts off of her back.
"Stay here dimples… I've gotta have a word with the Netrunner. "
And with that, she bounded up the stairs, ass cheeks damn near clapping with the speed and force of her movement.
Goddamn...
He was about to say something when he was struck with a feeling of having touched an open socket. But much worse. Fucking Short Circuit!
(Host Pain! Help! Help Impossible? Helpless…)
I'm… I'm- FUCK! I'll be ok. Just… fuck…
(Anger!.... Determination. Sandy…Help.)
But before he could even begin to question what the hell the AI was even referring to, he heard a gunshot and then…. Blessed blessed relief, his arms still twitching a little from the shocks.
He took a deep breath and holstered his gun as silence rang.
Giving Becca a call, he focused on rubbing sensation into his shocked extremities.
David: "Becca, everything good?"
Becca: "just Nova Choom. What about you? Whatcha get hit with? I don't think I was fast enough to avoid you getting hit with that hack."
He hissed slightly as his fingertips stung with pins and needles but just kept stretching and rubbing them to get the circulation flowing.
David: "fucker got me with a Short Circuit. I really need to get me some ICE at some point. But I still got two weeks before Vik okays me for new chrome."
There was a silence that once it went on for too long David couldn't help but pipe up uncertainty.
David: "um… is everything ok?"
Becca: "yeah. Yeah just… you're not looking at adding a lot more chrome are you? Cuz I mean-"
David: "oh, no. No I'm… I'm really not. Just figured that that was one of those… important pieces. I might be fast, but I won't be able to do shit if somebody throws a hack my way. Ya know?"
There was silence then, and he was about to say something again when he heard footsteps making their way down the stairs, and Becca appeared next to him, looking up at him with a hard to describe look in her eyes.
"... Ya know… you don't have to do everything on your own right David? I've got your back."
A̷̭͖̪͆̈́̽͂̔̍̀̾n̵͇̫͓̣͚͈̳͙̜͈̰̥̔̈́̿̂̄̓͊̌̃̏͝d̷̨̢͈̱͉̳̫̤̙͕͚͕̥̳̑̄̍͂̈́̈́̾͑̃̈́̊͂͝ ̴̨̨̣͉̜̱̻̼̜͙̀̂̀͌̈̑̓̄d̷͖̐́͗͂̓͆̆͐͘͝o̸̡͇̫͇̱͖̲̟̟͖̞͒͜n̵̢̗̻̳̘̺̙̟̓̀̈́̇'̷̡̢̹̬͔͔͕͕̗̰̬̲͓̑̈̏̾͊͜͜t̵̝̯̳̠̹̠͂̽̒͜͝ ̴̡̤̭̞͎͓̺̺̰̇̇̿̀͒͜͝͝w̷̨̝͖̫͍̲̬͉͚̺̯̠̯̳̗͆̋o̴͔͓̰̜̦͐̊̏̈́̍̉̽͛͘ŕ̴̢̬̰͉̭͙̈́̎̑̀̉̈̎̏͠r̶̢̝̱͒͗̒̉͝͝ŷ̶̧̯̔̋̄̚!̴̛̻͇͙̩̰͙̠̹͇̞̃̾͋͛̄͌̈́̒͌̽́̾͠ͅ ̶̲͚̮̰̮̈́̋̏̌͂͊̈̕̚͝İ̸̡̛̘͈̰͔̼̲͕͚̅̌͆͆̐͑̋̈́̿̕͝'̷̡̡̡̞̘̤̥̟͐v̵̡̛̛̹͙̯̖͖͍̏̔̈́́̎́̋̀̊͒̓͝e̴̥̺̔͗̃͂ ̴̙̯̙̱̲̟̾̎̃̐̑̑͝g̴̛͓͉̲̙̭̦̮̘͈̱̍̿͑̎͋̂̕o̷̢͙͎͇̥̖͌͊͂̅͆̾t̸̹̼̤̫͕̱̄̑ ̴̨̬͈̙̳̽̂̈́̉̃̋̓̋̚͜͝ỳ̸̟̤̻̙̜̰͖̤̞͒̈́̈́̇̑̆̈̑̽̚̕̚o̴̳̹̤͔̺͕̾̓̒͜u̵̫̙̒̏́͛̅̓̇̋̿͘͝r̸̢̡̔̾̔̿́̀̔̈̆͘͝ͅ ̶̧͉̟̥͔̙̹̮̯̎͘ḅ̵̢̣̻̠̿͗̋͠ä̷̖́͑̆̊̒̎̑̈́̿͐̀̉͠ć̶̢̧̡͈̟͇̹͎̉̀̽̀̂̚̕ḳ̷̡̛͈̥̭̣̻͓̰̖̠͙̟̈́͆̄̐̋̀̑͂͋̃̒!̸̣̝̭̪̥̐̑̂̿̋̋̇͠
Breath was stolen from him once more,and this time… this time he didn't have the luxury of no one witnessing his attack.
"David? David! Are you ok?"
Becca's voice was filled with a kind of confused panic, her hands reaching up to grab his jacket and shake him.
"David!"
He finally managed to force a breath of air into his lungs, the fresh(?) air relieving the burning that had begun to accumulate in his chest.
"I- I'm fine. I'm fine Bex. I promise."
He said, attempting to give her a smile to relieve her… but by the flat look on her face, he could tell he'd been less than successful.
But as the attack faded he got a stronger grip on himself, even as she began to fuss over him, patting him down.
"I don't see any bullet wounds… no broken bones… you going into shock choom? I'd be a little surprised what with how easily you handle this shit for a new guy but shit, the brain is fucking weird sometimes."
He laughed softly and put his hands on her shoulders, her jacket as always a barrier between her skin and the world.
"I'm alright Becca. Just… caught off guard. You wanna call Maine? Tell him the job is done so he can call it into Falkins?"
She gave him a sour disbelieving look, but sighed, and brought up Maine.
Unlike Lucy, Becca didn't tend to vocalize her calls while she was talking to someone. So he was just standing there, having moved his hands off her to lean against the wall next to her, just trying to relax.
…. These attacks were getting worse. They were starting to happen more often. More intensely as well. They hadn't happened in the middle of a fight yet… but that was something he had to worry about. He couldn't pretend that it wasn't starting to get out of hand.
Becca wasn't the first one he'd been like this in front of. Lucy had gone almost into a panic the other day when they'd spent the day in his apartment curled up on the couch. They'd been watching one of her musicals, (Something called… the Sound of Music?) When they'd stopped to check the news,and an ad for Moon Travel came up. The same one that he'd watched in the nice apartment they'd rented together.
He'd frozen up so bad, almost started hallucinating, seeing his arms replaced with Maine's gorilla arms, the lines going down them to denote their artificial nature.
It was only with her gentle and fearful tone of voice that he'd been pulled out of that episode.
He'd made up a story about dozing off or freezing up but… she hadn't believed him. He could tell.
…. God he couldn't keep doing this.
"Alright Davey, should be getting our pay pretty soon. You wanna delta and head home or…. Do you wanna hang out some?"
She asked with a tentative, almost reluctant tone.
Looking at her, it was almost like she really wanted to hang with him, while also hoping she would say no.
"Sure. I'd like to hang out. Hey…. How about I treat you? The ramen place we went to. Katsu ramen? Maybe some synth-sushi?"
She perked up, and he grinned. Got her.
".... Alright but for scaring me you're paying for extra synth pork!"
She said giving him a cheeky challenging look, that he just took in stride waving her off.
"Sure sure. Like I said. My treat."
They left the scene of the skirmish, and less than 3 minutes later, they were on their way through the NCART. Sure they could get a cab or something, but honestly, David was more than happy to spend plenty of time with his best Choom.
…. Even if there were some…. Unresolved feelings and thoughts there.
Doing his best to ignore that for the moment, he sent Lucy a quick call.
David: "hey beautiful. Gonna be late. Gonna hang out with Becca today."
Lucy: "oh? Well, have fun. Becca can be… really energetic, but I like spending time with her too. You take as long as you want, handsome. I might be diving tonight anyway."
David: "ah… with the other runners? Tell em I said Hi. And that I seduced you, not the other way around."
Lucy: "whatever you like to think David~. Later."
Hanging up, he looked down at Becca who raised an eyebrow.
"Lucy?"
David blushes, scratching the back of his head.
"Yeah… just letting her know I'm gonna be spending time with you for most of the day. She's gonna be diving so, I'm all yours Becca."
Her cheeks blushed, and he flushed as well, the heat creeping up his neck into his ears. Oh. That… uh...that kind of gave it a whole other sort of vibe didn't it? Oh god what should he do?
Becca seemed to rally before he could and just punched him firmly on the arm, making him hiss and rub it looking at her askance.
"Don't say something gonk like that dammit! You might get a girl's hopes up."
She said with a pout, disembarking from the tram as they made their way to her favorite ramen place.
Sitting in the same place they did the first time they'd gotten food together, both of their orders were quickly paid for by David, including the extra synth pork.
Becca sighed morosely as she waited for the food, and he couldn't help but nudge her with his foot.
"What's wrong?"
She blushed then, but before he could question that, she hid her embarrassment with a smirk.
"Oh I was just thinking about how it was too bad that all this good food is gonna go straight to my ass and thighs and not an ounce to my tits. "
She said, giving her big jiggly ass a slap, grinning as David blushed harder than before.
"O-oh. Um… yeah I…"
Oh fuck he was devolving into a blushing fucking mess all the while the little gremlin just cackled at him.
"Man David, you're really way too easy. Though it's nice to know I can fluster you a bit. A girl likes to feel pretty."
That at least was said with an earnest tone and smile on her face.
David, because his mouth was apparently equipped with its own Sandevistan unattached to his brain, found himself saying this.
"Well… shouldn't be an issue feeling that way because you're gorgeous."
Huh. So THAT'S what her face looked like when she went atomic on the blushing.
".... You shouldn't say shit like that just to make somebody feel better David. Can fuck up their self esteem."
She said eventually, looking morosely at the table, playing with a cuticle on her index finger.
He… didn't really understand what she was saying. Rebecca was gorgeous. All the women on the squad were fucking fine as hell.
"What do you mean? Becca… you look fantastic."
"... I look like a fucking kid. If it weren't for my ass, I'd have people asking if I were your little sister. All my life since me and bro came to Night City, I've been looked at like a kid."
He blinked, remembering her having told him something really fucked up.
"Wait… but.. you told me…"
"That I sucked dick in alleyways from 14 until I turned 16? Yeah. I did. Think about that for a moment. What kind of people do you think want a blowjob from some less than 4 foot prepubescent looking bitch?"
His jaw was clenched as shit fell into place a little more.
Holy fucking shit.
She snorted and continued to play with the cuticle, this time starting to scratch at it.
".... First time I fucked someone I had to pretend I was even younger than I was. Shit freaked me out so bad as soon as he was done I ran. Didn't even demand my pay. Had to come slinking back later to get paid, and had to do it again. Told me I… ruined the experience for him by running."
She seemed to hunch down as she spoke, never looking up, making herself smaller and smaller.
"... It's why when I joined the Mox that I always got so fucking mad when people called me kid,or little girl. I didn't want to be a kid. But by the time I started getting more mass down south, just… I stopped growing. And I never really got looked at as a proper woman. People either wanted their midget fetish satisfied, or they wanted me to pretend to be young. And I did it of course. Gotta satisfy the fucking client. But any time I tried to date? Nope. Nothing. Too young. Too short."
She let out a sharp exhale that might have been a form of a laugh.
"The one time I thought I'd found a decent gal, it turned out she'd had a fetish for young girls. And that's why she'd asked me out. I haven't dated since."
She swallowed hard as she said nothing for a while, her fingers starting to tear at her cuticle. But as soon as she started to go hard enough that she might draw blood, David couldn't hold back anymore , and reached out, grabbing her hand. Stopping her, but also supporting her.
She clung to his hand like it was a lifeline. Like he was the only thing keeping her from drowning in memories and misery.
It was that scene that their waitress found them in, quietly placing down the ramen, the extra pork being placed in front of Becca.
The waitress didn't say anything, just nodding in approval at David holding her hand, and walking away.
"Thanks D…"
She said, slowly attempting to pull away… and then stopping when David didn't pull away. She looked up at him, and David couldn't help but give her a gentle understanding smile.
She blushed lightly and squeezed his hand before pulling away so that they both could eat.
The two of them ate in silence for a while, until after Becca had demolished about half her bowl, she continued speaking.
"Ya know… I gotta thank you."
He blinked, a noodle hanging from his mouth as he cocked his head in confusion, making her giggle and himself blush.
After slurping up the noodle, he finally was able to voice his confusion.
"What for?"
She gave him a fond smile, an emotion that he didn't know how to process clear in her eyes.
"You didn't ask me why I haven't gotten implants to make me taller, or gotten some bigger tits implanted."
He blinked.
"Why would I? If you wanted them you would have got them by now. Since you don't, you obviously got a reason."
She giggled in delight as she slurped up some more noodles and broth.
"And this is one of the reasons I like you Dimples. You pay attention. You're right. I could get taller. Or bigger tits. But honestly? I don't really want to be taller. I'm comfortable being the height I am. Even if it makes life a little harder. Plus it makes it easier to punch someone in the groin!"
She said with a wicked wink and causing David to wince playfully.
"As for the tits…."
She shrugged.
"Honestly I wouldn't mind having some massive tits to balance my ass. They seem like they could be fun. But…"
She looked down briefly, before looking back up, almost embarrassed.
"I just… I want someone to look at me… for me you know? Not just a vessel to live out their kink. Not as a more acceptable version of me. Just… me. You know? I don't… I don't want to find out that the only reason someone got with me was because of my new implants. "
She seemed to hesitate before asking him a question, her teeth worrying her bottom lip.
"... Is that dumb?"
He didn't say anything first, deciding to order his thoughts by drinking the rest of his broth and noodles, placing the bowl down.
"I think… that you have every fucking right in the world to not want to change yourself. To want someone who can look at you, and see the person you are. The fighter. The woman. All of that. It's not stupid at all. And I'd kick the ass of anyone who said that about you Becca."
She didn't say anything for a moment, only finishing the rest of her meal, probably to try and figure out what to say. Or maybe he'd said the wrong thing.
… fuck he'd probably said the wrong thing.
Once she'd finished drinking the broth, she sighed in satisfaction before giving him a little grin.
"You're a really sweet guy. You know that Dimples? Fuck… ya know, I don't really ever talk about this shit. Not even with my bro. Especially not my bro actually. He just...doesn't get it. What is it about you that I can just… be.. and not have to worry about getting hurt?"
But I did hurt you. I'm still hurting you now.
He had to admit it. Had to address it.
Becca liked him. Liked him a lot. She didn't just flirt with him to fluster him, she actually wanted him. And the first time around? He couldn't call what she did for him, taking him to Arasaka HQ… saving Lucy. Keeping him somewhat sane with the suppressants…
He couldn't call that anything but love.
Becca had loved him. And he never even realized it until the end.
But what the fuck was he supposed to do with that knowledge? What could he do knowing that?
It would be one thing if he was completely uninterested in her and could just act as her wingman to get her someone who would actually treat her the way she deserved.
But he DID find her incredibly attractive. And the idea of anyone else with Becca…. Fuck. It made him upset. God what a piece of shit he was.
In love with a beautiful amazing woman, but not wanting another beautiful amazing woman to be with anyone…
What a selfish bastard.
"I don't know. I guess… I just really care about you Rebecca."
And he could already tell that was going to make things even worse. Fuck what was he supposed to do? He couldn't cheat on Lucy. The very concept of it made him want to throw up in disgust. But could he really keep hurting his best Choom like this?
Desperate to try and find a way to move past this topic of conversation for now, David said the first thing that came to his mind.
"So… it couldn't have been all bad. Your time with your parents as a kid I mean. Was there anything you liked doing?"
… why the hell was she blushing almost as much when he called her gorgeous?
Becca bit her lip, and looked around.
"... I'll tell you, but you have to promise me you won't tell anyone else."
Brimming with curiosity, he nodded leaning forward.
She sighed and covered her face in embarrassment.
"I'm a fucking nerd ok? I used to love reading books. Lots of sci-fi shit."
He blinked and a delighted smile grew on his face.
"No shit?"
"No shit. That tattoo on my thigh? PK Dick? It's not just a sex joke. It's an old, old Sci-fi author."
Rebecca looked at him through her fingers.
"... You don't think it's dumb?"
"Pfft. No? I should tell you about my stupid old hobby from before I joined the crew."
But before she could ask about it, he grinned.
"Actually… I've got an idea. Come on."
Paying for the ramen, and dropping a nice hefty tip to the waitress who'd been so chill about giving them her food, he led her to the NCART.
"Hey! Where are you taking me?"
She pouted as they joined the NCART passengers.
Preferring privacy as always, he decided to give her a call.
David: " It's a surprise. I promise, you're going to love it."
He grinned as he took a seat, and she pouted at him, before breaking into a smile of her own, sitting casually next to him, before swiveling,and leaving her legs on his lap.
Rebecca: "oh? Well.. I do like surprises. So I guess I'll let you take the lead. But! Only if you tell me what you meant about your stupid hobby."
He grimaced, and leaned his head back, closing his eyes.
David: ".... Alright. I used to sell XBD's from this skeevy ass ripper . Name of Doc."
He could feel her shock long before he opened his eyes to look at her.
Rebecca: "huh… never… never figured you for someone who got into that scene. Did you… did you watch them?"
David: "had to. Not gonna lie, hated it at first. Threw up bad. I was probably...13? Yeah. About 13 when I first played an XBD. Horrifying shit. Guy was an… an Animal I think. Went crazy off the Juice, and was just literally tearing people's limbs off."
Becca looked fucking horrified and he didn't know why. Had he over shared too much?
Rebecca: "... Why on earth did you watch that shit David? You could have fried your fucking brain if that shit wasn't properly tuned. Shit the stories Judy could tell you. And...wait… Doc… Doc fucking Borg? The fucking gonk who ripped you while you were totally fucking conscious?"
David: "yeah. Well… mom might have been making enough Eddies to spend on my education, she hated using any of that money on herself. So about 3 weeks away from mom's Birthday, Doc makes me an offer. I sell some special BD's to the rich fuckers I went to school with, and he'd give me a cut. But I had to watch the BD's myself. Had to… know what I was selling, he said.
But… on the plus side, I was able to buy my mom some real flowers. She kept them until they wilted to nothing. "
He'd been really proud of that. The smile on her face was worth everything.
But…. Becca wasn't smiling.
In fact… Becca looked pissed. He could tell because this wasn't the annoyance in her eyes when shooting at Pilar.
This was the rage in her eyes when she'd heard Kiwi's voice on the radio on their way to Arasaka.
Rebecca: "Remind me why we haven't Flatlined the fucker?"
David: "because randomly killing a ripper isn't a good idea? Get a bad rep doing that."
Rebecca frowned and gripped his arm from where it was laying across her legs.
Rebecca:"You deserved better than that David. You're… shit. You're a really good guy. And well, I didn't get to know Gloria as much as I might have wanted, but she had drinks and food with us sometimes. And anytime she got tipsy, she would pull out her pictures of you. Talk about how much she loved you, that you were the light of her life. That she was so fucking proud of you."
He swallowed hard at that, having to blink faster to get the tears to go away. He missed his mamá. And hearing that she talked about him so much? That she had such belief in him? It made him feel… so privileged to have been her son.
Too bad that you ended up becoming everything she never wanted you to be.
The intrusive thoughts were cut off as the NCART stopped in the City Center, and Becca moved her legs, standing up and stretching, her jacket barely covering her massive ass cheeks from sight, the panties she wore basically having turned into a thong.
"Alright Davey… where is it you want to take me?"
He latched onto his plan eagerly with both hands, leading them out of the station and down the streets.
It took a little bit… but eventually…
"The library?"
She said in disbelief as she looked at the not as well kept Burroughs Municipal Library, one of a few public libraries in Night City.
He blushed, looking away sheepishly.
"Well… yeah. You said you used to like to read stuff as a kid so… I figured we could hang out in the library for a bit and you could show me a few books you liked."
There was silence for a second, before he heard a small sniff. He turned to look back at her and… oh shit was she crying?!
And in fact… she wasn't crying. Not completely anyway, but she was misting up pretty good, and she had the most bright and tremulous smile he'd ever seen on her face.
"Becca? Are…. Are you ok?"
She let out a bark of laughter, before gently punching his arm, grinning as she looked up at him, eyes still shiny.
"I'm way more than ok David. You…. You fucking gonk."
She said with a hefty amount of affection audible in her tone as she hugged him tight, her head buried in his stomach. He hesitated for a moment before hugging her firmly, his hands on her shoulders and the back of her head securely as she sniffed a few more times.
"Come on David!"
She said as she finally pulled away, all manic energy and eagerness again.
"I got so much shit to show you!"
Right behind ya… Rebecca.
__
Fucking dimples and his being sweeter than synth syrup.
Rebecca was not used to talking to people about her fears, her experiences, her insecurities. In Night city? That was basically like ringing the dinner bell for anybody who was looking for an easy target whether it was for sex, spare parts, or just manipulation.
For the most part, even with Chooms you tried to… keep your soft underbelly from being exposed, otherwise you never know when someone was going to reach down and claw you open.
But here she was, rolling over, exposing her softness, her fear, her insecurity and anxiety to a boy… a young man who she was beginning to realize wasn't just a crush.
And he didn't claw. He didn't slash. He practically reached down and gave her a belly rub. Goddammit… She wasn't even horny right now, but she felt all gooey and warm inside as she dragged him into the library, looking through the shards available, and she showed him some of her favorites.
"So, this is actually my favorite series I used to read as a kid. Mostly because of how weird it was. And yet… it made sense."
She lifted the shard container, and held it up for him to see.
He cocked his head in that cute way that made her just want to reach up and squeeze his cheeks.
"The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy? What's special about this?"
And if it was anyone else, she'd assume they were mocking her, and she'd answer that with a pistol whip to the junk. But this was David. And that adorable face screwed up in curiosity mixed with those beautiful inquisitive brown eyes… She knew he just wanted to know what made it special to her.
She grinned and grabbed the next couple shards in the series and led them to a more comfortable nook. They had to squeeze in but… shit she'd never lose an opportunity to be close to him, even if she'd promised herself that she wouldn't be a homewrecker. That she wouldn't try to get in between the relationship that he had with Lucy.
...lucky bitch.
"So ok, the book starts with this guy, Arthur Dent who lives in Pre-DataKrash UK right? And because the government wants to build a highway, they decide to bulldoze his house. After trying to keep that from happening, he basically gets screwed when he goes to get some drinks with his friend, as they start to bulldoze his house. All of a sudden some aliens show up, and basically say 'hey! We came to earth to destroy it so we can build a hyperspace expressway!' and then blow it the fuck up! Earth I mean. Arthur and his friend manage to escape because his friend was an alien but…"
She flushed as she looked over at him, expecting him to seem completely lost or bored. And of course she was wrong. He was listening with rapt attention.
"So… he was gonna get screwed by his house being demolished for a highway… and then the aliens came and did the same damn thing to all of Earth?" He said, his body shaking in suppressed laughs.
She grinned and nodded rapidly.
"Exactly! It's fucking ridiculous, and absurd, and just so goddamn funny. "
She blushed and offered him the shard.
"You uh… wanna give it a read?"
"Yeah! Sounds fun."
He said taking the shard, And slotting it in. She sighed happily as being able to share one of her secret hobbies with someone who actually gave more than half a shit was… god it was heartwarming.
"Ya know…"
She mused quietly, mostly to herself.
"I used to have paper books. Real ones. They had… this weird fucking scent to em.. but man. It's been so long. I barely remember how it felt to turn a page."
He hummed, and continued reading.
"I don't think Ive ever read a paper book before. It's just… not something I ever experienced."
She snorted in derision.
"Yeah.. spoiled corpo upbringing remember. Had a bunch of shit most people never get to."
David stopped reading for a moment to turn to her, and oh shit. That warm intense gaze~... Not fair…
"You're… an amazing woman and an amazing person Rebecca. Your origins don't mean anything. It's not about what you came from, it's what you do now. And you… you're one of the best people I've ever known."
… fuck. She wanted him so fucking bad.
"... Thank you Dimples. You're… I don't really know how to say it right. But you mean a lot to me too."
He meant everything to her.
Ḏ̴͘ò̸̹n̷̳̏'̴͎̒t̶̮̿ ̵͖̃w̸̨̐ō̷̻r̸̪͋r̶̛͔y̸͇̿!̷̜̑ ̶̘͗I̶̛͚'̵̼̾v̵̮͆ë̸͉́ ̶̡́g̸̢͗o̸̹̓t̸̩̓ ̵̯̋ỵ̴̃ò̴̦u̶̢͗ṛ̴̅ ̷̬̅ḇ̵̇ä̶̭́c̷̛̳k̶͍͆!̸̧͛
̶̻̅
̷̼̃I̸̟̓ ̸͎̅d̵̢̀o̸̮͋ṋ̵͂'̴̳̐t̸̞͆ ̸̟̎w̸̺̓a̶̫͒t̵̃ͅć̴͖ȟ̵͇ ̵̖̾a̶̝̿ṇ̸̅ȳ̷̩o̸͋͜n̴̜̊ě̴͍ ̶̫͌l̴̳̾ì̶̟k̵̮̔ę̴̀ ̶͎̑I̴̗̋ ̸͓́w̸̬͂ā̸̢t̵̩͝c̶̉͜h̵̨͛ ̷̚ͅy̵̳̋o̷͕̒ù̸͍…̸͕̀
S̴̤͒T̷̺̋̂̄Ó̶̪̞̠̇̌̈́P̵̜̐İ̶͕͖͙̈́̚̕T̸̳͓̀̒̑͝Ş̵̨̺̍͛̑͘T̸̠͗͛Ő̷̱͝Ṕ̵̛̯͝Î̷̭́͗͋T̶̰́̔̀S̴̘̳̺̟̅T̶̻̳̥́̾̔O̵̫̲͚̕͠P̴͕̞̟͘I̵̩͗̾̍͘T̸̰̒̈́!̸̨̯̮̰́̔
̵͔̳̓̀̉
̴̤́́̚O̶̭̻͕̔̀ḱ̸̰̇ ̴̠͆Ḏ̵̘͕͝a̵̞̺̯͙͐v̶͕̠̇̍͝i̴͔̜̾͂̅̏d̷̦̕…̸͕̦̳͑̆̿͜ ̶͙͎̏͋̀r̵͉̰͌́̾i̷̹̽̍͛͝g̶̭̱̩̎͠ḧ̶̨̖t̴͇̩̫̾͊̂ ̸̛̦̘͈̂͠t̷̢͎̳̬͋͊o̷͙̙̖͆̃ ̵͇̘͈̀̊̕t̴̡̢̩̹̏ḩ̶͚̓͂é̶̹́͘ ̸̢̲͙̆̌͘̕Ť̴̥̃͘ơ̶̼͈̻̼̑p̸̗̝̐.̸̦̪͉͈͌͒̓̚
W̸̛̲̫͈̳̱̟̙̣̣̯͊̔̓͑̓Ẻ̸̯̅̐̑̔ ̵̳̼̞͕̮̏̇̓̽̾̈́̕͜W̴̛̛̬̰͑̎̈́̏̇̃͠Ě̴̯̬̪͚͎̲̱͎͈̑̋̾̈́̓R̴̢̛̬̜̭͓̈́̾͊̋̈́̅͗̃͝È̷̢̛̻̭̦̻͊̀͠ ̴̟̮̔͛̍̚H̵̭̓̈́Ă̶̢̬̼̘̼̝̯̒̓͐̽̽̕V̴̨͍̩̹͍̞̭͍̤̈Ḯ̶̩̰̩̭̞͕̈̈́ͅN̶̥͗̿͛̆̽̿̓̚G̴͚̞̲̯̤̦̈́͗̏͠ ̷͉̥͈̤͉̼͇͍̪̋̄̈́̔̓͐ͅẢ̸̧̨̛̰̹͔̤͚̥̲͂͠͝ ̶͎͔̟̟̀͋͑̂M̴̳̎͒͆Ö̶̫̲̖̼̤̤̭͙͍̮́̄̕ͅM̵̹̲̻̯̫̥̞͉͉͈̾̎͆́̏̏̕͠͝Ę̶̢̥̰̬̻̰͓̊̅̀͝N̴̲͚͉̟̤̣̅͛̎̀̒̏T̸̨̛̲̣̝̗͔͙̮̓͛̕͝͝ ̵̨̯̥̰̠̭̟̿̂̎̏̏͊Ḥ̵̘͇̞͉̬̾̋̋͊̇̇́͊̈́̿͘E̸͍͚͊̀̑͂ͅŔ̸͓̽̋̉͝E̵͔̥͆̒̀͊̇!̶͕̑͂̍͑̌̓͗͝ ̸̡̾F̷̘͔̪̩͓̘͇͉́̈̎̽̑́̓͘U̵̥̺͔̦̾͊̽̈͛͠ͅĆ̷̩͓̮͚̜̫͂̐̓̍K̵̡̺͔̘̯͈͚͛̉̃̆ ̴͍̐̐̔̍̍̑̊Ȳ̸̯͙̣̹͍̝́̑̿͊͆̏͑̕͘͘O̶̡̽̽̈́͗͑̿̑͌̒̚̕Ṵ̴͓̭͇̮̠̔̋̈́̇́̌̎̌̽͜!̷̢̡̱͚̗͇̣͎̱̦͊̏͐̄̿͋̄́̏̕
She blinked, unable to shake off the feeling she wasn't… remembering.
But then David gave her that bright smile again. And everything was ok again.
".... Good. I'm glad." He said quietly as they went back to reading together. For the next hour they read and commented quietly on the books, the absurdity of the scenarios and how Night City still managed to be crazier at times. It was one of the best days of her entire fucking life.
As they finally decided to end things for the day, putting away the shards, Rebecca had finally come to a conclusion. She couldn't be quiet about this any longer. She was feeling way way more for David than she had ever expected to feel for…. Anyone really.
So she resolved to talk with Lucy. She and Lucy were Chooms so… maybe she'd be ok with… sharing?
She knew she couldn't take Lucy's spot in his heart. But she honestly didn't even want that. Seeing all that love for the Netrunner...she didn't want to take that for herself. She wanted her own kind of gazes. Ones where he was just caught up in how much he loved her.
So that was it. Once she had the right opportunity… she'd talk to Lucy. Should be a piece of cake right?
Right?