Chapter Text
There’s a humming to his left. He’s sure Tina is saying something. They were talking about the new hire at the annual DPD get-together, but Gavin can’t help but be distracted. They look like little stars throughout the lawn. Across Hank’s backyard, Nines and the captain are deep into a conversation, their faces lit by the fake lanterns Connor must’ve hung from tree to tree. The android is holding a clear cup full of blue liquid, and after a beat, he takes a sip and nods his head. His LED cycles a constant, cool blue, and the detective can’t help but stare. The lights seem to twinkle around them. A punch to his arm brings him back to reality.
“-Even listening to me at this point?”
“Huh?” Gavin turns his head back to the short officer next to him. Tina is sending him a fake glare, but she has a coy grin on her face. Gavin moves his beer out of the way so Tina doesn’t slosh it into the grass or all over him. She punches his free shoulder again, but this time the glare is replaced by a playful and knowing expression.
“I said, if you’re so distracted by mister handsome robot over there, you should just go talk to him.” Tina adds a wink at the end of her sentence, nodding her head in Nines’ direction.
“I- I wasn’t- I was admiring the fireflies,” Gavin finishes lamely, red creeping up his neck to his cheeks.
Tina widens her eyes. “Uh huh. Sure you were. I’m sure the fireflies are what truly have your attention this evening,” she adds sarcastically, rolling her eyes. “Well,” Tina pauses, taking a sip of her colourful drink, “It looks like they’re finishing up their conversation now, so I’m gonna split and go talk to that hot new girl I was telling you about.” She hip bumps Gavin, shoving him in the direction of the android with another wink.
“Wait, wait, wait,” he tries, but Tina is already gone from their spot, and he is left alone halfway across the yard. It does look like Nines and the captain are wrapping up their talk, and instead of doing what Tina suggested, Gavin knocks back his drink and makes for the deserted minibar. He leans against the bar, holding up his hand to get another drink. He orders another Corona, and the barmaid tosses him a lime when a familiar voice sounds over his shoulder.
“Detective.”
Gavin takes a swig of his drink, determined to act nonchalant. “Nines,” he says, acting pleasantly surprised as he turns to face the android. “Funny running into you here.”
The android tilts his head. “You mean at the company get-together?”
Gavin flushes, but Nines has a mischievous smile on his lips. “I- yeah, I just meant-”
Nines leans forward onto the bar, holding up his finger for another thirium drink. He turns back to the detective, and the smile works its way back to his face. “I know what you meant. It’s just funny to see you get all flustered.”
“I don’t get all flustered,” he denies, though he’s certain he’s red from the interaction. God, he needs to get his act together. Nines grabs his drink from the bartender with thanks and Gavin takes the opportunity to look around for Tina and the new girl. They must be inside, keeping away from the late summer humidity. “Anything exciting happening?” he asks feebly, trying to keep a casual conversation with the android. Nines seems to know that’s what he’s doing, because he raises an eyebrow, but he doesn’t comment on it.
“Other than the new case that came in this afternoon? Nothing too exciting,” he says, probably detecting he’s piqued the detective’s interest.
Gavin turns from leaning against the bar, taking another swig of his beer. “You can’t just say that and then not fill me in,” he chuckles, making brief eye contact with Nines before facing the yard again. He has got to get this under control. He’s going to pretend the pink of his cheeks is from the alcohol at this point, so he needs to drink faster. That should help. Right.
“Do you remember the briefing we had about Aleks Fitzgerald two weeks ago?” Nines asks, drawing Gavin away from his intrusive thoughts.
Gavin hums, thinking. “The serial killer we caught, right? Did something else happen with him? He didn’t break out, right?”
“No, he’s still incarcerated.” Nines notes, “But something strange did happen. A killing similar to his very first one was reported in Milwaukee. The victim had the same initials and occupation as Fitzgerald’s first victim. They even took the same fingers as trophies.”
“Oh god,” Gavin groans, bringing a hand to pinch at the bridge of his nose. “Shit. Now we’ve got an impressionist. Phck this.”
“Hey,” Nines calls, setting down his drink to draw Gavin’s hand away from his face. “We’ve done this before. We can do it again.”
Gavin ignores the feeling of Nines practically holding his hand. “Nines, we barely got out alive last time. I don’t want to put you through that again.”
“Me?” Nines chuckles. “I’m Cyberlife’s top creation, Detective. I’m built for this. We can do this.” He squeezes Gavin’s hand gently before releasing it and grabbing his drink from the bar counter. After a sip, he speaks again. “Plus, I bet it’ll be kind of nice to have an all-expenses-paid trip and hotel.”
Gavin tilts his head. That is a perk. Plus, if there’s only one bed- “Fine,” he sighs. “You got me. But tonight, we have to enjoy the party since it’s the last one for at least six months. And the bar is open. Let’s get drunk and forget about it until tomorrow, deal?”
Nines grins. “Deal.”
It’s kind of nice, as they sit and chat. Tina and the new girl, Jackie as she introduced herself, join them for a deep conversation about a previous case, and Gavin almost forgets the daunting task they’ll have tomorrow. Almost. But when they laugh at something Tina says and he turns to Nines who has a grin on his face and a cool, blue LED, Gavin can’t help but think how beautiful the fireflies are tonight.