for kateand

[actlikeamanfred]

[ After this. ]


Leo feels awful the entire elevator ride up from the parking garage to the seventh floor. He should've just kept his mouth shut and accepted Connor's concern without questioning it, or at worst just ignored it.

Despite being a little judgy and disappointed, Connor's never been an asshole to Leo, even when Leo most definitely deserved it. He's generally treated him like a human being even when Leo was completely iced up. So Leo should know that Connor's probably a decent person. He'd been downright sweet today, in-between the jokes.

And Leo had of course been a complete asshole in return. Figures.

He can't even quite blame it on withdrawal, it's been three weeks since he last smoked red ice, and the worst of his mood swings have subsided by now. But not quite enough to stop him from lashing out, it seems.

The moment he's inside the apartment, he kicks off his shoes as he heads through the hallway, drops his jacket over a chair, gives a vague wave of acknowledgement at Kate, then goes and flops face-first onto the couch. Then he groans loudly into a pillow.

Comments

[kateand]

Oh, Leo. She doesn't know what he did or said, but he's clearly regretting it. She taps a little into her childcare programming (like she often does to comfort him) and combs her fingers through his hair.

"You've never been ungrateful or an asshole to me," she says. And it's true - he's always treated her well. She can't speak for his actions today, but she's always been grateful [software instability ^] for his kindness.

"What happened?"

[actlikeamanfred]

Leo's pretty sure that's not entirely true, but then androids probably have low standards, right? Just two seconds ago she picked up his shit and he didn't even say thanks. (He sometimes does say it though, because he feels like if he never says it to the person being he probably interacts with the most, then he'll forget to do it at all.) As for asshole, well, maybe he's never purposefully been an asshole, but he's most definitely been rude.

But he appreciates the sentiment anyway, and the fingers in his hair, soothing him. His mom used to do that for him when he was younger, and the first time Kate did it he'd had a breakdown as a result. But that had only been a few months after she died. Nowadays it's just a comforting gesture.

"There's this guy I bumped into while getting food, he's a cop. He's arrested me a few times," he answers. "Except he's actually an okay guy, and he was being nice, and I.. was a total dick to him."

[kateand]

Listen, you say thank you, you don't beat her, and you don't ask for the impossible from her. She has nothing to complain about. (Not that she can complain. She's an android.)

"Why were you a dick to him?" she asks gently. It's part of her childcare protocol, to help children talk through their emotions and stuff when they're upset. She has, however, taken pains not to use the tone she was programmed to use with those protocols. They'd just be condescending to a grown man, and she doesn't want Leo to feel like she's treating him like a child just because she can repurpose some of that programming.

[actlikeamanfred]

"I dunno," he answers, staring into space. "Wanted to figure out his agenda?"

He does know a bit more than he lets on. He gets scared of letting people in, in case they hurt him or leave him, voluntarily or against their will. So he pushes them away to protect himself, and to test them, to make sure they actually want to be there before he risks anything.

...He may have discussed this with his therapist too. He knows he does this shit, he knows it's not healthy or friendly, it just doesn't seem to stop him when he's in the moment of it.

[kateand]

She tilts her head a little, looking down at him. He seems sad. She wishes she could fix it for him, and make him not sad.

She likes it better when he's happy. [software instability ^]

"Well. Did you?"

[actlikeamanfred]

Leo shrugs with the shoulder he's not lying on. He's not even sure, really.

"Well he doesn't care about Carl or his money," he answers, which is a good thing. Kate has listened to more than a few Carl-related rants. "And he wasn't trying to get me to flip on my dealer. And he apparently doesn't want to have sex with me, even if he was kinda flirting, so it's not that."

[kateand]

"Maybe he just wants to be friendly," she offers. "People will sometimes flirt to ease tension in conversations when they're nervous." Thank you, Cyberlife, for the 'teens and dating' basic psychology protocols. "If he was flirting with you but doesn't want to be involved with you, he might be anxious about speaking to you in a friendly, non-professional setting."

Or maybe he's into him and Leo's overthinking things, but she's not going to even guess about that.

"I think it's possible you're reading an agenda into someone just being nice." She's chiding him, but gently, still carding her fingers through his hair. It's a reminder that not everyone has an angle when they're friendly.

[actlikeamanfred]

"I knooow," Leo answers dejectedly, putting a hand over his face and rubbing at his eyes in frustration at himself, then drops the hand back on the couch, feeling hopeless.

"Hence me being an ungrateful asshole," he says, rolling over to stare at the ceiling. "Why couldn't I just have let him be friendly? Why did I have to make such a deal out of it? Ugh."

[kateand]

"He's arrested you multiple times," Kate points out. "If he's really just trying to be friendly, he should understand if you're not immediately trusting of his intentions."

She hopes that she's right, for Leo's sake, that this officer is just trying to be friendly.

"Maybe next time you see him, you can apologize for lashing out?"

[actlikeamanfred]

There's a difference between not trusting his intentions and openly calling him out on it in the most confrontational way possible. Surely there's some safe middle-ground in there somewhere. Anyway, if detective Stern had had other intentions, he probably wouldn't have snapped back the way he did, since that could've ruined his chances at... whatever it was he was trying to accomplish.

"Well, ideally I won't see him again," Leo points out. Detroit is a big city, the chances of bumping into him aren't that big. Unless Leo goes and gets himself arrested again. But he generally only does that when he's high, and he has no plans of getting high any time soon if he can help it.

[kateand]

"Yes," Kate agrees. "I hope he won't have reason to arrest you in the future."

There isn't any judgement in her tone. Just a hint of hope. She wants him to be healthy, and happy, and not fucking arrested.

[actlikeamanfred]

Leo sighs heavily, a touch dramatically. "I hope so too, Kate, I hope so too..."

He feels a bit better now, having talked through it a bit and vented his frustration at himself, so he sits up. And because he wants some more physical reassurance (clearly not to thank her or anything, androids don't need to be thanked), he reaches out and gives her a hug.

[kateand]

Kate hugs him back, smiling fondly [software instability ^] as she presses her cheek against his hair. "Would you like me to make you a sandwich?"

[actlikeamanfred]

"Nah, I had a burger, and C-- Detective Stern shared his cheese fries with me," Leo answers, pulling away slowly and sitting back on the couch, leaning against the pillows and pulling his legs up. "Just sit with me and watch TV."

[kateand]

"Of course, Leo," Kate says, and while yes, it's the programmed Cyberlife response and tone of acknowledgement, there's enough love familiarity under it that it doesn't sound rote.

Kate wraps her arm around Leo's shoulders, tucking him against her side, and turns the TV on with a silent command. Sure, she still needs to do some cleaning and it's laundry day, but that can all wait.

Leo takes priority.