Her watery gaze met mine as her hand lifted to cup my cheek, a tear slipping free.
My eyes fell to the bruises forming on her arms. I had threatened Acer when he had done the same thing.God, was I no better than a cyborg who was losing their processors?
My thumb brushed away the tear. “Mother, I didn’t know it was you,” my voice cracked.
“I know,” she patted my cheek. “It’s okay, my sweet boy, but Axios is right. You are pushing yourself to hard, Dax. You need to take a break.”
I pulled out of her grasp. Guilt sat like a heavy weight in my chest for the hurt I had caused my mother, but I couldn’t leave Poe. I simply couldn’t.
I shook my head, “Mother, I will not leave her. If something happens and I’m not here...” I couldn’t finish, my eyes locked on Poe. “I did this! It’s all my fault. I should have said no. I should have not been so confident that nothing could go wrong.” My hands pulled at the edges of my once clean lab coat. Being clean no longer mattered.
I gave a bitter laugh. What would Poe think of me now? Her once polished and well-dressed cyborg was nothing now but a mess of dirty clothes and useless circuits.
I had been so convinced everything would beokay. The others had been fine. Dash, Reaper, and Acer had gotten forever with their female, why shouldn’t I? My confidence had bordered on arrogance and Poe had paid the price.
Forget forever. Now I only wanted what the universe would grant me. If I got another minute, another hour, another day with Poe, I would be grateful, cherishing every single second.
I looked at my mother and Axios. “I tried to cheat time, granting humans longer lives without thinking about the consequences. The universe is laughing at me and my foolish arrogance.” I hung my head in shame. “Poe suffers while I am condemned to watch her fade away before my eyes.” I pounded a fist against the side of my skull. “Tell me mother, what good is all of this if I can’t find a way tosaveher?” My frame hit the wall, sliding down to the floor.
My processors were out of ideas, my CPU running on empty, as I buried my face in my hands.If you go Poe, know that I will follow.There was no other choice. I refused to exist in a world without her.
“Get the fuck up, Science Model. Sitting on the floor like a bag of bolts isn’t going to help your female.” A metal hand gripped my lab coat, yanking me off the floor.
Acer’s angry golden gaze met mine. “Never took you for a quitter, Dax.”
“I’m...I’m not quitting,” I stuttered, swallowing past the lump that had formed in my throat.
Acer’s eyes narrowed. “Well, if you’re not quitting, then why the hell are you crumpled on the floor like a useless mess of circuits?” Lightening quick, he raised his fist and swung, hitting me square in the jaw.
“Acer,” Both Dr. Shaw and Axios shouted at the same time.
Acer only grinned and pulled back his fist, getting ready for round two of punch the Science Model in his face. If he wanted a fight, I’d give him one. I curled my hand into a fist and slammed it into his stomach.
He doubled over, clutching his middle. “Nice one,” he wheezed.
I cradled my jaw, wincing. “You hit me first.”
Acer straightened up his frame and glared at me. “Someone needed to. It was turning into some kind of fucked up pity party up in here.” His gaze swung to Dr. Shaw and Axios. “Were you two going to just sit here and cry with him? For fucksakes! How the hell is that helping him?”
My mother bristled. “I can see the asshole side of your personality is running the show today, isn’t it, Acer?”
“Actually doc, this is the nice side of my programming. My other half wanted to punch Dax’s lights out and drag his frame from the room.” He flashed her a grin. “That way he wouldn’t be so miserable, and he would get the much-needed rest for his processors. In case you haven’t figured it out yet, asking isn’t working, doc. Dax needed some tough love.”
Axios huffed. “And let me guess, you are just the cyborg to provide it?”
“Look at you Rainbow! Now you’re getting it!” Acer clapped his metallic hands together.
I shoved him. Hard. “Is this a joke to you? You come in here, order me around, punch me in the face, and now you’re clapping?” I flung a finger towards the door, “Get thefuckout!”
I heard my mother gasp. I usually never use such colorful language, but Acer’s antics made it impossible not to. I was driving myself mad trying to think of a way to save my female and he waltzed in here like nothing was wrong? He claimed to be my friend. Friends support one another, not make light of the worst moment in someone’s entire existence. How would he have liked it if I would have done this when his female wasdying?
Fury ignited in my wires. “Next time it’s Marley lying there, I’ll make sure to repay the favor,” I sneered. I pointed at the door again. “Now get out!”
Acer’s grin died on his face. “Low blow there, Science Model, but I’ll ignore it since you aren’t thinking straight at the moment. I know you think I’m not helping, but you aren’t in a heap on the floor anymore, are you?” He advanced towards me like a predator stalking its prey, but I refused to budge from where I stood.
Acer no longer scared me. Poe dying while I watched, unable to do something, was what now scared me. Acer’s intimidation tactics were nothing compared to that.
“I needed to see if you had any fight left inside those processors of yours and since you look like you want to murder me, I’d say you do.” He poked my chest. “Poe needsthisversion of you.” Reaching out, he gripped my arms. “She needs you tofightDax, not curl up racked with guilt.Guiltwon’t fix her.” His eyes bored into mine.