Happy Valentines Day Erin <3
Tabitha put the shared mechanics kitchen to good use. Her shop was closed early and she had spent most of her afternoon trying her best to craft a decent meal for her and Clay. The other mechanics were beyond curious as to the happenings conspiring in their kitchen. Occasionally someone would poke their head in, trying to figure out what exactly Tabitha was cooking.
Finally, after what felt like hours, Tabitha had put together a decent meal of spaghetti and Caesar Salad. She wasn't much of a cook but she had tried her best, and that was all that mattered. Quickly she moved the food to a boxed thermos and rushed off to her room. She half expected to find Clay waiting outside her door, but luckily she had gotten there before him.
“I need a minute anyways.” She sighed to herself, thankful she could finally wash up after the long day. She had a few minutes before Clay was supposed to arrive, meaning she had to rush as she ran a comb through her wild hair. She glanced at her bedroom clock, she had exactly two minutes left, just enough time to brush her teeth.
When she was done she hurried to the small table set up in her living quarters, darting about to make sure everything was in order. The food was ready and waiting, the room was clean and tidy, she was freshened up and all that was missing was the scientist.
“He'll probably be a few minutes.” She shrugged when the clock struck 7. She knew the scientist was a busy man and was more than likely wrapping things up back at the lab. Realizing she could spare another moment, she darted back into her bathroom and applied some lip gloss and her mothers necklace. She stepped in front of the mirror, carefully taking note of her reflection. She still wore her work pants and shirt. They were both stained with persistent grease and oil stains, perhaps she should change.
Quickly she darted to her closet and rummaged through the scarce garments that lined the wall. It was tough deciding on what to wear. Her gala dress was far too fancy for the occasion. Her other work clothes were all stained with the remnants of her garage, leaving her with a light blue button up dress top and an old pair of dark jeans she wore once before. She slipped into the outfit, feeling odd out of her cargo pants and fitted tank.
“Should I do something more to my hair?” She muttered under her breath, running her fingers through the wavy locks. Hesitant at first, she began to braid the strands into a long fish tail. She admired her work before striding back towards the set table. She sat down, facing the door, slightly shocked Clay hadn't nocked yet.
“7:30” she hummed, glaring at the clock as if it was ticking much too fast for her licking. Patiently she sat, her finger tapping on the table, any minute he would be there.
“He's probably going to be starving.” She muttered and decided it might would be best to have the food plated and ready. When 7:50 rolled around she had finished readying the food and had it on the table, surely he would be there any moment. It wasn't like him to be nearly an hour late, although she knew a number of things could have delayed him. Clay-Trap was constantly giving the poor scientist trouble, and she wouldn't put it past him to sidetrack Clay.
“He'll probably knock on the door, bits and pieces of Clap-Trap in his hands.” She chuckled, the unfortunate robot was always in some sort of mess.
As the arms of the clock turned and ticked, Tabitha's heart began to sink. She had let her head rest on the table in her folded arms, why was she still waiting? The small arm of the clock came to rest at the 9...Clay wasn't coming. Tabitha exhaled softly, pushing herself off the table, her stomach growled, but she couldn't bring herself to eat, she was too upset.
She had wanted to talk with him, needed to ask about that dream like kiss that nagged her every waking moment. Her decision rested on what he had said...if he had said anything to her at all, if it had even happened. Then again, she glared at the cold pasta, if he had kissed her then why was he standing her up? If he cared about her at all, had any of her interests at heart, then he would be here right now.
Bitter, and somewhat heartbroken, she roughly grabbed up the two plates and crammed them both in the trash can; not bothering to salvage her plate.
“I wont need it.” She huffed, reaching for a large tape roll sitting on her dresser. She neared an open box that sat by her closet and began to toss her few outfits into it sloppily. Once it was filled she taped the box closed and moved on to the next empty container. Her communication device began to buzz from her bedside table where it rested. She stomped across the room and yanked it up, answering the call.
“Hello?” She grumbled.
“Tabitha!” The cheery hum of her boss echoed through her bedroom, “I hate to rush you, but you haven't made up your mind about the project yet and tomorrow I have to submit the names of my crew to the board, can I count you in?” He asked.
There was a long pause and Tabith bit her lip, hoping that maybe, just maybe, there would be a knock at her door. An out of breath scientist would be on the other side, covered in sweat, he had raced across the facility with the wildest story to tell her.
“Tabitha?” The voice of her boss called her back to reality and the decision waiting for her. She gulped down the heartbreak bobbing in her chest and clenched her fist.
“Yup, I'll go.” She practically gasped it out, but once she had said it, she felt better. She was going now, that was it, no more worrying or wondering or wishing.
“Great, i'll pick you up tomorrow.” Everett was overjoyed and Tabitha quickly ended the call, she had packing to finish.
'A' twitched his finger, his senses returning. He wanted to groan in pain as sharp throbs surged through his skull. However, he couldn't seem to form words, or even make sounds. Instead he winced, furrowing his brows but refusing to open his eyes. He knew where he was, or at least he imagined he did. He remembered being dragged away by that strange man...Braden. Clay hadn't even noticed. Braden didn't explain to 'A' what was going on, but the young experiment was smart and had caught on quick enough. He had heard Clay fuming over the procedures, refusing to go through with any of them.
'A' was aware of how both Braden and Clay seemed to clash, never agreeing with one another.
However, just because he knew he was being carried away for a procedure, didn't mean he couldn't be horrified about it. He had kicked, fought, bit and punched, but Braden went unfazed. Eventually the nurses had to restrain him and the last thing he could remember was the mask being placed over his face.
'A' could now feel a tight band strapped around his middle, pinning him to the table. Eventually his nerves returned and he could detect the same straps around his ankles and wrists. Still, he refused to open his eyes. He felt strange, like pieces of him were missing. His thoughts seemed to form clearly in his mind, no longer a jumbled blur of images and ideas. He felt...smarter.
'A' hissed in pain as another sting scraped his head, he hated it. He could feel strength come back to his arms and legs. Deciding it was time to find Clay, he opened his eyes. Immediately panic struck him as he realized there was something horrible wrong with his sight. The vision of his left eye was completely red, as if he was looking at the world through tented glasses. Numbers and dials flashed over things as he looked at them.
Desperate to get the strange contraption off his face, he began to wriggle in his bonds. He pulled with his arms and kicked with his legs, trashing himself on the table. One of the straps on his arms was weak and snapped after a moment. With his free arm he undid the other buckles and leapt off the table frantically. His feet were barely on the floor before he slipped, smacking his cheek against the cold tile. His heart raced in his chest as all kinds of thoughts raced through his mind, but he didn't give up. He pushed himself onto his feet again, this time making it a few steps closer to the door before tripping and crashing against the wall.
It was then that 'A' began to notice the odd sensation that part of him was just...missing. He paused, catching his breath before taking a moment to assess himself. He knew about the planned experiments, knew what Braden wanted to do, but he wasn't prepared for them. A whimpered sob escaped him when he realized his tail and both his wings were completely gone, throwing off his whole balance. 'A' was beyond frustrated and he slammed his fist against the wall, he had to find Clay.
Although walking was now a difficult chore, he was determined to escape the small room he had woken up in. It was a medical room with strange beeping machines and wires that hung all around. 'A' tried not to think about the scary décor, and flopped against the door. He hardly had time to grab the knob before an ear piercing alarm rattled his brain. Red lights flashed and blinked and immediately he fell back in horror, grabbing his knees.
Shouts echoed outside the door before it swung in on its hinges. A wave of doctors and armed workers rushed into the room and swarmed around the frightened experiment. 'A' shrieked as rough hands yanked him off the floor and slammed him back onto the bed.
“He's trying to escape!” Someone shouted, causing a loud murmur to reverberate through the room.
“Be careful, he could be dangerous.” Another voice warned.
“Strap him back down!” 'A' could feel the tight bonds wrapped around his middle and arms again. He kicked and spat, growling at the strange people surrounding him.
“Watch out! He might try and bite.”
“Don't let him get up again!”
“How did he wake up? I thought he was in an induced coma?”
“There are no IV's, where are the IV's? No wonder he woke up!” One doctor began dragging tubes and wires to the bed, hooking them to the machines. 'A' could see the open door through the hoard of doctors, but he couldn't fight them off. Hands pressed against his shoulders and stomach while straps also kept him pinned. His heart was racing out of his chest, his mind running wild with thoughts and demands.
“GET OFF!” He finally shrieked, his eyes widening at his own voice. The doctors all paused, and for a split second the whole room fell silent. All eyes were on him, blinking in confusion as the experiment took a moment to catch his breath. It was as if they were all in a trance, shocked by his words.
The still state of the room was interrupted as a figure stepped through the door.
“What is going on?” A voice rang through the quiet and immediately the doctors all turned. 'A' moved his head, peeking behind a doctor until he could see the familiar face of Braden. He frowned, fighting off a hiss that threatened to slip through his teeth.
“The alarms went off.”
“He broke free of the restraints.”
“He was trying to escape.”
“Someone forgot to hook him to the sedatives.”
“He woke up from the induced coma.” The doctors bombarded Braden and the scientist had to take a step back.
“There doesn't seem to be much of an actual problem here.” He frowned, crossing his arms. “If he was able to break free then that means he is on the right track to recovery.” the other doctors all sighed, glad their boss was not ill with them. Braden took a step further into the room, pushing his way though the nervous doctors.
'A' scowled when his gaze met the scientists', this was all his fault. Braden gave a smirk before turning to address the doctors,
“I'm going to run a few tests, you can all go back to work.” He gave a wave of his hand and they all quickly scurried out of the room. 'A' could feel a dread fall in his gut, Braden was the last person he wanted to see.
“So...little experiment, it seems as though the implant had worked.” He sat on the edge of the medical bed, legs crossed. A's heart was racing, why hadn't Clay come to help him? Here he was at the mercy of Braden and Clay wasn't there to protect him.
“Talk to me.” Braden stated, snapping 'A' out of the small panic attack he was having. He took a calming breath, processing what the scientist had just asked him to do. “Talk, he wants to talk.” 'A' thought to himself, but try as he might he just couldn't bring himself to form words. And how could he? He knew it was Braden's doing, having his tail and wings removed. He remembered how he had snatched him up and carried him away. No, he wouldn't be talking with Braden.
The scientist began to grow impatient, tapping his foot against the leg of the bed. Finally he stood, arms flopping by his side.
“You stubborn freak!” He hissed, kicking the bed. 'A' let out a startled yelp, wishing he could curl up somewhere and just hide.
“Fine, you don't have to talk to me, but you will talk to your therapists. And if you don't...well you can just forget about food.” He snarled before leaving the room with a huff. The door slammed shut behind him, causing 'A' to flinch. He had to escape, had to find Clay.
His mind immediately began to race as he struggled to come up with some sort of escape plan. The straps that tied him down had to be the first to go.
“If I could break them once, I can break them again.” He thought. Quickly he began to struggle against them, pulling and thrashing his limbs. The same strap form before loosened, allowing him to slip his arm free. In no time he had undone the other bindings and leapt off the bed, doing his best to remember how to walk.
“Clay will help me,” he told himself, “he'll make it all better.” he imagined himself finding his beloved scientists and throwing himself into his encouraging arms...he desperately needed a hug. With new determination he charged for the door, setting off the alarm once again. However, this time, he did not stand dumbly flustered in the middle of the room. Within an instance he had turned completely invisible, standing with his back pressed against the wall.
The sound of shouting and pounding feet drew closer, just like before. It wasn't long before he could hear the lock on the door click.
“HE'S ESCAPED THE BONDS AGAIN!!” Someone shouted, and the door flung open, releasing another mob of doctors into the room. By the time they had all stumbled in and realized he was nowhere to be found, it was too late, 'A' was gone.
Authors note: Sorry for the short chapter. It really wasn't supposed to be done until at least this weekend...but it's Valentines day, so enjoy :) (this means i didn't edit so excuse the mistakes XP )
