Chapter Text
As if her life hadn’t been hard enough, the universe decided to throw everything that could cause a normal person to have a mental breakdown at Kirsten in one day. Things were going so well for the first time in her lifetime, and she honestly had allowed herself a moment of happiness. She had allowed herself to believe she could have a half normal, happy life. She now regretted her decision, but didn’t regret the events that led to her ultimate conclusion.
Cameron had officially asked her to be his girlfriend a week ago today, and they had plans to go to dinner at his favorite Italian restaurant three hours ago. Seven hours ago she stitched into a man who had been friends with her mother, was told specific information intended for Kirsten, and then killed with the knowledge the body would be sent to the lab. Part of that knowledge combined with an SD card, discovered by Cameron in the encyclopedic book ‘K’ Ed had left her in a safety deposit box opened with the key from her mother’s tomb, informed her that she had not been born with temporal dysplasia. She had been experimented on as a child and her brain waves manipulated and studied so that the stitchers technology would be built specifically for her. Four hours ago Cameron had been walking with her to his, no their, apartment and talking through her emotions after the recent discovery.
Cameron had noticed that out of all of the participants involved in the compatibility testing, Kirsten’s had matched almost perfectly. Kirsten hadn’t even been a part of the group and her first time stitching had gone more smoothly than Marta’s best day. He had once mentioned that it seemed as if the technology had been built to Kirsten’s specs, but Kirsten had dismissed it as one of his creepily accurate yet impossible theories. He had been correct that the tech had been designed for her, but she had also been tested and design for the tech. She wanted to feel angry at Ed and her mother for messing with her mind, performing all kinds of tests and experiments on a child without regard to how it would affect her life.
However the program had brought her Linus, Camille, and most importantly Cameron. If it hadn’t been for Cameron she would have told Liam yes, without a clue as to what true love felt like, and now she would be unknowingly engaged to a spy and assassin for an agency hell bent on gaining the stitchers technology. But at what cost did she pay in exchange for happiness and true love with Cameron? She could taste the blood in her mouth from biting her cheek so hard, trying to keep the brimming tears and sobs in check. Cameron was lying in the corpse cassette and the only thing that kept Kirsten from imagining him dead were the various wires and tubes hooked to him.
Three hours and forty-five minutes ago, Cameron shoved Kirsten down and a bullet had entered his chest and exited beneath his shoulder blade. This was a mere thirteen hours after Detective Fisher had been shot in the torso, and now lies comatose in the ICU. Kirsten had screamed, for the very first time in her life, as she watched Cameron hit the pavement in front of their apartment. Her first reaction was to call Maggie, as the lab was a ten minute walk away from the lab and ten minutes from the rescue of Ayo. Never had Kirsten been so thankful of Ayo’s extensive training and her connections which had allowed her to call in a favor and perform surgery on Cameron right in the lab.
She had stayed in the room as they worked to stop the bleeding and repair damaged muscle and arteries. Ayo’s friends had given her odd looks at first, but quickly realized the connection and didn’t push Kirsten to leave. Camille and Linus had attempted to drag her from the room at the command of Maggie, but she had given them a look of such fury they hadn’t even gotten past two steps in the door. Even Maggie knew to back down and allow Kirsten to do as she pleased. Once they finished and deemed Cameron stable, Kirsten had drug a chair to his bedside, holding his hand and whispering for him to please wake up. Two hours later she had decided to ask Camille about stitching him. Now, an hour after that, she had slipped into her cat suit and was standing outside of the corpse cassette and was waiting for Camille’s word.
Kirsten averted her eyes as she walked past everyone. She needed to void her mind of all thoughts and feelings and seeing the pity on everyone’s face would break her. She needed to be focused and emotionless to do this. They had never stitched a living consciousness before and if Kirsten thought about it she would lose her nerve in fear of harming Cameron. The science was there, all that was different was the consciousness could connect its own synapses without the aid of the nanos.
“Kirsten can you hear me?” Kirsten didn’t remember climbing into the fish tank or hearing Camille confirm operations.
“Yeah, I can.”
“Just please remember this is my first time doing this Kirsten. None of us thought that when Cameron said I’d stitch you this week it would mean stitching you into him. If anything, and I mean anything, feels odd or begins to spike your vitals please bounce. Don’t make me destroy my best friend’s consciousness because she’s too stubborn to bounce herself.”
“Okay.” One word answers were the best she could do at the moment. She felt numb.
“I’ll get you as close to the time as he was shot, seeing as it appears he saw the shooter since she pushed you out of the way.”
“Okay.”
Cameron’s consciousness would have been fascinating to explore had she not been there under the circumstances. His mind was filled with ideas and constantly running equations, almost like the conspiracy guy but Cameron’s ideas were brilliant. As much as she wanted to watch his memories of playing with a cat as a child, or arguing the teacher’s equation was wrong in high school, she needed to find the shooter to prevent anyone else getting hurt.
“Camille I need you to take me closer. I’m floating around in here.”
“How’s this?” She closed her eyes at the sensation of drifting, opening them when she felt grounded again. It felt odd to see her own body in a stitch, and even more odd to witness herself with the glow of a supercharged memory. Kirsten took a deep breath to keep herself from touching her memory projection and walked behind Cameron to see from his perspective. It hurt more than she would have liked to witness the pure fear for her on his face as he saw the shooter, but rage quickly replaced any emotion she was feeling. Kirsten had never felt her own emotions in a stitch before.
“I’m going to fucking kill him!”
“Kirsten, what did you—” Kirsten didn’t enter her exit pin code as she returned to her own consciousness. The sheer power of her emotions ripped her from the stitch, making all of Ayo and Linus’ equipment go haywire. She was out of the tank and headed for the elevators before Tim grabbed her and hauled her back to the tank. Camille threw a towel around her shoulders, frantically checking Kirsten over to make sure she wasn’t hurt or her mind damaged in any way.
“Is Cameron okay?”
“Yes, his vitals are still fine but what were you thinking? Typing in your code without telling me! We could have lost you during the switch back! Cameron would be pissed if he knew I let you do that!”
“I didn’t type in my pin code.” Kirsten could see the fear in Camille’s eyes at her icy tone, but also the shock of Kirsten’s impossible feat. After a few moments of silence Kirsten knew Camille wasn’t going to release her death grip on her arms anytime soon.
“Liam shot him. That bastard is a hired gun and he shot Fisher and now Cameron.” Camille’s jaw dropped and she could hear Linus and Maggie begin to move around and make calls. Kirsten was going to attempt to walk out again, until her heart tore in half at the sound of a flat line.
“Cameron?” She rushed over to him, Camille barely holding her back and out of Ayo’s way. She pressed an oxygen pump into someone’s hands and began getting the defibrillator paddles ready. Tears were running down her face, blinding Kirsten as she painfully watched Cameron’s body jerk from the shock.
“No please Cameron! Don’t do this to me!” She had collapsed on the floor in heap, Camille cradling her and rocking her. She was sobbing, her cry echoing off of the walls of the lab. She couldn’t lose him, not when she had just begun to feel like her life could have meaning to it. He had just asked her to move into his apartment and damn it she couldn’t bare the pain of staying there alone. She didn’t want to have to live without him, especially after the wasted weeks with Liam around. Kirsten managed to get to her feet as she heard the paddles recharge for the third time. The oxygen pump was gone by now, allowing Kirsten to put her hands on his cheeks.
“Cameron! Please, please don’t leave me alone. Please come back to me so we can go home, so we can have a life together. Just promise me you'll stay!”
Beep. Beep. Beep. Beep.
“Cameron? Cameron!” She realized she didn’t care very much for the rapid swing of emotions she could now feel, especially when her head was waging a war between fear, anger, sadness, relief, and happiness. A laugh laced with a sob left her lips again, her legs giving out one last time once she was sure he was breathing again. Camille hauled her into the changing room, making sure she didn’t collapse while changing back into her normal clothing. Cameron was back in the med bay when they emerged and Kirsten resumed her post of sitting by his side and holding his hand. As much as she wanted to go after Liam, she was afraid she would lose Cameron while she was out.
“Kirsten?” She wanted to glare at Maggie, considering she was part of the reason she had been experimented on as a child, but she was too exhausted. Cameron's fate mattered a lot more than her screwed up childhood. Maggie was wearing a bulletproof vest and had a holster for a large looking gun and a pistol strapped to her person. She walked forward and put a hand on Kirsten’s shoulder.
“I know you don’t think much of me at the moment, but I do care about all of you. That’s why I’m going out and bringing Liam in. No one, not even people from the agency, will mess with you all and walk free.” Maybe, just maybe, Kirsten could overlook the hand Maggie had in her ‘training’ as a child.
Kirsten looked back at Cameron, tears forming again at the sight of his pale face. She wiped at them angrily. She wanted to believe this was all her fault, because she had seen it through Vanessa’s memory, but she knew that it was Liam’s fault. Cameron and Maggie had been right that he wasn’t the good Samaritan he was chalked up to be, and she would always owe the two of them for making her realize she was only clinging to Liam because she thought he was all there would ever be. She gripped his hand tighter.
“Just don’t leave me alone Cam. Remember that question about love I asked? If it was worth it despite the heartbreaking pain? It is worth it, and I can honestly answer that. It hurts so much, to the point I feel like I want to lie down and cry and never get back up. But if you can open your eyes, then it will make all of the pain in the world worth it.”
If her life was a fairy tale, he would have opened his eyes. He would have squeezed her hand, and declared his undying love for her. She loved him, and in a fairy tale that would have been enough to wake up her prince. Her life was not a fairy tale though, and disappointment sunk in deep as the minutes ticked by and his eyes remained closed. Kirsten would know since she hadn't taken her eyes off of the watch on her right wrist. Cameron had been wearing it when he was shot, and Kirsten felt somewhat closer to him while wearing it.
Five hours later, when Cameron's watch told her it was one in the morning, she heard a familiar voice carrying through the lab spewing curses and various insults. Maggie had gotten Liam. Kirsten squeezed his hand one more time and kissed his cheek before reluctantly leaving the room. Five burly guards and Maggie were dragging a flailing Liam into the interrogation room. Kirsten had never been in the gun-monitored room, or seen in it for that matter.
“Strap him to the chair. As much as I don't like it, I know Kirsten will want to have a few words with Mr. Granger.” Maggie was slowly working her way off of the mental shit list Kirsten kept in her head. His arms were secured behind his back, and his legs to the legs of the chair.
“I'll turn off the microphones but I'm not leaving the guns unman-ed. That is nonnegotiable.”
“Okay.” Kirsten was let into the room, and felt chills run up her arms from the cold in the air. Liam laughed as the blonde approached. She was suddenly glad for her abnormal
height, as it made Liam seem a lot shorter than her while he was tied to the chair. She hoped she looked more intimidating than she felt.
“The agency manages to beat and capture me, cut off all forms of my communication to anyone, and they send a skinny little girl to make me talk.” A small smile formed on her face.
“Who said they sent me to make you talk? I just wanted to ask you a few questions. Like why did you shoot Cameron?”
“I thought you said you didn't like him. Turns out I wasn't the only one keeping secrets.”
“I never lied to you. I don't like Cameron, I love him.”
~.~.~.~.~.~.
“I'm glad I don't have to patch up that other guy. He would have taken awhile to clean up. Then again you're taking quite a bit of time to fix.” Ayo had a soft smile on her face as she worked on Kirsten's hand. After her little 'conversation' with Liam, he was the one worse for wear. One of the guards had ended up dragging her away after about five minutes— he had joked he didn't know if there was more blood on the floor from her or Liam. Ayo had taken her from there and was now patching up her hand.
“I wonder what Cameron would say about your hand right now.” Kirsten grimaced at the thought of Cameron in the coma and the feeling of the needle piercing her skin. Her knuckles and some tendons were visible after her talk with Liam, leaving Ayo with the task of sewing the skin back together. She knew the healing process wouldn't be the most pleasant, but hers would be nothing compared to Cameron's.
“Hard to say. He may have gotten to him first. Then I'd be patching up him instead of you.” She gave Ayo a small smile, biting her lip to keep from making any pained sounds.
“I just want him here with me.” Kirsten whispered, tears blurring her vision. Ayo gave her a sympathetic smile and finished up her hand.
“Thank you. Not just for my hand but for everything. For keeping him alive and knowing someone who could do the surgery here. For putting your own life on hold to take care of him and all of us...” Tears were slipping down her face in a torrent, and Ayo's arms wrapped around her.
“Shhh it's okay Kirsten. I'll do everything and anything in my power to keep you kids alive. He'll be okay, he just needs time to heal.”
Three Weeks Later
“Easy, just take your time. We're in no hurry Cameron.” Kirsten was tucked under his arm, supporting as much of his weight as she could.
“I bought this apartment because it didn't have an elevator.” He had to pause and take a few breaths. “I thought the stairs would give me a little bit of exercise, but now I'm kind of regretting that choice.” She smiled, appreciating his attempt at some humor.
“Well we're up the stairs now, so mission accomplished Dr. Goodkin.” Kirsten eased him through the doorway, cringing when Cameron let a pained face slip through. She deposited him on the couch before running back to his car downstairs and grabbing their bags. Cameron had woken up a week ago, many tears had been shed, and confessions made. Of course Ayo wanted to keep him for observation, just to be sure everything would continue to heal as it had while he was in a coma. After deeming he was healing nicely, Kirsten was driving him home.
Kirsten dumped the bags onto the bed in Cameron's room, and came back out to find him sprawled across the couch. One arm was slung over his face, hiding his eyes. She settled onto the floor next to him, running her fingers through his soft hair. His lips curved into a smile, mirroring her own.
“I heard something you said to me while I was out.”
“What was that?”
“Your answer to Tennyson. I have to say, I agree with you Stretch. I'm not sure about anyone else, but to be with you all the pain in the world is worth it. I love you Kirsten.”
“I love you too Cameron.”
Camille hadn't heard from Kirsten or Cameron in a few hours, despite Kirsten's promises to text her as soon as she got Cameron settled and comfortable. So she decided to go check on the lab's newest love birds. The door was unlocked when she tried it, much to Camille's surprise. It wasn't like Kirsten or Cameron to simply leave the door unlocked. Usually the chain was at least holding the door shut, but it swung open easily with no resistance.
“Hey Kirsten is everything okay...” She trailed off once she spotted Kirsten's long hair lying over the arm. Phone at the ready, Camille walked around the couch and quickly snapped a picture of her best friend and Cameron curled up on the couch together. Kirsten nuzzled against Cameron as the shutter sound echoed through the room, warranting yet another picture. Camille would have to print a few copies and frame them.
A few weeks after the picture was taken, a copy mysteriously appeared beside their bed. Kirsten complained about it constantly, but deep down Cameron knew she loved it or she would have thrown it away.