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Their day had been long. Far too long. Gavin hadn't slept well — to be truthful, when did he ever? — and was already irritable and tired at the start of the day so, at the end of it, a miraculous mood improvement was not to look forward to. Sadly, the day wasn't over. They had yet to drive to Cedar Point, still two hours away. Early in the next morning, they would have some questioning to do. Nines had offered to drive. "Whatever dipshit," Gavin had mumbled as he slid into the passenger seat.
They'd been riding in silence for about an hour. Nines would occasionally glance at his partner, but Gavin wasn't in the mood, not even to threaten the android. In a way, Nines was glad, but he also felt a little uneasy... It was hard seeing the detective going further down his spiral of sadness. And today, Detective Reed was deep down the well. Yet, Nines didn't want to pressure. Sure, they'd been partners for almost a year; they were friends even — though neither would ever admit it —, but Gavin still put up his walls and kept Nines outside.
From the passenger side, Gavin had lowered his seat and been looking outside at the darker than void sky. He was tired. But he couldn't seem to rest. The radio filled the silence with aged-up, forgotten songs. It was mostly a background noise: the detective deep in his thoughts and his worrying partner, a yellow flickering LED giving him away.
It wasn't supposed to be so cold this time of the year. Gavin only had his shirt on, that rode a little up his stomach, exposing his hip. Nines admitted to himself he'd looked more than he should have at the exposed skin. He wanted to caress that scar gently, but that would most certainly result in a car accident.
Meanwhile, Gavin debated about dressing his jacket, though the car seemed far too heated for it. He looked to the side; there was the tin can's jacket. Maybe he could wear it...
Without a word, he rose himself and slipped it on. It felt soft. And just warm enough... And made him feel embraced. Not alone. If he wasn't an idiot and someone worthy of good things, maybe he'd take Nines' hand, hold it to his heart and let him feel it race, set his feelings free. But he was an idiot, so this was the closest he'd have to being on the android's arms.
A voice disturbed his thoughts. "Are you cold?"
"A little." A hint of a pout.
Another dead end. It was best letting him be. Nines hoped Reed's scent lingered long enough on his coat... Maybe if he wasn't so scared of ruining this routine, this kind of barely-a-friendship they shared. If he wasn't afraid, he'd take Gavin's hand and kiss him, slow, and gentle. But he is.
Minutes ticked by, and eventually the detective managed to fall asleep, comfortable in RK900's jacket. And eventually, Nines' LED settled on royal blue, the sight of his partner so calm. So unlike him.
Unfortunately, their destination comes by. Nines doesn't want to wake him up. He hovers a hand on Gavin's cheek. So close he can almost touch him. So far away that he doesn't. He can feel the warmth, a wave crashing coldish fingers. The detective stirs lightly; he wakes up. Gavin can feel the tingling electricity and raises his hand. Their hands touch, and they look deep into each other's eyes. But they part.