Work Text:
Deckerd and Gunmax had a small argument, which quickly escalated into a physical confrontation. Gunmax had probably anticipated that things would head in this direction without a second thought. The exchange happened in the activity room, and when he felt the world spinning around him, Gunmax instinctively used Deckerd's shoulder to absorb the force, leaping toward the room’s wall, using it as a pivot to fly over Deckerd's head. By the time Deckerd could react, Gunmax had appeared behind him.
“You should look up, darling.” Gunmax stretched his arm from behind and locked Deckerd's neck. Deckerd felt his throat tighten and silently elbowed Gunmax, forcing him to reflexively release one hand and step back. Deckerd quickly grabbed the hand Gunmax hadn't pulled back and slammed him to the floor.
The sound of Gunmax's metal body hitting the ground was dull and thunderous. He could feel some parts inside him shift.
“Ouch!”
“Gun… Gunmax!” Gunmax's cry of pain caused Deckerd to suddenly change his attitude. Deckerd knelt down, while Gunmax, lying on his back from being thrown, was in pain. “I… I’m sorry, I got a bit carried away. Are you… are you alright?”
“Of course, I’m fine. Why wouldn’t I be?” Gunmax replied in a teasing tone. Deckerd couldn’t see his eyes, but he could hear the hidden meaning through his receiver.
“Because you were slammed hard on the ground and screamed?”
“Well, yeah, but that doesn’t mean anything,” Gunmax continued with his signature tone. “In fact, I kind of like that feeling.”
Deckerd doubted what he had heard. “What?”
“It’s nothing. I often have to endure the pain when you inside me—”
“What?!”
“Buddy, don’t yell like that… It’s not something shameful. I don’t mind that feeling,” Gunmax’s voice hissed through his airways. “If I were to accuse you of rarely making me climax during sex, that would be worth making a noise about. But in reality, well, you’re doing pretty well.”
Deckerd fell silent for a while. He wasn’t happy. Normally, such blatant remarks would spark some interesting reaction from him, but Gunmax suddenly felt like he couldn’t read Deckerd's eyes.
“Gunmax, can you explain?”
“Explain what, the thing I just said?” Gunmax started acting clueless. “Where do you want me to start?”
Deckerd kept his eyes fixed on him from above, unwilling to look away. “Start from the part where you said you felt useless.”
“Oh!” Gunmax crossed his arms. “After all, we’re just some sort of… consumable, aren’t we?”
“That’s not what you said,” Deckerd frowned. “You expressed a negative view of yourself, you even think of yourself as an object.”
A brief silence settled between them. The only sound was the whirring of Gunmax’s exhaust fan. Then, Gunmax stopped maintaining his previous silly posture and sat up from the floor, turning his back to Deckerd.
“I’m not like you, boy scout. I'm just a jerk who can only stand by and do nothing during bigger crises,. At most, I just become a weapon for you to use.” Gunmax spread his hands. “I need to keep busy or ride the Gunbike on the highway to empty my brain, whether it’s past memories or my current situation.”
“Past memories can be overwritten by new ones, and your current situation—” Deckerd stood up, extending a hand to rest on Gunmax’s shoulder armor, causing Gunmax to turn and look at his blue body. “I want to tell you my true thoughts.”
Gunmax was starting to lose his patience. “Skip the formalities. The more you say, the more it will backfire. As a leader, I’m sure you have your own considerations, right?”
“I’ll definitely do that,” Deckerd quietly added, “But from my personal perspective.”
As if to oppose Deckerd, Gunmax didn’t stop his sharp questioning, even slightly tilting his head. “Then I just don’t want to listen to you. What are you going to do about it? Hit me? Or—” He seemed to anticipate some fun scene, chuckling a few times. “No matter what you do, I welcome it.”
Deckerd stepped forward and suddenly grabbed both of Gunmax’s wrists, pushing him to the corner. Gunmax mistakenly thought he had predicted something, and flashed a victorious smile. But soon, he couldn’t smile anymore.
“You have a face that everyone would love if they saw it.” This was Deckerd's first sentence.
“Uh, thanks? Shit, what’s going on...” Gunmax, confused by the sudden compliment about Deckerd, tried to shake off his wrists but couldn’t escape. Deckerd’s grip reminded him of the afternoon he had been handcuffed.
Deckerd took a deep breath, and Gunmax, feeling a sense of impending danger, began to realize that the threat was real. Then, an incredible surge of energy struck him. “You’re really good with guns, and you take great care of your weapons. You’re also an excellent motorcycle rider. Even though patrolling on the highway looks dangerous, you always do it with confidence. You talk tough, but when humans face danger, you rush to the front without hesitation.”
“Shit!” Gunmax hadn’t expected this. His faceplate turned bright red, and his expression began to twist as Deckerd’s voice poured out. His body instinctively tried to escape but couldn’t, because Deckerd had likely anticipated that Gunmax would feel deeply ashamed. His body was almost pinned in place.
“This is just the beginning,” Deckerd calmly continued. “You’re also great at making kids happy. Both Drillboy and Yuta love talking to you, and you get along well with loners like Shadowmaru. You notice things others often overlook. You always try to act tough, unwilling to show any weakness, but you also hope someone understands your past. The time you spent with Kirisaki as a partner was a thorn in your heart, but instead of giving up, you felt you hadn’t contributed enough to the team.”
“Enough... enough!” Gunmax’s super AI was on the brink of overload, and the high-temperature warnings were flashing all over his system. No matter how much the fan worked, it couldn’t cool him down. “Stop… stop talking!”
“You heard from Drillboy that I said bad things about you when we first met. I admit, I did have prejudices against you at first, only seeing the surface, which is my fault. But the afternoon you confided in me changed everything. I love the way you drink gasoline, and I really appreciate that even though you don’t understand, you still let me follow you. Also, you’re very thoughtful. The relationship between you and Mr. Todo is enviable. You’d risk your life for him, and he cares about you. All your colleagues love you, including me. I hope I can treat you sincerely. Anyway—I still have a lot to say.” Deckerd finally stopped, adding, “Look up, Gunmax. I still have plenty more to say.”
After staring at Gunmax, who had turned his face away and lowered his head for a long time, Deckerd noticed he hadn’t spoken. He sighed and was almost ready to start his second round of speeches when Gunmax’s voice, now softened, came from below.
“… You… you win.”