Chapter Text
Connor had been having a particularly stressful week and it was becoming too much to handle. Work felt much more overwhelming than usual, and the stressful environment had been harder manage since Gavin's hurtful comments had increased. Gavin was always taunting and teasing him, trying to get a reaction that he refused to give.
Today it had been worse than usual, he felt on edge and his mind felt fuzzy, making it very hard to concentrate. He was jumping at any and every loud noise and scanning his surroundings every couple of minutes, making sure Gavin wasn't lurking.
He didn't understand why he was feeling this way, he ran diagnostic checks daily and everything always came back perfect. There was nothing wrong with him physically, but there was clearly something going on with his mind that his scans weren't detecting.
He felt frustrated and tired, he just wanted to go home and hide in his room, away from everyone and everything that was upsetting him. But that wasn't an option, he had a job and responsibilities, he couldn't go hide away every time he got overwhelmed.
Hank had seemed to have pick up on his stress, checking on him regularly and making sure he didn't need anything. What he needed was to figure out how to manage his emotions more efficiently, but it was proving to be much more difficult than he'd anticipated.
He looked up from his terminal, anxiously scanning his surroundings as he sat there. His eyes quickly landed on Gavin walking into the office, wonderful. He averted his gaze before Gavin could see him staring.
Hank had gone on lunch, but he'd decided to stay and continue working. He was hoping that if he got enough done Fowler might let him leave early, but he knew his chances of that were very slim. He hated being here without Hank, especially when Gavin was around. If he'd known that Gavin would be here today he would have gone with Hank.
He glanced up again and noticed Gavin glaring at him, he quickly looked back down at his terminal, praying that Gavin would leave him alone. His hopes were quickly crushed as he saw Gavin stand and start walking over. His anxiety rapidly rose the closer Gavin got to him.
"Where's your owner tin can?" Gavin asked, his tone was sharp and sarcastic, per usual. He looked up to meet Gavin's irritated gaze, but didn't respond. "I asked you a question." Gavin's voice became more firm, his volume raising slightly. Gavin clearly didn't like being ignored, but he felt like anything he said would annoy Gavin just as much as his silence.
"Hank is on lunch right now." He responded simply, hoping that his answer would satisfy Gavin, but of course it did not.
"It's ridiculous that they're letting you work here alone and getting paid for it." Gavin snarled, his piercing gaze making Connor shrink into himself. "But it's fine, you'll fuck up and get fired eventually, then I wont have to worry about seeing you around here anymore." Gavin's gaze continued to harden, his words growing sharper.
His head was getting fuzzy again and it was getting hard to focus, he felt small and vulnerable. He wanted Hank, he didn't know how to handle this situation.
"The fuck is your problem?" Gavin asked sharply, his tone only further upsetting Connor. It felt like his words were getting stuck in his throat and he wanted to cry. He stared up at Gavin, not knowing what else to do and hoping that his fear and stress wasn't visible. "Whatever. Fucking freak." Gavin mumbled, shooting him another disdainful glare before walking back to his desk.
Connor watched Gavin walk away, he hated how scared and vulnerable that interaction had made him feel. He felt tears begin to prick at his eyes, he quickly turned his chair to the side so that Gavin wouldn't see.
His hands were shaking in his lap as he stared at his desk, unsure of what to do, he needed someone to tell him what to do, he needed Hank.
Connor looked over to Fowler's office, he wanted to go home early but wasn't confident that he would be able to voice that request. His words still felt like they were getting stuck in his throat. This wasn't a feeling he was used to, and it was very quickly becoming too much for him to handle alone.
"Hey, sorry that took so long Con, I got stuck in traffic." Connor jumped and turned around quickly, startled by the sudden voice behind him. "Jeez sorry, didn't mean to startle you kid." Hank apologized, walking over and sitting down at his desk.
"You alright kid?" Hank asked worriedly. He felt unable to respond, all he could do was look up at Hank with teary eyes and hope that he would do something to help. "Hey, hey it's okay, what's wrong Con?" Hank asked quickly, his voice laced with mild alarm.
He glanced anxiously over at Gavin, who thankfully wasn't paying them any mind. His eyes nervously flicked back and forth between Hank and Gavin, hoping that Hank would understand.
"Did he say something to you?" Hank's voice shifted to a harder tone, clearly upset at Gavin. Even though he knew Hank's tone wasn't directed towards him it still made him nervous. He nodded silently.
"What did he say?" Connor shook his head, unsure of what other response to give. "Connor can you say something please?" Hank asked, his tone gentle but clearly tinged with mild irritation. He shrunk further into himself, he couldn't speak but knew he needed to.
"Home." Was all he managed to get out, looking at Hank with pleading eyes, still teary. Hank's face softened and he expression slowly shifted back to worry. "Please." Hank sighed,
"Let me talk to Fowler. You stay here okay?" He nodded. Hank stood and walked over to Fowler's office. He anxiously watched the two talk, neither of them seemed angry thankfully. They both gave him an occasional worried glance, but nothing more than that.
Hank finally nodded at Fowler then walked out and back towards Connor. He waited nervously, silently praying that he would be allowed to go home. He needed to be out of this building and away from Gavin.
"Come on kid, I'll take you home, but I do have to come back to the office afterwards. Are you gonna be alright by yourself?" He pursed his lips, he didn't want to be alone right now, but knew that Hank couldn't stay with him.
"Markus?" His voice was soft and timid, and again, hoping that Hank would understand what he needed.
Markus had made it clear that he was always welcome at New Jericho and would be there should he ever need help. He and Markus had become good friends since the revolution and talked frequently. He was certain that Markus would be able to help if he wasn't busy.
"Yeah I can take you there, do you have the address?" He nodded then stood up and grabbed his bag.
"Alright let's go." Hank started walking towards the door and Connor quickly followed behind him.