The following morning an different vibe was present in the apartment. As the warm morning glow entered the room Erika moved around in discomfort. She tossed and turned with the nights memories replaying as a nightmare. The woman suddenly woke up as she became aware of an ache that radiated all over her body. Her back, side, and neck were on fire. She turned but fell back on the pillows due to the unbearable pain. Flashes of the past night events came into her mind again as it wasn't just a bad dream. She put a hand to her head as the uncomfortable memories played. In thr midst of her discomfort she looked at herself and noticed she was dressed in her pajamas and wondered how she got in them. She surveyed the room as Rizzo was fast asleep next to her and things seemed normal. Connor soon entered the room with some ice packs and a first aid.

When she saw him she began to blush at the thought of Connor dressing her for she couldn't have in her unconsous stare. The tint im her cheeks deepened as thought of what he may have seen. Connor looked at her with innocent eyes as he tilted his head to the side.

"Erika you're awake", he said and walked over to her side. Rizzo, on the other hand, stayed fast asleep by his owner's side.

"Believe I did, how did yo-", a sharp pain pierced her body as she fell back down again to relieve the feeling," crap, I feel like a train ran me over"

"You shouldn't move, it will only cause more pain", Connor grabbed the first aid and took out a bandage wrap and some triple antibiotic ointment. Annoyed by the sudden movements Rizzo jumped off the bed and continued to sleep on his bed. Connor then proceeded to clean and redress Erika's wounded left hand. She looked at with care but winced at the pain when he applied the rubbing alcohol.

"Did he leave?", she asked to distract herself from the sharp pain. Although the last night's events was a traumatic experience Erika forgot them when Connor was near--caring for her. She felt safe.

"Conan was harming you when I arrived, he left moments after," he applied the ointment topically and bandages the wound," he did not return while you slept for the night and most of the day"

"You stayed?", she questioned, but relieved at his choice of words.

"Yes, I wanted to make sure you were safe and taken care of", he looked at her then away as their eyes met," Hank would be devastated if something happened to you"

"Hmm, must be since I'm the goddaughter of a pouty-mouthed DPD officer, you have a right to be scared of him", she spoke with a humorous tone--her eyes then widen as she paused at the mentioning of Hank," wait, does he know?"

"He was not notified about the break-in", he said and stood up from her bed.

"Thank you, I don't want him to be more stressed", Erika nodded her head and slowly moved to get out of bed for her legs did not feel pain. She stumbled as she tried to maintain balance, Connor rushed to her side to assist her. She smiled at the action and took a hold of his hand. They felt real, the heat of their hands clamped on one another made her feel this. Connor was caring for an android and this made her smile for some in the past blamed her to be the reason why they were being destroyed along with her hatred for the ones that provided intimate services. They were the reason why she became the abomination she felt she was. But to be near Connor these thoughts did not exist.

"Thank you, but don't you have to be at the station? Or at CyberLife?", she questioned as she managed to walk over to her closer to change.

"Hank is off duty for the day", Connor stated but didn't answer the second part. Erika brushed off the second question she asked and grabbed a simple forest green tee and some denim shorts. The weather was to be on the warmer side and she wanted to dress appropriately.

"What?", she questioned Connor, who had a dazed look on his face for seeing Erika in such revealing clothing was a sight," don't tell me you haven't seen an ankle in your life"

She joked and stretched her leg to show the android her alleged ankles. She laughed at his surprised reaction and walked out of the room to the open area. Erika let out a gasp as the living room and kitchen appeared untouched. No signs of the break-in were evident nor was there any stains or markings from her struggle the night prior. She turned to Connor who was an emotionless face, but the lack of expression was adorable to the woman.

"You did this?", she asked and inspected every inch of space for any damage caused by Conan. The room was prestigious.

"Yes", Connor quickly stated and brought Erika to the breakfast nook by her kitchen. Before her eyes was an outstanding spread of breakfast items--definitely more than she could consume in one sitting, but they all looked mouth watering.

"Talk about food porn", she commented at the sight and turned to the android," you can cook?"

"I may not be equipped with such tasks but research helped with the process", he replied.

"Sit with me?", she asked as she scooted into the nook seating. Connor did not hesitate and entered through the other side of the bench.

He sat at an upright position as usual, but the reasoning behind it was due to the situation he placed himself in--he was tense ad nervous.

Erika took a couple bites of the pancakes and a strip of bacon. Her voice was muffled by the food, but her humming was a statement of satisfaction. She continued to eat until she felt full and sipped her coffee. At the corner of her eye, she saw Connor observing her movements. Erika gulped down the warm coffee and faced the silent android.

"Hmmm, so Connor how did you know about last night?", she asked quietly as she didn't want to disturb his position. He blinked at her and proceeded to be silent. With all of his computation and problem-solving mechanics he could not create a reason, so he stayed quiet.

"I'm glad you came, again", She sipped the last drops of her coffee and set the mug aside," you've been quite the knight in shining armor lately"

"I wanted to...assist you", he managed to speak some part of the truth. Erika smiled at the thought and got up to clean up the messy dishes. Connor stood up as she did and grabbed the plates once again.

"I'll do it, I cooked after all", he said with a small smile.

"Alright", She returned the smile and went over to a record player that was similar to Hank's, but her genre preferences did differ from the older man. For music helped her calm down and forget the pain and bad dreams.

She grabbed a record entitled "Phase" and placed it on the music device. Erika placed the pin to a specific area and a slow song began to play.

Connor soon finished the dishes and turned to see the young woman move to the slow beat, the sight itself was beautiful with her gracefully swaying to the music. She twirled around and at the corner of her eye noticed Connor had finished the dishes, so she walked over to him and grabbed him by the hand. Shocked by the action Connor obeyed and followed her to the open floor locates in the living room. She fixed his hands so that they rested on her waistline then she wrapped her arms around his neck. Confusion filled his head while admiration gleamed in his eyes.

"Hmm, you know Connor you surprised me", She guided his feet with her's as they moved side to side. He looked at her with an intrigued look.

What could she possibly say?

"How?", He questioned, his voice became fluid and sounded natural to the ear. His hold around her waist tightened as he pulled her close to feel her sunlight.

"You're different", this was all she said and they continued to dance. She placed her head on his chest as her breathing calmed as she heard his mechanical heartbeat. The world froze around them and they felt was a neverending bliss--a great way to start the day.

"Software Instability,,

🎵Talk without a taint or hold 🎵

🎵The doubts that should embrace your heart🎵

🎵The calm and chaos of your soul🎵

🎵You know you might surprise yourself🎵

.

.

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🎵It helps me to surprise myself

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Hooray for happy chapters! I've been wanting to write this chapter for a while and I finally did it! I'm so happy with it that I hope you do as well!

Also in celebration of father's day here are some dad jokes that Hank would/could say:

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Hank: If you saw a robbery at an Apple store what does that make you?

Connor: No, what am I?

Hank: An iWitness

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Hank: I never liked beards, but then it grew on me

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Hank: What do prisoners use to call each other?

Erika: What? *sarcastic tone*

Hank: Cell phones

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*Connor tasting evidence again*

Hank: Dammit Connor!

Connor: I'm sorry Lieutenant

Hank: Hi sorry, I'm Hank

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Comment your thoughts and maybe more bad dad jokes Hank would say! Thank you for each one you leave!