By the time Gavin finally pried himself away from you, he seemed twice as exhausted as before. Your deviant empathy- or something similar- kicked into high gear, reaching to wipe the stray tears from his face. "... may I make a suggestion?"

His face was pale, save for the blush across his cheeks at your incredibly sweet demeanor. "... 'Course. What's up?"

How can one person be so fucking delicate with me...?

"You are drained. I will tend to the belongings you brought; please go inside and take a nap." When he opened his mouth to protest, your eyebrows raised by half an inch. "Please. Your eyes are red, your motions are slowed, and your reactions are delayed."

Still, he tried to push back. "I--"

"Gavin."

Whoa.

That stopped him dead, the blush spreading to his ears. Your voice was firm, the kind that he knew better than to oppose. But that wasn't what made his body freeze, or his stomach twist harder than when you'd tilt your head. ".... Y-Yeah. Okay, yeah, um... n-nap. Right." He paused. "..... thank you." Reed's eyebrows knit tightly. "... what do I call you?"

Smiling a touch, your hands pulled away and went behind your back. "The decision has been in your hands from the beginning. I am aware that most everyone else has named me Nove, but if I am gifted a name from you, I can program it to appear on my jacket."

Gavin tried to return the smile but was, unsurprisingly, too worn out. "Okay, well... uh... I mean, Nove is... probably what you're used to by now." You just shrugged, and he rubbed his face vigorously. "Name. Right. ...... shitfuck, I... ugh. I'm not fucking good at this."

There went your head tilt, and consequently his pulse. "What would you name your partner, then?"

The definition of partner may have gotten lost in translation because Reed's immediate answer was, "Cara mia."

This time the both of you had colored cheeks, though Gavin couldn't seem to tear his eyes away from yours. Not only could an android blush, but it was purple? Thirium was blue, he knew that much, but there was no mistaking the reddish-violet dusted across your face.

Close to panicking, the male stuttered out something resembling a sentence. "U-um... right... s-so, nevermind what I just said like a dumbass, I'm... I'm gonna... fuck... shit. Um. Bed. NAP. YES, NAP."

For all his exhaustion, the human ran quicker than you'd expected, leaving you outside the front door with a warming face and a fuel pump regulator that seemed to need an update. It kept pumping much too hard at an irregular pace.

◇___#$&!___◇

OH MY GOD WHY AM I DUMB?

As badly as he wanted- and needed- sleep, Reed lay immobile in the bed situated in a spare room, staring at the ceiling. He was alone, which was preferable; it meant he wouldn't have to answer questions about his permanently red face.

Cara mia? CARA MIA? SHE DIDN'T MEAN A FUCKING PET NAME WHEN SHE SAID "PARTNER". What the FUCK is wrong with me?! I'm not trying to replace being an asshole with being a fucking CREEP.

He groaned loudly, throwing an arm over his aching eyes. Now he wasn't so sure he'd be able to sleep, at least not that day. Groping wildly, Gavin snatched his cell phone on the bedside table, pausing. Messaging you seemed risky.

... she probably has ways of knocking me out, though. And if another android comes in with her, that's fine. Or Eli.

I'll be pissed if it's Hank, though.

[Hey... uh... you got a minute? I... can't sleep. My fucking eyes are killing me but I can't chill the fuck out...]

In 29 seconds there was a soft knock at the bedroom door. Reed managed an "It's open!" before his head flopped back down on the pillow.

The sound of your heels didn't come; you'd removed them, it seemed. Taking a chair from nearby you pulled it to sit beside him, setting your shoes aside. "I didn't want to cause unnecessary noise," you murmured. "As per the rules, I brought someone with me."

Please not Hank. Please not the grumpy lump of fuck.

It definitely wasn't Hank. It wasn't even human. Nudging his nose around Reed's arm, Sumo happily attacked the male's face with kisses, his tail wagging hard. Though he sputtered a good deal, the detective smiled wide, leaning on his side to give the good boy plenty of attention. "Are you gonna help me sleep, handsome? Are you? You're gonna try your best, I can tell, look at that tail go!"

[He is wonderful with pets. Why does he not have his own?]

The smile had formed before you realized, watching Gavin interact with the lieutenant's dog. "Pets are a very good de-stresser, and so I asked Hank if I could borrow his fur child."

With a snort, your directive looked up. "Fur child?"

"Yes." There went the head tilt. "Originally I asked to borrow his son, since most animal owners consider their pets to be their children. However... Connor got confused and subsequently disappointed that I meant Sumo."

Chuckling to himself, Gavin laid back down, still grinning. "The man has two kids, all right. One has a hell of a lot less hair."

"Perhaps, but Connor is more low-maintenance than Sumo. We don't need sustenance, nor do you have to chase us around with a plastic bag and a trowel every time we go for a walk." His laughter filled the room, and your regulator became erratic again. "...... Gavin?"

Fuck. His laughter came to a screeching halt. Hearing his name coming from your mouth was one thing, but you were soft and hesitant, with just enough of a hitch to get his heart going again. "What's wrong?"

Your beautiful eyes lowered, and his stomach did the same, so he forced himself to sit up. "... I am aware that I brought Sumo in with me, and I hope he calms you enough to rest, but I did have to request someone to be present. So that you are being supervised. I requested ten minutes before he shows up, and that time is nearly up."

Leaning forward, the human tried to maneuver his head so he could catch your gaze with your head still down. "Talk to me. You sound like there's something else."

When you'd patched up the wound on his forehead, Reed had met your gaze, his hazel eyes so intense that they alone had given your software a shock, making it that much more unstable.

Now that you lifted your head to meet his own gaze, Gavin suddenly felt like everything around him had faded. Why his pulse sped up he couldn't explain, but it was like you were looking right through him. Judging his soul. And the male was terrified that you'd hate what you saw.

Slowly, you opened your mouth before you could avoid the topic altogether. "I know that you were incredibly uncomfortable earlier, but... I truly would like you to give me a name."

She wants a name. And my stupid ass only came up with a pet name.

Having Sumo nearby to give him kisses and tail wags really did help his mood. So Gavin smiled, a gesture you hadn't gotten to see much of. "Can I give you an Italian name?"

"You may give me whatever name you'd like."

The smile widened by a fraction of an inch. "... what about Viviana? Little fancy, I know, but... it means alive. Which... suits you." He was quiet for four seconds, gazing at you. "... it really suits you."

"I am... flattered. The name is lovely. But I p--......" Oh dear. Your cheeks filled with that warm violet again.

"What? You like the name, but...?"

[No no no no no this feels wrong]

"... I prefer cara mia, Gavin."