Mechanical Love

by Emrys Apollo

  “I found him on the streets, he escaped before they could destroy him.”

  “Whoa.” Dornan held his hands up, and Gary felt his blood run cold as Spencer started looking for the exits. “I can do it, but it's going to take a while.”

  Dornan paused and Gary was sure that there was something that Dornan wasn't telling them.

  “How are you with blood?” Dornan asked, and Gary felt dizzy, his face so white that he was paler than Dornan.

  “I'll manage,” Gary said, taking a deep breath as he steadied himself. “What do you need?”

  “I've got everything here,” Dornan said, patting his rucksack, which clinked with the sound of metallic objects. “Can I use your table?”

  “Sure.” Gary had a sinking feeling in his stomach, but if this meant that he could keep Spencer safe, then he could get through it.

  Watching Dornan set up only added to the feeling of unease, and now that Spencer was lying out on the table, Gary dreaded what was coming next.

  Dornan opened a small box, and he took out a scalpel. Gary rushed through to the bathroom, kneeling in front the toilet as he threw up a night's worth of coffee, retching until his stomach was empty and he could see white spots floating in front of his eyes.

  “Are you okay?” Matthew was standing outside the door, and Gary knew that he had to pull himself together.

  “Just give me a minute.” Gary flushed the toilet, feeling ill just at the sight of it all, and he wondered if he'd ever drink coffee again.

  He wandered back through to the living room, where Spencer was lying on the table topless, and Matthew handed him a glass of water.

  “I'm going to have to replace his current ID chip, and then make sure that his software is updated to match it.”

  “Where's the ID chip?” Gary asked, his eyes pleading with Dornan to tell him that it was somewhere easy to reach.

  “For military bots all the hardware is around the spine, it's less likely to get damaged if it's in the torso.” Dornan looked impressed, and Gary felt his blood run cold.

  “It's okay, he can turn his pain receptors off.” Dornan looked at Spencer, and he looked indifferent to the fact that Dornan was hovering over his back with a scalpel.

  “You can turn them off?” Gary breathed a sigh of relief.

  The way the Spencer hesitated told Gary that he was lying, and Dornan shook his head. “They were designed to be as a human as possible, so the enemy wouldn't know that they were robots, and that means they have to feel pain.”

  A single tear ran down his cheek, and Gary was sure that nothing else could shock him, but then Dornan started to cut into Spencer, blood welling up around the incision. Gary couldn't look away as Dornan cut along the length of his back, Spencer gripping at the table as Matthew whispered to him.

  “I need someone to help me, someone who won't throw up inside him.” Dornan pushed his glasses up on his nose with the side of his hand, and just the sight of the blood on his hands had Gary feeling dizzy again.

  “I'll do it,” Matthew said, standing up from where he was crouched down by Spencer. “Gary, would you come and hold Spencer's hand?”

  Gary knelt down on the floor by Spencer, choosing a spot where he couldn't see what was happening on the table. He looked Spencer in the eyes, and he wasn't sure who was comforting who. Spencer was stroking his thumb along the side of Gary's hand, the way that Matthew did when he held his hand.

  “I'm going to do this as quickly as possible, okay?” Dornan said, and Gary peeked up to see Dornan gripping a corner of Spencer's skin, preparing to peel it back.

  Gary pressed his forehead against Spencer's, holding his hand tight. Spencer's nails were digging in and Gary could hear the sickening sound of skin being torn from the flesh.

  “You're doing really well,” Dornan said, and Spencer took a deep breath, relaxing his grip on Gary's hand. “Gary, can you hand me that soldering iron?”

  Gary felt the bile rise in his throat, and Spencer gripped his hand tight, making Gary look at him. “If we don't do this, they will take me apart for scrap, and I will feel the agony of it all until they finally take out my processors.” Spencer had tears in his eyes, and Gary reached out for the soldering iron, bracing himself for the smell of burning flesh.

  “It's going to be okay,” Spencer said, and Gary smiled as the tears fell down his face.

  “I'm meant to be telling you that.”

  Spencer laughed, and Gary found himself laughing hysterically at the absurdity of it all.

  Dornan used the time to switch out the ID chip, Spencer flinching as Gary held him tight, whispering to him that it was all going to be fine, when he had no idea how it would turn out.

  Gary thought that Dornan was done, but then he took out his laptop, connecting it to Spencer with tiny crocodile clips, and the way that Dornan was sitting with his feet up said that it was going to take a while.

  “I have to change every instance of his ID in all of his software. Also, I'm going to have to wipe any of the military records, if he's found with them still installed, the fact that his ID says that he's a sexbot won't save him.”

  “I'm going to make everyone a cup of tea,” Matthew said, and Gary laughed. Spencer winced as he thought about laughing and decided against it, the clips were pressing against his lungs and every breath hurt.

  Dornan typed away as Matthew joined Gary on the floor, both of them trying to distract Spencer while Dornan worked.

  “This is going to be our future, you know,” Dornan said, to no-one in particular, “One day they're going to be able to download everything in here and upload it to a synthetic copy of ourselves. Make us immortal.”

  Gary laughed again. “You would not need a big hard drive for what I have in here,” Gary said, pointing at his head, as Matthew laughed at him. It even got him a small smile from Spencer, although the longer he lay out, the weaker he looked.

  “All the synthetic organs and tissue are self-repairing and disease free, and they have a superior skeleton.” Dornan peered over, and he looked impressed at what he could see inside Spencer, but Gary felt his stomach churn just from the thought of it.

  Spencer's eyes drooped shut, and Gary looked at Dornan. “I have to reboot his software, and then check that the IDs match and all the military files are gone. It's going to be another hour.”

  “I'm going to go out and get food,” Matthew said, giving Spencer a kiss on the cheek.

  “Sushi,” Dornan said, “It's best for healing.”

  “Sushi sounds good,” Matthew said, grabbing his wallet and shoes. “Where's good round here?”

  “There's a place on the corner, go left out of the main door.” Gary stroked the side of Spencer's face and his eyes twitched.

  “I love you.” Matthew smiled as he slipped out of the front door, making sure it was shut and locked before heading off.

  Dornan raised an eyebrow but said nothing, and Gary just shrugged, there were no words to explain how he'd ended up here. They sat in silence until Dornan disconnected the leads, and poked at a button on his spine.

  “SV forty-seven dash MP dash W,” Dornan said, and Spencer's eyes flew open. Gary stared at him, checking for some sign that he remembered where he was.

  “Spencer? How do you feel?” Gary wished that Matthew was here, Spencer would have been more comfortable with him around, but he could see Matthew's phone charging on the coffee table, so there was no way of contacting him.

  “Am I fixed?” Spencer released Gary's hand, frowning as he saw the crescent shaped cuts where his nails had dug in. He kissed at the red marks, and Gary felt at ease, the terror of the afternoon wearing off now that he could see that Spencer wasn't too badly affected by it all.

  “It's nearly over, you're doing really well,” Dornan said, and he reeled off a lot of questions, checking off a list on his laptop.

  “Is that it done?” Gary asked, looking up at Dornan as he took out a tube of superglue.

  “Yes, but this is going to sting
a bit.” Dornan set to gluing Spencer's skin back together, and Spencer clung on to Gary's hand, his eyes screwed shut as he tried not to scream. The sight of it had tears running down Gary's cheeks, and he held his breath until it was over.

  “It's going to take a couple of days to heal, make sure he's well fed, and rests while he's healing.” Dornan waved a small handheld thing over Spencer's spine, and it beeped when it picked up the ID chip.

  “It's okay, I've done this before,” Spencer said, and Gary felt a pain in his heart. Gary knew the story but every time he thought of it he felt sadness wash over him.

  “I'll take good care of you,” Gary said, looking Spencer in the eyes, and he smiled.

  Dornan went to wash his hands before packing up his tools, and Gary winced when he saw the scalpel being put away.

  “Let me pay you for this.” Gary went to take his wallet out of his pocket.

  “No way,” Dornan said, holding his hands up, “I was just here for a coffee to plan Ellis' birthday surprise.”

  “In that case, would you do me one more favor?” Gary asked, and Dornan rolled his eyes. “I've got tickets for the ice hockey tonight, I was going to take Ellis for his birthday, but I should stay and take care of Spencer. Would you take Ellis to it?”

  Gary found out the tickets and Dornan nodded when he saw how good they were. He'd bought them ages ago, but then everything else had happened, and he was sure that Ellis would understand.

  “Thank you,” Dornan said, waving the tickets as he left, leaving Gary staring at Spencer, still lying out on the table, which couldn't be comfortable.

  “Let me help you to bed,” Gary said, holding Spencer's hand tight as he stepped down from the table. He walked slowly, and Gary arranged the pillows so that Spencer could lie on his front and still eat without too much difficulty.

  “Thank you for saving me,” Spencer said, as he held Gary's hand. Gary was humbled by it all, and he didn't know what to say, words seemed inadequate to express his feelings.

  The front door opened, and Gary peeked out the bedroom door to check that it was Matthew. With all the sneaking around, he was still on edge, and the lack of sleep wasn't helping.

  Matthew was carrying shopping bags, and Gary wondered if he had found the takeaway place, but then he saw the familiar brown paper bag that they put their food in.

  “How is he?” Matthew asked, his brow furrowed as his big blue eyes stared at Gary.

  “Resting, he's going to be fine.” Gary held his arms out, and Matthew sat all the bags down before rushing over for a hug. Matthew's soft hair tickled at his nose, and Gary felt the exhaustion of the day catching up with him.

  “I'm just going to sleep.” Gary yawned, and Matthew stood back, looking at Gary with concern in his eyes.

  “No, you need food first, I haven't seen you eat in nearly twenty-four hours.” Matthew was using a tone of voice that Gary had never heard before, it was a tone of voice that said he would be obeyed, and Gary nodded, too tired to argue with him. “I'll feed you if I have to,” Matthew said, his cheeky smile shining out, and Gary found himself smiling, ducking down for a kiss before carrying the food through to Spencer, leaving the groceries to be put away later.

  Matthew fed Spencer little pieces of sushi until he was satisfied that he'd eaten enough, and he watched Gary eat with a look that said he'd do the same for him if he didn't eat.

  “I should go sleep,” Gary said, but Spencer wouldn't let go of his hand.

  “Stay.” Spencer had a small smile on his face, and Gary couldn't say no, the thought of curling up next to him and Matthew was exactly what he needed.

  He made sure Spencer was comfortable before stripping off to his boxers and snuggling back in next to him, resting his hand on his arm, it was one of the few bits of Spencer that wasn't sore.

  Gary drifted off as Matthew watched over them both, a smile on his face that wasn't his usual cheeky grin. He looked content with his life, and he was glad that he'd been given a second chance so that he could enjoy it all.

  CHAPTER 6

  The next morning Gary woke up to sunlight streaming through the window. He looked over at Spencer, the cuts on his back now a thick pink scar, and he reached out to stroke his hair, checking that he was conscious. Spencer fidgeted in his sleep, his hand twitching as he hugged the pillow.

  Gary's phone buzzed, and he rolled over to see who it was. Ellis had sent him a picture of him and Dornan clearly tipsy in a bar, arms round each other, with the caption – Thank you for the birthday gift!

  He slipped out of bed, walking carefully as he headed for the shower, at least he'd got up before his alarm. Matthew had his arm draped over Spencer's bum, and they made a beautiful couple.

  Gary left them a note, saying that they should stay home and rest, and to send him a message if they wanted anything bringing back.

  He thought about giving them a kiss goodbye, but it was all so new, so he headed to work, making sure he had all the paperwork to sort out one last thing.

  *

  The queue to register Matthew and Spencer as 'his' was long, and by the time he got to the front of it he was sure that he was going to be late for work. But he'd feel a lot better knowing this was done.

  “Next.”

  Gary handed over the documents as the middle aged man behind the counter studied them intently. He felt his heart race, and even though he told himself it was just routine he couldn't help but feel like someone was going to jump out and arrest him at any moment.

  “Two sexbots?” The man raised an eyebrow, pushing a strand of his thinning grey hair behind his ear.

  “I like variety.” Gary was trying for nonchalant, but he'd take arrogant if it meant that he got to leave here without being taken out in handcuffs.

  “Why haven't you registered them before now?”

  Gary leant in, and the man did the same. “It's not something I really want to advertise.”

  “Each to their own.” The man typed everything in, and he stamped both the forms before handing them back to Gary.

  Gary smiled, he was sure it looked forced, but it would have to do, it was the closest he was getting to relaxed while he was here.

  “That's them all registered. You should get a confirmation e-mail later today.”

  “Thank you.” Gary scurried off as the man called 'next' and he rushed to get to work, his heart still pounding as he got in the lift to head up to his office.

  *

  He was only fifteen minutes late, and he'd make sure that he was seen staying late to make up for it. By the time lunch rolled around he was sure that he looked like a zombie, even though he'd had eight hours sleep last night, it didn't make up for the forty-four hours straight that he'd been awake before that.

  Ellis came rushing over to where Gary was sipping his third coffee of the day, his taste buds now numb to its bitter edge.

  “Guess who got the promotion?” Ellis' smile was shining out, and Gary felt his mood brighten.

  “You got the promotion? I'm so happy for you.” Gary stood to give Ellis a hug, swaying on his feet as he held him tight.

  “Thank you.” Ellis took a seat, glancing around so that he could attract the attention of the robot who had the coffee. “And thank you for sending me Dornan.”

  Ellis' grin said it all, and Gary was happy that some good had come of this mess. “You don't mind that I couldn't make it?”

  “No, I understand, family has to come first.” Ellis raised an eyebrow, and Gary wondered what Dornan had told him, but that would have to wait for another time, they couldn't talk about it here. “You'd have hated the ice hockey anyway.” Ellis laughed, and he stopped just in time to thank the robot as he handed him a cup of coffee.

  “You and Dornan should come round for dinner some time, maybe this weekend?” Gary knew that he'd be forever in Dornan's debt, and since him and Ellis seemed to have more than just a casual thing going on, he should really try and get to know him better.

  ***

 
; A couple of days passed, and Gary had gone back to sleeping in his own bed, alone. He'd also not found the time to talk to Matthew about what he'd said, ask him if he really meant it when he said that he loved him.

  He was getting ready to leave work for the day when an unknown number called, and he thought about ignoring it, but curiosity got the better of him.

  “Mr. Gareth Verner?” The tone of voice said this wasn't going to be a happy call.

  “Yes, who is this?” Gary felt his heart rate pick up, and his stomach twisted into a knot, it seemed to be his normal state of affairs lately.

  “Officer Latham, we picked up your bot for solicitation.”

  “What?” Gary was wondering if it was a joke, but the officer's voice said otherwise.

  “KM twenty dash RS dash E? Caught by an undercover police officer.”

  Gary felt his blood run cold and he took down the details of the station where Matthew was being held. He was sure that he looked windswept and frantic by the time that he got down there. Even though he hadn't actually run, he'd walked at such a speed that several people had ended up dodging out of his way rather than risk being knocked over by him.

  The police station sent a shiver down Gary's spine, the white walls and the stale smell reminded him of hospitals. There was a tall man behind the desk, and Gary saw the name badge – Latham.

  “Hi, Officer Latham? You called about my bot?”

  “Yes.” Officer Latham stepped out from behind the desk, motioning for Gary to follow him and he moved quickly, trying to keep up with the officer.

  He led Gary to a row of metal lockers, each one just big enough for a person, or a robot. The lock clicked open, and Matthew was standing there, his face unimpressed and when he saw Gary, there was a flicker of a smile before his face returned to neutral.

  They both knew the roles that they were going to have to play, until Spencer healed fully, they had to make sure that no-one was asking too many questions.

  Gary rolled his eyes as he tutted. “I'm going to have to get him wiped.”