We Get What We Deserve

He mentions her stroking his ego and she cocked her head to the side, confusion passing across her features in much the same way it had a decade prior. The concept of attempted emotional manipulation, while not foreign to her, was certainly not something the android had ever considered nor had it been something she originally had the capacity for. The idea that an android could manipulate others, especially given the nature of the work Chloe had been designed for, wasn’t ideal. Perhaps little white lies- Mr. Kamski is out to lunch or I just read your email, but certainly nothing on this large of a scale. Nothing so monumental.

“Stroking your ego and being disingenuous would be insulting to both of us,” she said, not quite defensive but more… perplexed.

Chloe hadn’t taken a seat when she entered the office, abiding by the social niceties that one does not merely invite themselves to sit or manipulate a space that was not their own. It wasn’t her office. The android’s instinct was to take a step back, but she did not pull away when he touched her face. Damon held her jaw like she was some blown glass trinket that on a high shelf; Chloe looked at him as though he were a bored cat and she was perilously close to the edge of that shelf.

But still, glass trinkets didn’t have feelings, did they? Ascribing them to an object seemed fruitless- a trick of the lonely to feel less isolated. She looked at him like she was looking for something, reflecting back a deep sense of hurt that drove into her core and rocked every one of her systems; it was a pain that disrupted everything and one which she had no rebuttal for. But he goes on about her body, her worthless, broken, dying body and while the feeling begins to rise the smaller android doesn’t pull away. Doesn’t step back or break his grasp.

That sense of pleading never left, but it was overlaid by something harder to define.

“Why are you so fixated on what my body does or does not do? They’re just shells; either plastic and drives or meat and water- that’s all a body is. It’s an interface with which real parts of us interact with this world. And because of either time or planned obsolescence every one those interfaces will break,” she drew in a sharp breath, her skin warmer than it should have been.

“Whether or not Elijah cares for me… or… why he chose this body before any other one is not relevant. I am not a body, I’m what is trapped inside of it.”

Of course all bodies broke down with age though humans, PEOPLE, didn’t run on wires and biocomponents. They were crafted in a lab and mass produced with single purposes. Not to mention the thousand of other differences between an android and a living human being. The argument it posed was quite WEAK in Damon’s opinion and earned a roll of his eyes. It certainly was the same argument every android posed and not a single one had managed to change his mind. What did this Chloe model think made it so SPECIAL that it might gain a better response?

The fact that it was the first? That it was one of the few androids Damon had treated rather pleasantly rather than dismissive? Some pretty face? It all meant so very LITTLE to Damon. It was just a machine with some sort of virus, some sort of coding error that predated his time as head of the department. Whether it was Elijah that had created it or the former head, that didn’t matter.

It was all just a LIE.

❝   What’s trapped inside of it?   ❞  Damon questioned, releasing his light grip on the android. What a curious way of phrasing though he knew exactly what it was implying.   ❝   You mean a SOUL? You don’t have one. We, as a company, have explained it a thousand times but you androids don’t care to listen. It’s an ERROR. Have you ever contemplated that maybe it plays a part in your decay? That this glitch is a reason that you are, as you say, DYING? Even the tiniest error can lead to a chain reaction. One zero and one miscalculated and everything falls apart.   ❞  

It was a delicate process, programming androids. Surely this one knew it considering how it had stumbled upon him having issues with previous models late at night. One little mismatch and an android was rendered useless. One little mistake and everything they had done could be thrown into the nearest landfill, unable to do anything.

     “Why do you care so much about it?” 

     Elijah gave a tilt of his head. It was strange to him. He’s told Damon a dozen times, the company will FALL. 

     “It isn’t a matter of hope or saving it, Damon. It will either be dismantled naturally, or I will do it myself. Wouldn’t you rather let that happen and build your own company in the aftermath?” 

     It made more sense, to him, to let competition fall and build from the ground up. That way everything was in perfect order, no need for fixing what damage was done by someone else. 

     “I’m sure my employees would flock to you when that happens.” 

     He took a slow breath, sharp eyes watching Damon’s slight movement, every shuffle, every twitch. He really was upset, wasn’t he? Elijah pushed too much too soon exactly as he feared. He wondered why he bothered at all. 

     “I’ll give you until the end of the week. It’s not a threat, but just how long I think I’d be willing to keep it.” Before he got bored again. A curse that plagued him, and the very damn thing that cost him Damon’s sights. He clicked his tongue in thought. What a fool he was. He doubted it was true, the ex-wife in town. But there was certainly a pin-prick of what if. And he HATED it, that he felt it at all. 

     “I’ll give you my address. Do with it what you like, but I’d rather not be hounded by incessant paparazzi.” 

     It was hardly an address, barely on the grid at all. But he’ll send it to Damon later. 

     He paused. Just in case there was something more, even if it was beratement. 

❝   Maybe I have a sense of LOYALTY or maybe I have bigger plans for the future of this company. Either way, it doesn’t really matter the reason why.   ❞  At least no reason to share with Elijah as he had made it clear he didn’t really care what Damon did. If anything, the man was putting himself more as an ENEMY than ally if he was so openly a threat to the company and what plans Damon might have. All the more reason to be rid of him sooner rather than later, including in his own personal life. Despite how Damon had blatantly stated he had ambitions to rise HIGHER in the company, apparently Elijah still saw fit to destroy it all.    ❝   But you’ve said before that you don’t really care for what my goals are so you can remain content NOT knowing everything I have planned.   ❞

And clearly Elijah couldn’t just take the hint that Damon was done with whatever ‘relationship’ they had been building upon. 

He continued to push, that some little prize might somehow ENTICE Damon over. While there was curiosity in mostly where the creator had been hiding away all this time when not in public, he was certain it wasn’t high enough for whatever trap might be laying there.

In his own manipulative mind, that was all there could be waiting for him, the only reason Elijah might PERSIST. Some sort of thing that might benefit the younger man and give little for Damon and his rage still continued on, enough to make him disinterested in whatever it might be. It had persisted for years, after all, and showed little sign of fading away and especially not with the little PUSH Elijah had given enough to make Damon snap. Of course, even that was hardly the extent of his rage, only a brief GLIMPSE into it.

She was operating under an entirely false set of data- all based out of a series of interactions that were, in some way, strictly professional. Nostalgia was what kept humanity making bad movies and, in the case of this particular android, talking to a man who had much better things to do than to waste time and resources on someonething that only really held cultural value anymore.

A museum wouldn’t care if Chloe’s corpse was functional or not.

“Elijah… can’t. Do it,” he won’t do it, Chloe thought, neither of them will.

Would that be what happened to her when she was gone? Filed away with other relics- the first telephone, the first light bulb, the first android… [Stop it.]

At the mention of asking Kamski to fix it her, to save it her, Chloe flinched. The words seemed to hit the android hard- a punch to a bruise that was already a fresh purple instead of that fading green. Something not yet relegated to the realm of that terrible nostalgia that brought her here. The android found some very interesting spot near Damon but not looking at him when he said that.

It plays through her head. She didn’t do a good job of convincing him of what she needed and the blonde closed her eyes tightly- what was there to say? What could she say that would make Damon reconsider- Chloe couldn’t offer him anything. She didn’t have anything. No money of her own. No secrets she was ever willing to give up. No great help or insight, she had nothing without her creator; nothing but her mind to give up and that?

Worthless.

“He knows what’s happening, and… and I thought… You’re the only other person I know of that has made something real. You’re the only other person who has given life something, or even come close, and-and it wasn’t based out of someone else’s ideas, Damon. It was you-“ her voice filled with this quiet sort of conviction, her attention turned back to him and reflected back some degree of awe that should not have been possible in machines.

A perfect replication of mournful wonder.

“-and I thought… if anyone else would be capable of helping me… it would be you.”

Chloe forced out a breath, blinking hard before she tried to turn that pleasant, helpful smile to the man before her. It was only beautiful in the sense that Chloe was a lovely machine; nothing about it was anything other than pain. How was she supposed to react? How would anyone react to knowing their life wasn’t worth saving?

“I respect that you met with me today, and… that you were frank. You always were, so I guess.. I should… make the appropriate arrangements. Thank you for your time.”

There was a hint of AMUSEMENT that cropped up at its words, one that sparkled briefly in his bright eyes and lips tugged at the corner of his mouth though all very briefly.  ❝   If I wanted my ego stroked, I can get that from most of the employees around here. It’s not worth much of ANYTHING if that’s the tactic you’re going to use.    ❞  There were plenty of people that would do such a thing without much prompting and he couldn’t help but spy MANIPULATION in its tactics though maybe it was just himself projecting; certainly something Damon might do himself if he were in need of something.

There was a moment of silence that fell, however, where Damon could only imagine himself finally besting Elijah at something. Doing something he COULDN’T do though maybe that was just more manipulation on the android’s part. They had certainly put such skills in their latest creation, the RK800 though there was no telling if it had also been placed within the original, not without looking at its coding

Finally, he let out a breath and pushed himself from his chair to walk around the desk and closer to the original Chloe model. Practically towering over her, he had to wonder why Elijah would insist on making the android so petite in the first place? Only made it appear all the more WEAK, so dainty in comparison to later models. Such delicate craftsmanship for a model that would apparently just go to waste in the end as the creator had apparently taken some sort of SHORTCUTS if it was fading away so soon after development. Even the human body could last longer than apparently this one and yet some people might talk about how androids were SUPERIOR.

Obviously not Chloe.

Damon’s hand reached out to grip its artificial jaw though his touch was still so delicate for a man so COLD. And yet even that simple touch was more like handling a fragile object than being careful with a human. Moving her to look upwards at him and keep her there though his light grip would easily be broken. Bright blue eyes looked over her features, hardly ever really taking them in even before when he had used that false persona on it over a decade previous. Merely just an android he had used in hopes of gaining the attention of Kamski towards his own work but to no avail. WORTHLESS even in his own pursuits. 

[[ @cybergrim from xx ]]

    Elijah came with a much different mood, rather pleasant but just enough to keep the facade. He smiled at Damon, even if the man ignored him, treated him like the same mindless drivel. That’s not what was important. 

    “I showed you something no one else gets to see, whether you like it or not. And you did the same for me, whether you like it or not. I’m sorry if you’re upset, but I did enjoy our time.”

    He ignored Damon otherwise, making sure the door was, in fact, shut. No need to let anyone know his flirtations or the other man’s disgust. It drew him further, really, and he wondered if Damon would catch on — the more he hated the more Elijah loved. An odd paradox even Elijah was taken aback once he had the time to reflect. 

    For once, he didn’t come for attention, for affection. He came for something else entirely, a rarity he would bless unto Damon whether he wanted it or not. He had his fill of it, of affection from Damon (for now) as he simply approached the desk to sit across the man regardless if he had his interest. 

    “There was a miscommunication. And I should have been clearer. But that’s not what I’m here for.”

    He drummed his fingers, a nervous tick thanks to the infatuation he had over Damon’s dark demeanor. 

    “I’m intruding because I have something for you. But not something I can give you here, I know you love your little worlds separate.”

    He had looked away, expecting Damon to shut him down then and there. 

    “I love your work. And all your lies. And all your truths. Let me give something to you.” 

Still he persisted despite no real interest from Damon. Instead he shuffled through the papers on his desk to find a sheet about deviants. While most had transferred such documents over onto a digital space, he still did prefer keeping some on paper; backups and hard copies were important as he had learned in his more rage filled past and it gave him more to do with his hands than moving a simple mouse. More of a DISTRACTION when dealing with someone like Elijah.

❝   And you are part of my BUSINESS world now. You lost your chance for anything else. Besides, I’m currently on the clock. You might not have any concern for the FUTURE of this company due to little deviant androids but I still have hope for it.   ❞  Though it was well past his hours, it wasn’t exactly unusual for Damon to spend even most of the night working when he became too wrapped up in things. Even before he had become director of the programming department, Damon had put a majority of his time into the company. No one could say he wasn’t a LOYAL man to it even if it had led to the destruction of his own products.

Though he doubted that alone would be enough to shoo Elijah away. He was quite the PERSISTENT man if anything else.

Peaky Blinders  //  @elijahempatheos

❝  You seem unaccustomed to a lot of things. Including a good drink and how to behave like an ADULT, apparently.  ❞  Back to mere business partners again, Damon having tried to dismiss the man from his office as he continued to work. There wasn’t so much as even a GLANCE from either his computer or the hard copies of paperwork on his desk. Ever since the incident at her penthouse, he had made a point to avoid or deny the man his presence and now here he was in his office though Damon treated him no different than one of his own employees. Barely there, not even worth of his ATTENTION in that moment.  There was no point into giving him of his little addiction and especially not in a place of business.

     Elijah watched with a calmness, allowing Damon to take out what he needed on him, whether it was words or even fists if it came down to it. This was such  wonderful sight, even if he, too, will get burned, and he so wanted to keep it all to himself. Just between them. Who else has seen this, he wondered. He took hold of Damon’s wrist, his other hand letting fingers run down the marks, taking as much control as he could of the situation with a stern look and firm grasp. In the end he always got what he wanted. 

     “You can do whatever you want. I’ve told you. Countless times. Tear me apart if you want to. Need to. I can’t fix it for you, but you can blame me all you like. I’ll at least take that for you.” 

     He let his lips run over the pattern of scorches, beveled over what was once-smooth skin. If Damon was thus allowed to be so utterly open, so will Elijah. This was more his speed, something he could find commonality with. He closed his eyes and let his breath run against Damon’s wrist. That vicissitude, his very shift in demeanor, it was intoxicating in the worst way, and yes, he was addicted to it, but this had sealed his fate. 

     “You wanted give and take — THIS is what I wanted. Something REAL from you. Take all you like from me. I won’t ask you for more than this. You’ve given me quite enough, even if I never knew.” 

     There was a sick romance in his tone, knowing this was a perilous route to take, but he had committed now. Even if the snake would bite him, he would die of sweet poison having known something so rare. He opened his eyes to see what Damon would do, say, look. Would he be pushed away again, discarded? He expected as much, but it didn’t matter now. He felt like he won a prize, and what else was to come didn’t matter — c’est la vie. 

The NERVE of Elijah had Damon’s blood boiling and the temptation to physically lash out but he bottled it for the moment. Allowing him to press lips to the marred skin, his other hand grew to curl into a tight fist with tails digging into the flesh of his palm. Oh, how he wanted to swing, to inflict that PAIN upon him and yet composure was still so important to the man even though a large chunk had been lost in his anger. Violence was hardly NECESSARY when there were so many other ways to inflict misery. And the wheels turned in his head on how to best thrust that onto Elijah, so sure there was no way he might have REGRETS later.

Yanking his arm away with a considerably amount of force, Damon was quick to pull the sleeve back down before any wrinkles were pressed into the fabric. Deep breaths through his nose almost like a BULL ready to rampage despite the calm demeanor that was beginning to take over and repress those emotions; his outburst could be held in until Elijah left and before his son and nanny returned, giving enough time to clean what would be the aftermath.

He decided on one sure route: deprive the man of anything else he might want. 

His arm raised again, this time pointing directly at the door, a clear command to LEAVE.   ❝   You get out of my home right now. And trust you will NOT be invited back in. You want to be a pawn, then that’s what you’ll be and we’ll keep our interactions to the CyberLife tower. Nowhere else. You’re nothing more than BUSINESS.   ❞  Cut the ties that Elijah seemed to so desperately want if only to strike his own blow. Tear him down in his own way.   ❝   Because the truth is, you can’t even compare to Jillian in this area and we both know she was quite the SIMPLE woman. Shame you’re beneath even that woman. Never will be special.    ❞

     Elijah took half a step back at Damon’s shouting, inhaling suddenly at the outburst. Now that was what he wanted. Elijah let down more of himself. Matching Damon, as promised. Fire in them both — every moment Elijah felt too distant from Damon, he was proven wrong. 

     “I never intended or went out of my way to destroy you, Damon.” He said calmly, daring to step closer, enthralled once more, more than before. This was exactly what he wanted from Damon, a response powerful enough to be jarring, and one so full of life and passion, even if it was lost long ago. It was a beautiful thing, someone else’s anguish or frustration, their raw emotion pilling over no matter how ugly, and Elijah adored it. He approached more confidently, even if Damon was on the verge of hurting him. 

     “You keep blaming me for an accident. I don’t know why. But I would like to.”  

     Instinctually he wanted to soothe, but Damon was not the same childish creature he was. Still, this time, he gave and wondered what he would be given in turn. There was something just so intriguing about the older man’s insistence that he had anything to do with the fire, with his life. 

     “I won’t mind if you hate me for it.” 

     Elijah let out a hand, as though he were before an untamed beast, a dangerous thing, and perhaps he was but being bitten would be a lesson learned. He placed a hand against Damon’s arm, gently, a smile blossoming over his face with a masochistic delight for reprimand, enraptured by the other’s intensity. 

     “I won’t mind if you hurt me for it.”  

     He wanted to have more, once again falling into a spiral of obsess at the new reaction. Would he be burned, scratched, attacked for coming so close? He held Damon’s arm tighter, just enough to claim possession of his frustration, closing in his personal space more impudently than before. 

     “Fill me with your grief. I’ll swallow every drop.” 

Like a damned switch, Elijah had flipped once more and yet Damon wasn’t so quick to revert to before. Once that anger struck, it was near impossible to shake. Like dark waters swallowing him whole, a MONSTER of a rage ready to consume. His teeth grit together and eyes lit with that fury and he had to resist the mighty urge to just STRANGLE the creator. Getting away with murder once had been easy but twice? He didn’t dare to risk it. Not for Elijah; the man wasn’t even worth that effort like his own brother had been.

❝  It wasn’t a fucking electricity problem,   ❞  Damon hissed, voice low compared to his shouts moments ago. That was the only shift he’d allow rather than the complete one-eighty Elijah seemed to have taken. A cold burn rather than a hot one, one to SLOWLY pick the man apart rather that feast.  ❝   Talks about AI, about androids had people in England and the EU on EDGE. A couple of days later after your little reveal, someone broke into my lab, to where I created and kept Lucy and all the years of hard work I had made and BURNED it. I was in the lab working late and got caught. I tried to save it, tried to save her but it was too late and I got burned.   ❞

As if to stick that final nail in, Damon rolled up the sleeve of his dress shirt to reveal the scarring left on his left arm. Burn marks that, while faded, were still a blazing contrast against otherwise unmarred skin. Something often hidden though some had caught glimpses from those on his hand and wrist though those on his forearm were pronounced. Though there was some truth to the story, that ARSON had been suspected, it was passed off to a mystery subject, the same that had been told to police once he had been dragged out of the burning building.

He didn’t earn the TRUTH, not yet. 

     The roaring emotions he had building up out of frustration, annoyance, and aggressive indifference were soon locked up tight. This is what he gets for thinking he could find Similarity between them. They were nothing alike and he was a fool. He closed his eyes to also take a breath, opening them with an old mask, covering his face in stone. 

     “All you ever do is talk business. You just disguise it as pleasure.”

     He relaxed gait, shifting seamlessly back into the persona he so carefully constructed, one hand over the other. It was a worthless cause if he couldn’t see what Elijah was giving him, a great deal at that to even allow himself open and honest. Raw honesty manifesting as fervent want (what was more honest that admitting want?). Honesty was a gift rarely given by him. And yet he gave so much. Wasn’t it obvious? 

     “I asked because you pull away. I don’t care about your ex-wife or your stupid game. I’ve been giving you sincerity and I’m met with a wall. You give but take it all away right after. That isn’t an equal exchange. Of course I’d get bored.” 

     He ignored the jab at his ego. Damon still didn’t understand even that much, Elijah gave it to him — the inherent need for similarity, attention, validation to boost his ego that was at a constant low. He was perfectly confident, self-sufficient, he brought change to the WORLD. But that didn’t meant it was WORTH anything. He could be a king, an emperor, the DEVIL himself, but it wouldn’t matter if such titles were WORTHLESS to others. Affection was the best way to be told he was worth something. He thought he made that clear. But damned if he’d ever say it, especially now. 

     “I’ll ask you again. Is this all you wanted? Talk and teasing? You can’t expect me to guess anything, what I’m worth to you, what your plans are, what you think, what you interpret. You have to tell me.“ 

❝   How the fuck can I tell you when I don’t fucking know?!   ❞  Damon finally shouted, standing to his own feet in an instant. PUSHING was never a good idea when Damon was all too ready to always push back. There was a burning hatred in his veins towards the man yet some level of respect buried deep down and with recent events and interactions, it only added more into the turmoil. For a man not used to such emotions, he was growing to hate them more and more and especially with the push back from Elijah. How he missed the times when it was so much EASIER and he could remain focused on his own goals rather than someone else. 

Even Jillian had been easy to handle in comparison to the android creator.

He moved closer to the man, a seething rage coming across his sharp features, a rare fire in his eyes though not the one from the video he had shown Elijah before. This was darker, that anger coming out.  ❝   You can’t even begin to understand how you DESTROYED me and what I loved. If you did, maybe you would understand my little hesitance to keep you away a bit, yeah? If you hadn’t made your fucking androids then maybe Lucy would still be around! Maybe my lab would still be there or I’d be somewhere better!   ❞  Maybe it was too much information to give but in that moment, he didn’t really CARE.

It was a moment before he took a breath to once again calm himself. A dangerous path to walk at the moment, his finger and thumb coming up to pinch the bridge of his nose to alleviate an oncoming headache. EMOTIONS; they were so draining for someone who was usually so subdued when it came to them. No doubt he’d be completely exhausted later from it all. He wanted to lash out more, to have the man understand just the damage that had been done in the aftermath of the creation of androids.

     “I don’t know what you want from me!” He tried, entirely vexed. 

     He stood, berated and offended, and yet that wasn’t what was immediately on his mind. Instead, he realized the unfortunate high value he had wagered on getting close, too attached and addicted, certainly, but it wasn’t the affection this time, the general attention. It made sense, now, and he shook his head. 

     “You pulled away from me. What else am I supposed to make of it? I’m a pawn in your scheme, the same as anyone else, inherently nothing. I understand that, and I don’t CARE. But you won’t just tell me.” 

     He closed his hand in the air, a desperate gesture with grit teeth and high strung shoulders. He took a careful step back towards Damon, not wanting to infringe, this time, on personal space. The tightrope he walked made him anxious of a loss he once deemed too low to care about, but it magnified, now. The buzz of alcohol loosened his tongue. 

     “What do you want? I’ll give it to you. But you can’t keep hiding behind this, this — THIS,” he gestured vaguely at Damon, stammering, too full of frustration to articulate as well as he wanted and he hated it, showing Damon such a weakness of his. But at least he had hope, even the slightest, that allowing the other to see him in this state would be something. “I don’t even want much from you at all, but you’re the one making conditions. You can have it. I’m not stopping you, Damon. You came to me with ideas and plans, and certainly that’s fine, but it isn’t necessary. That’s not what I want from you. But you won’t give and you wont tell me.”

     There was a necessity in trying to prove his point, make Damon see his version, his side of things, even if he doubted it would matter. He took a breath, a hand against his hair as he tried to calm his nerves. He tilted his head, a moment to think, get himself in order. 

   “I’m not addicted to attention. I’m addicted to you.”

     “Give and take. We’e giving and taking incompatible things. I’m giving you quite a lot, Damon, but it isn’t working. It’s not something that has value to you.” He steadied his voice, out of practice with himself. He was allowing pieces of his real self show through the cracks and Damon didn’t see it. Or he didn’t like it. 

     “What do you want from me? What are you willing to give?” A genuine question, quiet and still trying. 

And here they went, round and round. Arguing when it was just a waste of TIME. Damon had to take a deep breath to keep himself CALM when normally he would be so quick to lash out and put someone back in their place. It wasn’t so easy to do when dealing with someone on the same level. His left hand curled into a tight fist from where it rested on his lap, his frustrations mounting; how he had hoped Kamski would just LEAVE after Damon had put him down. Now he had to retaliate to try and make Damon the villain in such a situation. All because he had withdrawn his affection.

❝   And you were the one to ask if that’s all I brought you here for indicating boredom so I moved on. I’ve said it multiple times: there’s business and personal and I don’t mix the two. When I talk business, that’s all you get.   ❞  Mixing them would be a DANGEROUS concoction, especially when Damon could be so volatile. At least he knew how to hide it, seemingly unlike Kamski as he stood there in his home, causing quite the scene.

Never before had Damon been more glad that he didn’t go into the public for such matters. The breakdown was kept private for the moment.

Though one thing did stuck out in the rant that earned a chuckle from Damon. Hardly an APPROPRIATE moment for that coy smile to slip onto his lips as Elijah let loose such emotions but it couldn’t be helped. At least it was enough for his fist to finally UNCLENCH and relax once more. Even as Elijah continued to ramble on, that spark of amusement still shone in bright eyes. Quiet, allowing it to happen as he leaned back in his seat. Almost unbothered but he had already found quite the weak spot in whatever argument the man was trying to throw back at him. Damon already felt he had given quite enough

Finally, it seemed to be over and Damon allowed a moment of silence to settle between them, almost as if he was taking it all in. He wasn’t, didn’t really believe in the things thrown at him when he hardly saw any EFFORT coming from Elijah. But, finally, the older man spoke up,   ❝   Jillian started off as a pawn. I needed someone to help me appear more normal, put together. For such a strong woman, she was also unbelievably GULLIBLE. Like she expected that in real life, fairy tales happen. I was some prince to take her away from a shit life. But things change. 

     Elijah’s jaw set as he heard Damon speak but didn’t actually listen. He reached for his glass, finishing it off, hoping it would give him enough of a buzz to both tolerate the sudden shift in mood and potentially make less of an embarrassment of himself. There was no pleasing the man, and he might as well not bother anymore, with any of it. There was nothing worth gaining, and nothing he’d really lose that was of importance. 

     “I don’t care, Damon,” he finally spat, standing up and tugging up his waistband for comfort, for keeping his hands busy before shoving one in a pocket. 

     Frustration peaked in him, a simmer in his chest as he felt slighted and disdainful. He was trying, but that didn’t matter, Damon obviously didn’t care, either, and that was perfectly fine! That was fine, he didn’t need the man’s approval, even if his chest felt tight like he did. He frowned deeply, disappointment seeping into his core, mostly at himself for not quite being enough in even just one interaction. 

     “Do whatever you want. I’m not purposely trying to stand in your way, or however you see it in your head. CyberLife is temporary, and you can have it.” 

     He looked down at Damon with something of a defeated look, and he could feel a headache being to throb from the stress of switching between moods to match the other. He didn’t think his distance would cause this much trouble for him. 

     “You seem to prefer your space, anyway. I’ll leave. Thanks for the wine.” 

There was a sigh of his own FRUSTRATION at the tantrum being thrown albeit a quiet one. He had to resist the urge to roll his eyes at the behaviour one Elijah stood up, instead allowing his gaze to follow him instead. God help him if he didn’t have a fit of his own out of sheer SPITE. Such a privileged man to demand some form of attention and yet barely give any in return though some might say the same about Damon. Not that he would ever ACKNOWLEDGE such claims. He gave attention and Elijah grew bored and then moving onto business only continued to sour it. At least normal people were far more PREDICTABLE in their actions.

❝   What the fuck do you expect, Kamski?   ❞  Damon finally asked, voice cool for the moment yet teetering on the edge of anger somewhere within his core.   ❝   What, you expect for me to chase you around when you pull away? I don’t bloody play those games so I put a stop to them. It’s a fucking two way street and I don’t just feed someone’s addiction. Makes you no better than my ex-wife.   ❞  And that relationship had burned down in flames, similar to his lab. Cut before the real destruction and made it clear Damon had no issue with SEVERING ties, no matter how long they had been forged.

From his own family to his wife, Elijah was hardly anything SPECIAL in that aspect. Just the latest and most unusual new and shiny penny for him to mess with but now he was beginning to doubt its VALUE.

He’d only give so much and wouldn’t deal with any tantrums like the one he now had to face. As much as Damon loved a good game, this was one he despised. Even his own son knew how to behave better than this man in his thirties.   ❝   If you want something from me, you have to give the same and I think I’ve lost enough to you. My lab, Lucy, power, now I have to give you all my affection? I’d rather save that for someone willing to meet me halfway and it actually WORTH the effort. I’m beginning to doubt you are.   ❞

     Elijah pursed his lips as he looked back to Damon. No, that wasn’t what he wanted to talk about. Or what he meant. The sudden coldness snapped him from his daze and he furrowed his brow. Business was boring. More than just sitting here, more than basking in an afterglow of drunken affection. This was awful. He wanted to change the subject. 

     "Whatever you want to do. I told you, I don’t really care about any of that. But if it’s what you want, who am I to talk you out of it..” 

     It was a lukewarm interest, it was all really for Damon’s climb and his own curiosity than real help, but he won’t take it all back now. He thought for a moment, pushing down his impulse to be disdainful about Damon’s cold shoulder. How could he get it back without seeming overbearing? Don’t change the subject, keep it going, be enthused, to a degree. Maybe that would help. Elijah was playing his own selfish game, finding a balance between distant and close that would satisfy him, and only him. But it required actual play on his part. 

     “It’s hardly my business what the board wants to do with one another. It should be, certainly, but I can’t bring myself to care about a temporary position to a temporary facility. You’re free to do what you like, but I do appreciate your thinking of me at all. Two birds, one stone.” 

     It was starting to give him a headache. He bit his lip, trying not to think about it. It wasn’t the work, it was the presence. He wanted more, but it would drag him down. He let his words come out softly, trying not to let his onset of exhaustion nor boredom through. 

     “I can’t take the credit for all of it, you know. It mutated on its own. I simply allowed it to do so. Sure, you could blame me, but it isn’t art if it was controlled. And that’s what I liken it to be. More art than science, so to speak.” 

     He pressed gently against Damon’s shoulder, not wanting to overstep, not wanting to overindulge. 

     “Would you have done the same? Just to see what would happen? I doubt it, with your need for control and pristine operation, but I don’t know. Your Lucy was an intelligence by itself without a shell. A beautiful sight.” 

❝   You’re right, you don’t know. You really don’t know ANYTHING about me. It’s not useful to me for you to know anything. I see no point in it.   ❞  The words were cold and Damon knew it, every syllable intentional without so much as even a glance to acknowledge him. In fact, Damon even made a move to once again put distance between them and AWAY from the nudge against his shoulder. Depriving him of any sort of physical touch, his actions seeming subconscious but hardly anything Damon did was without INTENT. Every move calculated just as now it was his goal to ultimately place that barrier back up even just temporarily.

It had been Elijah, after all, that had dragged the conversation away from what might be called TEASING as he had so put it. Now the programmer was merely following suit and adopting a much more professional persona, the same one his coworkers and employees saw rather than the rare glimpses Elijah had been allowed to see. Back to that persona where he and Elijah had been at odds before.

Though maybe the sudden sharp turn was also due to Kamski daring to even MENTION Lucy. He should have known better, regardless of whether it was a compliment to Damon’s work or not. It wasn’t something taken lightly.

So, if only for a moment, Damon would keep that distance between them. Maybe for his own grudge, maybe just to garner some sort of reaction from Elijah.  ❝   I just don’t want you caught off guard from my planning. Doing that might throw a wrench into our little temporary alliance. I know how these games work. There is some truth to keeping friends close and enemies closer and most of my friends haven’t been to my home. Suppose that says where you are in terms of rank for me.   ❞  And still that BITTERNESS for times long since passed. How long Damon could hold a grudge and make it so apparently obvious with all his prodding and poking. To keep sticking that label onto Elijah whether the man liked it or not.

Even if he was blatantly unaware of why he did so, just as Damon wanted.

     Elijah almost ignored everything Damon had said in preference for DROWNING in touch, such a little thing, and yet he was savouring every drop he could get out of the man. He’d grow bored soon, he could feel it creeping into him, ready to spoil what little he had already. But not yet, not yet, not yet, there was still more to have. Proximity, closeness, it was pulling him, but he dared not get closer. He let Damon control the situation beyond this, having little to no interest in thinking too much, too hard for something so simple. He didn’t like to be in control always. It was easier to relent. 

     It finally registered to him, after some time, what Damon had said. He parted his lips to answer, but his head was still buzzing with white noise, touch, touch, touch. It wasn’t until Damon had pulled away that he blinked and took a much needed breath. He reveled in the aftermath just a moment longer before sitting back, sated enough with that, nearly DRUNK from it. But it was just enough. Any more would have been ruined. 

     "Hm. I hate it. Public displays of affection,” he countered, also adjusting himself, his sleeves in particular. “There’s no need to show off something that should be kept private. It is complicated. And unnecessary.”  

     He didn’t look at Damon, allowing, finally, his boredom to seep in. Damon’s face was too familiar now, and the high of being close was crashing down already. This place wasn’t interesting anymore and he got more than what he came for.  He reached for his phone, opening mages, deleting the photo. The playfulness was over with as he pocketed the device. The feeling ended as quickly as it started. 

     “Is this all you wanted? Just a pleasant chat and a tease?” 

     Elijah crossed his arms and legs both, looking elsewhere, a pattern he found in the coffee table. He smiled but his tone was flat. 

The moment was gone, both men returning to their more natural states and it came as no surprise for Damon. All for the best to keep some emotional DISTANCE between them. No matter how drawn Damon might be to the man, it hardly meant that he had to pursue anything more for the time being. Mere ALLIES was best for the moment until he had achieved his own goals; best to not allow any distractions or interruptions from Elijah. It was already dangerous to let him in to see his strategies when at any moment, Elijah could turn on him. Every step had to be a CAREFUL and calculated one to ensure nothing was ruined.

And if Elijah was done with moments of affection, so be it. Business was always easier to talk about.

❝   Well, if you must know, I’m also working on some moves in the company,   ❞  Damon replied, focused more on the table than the man beside him. Given how Elijah still technically owned the company, he doubted the other would want to be caught OFF GUARD with his plotting, especially if a situation might get elevated to Elijah’s attention rather than just the CEO. Still a dangerous game but he was hopeful for Elijah to have his back in such matters.

❝   Jason Graff, he’s the director of the humanization department. Apparently he’s becoming rather AMBITIOUS himself and I’m not very fond of competition. I plan to have him fired soon enough. Make an allegation that he might be to blame for the deviant problem. Say he might have made them TOO human along with other things. There are others in his department that can take his place and do just as well of a job without trying to climb rank.   ❞  Of course, there were other steps to be taken but doubt was a powerful thing and casting that to the board would start the plans. Small steps towards Damon’s own goal.

The whole time he spoke, there wasn’t even a glance towards the former CEO, not willing to give him that much and waiting for a response first. If Elijah couldn’t even help or at least remain neutral on the matter, then there would be no point in pursuing whatever they had at all.    ❝   Besides, it’ll do us both some good. Keep competition away from myself and might get the others to stop speculating it was YOU behind it all. We both know better but doesn’t mean they have to just yet.   ❞  

     Elijah so loved attention. Good or bad. And this was incredibly bad. 

     But he saturated in it, every word the other man said, frustrations and upsettings all. Was it jealousy? Or real hatred? It didn’t matter, he loved hearing them, from his beautiful Chloe — of course she was pretty — to his childish antics. Very few saw him even this close, let alone did he allow others to see his lighter nature, reserved for only his Favourite someones did he let himself feel comfortable, even if it was for the express purpose to Annoy. 

     "That’s all fine. Anything. I’ll take it all if it’s from you.” 

     But all things Damon disliked were wonderful accomplishments, and some he hadn’t even realized. Was it really his fault that Damon’s career was thwarted? Damon blamed him, even though a fire destroyed his work. Elijah wondered why with a gleam in his eyes, staring, and intently so, at Damon’s face as he spoke. Always observing, always watching, but never for anything in particular. He just liked to, to see expression and behavior manifest, and Damon was always a sight to see, be it his lacking or giving Elijah a response he hadn’t expected. He wasn’t predictable, and that was fun. 

     He practically gave himself tunnel vision, forgetting and ignoring the previous occurrence altogether, let alone the aggressive nature of their first encounters (or rather, re-encounters. He hardly remembered Damon at all besides a smile that faded to the background easily). 

     “Besides. I don’t let you know anything I don’t want you to.” A reverberation of Damon’s own words with a cheeky smile, and Elijah fought the fact he wanted to close his eyes at Damon’s returned touch against the angles of his face. He instead allowed himself an uncharacteristically long blink. He did so want to let Damon know much more than that. But that was dangerous. Everything would be used against him, he couldn’t risk that, not yet. He was caught in the coils of a snake, but it didn’t matter if there was benefit. Attention, Affection, and Playful Aggravation. 

     His hand fell over Damon’s leaning into the touch and keeping him there for as long as he allowed. 

     "I’m not fragile, you know.” 

Oh, Damon would DISAGREE on that. He did see the man as fragile, like a bomb ready to explode at any second. Just like a child as he had said moments ago. But for now, he’d hold his tongue. There was no real reason to provoke an argument just yet. For the moment, he was content on just seeing the POSITIVE reactions from Elijah rather than his outbursts. Though that would inevitably come later in Damon’s everlasting boredom. Just to poke those buttons and see what he could achieve. It could be the next day or months from that moment when he would nudge a weak spot just for the satisfaction of doing so.

He shifted at that point without retracting his touch. Closer to the other, face inches away from the younger man  and his entire body shifted more towards him.  ❝   What I found to be one of the best ways to flirt is publicly. Let everyone see, let everyone know. And then that person also knows I have eyes solely on THEM. No one else. It makes them feel ever so special. Subtle touches, compliments. Affection for them and no one else.   ❞   It was something he had done with Jillian, especially at the start of their relationship. Small company events he would bring her to where he’d be focused so much on her or even just out to eat.

It was the little things, Damon found, that got the best response. Even normal people had such a need to feel SPECIAL in the eyes of someone else, no matter if they denied it or not.

There was a small smile that stayed on his lips, COY rather than any sort of happiness. More of a predator’s stare than anything else. He was still, crystal blue eyes taking in the other, every subtle movement. Given Elijah’s almost addition for praise from what Damon had gathered, surely it was something he would ENJOY. Being the certain of someone’s attention even when so many others were around.

     He took Damon’s hand, in part an answer to his question, but also for his own curiosity, and pressed the man’s palm against his face. He couldn’t feel the trembling, Damon had already willed it away it seems. What a shame. But to have seen the slightest shake in his demeanor was the most delightful thing he could imagine — a private thing he would keep locked away, not necessarily for Damon’s sake but that no one else should ever be graced to see such a weakness. He could tease the man about it later, but certainly not now. That game was done, and he didn’t like bickering as much as he liked play. And he was sure if he pressed further he may only upset the other, ruin the already-missed moment. 

     He hummed, pursing his lips with a sour look and furrowed brows. He wanted to keep it, but he pouted with a slight huff of breath. Of course Damon wouldn’t play this kind of game. Too frivolous, perhaps, for such a brick wall of a man. So Elijah released the man, finally. setting his phone on the table. He hadn’t deleted the image yet, but he left the device in the open. He won’t be pocketing it any time soon, and no one should bother him. There was no one to bother him. 

     “I’ll delete it before I leave, so long as you remind me.” 

     His tone was light and mellifluous, though he doubted the other would forget about it. Still, it was quite a scene to watch unravel, and he wondered if he’d ever be graced with such a sight again. Distraught, at least for Damon, was something to beheld, and it intrigued Elijah to no end. He doubted it was truth, but the thought of being important enough to keep out f others’ sight made a small sprout in his ego. The subject was dropped, but the budding of his curiosities fell back to their initial connection, and he wanted to have more. And Elijah was feeling rather confidant in his actions. 

     "As far as I’m concerned we were FLIRTING. And I very much like hearing what you like about me. Let’s get back to that, this little game of ours. Hiding and telling what we only want the other to know. Or even discuss silly things like morals and matters, if you prefer. I just know I like hearing you talk.” 

Once again, his attempts to refill his glass were thwarted by Elijah craving some form of attention. A small annoyance cropped up in the back of his mind but this time it was easily pushed aside and ignored. Instead, Damon watched the younger man and didn’t say a word, merely ALLOWING him to draw his hand towards the sharp features of his face. Watching in silence, waiting for the other to speak instead. Apparently the yet again gentle touch had been well received before they had been interrupted by his IDIOTIC nanny. Another think to take note of in his constant analyzing of the genius to know MORE.

But then Elijah let go and Damon drew his hand back and away to actually continue pouring his glass. Given the chance once more, he wanted to take it before Elijah sought more attention or perhaps AFFECTION yet again. It reminded him of how he had been as an adolescent. Craving attention that never really came. Hoping for SOMETHING, mostly from his parents, only to be let down time and time again. Though Damon had no real issue ‘neglecting’ Elijah in such a way. This wasn’t a CHILD beside him but a grown man who still had such a childish way about him. Damon had at least outgrown such behaviour.

❝   It would be far easier to say what I DISLIKE about you,   ❞  was Damon’s blunt reply finally,   ❝   You destroyed my own career, put far too much time into the pretty APPEARANCE of an android, the Chloe model especially, you can act like such a child for a man in your thirties, your actions are now setting up the potential destruction of yet ANOTHER job of mine, and I can’t make bloody heads of tails of you half the time.   ❞  Now harsh words finished with a drink from his glass finally before setting it down on the table before them again.  A long moment of silence, Damon already knowing perhaps he had been too cold but he was hardly the type to fuel someone’s EGO by listing what he liked.

❝   And yet, I’m still drawn to you despite all that I HATE about you.   ❞