Human After All (II)

"One bunch please."

"Yessir. Here's your— Hey!" The florist at the counter, who looked no older than maybe 14 or 15 years old, paused and pointed at Beau. "Didn't you escape from the Main building?"

Beau nodded.

"So, what's my t-total?" He tried moving on from the subject, but the girl was not easily swayed.

"No, no, you aren't going to pay for this." She said quickly. "Free of charge. May I guess who you're giving them to?"

Beau sighed softly. "Please, let me pay. I'll feel—"

"Is your mate feeling better? Is he finally awake? Are you going to give him these? Oh, please let me pick out a better bunch." The girl, suddenly scatterbrained, began to shuffle through bouquet plastic cases and rubber bands before she pulled out a bouquet of velvet-colored roses. She quickly tied a bow around the side of it, flourishing the flowers with some final touches as she spritzed a bit of perfume. Beau pulled his wallet out and slipped out a few bills from the folds, placing them upon the counter in exasperation.

"Please let me pay." He pleaded. "What's your name?"

"Oh no, no paying for you, you're a special case. Oh, look, these roses are just beautiful! Oh, my name? My name is Kris. Excuse me sir, but would you like more flowers? I can give you more, or perhaps a card or some balloons."

"Well Kris," Beau said, "you're too kind, but I can't accept these without paying first." Beau insisted, but Kris was just as stubborn as he was.

"You made my little brothers to start their own little gang back home." Kris said. "They're all so inspired by how brave you and your mate were, and Ethylon especially! Well, I want to support them with their mission, that's why I got this job." She paused and giggled. "Sorry, you didn't want my life story. Anyways, please don't worry about the charge. I'll put it on me."

"You're s-sure?" Beau finally gave in. Kris nodded eagerly.

"Absolutely sure!"

Beau pushed his wallet back into his pocket before picking up the velvet roses and starting towards the Main building. It was only a few blocks away, and Beau's heart was pounding out of his chest. He even thought his heartbeat was so loud that all the people he was walking past had heard it, and he thought that was the reason they were looking at him, when the true reason was because he was a legend.

As the large and colorful Main building came into sights, Beau's lips became dry, and he couldn't seem to swallow anything down his suddenly parched throat. His hands tightened around the bunch of roses in his hand, and he couldn't let go. The light from the streets seemed to flicker and brighten, yet Beau didn't stop. Instead, he took a deep breath and began to walk down the stretch of sidewalk, the only thing that separated him and the love of his life.

***

Rowan glanced at the doorway where a flustered Beau stood. Rowan smiled inwardly.

"Finally, Beau! I was wondering how long it would take you to get here." His usual white lab coat fell down to his ankles, only matched by his dark pants and worn sneakers that he had began to wear instead of the usual business shoes that the Main considered acceptable. Rowan had never really been into the fashions of the Main anyways, too strange for his tastes.

"I tried, as quick as I could." Beau replied. "I-I caught the first train here, but I got s-sidetracked. I can't believe how many people are out in this t-town at this time."

Rowan furrowed his brows together, putting down the pen in his hand and walking over to Beau. He placed one hand upon Beau's forehead with a look of confusion and irritation playing on his face.

"Where'd the stutter come from?" He questioned before touching Beau's cheek, mentally noting how warm he was.

"I figured it was anxiety. Y'know the scars." Beau said. "But I only stutter every now and then. It's not like it's every single sentence, Rowan. Now, where's J—"

"I have something for that." Rowan replied. "It's not a daily pill either. Just one injection."

"Does it hurt?" Beau asked childishly, though he had been poked and prodded by the hospital in the Main so many times that his fear of needles was understandable. They had taken blood for his labs, and injected him with medicines to rehabilitate the lost flesh he received from Mr. Rager's constant beatings, yet they had little to no effect unless in huge doses.

"No, not really. It's just like any other vaccine." Rowan interrupted Beau's thoughts.

Beau placed the roses on a small table beside a chair and slipped the long sleeve to his shirt off of his pale arm. He tapped his flesh and looked at Rowan.

"Shoot me up, Johnny."

Rowan snickered. "You got it."

While Rowan scampered back to his laboratory to grab a small syringe, Beau glanced around the room. It had changed drastically since the last time he was there, as the glass cylinders that were previously filled with humans and a strange blue gel had practically disappeared. Instead of thousands of cylinders, now only 200 remained, which was amazing to Beau. It meant that Rowan had transferred thousands of memories back into humans within a few months! And he also managed to save Joshua's in the process as well. Rowan was a genius.

Rowan appeared with a small needle in hand, filled with pink stained liquid. He smiled, tapping it slightly before grabbing Beau's arm and stretching it out towards him.

"Just a pinch." He said as a force of habit.

"How many more robots do you have to do?" Beau asked for specifics, staring weakly at his arm while the needle punctured the skin. Rowan glanced up at him, though he didn't bother to say anything. "Rowan, how many more—"

"Beau...." Rowan trailed off quietly. "I.... The empyreals, they can't locate.... They haven't been able to locate the other bots. And you know I can't transfer them unless they're robot self is here as well."

"Wait." Beau felt the needle slip out of his flesh. "They're missing?"

"Yes. We can't figure out where they are. All those ones in the cylinders, we can't—"

"Can't you search for them or something?"

Rowan threw the syringe in a basket. Then he made a gesture with his hands.

"Poof." He said with the move of his finger. "They're gone. We can't find them anywhere either. They're not on the grid."

Beau chewed on his bottom lip. They weren't all deactivated, were they? They couldn't have all be deactivated! No way, no how. But Beau couldn't think of any other explanation as to how the robots weren't on the grid. They just had to be somewhere.

"Beau?" Rowan asked. "You came here for a reason." Beau looked at Rowan, uneasily shuffling his feet after Rowan said that. Rowan smiled at him. "Let's hope for the best."

"I'm not worried about his memories anymore." Beau murmured. "It's just..... What if he doesn't like me anymore? Or what if I'm not a good mate?" Beau rubbed his shoulder. "What if he doesn't like me?"

"Beau, if we based our lives on 'what if's', nothing would get done." Rowan said firmly, before reaching behind Beau and grabbing the roses that lay upon a table. He pushed them into Beau's arms. "Now we're gonna go get Joshua."

"No, wait—"

But Rowan didn't listen anymore as he latched on Beau's arm and jerked him out of the room and into the hall. They passed down three rooms, Beau counted, before they stopped at one particular room with a large glass window residing beside it. Through the glass, he could see the auburn-haired, freckle-faced Joshua that he had grown to love more than he loved himself. Rowan unlocked the door with a strange looking key before he jiggled the handle and opened the door with one final push.

"Rowan, I feel sick."

"That's just the medication." Rowan shrugged his statement off, continuing his pursuit in the room. Beau shuffled into the room, keeping his gaze averted from Joshua, even though he wasn't awake. Beau just couldn't work up the courage to see his mate the way he was at that moment. He looked so weak, even though Rowan ensured him plenty of times that he was fine, and receiving all the nourishment that he needed. Beau never really doubted Rowan though. He was thrown off by the pose his mate had, looking as vulnerable as could be.

Rowan murmured things to himself as he grabbed a bag filled with a light maroon colored liquid. Rowan hung it over a rack with other bags upon it, where small tubes led out of each one and into Joshua's arm. Then, ever-so gently, Rowan slipped another IV into a vein. Beau cringed, watching while the maroon liquid slipped down the IV and finally disappeared into Joshua's arm.

"He'll wake up in a few minutes. Just give him some time." Rowan said. "I'll be leaving."

"No." Beau snapped Rowan back into the room. "Don't leave." Beau's eyes were full of discomfort and insecurity as Rowan stared at him. He sighed, but gave the same heart-warming smile that Ethylon would have given him, had he been there. He nodded, and stepped back to the wall of the room.

And then Beau waited. He knew it sounded ridiculous, he should have been beside himself in joy, but this was the most fear he had ever felt in his life. There was a chance that the one person he actually loved couldn't remember him. Then what? What would Beau do? There was no answer to that question, but he waited.

Beau finally worked up enough courage to look at Joshua's face. It was just as perfect as it had been before, the same freckles, the same dimples, and the same angelic expression. Beau's heart fluttered at the feeling he had lost during the time away from Joshua. Once again, Beau felt love, guilty love for Joshua, and nothing else mattered.

First Joshua's fingers curled under the blankets of the bed. It was just the smallest movement, but Beau gasped audibly. Rowan smiled in the corner of the room, though he didn't murmur anything. With his luck, he would ruin the moment.

Then Joshua whimpered quietly. His nose scrunched up in the cutest possible way, and he squeaked quietly, rubbing his nose with the back of his hand. Beau took a step back, his breath hitching in his throat. Everything seemed to be happening within a matter of seconds, and Beau couldn't grasp what was going on. Instead of taking another step back, Beau stood his ground with wobbly knees, and watched as Joshua carefully peeked one eye open. Then Beau realized how much he missed those glasz eyes of his.

He sat down, holding onto his chest with a rough hand. Joshua, blinked twice before opening his other eye. He turned his head slightly, staring at Beau with confused, yet tired eyes. The room went silent, even Beau's breaths seemed to silence as they waited for Joshua's reaction.

Yet, there wasn't one. Joshua sat up in the bed, glancing down at his arm where IVs entered his flesh. He touched one before letting out an uncomfortable hiss of pain. He looked at Beau, then at Rowan. His eyes darted between them.

"Where am I?" Joshua squeaked. Without another word, Rowan pushed himself away from the wall with a sigh of pure disappointment. He hadn't managed to save Joshua's memories. No matter how much he argued it within his head, the truth was obvious: He wasn't suitable enough to save a robot if their core was damaged, and that itself was a huge letdown.

Beau slumped over, rubbing the pool of tears away from his eyes so Joshua wouldn't see. He couldn't know. Even though Beau loved Joshua with all his heart, he wouldn't tell him that. The burden of having two lives would have been too much for Joshua to handle.

"Excuse me." Joshua whispered to Beau. Beau smiled to himself, but wiped his eyes free of tears, though they were still red. "Oh no, why are you crying?"

"N-no reason." Beau replied with a small gasp in his breath. He kept the sob from truly breaking his voice, though he wasn't sure his composure would be kept if he stayed in the room. He had to leave, he couldn't keep his broken heart in there.

"Hey." Joshua whispered again. "Don't cry. Please don't cry." He leaned forward, sitting on the bed with his knees. Joshua shook Beau's shoulder. "Hey." He said again. Beau looked up at the auburn-haired beauty in front of him, and he gave a weak smile. "My name is Joshua."

Beau laughed, gaging a strange response from Joshua. Then he straightened himself out, wiping streams of tears away from his cheeks with the back of his hand. He didn't bother to reach for the roses on the table. To be honest, he had almost forgotten they were there. It was only him and his disappointment, and now, a pounding that went off in his head. Though Beau couldn't feel the pain in his leg, or even the ghost pains upon his chest and back, he was sure that when he left, pain would be all he could feel.

Beau lifted one hand up and interlocked it with Joshua's. He shrugged inwardly, and smiled at him.

"I'm Beau."

Joshua furrowed his brows together, a look of frustration playing upon his previously expressionless face. Beau slipped his hand away from Joshua's, glancing at Rowan who was filling a syringe with a clear liquid. Rowan didn't bother to look back though. He had failed Beau, and that was all that mattered.

"It didn't work." Beau murmured. There came a shuffling from the bed, and Beau supposed Joshua was sitting back on the bed as he had before, innocent and oblivious as can be.

"I'm sorry." Rowan said under his breath. Beau nodded in silent acceptance, turning his attention back to Joshua. And there, sitting in front of him, was Joshua, staring deep within his eyes. Joshua's eyebrows were still knitted together in frustration, and yet, he couldn't place what was confusing him.

"Excuse me, but what did you say your name was?"

"Beau."

"What's your full name, please?" Joshua leaned forward with those perfect glasz eyes that broke Beau's heart. To know that he would never be his was soul-crushing.

"My name is Beau Homem-Christo." Beau said. "Why do yo— Ah!" Joshua threw his arms around Beau's shoulders, jumping onto Beau with such force that the chair fell backwards, though the cushion of the chair broke the fall. Joshua squealed loudly, crushing Beau with a hug.

"Beau!" Joshua managed to say through his excited squeals. "It's you! You came back for me!"

Joshua pulled away for a split second, pressing his forehead against Beau's with a grin across his face.

"You came back." He whispered. Beau, dazed from the fall and the sudden movements, couldn't manage to even stutter something out. Instead, he rubbed his finger along Joshua's chin in disbelief. The soft curls from Joshua's hair, which had grown over the months, made Beau giggle.

"J-Joshua." Beau said with a sob escaping his lips. Warm tears trickled down the sides of his face. Joshua wiped them away with a gentle touch, though his own tears were pooling in his eyes. "You r-remember!"

"Who could forget 'Beau Homem-Christo'? What a mouthful." Joshua admitted with a smile, pressing his lips against another trail of tears. Beau couldn't seem to stop them, nor did he care. He crushed Joshua in a warm hug, pressing his lips to the top of Joshua's head.

"You remember everything." Beau murmured. Joshua nodded, and though he was still excited, the memories of his previous life had been brought up as well. His parents, his younger brothers and sisters. He wondered where they went, but only allowed the thought to linger for a few seconds. Then he turned to Beau with a sad smile playing on his lips.

"Yes."

"So you—"

"Shush." Joshua replied, pressing a finger against Beau's lips. "Shush." He repeated with a sad giggle. Beau did as he was told, keeping his lips shut, though he didn't keep his hands from holding tightly onto Joshua. He had said it a million times before, and he would say it again.

"I'll never let you go." Beau said. "I'll never let them take you from me."

Joshua rolled over on his side, running his hand against the side of Beau's face. Joshua wiped his own face free of tears.

Then somebody cleared their throat from the corner of the room. Beau glanced at Rowan, and Joshua did the same.

"Rowan!" Joshua shouted, pushing himself off of the ground and crushing Rowan in a hug as well. "You did it! You saved me."

"Oh Joshua, your arm— Yes, it's nice to see you, but your arm! Come, come, get back in bed, you'll need to get that medication in your system— Jeez, look at your veins! That's what you get for bolting out of the bed like that. The IVs just popped right out, didn't they?" Rowan murmured things both to Joshua and himself. Joshua huffed quietly.

"I feel fine, though." He whined quietly. "I don't feel dizzy at all. I think I can go home now," Joshua glanced at Beau, "with my mate."

"You can't just leave. Only an hour more, then you can leave. But I have to keep you here for just some time longer, Joshua."

"But—"

Beau leaned closer, intertwining his fingers with Joshua's. He gave a quick smile.

"Don't argue with him. Just stay here for a little longer."

Joshua pouted. "But I want to leave with you."

Beau pressed his finger against Joshua's chest where his heart was. He traced in the shape of a heart and smiled.

"I'll be right there." Beau whispered. Joshua managed to keep himself from completely breaking out into sobs by covering his mouth with both of his hands, though the tears spilled over in hot pools that stained his hospital gown.

Rowan laid Joshua upon the bed, working the IVs back into his veins while murmuring things to himself. He had a tendency to do so, especially when working with his 'creations'. He had this thing where talking to himself made more sense. A crazy genius, Beau mused to himself.

While Joshua chattered away upon the bed about how he felt absolutely terrific, and that he should be going home already, Beau laughed. He couldn't help but feel the greatest sense of relief he was sure he would never feel again in his life. Joshua was safe. Beau didn't even care for his own well being anymore. He just knew that Joshua was safe. And that alone was worth the wait.

***

The living room was clean. That was almost the first thing that changed when Joshua came home; that and the fact that music played more often. Beau had cleaned up his act, as much as he could anyways, and the apartment looked acceptable.

Beau swallowed two pills without water, which Joshua detested.

"Let me get you some water."

"Really, Joshua, it's fine."

"Are you sure?" Joshua asked carefully. "I don't want you to get all sick because you didn't have water. I'm going to get you some."

"No!" Beau shouted, grabbing onto Joshua's waist with a quick tug. Joshua squeaked and fell upon Beau's waist with a loud giggle. Beau nuzzled his face against Joshua's auburn hair, grinning from ear to ear. "Don't leave me."

Joshua pressed his lips against Beau's cheek.

"You know I would never leave you, Beau."

"I know...." Beau said. "But whenever you leave me, my pains come back." Beau referred to his wounds, which had progressively gotten better, yet his leg still had a slight limp. Perhaps that wound was deeper than the others. It deteriorated more muscle.

"So I can never leave you?"

"Nope." Beau said. Joshua laughed, pressing his head against Beau's chest with a deep sigh.

"Then I won't."

"Good."

The silence of the apartment was strange, they both had to admit that, but it was peaceful. Outside of the window chirped a blue bird that had been visiting the apartment frequently, though each time Joshua went near it, it flew away with a loud whistle. Joshua always just thought the bird was there to sing its song.

Joshua began to trace his fingers over Beau's chest, forming spirals over the soft fabric of his shirt. Joshua imagined his fingers creating ripples in water, when it was really just cotton. His ear was perfectly placed over the area of Beau's heart, and he listened to the steady beat that came from the cavity of his chest.

"Your heartbeat...." Joshua murmured. "It's so beautiful."

Beau smiled.

"You have one too, Joshua." Beau placed his open palm against Joshua's chest. "It's right there."

Joshua nodded, though he didn't seem as excited as Beau figured he should have been. He had always loved Beau's heartbeat, listening to it, sometimes feeling it pound from his chest, but just mentioning his own heart didn't bring his mood up at all.

"No, I don't." Joshua denied it. Beau grabbed Joshua's chin with a soft touch.

"Yes, you do." Beau said firmly. Joshua shook his head.

"But I can't hear it like I can hear yours." Joshua replied. Beau gave a grin, pressing his lips to Joshua's forehead.

"Just because you can't hear something doesn't mean it's not real."

"But—"

"Can you hear my love for you, Joshua?" Beau asked. Joshua nodded eagerly. "What? No, you—"

"When I press my head against your chest and your heartbeat speeds up.... I think that means you love me." Joshua said quietly. His cheeks flushed from its usual pale color to a deep pink that just made his freckles pop out more, and his blue-gray colored eyes flare more than usual. Beau cooed quietly, only forcing more of a blush upon Joshua's face.

"Well, I know you have a heart, Joshua." Beau smiled. "There's a possibility for everything."

Joshua looked at his mate with eyes that were filled with admiration, respect and love. He couldn't keep himself away from Beau, nor did he really want to. He felt secure when he was around him, and yet, vulnerable. His love could bring him up on the worst days, and make him hopeful for the future. Joshua liked to think that one day he would find his brothers and sisters again, and Beau supported him 100% of the way.

From outside the window, the blue bird chirped loudly. Joshua listened as the song of the blue bird died down, though when he looked, it was still there, perched upon the window. Joshua felt sleep tug on the lids of his eyes and he soon napped upon Beau's chest, yawning with a sweet smirk upon his face. Beau kept his hands locked around Joshua's waist, and from the deepest sleep only did he dare to murmur those three words he wouldn't choose to say while Joshua was awake.

Yet the bird did not escape from the window. Instead, from behind the bird's eyes, came the resounding laughter of a mad man who soon hoped for a better tomorrow, though none could hear him or his cries. The bird's eyes flickered a red light quickly, and the laughter continued through the empty room around him. Soon he would be heard. Just as Beau and Joshua absentmindedly listened to the bird's songs, the citizens of Abionmaton would do the same. It was just a matter of the predator attacking its prey, and survival of the fittest.