Chapter Text
[DREAD]
A small, annoying text in the very corner of Gregory’s vision tells him that he is feeling dread.
Wow, thanks. He really couldn’t tell.
Something’s tugging at the back of his mind.
Maybe it’s paranoia, but he wasn’t sure if he could even feel that.
No matter, it’s nothing he can’t handle!
…Okay, that’s a lie. He’s scared.
[FEAR]
He would beg Mike not to leave, but he knows that his pleas would fall on deaf ears.
Still, he has to warn him! It's 10:00 pm, almost time for his dad to make his walk to work.
So Gregory makes his way to Mike’s bedroom, where he finds his dad brushing out his hair. He is already in his work uniform.
If you asked the kid, he’d say that the bright purple is honestly kind of ugly. But he doesn’t have the heart (metaphorically or literally) to tell him.
Gregory has always hated purple.
Honestly, he’s feeling kind of shy. Which is strange for him, as he’s usually more confident. It’s likely an effect of the dread.
He tries to say something, but it only comes out in a tiny squeak. Jesus, what is up with him today?
When his pathetic attempts at a sentence aren’t heard by his father, he tries tugging on the side of his shirt. Finally, he gets the man’s attention.
Micheal turns to see the robot he’s grown quite fond of, standing meekly at his side. His face is illuminated by the warm light of his bathroom’s night light. Yeah, he uses a little night light instead of the overhead one, what about it?
Originally, he’d built the kid in his own selfish desire for a substitute of his younger brother, long lost to his own mistakes.
But now, he sees him as more than just a copy of that boy. He’s more than a fake brother, he’s like a son. Though it took him longer to say that than he’d like to admit.
“Huh? Yeah, what is it Greg?” He says, his voice still muddled by exhaustion from his earlier nap. But the boy seems to be fluent in the man’s mumbling.
Gregory takes a moment to say anything, he seems to hesitate. Weird.
”Um, do you have to go to work today? I mean, I know you have to but mystystemisdetectingdreadandimworriedaboutyou.”
Mike can barely make out “Worried about you” from the quick jumble of words that the kid spits out. If there were any other statements made, he didnt hear them.
He rubs as much sleep from his eyes as possible, feeling them begin to water from the pressure of his hands. He bends down to Gregory's level, placing a hand on his shoulder.
"Listen, kid. I couldn't possibly hate my job more than I do now. But I'm only going to be at this job for five days, and this is the last one. I promise you a brand new sweater if something bad happens. And if I go back on it, you can slap me as hard as you want." To be fair, Mike isn't the most comforting person out there. But if you said that to Gregory, he'd yell at you. To him, a promise means everything.
Gregory pouts, tilting his head downwards. Barely mumbling something before turning his head away.
"Hm? What was that?"
"Why do you only head to your jobs for five days anyways? You're barely making enough to live.. let alone afford the electrical bill that's mostly caused by me."
Gregory tries to maintain eye contact as he speaks, but fails. His concern seeps through the cracks of his barely standing facade of annoyance, Mike can see it in his eyes. He built him, after all.
"Oh no, no I have another job, you know that. And it's definetly enough for both of us to survive off of. My motivations for working as a security guard are.. complicated."
Gregory is fuming. "Then why?! Why do you keep going? It's so obviously exhausting and dangerous. I see the way you look when you come back! There is no rational reason for you to be working there! Give me one reason why you go!" He yells.
Gregory's voice cracks and wavers as he screams.
[ANGER]
"...I'm sorry." Mike stands from his spot on the bathroom floor, his bones creaking and muscles stretching uncomfortably as he begins to walk to the front door of his house.
Gregory darts after him, catching him just before he exits. He flies into a hug, wrapping his arms around the mid-torso of the taller man.
"Please be safe.." He cries into the ugly purple shirt. His fingers dig into the well-used fabric.
Gregory feels a heavy hand fall onto his head and play with the artificial strands.
"I will."
[CONTENT]
And with that, Mike exits the house. Gregory hears the door softly click shut, before locking.
It's not uncomfortably silent in the house. Gregory can hear the soft whirring of subtle fans in his body as he pads to his bedroom to charge for the night.
Before he "goes to bed", he picks up a small blue diary, feeling the strangely textured cover underneath his silicone fingertips.
He picks up a multi-coloured ballpoint pen.
Tuesday, May 19 20, 20XX
Today I spent most of my day at school doing the most boring work ever. I watched Tony and Ellis eat lunch, and we talked about whatever tv show Ellis was watching, then Tony told us about the obserations he'd made lately.
I had fun It was ok. When I got home, I played a bunch of video games in the living room. Dad watched me, then he got me through a puzzle I was struggling with. So I guess I owe him a piece of my Halloween candy. It's not like I can eat it anyways, I just use it to make bets with him.
I got a little mad at Mike. I feel bad about it, but I think everything will be okay.
Thats all that happened today.
Gregory wakes up from his short charging session by the sound of heavy footsteps moving through the house. It's 6:32 AM.
[DREAD]