A Blast from A Past

"Adam, wait," Y-0 strode faster to chase Adam who quickly disappeared among the crowd of police officers outside of the crime scene. Adam was clearly upset. The scene reminded him of the gory scene from his past, but Y-0 thought Adam was already managed to control it, even with the use of BE. Y-0 tried to force jack his helmet camera onto Adam's helmet's interface. He only managed to get through less than a second before Adam turned it off from his side.

'Was he crying?'

"Please don't do that, Yo," Adam said through the helmet's earpiece. The rain started again. This time it was just a drizzle.

"Are you okay? We haven't finished scanning the crime scene." Y-0 said, still trying to pinpoint him through the crowd of the same armor suited people.

"I just…" he hesitated, "just meet me at the car."

"What happened?" Hagar chimed in from another channel.

Y-0 hesitated, but answered anyway, "he's fine. He just needs to take something from the car."

"OK. Tell him don't just go without saying anything," Hagar muttered, "but I guess that's him alright," Y-0 could hear a small cynical chuckle from Hagar before she disconnected their channel.

Y-0 found him standing just in front of the door of the car. His right arm supported his weight on the roof of the car, and his right arm put on his right chest. 'Is he in pain?' He was heaving. Y-0 approached him slowly. Adam wanted to clutch on his thumping right chest, but he couldn't. His suit could only be undone in its cabinet in his apartment. He managed to control the flow of his tears, but the tears fell anyway. He couldn't breathe.

Y-0's arm touched his shoulder, "you need another shot?"

'Unbelievable,' Adam thought. He shouted, to mask his crying, "No, Yo. I don't need another shot!" he shrugged Y-0's touch away.

Y-0 quickly access his programming to find the sympathetic tone, which programmed inside him. Found it. "Are you crying?"

A very long pause. Adam still didn't turn around to face his partner. The sympathetic tone felt genuine, while he was aware that Y-0 wasn't human. He didn't know what to feel about that, but he was grateful for the gesture.

"What.." Y-0 struggled, "…what's bothering you?"

"The victim," Adam finally turned his head towards Y-0, "I know him."

"That's good news," Y-0 commented without processing, "that will make the investigation easier…" Y-0 looked at Adam's face, his eyes looked at him widely and his mouth agape. He just realized he gave the wrong humanly response. "…Sorry. I didn't… who is he? Uh… was… oh sorry… ." Processing.

Adam turned away and started walking back and forth, "Oh, Aster. Just stop trying to be human, Y-0. Your kind won't be able to ever."

Y-0 tried to convince himself that Adam was just being mean because he was upset.

"He's… was…" Adam stopped and put his arms across his chest, rubbing on his armor, as if the act would soothe him. He searched on the droplets of the tight rain upon the puddle on the ground, which reflected the brilliance of a neon sign. He tried to read the mirrored neon sign, it said 'hotel'. He continued, "He was Marco."

Y-0 searched his database. He found him.

"He was my foster father. Oh, Aster…" Adam couldn't breathe. He wanted to throw up. He couldn't stop the constant pouring of his tears. This armor suit was such a wrangle.

Y-0 did a quick search on his database. Marco Williams. Adam took his name when he was under Marco's care. Back then, Marco was in the military. After Adam reached his adulthood, they stopped seeing each other. There was a big fall out, which wasn't recorded in his database. Y-0 suddenly realized why Adam should hide this reaction from the other officers, especially Hagar. Since being emotional about the death of someone one knew could get them investigated. Besides, Y-0 suspected that it was Marco who introduced Adam to BE.

Y-0 wanted to give him consolation. But he didn't know how to. Androids don't mourn their dead. Their 'discontinued', so what he could muster was just a simple, "I'm sorry for your loss."

Adam laughed at the absurdity of Y-0's response, but what could he expect from a robot? But at least it put a stop to his pain. "Oh, Yo. I didn't LOSE anything or anyone in this." He moved closer to where Y-0 stand and looked at him in, "I just… you know, I knew him…"

"I understand," Y-0 said.

"Yeah, right."

"All things aside, Adam," Y-0 continued, not trying to push his point, "you must tell this to Hagar."

"I know."

"And report to George."

"I know."

"Do you want me to do it?"

"No… yes… just let me think first, okay?"

Y-0 waited. He searched again inside. Looking at Adam's photo when he was twelve. When his parents die. He wasn't mourning then. But now…

Y-0 finally said, "Y-14 and Hagar will find out, eventually. After they get the samples of Marco's DNA to the lab."

"I know!" Adam yelled.

"Then pull yourself together and tell me why you should hinder that information like this? Are you afraid of showing how emotional you are in front of Hagar?" Y-0 found some courage somehow, without his trying to activate it.

Adam looked at his eyes. His lips stretched thin. Anger was building up.

Y-0 continued, "or are you trying to solve this case before she will? If so, I will help you. You could connect this to the crime at the gallery. But we have to start now before she and Y-14 beat you to it."

Adam wanted to punch Y-0. His armor suit would give him extra power to beat this piece of junk. His thoughts were racing. He didn't want to work again with Hagar on a case, but his perceived closeness with the victim could make the case be taken away from him. He wanted to know where were the missing Ogrario's pieces, and this seemed to be connected with the death of Marco. He needed to act fast. He accessed George���s channel from his suit.

"Yes?" George's raspy voice boomed inside Adam's helmet. Y-0 looked confused in front of him. He could hear the call.

"George. I'm at Hagar's scene. I request permission to work with her."

"How about the DomArt?" asked George.

"The two are connected."