Ghost in the Machine [Matthew+Jia]

[jin]

Jia rested his head against the bus’s sagging seat, watching the fantastic cityscape slowly deteriorate into the familiar tattered apartment buildings he’d called home. It was striking, how much the area changed from one street to another - to think it was only a matter of feet that kept the upper class safe and sound from the hazards of everyday life. Honestly, what did the rich have to be afraid of? Spilling coffee on their new shoes no doubt.

He closed his eyes, listening to the gravel crunch beneath the wheels all while trying to ignore the steady ringing in the back of his head. He was exhausted, both mentally and physically – as soon as he got back home, he would get into bed and sleep. The last thing he remembered, the only thing he remembered clearly, was being wheeled into an operating room by two stone faced surgeons. So...how had he ended up here?

He’d woken up in the middle of a shopping centre, surrounded by well dressed aristocrats flanked with those creepy bots that he’d seen advertisements for. They were the ‘perfect companions’ or something to that effect – blank eyed dolls that smiled and nodded according to their master’s whim. It was disgusting.

He hadn’t panicked, that would have caused a scene and drawn unwanted attention – if any of the fat cats found out that there was a bottom dweller in their midst, he might get arrested...or something. He wasn’t sure. So he ran, as quietly and quickly as he could, until he found a way out of that horrible, superficial, plastic place. His body felt odd - light and airy, but also somewhat numb. Was it a side effect of the sedation? The surgery? What was it?

The bus creaked to a halt and the double doors folded open, allowing a handful of passengers to exit. Jia stood up shakily and dropped a few coins into the till, stepping out onto the streets and pulling his sweater close. He looked around, gold eyes flitting around the broken windows and tattered billboards surrounding the area, not recognising anything. Had he gotten off at the wrong stop?

The bus hissed behind him, the doors closing once again; Jia shrugged and walked into what looked like the town’s square, hoping someone would tell him there was some major renovation project that took place over the past...week? Month? Months?

He shook his head, not willing to go any further - there was no way he’d been out for more than that, absolutely no way. Jia pulled his hood over his head, hoping to find someone who could tell him where to go.

[Matthew Williams]

Matthew's thoughts took over as he walked through the desolate streets of the Eastern Sector. Everything was dreary as usual within this particular area. The houses here were no longer habitable, having long since served their purpose. The occassional homeless or teenager could be found lurking within some of the condemend buildings, though. And it was a rather unsettling and sad sight to behold.

No one should have to go through that.

And that was his real reason for coming here when he did. Matthew knew he could find people who needed a roof over their head for awhile. Besides, the more the merrier, correct? The Canadian definitely thought so; a small wry smile making it's way to his face. The people he usually found here were dead or dying. The fact alone making him wish that he had come to their aid sooner.

The blond had taken to a particular stone along the way. Kicking it a little further from him, catching up, kicking it again, and so the game went on. A mindless action that helped his thought process. Right now, what he wanted was a good night's sleep. But, that beast was always just so elusive and hard to capture.

Matthew kicked the stone once more, stopping briefly in his footsteps and watching it tumble forward and landing against someones shoe.

At first, he hadn't even noticed; simply staring blankly at the the little pebble before looking up and seeing someone in front of him. Well, this person certainly didn't seem dead or dying to him. But, then again, he didn't seem very bad off, either. Confusion was taking over as he slowly began to let his mind crawl out of that deep pool of thought. "Ah, sorry about that."

[/blockquote]

[jin]

Jia studied the street signs overhead, finding them vaguely familiar, but not enough to help him figure out where he was. He quietly wished he’d paid more attention to the scenery when his parents drove him around, though having to observe the slums wasn’t exactly the greatest thing for one’s mood.

A light tap against his shoe brought the teen’s attention downwards, staring for a bit at the sneakers he couldn’t remember owning before following the pebble’s path to a wavy haired blonde standing some ways away. He looked exhausted, moreso than Jia currently felt. Then again, maybe his house had been condemned...that was a good reason to look so haggard, he supposed.

“No worries,” Jia said, waving the apology away. “I was just trying to figure out where I was... I guess I haven’t been around here for a while, so everything looks kind of weird.”

‘Awhile’ was a nice, vague statement. He was still clinging onto the hope that he had merely gotten off at the wrong bus stop. Though there were one two stops in this sector, and he knew the later one would bring him too close to the South – maybe the bus routes had changed in his absence? He hadn’t taken his prior hospital stay into account after all.

“...Like, is it normal for private hospitals to drop off their patients in the middle of nowhere?” he asked aloud, more to himself than anyone else, frustration getting the better of him. “That doesn’t sound right...right?”

[Matthew Williams]

Matthew rubbed the back of his neck, staring at the boy apologetically. That was a very interesting question to ask if he did say so himself. Then again, he was a bit worried at the first statement. To his knowledge, this particular area had been like this for quite a while. "Yeah..." Matthew responded with a tinge of remorse.

The blond was quick to shake his head at the latter two questions, however. That most definitely didn't sound like something that hospital (much less, a private one,) would wish onto their patients. "I-I can't say that it is, I'm sorry." his expression quickly turned to one of concern. Surely this kid hadn't asked the question on a whim? It was too odd of a question to pose to someone, moreso with that detail.

Matthew could only compare it to someone asking a 'hypothetical' question. The difference being that this most certainly didn't sound as such. It sound like a geniuine question. Only accented by the uncertainty that seemed to cloud the latter part of his talk. "Did something happen? A-are you lost?" Finally, the bespecled man allowed himself to ask the question.

[/blockquote]

[jin]

“Well, I’m not exactly lost,” Jia explained, shrugging a bit. “I know that this is the Eastern Sector, and I know that I live here, but I don’t know which way is home, so... Actually, yeah, I guess I am kind of lost.”

He blushed slightly, embarrassed at how little sense that made, even to him. They hadn’t messed with his brain or anything while he was getting treated right? Speaking of which, he really couldn’t remember much after getting carted into the operating room – whatever pain killers they gave him afterward must have been really potent.

“Sorry, I’m like, totally spacing out right now, probably,” he sighed, turning back at the street signs. He squinted his eyes a bit, wondering why they had changed the colour from bright green to...pea soup grey.

[Matthew Williams]

The concern never left his face as the boy continued to talk. It sounded like such an odd story, but it was one that he had heard before. "Do you know your parents phone? Maybe we can call them." he offered the other a small smile, feeling the need to help out at least a little bit.

This particular part of town was not home to people who could afford it. No, this was now a desolate and uninviting homeless central. Something in the back of Matthew's mind told him that this particular boy had to have been in the wrong place. Though, he did mention a hospital and time having gone by. "Are you sure you lived here before? I-it's been like this for awhile."

[/blockquote]

[jin]

“Yeah, I’m sure; my family and I have lived here for like, 4 years already. Mama and baba had to move here from the Northern Sector after their investment in talking bunny slippers fell through,” Jia said, his tone completely serious. His parents used to be more picky about what to put money into, and when, but recently he’d noticed they’d gotten rather desperate.

“And like, we don’t have a phone number, I don’t think; no one over called us, so we didn’t have a landline, and I think mama and baba just used like, walkie talkies or something whenever one of them went out.” He took a moment to reflect on what he had just said, suppressing a sigh.

It worried him when the other mentioned the place had been looking that way for a while, and he struggled to find an explanation for why he didn’t recognise anything. The street names themselves were vaguely familiar, but the landmarks he’d always associated with this sector were either missing, or completely different.

[Matthew Williams]

Well, that wasn't going to help at all. He thought that maybe calling them may have solved this pretty easily. Then again, that was usually how the ball rolled; problems were hardly ever easy to solve. "...bunny slippers?" he droned; looking at the younger male with a bit of interest. But, the tone from the dark haired boy gave away that he was dead serious.

"I-if that's the case, maybe I can help you look for them? Surely there is some record of some sort about where they may have gone." Matthew let himself smile, extending the verbal helping hand.

Though, he found himself looking around the area; gazing at the run down buildings, the cracked streets, the dimly lit signs. It truely was like a ghost town in all senses. Four years? How long had it been since Matthew had seen anything even remotely livable in this area. It had to have been less than that, at least.

[/blockquote]

[jin]

“I’d like that a lot actually,” Jia nodded, managing to convince himself that the idea of his family suddenly moving wasn’t as farfetched as it sounded. The seemed to do that a lot back in Asia...hell, even their move to Eishoff was quite spontaneous in its own right. Perhaps they’d stuck a golden deal during his time in the hospital, or his older brother had sent them enough money to move somewhere else. Yeah...that was probably it.

“Oh yeah – my name’s Jialong by the by, Jialong Wang. But everyone just calls me Jia because it’s easier to say,” he smiled, offering a slight bow. “Thanks for helping me out though; once we find them I’ll totally treat you to lunch at the restaurant where jiejie works. ...Like, if she’s still working there, I guess. ”

[/size]

[Matthew Williams]

Matthew offered Jia a smile. He was a polite sort, something you didn't see very often from people these days. "I'm Matthew Williams. Matthew's just fine, or however you would like to call me." he placed his hand in front of his face and waved it slightly in protest, however. "N-no, there's no need for that. I'm just glad I could help."

This was almost dejavu, it seemed like whenever he ran into strangers it always ended in food. Although, this was not necessairly a bad thing. Matthew loved food and could deal with it. But, he simply did not like other people paying/treating him to these things. Especially if this by is right and lived in the Eastern Sector.

"M-maybe that would be a good place to start, though. Do you remember where it was?

[/blockquote]

[jin]

Jia tilted his head slightly, the smallest of smiles playing on his lips. It was rare for him to meet someone who would refuse food, particularly someone from the area where he lived. It was strangely refreshing~

Not that he thought accepting the offer outright was rude by any means; after all, he was always up for a free meal.

“Nah, it’s no problem – she usually gets a huge discount on meals, if they aren’t already free,” Jia insisted. “She used to take me all the time after school, before I got sick. It’s kind of far, but it beats the hell out of anywhere around h... ”

It was an odd feeling really, what he felt next. It was as if all of his energy had suddenly evaporated, leaving him feeling like he’d spent the entire year wide awake, without a wink of sleep. There wasn’t even a chance for him to keep himself standing – any and all control over his body was gone, which somehow felt both surreal and appropriate. Eventually, even his ability to register was what happening was gone. Without so much as a moan, Jia’s eyes fluttered shut and the boy fell forward, completely ‘unconscious’. As he fell, his dark hair became tousled, revealing the least few digits of the serial number along his hairline.

[/size]

[Matthew Williams]

"H-hey!"

Matthew instinctively closed the remaining distance between him and Jia; catching the poor boy before he could fall to the uninviting floor. "Jia?" the blond attempted, holding the other awkwardly in one arm.

First instinct was to call for help, and he might have; save for the fact that he noticed something a bit peculiar. Carefully, with his other hand, Matthew brushed away a few strands of hair. Taking note of the number listed just below. All at once, the Canadian wasn't sure how to feel.

A shakey sigh escaped him. He couldn't leave him here, and it served to further his worry. He had heard of the lawsuits that followed with taking bots. But, he couldn't just leave him here when the bot was acting so...human. Something wasn't right, and Matthew knew this.

Carefully, he placed the other gently on the floor before taking off his jacket. Situating the other upright and draping it over him. The hood was now placed over Jia's head and the rest dangling off of him. It was best if no one saw him, right? Maybe. Better safe than sorry.

Almost with just as much care as he had taken in the previous action, Matthew hoisted the boy up and onto his back. Keeping himself steady before moving back toward his home. All he could think of was asking questions later. There was no time for anything else but to act.

---

It had taken awhile, some questionable gazes from onlookers, and the occassional offer of "help" before Matthew finally reached his home. He struggled with the keys at first, but managed to slip them in and open the door. Quickly closing it behind him once he wormed his way inside.

Without another thought, he walked towards the bed and sat the bot down; taking off the jacket and then laying him down fully on top.

"...what do I do?" he rubbed the back of his neck nervously.

What could he do? Try to wake him up? Report it somehow? Do a dance and hope a miracle appeared?

Matthew sighed.

[/blockquote]

[jin]

Jin could only go for so long without having to be plugged in, due in part to his outdated technology in comparison to the fancy new F.A.C.U. Enviro models. Already running low on power prior to his curious shift into the boy he was before, it was only a matter of time before he would collapse. Luckily, he’d done so in front of someone who cared enough not to leave him in the middle of nowhere to be scrapped for parts.

Around Jia’s neck were cordless red headphones, decorated with a stylised white orchid on each speaker. While they did function as such, they were actually an alternate power source crafted carefully by Yong Soo and given to JIn as a present for some made up special occasion. Using technology that was too long winded for either to even bother explaining, it allowed Jin to use sunlight as a battery source without having to go through any physical modifications.

Hidden beneath Matthew’s coat, while safe and sound, the bot was unable to absorb any sunlight that fell through the spotted clouds, leaving him in a sort of standby mode. It wasn’t until he was placed onto the blonde’s bed that he was able to begin recharging. Tiny strands of the sun poked into the room where Jia now rested, a few striking the painted orchids on his headphones. This light, however slight, was enough to rouse Jia from unconsciousness, the faint beeping in his head returning as soon as his eyes blinked open.

...Lucky for Matthew, as the only other ways to power up the clueless boy-turned-bot were plugging him into a wall socket or pressing the intimately located ‘on’ switch along his inner thigh.

That would have been a bit awkward.

“Ow...” Jia moaned, attempting to sit up. He still felt tired, though not as much as he did in the seconds prior to his blackout. After a bit of wiggling, he gave up on that and simply rolled towards the end of the bed, instinctively moving closer to the small rays of sun leaking in through the closed blinds. He rested there for a good while before finally being able to pull himself into a seated position, bouncing a bit on the warm bed.

[/blockquote]

[Matthew Williams]

Thoughts spun through his head as he was attempting to figure out what to do. Was there a serial number he could access with a phone number? Call the owner and let them know that their bot was here? Maybe then they wouldn't be as mad and--- Matthew cut himself off from his thought process, turning his attention to the now semi-awake being on his bed.

He watched with a bit of intrigue, unable to grasp what it was that the other seemed to be doing. Rolling on his bed and then all of a sudden sitting up. Matthew could only continue to examine from where he stood. It was a remarkable recovery, to him at least. The most interaction he had with bots was the occassional encounter on the street. Never a face-to-face talk with one.

"H-hey, are you okay?" he finally asked, "D-do you need some water?"

Is that what you offered bots? He wasn't sure.

[/blockquote]

[jin]

“Um...” he hesitated, knowing that a fainting spell would normally be followed up with a glass of cold water, but also confused as to why he didn’t feel very thirsty. In fact, he hadn’t felt hungry all day either, which was more than a little disturbing for a notorious gourmet with an insatiable appetite (just ask his family). Regardless, he chalked it up to the medicine and accepted the offer with a quiet nod.

Jia shifted slightly and slipped off his shoes, pulling his feet up onto the bed. He didn’t feel like moving at the moment, especially away from the sliver of sun. It was tiny, barely there, but it made him feel warm – warmer than he’d felt in the few hours he’d been ‘awake’.

“Thanks for carrying me all the way to your place by the by,” he said, tilting his head. “I hope I wasn’t like, too heavy for you.”