forum 1-1 with @Hiro_Shimada (I’ll figure out a better title later, maybe)

Started January 03, 2022 by @Serpentess health_and_safety language

tune

Malcolm snorted.

“You’ll get used to it. He mainly likes to eavesdrop on conversations, otherwise he’s being an invisible guard dog,”he mentioned.

The bot flashed to confirm Malcolm’s words.

hiro walked over and set bax down next to the bot " bax this is malcolms friend"

Malcolm gently moved both bots onto the table, so they could better interact. They were about the same size, about equal to a rat, though the spidery bot was slightly bigger because of its more numerous, and longer, legs.

“Hello,”Bax said.

The spidery bot flashed in greeting.

hiro watched them, smiling softly " Midas." he said softy to the spider

Malcolm looked at Hiro curiously, then at the spider bot. The bot seemed to considered the name for a moment, then flashed approvingly.

“Midas. Well, it is actually fitting. He was, at one point, gold,”Malcolm commented, rubbing one of the Midas’ legs, one that still appeared gold.

Midas leaned into the rub, contented. Malcolm smiled softly.

Bax did a little happy dance.

“Midas is a good name,”Bax commented.

Hiro laughed and nudged bax " come on bud, I'ma start cooking here soon."

Bax climbed onto Hiro’s hand, then perched on his shoulder. It giggled again.

Malcolm rose an eyebrow, a bit surprised by Hiro’s words.

"what dont want me cooking?"

“It’s not that, kid. I wasn’t expecting you to be the one cooking,”Malcolm replied.

" ive always loved to cook," he said and walked up to the kitchen

The kitchen was spacious with plenty of cabinets. It was organized and clean.

Malcolm followed in case Hiro needed some help. He pointed out what cabinets held what, whether it was pots, pans, dishes, or whatever.

hiro payed attention, cooking quickly afterwards. the house was filled with good smells

Malcolm lingered in the living room as Hiro cooked, relaxing and occasionally dozing. He chuckled to himself at the smell.

“Who knew that a fucking kid would be a better cook than me?”he mumbled to himself, snickering.

Memories of the explosion came to him, of the damage it had done. He remembered looking in the mirror to see the grotesque mess of his face. The left side of his jaw had been barely attached to his face, and he could still feel the burn scars on the side of his tongue from the blast.

Hiro shook Malcolm " hey! Please! Are you okay?" He'd seen Malcolm fall asleep but it want until bax started freaking did he worry. (Drama)

Malcolm gasped awake, reflexively grabbing the left side of his face. He then looked at his shaking hand, seeing the frail, wrinkled thing before him.

“I… I’m still alive. Right?”he mumbled, glancing around.

Everything seemed to have a surreal look. Malcolm groaned, leaning back and covering his eyes with his hand.

Midas abruptly appeared, tapping Malcolm’s shoulder with a particular rhythm. Malcolm whimpered a bit.

Hiro had tears in his eyes " what the hell is that supposed to mean dad?! You scared the hell outa me!" He said as tears now frantically ran down his face.

“D… dad? But, I’m…”

Malcolm lifted his hand and shifted to look at Hiro. His right eye had teared up.

“Shit. I… I’m sorry, kid. I…”Malcolm trailed off, not sure how to explain everything.

His fingers unconsciously fiddled with the integrated mask in the left side of his face. He didn’t even seem to notice or feel it.

Hiro hugged Malcolm tightly " I don't give two shits if you care or not! Your my dad to me like it or not." His words trembling.

Malcolm didn’t know how to react, to either the hug or Hiro’s words. Everything still seemed so surreal.

Without even realizing it, he hugged Hiro back. His hands continued to shake, and tears streamed from his one real eye.

" I've got you.. it's okay.." hieo whispered, just holding the man.

Malcolm snorted, trying to reject the comfort, but all it really made him do was cry harder. He remembered that explosion with vivid clarity, as if it was happening to him in that moment.

That fucking explosion took nearly everything from him, and had almost claimed his life too. He had never understood how he had survived. His wounds had been horrifying at best.

“I… haven’t cried in a hundred and twenty fucking years. The last time… I did was right after that damned explosion that made me this fucking wreck,”Malcolm said through his sniffling.

He continued to hold Hiro, oblivious to the two robots watching the pair. Midas seemed to understand exactly what was going on, and simply waited. Bax, however, was confused and concerned about Malcolm.

Hiro nodded " then this is something you needed," he said softly. Hiros arms never left their spot unless Malcolm told him to move, even if his food burned he didn't care, Malcolm needed this and Hiro would be the one to do it.

Malcolm continued to cry, though it made no sense to him why he was crying. He had had plenty of nightmares before, but had never cried to them. Why now?

“I… have been apathetic all this time. Why has that changed?”he asked his thoughts aloud.

"i.. im not sure, but i can guess that now someones here to care." he said softy.

“Who? You… or me?”Malcolm quietly asked. His voice trembled at the mention of himself.

He held tighter to Hiro, clearly terrified. It scared him that he might actually care about something after a hundred twenty years of not giving two shits about anything but himself.

The change was reawakening old memories, and for once, he had remorse. It wasn’t about anyone in particular, but just a general feeling of regret regarding all he had done. Sure, he had made considerable progress on the evolution of nanobots, but for what purpose? He had blown up the world, so no one cared about nanobot research anymore.

Malcolm closed his eyes, willing himself to calm down, though that didn’t really work. He didn’t like the feelings he had. He didn’t like being vulnerable. And yet, look at him. He was nothing more than a crying old man who had lost his way long ago.