I refused to let myself be talked into wearing a mask. No matter how cute Amelia looked while pouting, it just wasn't going to happen.

I could not, however, deny that getting a pair of glasses would be a good idea. So, while she typed away on her scroll, looking for a good shop to order in from, I sat there and fidgeted in my chosen outfit.

I had assumed said outfit was pre-approved by Amelia, since she had bought every item that made it up.

I was wrong.

"Really, couldn't you have gone for a splash of color?" the former lab assistant groused, sending me the stink eye.

"What's wrong with these clothes?"

"All black? Really?"

"You bought these for me!"

"I bought them so you could mix and match. Sure, black works shockingly well for you, even with how pale you are, but come on!"

I looked down at my comfy hoodie with the roomy pockets on the front, then at my cargo pants. Both, as Amelia had just pointed out, pure black. The fact that the sneakers she'd bought me were mostly black with blue accents amused me, but I didn't think it was smart to mention it at the moment. The black socks I was rocking seemed to have offended her enough as it was.

"I don't know. I just feel comfortable with the color? Some of those shirts you got me are a little too… loud."

"Stupid boys and their stupid tastes," Amelia grumbled. Then her entire face lit up. "Here, what do you think about these?"

I quirked an eyebrow at the glasses she was showing off, barely holding in a startled laugh. The fact that the lenses were tinted black was the only redeeming trait. This was a 'cat eye' model, and looked so ridiculously distinct that everyone I came across would at least make a note of me. It did not help at all that the frames were black with emerald green spiral accents.

Yeah. Not happening.

"Um, I think it would be better to go for something else. Maybe something like… this?" I tapped at a different pair to magnify them, revealing nice, simple, rectangular glasses. The lenses were still pure black, since that was the whole reason we were shopping for glasses, but the frames were understated and normal-looking.

"Zero taste. Zero!" Amelia muttered, but she did reluctantly click on the order button.

My eyes almost bugged out of my skull.

"Those cost how much?!"

"Hmmm? Oh… eight hundred credits? That's not too bad."

"Not too bad?!" To describe the look on my face as 'offended' would have been a severe understatement. "Maybe I don't need glasses after all."

"Don't be silly, Adrian. If those peepers of yours get noticed, our cover could get blown way too easily. Now, sit down and relax! They'll be here in… oh, look! They have express shipping. Nice! So, like, twenty minutes?"

I very pointedly refused to look at the scroll screen. I had little doubt that the cost of the glasses would only jump up considerably due to the rushed delivery, and I wanted no part in that insanity.

Those kinds of credits could have kept me fed and happy for way too long back in the slums.

Then again, it wasn't like I could ignore the fact that Amelia had spent enough money on food already to beggar a decent chunk of my former megabuilding. Past the first few orders, I hadn't even felt bad about relying on her generosity. It helped that she kept giggling about how her father was going to be paying for our necessities for a long time.

So, instead of letting myself stew in complex feelings and all sorts of guilt, I just decided to put the topic aside for the moment. It was helping neither of us, and I needed to focus on the important things. Like the fact that I'd be going outside soon.

All of a sudden, fretting over credits seemed far more preferable.

I wasn't scared! Probably. Maybe. Sort of?

It was just so comfy in the apartment. There were no overwhelming light sources. No crowds. No people looking at me or for me. And so long as I stayed inside, the chances of the good doctor finding us were so small as to be almost negligible.

No. I wasn't scared.

It was just that the thought of stepping foot outside the apartment filled me with a quiet sense of… dread.

"You know, maybe I just… shouldn't?"

"Shouldn't what?" Amelia asked distractedly, eyes fixed on the glasses listings still. She'd ordered 'my' pair already, but now she was looking at prescriptions and different models. I had to wonder how her own eyes were doing.

The fact that she had a failing organic pair inside her skull instead of a superior cybernetic option was honestly kind of odd.

"Go out," I mumbled. "I mean, it's risky, right? Your father might have watchers on the lookout for us and stuff."

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She paused in her scrolling, sparing a moment to look at me. I immediately stopped tugging on the gloves I was wearing, which I was totally doing to give my fingers something to idle away at, and not out of anxiety. Never mind that my body was content to stay perfectly still nowadays.

"It's going to be okay, I promise," Amelia said softly. I dropped my eyes to my lap, trying to ignore how my cheeks felt hotter all of a sudden. "Besides, you'll have me on call with you the entire time you're out there."

"Ugh, don't remind me." I affected annoyance, even scrunching up my nose in full-on mock disgust. "I was hoping I could get away from you for a second."

She laughed and swatted at me, but that seriousness didn't leave her voice. "For real though. No way I'd tell you to go out there if I thought it would turn into a mess. I know I was teasing you about the mask and glasses and stuff —"

"Oh really?" I shot back, looking up at her. "You DON'T want to see me in those?"

"— but that doesn't mean I'd be careless with your, or our, safety!"

She was staring at me so sincerely, I had to drop my fake outrage and look away. "I know. I get it. Just… never mind. I'll be perfectly fine. When'd you say the glasses were getting here?"

I wanted her pitying eyes off of me. I could feel her gaze. The knot of unease in my stomach didn't start unwinding until she looked away.

"They'll be here soon," she promised.

The words sounded way more ominous than they had any right to be.

Of course, Amelia was right. I didn't like the thought of how much money she'd shelled out for it, but soon enough, a chime passed through the apartment to signal we had a delivery waiting for us outside the door.

That was a luxury you couldn't enjoy while living in the slums. People there often liked to tamper with packages and leave 'fun' little additions in them. Sleeping gas, explosives, and the like. I was really starting to appreciate the convenience.

I even forced myself to retrieve the box personally, feeling a twinge of true fear at popping out of the apartment for the first time in a while. Only then did I realize I had always left the task to Amelia. She was more than happy to 'do regular stuff' that her father had gotten in the way of before, but still.

"Well, let's see them, then!" the former lab assistant crowed, and I could only give in. Quickly opening the box, I barely paused before retrieving the glasses from their case and popping them on.

The world was immediately tinted in a veil of darkened colors, but I was honestly surprised at how little the glasses affected me. My vision was still perfectly clear. I could even see a hint of color through the glass filter, which should have been impossible. A benefit of my eyes, probably.

"Ohh, they actually kind of suit you," Amelia murmured quietly, walking around me once or twice before nodding her head imperiously. "Yep, looks good. They're doing a pretty good job of keeping your eyes concealed, too. Might want to put the hood up anyway, but they'll do."

"I'll see when I'm out there, I guess," I mumbled noncommittally, knowing I would probably drag the hood up the second I went through the doors. The less of me people could see, the better.

"Yeah, well… off you go, then!" Amelia gestured at the door with a smile, making me freeze.

Right now? Like, immediately?

I was panicking on the inside, but after reaching for more than a few excuses, I realized I had no good reason to delay.

I was dressed. I had the glasses. So…

"Yeah, I suppose I should head out," I said woodenly. Then I headed for the door.

Amelia simply watched me. She didn't, as I was secretly hoping she would, call out for me to stop.

Once I reached the door, I forced myself not to hesitate. I just prompted it to slide open and took a bold step outside. Granted, I immediately paused once the door slid shut behind me, but I was out of the apartment. Technically.

Then the stupid incoming call alert started flashing in the bottom left corner of my vision. I hissed out a breath and forced myself to start walking as I hit 'accept.'

"There you are! What took ya so long?" Amelia teased. Her face popped up where the alert had been moments ago, letting me know she was lounging on our couch while calling me.

"You didn't even have to wait a minute for me to answer."

"No, but you didn't pick up immediately, either."

"I'm sorry, but just because you started missing my handsome face so quickly doesn't mean I reciprocate the feeling."

She snorted at me. Rude!

"Yeah, you wish. I mean, sure, you're cute. But handsome? That's pushing it a little."

"You always say such nice things to me."

"And you're an ass. Now, you gonna keep me on the whole simulated face-feed thingy, or are you going to lend me your vision, so to speak?"

I hesitated for a moment, but I did access my call setting. As Amelia said, the 'default' was my eyes simulating my face. While talking to someone else with eye implants, a hologram of my head (or, if I chose, my upper or whole body), would pop up in their vision. Things were similar for a scroll user, though confined to a screen and therefore far less 'realistic' looking.

I could, however, link her directly to my eyes, letting her see what I saw. This was the first time I was making use of the option. It felt strangely invasive to consider, and it wasn't like I'd ever needed it before. Still, I figured having another person on the lookout for anything suspicious would make things easier.

"Woah! Do you really see everything so clearly?" Amelia gasped.

I couldn't hold back a little smile. I did love my eyes ever so much, even though I'd paid for them in drama and torture.

"Yep. I hate to ask, since I know better than most how sensitive a topic eyes can be, but… why do you not have, you know, more functional replacements already?"

She went silent. When I glanced at her feed, I saw she was nibbling on her lower lip.

"You don't have to answer if you don't —"

"It's fine!" she said in a hurry, her cheeks flushing. "It's, well, a combination of things. First, my father was a controlling asshole. He didn't want me getting any 'upgrades' without his say so. He enjoyed lording it over me that he was so much better and more prepared for anything with all his cybernetics."

"Ah. Really, the more I learn about the guy, the more I'm convinced we should introduce him to a bullet as soon as possible. Or my claws."

I was rewarded with a giggle, which did bring a smile to my face. "Yeah. He's something else. Still, I could have begged until he gave in. Honestly, with how much money I've spent on glasses, he might have cracked just to spare himself the expense."

"Then…?"

"My eyes look just like my mother's."

She stated that neutrally. Calmly. A bit suspiciously so, in fact.

"She never got cybernetic eyes either, and — and I like the reminder of her. So, I never pushed before. Maybe I should consider it now, though. Having cybernetic eyes would make a whole lot of things easier. More convenient. We do need every advantage we can get right now."

I suddenly felt my mouth go dry. Here she was, opening up to me, sharing things I'd bet she hadn't told anyone else before, while I was still holding a whole lot of stuff close to my chest.

"You don't have to. I… I get it. My father was — is, I guess — a real piece of shit too. Never even met the guy. I'm pretty sure he's wealthy and influential, because even though he left my mother and me to rot, I still have D class access. So he probably lives in the inner or even core district himself. But that didn't stop him from forcing my mother to end up in the slums, just so she could afford to feed us. She ended up working herself to death anyway."

Amelia went silent for a moment. When she spoke again, her voice was suspiciously quivery. Not that I made mention of it. "Guess neither of us has much luck with parents, huh?"

I chuckled. A quiet, bitter sound.

"Yeah, that's true."

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