Issue 1 Downtime

Regan was sitting in a quiet corner of the library, sketching something. Besides the wounds that Victoria had fixed up, Regan also had some new clothes.

A completely different colored hoodie, clean jeans, and a t-shirt advertising "Victory Gin".

Victoria was still working on Regan's fashion sense. It had been hard enough to get Regan to give up the Air Supply hoodie. The girl had a twisted love for terrible musical groups from the '80's and '90's.

Cal, meanwhile, was taking over one of the back tables, consulting various books as he worked on... a much smaller project this time. Various coding books were set out around him as he worked on it, apparently multitasking like hell.

After awhile, Regan went over to Cal, tearing a sheet of paper out of her sketchbook.

"I made this for you," Regan says, leaving it on the table. It's a picture of Calvin with a 60's style haircut wearing a red tracksuit.

It wasn't clear if Regan was trying to insult him with this or not.

Cal looked at the picture for a moment, then went back to what he'd been doing. "I cost a lot more than six million dollars."

"Sounds like a ripoff to me," Regan says, "A wheelchair would've probably been more cost-effective."

"Could've used all the money left over to spring for a casket for you."

"Nah, I figure you'd need it more than me," Regan says, "I mean, you are dating Haley and all those STI tests probably add up after awhile."

"Awww, Casper the Rejected Ghost is being bitter again. It's so cute," Cal said with a smirk.

"Yeah, I'd have to ask someone out to be rejected. Or at least, want to ask someone out," Regan says, rolling her eyes.

Cal just laughed. And laughed. And laughed.

This confused the hell out of Regan, "What's your damage, Johnny 5?"

"Y'know, most people don't notice stuff. Hell, I don't notice it half the time. But when I get to replay things, and replay them, and replay them, and reanalyze them... well, you notice little things."

"Like your dick."

"You know, I don't know of any other lesbians who are that fixated on my dick. That much compensation? Honestly it's kind of creepy."

That stops Regan cold. She definitely wasn't expecting that.

"I...wh..." Regan reddens a bit, "Well, so what? Yeah, I like girls. Doesn't mean a goddamn thing except that I wouldn't fuck you even if you weren't a crippled version of Inspector Gadget."

"Nope. Sure sucks that Theresa had an appetite for the same seafood as you, though, doesn't it," Cal mused. "Too bad. Just when you decided to take a shower for her, too."

"Fuck you," Regan says, "You're delusional."

"Riiight," Cal said. "Which explains the shift from 'I'm going to defend Kay at all costs and she's the only one who ever matters' to 'I'm going to be horrible to Kay once she's dating someone.' Hey, it'd make sense, though! I mean, someone who doesn't mind ocean smell wouldn't mind dating a corpse, I guess. I can see what you were trying to do."

"You don't know a goddamn thing about what I was trying to do," Regan says.

"Riiiiight, you were just making everyone miserable and wanted to lull her into a false sense of security. Riiiight."

"Listen you cyborg asshole," Regan hisses at Cal, "In the last few days, I've vividly remembered that I was in fucking Hell for a year complete with a shiny new set of memories of being chased and tortured by guys that would make you piss oil or transmission fluid or whatever. And last night, I found out that I'm being hunted by these things again for god knows why. So maybe, just maybe, I have a pretty fucking good reason to keep Kay and anyone else out of my life, you get me?"

"Yeah, see, if that hadn't been an ongoing thing? I might buy the explanation."

For the second time that day, Regan was caught flat-footed.

"...Fuck."

"Don't worry. I won't tell anyone. Well, aside from anyone who checks the network. Making websites in your sleep is really relaxing when you're a cyborg, y'know? Oh, and those are some cute pictures on your facebook page. Y'know, of you and all the girls that de-friended you."

Regan stares at the ground, "Like I give a fuck."

"What's gonna happen? I'll lose my friends? People won't like me?"

"Do whatever the fuck you want," Regan says.

"Lose friends? Yeah, that won't happen. Everyone already thinks you're a worthless parasite that only thinks about herself and gets off on making everyone miserable who's never done anything to them. Which, y'know, is accurate."

"Everyone deserves it," Regan says.

"And when Kay was single, you sure didn't think so. 'Oh, Kay, don't go in the water! You could get hurt!'" Cal said in a mockingly bad impression of Regan from the other day.

For a second, Regan looked like she wanted to punch him. Instead she turned away, pulling up her hood and floating away.

She didn't want Cal to see her crying.

"Love the picture, though!" Cal called after her.