10 Chapter 10- The Maxim job (completion)

He'd kept his eyes closed for the majority of the time they waited for the job to begin. Catching some rest whenever you could was fundamental to being an Edgerunner.

Or a Merc really.

Regardless, being able to fall asleep, or rest your eyes to a level that actually left you feeling rested was important. So it was with a mild note of pleasure that he found out he could do it just as well as he did from the last go around. Turns out it was more of a mental thing than physical.

It was then that he got a call from Lucy, his face breaking into a smile as he kept his eyes closed to answer her.

Lucy: "hey. Maine still giving you a hard time?"

David: " No-no. Might have even come up with a way for us to make more money."

Lucy: "clever boy. I knew there was a reason I liked you. I'll be on the site, outside the Jacked and Coke."

He chuckled softly before just luxuriating in the fact that he got to talk to her like this. It was… wonderful.

Lucy: "So what do you think of the crew? Now that you've met them all, except for Falco? We don't need him very often."

He hummed for a moment. Well, he couldn't tell her everything… he could tell her a little.

David: "Well, I-I can say for a fact that Pilar's a dickhead. Heh. But like I said a few days ago, Rebecca is pretty cool. Crazy that they're related. Dorio is chill, and seems to be alright with me. I think I impressed Maine while hearing about the job."

Lucy: "What about Kiwi?"

Fuck. He hadn't expected to be able to avoid talking about her, but he'd just have to deal with it he supposed.

David: "I don't really know. She doesn't seem to like me all that much, so mostly she feels standoffish. Oh. Hey did you know that Dorio and Pilar and Maine all had a threesome???"

He could almost feel the spit take she likely had on reading that. Heh…seems he did good on redirecting her thought process.

Lucy: "What-what?! Are you kidding me?"

David: "no bullshit gorgeous. Pilar said she broke his pelvis."

Lucy: "Ugh. No accounting for taste it seems."

David: "heh. That's what I thought."

Lucy: "Oh?~ does someone have an interest in our muscled second in command?"

His face heated up greatly at that. Hey now, just because he had eyes didn't mean he was gonna cheat! Never mind that they weren't… technically together. But he still considered himself her Input.

David: "N-nothing like that! I wouldn't do anything like that!"

Lucy: "Easy handsome~ just teasing. You're cute when you're flustered. And besides… I'm not the jealous type. As long as you're not the type to leave…"

David: "Never."

Lucy: "Mm…. Good. Because I'm not letting you go. Now, David…. Why don't you tell me what you like about Dorio's body~"

Oh fuck him his face was getting red.

But he was ready to sing Maine's praises when the man came back, face impassive and jerked at the door with his thumb.

"Alright y'all. Time to fucking do this shit. Dorio. You got the cash, you make the bet. Kiwi. You do the same through the net. Once Butcher goes down, we make our way to Jacked and Coke. From there, Newbie, you know your job. Here's your chance. You don't get another one."

David: "heh, um… raincheck? Job is a go."

Lucy: "oh fiiiine. Hey… be careful David. I want to cuddle with you undamaged. Got it?"

David: "yes ma'am."

He ended the call and got to his feet.

"Then let's get to it. Gotta show you that this was the right decision to make."

He said with a firm and steady gaze.

Maine just nodded, and everyone filed out.

Maine, Kiwi, and Dorio got into a car nearby, and headed off while Pilar and himself got into a much shittier looking car.

"... This thing functions?"

"Hey now Newbie, don't go insulting my ride! She's proven herself more often than you have, so show some respect!"

Pilar said with a grumble, getting into the driver's seat, David taking the passenger.

They drove off towards what he remembered was Pilar and Rebecca's apartment from the last time around.

"Why aren't we heading to the bar yet?"

"Gotta pick up my sister. She's usually good for distraction work when we don't need someone just blown full of holes."

Ah…. Yeah… he remembered last time that Becca had jerked off Maxim to keep him distracted. Seems he had a hair trigger however because he'd gone off way too quick for them to get the data.

"So…. How's Lucy?"

Pilar said with a grin. David narrowed his eyes. That was WAY too innocent a turn of phrase and he was fucking suspicious.

"She's… fine?"

"Yeah? How tight is she? Cuz let me tell ya, hooboy, I got a nose for fine pussy, and that girl is PREEM."

"Oh Jesus Christ!"

Sometimes he really forgot why he liked Pilar when he was like this.

"Oh come on Choomba, we're pals now aren't we? Go on and tell uncle Pilar!" The lanky son of a bitch cackled as David was obviously very uncomfortable.

"Oh my god just shut up and drive."

He groaned in annoyance as they finally, mercifully pulled up in front of the siblings shared apartment.

The fat assed Shortstack came bounding down, murder on her face as she actually DOVE through the passenger side window to start punching Pilar in the face, the rest of her lower body and legs across David's lap.

"You stupid fucking BASTARD! I TOLD you not to mess with my fucking gun! I told you and I told you, if I want you to modify it, ILL FUCKING ASK YOU! Now it doesn't fucking fire!"

Pilar for his part had just been trying to avoid small fists knocking out any of his teeth.

"Knock it off Becca! I was just tuning it up! Not my fault you've modded the damn thing to hell so much that it doesn't even resemble the same damn model!"

"I'm gonna make YOU not resemble yourself in a minute!"

David, not really knowing how to handle a lap full of angry shortstack, looked up to the car roof so as not to get a face full of massive ass on display.

"Could we please save this for later?!"

He said with a tone, completely devoid of amusement.

Rebecca seemed to respond to it well enough and pout as she sat herself down on his lap..

"Fucking fine. I'll Kill him later. Hey there Dimples! Are you ready for your first job?"

She said with a grin, squirming a little on his lap, making him have to maintain an iron grip on his self control.

…. Which obviously failed. Christ he'd never managed to avoid getting hard in his life when a pretty woman was touching him. But In hopes of avoiding an awkward conversation he answered swiftly.

"Yeah. I'm ready to get this done. To prove that I'm worth taking on."

"Well Cutie, even if Maine doesn't let you join…. I could still be your mama~. Or maybe I could be your little girl...Daddy~"

…. Fuckfuckfuck.

Pilar was grimacing but laughed.

"Jeez sis I didn't know you were so hard up for dick you were looking for underage meat. You and Lucy both."

Rebecca blinked and looked at him, suddenly chastised.

"Oh shit. You and Lucy together choom?"

David nodded..

"Yeah we're… we're seeing how things go. But I really like her."

Rebecca sighed, before grumbling and climbing into the back seat as Pilar pulled away from the apartment complex.

"Sorry Choom. Wouldn't have flirted so hard if I'd known. Can't blame a gal for trying."

Trying… what?

"Ooooh Clam jammed! Hah! Jeez sis, haven't seen you this disappointed in years."

She snarled at him, cheeks red with annoyance and embarrassment.

"Well you shouldn't because I'm disappointed everyday I look at your face!"

The two of them bickered heavily as David had to deal with the possibility of himself having been a complete and utter gonk.

…. So pretty much a guarantee.

Becca….shit he couldn't get distracted about this just yet. He needed to handle the job. He could brood about sudden realizations later when his status in the crew had been solidified.

Pulling up to the bar, he'd exited the car before opening the door for Becca who looked at him with just the smallest amount of sadness despite her smile.

"Shit David, you're not making this easy."

She said quietly before rushing off to get into position, while Pilar stayed in the car. As he was going to leave, Pilar reached out and gripped his shoulder tight.

"Hey. I might be a shithead, but I still love my sister. So don't lead her on. Ok?"

"I don't-"

"Yeah. I know. Just… don't make her cry brat. She's done enough crying. Now go on. Got a job to do."

He said letting go of David, and pulling off to the side, getting into an alley.

David just breathed as he shoved all his confused and conflicted thoughts down deep. He could flip out later.

It was showtime.

Maine: "alright kid. Fights done. Bookies are fucking pissed due to the bets, but we've got a damn tasty amount-amount of eddies coming our way. Do the job as smoothly as you did coming up with that, and we'll be done shortly."

David: "got it. Got eyes on the big guy moving to the bar now."

And boy did he. The man looked pissed, slamming back shots of vodka like it was water.

After a few minutes however, the man looked tipsy.

David: "right… making my move now."

And like that, he activated the Sandevistan, moving swiftly through the bar itself, taking the chip in a fluid motion, and slotting it into Dorio's decoder. Once he'd done that, he moved back to his original position.

David: "Done-Done"

Maine: Shit kid, that's a work of beauty right there. Kiwi. You got this?"

Kiwi: "child's play. Cracking now."

For a moment nothing happened. They'd gotten a LOT more of this decoded than last time. But then… the call.

Kiwi: "Not good. His boss is calling."

Maine: "shit. Guy can't catch a break."

They were about halfway done. Shit. They wouldn't be done before he started to go to the car again. He was gonna have to come up with something.

Kiwi: "his boss needs him. Calling him in."

Maine: "on his day off?!"

David: "Corpos don't give a shit. He probably doesn't even need him for anything important. You said this was my show if Tanaka called. Is that still on?"

Maine: "shit…. Do it kid. Show me what you got."

Without hesitating, David used the Sandevistan to slow everything down to a fraction of normal speed, and made his way to Maxim. The man was in the process of getting up… which made this perfect.

He got down on his knees, and swiftly untied the man's laces and then loosely tied the laces to each other.

Moving back to his original spot, he turned the Sandy off, and watched the results.

With a startled grunt, the man had slipped as he'd gotten up due to his shoes being tied together, and went face first, clipping his jaw on the counter, putting him out cold.

David had only managed to blink once, before he realized this was even more perfect than what he'd expected to happen. With another use of the Sandy, and having untied his shoes and lacing them back up properly, this was PERFECT.

Returning to his bench, he dropped the time, meanwhile the bartender grimaced and hauled the big man into a booth.

"Fucking lightweight…"

He sighed before going back behind the bar.

Maine: "what the fuck was that kid?"

David: "tied his shoes-shoes together. He tripped and knocked himself out on the counter."

The sound of Maine's laughter carried through the open line.

Maine: "shit kid, that was quick thinking. What's the word Dorio? Kiwi?"

Dorio: "95… 97….100. all data compiled. Are we good Kiwi?"

Kiwi: "we're good. Slot it back into the poor gonk, and we can Delta."

As soon as she said it, David had already removed the chip, and placed it back using the Sandy.

He couldn't help the wide grin on his face as he made to leave the bar.

He'd done it. They'd gone quiet, and nothing went wrong!

Maine: "kid… no. David. You did good. You did real good. Meet at Turbo's in an hour for the payment when the fixer clears the cash."

David: "you got it."

Heh…. Exiting the building, he smiled at the sight of Lucy leaning against a wall.

She raised an eyebrow as she fiddled with her cigarette case.

"So, it all went well?"

She said as she took a place by his side, and they started to walk off towards Turbo's.

"Quick and clean. You were listening in?"

"Of course. You handled it really well. Didn't panic, and made sure Maine had the final choice in the approach. That'll get you far with the crew. Means we won't think you're gonna go off doing shit trying to be a big hero."

She said complimenting him with her usual dry emotionless tone. But he knew better. Seeing her hand twitch towards him, he took the hint and gripped her hand, bringing it up to kiss the back of it.

Her cheeks flushed and she gave him a small glare before smiling.

"Not in public you Gonk…"

She murmured as they walked, the only thing in the world mattering now.

"So...how much is the job anyway?"

She hummed.

"Well, despite Faraday being a mysterious bastard, he pays well. Probably the only reason Maine takes jobs from him. He usually does things in two stages. One, the base pay. What we get if the job gets done. It's not the best, but It's the bonus pay that's what's so enticing. You do the job the exact way he wants? He offers 10 times the base pay. We've only ever gotten it a couple times, but those are always good, good days."

David hummed at that.

That meant that the first time around, they'd lost out on a fat paycheck. They hadn't seemed to be upset though. Which tracked with their record of getting the bonuses. But this time… this time they'd be sure to get quite a hefty chunk of change.

…. He needed to figure out what to do with all his money if he wasn't going to be blowing it all on chrome upgrades.

"So David… Do you think you want to keep doing this? Being an Edgerunner isn't always as quick and clean as this."

She said quietly, her thumb caressing his hand.

"I know Lucy. Didn't think it was. But… I think this is what I want to do. Feels right."

She looked away, and he could feel her closing off again.

"... You don't make a name as a Cyberpunk by how you live. You're remembered by how you die David."

"... And what if I don't care about being remembered? I'm not looking for glory, or fame. I don't need any of that."

He said stopping, making her turn to him, looking down, her eyes which were usually so carefully hidden of emotion shining with fear, and tentative fragile hope.

"....David…. I don't want to see you die. Promise me I won't have to see you die."

He flashed back to the roof, the day he'd said that. Just after their first kiss.

He'd lied back then and he never knew it at the time.

But this time. This time he would keep his promise.

"You won't."

She swallowed hard, and leaned her head against his own.

"... I'll hold you to that. Now come on… we'll get you some vodka."

"Vodka?"

That was weird. They usually tried to get him to drink a Broseph, despite the fact that he hated-.

His inner thoughts were cut off when she spoke.

"Well yeah. You don't like carbonated stuff."

She said it like it was common knowledge.

He blinked.

How... How the hell did she know that?

He'd not said that to anyone. Hell, he had taken the purple NiCola from her and drank it without an issue.

…. Fuck his head hurt. Too many things to think about.

Just .. take things slow. Enjoy life. That was what he needed to do.

They kept walking, and eventually, they came across a bustling and jovial party.

Pilar was doing his tricks, Becca was off grabbing a drink, Kiwi was sipping hers, Dorio was watching Pilar and heckling him, and Maine was sitting on the hood of his car, waving him over.

He looked over at Lucy and she just gave him a firm pat on the cheek.

"You go on handsome. I'll get us drinks while you chat with the bossman."

He just smiled before watching her walk away.

….mmmm.. damn those hips.

He eventually shook off his lust and made his way over to Maine.

"Well…. You did good kid. Did good enough I ain't even gonna bust your balls a little. You made sure this job went fucking smooth as butter. Here's your cut."

And just like that, he got transferred 20,000 eddies, and he grinned.

"Goddamn. That's good shit. I heard that we should be getting a bonus too?"

Maine nodded, looking a bit eager himself.

"Damn straight. We did one of Faraday's bonus tasks. Absolutely no one saw us, or heard us. You'll be getting a nice chunk of eddies. You should pay off rent for a few months, then invest some into cyberware. Flesh and bone just can't keep up."

Oh Maine… he'd taken those words as gospel last time around.

"I hear ya. Just… want to take things slow. Find out my limits before I break em ya know? Master my basics before I start going into the advanced shit."

Maine looked at him with steady eyes, before chuckling.

"Shit kid, Drill Sergeant Hayes would have loved you. Man was always bitching about morons who substituted learning their fucking jobs with cyberware."

David blinked.

"Who?"

Maine laughed and used his immunoblocker the moment he started to get shaky. Fuck. The fact that he was shaky already was something he hadn't really registered last time around.

He had to move quickly.

"Drill Sergeant Hayes. Man who ran basic back when I was Private Maine Nelson in the NUSA Army. "

"You used to be a soldier?"

"Damn straight kid. Joined up to try and get out of the gutter. This was about 20 years ago when they still had bits of the GI bill on the table. I got my degree from the University of Houston. Not that a fucking Bachelors Marketing Degree is worth anything if you aren't already deep into the corpo ladder."

Maine had a business degree????

The big man sighed.

"Look, Kid, you want to hold off on cyberware? I ain't gonna make you get nothing. Just make sure you don't end up having to rely on any of us because of it. You can't keep up, you and I are gonna have to have hard conversations. Ya feel me?"

David nodded. That was fair. And really emphasized why Maine had fallen down this road so far.

He wanted to keep everyone alive.

Maine grinned then and patted him on the back.

"You did real good though. Cool. Calm. You took control real quick and you did it without getting cocky. That bodes well for running on the edge."

"So that means I've got a place on the team proper?"

"Heh. Hell yes you do. Just hope when I get Flatlined your mom isn't waiting with that damn sandal of hers. I got no idea how she got that thing to hurt so much!"

David busted out laughing.

"That's a secret of all latina moms boss. La Chancla is to be feared and respected. But… I think she'd understand. It's not your fault I got into this life. I made that choice. No one else."

Maine's joviality seemed to dampen then.

"... All a man can do is be true to himself. Own up to the consequences of his actions."

And with those somber words, a further buzzkill arrived, though unlike last time, the party still went on. Probably because the job had been done flawlessly.

"Alright kid, you stick over here. I'll introduce you another time when you're a bit more established."

"Who's that?"

"Faraday, the fixer. Should be getting the bonus here quick."

And just like that, Maine headed off to speak to that CUNT Faraday… oh he would die and die painfully. That was inevitable.

But for now, he would have to tolerate the four eyed bastard.

It was then he saw Becca coming his way, offering him a glass of multi-colored liquid.

,"Hey choom! I saw your performance. You did gooooood. Shit, I didn't even have to use any of the patented Mox distraction techniques."

She said with a grin as he took the glass and frowned.

"What's this?"

"Long Island Iced Tea Choom. Sip at that, it'll knock you on your ass if you let it."

He looked over at Lucy who was fending off Pilar with a look of annoyance, before gazing at him.

Lucy: "you might want to just drink with Becca for a bit. I'll be over when I've dealt with Pilar."

David: "ok. Stay the night again?"

For a moment Lucy didn't respond.

Lucy: "Just holding again?"

David: "yeah."

Lucy:"then alright. You can stay over. I slept really well that night."

Rebecca glanced at his eyes before laughing softly.

"Wow...I ain't ever seen her look at someone like she does you before. It's kind of adorable."

Her own face looked… a little sad but still happy.

"You'll be good together. I can feel it."

Whatever he had been about to say was cut off when Maine blew up in rage.

"What the fuck are you talking about?! We did the job quiet! No muss, no fuss, not a fucking sign that we were there!"

"I paid you for discretion, and actionable data. He has changed drivers and driving patterns between facilities for the projects."

"Hey, that ain't on us. You asked for specific data, we got it for you. You're gonna welch on us?"

"Watch yourself, Maine. Let this be understood, you do as I say, without backchat and without question. You'll get your bonus when I get usable data."

And with that, the fixer left, leaving Maine gnashing his teeth in fury.

Rebecca growled..

"Fucking four eyed freak. He just doesn't want to pay us."

David glared at the retreating bastard.

"Fucking corpo wannabe if I ever heard of one. Acting like he's better than us."

Rebecca snorted.

"Yeah… look. You go home with Lucy. Dorio will calm down Maine, and tomorrow, you and I are going to see if we can put something with more oomph in your hands."

He nodded, before getting to his feet after having sat on the car hood.

Looking at Rebecca he couldn't help but give her a wide genuine smile.

"Thanks Becca. You're the best."

Her cheeks flushed a little and she looked away.

"Yeah yeah. Now go on. She's waiting for you."

Becca…. Fuck. Think about this later. Much later.

Grouping back up with Lucy, clasping their hands together, he looked up at the night sky, the moon on display as they walked to her home.

There was so much to do. Save Maine, keep Kiwi from betraying them, keep Pilar from being Flatlined, and absolutely kill Faraday and Adam Smasher.

He'd never be able to feel safe with either of those two still alive.

But he was gonna have fun with it dammit.

That's what second chances were for afterall.

Living.