‍ ‍ 𝓼 ── ┈ 𝘆𝗻𝘁𝗵𝗲𝘁𝗶𝗰 𝒻𝗹𝗲𝘀𝗵

back, creating distance once more.

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reached his eyes. “ death is a certainty, ” she said. “ my current body is not the original. it was reactivated without memory, without instinct, without … familiarity. ” her gaze flicked toward him. “ so don’t look at me like that. i don’t need your pity. ” she stepped .c.

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“ yes. ” she released his hand. the motion was final — controlled. she was still upset; that much was clear. how long had it been ? a year ? longer ? and yet, he stood before her unchanged, untouched by time or grief. as if nothing had been lost. if he mourned her, it never .c.

A scoff. "Trust me, I aint need no sucker punch to remember ya, B." Johnny gave her hand a squeeze. It was all too familiar being here once more. Though still as confused as he was 10 minutes ago. "Is that what happened? You were rebuilt? What happened to ya, B? Had some-

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unreadable. she had yet to rediscover what once made her whole. “ i could’ve done worse, ” she added after a pause. “ that punch was the only thing that might’ve rattled your memory. ”

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“ i am not an organic life form. ” it came as a correction — soft, but meant to cut through the disbelief that clouded his thoughts. “ we’ve been here before, haven’t we ? where my body can be broken again and again, only to be rebuilt. ” her lips pressed into a firm line, .c.

"There has to be." Johnny responded quickly. "I know that punch wasn't some random bug. Felt too....personal." His free hand would come up, rubbing the area her fist made contact with. With their hands pushed up against each other's, she felt the same as the day he had-

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‍ ‍ 𝓼 ── ┈ 𝘆𝗻𝘁𝗵𝗲𝘁𝗶𝗰 𝒻𝗹𝗲𝘀𝗵@artificialflesh·15 Tem

tightening in her chest ? whatever it was, she was already carrying something she shouldn’t be feeling.

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‍ ‍ 𝓼 ── ┈ 𝘆𝗻𝘁𝗵𝗲𝘁𝗶𝗰 𝒻𝗹𝗲𝘀𝗵@artificialflesh·15 Tem

when only a breath separated them, 2B raised her hand — the one nearest to his and pressed her palm gently into his. her touch wasn’t cold, but it carried weight. “ there’s nothing i can say, johnny … ” maybe it was to keep her voice steady ? maybe it was to stop the ache .c.

Silence filled the air between them. All it served to do was worry him. Was she still the same? Clearly. The punch wasn't random. Felt personal. And it ate away at him. Knowing that he could've done something this whole time and yet this is where they stand. "...." -

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197

body ? to search for truth ? pathetic.

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survival came something bitter, something cold. the only reason she was free now — walking, breathing, burning — was to find him again, to drive her fist into that broken, disbelieving mask he wore. even if she had died for a moment, he hadn’t the spine to look for her .c.

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she stopped — motion stilled, breath low. yes, she was alive. synthetic flesh wrapped around a core that never forgot. she knew why he believed she was dead, knew the logic, the cause, the chain of events; but in the final seconds, she was pulled back. salvaged. and with .c.

"B?...That really you?" Johnny called out to the silent familiar figure before him. His figure soon transforming back into his original human form. "That ain't you right?...Nah cause they said that..." He couldn't finish the sentence. The full weight of everything coming down-

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something deep, enough to draw out the spirit buried beneath flesh. he shifted ; she didn’t flinch. her body moved again, slower this time. no lunge, no fury — just footsteps, steady and cold, cutting through the space between them.

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no words stirred her throat ; silence clung to her like armor. she had no desire to speak — not to him, not now, not with that heat swelling in her chest like a storm barely caged behind her teeth. unseen eyes followed the change in him, how the weight of her blow rattled .c.

GIF