Chapter 29
CHAPTER TWENTY-NINE_
WE CAN FIX IT
“What am I going to do?” Lucky asked. When he’d fallen asleep in Winston’s lap a couple hours ago, Winston hadn’t the heart to wake him. Calvin had handed him a book and curled up beside them.
“What do you want to do?” Winston asked. “You were never really in love with this place or the degree program you entered. You can do something else.”
“I can’t.”
Lucky’s voice was brittle, fragile. He was close to breaking. How long had he been like this? How long had Lucky been suffering in silence? Part of Winston wanted to be hurt that Lucky hadn’t confided in him sooner, but that wouldn’t help. It would only make things worse.
“What did your father say?”
Lucky scoffed and hid his face. “Nothing good.”
Winston frowned. “Your father is a piece of shit, Lucky.”
“He called the dean and greased some palms to make sure I’d graduate. I’ll have to work for him, and that will be a nightmare because I couldn’t even make it through the coursework a lot of the time. I’ve been drowning for years, Winnie.” Lucky sniffled. “I hate him.”
“What if you turned him in? Him and the dean? Surely there are laws against what he did.”
Lucky’s whole body tensed up like he was preparing to be attacked. “No.”
Winston rubbed Lucky’s back in slow circles. “What if I called my dad?”
“What good would that do?”
“The only thing money respects is money, and I hate to sound like a little kid, but my dad is richer than your dad.”
Lucky turned his head and looked up at Winston with watery eyes. “Do you think that would work?”
“I think my dad owes me a favor or three for all the shit he’s missed over the years.”
“According to the Department of Education bylaws, paragraph ten, subsection eight, what the dean did is unethical and illegal. It constitutes a bribe,” Calvin said from where he lay curled up on the bed. He’d cleaned up after their escapades and now wore a pair of skimpy pajama shorts.
“So we could get the dean in a lot of trouble.”
“And I won’t graduate. I’ll probably be expelled even though I wasn’t the one to do it.”
“They can’t do that.” Winston frowned but Calvin nodded.
“Unfortunately, it is possible that this coming to light would harm Lucky’s reputation and his stance at the university. He might lose his space.”
“I’m almost out of here anyway, regardless. I’m not really graduating, but I’m gone at the end of the semester. And if I don’t graduate, I’m not coming back here.” Lucky pushed himself up into a sitting position, putting some distance between him and Winston.
“I’ll call my dad,” he said again with more conviction. “Money respects money. But my dad also didn’t get where he is by being dumb. He’ll know how to out-rat a weasel.”
“I don’t want you to go to any trouble for me.”
Winston practically launched himself at Lucky.
Grabbing Lucky’s face in his hands, he looked him in the eyes.
“Lucky, you’re not trouble. You’re my boyfriend.
You’re one of the most important people in my life.
Helping you is not a burden because you are not a burden.
I fucking love you, okay? I love you so much, and I hate that you kept this from me for so long.
But I know now, so I can help now.” Winston wet his lips. “Let me help you.”
“Let us help you.” Calvin put his hand on Lucky’s shoulder and gave it a squeeze.
“What do you say, Lucky?”
Lucky took a deep breath and let it shudder out of him. He looked sad and lost and a little broken, but a glimmer of hope appeared in his eyes.
“Okay. But call your dad, Winnie. See what he says. And put it on speakerphone so Calvin and I can hear.”
Winston dialed his dad’s number and put it on speaker.
He didn’t often call his dad because he was always busy and could never talk long.
He hadn’t been someone Winston had tried to rely on in years, and he wasn’t really expecting him to pick up the phone so quickly, but he answered on the second ring.
“Winston, this is a coincidence. I was about to call you.”
“Dad, I have a problem.”
“What is it, son?” As absent as his dad was, he did care about Winston in his own way. The gift of Calvin had been one way that he showed his affection. He also relished an opportunity to throw his weight around.
“Lucky’s dad found out that Lucky wasn’t going to graduate, so he bribed the dean. Lucky will graduate now, but he’ll be beholden to his father. His dad wants to control him.”
“Ah. And you want me to do something about it?”
“Can you?”
The line was quiet for a minute before he spoke again. “Is Lucky there with you?”
“Yes, sir.” Lucky leaned closer to the phone when he spoke even though he’d have been heard just fine from where he was.
“If I interfere, you probably won’t graduate.”
Lucky scoffed. “I’m failing. I’m failing so badly I can’t catch up. I don’t want to graduate if it means being stuck with him. He’s… he’s not…”
“I understand.”
The line muffled, and Winston heard his dad speaking to someone, probably his driver.
“Look, I’m going to get in touch with some friends of mine, and I’ll get this mess sorted out for you.
You don’t have to worry about a thing. And if you want, Lucky, you can come work for me.
I’ll find you a position that will suit your skills, with or without your degree.
Don’t answer right now. Think on it for a while, okay?
Let me worry about this mess, and I’ll be in touch when it’s fixed. ”
“Thanks, Dad.” Winston exhaled a sigh of relief. “Send me your schedule, and I’ll try to pencil myself in for lunch sometime,” he offered.
If his dad was going to pull strings and help Lucky, then Winston could at least make an effort.
“That sounds nice, son. I should go. I have fires to put out.”
“Wait, you said you were going to call me?”
“Oh! Yes, the president of Rebonix Tech called. There was a small technical issue with some of the units, and they’re doing a recall. You’ll be given a new unit to replace the one they’re coming to collect.”
The bottom dropped out of Winston’s stomach. “Collect? When? What? What issue?” Winston tried not to panic. His father might understand a lot of things, but Winston doubted that he’d understand him falling in love with a robot.
“I gave them your address right before you called.”
“I have to go. Thanks, Dad.” Winston ended the call and looked at Calvin, who stood off to the side with his arms wrapped around his torso.
“I won’t let them take you,” Winston said. “There’s nothing wrong with you.”
“You can’t stop them. Even once the units are purchased, the company keeps the right to repossess at any moment, for any reason, but especially if the health and safety of humans is considered to be compromised by their presence.”
“Why would they think that?” Lucky reached for Calvin and tried to pull him close, but Calvin flinched away.
Scared.
Calvin. Was. Scared.
“You’re not like other robots, are you?” Winston said, getting to his feet. He approached Calvin slowly.
Calvin shook his head. “I’m… more.”
“No,” Winston said, taking Calvin into his arms. “You’re everything.”
“They’re coming for me. They’re going to take me away,” Calvin said, like it was inevitable.
“They’ll have to find us first.” Winston looked at Lucky. “Get dressed. We need to get out of here.”