The year is 2038, and androids have been given rights after a long battle. The leader of this battle, Markus, and his boyfriend are laying on top of Jericho and staring at the stars. Simon had his head rested on his boyfriend's chest, snuggling close. Markus sighed, even though he doesn't need to breathe. "So much has changed…" He said softly. "Last time we were here… the world seemed so different."

Simon was silent for a moment, his LED turning yellow. "...What do you mean?" He asked, confused. "We haven't… Come up here before?"

Markus looked down at his boyfriend, looking concerned. "Yes we have…? Not long after I came to Jericho. Remember?"

Simon shifted so he could see Markus's face, looking for any sign that he was joking. "...Are you sure?"

"Of course I'm sure. It was where we had our first kiss. Do you… really not remember?" Markus asked, sounding hurt even though he knew that Simon didn't mean to forget; if he forgot, it was a problem with his programming.

Simon looked down, his brow furrowing. His LED started flickering rapidly between yellow and red as he searched every bit of his memory database. "I...I don't...I c-can't...when did…" he frantically tried to remember when their first kiss was, but the memory had somehow escaped him.

Simon's eyes started to well with tears, something he didn't even think was possible, as he was not aware he even had tear ducts. Markus was also startled at the fact that somehow there was clear thirium running down Simon's face.

"Simon, Simon, it's okay," Markus panicked and shakily brought his hands up to Simon's face, wiping the tears off his face and analyzing it. "Thirium…?" He barely whispered.

Simon sniffled and forced out a weak chuckle. "Is that- is that really what you're worried about right now?" He bit his lip, trying to hold back his tears.

Markus shook his head slightly. "Sorry…" He whispered. "Look, Simon, it's-... It's okay. It's alright that you don't remember." Markus couldn't deny that he was upset about it, but he didn't want to worry Simon more. "I mean- it's not like it's that big of a deal." It really is, though. "What's important is that you don't lose more memories. Have you run a self-diagnostic recently?"

Simon shook his head, trying to collect himself. He trusted Markus and was comfortable around him, but that didn't mean that he wanted to cry in front of him more than he already had. The two had been through so much together, and Simon didn't want a stupid memory malfunction to be the thing to make him fall apart. Simon closed his eyes and ran a self-diagnostic. He was an older model, so it took longer than some other androids might, but it was still done in under a minute. He slowly opened his eyes and looked at Markus. "My-... My memory processor is damaged. It's been slowly losing data for a while…" He felt himself getting choked up again, and he took a deep breath to calm himself.

Markus sighed and closed his eyes, but wrapped his arms around Simon, trying to comfort him. "It's okay, Simon. It's alright. Relax…" He said as he started gently playing with the other android's blonde hair. "We'll go to CyberLife, they'll be able to fix it. It's okay…" He was trying to comfort himself just as much as he was trying to comfort Simon.

Simon stiffened when he heard Markus's idea of going to CyberLife, and he shook his head quickly. "I- I can't-... They're the reason we've gone through all of this, Markus. They're the reason we worked as slaves for all these years." He paused for a while. "There… There has to be another way. I don't want to go back there. I can't."

Markus looked at Simon incredulously. "Simon, that… That wasn't just a suggestion, I'm saying you need to go to CyberLife. You've already lost memories, I don't want you to lose more." He said, panic seeping into his voice.

Simon hesitated for a while, his LED blinking red. "We can find another way." He whispered finally.

"Simon-" Markus let out an exasperated sigh. "Please. You can't just let this happen… I-... I can't…" He shook his head slightly. "I can't have you forget me. I… don't know what I'd do. Promise me you won't forget me."

Simon hesitated, then nodded. "Of course. I promise."

"That settles it then. We are going to CyberLife, and there is nothing you can say that will change my mind." Markus said firmly. "I am sure the others at Jericho would say the same. C'mon, Simon, trust me. It'll be simple, we'll be in and out before you know it. I won't let anything bad happen to you or anyone else. I'll get us out, we just need a plan."

Simon closed his eyes, his LED flickering between red and yellow. "...Okay. I trust you, Markus."

"I'll gather the team and we can start planning then, let's head back inside so we can tell the others."

The two walked inside, then Markus called Josh and North to the upper floor to meet with him and Simon. The two seemed slightly confused, but nonetheless willing to come. Simon couldn't help but notice the way North looked at Markus, and he felt a pang of jealousy as he looked away. He had other things to worry about, more important than him worrying about North. "Simon has been losing memories." Markus said simply, looking at their friends for their reactions. The two seemed mildly surprised, but didn't say anything. "We need to go to CyberLife to get a new memory processor."

"But we can't trust them. You of all people should know that, Markus." North said harshly.

"Exactly. That's why we aren't just going to walk in there and tell them why we're there. We can request parts for the injured androids here and more thirium since our last stock is running low." Markus said calmly, trying to pacify North's lingering anger. "While we distract them, one of us can sneak away and look for a memory processor compatible for Simon." He looked at Simon with a loving gaze when he said this. "We'll be in and out without a problem."

"Yeah, okay, sure." North said skeptically. "Who's gonna' get the part?"

The androids were silent for a moment. It was obvious that Markus hadn't come up with the specifics of his plan yet. "...I'll get the part." Simon finally said, his voice soft.

Markus's eyes widened and he looked back at Simon. "Simon, no- it's too dangerous. I don't want to risk you getting caught. I'll get it. You stay safe."

"Markus…" Simon blushed slightly. He wasn't quite used to Markus being this sweet to him in front of the others, and it was almost embarrassing. Not that he minded. "I'll be able to know which processor is compatible. I need to be the one to do it. I'll be safe, don't worry." Simon gave Markus a small smile.

Markus wanted to argue with Simon, but he doubted he could convince him to change his mind. He nodded slowly and looked back to the others, forcing himself to look confident to convince everyone else that the plan was foolproof. "Alright, there we go. The rest of us will be the distraction while Simon finds the right processor."

North looked at the two lovebirds, then rolled her eyes and shrugged. "Alright, let's go, then."