CyberLife headquarters were much colder than the stores. Mila shivered under her white blouse while walking down the halls to meet with a representative. Her first day starting her internship and she wanted everything to go exactly as planned. Meet the bosses and other interns, make a lasting impression, and try not to throw up. She took a deep breath, clutching a notepad in her arms.

Mila decided to apply for the internship position after receiving positive feedback of how she could make a difference with her skills. The young teen was fine with fixing up android's programming for money, not work in a top rank company. Mila felt bold when she applied, a swell in her chest telling her that she was going to be important someday. Or at least change people's lives.

This was something she wanted to do, not something she had to do. Mila shifted as she stood in the hall, waiting for the representative. In her mind, she had practiced her greeting, her posture and checked her hair many times at the window so her bun wouldn't suddenly fall apart.

"Ah, you must be the new intern." A young man with shiny blonde hair strut towards her. His flashing white outfit, blinded her eyes as it reflected against the sun. "I'm Michael." He gave out his hand for her to shake. "You must be Mila, yes?"

"Yes, sir." Mila shook his hand, "Ms. Mila Milano."

"It's nice to meet you." He led her to a small room, containing only a table and two chairs. The room felt extremely chilly in there. "I'll grab Amanda for you." And with that, he shut the door behind him. Mila walked over and slowly sat down on the metal chair, gathering goosebumps all over her body.

She hadn't heard of Amanda, blaming herself for not researching employees before she arrived. Was she a mini-boss? Or a woman who stayed in the sidelines? Mila didn't want to work a desk job, she wanted to get her hands dirty.

The door opened and Mila immediately fixed her slouched posture. Amanda, dressed in a divine white pantsuit, a long, decorated white shawl drape over her shoulders like she was a queen. Her dark, purple lipstick stood out from her brown skin as her hair was done up. Her dangling earrings highlighted under the fluorescent light, making Mila squint to see.

"You are Mila Milano and I'm told you are to be working under me for your time here." Amanda remained standing as if those cold, metal chairs were beneath her. "You must be a remarkable girl if you're working under me." Mila gulped as she realized Amanda must be the high boss in CyberLife. Her intimidating figure made Mila's heart pound against her chest.

"I wouldn't say 'remarkable'." Mila said, twiddling her thumbs.

"Don't be modest. I need young women to recognize their talents and grow." Amanda's eyes stared at Mila up and down, observing her. "What made you apply for this position?"

"I uh..." Mila took a deep breath, trying to not get into a stuttering match with her boss. "I was always fascinated with programming, be it an android's or any kind of software. And CyberLife is the best company in Detroit for my programming abilities to grow." She recited, head held high.

"I see..." Amanda folded her arms, "You know, the position asked for someone at least eighteen years old. You're..."

"Sixteen, ma'am." Mila finished, "And I know I'm too young but my brain ability is not. I won't disappoint you, despite my age." A twinge of a smile appeared on Amanda's lips as she was pleased. Something told Mila that Amanda rarely smiled.

"Good. I need someone to keep up with me. I have a lot of plans for the future."

"So do I." Mila said with confidence. Amanda hummed, turning to the door to walk out of the room.

"We'll see."

Dark circles covered Mila's eyes as she hasn't been able to sleep. What happened last night still affected her but she needed to snap out of it. Mila wasn't a fan of coffee but knew she needed large amounts of caffeine to stay awake. Amanda assigned her the task of doing tests on Connor so he's ready for the release party in a few weeks. That meant, going through his code and pointing out the bugs.

While Amanda was busy taking care of the revealing, Mila led Connor into one of the conference rooms. She dimmed the windows so no one could see what was happening.

"You can take a seat, Connor." Mila smiled. Connor sat down in the chair in front of her, hands on his lap. His back was straight, eyes trained on her face. He looked so professional. So proper.

"Now, I'm tasked with analyzing your code and changing the bugs so you can do hundred percent. I'm not sure how long it will take but I hope you're patient."

"I understand." Connor waited patiently as Mila scanned through his code with a tablet. His code was detailed, programmed to effectively make sure he corresponds well with humans. Mila held in a sigh as she knew this was going to take her a while.

"How are you feeling about the reveal in a couple of weeks?" Mila asked, her eyes not leaving the tablet.

"I am ready to show the world what I can do. To please Amanda and accomplish my mission." Connor said, his head held high. Mila bit her lip, gripping the tablet. She could shut down Connor. Since she's examining all his programming, Mila could get rid of Connor. She thought about saving him, but maybe he shouldn't be?

"Your mission to get rid of deviants, yeah?" She questioned.

"Of course. That's my sole purpose for why I was created." Mila glanced up at Connor's determined face. Shutting down would be the best option. Her anxiety grabbed her by the throat. Mila's fingers hovered over Connor's shut down programming. She could do it and no one would know. Except for Amanda.

"Ms. Mila?" Connor said.

"Yes, Connor?"

"You appear to be sleep deprived. Your eyes are red and you don't appear to be having effects of being intoxicated." Connor declared.

"Oh, I...was just having some nightmares." Mila blushed, "Just the usual crap..." She shook her head, rubbing her temples to get herself together.

"May I recommend taking a nap during your lunch break? Or perhaps taking the day off after our session?" He suggested which made her grin.

"Man, what you suggested is rare for someone like me." She chuckled, scrolling through the tablet.

"But your performance will decrease if you don't take care of yourself." Connor sat up, hands clasped together as he pushed.

"Um...after our time together, I'll ask if I can leave early." Mila said. She did need to get some rest, at least close her eyes for a bit. Connor nodded, going back to his regular posture. "By the way, you can call me Mila. Not Ms. Mila."

"Okay. Mila." Her name rolled off Connor's tongue.

She rubbed her eyes, deciding to finish taking a look at his basic programming before getting down to the advanced stuff. Mila was shocked that Connor expressed...concern? The emotion was hard to tell due to his straight face, but she couldn't be sure.

After finishing her daily code, Mila had permission to take the rest of the day off. Though her desire to examine Connor was strong, her health came first. With a stop at her apartment, Mila took a power nap, which ended up being five hours.

Connor stood in the garden, flicking a coin back and forth between his hands. His LED flickered from yellow to blue, going over what happened with Mila earlier. The short interaction made him contemplate what working with her would be like. She seemed to be a capable young woman, who wasn't exactly on her A game today.

He stopped flicking the coin as he remembered how sleep deprived she was. Connor could see the poor attempt to hide her drowsiness with makeup, but her slow reaction time and droopy eyes gave it away before he scanned her. The android shook his head, going back to his required objective.

"Hello, Connor." Amanda greeted, hands clasped in content. "So nice of you to join me in the garden." The duo proceeded to take a walk, taking in the warm weather.

"It's not a problem." He gave her a small smile. "I heard you wanted to speak to me."

"Ah yes. How was your coding debug with Mila?"

"Shorter than I thought it would be on the first day." Connor admitted, "But she also appeared to not have enough sleep."

"I am aware. She called out early, which is unlike her." Amanda frowned, "If she does anything out of the ordinary, let me know." Connor nodded, though was confused at why Amanda wanted him to observe Mila. He thought she trusted her.

"You do know what I expect from you when you get announced, correct?"

"Yes, Amanda. Hunting down deviants will be my top priority."

"Good." Amanda kept an emotionless face, "You have assignments on your own before working with the Detroit police department. I want you to work well by yourself before with others."

"I understand. I will do my best." Connor said.

"Good," Amanda said as they continued to stroll.

Carl Manfred's mansion was one of Mila's dream homes. She loved being there when she had the chance or when he called her to "fix" something involving the automated system in his house. Most of the time she knew he needed some people to talk to, besides Markus, his personal android, and his drug addict son. Mila couldn't remember the last time she saw Carl, knowing her tight schedule kept her at bay from doing what she wanted.

A light chirp from the doorbell resonated throughout the house before someone opened the door. It was Markus, the prototype given as a gift to Carl. Mila hasn't dealt with his programming directly but was interested to know what Markus possessed. He was the same model as Connor so maybe they were similar.

"Hey, Markus." She greeted, walking in the home.

"Good afternoon, Mila." He greeted back, closing the door behind her.

"Where's Carl?" Mila asked as she looked around.

"In the living room." He led her to the living

room, Carl in his wheelchair in front of the chess board. He stroked his chin in thought, examining the pieces.

"Playing against Markus again?" Mila motioned towards the game.

"I know he always wins but that doesn't stop me from trying." He moved a knight, glancing at Mila. "I haven't seen you in a couple of weeks. It's a good thing you didn't forget about me." He let out a raspy chuckle.

"No, things have been...busy." She rubbed her forearm and avoided his piercing gaze. "You know it is."

"Sure... Being busy meant you didn't want to see me anymore..." Carl pouted.

"Oh come on! Don't pull the guilt card on me!" Mila put her hands on her hips, having a playful scowl. "CyberLife likes to be a pain in the ass."

"Uh-huh." He laughed making Mila shake her head.

"How's the painting going?" She snickered.

"Well enough that I've managed to do three pieces in a month." He motioned over to Markus to help him over to his painting studio, Mila following. The way his studio was set up made Mila want to take up art classes. He had huge glass windows replacing walls, giving Carl a gorgeous view outside of his property, the city in the distance. Green grass reflected against the sunlight, which left room for a ton of inspiration.

Mila saw a huge tarp covering a painting and eyed Carl. "What is this?"

"A surprise." Carl said. "If you want a painting, I have a nice one upstairs."

"Pfft, who said I wanted a painting?" She folded her arms, "You keep giving me paintings like it's food."

"And your home is nicer because of them." He gave her a smug look which made her roll her eyes. "Markus, do you mind grabbing that painting upstairs? The one with the bird on it."

"Not a problem, Carl." Markus went upstairs, leaving Mila to get a good look at Carl. He was tired, despite his spry responses, she could tell he was getting weaker.

"How's your grandmother? Is she getting better?" Carl asked.

"She's hanging in there." Mila leaned against the table, "How are you?" Carl waved his hand at the question, not wanting to answer it.

"Everyone keeps asking me about my health, I'll be fine."

"You're such a stubborn old man." She shook her head.

"He's beginning to not take his medicine either." Markus added, walking in with a covered painting. "He gets stubborn every day."

"I don't need you two to be my nurses." Carl frowned, "I said I'm fine and I mean it."

"Whatever you say..." She thanked Markus for the painting and grabbed it, wondering what masterpiece Carl painted this time.

"Put it in your grandmother's room. I'm sure she'll love it." Carl smiled.

"How much should I give you?" Mila took out her wallet.

"Mila, you know you don't need to buy them. I have enough money." Mila sighed, giving Carl a thankful hug.

"I'll see you later."

"As busy as you are, I won't see you for a few months." He joked making her scoff. Markus led her out of the home, Mila waiting until he's an earshot away to talk to him.

"Make sure you keep looking after him...You're basically the only family he's got." She put her hand on Markus' shoulder.

"That won't be a problem, Mila." He gave a small smile. "It is my duty to look after him."

"Yeah..." She was disappointed with his response, not saying anything else as she left the mansion. Mila had only known Markus for a while but she had a feeling that he cared for the old man. Loved him even. Though, with androids and their advanced programming, Mila could rarely tell which emotions were scripted or not.

Family dinners were a priority for the Milano's. Jacob could get away with missing a few due to his job but Mila wasn't an exception. Her mother didn't want to hear if CyberLife needed her or wanted her to stay late. Family dinners were mandatory, especially when her grandmother got sick.

So Mila wasn't surprised to find out that Jacob couldn't make it tonight. Instead, she spent time with the twins, playing with them outside and listening about their days. Rose almost got in a fight due to a mean little girl at school. She got a timeout but was still pissed about it when she got home. Emmanuel laughed at her misfortune while Mila scolded the two.

"Not funny!" She flicked Emmanuel's nose, causing him to stick his tongue out at her.

"It is funny. Rose always gets in trouble." He snickered while his sister glared at him.

"No, it's not. It's not my fault that girl had ugly shoes." Rose pouted, folding her arms in a huff.

"You're not supposed to say that out loud." Mila poked Rose's forehead. "It's okay to speak your mind but not if it comes off as rude to other people."

"Fine..." Rose sighed, walking inside to get ready for dinner. Mila shook her head, running a hand through her hair. The kids were stressful now, but she knew they were going to be worse as teenagers.

After dinner, Mila had time to hang up the small painting in her grandmother's room. Abuela stared in awe at how beautiful the painting was. Blue splattered in contrast with the yellow canary, the bird relaxing peacefully on a branch in the sun. Mila could never stop being wowed by Carl's paintings.

"You know, I wonder if Carl could give me a few painting lessons." Abuela chuckled, making Mila groan in disgust.

"Your crush for Carl is too strong, Abuela." Mila sat down and held her hand. Her thumb went along her wrinkles, noticing how soft her skin was.

"You look exhausted." Her grandmother pointed out her dark circles, "Was it nightmares? Or did something happen?"

"Ah...it was nothing." Mila waved it off. She told her Abuela almost everything but there were some things that even she didn't need to know. "Just a work overload, I'll be fine tomorrow." Abuela eyed her in suspicion, knowing that Mila couldn't get any sleep to begin with. It was a miracle when Mila achieved her eight hours of sleep.

"You know you can always tell me, muñeca. Always." Abuela kissed Mila's hand, making her kiss her forehead in response.

"I know..."

The junkyard was terrifying at night. If there wasn't any rats or creepy crawlies, there were trashed androids. Some still worked, roaming around the area while others were on standby. Mila didn't like coming there by herself.

"How come you never get supplies from the CyberLife's warehouses?" Suni asked as the two stood by the entrance.

"I work there so that would be suspicious already." Mila said while turning on her flashlight, "And security is tight to the point where I shouldn't even try." She walked in, clutching her empty backpack to ease her anxiety.

"And the junkyard is the best place?" Suni frowned in disgust as the two walked over dirt and debris, on the lookout for any security.

"Unfortunately. But don't worry, I always find good materials here." Mila grinned. The two dug through the junk to find hidden treasures. The pump regulators and arm and leg components were easy to find. Other hardware like audio and eye components were another story. Mila mainly needed to find the latter, since she was running out of those at her place.

The junkyard was filled with the sounds of crickets and android movement. The expedition felt like a scene out of a thriller or horror movie.

"So, did you find a name for the cute puppy yet?" Mila asked after striking gold with two eye components.

"Yes!" Suni bounced with joy, "I named him Puppy since he is an adorable puppy."

"Aww..." Mila smiled, "Not the name I expected, but cute."

"Thank you. He does keep me satisfied while you're away." Suni then paused, her eyes lowered. "But I do wish I could stay at your place, Mila. It is lonely, even when Puppy is with me..."

It was Mila's turn to pause as she stared at Suni. She never explained why she couldn't have Suni at her apartment. And Mila wasn't sure if her friend would understand.

"Suni..." Mila opened her mouth to say but jumped when a broken android lunged at her companion.

"Help me! Please help me!" It shouted at Suni. Mila quickly ran over to the two, getting the shocked android off of her. It was a Traci model, eye darting around in fear. Her leg was missing along with her right eye and she was in a black pair of lingerie. She was scared as if she didn't know where she was.

"I can help you." Mila said, "What's wrong?"

"I...I can't remember anything. How I got here...or what happened..." Suni and Mila glanced at each other, before helping the Traci model up.

"Don't worry. I'll take you to my special place and I'll fix you up." Mila and Suni helped the android to the car. The Traci model was traumatized. Whatever happened, someone did a number on her.

A/N: Muñeca means doll.

I'm feeling so much better about this chapter! And I'm getting ideas to possibly do a story with Markus. Or some Kara, Alice, and Luther drabbles because they're adorable. 3

Anyway, I hope you guys liked this one!