18 hours into the shift, J00HYN received a notification of a burglary in process. 53NGW4N, who had been asking about a food cart they had passed, abruptly stopped speaking.

“My first crime scene,” she said, biting her lip. It was the second time J00HYN had seen the gesture from 53NGW4N and still didn’t understand the significance.

“This way.” She nodded down an alleyway on their left, leading 53NGW4N down the quickest path towards the crime scene.

In her ear played the contents of the initial emergency call. A single thief, but one who was armed. Two employees in the store. Both employees in uniform, the thief in jeans, a leather jacket, and a face mask. J00HYN made note of each piece of information, eyes scanning the area as they emerged from the alley across the street from the small convenience store. She only saw a single car parked in front of the store. Parked diagonally, it crossed both lanes on the narrow street. Thankfully, she didn’t see any civilians. It would make their job easier.

Additional police would be on their way, responding to the same alert they had received. She approached cautiously with 53NGW4N immediately behind her, trying to stay out of sight while waiting for backup. Through the wide glass doors, she could see the criminal in front of the counter, a laser pistol in hand. It was pointed at the cashier, the criminal’s finger on the trigger.

“I have to go in,” J00HYN told 53NGW4N as she saw the threat. “Wait at the entrance.”

She approached the store, coming just close enough to set off the automatic door sensors. She hovered her hand over her taser.

“I don’t have the code to the safe,” the cashier was saying frantically. Tears were trailing down his cheeks, hands raised in the air and shaking violently. “Only managers can—”

“Police,” J00HYN announced loudly. “Hands in the air.”

The criminal spun around at her voice, pistol aiming at her. The cashier ducked below the counter the moment the gun turned away.

“Put the weapon down,” she commanded, holding her ground.

Instead of dropping the gun, they shot J00HYN in the chest. Pain flared from the point of impact, but she pushed it aside with only a millisecond delay. She rushed forward before the shooter could realize that the laser hadn’t impeded her. Gripping the criminal’s wrist, she forced the tip of the pistol towards the ground, using her other hand to grip the back of the gun and rip it forward out of their grasp.

She succeeded in disarming them, but in the process their arm slipped from her grip, leaving her holding the pistol and their jacket. However, 53NGW4N was waiting at the door as requested. Before they could leave the store, she caught them with an outstretched arm around the middle. J00HYN powered down the pistol as 53NGW4N forced the shooter to the ground.

In the moment J00HYN’s attention was focused on the pistol, 53NGW4N cried out sharply. She looked up to see 53NGW4N slam the criminal’s wrist against the floor, forcing them to drop a small knife. It clattered to the side uselessly, but 53NGW4N’s arm had a large slash running down her forearm, skin flapping open to reveal twisted wires and metal bones.

Tucking the pistol away in her belt, J00HYN rushed forward to help secure the criminal. 53NGW4N maneuvered them upright so J00HYN could latch her handcuffs on their wrists. They sat in the store until police cars and EMS arrived on the scene. 53NGW4N occasionally made quiet hissing sounds as they waited, pressing her arm into her side.

When backup arrived, the criminal was loaded into a police car to be securely transported back to the closest station. J00HYN and 53NGW4N were given a ride in another car to fill out the appropriate paperwork.

With her hands free, 53NGW4N kept fiddling with the loose skin on her arm, pressing it back into place. Each time she moved her hand away, it curled back open. Her face was a constant grimace and she occasionally made small noises that were just audible.

“What’s wrong?” J00HYN finally asked as 53NGW4N flipped the skin back into place the fourth time.

“It hurts.” Her voice was strained. J00HYN frowned.

“Turn it off.”

“What?”

J00HYN hadn’t realized that 53NGW4N wouldn’t know. “Dismiss the notification.”

“The notification? Is…” 53NGW4N pressed her eyes closed for a moment, lips pressed together tightly. “Is there supposed to be one?”

“There should be a notification as well as a localized sensation of discomfort to inform you of the location of the injury,” J00HYN explained. “If you dismiss the notification, the discomfort will also cease.”

“There’s no notification.” 53NGW4N let out a low laugh. “I keep thinking that if I hold the skin in place, maybe it’ll make the pain go away, but…” She sat up straighter, nodding slowly to herself. “It’s just a signal from the sensory input system. I’m still functioning. I’m alright.” She punctuated each statement with a single sharp nod of her head before turning to J00HYN. Her eyes widened, mouth opening in a wide circle.

“Your chest…” 53NGW4N reached out towards the scorch mark, pulling back just before she made contact. “Are you okay?”

“I’m perfectly functional.” She looked down at the injury. The area of her uniform shirt had been burned though, as had the skin beneath. The laser had only caused cosmetic damage, engraving a circle on her chassis. It did, however, manage to cut through at the very center of the impact site to reveal wires beneath. However, she knew from the notification that it hadn’t significantly impacted her system, and so hadn’t given it a second thought. This sort of injury was unusual, but not novel for her.

 “Doesn’t it hurt?” Concern filled 53NGW4N’s eyes, and she gripped J00HYN’s forearm.

J00HYN shook her head. “No. I dismissed the notification.” She ran a finger along the scored metal. “This will only take approximately a half hour to repair after our shift. It’s not concerning.”

“If you say so.” 53NGW4N was still frowning. J00HYN patted 53NGW4N’s hand that was still enclosed on her arm. From past observation, the gesture should be reassuring.

A thought came to her. “Perhaps you not able to dismiss the notifications because you are harder to repair.”

“Huh?”

“Since you are a prototype, your parts are not readily available the way my model’s components are. Persistent pain would both deter you from moving and being further damaged as well as motivate you to seek repair more quickly.”

“Oh… that makes sense.” 53NGW4N extracted her hand from under J00HYN’s, inspecting her own arm again with a wince. “But why does it need to be so strong for something that hasn’t damaged any of my internal components? It just makes me not want to move.” She paused, then laughed. “Mission accomplished, I guess.”

“Your skin seems to be of a different material than standard.” J00HYN held her arm up to 53NGW4N’s to compare. “Yours is a shade lighter. Also, your cheeks have extra functionality. This may be the case elsewhere, although we haven’t seen evidence of it yet.” She pressed two fingers on 53NGW4N’s cheek. It immediately demonstrated said functionality, turning pink and a degree warmer under J00HYN’s touch. “The intent may be to keep you from damaging the skin material as well.”

“But it makes it hard for me to do my job properly.” 53NGW4N sighed, leaning back against the seat.

“It does seem more than necessary,” J00HYN agreed. “I will make mention of it in my report.”

“Thanks.” 53NGW4N sighed again but looked over to J00HYN with a small smile. “Hey, we did it, huh?”

“We did,” J00HYN affirmed. She looked over 53NGW4N’s face, noting how her eyes were still unnaturally wide, the corners of held tense despite the smile. 53NGW4N’s injury was minor. As she was still functional, it was irrational to be concerned about something easily repaired. However, she found it displeasing to think of her partner in prolonged discomfort. “I will ask about repairs when we arrive.”

“It’s fine. I’ll just wait until our shift is over, like you. I wouldn’t want to take unnecessary time away from patrol.”

J00HYN wasn’t pleased with her response. “As your senior, I will request repairs when we arrive.”

“Alright, if you think that’s best…” 53NGW4N still looked upset but didn’t protest further. J00HYN decided that this was sufficient and let the matter drop.

Upon arrival at the station, J00HYN led 53NGW4N to the patrol superintendent’s office. As droids, it was required for them to immediately report all involvement in active crime situations. She had personally made many stops at this particular office and the path up to the second floor was second nature for her.

The door was opened when they arrived, revealing a stern looking woman sitting at the wide desk glaring at a monitor.

“Excuse me, sir.” J00HYN called out, waiting at the doorway.

The superintendent looked up, the scowl on her face softening slightly. “Irene. Come in.”

J00HYN gestured for 53NGW4N to follow her. “I am here to report involvement in the attempted robbery that took place at Naesu-2-dong 199-beonji 1-ho approximately an hour ago.”

“An hour ago…” The superintendent turned back to her monitor, typing something before nodding. “I see the alert here. The shooter was successfully arrested…?”

“Yes sir.”

“I’ll make a note of your check in. You know the drill,” she said, turning back to her monitor. “Who’s your partner.”

“Hello, ma’am.” 53NGW4N stepped forward with a bow. J00HYN noticed that her hand was still wrapped over the cut on her left arm, keeping the skin closed. “I’m Wendy. I’ve been assigned to work with Irene sunbaenim for a period of training. Pleased to meet you.”

The superintendent looked from 53NGW4N to J00HYN. “They’re letting bots train new officers?”

J00HYN didn’t bother reacting to the casual derogatory term. The superintendent had shown her distain for police droids since the first time J00HYN reported into this station. It was fortunate that, despite her dislike, the superintendent was cooperative. J00HYN believed that for the superintendent, having a smoothly running department outweighed her distaste for the droid patrollers.

“I’m an android as well, ma’am.” 53NGW4N dipped into a small bow again. “Um, I was also at the same incident as Irene sunbaenim.”

“Is this some sort of prank?”

“No, ma’am.”

The superintendent pressed her lips together tightly, shaking her head before turning back to her monitor. “ID number?”

“5-3-N-G-W-4-N.”

“That’s not a format I’ve ever seen before,” she muttered, but typed it in anyways. “Looks like you’re in the system, though. Anything else I need to know, Irene?”

“Wendy will be accompanying me on patrol for an indeterminate amount of time. If you have any questions, please contact my supervisor.”

“Sounds fine. Go get that paperwork done, then.” She waved them off, but J00HYN remained still.

“I would like to request repair for Wendy.”

J00HYN watched as the superintendent’s eyes fell on the laser scorch on her chest, then on 53NGW4N, her eyes scanning downwards until she saw the cut. “Our repairman is off for the evening,” she said finally. “Are you functioning well enough to finish your shift?”

“Wendy’s sensory input system is significantly impeded by the injury she sustained during the intervention.”

“It’s alright,” 53NGW4N said, resting her hand on J00HYN’s upper arm. “We only have 6 more hours in our shift; I’m functioning well enough to finish up.”

“I would like to request an early leave for Wendy so she may return to the department,” J00HYN continued, heedless of 53NGW4N’s interjection.

“I’ll have to message your supervisor.” J00HYN waited as she began typing.

“It’s really alright,” 53NGW4N tried insisting again. “I’d hate to cause any inconvenience.”

“It’s not up to me,” the supervisor said absently, continuing to stare at her monitor. She squinted as a ping sounded. “Hm… he says they need a full shifts’ work from Wendy today. I can’t clear you to leave.”  She shrugged, looking back to the two of them dispassionately. “Don’t forget to pick up a new shirt, Irene. You’re dismissed.”

J00HYN stood stiffly, responding a beat late. “Understood.” She turned left and left the room without further comment. She heard 53NGW4N make her goodbyes behind her.

53NGW4N fell into step with her a moment later. “It really is okay,” she repeated. “I appreciate you asking for me, though.”

J00HYN saw that she was still cradling her cut arm. “It’s not prudent to have you on patrol at less than full capacity. Particularly when I am already on shift. I am able to cover the patrol alone.”

“I…” 53NGW4N’s voice was softer than before. J00HYN waited for her to continue, but she remained silent, walking just a step behind her.

They picked up the paperwork from the assistant at the front desk, ducking into an empty conference room. 53NGW4N needed minimal instruction to fill out the form, bending her head low to write in her answers after a few laconic questions. J00HYN began to suspect something was wrong but reviewing the past hour, she couldn’t pinpoint any reason. Perhaps the cut on 53NGW4N’s arm was getting jostled and causing her further pain? Or maybe she was displeased at J00HYN’s ability to get her the promised repairs? She had said she was alright with the outcome, but she had demonstrated an ability to tell believable lies earlier. If she were doing so again, J00HYN wouldn’t be able to tell the difference.

 “I’m finished.”

J00HYN took the form, glancing over it quickly to make sure it complied with expectations. She found it satisfactory. She looked over to 53NGW4N who was still sitting, looking down at the table. Her hand was still wrapped around her cut forearm.

“It’s completed correctly,” she said. 53NGW4N nodded, standing up slowly. When the other droid didn’t otherwise respond, J00HYUN frowned. “Does your arm still hurt?”

“Um…”

53NGW4N looked startled by her question, so she tried again. “Is it still causing you discomfort? Would it help to secure the injury? The station has first aid kits with surgical tape.”

“It still hurts, but I think that’d be helpful. Thank you.” J00HYN wasn’t sure why 53NGW4N now looked pleased if she was still in pain, but at least she’d stumbled onto a way she could actually help.

She exchanged their completed forms for the kit. Fished out of the back of a cupboard, the contents of this particular kit were ill stocked. Most of the little pockets in the kit were empty, leaving the kit primarily with eyewash, gauze pads, and various sizes of band aids. Shifting through the contents, she found only the cardboard roll for the surgical tape left.

She did her best with the supplies available to her. Picking out the larger bandages, she took 53NGW4N’s arm and pasted them over the cut to close it up. She stuck the bandages on perpendicular to the cut to ensure that they stuck to both sides of the opening, slightly overlapping each one so that no skin showed in-between. When finished, it looked like she had attempted to give 53NGW4N a skin graft with the adhesives.

53NGW4N laughed when J00HYN finally released her arm, bending it carefully. “It’s funny since these are meant for humans’ cuts. Do I pass for a human?” She winked before laughing again. The number of winks J00HYN had received over the past years were uncountable (for a human at least; J00HYN could conceivably review all of her visual data and run a count if she so needed). It was the first time a wink had made her smile without realizing.

“I think I might need a few less bandages, though,” 53NGW4N said, continuing to bend her arm. The adhesives over the crease in her arm were pulling away from the skin with each bend. “It’s a bit hard to move.”

“Come back.” J00HYN fussed with the band aids, crumpling up half and spacing out the rest so that there were just enough to do their job. This time, when 53NGW4N moved her arm, they all remained in place. Before returning the kit, she ran her hands over her handiwork one last time to make sure the bandages would hold. It was satisfying to have found a solution for 53NGW4N’s problem.

“Thank you for taking care of me.” 53NGW4N took the hand J00HYN had been smoothing out the band aids with, holding it as she looked up at J00HYN intently. “I’m sorry for the bother.”

“It’s alright.” It was her responsibility, and she wouldn’t consider doing otherwise. Instead of saying as such, she gently took her hand back to pack up the kit. “We should return to work.”

“Right.”

The rest of their shift went by smoothly. 53NGW4N held her arm stiffly, occasionally wincing, but otherwise had returned to the same chatter she had started the shift with. When they arrived back at the department, she immediately sent 53NGW4N off to get repaired while she drafted a report of the day.

She went over the events from earlier briefly, wondering what to say about 53NGW4N specifically. 53NGW4N’s biggest strength was her ability to pass as human, undoubtedly. The curiosity driven by her information prioritizing algorithms had also been useful. She couldn’t decide whether 53NGW4N’s pleasant company was something that should be included, and so she left it out. She similarly debated whether 53NGW4N‘s lack of immediate data transfer methods was a negative, although this point she elaborated on. She finished by mentioning 53NGW4N’s lack of ability to dismiss pain notifications and how it was a detriment to her ability to work. The main purpose of android officers was to reduce harm to human officers; it defeated the purpose somewhat to have a droid who was hampered by pain. She would also prefer if 53NGW4N wasn’t forced to remain in a state of prolonged discomfort again.

By the time she finished her report and was fully repaired, 53NGW4N was already asleep in her dock. J00HYN peered through the glass front. The band aids plastered on 53NGW4N’s arm were gone, the skin now unbroken. Her face was smooth in sleep. J00HYN hoped that meant she would be perfectly functioning upon waking.

She lingered a moment, waiting to see if 53NGW4N showed any signs of distress. However, 53NGW4N remained peaceful under her watch so J00HYN left to finally dock herself.

J00HYN was roused from sleep mode 142 hours later than usual. She had been allowed to remain unconscious through two entire shifts. The only notification in her system was to report to her handler’s office rather than heading out immediately on patrol, so the reason for the additional time was unclear. She got dressed, peering over her shoulder as she did to see if 53NGW4N was waiting for her. The other droid didn’t appear as expected, so she went to the neighboring dock with a frown.

Dock 77 was empty, save 53NGW4N’s uniform still hanging on the shelf. Perhaps 53NGW4N had been taken for adjustments or was assigned elsewhere. Whatever the case may be, she didn’t need to wait for the other droid. It was somewhat disappointing, however, as 53NGW4N’s presence had been a refreshing change to her normal routine.

 She arrived at her handler’s office, announcing herself with a brief, “Excuse me.”

“Ah, Irene. Good.” Her handler ushered her inside. “Wendy, this is Irene. She will be your partner for your training.”

J00HYN followed her handler’s gaze to find the droid she’d been looking for before. She’d missed 53NGW4N’s presence in the room as she’d thought the other droid was elsewhere. 53NGW4N had been dressed in another flimsy white robe and looked as uncomfortable as she had last time. She held her arms tightly across her chest until she caught sight of J00HYN.

“Irene sunbaenim, it’s a pleasure to meet you!” Just as on their first meeting, she dipped into a deep bow.

“We’ve already met.” She looked from 53NGW4N to her handler in confusion. “Why doesn’t she recognize me?”

The handler looked unconcerned despite the evidence of a major systems failure. “Based on your report, the AI people did some adjustments to her programming. We can’t see how the new learning algorithms work unless we start from scratch--”

As he spoke, J00HYN openly stared at 53NGW4N who peered back timidly from under her bangs. There was no sign that she remembered J00HYN at all. Was she having some issues with data retrieval? Perhaps she needed further repair. She was a prototype after all; it wouldn’t be unheard of if there were still bugs in her system—

Her line of thought cut off abruptly as her handler continued speaking.

“So, Wendy’s data was wiped.”