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Charter Hill, Night City, 2079
Lounged on a sumptuous couch in an even more elegant high-rise apartment, Valerie watched as the last golden rays of the sun faded over the center of Night City.
She spotted minor differences in the skyline from the last time she had really taken in the view: corporate logos she didn't recognize, subtle redesigns of ones she did, a fresh set of graphics in the luminous, translucent advertisement towers. Once, Valerie thought the horizon of the so-called City of Dreams to be garish, brazen in its exorbitance, and a stark reminder of all her failures. But after two years bound to the empty, digital expanse of the Mikoshi infrastructure, she was finding herself with a new appreciation for the sight.
Only six weeks ago, Valerie's consciousness had been extracted from said corporate cyberspace, uploaded to a state-of-the-art shard, and then slotted into a meticulous reconstruction of her own body.
To Arasaka, her psyche's acceptance of the new physical form, an intricate coalescence of cutting-edge cyberware and lab-grown 'ganic flesh, was merely the proof of concept for the next advancement in their Secure Your Soul program. It was a costly, highly experimental investment, but that was just business as usual to the megacorp.
To Valerie, it was a literal rebirth. It was the second (or was it the third?) time she had cheated death, but this time it was with a clean slate and the promising start of a new life.
Mostly.
Her resurrection certainly didn't come without its drawbacks: while Valerie adjusted to her somatic vessel after 751 days existing only as a virtual construct, the company shareholders insisted that she be subjected to rigorous, invasive tests to measure its success.
Week one was the worst: confined in another white room deep in Arasaka Tower, Valerie relived the sterile claustrophobia she had endured through her last days on the orbital station, with the cold medical staff her only human interaction. Eventually, the official examinations transformed from redundant, bureaucratic psychological queries and incessant jabs with needles into athletic evaluations. By week five, Valerie had even been granted a personal trainer to reintroduce former muscle memory with firearms and melee combat.
(The implications of Arasaka reviving a former security operative and prioritizing combat training weren't lost on Valerie. Still, after a month of hearing "rest" and "take it easy," it felt damn good to move again.)
But it was only after investors were satisfied that she wouldn't be a severe case of cyberpsychosis, or an even worse case of bad PR, that she had been given corporate-sanctioned accommodations in Charter Hill. Valerie saw the amenities for what they were: a charitable ruse, although one she had gladly accepted anyway. She was well aware that she would still remain under Arasaka's uncompromising surveillance no matter where she was, but it was an improvement from the bleak medical facilities.
Granted, while the apartment Arasaka gave Valerie was nothing to scoff at, it couldn't compare to the penthouse suite Goro's service had earned him.
Shortly after Valerie had surrendered herself to Mikoshi, Goro had been formally and honorably discharged from his service as Saburo Arasaka's bodyguard and reassigned as a corporate special agent. Despite his contempt for Night City, he had spent the better part of the past two years living in it, working on various tasks of varying degrees of importance and secrecy, including being a consultant and personal advocate for Valerie's reconstruction project. One of the few perks of his arrangement was a generous housing stipend.
The rooms were elegantly furnished with sleek, minimalistic decor, and the tinted floor-to-ceiling windows provided the spectacular view of the city center Valerie was presently admiring. Her favorite part of his suite, however, was the pet permit that came with it: Nibbles, the stray cat who found his way into her old apartment, now had a proper home.
After a few days of putting up unnecessary pretenses, taking needless drives back and forth between their buildings, Valerie eventually just brought her toiletries and a steady rotation of clothes to his place. Goro often teased her about the latter: most evenings, like this one, Valerie just helped herself to one of his dress shirts, luxuriating in his warm, refined scent that lingered on the fine fabric.
Doctors told Valerie she'd likely experience heightened sensitivity for the first six months of her newfound corporeality, but it wasn't just an overreaction to stimuli. She was churning with energy, a keen desire to absorb every physical sensation she was denied while her consciousness was stored in Mikoshi. Burning the roof of her mouth with too-hot broth, the ache in her muscles after getting slammed into a firm mat by her sparring partner, even the sour stench of Night City's garbage-lined streets were sublime confirmations that she existed.
But nothing could compare to the staggering euphoria of experiencing Goro again. His body heat radiating through his silk suits, the light rumble of his throaty voice, his natural musk after a long day serving Arasaka, the sensation of his rugged, chrome-lined fingers on her skin--Valerie often felt as if she was one wanton glance away from going completely feral in his presence. She figured stealing some of his clothes was a reasonable compromise.
The penthouse's timed lighting kicked in, washing all the rooms with a dim amber hue as the windows were enveloped with neon lights shining through the dark smog. With a deep breath, Valerie crossed her arms and sank deeper into the sofa.
Goro's assignments had him working through all hours of the day, often into the night, but an earlier text message from him indicated he should have been home by now. Rather than succumbing to the grim speculations her mind concocted to explain the delay, Valerie beckoned Nibbles for company. The hairless cat leaped up onto the sofa and nudged his head against her leg before settling on her lap. Valerie smiled and spoiled him with scratches between his ears and under his chin, earning soothing purrs in exchange.
Finally, the apartment's VA system chimed pleasantly as the front door opened, and Nibbles jumped off Valerie to meet Goro. She followed, smiling when she saw Nibbles rubbing against Goro's legs in a happy greeting, only to then frown when she saw his state: usually neat bun ruffled, expensive blazer stained and disheveled, a fresh scab on his upper lip.
"Goro," she murmured as she stepped to him, gently cupping his cyberware-lined jaw.
"Valerie, I am fine," he quickly assured her, as if he had been preparing to comfort her before he walked through the door. Goro smirked, a faint and labored gesture. "What is it you say? 'You should see the other guy'?"
Valerie's brow tightened in disapproval.
"Is that only funny when you say it?" he asked, the smirk now reaching his rich brown eyes.
"You don't find it funny when I say it either," Valerie replied, lightly touching the tips of her fingers to the cut on his lip. "What did they have you doing today?"
Goro took her hand in his, pressing a soft kiss to her knuckles. "It is best that we do not talk about it."
She studied him a moment longer, but nodded. They had both done a thorough sweep of their respective apartments and cars, looking for any surveillance equipment, and came up empty-handed. Still, neither were fully convinced they weren't being monitored in some capacity or to what end. If nothing else, it seemed likely that Arasaka had taken liberties to install some sort of undetectable spying software directly on Valerie's shard.
"Do you want something to eat? I can run out to pick up some dinner."
He kissed her hand once more and shook his head. "No. I would just like to clean up."
She nodded again and watched Goro's back disappear down the hallway to their bedroom. Nibbles resumed his affection to Valerie, rubbing his sides against her shins until she picked him up and rested him on her shoulder. The quiet rush of the shower water filled the otherwise silent apartment, and she walked back to the living room, where she resumed her study of the skyline, observing the flickering lights and steady AV traffic flowing around the skyscrapers. The glowing white circles of Arasaka's logo now stood out clearly against the purple sky.
When it had been revealed that Saburo Arasaka had covertly made an engram of himself, Goro had wisely kept his burgeoning mistrust to himself. Still, Valerie had suspected, even through his brave and loyal facade, that betrayal had marked the beginning of Goro's disenchantment with the family and corporation. She could only guess as to the type of jobs that were now his responsibility--Intimidation, extortion, assassination all seemed likely--But she was confident Goro no longer felt he was dirtying his hands for the principles he championed.
And Valerie couldn't help but feel her own guilt, knowing that she was a large part of why he continued his allegiance to the depraved corporation.
Shortly before Anders Hellman escorted her to the orbital station to remove the Relic, Valerie told Goro to get the hell out of Arasaka and leave this life behind. He had fulfilled his duty to the emperor wholly and spectacularly. He had an easy, gracious exit from his oath. Instead, Goro opted to stay, relinquishing his shot at a semblance of a life free from corporate obligations.
It was a sacrifice she knew he made for her.
Tiring of Valerie's shoulder, Nibbles made a demanding meow to be set down, and Valerie let him hop onto the couch just as she heard the shower water turn off. She sauntered to the bedroom, easing around the door to see Goro standing in front of the bathroom mirror. He had only a white towel wrapped around his waist.
Valerie bit her bottom lip as she wordlessly drank in the sight of his damp gray-black hair slick against his cybernetics and broad shoulders. Her hungry eyes rove down his biceps, admiring his taunt forearms and exquisite hands. Even in their early days together, long before the thought of any romantic intimacy had crossed her mind, when Valerie was skeptical of his motives and thought he was a self-righteous asshole, she was still sure he was one of the most gorgeous men she had ever seen. That attraction only seemed to multiply every time she saw him.
Her lascivious reverence was paused when he turned to her, and she saw a large bruise across his ribs.
"I'm fine," Goro insisted again as she placed her palm against the tender, purple skin. "Truly."
"You should ice this," she said.
"I do not need you to dote on me, Valerie," Goro replied. His tone was likely harsher than he intended, but she was undeterred. Valerie was more than accustomed to his blunt manner by now.
"Yeah, yeah. I know." She still looked him over with a knotted brow. When her gaze met his again, Valerie noticed he was watching her with the same prurient appreciation she had previously lavished on him. For a brief moment, her worries faded, and she smiled coyly. "What?"
"I just remembered when I told you there was nothing beautiful in this city," he replied, lightly brushing his thumb across her cheek. "What a foolish thing to have said."
Valerie rolled her eyes and opened her mouth to protest, but Goro pressed his lips to hers, softly but effectively suppressing her attempt at humility. She returned the embrace and draped her arms around his neck, but pulled away before he could deepen the kiss.
"Are you trying to distract me from the massive bruise on your stomach?" she asked.
"Yes." Goro tilted his head, kissing her throat just under her jaw. The divine warmth of his lips paired with the tender scrape of his beard and cyberware on her sensitive skin made Valerie shiver. "Is it working?"
"Mhm," was all Valerie could say when she felt his breath against her collarbone.
He wrapped one arm around her waist as his other hand worked the placket of her shirt, deft fingers leisurely unbuttoning each clasp. Valerie sank into his grasp as every part of her body was overwhelmed with Goro: his wet hair clinging to her wrists, the intoxicating scent of his sandalwood soap, the smoldering heat of his mouth and skin against hers. A devastating tension was already blooming between her thighs, even as she knew these light teases were a paltry appetizer compared to the main course.
Goro slipped his fingertips between the panels of fabric and dragged his hand lower, stroking down between her breasts and over her navel. He opened the shirt entirely, exposing her bare stomach and black underwear, and the way he looked at her with a barely schooled yearning alone nearly made her whimper.
Lowering his head, Goro pressed an almost chaste kiss in the center of her chest, and Valerie gasped sharply, wantonly when she felt the unrestrained scrape of his teeth against her nipple. Her eyelids fluttered as Goro took her areola into his mouth, sucking and licking with a scorching fervor as her hand reached above the nape of his neck and roughly seized a fistful of his hair. Consumed with an insatiable need to taste him again, Valerie clenched her grip and used her new leverage to pull him towards her in a bruising kiss.
She claimed his mouth as Goro moved both of his hands to her waist, where his own grip tightened in response to the desperate way she clung to him. Valerie gently nipped his bottom lip, delighting in the low groan it drew from his throat, and he took an unsteady step forward, urging her to step backward as he guided them to the foot of their bed.
"Wait," Valerie uttered, almost breathless when the back of her legs met the mattress.
Goro loosened his grasp on her and studied her face carefully. When they had first resumed their physical intimacy, Valerie's increased sensitivity occasionally bordered on painful, even agonizing. But it was a different kind of ache that made her pause now: as desperate as she was for her own teeming release, Valerie was finding herself consumed with a desire to attend to his own oft-neglected needs.
"I'm fine," she assured him, echoing his earlier mantra with a light kiss. "Sit."
Wrapping her hands around his biceps, Valerie coaxed Goro to switch positions with her and urged him to sit down with a gentle pressure. He submitted to her command, and as he inched back on the mattress, his towel unfastened, revealing an expanse of skin from his thigh to his hip. It took all of Valerie's rapidly dwindling discipline not to yank the rag off entirely.
Instead, she straddled his legs, holding on to his cybernetic shoulders, and hovered over his lap. Valerie was teasing herself as much as she was teasing him at this point, the dampness between her thighs pulsing at the exhilarating absence filled only with their body heat. Goro eagerly dug his fingers into the flesh of her hips and side of her ass, only barely containing his own flagrant need to feel her plunge against him.
"Let me dote on you," Valerie whispered against his ear. She gently raked her nails up and down his back, coaxing a faint shiver and almost inaudible moan from Goro. "Just a little. Not because you need it--I know, I know, you're fine--But because I want to."
Valerie brought her hands around to his face, cupping his jaw as she pressed her lips to his forehead. "Because you deserve it."
"Untrue," he immediately protested, but she sank against his lap, reveling in the pressure of his hardening cock between her thighs, and silenced any further objections with a fervent kiss.
"No arguing. I just want you to feel good," Valerie murmured as she delicately ran her hands down his bare chest and stomach. Her index finger slid along the hem of the towel, a deliberately lazy gesture, slowly revealing the fine, dark hair that trailed down his groin. "Let me make you feel good."
Goro suddenly wrapped his hands around the back of her neck, his fingertips sending chills that snaked down her spine and erupted in her core, and he kissed her deeply, parting her mouth with that greedy passion that always simmered just below his cool exterior. Valerie took the embrace as enthusiastic permission, and, not breaking the kiss, she lifted herself up to remove his towel. Her own breath hitched against his as she wrapped her hand around his cock, hard and smooth, and he groaned into her lips when she gave him a firm stroke.
His hands fell to her waist, and Goro nestled his face against the crook of her neck, his hips rocking languidly in her grip. Valerie pumped her fist down his length again, this time rolling her fingers over the sensitive tip, and coaxed a soft vibration of another stifled groan against her throat. Goro's unbidden neediness fueled her own arousal, and any coherent thoughts that lingered were ravaged by her own ferocious compulsion to feel him in her mouth.
Valerie pressed her free palm against his shoulder, and Goro leaned back on his elbows, giving her room to move but never taking his eyes off her. She grazed her hand down his chest and stomach, leaned over to softly kiss the bruise over his ribs, and then lowered her knees to the hardwood floor before the bed. Goro propped himself up a little higher to watch her kneel before him, his chest rising and falling in shallow breaths.
Meeting his half-lidded gaze directly, Valerie ran the flat of her tongue against the entire length of his cock.
"Shit," Goro hissed in Japanese, his head falling backward.
Valerie grinned, biting her lip at the way he was coming undone right before her, and she licked him again, this time sliding her lips over the head and fully claiming his cock in her mouth.
Swearing once more, Goro reached for Valerie and found purchase in her blue strands. The taut grip made her inhale sharply, and Valerie drew a deep breath in through her nose that heightened the heady taste of his skin and scent of his hair. Valerie hummed as she savored every sensation of having him at her mercy--the way he twitched against the inside of her cheek, his thighs straining around her, even the tension in her jaw and dull ache of her knees on the hard floor--and the soft tremors made his fingers coil even tighter in her blue strands.
She was dizzy with the luxurious combination of pleasure and delicate pain as she lowered her head further, taking him as deeply as she could before releasing him from her mouth. Licking her lips, she quickly resumed stroking his now slick shaft with her hand.
Goro released her hair in response, fingertips grazing her cheek, and Valerie rested her jaw against his palm as he pressed his thumb against her swollen lips. Inspired, she took his thumb into her mouth, gently biting and sucking on the salty skin and hot metal.
"Valerie," he murmured, anchoring himself upright.
"Goro," she said in kind, lightly biting his thumb again.
"Come here." The Japanese words sounded delightfully rough in his voice.
"Patience," she replied, smiling and ignoring her own insecurities about speaking in his native language.
Valerie bent over his hips again, still holding his shaft as she licked the tip and slid her lips and tongue back over the length. Goro snaked his fingers around the nape of her neck, lightly pulling on the fine hairs and making her moan around his cock. His thrusts had been relatively steady, controlled, disciplined until now, but this time his pelvis bucked under her, plunging himself into her throat. His brief, magnificent loss of control made her cunt throb, and she hummed again, all but begging him to rock against her mouth harder and faster.
His fingers tightened in her hair, and when she tasted the faint saltiness of his precum, she lifted up one last time.
"Where do you want to finish?" Valerie asked, her voice raw and husky.
She kept stroking his length, keeping a steady pressure, as she watched Goro close his eyes, trying to find the words in Japanese or English to tell her what he wanted. She licked his cock, urging him on.
"Do you want to come in my mouth?" she asked, brushing her lips against the tip, tasting another bead of precum.
He swore quietly in Japanese again, his thighs tensing as he lifted his hips to her mouth.
"Is that a yes?" Valerie teased. She licked him again. "You have to tell me, Goro. Tell me what you want."
"Yes, Valerie. Please," he finally begged, roughly. "Please," he added once more, but in Japanese. The extra syllables sounded that much more pleading.
Valerie slid her fist down his length and took the top of him back in her mouth, working her tongue and hand in tandem to bring him to orgasm. She moved in rhythm with the desperate roll of his hips, urging him to take her mouth as deeply as he needed, and Valerie moaned, his cock growing stiffer and more rigid with his climax drawing near.
Her own heartbeat was pounding in her ears and she barely heard Goro telling her he was close, but his tight grip pulling on her hair and his cock twitching were all the warning she needed. Valerie whimpered faintly when she felt his hot release against the inside of her cheek, dripping down the back of her tongue, and she swallowed, devouring him until he was spent.
Slowly, Goro relaxed, dropping his hand from her hair and down to her shoulder, his fingers weakly massaging the back of her neck. Valerie rested her chin on his thigh, relishing in the sight of him reclined and content before her. She knew the moment would be fleeting, and she ran her fingertips across the top of his legs and lower abdomen, silently encouraging him to indulge in the afterglow as long as they could.
"Come here," he finally said after a few moments of quiet breathing.
Valerie accepted this time, and she crawled onto the bed next to him, laying on her side and propping herself up on her elbow. Goro rolled over to face her, looking at her with an unguarded affection he didn't display often. He reached over to lightly stroke her cheek and leaned in for a tender, grateful kiss.
Valerie smiled at him when he pulled away, running her fingers through his hair, tangled in the cybernetics around his shoulders, and Goro smiled back, resting his hand on her bare stomach. His chest rumbled with a quiet laugh before he rolled onto his back again.
"Something funny?" Valerie asked, raising her eyebrows.
"I did not realize you and I have such different ideas of 'doting'," Goro answered with a wry smile.
Valerie laughed, too. "I can still get you ice, if you want."
"No." He leaned over to kiss her again. "Thank you."
She laid down beside him, running her index finger along the sensitive edge of skin and cyberware on his chest, stopping just below the Arasaka logo branded in the center of his clavicle. Valerie's mind drifted back to her earlier thoughts, the temporary reprieve of her mental burden slipping away at the mere sight of the stylized tree logo.
She thought about his almost daily visits to the Izanagi access point, often to relay the latest Secure Your Soul updates to her, but more regularly, just to talk. Goro would tell her about Kagawa, promising to treat her to real udon noodles and a kabuki play at the Kanamaru-za. Valerie would advise him on the few hidden gems across the city, restaurants and scenic views that she knew couldn't compare to his home, but hoped brought him some consolation anyway. They shared stories from their very different childhoods: their education, first jobs, first loves, estranged friends.
Sometimes their conversations turned intellectual, philosophical, ruminations over hard questions with harder answers. These discussions were often cut short, not out of animosity or irreconcilable disagreements, but because they were all too aware they were constantly being monitored.
Time passed differently in Mikoshi, but Valerie still couldn't help but feel like they had been stifled by Arasaka for two years and counting.
Valerie sighed, and Goro looked up at her again, his face softening with worry.
"Is something the matter?" He asked.
"I know we need to be careful, smart, about... everything," Valerie said quietly. "And I know you can't tell me some things. But I need you to know you're not alone in this--whatever this is--anymore."
"Hm," Goro replied. He glanced at her hand and brought her knuckles to his mouth, pensively pressing his lips to her skin. "I only wish..." He sighed and looked up at the ceiling. "The past two years have been challenging. I do not want to drag you deeper into these obligations if I can help it."
"Christ, Goro," Valerie said, exasperated but not unkind. "For all intents and purposes, my body, my brain is Arasaka company property. I'm already in it. I'm in this shit as deep as anyone can go."
Fighting a tremble in her lower lip, she quietly added, "You're the one who could have gotten out."
"And leave you trapped in Mikoshi until a time it was convenient for them? Ten years from now? Fifty? To use your construct for--" Goro cut himself off as he sat upright. His voice was rough, angry, and even though Valerie knew his rage wasn't directed at her, she appreciated the apologetic way he took her hand. Softer, he continued, "I encouraged you to submit to that program. No, I could not have 'gotten out.' I could not just leave you there."
Valerie cupped his jaw, staring intently into his eyes.
"And I made the choice to sign. I made the best choice I could, from two really shitty choices, with the knowledge we had at the time." Valerie pressed her forehead to his, running her fingers through his hair again. "My situation is not a burden you need to carry, at all, but certainly not on your own. You just did what you've been doing since we first met: you were trying to keep my sorry ass alive. And against all odds, it fucking worked."
Goro slipped his hands around her back, sliding his arms under her open shirt and pulling her close to his bare chest.
"Could I not also say the same to you?" he asked rhetorically. "You do not need to shoulder this guilt for a decision I alone made."
"It'd be easier if you'd let me help you, at least a little. I still have friends in Night City. Well, business contacts, more likely." She paused, reconsidering her word choice again, and gave him a somewhat forced playful grin. "People who at least won't try to kill me at first sight."
"I take your point," He said with a nod. Then, smiling, he added, "We do make a very good team."
Valerie beamed unabashedly at his compliment and kissed him again. "We do."
"Are you sure you're not hungry?" She asked as she laid back down on the bed. "Yagami Market is open for another hour. Their dinner menu isn't terrible."
"Yes, it is," Goro replied plainly, and Valerie laughed. He hovered over her, his hand gliding over her naked stomach again, fingertips slipping under the band of her underwear. Her breath hitched when she felt the scrape of his beard between her thighs. "But yes, I am sure I'm not hungry for dinner."