No Skin Off My Arm

[Present day - 22:00]

Miz was on the edge of her stool, as if she had just finished watching an epic movie that left her floored. Billy had to carefully remind her to pick her jaw up off the floor as he chuckled and took a sip of his drink.

Her eyes were locked on V, working up and down, trying to put it all together in her head as she finally said, "So, all of this, it's a clone body?!"

V smirked as she nodded and answered, "Pretty preem, isn't it?"

Miz spat out, "It's FUCKIN' NOVA!"

Billy leaned forward, curious as he asked, "Any side effects or complications?"

V chuckled as she took a sip of her drink before answering, "There were a couple weeks of 'rebuilding'. My brain needed to adjust to me; I guess my prickly personality doesn't play well with others. And then there was the muscle rehabilitation. The problem with clone bodies is they're naturally atrophied out of the gate, so you have to carefully rebuild through 'electrical myostimulation' and an exercise regimen."

Miz asked the burning question on her mind, "W-what about your cyberware and implants?"

V laughed, "That was the tricky part. Of course, once I was physically fit enough and my brain had taken hold of the engram and accepted it fully, the cyberware implants were no problem, as long as I took it slow, piece by piece."

Miz followed up, "So what's the catch?"

Flashing her teeth with a smile, V answered, "I insisted Vik be the one to do the work."

Billy nearly choked on his drink as he said, "So what'd you do? Cart your corpse around Night City for a month?"

V nodded sarcastically, "Big fun, right? No, Biotechnica extracted everything and kept it in bio-storage until I was ready. Should have seen the look on Misty's face when they stopped by to deliver. She thought they were moving in. Vik just shook his head at all of it."

Miz giggled before she asked, "So, what's it like?"

V exhaled smoke as her face went serious and she said, "It was hard at first. I knew I was myself, but I didn't feel like myself when I looked in the mirror. Eventually my brain caught on and I settled in... it's definitely weird not having the scar below my ribs that I'd had since I was thirteen."

They could tell that wasn't all. There was a sadness in V's face as she continued, "The hardest part was knowing I'd have to live with the mistakes I made because I thought I was going to die soon anyway. Before it all happened, I had hurt someone. Someone I cared about a lot. Maybe the only person that would have held on to—"

V stopped herself, tears forming at the edges of her eyes as her hands trembled. After a few seconds, she cleared her throat and said, voice shaky, "The one thing they don't tell you about a lease on a new life is that you're still stuck with the mistakes from your old life."

Miz's heart sank as she stepped off her stool and took a chance, reaching in and wrapping her arms around V's torso and holding her tight. She took V by surprise, who reciprocated, looking up at Billy as she smiled and said, "You got a good one here, choom. Don't fuck it up."

Billy smiled back. Claire leaned in against the bar as she said, "Another round?"

V sighed, stamping out her cigarette as she said, "None for me, thanks. I think I've killed the mood enough for one night. You two are welcome to stay, though. It's on me."

Miz looked at Billy, and they both agreed as she spoke, "I think we'll call it. Billy has to be back at Vik's tomorrow morning; probably wouldn't approve of him walking in for a checkup with a hangover."

V took them all by surprise as she stepped off the stool and said bluntly as she walked past them, "Just fuck his brains out, work up a good sweat. Walls in your rooms are thick enough."

Miz's cheeks burned. Even Claire blushed a bit. Billy just laughed as he pulled Miz to him from behind and kissed her collarbone. He had the right idea. Miz turned and snapped her teeth at him.

Claire pulled the glasses down and began wiping the bar top as she asked, "Hey Billy, you talk to Liv yet?"

Billy shook his head, "Nah, I was going to call her in the morning. She's working now."

Claire pointed to his new arm and said, "You uh... might want to ease in to telling her about all this..."

Billy had been trying not to think about it. How the fuck was he going to explain to his mom that his arm got blown off by a psychotic animal during a job... but it's all okay. She'd raise cane until he swore to come back home and leave merc-work behind forever. That's going to be a fun chat.

Claire smirked as she said, "Sorry, guess V's not the only one killing the mood tonight. Hey, when you do talk to her, tell her I say hey?"

Billy nodded, "You got it. Thanks, Claire."

Her voice trailed off as she walked to the other side of the bar with a wave, "Anytime, honey!"

Miz turned to face Billy, her hands around his waist as she pulled him close and whispered, "If you don't get me upstairs soon, I'm going to mount you on the bar."

Billy laughed and pulled away, "Ah... don't do that to Claire, man. She deserves better."

Miz laughed back, "Then what are you waiting fo-O-O—"

Before she could finish, Billy crouched down and grabbed her around the legs with his new arm, picking her up and hoisting her over his shoulder as he walked towards the door. Miz laughed and squealed as she smacked his back and shoulders. As they approached the elevator in the main entrance, the doors slid open, Pops standing inside, lit cigarette in his hand.

Billy stopped cold as he locked eyes with Pops, terrified. Pops shrugged his eyebrows with a smirk and said nonchalantly as he exited the elevator, "Heya, kids."

Embarrassment written all over her face, Miz tripped over her own words as she called out, "Uh... heya Pops. Hey, you're not supposed to be smoking!"

Pops' voice trailed off as he walked into the Afterlife, "And Billy's not s'posed to be usin' that arm. So the fuck what..."

He had a point, and they really had nothing to be embarrassed about. The doors closed and they were alone, except for Emmerick, who paid them no heed at all. Billy put Miz down gracefully and they walked into the elevator, doors sliding shut behind them.

They hadn't even moved an inch before Miz wrapped herself around Billy as she kissed him deeply. While he certainly didn't mind it, he pulled away for a second, leaving Miz confused as she asked, "A-are you okay?"

Billy shook his head as he held up his arm, "I-I know this doesn't change anything between us, but I..."

Miz cocked her head in curiosity as Billy searched for the right words. After a few seconds, he continued, "I... I just hate that it's not my hand caressing your cheek, feeling your skin, holding you."

Miz's eyes closed, and she pressed her cheek into his cybernetic hand as she nuzzled it and said, "Do you feel that?"

He knew she knew the answer to that, but he smiled and answered anyway as he cupped her face, his thumb stroking her cheek gently, "I do."

She opened her eyes up to look in his as she said, "That feeling's never going away, Tiger."

Billy's heart sang in his head, and he pulled Miz back to him, kissing her deeply again. After a second, he felt a squeeze on his crotch as Miz pulled back, "As long as it's not a Mr. Studd."

Billy tripped on his own laughter, caught off guard, but he recovered quickly, "I think I got that part covered."

Miz bit her bottom lip, "Yeah you do, now make this elevator move faster."

They kissed again, melting into each other. No more jokes, no more quips. Just pure passion.

--

[The next day - 10:00]

Billy and Miz walked into the front door of Misty's shop, having just had breakfast at Tom's Diner across the street. Miz could get used to this; passionate nights and cute breakfast dates. Billy maintained he was just impressed someone could actually pack away more eggs than he could.

Even though Misty had literally watched Billy walk out of the clinic the day before, her face lit up at seeing him vertical and in good spirits. By this point, he was used to her quirks as he waved, "Heya Misty."

"Heya back, kids", she answered with a head tilt, "He's waiting for ya."

They headed out and down as Misty went back to shuffling a deck of tarot cards. Billy knocked on the collapsed gates, rattling them and startling Vik as he turned and said, "Woah! Hey kid, next time just say 'hi', alright?"

Billy smirked as he said, "Hi."

Vik waved his hands, "Yeah, yeah, yeah. Sit down, smartass."

Billy turned to Miz, "Should we have brought him a cup of coffee?"

She giggled, "Definitely."

Vik clenched his jaw, "Sit your ass down in the chair, or I'm going to rip off your new arm and beat you to death with it."

Billy raised his hands, "Okay, okay. Was it something I said?"

Vik spat at him, "I don't like being startled, kid. Puts me on edge."

Billy nodded, "Understood... sorry."

Vik scooted over on his stool, flipping the monitor and socket around as he said, "You know the drill; raise your arm."

Billy pulled his personal link from his left hand and plugged it in before holding his right arm out. Vik went to work, first checking the seams and joint mesh before looking at the individual muscles, artificial tendons, and other components. He turned to look at the monitor for a few seconds before he gave a perturbed grumbling noise. Miz was curious, "W-what's wrong, Vik?"

He turned, looking over the rims of his sunglasses, "Oh... nothing. Just... well, if Pops follows my instructions about as well as your lover-boy here, I'm sure he's having one hell of a time catching his breath this morning."

Miz smirked as she looked down and away. Vik narrowed his eyes, "Yeah, that's what I thought. Ah well, if everyone did exactly what I told them to do the first time, I wouldn't have any repeat customers, right?"

Billy shrugged his eyebrows and nodded. Vik continued, "You'll be alright. The arm will pretty much repair itself over a day or two, so don't sweat it."

Billy was genuinely curious, "What kind of damage are we talking about, here?"

Vik looked back at the screen before he answered, "Artificial muscles, tendons, and ligaments aren't like the real thing. Your new arm may have sat in a crate in cold storage for 6 months before it came here. The fibers and materials can get stiff over time. Real limbs, even when we're resting, are always on, so the muscles are always flexing, working, staying limber. Part of the reason I warned you to stay off the arm as much as you could was to give it time to settle in, work out any tightness, and to properly stretch it out. That way, when you get to actually using your arm for its intended purpose, you reduce the risk of tearing a muscle."

Billy's eyes widened, "A-am I at risk of that now?"

Vik smirked, "Nah, you'll be okay. Just stop curling 120 pounds of whatever over your head..."

Billy blushed, looking at Miz, whose cheeks were equally red. Vik scratched his jaw, "Uh huh."

After a few seconds of feeling like they were in the principal's office, Billy asked another question, "So, you said 'intended purpose'?"

Vik smiled, punching a few buttons on the console. Billy's right hand sprung to life, platelets and panels on his knuckles shifting and settling. Billy was startled at first, but quickly changed to childlike wonder as he raised his hand up, watching it move and articulate.

Always one for subtle theatrics, Vik continued, "With your size and build, I'd wager you had a pretty mean right hook with your 'ganic arm. Well... it ain't got shit on this, kid. What you're sporting now is a new-model Gorilla Arm. Thing will punch through solid concrete if you let it."

Billy was enamored as he turned his hand around and back. He curled his fingers into a fist, watching the panels articulate as if bracing themselves. After a few seconds, he looked at Miz before turning back to Vik, "I, uh... I guess this means I won't be training at Fred's anymore... he doesn't like any visible cyberware on his mats."

Vik laughed as he chided gently, "Fred's a good guy, but he's a little old school. Modern fights are juiced or chipped all to hell, no way around that. To his credit, there's no amount of chrome can really substitute for good combat awareness, footwork, or basic discipline. But you really want to succeed in a ring these days? You got to balance that with a healthy knowledge and understanding of your cyberware's capabilities."

Billy furrowed his brow with curiosity as Vik flashed his teeth, "You need a real trainer, kid. Not likely you'll be doing much boxing in your line of work, but if you have a good mastery of the basics, Miz and Pops can cover the rest with that 'CQB' judo shit they do."

Miz scoffed, "Hey, don't knock it, or I'll knock you, old man."

Vik raised his hands, feigning fright as Miz giggled. He turned back to Billy, "I still train up at the NC Devils club gym. Maybe I can talk to the fellas, see about getting you in?"

Billy's eyes lit up and he said, "Wow... thanks Vik. I-I'd really like that."

Vik waved dismissively with a smile before giving Billy a pat on the arm.

After a second, Miz asked, "Hey Vik... has there... been any change with Luca?"

The smile on Vik's face widened, "He actually stirred last night. Got him to eat some scop, talk a little bit. He seemed a little jumpy, so I gave him something to help him sleep. Should be wearing off any moment now. He's a sweet kid."

Miz nodded, smiling, as Vik continued towards Billy, "So, about that RealSkinn, I go—"

Billy cut him off, "I uh... what if I just want to keep the bare arm? No covering."

Vik shrugged, "I mean, really, it's up to you. These new models are pretty damn good about keeping out dust and dirt, so it's really just aesthetics at this point. Plus you're not trying to hide a projectile launch system or mantis blades like our girl here."

Miz wrinkled her nose with a smirk as Billy asked, "Did you do that implant too?"

Vik nodded, "Yeah, since Pops first brought her to me seven years ago, I've done all her implant work."

Billy's eyes widened as he looked at Miz. Seven years ago.

Vik picked up on it, looking to Miz first. She nodded, and Vik continued, "Yeah, Pops brought her to see me first thing after he rescued her from the TCs. Wanted to make sure she was physically okay, no internal injuries or anything, and to fix the hack-job they'd done with her face threading."

Billy was curious and confused, and Miz filled in the blanks, "As penance for Mama stealing from them, they were going to shanghai me into the doll trade until the debt was paid off. It's become a popular trend for TC dolls to have modified cyberware threading that can light up on command. I guess they weren't worried about the quality of clientele based on the work they did."

Vik cut in, "I offered to remove it completely, but Miz insisted on keeping it."

Miz continued, "It's a reminder of what I overcame, and to never be that weak again. Plus, the light-up bit is actually pretty cool. Max wrote some custom code for it to interface with my brain so it lights up automatically based on my emotional state."

Billy was piecing it all together, "So, when it's red...?"

Miz bit her bottom lip and winked, the threading flashing green for second, "It's probably a good idea to run... I can still manually control it too."

Billy already knew what pink meant, but he dare not say it in public as he smiled to himself.

They were interrupted by a low groan coming from the back of the clinic. Miz rushed over to the cot, finding Luca stirring and stretching. She leaned down, smiling as she looked at him. The bruising had already subsided a little bit, and Vik had clothed him in some old scrubs to give him a little dignity. As his eyes opened, he was slightly startled at Miz's face right in front of his, but he quickly gained his bearings, smiling gently as he said weakly, "H-hi Mizuki."

Miz answered him, "Heya Luca. How are ya feeling?"

She tried to reach out and rub his shoulder, but he recoiled away. He was still on edge; Miz couldn't blame him. She knew what it was like. She just sat there for a while, quietly watching over him.

--

Billy and Vik had been chatting for an hour about music, boxing, and anything and everything under the sun. Mostly it was Vik talking and Billy listening. He was captivated by how much Vik seemed to know about everything, and he was happy to listen and learn.

They were both interrupted as a holocall pinged in his head, followed by Liv's voice, "Mornin', honey!"

Billy smiled as he answered, "H-hey Mom!"

Vik backed away, motioning that he'd be upstairs. Liv continued, "I didn't disturb anythin', did I?"

Billy chuckled as he said, "No, no. I'm just at the ripperdoc's, getting a checkup."

Liv asked with surprise in her voice, "Oh, you chippin' in?"

Billy sighed as he decided to just come out with it then and there, "Uh, Mom... I got to tell you something, but I don't want you to worry."

Liv nearly scoffed at him as she asked bluntly, "What'd you lose, Billy? How bad is it?"

He rolled his eyes, "How could you possibly kno—"

"Honey, you act like I didn't have a life before you!", Liv cut him off, "I'm no stranger to how Night City works. Now how bad is it?"

Billy was actually relieved as he answered, "Entire right arm. Up to the shoulder."

A moment of silence passed before Liv asked, "Ya get fixed up?"

Billy changed the subject, "Mom, how are you not absolutely losing it right now?!"

Liv chided him, "Billy, you are your own man. Yes, you're my son, and I worry for you, but you have to carve your own path through this life. Nobody can make those choices for you. Not me, not anyone."

Billy's eyes clouded over a little as Liv continued, "And I know your crew is good people. They'll look after my boy, take care of 'im."

Billy looked over to Miz as he choked on his words, "T-thanks, Mom. And yeah, I got fixed up."

Another moment of silence before Liv spoke again, "How'd Pops and Miz do?"

Billy didn't want to worry her any further, but he obliged, "Pops got a couple of fractured ribs; Miz actually did okay. She got her shots in and gave us the opening we needed."

Liv answered calmly, "And that's why I can sleep at night, honey. Don't you screw that up, now."

Billy smiled, eyes locked on Miz, "I won't."

Subtle as a bull in a china shop, Liv continued, "And you tell that handsome cowboy to get 'is ass down here and let me take care of 'im."

Billy laughed out loud as he said, "Jesus, Mom!"

She didn't try to defend her position. She said what she needed to say. Regardless, Billy threw her a bone, "You know, from what Miz tells me, that's not a one-way road."

He could feel Liv's cheeks burning as she said, "Might jus' be the best news I hear all day."

Billy feigned offense, "Oh, and not that your baby boy's okay?"

Liv shut him down, "If you weren't okay, you wouldn't have answered."

Billy sucked his teeth with a chuckle, "I love you, Mom. We'll come see ya soon."

Liv answered, "Look forward to it. I love you too, baby. Kisses."

--