Title: Tech Trouble
Fandom: FAKE
Author: badly_knitted
Characters: Ryo, Dee.
Rating: PG
Setting: After the manga.
Summary: Dee is having trouble getting to grips with his new phone.
Word Count: 567
Content Notes: None needed.
Written For: Challenge 285: Amnesty, using challenge 48: Technology.
Disclaimer: I don’t own FAKE, or the characters. They belong to the wonderful Sanami Matoh.



Letting himself into Dee’s apartment, Ryo found his partner slumped on the floor by the coffee table, an open box and a booklet of instructions in front of him. He was muttering curses as he flipped back and forth through the pages with one hand, throwing frustrated glances at the object he held in his other hand. From the expression on his face, Ryo suspected Dee was about ready to throw whatever it was at the nearest wall. He was clearly so distracted that he hadn’t even heard his lover enter, a fact that was proven when Ryo spoke.

“Problems?”

“Ack!” Dee almost tipped the coffee table over as he leapt to his feet, the booklet and the box skidding across the surface and onto the floor. “Ryo! What the fuck? You tryin’ to give me a heart attack?”

“Sorry, but I thought you’d have heard me come in. What’re you doing?”

“Tryin’ to make this stupid thing work. They showed me in the shop, said it was so simple anyone could use it, but I’ve been at this for over an hour and I can’t make head or tail of the damned instructions!” Dee slumped back onto the floor, scrabbling for the instruction booklet and slapping it back on the coffee table.

Hanging up his coat and toeing his shoes off, Ryo joined him, picking up the fallen box and looking at it with interest. “You got yourself a smartphone? I’ve been wondering if I should upgrade to one of those. I know Bikky wants one but they’re expensive and he’s not exactly careful with the phone he has now.”

“You want my advice, don’t bother. My phone died last night so I went to get a new one his mornin’ and the assistant said I could upgrade to one of these. Looked like a really good deal and not much more a month than I was already payin’, so I figured what the hell, internet access could come in handy when we’re on the job, only the fuckin’ thing’s too damned smart for me, or I’m not smart enough for it, or somethin’.” Dee shoved the new phone at Ryo. “Want a phone? Barely been used, only had one very confused owner.”

Ryo snickered at his lover’s words, and the mournful expression on Dee’s face. “It can’t be that difficult; let me take a look.”

“Gladly.” Dee relinquished the phone and Ryo studied it carefully before turning to the instruction book. He flicked through a few pages, frowning, then he turned to the front of the book and his expression cleared.

“Oh!”

“What? You’ve figured it out already? I’m that much of a technological dunce? Figures.”

“No, it’s not you; the instructions are wrong.” Ryo reached for the box, checking that against the booklet. “It’s no wonder you’re having problems. The assistant’s given you the box and instructions for a different make and model of phone.”

“So it’s not that I’m too dumb to use a smartphone?”

Ryo shot his partner a teasing grin. “Hard to say. Guess we’ll find out when we take your new phone back and get the right instructions for it.”

“Thanks for the vote of no confidence,” Dee grumbled sourly. He was starting to think he should have just replaced his phone with the same kind he was already accustomed to. Modern technology was too smart for its own good.


The End