I LOOOVE this idea of the z-team kind of, maybe a little bit, taking advantage of Robert’s affection for them and it kind of biting them in the ass, as in Robert needing to walk away from his desk and take a break somewhere and them kind of collectively spiraling thinking they’ve driven him off.
Like, it’s the z-team. The program is for all intents and purposes, probation. They’re still adjusting, they’re not gonna be perfect in a day. Add in that Robert is Definitely the first dispatcher to like.. give a shit about then in any long term capacity, so there’s some struggles.
They push, they poke, they irritate, but they love Robert and Robert loves them.. right? But ooh, one day it’s like everyone’s taken one massive step back and they’re All pushing.
Visi’s snappy, Flambae and Prism are tag-team antagonists, Sonar is side-tracked and irritating and pushing all kind of buttons. Mal is probably trying her best but is probably getting side tracked alongside Sonar. Punch Up and Coupé, while not actively contributing to the chaos, aren’t helping either. Golem isn’t really doing much one way or the other, more chiming in than anything else. Waterboy is probably trying to defuse, which only adds to it.
It’s just- Noise, yelling, bickering, stuttering and the accompanied mocking, people being shitty and snide for the sake of it; people just pushing more than they should. They’re snapping at Robert and each other, it’s a mess.
And finally, Robert. The man is all kinds of worn out; he’s at the end of his rope, he’s probably sleep deprived and hasn’t eaten yet today, his back hurts, his head is probably throbbing and just-
“FUCK! You know what, yeah! you’re right! You’re all so fucking right- I don’t know shit! So you know what, Do it yourselves. I’m fucking done with this shit-“
There’s a harsh clatter in their ears and the mic goes static, like Robert didn’t even take the time to turn off the headset- just pulled it off and dropped it onto his desk. There’s a faint shout- probably Chase yelling after Robert from the neighboring cubicle, before nothing else.
The team call is silent now, everyone kind of shellshocked.
Everyone kind of rushes to his cubicle, finishing their missions with insane efficiency, all paranoid the entire time. They rush to his space to see if he’s there and just giving them all the silent treatment- not that it wouldn’t be deserved, but at least they’d know he was still physically there. But he’s not.
His stuff is still there, he hasn’t packed up and left. the sticky notes, reminders, and thumb-tacked photos still in the space, Beef’s things still laying around and present. Hell, Robert’s untouched coffee from that morning is there still- sat in his usual ceramic mug. But Robert isn’t there. Chase isn’t there either, which only really adds to the Z-Team’s collectively increasing anxiety and blood pressures.
I don’t really know how to end this but I like to imagine the ZTeam spiraling for juuust a bit, freaking out that they’ve driven off one of the only people to give a damn about them. They love him, he loves them, but they all have such bad habits and there driven Robert off now— only to find that Robert was so overwhelmed and frustrated that he’s taking a decompression nap in the Mech. The suit is closed around him (I personally HC that the cushioning in the All New, Royd improved suit is adjustable, so that Robert is pretty much curl up and Nap if need / want be.) and he’s shut himself inside for the time being.
I love the image of the z-team, after finding Robert and feeling bad for the whole thing, basically set up camp in Royd’s workshop while they wait for Robert to wake up / while they wait for Robert to want to talk to them again. Extra bonus is most / all fall asleep in little stress comas while they’re waiting for Robert and he wakes up, finds them, has a little shaky breath, and joins the snuggle puddle with his team. His people.