You know Marcus, when it comes to late night booty calls, I try to keep at least an ounce of decorum, but you make it awfully hard when you make me climb out of windows like some type of criminal."

He pokes his head out of the slim opening of the window ledge I'm balancing my butt on and smirks.

"Babe, it's either this or our dads. You choose."

"He's not even your dad. Why do you call him that?"

Marcus looks down as he is embarrassed. "He still created me. Im thankful to him for that. So in some ways, he's like a father. Even though I'm just a full functioning robot foot-soldier." His lips tug at the side of his face with uncertainty. He looks forward at the sun that is about to rise. "The sun is about come up, and you need to leave. If either Davenport found out, they'd kill us."

" Fine, Fine." I scoff.

Marcus grabs my as I prepare to jump to ground below. " I love you, though, okay? i wouldn't want to keep you a secret from anyone if I had a choice." I smile to myself and look back at him. He raises that signature eyebrow.

"What?" He says.

"I love you, too."

I lean over and give him a gentle kiss on the cheek.

"You are so much more magnificent and enthralling and enigmatic than a robot. You are Marcus, the bad boy who got the good girl; the lovely, stubborn mess and so much than just nuts and bolts. You are a masterpiece. You are a Picasso. Abstract and gorgeously enticing."

His eyes moisten and he opens his mouth but closes it again.

And with that I jumped off the window sill and took running towards home.

...

"Did you at least use protection?" someone says from the darkness in the living room. My heart jumps. "Lights." the person commands.

Now that I'm extremely startled, I realized its Tasha, recently I have taken to calling her lights click on and sure enough my Mom is sitting on the couch, bags under her eyes, exercise clothes on- ready to go on her morning run and a very angry glare. I clear my throat and try to steel a frown like a hers.

"I don't know what you're talking about." I say and groan internally as I hear how pathetic I sound. Mom raises her eyebrows.

"Bree," She gets up walks over to me and sniffs. "You smell like sex."

I cross my arms over my chest defensively. "What does it matter if I use protection? I'm bionic, I can't get STD or pregnant."

Mom's eyes glaze over as she hears my words and something that I say registers with her. She diverts her glare to the wall and then back to me.

"What?" I say louder than I mean to. Mom takes my arm and leads me to the coach, we both sit, a comfortable distance from each other.

"Bree," She pauses. Trying to gather what she is trying to say. "Your father and I, we discussed this a long time ago. In the event that you became sexually active with human boys, you originally wouldn't have even felt sexual pleasure. You were built as a machine not as a human. Your Dad programmed sexuality into your chip and more gender traits. That's why you've got your period."

I look up as she says the last statement. I had been so secretive. I thought no one knew. She sees this expression on my face and says:

"I'm your Mother. I notice a few things." she smiles quickly before getting back on track. " So if his programming worked you now have th ability to get pregnant- as a full human would. That's why it is impertinent that you tell if you used protection." I look away awkwardly at this. Mom gasps and begins to grab for her purse.

"Honey we have to get you to a doctor-"

"No, we don't"

"Um. Yeah, we kind of do-"

"No, Momma. We really don't." I argue back. She stops her flurry of panic and looks at me in confusion.

"Because the boy I was with wasn't exactly human either."

She stares for a minute, the gears in her mind churning, trying to gather what I'm saying. " You were with Marcus..." She trails off. She sounds almost disappointed? "If your father finds out he'll"

"He won't. Please Mom, don't tell Daddy, he'll never let me see him again. And I like him, Mom, I like him a lot. "

She clutches the bridge of her nose "You think you might...love him?" She says as if she doesn't want it to be true.

I nod slowly so that she understands that I mean it.

She looks at me and her lips tug in a disapproving expression." Then I won't tell your father," I smile brightly at this but she isn't finished. " But next

time be careful Bree, and use a condom. Marcus is still half-human and that half might still... well..put a bun in your oven. There will probably be no buns, but still."

I nod silently. She nods back as if to say Alright, go to bed. I don't waste a second to bound up the stairs to my room.

Be Careful, Bree.

Man, I wish I'd known sooner...