I feel there isn't enough Almost Human fanfictions out there. I know there are only 13 episodes of this show (sniff), but I think it's the perfect reason to expand the story. Karl Urban is yummy and I feel the need to give his amazing character a legit personal life. Also, I think Dorian is pretty comical so he will appear a lot in the story. It takes place a few months after the last episode of the show. I set it in 2049.

English is not my first language so I'll probably make some mistakes once in a while… I will review as much as possible, but please be understanding. Also, this is the very first story I will be posting. I have a few projects I'm developing but this is the one story I am really into right now and that I feel I can really develop.

Eden's Apartment

It was July 1st 2049 when Eden Martineau walked into her new apartment in 'The City'. She stood there, in her new empty kitchen, waiting for the moving company bots to bring up her stuff to the 56th floor. The landlord had told her it was a quiet building and that her only floor neighbour was a cop. The other doors of the 56th floor all led to the janitor's storage unit. Knowing that a police officer lived nearby was reassuring for her since she knew this city was swarming with criminal activity.

The main reason she had moved here was the promise of freedom and good money to start anew. Here, she thought, she could be herself without anybody interfering or criticizing every decision she made. In 3 months, she would turn 30 and it felt right to start a new chapter in her life.

About 5 months ago, an American headhunter had contacted her to discuss a job offer. She had been selected to become GreenTech International's French translator. The prospect was interesting, the salary was more than she would have dreamed of and the timing was perfect. The province of Quebec being very technologically advanced in the field of green energy and technology, GreenTech International had many business contacts all across Quebec, and, in some areas, it was important to do business in French. Recruiting a French Canadian was the perfect solution for them since she would be both knowledgeable of the language and culture.

Even though many teachers had been replaced by androids, most language teachers and translators were still employed because the bots were never precise enough to translate the perfect intentions behind words. While they were good enough to teach basic notions, most universities, companies and rich parents still employed humans for this task.

Hearing massive footsteps in the corridor, Eden headed to her apartment door, opened it and indicated to the bots where the furniture should go.

1 hour later, the last of her furniture and boxes were in the apartment, where she wanted it. She biped the payment-bot and went back inside.

10 minutes later, she realised that one of her bookshelves was missing. She considered calling back the moving company but since she had paid the bot in full, she had accepted the results of the delivery, which meant they would send her another bill for any additional trouble if she contacted them again. Sighing, she decided to take the elevator and go look around where the delivery truck had been parked to see if the bots might have just left it there.

Luckily, there it was, on the side of the street. It was strange that they would leave it there. Well it was the cheapest company in the area so the bots probably had a few bugs. Now she wondered how she would bring the shelf upstairs. It wasn't that heavy but it was huge and she didn't want to scratch the bottom by pulling it around, plus it was a long walk to the elevator. There didn't seem to be anybody around either. At 2pm on a Thursday, people were obviously still at work so she could either wait around for a good Samaritan or scratch her pretty shelf. She couldn't just leave it there on the street, what if someone stole it? Sighing, she decided to sit nearby and call for a pizza while waiting for a nice helping hand.

At John's work

The day had been uneventful for a change. Captain Maldonado had called in a meeting and he almost fell asleep during Paul's presentation. He only came out of it when Val's velvety voice announced they would be taking a short coffee break.

Ever since he had taken out Val for a coffee a month ago, his view of his delightful female colleague had changed. Sure she was a beautiful, strong, sweet and smart girl, but going out with her, he realised soon enough she wasn't the one for him. He believed that her perfect chrome design might have something to do with it. Oddly enough, she seemed way too perfect almost to a point where she felt plain to him. She was so flawless that there didn't seem to be anything unique, intriguing or exciting about her. Not that he needed a dangerous or toxic woman, but he sure needed a spark, something to light him up inside. Val was very beautiful and pleasant but he wasn't the kind of guy to go after a woman only for sports. Plus, he worked with her every day so that would be a bit awkward. She was a good and friendly colleague, pleasant to the eye, but that was it. She might have caught up on that as well since she had never commented on their first and only date afterwards. Their working relationship was back to normal and it was alright with him. He had tried and it just didn't work out. He could move on. In a way, this date with Valerie had helped him define what he was looking for in a potential partner.

During the coffee break, to his utmost annoyance, Dorian kept annoying him about the fact that he wasn't charging his leg to its maximum capacity and that he could have a look at the charger to make it work better. In the end, John accepted Dorian's help just to shut him up and decided they would both go to his apartment after work to take care of the device.

In front of Eden's building

It was almost 6 pm and only an old man with a walking stick and a tiny girl had made their way into the building in the last 4 hours. Eden was annoyed. She was about to give up and bring the shelf upstairs on her own, (bottom be damned) when a cop car entered the parking lot.

John pulling in his parking space

"Damn it Dorian! I'm a detective, not a tech geek. Leave these kinds of details to Rudy. When we get upstairs, you do whatever the hell it is you need to do with that device and then you leave me be." John says.

"Man, why are you so rude? I'm doing you a favor. Someday you'll be in the middle of an assignment and your leg will stop working. Is that what you want?"

John stops the engine and they both unclasp their seatbelt.

"Look. I didn't mean to yell at you. I know you're only trying to help but sometimes your constant babble fest is just- What?"

John looks at Dorian who isn't listening anymore.

"John, this girl looks like she could use a hand. That shelf is huge, man. How is she planning on moving that thing from the pavement to the sidewalk?"

"Good point." John replies.

Getting out of the car, they approach the brunette who has her back to them. She's struggling to level the base of the shelf on top of the sidewalk.

"Maudite marde!" she groans.

"It's French swearing", Dorian explains.

John raises a brow "No kidding!"

Surprised by the exchange, she turns around.

"Oh! Hi! Didn't see you there. Hum… would you mind giving me a hand with that? I'm sorry to bother you but I've been waiting to get that thing upstairs for hours and there was no one around to help me."

"It's no trouble at all." John says. "How did you get it on the street in the first place?"

"It's that stupid bot moving company. I thought they had brought everything upstairs when I paid for the service then I realised too late that one of my shelves was missing. I guess I should've checked everything before I paid." Eden says.

Dorian takes a side and John the other, Eden gets the door and together, they reach the elevator.

"Which floor?" Dorian asks.

"56th".

"You're John's neighbour then?" Dorian comments, smiling.

"Who's John?" Eden asks.

"Hum… that would be me." John answers.

"Oh! Well, it's nice to meet you."

"Likewise" John answers with a small amused smile.

She turns to Dorian. "And you are?"

"I'm Dorian."

"Well it's also a pleasure, I'm Eden."

"The pleasure is all mine. You have a beautiful name." Dorian says.

"Thanks." She answers, blushing slightly.

"Not very common though. Your accent tells me you are a French Canadian. Your people used to be quite religious many decades ago, way before your birth if I judge by your youthful appearance. Why do you have such a religious name? Are your parents firm believers? I understand most of your villages are also named after saints."

"Hum…" Eden doesn't know how to answer that.

"Dorian, for God's sake" John says, annoyed.

"You're a synthetic!" She realises. "For a moment there I thought you were human. I've never met one who behaved so human-like. If I hadn't seen those blueish lights on your face just now you could've fooled me!" Eden says, fascinated.

Dorian answers with a wide smile and says like a well-taught student, "I'm a DRN, I have a synthetic soul and that comes with human emotions."

"Wow! That's amazing." She says with a sincere smile.

As they settle her bookshelf in the living room, John asks her, "Why does a French Canadian move to the west coast, if I may be so nosey?"

"Back in Montreal I was a French teacher but I got a job offer here as a translator. Since it was an amazing opportunity I could only accept." She answers him, obviously proud of her achievement.

"So when do you start your new employment." Dorian asks, curious as usual.

"In two weeks." She says.

"It should give you enough time to settle then. If you need anything, I'll be next door." John offers. "Now if you'll excuse us, Dorian here has to help me with something before I throw him out and send him back to his charger for the night."

"That's not cool, man." Dorian says, pouting.

"Well I'm very grateful for your help! Please if you need anything, I'll also be next door, you know, if you need to borrow a cup of sugar or something." She says jokingly.

"I'll keep that in mind then." John answers, with a lopsided grin.

John and Dorian bid her good evening and leave the apartment.

Inside John's apartment

"So… what did you think of your new neighbour, man?" Dorian asks with a knowing smile.

"She seems… nice I suppose. Why do you ask?" John answers absentmindedly, trying to unplug the base of his synthetic leg charging device to present it to Dorian.

Working on the device, Dorian comments, "She fits your profile you know: brunette, seems smarter than you, sweet. I'm not a good judge of appearance but she seems anatomically proportional and her face looks pleasant. She also has an inviting smile and her deep blue eyes sparkled with genuine interest when she realised I wasn't human. Her line of work and her curiosity for my existence demonstrate the presence of a sharp mind. She also made a joke before we left which seemed to amuse you. But you never told me your physical preference in a lady. That's the part missing in your profile. She is perhaps a bit taller and curvier than Val. Is that why it didn't work out with her? Do you prefer a fuller chest and-"

"For the love of God, Dorian! It has nothing to do with…forget it!" John answers scandalized. "You know what? Why don't we do that some other time? I'm tired."

"I'm almost done John. There! You see that indicator? The potential of the charging device is now at 99.6%. It was only at 78.2% before I made a few changes. This means you won't need to charge your leg as long as you used to and it will also last longer during the day. Say for instance you go over to Eden for a nightcap-"

"Good night Dorian!" John says, pushing Dorian toward the entrance.

"Aw! Come on, man."