Chapter 04: Mine Alone
Calabasas Highlands (Connor Residence)
Aspirin; to relieve stress and cranial throbbing, take two tablets and swallow with a glass of water. Do not mix with alcohol.
Sarah considered the last part carefully, weighing the costs of ignoring the packaging's advice against the thought of her lying drugged-out on the couch. The choice was obvious, and Sarah put the bottle back into the cupboard before pouring herself a glass of water and downing the pills with a slight shudder. It was late, and today had been a day she'd rather not remember. Marty had been on the war path once again, his rebellious phase in full swing as he ran havoc around the house, refusing to behave himself.
Sarah sighed at her failure to understand how such a well-behaved little boy could become such an obnoxious brat so quickly. A phase, she reminded herself. John went through it too, though I wasn't around to deal with that, not the worse parts anyway. That was left to the foster parents he'd shacked up with during those grey years of her imprisonment at Pescadero. Sarah closed her eyes and could almost feel the pills starting to work their magic.
The house was mercifully quiet now, with Marty fast asleep and Derek busy cleaning his weapons. A quick glance into the lounge revealed Cameron sitting alone with the cat for company. But none of the above mattered to her more than John, who'd spent pretty much the entire week locked in his room, refusing to come out or speak with anybody. Sarah knew it had something to do with the Tin Can, but was too distracted by Marty's antics to dedicate a free moment to interrogating her on the subject.
Better use my one chance while I still have it, she reasoned as she ambled into the lounge, receiving a brief look of acknowledgement from Cameron. The machine was watching a nature programme on the television, which focused on the Chameleon, an infamous lizard capable of blending with its environment. Sarah had no idea why Cameron would bother watching this bore; surely she had everything about anything archived in that library brain of hers.
Yet here she was, staring intensively at the screen, stroking the cat absent-mindedly, or at least; as absent-minded as a machine could get. Sarah cleared her throat audibly and Cameron, getting the message, tore her eyes away from the screen to look up at her expectantly.
"We need to talk."
"About John?"
"Precisely."
Cameron remained as blank as ever, indifferent to Sarah's obvious annoyance and underlying anger.
"Did you know that the Chameleon can change its color in response to light exposure and ambient temperature, as well as to express its mood?"
Sarah circled the couch and stood between Cameron and the TV, blocking the machine's view. Cameron simply regarded Sarah with slightly narrowed eyes, patiently awaiting the argument that was inevitably coming her way. Sarah crossed her arms and took a moment to decide how to better approach the subject, eventually settling on simple candour.
"John hasn't taken a single step outside his room for near five days now. I assume you know why?"
Cameron realised that she wasn't going to be able to avoid this conversation, and so resigned herself to answering Sarah's question.
"I upset him."
Sarah's eyes flashed and her jaw clenched; so it is her fault, she thought.
"And how did you do that exactly?"
Cameron tilted her head up a little, meeting Sarah's gaze without flinching.
"I don't know."
"You don't know? How can you not know?"
"There are gaps in my memory, from when I deleted my progenitor's imprint. Things have… blurred together. I did something to him."
Sarah nodded to herself, fighting the urge to drag the robot to the nearest scrap yard. Cameron looked away, staring at the floor for a brief moment before returning her notice to Timmy, who was gently pawing at her shirt for attention. Sarah watched her stroke the cat and tickle his belly, a small smile on her lips as he purred contentedly. Without warning, Sarah grabbed the cat and placed him on the floor. Affronted, Timmy ran off into the dining room with an angry hiss, leaving a dejected Cameron alone with a thoroughly annoyed Sarah.
"So you have no idea why he'd suddenly lock himself in his room all week?"
Cameron stood up and took a step towards Sarah, whether to appear intimidating Sarah didn't know, but it was somewhat unnerving.
"We had a… falling out."
"A falling out… Over what?"
Cameron shifted to her left, regarding Sarah with a side-on look of blank determination.
"I respect his privacy too much to openly discuss it with others."
Cameron made it clear that this was her final word and turned to leave, but Sarah, wanting answers, grasped Cameron's arm.
"Don't you turn your back on me! You are going to tell me what the hell is going on between you and my son, or so help me God, I will-"
"What? What will you do?"
Sarah hadn't expected an interruption, nor did she expect Cameron to take such an aggressive posture all of a sudden. The machine's face spoke of anger buried deep within that endo-skull of hers, a genuine anger that only a human could possess. Sarah suddenly found herself in a difficult situation, and became all the more aware that she was threatening a potentially volatile killing machine. Sarah let go of Cameron's arm and opted instead to give her an intense glare.
"Tell me what you did to him, now!"
"Tell you what she did to whom?"
Sarah spun around to see John standing there, leaning against the door frame with a slightly amused grin on his face. Neither she nor Cameron had noticed him creep down the stairs. Sarah looked her son up and down and was surprised at what she saw. She had expected him to be a complete and utter mess, but instead he was well-groomed; his hair recently combed, his skin perfectly clean, and even his clothes were rather swarthy.
Cameron scanned his appearance carefully and detected a noticeable difference in his overall demeanour. He seemed to be emanating a new-found confidence, and his choice in clothes differed to the carefree attire he usually wore. John had decided to cast aside his tatty jeans in favour of a black pair of higher quality. He wore a belt around his waist that had a chrome buckle, noticeable but not distractingly so. He had also adopted a dark short-sleeved shirt, which was open to reveal the black t-shirt he wore underneath. His trainers were also notably different and new. Where he had acquired this new attire, Cameron could only guess.
"What? I got something stuck on my face?"
Sarah snapped out of her momentary thought safari and glanced at Cameron, who was regarding John shamelessly, her mouth open and her eyes wider than normal. Sarah stepped in her line of sight and rounded on her son, unaware that Cameron was standing on tip-toe to see over her shoulder.
"So you finally stopped sulking and decided to emerge. It's about time, don't you think? I was starting to think you'd died up there."
John smirked sardonically and pushed himself off the frame, crossing his arms as he approached his mother, his eyes flickering to Cameron as she looked at him in wonder.
"You, go upstairs and put on something elegant."
Sarah frowned at her son and Cameron stepped around her with a confused expression.
"Why?"
John smiled again and looked her up and down before answering.
"Because I told you to."
Cameron tilted her head curiously for a second before slowly striding past, keeping her eyes on him as she approached the stairs and finally broke sight of him as she ascended. John watched her leave for a moment before brushing past Sarah and dropping onto the couch with a lazy sigh. Sarah crossed her arms and glared down at him, baffled by his sudden and apparent change in behaviour.
"You mind telling me why you just sent Cameron for a change of clothes?"
John stretched his arms out and placed them behind his head, that wily grin still on his face.
"I sent her to get changed because I'm going for a night out."
"Really? At this hour?"
"I'm not twelve, Mom; I can venture out of the house and go out for a good time now and then."
Timmy skulked back into the room and hopped onto the couch, intrigued by a cologne that Sarah had yet to notice, and sniffed curiously at John's shirt. He stroked the cat behind his ears and paid no more attention to Sarah, who continued to eye John closely.
"Alright, but why take Cameron along?"
"You're always telling me to be on guard. Who better to watch my back than her?"
Sarah shook her head; the question she wanted answered burning its way through her throat.
"What's gotten into you, John? Four days locked inside your room, refusing to speak with any of us, and then all of a sudden you're out and about as if nothing has happened… Cameron told me that you two had a 'falling out', that she did something to you."
John kept his eyes on the cat, rebuffing his mother's attention as he tickled Timmy's stomach.
"Not really interested in talking about it, Mom. Just know that I needed some time to myself; to think things over."
"What things?"
"Everything… and nothing, just leave it be, okay?"
John finally looked up into her green eyes, the same shade as his, he realised.
"I don't need a 'talking to'; and I don't need your coddling. I'm fine."
John's words carried a finality to them that choked all other queries in Sarah's mind. He'd effectively closed himself to her and she knew that nothing she said now would make him open up any time soon, so she simply decided to let him be. But as she approached the stairs, one last question forced itself past her lips.
"What is going on between you and Cameron?"
This time John did acknowledge her presence and looked over the back of the couch at her, his face as blank as the machine's.
"Nothing that you need worry about, Mom; I'm not stupid, you know."
Sarah's last thought before starting the climb was: You could've fooled me.
Though he couldn't read minds, John guessed as much from his mother and knew that he couldn't hide his predicament from her for much longer. She would discover his secret eventually, and nothing he could do would stop that. But he'd made his choice; he'd spent four days deciding on how best to handle his torment. A plan was ready and waiting, all it required was the subject in question, who appeared at his side moments later.
Cameron was wearing a purple top that glimmered at the slightest movement. She had chosen her silky dark skirt to accompany the top and was wearing a pair of small-heeled shoes. John also noticed that she had indulged in make-up, this being the first time since the move. Her eyelids carried a subtle silvery sheen that served only to bring out the brown in her eyes, and she had combed her hair to perfection; every strand identical to the other.
John took in the sight with a slow sigh, his eyes lingering on her slender legs and moving up to her exposed shoulders and petite arms, eventually settling on her face and her glossy lips. He stood up and gave her a sly smile, receiving a bemused look of misunderstanding in return. John always found her confusion to be cute, and right now she was just adorable as she eyed him closely, waiting for him to explain his intentions in further detail.
"We're going out, just you and me."
"Going out where?"
"Somewhere in the city, haven't decided where yet. I'll figure that out on the way there."
John held out his hand and she took it in hers, only hesitating for a second. John led her to the front door and then to the car, opening the passenger door for her, confusing Cameron further. He then hopped behind the wheel and started up the engine, pulling away from the house with as much speed as he could manage. The road was bumpy at the best of times, but at their current speed, the whole car was in a state of constant vibration until they joined onto the main road.
Cameron looked out of the window, counting the number of white lines that shot past whilst her thoughts drifted to John and whatever he had planned for their "night out". She couldn't quite figure out what he was hoping to achieve with this, but something about the way his behaviour had changed… it seemed somehow familiar, but she couldn't understand the how's and why's. She glanced at him, catching his eye and receiving another sly smile. Yes, she determined, very irregular.
"Are you testing me?"
John frowned slightly and gave her a brief look, surprised at her perception, which was not at all off the mark. In truth, he was testing her, but not for the reasons that she might expect. He wasn't interested in her infiltration abilities or social blending skill; he just wanted to put her in a situation where she would be forced to expose her true self. He needed to know whether she was just a machine, or if whatever she deleted had survived the purging process. There was something special about her, something unique that she was keeping from him.
And he was determined to discover it.
--
Santa Monica (Entertainment District)
From the shadows of a nearby alley, Jason watched his prey with a small smile of satisfaction; the tracer had worked. Though he had been confident in his ability to kill John during his last attempt, Jason was not foolish enough to ignore the basic tenants of his training: always have a back up plan. As John and Derek entered the old gallery, Jason had snuck around them and planted a discreet tracking device on the underside of their car.
Linked to his newly repaired and upgraded neural net, Jason had followed the car to Santa Monica, and was more than a little surprised when the signal stopped moving outside a cinema. He narrowed his eyes at the couple, zooming in on them both, and took note of their fancy attire. John opened the door for Cameron and offered her his hand, helping her out of the car as if she were a normal girl. Jason studied John closely, detecting the boy's charisma, but also sensed a slight awkwardness in his applications. Was he trying to impress?
Jason fine-tuned his ears, cutting out all of the background noise and focusing on John's voice as he ordered and paid for two tickets. With both having gone inside, Jason crept out of the shadows and purposely elbowed a pedestrian. The man stopped in his tracks and squared up at Jason threateningly, grabbing the front of his jacket with both hands.
"You got a problem, boy?"
Jason just smiled and casually hurled the man into the alley, following up with a kick to the head, rendering him unconscious before stuffing him into a nearby dumpster. Jason flexed his fingers, that metallic clicking accompanying the action before sending a command to the poly-alloy, instructing it to take the shape and form of the unconscious individual. Jason's clothes turned to silver chrome as the alloy crawled up his neck and covered his entire head. Once his whole anatomy was enclosed, the metal took its shape, replicating the colour and texture of the man.
Jason examined his new face in a puddle on the floor, satisfied with the disguise he'd chosen. With one last glance at the dumpster, Jason set off with a smug smile and approached the lady at the counter, purchasing a single ticket to the same movie that John and Cameron were viewing. The screen wasn't hard to find; down corridor B and second on the right. Jason entered the gloomy space, filled with dozens of rows of chairs, each one identical and marked with a number.
Scanning the place row by row, Jason spotted the couple sat halfway up and centre, in aisle E. He made his way up the steps, careful not to appear conspicuous in case Cameron registered him as a threat. Jason went a little further up and proceeded down aisle H, taking a similar position in the middle. He sat down and regarded them closely for a minute before reaching into his jacket and grasping the gun tightly. But then he heard Cameron ask John a question, and despite himself, Jason paused to listen.
"I don't understand why you brought me here. Surely a more public and social location would be better."
"Here's assuming that's why I brought you in the first place. I'm not here to see you act human, Cameron."
Jason leaned a little closer, vaguely aware of the dimming lights as the movie started up.
"But I thought… Why else would we come here?"
"Just… watch the movie, eat the popcorn, and enjoy yourself, okay?"
"Enjoy myself?"
"Yes, you know what that means, right?"
A man in the row directly in front of Jason suddenly leapt to his feet, his phone pressed to his ear as he bolted down the steps, yelling incoherently about "breaking waters". Jason returned his attention to John and Cameron, absent-mindedly claiming the man's uneaten popcorn.
"-just a machine, I have never enjoyed anything before."
"You're more than that, remember. Just sit back and watch the film, then when it's finished you can tell me how you felt about it."
Jason could see Cameron open her mouth to reply, but John countered by grabbing a clump of popcorn and corking her with it, forcing her to chew the food with an expression of mild annoyance. The movie started, flooding the room with bright light and loud music, presenting the perfect moment to shoot John in the back of the head. But Jason felt compelled to wait, the sight of John and Cameron behaving like a quarrelling couple proving too intriguing to pass up. Assuring himself that he'd deal with it later, Jason leaned back into the chair and sampled the so-called "popcorn", finding it to be surprisingly likeable. There seems to be a lot of surprises tonight, he mused.
--
John felt like his chest might burst any second and had to cover his mouth to hide the beaming smile that threatened to split his face in half. He took a moment to try and control him self before glancing at her again, but it made little difference, as the sight of her sitting forward in her seat with wide eyes was just too hilarious to oppose. The movie was halfway through and he'd already seen enough from Cameron to know for sure that she was not all she claimed to be. She was so much more.
Cameron was, at first, unimpressed with the film he'd chosen, the ten to twenty minute premise failing to engage her interest. But when the explosions and action began, Cameron had tilted her head to one side and remained glued to the screen. Forty minutes in and the cacophony of violence and sheer destruction had her hooked, he'd even tried getting her attention a few times, but she either hadn't heard him over the explosions or was purposely ignoring him. He hoped for the latter.
The film he'd chosen was centred on a small group of soldiers trapped in a war-torn world where technology had become their undoing. John was fully aware of the irony of his choice, and as much as this depiction disturbed him, John knew it was worth it just to see some kind of reaction from Cameron. The soldiers strafed an attacking tank and grouped together behind a crashed helicopter, the squad leader giving instructions to the others on how to take out the tank.
John watched Cameron closely, his heart skipping a beat when she mimed the words of the youngest soldier: "I'm not leaving you!"
She leaned back in her seat, her lip giving a tiny quiver as the soldier was subsequently shot to pieces whilst defending his captain. John's eyes darted from the screen to her face, back and forth, checking for any other reactions. But she remained less engaged after the soldier's death and the last forty minutes passed without any kind of reaction from her, she remained stoic and he spotted her eyes wandering on occasion, and he wondered whether she was bored or in deep thought.
As the credits rolled and the overhead lights came back on, John reached over for the popcorn, finding that Cameron had hardly touched any of it, which came as little surprise. The mass of viewers slowly made their way down the steps and out of the room, but John and Cameron remained behind. John watched them go, spotting a bald guy in particular who gave him a direct look before leaving. John pushed this aside and turned to Cameron and was surprised to find her staring at him.
He momentarily became lost for words, but quickly regained his composure.
"So, err… What did you think?"
Cameron glanced at the screen briefly before answering.
"I counted six hundred and eighty-two parallels with the war humanity will have to face in the years to come. The character portrayals were accurate for the context and demeanour of desperate soldiers. The young one…"
She trailed off, looking away as she remembered the death of the loyal youth. John tapped on the arm rest, patiently awaiting her to continue.
"…he shared many qualities with someone I once knew."
John shifted in his seat and leaned closer to her, anxious for further elaboration.
"Who was that?"
Cameron looked him straight in the eye, and he saw for the first time, the tell-tale streak of a tear that had since dried on her cheek. Cameron got to her feet and stepped past him, their legs brushing together in the close quarters. John looked up at her, one hand on his jacket, the other still on the arm rest. Cameron stopped at the end of the row, waiting for him to follow suite. He remained seated for a long moment before getting to his feet and side-stepping through the row, his thoughts abuzz as to where to take her next as they left the screen and proceeded towards the car, unaware of the bald stranger following behind.
--
Calabasas Highlands (Connor Residence)
Sarah checked her watch for the sixteenth time since John and Cameron's departure, noting the time as 22:14pm, making them at least ten minutes overdue. Sarah let out a frustrated sigh; John knew the rules, he knew that they had a curfew for a good reason, yet still he ignored them. And what prompted him to decide to go on a "night out" anyway? Since when did he ever do that? And taking Cameron along, Sarah still wasn't sure what to make of that, especially seeing as they'd supposedly had a "falling out". Nothing made any sense.
The heavy thuds of a pair of boots alerted her to Derek's presence. He too, had been acting out of the ordinary, but she was less concerned about his welfare, so long as he doesn't suddenly go crazy and thinks he's back in the future. Sarah expected him to grab something from the fridge and leave, as was his custom nowadays, but he remained where he was instead.
"You're up later than usual."
An obvious remark, but that made the fact that he spoke all the more surprising to Sarah, who looked over her shoulder at him with a frown. Derek looked from her to the window she was standing by and took a step forward, peering around the kitchen for any signs of life.
"Doesn't the machine usually watch the house at night?"
"She does when she's here."
Derek's brow furrowed in confusion and he folded his arms.
"Where the hell is she then?"
"Out… with John."
Something discernable flickered across Derek's face and he stared at the floor with a dark look.
"Did he say where?"
"Not exactly, just into the city somewhere. I don't know where kids hang out these days."
Derek bit his lip and nodded to himself.
"I know where."
Without another word, Derek grabbed his jacket and made for the front door, stopping to collect the spare car keys.
"What are you gonna do?"
He looked back at Sarah, who was boring into him with her green eyes.
"Nothing, I'm just going to keep an eye on them, just in case."
Before she could say another word, Derek slipped through the door and jumped into the Dodge, pulling away from the house as fast as the vehicle would allow. The Dodge had better suspension than the small city car that John had appropriated, making the trip through the field less turbulent. Derek had no solid plan, just a simple need; he needed to keep John from doing something stupid with that machine.
There was no logical reason for him to suddenly come out of hiding and decide to take her for a "night out" on a whim. His nephew had a plan, and he feared what that might involve. Derek wasn't blind, he'd seen the way John looked at her, he could see what was happening, and he would be damned before he let his nephew try it on with a machine.
--
Santa Monica (Entertainment District)
Jason could've kicked himself for letting his curiosity get the better of him. John and Cameron disappeared inside the club, allowing Jason to creep out of another alley, his disguise having changed since the cinema. Kill Connor; that was the mission, yet he'd passed up the best opportunity in favour of watching Cameron watch the movie. Not that it wasn't interesting seeing her react the way she did, but it had cost him the element of anonymity.
Had he killed John in the dark surrounds of the movie theatre, he would've been able to escape with ease and avoided any public complications. Cameron might not have even spotted him, but now he would have to try something a little more open, then again; clubs were often crowded. Jason drew his attention from what may be to what is and approached the doorman, flashing a stolen 20 in his face as an unquestioned entry pass.
Once inside, Jason had to adjust his sight to compensate for the low-lit conditions, and upon spotting the mass of dancers coupled with the loud music, Jason couldn't help but let out an unheard exclamation of annoyance:
"Oh, c'mon! Give me a break you mean fu-"
--
John led Cameron over to a secluded and unoccupied table, the couch-like seats serving as a welcome change from the stiff chairs in the cinema, not that she minded either way. John sat back with a sigh of appreciation before taking a sip from his drink. Cameron sat somewhat awkwardly and didn't touch her drink, having failed to understand why he'd bought her one in the first place, especially after having reminded him that she wasn't thirsty.
Tonight had been the most erratic and otherwise senseless night of her entire existence. She had yet to figure out exactly what John was trying to achieve, and the more she tried to understand, the harder it became for her to fully comprehend. One moment she was convinced that he was trying to test her ability to appear human, and then the next; he'd want to see how she behaved as a machine. Everything was so confusing.
She looked over at him inquisitively, wondering whether or not he'd answer her if she asked him straight up. Cameron looked back at her drink and decided to go over what she'd seen so far: John was exposing her to social environments, presumably with the intent to test her infiltration abilities. This would make sense, except it didn't, because he had taken her to places that required little or no blending in whatsoever. So, she concluded, either he is being very inefficient or his intentions are far more ambiguous.
He had asked her to "enjoy" herself. Enjoyment was a human concept; something she possessed no knowledge of besides that which allows her to effectively mimic the associated emotions. She had never and will never enjoy anything, but even as she told herself this, Cameron unwontedly accessed her records, finding several instances of unexplained phenomena wherein she had felt something akin to enjoyment. Listening to Timmy purr as she tickled his stomach, the countless times she caught John looking at her and didn't know why, the rare moments when their skin brushed each others…
Small moments, few and far between, but no less significant; she liked to dance, she couldn't explain why, but she did. Cameron looked over at the dancing couples, failing to recognise the style they were practising, though the key theme appeared to be seduction. Then it all suddenly made sense, but at the same time it didn't. Turning to John, Cameron voiced the very question that her mind was trying to answer for herself.
"Are we on a date?"
John froze midway through taking a drink and choked on the stagnant cola. He fell into a coughing fit that lasted a good few seconds, during which Cameron gave him several hard slaps on the back. Once recovered, John cleared his throat and looked at her, his eyes streamed from the coughing.
"Uh, argh, umm, wh-… What?"
"Are we on a date?"
John considered the question carefully; by all accounts, that's what it seemed like, though in truth he had never thought of it like that. John had brought her out here for a specific purpose, not solely for fun, but he could see how easy it would be for an outsider to come to that conclusion. Were they on a date? Simply put: yes, they were, yet this was news to both of them.
"Err, yeah, I guess we are."
Cameron suddenly eased up, her shoulders relaxing and her face losing some of its seriousness, he could even swear he saw the faintest flicker of a smile.
"Oh, thank you for explaining."
And she was thankful, because now she had a handle on the situation, now she knew what to expect and what her place was in this whole scenario. She was John's date. Cameron, a machine once programmed to kill him, was on a social bonding event with John Connor. But then, she wondered, why would John take me out on a date when he should be taking a human girl instead? That thought troubled her, as his actions from the past few hours started to take focus, presenting her with one conclusion:
John thinks that I am a real girl.
Illogical, she told herself, mannerisms and feminine programming aside; I am a machine, a genderless entity by my very nature. Correction: I am not a product of nature; I am the creation of technology. A cybernetic organism built for the sole purpose of infiltration and assassination. This is my most basic function, my core directive; I am a Terminator, it is in my nature to hunt down and… Correction: I have no nature. Error… Terminology confliction; I have a nature in the sense of my purpose. But if I can have a nature, then what else ca-
"Hey, you alive in there or what?"
Cameron ceased her deathly stare at the drink and turned to John, who was watching her with mild scrutiny; has he never seen me lost to thought, she wondered. Cameron regarded him closely; once again going over everything she'd recorded and filed away for reference these past weeks, most specifically his moments of inexplicability. John was very upset by my deletion of the human template's memories, though he never divulged as to why, what had happened between myself and him that I cannot recall, she asked herself.
"Are you alright? Cameron?"
Records show nothing that explains his actions, the reasons behind all of this, why he was testing her like this. What is it all for? What is he after? Why won't he tell me? Her visual records failed at every turn, all memories of her and his interactions during the emergence was forever lost, and for a moment Cameron wondered if she would ever discover what happened. But then she was struck with a possible solution: Accessing sensor nodes… Search recent physical interactions of rare occurrence… Search complete: results show unusual mouth-to-mouth interactions within the past four weeks.
"Cameron? I'm talking to you!"
Analysing… interactions appear consistent with previously recorded contacts… Defining… Confirmed: action identified as a "Kiss"… Accessing… "Kiss": a form of physical contact involving the contact of two humans via the lips, one of many signs of romantic affection. Cameron placed two fingers on her lips, wonder and fascination coursing through her features, her eyes locked on John, but not for the purpose of seeing him.
John had kissed me. Or did I kiss him? Were we mutual in the act? Or was it one-sided? Why would he kiss me? Why would I kiss him? Cameron scoured her mind for answers, her sensor nodes informing her that each act was prolonged and that she gave no action to prevent them. She had allowed herself to be kissed, and may very well have kissed back, but with the little data she possessed, nothing was certain. And then, as if it were a carefully woven web, the strings and threads came into focus, showing her a highly complex pattern.
John was in love with her, and before she wiped her mind of prior humanity, apparently; she was in love with him.
So the only question that plagued her now that all others were silent was; did she love him still? Could she truly love him at all?
Love was another human concept and not one that any machine had experienced before, even Skynet was devoid of this emotion. Cameron carefully considered her thoughts on John, determining that her need to protect him was no longer justified by her programming as those directives were irreparably damaged in the car bomb so many months ago. It was by her own choice that she remained his protector. She could just as easily have killed him, or abandoned him, or destroyed herself. But she chose to protect him. She wanted to protect him.
Her entire life revolved around John Connor, whether she was programmed to preserve him or terminate him. He was her world, her purpose, her target. He was the centre of her attention and was all she thought about day by day. Keep John safe, eliminate all possible threats, and do not let him out of her sight. But her need to watch over him extended beyond the mission; many times she would stand at the end of his bed at night and watch him sleep for reasons she couldn't quite understand.
When he was sad, she tried to cheer him up. When he was angry, she tried to calm him down. When he was happy, she would feel content. When he smiled at her, she felt an unexplained tingling sensation. When he touched her, she warmed and recorded the feeling. No one affected her the way he did. Not Sarah, not Derek, not Marty, not even Timmy. Did she love John? She couldn't know, but she was determined to one day understand.
John stared right into those brown eyes of hers, trying in vain to see some glimpse of whatever was going on inside her artificial mind. It was a long time before she finally blinked, breaking the bridge between the green and brown of their eyes. Cameron lowered her hand and tilted her head slightly to one side, examining John with an expression unlike anything he had seen before. It was a complex mix of confusion, captivation, comprehension, calculation, and most unusually; adoration.
John suddenly felt very uncomfortable with the way she was looking at him and averted his gaze, shifting in his seat awkwardly. Cameron continued to stare at him for several agonising seconds before blinking once more and slipping back into her usual demeanour. Without warning, she stood up and strolled away from the table and into the masses of dancing couples. She stood amongst them for a moment, watching several in turn before falling into step and copying the girls' actions perfectly.
John watched, his jaw slowly dropping as she displayed her remarkable skill and beauty in the most angelic way possible. It was not long before a group of guys approached her, each one trying their utmost to gain her favour, but she turned her back on them all. But one wouldn't be deterred and kept getting in her space, causing the blood to rush into John's ears. With no thought of the consequences, or that the guy was a foot taller than him, John darted from his chair and rushed onto the floor, pushing the guy away from her.
"Hey! You startin' something, bro?"
The guy drew himself to full height, looking down at John as he were a small bug, ready to be squashed. John held his ground, however, and glared up at the aggressor.
"She's with me, you got that?"
The guy sneered at John and made to push him aside, but Cameron swept between them and skilfully shoved him away, causing the youth to fall hard on his backside. A gaggle of nearby girls cackled at the guy's misfortune, causing his face to redden with embarrassment, but he chose to salvage what was left of his dignity and leave without another word. Once he was out of sight, Cameron turned to John, a faint and slightly coy smile on her lips.
"Shouldn't I be protecting you?"
John scratched the back of his head awkwardly and gave her a self-conscious smile.
"Well, maybe I wasn't trying to protect you. Maybe I just wanted to kick his ass."
They stood awkwardly for a few moments as Cameron scanned a nearby couple, recording their embrace. She then closed the small gap between them and gracefully slid her arms around his neck, linking her hands behind him, mimicking a few of the surrounding couples. John hesitated for a moment before tentatively placing his hands on her hips, feeling her move slowly from side to side. He didn't know what to do next though, and racked his brains for an answer, coming across a faded memory that brought a smile to his face.
"What are you thinking about?"
Cameron was starting to sway more deliberately now, slowly developing a rhythm between them. John watched her movements beneath his hands and felt his entire body warm.
"We've done this before, you know, dancing. Do you remember?"
"No, I can't remember any of that. It's gone forever, John. All those memories I deleted; they can never be retrieved."
John looked down at the floor, that terrible truth hitting him hard again. Cameron tilted her head far to one side and leaned forward slightly, putting her self in the corner of his sight.
"I remember why I did it though."
John looked up and regarded her closely, the lump in his throat turning his voice hoarse.
"Why is that?"
Cameron gave him a small smile, her eyes glittering like stars.
"I did for you, John. I did it to protect you. I'd do anything to keep you safe."
John felt his eyes welling with tears and looked away, hoping she wouldn't notice, unaware that she already had. Cameron was utterly devoted to him. So much that she was willing to erase her own humanity for the sake of protecting him better. But her humanity, her love for him, it wasn't gone completely. He knew this without a doubt now, and was filled with new-found hope. It would only be a matter of time before she rediscovers her feelings for him. John placed a hand in her hair and stroked the side of her face affectionately before carefully drawing her close, a look of innocent anticipation on her beautiful features.
They were very close now, the inches of space between their lips gradually getting smaller as they moved with the music, lost in their own peaceful bubble. She was so close; he could feel her fabricated breath gently caressing his mouth as the intoxicating warmth of her body drew closer and closer, bridging the gap that had become so wide for so long.
--
Jason watched as Cameron snaked her arms around John's neck and started to move with the music, his hands resting on her hips. A small twinge of something inexplicable flashed through Jason's gut and his vision lost some of its focus as heat flared in his cheeks and ears. He moved as if in slow motion, like a panther on the prowl, drawing the pistol from his jacket pocket and sliding back the hammer. Jason closed out all background noise, allowing him to hear only the sound of John's breathing. He wanted to hear him die.
From within the crowded safety of the dancing masses, Jason took aim, everyone too engrossed in their own little worlds to notice the shining gleam of a fully loaded .45 Long-slide and the red laser dot that settled on the back of John's head. Everyone, except Cameron, who spotted the weapon mere seconds before her and John's lips met. Her eyes widened and she immediately spun John around as Jason squeezed the trigger, sending an incisive bullet straight into the side of Cameron's skull, stripping the flesh covering her CPU port.
In one perfectly smooth movement, Cameron forced John to the ground, shielding him with her body as she plucked the 9mm from within his jacket and brought it to bear on Jason. She fired once, twice, three times before Jason fell to the floor, apparently dead. A moment's silence, then total uproar as the crowd of patrons and employees swarmed towards the exits, stampeding each other in a desperate attempt to escape the scene.
Cameron slowly rose to her feet, John following suite. She kept a hand behind her, covering John's chest and keeping him safe behind her own body. Cameron scanned the assassin, detecting life signs, organic life signs. Jason twitched as the poly-alloy regenerated, sending the harmless bullets rolling across his chest and onto the floor. He rose to his feet, ordering the sheath to return to its default form and assuming his true face once again.
"It can't be!"
--
Derek looked from left to right, scanning the streets for any sign of the couple, spotting neither. He drove further down, passing several low-key clubs and cinemas, all of which John and Cameron might have entered and too many to search thoroughly. As he pulled a u-turn at the end of the street, however, Derek noticed several patrons flooding out of a club called Blue Faze and pulled up across the street, hearing the distinct sounds of gunfire. Retrieving his 9mm from the dashboard, Derek got out of the Dodge and prepared to enter the breach.
--
John stared wide-eyed and utterly dumbstruck as Jason smiled that familiar and narcissistic smile of his before quickly raising the Long-slide for another shot, but Cameron was faster and put four more bullets in him before he could squeeze off a single round. Jason once again dropped to the floor, but recovered much quicker this time, rising to his feet almost immediately. Before he could act, however, Cameron charged Jason and delivered a full palm strike to his chest, sending the Infiltrator hurtling across the room and over the bar.
She then grabbed John and dragged him to the nearby fire exit. Knowing what she was about to do, John fought against her and placed a foot against the wall to brace himself as she tried to force him through the door.
"No! I'm not leaving you, Cam! We can stop him together, you and me, c'mon! Let go!"
Cameron glanced over at the bar, detecting noises of broken glass over the screams and multiple foot beats; Jason was still conscious and she needed to get John to safety now. She quickly ran through a list of options, choosing the most effective, and pulled John into a deep and passionate kiss. Despite the danger and the impending chaos, John couldn't help but let him self be consumed by the feel of her lips on his and held her close, responding with equal fervour.
Cameron felt him relax into her touch and gently directed him in front of the door before suddenly pulling away and shoving him through the fire exit. He collided with the railing outside and let out a surprised gasp of pain and shock, falling to his knees.
"NO!"
He tried to scramble back to the door but it was too late; Cameron had already sealed it shut, cutting herself off from him completely. John defiantly bashed against the door, desperately trying to get back to her, knowing that he couldn't just leave her to face that psychopath alone. He kicked and charged and punched, but made little progress, each moment that passed only feeding his fears.
"John?"
John spun around to see Derek running down the alley, gun in hand, and let out an internal sigh of relief.
"Derek! Thank God. Look, we need to get back inside. You have to help me get inside."
"What? Why? What's happening in there? I heard gunshots and then all these people came rushing out-"
"It's Jason! He's alive and he's in there with Cameron! We have to get in there, c'mon."
Derek took a moment to digest what he was hearing; Jason alive? Impossible, but if he was and the machine was trapped inside with him…
"No, John. C'mon, we gotta go while we have the chance."
John kicked the door again and gave out a cry of frustration as a sharp pain flashed through his foot. His anguish intensified as the sound of gunfire came from behind the door.
"Cameron! Cam… Derek, please! Help me!"
Derek looked from the door to John and back again, knowing that there was no way he'd allow his nephew to risk his life for a piece of metal.
"John, we can't, we have to go before the cops show up!"
John thrust his finger at Derek, his eyes burning with rage and frustration.
"NO! I TOLD YOU, WE CAN'T LEAVE HER TO FIGHT ALONE!"
"John, she's a machine, he's flesh and bone. She can handle herself, let's go!"
John roared in distress as a loud crashing bellowed from within the club.
"CAMERON! CAMERON! CAM… DEREK HE-"
Seeing no other alternative, Derek delivered a single punch to the side of John's face, knocking him out cold. He caught the boy as he slumped to the floor and shifted him onto his shoulder, surprised at how heavy he was. Once John was secure, Derek quickly made his way back down the alley and crossed the street to his Dodge, depositing the unconscious youth in the passenger seat before jumping behind the wheel and speeding off. He glanced at John, seeing a small bruise taking shape on his face, and let out a sigh.
"Sarah's gonna kill me."
To be continued…
