Disclaimer: I do not own 'The Zeta Project'. I do not own any of its characters. It's just a fanfic.

I own George's character.

As English isn't my native language, I want to thank Antje and Wtchcool for their help on this chapter.

The Right Thing

by Iglika

Chapter 6

Zee's point of view

We had stopped aside of the magway again, kissing… and… It wasn't like only Ro wanted to convince herself that we could kiss. I needed to prove it to myself as well, over and over again.

The tender warmth of her lips…y-y-yes…the tender warmth wet of her lips, I was able to feel it, that was the last upgrade Dr. Selig had put in my new body, the ability to feel, but…

Did I have the right to steal her like that today?

Ro…

I loved her. I…I held her in my arms now. I held a bride in my arms.

Was it possible for Ro to be my wife for real?

We kept kissing and it was unbelievable, but I was still confused, perplexed and so nervous, I couldn't overcome myself and I still felt guilty. Did I have the right to steal her like that today? Was it fair toward George?

Of course not!

Probably he was a good man, no, he was a good man as soon as he loved Ro. As soon as she had promised to marry him, she had estimated that he was a good person. And I was sure that all he had wanted was to make her happy. I hated to hurt people even if it wasn't physically, but with words or with my actions...

I had stolen Ro because of her. She wasn't happy. She didn't want this marriage. I had seen her face beneath the wedding veil. She didn't love George. She loved me. And all I wanted to do was to make her happy…

Ro waved a hand, smiling, to the next car, which greeted us as several others – actually almost without a break. She didn't want me to make a hologram over her in order to hide her white, long wedding gown while we walked down on the streets or even here, aside the magway…

Dressed in the real black clothes of my official suit, I looked like a real bridegroom beside her, but for a just married couple to walk like that on the streets and aside the magway was absolutely unusual one way or another.

I held Ro by the hand, she was so happy, so smiling, as I had never seen her before. I wanted to forget everything aside from us – only us - as she had done, but…I couldn't.

She wanted us to leave our car and merely walk, trying to comfort me by listing all the crazy ways she knew for a couple to get married or begin a honeymoon: wedding on a plane and then jumping with parachutes; wedding underwater using aqualungs, honeymoon on a boat; honeymoon in a space shuttle, in a cave, in the jungle, on a snowy mountain; or honeymoon riding horses or bicycles. . . .Why not just walk on foot then!

It was funny that Ro listed things like that, as it was my usual way of speaking. Yes, I knew about all those weird ways for marriages and honeymoons, I had records for even more in my memory, but that didn't matter…well, yes, why not walk on foot, but…we…we weren't married…

I didn't voice my worries though, I kept holding Ro by the hand; I kept feeling the new thrill, while I kissed her each time when she stopped, looking at me and expected me to do this. I looked at her while we walked aside the road, while she smiled at me or waved to the cars, which sent regards to us, as we looked like a just married couple. The people of those passing cars didn't know who I really was; they didn't know we weren't married at all.

I really had never seen Ro so happy, being with me. Yes, I had never seen her so happy. I always tried to please her and I knew I would keep doing that, but now it was more. If my love was really the reason for her to be so happy, I would do anything to keep surrounding her with my love…

Almost had I begun to sound like a broken record, repeating, over and over again, how much I loved her, but that was the truth. Knowing that she loved me too, knowing that she had wanted me to steal her from that ceremony, I could feel, deep inside of me, that I was as happy as she was.

Then why couldn't I allow myself to express that happiness?

Why did I want, over and over again, to convince myself that I was the one she really needed? Why did I want so badly to assure myself that she would never regret she had chosen me? And why did I try to hide my fears behind my usual wish to protect her?

I asked Ro if she was tired of walking so long. She looked at me, smirking. 'Just a little longer, Zee! Isn't it beautiful? That blue sky above us, that plain around us, and those cars greeting us! You have a cell-phone, you can call a taxi and we'll go to some town, sit in some restaurant, stay in some hotel. You know how to take care of me. Stop thinking of this, okay? Oh, you can remove the high heels of my shoes. It would be easier for me to walk without them.'

Then I took her hand again and we had kept walking…

Ro knew I wasn't anxious because we had no defined aim or direction. That wasn't something new for us at all. I could take care of her, that wasn't the reason of my troubled mind as well and she knew it.

She just…she didn't want us to talk about my worries. It was more like she wanted me to be the one who had to voice them first. She didn't want to lead me forward, showing me what I had to do. She was sure I was able to share my troubles with her without waiting for her to urge me.

I had to believe that her smiling eyes and her tender hand, trustfully snuggled in my hand, was enough proof that I was the one she loved and the only one she needed. Although this was reassuring my concern remained. I hated myself for being so insecure...

Obviously the best I could do right now was talk.

I wouldn't be able to get rid of my confusion and guilt if I kept silent, so I said carefully, "Ro, what I did, stealing you like that from the wedding, was completely insane, wasn't it?"

"Yeah, definitely!" she answered glancing at me with a smirk, then she turned her gaze back at the plain around us. "That was really insane, Zee. You did something very insane. At last."

She was not just glad and happy, she was literally proud of me because of what I did! There was no doubt about it. But to be honest, these words of hers weren't exactly what I wanted to hear; although I knew her well enough to be sure she wouldn't say anything else.

Too many explanations about her feelings weren't something usual for her. More over right now, while we walked beside the magway. I didn't have to wait to hear: 'Zee, you are the one for me!'

Ro wouldn't say anything to me like that right now. She wanted me to rely on my inner sense that all this was exactly what she felt towards me. She wouldn't explain anything to me, because she really wanted to make me talk.

So I said even more insecurely, "But what about George, Ro? What I did wasn't fair toward him. I'm sure he loves you."

"But I don't love him. What you did was fair towards me. You fixed the mistake I made. It was all my fault, Zee. I didn't have to promise George I'd marry him. I'm happy with you, Zee. I wouldn't be happy with him and he wouldn't be happy with me as soon as he knew that I don't love him. What you did was the right thing. He will understand."

"But Ro…what about if I…if I will never be a real human-" I cut my words at her fast look. It wasn't like she was too angry with me, but she was angry one way or another. Just as I couldn't continue to keep my worries in silence, she couldn't continue to keep her thought in silence.

"First" she said, unusually harsh, "you never know what Dr. Selig or other scientists like him would invent after only a few years! And second," her voice became softer, "people don't have to know who you really are, Zee. We can travel all around the world. I want to see so many countries! We can make a long trip with your unlimited cred card! And that trip could take us a couple of years if we want it to, right?"

"Right, but…sooner or later…we'll come back…"

"Home" she emphasized.

"Y-y-yes, we'll come back… home" I repeated a little bit embarrassed.

"You have no idea how warm this word 'home' sounds to me as it's being said by you!" She smiled at me allowing for a moment all of her love to surround me gently, making me feel that thrill I had begun to sense every time I kissed her.

But it was just for a moment. She asked with her usual tone of voice, "So what about it?"

"I mean... what will we do if…if even after years I'll remain... just…as I am now…"

"You know perfectly well you're real enough. Anything else?"

"Yes" I nodded, but I silenced and I avoided her gaze. I had no strength to say, looking at her eyes, what worried me most, "Ro, I have no DNA and if I remain what I am now, you…you wouldn't be able…you wouldn't be able to have kids…because of me…"

She wasn't surprised by my words. She wasn't even angry with me this time. She answered me with such conviction as if she had thought about it a long time ago. I was sure she had thought about it, just like me, only, unlike me, obviously she had a solution.

"We can adopt kids, Zee. You're so kind with kids. You'll be a great father. I'm sure you will. There's no reason for you to worry about it."

"But that wouldn't be fair towards you, I mean…you're able to have kids and if you marry Geor-"

"Can you do me a favor?" she interrupted me.

I looked at her blankly.

"Don't offer me to marry George anymore or anybody else except you. Ever again. Okay? Look, Zee, some people just can't have kids, that happens. I've been thinking about me the same way. What would happen if I hadn't been able to have kids and you had been able? Would you leave me because of that? You wouldn't, right?"

"Of course I wouldn't leave you, but Ro-"

"Just think that way about all this, Zee. Please."

Her eyes glittered with tears she was unable to hide.

I hugged her around her shoulders, drawing her closer to me. She wrapped her arm around my waist in return and we kept walking in silence.

I didn't even notice a hover car, which had slowed beside us. The car stopped a few steps in front of us, blocking our way…

to be continued…

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