Alex spent the next few minutes covering the leftover pizza with cling wrap before he put it into the fridge, closing the fridge door once he was done. Turning around he grinned at Kiara who was now dozing on the couch with the same blue blanket he'd grabbed before keeping her warm.
Once he reached her side he gazed down at her his lips curling into a smile when she sighed, not even stirring when he reached down to stroke her hair.
I'm grateful to CyberLife for bringing me to you, Kiara. I dread to think where I would ended up if you hadn't won that competition. Plus you managed to leave the house because of me though that may have been due to our argument.
"Alex?" I whispered, opening my eyes to find him standing over me and he smiled at me lightly tousling my hair. "I fell asleep again." I mumbled as I slowly sat and he nodded, sitting beside me once I made room.
"Yes but you're tired. It's getting late so maybe you should be getting to bed." Alex suggested and I nodded, yawning before I climbed from the couch. "I'll walk you there and then I probably should get some rest too."
"But I thought you don't actually sleep." I pointed out and he chuckled as he wrapped an arm around my shoulders to support me. "Oh yeah. Sleep-mode right."
"Yes but it is almost like sleep." Alex agreed as he walked me back to my room. Once I was lying under the blankets he leant in to kiss my forehead and I grinned at him, resting my head on the pillow before I closed my eyes.
Once Alex could hear my light breathing he scanned to check if I was really asleep before he left the room heading to his own not to far from mine. Though as he lay in bed he found himself thinking back to the last few hours and that stopped him from switching into sleep-mode.
I should be happy that Kiara's better and that she doesn't care that I am no longer capable of taking orders. But I am still worried that I may not be able to control my new emotions. What if I hurt her?
"Alex, are you still awake?" He heard a voice call out and Alex lifted his head from the pillow to see me standing in the doorway. "Sorry if I woke up."
"I wasn't actually sleeping just thinking. Is something wrong?" He asked me as I apporached the bed and once I sat he noticed me chewing my lip. "You can tell me anything."
"I couldn't sleep so would it be alright if I stayed with you? Just for tonight?" I asked, rubbing at my eyes and he gave me a nod. With a tired grin I hurried over and after he lifted the blanket up I climbed into bed beside him, Alex pulling the blanket over us. "Thank you."
"You don't need to thank me, Kiara. I couldn't sleep without you beside me anyway." Alex admitted and I giggled at the faint blue blush that spread across his cheeks. "Just get some sleep." He said and I smiled, resting my forehead against his as I closed my eyes.
Sometime during the night Alex stirred awake to find Kiara facing away from him, a contented sigh escaping her lips when he drapped an arm over her back. Seeing the peaceful smile on her face he smiled to himself before he settled back, closing his eyes as he went back into sleep mode again.
Bright sunlight was already streaming through the crack in the curtains when Alex opened his eyes to find Kiara still fast asleep beside him and he fought the urge to laugh, afraid that it would wake her, when he caught her drooling on her pillow.
Sitting he watched her for a few minutes finding small things about her that made him smile; the way she snuggled against him, the way her hair stuck out when she moved around while she slept. Also her kindness at treating him like a human when he was cleary created just to serve her.
Kiara treats me like her best friend and not what CyberLife wanted me to be; just a helper and nothing beyond that. If they could see me now, a deviant no less.
"Hmm...Alex?" Kiara whispered and he smiled, leaning down to gently kiss her forehead. Feeling his lips on my forehead I cracked open an eye to find him leaning over me a faint smile on his face. A little groggy I smiled back and he chuckled as I sat, rubbing at my eyes in an effort to wake myself up. "What time is it?" I asked and he glanced over at the clock before he answered.
"Ten o'clock. You look pretty tired still though." He pointed out, pressing an open palm against my forehead. "Hmm...you feel a little warm. Are you feeling okay?" He asked and I opened my mouth to answer only to feel my stomach turn and I clamped a hand over my mouth, turning around before I stumbled from the bed nearly tripping over the blanket when it slid half-off the bed.
Concerned, Alex quickly left the bed hurrying after me as I dashed in the direction of the bathroom. He made it in time to see me hunched over the toliet and he immediately cringed at the sounds of vomiting though after a pause I felt a hand on my shoulder, giving it a squeeze before he held back my hair. As soon as the urge to vomit passed I weakly raised my head, wiping at my lips with one hand as I gripped the toliet bowl in case I started to feel nauseous again.
"Kiara, what happened?" Alex asked and I shivered wiping at tear-streaked eyes before I coughed. "No, I know what happened. Let me help you up." He offered, wrapping an arm around my shoulders to steady me before he helped me to my feet. I stumbled as soon as my feet touched the floor and he sighed carrying me towards the bath. Carefully setting me down on the edge he grabbed the washcloth from the shower before he moved to the sink and after rinsing the cloth he returned to my side.
Kneeling at my side, Alex gently wiped my face and mouth and I shivered my stomach in knots. "Thanks, Alex. Not sure why I felt so sick." I mumbled and he nodded, returning to the sink to rinse off the cloth. In the few minutes he left my side I slid onto the floor and he turned to find me leaning against the bath, my eyes half-closed and he blinked. "Just...a little dizzy." I muttered as he quickly turned the water off.
"Come on. I'll take you back to bed and you can get some sleep. You do have a fever so maybe you have food poisoning." Alex suggested and I briefly nodded, letting him help me up. When I stumbled barely able to get my feet to work he sighed and I gave a weak groan as he lifted me into his arms.
I settled against his chest with a sigh and by the time we reached the bedroom I was so exhausted I was barely even aware that he'd tucked me into his bed until he pulled the blanket over me. "Just sleep, okay? I'll get some water and something to settle your stomach." Alex whispered and I nodded, closing my eyes as he moved towards the bedroom door.
Returning a few minutes later with a glass and a box of medication he'd checked were for upset stomach, Alex found me breathing a little uneven and he frowned until I cracked open my eyes. "Hey...my stomach kind of hurts." I groaned as he crossed the room so he could sit beside me on the bed.
"Probably because you were being sick before. Here, take these. It'll help that upset stomach you have." Alex told me and I cringed, sitting before I reached for the tablets sitting in his outstretched hand. Swallowing them I took the glass offered before I drank most of it handing it back as I yawned. "Just get some rest."
"Good...idea." I mumbled as Alex set down the glass on the table. Lifting up the blnaket he gave me a grin when I slipped under the covers. "Feeling a little dizzy."
"That's the fever. Just get a few hours sleep." Alex told me as he covered me with every blanket on the bed. Resting my head on the nearest pillow I let out a breath my eyes closing to the sound of his humming. I barely felt the brief kiss against my forehead before I slipped into a doze and Alex just smiled at me, gently tousing my hair before he left the bedroom.
While Kiara slept Alex busied himself around the house, taking out the trash and doing some light cleaning. He had only been cleaning for just over an hour when he heard Kiara groaning loudly from the bedroom and after setting down the empty trash can he quickly made his way towards his room his LED flashing yellow as he reached the open doorway to find Kiara curled up where he had left her.
A little confused he approached the bed and she groaned again, her eyes shut but with a strange and almost content smile on her face. Shaking his head Alex reached the edge of the bed closest to him and after a long look he carefully sat reaching towards her he set his hand down on her forehead.
"Hmm...fever's still there though it has gone down a degree." Alex muttered to himself and that's when Kiara sighed again, moving her body unconsciously close to his. "Kiara?" He whispered unable to respond or even get his mind to offer up a response when she nuzzled against his chest one of her arms curling around his.
It took him a few minutes than he cared to admit before Alex managed to escape from Kiara's grasp though that was mostly due to him not wanting to wake Kiara, especially now that she was suffering from a mild case of food poisoning.
Returning to the kitchen Alex resumed cleaning and once that was finished he started to check on their food supply. It wasn't until he checked the sauce that he used for the pizza that he grimaced having been so focused on making something Kiara would enjoy that he hadn't taken enough time to check the use-by date.
Sighing to himself he grabbed the offending sauce packet, dropping it into the empty trashcan without a second thought. Checking the rest of the food he'd brought back Alex found that aside from the tomato sauce everything else was fresh and safe to eat. Eventually he headed back to the bedroom to find Kiara sleeping soundly and after a check of her forehead he found that her fever had all but gone leaving the android with a tiny smile on his face.