Now, Folks! Didn't I say that a lot can happen in two days? Don't worry... This is still 'Day Two', and I should be returning to the present tense real soon. But wouldn't you like to know what happened during those remaining hours before West made his big discovery?

Let's see...

Chapter Eight

"Bucky...? Bucky, are you alright?"

Bucky needed a moment to sink this all in. First, it turns out Zee has had a built-in conscience the entire time. Then, he develops the ability to feel. And finally, he was standing there taking off his shirt – a real shirt, not a holographic image – and saying that he's turning into a human.

"Zee... Are you sure about this?"

"Yes. My body has been changing ever since the Nosis exploded."

The Nosis? Oh, yeah... I remember hearing about that on the news. Dr. Selig was there, wasn't he? Did you finally get to talk to him?"

Zee's facial expressions did not go unnoticed as he answered, "Yes, and no. Ro and I were looking at a holographic image of my completion, when Dr. Selig entered the room. He didn't know who I really was, and yet he told us about the conscience module he secretly planted in me, because he had plans for me. But then everything exploded before I could tell him I am Zeta. And then, when his escape pod was shot down, I had lost hope. I even had nightmares about it. But Ro helped me through it, and thanks to her, Bennett has stopped chasing us. That was when I noticed that touching her gave me such a warm, soothing sensation. I like feeling her. She's so warm and soft."

A chill ran down Bucky's spine. "I gotta tell ya, Zee. It almost sounds as though you're in love with her."

"I am in love with her."

Bucky whispered a little too loudly, "I don't believe this."

"It's true, Bucky. I love Ro, and Ro loves me."

Bucky needed to take a deep breath. (This can't be happening!) "She...actually said that she loves you?"

"Yes."

This went against everything Bucky had ever learned about robots. To him, robots were nothing more than machines; toys to be played with. They should not be able to experience feelings and emotions. And then he remembered his first encounter with Zee. He used his inductance controller to control Zee's body, but he could not control Zee's way of thinking. What kind of machine begs and pleads not to make him do something he knows is wrong? And then there was Ro, a smart-aleck teenager who probably never finished high school. But then again, Bucky could not deny that she was able to outwit him many times. She did everything and anything to protect Zee...even if it meant calling him for help. It was no secret she didn't really like him, but he had the know-how to keep Zee in working order.

"Bucky... Bucky, the laptop!"

Bucky snapped back just in time to catch the laptop before it hit the floor. "Whoa! Thanks, Zee. I... think we better get started. Now, you said you can't turn off your hologram, right?"

"Right."

"In that case, we'll have to do the next best thing." Bucky placed his laptop on the bedside table and went to his backpack. He pulled out a pair of green-tinted sunglasses. "These will help me see through your hologram, so I can insert the wires correctly. Now, you lie down on the bed, and then we can get started."

Zee obeyed. He felt better having Bucky examine him that going to the NSA. He knows Bucky won't try to reprogram him, or shut him down. With that in mind, he allowed himself to relax.

Suddenly, he felt a huge jolt from the top of his head, shooting down his body. He stood up with a shudder. "What... What...was that?"

Bucky was just as startled. "I was trying to insert the probe wire through your hologram, and then the surge happened. You...felt that? What was it like?"

Zee massaged that part of his head where he first felt the jolt. "It felt... It... It hurt me, Bucky. That really hurt. But...that never happened before."

Bucky noticed the look of fear on Zee's face. He took of the shades and began to type on his laptop to produce an image of Zee's specs on the screen. He zoomed in on Zee's head, and finds a red dot among the labeled components he didn't notice before. "That red dot there... Is that Dr. Selig's conscience module?"

Zee emerged from the bed to look at the screen. "Yes. He said it was to make me rethink my programming, because he didn't like building weapons. He died thinking that it never activated."

Bucky turned to face Zee and said, "I don't know how else to say this, but that module may be doing more than that. I'm going to need to try again to make sure, but as far as I can tell, it looks as though the module is feeding off your emotions as it interfaces with your holomorphics, and that could be what's making your hologram more...solid."

"Ro did say that my body felt very solid last night."

Bucky did not want to know what Zee meant by that. "Okay... Let's try again. I'll try to be gentler this time."

IN THE MEANTIME, back at the restaurant...

Casey kept quiet as Ro tried desperately to dry her eyes as quietly as possible. He couldn't believe what he had just done. This was supposed to be nothing more than a simple lunch date with his long-lost sister. Instead, he lured her into a Spanish inquisition. And then he had to remind her about their grandfather, a man she has no memory of thanks to being tossed around from one foster place after another. He couldn't help but wonder how it must have been for her. She had no real stability until Zee came into her life. How could he take that from her?

How could he compete with that?

"Ro, I'm sorry that I upset you. I mean, I wanted to talk to you about it, but not here...not like this. It's just that... I had to get it off my chest. Please understand."

Ro finally managed to dry her eyes. "I do understand. To be honest, I was afraid how you'd react to us being together like that, so I didn't say anything." She felt more at ease as she went on about shopping for Zee. As Casey listened, he realized that Zee is more family to her that him, her own brother. But then again, Zee's been looking after her the whole time they were together. He remembered when they were taken away from their grandparents and separated. If he knew she was going to have it so bad, he would have tried harder to make sure they stayed together. But he was too young to have a say in the matter. He decided that he would try even harder to find their parents. This way, they could both find out what made them leave in the first place.

Then the waiter arrived, placed their orders on the table before them and quickly left the table.

They welcomed the food. The scent of cooked pasta covered with meatballs was the ideal aphrodisiac. Besides, a chance to actually sit and enjoy the food for more than five minutes was such a rare moment for Ro, having been on the run for over two years. As much as she loved Zee's company, it felt good to not be the only person at the table actually eating.

The remainder of the lunch date remained uneventful...except for Casey's curiosity for Ro's root beer-cherry-cola. After trying a sip of that, he vowed he'd never do it again.

Twenty minutes later, it was time for Casey to get back to work. They left the restaurant, hugged each other in a 'see-ya-later' kind of way, and headed off in different directions.

Ro decided to take the long way home. She needed time to think about everything. She can no longer deny that she's in love with Zee; they actually made love last night. The kissing, the caressing, even the climatic moment... Everything about him felt so real...and so warm. She picked up the pace a bit before anyone could see her blushing.

After ten minutes of walking, Ro found herself back in the shopping district near the apartment building. She was not really in the shopping mood, but she was still not quite ready to return to the apartment. So she simply walked about the stores, peeping through some of the windows. When she passed by a shoe store she and Zee were in earlier, she couldn't help but chuckle. Buying shoes for Zee was the hardest task to date. One would think that someone with no real toes would not have a problem with shoes. But not only was his hologram giving him surges as he squeezed his feet in the shoes, but he discovered that he could not tie shoelaces. Rather than risk embarrassment in front of the salesman, they settled for loafers similar to the shoes in his hologram image.

As she walked about, she had no idea she was being watched.

A while later, she felt better about herself and thought about going home when she noticed a bridal store just ahead of her. In its window, there were three mannequins wearing wedding gowns. The one in the middle, however, was the one that caught her attention. It wore a long, white gown with triangular elbow-length sleeves. Around the waist was a long, white sash. Ro had never seen a gothic-style dress like that. And Ro was a girl who was voted 'least likely to get married'. But, for some reason, she could picture herself walking down the aisle in that very dress. She could even imagine Zee in a tuxedo, looking ever so handsome, waiting to embrace her as she approached...

MEANWHILE, back at the apartment...

Bucky tried to make it as painless as possible for Zee, but the probe wires piercing through the hologram produced surges that were made Zee feel uncomfortable. But Zee knew this had to be done, so he remained on the bed and did his best to ignore the pain.

A few minutes later, Bucky said, "Okay, Zee. That should give me enough data. Now, let's remove the wires."

Zee felt an extra jolt with each probe wire being removed. Once the last of them was pulled out, Zee's hologram stabilized, and he was able to relax. "What happens now, Bucky?"

Bucky removes the disc from the laptop. "Now I go back to my place and analyze the data. But I'm sure that Selig's module has something to do with this. The NSA doesn't know about this, do they?"

"No. I'm afraid that if they find out, they won't let me stay with Ro anymore."

As Bucky gathered his things together he said, "Well, let's not get them involved...at least, not yet. I'll let my uncle have a look at this as well. He did some experiments with holograms not too long ago." Once his bag was all packed, he asked, "I'd better be going. Are you going to be okay?"

"Ro should be back soon. I'll just wait for her here."

"Okay. I'll call you later," Bucky said as he left the apartment.

After Zee locked the door behind Bucky, he returned to the bedroom, and sat on the chair next to the bed. He couldn't help but stare at the bed. Last night, he and Ro did something he never thought he could do before. He remembered being alone in the room when he turned off the TV and went to bed. The next thing he knew, he was having the dream again, with Ro approaching him in that beautiful white dress. He was able to feel her warm, soft body as he held her in his arms. And then, she kissed him. The warmth from her lips, it was so soothing. As they kissed, the cloudy mist enveloped them. This was when he felt their clothing disappear. He was able to feel her body, as well as feel her hands caressing his body. It was so wonderful. The mist became insignificant. He did not want to wake up; he did not want it to end.

But when he did wake up, she was gone. She had gone into the bathroom to take a shower. It felt cold without her.

He stood up from the chair and went into the bathroom. The first thing he noticed upon entering was the shower stall. He began to picture in his mind Ro under the shower head, the water cascading down her smooth body. The desire to hold her grew strong with every second. But then, he could see tears flowing down Ro's face. (Did I hurt her that badly last night? But she would have told me, wouldn't she?) He left the bathroom and looked out the bedroom window at the nearby buildings that make up the view. It wouldn't be the first time Ro has covered for his mistakes. If he really did hurt her last night, then he needed to make it up to her. He had not forgotten his promise.

He knew what he had to do.

He tucked his t-shirt under his grey trousers as best as he could, for wearing real clothes is still a new thing to him. And then he went through the difficult process of trying to remember which loafer is for which foot. He was rather relieved that Ro did not have him buy sneakers. He had great difficulty tying the laces. Finally, he donned his leather jacket and hurried out of the apartment, hoping to make it back before Ro returned from the restaurant.

A few minutes later, he was in the shopping district. He will never forget yesterday. Ro's dress was on display for the world to see. That image stayed with him as Ro took him back to the apartment. As he turned the corner and walked further down the street, he soon found the bridal shop. And the dress was still in the window.

There was no time to lose.

After carefully crossing the street, he entered the store.

Agent Jack was a man dedicated to his job, but he soon began to feel very bored with this assignment. Aside from buying clothes and having lunch with her brother, Ro Rowen had done nothing more than walk about. Only this is the first time she's been alone. There was no sign of her boyfriend, the robot. This was starting to become rather monotonous for the spy, who almost wished for something to happen, just so he'd have something new to report to the boss. And besides, his feet were starting to ache from all the walking.

A few minutes later, he would spot Ro walking past the bridal shop and staring at its window. Agent Jack thought he could use this chance to sit at a nearby bench, hoping to rest his feet for a bit. There's nothing suspicious about a man resting his feet on a bench. But for a girl like Ro Rowen to be staring at bridal gowns, however, was another matter. (After all the trouble she's caused, she's thinking about getting married?)

Five minutes later, Ro continued her walk down the street. It looked like she was heading for the park again. Agent Jack was just about to get up and follow her when he saw one of the gowns being removed from the display case. At first he thought nothing of it, but then he saw the robot leave the store holding a shopping bag. He must have entered the store earlier, before the Rowen girl came by. And it looked like he was headed back for the apartment building they were staying in.

Agent Jack shuddered at how two and two were adding up.

It was with a deep sense of dread that he reached for his cell-phone and re- dialed B.D. Commander's private line. Drops of sweat poured down his face with each ring. It turned out that B.D. Commander was still away from the office. Agent Jack decided that this report would have to wait until tomorrow...before his ever-so-understanding boss chews him up and spits him out. He began to appreciate the more monotonous moments of this assignment.

Zee was the first to return home, as he had hoped. He had purchased the gown. He was fortunate that Ro had given him his cred card after their shopping spree. Since he could no longer store it in his body like before, he kept it in the inner pocket of his leather jacket, which contained a zipper. Now all he had to do was store the dress in a safe place, until he found the right time to surprise her with it. He decided the best place to hide it for now is under their bed. He tucked it deep within the center area, just out of view. With the bed covers just touching the floor, it made an ideal hiding place.

"Zee? Bucky? I'm home."

Upon hearing Ro's voice, Zee made his way downstairs into the kitchen to meet her.

"Hello, Ro."

"Zee, there you are. Where's Bucky?"

"He left. He's gone to examine the data from my analysis. He said he'd check with his uncle about... Ro, are you okay?"

It would seem that the look on Ro's face was not the calm, happy expression that she had been practicing back in the park. (All that work for nothing.) She sighed and said, "Zee, we need to talk. We should go upstairs."

"Okay."

Ro was the first to enter the bedroom. As Zee closed the door behind them, Ro sat on the bed. Zee stood in front of her. Even though he was confident that nothing was going to happen to the package, since there was plenty of space under the mattress, he did not want her to find it at that moment.

Ro took another deep breath and said, "Zee, at the restaurant...Casey knows about last night. He heard the shower running, he heard you blaming yourself about what happened and he saw you heading for the kitchen naked. He thought that you must have raped me, and he wanted to talk about it. But don't worry... I explained everything to him. It was never your fault, it was mine."

"But, Ro... I thought I was dreaming when..."

"I kissed you while you were sleeping! When I came into the room and saw you there, I thought I could get away with stealing one little kiss. But then I felt the urge to kiss you again, and I couldn't stop after that. The next thing I know..." Ro could stand it no more. She collapsed on the bed and began to cry. "I'm so sorry... I can't believe I let it go that far."

Zee realized that Ro was crying not so much from any pain, but from guilt from losing control of her emotions. But Zee could no longer stand to see her upset like that, so he sat on the bed next to Ro and, with one hand, gently rubbed her upper back. "Ro, do you remember when we were in the Grandview Science Museum looking for Dr. Selig?"

Ro nodded her head, keeping her eyes buried in the pillow.

Zee continued to rub her back as he said, "When we were there, you told me that the past is past, and it's the now that counts. At first, I wasn't sure what that meant, but now I do. You didn't have it easy growing up. You were tossed around from one place to another, not having a home to call your own."

Ro could not deny that. That cold, hard fact has been a thorn in her side for so long.

Zee went on. "I didn't have a good start, either. The government created me to be nothing more than a killing machine. It seemed as though they didn't care who I destroyed as long as they get the results they want. That's how it was for every assignment. If not for Dr. Selig, I would still be doing that."

She was finally able to stop crying, but she made no attempt to move from her position on the bed. Zee's words, along with his gentle massaging, had a relaxing effect on her, and she didn't want him to stop...not just yet.

Zee continued speaking. "But it's like you said: the past is past. Those days are over now. You have your brother back, and I don't have to kill anymore. We can put what we went through behind us, and concentrate on the future...our future. Everything that happened last night happened because we love each other. There's no shame in that." Then he leaned over and whispered in Ro's ear, "And don't worry...you can steal as many kisses from me as you like. There's no shame in that, either."

(Say what?) As Ro turned her body to face him, he stole a kiss of his own...

Hours later, Casey came home. He loved being a text-writer, but never before was he so relieved to be out of the news building. After his lunch date with Ro, he returned to his desk expecting to be greeted by 'Old Man' Jensen. He can picture in his mind Jensen asking him how his sister is doing, if she enjoyed her lunch and just wondering if she would be interested in just a tiny, little interview. After all, it's not everyday a fugitive is taken off the Most Wanted List without an arrest being made. But this time, Jensen was nowhere to be seen. It was probably the most peaceful afternoons he's had since getting his sister back. (Could it be that he's given up? Has he finally decided to let it go...? Yeah, right!)

But he was not going to think about that now. He had something more important to work on: finding Mom and Dad for Ro. He almost tried to do some research at work, but decided against it. The risk of Jensen having someone hack into his system was just too great. It was better to do this in the peace and quiet of his apartment.

(Speaking of peace and quiet, where is everyone?)

As he headed up the stairs to Ro's bedroom, he heard a strange almost- purring sound. The last time he heard something like that... He very slowly, and very quietly, turned the doorknob.

Moving the door ever so slowly, he opened it wide enough to see the bed, with Zee and Ro cuddled together under the covers. Judging by the pile of clothes lying on the floor, it was easy to figure out what just happened here.

He made sure not to make a sound and he closed the door behind him, and went downstairs to the kitchen, where he would make himself a light dinner before going to his own room and work on finding Mom and Dad.

And he would pray that they'd be as accepting of Zee as he was.

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And that's what happened those two days before! Rest assured, Chapter Nine will return to the present tense. There is more to come, after all, so stay tuned!