"Remind me again. Why are the boys out here and the girls in there?" Derek questioned, as they waited in the car, while Sarah and Cameron went to make a deal for the Turk.
"I'm a girl too, remember" Kat pointed out, leaning forward in the backseat.
"I never noticed" John joked, as Kat slapped him round the back of the head.
"It's a good point though, I could have gone in" Kat stated, her arms resting on the backs of their seats.
"Too dangerous. They might need a quick getaway. Besides, one of the boys is still wanted for murder, and one of the girls is...harder than nuclear nails" John explained.
"And the other one's a cyborg" Derek joked, as John and Kat let out a laugh.
"Who knew being funny was in your skill set, Derek?" Kat egged him on, so close to him that he could feel her breath on his neck.
John could tell how uncomfortable Derek was at the closeness of Kat and realised that the problem could have been that he liked it too much. He refused to turn around to face her, and John could tell this was starting to irritate the younger girl.
"You wanna know why we're really here? Moore's law" John announced, wanting to break the tension in the car.
"Huh?" Derek frowned, as Kat went back to sitting in the backseat.
"Moore's law. The guy who founded Intel said that every two years, the number of transistors on a computer chip doubles. 30 years ago, it was an observation. Now it's a law. Tech industry spent billions doubling chip power" John went on.
"And?" Kat asked, confused at what he was getting at.
"And that's how we can go from a chess computer to the apocalypse in just four years. I learned that a lot can happen in four years" John sighed, leaning back against his chair.
"A lot can happen in four seconds. One minute, I'm in the yard with my brother, playing baseball, and the next, we look up, and the sky's on fire" Derek announced, surprising Kat.
Derek was always so closed off about his past. She couldn't help but wonder if he was trying to open up after what she had found out he had done. If he was trying to show her, he was still human.
"Judgment day…What'd you do?" John queried.
"The only thing to do: Took Kyle and went underground" Derek responded.
"What was he like?" John inquired, desperate for any information on his father.
"He was just a kid when it happened. Eight years old. I was 15. How do you tell an eight-year-old machines have taken over the world?" Derek asked, as Kat could swear, she saw the beginnings of tears in his eyes.
"How do you?" John inquired.
"You don't" Derek told him.
Derek watched Kat in the rear-view mirror and realised for the first time that she had been the same age as his brother when she found out about the machines. However, Pete hadn't sugar-coated it for her. She had been thrown into the life of war and death when she was just a child.
"You must have been the same age when Pete found you, weren't you?" John questioned, his thoughts paralleling Derek's.
"Yeah…" Kat trailed off, her arm up on the window of the car, her eyes not meeting his gaze.
"You must have been terrified" John suggested.
"I adapted" Kat shrugged.
"Just like that? With a click of your fingers?" Derek inquired, his curiosity getting the better of him.
Kat didn't reply this time, opting to gaze out of the window. This concerned John enough that he turned around, so he could face her properly.
"You never talk much about when you were younger" John pointed out.
"That's because there's not much to talk about. I went to school like everyone else, I just…got some training on the side" Kat replied.
"You never got to be a kid…because of me" John sighed, turning back around.
"Hey, I chose this life, okay? I could have left once Pete died. But I didn't. Because I believe in you, John…Besides, my life isn't important" Kat explained, as Derek scoffed.
Before he could say anything, the girls returned to the car with news. Sarkissian was willing to give them the Turk…for $500,000. Kat didn't like the sound of the meeting place, it seemed to out in the open. Almost like Sarkissian wanted them to get caught.
Later that day, Sarah, Derek and Kat were contemplating their next move when there was an urgent knock at the door. Sarah and Derek instantly pulled out their guns, making Kat feel somewhat defenceless. Sarah pulled the door open to find Charley standing there, much to everyone's relief.
"What are you doing here?" Sarah inquired.
"I need to talk to you" Charley stated, as Sarah went to slam the door in his face.
"Go home" She replied, but he raised his arm out to stop her.
Charley shared a quick glance with Kat, who could tell it was her cue to leave. She turned around to usher a reluctant Derek along, and went to reach for his hand to drag him away. She stopped herself at the last moment, the gesture feeling far too intimate. Instead she simply made a gesture for him to go, as they left the room.
"So, what was that about earlier?" Derek questioned, before they got far.
"What do you mean?" Kat frowned.
"My life isn't important, ring any bells?" Derek suggested, as Kat rolled her eyes.
"That's because it's not-" Kat tried to clarify, as Derek cut her off.
"Bullshit. Your life is just as important as anyone else's. More so" Derek told her.
"Really? Even compared to John Connor's?" Kat scoffed.
"…Yes" Derek replied, after a moment, shocking Kat.
"And why the hell is my life so important to you, Derek?" Kat snapped, a strange anger washing over her.
"Because it has to be to someone" Derek stated, as Kat's eyes widened at the meaning.
"…John and Sarah care about me. We're like family" Kat insisted.
"Yet they'd both throw you under the bus if it meant saving John" Derek pointed out.
"They wouldn't have to…because I'd do it myself" Kat replied.
Early the next morning, Cameron was inspecting their diamonds, to see if they had enough money to buy the Turk. However, Derek was making his opinion very clear, not liking the plan at all. Even though Kat was still upset after what he had said yesterday, she couldn't help but agree with him.
"We can't just hand over all our money! It's not even enough for the deal" Derek exclaimed.
"We'll negotiate" Cameron retorted.
"I don't think these are the type of guys who negotiate" Kat reasoned.
"Finally, the voice of reason!" Derek said, gesturing towards Kat.
"Look, we don't have a choice. And that's final" Sarah insisted, as Derek scoffed and left the room.
Kat was about to follow him when Sarah called her over towards the other side of the room.
"You really think this is a bad idea? Or is it just because Derek says it is?" Sarah queried, once John and Cameron were out of hearing range.
"I have my own mind, Sarah. I can come up with my own opinions" Kat rolled her eyes.
"You two seem to have got closer while I was gone" Sarah pointed out.
"He's John's Uncle, isn't it a good thing if we get along?" Kat stated.
"Maybe a little too well" Sarah suggested, as Kat scoffed.
"I'm going to school. Come on John, we don't want them to leave for the museum without us" Kat announced, picking up her bag, with John scrambling to keep up with her.
Author's Notes: I hope you all enjoyed this chapter! I really like writing this story but I'm desperate for some feedback now to motivate me along, so please leave a review?:)