Reconnaissance

Cameron stood in the mall food court, coldly staring at John and Riley. The two were having far too much fun together. Riley leaned close to John and whispered something in his ear. He suddenly leaned back and began laughing hysterically.

Something nudged her side none too gently. She turned towards Sarah, who had finished with her order. "Pick up your own food, Tin Miss. I'm not a waitress anymore."

Cameron complied, but continued to watch John and Riley. The two had ordered from the same McDonald's as Sarah, but they were sitting much farther away. Sarah was normally against fast food, but she decided to treat herself for the day. It had been so long since she had a good, greasy burger.

"That meal is malnutritious," Cameron said. "It will go to Riley's hips. It will make her fat. She will gain weight and be undesirable."

"Hey!" Sarah said indignantly. "I'm eating the same thing!"

"You are well-built and in shape," Cameron said. "One lunch will not affect your overall health."

Derek's voice came over their earpieces. "Nice save, kiss-ass."

"Play nice, Derek," Sarah said. "Or I'm not bringing you anything."

While she ate, Cameron consulted her database. One of her files contained playbacks of the day's events. She decided to watch one out of what could be called boredom.

The family was gathered in the living room after John had alerted them about Riley. He claimed that something had felt off about her for the past few days. It was no secret he no longer desired her anymore and preferred to keep his distance, but she had gotten overly clingy. She was following him to his classes and he swore he saw her car outside the house more than once.

But he had caught something she said about "the future." She could have meant in innocently, but he needed to be sure. John swiped her phone during lunch and looked at her contacts. One of them, an unlisted number, contained detailed text messages about their dates and John's schedule.

"Could she be a gray?" John asked.

"I doubt it," Derek said. "She would have killed you by now."

"Well, she certainly seems to be reporting to someone," Sarah said. "And it isn't a number I know."

"If we had employed my solution from the start, we would not be here right now," Cameron said.

"For the last time, we are not terminating her!" John snapped.

Cameron inched back. John may have been acting nicer to her now that he wasn't with Riley, but he still had a temper.

"Well," Derek said, "do you still have her number John?"

"Yeah," John said.

"Then I suggest we play her game," Derek said. "Ask her out on a date. Your mother and I will tag along and look for anything suspicious."

"No!" Sarah said. "We're not using my son as bait!"

"You got a better plan?" Derek asked.

"What if a terminator comes along?" Sarah asked. "Or if he gets kidnapped?"

"I will come too," Cameron said. "I will watch for terminators and metal threats."

"Won't she stand out if she's with me?" John asked.

"We will watch from the sides," Sarah said. "And Derek will stay by the car in case someone comes late."

"Oh, come on!" Derek said. "Why do I have to miss out on the fun?"

The playback was interrupted by a vibrating motion. Someone was shaking Cameron. She turned to see Sarah glaring at her. "They're on the move! We need to go!"

Cameron sucked down the last of her drink before getting up to follow Sarah. "In approximately 30 minutes, we will need to stop by a restroom for the expulsion of my waste."

"Terminator or not, no guy wants to hear about a girl taking a shit," Derek said.

The day felt like it dragged on for both Cameron and Sarah. Riley dragged John everywhere around the mall. To jewelry stores, tattoo shops, and numerous clothing shops. One of them was a Victoria's Secret. If Sarah didn't know any better, she would've sworn that Cameron was about to crush the bench she was leaning on.

Finally, the two went to the mall's movie theater. Riley was extremely excited about a slasher horror film. It seemed odd to Cameron to be into fictional horror movies. Real life was scary enough, especially with the future to come. It was also strange to see teenagers bouncing around like children for a scary movie.

"She's going into the movies," Sarah said. "One of us is going to have to go in."

"It will better if I go in," Cameron said. "I have observed that teenagers prefer to see movies without adults present."

"I hate to admit it, but you've got a point," Sarah said. "Get a ticket and follow them."

Cameron got in line for her ticket while keeping an eye on her targets. They bought huge buckets of popcorn and the largest sodas Cameron had ever seen. Even the candy bars were super-sized. She seemed so obsessed with unhealthy food. Cameron concluded that even if Riley wasn't a spy. She would drive John to obesity or diabetes within a few short years. That alone made their relationship dangerous.

Cameron pretended to look at her phone, keeping it in front of her face to keep hidden from Riley. She sat behind them and scanned the room for exits and threats just before the movie started. It was excessively gory and violent by most film's standards. Blood shot out of people like fountains, which was scientifically inaccurate. The girls would scream and grab their boyfriends when it happened, prompting them to hold them and protect them. This worked on everyone except for John. He was too engrossed in the movie and seemed to be ignoring Riley.

Halfway through the film, Riley got up to use the bathroom. Something I Cameron's code told her to exchange seats. She rose up and moved down the row, right next to John. He seemed not to notice.

The killer leapt out of the screen, a move that Cameron realized was called a jump scare. A cheap, sloppy way of frightening people without using any effort. This actually caused John to jump for the first time. Cameron decided to comfort him. She slipped her arm over his head and on his shoulder, as many of the men did to their dates. He visibly stiffened at the touch. She decided to gently massage his shoulder with her hand. He smiled and closed his eyes, letting a small moan escape.

Taking it farther, Cameron slipped her other hand onto his thigh and began to massage it as well. Now John had closed his eyes and let his head slump to the side facing her. The theater felt so warm and the film's music was softer. The on-screen couple were kissing and the audience were copying their movements towards their dates. She had to keep up appearances to blend in.

Cameron leaned closer to John and kissed him on his lips. He did not pull back or open his eyes, but instead pressed his lips back against hers. His arm slid around her waist and pulled her closer. Copying his movements, Cameron closed her eyes as well. Everything was black, but there was no threat approaching. All she felt was him against her. John seemed to be opening his mouth, maybe for air or for something else.

"JOHN! WHAT THE HELL!"

John pulled himself out of Cameron grasp in shock. His mouth was still open, but no wards came out. Only a strangled gasp. Cameron turned to see Riley standing behind her, holding a second tub of popcorn.

"What are you doing kissing her?!" Riley screamed.

Cameron stood up and stared Riley. "I must leave. My 30 minutes have passed."

She pushed past her and walked to the bathroom, feeling the stares of the entire theater on her.

The car ride home was awkward, to say the least. Cameron was studying John's face while he refused to look his mom, uncle, or friend in the eye. Neither of them knew what had happened, but they caught the aftermath.

"Man, she was NOT happy," Derek said. "What did you do?"

"I don't know," John said. "It must have been something I said."

"Well, it couldn't have been that bad," Sarah said. "She said to apologize again the next time you went out. She obviously forgave you."

"Yeah," John said. "Maybe."

John quickly headed up to his room when they got home. He needed to get his homework done before Monday and he needed something to get his mind off the movie. He tried to close the door, but something held it open.

"What do you want, Cameron?" John asked.

Cameron pushed the door open. "Did you enjoy the movie?"

That was an odd question. "Kind of," John said. "I missed the ending over Riley's screaming. I can't believe we didn't get kicked out."

"I see," Cameron said. "Would you like to see it again?"

Now John was confused. "With you?"

"Yes," Cameron said. "It will be easier to watch you that way."

"Like you were watching me during the movie?" John asked.

Cameron looked away. Her data was telling her that the door was slightly unaligned at the hinges. She didn't understand why her CPU deemed this information necessary.

"Sure," John said. "Maybe tomorrow."

"Thank you," Cameron said. "And I am sorry for that. I don't know why I did it."

John smiled and shrugged. "Well, at least now, I don't have to feel guilty for liking it."