Matchmaker

Okay, cheap shock humor is done. Now to put some actual effort into making you guys laugh!

John gripped the handle of his gun carefully. Hardly anyone ever rang their doorbell anymore. Why someone was doing so during the afternoon was beyond him. He looked behind to Cameron and Sarah, the latter giving him a careful nod.

John carefully opened the door a crack to a young man in a black jacket, a simple t-shirt, and jeans. He was blond and had a few scars on his face, but it was all too similar. John had seen it once before in a picture his mother had given him as a child.

"Hello," said the man. "Is this the Baum residence? A Miss Catherine Weaver told me to come here."

John could only mutter the first thing in his mind. "K-Kyle? Kyle Reese?"

Kyle stared at him. "You know my name? How? Have we met?"

John grabbed him and dragged him inside. He his dad was, in the flesh, for the first time in his life. He wanted to say something, anything to him. But he couldn't find the words to speak. His mouth hung open, making him look like an idiot.

"Holy shit! KYLE?!" Derek rushed into the living room and threw his arms around his brother.

"DEREK?" Kyle asked. "How are you here?!"

They broke apart to face each other. "I got sent back here, remember?" Derek said. "The General made me come here to watch over some resistance members."

"That impossible," Kyle said. "Isn't it 1984?"

"No," Derek said. "Why were you going there?"

"There was a terminator that was going to go back and kill Sarah Connor before the General was born," Kyle said. "He sent me back to save her and John."

"Uh, actually…" Derek pointed to the back of the room. Sarah was staring at them, just as shocked as John.

"Sarah Connor!" Kyle said. "It's an honor! I'm a big fan!"

Sarah took a step back in fear, shaking her head in disbelief. The word "no" kept being whispered several times until she turned around and ran for her room.

Kyle looked crestfallen. "What did I do?" He asked.

Derek clapped his brother on the back. "Grab a beer. I've got a long story to tell you."

…

After enduring his father acting like a rabid fanboy, offering to do his homework for him and drive him around the city like a chauffeur, John finally found a moment to sit down and process what was happening. Derek filled Kyle in on their adventures, including the fights with Cromartie and Jesse's attempted mutiny.

"Sorry about Jesse," Kyle said. "I remember you guys being close in the future. I never got to officially meet her; always wanted to."

"She hated you," Derek said bluntly. "Said you were 'too soft on metal.' She even blamed you for why the General sent so many reprogrammed terminators back."

"Yeesh," Kyle said. "What a bitch. Uh, sorry for the language sir!" He turned around to salute to John.

"I specifically asked you to stop doing that," John said.

"Right! Sorry, sir!" Kyle saluted again out of habit, but quickly put his hand down.

Cameron came into the room from around the corner. "Sarah will not exit her room or answer my calls."

"That's weird," Kyle said. "I thought she'd like you more than anybody. You were the coolest terminator I knew."

Derek dropped his beer to the floor, shattering it to pieces. "What?! You were friends with the…the…METAL?!"

"She's actually a great person," Kyle said. "I know you were scared of her, but she was like a mother to me. Even some of the hardest fighters loved her dry humor and cooking."

"It, not she. And it NEVER cooked for us!" Derek said.

"It didn't?" Kyle asked. "But we both ate her casserole together for Thanksgiving."

It suddenly dawned on Derek. "Kyle, I don't think we come from the same future. I think you were meant to go to a different time and someone set the wrong date, or the time machine failed."

"I was?" Kyle said. "But then, Sarah is undefended! We could all die!"

"No, we won't," Cameron explained. "One time change in the past will not erase us. It will simply create a new timestream but separate from us. It is why none of us are erased from existence when we attack Skynet's forces here. While one timeline is changed, ours and yours will never change."

"So then, I cannot stop Skynet," Kyle said. "It will win in my future. It will win in that past. And this Sarah hates me."

Kyle placed his beer down and stared at his hands in shame. He didn't say anything for the rest of the afternoon.

…

While John and Derek ate some leftover pizza for dinner, Cameron sat beside the despondent Kyle. Something in her programming was forcing her to talk to him. "Kyle?" She said. "Are you alright?"

"Can't you sense my heartrate or something?" He asked dismissively.

"John has told me that it is creepy," Cameron said.

Kyle sat back up and looked her in the eyes. "I had one main mission to do. To save the General. And not only can I not do it, it wouldn't have mattered if I did."

"The TDE failed," Cameron said. "And you could not have known about the timestream."

"It's not just that," Kyle said. "Sarah was everything to me. She was my role model, and a woman to look up to throughout the entire resistance. I wished more than anything to meet her. I may have even loved her, as stupid as it sounds."

He turned back to his now flat beer. "Did you see how she looked at me? Like I was a monster. Like she knew I had failed."

"You wanted to impress her," Cameron observed.

"Like I said, I loved her," Kyle said. "I don't know how things are here, but back in my time, unrequited love was never an issue for you."

Cameron sat back and considered correcting him but decided against it. Data rushed through her HUD in rapid detail. She could barely process it fast enough. By the time she had finished reading through her conclusions, she had created a deliciously cunning plan. A smile cracked through a face, a rare show of human-like hubris.

"I know that smile," Kyle said. "It makes me uneasy."

"Kyle," she said. "Come with me. John, retrieve your mother in approximately an hour. I have an idea."

…

"This is never going to work," Kyle said, standing in a blazer and dress pants. The candles on the table allowed for a dim romantic light to spread across the room, barely shining against the wine bottle. It was uncorked already and the glasses filled halfway. Spaghetti and meatballs were steaming on two separate plates across the table.

"Of course it will," Cameron said. "I understand enough about female psychological needs. Sarah will be, as they say, 'head-over-heels' for you. I hope it is a simple expression."

Rapid footsteps came down the stairs. John quickly came in the dining room. "Mom's coming! Duck and cover!"

He and Cameron ran into the kitchen and hid behind the counter. Sarah's footsteps slowly came from her bedroom and down the stairs.

"I really hope this works, Cam," John said.

"As do I," Cameron said.

Peering over the counter, they were just able to see the dinner in action. Sarah came in a change of jeans and a black button-down shirt. She stopped in shock at the sight of the plates.

"What is this?" Sarah asked. "John said a late-night movie was on."

"He did?" Kyle said, obviously flustered. "Uh, right. The movie was cancelled, I guess. Would you like dinner? Uh, instead?"

"He's blowing it!" John whispered to Cameron.

Sarah smiled and sat in her chair. "Sure. Thank you."

They took their wine glasses and toasted before digging into their food. Nobody said anything to each other, focusing on the food instead.

"How did you cook it so fast?" John asked.

"It was pre-prepared. I heated it up," she said. "I also uploaded some music."

"Great," John said. "Put it on."

Cameron held up a remote and pressed a button. Italian music swept the room, followed by the unmistakable lyrics of Bella Notte. Sarah lifted her head in surprise while Kyle coughed on his spaghetti.

"Really? Lady and the Tramp?" John asked. "She hates that movie."

"I have others," Cameron said. "Beauty and the Beast, Kiss the Girl, I Won't Say I'm In Love…"

"You picked out all Disney songs?" John asked. "Where did you get those?"

"Savannah Weaver lent her collection to me," Cameron said. "She said they are the most romantic songs ever written."

"You didn't find it strange to take romantic advice from a little girl?" John asked.

"I found it stranger how much of the collection contained songs from Nightmare Before Christmas and Corpse Bride," Cameron said. "The latter is not even a Disney film."

Shrill laughter reached their ears. Sarah was cracking up as the song played, tears rolling down her eyes. Kyle wiped his brow with his napkin and continued eating.

"I haven't laughed that hard in ages!" Sarah said.

The two finally began small talk. Music, movies, sports, and other boring conversations were mentioned between the two. By the time they were done talking, they had nearly finished their meals and the bottle of wine.

"They are nearly done," Cameron said. "Now for the piece de resistance."

Another click of the remote brought the song WHAM! by Careless Whisper. Sarah stiffened at the song, as did Kyle.

"What the hell?!" John asked. "This is music people play for sex, not dinner! This isn't even a Disney song!"

"The rights to the film Deadpool were acquired by the Walt Disney Company in 2017," Cameron said. "Deadpool is officially a Disney film."

"Wait, Catherine let Savannah watch Deadpool?" John asked.

Kyle threw down his napkin and tried to explain himself. "I'm sorry, I didn't check the full soundtrack when I picked it. Maybe we should TURN IT OFF!"

Cameron did so, but it was too late. Sarah pushed back her chair and stood up. Kyle quickly rose up to stop her. "Wait, Sarah! I'm sorry! I just wanted to impress you! I screwed up! Can we try again?"

Sarah's shoulders started shaking. She looked up to reveal tears in her eyes. "Kyle, you don't understand. You already impressed me. You were the one who made me the person I am today and will be in the future."

"I – what?"

Sarah continued. "You died in my arms. I felt my heart break that day. It took years to come to terms with it. And now, here you are, years after I accepted your death. I'm the one who's scared."

Now Kyle took a step back, but Sarah quickly crossed the table to him. "But this is impossible," Kyle said. "If I wasn't there…"

"You already were," Sarah said. "A future you was here. Didn't John tell you? It's because of you he is alive?"

She took Kyle into her arms. "You are John Connor's father. And the person I loved."

The man in her embrace was absolutely floored. Sarah's grip kept him from falling down. He had almost recovered when Sarah pulled him into a long kiss. Kyle finally put his own arms around her.

"I guess that worked," John said. "Let's leave them alone."

He took Cameron's hand and snuck back upstairs to their room.

…

The family of five waited in the living room in their best attire. Derek was busy setting up a camera in front of John, Sarah, and Derek. The one thing John always wanted was a photo of him and his parents together, like every normal kid had. Kyle waited by the camera alongside Cameron.

"Hey, before we take this picture, let me ask you something," he said. "How come you helped me?"

"Do I need a reason?" Cameron asked. "You are Kyle Reese. She is Sarah Connor."

"That can't be the only reason," Kyle said. "Considering that you barely know me."

Cameron stood up straight to face him. "You are an integral part of John's life. Having his father here will make him happier. I wanted him to feel like he has a complete family."

Kyle grinned. "It's like I told Derek; you are a good person. John's lucky to have you."

Cameron returned her own smile. "He knows. And so do I."

"PLACES!" Derek shouted. "I got the camera up."

Kyle took his place beside Sarah behind the couch. John sat in the middle, perfectly between the two. Cameron even used a rule to effectively measure the space.

"So, that's one of us," Sarah said. "Then one with Derek. And then a silly one."

"Shouldn't we include John's girlfriend?" Kyle asked.

Derek looked up from the camera. "What girlfriend?"

"Uh, the one who's been here the entire time? Cameron?" Kyle pointed at the Terminator.

Sarah shot Kyle a glare. "You must be joking! John would never date a Terminator! Right John?"

John suddenly became very sweaty. He looked to Cameron for help, but she seemed to be interested in the wall.

"I don't see why you're complaining," Kyle said. "The two made a great couple in my future. They always said they wished you could've seen and be proud of their children."

"WHAT?!"

John didn't end up putting the picture on the mantel. It would have been hard to explain to guests why it looked like his mom was trying to strangle him.