Life Is Good Part 2

Cameron's gaze was downright terrifying. It was cold and blank, impossible to read. John stood frozen to the spot.

"Hello John," Cameron said. "Why are you in my room? You will break our cover."

"I'm a volunteer," John said. "I'm supposed to help you with your therapy."

"A wise cover," Cameron said. "It will be easier to not be caught unaware by the enemy."

"No Cam, that's the thing," John said. "I need you to realize that none of what you think is real."

"John, there is no need to lie," Cameron said. "Our room is not bugged. You do not need to continue this farce right now."

"There is no farce," John said, trying to keep calm. He had to remember not to raise his voice. If things escalated on his end, her defenses would as well, and that would make the therapy harder.

"Why are you saying this?" Cameron asked. She slowly sat up in her bed. "Have you taken those pills? They will twist your mind."

"That isn't the point," John said. "Don't you notice that when they held you down with straps, they cut you when you struggled? Cyborgs don't bleed."

"Clearly, they have altered my physical tissue in some way," Cameron said. "You must not give in to their drugs. And do not trust Sarah or Derek. Skynet has somehow corrupted them."

John shook his head and left the room. A doctor was waiting for him outside. "I told you it would be hard. Her mind is very resilient."

"I'll find a way," John said. "I feel like I'm the key to all this. I just need to find a new technique."

…

"So here they are," John said. "There is no way to can remember Morris if you've never seen him."

"I don't need to remember his face to remember his constant flirtations," Cameron said. "He seems convinced that we are dating."

"Actually, that does sound like you, dude," John said.

"Oh, yeah," Morris said, eyeing Cameron up and down. "I'd play doctor for that."

John rolled his eyes. There was no sense in having brought Katherine, since she didn't feature in his fantasy. He hoped she would at least remember Riley.

"Well, what about her?" John asked, gesturing towards his cousin. "You gotta remember her, right?"

Cameron face twisted into an expression that John could only guess was anger. "I do. She tried to take you from me. Why do you refuse to break up with her?"

"For God's sake, we are not dating!" Riley said. "That's disgusting!"

"Is John not good enough for you?" Cameron asked. "You hurt him and then insult him? I will no longer tolerate this. I will terminate you."

Cameron sprang up and reached for Riley's throat. John quickly opened the door and pushed his cousin out, following with Morris soon after. John slumped against the door and took deep, ragged breaths. "Okay. It's safe to say that didn't work."

Riley shot him a glare. "YOU THINK?!"

…

John entered the room with a glass of water. He dearly hoped that the pills he crushed would not be caught by Cameron. He even had his own glass, to mimic the idea of a friendly drink between friends. "Hey Cam! I've got drinks for us both!"

Cameron tilted her head, a weird quick the doctors warned that she had. "I am a terminator. I do not require hydration."

John put the glass on her nightstand. "Well, it is part of social etiquette to share in a drink when others are. Consider it part of a social exercise."

Cameron eyed the glass curiously. She took the glass in her hands before dumping its contents to the ground. "I will not drink anything that comes from this hospital. Neither should you."

She snatched his glass and dumped it as well. "We are in enemy territory. They want to poison you."

John grabbed the glasses and walked out of the room.

…

Getting other people involved wouldn't solve anything. Sarah and Derek hated Cameron in his fantasy, and she wouldn't recognize Kyle. So John had to resort to using his own wits at this point.

"Cameron?" John asked. "Why don't you believe that you are a real person?"

"I am a Terminator," Cameron said. "I cannot be a real person if I am a cybernetic organism."

"But I consider you a friend," John said. "I consider you a person."

"What you consider and what is the truth are two separate things," Cameron deadpanned.

"Then why did you jealous over Riley?"

"I was not jealous. She was a threat, and I am programmed to stop all threats."

John sat down at her bed. "Look, Cameron, I really do care about you. I want to be your friend. Don't you want to be mine?"

"I am programmed to protect you," Cameron said. "That already makes me your friend."

"But don't you WANT to be to my friend?"

Cameron eyed his suspiciously. She suddenly stood up and looked John in his eyes. "You are a healthy male, only three years from the legal drinking age. You are entranced by my body. It is a distraction. We can end this distraction together."

John backed slightly. "What do you mean?"

"Your hormones are overactive," Cameron said. "You need to focus on your mission. Let us put a stop to your hormonal urges."

Cameron gripped her gown and began to lift it over her head. John quickly averted his eyes and raced for the door. The doctor was waiting for him outside. "How did that one go?"

"I…um…" How would John put this? "First, I need to find your nearest bathroom."

…

The soft pitter-pat of rain against glass woke John. He opened his eyes to see the window of his car. But something was wrong. He remembered going to the bathroom before passing out. Who was driving him?

He turned to see Cameron in the driver's seat. "Good," she said. "You are awake."

"Cam?" John asked. "What's going on?"

"I pretended to take those sleeping pills and hid them under my mattress," Cameron said. "Then I crushed them and put them into a rag. I snuck into the bathroom and put it on your face. With you unconscious, it was easy to escape while disguised as a surgeon."

"What?" John asked. "Where are we going?"

"To your home," Cameron said. "We must regroup. I had to look at your records to get your address."

"Cameron, pull over!" John pleaded. "I'm not a soldier!"

"Not yet," Cameron said. "But we must prepare for the future. You seem to have been brainwashed, John. I will fix that. Now sit back and do not scream. It will attract attention, and I would not wish to use the rag again."

John sat back, stewing in his terrified stupor. He didn't know what Cameron would do once they got home. Would she kill Sarah or Kyle? Would she hurt him?

They pulled into the driveway in the pouring rain. Cameron got out of the car and beckoned John to follow. She took a hairpin and set to work on the door lock. "They must not know they we are here."

As soon as they entered the house, Cameron began searching under the cushions of the couch. "Where are you weapons? Where are the guns?"

Kyle suddenly stormed into the room with a baseball bat. "Who the hell are you?" he demanded. "What are you doing with her, John?"

Cameron looked up, ready to kill the intruder, but stopped when she saw his face. "Who are you?"

"Kyle," he said. "I'm John's father."

"But John said you were dead."

"He's not!" John said. "See? He's here and alive!"

"But that is not possible," Cameron said. "If he is alive, then your story cannot be true. He cannot be a soldier. And I am…I am…"

Cameron fell back and saw only blackness.

…

All Cameron could see when she woke up was brightness. Doctors stood over her, documenting her state of consciousness.

"D-Doctor?" She whispered.

One of them looked up from her clipboard. "Yes? Do you remember me?"

"I…I remember…everything. My parents, this place…" Tears fell from her eyes.

"Yes, that's okay." Her doctor sat down and put a hand on her shoulder. "Let it out. You've held a lot back."

Cameron cried for a solid five minutes before she could find enough air to speak. "I'm so sorry!"

"Don't be," the doctor said. "No one has truly been harmed. This is the first stop on the way to recovery. Do you have any questions?"

Cameron stared up at the lights before giving her answer. "Where's John?"

…

Three months had passed before Cameron was granted a clean bill of mental health. The hospital was able to help her enough to ensure she would not relapse. Cameron stood on the front steps of the hospital, absorbing the feeling of the sun for the first time in a year. Her emotions and nerves had finally returned, minus her pain receptors, but she felt she would not miss the feeling of pain.

A car honked in front of her. John, Riley, Morris, and Katherine were all waiting for her in a large van. The five had made plans to spend the day downtown to show Cameron all the new sights. The four had graduated high school the previous week, giving them a full three months to enjoy summer.

Cameron squeezed in the middle between Riley and John. Riley flinched away from her, still nervous from their last meeting.

"What's wrong, Riley?" Cameron asked. "Didn't you get my apology letter?"

"Yeah, well, you know what they say about first impressions," Riley said.

"I'm just glad Mom and Dad forgave you so easily," John said. Now that she was eighteen, Cameron did not need to go through adoption procedures to move in with John. His parents were willing to give her a place to stay, provided she agreed not to break into the house ever again.

As the van sped off, Cameron inched closer to John. "You know John, there's one thing I really wanted to do, even when I thought I was a robot."

"And what's that?"

She leaned forward and kissed him on his lips. John quickly put his hand on her cheek and returned the kiss.

"OH, FOR CRYING OUT LOUD!" Riley screamed. "I AM SITTING RIGHT HERE!"

John ignored her and continued to kiss Cameron. There was no doubt about it. Life was good.