What are dreams?
A one off story featuring John and Cameron from "Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles." In a series of small chapters, Cameron learns more about human dreams and relationships and John learns how much his cyborg protector really likes him.
I haven't mentioned it previously, but this story takes place sometime after "Mr. Ferguson is Ill Today" and before Jesse murdered Riley in "Ourselves Alone." This story is slightly A/U borrowing from the series as necessary.
I do not claim any rights to the characters or the TV series.
Chapter 4: Riley's Nightmare
"Last problem." Cameron says, sliding the text book back in front of John. "I helped you with the previous two. This one isn't that different. See what you can do on your own."
"Thanks Cam. I really mean it." John says, taking another look at the problem. Mathematics was never his strong suite and physics just makes it even worse.
Cam walks out of the kitchen and returns to the living room.
He pulls a fresh sheet of paper out of his notebook and reviews the problem. Using the technique that Cameron showed him on the previous two, he works out his calculations. He isn't certain about the results at the second stage but he can't see what else it could be. After fifteen more minutes he sits back with a sigh of relief.
"Cam! I'm done. Do you want to take a look at my work?"
There is no answer. John gets up from the kitchen table and goes into the living room. Cameron is sitting on the sofa. Her head is resting against the back and her eyes are closed.
"Are you trying to daydream again?" He asks sitting down beside her.
"In a way. I was trying to apply your technique to imagine what Riley meant when she said she had to get waxed to wear her bikini. What does that mean, to get waxed?"
John's face goes red. "Do you really want to know?"
"Yes." She says looking at him blankly.
"You couldn't just look it up on the Internet and save me the embarrassment, could you?" John says, rolling his eyes.
She doesn't reply and just looks at him expecting an answer.
"If you must know, waxing is the removal of hair from a person's body by applying hot wax over the area. When it cools, you peel the wax off and the hair comes with it, leaving you as hair free as the day you were born."
"I wasn't born. I was built." She says looking down cast.
"I'm sorry Cam. I wasn't trying to imply anything."
"I know. You were only trying to answer my question. Why does Riley need waxing to wear a bikini?"
John opens his mouth to answer, then closes it again. This is getting a little too personal even for him.
"Uh, well, some people, um, have their, um, you know," John gestures at his crotch, "places waxed to remove the hair from around their um, you know."
Cameron smiles at John's embarrassment, and says. "I understand."
John sighs with relief. "Good. I'd hate to think I would have to draw you a diagram."
"Diagrams will not be necessary. I have complete data on human biology and anatomy. Will you teach me about dreams now?"
"Sure. Let me get a drink from the fridge first." He says getting up.
"Do you want anything?' He asks, while going into the kitchen.
"I'm fine, but thanks for asking." She replies.
John is busy looking in the fridge. He knows there is a can of Coke in there. He hid it so Derek wouldn't find it. He is always taking his Coke when he visits. Despite that, he wished Derek would spend more time with them. He's been pretty distant since they moved to the new house. Suddenly he spots the can and pulls it out.
"I don't require waxing." Cameron says as he walks back from the kitchen. John looks at her questioningly as he takes a big sip from the can.
"I don't have any hair down there." She says just as he gets a mouthful of soda.
John begins to choke and cough. The soda comes shooting out his nose and the tears stream from his eyes.
Cameron quickly goes to him as he recovers. His shirt front is soaked with soda. She brushes his face with a dry corner of his T-shirt while patting his back.
"Why do you always say something like that at the most inopportune moments?" He asks.
"Did I say something wrong?"
"No Cam, no. Just don't say things like that when mom is around. She might get the wrong idea."
John looks at his shirt and the floor where the coke sprayed. Pulling his shirt off he uses it to wipe up the spilled soda from the floor.
"What wrong idea might she have?" Cameron asks.
"She might get the idea you are trying to seduce me or something. Say that around Mom and she'd have you dismantled before you could blink."
"I can blink very quickly. Even faster than you."
"I don't doubt that one bit. Just don't say things like that."
John looks at his shirt. "I'm going up to change. Be right back."
Cameron watches him go up the stairs.
"I am trying to seduce you." She says very quietly. "I love you."
**
Riley is scared.
She dare not report back to Jesse without fulfilling her mission, but she doesn't want to go back to the house with Cameron there. If it weren't for the two of them, she'd really enjoy the time she has with John.
Riley knows he'll be their leader in the war against the machines. Remote, inaccessible to most people. She only saw him once, at a distance. He had a charisma unlike any person she'd seen. Even though the people hated the machines, which were his constant companions, he rallied the people. They fought Sky Net and it's hordes of machines on his orders. She saw him only that one time.
When Jesse offered to take her back in time to get away from that terrible world, she jumped at the chance. She didn't know that Jesse was going to use her this way. She liked this younger John, but if Jesse was right she had to get him away from that machine and show him real human companionship.
Knowing that John will be at home, she decides to return to the house in spite of Cameron being there. But she needs an excuse for not only returning to the house but to get inside. She rides past a storm drain and gets an idea. As she approaches the next one, she rides right for it. Her front wheel gets stuck and she gets thrown over the handle bars, landing hard on the pavement.
**
John is coming down the stairs when there is a knock at the door.
Cameron walks out of the kitchen, where she just rinsed out the towel used to mop up the damp floor. She is first to the door.
Cameron opens the door to reveal a bruised and bleeding Riley standing there.
"Riley!" John shouts in surprise and quickly goes forward to give her some help. Before he gets there, she stumbles inside, bumping into the entry table, where she removes the bug unseen.
John helps her up. "What happened to you?"
"Accident." She groans. "Front wheel got caught in storm drain. I was thrown."
"Cam, close the door and join us in the kitchen." John says as he helps Riley into the house.
Cameron frowns the whole time, but listens to what he says. She would have preferred to leave Riley bleeding on the door step, but that wouldn't have been nice . . . to John.
She enters the kitchen to find Riley sitting in a kitchen chair and John digging through the cabinets.
"Cam, where's the first aid kit? I can't find it anywhere." John says, exasperation entering his voice.
"It's upstairs in the bathroom. I'll get it." She says rather flatly.
John catches the tone and knows she is not happy with Riley's return, but he can't turn away a friend, or someone who needs help.
He helps her remove the bike helmet. Her temple is scraped and the helmet is cracked.
"It's a good thing that I bought you this helmet." He says.
"I'm sorry if I ruined your studies, but I didn't know anyone else in this neighborhood." Riley says.
"No. Its fine." John dabs at her forehead with a damp cloth. "I just finished. I was just about to help Cameron with her project when you showed up."
Riley looks at her hands. The palms are scraped and stinging. She can feel a wetness spreading on one leg.
"John, my leg." She says in a tone that sounds fearful.
He quickly looks at her legs. One pant leg of her jeans is torn along her thigh and soaked with blood. Pulling the edges of the tear apart, John reveals a bad gash in Riley's leg. There is a piece of glass in it.
"Oh gee." John says. "Get those jeans off and get up on the table."
He goes to the kitchen door. "Cam! Where's that first aid kit?" he shouts, only to have Cameron walk in at that moment carrying it.
While his back is turned, Riley slips the bug under the table and sticks it in place.
"Thanks" He says, taking the first aid kit and turning to face Riley.
She's removed her jeans and is just getting up on the table. She's wearing her bikini under her clothes and it is briefer than he thought it would be.
Riley sees him staring and says, "Looks like you get to see me in my bikini after all."
John swallows nervously. He looks at Cameron, who is glaring at her, then back at Riley. "I guess so."
He takes a close look at the gash on her leg.
"This cut looks bad." He says. "Cam, come over here and give me a hand."
"Does she have to?" Riley asks fear coloring her features briefly.
"She won't hurt you and I can't do this without help. Just lay back and relax. I'll be here the whole time."
Riley lays back on the table as Cameron walks around beside John.
"What do you think? Did she cut a major blood vessel or should we get her to the hospital?"
"No hospital!" Riley calls out. "My foster parents don't even know I'm out of the house. They'll kill me when they get back."
Cameron analyzes the wound and says, "There is no damage to any major blood vessels. Once we remove the glass and clean the wound, it should heal."
"Stitches?" John asks.
"No more than six." Cameron replies.
"Do you have everything you need?"
"Yes."
"Don't start yet. I'm going to fetch some clean towels and something to dull her pain."
Riley calls out, "John, don't leave me here."
John moves close to her. "You'll be fine. I'll only be a couple of minutes." He says, taking her hand briefly to reassure her.
Cameron glares at them as he takes Riley's hand. She stares after John when he leaves.
After she hears John go up the stairs, Cameron leans over Riley, tilting her head to one side.
"Why did you come back here?" Cameron asks her coldly.
Riley looks at Cameron, her eyes growing wide with fear. "I needed help."
"You have your cell phone. You could have called someone."
"Who was I supposed to call?" She says nervously.
"Your foster aunt. A friend. Why did you come back here? I cannot allow you to distract John."
"You're just his sister." Riley responds trying to push herself away from the cold face staring at her.
"Am I?" She says staring at her.
"Sorry, I took so long." John says, coming into the kitchen. "Mom hid the pain medication."
Cameron is standing beside the table looking as innocent as when he left.
"Riley, it is going to hurt when we remove the glass and stitch your leg." John says as he places the towels down on the counter. "I want you to take just one of these pills now. If you are still hurting later, I'll give you another."
"You won't leave me again?" She asks, her eyes darting at Cameron.
"No. I'll be right here." John says, handing her a pill and a glass of water.
"We'll give the medicine a few minutes to work and then we'll get started on that leg."
John takes some antibiotic ointment out of the first aid kit and applies some to the scrapes on her forehead and palms then covers them with gauze and tapes it on.
"Are you ready for us to work on your leg?"
"Uh huh" Riley says groggily.
Speaking to Cameron, John says. "I'll hold a compress against her leg while you pull out the glass. Clean the wound and put in the stitches while I maintain pressure."
Cam just nods her head. She grasps the edge of the glass with her fingers and pulls it out. Riley lets out a sharp yell but doesn't move. Blood begins flowing again. John maintains pressure while Cameron prepares to irrigate the wound.
"This is going to sting a little." John says as Cameron begins flushing out the wound with peroxide followed by distilled water.
"Ooooowwwww" Riley yells through gritted teeth as the wound is cleaned.
Cameron tries not to, but she can't help but feel some pleasure at Riley's discomfort. She proceeds to clean the wound out and double checks for any damaged blood vessels. Nothing comes up on her HUD.
"Remove the towel and hold the edges of the cut together while I put in the stitches." Cameron says.
A few minutes later Riley's leg is stitched and she is passed out from the medication.
"I'll carry her into the living room and lay her on the sofa." John says and tries to lift the young woman, but she is heavier than she looks.
"Do you want me to carry her?" Cameron asks.
"No. I'll manage." He grunts as he picks Riley up. Once he has her in his arms, he carries her without any problems. She places her arms around his neck in her semiconscious state. Cameron just watches the proceedings with a cold stare.
**
"How much longer is she going to stay here?" Cameron asks John almost an hour later.
Riley is laying on the sofa, sleeping soundly. Cameron standing nearby staring at her.
"I'll giver a few more minutes to sleep off the medication, and then I'll take her home. Why?"
"I don't like her being here. Not now."
John escorts her out of the living room. "I know Cam. But I couldn't turn her away. Not with her being injured."
"No. You couldn't, but you should have."
"Cam, that's not being nice."
"I'm not trying to be nice. I'm being realistic. Ever since she arrived in your life she's been a disruptive influence. You've been less focused on our mission. You argue with your mom more and our friendship came to an end."
"Our friendship came to an end when you told me I couldn't be trusted. I'm John Connor. You should trust me."
"I was wrong when I said that. I'm sorry. But there are people you will know who won't understand why you fixed me when I went bad."
"Well I don't know them yet and I did it because I need you."
"Is that all?"
"What more is there?"
She doesn't answer right away, but when she does it is with a quiet voice, "Nothing. Nothing at all."
John can't believe what he just did. He did it again. She wanted to hear him say that he loved her and he blew it. God! Why couldn't he get this right? One part of him just wants to love her for who she is and the other part of him wants to run away knowing what she is.
"I'm sorry, Cam. I'm going to go wake Riley now and take her home. We'll talk when I get back."
John goes into the living room and wakes Riley. A few minutes later she is up and talking.
"I can't wear my jeans back home. My foster parent swill freak if they see the blood. Nor can I show up just wearing this bikini. They would freak even more."
John turns to Cameron. "Do you have a pair of jeans she could borrow?"
Cameron does a quick scan of Riley's body. "My jeans won't fit her. She's got a bigger waist and wider hips than me."
"Well at least I have some curves." Riley snaps back.
"I've got curves too, but at least I don't have a hairy snatch like you." Cameron responds.
"Cam!" John shouts. "Go to my closet and grab a pair of my pants. They ought to fit Riley."
Cam walks off, a tiny smile curling her lips. She won that verbal sparring match.
**
A few minutes later and John is driving Riley home in his mom's SUV. Her bike with a bent front wheel is in the back.
"Why is it the two of you don't get along?" John asks.
"Your sister doesn't like me. That's all."
"Maybe you could make an effort and try to be friendly."
"I've tried, but your sister scares me. I . . . I sometimes get the feeling she wants to kill me."
John can't argue with that.
"Cameron just takes some getting used too. With mom working all the time trying to earn enough for the three of us, I'm the only friend Cam has. She's protective. She'll like you in time. It just takes longer for her to make friends."
"There's my home, over there." Riley says pointing.
"Good! My foster family isn't back yet!" She adds seeing the empty driveway.
"Where are they? It's against the rules to leave a foster child unattended." John says, knowing this from experience.
"Rules are made to be broken." Riley says with a smile. "Come on in with me. I'll change into my own pair of slacks so you can take yours back."
"All right." John says.
John takes her bike out of the back of the SUV and leans it against the tree in the front lawn. They both go inside Riley's home.
**
After John left with Riley, Cameron began analyzing everything that took place since Riley arrived.
She walks into the entry and scans the table. Riley came in contact with it two times. Once during her first visit and once during her second visit. She analyzes the surface and finds a tacky area under the lip suggesting something was stuck there.
Analyzing the recent events again she realizes that Riley was left alone for under a minute when John followed her to get the first aid kit.
Cameron walks into the kitchen. She scans all areas. Riley could have done almost anything.
Nothing is apparent at first. Riley was never very far from the kitchen table. There are still microscopic traces of blood on the surface. She'll clean that later with some bleach.
There is a bloody piece of gauze on the floor. Missed when John cleaned up the kitchen. She bends down to pick it up and her scan detects something. Looking up she sees a small electronic bug.
Removing it she stands up holding it. Her scans indicate that it is active.
Slipping the bug into her pocket, she quickly leaves the house and follows John and Riley as fast as she can run.
**
Standing in the living room of her foster parents home, Riley and John are talking.
"I want to thank you for helping me out today." Riley says as she reaches out, taking John's hand.
"It's what friends do for one another."
"Friends? John. I thought we were more than that. I want more than that. I want you." She says moving closer to him removing her shirt exposing her small bikini top.
"Riley." John tries moving back away from her, but he's up against some furniture.
"What? Don't you like me? Don't you want to have sex with me?" She says kissing him.
Outside Cameron arrives and is standing by the tree with Riley's bike leaning against it. She sees them kissing through the front window. She takes out her anger on the nearest inanimate object, then runs around to the back of the house.
John pushes Riley back. "Enough! Riley. I like you. I really do. And as much as I would like to have sex with you. . ."
John looks firm as he speaks. "When you came over, today was the day I decided to break up with you. I didn't say anything earlier because I didn't know how to tell you. I'll be your friend, but that's it. Our relationship goes no further."
"It's because of Cameron isn't it?"
"What do you mean?" John asks nervously.
"It's because she doesn't like me. Since she doesn't approve of me, you won't go out with me anymore."
"No Riley. It's more complicated than that. But it's over. I'm sorry."
"Don't you want your pants back?" Riley says as she begins to remove them.
"Keep them. I never liked that pair anyway." He says and walks out of the house.
He walks straight to the truck in the driveway, jumps in and drives off. If he had looked at the tree in the front yard, he might have seen something unusual.
Riley is almost in tears. John Connor, the future leader of the resistance, has broken up with her. Jesse will be angry with her. She doesn't know which makes her feel worse. The pain of the breakup or the fear of what Jesse will do.
But there is something else she'll be fearing today.
"Hello Riley."
Riley looks up with a start. Cameron is standing in her living room.
"What are you doing here?" She asks looking fearful.
"I want to talk with you. Alone." Cameron replies looking straight at Riley without blinking.
"About what?"
"John and why you are bugging our home."
Riley just stands there. Her pulse is racing and she begins to sweat.
"You thought you were clever, trying to hide the bug the first time. What's the matter? Your handler didn't like where you put it and made you come back?"
"Handler? What handler?"
"Don't lie to me. You are too young and inexperienced to handle an operation like this on your own. You ingratiate yourself in John's life and distract him from his mission. I can't allow that."
"Mission? What are you talking about?" Riley says trying to feign ignorance.
Ignoring Riley's question, Cameron continues. "So you return after staging an accident, got John all worried and concerned about you. He brought you into the house to patch you up. Once again you thought you were clever. Bumped into the table and removed the bug, just so you could place it in the kitchen."
"I don't know anything about a bug." She says nervously
"You are lying and I have it here." Cameron says pulling it out of her pocket. "It's still on, so your handler knows I found it; knows that I know you placed it; and whoever they are will know that John broke up with you. I don't think they will be happy with you."
"How will they know?" Riley asks becoming even more fearful of Jesse.
"This bug has an effective range of 10.2 meters when you turn the power up. I was standing in the next room. I heard everything, which means the person on the other end of this bug has heard everything."
Cameron raises her hand up and squeezes the electronic bug in her hand crushing it in front of Riley.
Dropping the pieces she grabs Riley by the neck and drags her to the window.
"You're hurting me!" Riley calls out.
"Remember that! And remember this!" Cameron says and turns Riley's head so she is looking out the window.
Riley couldn't look more fearful. Her bicycle is twisted around the tree in the front yard.
"Kiss John again and I will do more than that to you."
Riley looks at Cameron then back out the window at her bike. As she watches, her foster parents pull into the drive. How is she going to explain her bicycle to them?
"I'll take John's pants back." Cameron says.
Before Riley can react Cameron turns her over into the sofa. She grabs the end of the legs and pulls the pants right off. She quickly disappears out the back as Riley's foster parents come through the front door.
"We're home." Her foster mother calls out. "What happened to your bike?"
"Riley!" Her foster dad yells. "What are you doing dressed liked that! Go up to your room and get some clothes on! And stay there! You are grounded for a month!"
Riley grabs her cell phone from the sofa and runs past them, up the stairs and slams the door shut to her room.
She flops down on the bed crying her eyes out. Her cell phone begins to ring. Caller ID says it's Jesse.
Will her nightmare ever end?
I am presently backing up all of my files prior to the big switch to Linux. On Halloween, I was about to transfer some files to my secondary computer when I got an idea for a new chapter. Had to write it down while it was fresh. I finished it today while waiting for backups to complete.
I hope you like it. Let me know what you think. - - The1Russter 11-01-2009