Ok guys, thanks again to all reviewers:
kaotic2, ljim, acer-sigma, CloudyShadows, TK-MR, olischulu, clearfanfic and Renderer.
I have ideas for the next 2, possibly 3 chapters.
Analysing, please wait..........97% complete
If Cameron had been human she would have let out a sigh of boredom. Her CPU had been displaying similar messages to her for the last six hours. Six hours too long in her opinion.
Analysing, please wait..........98% complete
The worst part of it was that she was unable to view the results of her analysis until the process completed.
Analysing, please wait..........99% complete
The longer this took, the longer she was separated from John.
Analysing, please wait..........100% complete, standby
Results of emotional analysis are as follows:
Cameron's eyes twitched beneath her eye lids before snapping open.
Standby sequence complete. Initiate scan of surroundings.
She sat up and scanned the room with her eyes. She was still on her bed in her room. She checked her internal chronometer which read 7:13am. What intrigued her most was what lay flat on its back on the fluffy rug in the middle of the room. She tilted her head to the side as she examined him.
His hair was a mess, his mouth was open and a few light snores escaped. His legs and arms were spread in such a carefree fashion, she'd never seen him look so peaceful.
He said he would stay the night with me and he did. I didn't expect him to. He has done something nice for me, so I should do something nice for him.
A small smile formed on her perfect face as she quietly climbed off her bed and carefully stepped over the sleeping form of John Connor. She thought about getting dressed before deciding that it would create sufficient noise to wake the future leader of mankind. She quietly opened the door and slipped out of the room, closing the door behind her softly. She padded down the hallway in a white tank top, purple pyjama bottoms that were too cute for words and bare feet. She descended the stairs heading toward the kitchen. When she arrived she considered for a moment what to make John for his breakfast.
Cereal would be the healthiest choice.
As she moved her arm toward the cupboard door to retrieve the cereal box, a thought crossed her mind.
No, I want to do something nice for John. He will receive enough nutrition throughout the rest of the day. A cooked meal will be the better choice.
She briefly considered making pancakes until she remembered sampling some of Sarah's during her first ever staring contest with Derek. They were not nice, even to her and her limited sense of taste.
She instead decided on a breakfast of bacon sandwiches. She pulled the frying pan out of the cupboard, being very careful not to make too much noise. She had watched enough of the cookery channel late at night to know that frying bacon was a simple matter. After placing some bacon in the pan and hearing it sizzle, she decided to return the favour of a hot beverage. After fishing a cup out of the cupboard, she did something which surprised even herself and retrieved another cup along with a packet of hot chocolate mix. She poured the ingredients in to both cups and switched the kettle on to boil. She flipped the bacon in the pan before grabbing a glass from the shelf. She opened the fridge and proceeded to fill the glass with orange juice. She picked out four slices of bread from the packet and spread a liberal amount of butter on them, ignoring the warnings her CPU was providing her of high fat and salt content. The kettle boiled before the bacon was ready. She poured the hot liquid in to the identical cups and stirred both. When the bacon was ready she picked the slices from the pan with her bare fingers and placed them in the bread. She once again surprised herself as she sucked the leftover juices from her fingertips. She placed everything she had made on a tray and headed back upstairs with a proud beaming smile on her face.
I hope John likes this. When he is happy, I experience pleasant sensations similar to those I experienced last night when he was laughing with me, and when he touched my knee and held my hand.
The reasons she felt these things around John and only John still eluded her understanding and greatly confused her. She resolved to talk with John about them some time, he is the only one who will understand.
When she reached her bedroom door, she entered with more grace and balance than John was able to muster the day before. She entered so quietly that she STILL hadn't woke him up. As she took in his sleeping form a wicked idea came to her head. She accessed her database and picked out a random male resistance fighter's voice, modulated her own voice to match, then shouted at the top of her 'lungs':
"METAAAAALLLLL"
Cameron had never seen any human move as fast as John Connor did at that moment. He leapt up from his sprawled position on the floor before scrambling to the window. He crouched down with his back to the wall before scanning his surroundings for imminent danger. A soft giggle from across the room interrupted his self induced panic.
"It's good to see your reflexes and responses are what they should be"
She was smiling as she said it...until the look on his face wiped it clean off. He was on the verge of erupting at her.
"WHY THE HELL WOULD YOU DO THAT? THAT WASN'T FUNNY. I THOUGHT THAT...I THOUGHT... I thought...It doesn't matter what I thought"
She looked down at the tray in her hands crestfallen.
"I, I'm sorry John. I thought it would be funny. I thought it would make you laugh"
She looked up to his eyes
"I thought it would make you smile"
She looked down again before continuing in a tiny voice.
"I like it when you smile. It makes me smile"
He took one look at her distraught face before feeling like a complete asshole for overreacting. He took a deep breath to calm down before picking himself up and walking over to her.
She felt a warm hand on her chin tilting her head up to look in his eyes.
He is angry with me. I've upset him. He won't want to speak to me anymore. He will be unhappy, I will be unhappy. I do not want to go back to the way it was after I went bad.
He felt a sudden stab of guilt as a tear escaped her left eye and rolled down her cheek. He brought the hand that was on her chin up to her cheek and used his thumb to wipe away the tear.
Why is he still being nice to me? He is angry with me. Why isn't he sending me away again?
"Cameron, I'm sorry. I overreacted. You caught me off guard and I got angry. I'm so sorry"
Wow, she wasn't expecting that.
"I, I'm sorry too"
John looked down and noticed the tray for the first time.
"What's all this?
"You stayed with me last night. I decided to do something nice for you too"
"Wow. Bacon, huh? Are we out of pancake mix?
Words couldn't express the delight John felt when he was rewarded with a bright smile.
"No there is plenty, I just thought you would like something tasty for a change"
Her blank face made it all the funnier for John who couldn't hold it in any more. He burst out laughing, almost collapsing.
"Did...did you just....insult my mom's cooking?"
She waited for the laughing to subside before answering.
"Are you mad?"
"What, no. Not at all, I think it's funny. Well let's see if your cooking is any nicer than mom's"
He took the tray from her and moved over to her bed. He took up the same position they were in last night and settled the tray on his lap. He patted the space next to him as an invitation for her to sit next to him.
If Cameron had never seen a human move so fast moments earlier, John had never seen a cyborg move as fast either. She was snuggled in next to him before his hand had even made it back to the sandwiches on his plate. A broad grin greeted her as she looked at him.
"Erm, Cameron, why are there two cups?"
She took the cup with the hot chocolate from his tray before speaking.
"This one is mine. The other is your coffee"
He looked at her funny for a moment before asking.
"So you like hot chocolate then?"
She took a moment to consider his words.
"Yes, I do"
John merely watched as she sipped her hot chocolate. He shook his head and picked up his first sandwich. It tasted heavenly.
How can she make bacon taste so good when somehow other people fail?
They sat in companionable silence while John ate his rapidly cooling breakfast. She sat quietly while sipping her hot chocolate, simply watching him eat and seemingly savour every bite.
He is happy. Making him breakfast makes him happy. It must be true what those magazines say, the way to a man's heart is through his stomach.
She filed the information away for later use.
By the time she had finished her drink, John had polished off his sandwiches, downed the orange and was quickly finishing his coffee. Again it was perfect, exactly how he liked it.
"So, what are your plans for today? You still gonna get those nails done?"
"Yes I am. But I would ask that you reconsider my request for you to accompany me"
Her blank expression returned as he turned to face her, making her completely unreadable.
"Uh, listen, Cam, I've already said I don't really wanna be seen in any place like that. It's ah...it's kinda a place for girls to go on their own or as part of a day out with their boyfriends"
Boyfriend – Definition:
A favoured male companion or sweetheart.
She examined his face for any kind of deception but found none. He spoke up before she had a chance to counter.
"Why don't you just go by yourself? I'll stay here. I promise not to do anything stupid, scouts honour"
He held up his fingers in a mock salute while grinning like a Cheshire cat.
Her hand shot out and grabbed his, bringing it over to rest in her lap. He tore his eyes away from her to stare at their joined hands. He of course started blushing furiously.
"John...I do not wish to be separated from you for too long"
She couldn't bring herself to look at his eyes and continued to stare at his hand in hers. When she didn't speak again John opened his mouth.
"Again, because of the security risk?"
She had unconsciously started rubbing his knuckles gently with her thumb. She continued to stare at their hands as she spoke.
"N...Yes, because of the risk"
John didn't fail to notice the slip but decided to let her off.
"Ok, if it'll make you feel any better I'll go with you. I can hang out in another store while you get your nails done"
She stopped her ministrations on his hand and visibly stiffened.
"I'll make sure it's a store opposite the boutique that you can keep watch over"
It took what seemed like an eternity for her to answer.
"Thank you John. I'd like that. But I would suggest that you shower and change first, you are starting to smell"
She raised her eyes to meet his and they both found themselves smiling once again.
I'm not really sure I like the ending of this chapter, it's more of a set up for the next chapter in truth.