It took me such a long time to come up with a clear idea for this chapter! Sorry for the wait. In case no one saw the review I put for my own story, I would love it if MidnightMoon14 would illustrate for my story. By all means, have at it! Go crazy! I'd love to see your work. But I need to know if there is a link to the page the illustration will be at and what the link is. How else will I be able to view it?

Chapter Two: A Case of Lovesickness

"And now, ladies and gentlemen, I present to you my newest creation and my first successful attempt at artificial intelligence since the achievement of my wife, a robot with life, an efficient power source, and unmatched navigational, historical, and artistic intellect, B.E.N., the Bio-Electronic Navigator," Martin announced to a large crowd of technicians, engineers, and scientists of all alien races. The audience cheered as B.E.N. walked into the small auditorium, waving a greeting and smiling big. He stopped and stood beside Martin, who put a hand on his shoulder.

"I am proud to say that the repairs to his systems, after the power surge caused by the storm, have been more than successful. He has tested excellently and has proven to me how much alive he really is, not taking credit from Luna5, who has provided her own blueprints for B.E.N.'s construction." The crowd cheered. B.E.N. felt flattered by that, and he noticed Luna5 in the front of the audience, smiling and waving to him.

"Professor Trohs," an alien engineer called out. "Can you tell us exactly how B.E.N. operates?"

"Well, you don't have to ask me. Why don't you ask B.E.N. yourself?" He gestured towards B.E.N., who timidly pointed at himself as the crowd murmured.

The same engineer asked, "I have a question for you, B.E.N. When was the uninhabited planet Arcturia discovered and by whom?"

"Well, that's not so hard to know," B.E.N. replied in simple explanation, as though he were teaching a class, and continued at a slightly quickened pace of speaking. "It was discovered exactly 1,000,000.24 years ago by a group of way smart alien scientists, who were using their advanced technology to study other planets. How they built their technology is beyond even my knowledge."

The crowd murmured in awe.

"B.E.N., how many other planetary languages do you speak?" a scientist asked.

"Well…uh, I've never spoken in any other language except this one, but I would have to say over fifty. I mean there are over fifty alien races and over a hundred plates in the empire, aren't there?"

Once again, the crowd murmured, impressed.

"What is the square root of 1,564?" a technician called out.

Immediately, B.E.N. answered, "39.54743987. Why?"

"Since you are a living droid, I was wondering if you have any creativity in you," an engineer said out loud to B.E.N.

"Eh, you tell me."

"Can you recite a line from Shakespeare?"

"Sure. Which one?"

"Romeo, when he is saying to Juliet, 'What light…'"

B.E.N. knew exactly what the engineer was talking about. When he looked towards Luna5, who was smiling at him from her seat in the crowd, he was suddenly overcome with the urge to dramatize. And he pulled it off perfectly. "But soft, what light through yonder window breaks? It is the east and Juliet is the sun." The crowd clapped for his performance. He took a few bows. And Luna5 sighed tenderly.

The thing was that B.E.N. was directing the famous line to Luna5. She didn't know it but he was throwing a piece of his heart out to her. He was beginning to more than just like her.

For about another hour, B.E.N. was plotting exact coordinates, answering historical and mathematical questions with ease, laughed at a couple of jokes, cried at a touching story, and showed more of his artistic ability by quickly painting an abstract picture on a canvass. He also rewired a simple machine, typed a 5,000-word essay in under two minutes with his fast fingers, presented his excellent penmanship, played an extremely complicated piece on a violin, and baked a delicious cake.

"Thank you, B.E.N., for your wonderful and awe-inspiring demonstrations of yourself," Martin congratulated and the crowd cheered for the robot.

"Oh, it was nothing, really," B.E.N. chuckled modestly. He was somewhat exhausted from all the work he put into this whole presentation, but he was just as happy to show himself off to the cheering crowd scientists, biologists, astronomers, technicians, and mechanical engineers. He felt liked and admired. And it was never to be in his nature to let his early fame get to his head. He wasn't made that way. He would only show his smarts when he absolutely needed to. And besides, the only one his heart was really opening up to was Luna5.

The lovely android stood backstage, passionately watching B.E.N. leave the stage as he waved to his audience. Luna5's eyes then wandered away into space while she lovingly daydreamed of B.E.N. perhaps asking her out on a date. But she wasn't the judge of that. It was always the man's job to ask the lady out on a date.

Both of them were distracted by their own thoughts. Just as B.E.N. was walking backstage and Luna5 twirling about from her daydream…"Oof!" Well, I think you get what happened.

B.E.N. was the first to pick himself back up from the ground after colliding with the female android. That was a little embarrassing, if not painful. This was also one of his earliest clumsy moments besides the first few falls he took in the lab where he'd first woken up. He noticed that she, too, was on the ground, sitting herself up. "Oh! Luna5!" The robot felt panicked and was frantic to help her, taking her hand. "I-I-I-I…I'm really sorry. Sorry," he chuckled, fixing up Luna5's dress. "Uh-I-I had no idea where I was going and…"

"No, no, it's all right," Luna5 replied, smiling. "We all do these things sometimes."

"Mr. Navigator, sir!" a British voice called out to B.E.N., who leaned over to the side to see behind Luna5. She turned in the same general direction that B.E.N. was looking. They both saw a well-dressed alien man. The alien had blue skin and a head that resembled a hammerhead shark. The hammerhead vigorously shook B.E.N.'s little hand, his joints rubbing against one another and creating a subtle squeaking sound. "It was an honor to see your presentation. My name is Smithers McDermin-Hagen, head of the Interplanetary Trading Company. But you can call me Smithy." And Martin happened to be standing right there. "Professor Trohs. Such an honor to meet you. And what a privilege it is to see your wonderful creation in person."

"Thank you, sir," Martin said, somewhat flattered. "B.E.N. is one miracle I'll never forget. He is my first attempt at artificial intelligence and an overwhelming success."

"Indeed he is."

"But…he must be treated the same way as Luna5. He is a living machine, as you may already know by now. So, he must be treated like everyone else. He has wishes and dreams and emotions."

"Oh, yes! Of course. What an amazing paragon he is. Just like Luna5."

B.E.N. felt flattered by this. "Oh, well, heh-heh, I can't take all the credit."

"Of course." The hammerhead lowered his voice to a whisper, leaning down towards Martin. "Oh, I am terribly sorry about your wife. I know it must be very hard on you and your family."

The hammerhead wasn't very good at keeping his voice low; B.E.N. was able to hear enough of what was said. But he couldn't comprehend it "Huh?"

"It's all right," Martin replied in soft melancholy. "She couldn't be saved."

What was he talking about? What did he mean by "she couldn't be saved"? Who couldn't be saved?

The hammerhead turned his attention back to B.E.N. with a cheery grin on his face. "Right-o, then, Mr. Navigator. You'll be seeing me again soon," he promised. "You all have a lovely day." And he disappeared into the crowd.

"Okay, see ya!" B.E.N. called, waving.

"Hey, B.E.N.?" said Luna5. B.E.N. turned to face her, blushing a little. "You did wonderful with you presentation."

"Me? Well, heh-heh, you know…" He was too bashful to put his feelings into words, but it was clear by his flushed expression that the more he saw Luna5 the shier he was becoming around her. And it was clear to her that he liked her…a lot.

The android's expression suddenly turned timid and somewhat sad. It sent a foreboding jolt through B.E.N. when she spoke. "Listen, B.E.N.," she said slowly. "There's something you have to know."

"What? What is it?" he asked anxiously.

"Well, you know that I have been Martin's assistant for a while now, helping him achieve his goal, and that was bringing you to life. And now that you're here…and alive…and complete…he no longer needs my assistance."

"Huh? What are you saying? 'Cause judging by the tone quality in your voice it doesn't sound good."

"It's just that…since I'm no longer needed…I'll be holding a job elsewhere."

"Uh…wait. Does this mean we can't ever see each other again? Ever?"

"Oh, no, no. It's not that. You'll still see me…a-around…you know." She paused. "I'll be working as a nurse at a local hospice."

Hearing this, B.E.N. became happy for Luna5. "Oh, that's fantastic! You're gonna be a great nurse, Luna5."

"Thank you," she giggled shyly. "Well, I have to be going. I begin work immediately. And don't worry. We'll still see each other from time to time." As a final send-off, Luna5 came up and planted a friendly kiss on B.E.N.'s metal cheek. "That's a promise." And with that, she made her leave, waving as she went.

The robot smiled and his face became a clear depiction of his infatuation with Luna5. He once again felt the strange, warm and fuzzy feeling inside. In addition, his heart beat slightly faster. "Heh-heh. Okay…so, I'll be seein' ya! Bye." He sighed lovingly as he waved after Luna5, chuckling to himself. "Boy, is she just an angel, or what?"

"I would say so," Martin's voice agreed behind B.E.N., who jumped with a start and turned to face the professor, a little embarrassed. "You should take her out on a date with you."

The meaning of the suggestion was new to B.E.N., and it left him confused. "Eh…you kinda lost me there. I should do what now?"

"I mean you should take her someplace special. Give her a gift that she'd like," Professor Trohs explained.

"Why?"

"Well, you do this for a woman to let her know that you have feelings for her and also to build the relationship. Everyone does this. Especially if a man likes a woman."

"Well, um, technically, I'm not necessarily a man. Heck, I'm not even human."

"No, but you're alive, regardless of your hard, metal exterior. Anyway, I think Luna5 would greatly appreciate it if you asked her out on a date."

"Really? You think so?" B.E.N. felt hopeful.

"I know so. First, though, I want to take you to home."

"Home? What's that?"

"A place for you to live and call your own."

"Wow! That sounds fantastic!"

—

For the very first time in his life, B.E.N. got to see the outside world. The sky was washed with a gorgeous blue color and clouds streaked and puffed up on the infinite canvas. A bright, golden sun shined its light down on the world and bathed the scenery in its natural glow. Old English-style buildings lined down either side of the dirty street. Aliens of all sorts walked here and there. The environment was lush with exotic trees and grassy hills. In fact, the whole town sat on a giant hill slope. To top it off, a wide, blue ocean in the distance, at the base of the town, stretched out forever and merged as one with the sky.

Conveniently, Martin owned a private, bullyadous-drawn carriage. He and B.E.N. sat in the back seat as it bounded slowly down the road. Every which way they went, Martin would point out objects and customs that B.E.N. had many questions of as he saw them. Sometimes, B.E.N. knew things he never thought he knew and sometimes he thought he knew things that he really didn't know. He was told about the universal economy in general and how the system worked.

The carriage soon traveled up a hill and too a beautifully built mansion. It was bright in its design and presented a civilized yet fun feel to it. It wasn't as big as most other mansions, but that didn't matter. B.E.N. was too excited, knowing that he had a home.

In a few minutes, Martin led B.E.N. up the walkway in front of the mansion entrance and up to the front door. After unlocking the door, Martin then led B.E.N. inside.

The foyer's walls had tall, clear windows that allowed the sunlight to pour into the room. The Old English style was present again in the entire interior of the mansion. The architecture simply blew B.E.N.'s mind. He was almost at a loss for words. All he could say was, "Wow…get a load of this place!"

"Like it?" said Martin. "This is only a fraction of what you'll see. And don't worry about getting lost. I've programmed a blue-print layout of the house into your primary memory circuit."

"Wow, really?" B.E.N. could now see the whole map of the house in his mind. Of course, the layout didn't include the detailed architecture and colors. It was more like a floor plan. "Gee, you think of everything."

"My children are going to love meeting you."

"You're kidding! You have kids?"

"Of course."

Just then three young voices cried out happily, "Daddy's home! Daddy's home!" The voices revealed themselves to be three little children, two girls and one boy. One girl stood taller than the rest, the other shorter, and the boy in between. The taller girl had long, blonde hair and blue eyes. The boy, who was shorter than the girl, had scruffy, brown hair and green eyes. The smallest of the trio, the little girl, had short, blonde hair and silver eyes. All three had the faces of how one would picture children to look.

The taller girl gazed at the robot, who was grinning in awe. "Dad," the girl wondered, "is that the robot? The one you've been working on?"

"Yes, Olivia," Martin answered with a fatherly smile. "Children, this is B.E.N."

"Hi there," B.E.N. greeted with a friendly wave.

"Wow!" the boy responded and pointed, amazed. "He's-he's all talking and stuff…like a real person."

B.E.N. couldn't help chortling at how adorable they all were. "Oh, aren't you just the cutest things."

"Aren't they?" Martin agreed. "If you'll excuse me, I have some work to do. Children, why don't you keep B.E.N. company?"

"Okay, Dad," all three of them answered in unison.

"Now, children…" Martin turned serious and firm. "I want you treat B.E.N. with respect. He may be a machine, but he has thoughts and feelings just like you and I. Understand?" The children nodded their heads. They understood perfectly. "Good. I'm off." With that, Martin left the foyer.

"So, so, so, Daddy made you?" the boy said.

"Yep, he sure did," B.E.N. replied, smiling sweetly.

"That's so cool," added the older girl.

"Well, enough about me. What are your names? How old are you? If you don't mind me asking."

"I'm Olivia. I'm 8 years old," the taller girl introduced.

It was the boy's turn. "I'm Michael, and I'm 6." He held up his hands, showing six fingers.

But the youngest girl didn't speak. "This is Miley. She's 3," Olivia explained. "She doesn't talk a whole lot, but she likes to play and have fun."

"Awww," B.E.N. cooed. "Well, isn't she precious." He tickled the toddler around the cheek, and she giggled with delight.

In a minute, the children had B.E.N. sitting in one of the foyer couches as they sat around him, asking him many questions as to what he could do and what he liked. The children found that B.E.N. was able to cook, take part in the arts, do many things with his voice and body to act out a part in order to delight his audience, and name every historical date and answer any mathematics question he was give. He told them what he liked as well. His favorite color was blue, he liked children—now that he'd become acquainted with Martin's kids—he liked to do the many things he could do, and he enjoyed dining on chippers and pure, black oil, unrefined (unlike the noxious gas he humans keep wasting).

One question caught B.E.N. off his guard. Olivia asked him if he had a girlfriend. The first thing that came to mind was…Luna5. But was she really his girlfriend? He'd only met her just today, on his first day of life! Well, he did have feelings for her. Did that count?

"Well," he answered finally, "there is this girl…" He chuckled and rubbed the back of his neck, a little bashful.

"Ooh! What's she like?" Olivia eagerly wanted to know. "Is she pretty?"

"Pretty? Oh, she is beautiful! Her eyes shine just like the moon…" he sighed affectionately, lost in the daydream. "I tell ya, she is an absolute angel…" The feelings he had for Luna5 were strong, and until now he never took them to consideration. "You know something? Whenever I see her face or even think about her I…I feel so strange."

"Really?"

"Uh-huh." He nodded. "My knees feel like jelly—" his knees could be seen trembling slightly "—my electronic pulse unit beats really fast—" his heart could be heard pounding behind his chest "—and my tummy feels all fluttery inside." In emphasis, his hand covered his middle.

Olivia thought about this and nodded. "Hmmm."

"I'm not sick, am I?" B.E.N. queried with worry.

"Of course, not, silly. What you have is a case of lovesickness. Nothing to worry about."

"So, I am sick?"

"No! You're in love with the girl!"

"I'm…in love?"

Is that what this feeling was called? Lovesickness? Martin did say B.E.N. had feelings for Luna5.

"But don't tell her that," Olivia continued. "She won't want to go out with you if you tell her right away."

"Really?"

"Yeah. Wait for the right time. By the way, who is this girl?"

"Luna5."

"Oh! Oh! I know her! I know her!" Michael piped up.

"We all know her," said Olivia. "How cool that you're in love with our mom's robot!"

B.E.N. felt bashful all over again and chuckled. But he had no idea Luna5 belonged to their mother. He always thought she belonged to their father, Martin.

"So, did you ask her out yet?" Olivia wanted to know.

"Me?" B.E.N. replied. "Well, um…no."

"Do it today," Olivia advised. "And don't forget flowers, but only on the night of your date. Got it?"

"Yes, ma'am."

—

The hospice was located in the higher parts of town on the hill. The structure was small, but it was big enough to hold many patients. Luna5 was constantly needed, and in order to be there whenever she was needed, she was given her own dorm of sorts. Basically, she lived at the hospice now.

B.E.N. was directed to the android's place and knocked on the door. "Come in," Luna5 called from behind the door. The robot opened the door and stepped inside.

"Uh, hello there, Luna5," B.E.N. greeted shyly. "I hope I'm not intruding."

Luna5 turned and saw B.E.N. at the door and beamed. "Oh, B.E.N.! Hello. No, you're not intruding. Come on in. Did you miss me already?"

"Well, heh-heh, I guess you could say that."

The room presented a unique theme. It was bright in here, with the walls painted white. The furniture arrangements were simple enough, like any dorm would appear. It had a bed, a dresser, a desk, and the open windows had semi-transparent white curtains, which drifted in the breeze. Outside was a beautiful hilltop view of the ocean.

"Wow. Is this where you live?" B.E.N. said, gazing around the room.

"Yes," Luna5 replied. "This used to be an operating room, but they built a new one and gave this one to me as my own."

"Wow. This is fantastic!"

"Thank you."

It was difficult, but B.E.N. finally gathered up the courage to say, "Say…um…Luna5…uhh…I-I was just wondering…would you…um…would you like to…well…uh-heh…" He gulped. Okay, so he was short a smidgen of courage.

"It's okay," Luna5 forgave him for his trouble. "Go on."

"Oh! Well…I was just wondering…" he said slowly, "…would you like to…" He gulped again. His knees trembled slightly and his heart pounded hard and his stomach twisted and turned painfully. "Would you like to…guh…go out on a date with me?" He gasped inwardly and exhaled for relief. Luna5 was taken aback by this unexpected, if not jittery, request. "I-I mean you don't have to if you want don't to! I do understand! Really! I mean…would you?"

"Well, I would, but…" Luna5 answered, "don't you think you're rushing it a little?"

"Am I? Well, I mean…"

"Of course, I would."

"Really? Whew. Good. I mean, great!"

"What time?"

"Oh, whatever's good for you. Heh-heh."

"How does tonight at 7 'o clock sound?"

"Fantastic!"

"Well, I've got something I need to take care of, but I will see you later." With the conversation over, Luna5 gave B.E.N. her enchanting smile again, pecked him with a kiss, and made her way down the hall, disappearing around the corner.

B.E.N. grinned big and sighed long and lovingly. That warm, fuzzy feeling returned to him. And his compass flipped around in its place, exposing the navigational system, the small, circular grid screen showing a thudding heart.

"I've got a date…" B.E.N. put a hand to his chest, gazing blissfully into a space. "…Hee…"

To be continued...

—

Jeez. I really wish I had posted this around Valentine's Day. At first, I thought of waiting until Valentine's came around again, but that would mean I'd have to wait around a whole other year and that would take way too long! So, I'll just post it now. Oh, and for the record, the mathematical question and answer that came up was not from me. I am terrible at math. I just thought of a random number and used a calculator for the answer.

Please tell me what you think! I greatly appreciate it!