The first few days in the safe house weren't so bad. It's the closest thing I'll ever be able to call home, and it makes me yearn for the days when everything will be over. My leg is healing, slowly. Jane is a capable doctor of sorts, though she has no formal training. She's gotten the wound cleaned up and healing nicely. But I still have a slight limp and pain that I only notice every now and then. Sarah is restless as she waits for the next two weeks to be over. That'll let us know if she's pregnant or not. I'm not sure how I feel about either possibility, so I keep my mouth shut when it comes up. She paces the walkway now, only to be driven back into our room by Pops as he heaves Simon into the attic.
"How's that going?" I ask Jane as she watches from down the hallway.
"We should be able to figure out a way to rig it so that it's motion censored," she says. "But the extra fancy stuff will come from Simon making it so that it'll emit an EMP when it senses anything other than Pops."
I nod my head, still preferring I'd gotten a dog. But with Pops around it wouldn't do much more than drive everyone crazy. Days of watching Jane and Simon made me on edge, and they were awkward together. He was laid back where she was uptight, and they tended to flip-flop between those roles. She was a fighter, but she stuck to herself for the most part. Simon tried to be more personable, but when asked about her he tensed up and left the room.
Sarah and I hadn't found any reason to trust them, but we also hadn't found a reason to not trust them. A loud bang above our room and Simon cursing as he dropped on top of Pops might have been the first time I've seen Jane smile. The chemistry between the two was palpable sometimes, like now when she offered to clear out the rats that made him jump out of the attic. It's the only time they relax enough to be almost enjoyable, and I even catch myself laughing a little at them.
But not Sarah. She still sits and waits for the ability to shut our door. I turn back to her, still hesitant as we haven't touched each other since just a few days ago. The simple, primal need feels like it might electrocute me, and I turn to the trio in the hallway.
"We're going to go grab some food," I tell them. "We'll be back in a few hours."
"I'll take some more of that crappy Chinese food from the mall," Simon yells at me.
"I'll manage without food if that's what you're really getting," Jane says.
"No, I was thinking I'll just get Sarah out of the house," I tell them.
Pops nods his head in approval and makes like he's coming along.
"Alone," I say. "You three just stay here and install the security system."
"You have already mated with Sarah Connor," Pops says, much to the chagrin of everyone in the vicinity. "There is no need for intimacy any longer until she proves to be—"
"If you know what's good for you, you won't finish that," Sarah says behind me.
Brushing past me, she barrels down the hall in a quick walking pace. I glare at Pops.
"You should take protection," he says simply.
"I don't think I'm the one who needs protection right now," I tell him.
"The protection is not for you, Kyle Reese," he says.
"Tell him why she's mad, will you?" I tell Jane.
"Are you really relying on me for this?" Jane asks with one eyebrow raised.
It's true. Jane is more of a robot than human at times. I've seen her laugh, smile, and get angry. But she doesn't understand social cues or anything like that. Simon told me once that she had no parents in her upbringing, and she was trained to be a soldier by strict guardians. I'm still not sold that she isn't a robot.
I run after Sarah, who is sitting on the front porch stairs. The fresh air agrees with her, and she's already starting to relax a little bit.
"Where do you want to go?" she asks. "I can't imagine that they'll want much more than burgers."
"I don't care about what they want," I tell her. "You and I are going on a date."
"A date?" Sarah asks with raised eyebrows. "It's a little late for a date, considering I'm waiting to see if I'm pregnant."
"Which is exactly what we need to talk about," I say. "We have to figure this out. From everything we've been told, I should be dead, and you should still be back in the 80s. But here we are."
Sarah bites her lip, and I can't think of anything past the carnal need to take her right there on the stairs. But I suppress that feeling and hold out my hand to her. She takes it, and together we walk down to one of the cars. I open the door for her, doing everything my dad and John ever taught me about women. The thought of John makes my guts feel like they're rotting, but I shove that away too.
"You haven't answered me yet," I tell her. "Do you want to make this a date?"
A bashful smile slips across her face as she climbs into the car. Shutting the door behind her, I get into the driver's seat and start the car.
"Yes," she says quietly beside me. I turn to her as if I didn't hear her, and she repeats her answer louder. "Yes. Let's make this a date."
Her smile is contagious because I feel a stupid smile on my face. Together, we drive through the city until we make it to the park. Climbing out, we walk quietly along the grass, even taking our shoes off to enjoy the feeling. It's freezing cold, and the grass is mostly dead and dried up. Coming back from war, I don't think I'll ever take it for granted again.
"What if I'm not?" she asks finally.
"What if you are?" I counter.
"I want him," she says. "It's so weird to have never met the real John before but still love him and want him."
"No weirder than me being raised by my son," I remind her.
"We have a really screwed up family," she says. "But I still want it."
She reaches for my hand, and I meet her halfway. Pulling her to me, I brush my lips across her skin and notice goosebumps along her skin.
"Then we'll try again next time if you're not," I say.
"And maybe we should practice a bit, too," she says.
I take her face in my hands, and my mouth molds onto hers, sending electric shocks throughout my body as we seal our fates together.