You're Not Alone in This World

Chapter Ͷ

/date/

noun

The day of the month or year specified by number

A social or romantic appointment or engagement

Connor had made plans with Andrea but he wasn't sure what else to do. Most dates consisted of some sort of activity both parties would participate in. He researched ideas but most just told him to take out his significant other for dinner. They suggested something upscale but nothing too expensive as to hurt his bank account. Absolutely not. That would not cut it. How could something as simple as dinner capture everything he felt about her? He needed it to be more meaningful. With the new information about her, Connor wanted something concrete. He wanted to convey that somehow. Something that would continue to shine like gold in their memories well into their, hopefully, long-lasting relationship.

Hank expressed that Connor was thinking about it too hard. Did Hank know what Andrea was? If not, then he didn't understand. He couldn't... Connor and Andrea were beings that could last forever.

Forever is a long time.

Eventually, Connor decided on what he wanted to do. Right in time for Saturday. Getting ready was an entirely different beast. July was in full swing as was the height of Detroit temperatures. Connor had not fiddled with his temperature sensitivity, afraid it would distract him if he turned it on, but he felt he'd look weird if he wore a full suit in almost ninety-degree weather. A simple blue button-down would have to do. He rolled up his sleeves as he replayed the plans in his head. He took in a fabricated breath as he looked himself in the mirror and made his way to leave. Not before saying goodbye to Hank and patting Sumo's head.

Andrea didn't live too far away from Hank so Connor decided he'd walk. He rapped his hand against Andrea's door twice. Three times would be too much and only once would be practically unnoticeable. He waited on her doorstep as patiently as possible, leaning back on his heels every few seconds.

The familiar door finally swung open to reveal the woman he was waiting for. She wore a cropped band tee and a simple pair of jean shorts. Connor did warn her they were going to be outside for a while and to wear something comfortable. He assumed that, even though Andrea was a God, she could still feel temperatures far more acutely than androids. His LED blinked between pink and yellow for a few seconds before it settled on staying pink.

"Hey." Andrea's warm voice pulled Connor from his thoughts. She stepped next to Connor as she closed her door and gave him a gentle smile.

Connor couldn't help but smile back, "Hi." He glanced away from Andrea for a moment, just to keep his processor from running too wild. "I have set up a picnic for us by a nearby park. It overlooks Lake Saint Clair." He watched Andrea's face for her reaction. She looked delighted. His hand yearned for his coin at that moment. Or was it something else? Andrea's touch always smoothed his nerves somehow.

"Sounds nice," Andrea said softly. Her eyes flicked down to Connor's hand. She gently intertwined their fingers. "Is this okay?"

Andrea knew Connor was new to romantic relationships. Sure, he could research as much as he wanted about what he should and shouldn't do but there was only so much of that he could do. He wouldn't know what he wanted or what he liked until it happened. That alone could scare anyone, no matter if they were android or human.

"Y-yes." His voice glitched out for a second, causing Andrea to chuckle. Connor ran a quick diagnostic and found nothing was wrong. Then what happened? "I'm sorry, that's never happened to me before."

Andrea shook her head, "No need to apologize, it was cute." She admitted.

If Connor felt like he was going to malfunction before, now he felt like he was going to go into a forced stasis. He'd gotten compliments from Andrea before but they never had anything to do with appearance or mannerisms, mostly his work ethic or his intelligence. He's gotten quite a few "good work, Connor"s and even an "I'm glad you caught that, I don't think I would have." While those were nice to hear coming from Andrea's mouth, this felt more intense.