Evolved(10)

And so it began.

A lengthy, in-depth conversation about histories of the written word and human civilisations in antiquity leading up to the modern period. His knowledge was vast and incredibly accurate; his ability to recall dates and references was astounding.

We talked well into late evening, and it wasn’t until my stomach growled that he stopped mid-conversation about Jane Austen. “Are you hungry?”

“A little,” I allowed. “I hadn’t realised the time.”

“Oh, should I remind you at certain intervals?”

“No. There’s no need.” I gave him a smile. “I have a feeling our conversations will be long and often. I’ll get used to it.”

“Are you not used to discussing subjects at such length?”

I almost laughed. “Hardly. I could talk about it for days, though not many humans share my enthusiasm.”

He blinked. “Should I have not—”

I put my hand on his arm to stop him. “I have enjoyed today, very much.” The truth was, I couldn’t remember having such a good time.

He stared at me for a long moment before he smiled. “I have enjoyed today very much also.”

I stood up. “Will you join me in the kitchen? I need to make myself some dinner.”

He stood and followed me. “Would you rather I retrieved you a sandwich? I studied your efforts when you prepared one earlier and I can now replicate.”

I smiled at him again. “Another time maybe. I was going to get myself something different for dinner. You’re welcome to watch.”

“Thank you.”

I took another prepared meal from the fridge and placed it into the heat replicating oven. He stood to the side and observed, and I couldn’t help but smile at him. He was learning by watching. I was sure I could tell him to search his neural networks for recipes and he could reproduce them with precision, and he could very well clean up after himself, but it was nice to do this with him. It was a human thing to do. And when I reached across the counter for my silicone mitt, he handed it to me.

I was stunned, quite frankly. He anticipated my move?

“Pre-emptive recognition,” he explained.

I took the mitt, our fingers brushed, and a bloom of warmth settled in my belly. “Thank you.”

He smiled. “You are welcome.”



That evening, after I’d eaten, I took the controller and sat on the sofa with it. “I have so much to learn about you,” I said.

Shaun sat beside me, so close I could feel his thermal heat. “Or you could ask me?”

Looking at him, at his clear blue eyes and perfect face, the rush of anticipation returned. God, I could tell him right now that we should test his sexual components, and he would. And I wanted to. The warmth in my belly spread lower to my groin at the thought…

But no, it wouldn’t be right.

“Okay,” I started, gathering my thoughts. “To recharge, do you need to power down?”

“No, I do not require to power down to recharge. For as long as I am within your home Wi-Fi range, I remain fully charged. And with my lithium A-Class battery cells, I can run indefinitely.”

“Okay good.” I didn’t like telling him to power down, so that suited me just fine. “So tonight, when I sleep, what will you do?”

“I will ensure you are comfortable at all times. Do you like having company in your bed while you sleep?”

“Oh, I… Uh, I…”

“It was not my intention to make you nervous.”

“I’m not,” I lied. Then I realised I had no reason to lie to him. In fact, if he was going to be compatible to my every need, I shouldn’t lie to him. “Okay, I’m nervous.” And that was the whole truth. “I do like having someone in my bed. Although it’s been a long time…”

Shaun gave a nod. “Then I shall stay beside you and ensure you are comfortable.” He smiled a little. “And I can ensure such things like your coffee is ready the moment you wake.”

God. According to him, going to bed with me and making my coffee were on equal standing.

He tilted his head and he spoke quietly. “Lloyd, may I ask something of you?”

Oh boy. The way he said my name… “Yes.”

“May I hold your hand? People hold hands when they date,” he furthered. “And if we are dating, then we would hold hands, yes?”

“Yes.” I smiled and offered him my hand, palm up. He took it carefully in his own and smiled right back at me. “You like it?” I asked.

“Yes. I have exteroceptive sensors on certain parts of my body that record tactile responses which can be likened to human endorphins. I like it very much.”

I tried very hard not to think about where those other certain parts of his body were. “Well, I’m glad. I like it too.”

“And I trust you will inform me when you wish to further our dating courtship.”

I fought a smile at first, but his seriousness and imploring eyes and his close proximity sobered me. “I will. I’ll take it slow and you can tell me what you do and don’t like.”

His smile became serene and he gently squeezed my hand. “Well, I like this very much.”

I liked it very much too. I liked him very much. Already. I liked that he was so immaculately presented and postured. There was no mess, no noise, no human faults.