by Alechia Dow
“The doctor gave me medicine to take, and I stuck it in my underwear.”
He keeps his eyes on the road outside. “That’s an odd place to keep it.”
She chuckles. “I didn’t know where else to put it.”
He doesn’t comment, only looks up at the stars through the windshield. The stars shine brighter back home. Usually thoughts of home make him long to go back. But here, with Ellie, he can’t imagine being anywhere else.
“You can turn back now.” Ellie opens the compartment in front of the passenger seat and gingerly places the gun inside. And then he follows her as she gets out. Together, they lift the battery from the ground where M0Rr1S left it before the capture, and set it on top of the car’s engine. M0Rr1S takes the empty battery out, while Ellie rifles through the contents of the trunk.
“Hey look, a full container thing of gas. And... Aha!” she exclaims, coming back with two cables, one red, one black. She clamps the red cable to the battery where it shows a plus sign, and the black to the minus. Then she hands the ends to M0Rr1S. “You need to connect these to your panel. I don’t have scissors, so if you use your amazing power, you can strip down the rubber to the metal.”
“If this doesn’t work...I will shut down and stay asleep until charged.” Ellie nods as he concentrates on the wires, stripping away the layers piece by piece. It’s agonizingly slow, draining and precise. He slumps, the flashing over his eye saying he’s on reserved energy now.
Ellie turns him and pushes him back till he’s sitting against the edge of the car. She stands between his legs. “Okay, now twist these together.”
His movements and breathing are slow, but he does as she says.
“Now—” she takes his head into her hands and softly tilts his head “—give me your hand.”
She takes his hand in hers and pushes the cords into his USB port. Nothing happens.
M0Rr1S brushes his fingers against her arm. “You know, it was only a matter of time before you fell in love with me, Ellie.”
“Oh yeah?” She puts a hand on her hip, her head cocked to the side.
“Yes. I believe the universe has a way of bringing two people together. Two people who are just... What is the saying?”
“Meant to be?”
M0Rr1S nods. “Exactly.”
She scoffs, sounding unconvinced, and guides the wires into his panel, holding them gingerly. “Who said I’m in love with you? I told you I liked you. And up until a little while ago, you didn’t even know what love is, let alone what falling in love means.”
And then it happens. Small at first, but growing. Energy courses through him, his advanced technology pulling the electrical charge fast.
“Is it working?”
He gulps. The air suddenly smells sweeter, and her warmth starts to seep into him. He notices everything at once, from lines of concern on her face underneath the sheen of dirt, to the way her breath catches. “Oh, Ellie, your pupils are dilated, your heart races when I’m near, and you blink a lot. You also angle your body toward me often. And I did just wake up to you lying on me. You saved my life, and you’re saving me now. These are facts. And the facts imply that you and I are... We are music and stories brought to life...by love.”
She’s quiet as her eyes lock with his.
M0Rr1S pulls the wires from his panel, and they both let them fall to the ground. Her hand hovers by his jaw. He pushes down to see his charge status flicker in his left eye. Eighty-two percent. Enough to be useful, not enough to be inundated with senses. He moves until the palm of her hand rests against his jaw, and he looks up at her. “But as you probably know, I’m very much in love with you, too.”
“You’re ridiculous, you know that?”
“Perhaps humans dither around with their feelings, but I want to be honest and direct. I will not waste time and I will not say that which I do not mean. Janelle Baker, I love you. I don’t care if it doesn’t make sense, if it’s fast, if this is a star about to explode into oblivion. It means more to me to tell you this, this truth of mine, than to hold it in. I don’t wish to have regrets. Not about you.”
Her lips purse. “I just... I don’t know.”
M0Rr1S feels wounded. “You don’t believe me?”
She puts her free hand on his shoulder. “I do. It’s just...everyone knows that a love like this, love that’s sudden...it can’t be real. Every story I’ve read where someone says they love you after a week is ridiculous. It’s a cheesy trope. Or infatuation.”
“Before the Ilori came, did you believe that aliens were real? Aliens powered by electricity, who can charge from a car battery? Who can mentally communicate with each other? Who have seen worlds you can only begin to imagine?”
“No. No one did.”
“Did you think any of what has happened was possible before now? Or likely?”
She shakes her head.
“If you didn’t know we were real, what we could do, then perhaps you humans have a limited perception of reality.” He puts his hand on hers. “I’m not like you. You have always been free to feel. I’ve had to hide emotions deep inside of me, telling myself that they were false, unnecessary, shameful. I had to believe my own lies. Now, I’m here.” He looks up at the cloudless sky, before letting his gaze fall back on her. “I can own these feelings. I may not always understand them...but when I know something, I’m confident. And I cannot and will not lie to you or to myself. What I feel for you is love. I feel alive with affection, and wanting to be with you. When you were gone, and I was in that cell, I thought only of you. You were in my dreams. You’ve set me free in a way even music couldn’t. I’ve never been more myself, since I met you.”
The corners of her lips quirk. He moves into the limited space between them. She lets her head lean back slightly, gazing into his eyes. Her cheeks bloom a rosy pink and her teeth graze her lower lip. “May I?”
He stares down at her. She’s asking him. She has to know his answer.
M0Rr1S wants to take her in his arms and kiss her until the moon fades and the sun rises. But he decides to take this slow. He wraps one hand around her waist, her fiery warmth permeating her dress into his hand. The other hand brushes against the smooth skin of her jaw before he tilts her chin higher. He bends toward her to breathe her in, her mouth only centimeters from his own. “Yes.”
His lips touch hers, soft and perfect, and there’s an explosion of feelings and colors and lights and notes of songs that could perfectly capture this moment swimming around them. It’s everything. Her heart pounds against his chest, her mouth parts to let him explore her. They are clunky. It isn’t experienced, but it’s right. Her eyes close.
He, M0Rr1S 1lv, is kissing Janelle Baker, the human girl who controls his body, his heart and soul, if he has one. And nothing else matters.
She gasps and smiles against his mouth as his fingers pull her closer to him. He wants to know every corner of her, but he pulls away. “You like me?”
Her face is heated, and her eyes are round. “I like you. That other L word’s going to have to wait.”
“It can. I can.” He kisses her again before resting his forehead against hers. “We have to go.”
She sighs. “I know.”
“My starry dreams,” he sings softly.
She looks up at him with the stars reflecting in her eyes. “You would sing at this moment.”
He should be embarrassed, he knows now, at this display of vulnerability. But never with her. “I love to sing. Especially to you.”
She giggles. “I do love when you sing.”
He imagines there’s a thing such as fate and destiny, like the Andarrans believe. “That is why the universe brought us together.”
Her cheeks widen into a smile that makes his heart beat faster, if that’s possible, before she steps away from him.
Time. So little time. He sinks the batt
ery into place and removes the cables, while she stops and plucks something from the ground. From the open trunk, he takes the container of gasoline from inside and fills the tank quickly.
“What is that?” he asks as he sets the empty container back in the car and closes the hood.
“A buzzkiller.” She scrutinizes it. “We might need it.”
He eyes the little black device that can deplete his energy in a matter of seconds, but he doesn’t question her.
She opens the car door, and then the glove compartment. She gingerly takes the gun into her hands. “I can’t keep this. I hate guns.” Her arm stretches back before she hurls it into the night. It goes a considerable distance, given she’s a human, and plonks onto the ground.
With a happy sigh, she slides inside and shuts the door. Before he does the same, he tilts his head to the sky and smiles up at the stars. That kiss was everything he expected and more. With another deep breath, he slides in beside Ellie.
“Not much longer now.”
She twists in her seat and grabs another cracker. “So about the story... I can’t remember, where did we leave off?”
“He’s in love.”
* * *
“What happened back there, in the field, when we got caught?” Ellie takes a sip from her water after a short nap.
“I was low on energy and I connected to Il-0CoM.”
She shifts in her seat. “But you connected to the humans in the field, too...?”
“I didn’t, AvR0la did. But in doing so, I opened my mind to Il-0CoM.” He doesn’t want to scare Ellie, but he must tell her the truth. “0rsa, my brother, Brixton, and my father were able to communicate with me. I learned that 0rsa wants you dead, Brixton wants me dead and my father is disappointed, which means he would also be pleased if I were dead. And Brixton is coming. 0rsa... I don’t know what she plans to do.”
“Ilori,” is all she says, shaking her head. For once, he can’t read her expression.
“All of my life I’ve looked up to them—I was meant to look up to them. They were perfect and I was their lesser.” He scoffs. “The farther away I’ve gone, the more I realize they are weak. To understand and appreciate your emotions is strength.”
“Why does your brother hate you?”
The pain hitches his breath. “Because I exist.”
She huffs. “I’m sorry. He sounds horrible. Maybe he just...he doesn’t know how to be a brother, or...or you know, he’s used to following orders. Maybe he’s afraid of being compassionate.”
“Remember that when Brixton stops us at IpS1L, surrounded by a bunch of his Ilori soldier friends. And then when he tells you that I can’t possibly love you, because I’m a lab monster, and nothing I feel is real.”
Ellie looks over at him. “You think he would?”
“I know he will. The question is, when we get there, will he let me go?”
She turns her head toward the window. “We should plan, Morris. Stop and plan. How far away are we?”
“A few more hours and we’ll be close to Los Angeles. We’ll stop outside the city and figure how to get to the ship from there. It’s close to the coast, so we’ll have to run through the city undetected.”
She makes a dramatic huff. “You mean you’re going to have to run and carry me? Morris, it’s too much. I’m chunky, you know?”
Now it’s his turn to look at her. “What’s chunky?”
“You know... I’m sorta fluffy? Thick? Fat?” She does some weird gesturing with her hands to infer that she is large.
He furrows his brows, staring at her incredulously. “You—you are the most beautiful being I’ve ever encountered.”
“Most people think I’m unattractive. Too heavy to carry.” Her voice is strange, embarrassed.
“I love everything about you. I desire every part of you...immensely. And I will carry you across this world, and worlds beyond this one, Ellie. You are never too much for me.” He shakes his head, hoping she understands that any statement that implies she’s anything less than perfect is absurd. Her cheeks pink, and her heart is racing in his ears. His fingers reach out to trace the edge of her jaw quickly before dropping back on the wheel. He doesn’t want to make her more uncomfortable, so he decides to change the subject. “We’ll plan when we get closer to the city. Let’s enjoy the last few hours together.”
“Actually...” She smiles a little. “If you don’t mind, could we pull over somewhere?”
“Yes, but this time, I check around first, okay? It seems that every time we leave a car, someone attacks us. I find this troubling.”
“You’re right.” She chuckles before tapping on the window. “Hey, look at that old-timey diner. Surprised it’s still intact.”
“How do you always see these places, but you couldn’t see the snakes around us in the middle of the field?”
“There were snakes?” Her mouth drops open.
M0Rr1S bursts out laughing. “Let’s go there. Maybe you should leave that human device though? Having it close may harm me.”
“I will. I don’t even know how to use it.”
“I think it acts like a magnet to our electricity and depletes it. Simple yet effective.” M0Rr1S steers the car across freeway lanes. Gravel swirls into the air as they pull into the empty parking lot outside of the diner.
There are all sorts of colorful signs posted around the small building. It looks untouched by invasion. Another building the Ilori must have planned on keeping as a remnant of its human past.
“It says it has the best burgers in California, and features live music on Tuesday nights. But neither of those things are true anymore.” There’s a dull edge in Ellie’s voice that he wishes he could take away. “It was probably a busy trucker stop.”
“Stay here. I will look inside. And please stay here this time.” He steps out of the car and looks around. He can’t sense any movement or life. He’s halfway toward the diner when he turns to find Ellie at his side.
“I asked you to stay in the car.”
“But what if there are Ilori and they shut you down again? You need me.”
He doesn’t comment, only reaches for her hand. Sometimes he wants to sing that song about wanting to hold her hand by The Beatles. But what if she grows bored or annoyed with his singing? Is it too much?
Yet, as Ellie’s fingers lace through his, she hums the song, eliciting a chuckle from him. “I was just going to sing that.”
“I was waiting for you to.” She smiles at him and pulls him up the sidewalk with her.
“Wait,” he says, taking the doorknob with his free hand. He can’t see through walls, but he can sense movement in his mind. But there’s nothing inside, not even a rustling of air from an open window. “Okay.”
They walk inside, and she hits the light switch by the side of the door. “Worth a shot.” But the lights flicker on, and her eyes widen. “Oh my.”
Colorful orbs light up the black-and-white checkered flooring. Red booths line the walls, and flimsy furniture and chairs crowd the center. She navigates the forest of furniture to a bare platform. She stops next to a microphone but her gaze zeroes in on a machine in the corner. She skips over to it with a small gasp. M0Rr1S follows behind her, curious.
“This is a jukebox,” she chirps. “You’re going to love this, assuming we find some spare quarters.”
“It takes money?” M0Rr1S eyes the machine, noting the words on the screen and the records inside. There are little buttons and knobs, and a space to insert coins. He glances at the side of the machine; there’s a little compartment toward the back with a lock. Stooping down, he uses his power to manipulate it. The pieces of metal vibrate until they pop open, spilling coins onto the floor. His fingers graze the silver pieces before he hands them to Ellie. “These?”
“Yes, exactly.” Ellie takes them from his hands and pushes one through a small
slot. She hits a button, and music streams forth. “It’s Aretha Franklin. I’ve heard her a million times, and I’ll never grow tired of her.”
It’s loud, but the jukebox machine has this old and muffled sound to it that makes it atmospheric. He closes his eyes and sways with the beat for a second before glancing over at Ellie.
“Do you want to dance with me?” Ellie holds out her hands.
He is hit with a sudden case of nerves. “I am...uncertain about my level of proficiency.”
“Don’t get shy now. We’ve danced before and it’s easy. Just hold me close, and I’ll show you how.” He treads toward her and into her arms. “Put your arms around my waist, and I’ll put my arms around your shoulders and neck, like this.”
Her waist feels electric under his fingers, like she could be all the charge he needs to make his body run. He never wants to let go. Or maybe he wants to hold her closer until every part of him heats in her presence. He can’t decide. She moves with him, and her smile widens. The song is by a woman, Aretha, with a deep, lovely voice. She sings about a love that has finally come into her life.
“My mom and dad loved this song. It’s called ‘You Send Me,’ and it’s about love. All these oldies are about love.” Ellie rests her head on his shoulder. “Is this okay?”
“I like this.” His voice cracks a little with nerves.
They stay like that until the song ends. “All right, pick out another one—just hit a random combination. I’ll be right back.”
She runs off toward the bathroom, and he goes over to the machine. There are numbers and letters. He finds it confusing but sorts through them until he ends up hitting something. The music starts back up just as Ellie returns. Her purple hat is peeking from her left pocket, and her hair is free around her shoulders.
She catches him staring. “My hat was dirty.” A big, crooked grin splashes across her face as she begins to move around to the rhythm. “This song.”
His eyes are stuck to every angle of the way her body moves. “What is it?”