"Impulse created everything. The world. It's people. I'm no different, you know."

*

Memory loop. Playback saved file. Dated: July 3rd, 2016

The rings fit perfectly around our fingers. Spontaneously purchased. No need to resize. They held up in our heat, never budging, never moving. Silver bands slick with our love.

I looked down at mine as the moonlight hit it. Spinning it once around, I smiled, happily sighing as the cool night air hit my face. That smile turned into an all-out, hearty laugh. I couldn't help myself.

Who else could say they married the girl of their dreams? Their high school sweetheart? Not many. And I was proud to be amongst the few.

"Javier?" Mary's sweet, yet seductive voice hit me as she opened the door to our motel room. Standing within the open doorway in just her underwear, I couldn't help but bite my lip.

I turned my shoulder into the door frame as she opened it another inch, and another. A grin lifted my lips. "What'chu doing out of bed?" I asked.

Her beautiful, dark cheeks turned scarlet, and she looked down at her bra. Teasingly, she played with the lace bow in front of it. "I mean, you weren't in here." Only her brown eyes lifted to look at me. "Aren't I supposed to be in bed with my husband?"

Reaching forward, I grabbed her hand before she could entice me inside. "You asked me to come out here, remember?" My tongue trailed along my bottom lip. "You wanted some ice cream."

"Well, I mean, you didn't go get it, so..." Mary pushed out her bottom lip and batted her eyelashes. "I won't complain if you come back inside. I miss you already."

Honestly, I debated the option. I could easily slip back into the bedroom, take off every piece of her lingerie, and remind her just how far my love can go.

But she wanted ice cream. And what my queen wants, she gets.

I leaned forward, and with just one finger, lifted her chin so our lips met. The kiss I gave her was soft, sweet, and quietly told her to hold out until I made it back. "Give me half an hour, okay?" I whispered, looking at her with hooded eyes. "I'll grab you that ice cream and be right back."

Mary's head dipped against the side of the door as she watched me take three steps back. "But the store isn't around here. We're in the middle of bu-fu."

I smiled and bit the insides of my cheek. Having a secluded night was her idea, not mine. But there had been a reason why we said our I do's in front of a judge and not a priest. And why her father called her phone every fifteen minutes.

Not wanting to think of the negative, I pushed the thoughts away and smiled. My hands slid along the sides of the stair railing as I walked down into the parking lot. "Just a half-hour, babe. I promise I'll make it up to you."

I pulled open the driver's side door and looked up where she stood; still with the door open, still in her underwear. I took a minute to admire every inch of her before I jumped in the car and drove away.

The cold air from the opened window helped reduce the heat swelling in my body. Sweet guitar rifts came out from the radio, and I tapped my hands on my steering wheel, matching the beat. It calmed me. By the time I drove a mile down the road, I was cool, collected, but eager to get back.

"All right," I said to myself as I slowed the car before the train tracks, stopping before the separator went down. My hands checked my pockets. "Ice cream."

I patted once. Twice. But the sides of my jeans were flat. Empty.

A low groan left my lips as I stared out the front of the car. "I left my wallet. Shit."

The music continued to play as I checked the glove compartment, the side-pockets on both doors. Feeling slightly helpless, I tapped the car's dashboard, pulling up my call log. "Bionics," I commanded my car's built-in assistant. "Call Mary."

"Calling now," the car responded with a male voice. When I reached into the backseats, pulled up jackets and old sweaters, the car chirped, confirming the connection. "Mary Morales," it said.

My eyes went wide. And I smiled.

"Javi?" Mary's voice came from the car's front speakers as I glanced at the pink call-light. I couldn't help but laugh as I sat straight up in my seat, feet pressed down beside the gas pedals. "Javi, are you calling about your wallet?" I heard something tap on her end of the call. "'Cause, it's here."

I didn't care about the wallet. Leaning my forehead against my hands, I looked down at my lap and listened to her sweet voice. "Mar, when did you change your call information?"

She giggled, and my heart exploded with happiness. "Today," she said. "We're married, so it's only right."

Biting down on my thumb, I shifted closer in my seat. "What about your Dad, your Mom, your—"

"Javi." Mary cut me off as I saw white lights, but couldn't pay attention to them. I focused on her voice. "I love you. And what we did is forever, okay? You and me. I'll always be Mrs. Morales, baby."

There was beeping. Dinging. But I was too happy and clapped my hands together, hollering into the night. How many times had we argued about our families? Our lives? I was the boy her parents didn't like, and she was the girl mine couldn't stand. And yet, I called her, and my car announced her name the way it would to the world: Mary Morales.

"Mary, I—"

I had pressed my foot down on the gas pedal without meaning to. The car rushed forward as the lights from the oncoming train blinded me. No time to react, to think, I held up a hand and thought I had time to reverse. But trains were faster than anyone could see.

The front of my car was hit. It spun. I flipped. And the last sound I heard was Mary, screaming, crying.

And darkness. Peaceful, tranquil silence.

|||

"Systems rebooting. Recalibrating data. Fifty percent."

I opened my eyes. The sight of Bionics' symbol came into view. The gold emblem decorated with medical snakes surrounded the B within the company's name. When I blinked again, and my battery increased, the design fizzled and broke down, like dying pixels.

The store's aisles came into view.

"You're doing what?" I heard Will's voice. Panic lifted every syllable. "Mary, that's fucking crazy. Didn't you see those cops out there? You think they're just going to let you?"

I turned my head and found myself staring at cans of tuna. Organic. Dolphin free.

"I don't have a choice," Mary spoke next. She'd been crying. My sensors reacted to every pitch, every emotion. I could hear her wristband chirping endlessly. "My Dad won't answer, mom's AWOL. My personal droid hasn't responded to any of my sent requests... I don't even know if he's safe out there."

"But—"

"No, there isn't time for buts. I've got no one I can call to get an update. And out there, that's all clear to me. But Javi has a point; they've got Wendy. If I don't get him there, he'll... I'll..."

My hands pressed firmly against the floor, right at my sides. My head moved back, and I focused my eyes on the ceiling. The electricity that coursed through the building was clear to me. Faint blue lines behind the tile.

"It's been three hours. Androids are outside the White House. The fucking White House! Do you really think taking him to a factory where you build things is really going to make this better?"

I pushed my palms into the floor and sat up. Turning my head brought on mechanical sounds; my metal frame pulling at my power chords. One shake. Two shakes. I wanted to rid myself of the static in my head.

"For right here, right now, yes!" Mary screamed at Will. My head shot up in their direction. They stood just under the television where another news broadcast played. In Mary's hands was the scalpel from the droid kit, tip stained blue.

That's my blood, isn't it...

I glanced down at my chest. My sweater had been changed and I wore a white tee. Yet, near my navel, there was a fresh stain; a single blue dot. Another wound, manual scan.

Battery at ninety-two percent. Base sensors functional. Shut down may have caused errors.

My fingers pressed against the stain on my shirt.

Analyzing data.

"Javi?" Mary was suddenly crouched in front of me, scalpel on the ground. A trembling hand lifted to touch my face. "How are you feeling?"

Will was behind her. Her hair was a mess, cheeks flushed with anger and fear. His eyes looked at me before glancing up at the flatscreen as the news reporter, stuck out in the field, hid behind a car in a crowded parking lot.

"Kyle Marks here, reporting in. The Androids have taken over the police departments. Everyone, stay indoors. Please." The reporter covered his face and tried to hide his tears. "Someone come get us..."

Mary's fingers on my cheeks pulled my attention back to her. And her dark eyes. A silhouette of her emotions surrounded her.

Fear. Guilt. Regret.

I blinked.

"I closed off the wound and sealed the burns caused to your metal, but... there's some damage done." Her hand dropped from my face and slid down my chest, settling over my house. "Four of your sensors were cut out by the bullet, and I tried to reconnect your core to function differently. I was... Javi, I didn't think you'd wake up."

"I'm awake." I placed my hand over hers and squeezed. "I'm functioning."

"At what capacity?" she whispered her question, not wanting Will to hear. But he did. His gaze had settled back on the both of us.

And I shook my head. With Mary's hand still in mine, I stood and pulled her with me. The hair that fell over her face, I moved it, tucking strands behind her ear. She was speechless, concerned. But I was alive. Different.

I felt it. Glancing down at one hand, I spread my fingers open wide.

"Javi?" Her hand grabbed my shirt and gripped the material tight. I moved an inch forward, eyes on her. "Please clarify your functioning capacity?"

With my other hand, I pushed her hand off me and down at her sides. "Alive," I said as I touched her face. "Can't you see that?"

"But, when I had opened you up, I—"

"I'm fine." Turning my gaze away from her, I looked at Will next. "I know you're worried about what we need to do, but understand my sister is important to me."

He stared at me, trying to read my composition. I could feel his eyes try to dig into my digital soul. But it was hard to read a droid's expression, no matter how human it'd feel. Shaking his head, he pulled his eyes off me and stared down at his shoes. His hands danced nervously in front of him. "Okay, I get it, but if I open these doors—"

"Security is down, not connected to the city." I pointed up at the ceiling because I could see every circuit that flowed through the store. "Letting us outside won't bring any of them to you."

Will's head shot up as the television cut off. A long, steady beep of standby, technical difficulties played on the screen.

"I..." Mary tried to touch me again, and I looked at her. "Javier, I wanted him to cause a diversion while we ran."

"While we ran?" I tilted my head. "Why are we running?"

Mary's hands went up to my face, and she cupped my cheeks. She looked at me for a minute, eyes digging into mine. I wondered what she wanted to say, to explain. But she didn't utter a word, a sound. Not even a breath.

With just the tips of her fingers, she turned my head to look out the front of the store, out of the tall, glass windows. The sky had turned down. Stars had placed themselves across the sky like string lights. But it wasn't the night that caught me, or the purple fading into navy hues. It was the silence that hung in the air outside the store's main entrance. The wind that picked up not one scream.

Approaching the window, I scanned the area. There wasn't a single droid in sight; functioning or not. The air was free of electricity, of syncing waves. It was just us, the quiet street, and the silent cries of a city falling under the Android attack.

It wasn't until I looked towards the right, from where we'd come from, that I saw a light so out of place. A fire, so high and burning bright. Seeing its source made me grind my teeth, bite my cheeks, and take in a deep breath. I reached back to grab Mary's hand. "They've destroyed the car," I whispered, slowly shaking my head.

"Yeah." Mary's fingers linked with mine as I heard Will run back through the store. "We either run to get her, or wait to see what happens."

I looked at her.

"But I know what you want. And I understand."

When I glanced up to try and find Will, I couldn't. He'd gone, hiding, leaving us alone. And who could blame him?

Letting out a deep breath, I squeezed Mary's hand again. "Okay," was all I could say.