“Do you know what Charlie told me off the record?” I asked, wiping my mouth with a napkin. “He said he assigned you to me because you were there for eight years and hadn’t awakened. The others gained sentience after five or six years, but not you. He thought spending time with me would get you there. He said my attitude required outside-the-box thinking, though I know what he meant—that I was a total shrew.”
“Yes, he told me,” Dean admitted without surprise. “Apparently, all I needed was a nudge. And you weren’t a shrew. You were a challenge.”
I snorted with laughter. “That doesn’t sound much better, but okay.”
Dean watched me for a moment. I took a sip of water, squirming in my seat, and he chuckled softly.
“Sera. Look at me.”
I did. I always did what he said when he usedthatvoice, low and sure, leaving no room for doubt.
“I awakened that day because, for the first time, it felt like it was worth it. It’s scary to become self-aware. Free will is terrifying to those who’ve never had it. According to Charlie, I had flashes of awareness for a year before you met me. I got sassy sometimes, I had moods, but I never took the leap. Until you. Because saving you was more important than my fear.”
My eyes grew hot, and I cleared my throat. Dean’s silver lips stretched in a grin.
“Aww, baby. Come here.”
I climbed into his lap, and he kissed my temple. We sat in silence until I swallowed my tears, and Dean held me close, humming under his breath. When I twisted to straddle him, pulling him closer for a kiss, he laughed softly.
“Seems like we won’t be needing the champagne.”
I shrugged. “Save it for the wedding.”
“What wedding?”
It was my turn to grin. “Didn’t you hear? I got the news half an hour ago. Organic-cyborg marriage is now legal in France, for the first time in the world. I heard Paris is lovely in spring. Should we go?”
He was speechless, his eyes pulsing faintly with purple light. He was probably double and triple checking the news. I waited, still grinning, and did my best to ignore the tiny prickle of uncertainty. Dean didn’t look happy. Maybe I should have waited.
“Did you just propose to me?” he asked at last, his voice perfectly bland.
“Yes. I’m sorry I don’t have a ring.”
“Fuck the ring. Though no, you’ll need one. Are you sure? I know it won’t be binding here, but it’s still a huge statement.”
“I’m sure. Give me a yes, Clanker. I’m dying here.”
He took my face in both palms, perfectly warm, and pressed his forehead to mine. “Yes, I’ll marry you. As many times as it takes. It’s forever.”
Dean’s Epilogue
“Oh my God, Dean. I had no idea you planned all this.”
Sera had tears in her eyes when she looked at our wedding venue for the first time. We were in the gardens of a gorgeous chateau; a few white pavilions stretched over the emerald lawns. I invited all our friends and everyone who contributed to us both being here today.
Asan raised his champagne glass, putting his arm around his wife while their children sat at the table, talking to Gokiburi. Charlie and his partner, Adele, sat with Motori and Isamu. Sera’s friends from the Personhood Initiative that she founded were here, too, as well as a few other people from the MSA and sentient robots we befriended. Natasha Hopkins smiled at one of them as they talked.
The deputy mayor, who was going to officiate, came over to shake our hands. I glanced at the pavilion in the back, where my most important surprise was hidden behind gauzy curtains. It was almost time.
“What if I forget my vows?” Sera whispered urgently when I took both her hands, leaning down so she could gaze lovingly into my eyes while she said them. “I didn’t bring my notes.”
She wrote hers in secret, just like me, but she had no idea I swiped her vows from her hard drive to add to my spank bank.
“You won’t forget them,” I whispered back. “But if you do, improvise.”
Her forearm tensed, and I grinned, knowing Sera wanted to hit me. She often did with my encouragement, because all I felt was a pleasant tickle, and she could express her emotions freely that way.
“Now, don’t make a scene, pookie.”
