Heart of Titanium

Chapter 7: Rule Number Three

*The Next Morning*

Bryson awoke and slowly stretched, looking down at Cherise as she peacefully breathes in, and out. He smiled down at her as he slowly brushed her head fur and to her soft cheek, mesmerized by seeing her face once again. Bryce then blushes hard as he realizes what happened last night, and sits crisscrossed on his bed.

"Jeez..." He said to himself, "I'm not moving too fast, am I?" He then shakes his head, "Moving too fast?! What am I saying? There's no way she..." as he keeps thinking he looks down at her again, closes his eyes, and opens them again, smiling down at her as he pokes her gently in the side of her head.

She blinks a few times before looking up at him, and moving her legs to a fetal position. Her tail wagged furiously as she smiled up at him, her still laying on her side.

"G-Good morning.." She said, flushing red with her hypnotically gorgeous eyes, and her fur, still soft as a cloud.

Bryce chuckles as he rubs her head, "Morning, silly." He scratches behind her ears, "How'd you sleep?"

"Really good, actually. Best sleep I got since my arrival. Plus...I didn't cry myself to sleep for once." She said, looking flustered, but smiling.

Bryce grew a concerned look on his face, "When I sat in here with you the first night you didn't cry...or at least I didn't see it..."

"Yeah...ever since I've slept on my own I've been so scared...I was tempted to come to you, but I didn't want to bother you..." She said, looking ashamed.

"You could never bother me. I already told you, ever since you arrived at my doorstep I've been nothing but ecstatic about seeing you. You'd think I'd distance myself but my instincts told me otherwise." He said, reassuring her and hitting her favorite spot while scratching her head.

"Mmm..." She softly hums as she closes her eyes and smiles, "Thank you for not abandoning me...I promise I'll make it up to you...somehow."

"You already are." Bryce said, beaming.

He then thought of something, "Hey, you said you still have a neural link, right?" He asked, curiously.

"Mhm!" She said excitedly, "However from looking at the ads of actual protogens, their visors are way more complex and advanced. Thermal, heartbeat sensor, night vision without using infrared...mine is pretty basic in comparison."

"Sounds about right...the man who raised you, said your visor and neural link was a prototype, right?" Bryce said, getting out of bed and walking to his PC.

Cherise slowly pulls the covers off of her, and yawned, "Yeah, he was only able to give me the most basic of software when he saved me from those men..." She said, getting off the bed and wrapping herself with Bryce's jacket.

"I've had this visor all my life but it only worked like a one-way window. I can see clearly, but it's pitch black for you, besides my digital eyes, nose, and mouth." She said.

"Hm...says here there should be a type C USB port somewhere on your visor plate." Bryson said, looking at the notes online, "Says...'Should be on the metal band behind the proto's left ear."

He turned to Cherise, "Is it okay if I look for it?"

She nods and smiles, sitting down. "Mhm! Just be careful."

Bryce nods in agreement and looked at the band behind her left ear, it looked normal to him besides a square with slightly different looking paint. He pushed it and a USB port appeared. It was a rubber door, designed to keep water out.