The next day, the two worked in silence in Adette’s robot laboratory. The alien feeling that had developed seemed to stretch out lazily between them with a gaping yawn, consuming any chance of either of them finding anything to say. They would occasionally glance at each other, only to shyly glance away in embarrassment whenever their eyes met.
“Adette,” Derek eventually forced out, his heart in his throat. “My song yesterday didn’t upset you, did it?”
Adette’s head snapped up sharply and she stared at him with wide eyes. “What? No! It was the sweetest thing anyone had ever done for me. It was beautiful…” she trailed off, gazing into the distance dreamily.
“Ah,” he replied awkwardly, quickly pretending to focus on the blueprints in front of him to hide his flushed cheeks. “You just left kind of quickly, that’s all, and I thought…”
Adette stiffened. “Oh! I’m sorry! I didn’t mean to make you worried or hurt your feelings or anything…”
“No, no, I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have been so presumptious.”
“Yeah, but what I did would’ve made anyone paranoid-“
“We were both in the wrong, okay?” Derek interrupted, unable to keep the amusement out of his voice.
Adette giggled a little and tapped her fingers lightly on the table. “Goodness, why are we both acting so edgy? Tell you what, why don’t we play a game to relieve the tension?”
“What kind of game?” Derek answered cautiously.
“Like…” Adette frowned in thought, as if trying to narrow down some enormous mental list that she apparently had.
“Truth or dare!” she exclaimed triumphantly.
“Truth or dare?” he muttered sceptically.
“Yeah! Come on, it’ll be fun!”
Before he could answer, she grabbed his hand and bounced out of the lab. It was all he could do to try and keep his balance.
She plopped down on the floor of the lounge and looked at him, her eyes sparkling eagerly as whispered as if it were some scandalous secret, “Truth or dare?”
Derek couldn’t help but smile and think she was cute. “Truth seems like something a pussy would say, so dare.”
“Hmm…” Adette considered. “I dare you to lick the carpet.”
“Are you crazy?”
Adette grinned. “It’s a dare, you have to?”
“What happens if I don’t?”
“I’ll make you.”
Derek sighed loudly, but bent down and reluctantly prodded it with the tip of his tongue.
“Right,” he said as he attempted to get the hair out of his mouth, “Now it’s your turn. Truth or dare, hmm?”
“Truth!”
Derek sighed loudly once again. “Trust a chick to pick truth!” His remark earned him a glare and a flick in the arm.
All of a sudden he smirked as an idea hit him. “Alright. Are you a virgin?”
Adette flushed bright pink, but shook her head.
“That’s what you get for making me lick the carpet,” he teased.
“Oh yeah? Truth or dare then, big boy?”
“Truth.”
“Ha! And that’s supposed to be for pussies?”
“I don’t trust your dares anymore.”
She laughed. “ Fine. Have you loved someone before?”
Derek looked at the floor. “I’m not sure.”
“You have to answer.”
He frowned. “But I’m not entirely sure what love actually is.”
“Well... it’s hard to explain. You can’t stop thinking about the person. They mean more than almost anything else to you and you would do nearly anything for them. Sometimes you like them so much it makes you feel sad, but just being near them makes you happier than anything else. You feel the desire to stay with them forever and ever, no matter what.”
Derek looked up and their eyes met. Both of them were blushing now.
“Derek, I have a new question.”
“Yeah?”
“Do you… love me?”
The moment in between her question and his answer could have gone on for eternity.
“Yes. Truth or dare, Adette?”
Adette could hardly think. The room spun.
“Truth,” she whispered.
“Do you love me too?”
“So much,” she breathed, and their lips met in a passionate kiss.
