Chapter Text
Vines never made promises in the past.
Promises were never true to her, because nothing is ever promised in life. Things happen. Loved ones promise they'll be home in a few hours but die before they can, partners promise to never cheat and shatter that promise soon after, doctors promise a mother that their son will make it, and the son dies during the surgery.
Sometimes those thoughts made her palms prickle with sweat. She wondered when one of her promises to SAR or one of his to her would break. Maybe it was a stupid worry, but promises promised to stretch to eternity. And they never did, so weren't they just lies?
"SAR." Vines broke out of her thoughts before they could twist her stomach in discomfort. "I want to take you to the Jagged Waterfall."
SAR looked up from his sketchbook. He was standing next to the living room window as he usually did while she lounged on the couch beside him. His superior claws clicked as he glanced back at his gesture drawings.
"I know," she agreed. Vines had suggested that he add clothing to the drawings once he was done so that he could get a feel for how clothes fall on the human body. "I can wait until you're done if you'd like?"
He tapped his claws on the back of the sketchbook and looked out the window. It was about three in the afternoon. "No."
"Alright, if you say so. I'll go get ready."
In her (very comfortable and soft) pajamas, Vines went to her room to get changed. The Jagged Waterfall was the closest waterfall to them, being about two hours away from where Vines lived and nobody was allowed to visit it after five p.m. Except she had a pass because her job was taking care of life. So, it was perfect. She had only been there a handful of times because she didn't want to get used to it. Most of her work called her elsewhere, anyway.
Vines picked up a bottle of perfume and immediately set it down. Ever since she had realized her feelings for SAR, she had been doing more to impress him. How a human was supposed to impress SAR, she didn't actually know.
She would spritz on perfume sometimes, apply ChapStick more often, didn't hug SAR if she was sweaty, and more. It was annoying! She was doing those things without even realizing it! Luckily, though, Vines had just caught herself. She pushed away the bottle. It would smell so good, though. Her brain whined. Everyone likes a person who smells nice!
The lavender scent floated through her memories. You don't even know if he has a preference for that! Vines argued. Not everyone likes lavender.
He would say it if he didn't like it.
Maybe he's just trying to be polite!
You know SAR doesn't hide his thoughts about anything!
She was tempted to throw the bottle away just for the sake of removing the option completely. But the price of perfume hadn't gone down since her time on Earth and that bottle had cost her fifty dollars! Vines used to only put it on for special occasions, but now she could see a small dent in the amount still in there.
Sighing, Vines forced herself to put on socks and boots. Then she placed everything she needed in a small backpack and went back out. She walked over to SAR, who was calmly drawing with the help of her printed reference photos, and he lowered his sketchbook for her to see.
"That's pretty good, SAR!" she complimented him. "I can already see your lines becoming looser, so good job!"
He hummed in agreement, setting down his materials on the couch. Vines continued, "Do you want me to print out some outfit references, too?"
SAR shook his head and pointed at her. "I want you."
Vines' cheeks burned and her heart threatened to quit. He wants me. She thought, lips parted in surprise as she stared up at him. He wants me. "Like as a, ah, reference?" She forced her tone to stay calm.
"Yes."
"Ah, right." Her mood dimmed and her heart calmed a little, but that didn't stop her mind from continuing. All that she could imagine was that scene from Titanic where Jack drew Rose naked. The orange lighting, Rose slipping her nightgown off her shoulders, and her laying on the sofa with her arms loose above her head. Vines took in a deep breath, her heart hammering. But this isn't that. He needs you with your clothes on. She reminded herself, pressing her sweaty hands to her shorts. Still...it just felt very...intimate. "Yeah, sure, we can do that."
SAR nodded and offered her an inferior hand. She took it with hesitation, hoping her nerves weren't obvious. "Okay, it's like...two hours away," she said. Come on, Vines, don't lose your memory. "Let's go, we'll take the chariot."
She led them out and they climbed into the chariot. The chariots had been redesigned to be able to hold SAR's species, a special request from Will Robinson so Robot wouldn't have to hold onto the back of the chariot like his life depended on it. It was still a bit awkward for SAR, though, since he was definitely the largest robot in his species. He tucked his limbs close to him.
Vines powered up the chariot and pulled up the GPS. She could definitely see herself getting lost with how her thoughts were still rushing. He just doesn't stop improving. He keeps getting more and more interesting. I know there is a lot I still don't know about him. She glanced at him, thinking about his past. I want to know. I want to know it all. But this can wait. She gritted her teeth.
"So, SAR, did your species ever use any kind of transportation other than your spaceships?" Vines asked curiously as she pulled out of the driveway.
SAR nodded. "No many."
"So, you guys mostly relied on your legs, then?"
"Yes."
"I mean, that does make sense. You guys are amazing at running and jumping," Vines said. "Humans can't usually jump very high. Like when I told you how our ancestors would hunt. We can run, it just wasn't efficient back then. Does your species ever even run out of energy?"
"Yes."
"It just takes a while?"
"Yes."
Conversation. Conversation would keep her thoughts at bay. Plus, it was nice to get to learn more about SAR's species.
-
Rays of sunshine peaked through the trees, warming their faces. Gushing water splashed in the distance and gentle wind rustled the bushy trees, plucking off orange leaves and gracefully dropping them around SAR and Vines. The leaves crunched under them as they walked.
Birds chirped and sang around them, flying from branch to branch, and squirrels dashed over their heads. SAR's head would swivel towards the little creatures each time they rustled the branches around them. "They're getting ready for the winter," she explained. "Food is rare during the winter, so they are stocking up on it now. I'm kind of surprised that we brought squirrels and rabbits from Earth to here."
They walked with their arms intertwined and stopped often. "Look, a rabbit!" Vines exclaimed for the fifth time, pointing to the roots of a thick tree. There stood a rabbit looking off into the distance.
SAR hummed, claws outstretching towards the rabbit and then closing as he pulled his arms back. "I'm sorry we can't hold the animals," she apologized as SAR watched the rabbit sniff the cool air. An idea popped into her head. "Hey, how about we build a birdhouse sometime soon? We can feed the birds with it and you can watch them. Maybe we could even get some to trust us that way."
"Yes," he swiftly agreed, head immediately turning towards her. "Yes."
Vines smiled. He was adorable. And as they continued walking, she couldn't help but notice that SAR glistened in the sunlight. He looked handsome and pretty at once as his silver metal shined, all of his curves and patterns highlighted. The orange glow of the sun complimented the red glow of his face and with him staring straight ahead, Vines kept sneaking glances to admire him. Sometimes his claws would spin as something rustling would catch his attention, but then he'd return his curious gaze to the path.
His curiosity and desire were admirable. The more Vines saw it, the more she wanted to see it. His claws would click as he clearly wanted to pick up the rabbits, squirrels, and birds. But he controlled himself. SAR was so open to everything they tried. It just, gosh, it made Vines smile uncontrollably.
"I'm glad I took you here," she said, resting her head on his arm. "This place doesn't allow people in after five p.m. But we get a pass since I take care of the animals on this planet."
SAR looked at her, pausing them again in their walk. He gestured to the trees where a silver bird with a blue chest sat in a nest. "I would've brought my things for animals in need, but I wanted this time to be for us," Vines explained, answering his silent question. "Plus, there's been no reports so far."
He hummed and they continued their journey on the dirt path. "Did you get to see the animals on your planet?" she asked, absentmindedly stroking a claw with her finger.
"Yes. Many kill..." His voice trailed off of English and he grumbled, saying something in his language in his guttural voice.
"For?"
He nodded. "Masters."
Vines took that in. Will Robinson had reported that there were organic footprints that looked like the robots on the Shattered Planet. Thinking about SAR having some kind of thick skin or scales rather than metal made her shiver and cringe. "So, they needed to eat food, too?"
"Yes."
"Was that your job? To find and kill animals for them?"
"No. I programmed." SAR came to a stop, claws spinning rapidly.
"You programmed things for them," Vines said and then noticed his clenched claws and distant look. She quickly released the hand she was holding and stood in front of him, instead holding his inferior arms. Her tone became soft. "Hey, if this is a touchy subject for you, then we don't have to talk about it."
SAR met her intent gaze. "I never want to make you uncomfortable," she told him. "We can talk about these things when you're ready or never at all. It's your choice."
His claws slowly unclenched and he nodded as if remembering where he was. Vines returned to his side, offering him her arm. SAR intertwined his with hers and as they continued on their walk, Vines couldn't help but continue thinking.
Robot is lucky to not remember his life with the Masters. She thought, eyes closing as they took a turn onto a long, straight path. The sounds of gushing water were slowly becoming louder. All of the robots are touchy about that stuff. I wonder what Robot would be like if he remembered. I wonder what SAR would be like if he didn't.
"Remember, this place is called the Jagged Waterfall because it has jagged rocks all over it," Vines said. "It's smart, isn't it?"
SAR made a low, unimpressed hum. "Okay, not the smartest, but it's clever, is what I mean."
"Yes."
They came to their thousandth crossroad and Vines looked left. "The waterfall is to the left, but if we take a right we'll find the edge of a cliff and a resting area. What is your choice?"
SAR pointed right. "Alright! Right it is."
As they went right, Vines could see the resting area in the distance. There were a few benches and a pergola with wispy white curtains draped over the wooden frames, surrounding it. The curtains swayed back and forth as the cool breeze brushed against them.
"You know what this reminds me of? A show called Bridgerton. There were a lot of scenes where the characters would promenade with their arms interlinked, like how we are now. The show is set in the nineteenth century," she told SAR as they approached the resting area. "There were balls and soirees in the show where people would dance together. I wish I could've gone to one of those."
They finally reached the resting area to find it was clear of trees. Pink and white flowers were everywhere, surrounding the dirt path, rubbing up against the benches, and stretching towards the falling sun. Vines split from SAR and ran a hand along the back of one of the benches, admiring its intricate details.
"In the show, there would be a season each year where suitors would look for a woman to marry. And if a suitor was courting a woman, they would dance at balls, promenade, and stuff like that. I always loved the dancing scenes, they looked so fun."
"You and I," SAR offered, holding out an inferior hand.
Vines' face broke into a smile as looked up at him. "What? You want to dance with me?"
"Yes, Vines." And Vines blushed.
"Okay, suitor," she teased, despite being the flustered one. She reached out and took his claws. "I'll teach you, then."
Vines guided him under the pergola as the curtains danced around them. Little splinters of light peeked through as Vines stood in front of SAR. "Would you like me to choose the playlist?"
SAR nodded. She pulled out her phone and began scrolling through her many playlists. Some of them she had created herself, but others she had found. She tapped a piano playlist she had made a few years ago and placed her phone face down at the back of the pergola.
"There are many dances. Some are hundreds of years old, some are newer. But I'll show you one that many do," Vines said softly as she walked back to SAR, keeping her eyes trained on his chest. She took his right inferior hand in hers, the cold metal pressing into her warming skin. She held the first claw like it was a thumb, wrapping her hand around it.
"We hold hands like this," she told him as she stepped forward until they were mere inches apart. With her other hand, she guided his right to hold the small of her back. It tickled as the points of his claws dipped into her skin, almost making her arch her back. "Your hand goes there and mine goes up here."
Vines rested her hand on the edge of his chest. Maybe it was just her imagination, but it felt like he was getting warmer. She glanced up into his eye and a shock of electricity shot down her spine as she saw him watching her intently. She refocused on his chest, taking in a small breath. Maybe this was a bad idea.
"We'll pretend you're leading the dance," Vines continued. "You move your right leg forward and I move my left back." He did so, knee pressing into her thigh, and she moved her left leg back. "Now you move your left leg forward and I move my right back." She tried to be quicker this time to avoid his metal pressing into her thigh again, the smallest touches were becoming overwhelmingly intoxicating.
"Then we sway for a couple of seconds." She didn't like how there was an invisible rope at her chest trying to tug her closer to him. Focus! Vines made the mistake of looking down. SAR's hips swayed gently to the music. The wires connecting his thighs to his crotch bent and then stretched out as he moved. It was strangely hypnotic. Oh, fuck. Each time he swayed left or right, the splinters of light would catch his metal and the patterns wrapping around his thighs, dipping inward and following the thick curve. Oh, fuck.
Vines let out a hiss of a breath. Focus, come on, this dance isn't over yet... "And then we do the same thing, but backward, and repeat it over and over."
His left leg moved back and she followed, watching the top of his right thigh fit into his hip smoothly. Then his right moved back and she, without thinking, followed. SAR began swaying again and she tore her eyes away to focus on his chest and the glowing orange internals beneath it. But still, her mind replayed it even as she squeezed her eyes shut.
"Vines." SAR's voice tugged her from her memories.
She opened her eyes and finally met his gaze. She blinked, determined to not get lost in it. "Yeah?"
"More?"
What did he mean by that? Oh, well, Vines was going to guess. It either meant he was asking if she wanted to dance more or if there was more to a dance. "Yeah, there's more we can do. You can, ah, spin me," she said, happy to think about something else. She raised their hands and flattened her palm against his. "We move our hands like this and then I walk through..."
Vines walked under his arm smoothly, turning towards him as she did. "And then I come back to you and we continue dancing. You can also dip me." She quickly walked through the steps in her mind. "If I don't know you're going to dip me, then you just pull my hand upwards to grab your shoulder." SAR did that. "Then you place your hand on my upper back." The pricks of sharp claws on her upper back sent tingles up her neck and she shivered. "And then you...dip me down to the left."
SAR dipped her down towards the floor, going damn low as he did. Vines gasped, hands grasping onto him tighter. She was expecting it, but damn did he go fast. He pulled her up, fitting their hands together in the same way as before.
"What are you doing?" She couldn't help but laugh as he started doing the same foot moves as before, but faster and with no swaying.
They moved back and forth, legs following each other with swift ease, and SAR began guiding her around the pergola. Vines laughed again as they slowly spun around its edges with each quick step of their feet. He pulled their hands upward, pushing his claws flat against her hand and she did the same. Nimbly, she walked under his arm, spinning towards him in one large swoop and returning to him.
"I wish I would've thought of this," Vines said as they continued their fast dance. She giggled. "This is amazing."
SAR purred. "I'm good."
"Yes, you are." She grinned at his pride.
He spun her again, and Vines suddenly wished she was wearing a dress. A few steps later, SAR pulled her hand up to grasp his shoulder and she instantly knew what was happening. His claws moved to her upper back, making her shiver as they pressed into her skin. Smoothly, he dipped her down as low as before, pulling another gasp from her. She knew if SAR could grin, he would be.
Vines squeaked as he pulled her upward in one swift move, grabbing her left hand as he did. Vines stumbled until they were horizontal to each other, like they were in a line, and their arms were outstretched to only hold hands.
"Oh my God." She laughed, realizing what he was doing. "Are you doing those dance moves you saw in the romance movies?"
"Yes, Vines," SAR answered with determination and pride. He squeezed her hand, signaling for her to twirl into his arms.
Vines giggled and twirled towards him, his arm wrapping around her as she did. Her back pressed flush against his chest and his other inferior hand came down, claws wrapping gently around her arm.
"Wow, you really did study those movies," she said as they swayed. More tingles swarmed across her neck as the lights in his face vibrated close to her ear. Her face became hot as she remembered where they were and what they were doing.
SAR released her arm and unwrapped his arm from her, taking her hand instead. They moved back into the original dance position, but he didn't move. Vines paused, confused.
Slowly, SAR reached down with a superior claw, pulling her closer as he did, and shifted her hair farther away from her face. His claw stayed there. "SAR..." Vines wanted to speak, wanted to ask what he was doing, but she couldn't tug the words out of her throat. Instead, she swallowed.
His face craned towards her until his glowing red face was all she could see. The tip of her nose brushed the smooth glass and her eyes widened. "SAR," she repeated, her voice a whisper. Her lips tingled, urging her to kiss him, making her imagine how he would feel against her, vibrating lights and all. And the tip of her tongue pressed against the back of her teeth, desiring to taste him.
"Vines," SAR said back to her, almost making her go limp.
Kiss me. Vines wanted to say, but she couldn't. It was physically fucking impossible or something.
She stumbled as SAR let her go and she shook her head back and forth rapidly, trying to realize what had happened. She leaned the weight of her upper body on her knees, blinking. Her head shot up. SAR's claws were clenching and unclenching as he took another large step backward, hunching over a little like he was ashamed.
Ashamed? Why would he be ashamed? Vines tried to get her mind straight through all the sudden chaos. She just couldn't get it. Instead, she looked over her shoulder, seeing the last bits of the sun sinking.
"Do you, do you want to go?" she decided to ask, slowly rising.
SAR shook his head fast enough for her to worry about whiplash.
"Then, um..." Vines looked down, fighting back the barbed wire digging into her throat. "What do you, what do you want to do?"
He hesitated, shifting back and forth on his feet, but then slowly extended a claw out towards the roaring sounds of the waterfall. Disbelief left her speechless. He just dropped her to the floor, ashamed, and now he wanted to go see the waterfall with her?
"Okay." She heard herself say and more disbelief rattled her. Bouncing between numbness and heartbreak, Vines picked up her phone and allowed SAR to lead the way toward the waterfall.
There was just...no way that just happened. They had cuddled, held hands, shared so much about each other, and more. They had had so many moments of being breathless in each other's company, their vision purely filled with the other, and now what? They were going to pretend like this was totally normal?
No way. Vines nearly snapped aloud, a mixture of shock, anger, and more disbelief. There was no way she was going to continue their friendship like she hadn't brushed her face with his, palmed his waist, and imagined kissing him a thousand times.
She looked up at the sky through the shreds of the trees. Dark and dull blue swirled into the final strokes of orange and yellow as stars began to blink awake. SAR was beginning to become their only light as he took the turn towards the waterfall. The rushing of water was becoming louder, just like the blood in her damn ears as her heart began to pound.
The waterfall came into view, the jagged rocks behind the water barely visible in the dark. It was an impressive eighty-five feet tall. And all of that she would be saying aloud if that was what she really came there for.
"Remember what I said to William about this place?" Vines asked as they watched the endless pour. "When I was exhausted from carrying and organizing all of those art materials? Remember what I said?"
SAR's claws spun and after a few seconds he said, "Yes."
"I've only ever wanted to come here with a partner," she said. "I've never gone here without anyone else—Hell, I've only gone here, like, five times!" A little huff of a laugh escaped her at the end. "SAR, look at me."
They turned towards each other and Vines braced herself. "I love you, SAR. And I'm not going to pretend anymore that I don't. I'm not going to pretend that we don't hold hands, and tell each other our wounds, and get close enough to each other to the point where us is all we can see. I'm not gonna pretend that we slept with each other in the damn woods, that I drunkenly confessed all of the things I love about you, that you didn't corner me in the shadows of Laser Tag!, and that we didn't just nearly kiss under the pergola without feeling anything!"
Her lips couldn't help but crack into a smile as she rubbed her face. SAR twitched in clear surprise, claws opening and closing. "And I just realized that I'm an idiot. All of those times you got mad at William were because you could see he was in love with me, too. You were afraid, weren't you? That he would take away your chance of being with me?" SAR slowly nodded.
Vines nodded. "Well, I'm sorry, SAR, but I'm gonna have to break one of my promises." She stepped closer to him, hand intertwining with one of his inferior ones before it could close again. "I can't be your friend forever. I want to be more. I want to be your partner, SAR, because I love you. And that is a promise."
Without hesitating, without even thinking, Vines reached up and pulled him down by the sides of his head. She pressed her lips to the bottom of his face, closing her eyes as she did.
Four metal arms wrapped around her, pulling her flush against SAR's thrumming chest, and claws settled anywhere and everywhere. Vines pulled back just a little to open her eyes and her eyes jumped from star to star in SAR's face, searching. "Do you love me too?"
"Yes, Vines. I promise," he told her, resting the top of his face against her forehead.
A smile beamed on her face and she kissed him again, wrapping her arms around him.
Vines never made promises in the past. They were just lies of eternity waiting to be broken by reality. But she had come to realize that promises weren't lies, they were devotions. They showed care, they showed someone was willing to put in the work and effort for someone. Just like how she and SAR kept on devoting to each other in so many ways, even if that first devotion was a promise of hate.