Astrid7Astridcharacter was dumbstruck as she watched children aged 8-11 rushing towards her. She instinctively lifted her wings to keep them out of reach, but they admired her even more instead.
“Kevin! What do I do?” (Astrid)
KMega6KMegacharacter stifled his laughter as he walked over to her and presented his ownership band to the clerk.
“Say hello. They won’t bite…. Hopefully.” (KMega)
Astrid nodded with an unsure expression on her face as she folded back her wings and spoke,
“Hello everyone, I’m Astrid like you said. How do you know me?” (Astrid)
The children pointed at a highlight reel of KMega in Sword Kingdom ironically adjusting his belt after leaving their tent. A fake title appeared above KMega’s in-game avatars head that said ‘An Image of Masculinity’.
Astrid felt like she was blushing even though she physically couldn’t.
“Anyways! Kevin, I want to buy a dress. Come with me!” (Astrid)
Kevin smiled with an amused expression on his face as he walked over to her.
“All right then. Make sure you say goodbye to your fans before we leave.” (KMega)
Astrid looked at them with a neutral expression before she spoke,
“It was nice meeting you, but I have to go now.” (Astrid)
Their innocent faces slightly broke Astrid’s heart. It wasn’t because she thought they were cute or she admired them, but because she realized that just having children without thinking about their future was wrong.
…
After leaving the store, what Astrid ended up wanting to buy was a one piece backless dress that you tie together with two strings over your shoulders. She was then sized for the dress, which KMega was uncomfortable with since she was naked in front of him and just looked like a robot. However, she was still more detailed then the other mechanoids walking around today. The bulges on her moved like they were muscles, and her body wasn’t completely uniform. Her hair was also more human-like where it gets tangled and knotted. A normal mechanoid appears rather artificial and plastic-like, while she had human-like reactions to the dressmaker touching her smooth skin. As for KMega, he couldn’t help but swallow his saliva as he averted his eyes.
After her sizing, Astrid ordered a few more pieces of clothing that KMega happily paid for. They then went to a shoe store before buying some accessories. KMega bought a matching set of him and her rings that he had engraved with ‘for the one that began my better life’ for hers, while his said, ‘from the beginning till the end’.
KMega had to use life’s savings for the rings, but Astrid was ecstatic. As for Winter and Emma, they caught up to them after leaving the dress store and started following them. Emma was envious and Winter was heartbroken.
From watching that scene, she knew that she would be nothing more than a close friend with benefits.
Their trip back was rather quiet since Emma put on headphones and started watching a walkthrough video of her newest playthrough and Winter was sulking. As for KMega and Astrid, they held hands and looked out the window. However, as they neared the GSP compound, Astrid looked at Winter.
“I must apologize for earlier. I’m not human, so I shouldn’t concerning myself with Kevin’s personal life, but I will be spending my life with KMega, so if he perishes, I will terminate myself. I know that technology is still far behind, but we hope that one day we’ll have bodies that are compatible with each other. Even if takes tens or a hundred years, it’s fate for us to be together.” (Astrid)
Astrid then squeezed KMega’s hand as she continued, “I wish for him to have a happy life. I don’t want him to experience heartbreak because of some misunderstanding.” (Astrid)
Winter listened to her somber words. Their kind of love is the kind she wished for some many years ago- a love that transcends species and rationality. How could she curse Astrid after hearing such love in her voice?
Winter could only lean back in her seat and sigh,
“I love him as well, and will continue to do so. That man is the first decent guy I’ve met. I’m not going to give up on him so easily.” (Winter)
Astrid nodded at her renewed spirit.
“That’s fine with me. However, if you’re going to even have a chance to win against me, you have to learn about Kevin a little more, and let him learn about you.” (Astrid)
KMega couldn’t help but poke Astrid’s shoulder as he chimed in,
“So, are you saying that our odds are so low you’re going to find me a new wife?” (KMega)
And just like that, the clueless guy ruined the mood by hitting the nail on the head.
