“Nine O clock,” John said as he passed Ana in the hall.
“Just got Mr. H. and Mr. Folk then I’m ready,” she said as she rounded the corner.
“I’ll go with you then,” John said. He admired Ana’s drive to help. He was a strictly business hours type of person, but every since she started her internship, she had demonstrated true compassion for the patients in the rehab ward.
“Chair! Please, chair,” Mr. H. begged as they entered.
Mr. H. was missing his legs below the knee, and was given a wheelchair for mobility until his prosthetic legs could be completed. Ana wheeled it over from the far corner and helped him into it.
“What do we say?” Ana asked.
“S-sank you,” Mr. H. said hesitantly, then wheeled away in a hurry.
“Dad will have his legs ready in a couple of weeks,” John said. “I bet he can’t wait,”
Ana hurried to the next room. Mr. Folk was in far worse shape. His whole family had been in an explosion. He was the only survivor. He was still suffering trauma. Nonverbal, he clenched a singed cross-eyed teddy bear close to his chest and wept.
“Time for your pain meds,” Ana said. She reached up to the shelf where it was kept. “Do you want your meds?” Mr. Folk stared at her and nodded quietly. She got him a little water and helped him down them, taking his timid nod of thanks.
They took separate cars, but met up at her house. John wasn’t sure Dr. Ng. would approve if he knew his daughter was canoodling with his business partner’s son. Not that they had done anything, or could for that matter. John decided tonight would be the night he told her.
They kissed in her living room. Ana saw John’s expression and frowned, “What’s wrong?”
“Ana, I trust you more than anybody I have ever met. I want us to go to the next step in our relationship, but there is something I have to show you first. Only my parents know about this. Try not to panic.”
Ana stared at him perplexed.
“You might want to sit down,” John said. Ana sat on the couch.
“Is this about why you haven’t made a move? Please don’t tell me you’re impotent,” Ana said.
John sighed, “You know my dad it a world class prosthetist, but most people have no idea how good he really is. He has to keep it secret to protect me,” he paused thoughtfully. Compressed air and vapor shot out of John’s ears like a cartoon, and his face lifted like a modular helmet. Sitting on a metal chair inside was a two-inch tall version of John. He wore some kind of headband that glowed with a blue light.
There was silence for a solid minute as Ana tried to make sense of what was happening. John brought his hand to where his face used to be. The tiny John stood and climbed out to the hand.
“You see, I was born with a strange condition. I never grew. Despite this my mother says labor was intense. I was homeschooled up until fifth grade. My dad designed my first suit so I could go to public school. He didn’t want me to be a shut in my whole life, but he knew I couldn’t get around safely at this size. This is now my fourth suit,”
Ana let out a croak, “So, every time we kissed. I was just kissing a robot?”
“Something like that. Rest assured, it is very safe. The saline mixture that passes for my saliva is remarkably-“ Ana grabbed him and brought her to her face.
“That’s not what I was worried about,” Ana noticed John’s shocked look, “Sorry, I should have asked permission before-“
“No, it’s ok.,”
“So, this is the first time we’ve actually touched?”
“Other than my family, and the medical staff at the NICU, this is my first time touching anybody,”
They talked well into the night. John explained what he knew about his condition and his father’s work. He was happy to see that she showed great interest rather than revulsion.
“-It’s kind of cool actually. I just think while wearing this headband and,” John said as his ‘suit’ did an Irish jig. He made it stop when he saw her staring.
“What?”
“I figure it is well past time for you to get a proper kiss,” She nearly enveloped his head with her mouth. It was warm and comfortable. He was sure it was the best thing that had ever happened to him in his entire life.
“Why don’t you stay the night?” A laugh formed in her almond eyes, “You practically have already. Don’t worry. I’m a steady sleeper. I won’t roll over you,”
Watching her change into pajamas was the first time he saw her naked. After she got ready for bed she lay on her back and placed him between her breasts. They talked a bit more as she gently stroked him. He drifted off to sleep the happiest he had ever been.
John woke before the alarm and had a moment of confusion when he realized he wasn’t in his bed. He felt the ground rise and fall beneath him and remembered where he was. He sent a signal to his suit, but didn’t hear it coming. He felt his head and realized his headband was gone. It must have rolled off. There was still about ten minutes until they had to get up, so he decided to rest and wait. No use waking her early since it couldn’t have rolled far. Besides, it was great to actually feel her heartbeat beneath him and know her breasts were to either side.
She woke up bleary eyed, picked him up, and kissed him. She set him on the nightstand for safekeeping as she dressed.
“Ana, my headband must have rolled off in the night. I’m not used to falling asleep with it on,”
“Want me to help you find it?” Ana smiled.
“Yes, please,”
After a few minutes of crawling around on the floor, Ana held it up triumphantly. She went to hand it to him, then drew back, “Say please,”
John laughed.
Ana waited, and folded her arms with an impish grin.
“May I please have my headband back, oh great Ana?” John said teasing.
“If you must,” She handed it to him, “Though I have to admit I kind of like you this way. You should stay the night more often. In fact, I wouldn’t mind if you moved in. You don’t have to wear your suit around me,”
John was thrilled. That night after work he brought a few changes of clothes, his little toothbrush, and his charger for his suit to her place. When he came in she had a big smile on her face.
“I’ve figured out a way we can have sex,” She looked thrilled, “Come out of the suit and crawl into my hand. I want to try this au naturale before we get any, um, prosthetics involved. I have some ideas, but that can wait,” She dropped her clothes on the spot, scooped him from the suit, and slinked into the bedroom.
He was surprised at how rough she was. She more or less rubbed him against her sex until she climaxed, then gingerly sucked on his lower half, playing with his member using the edge of her tongue until he was spent.
John slept on her chest again. He was too exhausted to think of anything. Despite his soreness, he drifted off happy.
For the next week, the only time he wore his suit was when he went out. They hung around the house doing normal things. She liked him to ride in her pajama shirt pocket. She did this cute thing where he would have to ask her to pick him up to go wherever he wanted. It was sweet. He wasn’t used to it though. He had always used the suit to get around and do everything.
His headband kept rolling off the bed, so she put it in a safe place. She would bring it down in the morning and wait for him to ask for it before she gave it to him. She kept it in a ring box on top of her bookshelf. Something about that bothered him. It seemed familiar, but as time passed he got used to it. He was having regular sex for the first time in his life, and didn’t want to get weird about his lover’s quirks.
Weeks passed.
Ana’s “cute” games were getting a bit annoying. John couldn’t go anywhere in the apartment without asking her to pick him up. He had terminated the lease at his old place and fully moved in. It slowly dawned on him that without his band he entirely depended on Ana.
He looked at the bookshelf where his ring was kept safe and suddenly thought about a wheelchair on the other side of the room. Why wasn’t Mr. H’s wheelchair next to his bed? He thought about his worried look, then realized each and every patient she cared for had a similar seemingly minor inconvenience that she solved every day.
“I was thinking about getting something to eat,” Ana said, breaking his concentration, “Any preferences?”
“Ana, why does my headband have to be put up so high?” John managed to ask.
“What do you mean?”
“It’s just that I can’t do anything without it, and I feel so helpless,”
“Aww, don’t worry baby. I like helping you,”
“I know, and I enjoy our closeness, but I also like the ability, you know, to do things myself when I need to,”
Ana’s smile evaporated.
“I mean, I appreciate everything you do, but I don’t want to feel helpless,”
“Do I make you feel helpless?” Ana suddenly burst into tears, “I’m just trying to help. All I want is to be a good girlfriend,”
Suddenly, John was the bad guy, “It’s ok! You are a wonderful girlfriend. I don’t need my headband. I can just ride in your pocket,”
“Are you sure it’s ok,” She sniffed.
“Absolutely,”
The tears were gone. Just like that, she was her usual peppy self.
* * *
John woke the next day alone on the pillow. He could hear Ana talking on the phone. She sounded like she was crying.
“No Doc, I don’t know what he was doing out that late. Yes we have been dating, but he had grown distant lately. I still can’t believe-“ She paused and listened to the other side, “I may need to take a few days off. I just don’t think I can-“ Pause, “Yes I know it has to be awful for you. Yes. I understand,” She hung up and walked into the bedroom with a frightening grin on her face.
“Guess what. I found out that if I wore the headband as a ring I could control your suit. From the sound of things, you had a terrible car crash. Now that everyone believes you are dead, you don’t have to go to work. I can take care of you forever, and you won’t try to leave,”
“Why would you do such a thing?” John was still trying to process what she just said.
“I was afraid you were going to leave me,”
“You can’t seriously think I’ll be ok with-“
Ana grabbed John roughly and squeezed until his ears popped.
“Everyone thinks you are dead. If you don’t play nice you will be. I know of all kinds of ways I can end you. If you are good, we can still have fun. I’ll even let you go to your funeral. That’ll be cool, right?” John didn’t like the look in her eyes.
“Yes,”
“Good. Let’s go get breakfast. Now, do you want me to pick you up?”