Mechanical Gods (lgbtq+)

Chapter Five: Sweet Home

     Aiden titled its head. "If you are uncomfortable, I can clean myself."

     Tyler sighed in relief. "Right. Well, I don't know what to do next. Do you require anything else to set up?"

     "No. Though, there are other optional connections I can synchronize. For example, you can sync me on your phone. If someone calls, I'll let you know. Would you like me to do that?"

     Tyler nodded.

     "Done."

     "That was fast."

     "I am linked to your network. I can easily access any device associated with it. Would you like me to connect to anything else?"

     "Um, yes. Just connect to everything in the house. You can connect to the building as well. Mr. Abassi has his ModGlobe for the entire building to operate all the stuff around like laundry in the basement, so, that's probably for the best."

     "If you wish." Aiden's little diamond-shaped LED on his heck glowed bright pink, but a second later, it returned to its normal light purple color. "Done."

     "I always wondered what that thing on your neck does," asked Tyler. "Didn't they just implemented that a few years ago to the androids?"

     Aiden touched the diamond LED. "Oh, yes. There have been issues where to find all the ports from previous models, so the build for the latter ones had them around the neck. You could say it's an access to the artificial brain, my unit's computing processor. If I need an emergency shutdown, you can insert your finger here," said Aiden, pointing at the LED.

     Tyler made the mistake of imagining sticking his fingers on Aiden's and cringed. "That probably won't be necessary for a while."

     "Well, I promise not to scream, at least," the android smirked, and Tyler blushed harder.

     Aiden titled its head, watching him curiously. Tyler hunched lower, slightly uncomfortable from the android's attention. "May I ask a question?"

     Tyler tried to hide his surprise. Harry didn't tell him that androids ask questions, but he thought it made sense since they had to perform specific tasks tailored to what the owner commanded. Tyler nodded.

     "I have observed this over the day since we met, but, there's a reddening on your cheeks from time to time. Is that normal?"

     Tyler almost burst out laughing, but he held it on. "Uh, yeah. Its called blushing. Sometimes, a nice compliment can make a person blush. I have a pale skin tone, so, I easily blush on a lot of things. Compliments usually do that for me almost every time."

     A curl swept up on Aiden's lips. "I see. Forgive me if I don't seem human to you. I know you've included it as an add-on feature, but, I am merely testing my functions. There's a lot of things to know yet for this unit."

     "Oh. Like a test drive. That's okay. It's your first day, and Harry just coerced me to get that add-on anyway."

     Tyler sauntered over to the couch and sat. "Television," he said, and the TV across from him turned on to some news. A sitcom about a dysfunctional family played on the television.

     Aiden walked and stood next to the couch, and instead of facing the TV, it was on Tyler.

     "You can sit down, Aiden."

     Aiden's face remained impassive. "I'm sorry, but it's not part of my programming. Androids aren't allowed to sit while idle unless it is under a specific task. If you would like to access the human experience, then, I may be able to do so."