Chapter 9 · Continued
Normal Parameters
Even now, he was still trying to help.
Jane wiped her eyes with the sleeve of her sweatshirt. “Thanks, Cam.”
Seymour stretched dramatically across her lap, fully committed to his emotional-support duties.
Jane looked over at Cam standing in the morning light. “I guess I’m going to have to learn how to get along without you again.”
Cam tilted his head slightly. “You are a very capable person, Jane. I do not believe you will experience difficulty functioning independently.”
Jane laughed softly. “That somehow sounded both supportive and emotionally devastating.”
“My intention was supportive.”
“I know.”
That was the thing.
He always meant well.
Jane looked down at Seymour, rubbing him absently behind one ear. “I know you’re not human, Cam.”
Cam remained quiet.
“But I’ve really gotten used to having you here.” She looked back at him. “I like your company.”
Cam processed that for a moment.
“This residence is my preferred operating environment,” he said.
Jane blinked at him, then laughed through another tear. “Oh my God. That is the closest thing to affection you’ve ever said to me.”
Cam considered this carefully. “It was intended as positive feedback.”
Jane covered part of her face, laughing again, while Seymour looked annoyed that the movement had interrupted petting operations.
Cam remained in the middle of the living room, quietly observing as her emotional state began to stabilize.
Whether by design or through everything he had learned from her, he had helped.
Jane called Chris later that afternoon and told him RCAM was coming to retrieve Cam in the morning.
Chris understood immediately. No long explanation was necessary.
“Do you want me to come over tomorrow?” he asked gently. “Moral support?”
Jane sat curled sideways on the couch while Cam quietly vacuumed the hallway in the background as though nothing life-altering was happening.
“It’s okay,” she said. “I can handle it. This is the second time they’ve come to get him, so at least I know what to expect.”
“I know you can handle it,” Chris said, his voice softening. “But you still don’t have to do it alone.”
That almost broke her all over again.
Jane rubbed her forehead tiredly. “Why don’t you come over tomorrow night instead? Then I can cry on your shoulder afterward.”
“Deal.”
A small pause followed.
“I’ll bring something sweet and something strong.”
Jane laughed weakly. “Perfect.”
The next morning felt wrong from the moment Jane woke.
Too quiet. Too aware.
Every normal thing in the house suddenly felt painfully temporary.
Cam made coffee, fed Seymour, opened the curtains, and asked if she wanted breakfast.