Poe sensed my distress, moving to stand in front of my frame putting herself between Aria and I. “We haven’t met. I’m Poe.” She thrust out her hand.
Neither Aria nor Theo made a move to take it.
Aria’s eyes scanned Poe from head to toe, crossing her arms over her chest. “I take it you are the female who snuck into the woods. I am not sure why Reaper let you come here, but if you try anything to harm my family you won’t just have a pissed off Military Model on your hands. Trust me when I tell you that I am much scarier than he is when I want to be.”
Poe let her hand fall. “Got it. I swear I am not here to hurt anybody. I really like Reaper. And Viper. In fact, I like all cyborgs, but I get why I’m not the cyborg rebellion’s favorite person at the moment.”
“We don’t want you here!” Theo hissed, his hands curling into fists.
Poe flinched at Theo’s harsh words.
Aria drew in a breath, the tension in her frame relaxing slightly. “Theo,” she placed a hand on his shoulder, “Even though I don’t understand it your dad allowed her come here,”she looked to me, her gaze softening, “And despite Dax’s choices he is stillourfriend so I’m not saying it needs to be today but maybe you, no, we should try and give her a chance.”
I caught Aria’s eyes and tipped my head in thanks.
“I don’tcareif Dax likes her.” Theo swung his finger at Poe. “Sheis the reason for all of this.Sheis the one who took him away.” He glared at Poe, his eyes flashing angrily. “He wasminefirst! I don’t want to share!” His eyes shot to me. “Iwantedto be green just likeyou. Now you will be too busy for me!” His voice lost the some of the edge as his blue eyes grew damp. “You will have her now. You won’t need me anymore.” His shoulders slumped as he turned away, the back of his hand coming to up to rub at his eyes.
If finally clicked. For being the most brilliant cyborg, I sometimes missed things I shouldn’t. “Oh Theo.No onewill ever takeyourplace. I will forever be honored that you wanted to be green like me, and I’ll never, ever be too busy for you.” I opened my arms. Theo hesitated for a moment before launching himself into my waiting arms, hugging me tight to his frame.
There had been a lot of change at headquarters lately. I had failed to see how it had impacted Theo. Theo always wanted to be just like his father. Strong, determined, and convinced that they could handle everything on their own. Help was a four-letter word to Military Models.
I hugged him tighter to my frame. “Military Models, what am I going to do with you?” I pulled back to see his face, heartbroken at the fluid that had gathered in his eyes. “I may be brilliant, but I‘m not infallible. I often miss things I should catch.” I placed my hands on his shoulders. “I know there have been a lot of changes recently, but nothing willeverchange how much I care about you.Youandyour motherwill always matter to me.” I tapped the spot where my mechanical heart rested. “The both of you have a permanent spot right here.”
Aria stepped up beside Theo. “Remember when I told you about the amazing thing about hearts?”
Theo nodded solemnly. “Hearts have the infinite ability to expand. You never have to give up someone you love to love another. There is always room for those you care about.”
“So.” Aria prompted.
“So, Dax will still love me even if he loves someone new,” he exclaimed with a long sigh. “But I still don’t want it to beher.”
I looked at Poe and one glance at her face told me how hurt she was by Theo’s words. “But Po-”
Poe’s hand shot up. “Dax, don’t. It’s okay. He has a right to his feelings. Maybe in time he will feel differently, but all he knows about me is I’m the reason his father was deactivated and a person he loved left. Give him a break. He needs time.” She offered me a sad smile. Even though Theo’s words had hurt her she understood his reaction to her. My heart swelled beneath my frame, more convinced that Poe was the female that was meant for me.
“Theo, could you go check on Axios and Dr. Shaw? I remembered they needed some help with smoothing out some dents a certain Military Model put in their exam tables.” Aria stared pointedly right at Theo, her arms re-crossing over her chest.
Theo rolled his eyes. “Fine.” He looked at me with hope in his eyes. “I’ll see you later?”
“Of course. I look forward to it.”
Theo waved goodbye as he set off down the hallway.
Aria turned to Poe. “Don’t worry, he’s usually very friendly and enjoys making new friends. It won’t take long for him to come around.”
Poe raised an eyebrow. “And you?”
“Like I said, Reaper agreed to allow you to be here. My cyborg isn’t stupid. He doesn’t take risks when it comes to the safety of his family or his cyborgs. If he let you come here, then I trust he doesn’t believe you’d do us any harm. If that were the case your head would no longer be attached to your body. But I meant what I said. Hurt those I care about and Reaper will be the least of your worries.” She pointed a finger at me. “That includes him. Dax is one of my best friends; break his heart and I’ll break your face...slowly.” Aria’s smile was sweet, but her eyes gleamed.
Poe swallowed hard and nodded. “Got it.” She turned to me. “I really think I need those waffles and coffee now.”
I took her hand and resumed our walk down the hallway, praying that we wouldn’t meet any more cyborgs before we reached our room.