The sun was beginning to set as the digital clock on the wall slowly slid closer to six, each number overshadowing the next. It was a minute away by the time I had finished gathering up the materials Aurora and I would need to work on Mr. Bit’s project. I was still loathing the decision to put us together, but since Cody wasn’t at school today, he had no choice. I was still worried about what happened to him that night, but I was also angry because he hasn’t told me anything since then. I knew that wouldn’t help my mood tonight.

 

“It’s going to be a long night,” I whisper to myself, leaning back against the couch.

 

Six o’clock finally hits and I swear under my breath as two knocks from my metallic sliding door reverberate through the air, signaling her arrival. Sighing, I push myself up slowly and move sluggishly to the door, only slowing the inevitable. After inputting the code I use to open it when I’m not at home, I find Aurora, blue hair and devious smile, on the other side. She was holding her small iPad replica from class in her right hand and had her purse saddled on her left shoulder.

 

“Hello Random.”

 

Some hello, she showed no emotion. I can tell she didn’t want to be here from the tone of her voice and, to be honest; I didn’t want her here either.

 

“Hi,” I force myself to say, showing her that I acknowledge her presence.

 

“Well are you going to invite me in?” she asks impatiently. Please keep me from killing her.

 

After stepping aside she walks inside and heads straight for the couch. Setting her stuff down on top of the coffee table, she sweeps her head back and forth across the room, examining and taking in every inch of it. Tipsy then walks up to her and starts rubbing against her. She responds by “gently”, according to her, kicking her away.

 

“I didn’t know you were a cat person,” she says, turning toward me.“I have no animals and prefer to be around machines, honestly.”

 

“She is a machine, and she was built by me. And she has a name, Tipsy,” I respond, making sure she knows Tipsy is a person to me as much as anyone else and not some common object to be kicked around.

 

“A robotic AI cat designed and built by Miss Dadalian to assist her in any way I can,” Tipsy chimes in.

 

“Well, she’ll need all the assistance she can get,” she whispers bitterly, returning to her iPad replica.

 

What was that supposed to mean? Was I inadequate of providing for myself? She was starting to seriously piss me off and she’s only been here 60 seconds.

 

“Miss Dadalian is not as weak as to need me by her side 24/7, Miss Crystalere.”

 

“Whatever,” Aurora mumbles, rolling her eyes and grabbing the soldering gun. I went to sit down next to her, trying to keep my anger in check.

 

“So our assignment is to build a-“ I start, trying to change the subject and keep my cool.

 

“I know what we’re doing,” Aurora snaps, shutting me up completely. “You let me do most of the work and we’ll be fine. I’m sure my expertise is needed much more here than yours.”

 

Was she out of her mind? One, it was my home and she had no right to talk to me that way. Two, it was a project assigned to both of us and I was going to have just as much of a part in it as she was. Even Tipsy uttered a low hiss from the corner of the room, irritated by the small insult.

 

“Look Aurora, I know you don’t like me and that you don’t want to be anywhere near me, but we’re doing this together. It’s both our project.”

 

“So I can fail? Don’t count on it.” I’m going to kill her, I just know it.

 

Placing her iPad replica back down, she takes the soldering gun and begins melting the tips of small, loose iron rods to attach them to larger ones. She continued to this for several more minutes, moving quickly and gracefully through each rod, almost like a machine. She then moved onto the panels and began placing them together with the rods. She was still hell bent on not letting me help though, and proved that point time and time again by pointing the soldering gun my way anytime I tried to touch or do something. She was a control freak! It drove me 6 ways from a sundae in the desert ocean.

 

“So what is that,” I ask, pointing toward her iPad replica, trying to get something out of her besides silence.

 

“It’s an organized, personal, practical, prototype, mini AI unit. I use it for all my needs and find it very useful and irreplaceable.”

 

“So it doesn’t have a name?” I ask, cocking my head to the side.

 

“No, it doesn’t.” And the conversation ended there.

 

Once she resumed working, two hours passed by quickly before we-more her than me-finished the basic outline of the project. It looked very well done from what I could tell. Guess she’s not just all talk. Although she seemed to rely heavily on her little iPad replica, which I’ve decided to call a UPC: Universal Portable Companion.

 

“Now that we’re done, I think I’ll take it home with me to ensure it doesn’t get destroyed,” she says, grabbing it, her purse and UPC already in hand.

 

“What, you don’t trust it with me?” I snap at her, my temper at its breaking point.

 

“I did most of the work, so I deserve to have it with me. Leaving it here may cause it to be broken or worse.” She then got up and headed for the door.

 

“Aurora!” I exclaim, quickly standing. “Why the hell won’t you let me keep it?! I could have put just as much time into it if you’d just let me help. I’m just as capable of putting it together as you, provided you’d let me help.”

 

“Random,” she cuts in, turning back around. “While your skills are up there, I prefer to work on things like this by myself.”

 

By herself? Then what was the point of coming here in the first place? She invited herself here, took charge herself and finished this herself without letting me so much as move from my seat. I wasn’t going to let her walk out of my home with our project.

 

My heart racing and anger beyond repair, I head straight toward her, grab our project and try to take it from her grasp. Tipsy begins hissing behind me as the two of start struggling over it.

 

“Let go, Random!”

 

“Not till you give me a decent answer!” I reply, struggling to keep my hold on it. She was stronger than she looked.

 

The fighting and tugging continued for another 5 minutes. We ended of moving away from the front door to the living room and then into the kitchen, fighting, pulling and swearing as each of us tries to pry our project from the others hands. We even end up spinning around in a dance like form almost to a song that only the two of us can hear. Eventually we end up back in front of the door and reach a stand still.

 

“Are you… going to let go?” I asks her, trying to catch my breath.

 

“Never,” she replies in the coldest tone imaginable. She then puts every last ounce of energy into her next tug, causing me to lose my grip and stumble backwards, falling onto the floor. I shriek in pain but she ignores it and continues to the door, which slides open, and turns around to look down at me.

 

“You may be great, Random, but I’m doing things like this on my own. So back off, because you don’t want me as an enemy.”

 

As she continues through the door I sit there and watch it slowly slide shut while her figure fades into the distance and grow even more hatred toward Aurora. She was crazy, and I would never let her near my home again. “I never want her on the same team as me ever again.”

 

Getting up, I begin mumbling as I head toward my room.

 

"Insulting me in my home, knocking Tipsy aside like some common object, even taking control of our assignment…why she- she’s so- who does she-"

 

I begin sobbing as I crash onto my bed, unable to complete any coherent sentence. I was so upset that I shut the door to keep Tipsy out, wanting to be alone.

 

“She’s made my life a living hell…” I say, continuing to sob before I finally fall asleep. But the night wasn’t peaceful as nightmares soon arose, with worse intensity than before.