She makes me feel giddy. All the time! I cannot get her out of my mind. I feel like a schoolboy again. Those awkward, difficult days. They shouldn’t
be so difficult now. Jerry rubbed his hands together. It is not cold, nor are his hands dusty. It is a nervous use of energy. The sun is high in the sky, a few white billowy clouds are scattered about the bright blue sky. The green expanses of grass roll out
in the direction of the city; they are edged by and old fashioned, cobblestone like road. There are old fashioned street lights at regular intervals in the park, running along the cobblestone road. Running next to the grass is the city waterway. Those low
brick walls along the waterway never seem to age. The rot iron works along the tops of the brickwork never seem to age either. Over the water, way off in the distance is one of many bridges that match the brickwork along the river banks. It is too far off
to see with any accuracy who is coming over the bridge; movement is discernable although reminiscent of watching an ant trail from several feet away.
The note I left read 12:15. That should be plenty of time for her to get here. The bench next
to the exposition pad. You cannot miss where Giant Robot is standing while we steam blast the concrete floor at Unicorn Headquarters lift-off and landing bay. Jerry is standing next to the bench, one foot on the bench. He reaches his right hand out slowly
until it makes contact with Giant Robot’s left foot. “You think she will show up?” he asks the gargantuan machine.
Jerry feels doubt growing within him. His stomach feels as if it is bottoming out. He checks his wrist watch
and goes back to leaning on his propped up leg. He checks his watch again. After pulling his shirt cuff back down over his watch, he decides to check the time again. It has been 12:13 and 21 seconds for the last hour; or so it seems to Jerry.
There is a slight, early Spring breeze in the air. The trees, which follow very tight columns running away from where Jerry is standing, have bright glowing cherry blossoms throughout them. There seems to be a shortage of birds chirping. That may be due to
the robot standing in the park like a monstrous scarecrow.
“You know what my friend,” Jerry looks up at Giant Robot. The machine is just staring off into the distance in the direction of the bridge, “I may have over estimated
my…my account of her. She might have more of a life outside of Unicorn than I had imagined.” Jerry looked back down towards the bridge, there were no discernable people headed his direction. Only trees, grass, a few ancient looking park lights
stood still, looking back at him. The sound of the water rushing by seemed to increase a little. Jerry looked up at the Robot again; it seemed to tilt or shudder in a manner nearly imperceptible to a casual glance.
Jerry looks back towards the bridge.
Still no-one approaches. Yet, looking down the columns of trees, a smile seemed to float in his direction. Her smile was only rivaled by her eyes which came into view a moment later. the rest of her features come blossoming into existence as she strides towards
him.
Jerry’s arm subconsciously fired out to the right, both finding some balance for the sinking feeling he is now experiencing; and to seek the steadiness of the robot. Looking up again, he can see just the left cheek, eye and a portion
of that side of the robot’s nose. Again Jerry thinks he sees the robot almost nod towards her. He did not do that. He needs orders to so such things from Johnny.
“Why did you ask me here” Mitsuko (Mitsuko Nisho U5) asked as
she approaches.
Jerry felt his mouth go dry. He had been preparing to speak with Mitsuko about this for some time. Now he almost wishes he did not ask her here. It is now or never. “Hi.”
After several seconds of smiling
at each other, Mitsuko responds. “You brought me out here to say “Hi? I think you can do better than that.” She lowers her head and roles her eyes toward him.
She spoke! I love listening to her speak…it, Jerry is now
caught in the moment, right where he wants to be. Physically, he matches the robot next to him, statue like. His mind is thinking about her, but putting his plans into action at all. Far back in a deep corner of his mind, a voice is shouting, “TALK TO
HER YOU IDIOT!”
“I am right in front of you and asked a question. If you don’t get around to answering me I am going to walk away,” she said as she turned a shoulder away from him. She batted her eyes at him, then turned
to look at the bridge.
“Ummm…I was going to ask you…” he clumsily begins to stammer.
“Spit it out Jerry,” she laughed the words out melodically.
There she goes again. Her voice
just captivates me. “Uh…I am sorry. I need to ask you something. Something about y…us. More than just working together. I feel…we more than just work together.”
“Well sure we do more than work together,”
she interjected. “We look after Johnny and,” she gestured up to the robot, “we look after the big guy too. We are kind of big brother and big sister.”
“You are right. I want to go a little further than that though,”
Jerry was struggling for the right words. He can feel himself sinking as if he is a ship at sea and the Dracolan is thrashing his hull. “Let me speak.”
“You got ten seconds,” Mitsuko said with her a smile as big the front
grill of an old American car.
“I have to say I want to see you,” the words flew out before Jerry could restrain himself. He heard them after speaking them; and now he is looking for a way to pluck them from the air and hide them for
later.
“See me?” She chirped. “Your eyes are open and you can see me right now.”
“No. I mean outside of work. Away from all of this. When we are on our own time,” Jerry got the words out. Not
exactly how he pictured it. As a matter of fact, the words came out like a disaster. To see you outside of work! She will think of me as a moron from now on.
“That is the classiest way you can ask me out for a date, huh?”
“Uh…oh…uh…I want to take you out to dinner. Tonight. Any night. Every night,” the words just leapt from Jerry’s mouth like paratroopers leaping from a burning plane.
Though Mitsuko’s eyes did not lose their
luster a single bit, her smile gently fell half away.
“Jerry…I have to find the right words now. Don’t get me wrong, this is flattering. even from you, but I can’t do this right now. Ok, it is a lot more than I am prepared
for right now.”
The Atomic punch delivered by her words nearly felled Jerry. His lower gut feels the full impact of the words. She is not putting me off, she is destroying me…she…
“At work right now, I
just can’t do this,” she said again. “Please don’t hate me Jerry.”
“Is it someone else?” again, the words bailed out with a sense of urgency.
“It’s complicated Jerry. I cannot
get into it right now. Sorry.” She turns to walk away, then spins back around, her smile beaming at him. “It is a lovely note you wrote me to get me out here. I still have it and I will keep.”
Wow, that really helped. If I was
William Shakespeare I would be impressed with that, but I am alive here and now. Jerry reflexively tilted his head back and looked up for a split second. The dead eyes of the robot are looking back down at him. What the…he cringes internally. Like a
scientist in a lab looking down through a microscope. His eyes fall down back to the safety of looking back at her. In the back of his mind the Robot’s face remains, is it looking down at me or am I imagining this?
“I am not mad at
you, Jerry,” Mitsuko said. “I am not displeased with this, and I swear I will not tell anyone about this if you make me a promise U3.”
“Just ask,” he responded. His hand reached to her; as if he is about to help
her step onto a lifeboat.
“You keep this meeting between you and I, it is not a topic of discussion around the office. Azuma might frown upon us for this.”
“Why would I tell him?” Jerry puzzled aloud.
“
I didn’t say you would tell him you dope,” she giggled as the words sang across the park to him. “If you talk about it at work, the walls have ears you know. Someone will run their mouth at the most inconvenient time.”
“Can we discuss this over dinner?” Jerry tried. He almost wanted to retract the request, but she stopped in her tracks and chuckled. Not a mocking laugh, but one of astonishment. She tilted her head back at him. I would give up anything to have
her eyes look at me like that again and again. His upper body shuddered for a moment, as if he was experiencing an earthquake centered in his own body.
Now that was clever for such a goofball. A cute goofball. “Very persistent of you. I
like that about you. You are not one to give up.” She did a half turn away from him then turned back. He hasn’t taken his eyes off of me. He is nervous, so he must really like me. “It won’t be over dinner tonight. Maybe…um…maybe
some time in the near future.” She turned a little more, facing him, and planted her feet.
“Is that a rain check or a polite rebuke?” Jerry exhaled his words. He can feel himself deflating like a balloon.
“Don’t
get me wrong,” she answered. “It is all very complicated…but I am very flattered and want to …” she catches herself about to say too much. She spends a second smiling and finds the right words. “I have to tell you. I am
here for my career and things I want to do in life. I came here, with a hope that what you just asked me, would be the intention of seeing me here. So, yes I would go out with you in a heartbeat; but for some unique circumstances…
“Can
you just tell me what the unique circumstances are?” Jerry side with the swing of his arm; as if it was chopping through a load of red tape.
“No I cannot,” she answered quickly. Her smile is fading. “I guess…Jerry…don’t
feel you have to wait for me. Don’t feel for me like that.”
Her smile has collapsed. I have caused that. Her eyes are darkening. I did that too. “I am sorry for putting you through this.”
“It’s
nothing bad Jerry,” she answers. Her smile grows back onto her face. “You don’t know how much this means to me. Especially coming from you.”
A bit of encouragement came back to Jerry. He could feel his own smile start
to grow. His shoulders squared as she seemed to look inside of him from a distance. “Do you have to go away so quickly?” That last one slipped out. Of course she has to go.
“You know my schedule Jerry,” she shot back.
“I don’t have much time. But you know what? I think we have an assignment coming up together. I have seen some of the communications that have come through in the last few days. Azuma said something about getting a ’team out there’
to wherever it is. Maybe we will go together.” Am I giving him false hope? Or am I giving myself false hope?
Jerry felt his mind run wild with excitement. He knows he has to stop his reverie but he cannot in time.
“What
are you thinking about?” she asks him.
“A lot,” Jerry said.
“Goodbye…for now. U3,” she giggled out his Unicorn badge number.
I hate to see her go, but I love watching her leave,
Jerry pondered the future operation with her. Maybe we can get a dinner away from the mission for a night. Some out of the way café like in an old movie. We could look like spies on mission, without being spies; but actually on a mission.
Jerry’s shoulders snapped as he remembered Giant Robot was looking down at him. He has been watching the whole time! His eyes snapped skyward, The Robot is staring in the direction which Matsuko walked away. He dropped hid head to look back at Matsuko;
she is out of sight and perhaps over the bridge. He looks back up at the Robot’s head. There is no indication the great machine was paying attention to him.
“Thanks for hanging here with me old pal,” Jerry said as he slapped
the side of Giant Robot’s foot.
Ggggggtttnkt……..A faint, nearly inaudible sound, or more like a sound effect came to Jerry’s ears. He almost jumps out of his shoes. He looks back up at the Robot. Did I jus hear that?!?
“Giant Robot, did you just answer me? Did you manage a whisper?” I must be going insane. I better sit down.
No response comes from the great machine. It stands still and silent. Always oblivious to the spoken words of anyone except
Johnny Sokko…and Mari. Jerry often wondered to himself if Giant Robot has a sense of humor. It is a machine, a working machine but the Robot has displayed so many human like qualities. I may have been going through some wishful thinking; clouded by
my giddiness for Mitsuko. I will warn the Robot anyway.
“I know you are not going to answer me now. So, I will say, you keep the instances of your sense of humor to a minimum. I am not going to speak of what you did here with Johnny or
anyone else. They might think me insane. Or they might think of you as an alien being rather than Giant Robot; which could be very bad.” He roles his eyes up and down Giant Robot. There is no acknowledgement. “Why did I just say that to you?”
Jerry feels apprehension grip him all over. “I am sitting in a public park talking to myself now. All I need is a bag of crumbs for the birds.”
Mitsuko is striding across the park bridge amongst the lunch hour pedestrians. She looks
back over her shoulder. About a year ago, seeing Giant Robot in that park would have been a shocking sight. Today, it is utterly normal and is hardly worth a second look from any of these average citizens. Giant Monsters and Emperor Guillotine were unheard
of then too. My career …my whole life had a different outlook back then. She notices something odd about Giant Robot as she walks along. Giant Robot just gave a slight nod. Or am I seeing…no, he gave a slight nod. Johnny is far away from here.
Was that big machine listening? Matsuko feels something strange creep up her spine as she keeps walking. He was eavesdropping! The Robot was listening to Jerry ask for a date! She half laughs and coughs all at once. She increases her stride and heads for Unicorn
HQ.
Sitting on a bench on the far side of the bridge, a man sits with a newspaper open in front of him. He appears to be reading it, to the passers by. Closer inspection would have revealed some high powered lenses attached to his glasses. As
Mitsuko passes, if the newspaper was just a little bit lower, she could have seen a familiar goat-tee and the wicked grin that resides above it.
Piranha made mental notes of the situation that has transpired. Nothing useful about Giant Robot;
BUT, two Unicorn Agents may have a situation we can exploit for serious damage.