Silence enveloped the space between these close friends until Sienna, with a somewhat embarrassed and indifferent gesture, interjected, "How could that be possible? I don't even like him!" Yet, as the words escaped her, she couldn't help but recall the kiss she had shared with Brandon. A blush crept onto her face, and she tried to dismiss the memory from her mind.
"Why are you blushing?" Joe inquired, noting her peculiar reaction. "You can blush?"
Caught off guard by her unintentional expression, Sienna hastily raised her beer, attempting to deflect attention. "Effect of alcohol, of course!"
"No way, you never show it on your cheeks, no matter how much you drink!"
"People change," Sienna replied in a flash, but swiftly added, "But not our friendship. Cheers!"
Joe remained skeptical. Sienna, sensing his doubt, patted her chest and reassured, "I am only working with Brandon Myles for the interview into Walters, no other element involved." Only then did Joe's skepticism dissolve into a bright smile of assurance as he clicked his glass with hers.
As Sienna finished her drink, a sudden idea crossed her mind. Abruptly standing up, she declared, "I need to go to the Lab."
"Now?"
"Yes! Uh, thanks for the dinner! My treat next time!" With that, she swiftly departed, leaving Joe alone in bewilderment.
-
Panting, Sienna reached the Lab and swiftly entered by typing in the password. Hastening toward the robot model, a realization struck her, conceived during the earlier drinking session with Joe — to make the robot unique, she could integrate "other element", a motion-sensing function, for example.
With her tool case opened on the desk, she prepared to start working on the modification when an unexpected touch grazed her back. Startled, she turned around, finding no one in sight. Attributing it to the effects of the alcohol, she shrugged off the sensation and resumed squatting to search in the tool case.
Yet, another touch followed, more of a scratch this time.
Sienna abruptly turned around once more, still unable to discern anything peculiar or anyone nearby.
However, she observed a subtle change in the robot. Its chest was now facing her directly, rather than in a side-facing position.
For a moment, Sienna entertained the thought that the two mysterious touches originated from the small automaton. Yet, a quick recollection reminded her that she hadn't installed anything capable of initiating movement at this point, not yet.
Dismissing the notion, Sienna delved into the drawer, finally retrieving the appropriate screwdriver. As she smiled, ready to commence work on the robot, it unexpectedly darted toward her in a fast-paced motion, doing three consecutive somersaults.
Sienna stood stunned, immobile for a moment, before catching some commotion behind her. With a sharp sense of hearing, she could discern even the most discreet and quiet sounds of the other party.
Heart throbbing with fear, Sienna tightened her grip on the screwdriver. She stepped into the shadows, moving cautiously alongside the wall toward the source of the noise. In a sudden burst of action, she kicked the door open, holding the screwdriver aloft and pointing it at the man sneaking up behind her.
Simultaneously, a young and robust hand swiftly grasped the screwdriver, the movement so rapid that Sienna couldn't even register the process. Their eyes locked as she found herself face to face with Brandon Myles, his brow slightly furrowed. Sienna's gaze shifted to the screwdriver now effortlessly held in his hands, deepening her frown. In a split second, Brandon realized the proximity between them once again, apprehensive of a potential repeat of the earlier incident. To avert any more unpleasantness, he deftly brushed the screwdriver downwards and released his grip on it.
In Sienna's perspective, it seemed this man was consistently attempting to maintain distance from her. She sneered inwardly—did he genuinely believe she had any intention of staying close to him?
"What are you doing here?" Both of them blurted out simultaneously, both a bit surprised at the synchronicity.
"I'm checking how my motion-sensing function works," Brandon responded calmly.
This revelation left Sienna utterly amazed. "That... was your job?"
"Yeah. Any problem?"
"How... when... never mind." Sienna sighed, conceding defeat. "I was here to develop this function. I admit you won."
A sly smirk arched on Brandon's face. However, it wasn't a response to Sienna's so-called defeat, as he never cared about such competitions, never considering the possibility of anyone surpassing him. Instead, he had found amusement in the testing process. Standing by the door frame, he observed the robot piquing Sienna's curiosity and her ensuing reactions.
Why, he wondered, did he find her fearful and cautious look so adorable?
Sienna, on the other hand, also caught the subtle smirk. She presumed that Brandon was silently cheering for himself, igniting a spark of skepticism in her temperament. After a moment of contemplation, she voiced, "It needs improvement because..."
Suddenly, both of them were alarmed and exchanged a swift glance. The sound of footsteps, more than two, accompanied by whispers, reached their ears, approaching their direction.
Anxiously scanning the room for something to conceal their yet-to-be-released robot product, Sienna noticed Brandon had vanished and reappeared by the robot's side, covering it with his outer coat. The moment and method Brandon used to strip off his coat went completely unnoticed by Sienna.
But there was no time for Sienna to ponder, as the footsteps abruptly halted, and they heard one of them saying, "The Lab has the light on. Someone must be inside!"
"Why does it matter? We are heading to the print office anyway." The other one added.
"Are you sure we won't be caught?" A third asked hesitantly.
"I've already turned off the security camera in the office. No one will see us!" The first one sounded very proud. "Unless you are betraying us!"
"Of course not, we are in this together!"
"Keep your voice down and move on!"
...
In the Lab, Brandon exchanged a silent gesture with Sienna, and she instantly understood. Both of them swiftly hid under the desk as the three people passed by, finding no one in the Lab.
"Cool!" The third one heaved a sigh of relief. "No one heard us! See, no one in the Lab!"
Under the desk, Sienna turned to Brandon, whispering, "What's in the print office anyway?"
Brandon pondered for a moment before answering quietly, "Possibly the examination paper for tomorrow."
"So are they trying to cheat?"
"Possibly."
Sienna pondered for a moment, extracting a small device from her pocket resembling a miniaturized game controller.
Brandon shot her a questioning look.
"They turned off the camera? I'm turning it back on for them," Sienna declared with a slightly vengeful tone.
Brandon silently approved. He also had a strong resentment toward those who sought to achieve good scores through cheating. To him, the concept of cheating to obtain a good score was incomprehensible. Wasn't earning a good score a simple enough task on its own?
So as Sienna was speaking, Brandon leaned forward, examining the small device closely.
For the first time since they met, and since the momentary kiss, she found herself so close to him. In this proximity, she noticed that the shadow cast by the ceiling light acted like a sculpting blade, creating a perfect silhouette of a man, a form that seemed to encapsulate the essence of existence.