Chill

“Thanks so much for coming over to help, Jenny!” Two beamed as she lead her co-worker up the gravel path to the mansion’s entrance.

“Of course, Two! I can’t expect you to do all that cooking on your own ‒ a proper chef has to be able to taste her dishes,” Jenny tittered. She and Two had worked together at Garden Experts for nearly thirty years, ever since Two first applied for a job tending to the nursery. Jenny, who bore a lingering portliness of the space-faring generation before her, was just taller than Two’s comfortable hovering height and had skin heavily spotted by the sun. Her pale, bobbed hair was streaked with silver, held back by a green headband that matched her uniform.

“I hope you’ll forgive me if the kitchen is a bit reluctant to work with us right away. Quinn hasn’t had to power it up in months and the ovens have always been finicky,” Two smirked as she typed a code into the keypad next to the double-doors.

Jenny laughed as they stepped inside, but was cut short by a gasp as the doors closed behind them.

“What’s wrong?”

“It feels colder in here than it is outside!” Jenny shivered. The high stone walls seemed to radiate chilled air, the warm colors of the rug and the curtains hanging around the glass doors to the courtyard did nothing to bring the temperature up.

“Oh my gosh, I’m sorry! I meant to call Nos and have him warm up house before we got here, it completely slipped my mind. Quinn, would you be a dear?” Two asked in no particular direction. A reluctant groaning of vents started not long after, followed by the whisper of the air conditioning system coming to life.

“Do you not usually warm the house up?”

“Not unless we’re having human company, and I have to say it’s been a while. I’m sure we’ll warm up quick once we get cooking, but again, I’m sorry I forgot!”

“Why on Earth would you want to be so cold?”

Two tried to hide her amusement, not wanting to come off as patronizing. “It’s comfortable for us. Don’t you know that computers work best in the cold?”

“Well, sure, but don’t you have internal cooling systems? Fans and such?”

Two couldn’t help laughing then. “Does it make you any more comfortable in the heat just because you sweat?”

“Okay, I see your point, but then why do you wear heavier clothes in the fall and winter?”

“Because the weather gets cold enough to indulge in warmer fashions,” Two shrugged as if it were obvious, still smiling.

Jenny laughed then, too. “I guess you learn something new every day! Now, if you don’t mind, I’ll keep my coat on until I stop seeing my breath.”