Home Alone

Nos and Two hovered in the doorway of the main entrance hall, watching Fletcher, Asteri, and their kids carry their luggage down the gravel path to the street where a shuttle waited to take them to the airport.

“Have a good time!” Nos-4-a2 waved his hand high over his head.

“And take lots of pictures!” Two called.

“We will,” Fletcher and Asteri replied in unison for what might have been the twentieth time.

Mel and Toby waved wildly, chattering to one another about what they wanted to do first when they met their friends overseas. Nos and Two watched from the porch as long as it took them to load their luggage into the shuttle, waving until it disappeared past the bend in the road. Nos-4-a2 was the first to turn back inside, pulling one of the grand double-doors shut behind him.

Two closed the other as she followed him. The heavy click of it closing seemed amplified until it died out, leaving only the distant sound of water running in the gardens. The couple stared at each other for a long moment.

“...So,” Nos started, a smile tugging the corners of his mouth.

“So.” Two nodded.

“It would appear that we’re all alone.”

She smiled back, fingering the rim of her cloak. “For a whole week.”

They grinned at each other like children, drifting closer together. It was the first time they’d had the mansion to themselves since Toby was born.

“But what can we do now that we can’t do when everyone else is around?” Two said in a mock-thoughtful tone.

The taller Energy Vampire’s optics flashed. He knew exactly what she was thinking. “Quinn, cameras off us.”

“Gladly, sir.”

Two grabbed Nos’s hands in a flurry of giggles, dragging him through the entry hall and into the home theater. Nos-4-a2 landed on the squashy sofa and used his wireless control to turn the big screen on while Two grabbed the biggest, softest blanket she could find. They wasted no time stripping down to their bare metal and left their clothes heaped on the floor. Two spun herself into the blanket before landing on top of Nos-4-a2.

“What do you want to watch first?” Nos asked as he waved his hand, scrolling through hundreds of hours of recorded programs.

Two put her hand out and overrode his control, flicking through the titles herself until she landed on a show called City Hall.

“We’re gonna watch the whole damn thing,” she hummed.

“Seriously? I’ve seen a few episodes, I don’t know if I could watch eight seasons straight.”

“That’s just because you haven’t watched it from the beginning! It’s really funny, the story is so good and the characters feel so real ‒ ”

“Alright already, just start it,” he laughed. Two happily flicked her wrist, leafing through to the first episode of season one. They settled into the couch together as the peppy opening music began to play.