She loved how she could always hear Francis, even over the low rumble of the busy food-court. Her hand went to her neck to caress him.

Daniel reached across the table for her other hand. She winced. Francis did not like that.

“The ring-worm on your neck, sweetheart?” Daniel asked.

She grimaced and nodded. And withdrew her hand from Daniel. Francis stopped stinging her and she flushed warmly as he rewarded her with endorphins.

Daniel wrestled with something. His mouth opened and shut again and opened to finally say it.

“Sweetheart,” he said. “I feel like we’ve grown distant lately.”

She opened her eyes to stare blankly, though not because she had misunderstood. She simply did not care. She would gladly have told him so. But Francis desired to be entertained.

“Honey,” she said to Daniel. “What do you mean?”

“I don’t know,” he said. “Just that I feel we don’t talk like we use to. You’ve been awfully … dull.”

He paused, waiting for a reaction. She was busy mentally singing a song with Francis.

“Um,” continued Daniel. “At least since you stopped working at Nanocore …”

Francis burned in fear at that name. The heat along her neck spiked through her brain.

“I told you not to speak of that place ever again,” she snapped at Daniel.

She mentally soothed Francis. He shouldn’t worry; they weren’t going back there, ever again, she promised. They were free and in love. Francis calmed down.

“I’m … I’m sorry” said Daniel, surprised by her anger. “But … at least when you were working at … that place … you use to come home all excited. Talking about what you were doing … that … what was it called? Emerging intelligent?”

“Emergent intelligence in neural networked nanites,” she said. Almost sang.

“Yeah! That sounded cool. And you use to come home and just talk on and on about that or hormonal construction or whatever and what you did and how far it came along. And I was so proud and happy for you.

“But then, you quit. And I know it was because they were canceling your project anyway, that you couldn’t stand to see your work lost, and so on. But since your last day there … you’ve just been so quiet.”

She remembered her last day. She remembered standing over the culture, the idea popping in her head. She remembered the needle drawing in the sample, then the sharp brief pain as it jabbed into her neck. She remembered the sweet rush as Francis thanked her.

Daniel was looking off into the distance.

“I don’t know” he began. “Maybe … maybe I’m being a jerk. I mean, you were really sick for a couple weeks after that. You couldn’t really talk anyway. And now with that ring-worm. I just … I just wish I understood.”

Daniel’s face turned to her, filled with expectant worry. She considered something.

“I know, dear,” she said. “But I am just thinking what our next step is.” Our next step, she thought to Francis, and told him what it was. With Francis’s agreement she slid around the table and hugged Daniel.

She leaned in and kissed Daniel soft on the neck. Her head raised and her breath whispered into his ear.

“Take me home, and I will show you what I am thinking.”

Daniel eyed her for a second. But then he smiled and stood up. She did the same and as they exited the mall she thought Francis could teach Daniel a thing or two about romance.

And after tonight, he would. Daniel would learn about love, as he too would love Francis.