161I know. I've said that there would probably be no more new stories from me for the TSCC universe. But the idea popped in my head and I simply had to put it down. Again a short fluffy story with no action at all, but a lot of emotions and Jameron.
The story is set into the "Vacation Universe", after the 'Endgame', meaning that it's absolutely AU, so, please, be warned that the characters are 'out of character'. It's a one-shot and there'll be no more chapters. But … if you want to understand the background, you'd have to know the other stories of the series. I guess that the majority of readers read them and will have no problems connecting this one-shot to the others. Even though I tried to write it as stand-alone story, there are definitely hints on things that happened in previous stories.
Someone new enters the lives of Cameron and John Connor. Remember the talk, Cameron and John had in 'Endgame' while babysitting Savannah on the beach?
I don't own the franchise and the characters. However, Allison Lyn Connor is my OC. And yes … I chose the middle name on purpose!
Allison Lyn Connor - Chapter 1
"She's so tiny!"
"Of course she is! Babies in her age are normally tiny, Cam and she's no exception!"
"But …"
"No buts, Cam! You know it perfectly well yourself how big human children are at this age."
" … but I'm afraid I could hurt her. She's so fragile!"
"You won't Cam. You're holding her just as you should."
Cameron looked at John with slightly confused eyes, even though her face simply glowed in happiness. The small bundle in her arms stirred slightly and it let out a soft yawn before settling down again. Cameron's eyes momentarily flickered to the little girl she held secure in her arms and a slight expression of fear reflected on her face.
"Is something wrong with her? Why did she make a noise? Am I holding her correctly? Doesn't she like me?" The beautiful cyborg, once known as Cameron Phillips, but now going under the name of Cameron Connor, the legally wedded wife of John Connor, rattled the questions so quickly that John barely understood them and he most definitely had no chance to answer them as fast as they'd been asked. The huge brown eyes looked at him slightly insecure and deeply questioning. Never before in her existence had she felt so insecure as just now.
John smiled affectionately at his spouse and his arm, encircling Cameron's shoulders protectively and lovingly, drove her tighter to his body. His eyes rested on the little girl, now sleeping peacefully in Cameron's protective arms for a moment, before looking into the brown eyes, gazing at him expectantly.
"No, Cameron, you're doing everything right. I guess she's just sleepy and therefore she yawns. I'm pretty sure there's nothing wrong with her and I'm most definitely sure that she'll love you very much. But she's still a little baby and she never saw you before." He chuckled quietly. "You've seen how long it took her to fall asleep."
His finger gently touched the little girl's tiny fist and it suddenly opened and grabbed for the big finger, offering itself to her. John's face instantly erupted in a big smile and he gazed at the baby lovingly. He might have met her just few hours ago, but he already knew that he loved her.
"How can you be so sure?" Cameron's voice was not only slightly confused but also a little bit sad. "Most people don't like me." Her face reflected how she felt. She might have not cared for how other people treated her before, but now she did.
"Some people didn't like you!" John corrected her with serious voice and looked at her. "But now they do. The ones who see the real Cameron, they … well … they simply have to like you." He bowed to her and gave her a tender kiss on the lips. He remembered how difficult it had been for Cameron to get along with other people before. But then they went on that fateful winter vacation, met Andrea and Tim; made it through the horrible summer vacation where she made friends with Chris… Cameron changed immensely and it was all for the good.
The tiny hand, holding onto his finger suddenly let it go and began to wave through air abruptly, as if seeking for something else to hold on to.
"There!" John gently nudged his wife and pointed towards the searching hand. "Give her your finger!"
Cameron looked at him indecisive for a moment, but after he nodded to her vigorously, she gently shifted the baby so that she now cradled her in her left arm, while she carefully moved her right hand towards the tiny one, still circling in the air and grabbing at nothing. As soon as her forefinger made contact with it, Cameron felt how small digits wrapped around her finger with surprising strength and the girl made a satisfied noise while calming down completely.
"See? She likes you already!" John beamed at Cameron and as she turned her face towards him, he could see how she simply glowed. A wide smile adorned her beautiful features and her eyes sparkled like stars on the night skies.
They sat there in silence for few minutes, simply enjoying the sight of the baby girl in Cameron's arms. John somehow got the impression that Cameron wouldn't allow anyone to take the baby from her right now. He wanted to hold her too, but he also knew that there would be enough opportunities later. Now he just sat there, taking in the obvious Cameron's infatuation with the child. He knew how much she changed in the last time, but it still surprised him just how much she showed her emotions and how quick she let someone in her 'heart'.
"Have you already decided on how we're going to call her? Sure, she has a name, but somehow … Amelia … doesn't seem right." His face showed that he found the name completely unacceptable.
Cameron looked indecisive for a moment before she turned her huge eyes toward him. However, she remained silent.
"Cam?"
She hung her head for a moment before raising it again. "Would it be inappropriate if we'd call her Allison?"
John knew why she wasn't sure about this suggestion. One look into the guilty eyes of his wife and he knew that this was a wish he never could decline. Besides … Allison was a nice name. So he shook his head. "No, it wouldn't be inappropriate. Quite on the contrary, I think it would be very nice. And I like it." He smiled encouragingly at his wife.
Cameron was not sure if she'd made a proper suggestion and she waited for John's answer tensely. But as soon as he confirmed that it was all right, a bright smile spread across her face and she nodded vigorously. "I like it too." Somehow she felt like she would have been given a small redemption for what she did in the future to the girl who served as the template for her appearance. She might have terminated Allison Young when she was still a drone to her evil creator, Skynet, but she would make sure that Allison Connor would have a happy and long life.
John looked at Allison for a second, almost lost in his thoughts and then his face lightened up and he turned towards still smiling Cameron. "Allison Lyn Connor. I think she should be named Allison Lyn."
His wife didn't need more than a second to nod and her smile, if possible at all, grew even a little wider.
As if the baby girl would feel that they were talking about such important thing as her name, she woke up and her sleepy eyes gazed first into Cameron's smiling ones, just to shift to look at John. After a second her gaze returned to Cameron and she gave her a smile before her eyes closed again. The smile remained on the baby's face and her fingers tightly wrapped around Cameron's forefinger.
Cameron looked at John and he could see how her eyes glittered dangerously wet. "She smiled at me, John! She likes me!"
"Who wouldn't like you, Cameron."
"So, this is the new member of our family!" Sarah's voice interrupted the moment and John as well as Cameron looked at the Connor matriarch, who just entered the room. Her face showed her anticipation as she looked at the small bundle in her daughter in law's arms.
"Yeah, mom, meet Allison Lyn Connor." John smiled at his mother proudly.
Sarah walked over to them and as she approached, she noticed the extreme care with which Cameron held the tiny baby in her arms and saw the glowing face of the cyborg girl. There was no doubt that she already enclosed the girl in her heart and would do anything to protect her.
"May I hold her for a second?"
Cameron felt inexplicably reluctant to hand Allison Lyn over to her mother in law and hesitated for a second. She wanted to hold her baby in her arms. She instantly grew irrationally worried about her daughter and didn't want to give her away, not even for a second. Luckily, John solved the situation before his mother could get angry. "I don't think it would be wise right now mom. She just fell asleep and we wouldn't want to wake her up." He looked at his wife for a second before turning back to Sarah and grinned at her. "It's been quite a struggle to calm her down. If it wasn't for Cameron …" He trailed off and looked again at his wife, who beamed back at him gratefully.
Sarah nodded. She understood the reluctance in Cameron's eyes, but also knew a little bit about babies and was content for a moment to just watch at her granddaughter for the time being. Granddaughter! She was now a grandmother? Suddenly it hit her. Her son, her boy, who was a teenager just a while ago, was now a father. OK, an adoptive father, but nonetheless. He couldn't be a biological father with his wife being a machine from the future after all. But the terrible thing was that it made her a grandmother!
John looked at his mother like a hawk and saw how her eyes widened a bit and a flash of horror passed her face. "Is there something wrong mom?"
Sarah shook her head. "No, everything's perfect. I have just been reminded that I'm growing old!"
"You? Old?" John stuttered. "Never! You might be the toughest mom alive, but old? I don't think so!"
"Of course I am, John! I'm a grandmother, for god's sake!" Her voice crackled with emotion.
John now understood and he grinned at her. "Well, yes, you're a granny now, mom. But it doesn't make you old, though." He hurried with explanation after he saw a warningly raising of his mother's finger after he called her 'granny'.
"Oh, shut up, John!" Sarah finished the discussion with a small grin and turned back to Cameron, who followed the discussion between her husband and her mother in law with interest, while protectively clutching and slowly gently rocking her adopted daughter in her arms.
"She looks a lot like you!" Sarah gasped in surprise as she now looked at Allison Lyn carefully, taking in her brown curly hair and a face, that resembled Cameron quite a lot.
"Yeah, we were lucky, right, Cam?" John answered for his wife and grinned at his mother.
"Does she have anything …" Sarah trailed off and motioned towards the baby.
"Do you mean if she's the Allison, Cameron told us about?"
Sarah nodded.
John shook his head. "No, her given name is … was … Amelia and she's an orphan. Her parents have been killed in a shooting in a mall few weeks ago." His eyes suddenly looked far away and he needed a moment to return to the present. "We were lucky that we were the ones to be picked up as her adoptive parents." Suddenly his face got a little sly expression. "Well, it might have had a little to do with John Henry's messing up with the correct data bases."
"You didn't?" Sarah looked at her son incredulously, but her face almost instantly erupted in a mischievous grin.
"We did!" Cameron deadpanned with her best 'scary robot' expression, which she very rarely used since she got married to John. Mainly just when she tried to make fun of her mother in law.
"Why, you two …" Sarah shook her head and grinned from ear to ear. Then she got serious and fixed Cameron with her gaze. "How come that you agreed to adopt a child?"
"John wanted a baby."
"I know he did, but what about you? Did you want a baby too or is it just that you want John to be happy?"
"Yes!"
"Yes what?"
"I want John to be happy."
Sarah looked taken aback.
"And I wanted the baby too." Cameron added with a sly grin, unmistakably stressing the word 'baby'.
Now it was Sarah's turn to let out a relieved breath and she smiled warmly at the young cyborg. She nodded to her and looked at Allison Lyn, comfortably curled in Cameron's arms, sleeping soundly and maintaining the content smile on her face, while her small fist still clutched to Cameron's finger possessively. "Just by seeing how you hold her, I could never doubt that you're telling me the truth."
Cameron's face got serious and she looked directly into Sarah's eyes. "I love Allison Lyn and I will do anything to protect her and make her happy."
"I have absolutely no doubts about that." Then Sarah stood up and cast a last look at her granddaughter before turning to Cameron again and as she spoke, her voice reflected a mock severity. "But I still want to hold her, you know!"
Cameron's eyes flickered to her daughter for a second and she pulled her slightly tighter against her body before she looked at her mother in law. "I know. It's just …"
"You feel like you have to hold her right now and don't allow anyone else to touch her, even your husband not. Right?" Sarah's words hit the dead center of the target, called Cameron's emotional state.
Cameron nodded.
"I understand. I felt the same as I held your husband in my arms for the first time." Sarah's voice carried a distinct melancholic note and she abruptly left the room before the young ones could see the moisture, beginning to gather in the corners of her eyes.
After Sarah left them, Cameron turned towards John worriedly: "Did I do something wrong? Should I have allowed Sarah to hold Allison Lyn?"
John gently stroke Cameron's cheek, looking into her eyes. "No, you did everything right, Cam. You did everything just like a good mother should. And my mom understands it perfectly. I believe you even convinced her to love you more than she did before. She sees that you're going to be an excellent mother."
Cameron's expression relaxed and she smiled at him: "So I did the right thing?"
John nodded.
"Then I'll allow her to hold my baby later." Cameron nodded decidedly and looked back at the baby in her arms. Her eyes softened and her lips curled into a beaming smile. "I love you, Allison Lyn."
"I love you too, Allison Lyn." John added before looking at his wife again. "Together we'll make sure that you'll get the best out of your life." He didn't know to whom his words were actually meant ... to Allison Lyn or to Cameron. Maybe to both of them.
TBC
A/N
Disregard my notes at the beginning of the story about this being a one-shot. I decided to expand it a little bit further and add few more chapters.
