Looking at EVE, WALL•E was at a loss as to what to do for her. He remembered yesterday now too, and what had happened between them. He, too, was sad that their connection hadn't lasted.

But to him, it was an unexpected gift, a great blessing, to have touched EVE's consciousness . . . all that she truly was . . . and share even the briefest total contact with her. His understanding of her had grown. His understanding of himself had even grown. Their love had grown. It was deeper. If EVE had been everything to WALL•E before — she was even more so now.

It was a good, even wonderful, thing though that it all had happened.

WALL•E suddenly became aware that because of the connection with EVE yesterday, there was something new inside of him. It had taken root, and spread ever so lightly through his systems while he was dormant during the night.

What was it?

EVE? Was EVE within him, within his consciousness, he wondered?

It didn't talk back to him, but it did expand his awareness. Yes, he realized — some coding from EVE's consciousness had passed over into him, and had become part of him. For the first time, he was seeing more deeply into her than ever before.

WALL•E emerged from his own thoughts. He had a feeling now of what to do . . . of how to reach EVE . . . help her . . . love her.

"Eee-vah . . ." WALL•E said, snapping EVE out of her own thoughts.

Complete thoughts . . . oh how WALL•E wished he could communicate to EVE in complete thoughts again!

WALL•E's brain, his CPU, went into overdrive trying to pick a thought, even just one . . . and speak it completely! For her!

WALL•E went within himself . . . welcoming his primary EVE Directive to override, even take over, as it worked with his limited speech synthesizing systems. He even called on what he perceived as the coding from EVE's consciousness to assist. While he wasn't very good at engineering or developing new code or software, WALL•E worked the best he could with the resources and capabilities he had.

Finally, he tried.

"Eee-vaah . . . WALLL•EEEE . . . heeerrrreee . . . fffffooooorrrr . . . yyyyoooouuuu."

It mentally exhausted him just saying that.

But EVE looked up at WALL•E's optics. Her eyes widened. She couldn't believe what she was hearing . . . a complete thought from WALL•E!

She just froze with surprise and a degree of wonder. Perhaps as an internal effort to heal, she had started to allow herself to cynically question if that well-spoken essence she encountered yesterday in the realm had even really been WALL•E.

"WALLL•EEEE . . . coooonnnneeeecccctttt-ssshhhuuuunnnn." WALL•E gathered his strength. "Eee-vaah . . . heeerrreee." he said, pointing to himself.

For WALL•E realized that EVE, even just a piece of her, was truly now in his heart. They were connected!

"WALLL•EEEE . . . thhheeerrrreee!" he said, pointing to EVE's "heart".

"Llloooookkk . . ." he said, urging EVE to look within herself to see if a similar code fragment of his consciousness had made it into her.

EVE paused. What is he talking about? Look inside me?? she wondered.

WALL•E could perceive she wasn't yet getting his point — otherwise she'd be happy. Simple as that, he thought.

"Llloooookkk . . . sssyyyyssstt-eeemmm." he clarified.

Check my system . . . for WALL•E?? she wondered, incredulously.

So, EVE shrugged and began a diagnostic analysis of her system. At least it would take her mind off her sadness for a moment.

"System anomaly detected." her diagnostics announced to her. "Unknown dormant code. Successfully isolated and quarantined. Non-viral. Not harmful or belligerent. Awaiting permission to access and integrate."

Now EVE was curious.

"Access code," she instructed mentally, "No, override." EVE chose to access the new code directly herself, rather than let her diagnostic subroutines do it in isolation.

A presence started to emerge within EVE's consciousness. It was subtle, light — wholly unnoticeable to her when she was in the throws of her depression.

EVE couldn't talk with it. But it was there. It felt safe.

So she accessed and integrated it fully — allowing it to grow within her systems.

EVE's eyes started uncontrollably smiling.

"WALL•EE . . ." she said softly out loud, with growing warmth.

It was him . . . at least a piece of the consciousness she had touched yesterday.

"Connection . . ." EVE confirmed to WALL•E.

They WERE connected! Each of them had retained and brought back a piece of the code that made up the other's consciousness.

EVE proceeded to explore her piece of WALL•E's code as fully as she could. But she found it wasn't something she could experience or immerse herself in, as she had yesterday. It was only something she could be aware of, and allow to gently be a part of her mind.

She allowed this new piece of code to integrate with her WALL•E Directive. Suddenly, EVE gained not a rush, but a subtle breeze of new insights into WALL•E that would help her fulfill her chosen directive towards him even better than before.

She had a new awareness of him now, and she wanted to demonstrate it!

"WAALLL•EEEE . . ." she breathlessly whispered to him as her eyes seductively narrowed, "heeeerrrreeee . . ." she continued, pointing to herself . . . knowing now that this would just make him melt.

Which it did!

"Awwwwww . . ." WALL•E cooed, as EVE moved to embrace him, and thank him.

Then in recaptured joy, EVE squealed with delight as she just spark-kissed WALL•E all over the place! Little sparks danced from her head, fins, and body, connecting with his optics, cube, and arms.

WALL•E's Solar Charge Level display beeped and flashed happily, expressing his joy to her, as his eyelids narrowed in delight and he emitted that wonderful warbling sigh of his. EVE loved seeing such simple displays of joy from WALL•E.

Oh the joy all of a sudden that they both felt — just as they were!

EVE felt healed. The experience had still been rough, even harrowing, for her. But she was healed.

. . . and focused on WALL•E, which she realized now, was really the key to connecting after all — being focused on her beloved. EVE reveled in the connection that she did have with WALL•E, and he did, too.

Oh EVE still wanted the total, immersive, everything connection she had shared with WALL•E yesterday, and maybe someday she would try it again with him.

But not now.

Now EVE just wanted to celebrate the connection, and love, that she did share with WALL•E. But how, she wondered?

EVE backed away from WALL•E a little, opened her bio-stasis chamber, and took out the data transfer cable she had shared with him yesterday. She held it up towards the shelving, while looking at WALL•E.

"Where?" she asked him — where should they put this symbol of the connection they had achieved together?

WALL•E puzzled for a moment, knowing now how special this cable was to EVE.

"Ah-ha!" he exclaimed, holding up a finger.

WALL•E took EVE's free hand, and led her to their TV viewing area in the truck, where they watched "Hello Dolly".

He ushered her to the left side of the magnifying screen that was suspended by scissor springs in front of the tiny device that actually showed the movie. Carefully taking one end, his end, of the cable — he started to wrap it around the springs beside the magnifying screen.

EVE realized exactly what WALL•E wanted to do, and she started wrapping her half around the springs as well.

EVE and WALL•E looked at each other as they completed a basic knot in the cable, which would keep it always beside the magnifying screen . . . right next to the images that had taught them about love, and all that it's about.

They shared a spark-kiss to conclude this simple commemoration of their connection.

Then EVE froze for a moment, recalling romantic traditions, customs, and language she had been researching aboard the Axiom a while back . . . realizing that . . . she and WALL•E had tied, what was for them . . . the knot!

She'd try to explain this metaphor to WALL•E later — along with things like weddings, plans, and more that all began to rush through her head once this realization struck her . . .

But not now.

She realized to herself though that it all fit . . . their connection . . . the cable . . . tying it into a knot where they could always see it, right next to where their movie about love played.

It was all a perfect symbol of their love. Something that she realized she couldn't have or experience in any way other than the way she was right now.

It was all a gift, and EVE marveled inwardly at what a gift her life, and her life now with WALL•E, was.

And their day, which now essentially was their honeymoon — at least as far as EVE was concerned — was just beginning. As was their life together.

It all fit perfectly.

EVE was happy, and so was WALL•E. They were in love . . .

. . . and they were connected.