Eris:
That’s not an answer.
Locke:
It’s a promise.
The words shouldn’t feel like anything. I’m supposed to be suspicious of this, not some wishy-washy damsel waiting for a robot to haul me away to another planet.
Code doesn’t make promises.
Code follows parameters.
But my hand still loosens, releasing the death-grip I have on my phone. Logic and instinct fight in the same narrow cavity where my brain should sit.
It can’t protect me.
It can’t touch anything.
This is just a program.
Isn’t it?
“Who are you?” I whisper to myself as I glare at my phone. “And what do you want with me?”
Just as I glance away, commotion behind the cafe counter pulling my attention, my phone buzzes in my hand.
Locke:
Not just a promise.
A vow.
I sort of hate how the message makes me smile.
Clearly, I’m beyond my sanity being called into question.
A computer program just gave me butterflies.
Kill me now.
Idon’t tell Roo about the messages.
Not because I don’t want to, but because, contrary to my own belief, I’m not an idiot. And I don’t want her to make that face. The one where her mouth goes flat and her eyebrows pinch like she’s already mapping out where to bury the body.
And because if I say it out loud, it will start feeling real.
So, when Roo finishes flirting with the cafe staff, and tells me she’s ready to leave, I let her go with a wave and an excuse about catching up on research. After her departure, I sink deeper into my corner of the cafe, phone propped against the packets’ container, pretending to scroll.
I’m not working, though.
I’m waiting.
I people-watch for hours, the sun slowly moving across the sky in a way that gives the city of Crimson Bay the illusion of giants on the street. Shadows crawl across the road, covering the gardenias as noon turns to afternoon.
The hum of the espresso machine fills the cafe in a way that leaves no silence. Lavender and roast cling to everything, clogging my sense of smell. My reflection ghosts a polite smile in the window, faintly resembling a happier version of me, but it’s a sham. From my eyes, you can tell I haven’t slept, the faint circles becoming more pronounced as the day progresses.
My phone buzzes, the notification lighting up my screen and giving me the distraction I need.
