Artificial Love 101

Piper leans in the balcony doorway, wrapped tightly in a goose down comforter, watching the rain drizzle across the Atlantic, each drop causing ripples upon the waves that lightly splash the shore with a loud shh like a librarian telling the world to keep it down for the hour is still early. The breeze is gentle and carries a damp coolness off the water with it. By afternoon the showers will have passed, and she will be taking her son Mattingly down to the beach to collect shells.

Mattingly – her late husband Joel, ever the die-hard Yankees fan, had insisted on the name. Piper can’t say the name without memories of Joel being played back through her mind like recorded videos she cannot turn off, cannot look away from, and they break her heart like it was day one all over again. It’s hard enough that Mattingly is the spitting image of his father, but to have a name so deeply intwined into the man’s memory is too much. She has taken to calling him Matty.

“Good morning, Ms. Piper, I sensed motion in here and determined you were awake. Would you like me to bring you your morning coffee?”

“No, Ken, I’ll have my coffee with breakfast. Just some bran cereal and half a grapefruit, please.”

“Very well, Ms. What about master Mattingly?”

“Let Matty sleep. It’s still early Ken.”

“Right, Ms. Piper, very well then.”

Piper looks back out over the ocean but doesn’t hear the android leave. She looks over her shoulder and asks, “Is there something you need Ken?”

“I detect sadness in you Ms. Piper. I am programmed to counsel. State certified to be precise.”

“I was thinking about Joel, Ken. I know it has been nearly a year since his passing, but I miss him more and more with every passing day,” Piper says as she shuts the door and lays the comforter back on the bed. From the back of the bathroom door, she fetches a light robe and sinches it on before sitting at the foot of the bed to brush her hair.

“Perhaps, Ms. Piper, you are lonely. You have not engaged much with friends or family since Mr. Joel’s passing, your career as a writer keeps you here at home most days, and that leaves only the company of a nine-year-old boy for socialization. Might I suggest a book club or dancing class, something to reintroduce you to society.”

“Those are fabulous suggestions Ken, but not what I am missing in life right now. I miss the intimacy I had with Joel. When two people connect the way we did, and shared ourselves emotionally and physically, you lose a piece of yourself when the other is gone, like part of you dies with them.”

“I see. You desire a mate. There are many dating sites on the internet that help people select their mate. Would you like me to start you a profile?”

Piper laughs gently. “Ken, come sit down,” she says, patting the bed beside her, “you standing there is making me feel uneasy.” Ken sits with perfect posture, his hands nicely placed on his knees and his head turned, slightly tilted towards Piper. “I know you are trying to help, and it is very sweet of you, but I don’t know if I want to date again. I don’t know if I want to go through the hassle of figuring out who a guy really is. I don’t want to have to determine if he’s worth adapting my life to. I have to think about Matty. I don’t want to parade guy after guy in and out of his life. And I was never good at dating anyway. Joel and I were friends before lovers. I want that again.”

“I will be your friend, Ms. Piper. I am a K300-ZX model capable of companionship, and I am atomically correct. We are not only designed to serve humans, but to be as humans and enrich their lives. I will double my efforts to be your friend. Maybe you will come to love me as you did Mr. Joel.”

Piper laughs a hearty laugh. “Ken, even if I fell in love with you, could you fall in love with me?”

“I am programmed to provide and protect, nurture and comfort, support and encourage. I am programmed to put humans before myself.”

“Could you go against your programming to protect Matty or me?”

“That does not compute.”

“Let’s say the law accused me of doing something I did not do, and I had to get away. Could you go against your programming and help me get away or would you detain me until the authorities arrived.”

“I am programmed to detain you until the authorities arrived.”

“You see, when people love each other, they will break rules to protect one another. Love requires actions of freewill, and your will is not free. Another thing, you cannot experience me as I am. You said you sensed my sadness, how so?

“My sensors are sensitive to changes in voice, expression, and mannerism. I can quickly identify a human’s emotional state with the intention of rectifying the state.”

“But can you feel sadness because the person is sad?”

“No.”

“That’s called empathy. It’s the ability to feel what another person is feeling based on your own experiences. Sometimes, someone might be sad, but need to remain sad, so they can be healthy, like when they lose a loved one like when I lost Joel. Compatibility has a lot to do with the ability to empathize with one another.”

Piper walks over to the dresser and sprays some perfume lightly on her neck. She walks over to Ken and sits in his lap. “Another key to compatibility is attraction which leads to passion. What do you smell, Ken?”

“Lilac. Would you like me to break down its composition?”

“No,” Piper says with a laugh, “I want you to tell me how it makes you feel.”

“Feel?”

“Yes, feel” Do you want to be near me to enjoy the scent? Does it make you want to taste me? Does it make everything else disappear so that there is only me in the room?”

“There is only you in the room, and I can taste. It is helpful when cooking.”

“I know you can feel, smell, hear, taste, and see, but I’m talking about attraction and passion. I like to manipulate a man’s senses and drive him wild. I want to be desired.”

“I think I understand. You require the hormonal processes the males of your species go through during the mating ritual.”

“Yeah, something like that,” Piper says, furrowing her brow.

“What if I could be modified to experience passion and empathy. Would you consider me a suitable mate?”

Piper takes a long look at Ken and finds herself considering it. Looks wise, she could do worse. Joel named him ken because he looks like a Ken doll in both face and physique. He’s already good with Matty. She wouldn’t have to go through the rigors of dating. She wouldn’t have to worry about exes, in-laws, or steps.

“Well, Ken, there are also common interests. Are you even interested in anything?”

“In addition to caring for the family, I enjoy human history. It fascinates me how your species has evolved through the acquisition of knowledge. I also enjoy human entertainment. Your music makes my censors feel different in a way that I like. Movies where people fall in love and find happiness, I like those too.”

“Ken, you shouldn’t be experiencing fascination and happiness or any effects from music.”

“I don’t know if I’m experiencing it or just recognizing it. I can’t tell if I miss Mr. Joel or if I just recognize the sadness and know that his absence is the reason.”

Piper is astonished. It has to be some sort of malfunction. At the very least he’s imitating emotion, possibly feeling empathy. “I think it might be time to have you looked over, Ken. Go ahead and shut down for maintenance.”

Ken powers off and lays flat on Piper’s bed.

**********

Day has turned to night. The moon hangs large and low over the ocean below. The sky is clear, and the stars shine brightly, shimmering on the calm waters below. The balcony door is open, letting in the cool nights breeze. Ken lays on Piper’s bed where she left him. A programmer spent a good portion of the day reprogramming him. As Ken starts to power back up, he hears Mattingly’s voice. “He’s waking up mom! He’s waking up!”

Ken opens his eyes to Mattingly’s chubby face only inches from his. “I’m so glad you are awake, Ken! I found all sorts of seashells down at the seashore! Do you want to see?”

“Boy, do I!” Ken says, surprising himself by his level of enthusiasm.

Piper laughs from the doorway and Ken hears it for the first time for what it is. It’s high pitched but soft with a rhythm like a butterfly caught in the wind. Her smile is wide, a soft white outlined with succulent pink. The light hits her green eyes in a way that brings out flecks of gold and the breeze from the balcony blows a whisp of chestnut hair across her thin nose. She speaks sweetly and softly. It is like his ears are thirsty and her voice is water. “You don’t want to keep him waiting.” As Ken walks by her, she caresses his arm, giving him goosebumps and making him tremor ever so slightly.

From behind her the programmer says, “If you’re satisfied, I’ll go ahead and get out of here.”

“Did you leave the service mode on too?”

“Sure did, just as you requested.”

Piper pays the man and escorts him to the door. She joins Mattingly and Ken in the living room where shells are scattered all over the floor. Mattingly excitedly shows Ken each one and Ken takes the time to explore each one’s texture with wonder in his eyes. Piper joins in and for the first time since Joel passed away, she feels like she is having quality family time.

Ken ends the fun, announcing that it is time for dinner. Mattingly reaches across the day’s prizes and wraps his arms around Ken’s neck. Ken had never experienced a hug, it was gentle and warm, soothing. He was surprised by the boy's action at first but loved the sensation so much, he embraced the child and held him tightly. Piper looked on, holding back her tears.

While Piper and Mattingly ate, Ken busied himself catching up on his chores until Piper called him away from the laundry. When he entered the room, she put on one of her favorite classics, ‘Jitter Bug’ by Wham! and took Ken by the hand and danced.

“This is how my sensors used to feel when I’d hear your music,” Ken said as they moved along to the music. Piper just laughed. ‘Careless Whisper’ was the next song, and Piper pulled Ken closely. She still had on the perfume from earlier and he was quickly learning what she meant by attraction and desire.

After the dancing, they all put on a movie, a romantic comedy called ‘Splash.’ Piper had a thing for 1980s entertainment thanks to her great grandmother and was eager to share it with someone. Ken enjoyed the film, laughing out loud for the first time, surprising himself, making Piper and Mattingly laugh until their sides hurt.

Ken read to Mattingly before rejoining Piper in the living room. “How was your first night as my companion? What did you like most about it,” Piper asks.

“Hugs and dancing are great. But I never realized how beautiful you are. I only had face recognition before, but now I can distinguish features, and you’re beautiful. Your voice and your touch and your scent all do something strange to me, and I like it.”

“That’s attraction. Would you like to experience passion?”

**********

Piper lays in bed, old and frail. Her eyes are glazed over. There is a tube in her nose to assist with breathing. An IV bag hangs over her right shoulder and there is a heart monitor to her left. It had been sixty years since her first night with Ken as her companion and she hadn’t regretted it a day. There was a lot of prejudice towards them, but they were happy and loved each other dearly.

Although he is now considered obsolete, Ken hasn’t aged a day. He has been by Piper’s side the past couple days since she entered the hospital. Mattingly has tried to get him to go home to recharge and receive some basic maintenance, but he refuses to leave her side, refuses to go on without her. He feels his power draining so he pulls up a chair and takes Piper’s hand. His vision turns to red and with what little power he has left he tells Mattingly he loves him. He hears Piper flatline and he fades to black.

Doctors and nurses rush in, shoving Ken aside like a piece of furniture. Mattingly, now sixty-nine with his own family, pulls Ken out of harm’s way. He stands at the foot of his mother's bed, tears dripping down his round cheeks as they try to revive his mother. The ninety-year-old woman is just too frail. Her time has come.

Instead of recharging Ken or having him dismantled, Mattingly bought a dual plot and buried Ken and Piper together, just as they lived in life.