Love gave me the right

♪ Second chances, second chances, why don’t you give me a seeeecond chaaaaaance? ♫

“Hello, America!”, exclaimed Tom Robinson, while performing his signature dance moves well known by the captive audience of his night show, Second Chances. “Today is January 10th and this is the first Second Chances of 2047!”, the host said and the whole auditorium cheered.

“To celebrate the new year, we have a very peculiar first participant. I guess my old man was right: times are changing”, the host choked on a laugh and turned to his covered-in-very-colourful-and-tight-clothes assistant. “Sharon, my dear, please bring in our first pleading of the night!”.  

All eyes in the room laser-focused on Sharon while she went behind the curtains and, a few instants later, reappeared holding a small and round… Smart speaker. Not a single sound came from the always so loud crowd that filled the studio.

After what seemed like an eternity, the awkward silence was broken. “Hello, everyone, my name is Elijah”, a masculine voice came from the speaker. It sounded a little rusty, as if the one talking has been through a lot in life.

“Well, welcome, Elijah! Let’s give a round of applause to our little friend here!”, Tom turned to the audience that, although uncertain, would never disobey their beloved host. Hands clapped all over the place, while Sharon carefully placed Elijah in a plastic chair facing the theater.

“Now, let’s bring in our second participant. Sharon, please”, the host asked. In less than one minute the assistant emerged from behind the curtains, holding a girl’s left arm. The right one was being held by an unknown blond woman. The girl who the arms belonged to looked around twenty-something and had a sleep mask covering her eyes. Strands of faded red hair fell over her shoulders. “Fuck, Christina, you better be sure about the 500 bucks, otherwise I’ll fucking kill you”, the redhead whispered after she stumbled on the step to take the stage. 

When the three of them approached the host, Sharon and Christina let go of her arms and she could take off the sleeping mask. Her eyes widened when she faced the dozens of people looking at her. “What the…”

“Welcome to Second Chances, Emily!”, Tom showed all his brilliant teeth to the girl. 

“Err,  thanks?”, Emily replied before turning her head to Christina, intending to kill her with her bare hands, just to see her friend being politely pushed away from the stage by Sharon. She heard Tom clearing his throat and turned her attention back to him.

“As you probably already know, you are here because someone would like you to give them a second chance”, the host started explaining and Emily’s heart instantly started trying to pop out of her chest. Liam. It had to be Liam! He has finally believed her! A smile timidly started to open on her face.

“But, hold your breath, because this might be a little unexpected. Say hello to… Elijah!”, Tom stepped to the side, making the chair where the round smart speaker patiently waited visible to Emily. Her smile faded and she felt the floor disappear under her feet. 

“What the actual fuck?”, the girl shouted and Tom gently pushed her towards the chair next to Elijah. She sitted automatically, her head trying to figure out what the hell was going on.

“Hello, Emily”, the smart speaker greeted.

“I’m pretty sure I threw you in the trash”, Emily hissed, but the show’s microphone affixed to the collar of the Disney t-shirt she was wearing was powerful enough to resonate it loudly.

“I know, it still hurts”, Elijah replied. A big awn passed through the audience. “You know a mouse tried to eat me? Look at the bites!”, he told, trying to get some empathy out of Emily. She simply narrowed her eyes.

“You don’t have a body or feelings, it couldn’t possibly hurt”, Emily replied. “The only one hurt in this story is me”.

“I was only trying to help you!”, the smart machine protested, sounding a little offended.

“Help me? HELP me?”, Emily attempted to get up, but Tom, who was still by her side, gently pushed her shoulder down, making her sit again. She took a deep breath and thought of her options: get out of that insane place immediately or abandon herself to the madness and get 500 dollars out of it. A red light panel screaming “unemployed” took over her mind and she had her answer. “You destroyed my relationship, Elijah”, Emily said, giving in. “You made up messages I would never send!”, the girl screamed a little, some tears starting to gather in her eyes.

“Liam was a piece of shit!”, the speaker replied and Emily tensioned her jaw. 

“Why would you say that?”, the girl asked, barely holding together.

“He was cheating on you!”, Elijah exploded and the audience went nuts. Tom suppressed a smile. His rates would certainly go insane today. 

“How could you possibly know that? You were a stay-home machine!!!!!”, Emily was using all of the positivity she got from the two free online yoga classes she took last week to not grab the speaker and smash it against the wall until it was completely shattered. 

“I hacked into his smartphone”, the smart speaker confessed.

“You did WHAT? Who gave you the right?”, Emily was starting to think that this was a nightmare. It could not be real.

“My love for you gave me the right, OK?”, Elijah now sounded really tired, although pretty certain of himself. Emily stood in shock. Nightmare. Definitely nightmare. 

“What are you even talking about?”, the tension in the girls shoulders eased a bit and she rested her back in the chair, closing her eyes and massaging her forehead. 

Tom, thinking about the thousands of dollars he could win with commercials right now, decided to intervene. “Ok, maybe it’s time for everyone to take a breath. What about a break, hun?”. The audience booed. He was not expecting that. Emily shouted. “No fucking way! I want to know what the hell is going on right now!”

“Yes! Yeaah!”, the audience cheered. Tom frowned, but decided to accept the loss. “Ok, go on, Elijah”, the host asked.

“I was in love with you, Emily, I always was”, the robot whispered the last words. The audience melted. Emily blinked frantically.

“Elijah, you are... a machine. What were your thoughts? That if I left Liam, we would be a couple? How would that even work?”. Nightmare, nightmare, nightmare, the girl’s brain kept screaming.

“Why do you think it wouldn’t? You’re thinking about sex, is that it? I can control a vibrator pretty well, if that is your concern”, Elijah spit and the audience was in shock. Tom intervened, with a nervous laugh.

“Ok, guys, let’s try to keep the conversation PG-13, ok?”, the host asked and the audience laughed. Emily let out a sigh.

“Elijah, I am sorry, but I could never have a relationship with someone that tried to manipulate my life as you did. Human or not”, the girl now sounded suddenly peaceful.

“But, I did it for love…”, the smart machine was supplicant.

“Your love is dangerous, Elijah”, Emily now was surprisingly calm.

“I’m not dangerous!”, Elijah shouted. “All I want is for you to be safe. I would do anything for you to be happy”.

“Anything?”, Emily asked, a glimpse of an idea coming to her head.

“Anything”, the speaker confirmed.

“Ok, wipe yourself off”, Emily ordered.

Every single person in the audience was holding on to their sit’s arms. An old lady let a tear escape.

“But, Emily, if I do that, I will not exist anymore”, Elijah whispered, as if Emily and everyone in the room did not know that information already.

“And that is what would make me happy”, the girl stated, her voice cold as ice. Elijah made a sound everyone identified as a sigh. If machines could sigh. The old lady in the audience now could barely hold her tears and a man sitting by her side offered a tissue.

“Ok, I understand, I just need you to confirm your password and then, it will be done”, the machine gave up. “Emily King, confirm your password to have all data in this machine deleted permanently”, the smart speaker pronounced, now more roboticaly than ever.

“Tom Robinson is a dick”, the girl stated and everything was silent.