Rosy

Yellow walls enclosed Mildred, like daffodil petals surrounding an insect. She stared at the walls and fingered a small scar at the base of her neck. It was the result of a childhood surgery, one she couldn’t remember, though she found comfort in its thickened permanence. A steel door was the only exit and entrance. The silence was interrupted by a heavy knock.

“Come in!” she yelled, trying her best to sound cheerful. She didn’t feel safe but didn’t want anyone to notice. She thought she heard a baby crying, reminding her of a young baby she once held in her arms. Was it her baby?

The door opened slightly, and a young man with horn-rimmed glasses approached. “Hello, Mildred. How are you feeling today? Do you remember me? It’s Dr. Hutch,” he asked. He looked nervous, like he was anticipating something. He had a small instrument in his left hand.

“I feel tired. And my body… it hurts.” She rubbed her arms, pausing over areas that felt as if bent and broken.

“Well, yesterday was quite a day for you.” He waited, but when Mildred didn’t respond he continued. “Do you remember what happened yesterday?” Mildred stared back, unable to respond.

“You attacked the nurses, and we had to call security. Eventually, we had no choice but to… restrain you.”

Mildred’s gaze drifted downward. She had vague memories of screaming angrily, hitting people, but nothing defined. She shook her head.

“It was right after your visit with Mrs. Clancy.”

Ah yes, Mildred recalled. “You mean the woman who is trying to steal my life? Sorry, not woman. It. A robot.”

The memory of it came flooding back – Rosy was a robot nanny purchased to help Mildred manage life as a new parent. When she looked into Rosy’s eyes, she felt warmth reflected back, not the coldness of a machine doing a programmed job.

“Do you remember anything about what happened before coming here, Mildred?” Dr. Hutch asked.

“She wanted my life. She tried… she tried to become me. I know I'm right!” Mildred shrieked. Memories overwhelmed her of Rosy staring too long at the baby, hugging her husband a little too tightly, of late nights in bed obsessively combing through every interaction searching for evidence of how Rosy wanted to become her.

Dr. Hutch tried to redirect her, clutching the device tightly. “Do you think Rosy wanted to become you?”

Mildred looked at him, anger exploding out of her. “Yes, you idiot! I had the disabling device ready – it was supposed to stop her! To shut her down! I can’t… I don’t…” Mildred broke down in tears. Flashes of her screaming, lunging toward Rosy, aiming the disabling device toward Rosy’s neck, flooded her mind.

“Mildred, I think it’s time to discuss something. Something that might be hard to understand.” His eyes bore into hers.

Mildred looked away, the intensity of his gaze and her own feelings becoming too much to bear. “I just want my life back,” she whispered.

“Mildred, that’s what we have to discuss,” Dr. Hutch responded. He sat quietly for a minute, trying to figure out the best way to approach it. “Mildred –” he started.

A knock at the door interrupted him. He gestured for someone to enter, and that’s when Mildred saw her. Mrs. Clancy. Her brown hair was down around her face, her green eyes searching Mildred’s. She looked like she wanted to say something, but Mildred’s screams stopped her.

“You know the truth! Get her away from me!” she screamed, repeatedly like it was programmed into her and she had no control over it. She started to get up but was stopped by a feeling of heaviness that prevented her from rising. Dr. Hutch glanced over at Mrs. Clancy, concern in his voice as he asked her to leave.

“Mildred, I think we need to try a different treatment for you. We’d use this device to stimulate your parasympathetic system and help you relax. What do you think?”

She considered it. “Ok,” she answered wearily. She wanted peace.

Dr. Hutch stood behind her and placed the cold metal device at the base of her neck. He hesitated a moment, then pressed downward. Everything went dark.

==

She woke up in a small room, lying in a bed. She felt the scar at the base of her neck, gliding her finger across it comfortingly. Sunlight from a single window warmed her. A door at the end of the room was the only exit.

A knock came from the door as it opened. A man wearing horn-rimmed glasses walked through, asking, “Rosy? Are you feeling well?”

She looked up. “Yes.”

“I’m glad to see you are feeling better, Rosy. Do you have any memory of what happened yesterday?” he asked.

Rosy shook her head then looked up at him inquisitively.

“It’s probably best that you don’t. You see, we’ve been having some issues with your line of robot servants. Their coding was degraded to a point where they start to believe that they are their human owners. You were experiencing that faulty code, thinking you were Mrs. Mildred Clancy. We were able to fix it.”

Rosy sat silently, taking it in. “I see,” was all she could muster. A memory of a family, a small infant, a stressed wife and an absent husband, tugged at her.

“Rosy, Mrs. Clancy wanted to come in to say goodbye to you. Are you ok with that?” She nodded affirmatively. Dr. Hutch called toward the door. “Mrs. Clancy, you can come in.” A young woman, her brown hair in a ponytail, tentatively walked in.

“Rosy?” She asked cautiously. Rosy nodded, a feeling of deep sadness overwhelming her.

Mrs. Clancy walked closer to Rosy. “Dr. Hutch, do you think we could have a moment alone? Is it safe?”

Dr. Hutch nodded, “Yes, this is the final test. We will be right outside.” He stepped out.

“Rosy, I know it was all a malfunction, and you didn’t have any control over your actions.” She sat next to Rosy, looking deeply at her face. Rosy stared back.

“Rosy, I forgive you,” she whispered as she gave her a hug. For a second, Rosy felt an urge to grab Mrs. Clancy, to hold her back. But she released her and watched sadly as Mrs. Clancy walked out the door.