Chapter 4: "Michelle"
Michelle was the first of our group to undergo "The Change." At her first consultation, she chose her model and arranged to have the procedure done at her second consultation. Was she really that eager? Or did she just want to get it over with? Michelle was delicately pretty with her thin face and sharp features. Emphasis on was.
When I saw Michelle after "The Change," I, of course, didn't recognize her until she told me who she was. I looked down to see the obligatory name tag that had the full name, citizen ID number, and a radio frequency ID (RFID) tag embedded into the plastic and used for tracking purposes. I stepped back to get a good look at her face. It was a face that I had seen thousands of times before and was nothing special. This procedure was being done to make people beautiful? Michelle was prettier before "The Change." A bit of flesh on her face and on her body would have done far more for her. It occurred to me that instead of making Michelle choose a model, the doctors at the Change Medical Office should have made Michelle one of the models.
I asked Michelle if she were still planning to go to college to become a foreign language teacher. Yes, she was, but her indifferent reply sent a cold chill of foreboding down my spine. She had been so enthusiastic and full of ideas of how to do a better job of teaching a foreign language. I asked her if she had ever written down a list of all the ideas she had about teaching foreign language classes.
"No, I never wrote them down," she said. "I never thought that they were important enough to write down."
I nearly froze on the spot. This wasn't the Michelle that I remembered at all. It was as if all the enthusiasm for teaching and joy in life in general had been sucked out of her. The empty, blank look on her face betrayed little in emotion. She responded with the programmed politeness of a department store sales clerk. Her friendliness was mechanical. There was no warmth at all. Michelle reminded me of the teachers at the high school.
I exchanged a few pleasantries with Michelle and then turned my back to walk away. I walked away very quickly. I didn't want her to see me cry. I never talked to Michelle again after that. We would merely nod to acknowledge each other. After awhile, we didn't even nod.
End of Chapter 4
This story is based on the Twilight Zone episode "Number 12 Looks Just Like You." Viacom holds the copyrights.
