Chapter 2: Simone

November 8th, 2038 - 3:04 PM

The dim light of a television screen illuminated a cramped midtown living room in Kalamazoo, Michigan. A middle aged woman with deep brown hair and even deeper frown lines leaned forward in a squashy purple armchair. She didn't notice her daughter Simone, standing in the entryway with her arms folded.

Simone cleared her throat lightly. "Mom, what did I tell you about this channel?"

"Shhh." The woman waved her hand vaguely in her daughter's direction.

"...androids are reported to have broken into Stratford Tower in downtown Detroit. Assailants are still unknown, but sources note they were able to successfully hack into the tower's security system as well as one of the city's local news networks. One android broadcast a series of demands, calling for equal rights. No casualties occurred, but the operation raises concerns for our country's national security–"

"Mmm hmm." Her mother nodded in agreement.

"–Just how much are androids able to do in secret? If a few androids are able to pull off something like this, what else are they capable of? Can we trust any of the machines that were created to serve us?"

"I told you, Simone, those androids are nothing but trouble."

Simone grabbed the remote and shut off the television.

"Hey! I was watching that."

"Save your brain cells, Mom. The only trouble with androids are the lies being spewed by the media."

"Don't you give me that!" The woman grabbed a wine bottle from somewhere within the folds of the armchair and took a long swig. "You know what happened to your cousin. And my sister. Those androids are what drove her over the edge.

Simone clenched her fist, remembering how her aunt's suicide had thrown their lives into tumult. "Aunt Jean's death wasn't any android's fault."

Her mother slammed the bottle on the coffee table in front of her with such force that Simone was surprised it hadn't broken, and she rose from her seat, making her way to the entryway. "You have no idea what you're talking about. No idea the toll your cousin's death took on her. Androids could have saved him, but they let him die."

"His attending doctor was supposed to be human! If he'd been there, maybe Cole would have–"

With a loud crack her mother slapped Simone's cheek. "Shut up. Just shut up. You have no idea what we went through."

She held her burning cheek for several seconds before speaking. "I was there too, Mom."

She hated when her mother drank too much. Did her wine intake make her think she was the only one suffering?

Her mother's hand flew toward her again, but this time Simone grabbed her by the wrist before impact.

"Pain doesn't justify abuse," she cried through gritted teeth.

"How dare you raise your voice to me. I am your mother!"

"A mother wouldn't get drunk and hit her child." Simone released her and fled to her bedroom, grabbing a duffle bag from the closet. She'd packed it for nights like these. Nights when her mother was out of control.

Her mother stumbled in after her. "Just where do you think you're going?"

"I'm going to stay with friends."

"Friends," she spat. "Your little android pets aren't real."

"THEY'RE NOT PETS," Simone lashed back angrily. "And they're more real to me than you've been for a long time." She shoved past her mother and reached for the front door.

"IF YOU SO MUCH AS TAKE ONE STEP OUTSIDE, DON'T EVEN THINK ABOUT COMING BACK."

Simone took a defiant step onto the porch and stared into her mother's bloodshot eyes. "This is long overdue." Then she jogged down the sidewalk and out of sight.

–

An AX400 with black hair and light gray-blue eyes sat upright. "Did you hear that?"

She sat in a soft chair beside a piano. The entire room was filled with various instruments, glass bowls, candles, and soft lights - part of the music therapy studio where she and three other androids were employed.

"Hear what?" A male android with blonde hair and blue eyes flexed his knuckles at the piano bench beside her, preparing to play.

"Shush." She lifted a hand quickly. "Someone's crying."

The android at the piano rolled his eyes. "Willow, you were designed to be a caretaker android. Your hearing is better than the rest of ours."

She smacked his arm playfully. "Harper, you were a caretaker android."

He was a PL600 model. The model had been phased out quickly and replaced with the more advanced AP700, but their owner, Simone, hadn't minded. Every one of them had been pre-owned at some point. She'd taken them in and helped them find a new purpose.

Harper lifted his hands innocently. "Hey, I guess you're more attuned to hearing babies than I am."

Willow narrowed her eyes. "It's not a baby."

Another male android entered the room. "Mara is trying to sleep in the back room. It would benefit both of you to do the same." He tilted his head for a moment. "Is someone crying?"

"See, I told you." Willow rose from her seat in the music room and walked to the front desk window. "It's Simone. Tam, open the door."

–

Simone sniffed as she approached the door to her music therapy studio, wiping away the streaks of resentment and moisture pooling down her cheeks.

She fumbled in her coat pocket, reaching for her keys when the door opened.

"Tam?" Simone wiped her tears hurriedly. "Is everything okay?"

The VB800 smiled apologetically while letting her inside. "Willow heard you crying from several feet away. She alerted Harper and myself to your presence."

"Simone," Willow approached cautiously. "Why are you here so late at night?"

"Got into a fight with my mom - the usual." She set the duffle bag near the music room entrance and peered at her android friend with a somber expression. "An android in Detroit broke into a broadcast tower and demanded a bunch of things in a live broadcast. Things like liberty and equal rights."

"That is unprecedented." Tam's LED flickered yellow for a moment. "–but not totally incomprehensible."

"I don't care if you're deviants." Simone shook her head. "I wouldn't care if you were aliens from another planet. You're my friends, and I'll support you."

Willow smiled and rested a hand on Simone's shoulder. "You've always supported us."

Simone smiled sadly. All four of the androids working at the studio - Willow, Tam, Harper, and Mara had each shown signs of deviancy in their own way. But it only strengthened their bond.

"What they said on the news…" Simone hesitated. "They were things some people aren't ready to hear. Things my mother wasn't ready to hear." She clenched her fist. "Turn on the tv. And wake up Mara. We might have to lay low for a while."

–

Thanks for reading! Constructive criticism is appreciated.