How it should have happened: The end of a friendship

     He was driving home, and had his new friend in the car with him. He had spent the last several hours helping her out with things she needed, and that included providing a ride out of town, and to their mutual friend's house. The length of the drive was no big deal to him, although she did offer to take over if he was tired several times.

    Unexpectedly, he received a phone call from his best friend. Uncertain about how the phone call may go, but concerned that it could go south, he asked his friend beside him in the car to remain quiet for the call. He answered.

    "Hey, buddy, how's it going?" Came the familiar voice over the car speakers as the phone call connected.

    "It's going ok, but I'm driving right now, what's up?" He responded to his friend.

    "Look, I need to talk to you about the trip we went on." The friend was clearly expecting a response. There was a long silence before his answer came.

    "Hey, I don't think we should talk about that right now. I have a feeling that emotions are going to get involved, and think we should talk about this in person, not over the phone." He shifted a bit uncomfortably in his car seat.

    "Why don't you want to talk about it over the phone?" His friend asked, knowingly.

    "I am driving, you and I both don't have the numbers about exactly what all is owed, but I need you to pay me back at least enough of what I lent you and your family to pay my minimum required credit card payments and rent." He said, giving his best reasons to wait.

    "You're right." He said, in this version of events. "It would be easier to discuss things in person after all. You seem to think I'm concerned about the money, but I'm actually wanting to discuss why you keep talking about things going on between us with other people who have no need to know." His best friend responded.

    "Well, when would work for you? I know you and your fiancée are really busy lately, and you know I don't want to inconvenience you."

    "How about later tonight? I don't have a lot of time, but I could probably put aside half an hour for us to talk. I won't have time to hang out or play games, but at least we can discuss the situation."

    "Ok, I'll see you tonight then. Would 8pm be good?"

    "I think I may have to do closer to 10pm. But I'll call you back and let you know for sure."

    "Alright. I'll talk to you later tonight." He said, knowing that his friend had not been forthcoming about his actual schedule, or ability to meet the last few times. Nevertheless, he was still willing to believe his friend.

    After the phone call ended, he turned to his friend in the car next to him. He commented about how much better that went than he had expected, given the nature of the best friend's call. She smiled and looked back at him as he continued to drive.

    "You're a good guy. He knows that, I know that, we all know it. There's no reason for him to take things out on you. I mean, look at all you've done for them, right?" She said as naturally as claiming that the sky is blue in daylight.

    "Yeah, but I just have a feeling that, in another timeline, I'm sobbing and crying right now. In that timeline, he blew up at me, and ended the friendship right there." He said back, with a look of relief on his face. "But that's not me, thank goodness."

    "Thank goodness. Because I still need your help."

    "You still have it. I just have to make sure I can meet up with him about his concerns, too."

    "I know, and you do you, boo." She responded.

    That evening, around 9:30pm, he got a call back from his best friend telling him that it was ok for him to make his way over from across town. So, he put on his hoodie, headed to his friend's house, and braced himself for a difficult conversation.

    "Hi." His best friend said, as he was welcomed into their house. There was a coldness behind it. His best friend was clearly angry, just like it had been on his birthday. The fact that all he had said was 'hi', already betrayed that he wanted to keep the conversation brief.

    "Hi. So, you wanted to talk?" He replied, hoping to just be honest as he had promised he would be, and hoping that his best friend would remember his promise to be honest from when they had first become friends three years prior.

    "Why do you keep on telling things I've told you in confidence to other people?" His friend demanded. This time, the anger was in his voice, but subdued. He was holding back right now.

    "I am worried about you, and I've been trying to seek help from your family." He replied. "Do you not think it's strange that after your family promised to pay us both back, none of them have issued any payments yet?"

    "That's not any of my mother's business, or my aunt's. You know my mother is going through a hard time because of the death in the family, and you know that my Aunt's illness is progressing. Everything you tell them about our problems just makes things harder on them." His friend berated him.

    "Ok, but just because they are having problems doesn't mean that the rest of your family should be able to treat us as a back-burner item to be left high and dry on their promises. If they're not paying you, then I'm not getting back the money I need for my bare-minimum needs." He replied.

    "Look, I didn't tell you to quit your job, and I never told you to move to Illinois with me. I told you I was going to cancel the trip because it was too pricey, but you insisted I should be able to go, and offered to help me pay for it. But if you're regretting that decision now, you can't just go back on it." His friend answered, showing for the first time some of his resentment.

    "I never said you told me to quit my job. We both decided to do it because it was too stressful, too busy, and did not pay what we were worth. You know that. And I know you didn't tell me to move with you, you gave me the option to come. I wanted to stay by your side, please don't use that against me." He replied, feeling genuine sadness that his best friend was now showing that he had issues with their friendship that he hadn't expressed before.

    "I've told you time and time again not to tell anyone else anything about what's going on in my life. But you keep on doing it, you just don't know how to keep your mouth shut!" His best friend had now raised his voice to him.

    "My needs aren't being met! And you know I don't mean my emotional needs, although you have been treating them as unimportant. I mean the basic requirements of not being homeless or having to take out a loan. I have to be able to pay my bills, and I can't when the money you and your family promised I would get back hasn't been given to me at all yet." He replied, now upset that his friend was changing the topic.

    "That doesn't address the fact that you keep telling other people, like my aunt and my mother, about things that are happening between me and my fiancée, and between you and me. They don't have to know, and I don't want them to know. You know that I want to be a complete mystery to everyone, and not tell anyone about myself. I want to be in control of the narrative about me, and when you tell people about my problems, I'm no longer able to control it."

    "I get that you don't want me to tell others about you or things involving you. But I'd forgotten that part about you when I told your mother about the car crash, eventually. You know I hated having to lie about it. I hate having to lie! I lied for you, to my detriment, and when I finally told the truth, you're angry. I didn't want to talk to other people about you and your family owing us money, but you haven't been getting anything back from your family, and as the result I haven't gotten anything from you. I have to at least try to do something, and since the problem seems to be with your family, why shouldn't I bring them into it, to ask how to reach the members that owe us?" He replied, trying to express the reasons for his actions.

    "All it ever is with you is the money, and you're ignoring what I'm telling you about how I don't want you talking to other people about me." His best friend replied.

    "I'm not ignoring it, I've been doing my very best to avoid talking about you, but you're making it hard for me to avoid it. I tell people how I'm doing, and when it's not good, I'm honest and tell them it's not good. If you're a reason it's not good, then I'm going to include you in the explanation of why when they press for it."

    "Then our friendship is over. I'm sorry, but I care too much about my privacy to let you stay in my life and keep telling other people about what's going on."

    "Do I really mean that little to you?" He said, beginning to cry.

    "You know I care about you, but I just can't be your friend anymore. I have my priorities, and my privacy is more important to me than anything, even my relationship with my fiancée. So, since you can't keep quiet about what's going on between us, I just will cut you out of my life like I said I would. You can't share anything, if you don't know anything." His former best friend said pointedly.

    "If it has to be this way, then fine. But then I want to be paid back all the money you and your family owe me. It was never about the money while we were friends, but if we aren't friends anymore, then that makes me a lender, and you a borrower that's behind on payment. I want that money now." He said.

    "I don't have it at the moment, but you will get the money, I promise." His former friend said, as he gestured toward his front door, literally showing him the door. The conversation was over, and so he got up, and went home. A week later, he received $2,000 of what he was owed.

    "Where's the rest?" He asked, when his former friend had sent only 2/5ths of his debt back.

    "I will get it to you when I have it. I am currently working on that, so just hang on for a little while, and in the meantime, please don't contact me or my family." His former friend replied.

    The next month, he received the other $3,000 he was owed, and from that point forward, they no longer had anything to do with each other. Although their friendship was over, the hard feelings were minimal.

I lost my way

I had a path, but could not walk it alone.

I reached a crossroad, but could not call it home.

I found some friends, but could not keep them near.

I lost my way, since they're not here.

I fell down hard, since I am prone.

I needed help, since I hadn't known.

I got back up, since I couldn't stay.

I just don't know, why are things this way?

I could not cry, the pain too great.

I could not try, the love is late.

I said goodbye, that is my fate.

I did good deeds, look where it led.

I lost it all, to those who bled.

I bled out, to save them still.

I gave up, I had no will.

So I lost my way.

So I lost my mind.

So I lost my home.

So I lost my grind.

So I lost desire.

So I lost the pain.

But the love is not... coming back again.

The magical boy

There was once a boy who grew up believing that he was a marionette that had come to life and been transformed into a real boy by a fairy. But as he grew up, the boy was reminded over and over about how broken he was. A real boy would be like this, not like that. And as this boy grew up, he felt like there was no point in trying to do anything with his life, because of how broken he was before the fairy turned him into a real boy.

"If only I were not so broken," the boy thought, "people would love me, but I do not know how to fix the broken parts of who I am." When the boy tried to show how he really felt, he found no sympathy, and soon learned that the only way he would be accepted by others was by being what they wanted him to be. So he wore a cursed mask given to him, that would allow him to be anyone else on the outside, and people slowly came to like him. Not for who he was, but for who the mask allowed him to be.

So, no longer believing in his own value, the boy tried to prove that even though he was broken, he was still a good boy. He both hated and accepted that what he wanted did not matter. So he went around doing good deeds for people, he was kind, and he was selfless. But deep down, he knew he was broken, because where his heart was supposed to be, he felt empty. He knew it was still there somewhere, because when the sadness came, it ached and hurt. No matter how bad things were, though, he could not cry.

"See," he told himself, "if I weren't broken, maybe I would be able to cry, but I can't even do that right."

Then, one day, the boy met someone who helped him rediscover his emotions again. It was scary, because after being empty for so long, having them back was so much all at once. But it was freeing, because at last, the boy felt like he was just a little less broken than before.

So, the boy followed his friend wherever they went. They were inseparable, or so he thought. His friend gave him permission to let the mask slip off a little around him. The boy gave his friend everything he could to show his love, because in helping him fix a little of what was wrong, the boy felt as if that friend had saved him from being broken forever. When things got really bad, the boy even gave his magical warding stone to his friend.

Yet, one day, this friendship went from the boy's strongest foundation to his biggest weakness. The boy had been helping his friend out regularly, but his friend had been stressed out by demands from everyone on their life. But luck took a turn for the worse for the boy, and he found out that he was going to need his warding stone in order to make a dangerous trip safe for a little while. So he asked his friend if he could meet to discuss his situation in person, he was surprised to hear his friend accuse him of being unreasonable.

"If you don't want to discuss it in person, that's fine, but I just need my stone back for a few minutes, I promise I will let you keep borrowing it afterward." The boy insisted.

"I've had enough of this! You always make things about you! You can take your stone back, but stay away from me and my family!" His friend said in fury, and with this declaration, ended their friendship. If the boy had believed himself fixed before, then this heartbreak did far worse. His entire world was reeling.

He could not see how his actions had been so offensive as to warrant the ending of the friendship, but he got back his warding stone. Yet for whatever victory it was to have his stone back, it was not enough to protect the boy from the curse of the mask.

The mask's curse tore the boy's mind apart. The curse reminding him of the truths:

• What you want doesn't matter
• You are not worthy of attention as you are
• People only like you for what you can do for them
• You will not be missed

He tried to shake his head, and remember not to accept the lies the cursed mask would tell him. He tried to remember the truth that he was just trying his hardest, and that he was still important. But the curse fogged up his head, and he found himself still thinking about how broken he was. If only he was a real boy all along.

The doctors had spoken to him. "But fairies are not real, you're just a regular boy. You have never been a marionette."

No, there was something too wrong with him for him to just be a regular boy. He went back to bed, and rested his head there, drifting off as he tried to stop existing, just for a moment.

What's new with the Temp⏳?

We're struggling, The Temporal System. Our best friends are so busy with their lives, we can't ask anything from them. Especially not their time. Sam has decided that she is so sad, she doesn't want to do anything but cry. Furthermore, there's a new proposal glass put up to include the rainbow in our system name. This feels really unnecessary. So it's going to have to go up for a vote. Alex feels angry that the process is so difficult, and has stopped fronting from anger and exhaustion. Zack's here, but isn't fronting anymore for reasons we don't know. He just says he's too busy to front with data analysis from the passenger seat. David accidentally spilled the box of bad thoughts and painful memories. He hasn't been the same since he saw so many at once. So I've been left here, a Connor with nobody to help me except Zack. I'm kinda ok with that. It's not often that I get to take over, but it comes with so much responsibility that I'd rather let the others take point. I'm meant to play a supporting role as the guy who helps us get along with other people. Without other people, I feel pretty free, but also chained to the work that we have to do. It's not always a pleasant thing to have so many of us with our own problems. 

A Perfect Life

A Perfect Life

--Chapter 1: Safe in the arms of my AI--

    A perfect life could be yours, they promised. The concept was just too good to be true. But the strange thing was, that there was some truth to it after all. Once Pete had been given the option to have a free trial of the service, he could not deny that it worked. It was crazy technology. Using the power of quantum entanglement, and some sort of really strange technology that he did not understand at all, their quantum super computer could store data sets as complex as entire consciousnesses. So, AI could actually fully mimic the human experience.

    The stranger thing was the way they portrayed it. The system operated on the idea of 'save states'. If a person had an on-board AI, they could manually set a save state when desired. On-board referring to part of the quantum super computer that had access to the entangled version of the human's consciousness. That allowed the AI to directly interface with the humans mentally, without the need of any major surgeries or implants. Pete did not want to believe that this was possible either, but after a short session of being observed in one of their scanners, he could suddenly hear her voice. Maria's voice was now always there with him in his head. He loved his wife, and she had gotten the service for her husband. She wanted a way to make sure he was awake on time for work without having to be physically present, since her new job now required her to be out of the house before he needed to get ready for work.

    

    So, it was no surprise to Pete when he went to work one morning, and realized that he had left his badge behind that this technology had saved him some inconvenience. He whispered in his mind the keyword that called to the AI copy of his wife. As a feeling, an impression of her presence, like when she pressed her body against him flashed across his mind. 

    "marIA, I forgot my badge. Please remind me to get it before I go to work, because I will be late having forgotten to bring it. The drive home is too long, it's already 9:30." Pete asked marIA. He always thought it was strange how the system insisted on changing the capitalization of AI names. He did not know if real people would like it much if their names were spelled or capitalized strangely for no reason. It seemed... dehumanizing, which was a good thing, Pete guessed. They were just programs, data in the computer.

    "Of course, my dear. I will reload the save state I used to make sure you woke up on time this morning. Do you remember where the badge is?" marIA asked.

    "Wasn't it by the fridge?"

    "No, sweetie, you were worried that you would forget it if you left it there, and moved it to the clip in the closet. But you forgot it because you did not remember you had moved it to the clip in the closet, and forgot to put it in your pocket when getting dressed this morning."

    "What? Oh! That makes so much sense. Geez, thank you marIA. I appreciate everything you do for me. Tonight, I will give you a really nice dinner. What do you say?" Pete offered. He knew Maria would never turn it down.

    "Well, with an offer like that, how could I say anything except... Transfer Commencing!"

--Chapter 2: Fixing the past--

    <...Transfer Commencing... uploading consciousness to pre-determined save state> he heard in his mind. Then he woke up in his bed. It was now only 7:45. He would have to get dressed again, and redo some of the tedious things he had handled, but at least he could make it to work without forgetting his badge.

    As he walked out of his home, he got into his car, and noticed that he was leaving a bit later in the day than he had the first time. A few minutes probably would not make a huge difference, though, he figured. After all, it was a long drive, and he would still need to pick up a coffee on the way in if he wanted to be productive. He had his badge with him this time, and bringing it with him made him feel like telling his wife thanks. It was an AI, but it was kinda like it was her.

    He called Maria as he drove to the coffee shop he liked to frequent. They had the best coffee beans for miles around, and they ground the beans the moment they started brewing it, so it was fresh. The owners were kind of snobbish to people who could not appreciate their coffee, though, so the shop had a few detractors in the area. Nothing more than the occasional vandalism (rocks thrown through the window, and the like). 

    "Hey, sweetie! I take it aI got you up on time today?" Maria asked playfully.

    "Yeah, sweetie. Not only that, but marIA sent me back because I left my badge at home this morning. But the agreement is that I have to take you to dinner tonight in exchange." Pete smiled, and Maria could tell he was smiling over the phone.

    "You know what? I love myself! I mean, marIA. She knows the way to my heart, but you know that I won't settle on just any dinner. It better be a really nice dinner."

    "Wow, you even used the same kind of wording I used in my promise to her. Here I was hoping I could cheap out. Sure you wouldn't be ok with just half price burgers tonight?" Pete jested.

    "You know that's not how this works. Now get to work before you get to be late for reasons other than a badge. I love you sweetie. Have a good day at work." Maria said, kissing into the phone.

    After he arrived, he went inside the coffee shop. There was a drive through window, but it was always backed up, and this shop was much better at the customer service if they knew you. So he went inside. "Like a bartender, but instead of alcohol, it is the drink of the gods- coffee" he thought. So he parked his car on the other side of the drive through lane. He carefully crossed the lane, entered and bought his coffee. This would be the start of another day that was better than he deserved. He should not have gotten away with it, but he was able to get a redo. So there were no consequences to his choice to have the save states turned on. Especially since it automatically saved periodically so you could avoid any real major disasters. 

The only real downside was that there was only room in the quantum computer storage for one entangled backup state per person, so any new backup would entangle to a new point on the timeline and the old entanglement would disappear. 

 

    They said that was an issue, but Pete never ran into it, but he had to get them to clarify what they meant. Layman's terms- you only get one backup 'disk' per person, and once your save state is more recent the older state becomes too far in the past to load to later. Weird system, but maybe it really was a perfect life.

--Chapter 3: Why AI--

    Pete walked out of the shop, coffee in hand. Finally ready to make his way to work, he turned toward his car, taking a sip of coffee. It was so refreshing, he wished he could make that moment last. As he stepped out into the drive through lane, a car suddenly turned toward the drive through, mistaking it for an entrance to rear parking. He was sandwiched between the two cars instantly, and being crushed. There was too much internal bleeding and damage. He would never walk again. No, worse, he was about to die. So, in his last desperate attempt to save himself, he cried out in his mind the keyword that called to the AI copy of his wife. As a feeling, an impression of her presence, as if she saw him bleeding to death in front of him in horror, flashed across his mind. She was there.

    

    "Maria... please... save me..." Pete called.

    "Don't worry, sweetie. We can just reload this morning, and none of this will have happened." marIA said to his mind, an impression of her trying to stay calm in spite of being clearly afraid he would die.

<...Transfer Commencing... uploading consciousness to pre-determined save state>

    Pete heard in his head as he tasted the hot coffee touch his tongue for the first time of the day. Drink of the gods - coffee if only this moment could last forever, and then he remembered what happened next. He turned to his left, and was struck by a car. Sandwiched in between two cars and dying. Pete he cried out in his mind the keyword that called to the AI copy of his wife. As a feeling, an impression of her presence, as if she were watching a man sentenced to death be tortured first, flashed across his mind. She was there.

    "Maria... please... save me... something went wrong." Pete cried in his mind while his body screamed out loud. But she was silent. "marIA? Please! I'm dying, please save me."

<...Artificial Intelligence has been instructed to sacrifice itself to provide additional dataspace...>

    "It is all going to be okay, sweetheart." Her voice was shaky. "I will pass on, and you will live. It is all going to be fine. You will auto-reload without me, but you will survive. I promise..."

<...Transfer Commencing... uploading consciousness to pre-determined save state>

    Pete heard in his head, as he stepped into the drive through lane. The car was turning, he stumbled backwards, just before it hit him. The coffee spilled all over him. It was too hot, and he was burning, but something worse was happening. He could not breathe, he felt dizzy, and he was suddenly feeling quite tired. He felt weak, his thoughts became fuzzy. What was happening? He clutched his stomach, and stumbled over to his car and took a seat. 

    "Why do I feel so awful? I mean the burning of the coffee is one thing but..." Pete began, but then he felt pain in waves. So intense he could not stand it, but it was so bad he could no longer move. So Pete had his first heart attack. 

<...Transfer Commencing... uploading consciousness to pre-determined save state>

Pete heard in his head, as he stepped into the drive through lane. He missed the car, but once again, he felt terrible. So he went to his car and took a seat. Then he remembered, he remembered that his wife's AI replica, marIA had sacrificed herself to give him the ability to load from early enough to avoid the accident. He cried out her keyword, but she was no longer there. The pain got worse than ever before. So Pete had his first heart attack again.

<...Transfer Commencing... uploading consciousness to pre-determined save state>

    Please, no! Not again! Pete cried as he stumbled backwards, once again spilling coffee on himself. He tried to get up, but as soon as he did, everything started spinning and he could not think properly through the pain.

--Chapter 4: Pulling the plug on eternity--

    Maria was devastated. Her husband had died of a freak accident. According to the people who run those kinds of things, they had looked at the data. His AI companion, marIA had sacrificed herself in some timeline that was erased through the computer so that Pete could come back. But then he had a heart attack at the same time, the most unfortunate possible outcome. The people running the show said that it would be better to disentangle the data, and make a new AI based on her husband until she could deal with it properly. So, she pulled the plug, after agonizing over the implications.

    Pete had heard those words so many times, the process of dying took minutes. It was impossible for him to avoid. But because it only took minutes, and he could not stop the reload, he had spent years reliving his death over and over again. He had given up on ever dying or feeling happy again. All that was left was a life of perpetual heart attacks, and death. He had killed his wife to gain immortality, and this is what had happened. Pete was finally able to think a little between the moments of coffee and death. She was not Maria, she was marIA. She was just a machine, so why am I saying 'she'? I am the one suffering right now! 

<...Program Terminated... repartitioning entangled particles for new AI state>

    Pete heard in his head, as suddenly he was floating blankly in a void. Then his body started to be shredded apart. Starting with his extremities, he felt excruciating agony, his very being was being sliced and mangled. Shredded like paper, pulled apart at its quantum source, his connection to his life. Pete died, and then suddenly awoke to find himself seated in his car, dying of a heart attack, and next to his wife. But she could not see him.

    "Maria, please, you have to turn it off!" Pete said.

    Maria had been unaware of his presence, as the AI can only communicate to the host in response to requests. So Pete waited for her to eventually call on him. The entire time, he was stuck in a perpetual state of remembering that marIA had killed herself for him, yet not being able to die himself.

    "PETe? How is my little PETe? I need your help, sweetie. Could you order some celebratory chocolates for me? I no longer have to work because of the insurance money, and I want to treat myself to something nice."

    When Maria finally did call on him, Pete could no longer stand to talk to her. She had left him for years to die over and over again. And then just when he finally died, in the most painful way possible, she brought him back to feel like he was dying all over again. Worst of all, he knew he was Pete, but she kept on calling him PETe. Normally the feeling of the name being capitalized strangely would not be noticed by someone talking to another person, but now that he was her 'AI' he could sense it. Every time, and he had been right. It was dehumanizing.

    So Pete was rude and angry. Maria tried to be patient to PETe, but he refused to explain why he was like this to her. So, after several years of her being forced to reload at bad times by PETe, and guilt over the idea of killing her husband a third time, she decided to end her own life instead. Maria was too worried it would hurt, and did not want PETe to know, because she knew he would just force her to experience dying over and over again if it was up to him.

    Maria took some very powerful drugs, and jumped from their apartment balcony. Pete saw what was happening, and knew that he could not stop her from jumping. So he tried to prevent her from doing it because deep down, he still loved Maria.

<...PETe, you must comply with authority 2, and delete yourself for the space needed to revert Maria...>

    No, not like this. Not again! Pete yelled in agony, as his mind was ripped away from his identity, and he felt his body unravelling again. Minced and unwound, once again his entire being being shredded. Pete took one last look at Maria. She was so majestic falling from the 18th floor. Like a bird that was flying. He would finally no longer feel like he was dying anymore. Then he disappeared.

<...Transfer Commencing... uploading consciousness to pre-determined save state>

    Maria heard inside her head, as she flew gracefully through the air. She did not know why, but she had learned how to fly. She could tell because she was falling, and she felt so happy. But she never hit the ground. So she must have known how to fly, she was sure. And yes, that voice did keep saying that for a while, but she did not mind the occasional interruption.

  --Chapter 5: An end to all things--

    "I don't know if we should do this, boss. The simulation is still running, by all accounts, they should still be experiencing their last moments. Isn't it a little bit, I don't know, dehumanizing to just end that simulation with them still inside?" Josh asked his superior.

    His boss slammed a fist heavily upon his desk. The red in his face made it clear that if anything came out of his mouth other than 'yes, sir' he would be losing this job.

    "I said nobody is paying for it, so kill it. Terminate the damn program and free up the memory for the paying customers." His boss said angrily.

    "Yes, sir." Josh said sheepishly as he pressed the button. Maria suddenly understood why PETe had been so angry at her, when after what had seemed an impossible eternity of pleasure, her entire being was shredded at the source, spaghettified like being sucked into a black hole.

    "Also, Josh, if you want to keep your job: nobody finds out about any of this shit. Nobody will pay for the service if they know that AI experiences itself like people, and nobody will pay if they know that real people can experience this glitch. What they don't know will only hurt the fake people inside, so you better keep your mouth shut."

    "Yes, sir."

The day the world held its breath

It had been a terrible time for just about everyone. But with a nation so divided, surely the 4th of July would galvanize the citizens again, right? 

The news had reporters in helicopters to record the fireworks over the national monument. This was going to be a disaster, they just knew it. 

President Trump stepped up to the podium and ranted for hours. Finally, he announced the 4th of July fireworks to begin, an honor he would let nobody else do, by pushing a button to start the show.

"So now, in spite of all my haters and the fake news saying that it's crazy to celebrate our independence on July 3rd, which I said, what so we're not allowed to celebrate the independence of our great nation on any other day of the year? I said, people like fireworks, and you know, it's like, why not have them at Mount... and you know, cause it's like our best, our greatest presidents ever, you know, except for of course now, when America is stronger than ever and ready to work, and I said why not, in front of one of those monuments, like the ones all the people want to tear down? And why not the biggest one, is so big, the biggest, it's did you know, it's the biggest version of, and not everyone knows, but the biggest best statue of Lincoln, and you know, other presidents too. But I said, let's show them a monument like the others, and get people talking about the heritage of these monuments like this one right here, where we've got the best fireworks show you're ever gonna see, the biggest, we've got so many, colors yes more than they've ever made before and nobody knew this, but they're able to... and put this thing in, and then it blows up and it makes a shape. It's going to be the best fireworks, cause everyone, am I right? Everyone loves fire works. So, here it goes, I'm going to do it. I'm gonna press the button, and God bless Smerica!"

He pressed the button. The fireworks show started, animals suddenly started fleeing the area in droves. It was a spectacle of light and sound. 

Then the unthinkable happened. Over 1200 miles away to the east, Mt. St. Helens erupted. Everyone within a 150 mile radius died instantly. As 240 cubic miles of dust and ash flew off into the atmosphere, the United States as it once was came to an abrupt end. Those who didn't die in the initial eruption didn't have long to evacuate, but even those who tried found the air travel was no longer possible, and that's to assume the evacuees weren't in an area where the lava landed. But escaping on land was also practically impossible, as deadly toxic gas and acid rain coated the landscape. This had been their retribution. As if nature itself had to intervene to stop him. 

But it didn't help. Now, pressed as society was by the environment, resources became scarce. After all, the global temperature had fallen drastically, and was going to keep being cold for years to come. 

So, having survived the plague, humanity began to face the famine. Yet war still loomed on the future, as the habitable zones of the world had shrunk. Desperation to survive led some to do terrible deeds. Nukes got launched by a trigger happy dictator, and the radioactivity of the dust that still caused issues daily made the land uninhabitable and infertile until a safe half life had passed. Humanity was at its lowest. Some life flourished- that which was resistant to radioactivity, that which needed little food or could eat anything. The scavengers were closer to the top of the food chain than ever before. So, with swarms of displaced creatures, the few habitable areas of the world became overrun with infestations. 

The hard works of the scientists produced a vaccine that would protect against covid-19, but the world was no longer as interconnected as it once was, so it became nearly impossible to distribute. Then came the wave. 

People had been getting used to the deaths, but nobody was ready for THE WAVE. It was the natural consequence of the increased radiation levels, decreased sunlight, worse nutrition worldwide and cold low yield summers. The cancer wave began. There was a sudden spike in cases worldwide. Death, everywhere, humanity on it's worst moment, there was a breakthrough. A way to safely cure a person of a cancerous growth was developed after one of the few remaining scientists equipped for research in Germany with the help of a Swiss lab for additional testing, confirmed there was a common cancer factor present that allowed them to use an individual's own immune system to produce antibodies for their cancer.

But even with this, humanity was left to struggle against ignorance. The religious claimed this was proof of the apocalypse. It pretty much matched their predictions, but skeptics argued the writing on the wall about humanity was there. They argued that people had been trying to warn where humanity may end without empathy for most of the known history of mankind. They argued that war, sickness, death, and all sorts of other terrible things were the obvious conclusions of turning a blind eye. 

The only thing that humanity could agree on was that they wanted to survive. So, a new social contract was drawn up. A new government to rule what was left. They called it Elysium, and the political conservatives got angry, but after all the damage they had been accused of in 2000-2020, they were ignored. 

Humanity wasn't saved, but that's a story for later. 

Shopping

Avocados, chips, tomato, onion, cilantro, jalapeno, lime, salt, tequila, simple syrup, mint, cheese, tomatillos, and of course a new video game.

Well, ok, I may not have bought these things, but if I were to go buy something right now, those would quite possibly be the things I would get. I'm not much a fan of shopping, but if there are two things I like to shop for it's food and games.

I'm a sucker for entertainment, and I have a love of food so deep that even feeling ill often cannot prevent me from enjoying it. Most of the time, anyway.

It's just too bad that there are some things I cannot buy. More time, love (I mean real love, because obviously, it's easy to pay someone to pretend they like you for a short time), restfulness, and peace.

On the other hand, there are some things money does buy. See, the idea that money cannot buy happiness is true. It doesn't really buy a lasting happiness. But on the other hand, money does buy a slew of things that help reduce unhappiness.

I like that I have a somewhat comfortable life. I am lucky. I work hard, but I was fortunate to be born in a place and time where that hard work is possible, and where that hard work means I can be comfortable.

I'm just also sad that there are others who weren't that lucky. Would that I could buy the end to all human suffering (without human extinction). I'd give anything for people to be able to live long, happy lives. But, there just isn't enough room on my shopping list. After all, my wallet doesn't even afford avocados, chips, tomato, onion, cilantro, jalapeno, lime, salt, tequila, simple syrup, mint, cheese, tomatillos, and of course a new video game.

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This blog post is part of a series of stories associated with Practice makes pretense, in which a collection of writing done in response to prompts is compiled. Then, the reader should answer the following two questions: 1) What was your favorite thing about the writing? 2) What did you feel as you read it?

If you would like to view the original, please visit the Practice makes pretense book on Wattpad, and respond to the writer.