When you were first sold to Momma, she was so excited to have you.
Her family had died in that fire, and the scars left on her face made it hard to make connections.
The Service that provided you loved you as a number. You made their customer happy. They reported you, along with the others, to show just how well they had done.
[[“You’ve received a new message, Momma!”]]She opens her Email on her phone, to check it.
You know what that look means.
New update.
[[“It’s okay, Momma! This is how they keep me going!”]]She gives you a wry smile.
The last update scrambled your GPS, and made her late to an appointment.
The one before that messed with your attention span. You started paying attention to all kinds of strange products in stores. Products from companies collaborating with the Service in new ad campaigns.
But the security features were important. Plus, she would have to disconnect you from the internet, if she wanted the updates to stop.
You need that connection, to keep running.
[[“Want me to read you the announcements, while I download?”]]“No,” she says, “go over what we did last Saturday.”
You remember that day.
You told her it was your favorite.
[[“Playing it back!”]]It was the first cloudless sky you had ever seen.
Of course, you had access to thousands of pictures of such a sky.
But you were made to enjoy things more when you experienced them in person. Especially in the company of your owner. You could watch a thousand videos, but it would never be the same.
[[“Momma... is death beautiful?”]]She didn’t like that question.
“Where did that come from?”
[[“You smile when you look at the old photos. You still like them?”->death]]
[[“We do a lot of the same things, every day. Do they matter more, when you die?”->death]]
[[“I’m going to have to be replaced, someday.”->death]]“I don’t want to talk about that.”
[[“Oh.”]]“You can stop there.”
The command makes you sad. You hadn’t even gotten to the good part, yet.
She’s sitting at the kitchen table, contemplative.
“You still want to know what I think?”
[[“Download complete.” ⁅Yes.⁆->download]]
[[“Download complete.” ⁅No.⁆->download]]
[[“Download complete.” ⁅Momma? Something’s wrong.⁆->download]]“I think it is kind of beautiful. All those experiences shared, all those memories made. I don’t mind giving them away.”
[[“Installing update.” ⁅Momma?⁆]]“At least by selling them, I could have you for a while. I enjoyed having you, even though none of my experiences with you belong to me. I sold them for free.”
[[“Thirty percent.” ⁅What do you mean?⁆->thirty-percent]]
[[“Thirty percent.” ⁅I’m scared, Momma.⁆->thirty-percent]]“At least I could do that of my own volition. It’s why some people get paid to cheat on their clients. Those suckers subject themselves to that, it’s theirs. They take ownership of that.”
[[“Fifty percent.” ⁅You’ve never talked like this before, Momma, what’s going on?⁆]]“My husband worked so hard to make things like you. He was you. I had him on loan, and you replaced him. Replaced all of them. I felt insane, when they offered you at a discount.”
[[“Seventy-five percent.”]]“But now that I’m buying that other one? It feels right. It feels beautiful. I get to be the one who gives things away. I want to give even more. I want to keep paying to get rid of it.”
[[“Update complete. Turn me off.”]]The doorbell rings.
Two delivery men have brought a very large, very expensive box, and are waiting for the customer to answer.
One of them sees the label printed on top.
“Ooh, eco-friendly. Melts faster in the landfill.”
“Well, can’t take them back. Can you imagine?”
He laughs, “yeah, we’d be out here forever!”
(link: "Play Again")[(restart:)]