The pamphlets say you are not human.
That you are a care robot, designed to look after me while I go through chemotherapy, alone.
The pamphlets warn you have no emotions, that you are merely a good mimic.
They say I should be clear in my instructions. That if I don’t like something, I should tell you.
I find you, writing the pamphlets.
I pick one up and your motion stops, as you are programmed to do when I get too close, for fear that I might hurt myself against your hard exterior.
The pamphlets say that you love me.
Previously published by Daily Science Fiction, June 2020.
Liam Hogan is an award winning short story writer, with stories in Best of British Science Fiction 2016 & 2019, and Best of British Fantasy 2018 (NewCon Press). He’s been published by Analog, Daily Science Fiction, and Flame Tree Press, among others. He helps host Liars’ League London, volunteers at the creative writing charity Ministry of Stories, and lives and avoids work in London. More details at http://happyendingnotguaranteed.blogspot.co.uk
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