I closed the fridge, grabbed a cup from the cupboard, and filled it with water.

As my parents talked with Kevin's mom I zoned out, with a question stuck in my mind. Why didn't Kevin have a profile?

I'd seen people without profiles before. Every one of them was from a tribe in a far-off region. As I talked to the unknowns, Zix created a dataset on them.

I opened my menu and pulled up both Kevin's and his mom's accounts. There was now a good amount of information on Kevin. A single walk from a taxi to his room garnered more details about him than from however long his mom had been there.

When I focused on Kevin's profile, half a dozen bubbles floated alongside it. Each highlighted the interactions we had.

His inflections and accent were as American as any I'd ever heard. He either had a lot of practice or he was isolated from the rest of society somehow.

My mind kept falling back to the word he'd used. “Tech'ers.”

I'd heard about religious groups that rejected technology. The most famous were the Amish. Kevin's accent didn't seem to fit that group, though. They had a word for us actually.

Reality split as I stepped away from myself. “Zix,” I said.

I could only go a short distance away from my body when I did this but it was a private way to interact with Zix while others were talking.

The little fox appeared and leapt onto the counter. He stretched and gazed at me.

“What is the name that the Amish have for people like us?” I asked.

Zix sat, its long front legs holding it up in a regal position. “The English.”

If that was right, I wondered if that term was meant to be an insult.

“Are there any other groups that reject technology?” I asked.

“Neo-Luddism or new Luddism is a philosophy opposing many forms of modern technology. The term Luddite is generally used as a pejorative—”

“Whoa, wait,” I interrupted. His response might as well have been a cut-and-paste definition. “I didn’t want you to define it.”

His little fox head teetered to one side. “I’m sorry. My knowledge is limited to the Qweb, so I might not—”

“I know that. Have you heard of the term tech’ers?” I asked.

“There is currently no data on that term,” he said.

I turned and noticed Kevin standing by my body, waving his hand in front of my face.

"Thanks, Zix," I said as I merged back into my body.

The fox vanished, and I took a sip of water.

Kevin stopped.

“You ready?” I asked.

He shook his head and handed me his phone. “Mom wants to say something to you.”

The outline of my vision turned pink.

“Azerail?” Mrs. Smith asked.

I felt as if I’d missed something important. “Yes?”

“You two need to go directly to the doctor,” she said.

That wasn’t going to work. “Is it okay if I drop by a vendor? Kevin drank my juice.”

Kevin glanced at Jennifer and she in turn gave me a not-so-happy look.

“You know I don’t like starting my day without it, Mom,” I said.

Pause.

“Where is it?” Mrs. Smith asked.

“In the building across the hall,” I said.

“Okay, but go straight to the doctor after that, okay?” she said.

“Yup,” I said and handed the phone back to Kevin.

These people are way too paranoid.

“All right, Mom, talk to you after I’m done, okay?” Kevin said.

“Love you, baby,” Mrs. Smith said.

I put a hand to my chest, smiled, and stared at Kevin.

“Love you,” he said and fiddled with the phone.

That gave me an idea. I opened my menu and examined the phone. Nothing came up. It was like it didn’t exist. Yet another weird thing associated with Kevin.

“Az, no jumping into your game. Go straight to the doctor,” Jennifer said.

Kevin stuffed the phone in his pocket.

I crossed my arms. “I already said I wouldn’t.” As if I would jump into DO while entertaining company.

“Be safe,” Autumn said.

It seemed that the paranoia from the Smiths had rubbed off on my parents. “I’m always safe.”

“Says the girl that stays out really late,” Jennifer said.

I set my cup on the counter. “Let's go, Kevin.”

Jennifer glanced at the glass and then back at me.

Royal Road is the home of this novel. Visit there to read the original and support the author.

Kevin followed me as I made my way to the front door.

“Love you!” my parents chorused as we left.

Jennifer hated when I didn’t clean up after myself. She was being polite for Kevin's sake by not saying anything. I’d probably hear from her about it later, but the whole situation was annoying. Why did I offer to take him again?

You’re a good person and you like him?

Shut up, me.

The pink outline faded as I led Kevin across the hall and into the dorms. They were set up as a series of hallways. Each door had a number or some other indicator of where it led. I’d been this way several times, so I knew exactly where I was going. It was pretty easy to navigate.

“Is this a maze?” Kevin asked.

“No—” A flashing red light appeared on my HUD.

I did say that she could watch us. It was still annoying that she did though.

“I know where I’m going,” I said.

We weaved our way through the halls passing multiple people along the way. Since Kevin’s profile had at least some information on it we didn’t get many looks.

“Here it is,” I said as we approached the center of the building.

Large steel beams acted as pillars and ran up the middle of the area. It was like the whole inner section of the building was cored out and replaced with glass.

An oversized elevator carrying a dozen or more people glided between levels. You could see all the way up to the gardens. The light reflected in such a way that it seemed as if it were glowing green at the top. I did my best to ignore the downward portion of the area.

Along the walls were a dozen or so different machines, which were to either side of us. Each vendor had colorful decorations depicting the goods that they distributed. Every story had an array of selections, but I tended to stick to this one for obvious reasons.

I took a few steps, but Kevin didn’t follow. His mouth hung open in awe as his eyes darted back and forth. I hoped his mom got a good look at him.

He dashed to a large translucent wall connected to one of the pillars.

My vision stayed locked on the view above as I joined him. “What do you think?” I asked.

Without looking at me, he said, “They never told me it would be this beautiful.”

“They?” I asked.

He looked at me. “My mom and…”

“Who?” I asked.

His eyes drifted to the side. “Are those the vendors?”

He’d avoided my question. Though it didn’t seem deliberate, I was disappointed despite his intentions.

I turned as he rushed to one of the machines that assembled tacos. There was a window allowing us to see all of the intricate mechanisms inside. When placing an order, little metal arms swung around, completing tasks as it produced its product.

Although the vendors had great food, the best dishes were delivered in trays. Only because they were handmade by the best chefs in town.

“Can we order something?” he asked.

I smiled. “Yeah, the one I want is over here.”

He followed me as I made my way to the juice machine.

It was like the taco stand, but instead of taco ingredients, it offered an array of different fruits.

Out of habit I opened my menu and selected my usual.

A surge of power caused the device to hum as it began crafting my drink.

“It’s so quiet,” Kevin said as he leaned against the glass watching it do its work.

Oranges disappeared into a hole, and liquid poured from an opening into a cup. A powder mixture slid into the container, and then a piece of metal with a small ball at the end dipped into it and spun.

“What’s that?” he asked.

“The powder?” I asked.

He nodded and turned to me.

I said, “Supplements.”

“Like what?”

There were too many to mention, and I didn’t feel like listing them off. “It’s a blend to help with energy.”

Yesterday took a lot out of me, both mentally and physically.

My order drifted along its path to the front of the machine and slid into an opening. I picked it up and took a drink. The liquid slid into my mouth, sending a ripple of sweet sensations along my tongue. There was a hint of chalkiness, but it didn't ruin the experience.

It wasn’t a particularly large drink, but I usually finished it by the time I made it outside.

“Ready to go?” I asked.

He stared at my beverage.

“No! You already had one,” I said.

His posture sank. “I’m sorry, all I had today was my mom's apple.”

“Don't worry, we'll grab something to eat after your appointment,” I reassured him. “You'll need it.”

“Why does everyone keep saying that?” he asked.

I took another drink. “The nanobots need a lot of fuel to do what they do.”

“Oh,” he said.

When he didn’t say anything else I said, “Let's go.” and took a few steps toward the entrance.

He headed toward the elevator in the center of the chamber at the same time. He turned. “Uhm… Are we going down?”

The mention of the word caused me to glance in that direction. My stomach swirled, and I had to look away. “I don’t like the big one,” I said.

He closed the distance between us and said, “If you’re scared, I can hold your hand.” He offered one to me.

My heartbeat pounded in my ears. Contact with others wasn’t forbidden, but it was an intimate gesture I didn’t expect.

I reached out, and he gently took my hand, leading me to the doors.

His grip was loose, but he was so warm.

As the platform arrived at our floor, I took a step back.

“It’ll be okay,” he said.

What did he know that I didn’t? My gaze stayed locked onto the opening doors, and I retreated further.

He bridged the divide I’d made. “Look at me, not at it.”

His voice caused me to glance at him, but when our eyes locked, I lost myself in his gaze. I didn’t even notice him leading me inside the cabin.

Gravity shifted, and I grabbed him, nearly spilling my drink. I struggled to regain my balance and control my breathing.

His arms wrapped around my waist, steadying me.

“I like your shirt, by the way,” he said.

I swallowed. “Th-thanks.”

He smiled and held me.

Soon the elevator stopped, and he led me out. A glance at the floor reassured me that we were at ground level.

“Where do we go from here?” he asked.

I closed my eyes for a moment and took a deep breath. My nerves eventually settled enough for me to concentrate again.

“Zix,” I said.

The little fox weaved through my legs and circled Kevin before sitting down. “That was brave of you, Az,” he said.

“Could you get us a car to the doctor?” I asked.

“Sure!” Zix's little mouth curled into a grin as he darted toward a door.

A golden brick path materialized behind him as he sprinted, leading straight to the doorway. Without hesitation, Zix ran through it and disappeared.

“This way,” I said.

The route led us down a different labyrinth of hallways and opened up to a lobby similar to the one I took to get home. We continued our trek outside to a bench where Zix sat peering at me.

Kevin turned and eyed building seven. He likely wanted to see how it looked in the daylight.

I petted the little fox. “Thank you, Zix.”

“You really don’t know how cool this is,” Kevin said as he faced me.

Having grown up there meant he was probably right since I was desensitized to it.

A car pulled up before I could respond.

“Oh, look, a car!” I said. “Amazing, right?”

He sneered at me, and then his eyes went wide. “Wow!”

Kevin kneeled beside the car and asked, “What are those round things?”

I ignored his question about the tires, opened the door, and got inside. He dashed around to the other side and got in with me.

“To the doctor, James!” he shouted as he closed his door.

Lucky for him, I loved old movie references.

***