The squirrel is thrown off me and scrambles away into the nearby bushes. I can’t move for a moment. I don't feel any pain but I am shaken. I have never crashed into anything, not since I've been aware, and now I'm worried. I flick through my cameras, trying to make sure that I’m not damaged, but I can’t see the corner that hit the bollard.

I roll backwards slowly, scared that if I go any faster, I’ll realise that something in me is broken. Nothing happens though, I manage to move without difficulty. But then I realise that I can hear something. There’s a noise, a strange one that I’m not used to. Laughter. Someone is laughing.

I search through my cameras, trying to find the source of the weird sound. I find it quickly. A person, a man, on the road just outside the park has stopped and is pointing at me. The strange noise spills from his lips as he stares at me, his face contorted in amusement.

Happiness decreased.

Speed 1/10 Hope 3/10 Determination 4.3/10 Happiness 5.3/10 Pride 3.5/10 Battery 92%

He’s laughing at me. He must have seen me hit the bollard, maybe even saw my fight with the squirrel, but he did nothing. He was enjoying it.

Happiness decreased.

Speed 1/10 Hope 3/10 Determination 4.3/10 Happiness 5/10 Pride 3.5/10 Battery 92%

I have no clue what to do. I can’t say anything to him but I just can’t wrap my head around why he would find a robot running into something funny. I could be hurt. I wasn’t, obviously, but I could be. And he was still laughing.

“Oh no,” I hear someone call from behind me and I rip my focus away from the man to cycle through my cameras again. “Are you okay, little thing?”

I stare up at the woman who has rushed towards me. She crouches down, examining me carefully. I wish that I could say something to her, to answer her question, but I cannot. All I can do is look at her face as she brushes some snow off my lid. I notice that the man who had been laughing at me has stopped. I quickly jump to the right camera and see him skulking away.

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“Poor thing!” the woman exclaims and I look at her again. “What happened to you? Is the snow messing up your signal? Or did you slip? It is really icy!”

It’s clear that she did not see the squirrel fighting to get into my compartment and I wish that I could tell her about it. She looks so kind, so caring. She vaguely reminds me of someone but I don’t know who.

“Please continue towards your destination,” the voice in my head says.

I ignore it. I refuse to move just yet. The woman is still examining me closely and I need to hear what she has to say, I need her to tell me that I’m okay. For all I know, I could have a gouge out the front of my body or a dent. I wouldn’t even know.

Oh no, the food! I realise. I hadn’t even checked on it since the fight! I could have knocked everything around or even broken some bottles when I hit the metal pole!

I quickly look at my inner camera, staring at the bag within me. It is clear that it had been jostled but nothing looks broken. It has been moved about, I can see into it more, but everything looks okay, as far as I can tell. That makes me feel a little better. I can’t be too badly damaged if the food inside me is okay.

“Oh no, you have a scratch on you,” the woman says, reaching out. “It might have been there before but it looks like it’s in the right place. Aww, it doesn’t look too deep though. You should be okay.”

She pats me on the lid before standing and stepping out of the way so that I can continue on my journey. I don’t want to though. I want to stay with her and not be alone but alas, people are waiting for their food. However… she helped me, technically. She did make sure that I was okay, that counts as helping, right? That means that I can speak to her.

“Thank you!” I tell her before beginning to move again.

I start slowly, carefully moving around the pole, before gaining some more courage and confidence. Even so, I can’t help but look back. Maybe, I should have learnt. I should know better than to take my eyes off the path ahead of me but there are no more bollards and the path is clear. I glance back at the woman who is still standing where I left her. She stares after me, a small smile on her face. I was right, she is kind.

I reach the top of the ramp without difficulties and turn left, as my route dictates. It’s not a particularly long journey now that I’m on the other side of the park however, once I cross the bridge, I can feel fear starting to build within me. There is a hedge along the side of the path. The squirrel, the little monster that attacked me, could be waiting in there to strike again. Maybe it spent the time that I was recovering plotting, planning how to gain access to the food within me.

I watch the hedge carefully, staying as far away from it as I can on the narrow path. Each skitter of leaves, every soft crunch of the snow being compressed by bird’s feet, makes my vision scan the brambles. I’m not sure what I would do if it does come back. I am close to my destination, maybe I could just race there and hope that the person, whoever it is that ordered the food will help defend me. Or maybe the squirrel would get spooked and run away the moment the human appears. I’m not sure but I hope.

When I finally reach the turning at the end of the road and start along the next path, I feel relief fill me. There are no hedges here, just houses, and my destination is near. I can finally look away from my side cameras and I begin to scan the house numbers. I am close, almost there, but I know that the journey back will be perilous too. I must brave the park again and who knows how many squirrels await me this time.