Tokyo Love (6 page)

Kathleen sucked in more air and, quite calmly, attempted to push away those alarming thoughts.

Of course, it only brought to the forefront that the PLC was still a woman. And that only brought her back to the edge of a spiraling despair. “I've made a terrible mistake.”

The PLC didn't speak, but her expression was open, waiting for more.

“I need to … I am not a good candidate for a beta. This was way too personal for me to accurately judge. I should have insisted someone else perform this test. This is a total disaster. I'm going to lose my job.” She clutched her beer. It wasn't helping her. She probably had too much adrenaline coursing through her for it to relax her.

“Why would you lose your job?”

Her voice reminded her of Yuriko's, but Kathleen forced herself to ignore that. It was just a coincidence. That wasn't the real problem right now. “Because I can't interact with you like a customer would! This test is totally meaningless and flawed and when we release you to the open market in six weeks it will be a disaster!”

The PLC frowned. “Why can't you interact with me?”

“Because you are severely flawed!”

Now the PLC looked a little affronted. “Flawed?”

“You are a woman! I'm interested in men!”

“Bisexuality is a real thing, you know.”

Kathleen glared. “I'm
only
interested in men. Besides,
you
are a robot, a Personal Love Companion. I cannot love you! And I'm sorry, but I'm really freaking out!” Kathleen pressed her forehead into the table. She took a few steadying breaths and when she was sure she wasn't going to start crying, she looked up.

The PLC was resting her head on folded hands on the table. She looked at Kathleen curiously, her blue eyes contemplative. “Kathleen … did you want to fall in love with me?” Her voice was soft, and something about it soothed Kathleen's frayed nerves.

“Well … no. I just need to collect data.”

The PLC smiled slowly. “Then why are you freaking out? You just need to test me, figure out my kinks and rough edges, right? I know you've played your own love sims before. Aren't I just a more complicated one?” She reached out, her fingers closing around Kathleen's wrist, giving a gentle squeeze. “It'll be all right.”

It was very strange, to have a computer that she programmed comforting her from the brink of a total meltdown. But her fingers were soft and strong and her voice was calm. Kathleen knew she was getting more than a little hysterical. The PLC had a good point. Sure, maybe she wasn't as personalized as Kathleen had expected, but some of her first dating sim tests had turned out even worse. This was something fixable. Something easy to see and easy to explain in a report.

She sat up. “How do you know about my love sims?”

The PLC grinned, tapping her head. “The cortex scan and basic information. I don't know every personal thing about your life, of course. But I know you headed my project and I know you are in my code.”

Kathleen frowned. “That's … weird.”

“Is it?” The PLC propped her chin up on one hand. “What would be weird is if I called you ‘creator' or ‘god.' Or maybe
goshujin-sama
?”

Kathleen shuddered. “No, my name is just fine.” Then she hesitated. Did she really want to know? “What is your name?”

“Do you want to give me one?”

“I want to see what name you'd come up with.” Kathleen knew that no PLC had a default name. But would she be able to problem solve and pick one for herself?

She tugged at a strand of her hair. “How about Ai?”

Kathleen paused. “Eye? Like an eyeball?”

She snorted. “No,
Ai
,” she exaggerated, like it would help Kathleen understand. “It's a Japanese name.” She grinned. “It also means love.”

Kathleen wrinkled her nose. “Fitting, I guess. Are you Japanese?”

“Well, I was made in Japan.” She grinned. “But I guess with your cortex scan, I am a bit more worldly.”

Kathleen had no problems with Ai as a name. In fact, it somewhat helped that Ai hadn't named herself Yuriko. Not that Ai was Yuriko. That was just a coincidence. Kathleen had to convince herself of that.

With her freak-out ebbing away, she was starting to feel extremely tired. This day was just a little too much. She set aside her half-finished beer and stood up. “I think I need to pass out now before I conduct any more tests.”

“Okay then,” Ai said.

Kathleen stopped. “Wait, where will you sleep?” Then she stopped, rubbing her forehead. She knew that PLCs had a sleep mode. But it hardly mattered the position or place they entered it.

Ai grinned at her, as if she already knew what Kathleen was thinking. “I'll be fine out here. Unless you want me to join you in bed?” She arched an eyebrow.

Kathleen waved a hand. “No, definitely not. Okay, I'll see you in the morning, I guess.” She practically stumbled into the bedroom.

Ai's voice, soft and almost sweet, drifted after her. “
Oyasumi
.”

Kathleen decided, after a full night of rest, that she wasn't going to go crazy. She would be strong, persevere, and refuse to hide under her covers and ignore just how weird her life was getting.

Or she would, after she checked her emails.

Curling under her duvet, she tapped on her wrist. A reminder that she wasn't required to come into the office for the rest of the week was already displayed. She had half-hoped that Tamura would insist. But no, she was expected to stay home and thoroughly test her new PLC. Then probably go out in public.
Goddammit
, it was going to be a very long week.

Then again, the only people in the company that knew she was undertaking this were her direct subordinates and Tamura. She was sure that whenever she next went into the office they would be judging her. Even though they would be polite enough not to ask any inappropriate questions, she wondered if Fukusawa or the others would lose just a little respect for her.

Kathleen eventually had to leave the confines of her bed. She was hungry and her sleep cycle had gotten too used to waking up early. She stepped to her door, peering through into her brightly lit living room.

Ai was seated at her table, flipping through channels on the TV by waving her hand in front of her. She was still wearing the same cheap shirt and shorts she came in. In the morning light it was even more apparent that the fabric was lacking. Kathleen went to her closet, grabbing an old bra and panties, along with a worn shirt she had brought from America and a skirt that she had outgrown. It would all probably look hideous on Ai.

She stepped from her room. Ai didn't even look up. She just continued waving her hand to browse through the channels. “Done hiding?”

Kathleen threw the clothes at her. “I was
sleeping
. And here are some new clothes. Please put them on.”

Ai looked down at the garments. “New?” She sounded doubtful.

Kathleen stalked over to the kitchen, ready to shovel something into her mouth just so she wouldn't have to talk to Ai. “Well, they are better than what you are wearing.”

Maybe she could convince Mashida to form a contract with some department store, get them to contribute real clothes in different styles. It would look a lot nicer, to open up the PLC and find them dressed in your preferred style. Maybe if they made something like a deluxe package with brand clothes and accessories.

Kathleen selected a tub of yogurt and turned around to find Ai shedding her top. “H-hey!” She jabbed the yogurt in her direction. “Have some decency!”

Ai didn't even cover up. She just smirked at Kathleen, dropping her default shirt. Then she slowly picked up the ratty bra. “You said you weren't attracted to women. What could bother you?”

Kathleen knew she was blushing, so she scowled. “That doesn't matter. You are a stranger!”

She snorted, easily hooking the bra behind her back. “I was programmed from your cortex scan. I'm probably more familiar to you than your family.” She threw on the shirt, tugging on it. “Rutabaga Jazz Festival?” she read. She looked up. “Please tell me there were actual rutabagas there.”

Kathleen put a spoon in her yogurt, just eating out of the container. “College jazz concert. No vegetables. Plenty of weed, though.”

Ai quirked her lips. Then she slipped off her shorts and Kathleen had to turn around. She might have plenty of experience with locker rooms, but that definitely didn't mean she just gawked at random girls. She poked at her yogurt. What if Ai was a guy? It would probably be a little more disturbing, she guessed.

Her wrist beeped and she looked down to see that Fukusawa had given her the notes from the morning meeting that she missed. Nothing too big, which she expected, given that until she turned in her reports on her PLC, very little could be done.

She put the yogurt away, deciding that she might as well get started. She sat uncomfortably at her table, tapping the surface to bring up her computer. She hunched her shoulders as Ai sat beside her. The clothes were very ill fitting and didn't match at all. Kathleen ignored her curious expression and opened up her document, typing furiously. She had to acknowledge the gender mix-up, but she also didn't want it to sound like a complete malfunction. Perhaps there were other parts to Ai's appearance that were to her taste. Then at least it was only one major flaw, instead of a total breakdown.

Kathleen looked over to Ai, who had gone back to watching TV. With the beer clear of her system, she was able to remove her emotions a little better. Ai was a very pretty woman. She had some of the round features of Japanese descent, but her eyes were very wide and the color unusual. She had long limbs and was taller than Kathleen, but she did not look awkward, folded up next to the low table. Even with a terrible choice in clothing, she wore it comfortably and somehow made it all look less grungy than it should have. Kathleen might have even said she was beautiful, if she was given the chance to dress up.

Kathleen had never thought of herself being especially attracted to the Japanese aesthetic. But she could admit that she was somewhat jealous of Ai's long, sleek hair. She wondered if she were to thoroughly run her hands through it, could it even be tangled? Brandon had never been able to run his hands through Kathleen's hair. He would just jam them up there until they were trapped while they made out. Then they would have to work together to free him. Oddly enough, her hair never looked messier than usual afterward.

Ai still looked like Yuriko. And Kathleen closed her eyes, forcing the thought away. They were similar, that was all. There was no way they could look the same. Just a coincidence. An astronomically rare coincidence.

Kathleen decided that her thoughts were turning stupid and turned back to her report. All of Ai's other functions seemed pretty normal. There were no issues with coordination or simple problem solving. She had already showed that she was exceptional at reading Kathleen's moods. And, if Kathleen was being completely honest, her personality was refreshing. She was snarky without being cruel, honest if a little blunt, confident, and able to know when to talk to Kathleen or leave her alone, like now. Kathleen supposed that in an ideal partner, she would want someone with a little more warmth, perhaps more tactile. But she was also sure that if Ai were to embrace her, it would be totally uncomfortable.

She was getting sidetracked again. She had to come up with a more efficient plan to test Ai's abilities. All she had done so far could be tested in the lab, and probably had been by Engineering. She had to see what Ai would do, given an entire day alone. Could she been given an errand and complete it without Kathleen? How would she interact with new people, whose personalities weren't programmed into her code?

And, perhaps Kathleen's biggest regret, she would have to constantly observe Ai for an extended period of time. Test to see if her dialogue became repetitive, her actions too easy to predict, over a few weeks. Kathleen had no chance of completing this project early if she wanted it done right.

Then there were other basic functions to consider. Ai had the ability to eat, but then had to extract it when appropriate. She was also entirely functional for sexual acts. Kathleen had no intention of testing that out, whether Ai was a woman or a man or a dog. If Tamura asked her, Kathleen would throw a chair at her.

“What's that face for?”

Kathleen turned to find Ai staring at her, her chin in one hand again. “What face?”

Ai waved her free hand. “The ‘I'm slightly pissed off but I'm not sure at what' face.”

“You think I am unsure of the reason why I'm angry?”

Ai raised a single eyebrow.

Kathleen frowned. Was Ai actually reading into Kathleen's expressions? Or was it some subroutine in her program to try to draw answers out of Kathleen when she couldn't decode it? Kathleen made another note on her report. She would have to ask Fukusawa about it.

“I am not angry. I am just very stressed.”

“Anything I could do?”

Kathleen narrowed her eyes. But there was nothing inappropriate in her tone. “Um, clean the dishes?”

Ai gave her a funny look, but stood and stepped into the kitchen. Kathleen didn't have much in the way of dishes. It wasn't like she had to feed more than one person. Hearing Ai running the water, Kathleen turned back to her emails, which had been piling up since yesterday.

“Anything else,
goshujin-sama
?”

She looked over her shoulder to find Ai already done with the dishes, smirking at her. Kathleen actually didn't know what that meant. “What does
gokshujen
mean?”

“That is not a word.”

“You know what I meant!”

Ai took a rag and started wiping down Kathleen's stove. “You have such faith in my programming that I can read your mind?”