“Hey man, you in a rush? Could I borrow a few seconds of your time?”
He stops, looks right at her through the tinted visor. “You are…” he begins but is too hesitant to continue.
“I’m what?”
“You know…”
Kaarina takes a deep breath before she replies. “You mean one of those people? Well, yes I am. That’s me. One hundred percent. But I don’t bite or have the plague or anything. This state of my so-called life is not contagious. I could just use a helping hand, is all.”
He stands still, his pose mirroring hers: hands deep in his pockets, feet shoulder-width apart. They stand and peer at each other. She can almost hear his chipped brain ticking: contemplating whether he should keep on going or stay and hear her out. Finally, he reaches for his AR-glasses, pulls them off his head.
“I was going to ask if you were lost or something. I obviously know what… who you are.”
“Oh, we’ve met before?”
“No, we haven’t, I mean that you… you’re obviously not Chipped.”
“Oh, that. What gave me away? The lack of AR-glasses? Or the fact that I look like a hungry hobo?”
Making fun of him is a terrible idea, she knows. But being treated like a parasite each time she’s among the Chipped is finally starting to push her over the edge. The Unchipped aren’t any better—they want her to produce meat for the black market, after all—but at least they talk to her like she’s a real person, not some braindead excuse for a human being.
“I didn’t… I don’t think you look like a hobo. I think you’re quite beautiful, actually.” His hand flies up to cover his mouth, like he’s trying to push his unexpected words back into the hole they slipped out of.
“You what?”
“You’re really pretty. Even that… your scar,” he nods toward her face. “I think it makes you unique, more human somehow.”
Kaarina investigates his face, trying to find a trace of sarcasm or mockery. But the only thing she finds is sincerity and shyness. If this guy won’t help her, no one will. If it wasn’t a matter of life and death, she’d scold herself for being so calculative. Though his being kind doesn’t automatically mean that he’ll help her out. She needs to startle him somehow. Truly get his attention.
“You want to touch it?”
He blinks rapidly and huffs. “Um… what?”
“My scar.”
He shifts his weight from one foot to another. “I don’t… I, umm…”
Kaarina takes a step closer. Her heart beats faster and her face flushes. “Go on. It doesn’t hurt or anything. If that’s what you’re afraid of.”
She knows that’s not what he’s afraid of. He’s merely shocked, trying to shake off the discomfort of her unusual suggestion.
“Are you serious?”
“Sure. Unless, you don’t want to touch it?”
“No, no, no. I mean yes, yes I do, but—”
Kaarina reaches for his hand and runs his fingertips along the scar. The man sucks his lower lip in and stares in wonder. For a moment, he seems like a teenage boy, touching a girl for the first time. The intimacy of the moment and the seriousness of his face almost make Kaarina forget about the task at hand. But only for a fleeting moment.
She lets go of his hand and shrugs. “You afraid you have the pox or something now?”
He scoffs in disbelief. “No… It’s just…” His hand is still frozen in midair. “I can’t remember the last time someone held my hand. Or the last time I touched someone’s face.”
Blue eyes meet hers, and they stand quietly, processing their short but strange conversation.
“Well done, Kay. This bonehead is a done deal. Move in for the kill.”
Shaking her head to get rid of the man who lives there, Kaarina breaks their stare to close her eyes. I got this, Bill. Rubbing her temples compulsively, she must seem like the biggest town crazy this stranger has ever met.
What had they been talking about? Before she let a total stranger touch her?
“Oh, and I guess I should say… thank you? And you too. I mean, you’re not pretty, but handsome or, or good-looking…” Kaarina chuckles nervously and spreads her hands in defeat.
And here I thought this couldn’t get more awkward than it already was.
“Drugs, Kay. Get the pills. Quit this mumbo-jumbo and focus.”
They’ve both taken a step out of their comfort zones, but the man shows no signs of wanting to leave. They both blush bright pink. Kaarina wets her lips and says, “I’m Kaarina, by the way. People call me Kay.”
“I’m people now in this idiotic game of yours?”
Shut up, Bill.
“Nice to meet you, Kay. My name is Markus. I’m not really good at this, so please forgive me. Or I guess I’m just a bit rusty. I don’t really talk to strangers that often.”
She should ask him about helping her. Now, before the moment’s gone. But she’s too intrigued not to ask, “Who do you talk to, then?”
“Huh?”
“If you don’t talk to strangers, who do you talk to?”
Considering her question, Markus looks up to the sky, then gives a small laugh.
“I guess I don’t really talk to anyone these days.”
“Not even at work?”
“At work, yes, I used to. But not after I got promoted from pedaling and moved to the Server-Center. I’m out cold most of my workday, so when you think about it, me not talking to a bunch of people kind of makes sense.”
She’s heard of the Servers, people who let the city plug them into the CS. They lend their brains for use as computer servers to help run the city’s augmented reality. It’s been a wild rumor among the Unchipped, but Kaarina had never heard it confirmed—until now.
Markus brings his thumb up to his mouth, bites the nail a few times like he’s contemplating whether to say something or not. “And what about you?”
“What about me?”
“You don’t live in
