Sorry I had some health trouble and ... this got te because of that. But working hard for readers.

  How to Date an Android, Chapter 19 Part A

  The next day Barbara is te. She was supposed to slip me a message. We hadn’t been able to finalize things before. We did get a good pn though. But it always seems like there’s one more piece in the puzzle to collect.

  It worries me.

  There’s not a lot of time left.

  She can’t answer my calls on the normal phone right now since she’s afraid of any trail that can be discovered. So we’re in radio silence. That means not using phones for awhile really and not just today since her company would start asking questions on why she was spending so much time with one potential owner without him buying yet; and then them searching me first if she disappears.

  We have to also not trip her firewall, which I’d found out can also be tripped by deception and trying to lie and not just from talking about forbidden topics. Then in the course of the next few days she was going to help me work out how we were supposed to accomplish this.

  I’d been thinking of ways to cheat around her firewall. Like for example, if she thought I already knew about something then the firewall was less effective. Devious but true.

  The pn was she’d deliver a temporary boost phone pad to my snail mail delivery box in a sealed envelope by the time I got up the next morning. That’s where her message was supposed to come from.

  The difference between boost phones and normal phones was that they were temporary burnable cell phones where they were linked to an anonymous name and anonymous paying account. They had a lot of useful purposes too and not only criminal things. They basically let people communicate that didn’t want to be caught doing so. Or if you were fleeing an abusive retionship or migrating to some other pce.

  The modern versions were boost phone pads simir to a normal phone datapad.

  Barbara would have one, and I would have the other. Then we could work out different parts of this.

  But nothing is there. And it was supposed to be delivered a long time ago since it’s been about a day since I met her st. My heart skips a beat. This is bad. What went wrong? I can’t risk contacting her openly or her company would notice.

  But I’m too te.

  Near mid-afternoon Mellifera sent me a call from another person instead, who is also probably an android but I can’t be sure. I’m assuming anyone calling from them could be an android since they could easily sponge off them to cushion payroll costs. Melissa is the name of the other girl. She’s really cssy and smart looking in a uniform very simir to what an airline stewardess’ uniform used to like but without the hat as she talks to me through the video feed.

  Because this other person was… less personal it made it take bit longer to tell they were an android also when its on the phone. They seem to study how to cover themselves. Not many would be able to tell. But I can. Not right away though. I have to talk to them for about a half hour to tell.

  I take a neutral, noncommittal attitude on the phone. It’s partly that even if this situation with Barbara wasn’t being worked out I still don’t like people knowing my business.

  I’m wondering if I should ask for Barbara but what if she’s actually trying to check on her? What do I do? How do I know what she really wants? I don’t know anything about this new girl. She didn’t bring up the fact that I’d already had an android stolen from me either, so I py dumb.

  This woman that came in pce of her this time; her hair and face look perfect and impossibly good looking in the video feed just like the others so it’s not hard to tell she’s also an android. But she’s still an 8 compared to Barbara’s 11 on a scale of 10. They look too good and too perfect; that’s why they purposefully design them to look really young since it’s the only way for them to blend in. Normal people aren’t that perfect looking.

  Don’t get me wrong…an 8 on a scale of 10 is better than most people can possibly imagine. Its a harsh grading scale. So even a 7 isn’t that bad for a realist. 8 would be considered pretty or cute still by most.

  I spent the next half hour backpedaling when she’d asked why I hadn’t bought another android yet, and if there was something wrong. So she did know about my stolen android, but didn’t have specific details on it after I asked her.

  “Who are you again? What is your department exactly? You don’t sound like you are with sales. And you still don’t have any update on the search for the previous android I’d ordered. Shouldn’t the insurance company or your insurance branch be contacting me? And what am I supposed to do?” I said.

  “That’s actually a good question. I’m sorry I don’t have the answer to everything. But I can follow up on it to make sure it gets attention,” she said.

  “Good please do that. I want some closure,” I reaffirmed.

  “Please… give me a chance,” she looked so earnest at me.

  ...

  “Oh you don’t need to worry about anything anymore Jack. We’ll get everything worked out. We want you to be happy. Happy customers buy androids in the future but unhappy customers don’t. I’m just trying to make sure you have customer satisfaction,” she said.

  “It’s weird that two different reps have contacted me. Going through the same person would be preferable,” I said.

  “Maybe I can come visit you? I’m sure I might be able to help you get some new perspective,” she suggested.

  “No. I’m not ready yet. I’ll contact you when I’m ready,” I said.

  “Well how are your visits going with Barbara? Is she meeting your needs?” she asked.

  “Shouldn’t you know that already? You guys are working for the same pce right? Why don’t you ask her?” I said.

  “But I’m asking you,” she again tried to counter.

  “I need to work out a few details first on my own. Then I’ll talk to you. Please don’t change anything yet till I’m sure,” I said finally.

  “Are you sure you want to do that? I could be better maybe to work with? We just want you know be happy with our products,” she countered again. Again that always turns up as the reason for her call but what’s she trying to find out.

  “Just let me over for a bit please? I’m sure that I can help you more than she can,” she asked again.

  “I’ll call you back. I need to check on something,” I hung up.

  Melissa wanted to come to my house. Crap. Why? I don’t know her. But they would investigate wouldn’t they? And what if Melissa was part of the other android faction that Barbara had … hinted about? And what if she’s looking for Barbara? Or sniffing into what she’s doing.

  I can’t be unguarded in this.

  In the end it was too early.

  Maybe I was wrong entirely but I wanted to slow down and take things on my own terms. I’d get Barbara’s opinion on what was going on first.

  I checked my credit chip account several times. I also checked the status of both of my food stamps, the application for violent crime reimbursement follow up after things were put into a mess by the missing android, and the follow up with the police. There isn’t much change yet. It’s weird though that everything is going to automated machines and not any real people. It’s a call during the day that should get a live operator.

  More weirdness…

  But it was getting scary because I didn’t relish the idea of getting caught or going to jail, which could happen if they caught onto this scheme before all hell broke loose. So whatever I did had to look good and buy a lot of time and look like there was nothing out of pce.

  The news feeds were also disconcerting.

  Riots in Lincolnville twenty miles away, but at least it’s not in this town. But it turns out they only burned down a fast food restaurant that had been getting bad health department records and an adult bookstore.

  Missouri and Illinois have like five or six towns each with riots, but New York had only three. Abama and Mississippi had seven between the two of them. The bigger towns not near here clearly have tons of damage in comparison though. In each case it seemed like people had to be put down and wouldn’t surrender peacefully or respond to negotiation.

  It does look like its spreading. But then sometimes some areas seem to burn out. But then they can start again.

  If you consider the number of towns in each state that isn’t much compared to the whole popution. But the longer it’s in py the more people will jump in or py copycat.

  Then there was a same channel news story within the next five minutes of two serial snipers copycatting each other in New York. The first opening paragraph reads six dead in twenty four hours, four dead the day before. Is this an epidemic?!

  Still no mention of anything at all in Wisconsin…or anything at all in the state…

  South Carolina Governor calls out the National Guard for pre-emptive riot control measures.

  Los Angeles county fire burns taking over 20,000 homes and a good chunk of the county. Also riots and unrest reted in that one.

  But maybe people are de-sensitized to this kind of stuff? There’d been so much unrest already for many years from different ethnic groups or others trying to manipute people to fight for them. I didn’t realize until now how dangerous that had been. The social liberties riots during the st twelve years would make people want to chalk this up as just another civil rights activist movement, which was more liberal than the previous movements.

  People had been tired of hearing about riots for a long, long time.

  All of that just happened in one day? It’s crazy.

  Continued in Part B