The haptic kiss

To brighten a sad drive home

by Mike Meyer

She walked to the car and a sad wind answered before the question was asked. The car opened its door and welcomed her home. She sensed it wanted to dance. That was strange.

No foolishness now, she told it, but a scenic route home would be nice. The car literally paused to take the hint and a drive that avoided the new and featured the old. How nice, she told it, you knew.

Yes, Madeline, of course.

You have my memories, at least some, right?

Only the public transportation parts but in some ways I know your places, happy and sad and points in between, by your emotions going and coming.

You remember my emotions? I didn’t know. How does that work?

Only your public emotions and that only by pheromones, facial modeling, and comparative analysis. It’s included so we know when you are unhappy, frightened, sad, or sick and can ask if you need assistance.

And you use that to guess what I want? What’s the name of what you have chosen? Or does it only have a number?

It has both. 3489736 tagged to auxiliary elements on your account but also “I remember your kiss”, for when you return in the late afternoon with some sadness.

How sweet, she exclaimed with a smile. But which kiss?

Madeleine, I don’t know. But a kiss, we surmise, happened on this route. That building right there.

She laughed as they passed on old Starbucks where she had spent many afternoons while designing the first of her optional worlds. And there had been a kiss, a very sweet kiss with Jersey, but only the first of many later.

He had inspired that world but had left before it was complete. Some sadness but not much. These things are not all driven by or ruined by passion.

Wait, you must know that it was Jersey who was here with me.

Yes, we surmised that but you never know. You may have kissed someone else you cared for here or may wish to think of another kiss that we don’t know. But it happened or was remembered here and was important to you.

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