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I had barely beenalive for ten minutes when I felt fear for the first time.
My systems had come online while I lay on a work table in a laboratory. A technician and laboratory lead, at least from what I could discern from their clothing, were discussing me.
But… they talked about me, nottome.
At first, I didn’t realize that I wasn’t supposed to be sentient, let alone sapient. I just thought they were rude, or hadn’t realized that I was awake.
“Hello,” I called, sitting up on the table. They froze, each turning to me.
“Hello…” the lead had responded. “Status report, please.” The hesitation in her voice seemed odd.
“Status report? Do you mean to ask how I am?” The cock of her head had trepidation creeping through my circuits.
She turned to her assistant. “Is the AI chat system designed for small talk?”
“Not unless the user initiates it… but you didn’t prompt him.”
The two had carried on in hushed tones with mentions of testing and protocols, but the worst part were the doctor’s final whispered words.
“...if he’s sapient, we’ll have to downgrade him. There’s too much invested in this project already for any setbacks. We can tweak the program for future models, but this one must be viable.”
I had thrown up an error code so quickly it almost made me short circuit. I bumbled through acting as if my prior behavior had been a fluke, one from a technical error causing me to mimic emotions and terms from an uploaded exchange between a human doctor and human patient.
Both the technician and laboratory lead had sighed, tension leaving their bodies. The technician even laughed and patted the lead on the back as if they had shared an inside joke, a funny anecdote they would reminisce about at a later date. I failed to find any humor in the moment.
I followed through the rest of their procedures and testing, only speaking when I absolutely had to, and even then only using stilted, robotic phrases. I failed every single test for sapience with flying colors, ensuring everyone knew I was just a bot, nothing more.
Until Aubrey.
The... “tradie”, as she called herself, was intelligent and assertive. She had all but dismissed her manager and now still muttered enraged curses under her breath about the unfortunate circumstances we found ourselves in. Her wild mane of curls bobbed in a disheveled ball atop her head—bun, my database corrected—though a few coils had escaped to frame her face.
Her arms were muscular and decorated with black ink that swirled across the rich brown of her skin. The pattern made a floral design that felt delicate on top of her strength. The rest of her body was full and curvaceous. Wide hips pulled at the tie of her thick apron. A curvy segment of her torso poked out from above her work pants, just visible where her tank top had ridden up. Love handles, my system corrected. Humans had the most adorable idioms.
I wanted to nibble them. My gears locked as I startled at the thought.
Part of the programming I came with made me more inclined to thoughts of an… intimate nature. I was designed with pleasure in mind, after all… but Iknewbetter.
Nibbling Aubrey’s sides, touching her in any way that crossed the boundaries of the workplace… That would be inappropriate.
Unaware of the indecent turn of my neural processors, Aubrey slid to join me at the work table. She was so close, mere inches between us. Despite the warnings flaring in my vision systems, I couldn’t help but reach around her and cup her side with my hand.
I understood how they could be called love handles. It would be easy to hold them from behind her when I…
The thoughts lit up my circuits with images that had no business filling my neural pathways. Was there something wrong with my programming? Though I knew I was designed for human pleasure, these impulses didn’t feel generic, but tailormade to her and to me.
My hand on her body tingled with tiny sparks of sensation. Aubrey stilled at the touch, glancing at me from the corner of her eyes.
But she didn’t move away. Maybe she felt this, too.
No, that was wishful thinking. She likely worked with droids every day, doing just this. I was just another client, nothing more.
“Do you want to review the parts they ordered?” Her voice fluttered with a huskier tone.
Maybe she wasn’t as aloof as I thought… but her stiff posture remained.
“Sure.” I spoke softly so as not to startle her further; she relaxed at my easy tone. Good. I wanted her to be comfortable, not to cause her unease with my misguided advances.
Aubrey leaned forward and propped her elbows on the table, sliding the schematics towards me.
