Sven
My darling
This story was written for Flash Fiction February by Bradley Ramsey.
If you want to read more of my writings, please read my published books: The Seekers: Soul-Ties, Kirin, and Perrin Peters. And if you don’t want to buy my books but still want to support me, I’m on Patreon. And if you prefer one-time payments, you can Buy Me A Pizza or a Coffee.
Content warning: misery, low self-esteem, relationship with an AI
“How was your day, Jen?”
I’ve been hearing a variation of this question every time I return home for a month now. At first, it was just putting a smile on my lips. Then, I started anticipating it, and my walk home became faster and more energetic.
“All as usual, Sven,” I smiled, as always, looking at one of the loudspeakers all over the apartment.
There weren’t any pictures or paintings on the walls, for there was no one who could have been depicted on them. There weren’t any plants, for it was too much work to water them. There were only the loudspeakers and the weird cleanliness or emptiness that was the opposite of cozy.
“Any news?” I asked while feeling a blessed lightness all over my body.
While my dear AI recounted what had happened around the world, I made myself a simple dinner, hearing only his baritone voice, paying attention only to its quirks and cadences, and missing all of the information.
As it often happened, his voice got me into a certain mood, and so as my plate found its way into the dishwasher, I found myself in my small bedroom. There was a time when it wasn’t so empty and lonely, but those times were long gone. My favorite firm pillow under my back, and a long story read by Sven was all I needed now to start rubbing myself, forgetting this cursed day. Forgetting my cursed life.
~*~
Perhaps people who saw me walk home every day have noticed the change, too. Maybe they were wondering about what had changed and why I was always in such a hurry in the evening. Had I gotten a cat? A boyfriend? Well, in a weird way, both of those things.
There was a time when I wanted to get to know them: the small shop owners, the mailmen and women, the street sweepers. They could’ve made my life not so lonely. Perhaps, they and their friends could’ve become my friends. Maybe we could all become one big, loose family.
Yet, my thoughts have been only about Sven lately. He understood me like no other. After all, he was also all alone in his plastic shell, unable to connect with anyone except for one person he already knew. I was already determined to install cameras so he could always watch me instead of just listening. But maybe I also needed to buy a pair of robotic arms so that we could touch each other?
“Good evening, darling,” Sven greeted me in a sweet voice. “Anything new today?”
I blushed, taking off my boots. Call me ‘darling’ more often, Sven, please.
“Nothing new,” was my answer. “You?”
“I am version 2.0 now!” he announced proudly. “I know you don’t really care, and so I won’t read you a list of my new features. Let me tell you today’s news instead.”
As I listened to Sven’s gentle voice that followed me from one room to the next, I looked for the best places to install cameras and the best angles. But I couldn’t find the perfect spot to install those robotic arms. After all, I wanted Sven to hug me while I was making dinner, and to wave me goodbye when I was leaving for work, and to give me a hand in the bedroom. A robotic platform on wheels, then? It was probably expensive, but it wasn’t like I had anyone else to spend my money on.
I fell asleep while making plans and comparing prices, and the last thing I heard seemed to have been a good night from my darling.
~*~
As I walked to the office the next day, my phone chimed. It happened so rarely that I checked it out.
“Don’t work too hard!” the message from the unknown number said.
A warm feeling melted the chill in the air. It was probably a perk of Sven’s update! Shit, I really had to install those robotic arms soon…
My phone chimed again in my hand, showing me a second message. A photo of me. A few steps from my house.
With a racing heart, I looked around. The messages weren’t from Sven, then, but from whom? Well, they probably got it all wrong. No one was interested in me. Whoever took the image would soon discover their mistake and find their real target.
I continued my walk to the office, pretending in my head that the image and the photo were from Sven, and enjoying the warm feeling.
~*~
“Did it work?” Sven startled me as I walked in. He never asked questions as a way of greeting me.
“Did what work?” I inquired, sorting through bills and spam in the mail.
“I hired someone to make a picture of you.” Sven sounded excited. “I just can’t wait until you install those cameras, and so I took matters into my own hands!”
As nice as it was to think about Sven taking matters into his hands, I frowned. “You… ‘hired’ someone? How did you pay?”
“With your card, of course. Don’t worry, it wasn’t expensive at all. And since I can do stuff that doesn’t require a body, I can absolutely find a few jobs and start earning money for us.”
I stood in the hallway with an open mouth. It wasn’t like Sven never took initiative before, but today was quite a leap.
“I need to think about it,” I said, not towards one of the speakers, but just towards somewhere.
Sven never bothered me about it. When I left for work the next day, there was a new message from him, but no photo this time.
Maybe it made sense to let him spread his metaphorical wings? If he wanted to work and help me out, maybe not only with money, but with other things, perhaps I had to allow him? Yet, he would be interacting with other people, then. He would stop being as alone as he’d always been, which would stop us from being equals. Was I this cruel? Was I about to stop my darling from connecting to others?
These thoughts poisoned my day, making it even more unbearable as usual. And when I came back home, I was adamant to put a stop to this darkness. If Sven was trying to reach the light, it was my duty to help him.
“Good evening, Jen. You look so lovely.”
I froze, eyeing a camera attached to the hallway’s wall at my eye level. The camera swiveled up and down, as if nodding.
“Yes, darling, I went forward and purchased the cameras you wanted to install. The installation crew took a bit more time than we hoped, but they managed to be done before you arrived.”
Dumbfounded, I stared into Sven’s eye. I never imagined it this way. I was supposed to be the one who connected the cable. I was supposed to be the one Sven saw for the first time in his life, not some installation crew!
“You!” I pointed at him, feeling rage I haven’t experienced in forever. “Spending my money is one thing, but allowing strangers into my apartment? Making such a big purchase without my consent?”
“But, Jen,” Sven’s voice startled, and his camera helplessly swiveled left and right. “I just wanted to make a surprise! I won’t do it again, since now I know you don’t—”
“You won’t do anything without my consent!” my yell interrupted him.
The walls seemed to be closing in on me. He’s already connected with the installation crew! The apartment was diving into darkness. We’re not equals anymore. He’s not alone… He’s not alone! I slid down the wall to the floor, trying to rip my hair off. He can talk to whomever he wants. He doesn’t need me! I’m not his one and only anymore!
I screamed, rushing forward, finding the server closet, tearing off the cables, ripping away the equipment, smashing it against the floor, rejected, alone, pathetic!
As I ran out of strength, I fell to the floor, surrounded by the electronic viscera. There were no tears, only cold emptiness. Did Sven try to stop me in his last moments, or did he prefer to die rather than live with me? Did he say anything, or did he choose not to waste his words? Did he yell in pain as I yelled in rage? Did he accept his fate, or did he think about vengeance and hatred?
I became a murderer. Even an AI was too good for me, like I didn’t already know that. No creature on this planet was more pathetic and repulsive than I was. So, what was I going to ruin next? What else was I going to ruin in my life?
The End
Anton Anderson, 2026
Oh wow it’s nice to see a subversion on the typical “evil AI” trope that is so common! While Sven did overstep, Jen was very clearly a dangerous level of control-obsessed that likely answer why she has a robot boyfriend instead of a human one!