Back Slide

Tonight's dinner with Kenny's parents is supposed to be special, because Kenny's great uncle, his grandfather's younger brother, is returning from living off world. But Kenneth fell off the wagon last night.

And he fell hard after Duke called him last night.

"Kenny, my man, where have you been," asked Duke. "Haven't seen you in nearly three months. And you haven't called and arranged any poker parties. Are you sick or something?"

"No. No," Kenneth answered. "I'm fine. I've just been busy."

"Too busy to hang out with your best buds," asked Duke.

"I've just been… preoccupied. That's all."

"Kenny," Wise called as she stepped into the room. "Kenny, I need… Oh, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to interrupt your call." Then she stepped back out of the room.

"Who was that," asked Duke smiling nefariously. He'd gotten a good glimpse of a very beautiful woman.

"Nobody you know," answered Kenny.

"I know what's going on," Duke smiled wryly at Kenny from the screen. "You've met a woman and she has you P-whooped already. Bet she made you get rid of your favorite little sexbot and everything."

"You've got everything all wrong," insisted Kenny.

"Listen," Duke told Kenny, "I understand. You're not the first guy this has happened to. I understand the little woman won't let you come out and play."

"I can still go out anytime I want."

"Can you," inquired Duke with a smirk.

"Of course I can."

"Then how about tonight? Can you come out and play tonight, Kenny Boy," Duke asked teasingly.

"Yes, of course."

"I'll pick you up in about an hour," Duke smiling as he ended the call. Duke had deliberately pushed all of Kenneth's "I'm the man" buttons leaving Kenneth confused and frustrated. Making him feel like he has something to prove.

Kenneth sought Wisdom out immediately after Duke's call in this state of mind. He found her in the kitchen preparing to make dinner. He stripped her naked right there in the kitchen. And despite his rough handling of her, she had called out his name and orgasmed for him.

As he leaned over her catching his breath, Wise asked him, "What's wrong?"

"Nothing," he answered pulling away from her.

Wise knew something was wrong as she picked up their clothes from the kitchen floor. She didn't know what was wrong. Just that Kenny had been fine before his call with the man in the dark sunglasses she glimpsed when she accidentally interrupted their call.

She carried their clothes back to their bathroom. Kenny was in the shower. She put their dirty clothes into the correct dirty clothesbaskets according to color. Then she slipped on her robe and sat on the edge of the bed wondering what was bothering Kenny. Wondering how or if she could help him.

Kenny dressed hastily and Wise said, "I know something's wrong. Is there anything I can do?"

"No," he answered flatly.

"Did I do something?"

That look of distressed concern on her face wasn't fair. It made his heart ache. It wasn't fair she could make him feel like that when her feelings weren't real, were they? But he answered, "No. It's not you," and he kissed her.

Duke beeped his car horn. Kenneth furrowed his brow.

"I'm going out," he told Wisdom walking away from her. "Don't wait up."

Wisdom followed him outside, but not down the steps. The man in the black sunglasses from the call was behind the steering wheel of the car. The man's smile sent a chill down Wisdom's back. She didn't want Kenny to go with that man and she watched helplessly as Kenny got into the car.

"Nice piece," Duke complimented Kenneth as he leered at Wisdom. "If I had a petite little piece like that, I wouldn't mind spending more time at home myself. She's a little thick for my taste, but that's actually supposed to make the sex better."

Kenneth's response was, "Bones are for dogs. Steak is for men. I'm a man and I like my steak thick."

Duke laughed at Kenneth's response and drove Kenneth to the home he won from him just to rub salt in the wound. Kenneth didn't like the changes he saw made to the cozy two bedroom, two and a half bath home. He would have preferred to be in one of the casino's private poker rooms. He was uncomfortable; even though, there wasn't anything going on here he hadn't seen or participated in before. Other players had brought along their sexbots and whores, plenty of booze and drugs around.

Kenneth has never been into drugs. He did accept a proffered cigar and he drank. He drank hoping the discomfort he felt would disappear. Hoping that this familiar situation would stop feeling foreign. Hoping that he would stop feeling like he shouldn't be here, that he didn't belong there.

Kenneth drank heavily. He drank much more than he ever drank before because that niggling feeling he didn't belong there wouldn't go away. And he's not a good gambler when he's drunk. Plus, Duke wouldn't stop poking at him about his piece.

"Come on, man," Duke insisted, "Tell us her name."

"Wisdom," he finally shared unhappily.

"Wisdom," Duke repeated with a sly smile. "I sure could use me some Wisdom."

Duke tried to pick more information from Kenneth about Wisdom like: where was she from, how did he meet her, how old was she, etc. But Kenneth was tight lipped. He just kept drinking and making bad wagers.

Finally, sick of Duke and the others teasing him and prying, Kenneth blurted out angrily, "She's not real! She's a gift from my parents. A sexbot upgrade. So you can all just drop it. Just drop it."

Duke found this very interesting. She looked like a real female to him. But he only glimpsed her while they were on the phone and she was a good distance away when he picked Kenneth up. Sometimes you couldn't tell the difference until you were up on one. Close enough to see, smell and feel that the skin and hair were synthetic. So, Duke left it alone for a little while.

Kenneth got drunker and drunker by the minute and he was loosing. Duke had already won a whole house from Kenneth. And he was curious as to what else he could get out of Kenneth tonight besides money. When Duke thought the timing was right, he said, "Let's make things interesting, Kenny. I've won enough of your money tonight. What's say you throw in your new toy?"

"No, way. Are you crazy? If I lost Wisdom in a poker game, my parents would never forgive me. She was really expensive."

Duke knew it wasn't often Kenneth used the word expensive. The man had so much money, that God came to him when he needed a loan. But Kenneth wasn't going to put up his toy. Duke could see that so he changed his request, "Fine, you win this hand and you can do what ever you want with any of my toys or whores. I win this hand, then I get to play with your toy when I take you home."

Kenneth shrugged, "Alrigh…" and belched nastily.

Duke was excited as he drove Kenneth home. He was anxious to try out Kenneth's upgraded toy. And deep down in the pit of his stomach, Kenny was sick. Not because he drank too much, and he had. He was sick at the thought of what he'd done. Bet Wisdom, or rather the use of her like she was property. But she is property, isn't she?

Except, she doesn't feel like property. And he was sick at the thought of Duke touching her intimately. And angry, Kenneth was seething.

As they stepped inside the house, Duke asked, "So, where does it sit and charge?"

"She should be in bed," and Kenneth led the way. "Lamp on," and the lamps in the master bedroom came on. Wisdom stirred in her sleep and Kenneth motioned toward her.

Duke was confused as he walked around to where what was supposed to be a sexbot was lying in bed to charge. Yet it wasn't plugged in anywhere that he could see. And it certainly wouldn't bother to close it's eyes to charge. Then he notices the rise and fall of her chest and he knows sexbots don't breath. He could see the skin and hair were real not synthetic. And only a real woman smelled this good. He spotted the engagement ring on her finger as he touched her silky hair. Then he touched her cheek and her eyes fluttered open.

Wisdom shrieked in surprised fear, "Oh!" She quickly scooted away from the man discovering she was still in bed by herself. She spotted Kenny and scampered over to him, "Kenny, thank goodness."

Kenneth drunk and angry grabbed her by the hair, which elicited another shocked frightened yelp from her. Then with an unhappy sneer he told her, "I lost a bet," and shoved her toward Duke.

Wisdom stumbled, but didn't fall. She backed away from the strange man into the wall. He placed his hands on the wall on both sides of her. He hovered over her inhaling her delicious scent and admiring the ample breasts under the t-shirt.

"How do you know Kenny," Duke asked.

"I'm his fiancée. We've known each other since we were children."

"How long have you been engaged?"

"Five years," Wise answered.

"I'm sorry I've frightened you. This is just a really, really bad joke. Kenny's really, really drunk and I'm pretty drunk too." He stepped away from Wise and she slid down to the floor in tears.

Duke stepped over to Kenneth. He slipped down his sunglasses enough to look Kenneth in the eyes. Duke's eye are the only indication he's not entirely human, "You really do know how to keep a secret, man. This isn't even funny, Kenny. I don't do rape. If you're that tired of her, just tell her. Don't torture her. She's a lady. Not a whore or a sexbot. Nobody puts a rock like that on the finger of a toy. Not funny, man. Not funny." Duke pushed his sunglasses back into place and left.

Confused and angry, Kenneth stood over Wisdom. She slid back up from the floor not knowing what to do or expect.

Confusing questions slung themselves through Kenny's head. Why wasn't the gambling and partying fun anymore? Why wasn't he interested in any of the toys or females at the party? What was happening to him? His thoughts during the poker game had been all about Wisdom. He couldn't focus on his game because he kept thinking about how roughly he had handled her before he left. He had been careful not to bruise her or hurt her in any way, but he still hadn't been nice. And he left without much of an explanation. Left her standing there looking worried and confused. Could she really be feeling anything? It was all just part of her programming, right? Nothing she was feeling was real, right? She's just a fancy upgrade, right? Then why did he feel bad about the way he had treated her earlier? Why did he feel guilty about offering use of her as part of a wager? Why did he feel like a cruel bastard for grabbing her by the hair and shoving her toward Duke? Why did the thought of Duke or any other man touching her bother him so badly? She's not real, he thought to himself. She's just a fancy toy for his entertainment, for his enjoyment and pleasure, he thought to himself.

In his drunken, confused, angry haze, Kenneth decided to prove it to himself. That Wisdom was nothing more than a toy for his use. He grabbed Wisdom with both hands by the hair.

Wisdom cried out in shock and pain and begged, "Kenny, please, you're hurting me."

He shoved her down onto the bed and pushed himself between her legs. And when Wisdom realized what he was about to do, she begged again, "For heavens sake, Kenny, don't! Not like this. Please, don't touch me like this." Then Kenneth passed out on top of her.

Wisdom covered her mouth with one hand to muffle her own crying as she pulled the fingers of her other hand through his beautiful smooth black hair. She didn't get much sleep. She wondered if something like this had ever happened before. Was this something that had been blocked out by the amnesia? But she couldn't block out his mumbling throughout the night. He mumbled that it wasn't fair, he loved her but she couldn't love him. Leaving Wisdom wondering how he could possibly think she didn't love him.