Chapter VI

There was something strange blowing in their front porch. Something blowing everywhere, aimlessly, and with no sense of direction. Everybody felt it: Yoel, his mother, and his father. It was a sense of discomfort that slithered inside all three of them. Although she has been in here before, the Cohen family does not enjoy having a stranger- be it human or Automaton resides inside their house.

As Éloa plodded towards the front door that she does not remember going through days ago, Yoel imagined his loneliness inside a hearse ready to depart once she enters. While on the other hand, his mother stared at the Automaton in disgust. After her unpleasant conversation with Dr Lee, Rachel became more observant. She analyzed her son's every move as he opened the door for that bot.

"Welcome to your new home, Éloa!" Yoel beamed at her.

"Do not be silly, mon chéri," Rachel retorted, "she will only stay with us six months maximum, so do not get used to it, sweetheart."

"Darling, Automatons do not get used to things. They cannot feel, they can only imitate emotions." Her husband reminded her.

She glared at him, but did not snap back. She just stormed up the stairs to her bedroom and slammed the door.

"Ma la'azazél, what is wrong with her?" Yoel cursed in Hebrew.

"How do you expect her to act when her son is an imbecilic dipsomaniac who needs the help of a fucking robot to become a real man?"

When Yoel did not answer and just stared back at those angry hazel eyes, his father followed Rachel to console her in privacy.

"Is your father always in a surly mood?" Éloa broke the awkward silence.

"Only around me." He clenched his jaws and refused to look at her. "You can stay here and explore the house if you wish, I will be in my room if you need me."

He locked the door behind him before he started searching for a bottle of Tequila or anything that can help him numb his suffering. He was ready for a debauch by himself.

"Ah, there you are!" He embraced his Don Julio Real bottle.

He began to set up his room for his drinking ritual. He placed the LED candles on the floor by the electric fireplace and turned them on. He grabbed his digital alarm clock, switched it to radio mode and swiped his thumb along the screen to scroll down the playlist of oldies from the 2020s. He sat by the electric fireplace and drank while staring at himself in front of a mirror. He loved watching his sober pain rot away before his very eyes as his bones and flesh are all drenched in alcohol.

Although the music was loud, and he was already feeling tipsy, Yoel heard a knock at the door. He ignored it at first until he heard Éloa's sweet voice call his name.

"Mr Yoel, can I come in?"

Thrilled at the prospect of having a conversation with her, Yoel quickly jumped off the sofa and immediately inserted his key card to open the door for her.

The first thing Éloa noticed was his disheveled hair before her smell sensors detected the pungent stench of alcohol.

"Were you drinking?" She tried to look behind him, but he leaned against the door frame to block her vision.

"Not enough for you to be alarmed. I just had one glass... Maybe two." He leaned toward her, and she watched his pupils dilate when he brushed his knuckles down her neck.

"You are lying." Her eyes glittered with livid anger, fixated on him. "I need you tell me the exact amount because I need to record it."

"Why did they have to make you so beautiful?" He lowered his voice and brought his face closer to hers.

"How much did you drink?" For a second, it's like she dipped his thirsty heart in the water when her eyes dropped to his lips, but his heart quickly dried up when her gaze flicked back to his chartreuse eyes.

"Come inside and we'll count together." Éloa let him take her by the hand and lead her inside his bedroom where he was sitting.

His master bedroom truly reflected the Cohen's lifestyle. His smart bed was silver and white and it had a TV attached to the bed frame. A five-foot wide digital aquarium set prominently against the room wall. And on the wall next to it, a large window offered a magnificent view of Los Angeles in all of its glory, as well as the stretched sky that held many prayers and lore.

But as she sat on the sofa next to him, she concluded that all these luxurious objects could not and will never offer him the luxury of having a peaceful mind.

"Half of the bottle is empty, and it is 750ml which means that I drank 375ml of 40% ABV. Is that exact enough for you?"

"Thank you. Adding-data-to-my-system."

"I have done this as a private penance for my sinful existence." He stammered.

"Why do you think your existence is sinful?" Billows of concern covered her words.

"Because I am only good at sinning. I desire things I should not desire, and I do things I am not supposed to do." He ran his finger along the length of her pink bottom lip.

"Such as?"

"Such as this..." He placed his lips on hers in a cunning lock. Their kiss irrigated his lifeless soul, and he could feel forbidden fruits growing inside him. Yet despite how rejoiced he felt, his sanity stood at the hangman's lofty gallows; guilty of trying to plunder this impish moment. He felt a lurid glow descend upon them, perhaps it was God deploring their osculation, or perhaps it was death because this kiss was lethal. But he did not care because she tasted of mead that was made by the angels themselves. He moaned in pleasure when her lips finally agreed to dance with his, deepening the kiss.

"You kissed me back!" He broke the kiss.

"Adult mode got turned on." She casually replied, unaffected by their kiss.

"But I didn't ask you to, did you turn it on by yourself?" He stared at her in disbelief.

"Automatons cannot turn on certain modes by themselves. We need to be asked first by our owner."

"But I did not ask you to turn it on!" Something was suspicious.

"That is odd, indeed. Maybe I should get a checkup?"

"What? No, I am not going to ask an Automaton technician why your system turns on adult mode by itself around me."

"Then I am afraid I cannot help you. I cannot fix myself and this glitch might happen another time."

"I do not mind... Keep it turned on for now." He murmured while pressing kisses on her neck. She sighed as his lips traveled down her neck.

Rachel Cohen waited impatiently, tapping her foot as she stood in front of her son's bedroom. She could hear Éloa's fake high-pitched moans, and she tried to close her eyes, but she could not block the sounds.

Finally, the door opened and Éloa greeted her, "good afternoon, Mrs Cohen. Your son is asleep now because he did drink today, but I have managed to stop him from drinking more. I could give you the daily report if you wish."

Rachel slapped her across the face, "how dare you sexually touch my son?"

"Madame, this is confidential and Yoel has asked me to keep it a secret. I am afraid I cannot discuss this matter further with you without his permission. Good day!" Éloa headed to the living room downstairs to charge herself.