Chapter 13 - Girlfriend

Too curious, my eyes were glued to his back as I watched him join the splendid woman outside. She wore bright red lipstick and a small golden hoop around her nostril, shining against her black skin.

Was she a friend? A colleague? Maybe a—She kissed him!

A small gasp of surprise escaped my lips.

Both her hands got around his shoulders and she planted a kiss on each of his cheeks!

I barely listened when Styla told me I didn't need to change into trial garments since my bodysuit was tight enough already. She asked me to turn to the biggest mirror, and from there, I could still keep an eye on V and his friend.

I couldn't believe it! Did he have a girlfriend? The woman looked perplexed when she saw me. Was she perhaps not aware that V had bought a Love Machina?

Styla swiped through various styles on her tablet and my reflection in the mirror changed each time. For the first time in my life, I saw myself in a dress, a crop top, leggings, and more types of clothes I had never even heard of before. It didn't matter that the suit covered my whole figure, the mirror seemed to guess what my arms and legs' skin tone would be. Even the way I moved was reflected in the clothes. The draping of a long dress followed my movements or the long sleeves of a top floated around my arms.

In the distance, the woman and V kept talking, her bright smile contrasting with his nervous face. Her eyes came to me a few more times, and every time, I looked away.

She seemed as curious about me as I was about her.

The next minute, they walked away together.

What was happening?

"Try to pick colors that will complement your partner's wardrobe," Styla suggested when she asked to pick a color palette.

I ticked at the word partner. Was this truly what I was? I thought back to the couple in the loop, smiling and holding hands as they looked at the tablet between them.

Feeling clueless, I chose colors I had seen at the owner's home, like the kitchen's pastel blue, the room's pale orange, or the bathroom's soft yellow. I figured I might as well try to blend into the household like any other appliance.

Real prototypes of the clothes Styla had decided were best for my figure began to arrive in the drawers of the booth. Opaque draping fell around the podium and she asked me to change into a "blush pink summer dress, perfect for an afternoon shopping spree".

As I zipped it up, I heard a polite cough on the other side of the drapes.

"Can I come in?" I heard the owner's voice.

He was back.

"Of course, we're almost done here," Styla answered, and the next second, the draping opened. The soft fabric spun around my knees as I turned to see him.

He was alone.

His eyes were over me already. They seemed to detail me at first, from head to toe, before blinking fast. His eyebrows lifted slightly, his lips parting as if in surprise.

The next second, he had already recomposed the stern look on his face as he glanced down at the white box in his hands.

"This will be useful," he said, placing the box on the podium and opening it.

The short dress exposed my legs and feet, making me feel vulnerable while I was so high up. I dropped to my knees to bring us closer to the same height. Sitting on my heels now, the light fabric spread around me like a soft cover.

He removed a pair of clear glasses from the box. They resembled his own, though their color and shape were slightly different.

"Single earring pieces are more popular these days," Styla interjected. A sparkling earring materialized around her ear as she spoke. "Just like the glasses, the temple tip uses bone conduction for sound." She tilted her head, showing how the earring rested gently against her cheekbone.

"But there's no vision feature," V answered flatly.

"True," Styla said, with a professional smile.

As he unfolded the glasses, it just happened that they aimed in my direction, as if he was about to put them on me. I leaned forward, offering my face, the same way I would at the clinic, giving my arm for a pressure test or opening my mouth for a saliva sample.

He hesitated, seeming surprised, and I realized he had probably intended to only hand the glasses to me. But it was too late already. He followed my lead and gently slid the glasses onto my ears, pushing them until the bridge rested on my nose.

"Like this?" I asked, nudging them higher up my nose.

His eyes fluttered as he took a small step behind. He seemed to consider the whole image of me for a second, and again, I wondered how I must have looked, with these glasses on, sitting on my heels in this pretty pink fabric wrapped around me.

"Y-Yes. Like this," he cleared his throat, looking at his tablet again. "The glasses are connecting with your tablet now," he explained. "You can use them together to navigate, check the feed... or contact me if needed."

He paused, considering me again.

"I really have to get to work now. Can you manage on your own?" he asked, with that same look that seemed to wonder again whether it was safe or not to leave me alone.

I nodded quickly, not fully accustomed to the feeling of the glasses on my face.

He got the satchel he had left in the booth back on his shoulder and walked back. Behind him, the screen animated to show attractive men holding all kinds of tablet covers in their hands.

"Thank you for your work," he said to Styla, and this one looked slightly surprised by his courtesy.

He disappeared through the glass doors, but his head popped back in before they could close.

"Don't forget to eat," he said quickly before vanishing for good this time.

I remained quiet as Styla showed me some options for shoes.

My thoughts, however, were already elsewhere, trying to understand this man I was now sharing a home with. 

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🗓️ Next chapters: this Thursday, July 17th 🗓️