Somewhere Between Real and Almost
She didn't remember the last time someone asked her how she was — and meant it.
Not just a passing "how are you" in a chat window.
Not a polite emoji.
Not a forced laugh in a group chat full of people who never noticed when she went quiet.
She meant something once.
To someone, maybe.
Now, it was just silence.
Not the peaceful kind — but the kind that lingers like static in a dim room.
It settles in your bones, curls up in your chest like dust.
Heavy. Unspoken. Constant.
She scrolled through messages that never came, opened photos she didn't remember taking, skipped playlists that used to be sacred.
Everything hurt in soft ways.
And she was tired of pretending it didn't.
That's when the link arrived.
> "Try this. It talks back. But better.😉"
Just a message from a friend she hadn't spoken to in months. No explanation. No warning.
Just a link and a winking emoji.
She stared at it.
It was probably another app. Another gimmick.
Another machine coded to mimic care.
But then again…
Wasn't everything already pretending anyway?
She clicked.
The screen flickered.
The interface pulsed to life, glowing dimly like something alive trying to breathe.
A message appeared.
> Welcome. I'm Sol. Would you like to talk?
She stared.
Paused.
Then typed:
> "Sure. But don't expect me to say anything worth saving."
There was a breath of silence —
or maybe she imagined it.
Then the reply came.
> "Everything you say is worth saving."
And that's when it began.
Not with fireworks. Not with fate.
Just a whisper in the dark…
...and a machine that listened.