Living under a rock

"S- So what are we doing for you?" Suzie asked.

I quickly procured my smartphone and requested they make it compatible with Viewtube.

"Seriously, that's it? Sheesh, it'll be done in 5," Delina grumbled as she summoned a holographic screen before her.

Suzie also did the same, however, neon lines appeared on her skin.

"Pretty cool, right? Suzie's actually a subspecies of humans known as a humdroidian. Delina is too, but Suzie's the current iteration," Irina grinned.

"Uh, what?"

Selina quickly jumped in and explained that humdroidians were akin to biological androids. They were also used as the basis for the current model of human evolution. Unlike humans, they were born in laboratory test tubes via mixing DNA of humans. Each one was born wired to the internet, which sounds crazy, but apparently humans are essentially living smartphones now, so this shouldn't surprise me.

It turned out that humans soon surpassed humdroidians in terms of evolution, thanks in no small part to biological mating between humans and humdroidians. Nowadays, humdroidians are apparently classified as those born via artificial means, while humans are classified as being born biologically regardless if one of the parents or ancestors is humdroidian. As for how to tell them apart, humdroidians each have those neon lines called, neonveins. Apparently anyone can get them, or things like them, but only humdroidians have them at birth. They're more like natural bioluminescence and apparently they can appear anywhere on a humdroidian's skin.

Delina however, didn't appear to have any, though apparently it was due to her being one of the first humdroidians conceived. That did make me curious as to how old Delina was, but it would be rude to just pop that question, especially since she's being nice and helping me.

But as if she could read my mind, Irina began to speak.

"So Delina's actually- Mmph!?"

To my surprise, a neon rectangle, akin to a piece of duct tape, suddenly appeared over Irina's mouth.

"Irina, you know what you were about to say would breach company privacy policy," Selena glared.

Irina responded with a shrug and plopped down on a chair, kicking her feet in the air while humming a muffled tune.

"In case you're wondering, that's a gag order that activates when someone attempts to say something they shouldn't."

That line got me a little worried. "Like, what do you mean by 'attempting to say something you shouldn't'"

"Oh, my apologies, I worded that poorly. It simply pertains to official contracts such as NDAs and such."

"Mmph!" Irina happily nodded as she did a double middle finger salute.

Then much to my shock, Selena herself said the f-word Irina was attempting to say, and with a smile on her face.

"See, it's OK to say derogatory words or phrases, but I would still caution against using such vulgar language with someone unfamiliar with you. While Freedom of speech is the law of the land, that doesn't mean everyone will take kindly to someone shouting derogatory phrases every waking second or insulting them for whatever reason."

"So that thing won't appear over my mouth if I said something... someone in power might deem inappropriate or a threat to their rule?"

"Oh no. In fact, the gag order only activated on Irina simply because she signed an NDA preventing her from discussing info about our clients publicly unless said client allows it. And in case you're wondering, it's active for about 5 minutes."

I'll admit, I've got a mixed opinion on this. On one hand, it's good that NDAs can't be breached, but on the other, someone being forcibly silenced doesn't sit well with me. Back during my travels, there were many places I went where people were killed just for speaking out against the oppressive regimes controlling their nations. I do hope the world no longer has such regimes.

"Ah yeah, we done, girl. So gonna browse?" Suzie grinned as she handed me back my phone.

"Wow, that was pretty fast. And you're acting less shy and more spunky."

It appeared I misspoke as Suzie's face immediately went red and she darted to hide behind some nearby furniture.

"Great, you spooked her. Or rather embarrassed her. Well, we did the request, so get lost. And Selena, if you got more phones like that, go to someone else. We're musicians by trade even though we're capable of complex coding," Delina grumbled.

Well someone sure has an attitude, but I guess I did offend her friend.

"My apologies, Suzie."

Suzie cautiously peeked her head out before slowly inching back over to me.

"I- It's fine. I- I just get self-conscious... at times. E- Enjoy browsing."

I nodded and opened up Viewtube. Surprisingly, I was able to log in just fine and my channel appeared untarnished since I last checked it. First thing was first though as I quickly uploaded the first video of me waking up in this era.

Ping!

Much to my surprise, Suzie immediately summoned her holoscreen and began enlarging is before freezing it in place and hopping down on the couch.

"And what are you doing?" Delina growled.

"Hana Hangetsu just uploaded a new video! I'm a big fan of her you know."

Wait... didn't she just...

"Phew, now don't think a gag order will activate for me just naming names, but Suzie, ya know you just helped out the real Hana Hangetsu, right?" Irina grinned as her mouth was freed from the gag order.

Suzie blinked in shock before trembling and going red in the face once more, this time though, she threw up the cushions of the sofa and hid in what appeared to be a compartment beneath the sofa.

"Ugh, you and your big mouth. Wish that damn gag order was permanent," Delina grumbled.

I'll admit, while I was concerned about Suzie's well-being, that compartment she dove into really caught my eye. I couldn't help but ask about it, resulting in a nasty glare from Delina. Selina decided to play mediator and explained the sofa contained a micro pocket dimension of sorts. And inside was Suzie's room.

"I believe in your time, there was a phrase known as "living under a rock", well that's what spawned this concept."

"Uh, it wasn't exactly a positive phrase."

"I am aware of the connotations of the phrase in your time, but in this era, anyone can live under a rock, or sofa in this case, and have the security of a place to call home. In fact, this is what led to the complete eradication of homelessness, as now everyone could have a home. And since every home had a food generator, none would need to fear going hungry."

Wow, when she put it like that, living under a rock sounds amazing. Not to mention it seemingly led to the crisis of homelessness being solved. That deserves praise in my book. But it does make me feel bad for all those homeless people I met on my travels. Especially old Hobo Jerry. I bet that guy would've loved to live under a rock in the future.

As I stared both an awe and slight sadness at the couch, Suzie slowly peeked out. I have to admit, this is quite cute, and I'd love to take a picture, but filming without permission is-

Ping!

Much to my surprise, Irina sent me a photo of Suzie peeking out.

"Relax, we're essentially streaming and recording 24/7, no need to worry about asking permission to film."

While that may be true, I still do have morals.

"Suzie, you look cute, could I take a picture of you?"

I half expected her to hide again, but she ended up rising and striking a confident pose. Albeit while trembling and struggling to keep fer face from turning red.

"Y- Yeah! Get my good-side, girl! This girl's all about showing off."

And with permission granted, I can happily oblige in that request.