A moment of reflection

“I gotta say, this is quite impressive, Mr Kensu. Your scholarship, your grades, hell, even the subject of your thesis. It’s almost as if your resume was tailor-made to land you a job in my lab!” Professor Katashi chuckled as a nervous Kensu shifted in his seat.

“W-well, I wouldn’t go that far. To tell the truth, that scholarship kind of landed on my lap by dumb luck…”

“Luck is a skill too, you know? One we could use here in the lab,” the old professor leaned on his chair, stroking his white beard as he locked eyes with the bushy-tailed graduate sitting in front of him. “This brings us to the last question of the interview. Why do you want to work here, Mr Kensu?”

Kensu gulped. He sheepishly adjusted his glasses as his mind searched for the right words to reply.

“I-I always wanted to get into genetic research to help cure the last remaining diseases or develop food for our brave colonists in the frontier worlds. People act like we live in a Utopia already, you know? But we still have lots of problems, and I feel like this field specifically has plenty left to give to humanity.”

“Hah! It’s like you took the words straight out of my mouth! I think you’ll be a great fit for the team. I don’t even have to interview any other candidates. You are hired!”

“R-really? Oh my god, thank you!” Kensu leaned forward, grabbing the professor’s bony hand to give it a firm shake. “This is a dream come true, and working with such a renowned scientist like yourself, Professor, it-“

“Please, Kensu, you already have the job. No need for flattery.”

“S-sorry sir.”

“And you don’t need to call me sir, either.”

“Right. Is it ok if I call my parents to tell them the good news?”

“Sure, by all means.”

Kensu pulled out his phone. Before dialing, he ran his fingers across his somewhat greasy black hair to look extra presentable. “Mom, Dad, you won’t belie… what?!”

“What happened, sweetie? You didn’t get the job?” Kensu’s “mother” replied with a raspy, masculine voice.

“Look how pale he is, obviously not,” his dad said in the same voice.

“Well, there is always next time-“

The young scientist hung up. He couldn’t believe his eyes. The people on the other side of the phone looked exactly like Professor Katashi. But that was impossible. The professor was sitting right across him. …was he?

Kensu lifted his gaze from the phone and almost jumped out of his seat. The professor’s mangled body slumped on the table, a shadow draped around his shoulders like a cloak. The thing floated upward from the corpse, locked eyes with Kensu, and-

“Aah!” Kensu sat up. The room was dark, but not so much that he couldn’t see anything. A scant sliver of sunlight was peeking from under the curtains. There was little else in the cramped space, just a table and the uncharacteristically fluffy bed he had slept on. This wasn’t his apartment, nor the lab, so where-

As the dream vanished into the ether of Kensu’s subconscious, yesterday’s recollection hit him all at once like a truck. The Professor’s secret, his death, the escape from the military. It hadn’t been a nightmare after all. Air escaped from Kensus’s lungs, his heart aching as if it was getting squeezed, probably by the iron boot of the Bureau or the military.

Kensu remained in bed, failing to muster the energy to get out and resume the train wreck that had become his life. He wanted to call out for help, but to whom? Who could help him in this situation? His parents?

Yeah, they would probably try to help him, but… Kensu didn’t want to drag them into this mess. The Bureau was probably already visiting them, so the less they knew, the better. He would find a way to contact them from Ceres.

His dream flashed in Kensu’s mind, along with lingering doubt. Were they his real parents? How can that be if he had the same DNA as the professor? Maybe he was adopted? An illegitimate child of Professor Katashi?

That did not make sense. His childhood had been real, his family as well. Then... what? Was the professor his secret twin, somehow separated from birth by the hospital? Why would he look so much older than Kensu, then? The stress of life?

Kensu turned towards the other side of the bed. The pieces weren’t adding up. Maybe he really should go to the professor’s hidden lab… in a couple of years, when the heat from this whole thing had died down and he didn’t have half of Earth’s government on his tail.

If the family was out, should Kensu call some of her old colleagues for help? There was Ren, he was nice, but…he never even came to the lab’s birthday party, no way he would help him evade the authorities. Aya was another option, but Kensu could never get a read on her. She was as likely to help him as throw him to the authorities. And AIDA…

“AIDA!” Kensu sat up. That’s right, he wasn’t alone. He still had someone in his corner. Or something. “Are you still there?”

“Yes, Dr Kensu,” AIDA’s voice echoed in Kensu’s mind thanks to their still not-yet understood link. Another mystery for the pile.

“Oh thank goodness.”

“As you are well aware I am incapable of leaving you, Dr Kensu.”

“Didn’t think you cared about me that much, AIDA.”

“I’m programmed to care for all of the lab’s employees, but more than that, I was just stating the facts. I am anchored to your body until we can find another mainframe to house me. ”

“About that. I think it might be time to head out. We don’t want to miss the train to the spaceport.”

“Not yet. We can’t neglect your self-care.”

“…excuse me? You want me to shower and brush my teeth?”

“Yes, among other self-care rituals you human perform.”

“Is this because you still can’t get used to the feeling of sweat? Look, AIDA, we are on the run from the authorities. You can’t expect me to have a perfect hygiene-”

“Every morning in the lab I had to perform a series of maintenance tasks to ensure that my mainframe, my body, was performing optimally. Since you are now my mainframe, I require you to take similar actions to ensure that your body works adequately.”

“Still, this is hardly the tim-”

“Self-care is also important to maintaining a healthy self-image, which is paramount to keeping confidence up. Considering your obvious signs of distress, I must insist you perform your maintenance routines for your continual mental well-being.”

“Fine, mom. I’ll get on it.” Kensu rolled his eyes, stepping out of the bed. He began to unbutton his jacket but paused. AIDA had access to his senses. Would it be ok if she saw, well, everything?

…What was he worried about? AIDA performed the medical check-up back in the lab. Not only had she already seen everything, but had his exact measurements, blood type, average sugar levels, and even allergies.

“Good. Afterward, come down for nourishment. I’m making pancakes.”

“You… what?”

“Yes. They were the Proffesor’s favorite, and now that I have a tongue, I want to see why he insisted on consuming them despite my repeated warnings about their effect on his cholesterol level.”

“Well, glad you are at least enjoying the human experience.” Kensu shook his head. Sure, the situation looked grim, but maybe he should take a page from his AI friend and try to find joy in the little things he could.