And what, exactly, do you know of addiction? -- Anon Guest
"Just because I don't indulge in the standard recreational chemicals for my species doesn't mean I don't know what addiction is," argued Human Kae. "I seek my serotonin in other things. You might think they're safe, but they're harmful if I'm not on guard. You just haven't caught me in a spiral, yet."
Companion Riik puzzled at this. Sure, ze had recreational chemical issues and therapy for that was always a work in progress, but the request for a companion like hir still caused confusion. "How, exactly, can anyone have non-chemical addiction?"
"You know about just one more and just one won't hurt, right?" Human Kae waited for Companion Riik to nod. "That principal applies to other things. Humans have an endorphin boost every time they have sugar, but that's not a recreational chemical at all. We need a certain amount of it in our diets. Too much is just as bad as not enough."
"I am well aware of that paradox. If your intake of certain food items had to be monitored, it would be in your file... What are you addicted to?" Asking a Human a question like that could be very dangerous. They tended to provide answers that the asker was rarely prepared for.
"You're probably going to laugh," sighed Human Kae. "But it's virtuality sandbox games where there is no real endgame and the player can restructure their environment however they please. Last time I spiralled? I built a flying model of the Starship Yamamoto in Survival Minecraft."
Companion Riik had to look that up on the infonets. "That represents years of non-work effort..."
"Yeah, when anxiety and depression synergise, they really synergise. You'll know the signs and be able to pull me back from the vortex. Just... apply all the red flags to a different situation."
It made the weirdest kind of sense. Which was pretty much expected in Humans. "There may be a learning curve. I shall be trying my best."
"Honestly, so will I."
[Image (c) Can Stock Photo / PsychoShadow]
If you like my stories, please Check out my blog and Follow me. Or share them with your friends!
Send me a prompt [77 remaining prompts!]
