more complicated people than they knew.
― Murray Kempton
Last thing I remembered was speaking with Jessica via the chat bot in my living room. Now, I found myself on the floor staring up at the ceiling with the room spinning around me.
It was one thing to experience spatial disorientation, quite another to deal with my surroundings moving.
I waited to see if the spinning would stop and thankfully, it began to slow down and gradually die. Still, I wasn't sure if I could risk getting to my feet.
Suddenly, a woman's voice spoke and I gazed up into Jessica's inverted face gazing down at me in fright.
"I've had men fall for me but never had them pass out and do a face plant on my living room floor."
I raised a hand to my face and winced with pain.
She had a basin of cool water and a wash cloth. "I wouldn't touch that if I were you. It's rug burn from the carpet. I had a devil of a time, rolling you over. Can you sit up?"
I nodded. "I think so―I'll take it slow though. I still feel shaky."
"You've got quite a bruise on your cheek and you'll probably have a black eye on the left. You fell mainly on that side."
I was seated on the floor while Jessica knelt beside me and gently bathed my cheek and eye with the cold compress. It helped ease the pain.
"Maybe some ice cubes might help," I groaned.
"Yes, ice would help but I don't have anything like that. Let's get you onto the couch and hopefully being upright may bring the swelling down a bit."
I managed to push up off the floor and get onto the couch. Jessica was hovering over me looking concerned.
Her expression betrayed her shock. "I've experienced materialized apparitions before in seances, but nothing like this."
"I can assure you I'm not a spirit, Jessica, but you, on the other hand, are an entirely different matter. You're most likely a holographic avatar produced by artificial intelligence―nevertheless, quite impressive, I might say."
"I have no idea what you are raving about, Ryce. Is this more of your science fiction mumbo jumbo?"
"You don't get it, of course― how could you? You're some kind of simulation, some form of augmented reality."
Jessica's eyes grew huge. "Really, is that what you honestly think?"
"Certainly," I replied. "You're created by an algorithm and although I don't fully understand it, you're the byproduct of machine intelligence."
Her cheeks burned and her huge eyes flashed angrily. "How dare you insult me―are you saying I'm some kind of product made by a machine?"
She put down the basin of water but looked as if she'd rather have dumped it over my head.
"I'm sorry, Jessica, I didn't mean to insult you. I'm just trying to explain that these interactions between us may seem real but they're simply a virtual fantasy."
"And you truly believe this?" she asked, gazing at me incredulously.
"Look, I know it's difficult to comprehend―I don't really get all the technology myself, but you're not real."
"I see," she replied, defiantly tossing her head.
And then, before I could utter another word, she leaned over and passionately kissed me―a long, lingering kiss that left me giddy and breathless.
"Tell me now, I'm not real."
I couldn't speak.
I stared at her and at what I assumed was my living room and realized I didn't recognize the furnishings. To add to my shock, I gazed through the parted lace window curtains and saw a different century.