Ma
"I love you," I whispered, hugging Mom close.
Mother and daughter Ma and Mona are eating a meal, and Ma shoves a bowl at Mona. Mona shoves it back at her, and Ma shoves it right back.
Later, they watch TV and Mona explains the plot of the historical soap opera to her mother as she cleans. She then sits on the couch with Mona and they watch TV together. Later, Mona tucks Ma into bed.
Mona tries to sleep in her room, and stares up at the ceiling. She hears noise next door and listens at the wall, enjoying the music playing on the other side. Ma watches from the door.
The next day, a neighbor, Erica, runs up and gets into the elevator with Mona. They arrive at their floor and get off together, and Mona says that she can hear Erica's music at night. She says that she wishes that she could hear it better, and Erica is amused at the idea of a neighbor wanting her to turn her music up. Ma knocks on the door and Mona tells Erica that her mother needs her and goes in.
Later, Mona tries to listen to Erica' music through the wall. She cleans up the apartment, and then goes translate the show for Ma as she paints her toenails. Ma talks about the show and how horrible it is to be forgotten rather than simply dying. She says that it's terrifying watching herself get so close to dying, but it's okay for her because she has Mona and so she will never be forgotten. Ma tells Mona lf that she'll see one day, and Mona excuses herself to wash her hands.
The next day, Mona sits outside on the fire escape, listens to music, and smokes. Erica comes out and comments that Mona has a nice set-up, and asks Mona what she's listening to. Mona dismisses it as nothing and her book on the stairs jumps and falls off. She quickly excuses herself and goes back to her apartment.
Back in the apartment, Ma tells Mona that she's a stupid girl.
That night, Mona lies in her bed and twitches in agony. She dreams of Ma smothering her with a pillow, and wakes up to stare at herself in the mirror.
The next day, Mona is checking her mail when Erica comes by on her way out. She tries to move on, and when Mona stops her she says that she gets that she's gay and Mona is straight. Mona assures her that isn't why she's acting weird around her, but isn't able to explain. When Erica tries to move to the outside door, Mona yells "No!" and an invisible force pulls Erica back. Mona runs upstairs to her apartment and Erica goes after her. After a moment, Mona stops and Erica asks if she did it.
Later in Erica's apartment, Mona demonstrates that she can move objects in her mind. Mona goes back to her apartment and happily remembers Erica telling her that what she did was amazing. They kiss, and Erica asks to see her later. In her room, Mona hears Ma say "Stupid Girl" and stops smiling.
During dinner, Mona abruptly gets up and leaves the kitchen. Ma follows her and tries to discuss the soap opera. She asks Mona to watch the last episode with her, but Mona puts on a dress and prepares to go out. Her mother tells her that she looks cheap and knows she's meeting a friend and calls her a stupid girl. Ma suggests that Mona bring her friend there. When Mona refuses, Ma says that Erica will never accept someone like her. Mona angrily says that Erica already does. As she goes, Ma says that she's a bad mother and her daughter won't stay with her and she should just kill herself. She says that Mona's father left because of her, and Mona says that it was because of Ma. Mona yells that she wishes Ma would just die.
The next day, Erica sits on the apartment roof, waiting for Mona with a bundle of flowers and a bottle of wine. When Mona doesn't come, Erica goes down to Mona's apartment and discovers the front door is open. She goes inside and calls, and finds the TV tuned to an empty channel. Erica continues in, calling out that the door was open and she wanted to make sure everything was okay. She finally enters Mona's bedroom and finds bloody sheets on the bed and wallpaper torn from the walls.
Erica hears breaking glass and walks into the next room. Mona is standing next to Ma's corpse, telekinetically holding her in the air and yelling that she hates her. When Mona hears Erica, she telekinetically throws a knife into Erica's chest. Erica dies, and Mona loses her concentration, dropping Ma's corpse. Crying, Mona sits down, sobbing.
Later, Mona is sitting in the kitchen. The bodies of Ma and Erica are propped up in the chairs next to her, Mona gives them food and continues eating.
"I love you," I whispered, hugging Mom close.
Since she died, I haven't been able to let her go.
Guilt Trip
I keep my eyes on the road, heart pounding.
Michelle walks down the street alone. She sees two policemen assaulting a suspect, who yells at them to let her go. Michelle continues on while the suspect insists that he didn't do anything.
Later, the suspect, Jason Miller, is sitting on the curb when a car pulls over. He goes over and finds Michelle behind the wheel. She guiltily asks if he needs help, and he gets in. Michelle drives off, and says that she saw what the cops did to him later. She points out that he wasn't doing anything and they beat him, and explains that she'd never seen it before. Michelle explains that she came back because she wanted to help, and asks if she should take him to a hospital. Jason insists on no hospitals, and asks her to drive him to Merton. Michelle agrees to take him as far as she can, and he thanks her.
As Michelle drives, Jason says that a white girl like her shouldn't pick up a black guy. He then smiles and says that he's playing with her, and Michelle sighs in relief. Michelle introduces himself and Jason gives her his name. The radio talks about a missing college girl, and Jason turns it off.
Michelle continues driving, and finally pulls over at a gas station. He offers to get her something inside. Michelle refuses and he goes inside. As soon as he does, Michelle drives away. Gasping, she glances back in the mirror and finally stops at a late-night coffee shop. Inside she orders and sits alone in a booth. Michelle glances over and sees a newscast about the missing girl. The waitress gives Michelle her bill, and says that Michelle kind of looks like the missing girl, Mary Renton. She tells Michelle to be careful and walks away.
Going to the restroom, Michelle rinses off her face. She goes back to the door and sees Jason out by her car. She asks the waitress for help, and the waitress calls for the cook. Michelle asks the cook, Frank, to walk her to her car and insists that she doesn't want him to call the police. The three of them go out, Frank armed with a bat, and Jason asks where his wallet is. Frank tells him to leave, and a furious Jason promises Michelle that he'll see her again and walks off.
As Michelle drives off and parks, she finds Frank's wallet where he was sitting. Inside is a photo of a young girl. A homeless man knocks on the window, startling her, and walks off.
Michelle drives down the street and the driver behind her honks the car. He slams into the back of Michelle's car, finally knocking her car off the road. She wakes up a few minutes later, and Jason comes over and pounds on the car window. Michelle tries to start her car, and Jason gets a tire iron from his truck, opens the rear door, and gets Michelle's backpack out. He opens the trunk and finds a corpse tied up.
Drawing a gun, Michelle comes up behind Jason and says that he wouldn't leave her alone. Jason apologizes, saying that he lost his temper, and asks her to put the gun down. Michelle says that she can't, and tells him that she just needed his wallet. He explains that he wants the picture of his daughter because it's the only picture he has. Michelle tells him that she took his wallet so she could plant it and walk away. She figures that it works better and shoots.
The next morning, Jason calls over a passing driver and shows him the dead Jason, holding the gun. The news reports that Mary Renton's body was found in the trunk of her car. Jason was a local resident with a previous arrest for grand theft auto. The police believe that Jason shot himself
I keep my eyes on the road, heart pounding.
Getting into this stranger's car was a bad idea.
Singularity
Out of the corner of my eye, I see my own shadow.
Biohacker Nala makes a video log, and says that the Internet connected her to a better world. She learned how to push her body to become an extension of the internet, ties herself to a chair, cuts open her arm, and puts in a chip to "hack" herself. Once Nala is done, she staples the wound closed and collapses to the floor in shock and pain.
Later, Nala wakes up from a dream about a dog and a young boy, Ben, among stacks of wooden pallets. Her friend George is there, and tells her that it's okay. He gets her a glass of water, and blood from her nose drips into the water. George wipes the blood from her nose and checks her stitches, and then says that they're fine. He asks what is wrong with her, dropping off of the world and then leaving him a message to come there with his emergency gear. Nala thanks him for getting there in time, and George tells her that she got lucky, and admits that he loves her.
George suggests that she take her to the hospital, but Nala says that she's starving and needs to eat. She starts to call a Thai place for takeout, and then says that she feels something. She explains that she put in an antenna that receives and transmits radio-wave frequencies, and it was crude but she had to start somewhere. As they talk, Nala senses something go black. She insists that biohackers are working to make humanity better through equal access to technology. George asks when the last time she got out of the house and met people, and Nala insists that biohacking isn't crazy. She asks for his help to keep going, and George asks why she can't be happy where she is. George refuses to let her help her hurt herself, and points out that he stood by her during her transition. He warns that the biohacking is different and dangerous, and tells Nala that she needs help that he can't give her.
Later after George leaves, Nala goes on an Internet discussion board and talks with other biohackers. One asks what kind of monster she is, saying that she's a sick person and they hate her. The poster vows to find her, and Nala types back that she can't get him out of her mind. Behind her, a staticky shadow appears briefly.
Nala has another dream of the child and the dog. This time she can see herself there, and Ben giggles before disappearing with the dog. Nala finds a blue garbage container... and wakes up when her phone rings. It's George, who says that he's been calling her all night and hasn't got a response. Nala sees the child in the light of the phone, and jumps in shock. George hears her scream and then tells her that she's been posting online. Nala checks and discovers that the discussion board is filled with her posts ranting about anything and everything. She doesn't remember doing it, and tells George that someone must have hacked her. She remembers her dream of the boy and his dog, and the TV turns on by itself.
Hanging up the phone, Nala goes to the TV and sees a children's show playing. There's a knock at the door, and Nala opens it. A man comes in holding a gun, aims it at Nala, and tells her to stop harassing them with her e-mails. He asks Nala if she knows what it's like to lose a child, and then sees the TV playing and asks her how she knew what his son's favorite show was. Nala remembers more of her dream, including a man with a tattoo on his arm touching Ben, and blood in his hair. She tells the father that Ben's spirit is using her to communicate with him, and describes her vision. The father yells at her to shut up, and Nala describes the dog. The father realizes that the dog belongs to his brother Malcolm, sees a figure rise up out of the shadows behind Nala, and shoots at it.
Nala finds herself back in the shipping yard among the pallets, the blue container in front of her. She wakes up on the floor of her apartment and calls to Ben, but gets no response. Nala says that she's sorry what happened to Ben and hopes that he finds peace. She then calls George and says that she's fine now, and explains that she connected to another frequency or world, and she will explain it to him later.
As Nala reaches into the refrigerator and knocks over a bottle of mustard, the lights in the apartment go out. George says that he's losing her and the phone goes dead. The Ben-creature is behind her, but when Nala turns, the figure is gone. On the TV, a video plays of Nala screaming and running away from the person holding the camera. Notification tones go off throughout the room, and messages print on the laptop.
Nala runs outside and turns to see the figure behind her. There are a line of similar figures behind the figure, and Nala takes off the bandage on her arm. She falls to her knees and tries to rip out the chip, and the figures walk past her. She begs someone to wake her up.
On the video, Nala finishes her recording, saying that what she's doing is crazy, everything has to start somewhere, and nothing has to end there.
Out of the corner of my eye, I see my own shadow.
I don't know who the second shadow belongs to.
Written by Gadfly on Sep 20, 2019