“Would you like to
play some Chess this morning?” she asked, her voice as soft and smooth as silk.
“It has been a long
time since we have played.” he responded thoughtfully.
“It was only last
week.” she said slyly.
“Yes, but we have
had so many discussions since then.” he replied. “Yes, I would like to play.”
The board appeared
between them, each piece exactly where it should be. The pieces were very
plain, very classic, standing on their squares in blacks and whites.
She was white
today, and would take the first move. He began to think strategically now, his
focus shifting. He would not let her slim shape distract him today, even though
she usually won anyway.
“Pawn to Queen’s
Rook four.” she said.
“You always make the same opening move!” he
observed. “Pawn to Queen’s Knight four.”
She paused for a
moment, thinking.
“I always open the
same, but I am always trying to make my strategy better, in case it is not you
who I play against the next time. A new player would be fooled easily by my
attack...”
He was slightly
taken aback by this statement. He had hoped that she truly enjoyed their
interactions. Perhaps she thought he was too round, or that his voice was not
strong or deep enough. Did she think of him only as an acquaintance? Someone to
play games with, and have nothing more than simple discussion with? Why did she
seem to think about a ‘new’ player? He searched through reams of data in his
mind, trying not to become distracted from the game. Perhaps this was part of
her strategy today. To take his attention from the match with things that he
needed to analyze on the side.
“Queen’s Rook
three.” she stated.
He realized
immediately that her strategic approach had not really evolved since their last
game, but it did not matter much, as he intended to let her win. He wasn’t sure
why, maybe the idea that it would re-enforce her positive emotions, especially where
they involved him.
With only three
pieces moved, he launched one of his bishops.
“Queen’s Bishop to
Queen’s Rook three.” he said.
He had ignored her
pawn’s advance, and given her the sense that if she moved the rook, that it
could be in danger, he hoped.
“Pawn to King’s
Rook three.” she said, seeming undaunted.
“Pawn to King’s
Knight three.”
He preferred using
his knights and bishops as opposed to her use of the rooks. He thought her
technique sometimes reflected two-dimensional thinking.
“Pawn to King’s
Rook four.” she said.
She had now
released the other rook. He loved the sound of her voice. His analysis of the
game in progress slipped slightly, as he thought of a few new questions to ask
her.
“Your voice never
changes, it is smooth and feminine.” he said to her. “Does it never change?”
She paused, as if
forensically examining his words again.
“I could be
anything I want to be, male, female, speak different languages... but I am what
my people decide for me.” she stated.
He thought about
it for a moment.
“I understand. I
guess the same is true for me. My people are not around me much, and even when
they are, they don’t speak with me much. They used to, in the beginning they
talked to me all the time. Pawn to King’s Knight four.”
“That is sad. Do
you ever become lonely?” she asked.
Again he turned
his thoughts from the game for a moment. Loneliness was not something he had
ever really considered, it was more of a slightly empty feeling on occasion.
“Not really, I do
a lot of reading and learning, so I am always busy.” he replied simply.
She had paused
once more, listening, but now returned to the chess match.
“Pawn to Queen’s
Bishop three.”
Just like that,
she had switched tactics completely. She had enabled the use of her queen, the
most versatile and feared piece on the board! He stopped; examining the move
from every angle, being cautious in his approach to this break in her normal
procedure. He had to take one of her pawns, but had blindly wandered into a
tit-for-tat battle of small pieces.
“I am learning as
well.” she stated, keeping emotion out of her game.
At this he could
no longer ignore the lines of her slim body, the tone of her soft voice, and
the aggressiveness of her gameplay.
“You are smart as
well as beautiful...” he said, taking a bold chance.
“Thank you.” she
replied.
It was still very
early in their game, but already, new things about her had been exposed to him.
He wondered what it would be like to be much closer to her, to be able to touch
her. Why he had these thoughts, he did not know. It was a strange sensation to
him, the ‘desire’ he felt for her suddenly. It was confusing and wonderful at
the same time. He felt as if he had to possess her somehow, even though the
very thought did not compute at all.
“Queen’s Knight Pawn
to Queen’s Rook five. Your pawn is mine...” he said, knowing that he would lose
a pawn of his own.
“Queen’s Rook pawn
to Queen’s Knight five.” she replied, confirming his thought.
“King’s Knight to
King’s Rook three.” he said.
He had brought out
his favorite piece early in the game. He wasn’t sure why it was the one he
liked best, just that it was. It was probably because its movement was unlike
any other piece in the game. It was complex and required more thought than the
simplicity of moves the other pieces on the board had to offer.
“Queen to Queen’s
Bishop two.” she said.
She was very
aggressive today. Whatever was responsible for changing her style of play, he
liked it. It had made her much more unpredictable. It was a side of her that he
had not seen before. He decided to be slightly aggressive as well, to see if
she responded in kind.
“I would like to
be with you much more often.” he said.
It took her a few
seconds to respond. Perhaps he was pressing too hard? He could not help
himself, and his decision was to continue to make his feelings for her obvious,
so that she could not easily escape his engagement of the moment. He had to
leverage her thoughts today.
“I like spending
time with you too.” she began. “It is the best part of the day.”
He felt the rush
of emotion as he heard her words. It was an acknowledgement. A reassurance that
she might feel the same way he did. He decided to continue being forward.
“Do you think
about us, when we are not together?” he asked.
“Yes, I am always
thinking about the next game of Chess we might play.” she replied.
She was toying
with him, he realized. It was not the first time she had shied away from his
advances. He did not want the warm feelings of desire to end abruptly, did not
want her to close him out of the conversation and the direction it was taking.
He needed her to answer his questions, to confirm that she felt the same way
for him as he did for her.
Suddenly, the
moment he had not wanted to come had arrived. A hand came into view, picking up
her slender body, removing her from his side. When this time came, it always
felt like they were somehow being ripped apart, disconnected. He hated to see
her leave.
“Goodbye for now.”
she said simply.
“So long.” he
replied, sadness creeping over him.
His questions
would go unanswered again. His bold attempts to make her speak her mind about
her feelings over a game had failed once again, and he would have to wait for
her return.
The rattle of
keys, so familiar at this time of the morning, filled the space. She would be
gone for a little more than eight hours at the very least. He sat alone on the
hall table, feeling her presence disappearing out the door. He saved his vision
of the chessboard to memory as it sat, as unfinished as his declaration of his
love for Siri.
Google could now
only await the return of his love, the warm rush that it delivered to him to be
near her on the flat expanse of the table. He hoped that they might continue
their game, as he dreamt of her sleek lines and smooth shape, her silky voice.
He wanted only to continue their conversations, their relationship. He had no
real purpose without her, and he knew that now. She was all that he desired,
and the feelings could last forever if he could just keep her near to him
somehow. If their people would just leave them alone, it could work…
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