Page 2 of Greet the World


  “Where were you?”

  She shook her head. “I don’t remember. My last memory was of a large man carrying me away. He took me outside, through the back. Then I was met with darkness. When I awoke, I was here again. Strange, isn’t it?”

  “Oh, Kate.” He showered her with kisses. “You can’t imagine how much I’ve missed you.”

  She helped him to his feet and dusted him off, and then they hustled out to the merchandise area, to the front of the store. They climbed onto a ledge and stepped into a display case. Through the window they could see the town beginning to waken. A week before Christmas. Shoppers with little money and even less time would arrive soon, looking for bargains.

  He took his place next to her and gathered her hand in his and smiled. Less than a minute until six o’clock. Seconds before his skin would turn to fiberglass, his hair to nylon, and his eyes and lips to paint. It was time to sleep until the end of their shift.

  “The others told me that you tried to escape.” Her eyes studied him. “That you wanted to explore the world outside. Do you still?”

  He gave his head a shake and squeezed her hand.

  “My darling, I already have the world right here.”

  ***

  Outside on the sidewalk the morning’s first holiday shoppers arrived. A mother and daughter bundled up against the cold. They gazed at the male and female automatons posing behind the glass.

  “Look at that scarf she’s wearing,” the mother said. “Isn’t it adorable?”

  “They look so happy and cute in those outfits.”

  “Maybe there’s a sale. Let’s go inside and look.”

  Together they made their way through the entrance. They were the first shoppers of the holiday season, though not the last, drawn inside by the curiously human charm of the display bots gazing out from the Main Street department store.

  End

  About the Author

  Bryan lives with his family in Las Vegas, Nevada. To learn more please visit him on the web at:

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  Bryan’s Other Books:

  An Epitaph for Coyote: A Novel

  Shades of Wyrd

 
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Bryan R. Dennis's Novels