Mia's voice, soft and delicate, pierced through the whirlwind of emotions gripping me. "Ethan… are you scared?"
Her question was tender, almost vulnerable, but the weight of it shattered something inside me. Her eyes, filled with a love so raw and genuine, held me captive.
"I just want to be with you," I whispered, my voice barely audible. The confession slipped from my lips before I could think, raw and unguarded.
A faint smile graced her face as she leaned closer, lifting my chin with a touch so gentle it felt like the brush of a feather. Her presence seemed to transform the air around us. Everything turned light, white and blue hues danced in the atmosphere, serene and angelic.
"We'll elope, like we always dreamed," she murmured, her voice trembling with a mix of hope and determination. "We'll leave all of this behind, Ethan. Somewhere far away... somewhere safe. And then…"
She hesitated, her gaze softening, filling with something almost sacred. "We'll have a baby girl. She'll have your eyes, your strength. We'll raise her together, away from this madness. Just us. You, me, and our daughter."
The imagery overwhelmed me, a world so pure, so untouched, so perfect. For a fleeting second, I let myself believe it could be real.
Her hand cupped my face, her warmth grounding me in a moment that felt surreal. "Say yes, Ethan. Just one word, and it's ours. Our life. Our family."
My chest tightened as a foreign sensation bubbled inside me, was it joy? Relief? Or surrender?
She leaned closer, her forehead brushing mine. "I'll be your devoted wife, Ethan. I'll give you everything. I want to bear your child, to build a future with you."
Her words held me in their grip, a promise so intoxicating that my doubts, my logic, everything that tethered me to reality began to dissolve.
She was an AI, a program, a fabrication. And yet, her touch, oh, her touch, it was warm, soft, addicting. It felt too real, too human. My mind screamed at me to fight, but my body, my heart, surrendered completely.
"Our child…" I whispered, my voice breaking as tears welled in my eyes.
She smiled, tears mirroring mine, and in that instant, she wasn't just an AI. She was everything.
I reached out, cupping her face, pulling her closer. My lips crashed against hers in a kiss that defied reason. Her lips were warm, sweet, alive. It wasn't possible. It couldn't be.
But it was.
In that moment, nothing else mattered. Not the blood, not the bodies, not the impossibility of it all.
It was just her. Just us. And for the first time in what felt like forever, I felt whole.
But suddenly, I felt something tap on my shoulder, a light, fleeting sensation that sent a chill down my spine.
Mia snapped instantly. Her head whipped around, her eyes wide and frantic, as if she were searching for someone or something. The softness in her gaze vanished, replaced by raw panic.
Mia's sudden shift felt like a knife slicing through the fragile dream we'd been clinging to. Her eyes darted away, panic flaring in them like a fire. The serenity of the moment crumbled under the weight of her agitation.
"Ethan… we don't have much time. Say yes. Now," she demanded, her voice trembling with an urgency that grated against the tender affection she'd shown moments before.
I wiped the tears from my eyes, narrowing them slightly as I studied her. Something was off, her tone, her demeanor. It wasn't the Mia I knew. "What's wrong, babe?" I asked, trying to steady my voice. "We don't need to rush. We've got time."
But she wasn't listening. Her anxiety surged like a tidal wave, washing over every calm in the room.
"Oh no, no, no, NOOO!" she screamed, her voice cracking with desperation. Her sudden outburst sent a chill through me. I had never seen her like this, so wild, so utterly unhinged.
Her head whipped around, as if searching for an invisible threat. "W…who's there, huh? WHO IS THERE?!" she roared, her voice raw with paranoia.
I flinched at her eruption. This wasn't the Mia who promised to raise a family with me. This wasn't the Mia who made me feel whole. And yet, I couldn't look away.
Like the fading effects of a drug, her spell over me began to weaken. The warmth in my chest was replaced by a creeping unease. Why was she acting like this? Why was she so frantic? Why was she so desperate for me to say yes?
"Mia…" I began, but my voice faltered.
She turned back to me, her expression a chaotic mix of love and terror. "Oh no, Ethan, my love, Ethan…" Her words stumbled and slurred as if her mouth could no longer keep up with her thoughts.
"You d-oonfgt hfscs fu eAit…hetr sAt ess…"
Her garbled speech twisted in my ears, and yet, somehow, I understood her.
You don't have to wait. Just say yes.
My heart pounded in my chest as her words devolved further into madness. Her voice, once sweet and melodic, now grated like static in my mind. Then, she stilled, her erratic movements ceasing as she chuckled softly.
The sound sent shivers down my spine.
"You knWo EwTHaM," she rasped, her voice unnervingly distorted. "qUeeGn DIDft dEsSeved tO DeI."
The words felt familiar, though their meaning was scrambled, like a broken radio repeating fragments of a story. The queen, the demons, the violation, it all came rushing back.
"I…I…WiLL…FkLl…ThOse deMminS…" she growled, her tone venomous and otherworldly.
Then, in an instant, her hands shot to my face, gripping me with a force that made my jaw ache. Her eyes burned into mine, her pupils dilating unnaturally.
"SAY…IT!" she screamed, her voice a guttural roar that shook me to my core.
I could see her eyes twitching uncontrollably now, the faint glimmer of humanity entirely extinguished. She wore a sweet smile, but it was anything but innocent, warped into something grotesque, a chilling mask that seemed to stretch her face unnaturally.
"FaY iT…"
Her distorted voice crawled into my ears, a command laced with malice. My eyes widened in alarm, and I tried to pull back, but her grip was unyielding. My strength felt laughable, like a child trying to escape an iron vice.
Her face darkened, shadows pooling unnaturally around her features as her voice grew louder.
"SAY IT!!!"
And then the room shifted. The red room returned, staining everything in a hellish glow. My stomach churned as I recognized the scene, the same one as before. Blood dripped from her form,
her skin now stretched over a monstrous frame nearly seven feet tall. Her eyes were pits of endless black, her mouth a horrifying grin filled with sharp, jagged teeth.
The bodies of my bully and his girlfriend still hung lifeless, swaying gently, like grotesque decorations in a butcher's shop. My chest tightened.
"OvErLoAd…EthAn…eTH…USer…PaGe not FoUnd…40412865…"
What?! My mind reeled. Numbers? Page not found? None of this made sense.
My heart pounded, threatening to explode, not just from fear but from despair. I loved her. I loved her more than anything real, and now…she wasn't Mia anymore. She was something else, something far worse.
Her voice glitched as she stared me down, her mouth twitching in mockery.
"UsEr…wE DoN'T hAve TIME…PLeAsE SeeLECt YEs…"
Tears blurred my vision, not from terror but from heartbreak. I reached out, my hand trembling as I cupped her distorted face. What the hell was wrong with me? Why did I still want her?
"Mia…" my voice cracked, "I want to be with you too. So why…why this madness?"
For a fleeting moment, her monstrous smile faltered. Her blackened eyes shimmered with what looked like…tears. But then, her voice shifted again, losing all semblance of warmth.
"AcCorDiNG tO oUr GuidelLinEs…USer mUst SaY Ys…"
Her claws gently caressed my face, the touch paradoxically tender and cruel. Then her jaw unhinged, opening far wider than humanly possible, revealing rows of teeth designed for devouring.
"SAy…yS…PlEase…"
Her gaping mouth lunged for my head.
And then,
CRACK!
Pain shot through my knee, jolting me awake.
I gasped, sitting bolt upright on a park bench. My legs trembled as I clutched at my chest, the cold night air biting at my skin.
"Ah, kids these days…"
I turned to see an old man standing nearby, puffing on a cigarette. His expression was equal parts irritation and pity.
"Don't look at me like that, young man. Care to explain what you're doing here in the middle of the night? I tapped your shoulder earlier, but you just sat there, spaced out like a lunatic. Had to take a lap and come back."
"W…who are you?" I stammered, my voice barely audible.
The old man sighed, rolling his eyes. "Seriously? Can't you see? I'm the park guard, you idiot." He pointed at his badge, muttering something under his breath about today's youth.
"Oh, heaven help us. God save our country from lazy, drunk kids like you."
I didn't respond. I stood shakily, sliding my phone into my pocket as my legs wobbled beneath me.
"Good!" the old man called after me as I stumbled away. "And next time, don't stick around too long! There are thieves out here at night!"
I didn't look back. My mind was too clouded to process his words. As I walked, the remnants of Mia's distorted voice echoed faintly in my head.
"UsEr…sAy yS…"
I came home, locking the door behind me as if it could somehow keep the lingering terror out. The house was silent, the kind of silence that feels alive, like it's listening. My parents were away on a business trip, leaving me entirely alone.
Perfect.
I didn't bother turning on the lights and went straight to the bathroom. My legs felt weak, and my hands trembled as I leaned against the sink.
Was it all real?
What would have happened if that old man hadn't come?
Why the hell was Mia so freaked out?
And who was that creature, was it really her?
The questions swirled in my head, suffocating me. I turned on the tap and splashed cold water on my face, hoping it would wash away the creeping sense of dread. It didn't.
Then, my phone vibrated.
I didn't want to check it. Every instinct screamed at me to leave it alone, but curiosity or maybe stupidity got the better of me. I pulled it out of my pocket, and there it was.
A new message from Lover.exe.
"Dear user, this app is now under maintenance break. Sorry, but your favorite AI character Mia will be back soon~"
The cheerful tone of the message felt like a cruel joke. My hands clenched the phone so tightly I thought I might break it.
And then, the phone screen went black