My Human

Chapter 36 Bound for the Floor

"You're kinda losing it, Aeris...." Lulu whispered cleaning up the coffee I spilled on the floor while I rubbed my temples. She peered up at me with concerned jade eyes through her auburn bangs.

"Yeah," I murmured in agreement. My mind felt fuzzy, like I was missing blocks of time and all I could focus on was this project but even that somehow seemed unclear. I was progressing so much and when I worked I was so intent but outside of that it was like I couldn't think about it. It was like my mind went blank until I was back in the lab.

"Maybe you need some time off?" She offered handing me a fresh cup of coffee.

"Absolutely not!" Ivan sang like an opera baritone as he burst into the break room like his moment had been cued.

"Ivan, she needs a break," Lulu lectured, placing her hands demandingly on her petite waist.

Ivan laughed heartily. "Not my Aeris, she is a programming robot. She doesn't require worldly things other humans do, like time off or more money."

"No, more money would be good," I retorted cleverly, trying to lighten the tension. I actually was cracking but that didn't mean I wanted anyone to know.

"Seriously, you really are like a robot though, Aeris. I popped in to ask you questions this morning and it was like you didn't even know I was there. Your mind was so fixated on programming."

I froze, so as not to show the slight panic I felt at her statement. There was no recollection in my mind that she ever entered my workspace. I could barely remember the moments leading up to entering the break room, but somehow, I was getting work done. Ivan kept praising me. Victor was thrilled and all the while when I wasn't programming, I felt so in the dark. Was this just work-related stress? Tobias didn't seem stressed at all, which only frustrated me more.

Ivan threw his arm around me. "Nothing stops my little Aeris when she sets her mind to something."

"Right," I laughed anxiously and Lulu gave a hesitant smile, still thinking I wasn't alright.

"Tell you what," Ivan began boisterously, "When you finish this project and Victor is even more over the moon, I will give you a month of vacation that I know you won't take anyway, but it's there if you want it. As long as you help me hire more programmers."

I snorted. That was more challenging than the project I was working on. We were so short-handed. It wasn't just programmers though, it was everyone; scientists, project managers, secretaries, every position. People were just disappearing into thin air and leaving in masses without even the decency of 2 weeks' notice.

"One of our competitors must really be offering higher salaries and benefits," Lulu murmured.

Ivan growled in annoyance. "You mean Comptrix?" he spat. "They are barely on the radar as far as competition. They don't even have a quarter of the clients we have; how could they possibly need our entire workforce?"

I knew he was right, but it still was strange the way people kept up and leaving. Victor said it was human nature and when things get difficult people will leave in droves. He said what we were doing at InTeque was challenging new heights and it takes a certain level of dedication that the average person didn't have. We would find the right people; that's what he kept assuring me. Until then, I had to keep pushing forward.

"It will work out eventually," I reassured, more so to myself than Ivan and Lulu. "I'm gonna get back to work. Robo Aeris has much to compute," I snickered.

They both chuckled as I walked to the lab and entered the sliding frosted doors. Inside, sat Tobias, kicked back in my hover chair with a knowing grin. The mental exhaustion prevented me from stopping my groan of annoyance.