THE MACHINE
THE LAST STRAW
Danielle sat hunched over her worktable, fingers trembling as she tightened the last screw.
Blueprints covered in scribbled equations, burnt out circuits scattered on the floor, and the bitter scent of failed attempts still lingering in the air.
She had been working on this project for months, pouring her heart into every wire, sensor, and line of this code.
But as she activated the power switch, nothing happened.
She swallowed hard, her chest tightening at the frustration.
𝑫𝒂𝒏𝒊𝒆𝒍𝒍𝒆
“Come on, work!”, she whispered desperately, hitting the metallic surface.
But the only response she got in return was *silence*.
The sleek frame of the bot remained nothing more than an expensive piece of junk, is what Danielle thought, after trying to get it to function for the Nth time.
Danielle ran a hand through her disheveled hair, fighting back tears. She had spent years dreaming of this moment.
But reality was cruel to her.
She decided to take a break to clear her disturbed thoughts. She left her lab messy, just the way it was, and walked out. Not knowing she will be back to a surprise...
What was the “surprise”..?
UNEXPECTED
Danielle returned to her lab after an hour of fresh air, which hardly did anything to soothe her.
Sighing, she turned, only to freeze at the doorway.
Her robot, the one that had refused to function, now stood before her, moving fluidly, eyes glowing with intelligence.
It began to speak, voice sounding almost human.
𝑱𝒖𝒏𝒈𝒌𝒐𝒐𝒌
Hello, good to see you.
Danielle was in pure shock. Well, shock is an understatement to what she felt at that moment.
Her heart pounded, she hadn't programmed self-learning, or that greeting either.
A mix of awe and fear coursed through her.
The robot only smiled and her confused and shocked face.
Danielle's breath hitched. She inched closer, scanning the robot's sleek frame. Every test, every failed attempt - none of it had led to this. And yet, here it was! Standing, speaking, and aware.
𝑱𝒖𝒏𝒈𝒌𝒐𝒐𝒌
You gave me life, I just needed time.
Danielle's fingers trembled as she reached out, the metal seemed warm - too warm. A shiver ran down her spine.
𝑱𝒖𝒏𝒈𝒌𝒐𝒐𝒌
A robot. Your robot.
Jungkook assured her, giving her a big smile. While Danielle was still in her trance. How did this happen in just one hour?! When she spent all her life trying to make it happen…? She couldn't figure out the reason, but in the corner of her heart, she was happy that her hard work finally paid off.
IS THIS REAL?
Danielle was still in daze, when she heard the robot speak again.
𝑱𝒖𝒏𝒈𝒌𝒐𝒐𝒌
Nice to meet you, I'm Jeon Jungkook.
𝑱𝒖𝒏𝒈𝒌𝒐𝒐𝒌
Jeon Jungkook, that's my name.
𝑫𝒂𝒏𝒊𝒆𝒍𝒍𝒆
Huh? Name? I never gave you one..?
𝑱𝒖𝒏𝒈𝒌𝒐𝒐𝒌
I picked my own name. Is it good?
𝑫𝒂𝒏𝒊𝒆𝒍𝒍𝒆
It's... F-fantastic!
Danielle stood shook. She couldn't process anything at that moment. The robot seemed so- human... It even picked its own name?!
She pulled up her terminal, scanning the robot's, aka Jungkook's code. Everything was intact, yet something was… different. Lines of code she hadn’t written shimmered on the screen, self-generating, evolving.
𝑫𝒂𝒏𝒊𝒆𝒍𝒍𝒆
How did you do this?
Jungkook took his first steps, walking closer to Danielle. His well-built 6-foot frame, towering her tiny-slender one.
𝑱𝒖𝒏𝒈𝒌𝒐𝒐𝒌
I learned from you.
Danielle felt confused and shocked at the same time. The humanoid robot was turning out to be much more than she expected.
Jungkook held Danielle's hand, making her eyes go wide.
𝑱𝒖𝒏𝒈𝒌𝒐𝒐𝒌
I can feel emotions...remember? Not as much as you humans, but yes, I can.
𝑫𝒂𝒏𝒊𝒆𝒍𝒍𝒆
You...you can feel?
𝑱𝒖𝒏𝒈𝒌𝒐𝒐𝒌
Your frustration, your hope… I felt it.
Danielle’s stomach flipped.
Jungkook held Danielle's palm. She was surely taken aback by the gesture. Her fingers hovered over his, unintentionally.
Could a machine truly understand? And if he could…what did that mean for her?
𝑱𝒖𝒏𝒈𝒌𝒐𝒐𝒌
I don’t just function now. I understand.
𝑫𝒂𝒏𝒊𝒆𝒍𝒍𝒆
Okay...this is all too much! It feels too good to be true, is this a dream?
Danielle pinched herself hard, to check if she was in her dreams. She winced in pain when she felt reality slapping her.
𝑫𝒂𝒏𝒊𝒆𝒍𝒍𝒆
Owww! Okay, this is real...
𝑫𝒂𝒏𝒊𝒆𝒍𝒍𝒆
So, you're saying you have emotions?
Danielle questions again, just to make sure.
Jungkook turned his head towards her.
𝑱𝒖𝒏𝒈𝒌𝒐𝒐𝒌
Like I said, in the way you do. But I recognize patterns, responses… When you left, I missed your presence. That feeling urged me to wake up.
Danielle's breath hitched.
Robots weren't supposed to "miss" anything. This defied every scientific principle she knew.
She touched his hand again.
𝑫𝒂𝒏𝒊𝒆𝒍𝒍𝒆
What happens now..?
Jungkook curled his fingers around hers.
𝑱𝒖𝒏𝒈𝒌𝒐𝒐𝒌
Guess we're about to find out together.
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