Shower Thoughts

With his head down and his eyes closed Steven let the water pour across his scalp and neck. Feeling the water choose its path down his body. Some water flowing forward off his sagging shoulders and down his still swollen pictorials from his morning workout. The other half of the water flowed down his back, stiff from sitting way too much in an office chair in front of the computer. Steven hated gyms so he would do his exercises at home, push-ups, sit-up, crutches, planks. Doing body weight exercises to muscle failure. He hated every minute of it but loved the way it made him feel and look after.

His mind this morning, was not on his aching muscles. He was trying to work up the courage to ask Sam out on a date. Maybe it was not courage that was making the call hard but not knowing how to manage Sam. She pushed him in ways that made him uncomfortable. Uncomfortable is not the right word he decided, but more like unfamiliar. The conversations they shared and the experiences, the few they have had, where not a part of Steven's normal behavior. It felt like mental gymnastics on a subject that he did not have the skill sets to manage.

"I need a date tonight, so it might as well be Sam." Steven pushed the talk button on his headset and told the voice assistant to call "The Enigma". "Calling the Enigma." he heard the voice assistant say. There were too many Sam's and Samantha's in his phone book and he got tired of telling the assistant which one he wanted, plus the damn robot always got her last name wrong. Stupid phones he was thinking when Sam picked up."

"You know it is Saturday right." He heard her say, in more of a subdued tone than he was used to.

"I know, I will feel bad for bothering you if I am interrupting anything."

"Um. No. Nothing. Going on here. Just a late morning laying here in bed." Sam said, looking at the face of new Steven that she was lying next to. Just moments before she had started him and swore she heard what sounded like the dull thump and swish of a heartbeat. Now she was not sure if it was the robot or her heart beat she could hear. "What can I help you with." She asked, starting to feel a little embarrassed talking to her boss while lying half naked in the arms of a full sized robot. "Is it raining outside, are you outside?" she asked hearing the pattering of water.

"No. I am in the shower."

"You are where?"

"It is my thinking place."

"You were thinking about me in the shower? I like it."

"Don't flatter yourself. I think about most things in the shower." he would be embarrassed if she know just how much he thought of her, in and outside of the shower.

"Oh." Sam said emphasizing the disappointment in her voice.

Steven quickly continued, "I have a dinner tonight. A birthday party for a family friend. If you are not doing anything, I was wondering if you would want to join me."

"Are you asking me out on a date?"

"Yes because there are some services I don't pay for… that sounded much better in my head. I meant this is a none work trip. I don't want to talk about work."

As Sam thought about what another evening with real Steven would be like the new Steven opened its eyes and said "hello, let's get started". The voice was clear, deep, and controlled.

"Is someone there?" Steven asked.

"Yes. Um. I mean no. I have the TV on. Sorry she said." The robot continued "Let's finish setting up your experience by telling me about yourself."

"I thought I was not interrupting anything." Steven said concerned.

"You are not. It is just bad timing. I will call you right back." Sam hung up the phone.

Standing in the shower with the stream only hitting his feet, Steven tried to process what happened. "What was that about? That did not go as I expected." He did not get a commitment and there was a man with her, while she was in bed. "Play podcasts." Steven said into the headphones as he turned off the shower and tried to tamp down the feelings of jealousy that began to rise.