Perfection Unattainable

“What an absolutely perfect morning!” Stephanie exclaimed. She breathed deeply and could still smell the lingering vanilla scent that was programmed to be pumped throughout the house. She threw off the blankets of her king sized bed. “REBECCA! Open the drapes!” Stephanie yelled at her robotic assistant.

“Opening the drapes.” The calm voice of the computer rang out as the heavy drapes parted from the windows.

“REBECCA! What’s the weather today?” Stephanie yelled again as she stepped into her satin slippers. She stretched out her arms to allow the robotic limbs to place her satin robe on her.

“Today in Proctor Heights, Montana the weather is currently 79 degrees with a north wind blowing…”

“REBECCA OFF!” Stephanie interrupted the device. She looked out her window and saw her neighbor Jim mowing his lawn. Jim’s wife Sarah was in a lawn chair sipping what looked like a boozy drink. Stephanie lived in the most premier smart community in the state. Every house was a technological wonder. Each house was equipped with a custom robotic aide, the latest household equipment, and around the clock technical support. Stephanie loved living in this high end suburb. Her husband was one of the engineers that created this community. He named it Carcer Steps after Stephanie. There was nothing Stephanie’s husband couldn’t provide for her. If there was something she needed, Stephanie would tell REBECCA to send a message to her husband and he would get it for her.

Stephanie’s husband had gone to work before she woke up in the morning. At night, after an extensive nightly routine, she would try to stay up to see her husband. No matter how hard she tried she would always fall asleep. She knew he had made it home however because she could feel him in bed. Stephanie didn’t pay it no mind. As long as she had the money to indulge herself with, maintain being a stay-at-home wife, and a home that cooked and cleaned itself she was happy. Husband or not she was going to enjoy this day.

Stephanie made her way down the staircase to her kitchen. REBECCA had already put out a spread of pastries, fresh fruit, eggs, bacon, and sausages. All of Stephanie’s favorites, except for coffee.

“REBECCA! Where is the coffee!?” Stephanie’s shrill voice pierced the air.

“There is no more coffee in the house. Would you like me to order more?”

“Yes! Obviously!” Stephanie yelled again.

“I don’t understand your request.”

“REBECCA ORDER MORE COFFEE!”

“I don’t understand your request.”

“What is wrong with this stupid machine? REBECCA CALL HUSBAND!”

“Calling Husband.” The dial tone tone filled the kitchen. The speakers were always loud. Finally, Stephanie’s husband picked up the phone.

“Yes dear?” He said.

“I have no coffee in this house and the stupid computer is broken.” Stephanie whined.

“What do you mean REBECCA is broken?” His voice was calm. There was no indication of interest however.

“I’m telling her to order coffee and she isn’t doing it!”

“I could send in tech support to look at the mainframe. Is that what you want me to do?”

“UGH! NO! I want REBECCA to be fixed! You know what, forget it. If you’re not going to fix it then forget it! REBECCA OFF!” Stephanie hung up on her husband. At this point she decided to go across the street to ask her neighbors Jim and Sarah for a cup of coffee. Stephanie pulled her robe tightly around her body and switched from her inside slippers to her outside slippers.

“REBECCA! Open the front door!”

“Opening the front door.” The front door swung open. Stephanie glided out the front door and walked to the edge of her driveway. She stopped suddenly realizing that she didn’t hear or see Jim mowing the lawn. A second before she walked out of the door Stephanie could still hear the lawn mower buzzing outside. What lay in front of her was an empty front lawn, with no lawn chair or mower. The grass didn’t look as if it was mowed either. Stephanie slowly made her way to the other side of the street. It was quiet. There wasn’t a bird chirping or a bug buzzing. The trees stood still even though there was a breeze. Stephanie looked down the street and saw only the houses perfectly lined up in a row. No one was outside enjoying the beautiful day. Finally she made it to her neighbors front door. She knocked. No answer.

“Hello? Sarah? Jim?” Stephanie knocked again. No answer. “Sarah? It’s Stephy I just saw you two outside! Jim?” No answer. Stephanie knocked harder, hurting her hand. No answer. Stephanie ran back to her home, her robe coming loose and opening. She ran through her front door, slamming it behind her.

“REBECCA! CALL HUSBAND!”

“Calling Husband.” The dial tone rang loudly in Stephanie’s ears. Her heart was pounding.

“Yes dear?” Her husband sounded tired.

“Jim and Sarah disappeared!” Stephanie was breathless.

“Jim and Sarah who live across the street?”

“Yes! Which other Jim and Sarah are there?”

“Why don’t you call them?” Stephanie didn’t think of that.

“I saw them just now! They were outside! Jim was mowing the lawn and Sarah was outside with him! I heard the lawn mower just before I opened the door!” Stephanie was yelling at this point.

“Why did you go over there in the first place?” Stephanie was taken aback by this question.

“I told you this morning I didn’t have coffee. I was going across the street to see if they did.”

“I could send a technician to you to fix the problem if you want. Would that make you happy?” This question perturbed Stephanie.

“What do you mean?”

“What will make you happy?” Her husband said again. Stephanie’s eyes grew wide, beads of sweat were falling down her forehead.

“REBECCA OFF!” Stephanie slumped down on her clean floor.

“I sense your heartbeat elevating. Would you like me to perform an analysis?” The computer asked calmly.

“Yes.” Stephanie stood up and went to the kitchen counter. The breakfast spread from this morning had already been cleaned up. There was no trace of breakfast left. When Stephanie reached the kitchen counter she placed her hands on the center. A red light illuminated under her hands. Stephanie could feel the warmth underneath. The process took thirty seconds. Once the light disappeared Stephanie called for a stool “REBECCA stool.” A stool appeared behind Stephanie. She sat waiting for her results. “REBECCA water, 54 degrees.” A glass emerged from the top of the counter and filled itself. It was the perfect temperature. Stephanie took a gulp.

“Analysis indicates elevated heart rate, elevated blood pressure, deficiency in iron, vitamin B6, vitamin B12, protein levels low, cortisol levels elevated…”

“REBECCA! Stop! REBECCA fix.” Stephanie rubbed her temples.

“Producing shake.” There was a mechanical noise emitting from the kitchen island. Stephanie turned around and beheld a glass full of green liquid. Stephanie grabbed the glass and began chugging its contents. The taste reminded Stephanie of a lemon grove. It was fragrant and had the consistency of a fruit smoothie.

When she finished it, Stephanie decided to get ready for the day.

“REBECCA! Start shower! 102 degrees!” Stephanie yelled.

“Starting shower. Water temperature 102 degrees.” The calm computer voice responded back.

“REBECCA! Pick out outfit forty-two but switch the shoes with shoe pair eighty.” Stephanie yelled again as she walked up the stairs to her bathroom.

“Picking outfit forty-two with shoe pair eighty.” Stephanie ignored the computer speaking back at her. She walked into her bathroom which had steamed up the way she preferred it. The shower was a glass box with a shower head that hung in the middle. The water came out steadily resembling the rain.

“REBECCA! Perform bath sequence seven - five - nine - nine.” Stephanie barked. Stephanie dropped her robe and entered the shower. The temperature was perfect as it always is.

“Performing bath sequence seven - five - nine -nine.” This bath sequence included washing her hair and shaving her legs and underarms with strawberry and vanilla scented soap. Stephanie was beginning to relax and forget the stress she endured in the morning. She stood in the middle of her shower and allowed metal arms to wash her. She spent forty-five minutes in her luxurious shower. Once finished she stood in the middle of the shower to be blown dry by a built- in dryer. The entire showering process took an hour and a half. Stephanie stepped out of her bathroom and into her bedroom. She found the exact outfit and shoe combination she had requested earlier on her bed neatly laid out.

She dressed herself. Stephanie was beginning to feel like her old self. Shaking the memory of this morning. Just as she started to walk downstairs she heard the buzzing of a lawn mower. Stephanie ran to her window. Once again she saw Jim and Sarah. Except this time Jim was using a riding lawn mower instead of a push lawn mower. Sarah was still lying in a lawn chair, but the drink in her hand was a different color. Stephanie ran downstairs.

“REBECCA! Open the front door!”

“Do you want me to order more coffee?” The computer replied. Stephanie stopped dead in her tracks.

“REBECCA! OPEN THE FRONT DOOR!” Stephanie yelled. Her body started to tremble.

“Do you want me to order more coffee?” The computer repeated. The calm tone started to sound threatening. Stephanie didn’t reply instead she reached out and opened the door herself. The door swung open. Stephanie gasped. She looked across the street to her neighbor’s house and saw that it was as it was in the morning. No one was outside. Stephanie ran across the street to their house. She saw that the grass wasn’t cut and there were no indentation marks from a lawn chair. Again she aggressively knocked on the door. No answer.

“JIM! SARAH!” Still no answer. Stephanie turned and raced back to her home. She ran inside. When she closed the door she could hear the buzzing of lawn equipment. Stephanie ripped open the door again. Nothing. Stephanie slammed the door, and again she could hear lawn equipment.

“REBECCA! CALL HUSBAND!”

“Calling Husband.” The dial tone rang through the house.

“Yes dear?” Stephanie’s husband sounded tired.

“Jim and Sarah! They were outside and then they weren’t outside!”

“Did they go inside?”

“No! They were outside and when I went outside they weren't there anymore!” Stephanie was breathless trying to explain herself. She was shaking violently.

“What would make you happy?” Her husband’s voice was filled with annoyance.

“I’m trying to explain to you what’s happening. I don’t know where Jim and Sarah are!”

“Did you ever get coffee?” This question made Stephanie stumble over her response.

“Why are you asking about coffee?”

“I’m sending a technician to reprogram REBECCA. He should be there now.” Once her husband said that there was a loud knock at the door. This made Stephanie jump. “REBECCA open the door and hang up.” With that the door swung open and Stephanie’s husband was gone.

“Hey there ma’am! I’m here to reprogram your REBECCA. Can you point me to your mainframe?” A young man with bright blonde hair under a company hat stepped through her front door. Stephanie pointed him toward her garage. The young man tipped his hat and went to do his work. All of the sudden Stephanie received a strong whiff of the vanilla scent. She began to feel faint. The walls around her started to become blurry. Stephanie began to turn toward the young technician.

“Ma’am are you feeling okay?” Stephanie couldn’t respond before she fainted and hit the floor. The last thing she remembered was the smiling face of the young technician.

Stephanie woke up in her bed. She was in her pajamas. Her head was pounding.

“REBECCA! Are you fixed?”

“Running diagnostics….diagnostics complete. Running at optimum capacity. What can I help you with today?” Stephanie let out a deep sigh of relief.

“Today will be a beautiful day!” Stephanie exclaimed. She threw off the blankets of her king sized bed. “REBECCA! Open the drapes!” Stephanie yelled at her robotic assistant.

“Opening the drapes.” The calm voice of the computer rang out as the heavy drapes parted from the windows.

“REBECCA! What’s the weather today?” Stephanie yelled again as she stepped into her satin slippers. She stretched out her arms to allow the robotic limbs to place her satin robe on her.

“Today in Proctor Heights, Montana the weather is currently 79 degrees with a north wind blowing…”

“REBECCA OFF!” Stephanie interrupted the device. She looked out her window and saw her neighbor Jim mowing his lawn. Jim’s wife Sarah was in a lawn chair sipping what looked like a boozy drink. He was in the same outfit from the day before. Everything seemed to be the same as the day before. Stephanie could feel her blood freeze in her veins. She ran down the stairs and went into the kitchen. She saw all the same foods spread upon the kitchen table. “REBECCA! CALL HUSBAND!” Stephanie paced back and forth waiting for her husband to pick up the phone.

“Yes dear?” Her husband responded.

“Everything is the same as yesterday! EVERYTHING IS THE SAME!” Stephanie was trembling.

“Have you had your coffee yet?” Stephanie didn’t respond. “REBECCA serve coffee, two pumps, and extra milk.”

“Making coffee.” Said the cold voice of the computer.

“Drink your coffee Stephanie. You’ll feel better.” Her husband hung up the phone. Stephanie saw the glass mug of hot coffee steaming.

“But I didn’t order coffee.” Stephanie slowly walked over to the mug. With shaking hands she lifted the mug to her lips. She began to sip on the hot liquid, gulping it down. In the distance she could hear the buzz of a lawn mower.

“REBECCA, open the front door.”

“Opening the front door.” The front door swung open smoothly. Stephanie stepped into the doorway holding onto the mug of coffee. She clearly saw Jim mowing the lawn in his push lawn mower, and Sarah drinking something in a lawn chair. They both waved.