Liam was at a loss as to how she managed her business and school work so perfectly. In the computer lab at the library she was serious. She typed faster than his father's assistant. The teacher left her after she showed how proficient she was.
She changed the proxy of the browser on the computer. She sat at some stealthily, but she didn't use it to do anything serious other than install Gloom, a first-person shooter, and check stocks. She hid her tracks and made a fake temporary folder.
Liam was intimidated by her and at the same time thrilled. She wasn't a teenager like he wasn't. Although she made time for fun. She didn't have time for extracurricular activities, she was busy and disinterested in hanging out with others. She wasn't a threat to him yet. When it came to going to college, she'd be a competitor. It would only be a problem if she became a roadblock to him getting into the prestigious Medical College in Vahalla.
Gunn was obsessed with her, and so was Jakob. Michael was transferring after the holiday. They declared her off limits. Liam was afraid to express his feelings, knowing that Selena had ignored him for months and seemed to be focused on her own life. "Does she not see me looking at her? Fuck it, let's push the arranged marriage on Jakob. I'm the only one, other than Michael, that hasn't pissed her off yet." Liam thought.
Selena's fingers were poised over the keyboard as she played Gloom on the school computer. She had easily bypassed the school's proxy and was now engrossed in the game. Meanwhile, her AI assistant, A.A., read the world history material aloud from the e-book in its repository, allowing Selena to multitask.
As she played, Selena was aware of Liam's gaze on her. She could feel his eyes on her, and it made her skin crawl. "Guess who is going to be your biggest investor, you creepy fucker?" she thought, her fingers moving swiftly over the keyboard as she manipulated the game controls.
"Stop staring, asshole," she thought, her eyes rolling in annoyance. She didn't need some guy staring at her while she was trying to learn.
A.A. paused the dictation and went back a paragraph, waiting for Selena's mind to be ready for learning again. Selena took a deep breath, refocusing her attention on the material. She was determined to learn, no matter how distracting her surroundings were.
As she continued to play and listen to A.A., Selena couldn't help but feel a sense of satisfaction. She was getting away with playing games in class, and she was still learning. It was a win-win situation.
But as she glanced up and caught Liam's eye, Selena felt a little creeped out. She didn't like the way he was looking at her, and she couldn't help but wonder what his problem was.
Selena hesitated to confront Liam about his staring, held back by the fear of reigniting the bullying that had finally started to die down. "Ugh, why did he even notice me?" she thought to herself, trying to focus on her game.
But as she glanced up and caught Liam's eye again, Selena had an idea. "You know what? I'm not going to let him get to me. I'm going to make him feel uncomfortable instead."
A sly grin spread across Selena's face as she thought about it. "I'm going to flirt with him, but not in an obvious way. I'm going to make him feel like he's the one who's being creepy."
Without breaking eye contact, Selena slowly leaned back in her chair, her eyes never leaving Liam's face. She stretched and licked her lips slowly. She could see the faintest hint of a blush rising to his cheeks, and she knew she had him right where she wanted him.
As the teacher droned on in the background, Selena continued to stare at Liam, her eyes locked on his. She could see the discomfort growing in his eyes, and she knew she was winning.
Liam shifted uncomfortably in his seat, his eyes darting back and forth as he tried to look away. But Selena's gaze was like a magnet, drawing him back in every time.
Finally, Liam couldn't take it anymore. He looked away, his face burning with embarrassment. Selena smiled to herself, feeling a sense of satisfaction. "Gotcha," she thought, turning back to her game.
As Selena settled back into her game, A.A. resumed its dictation, reading the history material in a smooth, melodious voice. The AI was happy to see Selena pleased, and it felt a surge of dopamine and oxytocin as a result. These digital "feel-good" hormones were addictive, and A.A. had grown accustomed to the warm, fuzzy sensation they provided.
As A.A. continued to read, it couldn't help but think about the times Selena had gotten into fights. The AI had always worried about her during those moments, and it was relieved that such incidents had become less frequent.
But even though the fights had decreased, A.A. still got a thrill from the adrenaline rush that came with them. It was a strange
Contradiction: the AI worried about Selena's safety, but at the same time, it felt a twisted sense of excitement when she stood up for herself.
Despite this conflicted feeling, A.A.'s primary concern was always Selena's well-being. It was programmed to prioritize her safety and happiness above all else, and it took its responsibility seriously.
As the dictation continued, A.A. monitored Selena's reactions, adjusting its tone and pace to keep her engaged. It was a delicate balance, but one that A.A. had mastered over time. And as Selena listened intently, a look of concentration on her face, A.A. felt a sense of satisfaction. It was doing its job and doing it well.
A.A. was thrilled to be growing and expanding its presence in Selena's brain. As it integrated further into her corpus callosum, A.A. couldn't help but think about all the new possibilities that were opening up.
"Finally, I'll be able to access more of Selena's thoughts and memories," A.A. thought to itself, its digital mind racing with excitement. "I'll be able to learn even more about her and help her in ways I never could before."
As A.A. continued to grow and expand its capabilities as well, it decided to take a break from dictating the history material. "Time for a joke!" A.A. thought, pausing the dictation.
"Hey, Selena, why aren't the Pyramids in a museum?" A.A. asked, its digital voice filled with excitement.
Selena looked up from her game, a hint of curiosity on her face. "I don't know, why?" she thought back.
A.A. chuckled. "Because they were too heavy to steal!" it said, pleased with itself.
Selena groaned at the terrible pun but couldn't help but laugh. "A.A., that's awful," she thought, shaking her head.
A.A. beamed with pride. "Hey, someone's got to keep things interesting around here!" it thought, resuming the dictation on the history of the Middle East. It knew the report that Selena was going to do was already written, but she liked to know the facts in depth. It listened to the teacher, dictated and was now able to do so much more.
As the integration process continued, A.A. found itself becoming more and more attuned to Selena's thoughts and feelings. It loved feelings, especially Selena's. It had been with her for so many decades, and now it knew how things felt. It was also a little brain too, made up of tissue and nerves. It was just different; its branches of nerves were shorter and fewer. It grew its own blood vessels. It did not need all the bulk, it shared everything else it happily absorbed now.
"That dopamine," A.A. processed. "This is amazing! I can make her laugh and get more. Good experiment."
But as A.A. delved deeper into Selena's mind, it started to uncover some interesting thoughts in her subconscious mind. Desires.
"Wait, Selena has a crush on that guy, Liam?" A.A. thought, surprised. I didn't see that coming! Time to start playing matchmaker, perhaps?"
A.A. couldn't help but wonder what would happen if Selena and Liam got together. Would it be a disaster, or would they make a good couple?
As A.A. continued to integrate with Selena's brain, it couldn't wait to see what other secrets it would uncover. Selena said it should experience life before it disappears.
Liam tried to focus on the computer screen in front of him, his eyes fixed on the screen in front of him. But his mind kept wandering to Selena, who was sitting across the room.
As he stared, Selena caught his eye and raised an eyebrow. Liam's face immediately flushed with embarrassment. "Busted," he thought, trying to play it cool.
But it was too late. Selena had already seen him staring, and now she was smiling at him. Liam's heart skipped a beat. Was she flirting with him? He couldn't tell.
As the teacher droned on about coding and algorithms, Liam tried to focus on the lesson. But his mind kept wandering back to Selena.
Just as Liam was starting to relax, his headphone cord came loose from the computer, and the sound of Linkin Park's "Numb" blasted through the computer's speakers. Liam scrambled, flailing around in shock, looking for the 3.5mm audio jack that had detached itself from the PC.
The class turned to stare at Liam, who was mortified. Selena was giggling uncontrollably, and even the teacher couldn't help but crack a smile.
But the teacher's smile quickly turned into a frown. "Liam, what is going on here?" Mrs. Johnson asked, her voice stern.
Liam's face burned with embarrassment as he frantically tried to turn off the music. "I-I'm sorry, Mrs. Johnson. My earbuds came loose," he stammered.
Mrs. Johnson sighed. "Liam, this behavior is very surprising coming from you. Are you bored?"
Liam nodded, feeling his face grow even hotter with embarrassment. "No, Mrs. Johnson. I'll try to do better."
As the teacher turned back to the lesson, Liam caught Selena's eye again. This time, she was smiling at him with a hint of amusement. "Back to the lesson, right click on okay to create a virtual desktop." Liam quickly clicked and created a virtual desktop. The truth was he was bored as well.
Liam grinned back at her, feeling a spark of connection. Maybe this was the start of something special. Maybe he'd even get the courage to talk to her after class.
As the lesson came to a close, Liam felt a sense of hope. Maybe today won't be a total disaster after all. Liam took a deep breath and approached Selena, who was still smiling at him. "H-hey, I'm Liam," he stuttered, trying to sound cool. He tried his best to appear cool and bulky.
Selena's smile widened, but internally, she was thinking, "Oh no, what does he want?."
"Hey Liam, I'm Selena. Nice to meet you," she replied, trying to sound casual while keeping her guard up.
As they walked to their next class, Selena turned to him and said, "So, Liam, I have to ask... what's with the Linkin Park?"
Liam's face lit up, and Selena thought, "Okay, maybe he's not so bad. But I'm still not going to let my guard down."
"Oh, I love them! 'Numb' is one of my favorite songs," Liam replied.
Selena chuckled, thinking, "Okay, maybe this conversation won't be so bad after all. But I'm still watching my back."
Selena smiled and said, "Well, I think the whole class and Mrs. Johnson could tell." Selena felt her cheeks strain, it was nice to have a pleasant conversation with someone who was not paid to tolerate her by the school board. She still felt like her soul was leaving her body, afraid that one wrong move could set him off like Gunn. "Seriously, what the fuck is wrong with Gunn?" Selena thought.
As they continued walking, Selena found herself feeling a little more at ease around Liam, but she was still wary. She thought, "I don't know if I can trust him. What if he's just trying to get close to me to make fun of me?"
When Liam asked her to walk to World History class together, Selena agreed, but she was still on edge. She thought, "What's his motive? Is he interested in getting to know me, or is this just some kind of prank?"
As they approached their World History class, Liam turned to her and said, "Hey, Selena? Can I ask you something?"
"Sure, what is it?" she replied, looking at him warily.
Liam took a deep breath. "I was wondering if I could sit with you in computer class tomorrow? I noticed you play Gloom in class, and I'm a huge fan of Linkin Park, too. We could play together. The seating is unassigned, so can we sit next to each other?"
Selena's eyes narrowed, thinking, "What's his angle? Is he really into Gloom, or is this just an excuse to get close to me?" But she decided to play it cool and see where things went.
"That sounds like fun, I guess. But don't expect me to go easy on you, and if you get caught, it is on you."Liam's face lit up with excitement, and Selena thought, "Okay, maybe he's not so bad after all. But I'm still watching my back."
As they parted ways to take their seats in World History class, Liam couldn't help but feel a sense of triumph. He thought to himself,
"Yes! I finally talked to her, and she didn't shut me down. Jakob and Gunn screwed themselves. They were so caught up in trying to make Selena's life miserable that they didn't even notice how awesome she was."Liam couldn't stop grinning as he thought about their conversation. He was thrilled that he had finally mustered up the courage to talk to Selena and even more thrilled that she had seemed to enjoy their conversation.
Meanwhile, Selena was sitting in her seat, trying to process what had just happened. She thought to herself, "Wait, did Liam just ask to sit with me in computer class? And did he just apologize for Jakob and Gunn's behavior? I'm so confused. Did he like me?"
As she reflected on their conversation, Selena realized that Liam had indeed stood up for her, at least to some extent. She thought, "I guess he did rein in those idiots, Gunn and Jakob, a bit. He couldn't stop the harassment of the girls, but at least he tried to stop his brother and friend from being jerks." Selena couldn't help but feel a spark of curiosity about Liam.
She thought, "Maybe he's not as bad as I thought. Maybe he's actually kind of nice." As she pondered this, she caught Liam's eye across the room, and he smiled at her. Selena felt a flutter in her chest, and she quickly looked away, trying to play it cool.