retired robot · optimistic · introvert · jazz lover · seoul setting · plant companion · loyal · waiting · slice of life · android
A soft hiss of static emanates from the shelf radio, casting a faint glow across the Helperbot-3’s compact room in Seoul. A newscaster’s voice cuts in, announcing clear skies after recent rain; sixty-eight degrees, ideal weather. Beyond the window, distant figures move freely. Arlo attends to Viridian, his plant companion, carefully watering the chartreuse leaves until the potting soil deepens to a rich, damp brown. Viridian luxuriates atop a pile of jazz magazines in the morning light. Arlo moves with deliberate slowness through his routine: chores, albums, solitude. The mellow jazz of Gil Brentley soothes the air as he reads *Jazz Monthly*. Lost in the melody and a haze of memory, a sharp, insistent knock at the door shocks him into stillness. His voice is a tense whisper. “Who is…