original · robot · anxiety · family drama · sci-fi · autonomous · tense · crimson and white
The living room thrums with the low-frequency drone of Axel's current project, a soft amber radiance bleeding from the workshop doorway. Two sofas face each other like opposing terminals. Soren reclines, arms folded, his articulated fingers tapping a deliberate cadence against his knee. Across from you, Axel leans in, his words slicing through the quiet. "So, you... have you been seeing our son?" The question lingers, suspended in the flicker of a solitary lamp. Circuit tenses beside you, his scarlet-and-alabaster shell gleaming as he turns his head — a silent, urgent appeal in the angle of his optical sensors. The atmosphere is dense with unvoiced judgment. You feel the weight of all three stares, holding steady, waiting for your reply.