We are sharing the next story in our series, Featured Short Stories, written by students in the Creative Writing Club.
Every week, the students in the club work on writing short stories, sometimes from their own ideas, and sometimes from story prompts.
This week’s story was written by Amy, aged 11. Enjoy!
Number Thirty-Seven
“So, Henry, I haven’t heard from you for a long time. What have you been up to lately? You don’t look good.” Harold asked, raising his cup.
“Just the usual.” Henry replied.
“How’re you and Marilynn doing? Still having problems?”
Henry shrugged.
“Divorced a few weeks ago,” he said. “Really, Harold, I shudder when I look at women. Think about Marilynn. My bank account and assets have been split in half just because of a silly woman.”
“But the person who wanted divorce was you. So, you must face the consequences.”
“Yeah.”
There was silence.
“Marilynn was a good wife. Why did you choose to break up with her?”
Henry hesitated for a long time.
“Tired of it.” He muttered.
Harold was surprised.
“How could you say that?”
“I don’t want to tell lies to you, Harold.”
“Henry, fickle-minded people like you who get tired of stuff so often should have a robot as a partner.”
Henry frowned. He’d seen an advertisement in the newspaper about robot companions earlier that year. And it did seem… interesting. Just as he was about to ask, Harold called the waitress for another drink and the word “robot” was never mentioned again.
When the dinner ended at half past ten Henry was tired and weary, but instead of going home he went to his office. It was a tidy place, with a window overlooking the street, a shelf on which he kept his paperwork, and a desk on which stood a few contracts piled neatly together on a corner of the desk and a cup of cold tea. He opened the drawer at the bottom of his desk and pulled out a stack of newspapers. He started to search page by page.
He found it. The advertisement took up only a little space, and the language was simple: “Robot companion, always new, for more information contact 24678.”
Henry had wanted to dial the number straightaway, but he felt he wasn’t in the mood. Yawning, he cut the advertisement off the page and put it carefully into his pocket. Then, he left the office without even bothering to clear up the newspapers scattered all over the floor.
The next day all Henry could think about was the newspaper clipping inside his jacket pocket. He put it onto his desk and stared at it all day, forgetting to do his paperwork. He felt it was driving him crazy.
“What is wrong with you?” Mrs. Parrons, his secretary asked him. “You seem so… I don’t know… lost.”
That was it. He thought when she left. He couldn’t have his colleagues notice his strange behavior. They’d ask why… and then they’d laugh at him. He’d better get the problem solved. That afternoon when he returned from work, he drove way past the speed limit back to his house and, shakily, dialed the number.
The voice at the other end was soft. He relaxed.
“Hello, do you want to find an interesting partner?”
“Yes.”
“What are your requirements?”
“Well, she must be beautiful, the kind everyone loves at first sight, and has to make my life interesting, and help me with my work a lot.”
“Mr. Simmons, there is no perfect robot. You shouldn’t have overly high expectations. How about you come to our company to see the samples for yourself?”
Henry was pleased.
“We can choose them?”
“Of course.” The lady gave him the address and wished him a good day.
The next day after work, he went straight to the shop. It was not far from his home. He rang the bell, and someone quickly answered the door. It was a young lady, with blonde hair, blue eyes and a lovely smile.
“Mr. Simmons, please come in.”
Her voice was crisp.
Henry’s heart was pounding. He couldn’t wait.
“Tell me,” He said, “robots, can they be like real people? I mean, exactly like real people?”
The lady smiled mysteriously.
“What do you think about me, Mr. Simmons?”
“You are…”
“Mr. Simmons, I am one of the first generations of robots in the laboratory.”
“Oh!” Henry was surprised.
“I can let you look at three samples.” The lady said.
Henry suddenly flushed.
“Oh, and I’ve forgotten, what’s your name?”
The lady smiled again.
“My name is Number Eleven.”
A door was opened, and someone walked in. Henry took a glance, and his heart pounded so fiercely that it reached his throat.
This lady looked more mature than Number Eleven, with large eyes, thick eyebrows, and full lips curled in a smile.
“Mr. Simmons, this is Number Thirty-Seven.”
“I’ll take her.” Henry blurted out.
“You don’t need to look further?”
“No,” Henry replied. “This is my perfect girlfriend.”
“Mr. Simmons, I advise that you choose more carefully.”
“That’s okay, could you please tell me the price, I will pay immediately.”
“There are no expenses.”
“What?”
“This is an experiment,” Number Eleven explained. “You are a volunteer. After some time, we will contact you. We hope you’ll be able to give us a report on what you think by that time.”
“It’s… it’s this simple?”
“Please sign this contract.”
Henry signed with a stroke of his pen.
He reached out to touch Number Thirty-Seven’s hand. He found that it was soft and warm, just like that of a normal human.
“Here is the operation manual of Number Thirty-Seven,” Number Eleven said, handing him a thick book. “Hope you have a good time.”
“I want you give you a name.” Henry said to Number Thirty-Seven.
“Please tell me.” Number Thirty-Seven smiled.
“How about we call you Jenny?”
“Alright, thank you.”
“When I was young, I had a girlfriend called Jenny. Her parents didn’t like me.”
“And then?”
“And then we had to break up.”
“Are you still in contact?”
“Nope.”
That evening, Henry read the manual carefully. Jenny, he found, was not only a girlfriend, but also a caregiver, a secretary, a cook… once you changed her computer chip, she could be up to anything. Plus, she was so strong she could lift anything, a three-person couch, a desk… where could you find such a perfect partner?
Henry added Number Thirty-Seven’s functions to his computer, and from then on she started working for him. She was quick and convenient, and made Henry extremely satisfied.
Half a year passed, and one day the laboratory contacted him.
“Mr. Simmons, you owe us a report.”
“Oh sorry,” Henry replied. “I’ll hand it in immediately.”
“Thank you.”
“Don’t hang up, my report has only two words: extremely satisfied.”
“We’re very happy for you.”
From then on, no one from the laboratory contacted him again.
A few weeks later, something happened. Henry met his new neighbor Rachel on the elevator. Rachel was thin and short, had pale skin, short hair, and expressive big eyes. She was single, lived by herself, and worked at a bank.
“You also live by yourself?”
“Yes.” Henry said. Robots didn’t count, right?
“Could I go to your house some day?” Rachel asked. “I’ve heard it has a nice sea view.”
“You’re always welcome.”
One evening, Jenny was sitting beside him, knitting a sweater.
“When can you… you know… take me outside.”
Henry didn’t hear her clearly.
“What did you say?”
“I want to participate in your social life.”
“It’s nothing interesting,” Henry said. “All we talk about is business, you know, that stuff.”
“I’d like to meet your friends.”
“No.” Henry said.
“Business is okay. I want to go.”
Henry stiffened.
“Who’s the boss here?”
“You think?”
Henry stood up, pointing at Jenny with his finger.
“You’re nothing but a robot.”
Jenny pushed his hand away, and Henry put it back onto her shoulder. Jenny stretched over her hand and grabbed his collar, raising him up to over a meter.
“Don’t play strength with me.” Jenny said. She put him down.
That night, Henry was silently rereading the manual. He suddenly heard a click. Jenny had turned on the light.
“You want to destroy me?” she said, smiling. “Not that easy.”
“You… you’re wrong.”
Jenny crossed her arms.
“Go to sleep early! You have to go to work tomorrow.”
Her voice was just like Marilynn’s, and for the whole night Henry was so scared he was shivering. The next morning, he went back to the office and dialed the number to the robot company.
“I want to speak with Number Eleven!”
“Number Eleven is already retired.”
“So, who is responsible for the complains about Number Thirty-Seven?”
“Let me see, um, there is no record about Number Thirty-Seven on the computer.”
“That’s impossible!”
“Mr. Simmons, if the customer is extremely satisfied, the record would be deleted.”
“I want you go take Number Thirty-Seven back!”
“Take her back? But weren’t you extremely satisfied?”
“I said that too early, I –”
“Mr. Simmons, if you would want to take her back, you must take her to the laboratory yourself.”
“But how am I supposed to take her back?” Henry was panicking. “She’s so strong!”
“Mr. Simmons, she’s nothing but a robot. Besides, she’s left the factory for more than a year, her life is only three years before she has to be recharged. What are you afraid of?”
The lady hung up.
For the next few weeks, Jenny started slacking. She stopped doing chores or Henry’s work, and spent the whole day on the couch watching television.
One day, Henry met Rachel in the elevator again.
“You’re uncomfortable?”
Henry didn’t know how to reply.
“Come to my house and have coffee.”
“Sure. Thank you.”
At her house, Rachel made a cup of coffee for each and took out a strawberry cake from the fridge.
“You could tell me what’s wrong.” She said.
Henry kept silent. However, after he drank half of his coffee, he started to relax and told Rachel all about Number Thirty-Seven’s story.
“Don’t worry.” Rachel said.
Henry raised his head.
“What?”
“Don’t worry, I have a solution.”
“How is there ever a solution against Number Thirty-Seven?” Henry asked. “She’s… superwoman.”
Rachel grinned.
“I’ve got a knack of computer engineering.”
Henry saw hope.
“You said that Number Thirty-Seven is already on your computer?”
“Yes.”
“Then that’ll be easy.”
“How?”
“Destroy her functions.”
“You sure you can?” Henry asked.
“Of course.” Rachel said. “However, she can’t be home while I do it.”
“I’ll take her away,” Henry said immediately, “and I’ll give you the house keys.”
“Okay. What time?”
“Tomorrow night!”
When Henry went home, he told Number Thirty-Seven, “There’s a dinner party tomorrow, I want to take you with me.”
“Really?”
“Don’t you always want to go outside?”
“You really want to take me out?”
“Dress up nicely.”
The next day, he gave his house keys to Rachel.
“Let’s wait for the good news!” he said.
When he went back home from work, Jenny was already dressed up.
“First,” Henry explained, “we’re going to a concert. Then, we’ll attend a birthday party, and I’ll introduce you to my friends.”
“That’ll be great.” she said.
When the first half of the concert finished, she suddenly started to feel strange. She raised one of her hands in a peculiar posture. Her sweet voice suddenly became hoarse.
“What did you do?” she asked, her eyes falling on Henry.
Henry was impressed by Rachel.
“What?” He asked. “I’m not doing anything. I’m just sitting beside you.”
“This was your idea?” she could no longer move now.
Henry stood up and left the concert with Number Thirty-Seven. He folded her and put her into the car. He then drove the car to the suburbs of the city, where there was a large cliff, and threw the robot into the water underneath.
When he got home, Rachel was still there.
“What did you do to her?”
“I don’t want to talk about her.”
“She’s become trash now, don’t worry.”
Henry didn’t say anything. He opened the fridge for a bottle of wine and set it onto the table.
“Oh, and you haven’t told me, Rachel, where’s Number Thirty-Seven’s memory system?”
“In your computer.”
“Delete it!”
“It’s too late.”
“What?”
Rachel winked.
“I’ve already reused it.”
Henry frowned.
“What?”
“I have to find a way to know you, Henry.”
Henry froze. He suddenly understood.
He pointed to Rachel.
“You…”
“What kind of person do you think I am?”
“You… you’re…”
Rachel smiled.
“My name is Number Forty-Three.”
If you have a child who loves writing stories and you want to encourage them to explore their creativity and their imagination, then we would love to have them join our writing club! Just click on the link to register, and we will be in touch. Creative Writing Club – Registration Form.
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