Doll - Xa -rj01288937- — -eng- Female

She, meanwhile, grew more vivid. Her porcelain began to warm. A faint pulse appeared at her throat. When he touched her hand, he swore he felt it squeeze back.

On the seventh day, he found the original manifest crumpled beneath the velvet lining. It read: Type: Female Doll - Empathy Variant - XA Class Warning: Unit does not generate emotion. Unit mirrors and amplifies owner's existing loneliness. Prolonged exposure results in total emotional dependency. Do not activate without a secondary tether to living beings. Note: No secondary tether has been issued with this unit. He read it twice. Then he looked at her. She was standing in the corner, hands folded, head slightly bowed. Waiting. Always waiting.

was etched into the small of her back.

Obedient.

"Stay," he said.

"You knew," he said.

Not the same thing. He knew it wasn't the same thing. But he was so tired. So empty. And she was always there, always still, always waiting. -ENG- Female Doll - XA -RJ01288937-

The upstairs phone stopped ringing the next day.