Natural Selection (Elijah Kamski x Reader)

Cognitive Specialization

Compiling key events...
Time_Lapse=30 DAYS

The alarm screeched.  6:00AM, on the dot.  Elijah got up and went in the shower.  You did the same, but left for the kitchen.

You decided what to make.  Cooked each piece in sequential order – the toast in toaster, eggs on the skillet; vegetables that were cut and prepared the night before in a bowl beside them.

You turned the coffee maker on.  Put the grounds in the filter, and water in the tank.  You swiped the counter, sprinkling the loose, brown pellets in the sink before rinsing them down the drain.

Routine bullet point three.

You'd sit and talk once he was dressed, but most of the time you were too tired to even listen.  You didn't really need to.

It was always some varied form of the same conversation.

"What are you going to do today?"  He'd ask.

"I don't know."  You'd answer.

And then he'd talk about Colbridge.  Of course he had more than you to talk about.

Although, you questioned how many more lectures on artificial intelligence, the brilliance of Amanda Stern, or how close he was to a breakthrough you could endure.

When he'd leave, he'd give you a kiss at the door.  Tell you to rest, and get some sleep while he held a packed lunch that you'd prepared the day prior.  Tell you to relax, and take a breather.

But you couldn't.

You'd clean up the dishes from the morning mess, watch videos online while you drank your own coffee, and wait until 8AM to start laundry in order to avoid another noise complaint.

Today, there would be a break in that monotonous routine, however.

Dickhart
Today 8:14AM
Look...it's like, 2AM here...but it's been a few weeks.  Just letting you know I'm thinkin about ya.

You held your phone, hugging yourself in a robe.  Pulled your knees to your chest while sitting on the couch, frowning.  You'd gotten into a fight the last time you'd talked to him.

"Are you his fucking maid or something?"

"No."

"What did he do before you got there?"

"He just...didn't."

Things had spiraled out of control while you were locked in solitary confinement.  It was your own fault, though.  You'd tried to fix it.

When Elijah had told you to not associate with the locals, and you didn't.  You ordered groceries through a delivery service from some multi-billion-dollar company, instead – just like all the other students in the community home.  You'd been trying to fit in, to do as the "Romans" did while in "Rome."

To: Dickhart
I miss home.
Message Sent

He didn't answer right away like he usually did.  You could practically feel the gears turning in his head from overseas, gearing up to deliver another lashing.

Instead, his devices had your own grinding to a halt.

Dickhart
Today 8:19AM
Home misses you.

You'd come here to help create a better world.  To make changes that would be felt across generations, alongside a man you'd fallen in love with.  But during your first 30 days, all you'd managed to do was isolate yourself.  To fall into a mechanical rhythm of doing the same busy work every other day, wasting away while you hoped Elijah could figure out...whatever it was.