House No. 13

Unforeseen Glitch

"Mom, is Eric alright?" Anna asked loudly.

"Yes, he's fine," Kelly replied, her eyes still focused on the sketchbook where she was designing a layered gown for a bride.

"Then why is AURORA indicating that Eric has a high-grade fever?" Anna said, reading the vitals AURORA had just recorded for Eric.

"Eric is fine. He was just here with me and then went to take a shower," Kelly said in a surprised tone. She moved to the control panel of AURORA and began reading Eric's recent vitals.

"AURORA, Eric doesn't have a fever. Why are you indicating that he does?" Kelly asked the AI system.

"Eric has a high-grade fever along with inflammation on his face and hands," AURORA stated in its human-like voice.

"No, he doesn't have a fever," Kelly muttered under her breath as she rushed toward Eric's room. She couldn't understand how Eric could suddenly have a high fever when he was fine just a few minutes ago.

Kelly entered Eric's room and looked around, but he wasn't there, indicating he was still in the bathroom. She moved forward and sat on the corner of the bed, deciding to wait until Eric came out so she could check his temperature herself.

After three minutes, the wooden bathroom door opened, and Eric came out. His hair was wet, and he was wearing grey jogger pants and a half-sleeve t-shirt.

"Hey, Mom," Eric said in a plain tone as he approached Kelly.

"Eric, you have a fever. Why did you take a shower without telling me?" Kelly said with concern, holding his cold hand.

"I don't have a fever, Mom," Eric said.

"But AURORA told me you had a high-grade fever and swelling on your face and hands," Kelly replied, her tone worried.

"No, Mom, I'm fine. You can check my temperature and look for the swelling yourself," Eric said, sounding irritated.

His prolonged illness and the weakness that came with it had made him short-tempered.

Kelly looked at Eric's face and hands and found them normal. She approached him, kissed his pale face, and said,

"Don't let it get to you. You know I was just asking because I care."

Kelly then left the room and entered the lounge, where Anna was conversing with AURORA.

"AURORA, Eric doesn't have a temperature, and his face and hands are normal," Kelly said as she began scrolling through the control panel screen.

She accessed the record of Eric's vital readings, examining not only the recent data but also past readings.

"Eric has a high-grade fever, and his hands and face are swollen," AURORA maintained its stance.

"No, he's fine," Kelly said firmly, stopping her scrolling on the screen. The vital readings of Eric recorded by AURORA over the past week had been altered somehow, now showing distorted values.

"Who changed these values?" Kelly asked in a surprised tone.

"What values?" Anna asked.

"Eric has been showing gradual improvement, especially over the past week his vitals remained near normal. I was so happy that my decision to move here was right... But now, look at the values. They're showing that Eric's vitals have been quite bad over the past week," Kelly said, glancing toward Anna.

"AURORA, who changed these values?" Anna asked about the AI system.

"Eric is seriously ill... His body vitals are indicating that" AURORA said.