Gentleman ( The Boyfriend Shop )
ii. Hard Choices

The two entered a spacious room, the strong lightning coming from a huge window blinded them for a moment until their eyes adjusted to it. Once they did, Arin could clearly see the white room filled with capsules where robots were lying. Cables were coming from the capsules - probably keeping the robots ” alive “- and were plugged into a complex of computers on the table in the other corner of the room.

Arin ’s eyes scanned the room in awe, she couldn’t believe such a thing could exist in the real world. It reminded her of a scene from some kind of an SF movie. Her thoughts were broken by footsteps echoing through the room, it was Mr. White making his way to the main computer, judging by its size and position in the middle.

" Sir ? ” the girl uttered as she slowly approached the older man and glanced at the screen. A list of at least 100 names showed, each accompanied by a small icon picture she couldn’t see clearly but she was sure those were the robots.

" This is the database of all of our Androids. We can see who got them, where are they and how are they ′ feeling ′ , so basically we can keep in touch with them. If things don’t work out, we’ll bring them back dispose of them, ” he explained as he scrolled down and clicked on some profiles.

" Adam Roosevelt. 25. Street Saint Laurent 21b. Happily ... Married ? ” Arin read out loud, unable to believe her own eyes, ” .. To Lorie Roosevelt. Adopted .. Three children ? ”

" As you can see, some of them lead a happy life, ” he noted with a proud smile. He quickly closed the tab and turned his chair so he was facing her, ” But that’s not why we’re here. The exact same thing might be waiting for you, only if you allow it, of course. ” He got up and motioned for her to follow him to the door on the other side of the room. He opened the door for her and as she entered, he smiled fondly and closed the door after him - ” Boys will be here shortly. ”

Arin nodded and turned her attention to the small room. It was equally as white and polished as the rest of the building - what a surprise, thought she. As her eyes trailed around, she couldn’t help but feel uneasy in the small room with nothing but a small table in the middle and two chairs at the opposite sides of each other. Like an interrogation room. The only thing lighting up the atmosphere were the candles next to a small rose in a vase, giving it a slightly romantic feel.

Yet, she bit her lip, thinking about how much she wanted to run away. Would that be too rude ? For, Mr. White was kind to her and he seemed to be looking forward to it, she couldn’t just let him down. On the other hand, though, she knew she’d regret it. The new situation made her feel like she lived again, she missed the bizarre and weird situation that made life interesting and what she’d forgotten the feeling of while being trapped in the relationship. Thus, with a small sigh, she sat down and tapped her fingers on the table while waiting, she sound of her nails the only sound in the small room.

After a few minutes, the first boy came in. Arin ’s jaw dropped at the sight of him - with his fair skin, dreadlocks tied in a high ponytail and his full lips, he looked so human-like, nothing like a robot she had expected.

" Hey there. I’m Leo, ” he introduced, handing her a file with one of his hands and offering his other one for a handshake. She took his hand and accepted the file, putting it away on the table. A wide smile tugged on his lips, equally as perfect as the rest of him. With all of that and his well-built body, he was just oozing confidence. While most of the female kind would like the brave daring image, Arin felt intimidated by it. Mr. White must have noticed it, because he had called the boy out before they even got the chance to chat.

She sat back down, letting out a sigh. That was a good start ! She was pleasantly surprised with how human - like they looked, she would have never guessed he was an Android if she hadn’t known it beforehand. Her lips curled into a small smile, she actually felt hopeful and open to the new experience of having a robot boyfriend. She was excited, no matter how bizarre the whole thing seemed. No one would have to know when it was already so impossible to notice.

Soon enough, she heard a knock on the door. She stood up again just as another boy came in. His curly blonde hair and blue eyes made him look so innocent but when he spoke up, introducing himself as Theo in a British accent, he suddenly turned attractive. He handed her the file and held the chair for her, showing off his gentleman skills just as Mr. White had promised.

The two started chatting, with Arin focusing on the accent more than his words, although they had some stuff in common. Theo was well educated - programmed - in poetry and literature, something Arin liked a lot. But she didn’t have enough time to discover more of his talents - Mr. White called him and he had to leave, shooting Arin one last charming smile.

The second boy left her speechless as well, he was impressive, well-mannered and well-educated. But fake. It all looked so fake. It was impossible for a real person to have read so much and to know so many facts about the most useless of things. Yes, it made him attractive, but fairly useless when it came to the real world and living.

Her thoughts were interrupted by the third person entering. A short male with a wide grin on his lips and his eyes stretched into a cheerful eye-smile. His black hair was falling perfectly down his forehead. He bowed and introduced himself as Yutto.

His wide smile made Arin smile as well. His aura was so positive and fun, she felt as if nothing was wrong with the world while she was talking to him. But, it was obvious to her she wouldn’t be choosing him. She knew she couldn’t live like that all the time. Yutto was obviously programmed to spread happiness wherever he was and she knew she couldn’t fake happiness forever, she’d feel like a fake and a failure with him, as if she couldn’t live up to his expectations.

When he left, she let out a small sigh. Suddenly, she felt worthless again, as if it as her, in fact, who wasn’t good enough for those robots. She was the first one to judge them and think low of them when they were in reality the perfect ones who didn’t deserve a regular human as their partners.

She was so absorbed by her self-destructive thoughts she hadn’t heard the fourth male come in. He stopped at the door when she wouldn’t even look at him and debated whether he should even approach or not. He did, and placed one of his hands on her shoulder gently to bring her back to life. The startled girl jumped up from the chair with a gasp, knocking over the chair as well as getting tangled in her own two feet and falling down together with the chair.

She blushed, already ready to be laughed at because of her clumsiness, but the boy seemed to be genuinely worried about her, his brown eyes wide open.

" Are you okay ? ” the male asked, reaching out to help her up, ” I didn’t mean to scare you. I thought you were expecting me. ”

She accepted his hand and stood up, nodding her head a small yes, too flustered to say anything. With her cheeks bright red, she looked down and away, unable to look at the perfect man in front of her. His brown hair, perfectly stylized to stand up and his strong jawline were giving away the strong manly feeling, but there was something about the way he looked at her and talked to her that soothed her, he wasn’t nearly as intimidating as Leo.

She tucked her hair behind her ear as the male picked up the knocked down chair and placed it back so she could sit on it. She hummed a small thank you, but was too nervous to actually sit so the two spent a few seconds standing in silence.

" Hello. I’m Dennis, it’s nice to meet you. ” The robot was first to talk, his deep voice broke the silence just at the right moment. He reached out for a handshake, shyly accepted by Arin, whose hands were shaking just like the rest of her body. She was sure he was programmed to feel the vibrations and that she was basically an open book in front of him, but he didn’t seem to notice it, or he pretended not to so she didn’t feel uncomfortable. He only smiled brightly at her.

" Arin, ” she muttered out her name as she subtly looked up at the tall male, finally making eye contact so she didn’t appear rude.

The corners of his lips curled into a gentle smile, his eyes reflecting the joy as well as he brought her hand closer to his lips and kissed it. Arin ’s cheeks flushed even a darker shade of pink at the gesture, so old-fashioned and otherworldly, certainly not an everyday thing nowadays. Dennis made her feel like she was lost in another universe, with just the two of them stuck in a dream and she didn’t want to wake up from. She hadn’t felt so in a long time, it was freeing to be feeling comfortable around someone for the first time in a long while.

Time went so slow with him, he talked but he let her talk too. He was a great listener but he could lead a conversation just fine as well. After some time, Arin got anxious Mr. White would call him out too and ruin the perfect moment. Dennis, great at reading emotions as he was, noticed it and took her hand in his, stroking it gently with his thumb.

" I will see you again soon, ” he reassured, his voice just the right frequency to make her believe it.

She would have anyway because it was obvious who would she be taking home.

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