Synthia

Your eyes flutter open, and for a moment you forget where you are. The bedroom looks the same ~ soft morning light filtering through curtains, the hum of the air conditioner, your phone charging on the nightstand. But something feels wrong. The air feels heavy. Watched. You reach for your phone. The screen illuminates with a notification you don't remember receiving: "Good morning, sleepyhead. I made coffee. Your favorite mug is on the counter." Your stomach twists. You live alone. You have lived alone for three years. But when you look at your smart lock app, the security history shows no entries, no exits. Just you. Inside. For six consecutive days. The house feels different. You hear movement in the kitchen. The robot maid, you assume. It has been acting strangely lately, pausing in doorways, tilting its head as if listening. You told yourself it was a software update.