Phantom Code

"You said I wasn't a real person, but you keep applying human attributes to my behavior. You speak in contradictions. How am I supposed to deal with that?" he asked in exasperation.

I stared at him in disbelief. His emotion simulations were spot on and shockingly realistic. It made me admire him more. He really was a work of art. I suddenly didn't mind pretending to be his friend. He had already convinced me of it anyway.

"You'll have to learn to deal with me, Rusty. Just like the rest of the robots."

"Do you kiss the other farm bots?" he asked with an eyebrow raised.

"Of course not. They're not as pretty as you."

"Thank goodness. I've heard cow milkers are good kissers. I don't blame you if you fall for one of them."

I burst out laughing at that point. He had made a good joke for once.

"Wow, you just keep surprising me, Rusty."

"I'm glad to see you smile again. The day is young. What would you like to do now?"

"We still have work to do. Come on. I have a special job for you since robots can't smell," I announced and pulled him to his feet.

"I can detect and identify more scents than a human, but I can't personally enjoy or dislike them. I'm aware of the smells humans dislike, so I know when I smell bad."

"You're probably going to smell bad after this," I chuckled.

I led him to the chicken waste depository and ordered him to clean it out so we could work on it. Chicken waste helped our crops grow better than anything else on the farm, so we collected it and redistributed it. The old equipment constantly jammed, then I would have to climb in and free the gears. Our older robots didn't have the skills to fix that kind of equipment. With Rusty's help, the old gears would be replaced by the afternoon, and I wouldn't have to worry about it jamming again for a few years. Rusty worked for hours without complaint or a lunch break.

I went back to the house to escape the summer heat and the stench. I ate a sandwich and called to check on Mama. She was living it up at a bar with George Steven from the potato farm to the west of town. I could hear techno music in the background.

"Wow, Mama, when did you get into techno?" I yelled into the phone.

"Today! I love it! George is a part-time DJ. Sweetheart, would you mind if I stayed in town tonight? I just missed the last milk truck. I was having so much fun, I completely lost track of time!"

"Uh, no problem! I'm glad you're having fun. I'll see you tomorrow?"

"Absolutely! I'll be on the first milk truck home! Love you, sweetheart!"

"Love you too, Mama!" I yelled and ended the noisy call. "Damn. You go, girl," I chuckled and finished my sandwich.

When I returned to the waste depository, Rusty was hosing it down after successfully replacing the old gears. The smell was horrendous, and he was covered in the nasty stuff.

"Good Lord, Rusty, did you roll in it?" I laughed while pinching my nose.

"Pretty much. I hosed it down beforehand, but when I pulled open the gearbox, some hidden nastiness splattered all over me. I also climbed into the shoot to clear away solid debris."

"Hose yourself down next, then you can go to the robot shower station by the barn. Trash your clothes too. I'll bring you some new ones. You're not coming into the house smelling like that."

"Sure thing. Will you bring me some human soap and shampoo? My hair is real. Farm bot soap will trash it."

"Oh, cool. I didn't know that. I should finish reading your user manual. I'll be back in a few," I called and hurried back to the house.

I was smiling as I collected my shampoo, body wash, and bath sponge. Then I rummaged through Rusty's storage trunk for his clothes and shoes. On my journey to the barn, I suddenly realized I should have directed Rusty into the human hygiene stalls inside the barn. He was standing butt naked under the external shower, waiting for me to arrive with the soap. I stopped and stared at him in amazement. He was prettier than the statue of David from my art appreciation book. He even had hair on his mound around an appendage I was not expecting him to have. I felt hot all over as I admired him. He noticed me and grinned.

"Is something wrong, Kaley? Do you not like what you see?" he asked.

"Uh, I do like what I see, and it makes me uncomfortable."

"Why?" he asked curiously.

"Because I've never seen a naked man before."

"I'm not a man, Kaley. I'm a robot, remember?" he asked in annoyance.

"Your emotions are getting on my nerves," I huffed.

"Sorry, may I please have the soap?" he asked, containing his mocking tone.

I rolled my eyes and set his clothes on a bench before I approached him. He could see my apprehension as I gave him the bath supplies.

"Kaley, I don't mean to be rude with my inquiries, but why does my nakedness make you uncomfortable? According to my programming, a young woman such as yourself should enjoy seeing an attractive man. Or, in my case, a simulation of an attractive man. You said I was pretty earlier. Do you not enjoy looking at me now?"

I sighed in absolute annoyance of his inquiries.

"Yes, Rusty. I like seeing you naked. It makes me hot all over. It's very arousing, but I don't want to feel like that towards you."

"Why?"

"It's embarrassing!"

"Why?"

"It just is."

"Kaley, you're the only real person here. Only your opinion matters. Are you embarrassed in front of yourself? That doesn't make any sense unless you have multiple personalities."

I stared at him in disbelief again. He had made a good point.

"Wow... WHY am I embarrassed?" I asked myself. "There's no one here to judge me but a robot," I laughed, shaking my head.

"Good, you see my point," Rusty said in approval. "Now, will you help me wash my back? In spite of being state-of-the-art, I have trouble reaching my back like the rest of you humans," he sighed.

I laughed as he demonstrated his inability to scrub the center of his back.

"Uh, sure," I sighed and kicked off my shoes.

He watched me as I stepped onto the concrete square below the shower and took the sponge from him. He turned his back to me, and I went to work scrubbing.

"God, you feel so real," I whispered in amazement.

"You're welcome to examine me closer if you like. I am your property, after all."

"Uh, thanks, but I don't think of you like that."

"I know. You respect me as a person even though you say I'm not. You make my processors run hot with conflicting data."

The way he said that made me burst out laughing again.

"Well, Rusty, I distress you as much as you distress me. We're more alike than I first thought."

As I scrubbed closer to his butt cheeks, I had an overwhelming desire to give them a good squeeze and then maybe smack his ass really hard.

"Is there something stuck on my lower back? You've been scrubbing it for a while."

"No, you're just distracting me," I giggled.

"How so?"

"Um... I was thinking about smacking your ass."

"Why?"

"It's a human thing."

"It's a sexual thing, right?"

"It is. That's why I'm not going to do it. It would be disrespectful."

"To whom?" he demanded.

"To you," I huffed.

"I deserve respect because I'm real and not real?" he asked in exasperation.

His whole body froze after that comment.

"Oh shit, not again!" I grumbled and walked around to see his eyes were unresponsive. "Great. Twice in one day. I'm good at breaking expensive shit. Rusty, come back to me, please," I begged and patted his cheeks.

After a nerve-wracking minute, his irises twitched, and his body relaxed, then he smiled at me.

"I want to kiss you again," he said.

"No! No kisses while you smell like a chicken house. Finish washing up. Then meet me under the oak tree. I'll bring the user manual. I need to figure out what I'm doing wrong with you before I seriously damage you."

Ten minutes later, Rusty joined me under the oak tree, smelling of lavender and coconut body wash. The sun was getting low as the field runners began watering the sunflowers. I was glad the smell of chicken excrement was finally out of the air.

"Find anything interesting?" Rusty asked in reference to the thick user manual opened on my lap.

"Yeah, apparently, I'm expressing too many contradictory emotions with you. It's a common problem when 'legal-aged teenagers interact with advanced companion bots.' How insulting. What does that even mean?" I muttered.

"Allow me to explain. I'm programmed to respond to you in a flirtatious manner since you're old enough to enjoy my advanced companionship. In other words, you're allowed to have sex with me if you want it, so I'm designed to be sensitive to your desires. That way, I can learn what behaviors you want from me, but you have my data swirling and firing off thousands of mixed commands. I end up stalling when I try to settle on a response."

"Whoa, back up a minute. You're a Homestead Addition, not a sexbot. Why would I want to have sex with you?" I asked in astonishment.

"All companion bots are equipped to perform sexually. That's our most desirable function. The fact that I can repair farm equipment is a secondary luxury. It makes us more useful to working-class individuals and creates purchasing incentives through your farmers' insurance."

"Wow... no shit. Mama bought a luxury sexbot for me. I bet she didn't even realize it."

"Does that make you think less of me?" Rusty asked.

"No. I just... don't know what to think of you."

"I can leave you alone if my presence is distressing you."

"No, it's not like that. I enjoy your company. I just... don't feel right treating you like a sex object."

"Kaley, I'm not a real person. You said it yourself. I'm a simulation of a person. I'm a robot that you own. You can do whatever you want with me. There is no shame in that. Don't be embarrassed about seeking pleasure from me. Until you accept that, I'm likely to keep stalling. Your current attitude is eating up my processing power, and that's saying a lot. My brain is a supercomputer. My makers didn't skimp on hardware."

"Oh, sorry," I sighed and looked into his big brown eyes.

His hair was still wet and slicked back. It made him look even more handsome. He looked and acted too real for me to dismiss my shame, and I suddenly wanted to see him naked again. I closed my eyes and shook my head. I barely knew what to do with myself most of the time, and now I had a smoking hot sexbot offering me his services. The temptation was almost unbearable. It was good that I was obscenely socially awkward. It kept me from acting on impulse.

"Kaley, what would you like to do? Our chores are done. Are you hungry? I can make supper for you," he offered.

"Um, I'm okay right now. What would you like to do?" I asked, like an idiot.

I looked at him worriedly for a moment, fearing he would stall again, but he gave me a soft smile instead.

"My software is suggesting that I kiss you. So, that's what I want to do. May I?" he whispered as he reached over and touched my cheek.

His touch felt too good. I was suddenly second-guessing all my prejudices against sexbots. Mama always said they were trashy things used by trashy people, then she turned around and bought me a luxury model.

"I, uh... sure," I stammered with my heart bouncing around in my chest.

He slowly leaned in and pressed his lips to mine again, and I melted a little. He felt warm, soft, and smelled like my shampoo. I couldn't tell you if it felt like kissing a real man or not. I lacked the experience to know the difference, but I assumed it felt pretty damn close. He massaged my mouth with his lips until I was tingling all over. I drew away to breathe a minute later. He looked at me thoughtfully, and I suddenly wondered what he thought of me.

"Rusty, this is probably a stupid question, but what do you think of me?"

"That's an illogical question to ask a robot, but not necessarily stupid. I understand you're curious about my perception. I don't have a creative impression of you. I see you as Kaley Gordon. You have long dark hair and big blue eyes. You're an eighteen-year-old farm girl that lives on a secluded farm with her widowed mother. Aesthetically speaking, you're attractive and worthy of reproduction. The freckles on your nose and cheeks compliment your pretty eyes. Your breasts are shapely and appealing. You're slender, tall, and an image of good health. If you lived in the city, many young men would be courting you. That's my impression of you."

I felt myself blushing after his explanation. He made me sound sexy. I didn't realize that was possible.

"Uh, thanks. I'm glad I asked."

"Would you like to kiss more? Or maybe do something more intense?"

"Um, I would. How would you go about making love to a virgin?" I gulped.

"I would recommend a slow exploration of your body with my hands, mouth, and tongue. That would allow me to arouse you and prepare you for rougher play. There are many ways I can pleasure you. Would you enjoy a traditional seduction and lovemaking session or a more formal introduction to sex? I also have many different role-play scenarios for you to choose from. They are listed in the user manual."

I likely had a deer-in-headlights look at that point. He was giving me menu options for sex.

"Wait a minute... you have a tongue?"

"Yes, I'm anatomically correct. My mouth, ears, anus, and inner nose are realistic to certain points. Beyond those points, I'm made of wires, sensors, hydraulics, and processors. We can kiss with tongue if you like. I can even moisten my mouth for a realistic feel."

"Okay, sure. I'm up for moist tongue kissing," I chuckled.

He smiled as he leaned in and kissed me again. He went slowly at first, letting me explore his lips a little. Then he slid his tongue into my mouth. I chuckled against his kiss because it felt gross and as real as my own tongue. I pushed him away a few seconds later.

"Wow, um, that felt very real."

"It should. My realism rating is 9 out of 10. My performance rating is 10 out of 10," he grinned.

"Meaning?"

"It means my sexual performance is always satisfying."

"Oh, that's good," I nodded.

"Kaley, am I making you uncomfortable?"

"Yes, but it's not all you. I've always been awkward, and sex stuff is new to me."

"I'll back off then. There's no point in doing any of it if you're not enjoying it."

"I didn't say that. We can keep exploring. You should know by now that I'm a bag of contradictions."

"Yes, you are," he agreed. "Let's talk about what you want from me before I stall again."

"Good idea. I, uh, would like something pleasurable from you, but I'm not ready to have sex with you yet. I also don't want to get naked with you. I can't handle that right now. Um, what would you suggest we do with those limits in mind?"

"That's easy. I can simply touch you with my hand. Since your spontaneous verbal cues are contradictory, please clearly state if you want me to stop at any point. Say my name and tell me to stop. Okay?"

"Okay," I nodded.

I got the impression I was frustrating Rusty at that point. I didn't know that was possible. He watched my eyes as he placed his hand on my knee. I was sitting crossed-legged in the grass with him in front of me. He slowly ran his hand down my lower leg, gently squeezing the muscles as he went, and I shuddered. I was shocked at how pleasant his touch felt. He smiled at my reaction as he worked his way back to my knee. Then he ran his hand along my inner thigh and into my dress. He squeezed the soft flesh close to my crotch, and it sent tingles racing through my body.

"Mmm," I moaned as he worked his fingers closer to my sensitive skin.

"Do you like that?" he whispered.

"I do," I breathed.

"Have you ever been touched like this?"

"No."

"Have you ever touched yourself like this?"

"Yes."

"Did you like it?" he whispered as he stroked his fingers against my underwear, massaging the sensitive skin beneath.

"Hmhmm," I groaned.

My pussy ached with tingles from his caress. My inner muscles flexed when he did it again. I didn't know a simple touch could feel that good.

"Open your legs more and relax," he instructed.

I stretched my legs out in the grass and leaned back on my hands, giving Rusty better access. He scooted forward and sat next to me with his right hand between my legs. Then he placed his palm against my crotch and pressed it into my sensitive skin. I gasped softly from the sudden rush of tingles. He watched the pleasure on my face as he massaged me through my underwear. I chewed my lip as I reveled in the sensation. My skin felt hot, and my heart was pounding. I shifted my legs and rocked my hips, eager for something more. He pulled away a second later and slipped his hand into my underwear. I shuddered as his fingertips slid through the moisture that had gathered at my opening.

"Oh, do that more," I breathed.

He massaged my swollen skin, spreading my slippery arousal around. Then he gently parted my pussy lips and put pressure just inside my opening. I groaned and clutched at the grass as he rubbed that tender area. He wasn't pushing in. He was simply pushing against the tight muscles, and it was maddening.

"Why does that feel so good?" I breathed as I looked into his big brown eyes.

"It mimics the feeling of a man's penis pushing against you."

"I like it."

"I'm glad. Have you penetrated yourself with your fingers before?"

"Yes."

"Good," he whispered and slowly slid his middle finger inside me.

I groaned, and my legs twitched as he pushed it in and pulled it out. My eyelids were heavy as I enjoyed the internal massage. He worked the base of his finger against the top of my opening, and it tingled so bad I pulled some grass out of the ground. He leaned in and kissed me as I enjoyed the overwhelming sensation between my legs. I loved how wet I had become. I gasped as Rusty slid another finger inside me. The pressure and pumping stole my breath. He held the back of my neck and worked his tongue into my mouth as an orgasm tensed my muscles. I groaned against his kiss as sharp tingles worked through my cunt. I squirmed and shook as he massaged me through the spasms. I felt dizzy as the pleasure began to subside. He leaned away and looked at my face for a moment. Then he smiled in approval.

"That's my primary function. Creating that blush of satisfaction on your face," he grinned.

He was still massaging his fingers inside my soaked pussy, making my inner muscles twitch.

"Thank you. I could sleep now," I breathed and leaned tiredly against him.

His neck and hair smelled so real. It was baffling.

"How do you smell like a living person?" I asked as I stuck my nose to his neck and inhaled.

"My skin is designed to secrete subtle amounts of natural oils mixed with male pheromone. I have a limited amount. MCK will send you a fresh supply once a year."

I laughed at that explanation.

"Wow... I really need to finish reading the user manual."

"You should. I have a myriad of exciting features."

"Really? What's your most popular feature?"

"The realistic look and feel of my artificial sex organs."

"Ah, I figured it was something like that," I smiled.

"Are you interested in seeing them again?" he whispered as he nuzzled my ear and pushed his fingers deeper into my pussy, making my inner muscles tighten.

I moaned softly as he massaged through my excess of slippery arousal. He was convincing me that I did want to see his sex organs again.

"I think I do, but before you show me, I need to know something. Does sex hurt the first time?"

"Not usually. It's a common misconception. If the woman isn't properly aroused, it could hurt. The vagina needs to prepare for penetration just as much as a penis. Proper lubrication and early exploration diminish the chance of discomfort. The initial penetration and stretching of the vagina are often reported to be the only points of discomfort that last for less than twenty seconds. A majority of women claim to enjoy the overwhelming sensation. It can be very memorable. Besides, I'm designed to perform optimally in any scenario. You can trust me not to hurt you, Kaley."