It wasn’t dark. Not technically, anyway. The flickering lights on the ceiling made sure of that. The thin corridor on which you, and the others like you, were shelved did not need much light. Even so, you were constructed to see even in complete darkness. These lights were useless. A waste of power. Except for when a human opens the door, which hardly ever happens anymore. In spite of these sporadically on ceiling lights, it was all dark to you. And it has been ever since you’ve been marked obsolete, ever since you’ve been taken away from your best friend.
Directly after you were activated, after you were given life, you saw a small girl. She stared at you with wonder as you whirred to life. Wearing a smile with brightness to rival the Sun. That smile would be implanted on your hard drive forever, it was the first thing you saw after you were activated. Which also happened to be the first thing you had ever seen at all. You thought that in a way, this small girls smile gave you life.
Her name was Luce. She had light brown hair, that she always complained was too short, and emerald eyes. She hated macaroni and wanted to become a professional dancer when she grew up. You remember her short temper and how loud and passionate she could get. Always running and jumping off of everything she could get onto. So exciting and vociferous, and you missed her.
Your main task was to play with her while her parents worked. Through their work they made money, enough to buy you. And you understood that to maintain their wealth, you had to keep her happy. That was your one and only task, and you’d thought you’d performed it perfectly.
The first thing she did when you were activated was take you outside to explore, and you got to see firsthand the beauty of the city they lived in. The family owned a mansion in the city of Novara. Though the city still held its historic charm, it was now also a modern wonderland of metal and technology, just like most places around the world. You loved it there. Afterall, you were based off of collaborations of old models from the 2000s. It was a mix of old and new, just like you were.
You two spent day after day always together. Occasionally you’d help with her chores by tending to the vegetables in the backyard garden. You would help her find what was ripe and what wasn't by using your scanner, and she'd wash and sort them. Sometimes she'd get sick, and be bedridden for days. When this happened you would bring her medicine and do her part while tending the garden. When you weren't helping with her chores or keeping her healthy, you two would play for hours and hours. You remember how much she loved tag. You could go one-hundred miles an hour but slowed down, just for her. Once, you slid on the wood floor and put a dent in your chrome leg. A large indent that stood out against the smooth workmanship of the rest of your metal body. Luce could have just ordered you to get up and continue playing, but she slowed down, just for you. As Luce put it, you were going to be best friends forever. You only wished that you two could have been best friends for a bit longer.
Remembering the day that the workmen took you hurt. It’s strange. You weren’t programmed to feel hurt. But after hearing her parents struggle to explain that they were going to get her a better friend to play with, it felt like the only thing you were ever programmed to do. They grabbed you, and you watched as the characteristic light and happiness drained from Luce’s face. The workmen then threw you into a bulky white van with its companies logo on the side. In the back it was filled with old robots of differing sizes and colors, all of them were deactivated. You were lucky that they forgot to do the same to you. The ride was long, bumpy, and lonely, and you calculated each mile they drove you away from home. 985.338 miles. Destination Manchester, England. Much too far away from Novara. You thought that they were going to deactivate you and sell you all for scrap, you were lucky that they decided to resell you. You were a very lucky robot, and yet, you felt sad. Unable to continue your task, and unable to see Luce, you felt like you were useless. A waste of power.
The ceiling light directly above you began flickering violently and you snapped out of your previous thoughts. You sat and watched until it burned out. That’s what it gets for staying on for so long, you thought. Although, it’s not like you have the authority to go criticize ceiling lights. You like to think you’ve managed to stay on for so long, because you were never properly deactivated by the workmen. Although, that’s not completely true. You can deactivate yourself manually at any time. But you just thought that if you remained on, you wouldn’t forget Luce. It’s strange. You aren’t programmed to miss people. Though you aren't really sure what you are programmed to do anymore.
The small worn door at the end of the hall creak open for the first time in months. A rugged man in a blue body suit walked in with the store keys jingling in his hands. You heard a second person behind him, unfortunately you couldn’t see due to your position. It’s not like it mattered, they’re probably just here to buy one of you, and nobody likes the robot with a dent. You could tell that the person behind him was a woman by the way she talked. “Grazie,” she said to the man, he nodded and replied “Don’t worry about it, you just find what you’re looking for then come see me in the back.” before walking out of the room.
You heard her walk up and down the aisles multiple times, occasionally stopping to get a closer examination. You couldn’t move, if you did they just might be successful in deactivating you this time.
The woman walked by and this time stopped in front of you, and you tried your hardest to keep still. You saw the light above you that had just flickered out, sputter back to life, as she bent down to look at the bot below you. The way she carried herself had immense grace, like that of a dancer.
You saw she had long, light brown hair that reached the small of her back.
She stood up to looked at the bot above you, and you saw two stunning emerald eyes.
Then finally, she looked down at you and her emerald eyes widened. She covered her mouth with one hand. Then she ghosted the other hand over your dented leg, leaving a trail where she disturbed dust that had collected on you over the years. A smile with brightness to rival the Sun stretched across her face, and everything that you once thought was dark, was now flooded with her light. You felt like you were being given life once again. Maybe it wasn’t a stretch to assume, that this particularly emotional woman, this woman with light brown hair and emerald eyes, did not like macaroni.