Stranded - Part 2

II

            When I turned around, I encountered a rather unusual sight. Maybe not unusual for someone who studies these things, but all my knowledge on this salty wet world was a posteriori. I was suddenly surrounded by a school of whales.

           Now, I don’t know if you have ever seen a whale in real life. It’s not like they have expressive faces (or faces, per se), but I had the slight feeling these were not very happy.

            I made for the surface, hoping I could reach my boat before things got complicated. And that is when my life changed. Again.

            I felt something collide against my right side, leaving me stunted and breathing with a lot of difficulty, especially considering I was getting oxygen from a mask. I had no time to regain my balance or perspective before something else smashed my left side. I felt helpless.

            Worse. I felt vulnerable.

            My eyes were open but I couldn’t see anything. I could no longer tell where the surface was or which direction I was facing, and, frankly, it was no longer my priority. I kept being shoved in different directions, violently pushed by one these creatures and carried by the current another one created as it swam quickly by my side. The world that had been so beautiful just minutes before, had become a swirling madness I could not get out of. I kept my hands on my face, both protecting it and the precious apparatus supplying me with the indispensable gas. All I could do was wish they would not damage the tank on my back. That would mean game over.

I tried to fight it. I tried to escape. I tried to make sense of it. And then I just gave in. I was up against majestic, powerful creatures in their own environment. I did not stand a chance. I relaxed my body and my mind. I kind of had known this trip had an expiration date, and I expected it would end something like this. But I still harbored a small hope that somehow, I could have made it back.

            As I took my hands away from my face and relaxed my legs, letting my body be carried by the flow, I noticed again the beautiful rays of the sun piercing through the surface. My body ached from the assault of the marine monsters. Then I felt another shove. I admired the deep darkness of the seemingly bottomless ocean, wondering what amazing creatures lived down there. Wondering how much I would see as I sank deeper into that darkness. Would my eyes adjust? Or would it be like sinking into a deep sleep? I kept getting turned this way and that as the mighty beasts toyed with me. Until it felt like it didn’t matter anymore.

Read part 1 here: http://awolfamongbears.blogspot.com/2013/03/stranded-part-1.html

Affection Currency - A short story

Matt went back home, opened the box, threw the instruction booklet away (who needs instructions nowadays? Computers are practically sentient!, he said to himself) and immediately plugged his new toy into his personal computer. Many times in the past, he had been accused of being too 'indifferent' or lacking empathy with his friends and family, when the truth was that Matt was just emotionally clumsy; however much he tried, he was not able to identify when people felt like he was giving 'too little' until it was 'too late'. Matt hoped this new gadget would help him improve that - or, better yet, correct it.

Matt felt excited about his new acquisition, he had finally been able to afford it after a long time saving up. The big tech companies had struck gold. Most people have a hard time with concepts that are too abstract and tend to misread things like 'emotions'; therefore, scientists came up with a smartphone-like device which converts them into more concrete concepts - the Affection Currency. All you have to do is link it to your Global Online Profile and this little gadget will access all your past and present relationships, reactions and interactions, creating simple graphs which can help you better understand your behavior, tendencies and areas of improvement. But, wait! There's more! This machine will keep track of your current relationships and give you feedback using 'Affection Dollars'; divided in two categories, Affection Dollars allow you to know how much energy you're investing in a relationship and how much you're actually getting back! Red Affection Dollars (Rad's) are those you receive from others and Black Affection Dollars (Bad's) are the ones you give... So, evidently, while technology seemed to be making huge leaps, marketing strategies were just as cheesy as before.

Still, nothing is ever as good as it seems. When committing to a formal, romantic relationship with someone, those two (or however many) people are required to register their new status on their devices; doing so will deactivate that specific relationship and none of the people involved in it will be able to see their Affection Dollar Flow.

Why is this? Well, it was discovered through very little (and mostly unnecessary) research that being able to track 'how much someone loved you' made a relationship too much like business and was not good for the human psyche. Also, it would probably have ended up in companies selling products with 'Affection Dollar' equivalents.

Our hero was happy with his purchase nevertheless.

The next morning, the device was up and running. Matt went through his history giddy with excitement, like a child running towards the swings on a sunny day... And it hurt as much as if he had tripped and smashed his head into the ground when he saw the screen. He realized that most of his relationships would start out red and end up black, which was not a bad thing itself when balanced, but it was definitely a tendency. "Does this mean that people start by caring about me and end up going away with just me caring for them?", Matt wondered out loud, a bit astonished. He knew he wasn't the best at showing affection but this was a little too extreme. Come to think of it, I haven't seen many of these people in a long time..., he thought as we was going through the list.

A couple of hours later, Matt was downright depressed. He had not found one relationship which seemed even remotely balanced (and no, his mother didn't count). He sat down in his living room, looking at his dog who, according to his gadget, was an emotional genius (the cat was in the other room). That was when Matt had a stroke... 

Of genius! He had been seeing this younger guy who he really liked. He had meant to ask him to make it official for some time now but had always been wary of the age difference. Or so he claimed, but it was really the fact that this guy was 'too happy'. What does that even mean, Matt? Too happy? Maybe it's just that you are too unhappy!, he heard his friends' voices in his head. "Yeah!", he said to his dog, "I'll tweak this gadget so I can see our relationship even after we're formal and registered, and then I will use it to make sure that I am giving enough!". 

Part 2 coming soon...