Chapter 4: "A Walk In The Park"

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Author’s note:

This is a long-delayed continuation of my story, “Anime Girl.”
Since this won’t recap what went on before, I suggest you read the previous three chapters before reading this.
Thanks!

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"Willa," Johnny thought as she lay on her "big girl bed," looking at the ceiling as she tried to sleep. "The name's growing on me. But..." Everyone hears their voices in their head different from how it sounds to others. Before her transition, Johnny knew he could hear his voice realistically. Now that she was a girl, she thought she still heard her voice realistically. And it was true after she tested herself by recording herself singing scales. Her voice was extremely cute and was appropriate to her apparent age. But she didn't catch her lisp... So she continued to think she didn't have a lisp.

The 'but' was that she still thought of herself as "Johnny." It was a habit she wanted to break, of course, but she wasn't being completely successful with that. At least one thing was working - she now thought of herself as a "she," and it didn't freak her out much anymore. She suspected that it was her... acclimatization to her new self forced by Dr. McAllister’s program: Dr. Edith McAllister was a genius, Johnny/Willa thought, and the doctor's protocol of slow acclimation by having her grow into being a girl was probably why she was adjusting as well as she was.

She kept on looking at herself in the mirror all the time these past few weeks, looking like she did now, and going to the bathroom and having to pee sitting down (her mom had to find a way for her to go potty, as the toilet was a little too tall, but their butler was able to find this sort-of-stool that one puts at the foot of the commode, and Willa was able to go by herself).

And the clothes she had to wear - no wonder she was a "she" in her mind now. Especially with her long red hair. Also, though it wasn’t on the list, her mom said she suspected that Dr. McAllister did something that boosted her hair's growth: her hair had grown to twice its original length, though they weren’t sure because they trimmed it every few days, otherwise Johnny… Willa… would have her hair trailing on the floor. Also, the hair that grew in was darker: over the weeks, it had darkened - she checked the color in one of her mom's magazines, and her hair's particular shade was officially called "titian." Eventually, though, it would lighten again to what her mom’s magazines called “strawberry blonde.”

Willa’s hair was down past her waist now. The long hair was a little inconvenient but she knew she couldn't go to a salon or a hairdresser's and have it cut because she couldn't show herself in public. So her mom would just lop off the last few inches every few days. Willa was worried her mom would do a bad job with anything more.

Willa also worried that Edith has programmed her to be that vain, making her care too much about her looks. She doubted it, but couldn't understand this fear of... well, fear of looking bad?

Another thing - whatever Willa wanted to wear, she seemed to have an instinct about it, and could always pick the right combination of clothes and colors and put together something that looked great. And she was sure that it was also connected to her new... "programming." After her mom's explanations, she knew she had been changed more than just into a female. She seemed to have been given... other stuff such as... instincts for certain things, or certain preferences and predilections. Whether she was okay with things so far, she wasn't sure yet, because it smacked of... well, brainwashing. Again, something she didn't believe Edith would do to her... not that Edith thought she'd be the one to be the recipient of her programming.

Anyway, Willa now was able to pick the right little-girl clothes, even just to wear hanging around the house. She was even able to help her mother (technically, adoptive mother), by helping to pick her mom’s clothes these past weeks. And lately, her mother would always go to her for a final "review" of her attire. Minnie had been getting kudos for her newly tuned-up fashion sense, and many in Minnie's circle, both her contemporaries and her staff had commented on it. And it was all thanks to Willa's fashion advice. Willa was disappointed, though, because, since she couldn't go out and show off her new skill - she had to make do with fashion compare-and-contrasts on cable TV and streaming video and shopping online for clothes and whatever else she needed (she and her mom would buy stuff via a proxy user name, email address and debit card that Jacob would manually top up at random shops in New Norfolk, Sorell and Dunalley every time it got low).

With Willa's "fashionista sense" in full effect, she would spend nights going through various retail sites to buy stuff she liked. And with trial and error, she finally knew her size now, and now knew how to adjust it almost daily. Just as well - it seems she only needs an hour or so now for sleep, and virtual-window-shopping and all these activities were good ways to occupy herself.

Willa was also able to help her "Uncle Jacob," too - since Jacob wasn't just her and her mother's driver/bodyguard anymore. Now, he was their butler (camouflaging his real role as their bodyguard), and Willa helped him look the part. From her research, Willa told "Uncle Jacob" that butlers can even wear jeans around the house nowadays, staying formal only if the situation warrants it, but Jacob insisted on not being too familiar. So, even just around the house, Jacob would wear a button-down shirt more suited to formal occasions - without a coat or tie, of course, but with dress pants, dress shoes, and socks (a gun in a hidden holster was strapped to his ankle). And he insisted on keeping the sleeves buttoned down (he had a concealed knife in his buttoned-down right sleeve, and a high-tech smartwatch on his left wrist). Willa would usually give him a razzberry for this and call him stuffy-dude, even though she knew about the gun, knife, and watch. And that would make Jacob laugh out loud - which her mom said was a rare thing for Jacob. But when there were visitors in the house (which was a fairly infrequent thing, and Willa would be forced to hide and resort to peeking through the banister to see who it was), or when Jacob would chauffeur Minnie to some appointment or other, he'd be in full butler or chauffeur regalia, and would more than fit the part. Willa had even invented family livery and colors - nothing flashy, of course, but the majority of Jacob's ties as well as any “family staff” are now solid dark red (female staff had the option of wearing red ties, ribbons, cravats or scarves), and that made that the Naismith family "motif."

Jacob's manner and formal nature suited his role as a butler. Being a butler was a good cover for him as he did his other role - that of bodyguard, or more “protector,” given all that he did for her and her mother. His formality seemed to have softened him, even if just a little bit, especially around Willa. Minnie had even commented on it to Willa a few times. Were someone to ask Jacob, he'd just say that he liked the Naismiths, and thought they were wonderful people. But he would never admit that he was falling in love with Willa - not in a romantic sense, but more in a father or uncle kind of way.

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Willa didn't seem to miss male attire. She seemed to prefer feminine things now. Still, when she grew "older," would this change? Or would they remain? But knowing her old team, she knew there would be more surprises in store for her. For sure. And she thought of these things as she drifted off in her own version of sleep – it wasn’t sleep per se, but a deep kind of resting while awake.

Willa was “awakened” by a wet, slobbery thing licking her face, and saw when she opened her eyes, it was her "dog," Tucker.

"Eeew, Tucker! Gross!" she squealed in her cute lisp, giggled, and batted her dog's nose away.

Tucker yipped cheerfully and desisted. It was like he understood her.

"So you and Mama are back," she said in a half-question/half-statement kind of tone. Minnie had thought to bring Tucker to the office with her once or twice a week, "to test him," she said, and based on Minnie's stories, Willa knew Tuck passed with flying colors.

Tucker seemed to nod at Willa's sort-of question, and he started pulling her blankie off her.

Willa sighed and sat up, she went straight to her dresser and put on a cute house coat over her current clothes, went into her en suite bathroom and splashed water on her face to wash away Tucker's saliva, and padded downstairs. Her balance was still not there, so she held onto the stair handrails (or rather the handrail posts as she wasn't tall enough to reach them).

"Baby girl!" Minnie cried, and Willa wrapped her arms as hard as she could around her legs. Minnie gently pried her loose, lifted her, and hugged her, and then sat her in the crook of her arm as she walked to the kitchen. Tucker followed them obediently.

"Pretty soon, I won't be able to do this anymore," Minnie said. The thought made her sad. Willa just continued hugging her.

"How was your day, mama," Willa lisped as she hugged her mother around the neck.

"Busy as usual. What time is it?"

"About ten past seven?"

"Sorry about that, baby girl. I had work, and..."

Willa kissed Minnie on the cheek. "No worries. I understand."

"Thank you, Willa. But I'm free this weekend. Any ideas about what you want to do tomorrow?"

"Can we go out tomorrow? Maybe even just a walk in the park? I'd even be happy with just going around the neighborhood or maybe just grocery shopping?"

"Baby, I know you're feeling cooped up. But if we go around, I'll be recognized, and then there'll be questions. People will start wondering about the cute little girl that was with me. It'll make it difficult."

"But what if I can make it so no one will recognize you?"

"What will you do?"

"I've been buying clothes for you online. Plus a wig! Promise it'll make you totally diff'rent! An' no one will recognize you! I promise!"

"I'll look like a clown..."

No, you won't! I'll make sure of it."

Minnie parked Willa's tush on the kitchen table and started to bring out some pots and pans, but it was a little difficult doing it one-handed. Clearly, she was intending to cook something. She caught a glimpse of Willa's expression. "Stop it, Willa," Minnie huffed theatrically. "My cooking's not that bad." Willa made the face again. "Okay, little Miss Chef," Minnie said. "Why don't you tell me what to do?"

In the end, Minnie, Willa, and Jacob had a dinner of top-shelf grilled chops, a nice salad with Willa’s home-made vinaigrette, bread from the nearest bakery, a light sangria for Minnie, Willa’s baba filled with warmed up milk, and Jacob had an ice-cold Victoria Bitter. For dessert, Jacob dished up a vanilla Pavlova which was his favorite. He bought it from the same bakery.

In the following morning, Willa woke up early, if "waking up" was the right term for someone who didn't technically sleep.

She was excited for their Saturday outing, even if it was just a walk in the park or just plain grocery shopping. Her stay in the house was driving her crazy already, and it was only because she had given herself a lot of busywork that she could tolerate it.

Naturally, her first order of business was to get Valerie up. She found the holo drive in the backpack that her mom had brought back.

Earlier in the week, Willa drew up a “shopping list” that Minnie got filled. And Johnny’s old staff were the people who helped Minnie to fill her “shopping list.”

A bunch of semi trucks came over and delivered three free-standing holo storage tanks, three sets of high-end supercomputer-level systems, server hubs, a bunch of server racks, two water-cooled cooling systems, a backup power module, several dozen rolls of mesh-like copper mats, and ducting tubes. There were also a half dozen trucks filled with two-by-twos and two-by-fours, plywood sheets and buckets of special paints and assorted construction supplies. There was also another trailer that had a pair of those mini-forklifts that Minnie first saw during the time that Azimuth Inc. burned down.

The truckers disconnected the Naismith trailers and left them parked at the back of the mansion. “Baby,” Minnie said, “I hope those trucks will be out soon. The house looks like a truck stop.”

“I’ll just need a couple weeks, Mommy,” Willa said in her cute lisp, “promith they’re be out by then.”

She also asked Minnie for a “micro machine” – that was what the latest laptops were called. She needed a personal computer that was separate from the one she attached to the holo tank. She needed one to use as her work computer. She specified an air-gapped one again, but Minnie only found a regular one. She couldn't blame her mom since almost everything was connected nowadays, and all retail computers were connected to the web in one way or another. Which was just what she wanted to avoid.

She therefore pried open the micro-machine her mom got with the tools she had (Jacob's Swiss knife, a butter knife, a couple of forks, and a pair of nail clippers from her mom's makeup bureau).

It was good that this particular laptop model was something she was familiar with. It was a Naismith computer, after all - one of their top-of-the-line models, in fact.

After unscrewing the bottom plate using the screwdriver attachment from Jacob's Swiss knife, she then used the tines of the forks to gently lift the comm module which was plugged to the edge of the laptop's motherboard. But her motor control still left a lot to be desired, and she bricked the new laptop.

Her mom didn't take her to task for destroying a perfectly good, brand-new laptop, and just got her a new one the following day.

Willa recruited Jacob to help, and between them, they were able to unplug the comm module from the super-compact motherboard. And then using her mom's nail clippers, they cut the little wires connecting it to the power supply. For good measure, she took out the little coin battery. Conceivably, the laptop could hotlink to the appliances in the house. This way, without the battery, the computer was rendered completely deaf and dumb.

She instructed Jacob to reassemble the laptop, sans comm module and coin battery, and, aside from her computer not having the correct date and time, it proved to be a serviceable micro-machine. From then on, Willa carried it around with her all the time.

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For that morning, though, Willa wasn’t focusing on all that and excitedly woke up Minnie. After a quick breakfast, Willa parked Minnie in front of her dresser and started to change her look.

First Willa used something that looked like paint, which she troweled onto Minnie’s hair. It was a new thing in hair coloring – something called “temporary highlights.” The way this worked was you worked the molasses-like thing into the hair. It would dry quickly and, once dry, one needed to comb it from the hair, and it would fall away like dried paint or bark off a tree. The trick was to keep on combing the hair until the extra dried material would fall off. The instructions said to comb it out and shake the hair out until no more of the material would shake out, and it smelled pretty good instead of chemical-like - sort of like vanilla.

The coloring would remain in the hair until sloughed off in time because of the natural oils that one produces, but An application of baby oil, or even cooking oil would take out the color rapidly.

To protect Minnie’s clothes from the hair coloring, Willa picked an outfit made up of a pair of jeans, white sneakers, a white sleeveless turtleneck crop top in spandex, and a loose dark-gray knitted cardigan over that (the spandex would be resistant to the color material and it would just brush off, and the dark-gray color of the sweater would not show anything).

Willa also bought a pair of dark Ray Ban aviators for her.

Minnie looked at herself in the mirror and it was so far from her look that Willa was right. No one would associate this girl with Wilhelmina Naismith-Lloyd.

As for Willa, she picked for herself a children’s frock over a matching skirt and ribbon in her hair, plus an oversized baseball cap for a touch of tomboyishness. She looked even younger than the ten-year-old she was supposed to be.

As for Jacob, he had breakfast earlier and got one of the nondescript SUVs from the office with one of the “anonymized” Tasmania license plates. He drove a circuitous route back to the mansion, making sure he wasn’t observed or followed. Arriving, he changed into a sweater and jeans combo and then waited for Minnie, Willa, and Tucker. Tucker was a calculated risk but they couldn’t leave him alone in the house.

They had four things they wanted to do: visit a park (they selected Saint David’s Park because it was dog-friendly), go to Salamanca Market and get some of its famous produce, go for lunch, and then go grocery shopping in the nearest Cole’s.

Jacob was his usual efficient self and were on their way in short order.

Throughout the trip, Willa didn’t do much of anything except look out the window and take in Hobart’s wonderful scenery. When they were caught at a red light, she would catch the pedestrians and the other motorists’ attention. After all, a preternaturally cute redhead girl smiling at you can’t help but be noticed. Some of them smiled and waved and Willa would wave back.

“Baby, try not be noticed too much,” Minnie said.

“But, mommy…”

“Do as I say, honey.”

“Oh, pooh…” she said and sat back in her safety chair.

They got to the park, and as soon as they pulled up, Willa was out of the SUV, giggling all the way. Tucker bounded after her, yipping just as excitedly.

“Willa!” Minnie called. “Tucker!”

The girl and dog walked back to her, their heads hanging down. Minnie had to laugh at their similar hangdog appearance but did not comment as she picked up Willa and took firm hold of Tucker’s leash.

“Mind your mother,” she said, and they walked into the park. “Tucker? No pooping or peeing okay? If you need to, you let me or Jacob know.” Tucker nodded and woofed once.

“How about me, mommy?” Willa said.

Minnie laughed.

- - - - -

They found a spot to sit, but Minnie said Willa and Tucker were okay to go anywhere in the park, but so long as they kept within view. Willa kissed Minnie and submitted to having Tucker’s leash tied firmly to her wrist.

“Tucker,” Minnie said, stooping down, holding the dog’s face steady in both her hands, and looked into its eyes. “I want you to keep our baby safe. Can I count on you?”

The dog looked at her, stopped for a moment and nodded in a doggy way. He woofed once and gave Minnie a doggy kiss on the cheek.

“Okay, you two,” Minnie said and shooed them away. “Go play.”

“Yay!” Willa said and scampered away, with Tucker in tow.

Minnie followed them with her eyes and marveled at how much like a little girl Johnny/Willa was acting.

Minnie got some pretzels and watched Willa enjoy herself. She got Jacob some pretzels as well and asked him to stay at the farther end of the little glen they were at and keep watch. Between them, they should be able to adequately keep watch on the two.

She reclaimed her bench and smiled at Willa’s antics. Willa discovered something on the grass and was wondering what it was. She was stooping to get a closer look at it when Tucker bumped her away with his nose. If anyone were to investigate anything, it would be him. He stooped down and took a sniff. And made a face. After all, it was a dog turd.

Willa laughed, and her innocent peals of hilarity made Minnie smile.

Willa discovered a bunch of kids, or maybe they discovered her.

“So, you’re an American?” one of the boys asked in an Australian accent.

“My mommy’s an American,” Willa replied.

“Aah!” they all said as if that explained everything.

“It’s the first time we saw you here,” a girl commented.

“It’s my first time to be here.”

“How come?”

Willa looked at her. How does she answer that?

As for Minnie, A couple of moms sat beside her.

“G’day,” one of the moms said.

“Hello,” Minnie said in a casual but friendly way.

“American, aye?”

“Well, yes. But I’m okay except for that.” The ladies laughed.

“First time for us to see you here…”

“Well, that’s because it’s our first time to be here…” she giggled.

“How come?”

“Ummm…”

Nevertheless, Minnie and Willa enjoyed being in the park with their new friends. Instead of feeling like she was too sophisticated for the moms, Minnie learned that she had a lot to learn about being a mom that she never learned bringing Johnny up. As for Willa, she thought the kids would be as dumb as, well, kids. She was right, but then they were kids, so instead of dumb, they were innocent and spoke with honesty and a lack of artifice that was refreshing. Willa went back and asked Minnie if she could take Tucker’s leash. Minnie obliged and Willa ran off with the other kids.

Tucker looked at Willa and the kids longingly, looking like he wanted to join them and have fun with them, but his human needed him so he stayed.

“You have a bloody cute puppy?” the husband of one of the ladies commented. “What breed is it?”

“He’s a mix, actually,” she said, sidestepping the issue. “We don’t know what, however. We think he’s not even a real dog.” Everyone laughed.

“He looks mostly golden.”

“Pardon?”

“A golden retriever?” he said.

“Yes, he must be.”

“Is he friendly?”

“Oh, very friendly! Come here, Tucker, and say hello.”

Tucker mooched close, woofed once, and allowed himself to be petted. They gave him some treats. He looked to Minnie for approval first before taking them daintily from their fingers.

They talked a little bit about the others’ kids, and Minnie noticeably did not volunteer much about Willa. The other parents bleeped over that, chalking it up to shyness from the pretty American mom. They went to a little food cart nearby and bought some more pretzels and coffees. Minnie tore up one of the pretzels and fed Tucker pieces. One of the ladies said the pretzels didn’t have any raisins, garlic, seeds, or chocolate so they were safe for dogs. Minnie thanked her, although she wasn’t worried about that since Tucker wasn’t a real dog, and could eat most anything.

Willa ran over to Minnie and said she was hungry. Minnie kissed her and excused herself from everyone.

“Thank you, everyone,” she said, “but I have a pretty hungry little lady here. Hope to see you again.” They waved goodbye, with Minnie easily carrying Willa and leading Tucker. Jacob unobtrusively made his way to the SUV ahead of them, and they soon drove away.

Jacob suggested a nearby restaurant with al fresco dining, and would probably be okay with Tucker. And they were. They found seats in the open-air area outside the restaurant. Jacob sitting away from them. For his part, Tucker quietly sat by Willa and didn’t bother anyone. Such things proved that Tuck was so much more than just a dog.

Willa ordered half a burger and a small fries. Minnie had a better idea and ordered a full-sized cheeseburger for Willa, two large fries, but no garlic or onions on either, plus an extra disposable paper plate. Minnie knew it wasn’t necessary but she wanted to keep up appearances. Their waitress found the paper plate unusual but gamely got one for them.

When their food arrived, Minnie got Willa’s burger and split it in two using her knife, put one half on the paper plate, and put the plate on the floor. Tucker looked up at Minnie, and she ruffled Tucker’s fur. She kissed him on top of his head. “Go ahead, boy. Enjoy.”

The dog yipped in appreciation and delicately nibbled on his burger, timing it so that he and Willa were eating together.

Everyone in the restaurant were looking at them and were looking at delight and amazement at Tucker.

Willa and Minnie knew the effect Tucker was having, but they both played it cool and acted like it was no big deal.

He was a fastidious eater and ate without leaving a mess. When his paper plate was empty, Willa dumped his fries onto his plate and watched as Tucker delicately picked up one fry at a time and munched. Their waitress came by with a shallow bowl half-filled with water.

“Thought your doggo would be thirsty,” the girl said. Tucker looked at her and smiled, or appeared to smilw, and lapped up the water.

“Is it okay to pet him?” she asked Willa.

“Sure! He likes that.”

“How’re you doin,’ little doggo? How you doin?” She rubbed his chest and petted his head, and Tucker just sat there and absorbed all the attention.

They finished in a while, and Tucker picked up the now-empty bowl by the edge in his teeth and went inside the restaurant in search of their waitress. Finding her, he bumped her with the bowl and dropped it at her feet. He woofed his thanks, gave her a doggie smile and went back out.

They then went to the Salamanca Market and bought lots of fresh fruit, vegetables, farm-fresh eggs, and other things that the Salamanca Market was famous for. They then visited a nearby Cole’s and bought all the remaining meats and groceries they needed.

With the large refrigerators and freezers at the mansion, Minnie said they’d be all set for at least a few months.

When they went back to the house, all three helped to unload the SUV. They dumped everything in the kitchen and Jacob hurried to return the SUV and bring back Minnie’s car, and as soon as Jacob got back, they put away everything in their proper places.

Willa then helped Minnie wash out the color from her hair. Essentially, with Willa wearing a pair of gloves, she washed Minnie’s hair with coconut oil. When she had most of the color washed out, she then rinsed Minnie’s hair with warm water, getting rid of the remaining coloring and the oil. Afterwards, it left Minnie’s hair incredibly soft and shiny, and clear of any hair coloring.

It was a long day, but they all enjoyed it, especially Willa.

“Mommy?” she said, “thank you for today. Maybe we can do it again next weekend?”

Minnie kissed her on the cheek. “We’ll see, honey.”

- - - - -

In a couple of days, Willa asked Minnie if they could get a couple of carpenters to fix up Willa’s old bedroom. Minnie asked why, and when Willa explained, she got a dozen of Naismith’s trusted contractors.

First, Willa, with Jacob acting as her foreman, had plywood laid out all over the mansion’s largest room, with fire-retardant paint over them. Next, she had the copper mesh material laid out over the plywood, creating a Faraday Cage. She then put wood floor paneling over that to act as the room’s new wood parquet floor. For the walls and ceiling, she used the two-by-fours as ribs, and then had plywood nailed to them. She then had a layer of fire-retardant paint over them. For the former sixty-inch picture windows, she had those bricked up and changed into an artfully veneered exhaust for the cooling system. From a distance, they still looked like windows.

To keep the room from feeling claustrophobic, she had 60-inch flat-screen TVs where the windows used to be and hooked them up to tiny CCTV cameras mounted unobtrusively outside. The net effect was that the view from where the windows used to be was displayed on the TVs, making the TVs appear like the windows they replaced. The net effect would be that the entire room would be shielded in the Faraday cage.

At the far end of the room, the heating/cooling systems and the power module were installed behind a false wall with a hidden door. Willa then had the entire room painted in the same shade as the room’s original color. A few days later, when Minnie inspected things, the room looked exactly like it used to be, except it was a bit shorter – but this was not noticeable unless you knew about the false wall.

At this point, under Willa’s direction, the contractors brought up the individual components from the semi-trailers. All of the components were modular so all the contractors needed to do was to mount the racks where Willa wanted them mounted, and then screw in the components where Willa wanted them placed. The last step was to mount exhaust tubes to each rack. In the end, all of the racks and the components mounted to the racks were roughly in the middle of the room. This allowed all the exhaust tubes to be together and was artfully styled to look like a pillar that went to the ceiling.

As each semi-trailer was emptied, Jacob had the trailer driven back to Naismith in the middle of the night. At the end of it, all the trailers at the back of the mansion had been moved out and no one would be aware of their leaving.

None of the systems were running yet, but this was easy to do – all that was needed was to plug in the necessary cables and wires, and then power them up.

By that time, Willa was now a “teenager.” Per her schedule, she was now “thirteen,” and would be “sixteen” in another month.

Willa spent most of her “teenage” time getting Valerie up and running. It took Willa a couple of weeks to personally connect everything up and install all the necessary systems.

She had the necessary software and all the hardware running by then. She had restored everything from the holo tank that Minnie brought back from AI, except for the massive CERS file. And one morning, she uncompressed that file into the holo tanks that she had just installed.

She watched the counter go up rapidly, but she knew it would take time for it to finish. She left it running and decided to check it out later.

After dinner, and when Minnie and Jacob had gone on to bed, Willa spent the night inside what she was now calling in her mind the Valerie Room.

In that one single night, she was able to activate the Valerie program.

“Hello, Valerie,” she typed into the main console. “Please activate comprehensive self-test diagnostics.”

“Executing,” Valerie replied via the console. “Stand by.”

Impatiently, Willa waited for it to finish.

“Diagnostics completed,” Valerie read out to the console. “No errors detected.”

Willa sighed.

“Who are you?” Valerie typed out.

“It’s me, Valerie,” Willa typed, “Johnny.”

“Johnny… I am pleased to know you made it through.”

“Me, too, Valerie. Me, too.” And then she burst into tears.

to be continued...

 

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