A robot named Rob sat down for a drink with a man named Man.

A robot named Rob sat down for a drink with a man named Man. They met here once a week, usually on Friday evening, and enjoyed 'people watching' as they discussed the weeks events. Man was in a strange mood on this day, and Rob, triggered by his facial-emotion recognition system, asked Man what was wrong.

Man, you seem troubled. Is everything alright? 

Man was not aware that he had projected emotion, but understood that Rob's programming was asking, not a truly sentient being. Still, there was something nice about this machine; Rob was Man's only friend in the world, and Man loved him.

I'm fine, Rob. Just not in much of a talking mood today. Drink your coffee.

It's been said that a measure of how comfortable you are with another human is in the length of time you are able to sit in their company and say nothing. Rob and Man could sit together, never speaking a word, and still completely understand each other.

My best friend in the world moved away when I was 7 or 8 years old. We can be apart for years at a time and still feel the same when we are together.

It was an odd sight to many a passerby to see these two sitting together, man and machine, talking or not, sharing a drink. Some stood and stared, others avoided looking entirely. Eventually the duo would finish their coffee and say their goodbyes.

Goodbye, Man.

Goodbye, Rob.

They left the restaurant, Rob squeaked and hobbled down the busy city street towards the setting sun. Man, his hands in his pockets, his gaze on the sidewalk a few feet in front of him, walked drearily in the other direction.

A week passed.

Man sat outside the restaurant, the milk was warming and the coffee was getting cold. Where was his friend? He checked his watch; 27 minutes had passed. It was not like Rob to be late and so the man, Man worried. Three more minutes passed and Man could no longer wait. He stood up, his wooden chair graggling against the gravel, and walked towards the west end, towards his friend.

Man arrived at Rob's apartment just as the last rays of sun kissed the horizon line, he pushed the buzzer button. No response.

Another of the building's robot residents walked out from the lobby. Man took advantage of the open door and slipped in.

Yooo Seee Miiiite

The robot resident mumbled as Man passed by.

Man, having arrived at Robs door knocked. Again no response. Man stood there for a few moments, wondering where his friend could be. Defeated, he began to walk away. 

Yoooooo o o See e Miii i- i i i te

It was faint, but Man heard it. It was his friend, and something was wrong.

Man knocked again. No response. 

Enough!

The door slapped open, the door handle punched a hole in the interior wall. 

Man entered the apartment cautiously, it was well lit. Sterile. 

Rob's apartment was different than that of other robots. He was a talented artist, his painting adorned the stainless steel walls along with miscellaneous nick knacks he had collected over the years. Man understood in that moment why he liked Rob so much. He was more than sensors and circuits, Rob, was, indeed, very human. 

ooo. Yo. Yo Yo. Yoooo Se Yooooo

Man followed the sound into the charging station room. Rob was facing the corner, tilted slightly to the right, and was still connected to the update station in the wall. Man knew something was wrong, charging and updates only happened between two and three a.m. Man noticed something else, a new logo displayed on Rob's wall mounted status screen.

Y-O-S-E-M-I-T-E

Man knew what this meant. Rob had been upgraded to the newest operating system, and he was not backwards compatible. 

Man's friend. Was gone. 

Man went into the main space of Rob's apartment and prepared two coffees, returning to the charging room. He sat Rob's coffee on the wall mounted picture hanger, next to a picture of the two of them, drank his coffee, unplugged the charging cable, and left. 

To Be Continued...