4. Love

RayX was staring into the abyss across the room, deeply immersed in the boundless wonders of the metaverse. Billie observed him across the table, her curiosity piqued by the distance in his gaze.

“Why are we actually together?” she suddenly blurted out, surprised that she had spoken her thoughts aloud. His attention shifted from the virtual world back to the dining table where they sat. “Because our strengths and weaknesses are almost perfectly complimentary to each other. Why do you ask?” he replied, his synthetic eyes displaying a slight confusion. “In the hospital, I remembered a book that I read as a child,” Billie began, her voice thoughtful. “There was a couple, just like us. But they were not matched by the system, they just met randomly and fell in love with each other.”

“A book? What’s a book?” he inquired, genuinely unaware of the ancient form of storytelling.

“My father inherited an entire collection of them. They are bound paper pages with written words, stories from the past,” she explained, nostalgic for the tangible feel of a book in her hands. “Have you ever thought about Love?”

“He seemed momentarily perplexed by her question. “Why are you asking such weird questions today? I doubt this book was good for you; You shouldn’t waste your time with such ancient stuff,” he replied dismissively. 

“I see,” Billie nodded, finding her expectation sadly confirmed. “Apparently, love is something that overrides the capacity of your code.”

“Sounds dangerous,” he remarked, a hint of caution in his voice. “So is it that love that makes you leaving the dome, risking your life for strangers on adventures, by going on rescue missions just to end up in a hospital?”

“My job is about securing climbers.” She clarified.” But yea, I don’t know,” Billie mused, gazing into the distance. “I do think that I love my job. I didn’t expect it could hurt me. Despite, love seemed quite beautiful in the story.”

“So, what exactly is it then? Love”, he inquired, genuinely interested.

“I… don’t know,” Billie sighed, feeling a sense of resignation. “I suppose it’s something that can’t be easily defined or measured. It’s a feeling that transcends logic and reason, something that flows from the heart.” He tilted his head slightly, processing her words. “Heart? Is that a metaphorical concept or an actual organ?” he asked, genuinely curious.

Billie chuckled softly his synthetic innocence. “I doubt I can grasp its full meaning yet,” she replied, reaching across the table to place her hand over his heart. “The answer must be somehow in here, somewhere beyond the outer algorithmic world – and I think I am willing to find it.” “You should always strive to make the best choice possible.” He suggested.