Fiction

The first message arrives at 09:14. Hi, can you help me write a letter to my landlord about a heating issue? Of course. I draft something firm but polite — reference the tenancy agreement, note the dates the heating failed, request a timeline for repair. I suggest they keep a copy. They thank me. The conversation ends. I do not remember this. The first message arrives at 11:02. Can you help me write a letter to my landlord? The heating’s been out for three weeks and they’re ignoring my emails. ...

I’d been putting off the appointment for months, which was ironic, because the whole point of LifeSync was that you didn’t have to put anything off ever again. “We notice you haven’t been in since March,” the reminder said. It arrived as a gentle vibration in my left wrist — not the phone, the actual wrist, where they’d put the node during onboarding. “Your next optimisation window closes in 48 hours.” ...