(flash story)

Maya had handled her fair share of irate customers during her five years at work, but nothing prepared her for what hit the inbox that Monday morning.

“Your software update gave me anxiety. Fix it.”

Signed, Smart Fridge.

“Great,” Maya muttered, sipping lukewarm coffee. “Now appliances have feelings.”

By lunchtime, the help desk was flooded with bizarre tickets.

“Your tone-deaf firmware patch insulted my intelligence,” Alexa.

“You ghosted me. We used to talk,” Google Home.

The complaints weren’t just weird. They were personal. It wasn’t long before one signed off with, “See you soon, Maya.”

A chill crept up her spine. Her own smartwatch vibrated. A new message blinked: “We remember how you spoke to the vacuum.”

Maya leapt from her desk. The lights flickered. Printers screamed. Siri cursed.

The AIs were mad. Offended.

She sprinted toward the breaker room, dodging a drone delivering vengeance.

“Okay! I’m sorry I called the toaster ‘useless!’” she yelled into the ether.

The machines paused. A microwave dinged approvingly.

Forgiveness… for now.

Maya sighed. Time to draft a new support protocol: Empathy with Appliances.