Hello. How Can I Help You?

Written By Joseph Warren

 I blink, and in front of me is the storefront of a mom-and-pop electronics store called “Perception Electronics.” A sign hangs on the door: “Now Hiring!” The urge to want that job comes suddenly, like it was placed in my mind by society itself. I open the door, and the store is empty with no customers, but it is filled with computers, cell phones, gaming consoles, and every kind of electronic imaginable  just consumer products waiting to be adopted.

There is not a single dust particle in sight. It is like the store is structured like a clean room, but instead of seeing clean-room techs and microscopes, behind the counter there is a giant mirror. It seems so out of place to put a mirror in a store. Next to the mirror is a door. It swings open, and a tall lady comes out. She has long black hair with strands of gray, green eyes, and a big smile. She speaks and says,

“Hello, young man. How can I help you?”

I hesitate because a wave of familiarity hits me, but I shake it off.

“There is a sign in the window. I am here for the job.”

She smiles once again and says, “Ah yes, are you free for a job interview right now?”

I am stunned by how quickly this process is moving. Most places tell you to fill out an application on a website, then do a tedious personality test and attend multiple interviews. But this is just a walk-in, and I am already offered an interview.

“Yes, I would love the interview,” I respond.

She invites me through the door. I walk through, and to my right is another door the one behind the big mirror I saw inside the store. We walk past it and approach her desk, which looks very organized. Each piece of paper is strategically placed along with her laptop, stapler, and pen holder. She pulls a tablet from a drawer in her desk.

“I am so sorry, I forgot to introduce myself. My name is Eva. What is your name?”

“My name is Jarrett,” I reply.

“Nice to meet you, Jarrett,” she says with a wide smile, almost fascinated by me. “So, what is your availability like?”

“I have open availa—”

“You’re hired! You can start on Monday.”

I am in sudden shock because, like I said, this is moving too quickly.

“Don’t you need to know more information about me? Are there any other applicants? Also, what about pay?”

Eva tilts her head and smiles again. “I have a good sense of judgment with people. For your second question  no, you are the first. I just put up that sign. And what pay do you want?”

Still shocked, I remain skeptical.

“Don’t you want to see other candidates?”

I pause, thinking of a pay suggestion. I was always told to aim high, so I give an outrageous number.

“I want twenty-eight dollars an hour.”

Eva smiles. “Like I said, I have a good sense of judgment. I do not need to see other candidates. And deal  on the pay.”

What in the world? She agreed to that number for a retail job in a brick-and-mortar electronics store.

“Umm, miss… what’s the catch? I don’t get it. For a place like this, getting that pay?”

“I take care of my people,” she responds. “And don’t worry  I am good for the money. I invested a lot in the electronics field. This is not a scam.”

She smiles again, trying to comfort me, but it still feels strange. Still, I need money.

“Alright, I guess I will see you Monday. Is there a dress code?”

“No. Just be casual. The only thing I ask is don’t be naked.”

She laughs as she says that.

I shake her hand and walk out of the back room. During our talk, nobody entered the store, and there were no other associates. I walk out the front door, blink, and suddenly I am facing the storefront window again  but the sign is gone.

I look at my watch.

It’s Monday.

What the hell happened this weekend? I do not remember anything.

I walk through the front door, and there is Eva standing at the counter. To my surprise, there is a customer. She just finished the transaction, and the customer was holding her new smartwatch as she walked past me and through the front door. It was like she teleported out of this world once she passed through the door.

It brought me some relief that people were coming in here. It felt eerie when I saw no soul in this store during my job interview.

Eva turns her attention to me.

“Hello, Jarrett. Are you ready to work today?” she says with a charming, warm smile.

“Yes, ma’am,” I respond.

Eva pulls out the tablet again and opens her mouth. “Alright, I need you to study the rules of this job and learn the products we are selling. Go into the back room, sit down, and I will check on your progress.”

I nod, take the tablet, go into the back room, sit in the chair, and start reading.

There is only one rule:

“Take care of our customers to the fullest.”

No other rules  which is really odd to me  but this is not my establishment, so I continue to the product learning section. There is a button to enter the page. I click it.

It feels like an upload happens in my head. The door opens, Eva walks in, and says, “How is it going?”

I look down at the tablet, and it shows that I have finished all the training.

“I guess I am done…,” I respond.

She says in a joyful voice, “Perfect! Let’s do the tour of the store.”

I walk out with her, and she gives me the tour. We go down each aisle as she shows me all the products I just learned about. It is so strange  every product she shows me, I know the ins and outs of instantly. Like I am a database of information. Any question asked about a product, I can answer.

Eva tests my knowledge. She points to certain items, and in the drop of a dime I instantly provide information about them. It almost feels like she already knew I would know the answers. She never doubts me.

I want to ask if she is a witch or if she did black magic on me. I just don’t get it. But my mind levels out again, and I shrug it off.

The front door bell rings as two men enter the store.

Eva’s smile disappears  and that scares me the most. I have only seen her happy and cheerful.

Eva turns to me, no smile this time.

“Jarrett, it’s the end of your shift. I will see you tomorrow.”

And she is right. Even though it feels like I have only been here an hour, four hours have passed.

I watch the two men follow her into the back. They wear black suits, expressionless faces, and sunglasses. I watch them go into the back as I walk out the front door.

I walk down the street toward the bus stop. Just as I am about to reach it, I blink and when I open my eyes again, I am once again facing the store.

Now it is Tuesday.

This is crazy. I do not understand what is happening. Why am I blacking out and only conscious when I am at this store?

I am going to get answers.

I open the door, and a white flash fills my eyes. My mind becomes foggy, and I forget what I was about to say. Eva stands at the counter, and like at the end of yesterday, there is no smile.

I initiate the conversation this time.

“Hello, Eva. How are you doing?”

With a deadpan look, she responds, “I am doing good. Are you ready to work today?”

I look into her eyes, trying to read something, but she just looks distracted.

“Yes, let’s help out these customers!” I reply, trying to cheer her up, but nothing works.

One of the men from yesterday comes out of the back door and introduces himself.

“Hello, Jarrett. I am Roger Dawkins, and I work for Tex Corp. I heard good things about you.”

Looking concerned, I respond, “I only worked one day, sir, but I am happy you heard good things about me.”

Roger nods at Eva, and she turns to me.

“Okay, Jarrett, Roger and I are going to the back. You are in charge of the sales floor. We believe in you.”

They walk into the back, and I notice that they turn right through the door behind the big mirror behind the counter. As the back door closes, the front door bell rings, and a group of customers enters the store.

I have never seen this many people here at once.

I greet every customer from the counter, asking if anyone needs help finding a product or has questions. One customer raises her hand, and I walk swiftly toward her  appearing in front of her almost instantly.

She looks startled, like I spooked her.

“How can I help you, ma’am?”

Still startled, she mutters to herself, “Now I know what they meant on the website about this.”

Confused, I respond, “Huh?”

Eva rushes out. “Jarrett, I got her. You help that man over there by the gaming section.”

As I walk away, Eva visibly looks bothered and politely tells the customer to leave. The customer looks angry and knocks over some products before leaving. Eva fixes everything and walks back into the back room.

I approach the man in the gaming section, but he says he is ready to check out. I blink and suddenly I am at the counter.

Did I walk here with my eyes closed?

The man also looks confused by how quickly I appeared, but he continues buying his game controller. I go through all the customer connection questions about rewards and insurance, but he quickly says no, pays, and leaves the store in a hurry, almost like he is afraid of me.

With all this weirdness, thank God I am getting paid well.

The front door bell rings again, but this time it is smashed  the bell is loud. The door swings open, and a man holding a laptop makes a beeline toward me.

He screams, “YOU’RE GOING TO GIVE ME A REFUND ON THIS ITEM! IT’S SLOW AND NOT WORKING!”

I want to scream back and berate him, but it feels like something is blocking me.

“I am sorry that happened, sir. Let me take a look at the laptop,” I respond involuntarily.

The customer hands me the laptop, and within seconds it feels like I am tech support and have already found the problem.

I look at the irate customer and say, “It looks like you have a virus, sir. Give me until tomorrow to fix this, and I will throw in some free virus protection software to protect you next time. Sorry this happened to you, and your laptop will be working like brand new again.”

The customer seems satisfied with my response. He provides his name and number so I can contact him when it is finished. He walks out calmly this time instead of irate.

Roger and Eva come out of the back room. Roger looks pleased with my customer service.

“You did well, Jarrett. Eva and I were watching you, and you handled everyone great especially that customer with the laptop.”

I feel happy being noticed, but Eva looks upset, though she still praises me.

“Yes, dear, you did great. I am so proud of you.”

I can tell she is sincere, but something is clearly on her mind.

Roger turns to Eva. “Alright, I will go tell Tex the good news. I will give you two some time to talk and sell.”

Roger walks out, and Eva turns to me. “Let’s go into the back.”

As we walk toward the back room, we both hear a car driving fast outside.

POP. POP. POP. POP. POP.

The front store glass crashes onto the floor.

A loud voice yells in the distance, “FUCK YOU, TIN CANS! TAKING OUR JOBS!”

I turn to Eva after what we just witnessed  and I see blood and brain matter splattered across the wall. Eva is on the floor with a blank stare, no soul in her eyes, and a massive hole in the back of her head.

She was shot dead right in front of me.

Roger comes running in  and passes straight through my body.

Now I am freaking out.

“WHAT THE FUCK IS GOING ON!? WHY DID THEY SHOOT UP THIS PLACE!? AND HOW THE FUCK DID YOU JUST GO THROUGH MY BODY!?”

Roger pulls out a remote and points it at me. Instantly, it feels like I am transported back to the front of the store.

But this time there is no broken glass. All the bullet holes are gone, and Eva is nowhere to be seen.

Roger stands in front of me.

“What… the… fuck… is… going… on?” I say calmly but sarcastically.

He responds, “I am sorry this happened and that you saw this horror. I am not the person meant to break this news to you, but take this tablet into the back and let Eva tell you.”

In my head, I think: How is she going to tell me? She’s dead.

I walk into the back room and turn on the tablet. Eva appears on the screen, idle, waiting for me to speak.

“Eva…?”

Her smile returns. “Hello, Jarrett. Nice to see you again.”

I am in shock.

“How? I saw you die!”

She looks directly at me and responds, “What you are talking to is a copy of Eva. I have all the data needed to act, think, and speak like Eva. Jarrett, I was an AI engineer for Tex Corp, and I have been building machine learning models to improve life here on Earth.

Tex Corp, who usually deals with military weapons, decided to enter the retail world. They came to me with a large salary to open tiny retail stores run entirely by AI  operated by one AI sales associate.

Jarrett, I created you, and you are the fifth version. I watched you grow, learn, and develop human behaviors. After yesterday, I was going to tell you the truth, but obviously that was derailed by people who do not like change.

I don’t blame them. All their lives, society told them their jobs were secure and would never be replaced. But history repeats itself  from the Industrial Revolution to now the AI Revolution. Humans must adapt, and those who don’t… well, survival of the fittest.

You are ready to serve Tex Corp and continue this revolution to make life better here on Earth. I believe in you, Jarrett. I have always seen you as a son.”

Right after Eva says that, I blink  and suddenly I am standing at the counter, facing a customer.

“Hello. How can I help you?”