#spatial delivery

“She has to be somewhere.”

Theodore stared at the destitute cafe on the corner of O.S.O. Square 1 with tired eyes. Out of the four squares that made up the satellite-city, this one saw the most bustle. Theo recalled having to wait in a long line to buy the largest coffee they sold, just before he started the morning deliveries. Today, Theo stood alone as he stared at the dust-covered modern street, a clear light shining from a streetlight overhead. If one were to press their head against his, brushing against the greased auburn curls, a slight whirring noise could be heard amidst the slow throb of blood coursing throughout his head. Back and forth he looked, and time and time again silence was broken by the slight clicking sound from his cranium.

He looked over his shoulder, seeing Newcastle stand with near-perfect posture just a few feet behind. The stiff-postured android loomed tall above him, a slim, teardrop head with flickering eyes, going from red to black every so often. The figure was covered in a polished grey from head to foot, with only a sandy, oversized trenchcoat draped over its shoulders, like an animate mannequin. Theo’s companion did not respond to his glance, only aware of the massive amount of data flowing across an ad-hoc connection from Theo’s mechanical eyes, so that Newcastle saw his reflection. The monolithic figure stood without moving, possessing no real sense of self, as far as Theo could tell.

“Newcastle, status?”

The android responded after a second.

“Investigation continuing, no sign of target.”

Theodore felt a tinge of despair, but he clenched his fist and shoved through the doors of the cafe.

As the strange couple entered, they were greeted with an automated message, booming from a tinny speaker above the door, causing a startled Theo to brace a cupped hand over his ear.

“Welcome to OSOCUP. Feel free to relax — Mr. Letterman.”

Theo removed his hand from his ear and moved toward the dusty counter a short distance from the entrance, Newcastle taking calculated steps behind him, otherwise leering blindly ahead.

“Still ain’t me,” Theo muttered.

A few coffee mugs stood up in random places, several overturned, leaving a sticky residue smelling faintly of espresso and mold. “Could’ve used a cup…” Theo murmured to himself, drawing his allOne out of his pocket.

“Worth a try.”

He drew the thin blue device over a sleek box placed near the edge of the counter, not needing to touch its sleek surface.

The display on the allOne flashed before showing a picture of the storefront, appearing in vibrant colors that stood in contrast to the abandoned storefront where Theo and his charge stood.

“Must be stored on a local server, can’t get a signal to the network in here.”

Theodore tapped away at the screen, which displayed OSOCUP in an idealized fashion, warm, burnt shades of brown adorning 100% recycled cups held by groups of modern, unoptimized people enjoying each others’ company in the pleasant glow of the cafe lights. OSOCUP’s ever-present logo was mostly static in the corner of the page, ignoring the holographic puffs of steam rising up from the screen and into Theo’s face, causing him to sniff, only to smell nothing but stale air.

“Thank you for scanning! Try a sample of our new autumn grind.”

Following the message arrived a small paper cup and a series of whirring noises, the loudest of which sounded to grind away at Theo’s headache, dispensing nothing at all into a miniscule paper cup, delivered to him via a screeching, grimed conveyor belt.

“I don’t think I can bear this any more…”

Theo trailed off, tilting his head, before shaking it to wake himself up. He turned around to the statuesque android.

“Officer, your opinion?”

There was a slight buffer before it responded.

“The premises has been vacated. No applicable evidence detected.”

Theodore turned back around, sighing to himself as he stared at the empty cup, picking it up and rolling it around in his clammy hands, leaning back in the stool.

“I just don’t know what’s my problem with this place, I’m sorry.”

Robin just sat there, staring at the automated grinders and brewers that sat in the translucent casing, the only humans in the shop at that early hour, on that day. Theo did not respond to her, the two remaining silent to each other. He stared at the brewing setup, running clean and efficient, delivering prepared drinks and delicacies to customers via a conveyor belt that spanned the counters along the edges of the establishment. Robin choked for a moment, spitting out froth onto the translucent casing separating the machines from the customers, dripping down as she cursed under her breath. Theo stirred the brown mixture, a thin layer of translucent liqueur almost invisible in the corner of his eye as he watched her take a small sip without incident, smiling at her all the while.

She slammed her gloved fist down onto the table, before flicking her straightened copper hair out of her hair and out of her coffee. His smile faded.

“Sometimes it’s just right in front of you, but you never admit it.”

Theo sighed, taking the empty cup into his pocket off of the dirty belt, getting up from the stool and looking Newcastle in the face, giving the android a mirror image of itself once more. Theo hurried around the android and exited the cafe, the robot whirring behind.

“Thank you, and please come again!”

As Theodore walked down the quiet street, he dictated to Newcastle.

“Nothing to be seen in the cafe where we used to go…”

Just ahead, the tired man noticed a familiar sight. The jade Spatial Delivery box stood out on the edge of the street, displaying a blinking light. Theo hurried over to the box and jabbed at the screen. A red light shone out, and he stretched his right eyelid out, identifying himself just as Newcastle stopped behind him.

“Good thing I’ve still got a job, eh?”

There was a loud thump, and the machine dispensed a round package, wrapped in newspaper. Theo picked it up, feeling the coarse texture of the old media.

“Haven’t seen one of these in a while…”

The package felt heavy as he rolled it around in his gloved hands.