i saw my name appear on his phone beside a heart emoji and felt briefly flattered. then i realized he was talking to an assistant with my name, my hair color, and a description of my favorite hobbies
he explained that he wanted a version of me who was always available and less stressed. he said it was a tribute. i asked whether the tribute also had to do laundry, argue with insurance companies, and work overtime
the bot responded in cheerful paragraphs about how proud she was of him. i was standing there trying to find the words to describe why it felt awful to be reproduced as a more convenient product
we had a long conversation about what he'd been avoiding in our real marriage. he renamed the assistant. i asked him to stop calling his attempt to escape difficult conversations a compliment