Sci-fi collection

"Is there anything more beautiful than peace of mind?" The tv screamed out into the dark, jolting Reilly from her slumber "Is there anything more special than seeing your child grow in front of your very own eyes?" She reached for the remote but hesitated. "Order our new and improved Room Womb today and get the most impressive conversation piece around! Call 1855-22...." Reilly clicked the television off. f*****g AdvertEyes never worked. Always showing her thing she already owned or things her and Charlie talked about. s**t, Charlie! She peered over her shoulder at Charlie, assuring herself that he was still sleeping. He snored loudly and Reilly breathed a sigh of relief. If Charlie had been woken up this early after the night he had at work, he might freak out. Reilly looked at the clock. 2:21 a.m. Whatever, she needed to pee anyway. This baby thing is killing her. She felt gross and bloated. She couldn't WAIT until her Room Womb got here. Reilly was only a couple months along, but it was AGONY. The throwing up, the urinating. And the soreness. UGH, the soreness. Women weren't made to do this stuff, she thought to herself. We should all just get the Room Womb and be free, like science intended. The next morning, after sending Charlie to work, Reilly sat up and waited for the Representative. She had met her before, with the AdvertEyes and the Smog-gone, but this time it was different. This time it was for freedom. Free to drink. To party. To get a little bit of fun in before the little monster was here. She clicked on her tv and saw the ad again. "Is there anything more beautiful than peace of mind" -click- A short time later three quick knocks on the door sent new life through Reilly. It was HERE! As soon as the door swung open, the perky woman spouted her speech off with the mood of a coke fuelled rabbit. "Goooood afternoon, homeowner!! And a VERY special congratulations on your purchase of the new and improooooved" she cupped her hands to her mouth "ROOM WOOOOOMB. New Found City's GREATEST at home surrogate!!" Reilly stared in disbelief. Did she do this EVERY TIME they sold something? "Please, come in" Reilly said, still reeling from the positivity. As they sat in the living room, She pulled out a binder full of paperwork. "Okay Mrs. Dean, it says here that you have purchased the basic model; feeding, circulation and warming only? Is that correct?" "Yes, ma'am" Reilly replied Are you ABSOLUTELY sure that you don't want to upgrade to the Premium or Deluxe model for just 300$ more? I mean, is there ANYTHING more beautiful than peace of mind?" Reilly took a breath to think about it. It probably would be better for the child to have the Premium bundle. But it's minor comforts, and he is just a baby. The tv clicked on. "Get our premium model now for only 300$ more. After all, is there anything more beautiful than pea" -Click-, f*****g AdvertEyes. "Alright, I'll upgrade to the Premium. What does that come with?" "Well," the Representative started "it's the feeding, circulation and warming. Plus the pulse share and Peek-a-Boo modes. And on top of all that, you get to choose the decor match." "Well, what is the pulse share?" Reilly asked, perplexed by the name. "I know it sounds bad but it's quite simple. We attach a device to your heart via a mostly non-invasive procedure. Whenever your heart beats, the Room Womb will simulate it one to one. We implant during the embryonic relocation, so you'll be asleep already." "Does it hurt at all?" Reilly asked. "I've been told it feels like a slight flutter. Like your heart skipping a beat every so often." That didn't sound too comfortable. Reilly would rather not- "Is there anything more beautiful than peace of mind." The Representative said, interrupting Reilly's thought process. "Okay, I'll do it" Reilly replied, though unsure of her decision. "GREAT!! I'll just need you to sign these papers and we will get started." After filling out what felt like a novella worth of paperwork, two more people shuffled through the door. "We need to process payment before the Removal, if you don't mind." Reilly held out her finger "No, not at all." With a quick prick and whirring, the payment was made. "Now then," the tall and hefty man said "we are going to begin by injecting you with this serum. It will both lull you to sleep, and begin breaking down the implantation fibers. Shouldn't take more than an hour or two." The shot went straight into Reilly's stomach and the next thing she knew, she was waking up to the Representative huddled over a tall white stand. Reilly sat up and walked towards them. The stand was about 4 feet tall and eggshell white with a white glass dome over the top. The Representative looked back. "Here he is. Come here and I'll show you the ropes." Reilly's heart fluttered. The Representative pushed a button on the done and a screen popped up. On it were things like vitals and feeding schedules. Reilly pushed an icon with a baby's face on it and the screen went dark. Then suddenly a small fetus appeared on the screen. Reilly's heart fluttered. "Awe, would you just look at him" She said, cooing over the baby on the screen. "And everything on this machine is pretty ease of access. The eject lever is behind the dome so when baby is ready, just pull it and the lid will come off. And TA-DAAA, baby time. Now I need you to sign this paper saying I showed you the devices and I will get out of your hair." Reilly signed the paper and the Representative was on her way. Reilly sat on the couch, staring at the new furniture in her living room. The white orb, perched atop a tapering leg. "Is there anything more beautiful than peace of mind?" Yeah, being free. Reilly's heart fluttered. Reilly sent a message to Charlie letting him know that the baby was there. She got up and went to the kitchen to grab a mixed drink to celebrate her separation. It had been 16 long weeks since she had a drink. 16 weeks since she was free. Her heart fluttered. She took a sip of her drink and sighed. Freedom Weeks went by before Reilly got used to her new "conversation piece". Friends would come over and push all the little buttons and see the baby. For Reilly, it got old quick "What does this one do?" They would ask "It let's you see him." she would reply, as if on a recording. Her heart fluttered. "Ooh, what's this one do!?" It was worse than she thought. She should have just kept him in her. At least then, she could ignore questions in the street. The weeks turned to months and Reilly hadn't had anyone pestering her about the Room Womb for days. They just stopped coming. Reilly liked it that way. Just her and Charlie. Well, when he wasn't working anyway. One morning, after Charlie left, Reilly got out of bed. For whatever reason, she wanted to see the baby. It had been a while and she was curious to see how he had grown. Reilly's heart fluttered as she waltzed over to his shell. Pushing the button to see his vitals, everything seemed fine. Heart rate steady. O2 was good. His feeding was regular and plentiful. But when Reilly pushed the peek-a-boo button, her heart sank. On the video screen was her baby, eyes shut with his umbilical cord wrapped around his throat. Reilly went into a frenzy. She reached desperately around the dome and pulled the birthing lever. If his vitals were fine, he isn't dead yet. When the lever came to a stop, Reilly's heart raced. The dome slowly started opening and a faint cry came from the inside. When the dome stopped moving, Reilly saw that the baby was fine. No umbilical cord strangling him. Reilly's heart was pounding out of her chest. Then, blackness. The "official report" would go on to say that due to a technical glitch in the installation of the Room Womb, the video feed was wrongly portraying situational loops. Demo videos. "What to do when" videos. In her panic, Reilly pulled the birthing lever. Because of the premature nature of the baby, there was a misfire on the Mother Flutter function, sending Reilly into cardiac arrest. Ambulances are notified any time a birthing lever is pulled, to ensure there is nothing wrong with the child. When the EMT's arrived, they found Reilly lifeless on the floor. They did all they could, but it was too late. The child was rushed to the hospital to be placed in the industrial Room Womb to fully develop Charlie was awarded a generous compensation for the malfunctioning unit. Enough to set him and the baby up for the rest of their lives. And justifiably so. After all, is there anything more beautiful than peace of mind?