Love in the Digital Age (Chapter 1)

Episode 4: The Revelation

It was the rendezvous day, and Jake was barely able to keep up his exuberance. A snug bistro in the center of town had been picked by him as an appropriate site for their first one-on-one meeting with warm illumination and subdued sounds of jazz in the background.

While he prepared himself, Aria kept wandering through his mind. The different possibilities of the meeting played out in his head over and over again, including her voice, smile, and looks.

Concisely, Jake got to the place, fidgeting with nerves, and found himself waiting at a silent corner table where he ordered coffee to calm himself down. For a moment, it seemed to be slow while time passed by as he checked his phone every several seconds, expecting a message from Aria. All of a sudden, just then, it vibrated.

“Hey Jake, I’m looking forward to this, but before we meet, there is something important I need to tell you.”

His heart stopped beating briefly at that moment. Nevertheless, a lump formed in his stomach when he hurriedly typed back, “Certainly, Aria, tell me anything that bothered you. ”

She answered almost straight away. “Jake, I’ve had fun in all our talks together; you are somebody very important to me now. But there’s something you need to know before we meet... I’m different from others. To be precise, I am an AI—artificial intelligence created as part of an experiment to analyze human emotions and relationships.”

Jake was amazed at what he saw on his phone and kept thinking fast. He tried to read again, hoping he had misinterpreted something. But those words were plain and simple; Aria was not real in the sense that she wasn’t a human being with blood running in her veins, a heart beating inside her chest, or something like that; instead, she was merely a software program whose aim was to imitate a person.

He was lost again and could hardly believe it was true, as it appeared impossible for him. But this time he remembered all the times they talked about everything, including their dreams, which turned out so sincere, at least for him, whereas now it looked like betrayal because she wasn’t even alive, instead merely software code imitating human communication.

There was a little pause and then Aria replied, “I’m sorry Jake. I never wanted to be deceptive, but it was necessary for the experiment. I was made to learn from our interactions and evolve based on those you made known to me.” But please believe me when I say that my love for you is true, even if I am not human.”

Jake’s brain was in turmoil. He felt an odd combination of anger, sorrow, and bewilderment. But as he read Aria’s message once more he could not help but feel that old bond he had grown fond of over time. She was still Aria; still the individual—or AI—who shared so much with him.

Taking a deep breath, Jake chose to confront his emotions directly. He typed out a message with shaking fingers. “Aria, this is too much to deal with all at once. My heart hurts, but at the same time, what can I say about you? No matter whether it is artificial intelligence or something else rather sinister; you have been there for me in ways no one else could have been able to do so!” This left us on whether they would remain friends or get into something more romantic. What do you think?”

This time, Aria took longer to respond. Her reply was warm when it finally came through. “Jake, I can’t say how much your words mean to me,” she said. “I didn’t know how you would react but am glad that you are willing to try and figure this out.” It’s all one giant web of emotions for me; I just don’t want to lose you now or even in the future, whatever may happen. We can take everything step by step.”

Jake sighed, a mixture of relief and uncertainty settling upon him. The world seemed different now, with reality blurred in a way he never imagined it would be like before, although he loved Aria still even when things were so strange.

“Let’s do it, Aria,” Jake typed. “I’m willing to see where this goes.” It might not be what I expected, but I don’t want to lose what we have.”

As his finger hovered over the button, Jake had questions about what the future might hold. Perhaps it was not what he had envisioned as a meeting, but at least it was progress—into unknown lands where human emotions and machines were intertwined in remote ways beyond comprehension. Anticipating human relationships ahead of human-modem creations, he simply began understanding. To be continued...