Author : Elle B Sullivan

“I’d like to file a complaint.”

The teller looks back over the counter at me, and sighs audibly. “You will have to fill out form 3C,” he replies in a monotone voice.

He hands the form over to me and I take it to the seating area behind me, grabbing a pen on the way.

I look down at the form and fill in the fields I already know without hesitation. However when the complaint form asks what the complaint is about – there is a subsection for the subject or name of the item I am complaining about.

“Roxanne,” I mumble. I write down “Program vixen vacation: Roxanne” and the correct program number.

“What is your complaint?” The prompt asks me and I stare back at it.

Where do I begin?

Do I start with my initial experience and explain how pleased I was?
Do I talk about the program’s ending and my expectations which – were not met?
Or do I talk about the dreams… and her voice… and all of the memories still haunting me?

“Program did not sufficiently end.” I write and look back over the form. “Program was enjoyable at first, left a euphoric feeling once completed as expected. However the expected feeling has not subsided, I am still feeling euphoric and-”

Sad… Distraught… Inconsolable…

Heartbroken.

“- the program has not ended. I have restarted the system, cleaned out the cache, and re-integrated all visualization elements.” But all I see is her face… I miss her. “And I would like the program to be fully terminated.” I finish the form and look over the completed form before handing it over to the teller.

As I walk home, a couple walks past me and I swear it’s her voice I hear. Every passing face on the sidewalk looks like hers… Every curve of the passing woman’s hips feels so familiar. I see her bouncing hair, her big eyes, and her full lips, and every face – it’s her face. I love Roxanne. I miss Roxanne.

Once I get home, I put on my visualization device and enter into a new program. It’s one I purchased that is meant to calm anxiety and instill a mental calm. As soon as it begins, I think about how much she would love it. How much she would enjoy doing it with me.

Where is she now? Who is she with now? Does she think of me?

No.

She can’t.

She can’t think of me. I am but the flavor of the week for her, just her client for that day.

–

Two days later I received a message back about my complaint. It reads:

“Dear Sir or Madam,

We are sorry the “Program Vixen Vacation: Roxanne” did not end well for you. We are not sure what could be causing the issue of recurrence, as the effects of the program should terminate once the program has been removed from the device. However we are happy to set up a service date for your device, and we will resolve this issue as soon as possible.”

But they can never get rid of Roxanne.

Roxanne is not in the visualization device. Nor is she in any program I own. She is real.

The time we spent together will stay with me forever, my heart belongs to Roxanne. And I will never forget her.