I sat in the university cafeteria with a tray of food on my table but I wasn’t eating. I just stared at my food blankly. My mind was all over the place. The images of Taiji’s brother and the metallic building on Mars continuously ran through my head. I wanted to talk to Taiji and ask him what the hell just happened.

 

Then I remembered I could access radio on my phone and quickly pulled it out along with my headphones. After placing both speakers in my ears and the radio app on my phone, I went to a random station and waited.

 

An announcer on the radio was addressing some information on a podcast and kept talking for almost two minutes. I looked at my phone confused and switched to another station. After about a minute of music, I went to another station. After going through all of the stations I had, Taiji never resonated in my ears.

 

“What the hell..?” I stared at my phone for a moment then set it down with a frustrated sigh.

 

At that moment my phone vibrated and I quickly checked my message box. It was a message from Sunwoo. He told me to meet him at our local café. I sighed again and slowly texted him back.

 

Shinwoo: I’m not feeling well…

 

Sunwoo: But…we were supposed to hang out! Are you sick?

 

Shinwoo: Yeah. I think I should just go home and rest.

 

Sunwoo: Fine…maybe you should go to the doctor too. In case you throw up again.

 

Shinwoo: I will. Thanks for understanding.

 

Sunwoo: Yep.

 

I didn’t like lying to him, even though I was feeling a bit light-headed. I was mostly feeling mentally sick. Since Taiji didn’t come through in the radio, my only other option was to take a nap, which actually sounded nice. I ate some of my lunch and left the cafeteria.

 

When I got back to my apartment, I set down my backpack, pulled off some of my clothes, set an alarm on my phone to wake me up in an hour and a half, and climbed into bed. I was anxious to talk to Taiji, but I forced my mind to quiet down and in less than ten minutes I was deep asleep.

 

 

 

After a few moments of pitch-black quiet, small sounds entered my ears. The sounds of rolling waves and flowing grass in the wind. I slowly opened my eyes and looked around. I was in the same place where I first met Taiji in person. The area looked exactly the same. The large head-shaped rocks stood majestically in the ground staring up at the sky. A gentle breeze grazed my skin.

 

“Hello again.” A voice said from my side.

 

I turned to my left. Taiji was standing there, smiling at me.

 

“Please start explaining yourself.” I said as politely as I could.

 

Taiji chuckled softly. “I guess that last adventure was a bit confusing.”

 

I watched him expectantly.

 

“You weren’t dreaming. You really were on Mars for a brief time, but I didn’t want your life to end because of our past, so once I was able to access your mind, I transported you back to your apartment and from that moment on, it became a dream for you.”

 

“Then…your brother…”

 

“I tried to make amends, but his hatred was too strong. He didn’t want to even look at me.” Taiji said quietly.

 

“So he didn’t make it.” I said quietly.

 

Taiji shook his head. “That explosion destroyed that entire building and some of the land around it.”

 

I was quiet for a moment. “He was going to unleash an entire robot army onto Earth. I’m pretty sure he went insane.”

 

“That’s an understatement. You see, there are many reasons why the Human Dream Project was banned from all sources of media. One of them, if not the main reason, is because the risk-to-reward ratio was unbalanced, especially in my case. My parents were naïve and rushed into things too quickly. Because of their hastiness, my brother and I suffered a lot.”

 

“…I’m sorry.” I said quietly.

 

Taiji shook his head. “Don’t be sorry. It’s not your fault nor your life. All of my issues are my issues alone. Now that my brother has been stopped, you can go back to your life without any worries.”

 

I stared at him in disbelief. “How am I supposed to live a normal life? I’m a robot!”

 

“Well, look at me. I’m a robot too, and I’ve lived a relatively human life. And if you think about it, being a robot has its perks.”

 

“Like what!?”

 

“You don’t have to worry about getting drunk or hung over because your body can’t withstand alcohol or any carbonated drink. You don’t need a lot of technology like TVs or game systems because your mind is just as vivid and clear. The list goes on.” Taiji shrugged.

 

My gaze shifted to the ground. The examples he stated rang very true for me. I drank once and never did again because I got very sick and I don’t own a TV. I’ve always been fine with just my phone. I don’t even play video games that much. I was never really interested.

 

“Also, let me give you some advice.” Taiji took a step closer to me. “Just because someone says they’re a robot doesn’t mean their lifeless and metallic. As technology develops more and more every year, the theories of AI are becoming real, no matter how much the government tries to cover it up.”

 

I nodded slightly. “I was so surprised when you said you were a robot. You don’t act like one.”

 

“That’s because I’m a special kind of robot: a robot made to grow and learn like a human would.”

 

I nodded. “…so what are you going to do now?”

 

Taiji paused. “…I didn’t want to tell you before, but my body was destroyed in 2010.”

 

I blinked and let out a small sigh. “T-then how are we…?”

 

“Souls don’t die, right?” Taiji smiled.

 

I rubbed the side of my head. “This is too much…what if my body dies? Will I become like you?”

 

“Most likely.”

 

“You mean you can’t go to heaven or something?” My eyes widened.

 

“I am in heaven.” Taiji motioned to the area around us.

 

“This is your heaven?” I looked around.

 

“Yes. The Easter Island in Peru. I always wanted to come here since I studied about it in elementary school. They say it’s the land where everything started. It resonated with me.”

 

“It is beautiful.” I watched the grass flow in the wind.

 

“Yes it is.”

 

We looked at the area while the breeze grazed our hair. The sound of the waves crashing against the side of the cliff was very relaxing.

 

Then I heard footsteps behind me and glanced behind me. My mouth opened slightly.

 

Taiji looked behind him as well and smiled. “There you are.”

 

The woman in white was standing behind us with an expression of calm serenity in her eyes.

 

“Y-you…” I stared at her then Taiji.

 

“It’s been a while.” The woman smiled softly and moved to Taiji’s side.

 

“Y-yeah…” I gave Taiji a questionable look.

 

“We coincidentally have the same heaven.” Taiji chuckled and gently put his arm around her waist.

 

“Uh-huh.” I smirked. “Sure.”

 

“I’ve been watching you as well.” The woman said. “You accomplished your mission well. Now you have the reward of living your life without the strain of your ancestors’ pain.”

 

“Wait…will I ever see you again?” I looked at Taiji.

 

“I might stop in once in a while to chat. If you want me to.”

 

I nodded. “I’d like that a lot.”

 

“Good. I’m glad we could remain friends like this.” Taiji smiled.

 

“Thank you…for everything.” I said quietly.

 

“Thank you for helping me. Now let’s all relax for a while.” Taiji smiled at the woman, who returned his smile.

 

I waved at them. “Bye.”

 

“See you later.” Taiji nodded.

 

A strange but irresistible feeling of fatigue washed over my eyes and they quickly closed. I was left only seeing darkness.

 

My eyes opened seconds later and I was looking at the roof of my apartment. I looked at my phone. I still had forty five minutes left to sleep. I put my phone down, turned to my side, and closed my eyes.