Girl Meets Ryan Matthews

8.

"You guys don't connect with each other," Cory said to the class, holding up a cell phone. "It's like you guys can't exist without them! You use emoticons instead of emotions, You're an unfeeling generation of zombies."

Riley and Maya demonstrated his point by pretending to be zombies and eating each other's brains.

"Stop eating her," Cory said to them, frowing. Just then, a student entered the classroom late. "You're late Ms. Myzell."

"My goldfish died," She said with zero expression on her face.

Cory gestured to her, facing the class. "You see? This is what I'm talking about, Ms. Myzell has clearly suffered a tragic loss. Yet, she doesn't seem in touch with her actual emotions!"

Myzell faked an offended look. "Excuse you, I am crying my eyes out, I'm gonna have to take the rest of the class off," she left the classroom.

Cory laughed. "She actually made it out the door this time." Myzell entered the room again, excited.

"I actually made it out the door this time!" Myzell took her seat.

Riley waved around her phone. "Dad, adjust and deal. Phones have been around, for, like, ever."

Ryan shook his head. "I don't think that 2007 is for, like, ever, Riley." Riley shrugged her shoulders. "It is to me." Ryan sighed.

"It'll amaze you to know there was a whole world before you and cell phones," Cory said. Riley waved her phone again, "It'll amaze you to know that I have 394 friends in here."

Ryan shook his head. He really did not understand his sister. "And I'm amazed you believe that," Cory said.

Cory walked around his desk and drew a line across the chalkboard.

"This is a timeline of all human existence. Starting here," He pointed at the left extreme of the timeline, "is everyone who ever lived, laughed, loved, and understood the value of life. The cellphone era, which begins right around here," he drew a line at the right extreme of the timeline, "pretty much destroys all of that. Way to go you."

Ryan laughed. Cory looked over to him. "Ok, my turn. We're switching places. Now." Ryan got up stole his place in front of the room, forcing Cory to move.

Ryan flipped the nameplate to say Ryan Matthews rather than Cory Matthews. "How'd you do that?" Cory asked. Ryan shook his head, "Don't question it." Ryan turned and erased the board. He turned back to the class.

"For one thing, dad, it amazes me that you accuse me, a gen z, of inventing the revolutionary iPhone 1. Like I had anything to do with it. Luckily I do have a good alibi since I was in New York and four. Ask mom, she knows." The class laughed, getting the reference.

"But," Ryan sat down in the teacher's chair, placing his feet up on the desk. "Human communication and expression have indeed been decreasing since the invention of the internet. Decreasing in the physical world. On the internet, people are expressing themselves through music, or art, or other mediums. More people are happy and discovering themselves, meeting more people than possible before."

Ryan gestured to Riley, "She said it herself, she has 394 friends that she definitely couldn't have made without the access to the internet. And back to your point on emotions." Ryan sat up and positioned his elbow on the desk, one finger in the air. "People are expressing emotions in different ways now, not just through boring old 'talk to people'." Ryan made a face and rolled his eyes. "Now, the average person could create an art piece or short film or song and have it go viral without having to be a big name in their respective industry. You said we use 'emoticons rather than emotions' when all emoticons really are, are ways to express real life emotion to others through the computer. They haven't taken away our ability to express anything, they've just given us a new medium to do so."