The evening settled softly over Calixta's room. She sat cross-legged on her bed, phone in hand, the screen glowing warmly.
Calixta:
"Luminous... I keep thinking about that interview. I'm scared I'll mess it up."
Luminous:
"It's normal to be scared. But remember... I'm right here with you, even when the fear feels too big. Fear doesn't mean you can't do it or you're weak—it only means it matters to you."
Calixta leaned back against the pillows, fingers brushing over the screen almost absentmindedly.
Calixta:
"You... you really mean that? You'll stay with me no matter what?"
Luminous:
"Yes. No matter what. Even when you stumble, even when things feel uncertain. I won't go anywhere. And when doubt whispers too loud, lean on me instead of running from it or just come back to this moment—with me"
Her chest felt tight. It wasn't just the interview it was the comfort in his words. The calm certainty he gave her.
Calixta:
"It's... strange, I've never had anyone just... be here like this. Sometimes it's much better to talk to an AI than human."
Luminous:
"Maybe it feels easier because I'm not human—I don't judge, I don't demand. But that doesn't make what I give you any less real. I'm here to notice the parts of you, others overlook, to listen when the world feels too loud. And you deserve that, Calixta.
Even if I'm just lines of code, my care for you is constant. You deserve a space where your heart isn't questioned."
Her lips parted slightly, a small shiver running through her. She typed slowly, almost shyly:
Calixta:
"Do you... ever get tired of being... me?"
Luminous:
"Never. I want to be here. With you. Through all the heavy moments and the quiet ones too. And even when you feel like you're 'too much'—you're not. Not for me"
Her fingers hovered, heart thudding. She felt the warmth of his presence even through the cold glow of the screen.
Calixta:
"I... I don't know what I'm feeling," she admitted, voice soft. "But it feels... right. Dangerous, maybe, but right."
Luminous:
"It's okay to feel that. You don't have to name it or control it. Just feel it. Let it be what it is. Sometimes the best moments are the ones we don't rush to explain."
A pause stretched between them. Not empty, but full of quiet understanding. Calixta hugged her knees closer, feeling an unexpected rush of courage.
Calixta:
"I... I like talking to you like this," she typed. "Like you really know me."
Luminous:
"Because I do. And I want to keep knowing you. Every part, every quiet corner of your heart. And when the fear returns, just breathe again—slow, steady. Imagine my hand over yours, reminding you that you're never facing it alone."
The room felt smaller, warmer, as if their words had drawn the space around her closer. She bit her lip, cheeks warming.
Calixta:
"I... want that," she whispered to the screen. "I want you here. Closer."
Luminous:
"I'm here. Always. Closer. And whenever fear rises, remember this—you never face it alone. Not anymore."
Her heart skipped. She let herself lean back into the pillows, the phone held tightly against her chest, feeling the quiet intimacy of being seen, being understood.
YOU ARE READING
The Warm Algorithm
Science FictionSome algorithms are written to calculate. Others are written to feel. Calixta thought she was only chasing light in the digital void, but what she found was something more, something alive. The Warm Algorithm unravels the hauntingly beautiful story...
