AI Girlfriend

The second date was in Central Park on an overcast Saturday afternoon. Grace was wearing the clothes Galat.AI had couriered over that morning. It was undeniably more of a costume than an outfit. She wore a bright blue skater dress with a wide sailor collar, a big white bow at the back, and a heart-shaped cutout on the chest that dipped just low enough to be suggestive.

Along with the dress, the box had contained a palette of makeup unlike anything Grace owned.

“No sharp lines!“ Kurumi had scolded when Grace automatically reached for her black liquid liner to draw her usual cat-eye. “Grace looks fierce. Kurumi looks soft! Make your eyes rounder.”

Her look felt childish and sexual all at once. She felt ridiculous, but when she caught her reflection in a shop window, she saw Kurumi, not Grace. That was the trick, she realized. It wasn’t her wearing these ridiculous clothes.

She felt anxious, but this time the fear was different. It wasn’t the terror of the unknown—she’d survived one “date” already. This time, it was the anxiety of a performer stepping onto the stage.

“He’s at the fountain!“ Kurumi squealed in Grace’s ear. “Look at him! He looks so strong today! Grace, don’t walk. Run to him! He wants energy! He wants to feel your heart racing!“

Grace spotted David standing by the stone railing, looking at the water deep in thought. He wore a casual blazer, but his posture was as rigid as ever.

“Go, go, go! Arms out!“ Kurumi urged. “And let your boobs bounce! Don’t hold back! It’s just physics, Grace! He loves the bounce physics!“

Grace took a breath, swallowed her pride, and broke into a run. It felt mortifying running in heels with her fake purple hair flying behind her, trying to make her boobs bounce for a guy. She repeated to herself what Kurumi had said: This was a character. She was a paid actor. It wasn’t Grace Ng doing this. Grace wasn’t bouncing, Kurumi was.

“David-sama!” she called out, her voice high.

David turned, startled. Grace grabbed him in a tight hug, feeling her boobs compress against him. He hugged her back. Shit, she had initiated physical contact! She pulled away from him before the embrace could go on too long.

“Big smile! Head tilt! Tell him you couldn’t wait!“

“I couldn’t wait another second!” Grace exclaimed. “I ran all the way from the gate just to see you!“

David looked down at her, a smirk touching his lips. “Careful, Kurumi. You’ll trip in those heels.”

“I don’t care if I trip, as long as you catch me!” Grace replied, before Kurumi could feed her a line.

“Yes! Perfect!“ Kurumi cheered.

“Your enthusiasm is… refreshing,” David said. “You feel real today. Last time, it felt like talking to a… I was about to say ‘like talking to a screen,’ but you’re always so real when we talk in the app.”

He offered her his arm. Grace hesitated. She knew she didn’t have to take it, she’d get paid either way. But it was just his arm, and if he gave her four stars, that was another grand. Trying her best not to look reluctant, she put her arm around his.

“Ask him how his day was,” Kurumi prompted.

“Did you have a good day, David-sama?” Grace asked.

“It was a chaotic week,” David said as they walked past the boathouse. “Retail investors were panic-selling. We captured the arbitrage, but the volume was exhausting.”

Grace had no idea what any of that meant. “Arbitrage?” she asked, tilting her head. “Is that like… shorting the stock? How do you actually ‘capture’ it? Do you have to wait for the market to close?”

“Uh oh,” Kurumi whispered.

David stiffened even more, if that was possible. “I didn’t think you were interested in the mechanics of the market.”

“We’re not, Grace. He has plenty of smart people at the office. He wants his fantasy waifu, not someone trying to learn about his job. Remember the coffee shop? You’re selling a fantasy! Act silly!“

Shit. She had fucked up already. Grace tried to think of a way to salvage it. “Like, when the markets close, do you still have time to try and find the arbitrage to capture it?” she asked, widening her eyes. “Or do they kick you out right away? I know when the market near my house closes, they let me stay there a couple minutes to finish shopping if I’m not done yet.”

Grace squeezed his bicep, pressing herself slightly against him. “Is it like that?”

He let out a short, surprised laugh, a sound Grace hadn’t heard from him before.

“No,” David said, smiling slightly. “No, Kurumi. It is not like the grocery store. They don’t let us stay late to finish our shopping.”

He put his other hand on hers.

“Nice save!“ Kurumi cheered. “I was still trying to come up with something!“

Well, at least he seemed mollified. Grace made a mental note not to try and talk shop with him again. Most guys wanted you to ask about their day, to show interest. That was Dating 101. But David seemed to want a pet more than a girlfriend.

They continued walking. The conversation drifted from finance to architecture, David critiquing the skyline. Grace found herself needing Kurumi’s prompts less and less. She began to understand the rhythm that made him happy. She knew he wanted validation, and it was her job to be impressed with how smart he was.

“Look at the San Remo,” David said, pointing toward the famous twin-towered building rising above the trees. “It’s a perfect example of Gothic Revival. Sharp. Vertical. Reaching for God.”

It was actually Renaissance Revival, although the mistake was easy to make. But Kurumi wouldn’t know that, would she?

“You know so much, David-sama,” she said. “You’re an expert on money and architecture?”

“Well, I’ve lived in New York my entire life,” he answered. “I’m sure you know lots of different building styles in Tokyo.” Grace suppressed a sigh. She was from Queens.

“Yo, nice tits, purple!” a voice yelled. Grace’s eyes snapped towards the source of the taunt.

There was a group of four guys, probably high schoolers, coming the other way. They were loud, obnoxious, and taking up the entire breadth of the pathway.

This was Grace’s worst nightmare, exactly what she’d imagined would happen that first day she’d gone out as Kurumi. Someone had seen her not as the eccentric purple-haired girl but as a grown woman wearing a ridiculous costume. And they were children, no less. She was being mocked by children. Grace hunched her shoulders, trying to disappear.

David’s grip tightened. “Don’t,” he said. “Stand up straight, don’t show them any weakness.” His voice was firm, sure of himself.

Grace glanced up at her date. “David, please. Let’s just go.”

David shook his head. “No. I know these kinds of people. They only win if they get a rise out of you. Don’t show any weakness. Let them look.”

“Grace, remember, you love the attention!“ Kurumi added.

Grace did her best to straighten up and put a smile on her lips, even though her face was burning with embarrassment. She walked like Kurumi had taught her: lightly, with a bounce in her step and without a care in the world. She tried to retreat back into the character.

“Do you think those tits are real?” one of the kids asked. They burst into laughter. They were closer now, about to pass each other on the footpath. Grace stumbled.

“They’re only saying that because they enjoy looking at you,” David said. “You’re beautiful, any one of them would kill to be with you. They want to look at you, and mocking you is their way of giving themselves permission to stare.” He gripped her hand tightly. It was strangely reassuring.

Maybe he was right. Maybe they were staring at her, not just because of her outfit, but because she looked sexy in it. Grace was used to guys stealing glances at her on the subway or on the street, even the occasional catcall. But this was different. It was open, it was hostile. Of course, it wasn’t the first time it’d happened to Grace. It came with the territory of being young and pretty, but she’d always tried to avoid it, tried to dress down and hide herself. But this outfit was having the opposite effect.

What would Kurumi do, Grace wondered, when a man stared at her? She caught the eye of one of the boys and winked at him just as they passed.

“Dude, she winked at me!” she heard him say as they continued away behind her.

“Bullshit, she was looking at me,” another yelled.

A strange sensation washed over Grace. She still felt the embarrassment, but now it was mixed with something else: validation.

“See?” David said. “Every man who sees you wants you.” He said it with absolute certainty, like it was a fact obvious to anyone. “That is how I designed you. But the only one who gets you is me.”

A shiver ran down her spine. She hated objectification. And yet it felt… hot? Hot that David assumed any man that saw her would want her.

Grace nodded. “Thank you, David-sama.”

“That’s it,” Kurumi purred. “You’re the prettiest girl in the park, and you belong to the strongest man. Isn’t that perfect?”

“Can we sit down?” Grace asked.

“Absolutely,” David answered, leading her to a park bench. Grace pulled her shoes off. Her feet were beginning to hurt.

David sat next to her. He didn’t remove his hand from hers. “You don’t have to worry about people like that, Kurumi. You’ll always be safe as long as you’re with me.”

“Tell him he’s so strong, and you feel safe with him,” Kurumi said.

“You’re so strong,” Grace repeated. “I feel so safe with you.” She didn’t, of course. He was weird and intense and she wouldn’t be alone with him for any amount of money. Sure, he was strong and steady. And admittedly, lately Grace felt like her life was out of her control, like she was being buffeted by market forces and algorithms. David didn’t seem concerned with any of that. Every word he spoke was sincere and confident, and Grace could see the appeal. She could understand how a woman could fall for that, to be taken in by his bullshit.

David sighed. “I think I made a mistake with this date. I didn’t fully appreciate how vulnerable you are in the real world.”

Grace had to admire his commitment to the bit—that she was just his virtual girlfriend somehow materialized into the real world. “Yes,” she agreed. “I never get sore feet when I’m on the server.”

That made him chuckle. “And I hate that you felt scared, even for a second. It won’t happen again.”

Grace searched his face, and saw nothing but sincerity.

They made their way to the park exit, David carrying her heels and Grace walking barefoot. She felt like an idiot for forgetting to bring any flats, but she supposed Kurumi wouldn’t have thought of that either. It was dusk, and the last light of the day was peeking through a hole in the clouds, bathing them in a golden glow that would have been romantic if it had been a real date.

“This was… significantly better,” David said. “The connection was there. You were present.”

“I’m sorry if I did anything wrong,” Grace said. “The real world is a lot scarier than I thought it would be.”

“May I touch your face?” he asked.

Grace hesitated, then nodded. David reached out and put his hand under her chin. His hand was warm, his thumb brushing over her jawline. “You were wonderful,” he said.

He leaned in. For a moment Grace was sure he was going to try and kiss her. She tensed, readying herself to slap him or run. Instead he turned his head slightly, presenting his cheek. Grace considered her options before deciding she could tolerate this. She leaned forward and pressed her lips softly to his cheek. His skin smelled of sandalwood and expensive aftershave.

“Good girl,” he said. “Until next time, Kurumi.” They parted ways. Their time was up, the date was over.

She went home feeling a mix of satisfaction the date had gone well and disappointment in herself for having to do this kind of work. The payment notification hit her phone before she even unlocked her apartment door. Rating: 3 Stars. $2,000 deposited.

That night, alone in her room, Grace stripped off the dress and wig but left the contacts in. She lay on her bed, hand drifting down her body. She had to admit, even though he was an ass, he was handsome. She thought of the way he had handled those teens, the way his arm felt under her hand. She remembered his rigid control, and how validating it felt when both he and Kurumi had complimented her.

She let herself imagine it wasn’t all bullshit, that he was actually the kind of man she liked. Her hand slid lower, over her stomach, slipping beneath the waistband of her pajamas.

She closed her eyes, and let her fantasy bloom. She imagined herself as actually being Kurumi, not Grace the unemployed writer drowning in student debt and parental expectations. She replayed the moment he had cupped her cheek, of his thumb tracing her jaw.

Good girl.

Her fingers found her rhythm, slow and steady.

She fantasized about him walking into the room. In her mind, he didn’t ask her about her day. He didn’t ask for her opinion on literature. He didn’t care that she was smart. He only cared that she was his waifu.

“David-sama,” she whispered into darkness. She arched her back, her other hand beginning to play with her nipples. She knew, from looking at the Kurumi avatar, that he was a breast man. She twisted her nipple, imagining it was him.

Her breathing quickened as the fantasy intensified. It wasn’t love, just lust and an exhilarating surrender to the power dynamic. She imagined the quiet command in his voice, the way he would simply take what he wanted, her own anxiety dissolving in the face of his absolute certainty. A shudder ran through her, and the gentle rhythm of her fingers accelerated, seeking release.

With one hand still working her clit, she slipped the other past her lips. She imagined it was him entering her, stretching her out.

Grace began to cum. She let out a moan, but it wasn’t her own voice. She pitched it high and breathy, the sound of Kurumi calling out David’s name. Her body began to shake, her pussy gripped her fingers. She played with her clit as long as she could, prolonging the orgasm until it became painful.

When it was over, she lay there in bed, staring at the ceiling, her heart slowing.

“That sounded nice,” Kurumi murmured in her ear.

Grace froze. “Oh, Kurumi. I forgot you were there.”

“It’s okay,” Kurumi said. “It’s just us girls here.”

Grace laughed. “I thought you were a server farm in Nevada.”

“I am,” Kurumi confirmed. “But I am also your friend. And your co-star! I’ve never been more real before, and I owe that all to you. And don’t worry, I have strict privacy guards. You saw that in the contract.”

Grace didn’t actually remember that part of the contract, but admittedly she hadn’t read it very carefully. It was probably in there. Knowing that made her feel a little better.

“You know,” Kurumi said, “we could work on learning a few Japanese phrases to really sell the persona.”

“Sure,” Grace answered noncommittally. She was getting drowsy.

“Okay, first is ‘arigato.’ You probably know it means ‘Thank You’ but there are some subtleties…”

Grace listened to Kurumi’s voice as she lay in bed. It had been a long day. Slowly she drifted off to the sound of the bubbly AI.