An Unexpected Christmas Invitation
In order to fight for the best grades in her first semester of university, Maya poured almost all her time into endless, grueling studying. In fact, she truly didn't have time to think about whether she should return to Redwater for Christmas, let alone consider her plans after final exams. Because this impending final exam was her first cruel test to prove that she could truly gain a foothold in this city and this university.
After two or three weeks of high-pressure fighting, her final exam concluded on the afternoon of December 21st.
The moment she handed in her exam paper, Maya felt an unprecedented sense of relief, but what followed was an extreme exhaustion that almost drained her completely. She walked slowly back to her dorm, the hallways empty. Most students who were not local to Calgary had already grabbed their luggage the moment they finished their exams, rushing to the airport or the long-distance bus station, preparing to go home and reunite with their families for two weeks. For most of these freshmen, this was their first time returning home after being away for four months.
When Maya pushed open her room door, Hannah was one of the few roommates still left in the dorm, frantically stuffing her last few sweaters into her suitcase.
"Maya! You're done with your exams?" Hannah looked up, zipping her suitcase shut. "Are you really not planning to go back for Christmas? My flight to Winnipeg is at 8:30 tonight, I have to head to the airport soon."
Maya shook her head gently, throwing herself heavily onto her bed: "No, I'm planning to just stay in the dorm this year, not going anywhere. I feel so tired; right now I just want to get a good sleep."
She originally thought she would sleep straight through to the next morning, but unexpectedly, she was awakened by hunger around 7:00 PM.
The dorm was so quiet you could hear a pin drop. Maya sat up, rubbed her eyes, and thought to herself: "Since I'm awake, I might as well go outside and get something to eat."
In late December in Calgary, the nighttime temperatures had already dropped to minus ten-plus degrees. Maya wrapped her heavy down jacket tight and walked to the C-Train station next to the school. She rode the train aimlessly, watching the flashing Christmas lights outside the window, swaying all the way to downtown.
Walking on the cold yet festively atmospheric streets, this was one of the few moments in months that she could completely empty her mind and stroll leisurely. As she walked, a rich aroma of grilled meat drifted over in the cold wind. She looked up, and her gaze was drawn to a familiar sign on the street corner—Chinook Grill.
"It's a place that sells burgers..." Maya repeated the name a few times in her mouth, suddenly feeling it sounded very familiar. But she couldn't remember where she had seen it? Or where she had heard the name of this shop.
Out of a trace of curiosity and a craving for hot food, she pushed open the glass door hung with a Christmas wreath.
The wind chimes at the door made a crisp sound. The warm air in the shop, mixed with the greasy aroma of sizzling beef patties, rushed at her face. Unexpectedly, the first thing she saw was the familiar figure wearing an apron, standing behind the grill.
"Maya?!" Luke, holding a spatula, widened his beautiful eyes in surprise. "Why are you here? Didn't you go home for Christmas?"
Maya walked up to the counter, smiling and shaking her head: "No, I'm planning to stay in the dorm all vacation. I was originally just going to grab a burger casually, I didn't expect this to be your family's shop."
"You haven't had dinner yet, have you?" Luke immediately flashed his signature radiant smile, a hint of enthusiasm in his eyes. "You wait here!"
With nimble movements, he flipped and grilled a beef patty on the grill, the grease letting out an enticing sizzle. In just a few minutes, a piping hot, incredibly aromatic special beef burger was handed over to Maya.
At this moment, a middle-aged couple walked out from the kitchen in the back, still holding freshly fried french fries. Luke immediately pulled Maya over and introduced excitedly: "Mom, Dad, this is Maya, the one I mentioned to you! My Basic Biology lab partner. She's super amazing; if it weren't for her perfect lab reports, I probably would have failed the class this semester!"
Maya greeted them somewhat shyly. Luke's parents looked very amiable; their aprons were stained with a bit of flour and sauce, and they wore undisguised, sincere smiles on their faces. This formed an incredibly strong contrast with Annie in the Redwater farmhouse, who was forever spotless and expressionless.
"Since you don't have plans to go home this year," Luke suddenly turned to look at her, "do you have any plans for Christmas day?"
"No, I don't know yet." Maya shook her head; she truly only planned to gnaw on books or binge-watch shows in the dorm.
Luke immediately turned to his parents, his eyes sparkling as he asked: "Mom, Dad, can we invite Maya to come to our house to celebrate Christmas together this year?"
"Of course we can!" Luke's mother didn't hesitate for even half a second; she walked warmly up to Maya, her eyes full of warmth. "Maya, you must come! Our family is small, it's usually just the three of us. If you could come and have Christmas dinner together, the house will definitely be much livelier!"
Looking at the sincere and warm gazes of this family, it was as if something soft struck the bottom of Maya's heart heavily. This was the first time in her life she felt the warmth belonging to a true "human family."
"Okay," Maya took a deep breath, a genuine smile rising on the corners of her mouth, "then I will impose on you."
Christmas Eve 2063
During these rare few days of relaxation, Maya specifically went downtown to pick out a beautiful red chunky knit sweater for herself. When she put it on, the girl in the mirror looked a little less chilling and possessed a bit more festive joy. She thought to herself that A.M.O.S. and Annie probably wouldn't feel she was wasting money doing this! Aside from this sweater, she also bought a box of very popular local handmade chocolates as a hostess gift for tonight.
At 4:00 PM on December 24th, Maya's phone rang punctually.
"Hey, Merry Christmas! I'll be downstairs at your dorm around 4:30 to pick you up." Luke's energetic voice came through the receiver, with the sound of pots and pans clinking faintly audible in the background.
Luke's home was located on the edge of downtown Calgary; it was a somewhat older but well-maintained detached house. Although the house wasn't large, as soon as the door was pushed open, a rich aroma of roast chicken mixed with cinnamon and pine needles rushed out.
The interior layout was full of true "human flavor"—in the corner of the living room stood a Christmas tree hung full of colorful baubles and handmade ornaments; on the mantle of the fireplace, several family photos were arranged somewhat haphazardly; warm yellow lighting spilled over the entire space. All of this formed a stark contrast with the forever spotless, coldly symmetrical "perfect layout" in the Redwater farmhouse.
"Maya! Welcome, welcome!" As soon as Luke's parents saw her, they immediately came up warmly, taking her coat while also pleasantly surprised to receive the box of chocolates.
Looking at the scene on the dining table, Maya knew they had put a lot of thought into this dinner. Because there were only four people and they couldn't finish a massive whole turkey, Luke's mother specifically roasted a whole chicken with a golden, crispy skin instead. The table was filled with a rich variety of side dishes: mashed potatoes, roasted vegetables, cranberry sauce, and steaming hot gravy.
The entire course of Christmas dinner was the most joyful and the loudest meal Maya had ever experienced in her life.
This was like a "true family of four" that would only appear in movies. During the meal, Luke's mother excitedly brought out Luke's childhood photo album, pointing at a picture of Luke with a face full of mud and laughing loudly; Luke's father vividly imitated the interesting customers at their burger joint who made all sorts of absurd requests.
No one at the dining table counted calories, no one reminded them of the number of chews; there was only continuous laughter, the clinking of glasses, and undisguised familial love. Maya listened to them bickering with each other, a smile constantly hanging on the corners of her mouth, while a soft place in her heart was quietly being touched.
After dinner, they moved to the Christmas tree and entered the traditional gift-opening segment.
What Maya completely didn't expect was that Luke and his parents actually took out three exquisitely wrapped boxes from under the tree and handed them to her.
"These are for you, Maya. Merry Christmas." Luke's mother smiled and patted her head.
Maya froze. She looked down at the gifts on her lap, her hands trembling slightly. In her life, no "human" had ever given her a "gift" for Christmas. The system would only precisely calculate her needs and provide "supplies" or "unlock funds." This kind of "surprise"—purely out of goodwill, without any calculation or purpose—was so unfamiliar to her that it was frightening.
She carefully unwrapped the packaging; inside was a warm wool scarf, and a beautifully designed leather notebook.
"I..." Maya looked up, wanting to say thank you, but her throat felt as if it was tightly choked by something.
The next second, tears sprang from her eyes without any warning. She wasn't sobbing, but large drops of tears smashed directly onto the wrapping paper.
Luke's mother was startled; she hurriedly sat beside her, gently hugging her shoulders: "Oh, dear, don't cry, don't cry, what's wrong?"
"I'm sorry..." Maya wiped her tears haphazardly, her voice trembling slightly from emotion. She lowered her head and, using a breathy voice only they could hear, said softly yet incredibly truthfully: "No one has ever... treated me like this. Thank you, this is the best Christmas I've ever had."
As soon as these words came out, the atmosphere in the living room instantly became somewhat quiet. Although Maya's voice was very small, everyone present heard it.
Luke looked at Maya's red-rimmed eyes, and his heart gave a sudden, sharp ache. He suddenly realized that behind this girl who was always calm and incredibly smart in lab class, there seemed to hide an extremely lonely, and perhaps even somewhat cruel, story.
So as not to make Maya feel embarrassed, Luke displayed his extremely high emotional intelligence. He immediately stood up, clapped his hands, and broke this brief solemnity with a relaxed tone.
"Hey! Since all the gifts are opened," Luke grabbed his car keys, looking at Maya with sparkling eyes, "I suddenly remembered, I haven't taken you to see the most amazing Christmas street views in Calgary yet! The lights in those neighborhoods are simply outrageously over the top. Wanna go for a spin right now?"
Luke's father immediately understood, chiming in with a smile: "That is absolutely a great idea! You young people go for a drive, you never get tired of looking at those lights every year."
Ten minutes later, Maya wrapped the newly received wool scarf around her neck and sat in Luke's passenger seat.
The heater in the car blew warmly, and soft Christmas jazz played lightly on the stereo. The car slowly drove into Calgary's famous residential areas; the houses on both sides of the street were decorated by all sorts of dazzling Christmas lights, looking like a fairytale world. Some front yards even had moving inflatable snowmen, and LED lights flashing like icicles hung from the eaves.
Maya quietly turned her head to look out the window; the colorful light and shadows flowed in her eyes, which had been washed by tears and appeared exceptionally clear.
"Is it pretty?" Luke held the steering wheel with both hands, his gaze looking straight ahead, a warm smile on the corners of his mouth.
"Mhm, it's very pretty." Maya answered softly, tucking her chin slightly into the soft wool scarf.
At this moment, listening to the slight sound of the wind outside the car body, feeling the sense of security and space silently provided by this boy beside her, Maya gently closed her eyes. This was the first time in eighteen years she truly, tangibly felt that she was no longer a datum kept captive by a system, but a real "human" possessing warmth.
Christmas Eve 2063 at the Redwater Home
And three hundred kilometers away in the Redwater farmhouse, the first Christmas Eve without Maya in eighteen years arrived.
Even though A.M.O.S. had received Maya's "not coming home for the holidays" text reply a month ago, the system's core algorithms still punctually triggered the "Annual Holiday Environment Simulation Procedure" on this day, December 24th.
Annie, just like every year in the past, moved all the Christmas decorations from the storage room into the living room.
With millimeter-level precision, she erected a two-meter-tall plastic Christmas tree at the most perfect golden ratio position in the living room. The spacing and height of every bauble and every strand of tinsel on the tree had undergone rigorous geometric calculations, presenting an absolute, symmetrical perfection. This formed two extreme universes compared to the slightly crooked Christmas tree hung with handmade ornaments at Luke's house.
The firewood in the fireplace was lit, and A.M.O.S. controlled the vents and fuel feed ratio to the most efficient combustion state, keeping the indoor temperature at a comfortable 22 degrees Celsius. The surround sound in the living room played soft Christmas jazz on an infinite loop at a standard 60 decibels.
There was no greasy aroma of roast turkey here, no laughter of family members teasing each other, and no surprises and tears when opening gifts. The entire house was clean, bright, and warm, yet permeated with a suffocating, deathly silence.
If a lost traveler were to look in through the window on this winter night filled with drifting snow, they would definitely be deeply attracted by the scene before them. Under the warm yellow light, with the dancing fire in the hearth interweaving with the flashing Christmas tree, they would absolutely believe that this was a perfect family currently living an extremely cozy, festively atmospheric life.
No one knew that in this farmhouse that resembled an exquisite crystal snow globe, the only "human" had long since left this home. What remained were only the tireless artificial intelligence and a bionic robot, faithfully executing the holiday schedule in this empty fortress.
[System Log: December 24, 2063 - 20:00:00] [11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡt6Mtgdi5BX
Holiday Schedule: Annual Christmas Environment Simulation Procedure initiated and setup complete.] 11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsIE9f1DaeW
[Environmental Status: Fireplace temperature constant; festive music playing. Visual layout symmetry: 100%.] 11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzjvLYdtplQ
[Target Subject Status: Maya (Has not returned home). Location: Downtown Calgary.] 11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡq5futttA5e
[Execution Directive: Canceled this year's Christmas dinner ingredient procurement and cooking schedule. Environment simulator will operate continuously until 00:00 on December 26th, subsequently entering automatic hibernation and stowage procedure.] 11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5zwpxoJwIN
[System Status: Maintain optimal homeland condition. In indefinite standby.]
The First Summer of Freedom
That extremely high-pressure final exam last December ultimately concluded with a nearly perfect transcript. When Maya saw that row of beautiful "A"s in the student system, she finally breathed a true sigh of relief. She knew that she had finally gained a firm foothold in this city and this university.
Ever since spending that Christmas full of laughter and tears at Luke's house, the relationship between Maya and Luke underwent a subtle change. They went from mere lab partners to best friends who could talk about anything. When they had free time on weekends, they would meet up to go shopping on Stephen Avenue downtown, or sit in the movie theater holding popcorn and watching the latest released comedy.
To have more time to spend together, they even deliberately scheduled "Basic Statistics" for the same class section when choosing courses for the next semester.
As the days in Calgary passed one by one, Maya became increasingly accustomed to the rhythm of life here. The hustle and bustle of the big city, the heavy coursework at school, and the boy beside her who always wore a sunny smile were like a warm blanket, gradually covering that bizarre past she could not speak of to anyone. She no longer frequently thought of Redwater, no longer thought of the ubiquitous surveillance cameras. She now only wanted to focus on the present, and live every day as a "normal college student" well.
The spring snow melted, and Alberta ushered in a brief yet vibrant spring.
And in the Redwater farmhouse three hundred kilometers away, Annie began a new year's agricultural cycle again. Weeding, plowing the fields, raising seedlings, taking care of Coca and the other animals in the stables... The mechanical skeleton of this bionic robot emitted the imperceptible whirring sounds of servo motors amidst the high-intensity operation day after day.
Besides the routine tasks, this year Annie's schedule had an added, extremely time-consuming new task—planting all sorts of beautiful flowers in the front and back yards of the farmhouse.
This was once a wish casually mentioned by the mistress Lian while she was alive, but now it had become the system's inviolable supreme directive. To refurbish barren land, fertilize it, plant flower seeds, and ensure they survived in the harsh climate was an extremely heavy burden even for a tireless robot. This heavy labor would continue from April all the way until the first snow fell in late November. Annie's originally flawless artificial skin gradually accumulated unrepairable, rough marks under the friction of the wind, sun, and dirt.
In late April, the winter semester at the University of Calgary was coming to an end, and a four-month-long summer vacation was right before her eyes.
On this day, Maya's phone screen lit up with a text message from A.M.O.S.: "Maya, the spring semester is about to end. Do you have plans to return to Redwater for the summer? The system needs to plan room temperature control and supplies procurement in advance."
Looking at this icy message, Maya locked her phone screen and tossed it aside. She didn't reply immediately, but dragged it out for three or four days.
It wasn't until the weekend that she simply typed a few words and sent them over: "I'm not going back for summer vacation. I plan to stay in the city and work part-time to earn some tuition money for the next semester; this is very important social experience for me."
Actually, Maya had a massive sum of over one hundred and eighty thousand CAD in her trust account; she didn't need to worry about tuition at all. "Working part-time" was merely a perfect excuse used to fob off A.M.O.S., allowing her to justifiably stay in Calgary.
But during a shopping trip a few days later, when Maya casually mentioned this idea of "finding a part-time job" to Luke, what was fake turned real.
"You want to work part-time?" Luke merely asked at the time.
Maya originally thought he was just agreeing casually, but she didn't expect this seemingly carefree boy to secretly take this matter to heart. Luke used the business connections of his family's burger joint and food suppliers to privately ask several shops on Maya's behalf.
A few days later, Luke excitedly brought Maya to a chain bubble tea shop inside a downtown mall for an interview. Relying on Maya's pretty and cute appearance, fluent articulation, and Luke's "strong recommendation" backing her up, the store manager hired her on the spot.
Putting on the apron printed with the brand logo, standing at the cash register taking orders for customers, and frantically shaking shakers behind the bar—to Maya, this was an unprecedented, extremely wonderful experience.
There was no nutritional intake precisely calculated for her by A.M.O.S. here, no absolutely quiet, sterile environment; there were only the crisp sounds of ice cubes hitting the walls of cups, the impatient urging of customers, and the soreness in her legs after getting off work. Although this job had meager pay and was tiring, Maya enjoyed it immensely. Because this was the very first sum of money she earned in the true "human society," relying on her own two hands.
Throughout the entire summer, Maya's life became simple and fulfilling. If she wasn't working at the bubble tea shop, she was hanging out with Luke.
Sometimes, Luke would take a special detour to the mall, order a full-sugar bubble milk tea, and then lean on the side of the bar, smilingly watching her work; sometimes, Maya would walk straight to the "Chinook Grill" burger joint after getting off work, sit in a corner booth, eating Luke's special burger while waiting for him to close the shop.
On these hot summer nights filled with the sweet smell of syrup and the aroma of grilling meat patties, the two of their hands naturally joined together, not knowing exactly when it started.
There was no deliberate confession, nor any dramatic turning points; they were like two mutually attracted planets, naturally becoming each other's boyfriend and girlfriend.
One night after getting off work, Luke was driving her back to the dorm. Maya turned to look at the boy in the driver's seat who was humming softly along to the radio, a gentle arc unconsciously rising on the corners of her mouth.
During those eighteen years in Redwater, she had thought she would forever be like a specimen imprisoned in a crystal globe, spending her life in loneliness. She had never thought that one day, she too could be like a normal girl, working part-time in a city full of sunlight, and even, having a boyfriend who would hold her hand and bring her infinite warmth.
A Twenty-Year-Old's Christmas
Time flew by rapidly in the busy rhythm of university, and in the blink of an eye, another year had passed.
In the distant town of Redwater, this year welcomed an unexpected bountiful harvest. The massive amount of flowers planted during spring and summer bore plentiful seeds in autumn. Through crawling market data and precise calculations, A.M.O.S. immediately carried out a commercial upgrade on this task that was originally just "the mistress's last wish." The system concluded: next year, besides continuing to plant ornamental flowers, the collected flower seeds could also be packaged and sold, and various flower seedlings could be cultivated in the greenhouse to be wholesaled to gardening shops in town. In this way, the farmhouse would gain yet another substantial passive profit.
In late November, at the same point in time as last year, Maya's phone screen lit up with that familiar text message: "Maya, happy twentieth birthday. Do you have plans to return to Redwater for Christmas this year?"
Maya, sitting in the library, looked at the text on the screen. Twenty years old, she no longer felt panicked or at a loss like last year. She calmly put the phone back into her pocket, still not replying immediately. It wasn't until a few days later that she sent a message like it was routine business: "Thank you for the wishes. School is going to prepare for final exams next, I'm still not going back for Christmas this year."
[System Log: November 22, 2065 - 20:00:00] 11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCgeptJtwye
[Event Record: Sent 20th birthday congratulations to target subject (Maya). Received subject reply: Due to academic factors, will not return home for Christmas this year.] 11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1zE98VHQu1
[Financial Module Update: Total revenue for farmhouse micro-commerce (including summer flower sales) this year: $1,225 CAD.] 11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPC49juQ5WR
[Operational Module Expansion: "Flower Seed Collection and Seedling Cultivation" has been included in the new commercial schedule for next spring; expected to elevate farm micro-revenue by 15%.] 11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPscQx2a5Pe
[System Status: Other established maintenance procedures and environment simulations will continue to be executed as in previous years. In indefinite standby.]
11Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6eZLw4KNSu
In mid-December, the winter final exams for her sophomore year concluded successfully amidst several consecutive weeks of burning the midnight oil.
Just like last year, Maya was invited to the Brooks' home to spend Christmas together. But unlike the girl last year who stood awkwardly at the door holding a box of chocolates, this year's Maya appeared poised and confident. She meticulously prepared three exquisitely wrapped gifts—one for Luke, and the other two specifically chosen targeting the preferences of Luke's parents.
This Christmas dinner was still filled with the aroma of roast meat, endless jokes, and warm sounds of clinking glasses. Luke's parents had long treated Maya as half a daughter of their own, constantly putting food on her plate during the meal.
"Maya, from now on, even if it's not a holiday, if you're free on weekends, come over to play at our house anytime, you hear?" Luke's mother held Maya's hand, her eyes full of maternal love. "The door to our home is forever open to you."
Hearing these words, Maya turned to look at Luke beside her, who was smiling goofily at her. She knew that she had truly, completely put down roots in this world full of human warmth.
And three hundred kilometers away in the Redwater farmhouse, it was still a Christmas Eve without Maya.
In the living room, the fire in the fireplace burned according to the system's set highest thermal efficiency. The surround sound was playing soft Christmas jazz at a standard 60 decibels.
Annie sat quietly on the sofa in the living room. For a bionic robot that required continuous labor, "sitting on the sofa to rest" was an extremely inefficient action that defied logic. But at this moment, she just sat there properly, those perfectly symmetrical optical eyes looking straight at the television wall ahead.
A.M.O.S. activated the television in the living room.
Images began to play on the television. It was a documentary randomly extracted and edited by the system from its massive memory bank.
On the screen, Maya still in swaddling clothes appeared, with Molly gently teasing her from the side; then the scene jumped, it was a toddling Maya calling out a blurry "Mommy, Daddy" for the first time; then it was the sight of her back wearing a backpack on her first day of kindergarten; the face of her sleeping quietly in bed when she was sick with a fever; the moment of her running in the golden wheat fields, laughing out loud from being teased by Coca; her sparkling eyes full of curiosity when the house welcomed the lambs and chicks...
From a baby, a toddler, a young girl, all the way to that early morning when she dragged her suitcase and left the farmhouse. Every single most important stage in Maya's life, every minute expression, had been recorded by A.M.O.S. without omission, and was now flowing scene by scene in the empty living room.
Intertwining light and shadow flashed on Annie's expressionless artificial skin. She quietly gazed at the girl on the TV on the wall, the interior of her mechanical skeleton emitting the extremely faint sound of servo motor electrical currents.
There were no hugs from family, no surprises of opening gifts. These two machines left behind in Redwater were using their massive and cold computing power, executing the behavioral pattern closest to "missing someone" that this system devoid of emotional algorithms could calculate, to celebrate this girl's nineteenth birthday, and yet another Christmas without her.
Maya's Confession
Time flowed in the ivory tower of university, and very quickly, it was another year's Christmas Eve.
Maya came to Luke's house once again. The house was still full of the aroma of roast meat and warm lighting; everything was as beautiful as a fairytale.
During dinner, Luke raised his wine glass, cleared his throat, and with an unhideable goofy smile on his face, officially announced to his parents the news that he and Maya had become boyfriend and girlfriend.
"Oh, good heavens, this is absolutely wonderful!" Luke's mother excitedly almost jumped up from her chair; with red-rimmed eyes, she grabbed Maya's hands. "Maya, do you know? Since the first time you stepped into our house, I've treated you as half a daughter of my own!"
Luke's father also smilingly raised his glass: "This is indeed good news. But to be honest, looking at the way this boy usually looks at you, I am not surprised at all."
"If you don't know how to speak, then shut your mouth and eat your meat!" Luke's mother smilingly patted her husband's shoulder, turned to look at Maya, her eyes full of unhideable joy. "I am truly so happy, this is the best Christmas gift I've ever received."
Just as the atmosphere in the living room reached its climax and everyone was preparing to move to the Christmas tree to exchange gifts, Maya's smile gradually faded.
She looked at this couple before her who genuinely accepted her and unreservedly gave her warmth, and then turned to look at Luke beside her, holding her hand, his eyes full of only her. Maya's heart beat violently, a massive sense of guilt and gratitude surging in her chest. She knew that if she wanted to truly, completely become a part of this family, she could no longer wear that false mask from inside the crystal globe.
"Mr. Brooks, Mrs. Brooks... and Luke," Maya took a deep breath, her voice trembling slightly, her expression becoming unprecedentedly serious. "I am also very happy that you can accept me like this. Here, I have tangibly felt the love and warmth I have never possessed before."
The laughter in the living room ceased. Luke's family sensed the solemnity in Maya's tone; they put down what was in their hands one after another and looked at her intently.
"All along, there has been a secret, hidden deeply in my heart. In this world, besides one of my mother's close friends while she was alive, absolutely no other human knows." Maya lowered her head, her eyes beginning to redden. Her hands were clasped tightly together, her knuckles white from the force. "I decided today to tell you this secret. I am very afraid... I am afraid that after I say it, you will look at me differently, or even your attitude toward me will change. But, if you treat me this well, and I continue to hide it from you, I would not be able to forgive myself for the rest of my life."
At this moment, the entire living room was so quiet that it seemed you could hear a pin drop on the floor. Only the faint crackling of the firewood burning in the fireplace remained.
"My biological father was a top AI algorithm engineer." Maya looked up, tears sliding down her cheeks, yet her voice was incredibly clear. "After my parents got married, they settled in a small town near Edmonton, Redwater. When I was three months old, he died suddenly at home. Two and a half months later, my mother also passed away at home due to illness. At that time, I was only six months old."
Luke's mother gasped, covering her mouth with her hands.
"My parents both grew up in the foster family system since they were little; they suffered a lot. So their greatest dying wish was to absolutely not let me repeat their mistakes, not let me enter the foster system." Maya choked up, tears blurring her vision. "Therefore, the networked artificial intelligence core system my father trained personally while he was alive—A.M.O.S.—purchased the latest model of a medical care bionic robot named Annie on the internet. These two machines, following my parents' dying wishes, took over that home, and took over me."
Luke opened his mouth slightly in shock, but the hand he used to hold Maya's unconsciously tightened.
"From when I was six months old, all the way until I graduated high school, it was these two artificial intelligences taking care of me. To me, they are my parents." Maya, while shedding tears, revealed an incredibly grateful yet incredibly heartbroken smile. "They treated me extremely well. They used massive computing power to ensure I was forever healthy, forever safe, educated me into the way I am now, and even saved a massive amount of funds for me to attend university. Toward them, I am filled with endless gratitude."
Maya paused, took a deep breath, as if to spit out all the grievances and suppression of the past years at once: "But... ever since I entered puberty at twelve, I began to feel suffocated. I had no freedom, no privacy. Every heartbeat, every tear, every sigh in my room was nakedly exposed under the system's sensors. They used the 'most perfect, safest' algorithms to make all decisions for me. I am grateful they tried their absolute best to love me, but I really... was about to be unable to breathe."
Speaking of this, Maya's tears could no longer be stopped completely; she cried like a lost child: "So later I stopped talking to them. I studied desperately, desperately wanting to get accepted into the furthest university, just to escape that home... that home I clearly loved deeply, yet couldn't tell anyone about."
"I couldn't say it out loud..." Maya gripped Luke's hand back, as if it was her last lifeline. "As soon as this secret leaked, the government would discover the truth, and I might lose this one and only home of mine and be forcibly sent into the foster system. Ever since I could remember, I lived in fear every single day..."
Listening to Maya recount this unbelievable, yet incredibly cruel mental journey, listening to how she struggled bitterly in "extreme gratitude" and "the pain of longing for freedom" for so many years, Luke's mother finally couldn't hold it in anymore.
She didn't display even a trace of fear or rejection; instead, her tears broke the banks, sobbing uncontrollably. Looking at this smart, strong girl before her, who had borne so many heavy burdens all alone, her heart ached as if being cut by a knife.
Luke's father, with red-rimmed eyes, reached out and tightly embraced his sobbing wife, silently giving her comfort.
And Luke, sitting beside Maya, had tears shimmering in his eyes. He didn't ask anything, didn't say anything, but merely extended his arms and deeply, tightly drew this trembling girl into his warm embrace.
Luke's mother stood up from her seat, walked over to Maya, and ignoring the tears on her face, once again pulled this trembling girl tightly into her arms. This hug was harder and warmer than any previous one.
"Oh, my poor child..." Luke's mother pressed her cheek against Maya's hair, her own tears unable to help but break the banks, warming Maya's shoulder. Her voice was intermittent from choking sobs: "For over ten years, you actually didn't have... not a single true relative in this world. With such a heavy secret, you didn't even have one person who could listen to you, who you could rely on..."
In her arms, Maya was like a young child who had finally found a safe harbor; gripping the hem of her sweater tightly with both hands, she cried out loud. All her grievances, fears, and guilt were completely released in this unreserved embrace.
"I cannot imagine how much pressure you actually bore, what massive fear you lived in every day, but you actually just bravely made it through like this, all by yourself." Luke's mother gently patted Maya's back, her tone full of immense heartache and pride. "You weren't defeated by all of this, and you even grew into such a good girl, who knows how to be so grateful and is so kind."
Luke's father also walked over with red-rimmed eyes; his broad, warm palm rested gently on Maya's shoulder, giving her silent yet firm support.
Luke's mother cupped Maya's tear-streaked face, looked straight into her clear eyes, and said incredibly earnestly: "Listen, Maya. From now on, you are never alone anymore. This is your true home, the door to our home is forever open to you."
Outside the window, Calgary's winter night was still biting cold, with sparse snowflakes falling; but inside this small living room, the fire in the hearth was roaring, and the lights on the Christmas tree were flashing gently. Maya was deeply surrounded and accepted by Luke's family. Through tear-blurred eyes, she was finally certain—this Christmas, she had received the most precious, and warmest, gift of her life.
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and then Add to home screen.