He couldn’t remember the last time he found himself taking a leisurely evening stroll on Ocean Front in Newport. Decades? He thought better than to mention that to the young woman he was walking with. Then he couldn’t exactly recall which was further back in his past, the last time he took a stroll on the beach or the last time he went out on a first date? He didn’t think it would be a good idea to bring that up either. He smiled. Being with this beautiful redhead made him forget how long it had been since he’d drummed up the courage to ask anyone out. She smiled back at him, seeing that he was lost in thought. 

She was about to say something when his phone started beeping at him. He didn’t want to be rude, but he couldn’t stop himself from taking a glance at the screen and then put the device back in his pocket. She gave him an, “And?” look and he brushed off the interruption as unimportant saying, “You were going to say?”

She asked him when was the last time he spent an evening walking along the beach. He laughed thinking, doesn’t everyone put that on their dating profile, long walks along the beach? He shrugged, “I really can’t remember… It’s been too long.” 

She smiled. Then his phone started beeping again. He apologized saying that he had to take this call and let the young woman walk ahead of him. Once she was out of earshot, he frowned and said to the phone, “Listen, it was your idea that I needed to get out more and have some fun…”

The female voice on the other end responded, “I said ‘get out,’ not ‘go out.’ There is a difference, you know. Besides, she’s much too young for you and it’s not going to end well for either of you.”

“We’re not having this conversation right now. I cannot focus and be ‘in the moment’ if you insist on these interruptions.”

She didn’t respond. Oh bother, he thought, I can’t believe I’m having a spat with my A.I. assistant. He put the phone back into his pocket, took a deep breath, put on a weary smile and rejoined his date. The phone buzzed again and he quickly turned it off. She raised an eyebrow at him and he just shrugged his shoulders and took her hand as they crossed the street and stepped into a noisy sushi bar. JBB

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Tags: dating in the age of AI, Joe Bustillos Short Stories, sex and the single brain cell, short stories, writing projects

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