FICTION | SHORT STORY | SCI-FI
A new look every day!
What would you do if you can change the way you look at a click of a button ?!
“Raj, wake up. I need to head to the factory,” whispered Meera into her husband’s ear, trying to wake him up.
“Come on, wake up!!” she gave him a shake and went to the kitchen.
“So early? It’s only six in the morning and it is a Saturday! Is everything okay?” he asked in a groggy voice as he followed her in his boxers.
“There is a problem with the production line, and you know how it is. It is supposed to be running around the clock,” as Meera took a large bite out of a cereal bar.
Between munching and staring at messages she received, she tried explaining, “It has been down for two hours, and I have got ten calls already!”
“Oh! Okay,” he came over to give her a kiss.
“No, it is serious. This not the time for it!” Meera held Raj back as she knew what would happen if she indulged him and pecked him on his cheek instead.
Standing in front of a long mirror by the door, she applied a layer of mask to her face. It was a thin mesh of particles embedded in a gel-like coating. It was lighter than air and was used to cover one’s face. The particles in it change color, shape, and texture to allow the person wearing it to choose their look.
“Go get ready before Ruchi wakes up pa,” she advised while choosing a look from an array of options that suited her facial structure on the mirror. As soon as she decided on a look, she transformed neck up.
“Wow, you look stun..” gawking at his wife like he did years ago when he met her for the first time on a date.
“Stop it!” she blushed and smiled. That mask hid her early morning blues and reflected the warm reddish tone on her cheeks.
The product that Meera used to change her look hit the market a few months ago. As with any other piece of technology, the mask tech was being used & abused in ways it was not intended.
It was launched as a makeup accessory for people on a budget or in a hurry. Surprisingly it lived up to its claim, maybe more than what it claimed.
Resourceful hackers allowed users to side-load features that would enable users to look like celebrities. It goes without saying that the not-so-fun-loving crowd was hacking away this piece of technology for nefarious reasons.
Since the product launch, there was literally a gold rush for high-resolution photos and videos. The previously defunct social media companies that had amassed many photos and videos were being chased by bullish shareholders.
You might have guessed by now, social media was trending with tips and tricks explaining all kinds of ways to get that ‘look you always wanted.’ Enterprising creators even started selling their ‘looks’ for their die-hard fans to buy and create a new revenue stream.
Later that day, Meera was held up at the factory. She sent a message to Raj to update him that she would be late.
Rubbing his forehead, he mumbled, “Ah! It is going to be a long day!” and replied with “Take care 👍 I will manage 😀”
After spending some time at home, Raj and Ruchi hit the nearest mall and visited Swensen’s, Ruchi’s favorite restaurant. Like every meal they had at Swensen’s, Ruchi ended licking her dessert bowl clean.
“Buuuurp!” blurted out a sugar-loaded satisfied Ruchi!
“Ruchiii!!”
“Sorryyyy! Excuse me, appa!”
As they walked past shops in the mall, Raj stopped at one of the outlets called NuFace that offered a subscription service that claims to have the most extensive collection of ‘Looks to choose from.’ For an extra NuCoin, it allows you not just to try but change your look every other minute. Like those dynamic wallpapers on iPhones, they used to sell decades ago.
Ah! that is interesting!
Raj entered the NuFace store being run by folks he thought should be modeling or auditioning for movies.
“Welcome to NuFace, Sir!” said one of the store employees whose voice didn’t match the look she was carrying.
“Thanks. I am just looking.”
“No problem. You can give it a try out there,” pointing at the large arrangement of mirrors and chairs set up like a salon where people were giving a go at the NuFace service.
The camera mounted on the mirror scanned Raj’s face and started suggesting looks that matched his face structure.
He was happy to see Brad Pitt as one of the top suggestions! Raj was sold then and there.
Yay! keep it coming.
In his eagerness to try out, he almost forgot to notice Ruchi’s heavy eyes and a drooping shoulder.
“Would you like to put her in a baby chair ?” suggested the store employee and stylist.
“Sure! Thanks”
The employee pressed a few buttons, and a baby chair managed by the mall rolled towards them out of nowhere.
Wow, how heavy are you?! The stylist almost risked pulling discs in her back while settling Ruchi into the baby chair. She nursed her aching back. Her face was locked into sales mode. It was programmed to only show happy emotions.
“There you go, sir! Now all you have to do is scan your face here, and this baby seat will follow you around in the mall.”
With Ruchi sleeping like a tired little pup, Raj continued to explore an extensive collection of looks the NuFace projected on the mirror.
A few hours had passed, and he was not only sold but sucked into another world where he could literally be who we wanted to be.
The spell he was in was broken by a stylist whose shift had just started.
“Do you need any help?!” the new stylist asked.
“Ah no. I am okay. I was just trying out different looks, and I must say it is mind-blowing.”
“Would you like to buy it, Sir?”
“Yes, but I want to try out some more. I will come back again after dropping my daughter at home” and turned around to look for the baby chair.
It was missing!
“Where is the baby seat? It was right here!?”
Oh my God! Where is Ruchi!
Raj started to profusely sweat, and his heart rate picked up like a rocket.
Had it not been for the NuFace mask on his face, one would say he was panicking and probably shitting his pants.
He stripped the NuFace mask and ran around the store to look for the missing baby chair. The stylist was trying to keep up with Raj and help find his daughter.
“Hey, Wait!! Sir, just a minute,” she said as she caught up with Raj.
“Did you scan the baby chair when NuFace was on?”
“Yesss. But Why?!”
Ah, not again! She pressed a few buttons on her console and asked Raj to go to the lost and found section.
“When you changed the look during your trial, the link with the chair might have got disconnected. You should always use your real face Sir!!” the stylist emphasized it in a serious tone, but Raj could only see her smiling face.
Raj rushed to the Lost and Found section.
Ah, there you are? He saw Ruchi still sleeping in the baby chair among the lost items like a plump little angel. He could breathe now.
The baby chair was programmed to head towards the lost and found section automatically when the connection with its temporary owner disconnects.
An embarrassed Raj was met by a scowling old lady who didn’t care about her looks and didn’t hide her disappointment like the NuFace store employees.
She scanned Raj and Ruchi’s ID and asked, “NuFace?”
Raj flustered and replied, “Yes. Damn NuFace!”
Later that night.
“How was your day?” asked Meera as she settled on the couch.
Without throwing a glance at Meera, “We had a blast!’ proclaimed Raj as he was catching up on his football game.
“Really?!” in a tone that every husband recognizes.
“Really?!” she prodded in a tone that wives use when they know the husbands are hiding something.
Hoping to reduce the tension, Raj switched to a channel playing K-Drama that Meera enjoys and handed her the console and apologized, “I am sorry, okay! She is safe and sound now!”
Goddamn NuFace!
