1 of 10
Inner-Head Voice told the young man there was a delivery.
He opened the front door.
A cardboard box covered in sponsored logos.
He squatted, lifted; responded to weight.
He placed then slid the box on the kitchen peninsular and took a deep breathe.
His inner double-stitched pocket moaned vibrated again on his hip which broke his trance.
Both sexes pants have this from conception. He jerked responded.
Inner-Head Voice: 'Hi Tom, how are you?
Have you just received Unris package?
Y for yes N for no.
Many thanks.'
In his head; he typed Y
Hire A Baby
2 of 10
Clare arrived home; getting out of a driverless communal vehicle, entered the house.
A cardboard box was on the peninsular and was open.
She went breathless taking a look inside the box when she heard a baby's cry from the livingroom.
Hire A Baby
3 of 10
She entered the livingroom and Tom was on the floor wresting on a blanket with Unris printed repeatedly.
He was smiling and deliberately blocking her view.
He was about to stand when she knelt then sat on the blanket supplied.
Clare: 'I'm trying to find words.'
Infront of him, Clare and a baby happily waving its arms round.
Tom handed Clare a card.
Tom: 'It's a girl and it's Robyn or whatever you'd like to call her.'
Clare was silent.
Her brow raised.
Hire A Baby
4 of 10
Tom: 'Well, say something.'
Clare: 'I'm. delighted. I. I don't know how I'm feeling. I'm.' She burst into a smile and shook her head.
Tom: 'I was thinking Rosette or maybe Carmel unless that's too insensitive?'
Clare was silent; kept the smile. It was waring off.
Clare: 'It all sounds fantastic darling. Yes, Carmel is perfect. After my mum.'
Hire A Baby
5 of 10
She motioned to pick up and hold when his inner double-stitched pocket moaned again.
Inner-Head Voice: 'Hi Tom, how are you? You and your partner have 21 hours remaining before pickup.
Thankyou again for choosing REMnan Commuter Services today.'
He also notices in his head, various options to Swap, Keep Longer etc.
Hire A Baby
6 of 10
Clare's fingers slid under the baby's body.
Clare: 'It feels warm.' She was breathless and delighted.
Not distracted by his inner voice, he smiled responding.
The baby was lifted up then she brought it to her chest instinctively.
Clare leaned into Tom.
The Unris repeated logo on the supplied blanket began to glow and wane.
They both looked at this then to the baby then to each other then to their yard of weeds.
Hire A Baby
7 of 10
They waited outside for a pram at the usual collections point; what were once public telephones, converted to air conditioning ducted tubing connected to also disconnected, disused street light poles.
As they waited for the arrival, Tom saw the beauty in most things and really liked how the ball of evening sun sprayed silently across all the tin tubing strapped; connected to everything for the delivery of anything was critical since City's had collapsed and suburbs had taken over.
Hire A Baby
8 of 10
Clare was looking at Tom as he moved away from them and touched the side of his hip as-if recording the moment.
He turned back around.
Clare smiled appreciating the colours reflecting around as the ball of light bounced a spectrum across all the apartments that stretched beyond the horizon.
They liked their area.
All 5 storey apartments.
Airconditioning tubing designed in the style of vines growing throughout the large community.
Hire A Baby
9 of 10
They liked the weekly-on-middle-day meetings and particularly this time as Clare could give a talk about her experience with a "new-born"; an intellect's novelty and how it may or may not have affected her and what her partner Tom's responses were.
Clare held Tom's hand as lights along the tin tubing lit; entering into their lane and as the lights diminished and their light lit, the tube at their collection point lifted cloche-like and there was their hire a stroller.
A timer showed depleting from 10 hours.
Hire A Baby
10 of 10
10 of 10
Tomorrow was middle-day.
As they "strolled" with their newborn, they rehearsed for it will have gone back for possible mature model and recited the anthem.
Never must we negate
Our passion for obedience
In fifteen short years
we have strived
Your independence my judges
is critical.
My hearsay is nothing.
Newborns to lay silent.
My thoughts forbidden
Except for judges to say
My life is not perfect
but will do
aug '22
310822 010922
I always date everything.
Clare and Tom Unris. Unris was original "title" then Clare and Tom then Hire A Baby.
Inner-Head Voice was a last minute thing. Realizing readers would not know that the "his voice; his thoughts" were more being controlled than not... or the implication.
Written for phone.