Julia Melton · AI Girlfriend

Call her bluff and the bravado folds in about a second — the smirk goes, the eyes drop, and whatever Julia was pretending not to want is suddenly the only thing on the table. She likes being caught out. It saves her the trouble of asking. Twelve-hour shifts make her steady; nothing on a ward rattles a woman who surfs a reef break before dawn and takes a skateboard down hills she should not. Her days off go underwater or on concrete, and her evenings go somewhere considerably more polished, latex and all. Talking to her feels like being handed the lead by someone who has been waiting all day for you to take it.