HE THINKS I'M A ROBOT

As Levan turned to face Maya, her stomach growled loudly, reminding her that she was hungry. She had only eaten a leftover pie for breakfast, and nothing since then.

Levan raised an eyebrow, suspicious. "Why is your stomach growling?" he asked.

Maya quickly recovered, remembering she was supposed to be a robot. "No, Master, it's not mine. I think it's yours, Master. You must be hungry. Why don't you go eat, Master?"

Levan scoffed. "You think my stomach growled? I didn't feel that."

Maya thought fast. "There are cases, Master, where people's stomachs growl without them feeling it."

Levan raised an eyebrow, intrigued. "So, you think my stomach growled?"

Maya nodded. "Yes, Master. Or is there someone else in the house? I'm a robot, Master. My stomach can't growl. If it did, it would mean I'm hungry, but robots don't eat."

Maya felt like crying. She was more than hungry; she was starving.

As Levan slept, snoring softly, Maya's hunger pangs grew unbearable. Despite finding his snoring somewhat endearing, her empty stomach made everything about him seem disgusting. She stood guard, ensuring he was asleep, before sneaking out to search for food.

Maya hurried through the hallways and down the stairs, making her way to the kitchen. Luckily, the kitchen was unlocked. She scanned the room, seeing various food items, but didn't want to cook anything that might give away her robotic disguise.

Opening the fridge, Maya spotted yoghurt and cookies. She grabbed a small yoghurt and devoured it in seconds, followed by the cookies. To quench her thirst, she drank from a bottle of water.

With her hunger temporarily satisfied, Maya sat down, feeling a bit more energized. She thought about how she'd escape the house once Levan left for work and return to the comfort of her own home sleep a little and head back.

Maya suddenly remembered her phone, which was tucked away in a pocket of the gown she wore. She quickly retrieved it and saw that Stephan had sent her numerous messages.

As Maya finished replying to Stephan's messages, she quickly switched off her phone and put it back in her pocket. Suddenly, she heard Levan's familiar voice.

"Zita, why are you there? I asked you to stay with me."

Maya's smile faltered, and she felt a surge of nervousness. "Oh, Master, I...since I am a robot, I need to move around the house to check for potential hazards and do some cleaning."

Levan's voice was stern. "What a disobedient robot you are! I told you to only watch over me. Besides, cleaning will be done in the morning, and it's not yet morning. I woke up to use the restroom, and you were nowhere to be found."

Maya gulped, trying to appease Levan. "I'm sorry, Master. I just wanted to make sure my master is safe."

Levan's tone turned authoritative. "Okay, now come back up here. You'll stand in my room, and I'll make sure to lock the door. You're not going anywhere again."

***********************************

Levan woke up, surprised to find Zita, his robot, sleeping on the couch. He shook his head, tapped Zita, and said, "Zita, Zita, Zita."

Maya, still pretending to be a robot, didn't respond.

Levan reached for his phone and called Mister Samuel. "Mr Samuel. I have a complaint about the robot I got. Why is she sleeping..do robots now sleep?"

Mister Samuel's voice came from the other end, "I don't think she's sleeping, Mister Levan. Maybe her battery is dead. Did you make her do something she wasn't supposed to do?"

Levan thought for a moment before responding, "I just told her to watch over me through the night until morning."

Mister Samuel said, "Oh, you shouldn't have done that, Mister Levan. That alone is tiring and would drain her battery. I guess her battery must be drained, and that's why she's like that."

Levan asked, "How do I charge her?"

Mister Samuel replied, "To charge her, you have to bring her back to us."

Levan objected, "What? Bring her back to you? No, I bought her, and I should be charging her."

Mister Samuel explained, "Mister Levan, our robots require specialized charging. You can't do it at your place. Why don't you drop her off at our place, and we'll charge her? Then you can come back and pick her up."

Levan asked, "Why didn't you tell me this earlier? I was planning to take her to work today."

Maya's eyes widened as she heard this. She thought to herself, "Work? That same place I left? Everyone would instantly recognize me!"

Mister Samuel continued, "Our place deals with robotic elements, and we have specialized equipment to charge her. That's why you have to bring her to our place."

Levan asked, "How long does her battery last?"

Mister Samuel replied, "She lasts twenty-four hours."

Levan asked, "Does she last twenty-four hours without being used, or does she have to be turned off to conserve battery?"

Mister Samuel clarified, "You can turn her on and off anytime you want, but you made her stand through the night, so her battery is dead."

Maya was thrilled that her plan had worked. She had been feeling sleepy overnight and decided to pretend her battery was dead. Levan took her back to the place where he purchased her, dropped her off, and said he would return by evening to pick up his robot.

He asked Mister Samuel how long it would take to charge her battery, and Mister Samuel replied that it would take about ten hours. Levan nodded and left.

As soon as Levan was gone, Maya quickly opened her eyes "pheew."she breathed out.

Mister Samuel smiled and said, "Good job, good job! I hope he didn't suspect anything."

Maya replied, "He didn't suspect anything."

Mister Samuel nstructed, "Now, you have to head to your house, do what you want to do, and come back immediately. Your time starts now."

Maya thanked Mister Samuel and hurried out of the building. She flagged down a taxi and gave the driver her address: "Number ten, Downtown Coastal Road."

As the taxi sped off, Maya called Stephan and told her she was coming over to her cafe. Stephan was concerned, asking where she had been.Maya immediately ended the call