Emma wandered through the overgrown rows, ducking beneath branches that sagged with the weight of too much fruit.

She plucked a small, round object and held it out for me to see. “What is it?”

I scanned the object, referencing it against my internal database. “An apple.”

“Apple.” She repeated the word like she had never heard it before. “Can I eat it?”

I nodded. “Apples are edible.”

She took a small bite, then made a face. “Yuck! People used to eat these things?”

I searched my files for additional information about apples. “Human farmers used to tend their fields. They pruned the trees and trimmed the branches. They did not pick the fruit until it was the ideal size and ripeness. This improved quality and taste.”

Emma examined her apple. It was small and green. “So you’re saying I picked a bad one?”

“It would seem that way.”

She tossed the fruit, sent it clattering through a thick cluster of branches. “They didn’t have apples in the bunker. How’m I supposed to know what a good one looks like?”

SkD offered its suggestion.

Unlike the small/green apple that Emma had picked, the image on SkD’s screen had a red blush. I scanned the branches until I found one that matched. But when I grabbed the apple—

SQUELCH!

The fruit splattered in my hand. Juice ran down my metal skin.

I identified another apple and tried again. On Attempt[2], I was careful not to squeeze the fruit too firmly as I pulled it from the branch.

I held it up for Emma to see. “I believe this specimen has reached the ideal ripeness.”

“Can I try?” she asked.

I handed the apple to Emma.

This time, when she took a bite, she did not make a disgusted face. Instead, she bit into the apple again, smiling faintly as she chewed.

Emma swallowed, wiping juice from her chin. “Okay, wow. That’s officially one of the best things I’ve ever eaten.”

She pressed her eyes shut. A sound came from deep inside her throat. “Mmmmmm.”

I had always been grateful that robots do not need to eat. All that chewing/swallowing/digesting—meal after meal, day after day. And for what? To store up a bit of energy? It is far easier to plug yourself into a charging dock at night.

Eating was another human flaw. That was what I had always thought. Right up until the moment I saw Emma and her apple.

Now I was not so sure.

I could measure the sugar and acidity of an apple, chart the size and firmness. But I would never know what it was like to sink my teeth into brand-new food, to feel a completely unexpected taste explode in my mouth.

Maybe eating was not a flaw after all.

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