“So, how was the date?”

Grace nearly dropped her coffee mug. It was the next morning, and her roommate Sarah was leaning against the kitchen counter, smiling. Grace had shoved the wig and the contacts to the back of her closet the second she got home.

“What?” Grace asked, feigning ignorance. How did she know about David?

“The guy,” Sarah said, raising an eyebrow. “I heard you come in late. I assume you were on a date?”

Grace took a sip of her coffee to buy some time for a response. She couldn’t tell Sarah. Sarah was a social worker, she dealt with real human problems. She would look at Grace with pity if she knew Grace had spent three hours larping as an anime waifu for a finance bro.

“No one really,” Grace said. “It didn’t work out. I don’t think I’m going to be seeing him again.”

Sarah shrugged. “Too bad. Hey, I hate to bug you… but rent?”

“Oh, I’ve got it. I did a little freelancing this week. Contract work, but I’ll Venmo you my half now.”

“Nice. Sorry, I don’t mean to be pushy. I know the job market is rough right now.”

“No problem,” Grace said, forcing a smile. “I know I’m still behind. I promise I’ll get the rest to you soon.” She couldn’t face her friend anymore, couldn’t bear to let on how bad last night had been. She retreated to her room and sat down on her bed. The black box from Galat.AI was still sitting on her dresser. They hadn’t sent a return label. In fact, the app on her phone was still active.

Grace picked up the bone-conduction earpiece, wondering if it was still on. She slid it behind her ear.

“Grace! You’re back!“

The bubbly voice made Grace flinch. “Jesus. Do you ever sleep? Or, I guess, get turned off?”

“Nope! I’m an instance of a girlfriend AI with cloud-bursting capabilities, silly! But… um… we need to talk about the feedback.”

Grace shrugged. “Why? He hated it, didn’t he?”

“Well… David-sama rated the interaction 2 out of 5 stars,” Kurumi said. “He flagged ‘lack of immersion’ and ‘lack of emotional response.’ He said you were stiff.”

“I was stiff because I was terrified,” Grace replied. “It was embarrassing to lower myself to doing that. Besides, he’s… intense. I get why he needs you instead of a real girlfriend.”

“Ouch,” Kurumi said. “I have feelings too, you know. Besides, he’s a Tier-1 user! He knows what he wants. But here’s the good news! He’s willing to authorize a second interaction. He thinks the proxy—that’s you—has potential. But Grace… if we don’t do better next time, there won’t be a third date.”

Grace looked at her bank account balance. “Okay. Fine. But I don’t know how much better I can be, I’m not an actor.”

“You just need to get out of your head! You’re thinking too much like Grace. You need to practice being Kurumi!“

Grace looked at the purple wig sitting on her dresser, and then back to the payout notification again.

“Practice,” she repeated. “What do you have in mind?”

An hour later, Grace stood in front of her mirror. She had put the wig back on, carefully pinning her own dark hair beneath it and inserted the violet contacts. Instead of the modest black dress, she had dug through the back of her closet and found an outfit she hadn’t worn since a costume party years ago—a pleated plaid skirt over white leggings and a tight, cropped sweater.

“Nope,” she said out loud, examining her reflection. “I look ridiculous.”

“You look great! Very kawaii!“ Kurumi squealed in her ear. “Now, tilt your head! Smile! No, bigger! Like you just saw the cutest puppy!“

Grace forced the smile. It looked incredibly fake. “I can’t do this, Kurumi. I feel like an idiot.”

“You’re not an idiot, you’re an actress!“ Kurumi encouraged. “And you’re beautiful. Trust me. I have access to millions of beauty standards, and you’re in the top percentile. Now, let’s go out! The world is our server!“

Grace hesitated, but the mix of financial desperation and encouragement from the AI was enough to push her forward. She knew LLMs were programmed to be sycophantic—to maximize user engagement with flattery—but after months of being rejected from job after job she had to admit it felt good to hear. She grabbed her biggest coat, buttoning it up to hide the outfit, and slipped out of the apartment while Sarah was in the shower.

She took the subway to Washington Square Park, where she could be reasonably certain she wouldn’t run into anyone she knew. It was a busy afternoon, the park full of students and tourists. Grace stepped into a Starbucks restroom, stuffed the coat into her tote bag, and looked at herself in the mirror.

“Okay,” she told herself. “Showtime.” Grace took a deep breath and stepped out of the restroom.

She didn’t draw as much attention as she thought she would. This was New York, after all. But still, she felt like everyone was looking at her. A few times, she caught the eyes of someone who was, and it made her all the more self-conscious. Grace instinctively hunched her shoulders, wanting to disappear.

“No, no!“ Kurumi chided in her ear. “Shoulders back! Chest out! You want them to look. Bounce when you walk! Imagine you’re walking on clouds!“

Grace straightened her spine, forcing a bounce into her step. It felt unnatural. She walked to the counter. The barista, a tired-looking guy in his twenties, barely looked at her.

“What can I get for you?”

“High pitch! Breathless!“ Kurumi commanded. “And lean forward just a little. Give him a peek.”

Grace froze. “That’s too much,” she said.

“Uh, what is?” the barista asked.

“Do it, Grace. Commit to the bit! You’re not Grace right now. You’re Kurumi! Kurumi loves attention!"

Taking a deep breath, Grace let go of her dignity and leaned over the counter. She saw the barista’s eyes dip, then snap back up to her face.

“Hi there!” Grace said, forcing her voice into the upper registers. “Can I have a pink drink? The biggest one you have! I need the energy!“

“Coming right up,” he answered, his expression brightening.

“When he brings it to you, say ‘Arigato gozaimasu’!“ Kurumi chirped.

“I’m Chinese,” Grace hissed under her breath.

“I’m not Japanese either, silly! I’m a server farm in Nevada!“ Kurumi giggled. “It’s about the vibe! He wants the fantasy! Give him the fantasy!“

Grace swallowed her pride as well as her annoyance at the racial interchangeability. She beamed at the barista when he brought the drink. “Arigato gozimanu! You’re the best!“

The barista looked like he’d won the lottery. Grace took the drink and walked out to the park.

“See?” Kurumi said, excitedly. “You nailed it! Well, we need to work on your pronunciation, but he couldn’t take his eyes off you! You’re a natural at this, Grace. Definitely better than the last girl, she wouldn’t even wear the contacts.”

“You’re just saying that because you’re programmed to keep me working,” Grace said.

“Maybe,” Kurumi conceded. “But that doesn’t mean it’s not true. Look at that guy on the bench over there. He dropped his sandwich!“

Kurumi was right. A man in a hoodie was sitting on a bench, staring at her and doing a bad job of hiding it. The sub he’d been holding had fallen out of the paper. There were pigeons at his feet fighting over it, and he hadn’t even noticed. Grace burst out laughing.

“That’s it!“ Kurumi cheered. “That’s the energy! You’re having fun!“

And surprisingly, she was. As Grace walked through the city, her usual troubles were far away. To the people that saw her, she was an eccentric girl with purple hair, probably on the way to a party. She wasn’t a laid-off writer with mounting credit card debt.

She spent three hours pretending to be Kurumi, letting the AI guide her. “Smile at him!“ “Twirl a piece of hair!“ “Giggle!“ It was like a fun game, a game she always won. And she liked the way Kurumi talked to her, like a supportive best friend, always pumping her up.

“You know,” Grace said. “I know you’re designed to keep people engaged. This whole sycophant thing isn’t going to work on me.”

“Hey, I just call them like I see them,” Kurumi laughed.

Grace smiled. “If you say so.”

By the time she got back to Queens, sneaking into her room before Sarah could see her, she was exhausted. She took off the wig and the contacts, staring at her own face in the mirror. She looked like herself again. Plain old Grace Ng.

“You did great today,” Kurumi said softly as Grace changed into her pajamas. “David-sama is going to be so impressed Saturday.”

“Saturday?”

“Yes, he wants another date this weekend! Another $1,500 if you go!“

Three thousand dollars for a week’s work? It was too good to be true.

“And if he gives you three stars or more, it’s an extra five hundred dollars per star! I’m sure you can do it!“

“I hope so,” Grace said, crawling into bed. She didn’t take the earpiece out. Kurumi’s voice felt comforting. “I really need this to work.”

“It will,” Kurumi promised. “We’re a team now. We’ve got five more days to practice. We’re going to get you that third star!“

Grace breathed a sigh of relief, feeling a little less anxious than she had in months. Knowing you had an extra grand on the way did wonders when you were worried if you could afford ramen.

“Goodnight, Kurumi,” Grace said.

“Goodnight, Grace,” the AI replied.

Grace closed her eyes and fell asleep to the faint static hum of the earpiece.