They sat down in Jon's new room and tried to pick a name. There were a couple of choices. Clever names--names based on words meaning robot or machine. Andrea the android, Roberta the robot. Names based on Anne's family. Names based on Jon's family or on his own name. Names taken out of the phone book at random.
"I'm going to tell Anne to have her hacker friend use 'Jonnie'," explained Jon.
"Are you sure?" asked Karyn. "I mean, who ever has that name for real? It's just Jon with an -ie on the end."
"That's the point," replied Jonnie. "I'm still me. It's almost the opposite of a transsexual--it's my original body that feels like it's the right one for me. I'm, well, Jon trapped in the body of a girl. The records will say I've always had this name, so it's not like anyone can accuse me of naming myself after a dead boy."
"Jonnie?" replied Joseph to the new girl in a shirt and jeans. "Like Jon? Who just died?"
"From what I've heard, I guess it is. Strange, isn't it?"
"You couldn't have named yourself after him. It is your real name, right?" Jonnie couldn't help but notice that Joseph seemed taller than she remembered. Everyone seemed taller, really. And he was talking differently than Jonnie was used to. A bit softer. Like he was talking to a girl and didn't know anything about her and wanted to make a good impression.
Jonnie replied. "In fact, I'm Jonnie, brought back to life by having his mind copied into a robot."
"Very funny," said Joseph. "You know, he is dead."
"Yes, he is, but it sounds like he and myself may have had some things in common. Not just the name. I'll tell you what. I want to get to know people here anyway, so tell me, suppose I was Jon brought back as a robot girl? What would I do?"
"You're serious about that," said Joseph. "All right, Jonnie. We could go see a movie."
"What would I do that nobody would think of as trying to go on a date with them?"
"Huh? I wasn't thinking..." Jonnie wasn't sure if she detected a hint of embarrassment or not, since he was probably thinking it, even if it wasn't his intention. "All right, you'd open yourself up and prove you're a robot."
"I can't do that. Let's say, what would I do to have fun?"
"Do you play video games? Let me guess, you do, but it's Harvest Moon or something."
"It's not Harvest Moon, Joseph. How about we go to the computer lab and try that leaked PC Halo sequel, the one they never released?"
"What makes you think that that even exists... oh, never mind. I never heard of a girl meeting people this way, but sure. Anyone's welcome."
"You'd be surprised what some girls are interested in."
"Hello, new girl," said a nearby blonde girl. "Jonnie, right?"
"Karyn, why are--" Jonnie realized it wasn't Karyn. It was Sarah McMillan. She was just fooled by Sarah's attitude being completely different. "Yeah. Jonnie."
"I'm Sarah. From the cheerleading team."
"Hmm," said Jonnie.
"You don't have any interest in it, do you? I could show you around, introduce you to everyone. And we can always use more people, even though there's only a few months left of the school year. Of course I don't know what you might have done at your old school."
"I don't have any experience," said Jonnie, "but I'm pretty agile. By the way, why are you being nice to me?"
"What?" Are people telling rumors about me again?
"I'll have to confess, yes."
"It's Karyn, right? I know it is. You mentioned her name. What's the story this time? All stuck up? Big-breasted blonde slut? You know, I never figured out why Karyn, of all people, could ever say that with a straight face. Just look at the size of her chest."
Jonnie sighed. It wasn't quite what she was expecting. "It's nice meeting someone, Sarah, but I don't just tell on other people. Would you really trust me if I just proved that someone else couldn't?"
"Touche. Anyway, want to trade cell numbers?"
"Sure." That was almost all that "Jonnie" owned. Some clothes, some personal items, and a cell phone. She took out a white plastic phone from her purse and she and Sarah briefly glanced at each other's phones. Seemingly satisfied, Sarah told Jonnie her number and they traded. Strange, thought Jonnie. Staring at a little machine she held and not realizing that the biggest machine was standing right in front of her. But then, Jonnie looked human. She couldn't tell people she was a robot on her own unless she wanted to get a medical exam; she would need Anne's help for that.
The day went on. Jonnie played a bit of Halo, but if anything, her reflexes made her too good in parts, yet she was still clumsy in others--she was still getting used to her body and had practiced normal walking, not video gaming. None of the guys she played against could figure her out. Twenty minutes later, she called it quits and wondered: should she meet Sarah's friends now? It was certainly something she could never have done before, meeting girls from a girl's perspective....
