Faces of Future

The screens flashed at midnight as they sat in the dimmed room. “Happy New Year!”

The girls of Iota Delta Iota Omicron Tau raised their glasses of sparkling cider as they celebrated the arrival of 2069. Banti77, 4Donna4, and Kar3n stayed in a room at their sacred sorority house on the campus of The University of Mid Southwest Coastal Florida. As part of this sisterhood, they shared holidays and many conversations about the past and the future.

“I remember,” Banti77 mused, “how my grandma described life before CIs. I can’t imagine life without my cell implant. She said cells were banned in school.”

Kar3n’s face scrunched up. “Then how did they access the content?”

Banti77 answered, “Evidently they sat in a room and person lectured for hours.”

“Oh, that sounds horrible. No cafés and snacks? No sofas?”

4Donna4 chimed in, “I got a new CI in my left arm last week. Seven centimeters this time.”

The other girls admired her glowing arm, her skin still red and swollen from the implant procedure.

Kar3n asked, “How’d they get that to fit in your little arm? You’re so thin.”

“Easy,” 4Donna4 replied. “They inserted a carbon expander between my radius and ulna. It’ll take a few months for the pain to go away.” She looked down at her arm. “But what a difference it makes. So much better than the last one. The Ultra HD 16 is incredible.”

“Does it have the new transdermal surround sound?” Kar3n asked.

“No. But my next one will,” 4Donna4 answered. “Those are really expensive.”

Banti77 glanced at her obscured screen. “I have to get a replacement soon. My veins are starting to grow under the plexiglass.” Her face lit up with excitement. “Hey, go on Xintachat. 5Garander5 is on. Look at his forehead. He’s had that redone in the last week.”

The girls examined their arms. “Oh my god, you’re right!” 4Donna4 exclaimed, “check out Minterf0x. Her face is so much better now that it’s symmetrical. She probably went to that surgeon in New York. He’s supposed to be the best in the country. And to think that started out as some kind of SnipChat Dysmorphia, back in the 20s, I think. That was fifty year ago.”

Kar3n crossed her legs on the sofa and corrected her, “Snap. Snapchat. My grandparents used that and something called Instagram. I like Xintachat better than CyZan7bot and Poshgram. Which one do you like best?”

4Donna4 replied, “Poshgram all the way. My brother uses ScorNutV5, but he’s more into sports.” She set her empty glass down on the table.

“I hear ya,” Banti77 agreed. “I have more followers since President JonnyB was elected. I’m so glad we finally switched to voting on our CIs last year. Hard to believe that we once had paper to vote on.”

“Ballots,” Kar3n laughed. “They’re called ballots. Didn’t you study your history?”

4Donna4 checked her CI. “It’s nice to be part of history. JonnyB is our first Social to be elected. I couldn’t believe he won the popular vote.”

Banti77 scoffed, “Of course he did. He’s got the biggest following here in the US. Probably the world as well. Though after he had his eyes redone to appeal to the Asian demographics, I wasn’t sure if he was going to keep his lead.” She readjusted the screen in her arm as it softly buzzed.

Kar3n poured herself some more cider. “I’m thinking about changing my major from Social Celebrity to CryoAdverts. Nothing like marketing after death. I just don’t feel like having another facial procedure done for my final thesis.”

“Good move,” 4Donna4 nodded in agreement. “The classes in Pediatric CyberCare are challenging, but there’s more money in it. Today’s kids are getting their facial reconstructions and CIs earlier. Some as earlier as 3 months prenatal. That’s some tricky surgery.” She was reminded of some things her grandfather had displayed over the holidays. “My grandfather showed me an original iPhone XS Max. It even had the charging cord with it. He collects all kinds of antiques.”

“Charging cord? Why didn’t they just use the charging receptors in their necks? It’s so much easier. There are charging stations everywhere. My grands can’t believe how easy it is to recharge our CIs now.” Kar3n sipped her cider. “Sometimes I can’t believe the stories our grandparents tell us. Back in 2019 they had handheld phones that they’d set down and misplace all the time. And their social media influencers had boring faces. That had to be awful to watch. And they didn’t have Socials like today. That’s America’s top export now.”

“They had to actually pay for service, too,” 4Donna4 added. “Too bad the government didn’t provide it like they do today.”

Banti77 was lost in thought as she considered what 4Donna4 said. A grain of understanding was starting to form. She thought to herself, why IS the government paying for this? What do they have to gain? But then her arm buzzed again, and she lost track of her thoughts.

Kar3n stated, “When I get my CryoAdvert certification, I’ll be able to market Socials throughout their lifetime and afterwards.”

“Do you think,” Banti77 glanced at her glowing arm, “that Socials will ever go out of style?”

Kar3n replied, “Are you kidding? This is the future. Socials are here to stay, and that’s how I plan to make a living. We can’t afford NOT to have them. This is 2069. It’s time to realize what’s truly important in life.” They continued watching the glow of the new year on their arms, an eerie blue light illuminating the darkness around them.