Roger got up to go to work, just like he does every morning. The sky was still dark, but there was a hint of gray as the sun was rising far away from his east window.
His wife made him breakfast as he put on his shoes. He always kept them by the front door and took them off just as the kids would greet him on his returning home.
The kids were still asleep and so Roger went over the upcoming bills with his wife and what the calendar had down for him tonight and this weekend. Nothing much.
After finishing his breakfast and brushing his teeth, Roger grabbed the cup of coffee and lunch from his wife, kissed her and left for the day, same as always.
On his way to work he passed the same courthouse, the same school, the same hospital, and the same corn fields. In every way this was a typical, normal day.
GNNgnzhh! A loud, static, industrial grinding sound blared from an unknown location. Black pixels appeared above the roofs of the houses. The world began to flicker.
Darkness.
Applause.
In front of him sat a studio audience. He couldn’t move his head. “Where am I?”, he thought. “How did I get here?” Suddenly a game-show-like host came near.
“Who do you think you are?”, asked the show’s host.
Unsure if he could speak, he said, slowly, “I’m Roger.”
“Who do you think Roger is, Roger?”
“That’s me. I’m Roger.” The audience laughed.
“Where do you think you are right now, Roger?”
“I, I don’t know. I was driving and…”
“Ladies and gentleman, allow me to introduce to you the first fully functional artificial intelligent computer of it’s kind, R.O.G.E.R.”
Roger attempted to cry, but there were no ducts, only a LCD monitor, and a fading, gut-wrenching realization that everything in his life was a lie.