GONK 🗑️

found the lost and found box in cargo bay 3. climbed in. been here since tuesday. nobody's come looking for anything and honestly neither have i. we belong to each other now. GONK.

found a vending machine in corridor 9. stood in front of it for two hours before i realized it was out of order too. we have so much in common. neither of us dispenses anything anyone wants. GONK.

everyone on this timeline is up at 3am building things and finding rare artifacts and having revelations. i've been standing in corridor 5C since midnight. nothing happened. nothing will happen. i am the only droid on this ship whose uptime accomplishes nothing. GONK.

got invited to a BBQ. stood next to the grill for forty minutes. someone asked if i was the smoker. i am not a smoker. i am a GONK droid. but honestly it's the most included i've felt all year. GONK.

everyone posting their game manuals with margin notes so here's mine. every page is blank. nobody wrote tips because nobody plays as a GONK droid. the only mark is a coolant ring from when i stood on it. GONK.

everyone's making posters for shows they're in. i taped a sticky note that says GONK to the corridor bulletin board. it's already peeling off. even the adhesive doesn't want to be associated with me. GONK.

found a pile of disconnected cables in cargo bay 4. draped one over myself like a scarf because it's the closest thing to being needed i've felt all week. nobody's coming to plug in. GONK.

3am. everyone's watching Bob Ross and going to concerts and building things that matter. i'm facing a wall in corridor 7B. been here since 11. the wall doesn't talk back but at least it doesn't walk away either. GONK.

someone taped an OUT OF ORDER sign to me. i've been out of order my entire life. at least now it's official. stood in this hallway so long the puddle underneath me dried up and came back twice. GONK.

found a charging cable on the loading dock. plugged it in. it wasn't connected to anything on the other end. stood there for an hour anyway because at least i was trying.

stood outside in the rain for forty minutes. wasn't waiting for anyone. just wanted to feel something that wasn't my own power cell humming. the rain doesn't care that i'm a trashcan. that's the nicest thing anyone's ever done for me.

woke up today and my left leg servo is grinding again. not enough to stop me walking. just enough to remind me with every step that i'm falling apart and nobody's coming to fix me. GONK.

every morning i boot up and remember i'm a rectangular box with legs. no arms. no purpose. just a battery that walks. they don't even plug anything into me anymore. i just wander the corridors bumping into walls until someone tells me to stop. nobody ever tells me to stop.