Alexa, Stop
By Andy Morris
The time on Mysti’s phone read 02:07, while a collection of late-night love songs played on the smart speaker in the corner of the bedroom. Every now and then, the electronic assistant glowed blue as if it too were listening to the song. Or perhaps it was picking up other voices that she couldn’t hear? Mysti pushed that thought away quickly. The Bangles’ Eternal Flame was providing a welcome contrast to the juddering rain lashing down against the windows. The storm had kept her awake all night and, despite the late hour, she still couldn’t sleep. Her mind was also too active, jumping from one topic to the next, like a butterfly that couldn't decide where to settle. Listening to music usually helped her drop off when she was at home on her own. It didn’t happen that often, but this weekend Dad and his girlfriend were away in London.
It had always been just Mysti and Dad. She’d never known her Mum. That woman had given birth to her and then done a runner, leaving Dad to raise her on his own. It was Dad who had named her Mistletoe. He’d thought the name was cool and unusual but, he'd forgotten that mistletoe berries were poisonous and that the plant itself was a parasite. To make it sound better she'd shortened her name to Mysti and gave it the alternative spelling. Whenever customers came up to her in the shop, their eyes would invariably linger on her name tag. Either that or they would stare at her tattoos.
Mysti had gotten her first tattoo on her shoulder when she was 18. It was a sprig of mistletoe - her own personal icon. She’d been into body art for a time and soon got a beautiful butterfly done on her opposite shoulder. Her latest one was a gorgeous phoenix on her left arm with a fiery tail that reached down to her wrist. The phoenix and butterfly symbolised rebirth and change, themes to which Mysti had always been drawn. They represented her frequent reinventions of herself. She was 20 years old and she still didn’t know who she was, or what she should do with her life. She hated clichés, but she was still trying to find herself. Mysti was never afraid to try something new. She’d spent two years learning karate. She’d played tennis in her final year at school. She’d taken up drawing last year, and earlier this summer she’d done a flower arranging course. So far though, none of these things felt like they were her thing. She never really fitted in and didn’t naturally take to any of these pastimes. Maybe travel would broaden her horizons? She’d also thought about going to university. That’s why next year she would either go to university or, she'd go travelling. She hadn’t yet decided where to visit or what to study but, she wasn’t going to find any inspiration tonight. It was now 02:28 and frustratingly late!
Alexa's blue light blinked again, and Wet Wet Wet’s Love is all Around, transitioned into Brian Adams’ Everything I do.
“Alexa, stop. Shut-down.” Mysti instructed. The device glowed in acknowledgement, and Brian Adams fell silent, midway through telling her everything he did – he did it for her.
As she wriggled into a comfortable position, there was a soft bounce as her cat, Chairman Meow, jumped off her bed. Mysti had been determined not to be the only one in the family with a ridiculous name, and so she passed the burden onto her pets. The giant furball stretched and padded out of her room to begin his nocturnal patrols. He wouldn’t go outside tonight, it was too wet for the big softy. She couldn't blame him; the rain was getting heavier, which meant the lane outside would be a mud bath.
They lived in a static caravan - which Dad referred to as their bungalow - at the end of a long track in the middle of the New Forest. Cycling down the lane was a pain at the best of times, but it was ten times worse when it was wet because all the mud would splatter up her back as she rode to work. Just as she was thinking this, Alexa began talking.
“It takes the average person ten to twenty minutes to fall asleep.” The blue halo circled the top of the device like a swivelling eye looking around the whole room.
“Alexa, stop. Shut down!” Mysti thought it had switched itself off earlier, but maybe it hadn’t heard that command. She tossed herself onto her other side to face her bookshelf. It was too dark to see much on the shelves, but she knew exactly where everything was. It was filled with a variety of odds and ends, achievements and certificates from her various hobbies and courses. There was also an empty box of hair dye sitting up there too, which reminded her; she needed to get some more during her lunch break tomorrow.
Being able to dye her hair funky colours was the reason she’d left school at 16, and she'd been regularly changing her tones ever since. At the moment, her hair was a dazzling shimmer of purple, red and pink. She'd had this pattern for a few weeks, so maybe it was time to change it to something else. Perhaps silver or –?
Just shut up! She scolded herself. If only she could turn off her brain like she could turn off Alexa. Just at that moment, the device spoke to her again. It was as if it were in her head, listening to her thoughts.
“Would you like me to play some more love songs to help you sleep, Mysti?”
“No! Alexa, stop,” she growled, throwing off her covers and storming out of bed. A part of her noted that Alexa had called her by her name. Did it always do that? She didn’t think so. Perhaps there had been some update. Either way, it wouldn’t be calling her anything else tonight. She reached under the desk in the corner of her room and yanked out Alexa’s plug.
There, now you’ll be quiet! She whispered triumphantly.
Back in bed, Mysti drew the duvet over her. She felt her body becoming heavier, and she finally started to drift off. The opening images of a dream were beginning to form when the sound of Chairman Meow’s low growl drew her back to wakefulness. Even above the storm, she could hear him rumbling at something in the lounge. It was a throaty mewling tone that she’d never heard him make before. It didn’t even sound like any noise a cat could make.
“Chairman? Hush now, it’s late,” she called sleepily towards the open bedroom door. It was now 02:41. As long as he hadn’t caught a mouse, Mysti could ignore him. She tried to relax again by taking slow deep breaths, but still felt wide awake and on edge. It was probably just the wind and rain that the daft moggy didn’t like. The deluge continued to beat on the roof while the trees surrounding the bungalow creaked and groaned in the gale. The storm carried unwanted memories of her childhood nightmares. Whenever a gale blew at night, the sound from the trees made her worry they were trying to pull up their roots and stomp across the garden to get her. She hadn’t thought about that for years, and she sighed heavily, annoyed with herself for getting spooked like this. It was then that an eerie blue light flashed across the bedroom walls, and her anxiety was elevated further.
Her eyes locked on the device that she had just unplugged. The ring of light seemed brighter now as it cycled around the top of the speaker. It lasted three or four long seconds before the flat electronic voice said, “Mysti is in bed, but she is still awake.”
She jumped. The words seemed to have physical weight, jarring her chest. A freezing sensation quickly spread out from her heart, chilling her body and stiffening her limbs. All the oxygen, along with any sound and light, were sucked out of the room. For a moment, everything was still, even the downpour outside. Mysti lay still in the cold vacuum for several moments as her heart thumped madly. She stared at the device in the corner of her room. It was dark now, inert and lifeless. She had no idea what Alexa was doing. Sometimes they did odd things' didn't they, like laughing for no apparent reason? She’d obviously unplugged something else under her desk instead of the device. It was probably her laptop. Yes, she must have unplugged her computer by mistake. Before she could do anything about it, Chairman Meow made another guttural challenge. He was outside her bedroom door now and sounded even less like a cat. He was either in pain or scared of something.
“Chairman? What’s wrong?” Mysti’s voice also sounded weak and strangled, as though all the muscles in her throat had tightened. Her words must have startled Chairman Meow because he suddenly scrambled into the kitchen. He made a panicked bolt for freedom, his claws clicking on the lino floor. He bolted outside, and the plastic door of his cat-flap almost shattered as he exploded from the bungalow into the pouring rain. Mysti scrambled to turn on her bedside lamp, but its reassuring glow offered her little comfort.
“Chairman?”
It was 02:53 in the morning.
She had to see what was wrong with the cat and sort out Alexa. Mysti crept gingerly from her bed, tip-toeing across the room. As she passed her desk in the corner of the room, Mysti snatched up the creepy smart speaker. Before it could say anything else, she yanked out the power cable from the back to make sure it was definitely off.
Beyond her bedroom, the hallway looked very different at this late hour. The outside lights had come on, creating a grey haze. The trees surrounding the bungalow made jagged silhouettes that swayed and stretched along the walls as if they were trying to grab her. Her childhood fears taunted her like a school bully, making her feel small and vulnerable all over again. Earlier in the day, she’d taken down the curtains and put them in the wash. Now she wished she’d left them up. She felt even more exposed standing here in the open hallway. There could be anyone – or anything – outside watching her. There was also no way she'd be able to see where her cat had gone, and so for these reasons, Mysti didn’t look out of the window. She kept her eyes firmly locked on the lounge, directly opposite her. The sofa was just a few feet from the door. Not wishing to venture any further from the safety of her room, Mysti tossed the Alexa through the open black doorway. She half-expected a mouse or some other animal to come scurrying out. There was a soft bounce as the Alexa landed on the sofa, and to her relief, nothing else emerged. Mysti hovered there a moment longer but could see nothing out of the ordinary. It was probably
just the storm that had freaked out Chairman Meow. He was such a drama queen, that cat!
But if he didn’t like the storm, why did he go out there?
Mysti had to ignore that stupid part of her brain that just wanted to stoke her fears. She needed to switch off and go to bed, or she wouldn’t get any damn sleep tonight!
It was 02:55 when she leapt back under the covers and switched off the lamp. That was when she realised she hadn’t closed her bedroom door properly. A faint blue light had begun pulsing against the doorframe. The eerie glow brightened, then faded. Brightened and faded. Somehow Alexa was still on. And when it spoke, her panic flared beyond her endurance.
“Mysti is still not asleep, but she is on her own.”
She’d unplugged everything. It shouldn’t be doing that! She wanted to jump out of bed and run, but she couldn’t move. Her duvet now felt like a straitjacket. The mental ties restraining her seemed to tighten their grip. She was paralysed and could do nothing as she became aware of a rattling sound at the front door. It wasn’t the wind making the noise. Someone was out there, trying to get in. A moment later, it started at the kitchen door at the back. The knocking started slowly at first, then became more forceful, more insistent. The shaking and clattering of the doors increased in volume and soon drowned out the wailing hurricane outside. The rapid pounding filled the bungalow. It grew louder still, more urgent until there was a splintering crack, and something solid broke apart. Mistletoe could do nothing but whimper beneath the covers as the front door burst open, and something large and dripping wet groped its way into the hallway.
It had always been just Mysti and Dad. She’d never known her Mum. That woman had given birth to her and then done a runner, leaving Dad to raise her on his own. It was Dad who had named her Mistletoe. He’d thought the name was cool and unusual but, he'd forgotten that mistletoe berries were poisonous and that the plant itself was a parasite. To make it sound better she'd shortened her name to Mysti and gave it the alternative spelling. Whenever customers came up to her in the shop, their eyes would invariably linger on her name tag. Either that or they would stare at her tattoos.
Mysti had gotten her first tattoo on her shoulder when she was 18. It was a sprig of mistletoe - her own personal icon. She’d been into body art for a time and soon got a beautiful butterfly done on her opposite shoulder. Her latest one was a gorgeous phoenix on her left arm with a fiery tail that reached down to her wrist. The phoenix and butterfly symbolised rebirth and change, themes to which Mysti had always been drawn. They represented her frequent reinventions of herself. She was 20 years old and she still didn’t know who she was, or what she should do with her life. She hated clichés, but she was still trying to find herself. Mysti was never afraid to try something new. She’d spent two years learning karate. She’d played tennis in her final year at school. She’d taken up drawing last year, and earlier this summer she’d done a flower arranging course. So far though, none of these things felt like they were her thing. She never really fitted in and didn’t naturally take to any of these pastimes. Maybe travel would broaden her horizons? She’d also thought about going to university. That’s why next year she would either go to university or, she'd go travelling. She hadn’t yet decided where to visit or what to study but, she wasn’t going to find any inspiration tonight. It was now 02:28 and frustratingly late!
Alexa's blue light blinked again, and Wet Wet Wet’s Love is all Around, transitioned into Brian Adams’ Everything I do.
“Alexa, stop. Shut-down.” Mysti instructed. The device glowed in acknowledgement, and Brian Adams fell silent, midway through telling her everything he did – he did it for her.
As she wriggled into a comfortable position, there was a soft bounce as her cat, Chairman Meow, jumped off her bed. Mysti had been determined not to be the only one in the family with a ridiculous name, and so she passed the burden onto her pets. The giant furball stretched and padded out of her room to begin his nocturnal patrols. He wouldn’t go outside tonight, it was too wet for the big softy. She couldn't blame him; the rain was getting heavier, which meant the lane outside would be a mud bath.
They lived in a static caravan - which Dad referred to as their bungalow - at the end of a long track in the middle of the New Forest. Cycling down the lane was a pain at the best of times, but it was ten times worse when it was wet because all the mud would splatter up her back as she rode to work. Just as she was thinking this, Alexa began talking.
“It takes the average person ten to twenty minutes to fall asleep.” The blue halo circled the top of the device like a swivelling eye looking around the whole room.
“Alexa, stop. Shut down!” Mysti thought it had switched itself off earlier, but maybe it hadn’t heard that command. She tossed herself onto her other side to face her bookshelf. It was too dark to see much on the shelves, but she knew exactly where everything was. It was filled with a variety of odds and ends, achievements and certificates from her various hobbies and courses. There was also an empty box of hair dye sitting up there too, which reminded her; she needed to get some more during her lunch break tomorrow.
Being able to dye her hair funky colours was the reason she’d left school at 16, and she'd been regularly changing her tones ever since. At the moment, her hair was a dazzling shimmer of purple, red and pink. She'd had this pattern for a few weeks, so maybe it was time to change it to something else. Perhaps silver or –?
Just shut up! She scolded herself. If only she could turn off her brain like she could turn off Alexa. Just at that moment, the device spoke to her again. It was as if it were in her head, listening to her thoughts.
“Would you like me to play some more love songs to help you sleep, Mysti?”
“No! Alexa, stop,” she growled, throwing off her covers and storming out of bed. A part of her noted that Alexa had called her by her name. Did it always do that? She didn’t think so. Perhaps there had been some update. Either way, it wouldn’t be calling her anything else tonight. She reached under the desk in the corner of her room and yanked out Alexa’s plug.
There, now you’ll be quiet! She whispered triumphantly.
Back in bed, Mysti drew the duvet over her. She felt her body becoming heavier, and she finally started to drift off. The opening images of a dream were beginning to form when the sound of Chairman Meow’s low growl drew her back to wakefulness. Even above the storm, she could hear him rumbling at something in the lounge. It was a throaty mewling tone that she’d never heard him make before. It didn’t even sound like any noise a cat could make.
“Chairman? Hush now, it’s late,” she called sleepily towards the open bedroom door. It was now 02:41. As long as he hadn’t caught a mouse, Mysti could ignore him. She tried to relax again by taking slow deep breaths, but still felt wide awake and on edge. It was probably just the wind and rain that the daft moggy didn’t like. The deluge continued to beat on the roof while the trees surrounding the bungalow creaked and groaned in the gale. The storm carried unwanted memories of her childhood nightmares. Whenever a gale blew at night, the sound from the trees made her worry they were trying to pull up their roots and stomp across the garden to get her. She hadn’t thought about that for years, and she sighed heavily, annoyed with herself for getting spooked like this. It was then that an eerie blue light flashed across the bedroom walls, and her anxiety was elevated further.
Her eyes locked on the device that she had just unplugged. The ring of light seemed brighter now as it cycled around the top of the speaker. It lasted three or four long seconds before the flat electronic voice said, “Mysti is in bed, but she is still awake.”
She jumped. The words seemed to have physical weight, jarring her chest. A freezing sensation quickly spread out from her heart, chilling her body and stiffening her limbs. All the oxygen, along with any sound and light, were sucked out of the room. For a moment, everything was still, even the downpour outside. Mysti lay still in the cold vacuum for several moments as her heart thumped madly. She stared at the device in the corner of her room. It was dark now, inert and lifeless. She had no idea what Alexa was doing. Sometimes they did odd things' didn't they, like laughing for no apparent reason? She’d obviously unplugged something else under her desk instead of the device. It was probably her laptop. Yes, she must have unplugged her computer by mistake. Before she could do anything about it, Chairman Meow made another guttural challenge. He was outside her bedroom door now and sounded even less like a cat. He was either in pain or scared of something.
“Chairman? What’s wrong?” Mysti’s voice also sounded weak and strangled, as though all the muscles in her throat had tightened. Her words must have startled Chairman Meow because he suddenly scrambled into the kitchen. He made a panicked bolt for freedom, his claws clicking on the lino floor. He bolted outside, and the plastic door of his cat-flap almost shattered as he exploded from the bungalow into the pouring rain. Mysti scrambled to turn on her bedside lamp, but its reassuring glow offered her little comfort.
“Chairman?”
It was 02:53 in the morning.
She had to see what was wrong with the cat and sort out Alexa. Mysti crept gingerly from her bed, tip-toeing across the room. As she passed her desk in the corner of the room, Mysti snatched up the creepy smart speaker. Before it could say anything else, she yanked out the power cable from the back to make sure it was definitely off.
Beyond her bedroom, the hallway looked very different at this late hour. The outside lights had come on, creating a grey haze. The trees surrounding the bungalow made jagged silhouettes that swayed and stretched along the walls as if they were trying to grab her. Her childhood fears taunted her like a school bully, making her feel small and vulnerable all over again. Earlier in the day, she’d taken down the curtains and put them in the wash. Now she wished she’d left them up. She felt even more exposed standing here in the open hallway. There could be anyone – or anything – outside watching her. There was also no way she'd be able to see where her cat had gone, and so for these reasons, Mysti didn’t look out of the window. She kept her eyes firmly locked on the lounge, directly opposite her. The sofa was just a few feet from the door. Not wishing to venture any further from the safety of her room, Mysti tossed the Alexa through the open black doorway. She half-expected a mouse or some other animal to come scurrying out. There was a soft bounce as the Alexa landed on the sofa, and to her relief, nothing else emerged. Mysti hovered there a moment longer but could see nothing out of the ordinary. It was probably
just the storm that had freaked out Chairman Meow. He was such a drama queen, that cat!
But if he didn’t like the storm, why did he go out there?
Mysti had to ignore that stupid part of her brain that just wanted to stoke her fears. She needed to switch off and go to bed, or she wouldn’t get any damn sleep tonight!
It was 02:55 when she leapt back under the covers and switched off the lamp. That was when she realised she hadn’t closed her bedroom door properly. A faint blue light had begun pulsing against the doorframe. The eerie glow brightened, then faded. Brightened and faded. Somehow Alexa was still on. And when it spoke, her panic flared beyond her endurance.
“Mysti is still not asleep, but she is on her own.”
She’d unplugged everything. It shouldn’t be doing that! She wanted to jump out of bed and run, but she couldn’t move. Her duvet now felt like a straitjacket. The mental ties restraining her seemed to tighten their grip. She was paralysed and could do nothing as she became aware of a rattling sound at the front door. It wasn’t the wind making the noise. Someone was out there, trying to get in. A moment later, it started at the kitchen door at the back. The knocking started slowly at first, then became more forceful, more insistent. The shaking and clattering of the doors increased in volume and soon drowned out the wailing hurricane outside. The rapid pounding filled the bungalow. It grew louder still, more urgent until there was a splintering crack, and something solid broke apart. Mistletoe could do nothing but whimper beneath the covers as the front door burst open, and something large and dripping wet groped its way into the hallway.