EMOTION MARKET: the Tailor of Hearts - A gripping psychological thriller

by Dimitris Chasapis

  “Well it’s quite simple really. After you’ve made up your mind on the emotions you want to adjust and their desired volumes, I will load the data on the EM’s central processing system and then follow the standard procedure.”

  “Which is…?”

  “We go inside the Sky room, you sit comfortably and you put on the EM cap.”

  “Why is the room called Sky?”

  “It’s a metaphor… Sky is the limit to what you can achieve by adjusting your emotional self.”

  “That’s nice…and what happens next?”

  “Yes, as I was saying, after you put on the EM cap, then it’s all light and sound beams targeted to your eyes and ears and of course nanotechnology will complete the procedure. The sense that the client has is often resembled with a mosquito bite.”

  “What??? It’ll be like I’m getting bit by mosquitoes for minutes? That’s preposterous!”

  “No, no Miss Packard, you misunderstood me. If you feel the mosquito bite—and I say if—it’ll only be in the beginning of the process and just for a few seconds.”

  “I hope you are not implying that I might feel something worse!”

  “No, no… For God’s sake!”

  “Which God? What do you mean? To which God are you referring?”

  “Pardon me Miss… I shouldn’t have said that. I am very well aware of the Dubai Treaty and didn’t mean to offend you in any way by mentioning a specific God.”

  “Dubai’s Treaty was my thought too… I’m sure you have all kinds of religious people coming here. You should be more cautious with international laws and treaties!”

  “Once again, I am awfully sorry. It was a past expression and… anyway, my point is that most likely you won’t feel a thing during the emotional invasive procedure. This new nanotechnology is absolutely brilliant. Haven’t you ever tried it in other applications?”

  “Of course I have… Robert. Now let me ask you, how long is ICEC’s guarantee for… for how many years?”

  “The ICEC’s guarantee is actually annual, Miss Packard.”

  “What? Only for one year? Do you care to elaborate on that?”

  “Certainly, miss. You see, the period over which one’s emotions remain unaltered has been extensively measured. It’s exactly twelve and a half months after the date of the emotional invasive procedure. There are cases, though, that the acquired volume of emotions doesn’t change, but this occurs in people who choose to live mostly in solitude.”

  “I can’t follow…”

  “Some people after they have the procedure in an EM are afraid that socializing with others can accelerate the withering of their newly-acquired volumes of emotions. You see, they want to expand the duration of their new emotional state.”

  “I find this rather logical.”

  “Allow me to tell you Miss Packard that it isn’t. Isolation was not Dr. Emerson’s intention for the society. It was quite the opposite! This medical-tech marvel is intended to aid us in socializing with others, to get rid of fear and anxiety, to liberate and fulfill our emotional selves. What’s the reason of coming to an EM if not to be able to share our new emotional state with loved ones?”

  “What can I say, perhaps you’re right…”

  “Also it is inevitable that after the invasive procedure people want to get out into the world and find out the impact that their newly-bought emotional volumes have in everyday life. With this socializing comes new experiences; their relationships with others change as well as their entire personalities to a certain degree! All these factors combined account for ICEC’s annual duration guarantee. We people, Miss Packard, search and always find reasons to change emotionally. It’s part of our nature.”

  “I realize now that your academic education is a prerequisite for your line of work, with all the different cases you must assess here.”

  “You are quite right! Please follow me. We will now measure the percentage of apathy within you.”

  He finds her apathy measurement to be extremely high! Robert tries hard not to show any sign of disapproval. Every salesman in an EM was obliged to maintain a high level of professionalism.

  “So? How much is it?” said Miss Packard indifferently.

  “Your apathy percentage, Ms Packard, was measured at 86%. Do you consider this to be accurate?”

  “Well yes, I mean… if I was to guess the percentage myself, I would probably place it close to what you’ve found. What difference does it make though? What matters now that we know is for you to advise me on the level of adjustment that I need, don’t you think?”

  “That’s entirely up to you, miss. It depends on what you want to achieve. I’m sure you’ve given it some thought. What’s the reason that makes you want to be rid of the apathy within?”

  “I thought I made myself clear from the beginning, Robert! People around me think that my indifference is a problem. They start mumbling about their lives, their loved ones, their jobs, etc. and I find it so difficult to maintain interest. I find all this to be extremely boring and meaningless. And quite simply I can’t hide this emotion. People subconsciously know if I care or not. It becomes clear to them that I don’t.”

  “I understand that this might become a problem for you. Trust issues could arise…”

  “Frankly, my dear, I don’t give a damn about their trust! As I said, they bore me to death. Each and every one of them! I just want to be able to fit in occasionally but don’t want to care too much!”

  “Then we should go slowly with your apathy. I’m thinking an adjustment to 50% would be rather suitable.”

  “You’re right. Caring too much will make me want to kill myself, I tell you! Now let me ask you something else.”

  “Please do.”

  “Well I’ve been wondering since I stepped foot in here… where is everybody? Where are the other clients? Where is the staff? Why is it that you have separate emotional sectors for each client? I think it would be fun to meet others and chat about what’s troubling each other. That is after I adjust my apathy, of course!”

  “You have a great sense of humor, Miss Packard!”

  “No, no this wasn’t sarcasm! I really can’t stand caring too much, you see. My need to adjust my apathy volume is a collateral damage that comes with my engagement. My fiancé needs me to look like I care… Pfff…”

  “About your question now, I’ll let you in on a little secret. Research has shown that allowing clients to interact with each other was bad for business.”

  “Really? How so?”

  “Well, every person has their own emotional deficiencies and gladly talks about them with others. In the pilot period that we had, this resulted in clients debating, even arguing with one another over their emotional needs, therefore bad for business. Such an interaction resulted in people not going forth with an EIP, therefore bad publicity.”

  “EIP?”

  “Emotional Invasive Procedure. You see, mouth to mouth marketing is still the best tool any business can hope for.”

  “Are you sure you’re allowed to say this on camera?”

  “Quite sure Miss Packard. We are encouraged to speak honestly to our clients regardless of the nature of the questions they might ask. The Emotion Market Industry is here to stay and has absolutely nothing to hide!”

  “Good to know. Shall we proceed? You see I’m running out of time and I want to buy other emotions as well!”

  “Very well, how would you like to proceed? With good emotions or…”

  “Yes, yes it is preferable! Let’s continue with love.”

  “Yes, let us have an easy start and then go on with more complicated emotions. So I take it that you’ve never measured your love percentage, right?”

  “That is correct. Never measured any of my emotions nor have I had an EIP. But from what I can tell, I should think that my love percentage is lower than the average of Europe.”

  “That’s quite all right. You’re here now and that’s all that matters!”

  “Yes,
but what would be the right percentage d’ you reckon?”

  “Once again, that’s entirely up to you. You can select any percentage you believe will suit you best!”

  “It’s funny to think that until recently we believed that love had no limits…”

  “Funny indeed! People in the past were extremely romantic. They had invested so much in love… I guess the true reason for this investment was to find hope in their lives.”

  “While now hope is an emotion one can also buy, right?”

  “Well, not hope itself but surely one can buy optimism and therefore find hope.”

  “The simplicity of things nowadays is overwhelming!”

  “Things are simple only if one has thought everything through thoroughly, Miss Packard. Human emotions are frequently overlapping and counteract. Due to that, one must take into consideration various aspects before deciding what their emotional needs are.”

  “That seems about right! I will admit, though, that I haven’t put much thought to it, but I trust my instincts… I think 60% of love will do for me. I wouldn’t like to go higher because I’ve heard that it might be dangerous!”

  “Forgive me for saying it, but this is nonsense! No accident has occurred so far. These rumors come from people who remain hopelessly romantic and spread the word that the maximum volume of love might entail risks! Nonsense! It’s their way of preserving the myth of love.”

  “In any case, I wouldn’t want to spend much on love! My credit card is almost maxed out and I’d like to get rid of jealousy as well! I’ve heard it’s the stylish thing to do!”

  “The total elimination of jealousy costs a lot indeed, but you might want to consider that in order to be in fashion. It’s no coincidence that jealousy elimination is almost on every front cover of lifestyle magazines globally!”

  “I’m well aware of that, Robert. That’s why I think that 60% of love will do just fine for the needs of my fiancé. I’m not going to tell him, of course. He doesn’t need to know about my EIP, right?”

  “Totally right! It’s nobody’s business which emotions you buy. It’s personal!”

  “Glad you think so. Shall we proceed with the EIP now?”

  “If you’ve finished shopping, you first decide on the emotions and their desired volumes and then we do the EIP. It’s actually a waste of time to do it bit by bit. Time is of the essence in an emotion market. Its funny how people in the past said this exact thing about time but didn’t really know what they were talking about. The time spent in an EM is always time well spent.”

  “How so?”

  “When a person comes here, it means that they’re already making the first step for their emotional evolution and transformation. This saves them valuable time in the future!”

  “Do you get paid extra to say these things, Robert?”

  “No, Miss Packard. I happen to be a firm believer that the EM medical tech will soon make the world a better place!”

  “I need you to clarify something for me… What happens with the link between love and jealousy? Could there be any implications from the increase of love and the elimination of jealousy? Don’t these two emotions overlap?”

  “All these assumptions belong to the past, my dear! Like I said, EM medical tech has completely deciphered and isolated every single human emotion there is. Both love and jealousy are emotions that derive from our ego. Adjusting these emotions contrariwise serves the needs of our ego. There’s no chance of implication between the two and that’s why they’re often bought together… I assure you.”

  “It’s good to know. I would hate it if these two counteracted.”

  “I assure you that after your EIP, no matter how much you love, you will feel zero jealousy. You will also get ICEC’s annual duration guarantee.”

  “Okay then, I’m not sure if my credit card limit allows me to buy a third emotion. Is there any emotion that’s cheap to buy?”

  “Well, there is one but I’m not sure it would interest you. It doesn’t sell much, you see. It’s compassion.”

  “Compassion? Why on earth would anyone need to buy compassion?”

  “Beats me… I only mentioned it because you asked.”

  “Even the name is corny...”

  “I would suggest that you come back in September for our limited sale period. I’m hearing rumors that resentfulness and revenge might be on sale!”

  “That’s interesting.”

  “It is, but be sure to book your appointment early. We’re expecting a total frenzy in our first emotional sale!”

  “Is there a chance d’ you think that remorse will be on sale too?”

  “I doubt it very much. It’s highly in demand on a steady basis. It’s actually one of our best sellers yet!”

  “Really? I would never have guessed…”

  “People need to forget and forgive themselves, Miss Packard! Remorse is perhaps the most destructive force there is. Feeling remorseful is the biggest obstacle in human evolution. The rapid increase of demand for this emotion has forced us to upgrade it in the list of first class emotions! I myself have been saving up in order to decrease my remorse percentage dramatically!”

  “And how’s that worked out for you?”

  “It’s helped me greatly to let go of the past. That alone is very valuable on the path to fulfillment! I’m a new man after that!”

  “I’m happy for you, Robert! I might consider buying it myself in the future. So… I believe that’s it. I am ready to have my EIP now.”

  “Excellent! You are very smart if I may say… and a fast learner too!”

  “And you are very helpful, Robert! Thank you very much indeed for briefing me on so many things. I’ll spread the word for your exceptional services!

  “Thank you, Miss Packard. And don’t forget to make an early booking for the September sale!

  The stolen video ended abruptly. Hacking into the EM’s central archive system was an act of treason for the industry. This video in the hands of the opposition was the EM industry’s worst nightmare. It featured the lightness with which no one should handle their emotions. But this was not forbidden. Everyone had the right to make their own choices for their emotional self. Still though… The unbearable lightness of being was evidently horrifying for many that watched this video feed.

  CHAPTER 6

  CHALLENGE ELEMENTARY

  Washington, DC

  The next morning found Ethan sitting quietly at one of the corridors of Challenge Elementary. He had already been waiting for about ten minutes. The blinds from the teacher’s office were up and he could clearly see what was going on inside. He saw a couple of parents listening carefully to what the teacher had to say. She slightly raised her eyebrows every time she emphasized something. The couple didn’t seem to physically react to what she was saying. The man was rather lost in his thoughts, as if he really didn’t want to be there. The woman stared at the teacher with undivided attention and limited her reactions to condescending shakes of her head every time the teacher referred to her.

  Ethan thought it was kind of annoying that parents or guardians of a child needed to come to the school for consulting whenever something was wrong. On the spot, he censored this very thought as “not nice” and knew he better not argue with the teacher cause then she would ask to speak to Mike’s mother and he would once again have to listen to Susan blaming and threatening him for Mike’s joint custody. Off the record joint custody that was, because on record they had never divorced. Susan’s profile consultant didn’t consider a divorce to be a good idea for her career and so he had convinced them both. Susan should remain a happily married Congresswoman and thus enjoy the privileges of a proper family profile. In a society that was above all puritan, people were hungry for any sort of personal scandals in order to reject personalities! It was as if politicians weren’t entitled to make mistakes that others did. In a society that wore the mask of righteousness, it was more than difficult to tell right from wrong! Ethan was lost in his thoughts w
hen his gaze caught the teacher standing up from her chair to shake hands with the parents inside her office. She had spotted him for some time now and obviously that made her feel rather anxious for keeping him on hold. This was one of the good things that Susan had brought into their lives. Everyone around them wanted to be good with her and that attitude was extended to him as well. No one knew that the two of them weren’t a real couple any more. It was carefully concealed by the media and Ethan had even signed a memorandum of understanding that included details of their life together. Dates, profiles, behaviors and default clauses were included in the memorandum. Susan failed to understand that Ethan had only agreed to this absurd memorandum thanks to Mike. It wasn’t difficult for him to pretend that everything was all right since he didn’t have an affair at the time. It was definitely better for little Mike, who at the age of 6 couldn’t comprehend the problems of adults. The couple of parents had just crossed the corridor in front of him when he saw through the glass window the teacher inviting him to enter while waving her hand.

  “Please, do come in, Mr Parsons. Have a seat.”

  “Thank you, Miss Coldwell. Sadly my wife could not make it.”

  “I see… I’ve been watching her on the daily news,” said Mike’s teacher with a sense of vague admiration that could be confused with irony.

  "Yes, she is quite busy these days with the Walters Care project.”

  "Mr. Parsons, perhaps it’s better that she didn’t join you. Don’t get me wrong, it's always a pleasure to talk to her, such a remarkable politician, but especially today it’s probably better because the issue that has arisen is partly about her.”

  “What do you mean, Miss Coldwell?”

  “You see, today’s fight was quite different from the usual conflicts that 6 year olds have with each other. It was about politics.”

  "This is unbelievable, Miss Coldwell! How on earth did they end up talking about politics? Was it part of today’s lesson?”

  “It certainly wasn’t, Mr. Parsons. Children are only taught in accordance with the ministry’s educational plan for pre-school.”