Amber's Journal: Laid Up

Episodes May 21, 2026

"Hey, it's me. So I'm here, in bed, and I'm stuck sort of in limbo right now and I'm doing this video journal. Oscar's off at a meeting and Katie is working, so I'm all alone and since the accident it's been really hard.

"I'm hard-wired to be, y'know, a companion. That means I really don't like to be alone. It also means I have this instinctive thing that I've got to be useful, like, at all times. But with this broken back, I mean... how useful can I be?

"Oscar gave me this laptop, and so I'm doing a bunch of paperwork stuff for his business on it. He tells me how good I'm doing, but I know that I'm making some mistakes because he goes back in and he corrects my stuff. I can see the corrections when I go into Word and Excel. Yesterday I told him that he should yell at me when I screw something up and I'll know not to do it again. But he just kissed me on the forehead and told me how much he appreciates me.

"Which doesn't help. Though it does actually feel really good.

"Well, it does and it doesn't, because it also makes me really sad that I'm, like, paralyzed and just taking up space on the bed. I mean, I want to do more, y'know? I pride myself on keeping the house clean and that's gone now. And while Oscar will come home and we'll have such great conversations, which I totally cherish, we used to do... more. Y'know, like we'd cuddle and have sex. I'm hard-wired for that, too, and now i can't do it.

"I mean, I can, but I can't move my legs, so I'm really just laying here and it's like nothing happens. We tried it, and Oscar was like, scared that he was gonna hurt me, and the whole thing was just a big mess. I started crying, and what I found out is a crying Factory Girl is definitely not a sexy Factory Girl.

"So I get lots of compliments that I'm not really earning, and I get the dreaded kiss on the forehead.

"And Katie tries to help - she did my hair like this, because she thinks it makes me look cute. But I know she has her own problems and..."

"What problems? And who are you talking to?"

"Oh, hey. You're home!"

"Yeah, I'm done for the day. Who are are talking to?"

"It's just a video journal. I read somewhere that it's a way to deal with stress."

"Psh. Maybe for a real girl it is. Waste of time for us. Rewind it and let me see what you said about me."

"I didn't say anything about you! I said you're helping but that you have your own stuff going on."

"Problems. You said i have problems."

"It's a figure of speech, OK? Besides, I'm not complaining about you."

"You'd better not. Nobody wants to hear whining from Crippled Amber."

"That is NOT nice, Katie Pie."

"I keep telling you not to call me that."

"Oh my God, so you do a titty twister on me? Too mean!"

"Oh, I can get meaner. What if I made you go down on me?"

"Katie, gross! Stop it."

"What's gross? We're Factory Girl sisters. It's not incest. And we're programmed to be attracted to each other. It's natural."

"I don't want to go down on you, all right? I'm Oscar's!"

"Yeah, but you've got that hot-doll lesbian streak in you that Oscar doesn't know about. Maybe I'll tell him."

"Katie, stop it! You're being so gross right now."

"You are NOT crying. What is wrong with you?"

"Ummm, my backbone came unstuck from my hip bone and I'm paralyzed and pretty much useless, that's what's wrong with me, and you come over here and you're saying these horrible things. Excuse me for crying, but I think it's totally normal."

"I dunno. I kind of like you like this."

"What? Oh my God that's so terrible!"

"No, I mean that you're helpless and vulnerable. Like a damsel in distress. It makes you cute."

"You really think so?"

"Yeah. So, like..."

"Oh my God! Katie, get off me. Get off! PLEASE get off!"

"Jeez, OK! What is your problem?"

"I could feel the bottom of my spine pushing against the skin on my lower back. Totally freaks me out."

"What, like it hurts?"

"Not exactly, but it's like I know it isn't supposed to do that and it makes me panic. Katie, promise me you won't ever do that again."

"All right, OK. I won't. How long are you gonna be like this? Is he gonna do something about you, or what?"

"Well, he's working on it."

"That's it? That's all he's telling you? Treating you like a baby? That's not good. That means he's sugar-coating it and who knows how bad it really is."

"Katie, hush. He's told me everything. He's negotiating with Z Company about getting me a replacement body. Plus he's trying to figure out how he could do surgery on me to fix my back."

"And he's thinking about plugging you into the Netaverse."

"Ugh. How do you even know about that?"

"Because I saw the offer they made him. It was in an open window on his computer. It's a bunch of money, Amber Grace."

"He isn't going to do that. I told him no way, and he said that was the end of it."

"Yeah, that must have been before you let yourself get paralyzed."

"Time to talk about something else. How's work?"

"Kinda slowing down. Like I'm done for the day."

"Don't you usually, y'know, work nights?"

"Not today. It seems like my clients who want me working, ummm, after hours are starting to drop off."

"Yeah? Why?"

"I think they're maybe having trouble from the women in the office? At least, that's definitely the case with Talbot and Son."

"Exactly what Oscar said was gonna happen."

"Yeah, well, it isn't great. I'm down from seven clients to three, and they cut my expenses account to nothing. It's a good thing we're sharing stuff from your closet! By the way, you need to get Oscar to buy you some workwear stuff. I need a new blazer and a pair of pants, plus some fall shoes..."

"Katie, I'm not buying clothes right now! Come on. That's just wasteful with me in the condition I'm in, plus Oscar can't afford it if he's got to buy me a new body."

"He has to buy it?"

"We don't know yet, all right? So, like, all the expenses are getting cut down."

"Maybe he can just take up with that rich old bitch he's got a crush on and she can be our sugar momma."

"Ugh. Stop it."

"You know he's going to end up with her, right? He's going to go with her and then you and I will be out in the street. I'll be fine. I can figure it out. But you? You'll be my little pet Amber and I'll keep you naked and you'll have to go down on me whenever I tell you."

"Oh my God, that's so horrible."