A ROBOT WITH A LEARNING DISABILITY

Roselyn was going crazy. This wasn't what she expected when she decided to enter the kingdom of motherhood. She couldn't feel the mother-in-law child bond with Josh who happened to be her only child. To make issues worse, Matt had just asked for a divorce. She loved her son, but he was ruining her life. He was the reason his Dad was leaving her.

Josh Bruce was diagnosed with Autism Spectrum disorder. He had issues with speech, learning and social interactions; but this wasn't what made his mom sad. Roselyn's grief arised from the fact that all the millions she made from her hard work as an under cover journalist in the past years couldn't cure the only family she had left.

Her last option was Chappie

Source
Fred, a husband to her late sister, Anna - owned the ROBOTICS ACADEMY. He knew about Josh's problem & had recommended Crappie, a robot who had been programmed to help children with autism & learning disabilities. She had turned down the offer at first because she thought she could get him through a surgery or something. But now she was sitting in the reception, staring at the male robot with soulful eyes & he stated right back at her. It's intelligence shouldn't be underestimated- she thought to herself. Chappie had features that made him look slightly human, plus he looked super nice and friendly to. This made Roselyn believe it could actually help.

The scheduled appointment with the autism specialist in the Robotics Academy combined with the snow of the Friday morning made her more nervous. There has been previous sessions with Chappie & Josh had improved, although very slowly. Fred has suggested another session outside the house & this time Josh's reaction was to be monitored.

His clothes was covered in sensors, and standing in front of Chappie which was now smiling. Probably, the previous sessions had made Josh more comfortable with Chappie as he was smiling back.
"What's your favourite food?" Chappie asked Josh. "Chocolate milk and french fries". "I love chocolate milk" Chappie replies. The robot raises its arm & Josh copies. Chappie rubs his stomach and so does Josh.

It looks like fun - and for Josh it is. But the specialists believe the interaction between Josh and Chappie also holds the key to treatment of autism. Roselyn believed he got more out of this session than the previous ones. She saw her Josh fist-bump Chappie, somethingshehad never seen. He was obviously getting better and she knew he could get even more out of subsequent interactions with the robot.

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Thanks to @mctiller for this amazing twentyfourhourshortstorycontest
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