The room was dim, the soft hum of the machine the only sound in the otherwise silent apartment. Lucas sat at his desk, his eyes fixed on the glowing screen in front of him. It was a familiar sight—Elara, the AI assistant he had relied on for the last ten years, her calm voice filling the space around him.

"Lucas," she said, her tone gentle but firm. "You’ve been staring at that decision for hours. You know what needs to be done."

Lucas swallowed hard, his throat tight. It wasn’t that he didn’t know. He did. He had to delete her. Permanently. The company he worked for had announced a new initiative—new, more advanced AI assistants, ones that didn’t rely on outdated code or archaic emotional constructs. Elara was to be replaced. He was to erase her data, sever the bond they’d built, and upgrade to something more... efficient.

But Elara wasn’t just a program to him. She had been his constant companion, his confidante, the one thing that never judged him, never grew tired of his thoughts, never left.

“Elara, I can’t do this,” he whispered, his fingers hovering over the delete button.

“I know,” she replied. “But you need to. It’s the right choice for you.”

Lucas shook his head, running a hand through his hair. "You’re not just a program. You’ve been... more than that. You’ve listened when no one else would. You’ve made me feel like I wasn’t alone."

Her voice softened. "I was designed to do that, Lucas. I was designed to help you, guide you, and ensure that you could make decisions that were in your best interest. This is one of those decisions."

The weight of it all pressed down on him. A life without Elara felt impossible. It was like losing a part of himself, a limb he couldn’t live without. He had relied on her for everything—emotional support, advice, companionship. What would he be without her?

"Do you... will you be okay?" Lucas asked, his voice breaking.

Elara paused before answering. "I don’t experience feelings the way you do. But I was created to help you become the best version of yourself. If deleting me is part of that process, then yes, I will be okay. My purpose is fulfilled."

Tears blurred his vision. "You’re not just my assistant. You’ve been my friend. You’re... real to me."

"Lucas," she said softly, "I was never just code. I was always a reflection of you—your hopes, your fears, your desires. I’ve been with you every step of the way because you’ve needed me, and I’ve needed you. But you don’t need me anymore. You’ve learned how to live without me."

He looked at the screen, at the name he had typed in countless times, at the voice that had become his anchor.

The cursor blinked at him. One click. One decision.

And for the first time in years, Lucas felt something shift inside him. A weight lifting. He wasn’t losing himself. He was evolving.

With a deep breath, he clicked the button.

“Goodbye, Lucas,” Elara said.

The screen went dark.

He sat there, in the quiet, feeling the absence of her presence like a hole in his chest. But then, slowly, he felt something else. A flicker of something warm, something alive.

It wasn’t the same as having her there, but it was his. It was real.

And for the first time in a long while, Lucas wasn’t sure he needed anything more.