My bag was heavy, scuffed and too full of over-ripe football kit. Some things will never be virtual. I totally should have left it in the dumpster by the soccer arc. What was I thinking?

It was a martial art carting that across New Paris central sector, weaving through crowds of sentimental desperadoes pinning their vacation hopes on Replica 3 : Lovers' Bridge.

My earline buzzed as I battled forward, hoping she'd meant what she said. (Oh those eyes...)  I thought it must be her:

"Follow me," was all I could make out before the disconnect.

I was really sweating now. I glanced around but couldn't see her. If this was meant to be alluring, it was a little creepy. The voice she'd used was way too husky.

Two paces on, a call rang out from a vintage phone booth, and the same thing happened further up. I just kept going. I wasn't going to miss this date (was it a date?) for anything, and anyway why bother if a phone rings out? Old tek doesn't work. It's just street art.

Red-faced with a beaded brow I slowed down to snatch two blocks of the overland, where walk-lite grid lights flickered green to indicate the cube's arrival. The air con was like heaven. It cost ten argents, but it could deliver rich rewards if I stepped out looking cool, and played my cards right.

I landed in a corner seat, leaning my head on the near side, and found myself cheek to cheek with a flat screen retro-poster of an old woman in an armchair. She was perched beside a picture of her son, I guessed, flaunting an antique phone in her hand, grinning.

"Call me!" the slogan urged, promoting some new network, or guilt-tripping Mothers' Sunday... I didn't really look.

Then her phone rang.

No... yeah. It must be hers. The screen was frozen, with a zoom-it of the old woman's face. A scent app exuded formaldehyde.

She was looking straight at me, smiling less.

"You followed," she hissed, "You sweet thing."

I shivered, and reached for the hatch. It was jammed. But the voice continued, in horribly familiar tones:

"You'll find there's no unfollow option here, ha ha ha!"

Oh no! Those eyes.....

*******************************

This was a #SciFriday shorts challenge a few years ago, for @Science Fiction profile, the first I tried (edited a bit). It's scary moving out of poetry into a story, even shorts!

erm so (coughs) I forgot to mention who the protagonist was? Did s/he have purple skin and three heads Lol!

Oh they were so kind! They gave me Honorable Mention and I never stopped scifiing from that day :D it's such a massive genre, there's room for everything. 

I really would recommend anyone to give it a go.