I kissed a boy once.

"I kissed a boy once." is a flash-fiction story included in the Halo Wars: Official Strategy Guide. The story depicts Nurse Lulu Hershey, stationed aboard the UNSC Spirit of Fire during her night shift, chatting with ship artificial intelligence Serina.^[1]

Plot synopsisEdit

Hershey is stationed in the medical area during the night shift, feeling job monotony and her growing disdain for holo-sudoku. She looks around the room, which remains unchanged from ten minutes earlier, and calls out to Serina. Although it initially felt strange to talk to an AI, Hershey has long since become comfortable with it.

When Serina's holographic form flickers to life, casting a blue light over the station, Hershey asks if the AI ever dreams. Serina explains that she doesn’t sleep, but instead runs projected simulations based on probabilities and known patterns, focusing on ship operations and crew management. Hershey, curious, presses Serina further, asking if she ever thinks about something personal, like something "girly." After a brief pause, Serina reveals that she sometimes tries to remember the taste of chocolate, simulating the chemical response in her neural network without success. This surprises Hershey, leading her to ask when Serina would have ever tasted chocolate. Serina explains that she’s not just a computer, but a neural network cloned from a human, sharing some of that person’s core memories including sensory experiences like taste and touch.

Intrigued, Hershey asks what else Serina remembers from her human origins. Serina shares vague memories of food, flowers, and grass, but then hesitates before revealing something more personal: She once kissed a boy. Hershey laughs, finding this revelation amusing and relatable, but Serina insists that it's a secret she runs detailed simulations about. This unexpected moment of gossip between Hershey and the AI surprises the nurse, who never thought she would bond with an AI in such a way. The night shift, once dull, now feels livelier and more amusing for Hershey.