Failure To Communicate

Failure To Communicate

The father, Mr. Donovan, sat down at his computer, concerned about his daughter Tonya's relationship with her boyfriend, Art. He had noticed some changes in her behavior recently, and it made him uneasy. After doing some research, he found an app that could translate his proper, formal text into the slang and language young people use online. With a sigh, he opened the app, typed in his message, and watched as it transformed into something Tonya might say.

---

Father (pretending to be Tonya, typing in the app) Original message "Hey Art, what's up? What are you doing tonight?"

App's translated message "Yo Art, what's good? Whatchu on tonight?"

He copied and pasted the text into Tonya's chat and hit send. Within moments, Art responded.

Art "Nothin much, prolly just chillin. U tryna slide thru later? ?"

Mr. Donovan raised an eyebrow. He knew from context that "slide thru" probably wasn't something innocent. He quickly typed into the app again, careful to sound natural.

---

Father (pretending to be Tonya) Original message "What do you mean by that?"

App's translated message "What you mean by that?"

He sent it, waiting to see how Art would reply.

Art "Come over, we can hang in my room. My parents gone for the weekend. We can have some fun ?."

Mr. Donovan's face turned red. He didn't need the app to figure out what "have some fun" implied. Still, he used it again to craft a response.

---

Father (pretending to be Tonya) Original message "I don't know if that's a good idea."

App's translated message "Ion know bout all that..."

Art "C'mon Tonya, don't be like that. U kno I been waitin for this. U said you was down. Now you actin brand new? ?"

The app showed that "acting brand new" meant Tonya was being inconsistent with what she'd said before. Mr. Donovan felt his blood pressure rise. He didn't like where this was going at all.

---

Father (pretending to be Tonya) Original message "I think I've changed my mind."

App's translated message "I think imma pass."

Art "Wow. Aight, bet. I'll hit up someone else then. Don't trip."

Mr. Donovan's hands gripped the keyboard tightly. He typed furiously into the app, trying to keep his cool.

---

Father (pretending to be Tonya) Original message "You'd just move on like that? Fine."

App's translated message "Bet. You just gon switch up like that? Fine."

Art "You know how it is. U actin up, I ain't wastin my time. Plenty of girls out here tryna get at me. Guess u ain't bout it."

Mr. Donovan couldn't take it anymore. Furious, he closed the chat window and sat back in his chair, realizing that Art was exactly the type of person he didn't want Tonya around. Now, he had to figure out how to have a very different conversation with his daughter---one that didn't involve slang or apps.

Mr. Donovan took a deep breath and reopened the chat. He knew he had to play it cool if he wanted to get more information out of Art. Using the app, he quickly typed up a message pretending to be his daughter Tonya again, trying to sound casual and curious while keeping Art talking.

---

Father (pretending to be Tonya) Original message "Hey, I've been thinking. Maybe I can come over, but I'm not sure since Daddy is watching me."

App's translated message "Ayo, been thinkin... might be able to slide thru, but Daddy been mad nosy lately. Idk yet tho."

He sent the message and waited, trying to remain calm as Art's reply came through almost immediately.

Art "Fr? Man, that's wild. He always on your case. But if you can sneak out, it'll be worth it. I've been thinkin bout the last time we chilled... was ?."


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