You have to know.

I can feel my hand start to shake as my heart beats faster and faster. I want to wait, to try and think rationally about this, but I can't seem to. Every bone in my body wants to see what will happen. As I continue to get more and more anxious about what I'm contemplating, I suddenly do it: I drop my thumb down and press the red button.

I feel like an eternity passes as I wait on bated breath. Then something new suddenly appears on the screen. But before I get a chance to read it, its gone, replaced by different text. I try to catch it this time, but once again the letters change before I get a good look. This happens a few more times before I realize what's going on. Words keep cycling through the screen, just long enough to know they're there, but not long enough to actually read them. It seems like the remote is trying to emulate the wheel of a slot machine with spinning words. I suppose it does that to add to the feeling of randomness.

I keep my eyes glued to the screen, all the while my mother continues making my plate, completely oblivious to what is going on in the next room. Just then, the roulette stops. I can finally read the words on the remote clearly.

- SELECTED TARGET: ELIZABETH ANDERSON -

Identity: Dog

Wait... what? This thing can't seriously be telling me it's going to turn my mom into a dog, can it? I glance into the kitchen to see my mom finishing up my plate, very much still a normal person. So that's it, I guess. This was all just one elaborate joke or something? I don't really understand how that's possible, but the remote didn't actually do anything so-

Right as I'm about to finish that thought I notice something new has appeared on the screen.

Initial Attribute Unlocked

MAN'S BEST FRIEND

The target will slowly become more loyal and affectionate toward the user. The target will also find themselves thinking more and more about the user when the two are not together.

Attribute? What is this? Another weird joke the remote made up?

Before I have a chance to interpret what I've just read, I hear my mom start to come into the room. I quickly slip the Random Remote into my pocket, not wanting to explain to her what it is or how I got it. Luckily, she doesn't seem to notice as she sets down a plate of food and a glass of water in front of me. She then looks at me and smiles.

"There you go, sweetie. I hope you're not annoyed with how long it took."

"No, it's fine. I'm just happy to finally have something to eat!"

Without another word, I dig into my food. My mom isn't exactly the best cook, but in my opinion, just about anything homemade is better than what I would find on campus. Besides, I'm so hungry that right now, any food would taste amazing, let alone a nice home-cooked meal.

With how absorbed I am in my meal, it takes me a moment to realize that my mom is still standing right next to me. Normally, she has so much to do, that as soon as she's done with one thing, she's on to the next one. I glance at her only to find her staring at me with a weird intensity. Not an angry or upset intensity, more like she's enjoying watching me eat. When she notices me looking at her, she looks a bit worried.

"Is something wrong, honey? Do you need something?" she says in a surprisingly concerned tone.

"Uh... no, I'm fine. I was just wondering why you're standing there. Isn't there something else you'd rather be doing?"

"Oh! Um... y-yes! You're right. I have other things I need to do. Just leave your dishes in the sink when you're done and I'll get to them later," she mutters out before quickly leaving.

Was it just me or did I catch her blushing like she was embarrassed? And it kind of seemed like she was **** to leave. After a moment of thinking, my mind goes back to that attribute thing I got. Once I finish my dinner, I pull the remote back out to reread it. It says something about becoming more loyal and affectionate. Is that what that was about? Is it possible that this remote does work, it's just more subtle than I originally thought? Perhaps I need to test it more, or at least give Mom some time to see if she changes anymore. Although, I'm not sure how I feel about using this thing again if "dog" was the first thing I got.

With all of these thoughts swirling around in my head, I put my dishes in the sink and head upstairs to finally relax for the night.