Julia reclined on the bed, the dull whine of the building's climate control the only sound. She looked out the window to the darkened city of London, capital of Airstrip One. So many souls out there, how many were as lonely as she? How many longed for the warmth of another human being, truly connecting with them instead of the multiple layers of social filters imposed by the omnipresent Party...

She stretched, pressing her body into the mattress. The Telescreen, mandatory in every building, was directly in front of her. She knew that somewhere, down the wires, a government official somewhere was watching and listening, and reporting on everything she was doing. Perhaps Big Brother himself were peering in on her at this very moment. "Well, let him," she thought as she slipped her hand into the band of her underwear