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Flash fiction · From the Margen catalogue

In 2042 the law fines you for looking at your phone parked

«Engineer Fumero, I'm fining you for handling the mobile terminal.» «Bautista, the car was off.» «And parked in a paid zone.» «I was messaging the hospital that I'd be late.» «You could use the watch. The law accepts the watch.» «I don't have a watch.» «I'll note it down: no certified device on you.» «Officer, this can't be. You can't drive in a car park.» «Article 92 bis of the General Traffic Regulation. Amended by Royal Decree 421 of 2039. It bans handling the mobile terminal even with the engine off in paid parking zones.» «And in the empty field it wouldn't fine me?» «In the empty field there's no paid lane.» «But it's the same action.» «The article understands the location. Intent is judged by the judge.» «What if the car park were full? I'm circling.» «Then the engine wouldn't be off.» «I turn off the engine so as not to pollute.» «And I raise the fine for polluting.» «Bautista, I have a watch at home that I don't wear because it pinches me.» «Engineer, I'll note it for the judge: certified watch available at your home, not carried to the vehicle for personal discomfort.» «And how do you know my profession?» «The terminal you were handling told me. Your watch would have encrypted it.»