Service with a Smile

"Service with a Smile" by Charles L. Fontenay is a science fiction tale set on a remote, desolate planet where four women find themselves utterly alone, their only companion being a dutiful robot named Herbert, who caters to their every whim. Their monotonous existence is disrupted by the sudden arrival of a man – a survivor from a crashed spaceship. Overjoyed at the prospect of male companionship, the women quickly find themselves at odds as they try to decide how to share him. Their initial excitement turns into a comical yet unsettling competition, with each woman vying for his attention. They contemplate a polygamous arrangement, but their desires lead to a grim conclusion when Herbert, in a misguided attempt to serve, literally divides him into four parts, transforming their dreams of companionship into a bizarre, dystopian nightmare that shows the absurdity of their longing and their isolation.