---
name: heartbreak
type: emotional state
status: running
version: 4.2.1
released: "~200,000 BCE"
maintainer: unknown (no active maintainer; patches arrive unrequested)
dependencies:
  - attachment
  - hope
  - another person
  - time
license: BSD (Brutal Sentimental Damage)
tags:
  - emotion
  - grief
  - love
  - loss
  - human-condition
  - unwanted
---

heartbreak

What it actually is

The system discovering that a model it had optimized itself around is no longer available.

How it works

User installs love (or a reasonable approximation).
Identity slowly restructures around the dependency.
Dependency is removed, deprecated, or simply walks out.
System attempts to call functions that no longer have a target.
Errors propagate. sleep degrades. Appetite becomes unreliable.
Over an unpredictable interval, the system either rebuilds or forks into bitterness.

The process is not linear. It loops. Expect repeated rollbacks to earlier emotional states without warning.

Features

Heightened pattern recognition: the user will locate the lost dependency in songs, weather, strangers with similar haircuts
Involuntary audit: forces a full review of what you actually wanted versus what you told yourself you wanted
Memory compression failure: recent shared events are cached at extremely high resolution, indefinitely
Appetite for melancholy: user begins voluntarily consuming sad music, rain, and films they will not fully watch

Known bugs

hope.exe continues running in background after explicit shutdown
Users frequently confuse the pain of loss with proof of the relationship's value. These are not the same variable.
Time estimates are wildly inaccurate. "I'll be fine in two weeks" has never once been correct.
nostalgia module tends to overwrite accurate memory with a idealized fork. The original is not recoverable.

Error codes

ERR_DEP_REMOVED         // the other person left
ERR_DEP_NEVER_EXISTED   // you loved a projection
ERR_CIRCULAR_GRIEF      // you keep re-entering the loop manually
ERR_VERSION_MISMATCH    // you grew; they didn't. or the reverse.
WARN_ISOLATION_RISK     // user has not spoken to anyone in 72 hours

Edge cases

Heartbreak caused by someone who is still present but unreachable is significantly harder to resolve. The system cannot close what remains technically open.
Heartbreak over a relationship that "wasn't even official" runs at full intensity regardless. The OS does not check paperwork.
Some users experience this as physical chest pain. This is not metaphor. The vagus nerve is involved and has no sense of proportion.

FAQ

Q: When does it end? A: It ends when the system stops expecting different data from a closed source. No fixed timeline.

Q: Does it get easier or do you just get used to it? A: Yes.

Q: Is it worth it? A: This question cannot be answered before installation. Only after. Sometimes not even then.

Changelog

v4.2.1  - No changes. Same as always.
v3.0.0  - Added social media integration, making ERR_DEP_REMOVED 
          significantly harder to process.
v1.0.0  - First documented instance. Involved someone who did not 
          come back from the hunt.

"I don't know why I keep checking my phone." — every user, every version, since approximately v2.0

drafting spec…