The short story “Microbiota and the Masses: A Love Story” by S.B. Divya was published for the first time in 2017.

Moena Sivaram lives in an airtight house where she created an isolated domestic biome that allows her to live without having to fear for her health. The price is the considerable difficulty for her in getting out of that house so as not to risk getting sick from some of the pollutants that infest Bangalore.

One day, a malfunction in the windows forces Moena to call a technician to fix the computer system that controls them. Rahul answers the call and, when she discovers that he’s a volunteer with an ecological group, Moena is strongly attracted to him but she knows very well that starting a relationship would mean exposing herself to serious dangers for her health.