Entering the library along with his boss carrying the book between his hands, the place was more full than ever; numerous people were scattered about, with several browsing through shelves, while others were seated at tables or couches reading or writing on notepads, typing away on their laptops with headphones attached. Some students were even chatting with one another, laughing loudly, while some adults simply shook their heads in disapproval of their noises.
It's lively here, and it's been a while since Adam stepped foot inside places that are packed with all sorts of people from different walks of life. The atmosphere of a place like this was rather refreshing; seeing all sorts of humans and mutants interacting in their own unique ways brought comfort to him whenever he came across places similar to this one.
"Go explore a bit," Miller said to him. "I need to return this back, so just keep yourself occupied while I'm gone," he suggested kindly before leaving his partner to his own devices. "Fine by me," Adam mumbled quietly as he watched his boss disappear within the crowds of people, turning around to observe his surroundings once more. I guess I'll wander around."
Nothing interesting could be found within the place; it was just a regular library filled with books, tables, computers, and chairs. Although it made him feel at ease to be somewhere like this rather than in some suspicious place where he could get himself hurt,
Although he probably would prefer that when there are stupid children screaming and running around like a bunch of idiots instead of being quiet, The nerve of their parents to allow their kids to be so rambunctious and obnoxious to others
"I hate kids," he said in a low tone under his breath, walking across the aisle of shelves containing all sorts of fiction and nonfiction literature written by authors of different genres, ranging from action, mystery, sci-fi, horror, and romance, among other genres.
It is interesting to see so many books that are available to be read, from fantasy stories to classic novels. Adam just couldn't get enough of this, so he started searching for books that caught his attention, but no matter which ones he picked, he'd always find himself wanting to read every single one of them.
Pausing in his tracks just to look over his shoulder to see if anyone was following him. There wasn't any person he could spot through his vision. "I'm alone," he said to himself in confirmation of that fact. Turning back around, he kept moving forward until finally finding himself in a place he had never seen before.
A quiet section with barely any people passing through, filled with countless rows of shelves stocked full of books on all kinds of topics ranging from history, science, mathematics, psychology, geography, etc. The whole area was relatively calm despite the loud noise from afar.
Seeing this as a perfect opportunity to be left alone to his own devices, he laid his back on the book shelf, allowing his body to lower itself down until his ass touched the floor, bringing him a moment of peace and quiet from the hectic world outside this place.
Just then, a loud sound broke out from the speakers located throughout the building. The noise made Adam jump slightly at this sudden announcement: "We apologize for the inconvenience, but please be aware that all children under age 18 must be accompanied by an adult due to a security breach that happened recently. Again, we apologize for the inconvenience."
Adam shook his head, not caring about anything except himself, inhaling the scent of paper and leather as he relaxed his head back against the said book shelf, enjoying this moment while it lasted. However, the sound of footsteps approaching his location caught his attention, and he glared sideways towards whoever approached him, seeing someone familiar heading towards him.
Only to see the same little girl he and his boss had encountered earlier, appearing nervous and worried as she slowly walked toward Adam, giving off a timid vibe with her body language as she clutched tightly onto her precious toy. "Uh... Excuse me?"
Raising an eyebrow in confusion, Adam stared at her for a couple seconds and said, "It's you again; what do you want this time?" Annoyance laced his tone of voice. She shifted uncomfortably under his gaze before answering, "Um... Can I talk with you something?" The girl requested it shyly, fidgeting nervously under his intense stare.
He hesitated, unsure what to say or do; unsure what this strange girl wants from him, but nevertheless, he felt compelled to answer her anyway, "Do what you want," sighing tiredly from this whole situation. Her expression changed dramatically as soon as those words reached her ears.
She perked up instantly, looking more energetic than before. "Really?!" The excitement in her tone was evident as she rushed forward excitedly. Adam didn't respond to her question, keeping silent as he watched her approach him closer with every step, stopping directly by his side as she sat down.
Rather than allowing normal conversation to happen between them, he decided to get straight to the point: "Emily, right?" Adam asked, trying not to sound too annoyed with her presence, "You can drop your act; I know you're only pretending to lure me into some abandoned place and kill me without anyone noticing." The little girl then flinched back at this response, eyes wide with shock at what he had just said.
However, she recovered quickly from this as she tried to keep up her facade: "What do you mean?" Acting innocent, pretending to be unaware of what Adam meant when he said, "I'm trying to be friendly," she lied through gritted teeth, keeping an innocent smile plastered upon her lips.
A smirk graced his lips. "Come on, I know what you are." The amusement in his tone caused her to grow uncomfortable. "Y-you do?" She stuttered nervously, and Adam nodded his head as he said, "Yeah, you're a sociopath that lures victims into abandoned places to kill and likely torture them."
Emily wanted to stand up or at least kill him right here and there just to prevent anyone from learning her secret. The mere fact that someone saw through her deception caused fear to creep into her heart. But then suddenly, she realized that Adam said that he knows about her secret but has never told anyone about it; that means he'll likely keep quiet and won't expose her to anyone as long as he keeps this between them.
"The question is, why do you do it?" Closing his eyes, he waited patiently for her response—an answer that he expected. But instead, she tilted her head, humming in confusion at his question, before replying with one simple word that caused him to raise an eyebrow or two.
"Fun."
"Fun? Seriously, that's the only reason why you do this?" He asked sarcastically, "That's the best thing you can come up with?" The way he phrased this caused Emily to frown sadly, looking down at the ground in disappointment at this answer.
"Because it's what I wanted to become..." Her voice trailed off as she tried to find the right words to say, "I just wanted to become the best version of myself," explaining quietly while keeping her head low, staring intently at the ground below as she spoke, "hurting people is what I enjoy doing; I feel happy whenever someone suffers from my hand; hearing them scream in agony makes me happy," sounding like an insane person who just admitted to committing a heinous crime.
Adam remained silent as he listened carefully to every single word spoken, taking in every single detail before responding back in his own, "Are you aware of your actions? That what you did is wrong?" Asking the important question, wanting to know more about this odd little girl sitting right next to him.
She shook her head and said, "Mama and papa told me about what was right or wrong, but I didn't care," responding to his question honestly. Her parents taught her everything she needed to know about being a good person; however, those teachings were thrown out the window because they didn't interest her.
All she wanted was to inflict pain upon others so she could enjoy watching them struggle in vain. "I tried to be normal, but I enjoyed who I have become," continued her explanation with a smile upon her lips. "Being different from others feels great."
Sighing heavily as he scratched the back of his neck, he said, "So you knew what you did was wrong," gritting his teeth in anger from this revelation, "and let me guess, you killed your parents to?" Saying this in a matter-of-fact tone of voice.
Emily didn't answer; she simply kept quiet and continued to stare at the floor while avoiding his gaze, causing him to answer back, "That's what I thought; I was right about you after all," feeling himself losing interest in this conversation, "you are no better than the very crazies that roam around these parts of the city," commenting on his opinion regarding her nature.
"But you still didn't tell anyone about who I am," she said, raising her head slightly to meet his gaze. "Why?" Eyes glimmering with curiosity as she looked up at him with a quizzical expression in her features, almost childlike innocence.
Shrugging nonchalantly before answering back with his own words, "because I don't care anymore," this caused her eyes to widen in surprise, staring at him with mixed emotions playing out within her irises. "I know how selfish I am, but as a former psychologist, I think second chances should be given, even to people like you," he said, closing his eyes as he recalled those memories that caused his mind to race with unwanted thoughts of the past.
"You think I can be normal again?" Her conflicted words came out soft, almost whispering under her breath, "no one else thinks so," saying this sadly as she lowered her head in defeat, "except the person who took me in as his sidekick," mentioning this last bit.
Standing up, Adam sighed once again: "Do you want to be normal like everyone else or continue this path of destruction? Does taking lives give you some meaning to your life, or is it simply just a hobby for you to enjoy?" He asked two important questions at the same time, wanting her to answer all of them right now.
The way he phrased his statement caused her heart to beat faster than usual, and she felt slightly anxious over such an absurd question like that, but nonetheless, she knew what she did was wrong, and her feeling of killing others is what makes her happy, but is this really the only path she has?
"Emily," he started off slowly with his eyes closed, looking up at the ceiling, "do you find this fulfilling for you? Because there are still other paths you can find that might give you meaning other than becoming a ruthless murderer, there is more to life than just causing others pain and suffering."
Those words caused her to snap out of her trance, glaring angrily up at him for daring to question her actions. "Shut up!" Emily stood up in defiance, looking at him with a conflicted stare of confusion and spite, saying, "Don't you tell me what's wrong or right!" Pointing an accusing finger towards him, she said, "It's none of your business!"
Shaking his head, he continued his speech despite her growing anger: "No matter what path you choose, remember that life isn't always stuck in one road," keeping his gaze focused straight ahead as he spoke in a stern tone of voice, "and I know for certain that you haven't tried other options, but if you keep following your current path of destruction, then someday you will end up the same way your victims have gone through, as there are always consequences in every action we take."
His insightful words were too much for her; she began to feel guilt creeping in the back of her mind. "I don't care! I just want to enjoy life as it is!" She cried in frustration from those overwhelming feelings, trying to shake them off, but they kept coming back no matter how hard she tried to ignore them.
Opening his eyes, he turned and stared down at her with pity, "kid, during my years as psychologist; I have met and spoke with various clients that came from different walks of life, to drug addict, sexual deviant, racist, con artist, thief, child abuser, murderer, other forms of mental illness and criminals; each one of them had their own reason for what they did or have and most of them were understandable to some degree but you know what the majority of them had in common?"
She didn't answer; instead, she kept silent while waiting patiently for him to finish what he wanted to say: The majority of them regretted their actions once I gave them the many options to think about their wrongdoing."
His words sounded sincere, almost as if he cared deeply for these clients of his: "If you keep going down that road, you will eventually lose yourself to the darkness that resides within your heart and become nothing more than an empty shell of human being."
"Why do you care if I become someone better or not?" She demanded angrily, "What's it to you?"
"Because I don't want another person as young as you to be running around here causing havoc for no good reason," he replied honestly to her question. "Think about it, kid; I'm not forcing you to be good or become part of society; I'm just giving you some advice to do what with your life." This made her upset and fold her arms across her chest in annoyance. "Anyway, now that we've discussed this topic, I have other places to go," said the young man as he began to walk away, but he stopped dead in his tracks when she spoke once more.
"Wait..." She called out weakly, causing him to glance back at her, "Thank you..." Muttering under her breath while looking down at the floor, she said, "You're the first person who actually gave me a different perspective on what to do with my life." Her words caused him to smile knowingly.
He nodded, "no problem," replying back casually with a wave of hand, "but remember one thing: try not to repeat the same mistakes you have made in the past; there will always be consequences to your actions, so just keep that in mind and find something else that you enjoy instead of harming others, kiddo."
