Of Monsters and Humanity: The Genesis

Chapter 46 - Terra

Twenty-two days before....

Part of me wished that I just got a doctor's note from work to give to my professors as an excuse for my absence.

I hated going to school in the awkward, hostile government car and sitting in class with government agents watching me. Was this how Xander felt every waking moment of his day? It had to be worse, because at least I could go outside and see the world. Though, he didn't have to see his childhood safe haven turn into a playground for Project X.

I had a lot of work that day. It felt, to me, that all of my professors had a conference and decided that it would be best to put the heaviest possible workload on me all at once. As soon as I got home, which was earlier than usual because Mr. Evan didn't care to show up to class, I walked briskly straight to Xander's room.

He was sitting on his bed and looked up at me, surprised, like I just jumped out of thin air.

"I need my laptop," I instructed, leaning into the doorway.

Looking frazzled, he picked it up from the bed and handed it to me with the earphones on top.

"Thanks," I mumbled, then looked up at him in question. "Hey, are you alright?"

He nodded, but there was something in his face and in his silence that told me differently.

"What is it?"

"Nothing."

I gave him a look.

"Really. Nothing's wrong." His poker face was almost convincing, but something told me that he would come to me if something was genuinely wrong.

"Okay, then," I murmured and turned to leave. "I have a lot of studying to do so I'll see you tomorrow."

"Alright."

"You're welcome to use the television or anything," I added and looked at him for another moment before heading off to my bedroom. Something was up, and I could tell that he was put off by something. I didn't dwell too much on this thought, as there had been a lot of big changes in his life as of late. I couldn't blame him, it was the same for me. Seeing him shot right in front of my face, right in the head.... I haven't been able to sleep at night without being awoken by the sound of the gunshot, or the vision of the bullet entering his head.

How could he adapt to something like this? It isn't normal and it shouldn't be something that any being should ever accept. Treatment like this is disgusting and he did not deserve any of it.

When I got upstairs and entered my room, I allowed a SWAT officer to enter and stand guard behind the closed door as I studied. There was so much to be done, and there were so many quizzes approaching. I had biology and chemistry tests coming up, as well as the due date for a paper getting sooner and sooner. I needed to work on it all, and that was exactly the intention I had.

I set out flashcards and outlines of textbook chapters before I opened my laptop and started to pull up the lesson plan for the biology quiz.

As I typed in the last name of my professor, though, something curious came up.

"Abigail Egan" came up as a search option, as if I had Googled it in the past.

I shook my head in shame. I couldn't believe that I did that so long ago.... It was the past, and I was trying to move on without thinking about one of those horrible days for once in my life. Things had gotten so much better before Project X and I still decided to think about my childhood....

I was so selfish. I never knew how easy it would be for things to get bad again.

Shaking my head, I pull up my search history. I wanted to delete this from the computer's memory, and from mine. I want to open a new chapter in my life and take advantage of the possible good from Project X and study to be a doctor and make my life the best it possibly could have been with my father in it.