The Unsolvable Equation

Thirty-three

Almier POV

Almier emerged from the bathroom to see Brad sitting cross legged on his bed, staring at him expectantly. His mouth was frozen into a smile that suggested he wanted to make friends, but his eyes, that bore into Almier, said otherwise. Almier took a cautious step forwards and Brad’s eyes followed. Another step. The eye balls didn’t leave. Almier awkwardly advanced, unsure what to make of Brad’s intentions. He slowly began to unpack his things with more tension that necessary and felt Brad’s eyes trailing his every movement. Chills went up and down Almier’s spine and he began to dread spending the next few days in the same room as Brad, unsure of what he might do while he was asleep. Hell, he might even wake up one night and find Brad grinning down at him, like a psychotic doll waiting to harvest his soul. Finally, he couldn’t stand it any longer and snapped his head up to meet Brad’s gaze. The hardness in his eyes had disappeared and he was now wearing the kind of normal smile that one might see on a typical human being.

“Hello Almier,” he said cheerfully.

Yes, Brad. That is how you greet your new roommate, not by staring straight into their soul. “Hello,” Almier replied cautiously. “What’s with the whole horror movie-esque staring thing, though?”

“Oh, that? That was just a social experiment to see how you would respond,” Brad explained, as if it were a common task that the rest of humanity underwent on a daily basis.

“I don’t know about you Brad, but I like the get to know my roommates a little better before performing social experiments on them.”

“Oh, but performing them on strangers is part of the beauty of it all!” Beauty. Because freaky social experiments were now art. “You get to see their unsuspecting reactions!”

“Huh,” Almier said, dipping his luggage back up and stuffing it back in the cupboard. “So what mind-blowing conclusion you’d gathered from this one?”

“Don’t stare at people you have just met. It makes them behave awkwardly.”

“Well, it’s hard to argue with that discovery,” Almier responded dryly.

“Also,” Brad went on. “Video games and shopping obviously don’t mix, judging from your reaction.” He grinned at Almier.

“Wait. You were watching my reaction on the bus?!”

“Of course,” Brad frowned, as if this were a simple concept that Almier was too dim to grasp. “That’s the whole point of the social experiment, isn’t it? To see your reaction.”

“So that was a social experiment as well?”

“Everything is a social experiment, Almier,” he said with a wink. Almier didn’t know whether to be creeped out or fascinated.

“Ah, I see. You’re the first one I know to have a passion for social experiments, though,” He mused.

Brad held out a hand in front of him, like he was correcting Almier. “No. I’m not a social experiment fanatic. I’m a modern artist.”

“No offense, but isn’t that just a fancy term for a freak?”

“It depends on how you look at it,” Brad said simply. “For me, however, I like to be able to see the art in people and everyday things.” He waved his hand around at their hotel room, probably trying to open up a whole new world to Almier’s not very artistically inclined eyes. “Look at this. Every one of these pieces is a work of modern art itself, bearing a deep meaning and societal message. Or they’re just household items. It depends how you choose to see the world,” Brad explained, his voice flowing over like the narrator of a philosophical documentary.

“Wow, that’s…fascinating,” Almier replied, searching for the most tactful word he could find to describe Brad’s unusual hobby.

Brad grinned, oblivious to the lack of shared enthusiasm in Almier’s tone. “It is, isn’t it! Art is a wonderful thing, indeed!”

“Yeah, I mean you should really hang out with Heather, you know. You two could know yourself out being all artsy and … stuff,” Almier didn’t really know what to say.

“Hannah,” Brad corrected him. “And she likes traditional arts.” He made a face. “I can’t stand their kind. What beauty is there in such flat, boring pieces of art? Modern art, now that is true expression, talent and beauty!”

Almier nodded quickly, not wanting to be caught in the middle of an art debate. “Yeah, that sucks, um hey Brad, I need to ask you a question,” he stammered quickly.

“Anything friend.” Friend.

“You don’t actually like both video games and shopping, do you?”