I walked upstairs to meet my class for the last time since I had caught the people behind the abduction of missing students. It was not a complete success because I haven’t taken down their boss, but the abduction would cease to exist in this university. The next thing they’ll do is to lie low and look for an alternative scheme to continue their business.
I placed the pile of test papers on my desk and stood in front of them.
“As you all know, today is my last day as your professor, because I’m only a substitute. Today, I’m going to let you have the privilege to ask me some personal questions. Take note, not everyone has the chance. What happens in the classroom, stays in the classroom. Got that?”
The student nodded as they smiled and gossiped about some gibberish I couldn’t understand.
“But before that, I’ll return your test papers. I’m glad you studied well because your scores are great. The highest score in the class is still Miss Morris. Congratulations.”
They clapped their hands while Kylo looked ashamed.
“Raise your head, Miss Morris. Tell us your secret.”
The class went silent and waited for Kylo to speak.
“Ugh… actually… someone helped me,” she said.
“Was it Treyton?”
“Your boyfriend is so sweet.”
They teased her.
“No. It’s not him. I found a notebook under my bed. It has written messages for me and it came from my dad. He gave me some advice on how to study well and be the best version of myself. But it’s kind of weird because he approved of Treyton as my boyfriend. He died when I was a kid and I met Treyton in high school.”
The students were shocked, and I became curious about it.
“Your dad might be a clairvoyant,” I said.
They laughed and cleared the odd scenario in their head.
“Let’s start! Who would like to come first?”
Someone raised his hand.
“Yes, Trevor?”
“How old are you?”
“What? What kind of question is that?”
They chuckled.
“That’s way too personal, but I’ll be honest, since you’re my favorite class. I’m 25 years young,” I said and winked at them.
They shook their heads in disagreement.
Another student asked me.
“Do you have a girlfriend?”
“Girlfriend? Unfortunately, no. But I have a wife. Girlfriends are for amateurs.”
“Your wife must be awesome to handle someone like you.”
“Yeah. She’s the coolest woman in the world. We are a hundred percent compatible, though the benefits of our relationship are favorable to her.”
“Is she your first love?”
“No,” I replied.
“Then who’s your first love?”
“Myself.”
They did not expect my answer. They looked at one another with a puzzled expression. I sighed.
“Why are you surprised? Aren’t we supposed to love ourselves before anyone else? How can you give something you don’t have?”
I crossed my arms and walked back and forth.
“You should know something about this basic. Remember that you don’t get what you want, you get what you are. That’s how love works.”
“Professor… you keep talking about love. By the way, what is love?”
“What are you? A slam book? How can you love yourself when you don’t even recognize love itself?”
Romance never goes out of style. It does not wither or die like plants in a glimpse of summer. We fall into its captivating curse the moment we find perfection in a soul filled with flaws. The second we see beauty in the laceration of their scars and lips maneuvered by deception, we are bound to plunge into the deepest fragment of their life. The day our heart palpitates at a rapid velocity is the day we chain ourselves to an immeasurable misery.
Love is an inescapable prison cell. It is a life sentence that we impose on ourselves. It is when our flesh is free, yet our heart is paralyzed. The function of our brain may perish and obey the echoing sound of the call of the void. It showers us with a ludicrous momentary illusion of eternal pleasure. But in the end, it summons the demon within us and does a crime not punishable by law and explainable beyond human wisdom. It leads us to an execution not accompanied by lethal injection, electric chair, or a rope. We are simply our own executioners with death caused by idiosyncrasies and masochism.
Love is a choice and not a necessity to exist and be felicitous. Happiness lies within us. It’s not always something that we acquire; rather, it is something that we build alone. But loneliness differs from solitude. The contentment brought by solitude can withstand all the temptations of love. We have the chance to untie the knot or not to tie it in the first place. It’s not an act of cowardliness, but protection from a catastrophe we’re not ready to face. One day, we’ll be able to experience a horrifying event with popcorns on our left hand, while we intertwine the right one with the grim reaper.
When the class was over, I went straight to the headquarters and faced the director. Tension crept inside her office after I told her the bad news.
“Please accept my resignation letter. You have no choice because this is my decision,” I said.
“Why all of a sudden?” she asked.
“I’ve been thinking about it for a year. This is the right time for me to quit.”
“What happened to you, Vad? You’re not the type who’s going to throw away everything. You’re the best in the business. It’s too early to quit.”
Lines drew on her forehead.
“I know you’re going to say that. I am an asset to IIF, but I can’t stay here forever because I already have a weakness, and that is my wife. I want to live in the countryside with my family and start a new life away from this mess.”
She smiled.
“Family… this is the first I’ve heard that word from you. You’ve grown apart from your past.”
“My past is still one with me, but the present has more control over me.”
“Okay, then. Thank you for your service, agent Vad Wagner.”
The rumor spread all over the headquarters. Most of them could not believe it. I have built a strong character and firm principle no one could destroy. Surrendering my title for the sake of my family was never a part of my plan. It just happens to be my hidden desire to be completely happy.
I was asleep with my wife beside me. It was the most comforting thing any medicine could not give — warmth from the one you cherish.
“Vad.”
Someone called my name. I thought it was my wife, so I opened my eyes and saw that she tightly shut her eyes.
“Vad.”
I’d like to ignore it, but it kept on calling me. I thought the voices inside my head were gone. They’re back to haunt me again.
I went to the comfort room and looked at myself in the mirror.
“What do you want?” I asked.
My weary eyes pierced through their own.
I heard loud laughter.
“Can’t you remember me? This is Agares,” he said.
“I don’t know you,” I said.
“But I know everything about you… the things you’ve forgotten.”
“Do I have schizophrenia?”
My heart throbbed in panic.
“You are not hallucinating. I am real, and I saved your life.”
“Save my life? From what?”
“I will tell you everything in one condition. Help me find the traitor under my legions. As the duke of the eastern region of Hades, there are 31 legions under my command. But one of them revolted and swayed the armies to go against me.”
“That is none of my concern.”
“Are you sure you don’t want to know where the voices in your head come from? You shall regret declining my offer because I will not stop haunting you, even your family.”
I clenched my fist.
“Don’t involve my wife with this,” I said.
“Sure, only if you agree to be a demon hunter.”
END