Ember

Ember -3- (Story of an ex-Superhero)

When Reno was small, he was always the kind of kid that flew under everyones radar. If you had looked at him when he was in kindergarden you would think he was the sweet type of boy with his large navy blue eyes and light hair. But looks can be deceiving.  

If someone threw a pencil at the teacher when her back was turned, they always blamed the few rowdier boys of the classroom. They believed Reno's little deceptive lies and sweet good-natured face and deemed him innocent. Of course, he wasn't innocent. Ever.  

He was a bit like the rowdy boys who started fights on the playground but he was even a step higher than them. He was very sneaky and very smart. If you caught him doing something suspicious like having his stubby little fingers in the teachers purse, he would put on an innocent face by arching his white blond eyebrows and making his eyes grow to the size of half-dollar coins and say he was trying to slip a thank-you note into her purse.  

Of course, he was too cruel of a child to be giving out thank you notes to teachers. But no one knew that and he was fine with it and as for what he was really doing with the teachers purse was a task that was already done. Let's just say he had enough dollars to spare after that.

Reno was an instigator.

He liked to see people fight each other.

When he was in third grade, he would lie to two kids who could be best friends or sworn enemies. It didn't matter to him.  

He would whisper lies in both of their ears and the result was always, always fights with broken noses and blood and him standing off to the side smiling like a cobra who infected his prey.

You could say Reno was psychotic. He was. He exhibited many traits of psychopathy: a charming disposition, a very great talent for lying, a mastered art of manipulation, along with a lack of empathy.

He was diagnosed when he was in the fourth grade after being caught threatening one of the girls in his class. He had a switchblade at her neck and already had made several slashes up her forearms.

The girl said he had no purpose, no drive to hurt her. She said he had hurt her just because he could. Maybe he did and maybe he didn't, but whatever the case was, Reno liked being powerful and he liked the fact that he could manipulate people.

But he couldn't in the rehabilitation center.  

________

When he was thirteen, Reno had been in the rehabilitation center for almost four years. He hated it at first. He hated all the white plastered walls and linoleum floors. He hated the straightjackets they had put him in when he acted up. Of course, that only happened on occasion but they still happened.

He went to therapy everyday. He hated it when he first came to the center. But over time, he had opened up and was beginning to try sort through his problems.

The Doctors had no idea what caused his psychopathy. He hadn't been abused or hurt when he was smaller. He was brought up in a safe environment like any other good natured kid. 

But they hadn't bothered to give him a brain scan because either they thought is was unneeded or that they were scared of what they would find.

Reno was sitting in his room that had white sheets and white curtains and white paint on the walls. He hated the color white but he didn't have a single idea why. Well, he did have an idea, he was a psycho. Simple as that.

Hey lay on his bed. They let him have a TV this month. He had been a good boy in his therapy sessions. In truth, he had begun to feel a bit of guilt for hurting that girl back in fourth grade.