Emotions

Chapter 21: The Woman's Secret

Once certain that the two of them are gone, I let myself slide down the wall. I take hold of the shirt above my chest. Honestly, this many things happening after each other is bad for my heart.

''Are they gone?'' Lido questions in a cautious tone.
''Yeah..'' I exhale, being more at ease.
''Great!'' Lido steps in front of me and reaches out to me. ''Come on.''
''Right.'' I grab his hand, which he uses to get me back on my feet.

We walk over to the base of the vent. A cold breeze makes the two-bladed fan creak as it slowly turns. That reminded me of the third blade Bane threw away earlier. I look to the other side of the alley. The bent blade lays on the ground underneath a crack in the wall. The odor of overly sweet perfume fills my nose. It's from the nearby trash inside one of the weary carton boxes, placed under the vent. I still don't understand why they try to make trash smell nice.

''Well, let's get back up there, shall we?'' Lido says while stretching. With that, we repeat the procedure we did the previous time, which is me launching Lido in and Lido pulling me in afterward.

As we crawl back to the man and woman in the bunker, I hear Lido's thoughts slip.
''That kid...'' Lido mumbles in thought.
''Kid? Ah, you mean the one that those two talked about?"
"Yeah... Do you..." Lido stops moving forward.
"Hmm?"
Hesitant to do so, Lido continues: "Do you think that kid is brainwashed, too?"

With that question, the air around us turns glum. It was a question nobody was willing to ask. Even though brainwashing is a normal thing at this point, I'll never get used to it. At least... I hope I don't. But.... could it be the case with the kid? Just the thought makes my mood plummet.

I turn my back on Lido. I grit my teeth as rage takes me over for a bit.
"God... I hope not."

Those heavy words ring through the vent. Lido goes quiet in response, but decides to go forward again after a quick breath. Heh, I would too. Just to escape the tense situation we are in.

Soon, the end of the vent comes into sight.
We wanted to open with a big hello, but the man and woman are in the middle of a conversation. Not wanting to interfere just yet, we listen in.

"Are... Are you serious?!" The man sounds highly upset. The woman stands in front of him, startled by his sudden outburst.
"Why... Why?!" He yells, his voice shaking. He comes in closer, his fist flies to her tethered shirt, taking hold of it.

Lido jumps down without saying a word. The recoil of the landing didn't faze him for long.
Within a second, he stands in the middle of the two, pushing the man away from the woman. The man had no choice but to let go.

"What are you-?" The man says offended, but stopped halfway due to the eye contact he made with Lido. Lido faces the man with an intimidating glare. The man's face turns pale as he slowly backs away. As his friend, I could tell... Lido is pissed off.

The woman places her hand on top of Lido's shoulder.
"The kids... are they okay?" She asks with concern. Yet, her fear of the man still lingers.
Lido puts his hand over hers.
"Yeah, they're save." Lido replies in a calm tone. The woman exhales relieved. However, Lido refuses to take his eyes of the man. 

I decide to intervene by jumping down as well. Although, the impact of landing from such height makes my legs shake for a while.

"Calm down, Lido!" I shout, now standing in-between the man and Lido. Unable to look at the man directly, Lido now looks me in the eyes. He clicks his tongue, not satisfied with the interruption.

"What happened?" I look at both of them for an answer, but neither is willing to speak up.
Until the woman let herself fall down on her knees.
"It's not his fault..." She speaks in tears. "If I only took my pills..." The tears spill from her eyes onto her lap. "I'm sorry..." She burrows her face into her hands.

I rush over to her to lend support. I bend down,  placing my hand on her leg.
"What does she mean with 'pills'? " Lido questions, shifting his attention back to the man who's still cowering from Lido.
"S-She has medication to prevent anxiety attacks. She said they provided the pills at the facility, too." The man stutters, avoiding Lido's still slightly enraged face. "And for some reason, she hasn't been taking them." He adds.

All are now focused on the broken-down woman. In now an uneasy silence, I bite my lip as I bring myself to ask the burning question.
"I hate to ask this of you right now but.... Could you please give an explanation?"

The woman removes her hands from her face. She looks at me with lucid eyes. Her breathing gets heavier. With a shaking nod, her mouth opens.

"I... I stopped because I don't want my daughter to know. Lia a smart girl... Once she saw me taking them she already threw questions at me. I just can't-"

"So you just stop taking them at all?! That doesn't make any sense!" The man reverts back to his upset state.

The woman clutches her chest, frightened, she resumes.
''But it's not just that. It's true that the medication prevents it from happening, but I also feel myself slipping away with every pill I take. Like... I'm turning into a different person.''

The woman gasps, as if she became aware of something new.
''What if... What if.''
She turns to me, her face more petrified than before.
''What if I seize to be myself?''