Guilt and shoulder

click clack

The walk from school to the house was quite tiring since Matthew didn't see the point of bringing his bike when he couldn't take two person at the same time and it was too early to call for a car. Lauren was sleeping already on Matthew's back who gently proposed to carry her. Wyatt on the other hand had the whole path to think about what he went through but more specifically about that memory that emerged from the depth of his mind. He was so focused that he didn't realize he had opened the door yet stood like frozen holding the door handle. Matthew used his tail to nudge Wyatt's leg to make him get out of his trance. Wyatt jolted and turned back.

Matthew: "sorry if I startled you...you were spacing out i think, you okay?"

Wyatt rubbed his forehead a bit then turned to open the door widely.

Wyatt: "I'm fine...just tired is all"

Matthew didn't want to rub more of it so he just sighed and followed the german shepherd inside. The latter turned on the light and removed his shoes. He proceeded to walk towards the kitchen while Matthew closed the door behind him trying his best to make as less noise as possible to not disturb Lauren sleeping quite deeply.

Wyatt got to the fridge and grabbed a water bottle and drank it in less than seconds. He leaned on the counter, he was feeling a bit lightheaded and breathed heavily. He closed his eyes, flashbacks of that day...he was there.

Wyatt's heart started beating fast, sounds seemed amplified, he could hear the neon light making such an annoying buzzing sound, or the soft snores of Lauren in the living room still on Matthew's back. Wyatt walked but he couldn't feel his legs moving although they were, Matthew said something but he didn't hear it and kept walking upstairs to his room stumbling on the door and limping on the wall towards the bathroom and opening it weakly. He didn't bother turning on the lights and got to the cabinet under the sink. He opened it but crashed to the ground, his body shivering as he tried reaching for his pills. His hand couldn't reach it as he breathed heavily. His eyes were closing then it was dark again.

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Wyatt jolt up, coughing a bit, he was sitting on his bed helped by Matthew on the side. The latter was looking at him with a worried expression and had a glass of water in his hand almost empty.

Matthew: "Wy..t...Wyatt..."

Wyatt saw the gator's mouth moving yet he could barely make anything of it. Matthew put his hand on Wyatt's chest and looked at him in the eyes and breathed in then out and said again something that the shepherd couldn't understand. Wyatt followed the gesture and tried breathing slowly. His heartbeat started to slow down.

Matthew: "In...and...out, good"

Wyatt felt better and looked at Matthew whose expression was still of concern and fear. It was unusual to see such a fear in Matthew's eyes. Matthew's hand was still on Wyatt's chest, it was gently feeling his heart and he could notice the shepherd was calming.

Matthew: "You good buddy?"

Wyatt: "Thanks...I am..."

Matthew sighed then looked down for a moment. He looked at the shelf behind him, on it, some pills.

Matthew: "I know we haven't been friends for that much time...but I want you to know that I...I want you to ...know..."

The gator turned to the shepherd again whose expression was mostly tired but not physically. It was clear on the shepherd's face that he was not good despite his prior statement. Matthew seemed genuine with his concern yet it felt like it was deeper than that, like somehow he could feel it, that pain Wyatt's burying without doing much to hide it. Matthew's eyes were sharp and looked at Wyatt's own ones deeply.

Matthew: "You can tell me everything...I will always be there"

Wyatt didn't react to that, he knew normally he would be blushing or at least look away but now he just stared back. His eyes were half closed and glistening as if watering yet no tears was to be shed. He looked down to the floor and gripped his head with his hands using his knees as support for his elbows.

Wyatt: "it's...I used to not mind my father absence at least not so much...I could always be frustrated because of it but I never saw anything to it but his need to overwork himself...yet there's one thing I always thought my father would never do and it's...lying"

The last word got out heartfelt and Matthew could sense it. He wanted to pat the shepherd back but didn't as the latter continued.

Wyatt's voice was shaky and muffled as he tried speaking through the pain.

Wyatt: "I...was there...when he...I was..."

Matthew got closer and pat Wyatt's back gently.

Wyatt: "Dad told me when the accident happened I was waiting for them with Mrs. Goodfolk the old lady that's our neighbor...and that I was so excited to see Jack that I ran and tripped in the stairs...apparently I knocked myself out and woke up a month later ...and my brother was long dead and so was my mother...I do remember going to Mrs. Goodfolk house while they got to pick up Jack but...when the drugs were having me blackout I had a vivid dream, it wasn't one I know...it felt too real...I was there with Jack beside me, I wanted to move but my body felt so heavy and my head was hurting so much, he seemed asleep on a metal surface while sitting...there was the smell of burnt and blood and something else...how did I forget ...why...did I forget that...?"

Wyatt stopped his words full of melancholy. Matthew was silent for a second. He looked forward to the bathroom door but wasn't really looking more like fixing a point.

Matthew: "Wyatt...losing people we love is worst than any pain, trust me I know what it feels like...I'm so sorry you have to deal with this...all alone..."

Matthew got Wyatt close to his chest in a hug, no words, just the rhythmic melody of his heart to sing a lullaby to Wyatt. The latter was surprised by the gesture and found himself tightening the hug and sob...tears flooding once again on that chest. He buried his face in the alligator's embrace.

The latter just hold him close, his own eyes closed. Matthew had few thoughts yet all were on how did Wyatt managed to hold his sanity for so long. He himself lost his father and it was the worst day of his life, and not so long after that, he had to become adult sooner than he should have because he had siblings, and he also lost someone else...yet his family, those same siblings were the reason he was still able to fight and go through the pain...but Wyatt had only his father and from what it seems, even him wasn't that much of a help and if anything he thought that his father could also be living it hard in its own way. So it meant, Wyatt was left by himself with his thoughts, devouring him from the inside. Matthew held Wyatt's head and ruffled his fur gently.

Matthew: "I'm here...it's okay, let it out"

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Liam was having several holographic screens before him while he was lying on the bed. He was going through some old files from Project B-54 and some of Project W. He was also checking all the records from all the cameras during the days prior to Project W outbreak. His eyes were tired and he could clearly use some rest but he didn't stop scrolling and programming something. He was working on a special device, that should be able to track the electrical perturbation caused by Project W and locate it. Although it seemed quite an easy play for him, the fact that Project W was able to adapt so fast to his surroundings was more than outstanding and terrifying. Liam knew, it was not operating alone but the fact that it could still be able to limit its power surge to a level barely superior to that of a light bulb while siphoning energy from around it, that was just far beyond his own predictions. As weird as it sounded in his own head, he was kinda proud, he did manage to achieve what he was working on with Project W...and now he had to stop it before it realizes what it was initially designed for...Liam feared what would happen and was playing on the mental age of Project W, for now it shouldn't be higher than a toddler but with time and more energy it will soon become sentient. A knock at the door made him crisp out of his trance and close his holograms.

Liam: "come in"

The door opened slowly and Cassius was on the other side. He entered the room a d closed it before sitting next to Liam.

Cassius: "Sir, the doctor says you should be able to get out by tomorrow morning...I still insist for you to rest...it's been few days and you clearly lack sleep. You were working before I entered weren't you?"

Liam: "You worry too much about my health, you know how important this is right? What are the big heads saying?"

Cassius adjusted his position and turned on his tablet then went through some files.

Cassius: "a lot. They are all concerned about the recent outbreak of Project W, they talking about dust it under the carpet and neutralize the project"

Liam: "what?!"

Cassius: "They know about the menace level of Project W, they know if it is an attack from within our walls then the best option is to terminate the project from here..."

Liam: "That's, what?! They can't just have us do that, I...we all worked for years on that and even if it is currently being stolen from us, it works...do you realize it? It works...I can't authorize any termination of Project W..."

Cassius: "Dr. Fael...Liam...if Project W is currently in Eastpave, we can still activate the termination...it's the safest route"

Liam: "Do you think it will solve anything? Cassius...you know a lot, you know damn well that if someone was able to enter here, take something as guarded as Project W even going as far as living some kind of gigantic puzzle for us to solve without anyone seeing them or even notice anything, that person is the real danger...Terminate Project W would not mean the end...how many projects are under development, how many are within this infrastructure or underground...what if that person found a way to access them...you don't understand Cassius, that person, whoever that might be knows me...I don't know to what extent or if it is a death parade ...but they will do it again and again...if their purpose was to kill me they probably would have done so already so they must have something else in mind...and of all the project they could snatched they took that one...why? A coincidence? I doubt..."

Liam seemed very stressed by the whole ordeal and was tapping his finger on the bed while his eyes were going from one direction to another. Cassius remained silent and sighed.

Cassius: "what if that person wouldn't want chaos? What if they don't even exist and Project W got out on its own? What if you are just chasing ghosts?"

Liam: "There's no way that being is operating on its own...Cassius. I...(*sigh*) I need to think"

Cassius looked away for a second then sighed and got up to walk to the door. He stopped when he reached it then looked back at Liam.

Cassius: "Try getting some sleep...have a good night sir"

With that he exited the room leaving Liam alone with his thoughts. The latter turning on the screens. One of the screen, showcasing the device he was building, no one knew about it, not even Cassius. Liam trusted Cassius with a lot but he also knew the latter was still also following orders from higher up than him...he couldn't tell him he was creating something that will go against the higher power especially after their little chat. He was alone in this, he thought of it for a second...that solitude.

Everything leading to another, he remembered the dream or nightmare he had, a memory he wished to delete from his mind. The horror drew on his face, then sadness blended with it, that day he lost his worlds...in the most horrible way...brutally taken from him. He was on the edge of breaking, that night when he was first told that he was the lone survivor...he howled in pain that time, then hope seems to get around and he heard that one of his sons was breathing, seriously injured but alive. His relief was to none equal, tears flooded down his face. The accident left him bruised more than physically, it touched his soul on a deep level but....at least his pain would be less because he could have his son...

His son...Liam thought of him for a moment, their relation has been through a lot recently. He knew his son was just on the edge because of his absence yet...it wasn't that simple, was it? The more he grew, the older he got, the more he reminded Liam of his other son...he didn't know how to deal with that, he knew it was cruel to just avoid him because he was like his brother but that image, that nightmare just brought back the horror...he could smell the burnt odor of flesh, the suffocating mix between blood and fuel it was more than he could bear...he was ashamed, he knew his son was probably feeling just as bad and through his actions and behaviors he was found right about it...

Liam looked to the side at the window glass, the city was bright with buildings lights, and the crescent moon in the sky was already moving in the distance announcing the sun arrival in few hours. It was quite a sight, shame that had to be seen with such a heavy heart full of guilt.

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Cassius was dialing as he sat in the car. There was no lights on, all dark.

Cassius: "Yes, it's me. What do you mean we have a problem"

There was a loud explosion on the east part of the city, a huge cloud of smoke was rising as Cassius looked in stupor through his windshield. The explosion was so intense the Shockwave blew out some glasses on the buildings. It wasn't long before sirens of fire trucks were ringing. Cassius listened to the one on the other side of the phone.

Cassius: "On my way..."

He cursed under his breath and started the engine, drifting out of the parking lot like a pro pilot and dashing into the night towards the origin of that explosion.