They buried the rest of the bodies quite easily. Alex was quite happy when he found out that Silas had the ability to use three elements. It took him a while to realize, but when he did, he was quite ecstatic.
After they were done, Silas decided that Nymira and Alex should probably get to know each other better. He had quite a few plans for them, and even though he knew for sure that Nymira would do anything for him as long as it was part of their deal for him to save her, he wasn’t so sure of Alex at first.
However, now that he had seen Alex help them get rid of two dozen bodies, he was pretty sure that he’d be down for anything.
Though, if Alex did decide to betray them, he had a precautionary measure to make sure he’d regret it for the rest of his remaining life.
Hell, Silas was certain that Alex wouldn’t be able to speak a single word of what happened that day without, at the very least, feeling the worst pain he had ever felt in his life.
At the end of the day, Silas and Alex chose to leave. Nymira thanked them with a bow before closing the door behind them.
“Woah.” Alex sighed.
“What is it.” Silas asked.
“You’re girlfriend really doesn’t trust us.”
“Again, not my girlfriend.” Silas sighed with a little bit of annoyance, however, Alex actually noticed Silas’ frustration this time and raised his own brow.
“Really? So she’s free for the taking?” Alex asked with a slightly excited voice, while Silas simply shrugged.
“I suggest you don’t try anything. She might be your co-worker soon, and if you two break up, it might make things a little awkward.” Silas chuckled while Alex glared at him.
“Who said we’ll break up, huh?” Alex crossed his arms, however, he could not help but feel a shiver down his spine.
While Silas seemed like he was speaking in a mildly friendly mood, it didn’t feel like that when he said the last thing. Actually, Alex almost felt like it was a threat, so within an instant, his thoughts of going for Nymira went out of his mind.
‘Maybe they are dating… Or maybe Silas likes her?’ Alex thought, yet it was quite the opposite.
Silas didn’t mind them dating, though, it would disrupt his plans a little too much for his liking. Also, the previously mentioned risk was still very much a risk. He needed them to be a team, not a couple.
“She’s really closed off though, isn’t she.” Alex muttered.
“Yeah… I guess she is, but if you’ve seen the kind of things she’s gone through, there aren’t many other paths one may go on.” Silas explained.
“I don’t know. I think it’s better to remain smiling, you know? You gotta remain jolly! You have to smile at the world for it to smile back at you, you know?” Alex asked while turning to Silas, while Silas turned to him with a slightly flabbergasted expression.
“Who did you steal the from?” Silas narrowed his eyes.
“Ah. You caught me.” Alex chuckled, yet he didn’t say where he got it from.
“But, you”re not technically wrong.” Silas sighed.
“You’re not wrong.” Silas chuckled, but once again, Alex felt like there was something wrong with the chuckle.
Actually, he felt like any emotion that Silas showed was always slightly fake. As if he was putting on an act to please the people around him.
It didn’t feel like that back at Nymira’s house, but now that they were both alone, it was becoming a little more obvious.
“Those who smile through everything will see the world smile back at them. Those who laugh in the face of everything will see people cheer for them with all their hearts. Those kind of people become inspirations. They become things far beyond their singular being.” Silas spoke while remembering some of the people back on his planet.
“They become a symbol. They become hope.” Silas explained.
“They become heroes to everyone around them…”
“But that isn’t me. I’m not the hero of any more story. I’m not the hero of my own story… There are people like me who can’t smile at the world like you do because when we smile at the world, the world chooses to take advantage of our smile.
The world crushes our dreams right before our eyes, and all we can do is sit there and watch.”
“You… You sound like you’re talking from experience.” Alex commented while scratching the back of his head.
He didn’t really know what to say. He understood what Silas was saying, but at the same time, only someone who’s gone through the same things as Silas would truly know what he meant.
“Think of it like this. I left my family back in my city to keep them safe. To help them. Yet, here I am, incapable of doing anything as they suffer the fate I was supposed to suffer. And then… I come to the realization that, despite not wanting to admit it, I ran away from them not to save them, but for a selfish reason.” Silas chuckled, yet Alex could feel an ounce of rage in it.
“How does one live with themself when they know they are the reason their family is suffering?” Silas asked.
“But, you can’t blame that on yourself-” Alex paused when Silas opened his mouth again.
He couldn’t help but feel like there was a sudden pressure around Silas that made him want to kneel.
“You do it anyway.
Because it’s your responsibility to make it right…”
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