CH 38: STORY OF A STUPID BOY
As I looked down at Rem, I couldn't help but be lost in thoughts.
Even though I always complained about the way Asmodeus tricked me, I truly was grateful for all he did for me.
Looking at her always made me remember her, my mother. A kind but foolish woman.
Thinking of her I let out a chuckle before swiping my hair with my hands, "Hey, do you wish to hear the story of someone really stupid?"
Something in my eyes must have warned her to not say anything stupid since she stopped struggling and looked at me attentively.
"*Ahem* This story is the story of a sickly, stupid and suicidal young man."
---- 3RD POV
The young man was called Caleb. There was nothing particularly noteworthy about him. Only that he always had a fragile health.
The situation worsened once he reached the age of 10. His body simply began to fail him.
It was a congenital heart disease from a recessive gene. One so rare that perhaps only one every three or four generations would get it. That boy was the one to get the 'jackpot'.
What followed were years of intense pain and torture while confined in the white walls of the hospital.
Those years left many traces on his body. Scars by the dozens from failed surgeries, a body so weak that it was pathetic, a relative lack of hair, and a gaunt expression.
At 17, the young boy who should have been a bright and handsome man was just a bag of bones and who's body was so frail it seemed it could crumble at the slightest gust of wind.
But for Caleb, all those scars were nothing. The pain was nothing. He could accept it all. After all, he wished to live. He wished to run and play outside like anyone of his age. So no, his body wasn't a problem. The problem was his family.
His family was only relatively wealthy. Said wealth was sadly spent in years and years of successive treatments, each of them more expensive than the previous one.
His beautiful mother lost her shine and his ever-smiling father became a drunkard, though never the violent kind.
Caleb had only one thought as he looked at his parents that did their all to never show any signs of struggle in front of him.
'All that was my fault. My very birth brought misfortune, pain, and misery in an otherwise happy family.'
Caleb hated himself. He hated everything about this world. More than anything, he hated his parents.
Each time he saw his mother wear patched clothes, each time he heard the sound of the growling stomach of his father, he couldn't help but hate himself.
Each of their forced smiles, each of their words of comfort, each of their actions of love was like knives slowly slashing him.
He came to resent them. Their love brought his hatred, and his hatred brought self-loathing.
It was painful to be loved. It was painful to see your loved one destroy themselves for your sake. Sometimes he couldn't help but ask himself,
'Why am I even alive? Why do people like them have to suffer so much?'
As such, he became a bastard. He insulted them, rejected them, ignored them.
Now that I think about it, it was truly childish and stupid. But… All he wanted, was for them to hate him.
He wished for them to forget him. He wished for them to never take care of him. But he was clumsy and inexperienced.
His mother cried very much and his father clenched his fist in frustration. But… They never stopped caring for him.
The boy couldn't understand. And so he lashed out in front of his parents one day.
"Why?! Why do you continue to take care of me? Why? Why do you do so much for me? Why? Why don't you give up on me?"
That day, his father adjusted his black-rimmed glasses and his mother gave out a bright smile as they said in unison,
"Because you are our son."
Those words were perhaps the most painful thing he ever heard.
That scene was one he would never forget.
---
There's one thing to be said about this boy. He had a hobby.
In this world full of hate and pain, the only things that could bring him comfort were Anime and Manga. Each time he watched them, he couldn't help but fantasize about their adventures.
But what he envied more than anything was their seemingly indestructible body. He wished more than anything to have a strong and healthy body. One that would never suffer from sickness.
He admired their tenacity, envied their drive. He wished to be able to protect those around him, he wished to be in a world where everything was alright.
As the year passed, his health never got better, only worse. But he held on.
He was always in pain, even breathing was difficult but he held on.
There was one thing he understood. His parents would never give up on him. So he couldn't make them worry. As such, he developed a philosophy.
Smile.
Always smile.
Even when it's painful. Even when there's nothing to smile for. Smile.
Crying is useless. Brooding in sadness brings nothing. So smile.
Even if the whole world crumbles in front of you. Smile.
And smile he did.
There's one thing many people do not know.
A person with depression would indeed show a sudden change in attitude after resolving to commit suicide. This was because they already sorted out their thoughts and threw away any lingering attachment and obsession with living.
People around them would see this and be relieved, thinking that the person got better. And that was when they would get hit on the back of their heads.
Caleb had long ago decided to die.
The problem was just how.
He knew his body more than anyone.
He knew that his time was nearly up. The worst was that his parents still wanted to save him by doing another surgery and inviting one of the best doctors in the world.
But… His parents were already crumbling under heavy debt. Such an operation would simply push them toward sharks.
He asked himself.
How can I help them?
How can I relieve them?
How can I stop them from destroying themselves?
The answer was surprisingly simple,
"Since I am the cause of everything, I just need to die."
That day, after sneaking out of the hospital, he used all his remaining money to call a call girl with a portable phone he stole from one of the doctors that visited him.
Doing so was surprisingly easy. After all, he had been in that hospital for so long that he knew everything there was to know.
On the way, he used some of his medications to induce a total overdose.
Finally, he died while riding a woman he didn't know the name of and who would surely be traumatized for life.
He knew it was selfish. He knew it was stupid. But, he didn't really regret it.
He wanted to die in the most shameful way possible so that his parents wouldn't be affected too much. But that wasn't all.
His true goal was to put all the responsibility of his death in that hospital.
Him sneaking out when they should have stopped him. Using pills that he shouldn't have been able to get and using the portable of one of the doctors.
As he died he thought.
'My parents should be able to get a good settlement from my death right?'
He knew that they would wail in grief, he knew that they would suffer more than anything. But… He hoped to free them from their shackles.
Good people should be happy.
As for what would happen to the hospital? Well, he didn't really care. He was a selfish bastard to the bones. Destroying the life of all those strangers for the happiness of his parents was a good deal in his eyes.
----AKIRA POV
"This is how a stupid and pathetic boy died in the silliest and humiliating way possible for equally stupid reasons."