Intellectual Findings

Escapes and New Findings

Bright was never the type to be considered soft or gentle. He was a man who joined this world of his own choosing. He walked in with his head held high expecting everything he predicted then rose through the ranks with raw violence and scheming. Bright knew how he was feared, he knew how the streets stood on command whenever his mere cologne was mentioned.

He took pride in how clean his streets were knowing just how unaware most citizens were of his existence. He thrived on respect, efficiency, and loyalty. Thus he expects everyone to know their roles and responsibilities in his organization. They were a machine... and machines can always be broken or hacked if there was even a person out of place, something that Bright would never allow and his machine knew this. Bright had no problem with getting his hands dirty. In fact, he even enjoyed it every once in a while.

But the need for control takes a toll on one's body, especially when one is not allowed to seek outside comfort so Bright makes it a point to make time for himself—making sure that he takes a moment to center his being in a world that would enrich his mind and soul. This is why books have always been his means of escape.

It allowed him to lose himself outside the world of blood and general darkness. He was allowed to create a world that even he could not destroy and that brought him peace in ways that only his mother had once achieved when he was just a small boy.

Bright had learned of a new bookstore that was opening in his area and planned to make a short stop there. He was surprised when he learned how the one who owns it was as young as he was and had only recently moved to his city. While the area was not small, it was rare that people relocated to stay unless they had hidden agendas. Bright admits that he had some suspicions though all were thrown away with a simple background check into the man and his business licenses. The young man seemed to be well-liked, especially among the elders and Bright knew those old farts were hard to please. Hell, they still turned their lips up at him and he's nearly lived his whole life around them.

It was weeks before the small store crossed his mind again, only piquing his interest when his mind supplied the information at random, setting aside some mundane paperwork, Bright offhandedly asked his right-hand man to stop by the building as they were on the same side of town.

The small building was charming, looking vaguely out of place as trees and gardens surrounding a cottage-style home came into view. A sunbeam shone brightly on the small home, giving the small area an unnatural appearance that even left his driver in awe as he pulled into a random spot in front of a low white fence. They would have thought they were at the wrong place if not for a sign on top of the building that had the words, "Snawfus Bookshop," swirled elegantly on a styled wooden board in white and decorated with a deer and more flowers than Bright could name.

"Sir... Are we still in the same area? We didn't leave Bangkok right?" P'Boy asked rounding the car to open the door for his Boss.

Bright's face remained just as confused as he stepped out, letting the elder man smooth the lapels of his black bespoke suit jacket and fix the white pocket square. He turned to look across the street, feeling even more confused as he saw an old run-down factory, looking as depressing and desolate as the rest of this area, then back to the quaint house that seemed to be blessed by an unknown spirit and shines brighter. He said nothing as he walked up the cobblestone path, his shoes clicking as he approached the wooden door with a blue-themed flower wreath highlighting a circle window. P'Boy opened it for him, sounding an unseen bell as he walked through the door and past the small desk at the front that stood for the checkout area.

Bright was internally pleased with how the outside matched the interior although it was bigger than he had imagined. Bookshelves filled with endless genres, some on the floor in obvious overspill but still neat and artful places. There were several small tables and chairs around and even a quant window nook that was big enough for someone to lie down could partially be seen. The sun filtering through the various windows gave the area natural hues of brown along with the greens from the plants laying around, the feeling of reading in the shade of a tree while sitting in a pasture. Bright felt comfortable and quiet even the talkative P'Boy was taking in the serenity as they roamed through the store.