A Second Chance

Part 33 - Lost?

"Mmmm..." I muttered, opening my eyes.

"Hey, you're awake!"

"What?"

"The nearest hospital was pretty far, but it looks like the syringe kept you alive long enough. You must have been in a big firefight, right?"

I found myself in a hospital room, covered in bandages. Blood and various fluids were being pumped into my body by whatever you call those things; I'm pretty sure they're called 'tubes.' I couldn't move, but I felt relieved knowing I survived.

"Don't tell me they took your hearing too," came the voice again.

I turned toward the source and saw the cab driver. He had a few large bruises on his face, but otherwise, he looked fine. He was smiling, his face etched with a mix of relief and compassion.

"Y-you're okay..." I sighed in relief. "T-thank God."

"Made it out with some trouble," he replied. "But was I helpful?"

"You saved me more than once," I assured him. "If you hadn't been there, I would've been caught the moment I arrived!"

"That's good to hear," he smiled. "But what exactly happened out there?"

"I got shot multiple times," I explained. "I can't go into the full details of the mission, but it was a success. Good thing you volunteered to come along; if it weren't for you, I wouldn't be here now."

"Just doing my job as your ally, brother."

This mission made me realize the world isn't as bad as some people make it out to be. It's full of color—not as black-and-white as others would have you believe. The bad people or negative outcomes can hurt you to the point where you generalize, but most people are good. If your environment isn't, then you need to move and find a better one.

The cab driver and my interactions with others in this city showed me that people don't suck. If you think they do, you're probably hanging out with the wrong ones. Had I not trusted the cab driver, I would've died back there, the moment I entered the basement to steal that document on Synergy.

I sighed in relief. What I said to the ninja during my hallucination was true—I'd just been unlucky to trust the wrong people. I thought my old crew had my back, but they turned on me because of a false accusation. Now I know not everyone is like them, or like the people who were booing me in that courtroom.

"Damn... life is interesting," I muttered. "The more missions I do, the more new things I uncover,"

"Do you have any hobbies?" the cab driver inquired. "Anything you like doing? It can be casual."

"Umm... I like to play videogames, watch movies, dabble with computers, and engineering..."

"Engineering?! I thought you were a special agent!"

"I am," I replied. "But I just have a passion for engineering. If I wasn't a special agent, I would definitely have gone into engineering."

"Engineering... that's actually my major, sort of! I'm an Aerospace Engineering major!"

"You're also a college student?!" I exclaimed. "This is the second college student I've met who's a cab driver!"

"Well, tuition isn't bad for me. I just do this job for fun because I get to see all the wonders of Singapore all the time."

"What about your classes?"

"I'm on break right now, so no classes. Normally, I wouldn't have been your cab driver because I usually drive very late at night due to how hard my classes are."