The Behavior Game

39. "I UNDERSTAND."

39. "I UNDERSTAND."

He sat down at the water's edge, staring into Fate's eyes, the same eyes he sees when he looks in a mirror. There were some slight differences between Fate and himself, such as the absence of the scar on Fate's mouth, and the marks on his arms and legs were also gone. Mac looked down at his own hands, forgetting they were strapped around his body in a straightjacket.

"You put this on me?" He asked Fate.

Fate smiled, with air expelling between his crooked teeth. He spoke, his cold mechanical voice drifting around the room. "WOULDN'T WANT YOU HURTING YOURSELF."

He crossed his legs and leaned down so his face was close to Fate's. "Why am I in this game?" he desperately wanted an answer to this, ever since the first day.

"WE NEED YOU HERE. YOU'RE SECTION OF HUMANDKIND." This answer wasn't satisfying, but Mac knew Fate would never tell him the real reason, and he'd never find out.

"Did I kill Betty?" He asked suddenly.

Fate smiled up at him. "YOU ARE A MURDERER."

Mac looked down into the water. "You wanted me to kill her, didn't you?" he bunched up his shoulders, twisting the jacket around his body. "I guess we're both murderers then."

"I'M WILLING TO FORGIVE YOU." Fate told him.

"And I'm going to have to forgive you too," Mac told him. "I don't think you'll ever let me die if I don't." he inched closer to the water, sliding one foot into the pool.

"ARE YOU GOING TO TRY AND KILL YOURSELF AGAIN?" Fate asked. "IT'S POINTLESS, LIKE YOU SAID."

"I know it's pointless. Life is pointless, trying to kill myself is, and moving from room to room is all just a way of playing me until I finally die." He pointed to his submerged foot. "This is as close as I'll ever get to drowning as long as you're around. Even though I can't swim, and I don't think you can either, you'll find a way to keep me above this pool for as long as you can. I don't understand why."

"IT'S BECAUSE I'M NOT READY FOR YOU YET. I'LL TELL YOU WHEN IT'S TIME, BUT IT ISN'T TIME YET."

"Don't you understand that I'm ready?"

"I UNDERSTAND. I AM FATE, SO I KNOW WHEN THE TIME WILL COME. I KNEW BETTY'S TIME WAS UP, SO I TOOK HER AWAY. YOUR TIME WILL COME, BUT YOU HAVE TO WAIT. SO MANY PEOPLE WAIT THEIR ENITRE LIFE FOR IT, BUT IT'S ME WHO DECIDES. AND I'M NOT DONE WITH YOU YET."

"At least your life has purpose," he studied Fate's eyes, wondering why his eyes weren't brown and blue, but instead an iridescent color, one that mimicked the color of the water.