The Immortal

The interviewer smiled as his subject sat across from him. He waited until the man smiled back, seemingly settled, before opening his mouth.

"Thank you so much for taking time out of your -I'm assuming, very busy- schedule to be able to come and talk for awhile."

The man grinned and flippantly waved hand. "No need to thank me. It's always a pleasure to talk to people about my...unique...life."

"So it is true that...you're..."

"No need to hold back like it's a curse word." The man laughed.

The interviewer chuckled with him. "You're right. It's just strange saying the word...immortal...out loud now that I have one sitting across from me."

"A lot of people say that."

"So others know of you?"

"Yes."

"Why aren't you famous yet?"

"People these days still believe everything's a hoax."

The interviewer hummed before startling, "Where are my manners!" He stated, extending his hand. "I'm Simon."

The immortal took his hand and gave it a firm shake. "I've had many names given to me over the years. But you can just call me James."

"James." Simon nodded, sitting back.

"So. Let's get to business. My first question is...can you show me proof that you're...immortal?"

James chuckled. "That is also a very common thing people ask." He smiled."May I?" He asked, motioning towards Simon's pen.

Simon raised a brow and handed it over, jumping with a curse as James slammed the tip into his palm then yanked it out again.

Simon gasped as blue blood oozed from the wound.

"I-it's blue!"

"Yeah." James laughed. He swiped a finger over the cut and like magic it had already started to scab over. He wiped the remaining blood onto his pants and handed Simon back his pen.

"H-how? If you don't mind me asking."

"I don't remember how they did it exactly. The scientists used a  bunch of chemicals I believe. They never gave me the exact details."

"So you were made immortal...in a lab?"

"Yes sir."

"What year were you born?"

"Twenty twenty."

"Oh. Wow. S-so you're...One hundred and ninety seven?" The interviewer choked out, completely dumbfounded.

"Yes."

"You don't look a day over twenty five!"

"The perks of being immortal. Everlasting beauty." James joked.

The interviewer laughed.

"So you look  twenty five, but how old do you actually feel?"

The man's smiled faltered. "Very...very old."

"Have you traveled the world yet?"

"Yes. A few times actually."

"How do you pay for that?"

"The government pays me every month just for being alive. My immortality was created during a government funded experiment."

"What major events have you witnessed?"

The man huffed a sigh. "Many. Wars. Riots. Revolutions. The like."

"Do you have to breath?"

"Yes. If no oxygen is available, let's say if I was under water, the chemicals in my blood change carbon dioxide into breathable oxygen that continues to cycle through me until real oxygen is available."

"Do you appreciate life as much as a mortal would?"

"I would assume I do. I act pretty much like I would if I was mortal, sans the fact I don't die or...age." He finished lamely.

"I'm assuming it must have been difficult adjusting for the first couple of days."

"Yes. It was strange at first. I can suddenly  get shot or stay underwater for hours and still walk away like nothing."

"You said you were part of a government funded experiment. Does that mean there are...more of you? More immortals?"

James downcasted his eyes, uncapping and taking a sip from the water bottle that had been sitting next to him the entire time. He cleared his throat then answered.

"N-No. I'm the only one. Th-...The others didn't survive the experiment."

"How many people were there?"

"Twenty. Ten men and ten women."

"God. How did they..."

"Their bodies didn't...agree...with the chemicals. Cardiac arrest. Internal bleeding. Brain aneurysms. Et cetra. Et cetra."

"How does it feel...to watch people die around you?"

"Like hell."

Simon could see the life draining from the man, the sparkle in his sapphire blue eyes slowly dying away with each question he uttered. Eyes the same color as his blood.

"Have you ever been married?"

"Yes.Three times."

"Quite the player." Simon smiled.

"Immortality gets lonely. You get time to experiment. I've also gone through a multitude of lovers. Men. Woman. Both. Inbetween. Neither. You name it."

"What happened to your past marriages?"

"The first was a woman named Amelia. She died at 40 from pancreatic cancer. The second was also a woman, Elizabeth. She died at 82 from a stroke. I'm with a man now who's 43. We've been together for a few years now. His name's Julius."

"Did any of your past wives give you any children?"

"Yes!" James replied animatedly, the light suddenly returning. "Amelia gave me a beautiful son and daughter and Elizabeth gave me another daughter."

"Are they immortal too?"

Jame's smile faded, his face going grim once again as if he remembered something terrible.

"N-No. They aren't. Weren't."

"How do-...did you know?"

"Th-ey..." James stopped and cleared his throat again, trying to cover up the fact that his voice cracked with emotion.

"They started to grow. The years past and they began to look older than I did." Tears welled up in his eyes. "Burying your children is hard. Especially when you're young enough to look like you're their child rather than the other way around."

"So they'r-"

"Yes." James interrupted. "My first two are. My third is looking into nursing homes right now."

"Do you ever want to die?" Simon whispered, watching tears roll down the man's cheeks, leaving lazuli blue trails behind them.

James very slowly looked up, locking eyes with the interviewer.

"All the time."

"Well...this was...enlightening." Simon uttered softly, a tad choked up himself. The man thanked the immortal and the pair shook hands again before Simon reached over and shut off his camera.