The Disparate One

Chapter 13 - Outside

The robot had enough. Even though he knows that Oxford will be angry at him, he still wants to explore the world, see how humans get along with each other. After he made sure that Oxford's vehicle has finally left his sight, he went to his bedroom and grabbed a brown coat, a fedora hat that has the same color with the coat, brown pants and black shoes, so that he will blend in with the people in the streets. He promised himself that he will be only going to the central park, stroll around and return back home before someone sees him in the streets.

He walked out of the room and when he placed his right hand on the knob of the door, which leads to the elevators, that is where he noticed that he won't be able to leave the penthouse that easy. He looked around the area for a way to get down. He peaked his head out of the window and saw fire exit stairs on the side of the building. He checked every window in the penthouse where he can fit, he found one, near the kitchen, it also leads straight to the fire exit.

Rain and gusts of winds greeted the undercover robot when he finally got out of the penthouse. He placed his left hand on the railings as he started to walk down the staircase. He kept his awareness high as he went further down, closer to the streets of the city. He brought the ladder down gently and there he is, standing in an alley. In front of him is the sidewalk, behind him is another sidewalk. He checked the coat first if it is open or not before he walked out from the alley and ended up standing, looking around, at the side of the sidewalk.

He continued to avoid eye contact with the people walking past him. He immediately regretted leaving the penthouse, he began to feel scared from the people, he doesn't know what will happen if someone sees him as an artificial robot, but he also feels free from the rules, so instead of going back to the penthouse, he headed for the central park, by foot. Thirty minutes have passed, rain is still pouring and winds are still blowing, the robot finally arrived at the central park without getting caught.

He didn't find a single human in the park, which made him sad, so he turned around and started to walk back home. He noticed that he was not wearing gloves, as a result, his hands are completely exposed to the public, so he hid them in the coat's pockets. The glass case that protects his eyes from the outside began to moist from the inside, hence his vision started to get foggy. He entered a coffee shop so that the moist will be gone, but it will take a while since he is completely dripping water on the wooden floor, which is making a small puddle at the entrance.

When he noticed it, he quickly left the store and back to the streets. He looked around his environment as he tried to identify where he is in the city. He should have planned this before he even tried to leave the penthouse. He only knows the way to the central park, what he doesn't know is the way back. He didn't even try to memorize the path or the landmarks. He started to panic as he continued to walk. He began to shiver as the rain continued to pour and winds continued to blow. He suddenly bumped into a stranger, he hesitated but said sorry to the person that he bumped with.

He tried to look up, searching for the building that has a penthouse on top of it. He already knows that he is lost. He began to think as he took shelter in a bus stop.

"Hello sir, can I talk to you about our savior, Jesus Christ?", a lady popped up in front of him, asking.

"N-No... I can't, I gotta go sorry.", said the robot immediately and left the bus stop, keeping his head down and his hands hidden.

He turned left into an alley, searching for a place to hide. He thought of a plan and that is to wait for Oxford to go look for him. He knew that it is stupid, but it's either that or getting caught. He finally found a place, but it concerns him since it is just behind a dumpster. He decided to return to the central park since it is his favorite place. Also, Oxford knows it, so if he noticed that he is not in the penthouse, the central park will be his first place to look.

He sat down on a bench with his legs close together, his hands are still hidden, and moved his head down. He was admired by the droplets of water falling down and making ripples on the puddle near his left foot. He continued to shiver as he waited for Oxford to look for him. He started to think that Oxford will not look for him, since he has only one simple rule to follow, and that is to not leave the penthouse without his permission.

Soon the rain came to a stop and the winds have calmed down, but the street lights have bee turned on since it is getting dark. The bench, where he is sitting, was near a light source. He stared at the black shadow of him on the ground. He started to ask himself some questions like, what is Oxford doing now, what he might be doing if he hasn't left the penthouse, and when will Oxford come home.

"Forgive me please.", said the robot in a very low tone, keeping himself awake in case a person decided to make contact with him.