Adam [BOOK ONE]

VIII

"This will be your room, it used to be my son's so please excuse the teenage boy decor."

"It's nice, thank you again."

"No need to thank me, it's the least I can do."

Dr. Baker disappeared from the doorway and Adam dropped his bag on the bed before turning to look at me.

"He's nice."

"I agree, you have a way of making an impression on people."

"It scares me. People who are overly nice are always hiding something."

"Adam, you can't think the worse of everyone."

"You're right," he shrugged his shoulders, but he hadn't really dropped the issue. It was strange to me the way Adam's mind worked, it was almost as if he was seeing life through a looking glass and not actually living it.

The room was nice, it screamed teenage boy as the doctor had warned, but overall nice. The walls were plain a plain cream color with posters hanging by the dozens. There were two light brown dressers and a brown t.v stand that a small television sat on top of. Adam's bed was against the wall, sporting a bright blue comforter with beige pillows.

Adam sat down on the bed and sighed, I closed the door, and sat beside him.

"What's on your mind?"

"These last few weeks have been," he paused with a deep breath, "hectic."

"I know, I mean, I can't understand what you're going through but I agree it has been crazy."

"Do you think I'll ever move past this. Do you think like will ever be good for me?"

"I can't answer that. I don't know how to answer that. I think you have a good heart and a steady determination and I believe that'll get you far. I can't say how far though."

"My wife, Jae, she always told me that she loved my weirdness. It was kind of this running joke me and she had, she said she hoped that Emma was the same way. That she had my quirkiness, I've always thought it was a curse. I've never been ten toes down really, always up in the clouds."

"I think he deserved it," I whispered, "I think Georgie deserved it all."

"Before the accident, he was always on the news. He used to be drunk, stumbling around, Jae always said he was young and would learn. I once said hated him, that I hated his arrogance and how he flaunted his wealth and superiority without really caring. She told me that I couldn't hate him, that it took power away from me. After the accident, philosophical shit went out the window. I couldn't handle it, the anger I was feeling."

"Adam-"

"Thank you for being here for me, I questioned you. I questioned your motives, but I can see you mean it. You're a good person, why you like weirdos like me I can't understand, but I appreciate it."

"Is me calling you Adam okay? I know it's not your real name."

"I'm moving on from who I was before, so I'm Adam now. I like the name."

I smiled at him and he gave me a small smile back. He swung his legs around on the bed and laid out flat with his arm folded behind his head. He took the remote from the nightstand by his bed and flipped the t.v on.

"-new developments in the case of the John Doe everyone is calling Adam. The home he used to live at owned and operated by Blake Dawson have been receiving calls in support of Adam after he was kicked out of the property for allegedly being too much of a distraction. Several people have called in saying that if Adam was the person who killed Georgie, he's a hero. Georgie Phillips may be a popular household name, but less for his father, billionaire Desmond Phillips and more for his antics when he was alive. He was often in and out of prison, most commonly for domestic violence, DUI, and several counts of aggravated assault. The father of popular model, Justine Craw who formerly dated Georgie was abused by him on several occasions, spoke out this morning say that he will even help with legal fees and that he was trying to get direct connect with Adam. Now Mike, what's your opinion on this whole thing? Now Georgie Phillips, not a great guy, but can you really justify Adam's alleged actions?"

"Will this is what we call moral grey area, I mean Georgie Phillips was a spoiled, rude brat when he was alive. Beat his girlfriend so badly, that she had to have reconstructive surgery. The law has never caught up to him, I mean this guy, Adam, is kind of a modern-day Robin Hood if he actually did this. That's one point I do want to lie heavily on, is that the police don't know that he actually did what they're accusing him of and as of right now there is no evidence. Do I think that murder is okay? Absolutely not. But, if you put him in front of a jury and explain his wife and child were killed by negligence, there are too many bleeding hearts to not let him go."

"Now we're going to take it over to Jackie for the afternoon weather update."

The tv faded into the background as I looked at Adam who was staring directly up at the wall. His arm folded behind his head and his other arm laid across his chest.

"Do you believe in God," he whispered, so quietly I almost didn't hear him.

"I don't know. I guess I do, do you?"

He shrugged, "I don't know. After they died, I went to church every Sunday. I prayed, I sang, I clapped, I did everything I knew how to do and God left me in the courtroom. He left. My heart dropped to the floor, it was like I couldn't breathe. I looked up at the ceiling and screamed why. He shook his lawyers' hands and thanked them, and he walked out. He looked back at me once, mouthed a sorry, and kept going. He was drunk again the next night, I saw the news report, they flashed Emma and Jae on the screen and talked about his behavior and everyone said he deserves justice. But nothing. Nothing happened."

"So you don't believe in him anymore?"

He sat up, "I think I don't because I had to do shit myself. If he wasn't dead, it would have been someone else's wife and child the next day. The day after that, someone else. I had to end it myself, so I don't believe in anybody but myself."

"Where'd you go, after you killed him?"

"Everywhere, I got a little RV and set out on the road. I visited all the places we liked, I cried, I healed. By the time I got to the hospital, my hair was overgrown, I hadn't showered, and I hadn't eaten in weeks. I had to detox myself, I had to forgive myself."

"Elena! Adam! Come down here please."

Adam stood up quickly, opening the door and holding it out for me as I walked by. He took the steps two at a time, while I followed behind trying to keep up. When we got downstairs, we were met by a shaken Dr. Baker and two police officers.

"We just want to ask you guys some questions if that's okay. Not accusing you of anything, just want to get to the bottom of this."

AUTHOR'S NOTE
cliffhangers are still the best.