Happy Pills - The Story of Kevin Free

Break

  Kevin was still crying when Diego entered the room, bearing that same cold aura of calm that always surrounded him. Kevin held his breath, trying to will himself to stop crying.
  "Pathetic," Diego said as he locked Kevin's door behind him. "You're crying? You did this to yourself. You broke my trust, and after I was kind enough to give you back the job you had in Desert Bluffs. How dare you?"
  Kevin looked up at Diego, frowning as he saw what the other was carrying. It was a simple hand mirror.
  Diego knelt in front of Kevin, turning the mirror so the reflective side was toward him.
  Kevin felt sick to his stomach as he looked at his face, streaked with blood and tears. His still bleeding cut-and stitch smile was perhaps the most grotesque thing that he'd ever seen, and he couldn't bear to look at where his third eye had been stitched shut. He felt as if he might vomit. He felt broken. The pain in his face was nothing compared to the pain in his heart. His face was marred and his third eye was closed -- maybe permanently.
  "Look at what you caused. If you could just listen, this wouldn't have happened. We gave you a script and everything. Was it really that difficult."
In that moment, Kevin felt something inside him break. Rage flooded his entire being. A red, burning rage like he'd never felt before. He pushed himself to his feet.
  "You destroyed my town." Speaking was more difficult now, but with the stitches in, it was manageable. "You drugged me and tried to brainwash me, and when it failed YOU HAD SOMEONE CUT MY FUCKING FACE OPEN!" He couldn't fight the scream building in his throat as he'd said that last part. "So forgive me if I'm not overly enthusiastic about spewing your propaganda for the people that used to be my friends!"
  Diego stood as well, his expression now a cruel smirk. "Ooh, someone's feisty. Like it or not, you're mine now, Kevin. Everything you have is just me being generous." He ran one finger along the line of Kevin's jaw, tipping his chin up. "If you piss me off, I can take it all away. I can have you killed in the blink of an eye. The sooner you realize that, the better off you'll be here."
  Kevin growled and took a step back. "Don't touch me!"
  Diego simply stepped toward him. "You resisted our first attempt at re-education, but closing that extra eye of yours should fix it. And if it doesn't, we'll find another way. Now, I'm going to offer you a deal." He pulled a syringe out of his pocket. "I have a drug here that can make all the pain go away. It will make you less scared. Less sad. If you want it, all you have to do is drop to your knees and beg my forgiveness."
  Kevin remained standing, a fire burning in his eyes. "No."
  Diego laughed. "Fine. Then have it your way." Before Kevin could react, Diego's hands were around his throat, choking him. He could hardly breathe. He struggled as blackness tinted the edges of his vision. He felt one hand release, but the other's grip was still strong. Something else was wrapped around his neck, and then the other hand let go. As he was released, he realized what Diego had done. The shock collar was back on him.
  "No... please, no..."
  "You'll be sent for re-education tomorrow," Diego said flatly. "More intense, more thorough re-education. One way or another, we will make a better worker out of you, Kevin. And if not, I'm sure my scientists would love to have a fresh human test subject to play with. Enjoy your little personal rebellion, Kevin. When you're ready to think reasonably, I'll be here."
  "W-wait..." Kevin's voice shook. He dropped to his knees. "I'm sorry. Please, please forgive me."
  Diego laughed, and Kevin cried out in pain as the collar shocked him.
  "It's too late for that. You already chose what you wanted. You'll get what you deserve."
Kevin whimpered, the rage he'd felt rapidly becoming replaced by fear. "No... N-no... No..."
  "Really, you have such potential, Kevin," Diego purred. "I would love to see you become something more. I know you can."
  The way he spoke now was almost soft. Almost. For a moment, Kevin wondered if there was something kinder hidden deep under that cold exterior.
  Kevin looked up at him. "If it's what you want from me... I'll do everything in my power to make sure it never happens."
  "Oh, it will. I can assure you of that, Kevin. I always get what I want sooner or later."
With that, Diego turned on his heel and left, leaving Kevin alone. And before Kevin could so much as move, the lights in his room went out.
  Sitting alone in the darkness, Kevin shifted and hugged his knees. He took a deep breath, filling his lungs to their maximum, and then he let out a loud, piercing scream. He screamed to fill the silence. He screamed in mourning for Desert Bluffs, and for the part of himself that had died on this day. He screamed in fear, and rage, and agony, and a deep, hollow sadness. He screamed and screamed until his voice went hoarse and his mind went blank. He screamed until the darkness around him became his whole world, and that world became entirely meaningless. He couldn't hear himself think anymore, and he didn't want to. He didn't want to think. He didn't want to remember what had happened on this day. But one thought, louder than the screaming, rose in the back of his mind, pulling at Kevin's attention as he stopped to breathe.
  The re-education will make me forget. It made me forget other things before, so it should make me forget this too.
  Kevin breathed. He pulled at his hair, he screamed, and despite the pain coursing through his body, he smiled.