The History of the Phantom

Officer

I glared at the slamming door right before my eyes. My blood began to boil with furry as my teeth clenched together like my life depended on it. Nearly thousands of questions ran through my brain, wondering why he would want me. Is this revenge for the time I almost killed him? I know it was wrong of me to shove him in front of the car, but death was never the intention I was trying to force upon him. I was only trying to shock him enough so he would leave me alone. After all, he did try to take my mask off in front of all the people in Paris. The insolent boy will pay for this. It was my fault to let him go. If I did kill him, he would have never sent the cops to bring me back. He knew this would destroy my life, so he happily decided to drag me away from my friends. No. My family.

A few hours later, Ben entered my room with a packed suitcase. I didn't dare to look at him. I hung my head low with my eyes glued onto the concrete floor. I was sitting on my bed with my hands folded in my lap.

"You have everything, Sir. Please rest yourself. Have a nice day," He said. I couldn't help but shed a tiny tear.

"Erik, I'm sorry." The odd thing is that he sounds genuinely apologetic. I also hear a sense of guilt in his voice. I buried my face in my hands so that he doesn't see me sobbing silently.

"Please, Erik. I can't disobey one's orders." He was practically begging for me to pull in together, or else he would break on me as well. I turn away from him.

"Erik, don't do this. I've been thinking a lot about our conversation earlier. God, I feel like I'm doing something that my morals don't agree with."

I turn my head towards him.

"You're sending a lot of mixed signals Officer," I murmur.

"Excuse me?"

"You told me this was my destiny earlier today. Do you no longer think that?"

At last, his hands flew up in the air and roughly combed his fingers through his hair. He fell onto his knees as he cursed to himself. His face was resting on his forearms. I finally saw Ben for the first time.

"When you're thirty five years old with a lot of experience with people like I am, kid, you see a lot of the same spirits in different people." What is he going on with this? "You see, I have seen ones like you before. Especially when I was in the military. The first battle for every soldier is the worst, but they get numb to the fear eventually. Once they visit their families after months, the loved ones only bring back the emotions you thought were lost and gone."

This broken man who was on the floor in front of me was not the same person who arrested me today. I'm not very good at comforting people. I continue watching him silently thinking of the horrors the war brought him. Never in my life have I thought anyone could have it worse than me. My own mother left me, people used me, workers abused me, and I get dragged away from who matters most in my life. I realized that this man before me witnessed the death I have dreamed of night after night. The only difference between us is that it was all real for him. That was the moment when I knew I could trust him.

I slowly removed my mask from my face. For the first time in my life, there was no sign of the crippling fear that crept upon me whenever I had to reveal myself. I was confident enough that he wouldn't run out of my room.

He glanced up at me. His eyes examined the horrible deformity that was plastered on my face. He was definitely surprised, but his eyes didn't widen. For him, it was like seeing a small innocent puppy crawl through a secret opening in the wall. It almost had no affect on him.

"Erik-"

"This is why they want me. I'm the laughing stock in the whole country. I'm also the monster in everyone's nightmares at the same time."

"I've seen guts and blood gushing out of my comrades' stomachs. Your deformity compared to that is like the face of Prince Charming."

I couldn't help but laugh. I finally caught myself. "I'm sorry Officer."

He stood up again. He smiled at me. "It's ok. You can call me Daroga."

"I thought your name was Ben."

"That's my middle name. I wanted to reinvent myself once I retired from war, but I think I'm going to take back my original name."

"How come?"

"You were honest about your identity. I figured I should be that way with myself at last."

I smiled brightly. "It was nice to meet you, Daroga."

"You too, Erik."

Right when he was about to leave my room, he stopped in his tracks.

He whispers secretively," how about I hide you somewhere and keep you safe?"