Murderer next door

17

"Do you think I'm a psychopath?" I ask Amber as I open my locker.

"Woah, that's an extreme question. Where'd that come from?"

I shake my head. "Forget it."

"I mean, you do some questionable things."

I shoot her a glare.

"I'm kidding. But that look was a little demonic. What, is that your topic for your psychology paper?"

"No, I- psychology."

"What?"

"Psychology!" I slam my locker in a hurry and jog down the hallway.

"Wait! Is that your topic?"

"It is now!"

I run until I reach the psychology classroom. I tap the window and Mr. Weeks motions for me to come in.

"Ruby, what a pleasant surprise."

"I have a question in regards to my research paper."

"Well, it just so happens I'm a teacher. At your service." He takes a sip of his coffee.

"It's kind of weird."

"Weird questions are why life exists in the first place. I know this is the cheesiest thing and you've probably heard it many - a time, but there are no weird questions. Whatever you have on your mind must be shared with the world. Shoot."

I sit at one of the desks up front. "What makes a psychopath?"

Mr. Weeks drinks and narrows his brows at such a curiosity. He thinks about it. "I think it depends on the person. Everyone's brain develops differently."

"What if the person had an IQ of 150?"

"Damn, something that high? Then, the brain has developed at a faster rate."

"Is it possible some aspects of the mind can conquer others if that happens?"

"Yes, of course." He takes a book off of his desk and places it on mine. He flips through the pages until he settles on one. "See this diagram?"

"Yeah, what about it?"

"All of this green is the prefrontal cortex. You know what that's responsible for."

"Personality development."

"Exactly. The larger this is, the more an individual's personality can come off as... suspicious. It covers complex behaviors like planning and emotions, to an extent."

"What's the extent?"

"Well, no matter the brain, one function of the cortex always works stronger than the other. For instance, one could be so good at planning, that emotions are nonexistent."

"But what if the emotions come across as real?"

"Then that's some good acting."

"Could the planning be so good that they make it up as they go along?"

He shrugs. "It's possible. Now, if you want to get into the specifics, I recommend this." He hands me a book: In Cold Blood by Truman Capote. "You can keep that one, I've got a bunch."

"Thank you, Mr. Weeks."

"It's what I'm here for."

"Have you ever encountered anyone you would deem as, 'showing psychotic traits', so to speak?"

He sips his coffee. "I'll let you in on a secret. Ironically, the 'best' psychopaths are the ones you can't tell, or have doubts about them being one in the first place."

"Why?"

"Because they're clever in that sense. That's their method of inconspicuousness. It's how they're able to hide in plain sight."

"Thanks." I stand and gather my things, leaving the classroom.

"There you are," Amber says. "Did you get everything you needed for your paper?"

"What? Oh, yeah."