Hello Everyone! Thanks for reading, voting, sharing. Those moments of wonder mean so much. I cannot thank everyone enough for their support. This updated chapter is dedicated to @happyfacecrystal, who has helped renew my efforts in editing this beast of a story. Hope you will like it. On with the show!
"Prove Goodness over Evil"
Sitting cross-legged on the table in the lab, the teenage boy closed his eyes and took in a slow, deep breath, his chest and rib cage expanding to a maximum capacity. He held his spine straight, and raised his head high, trembling with the length of effort. He began to sweat. At the same time, he tried to relax and take the tension out of his arms and legs. He reached out over the top of his knees and turned his wrists over. Forming 'o's with his index fingers and thumbs, he extended his other fingers outward.
Then, Elliot let out a deliberate and even exhalation.
"Ommm... "
Calmness. Serenity.
"Ommm... "
It was easier to breathe with an open mouth than through a swollen nose.
"Ommm... "
Elliot was so immersed in his own world, he didn't seem to notice the off-key sound of his voice.
"Ohh, ommm!"
He also didn't hear Mimi enter the room.
"Oh, ohh, ommm!"
"What on Earth are you doing?" the female HP officer asked.
The young scientist lost his composure and reached for the surface of the table. Trying to escape his pretzel hips, he fumbled and grimaced.
Mimi giggled.
"N-nothing," Elliot stammered. "I'm not doing anything." He gave a flitting look.
"Why are you trying to act like Aless?" Mimi asked.
"I-I'm not, I'm just... "
Elliot was at a loss for words. He shrugged and gave an extended sigh.
Mimi smiled. She walked over and gave Elliot a hug. "Are you okay?"
Elliot melted into her embrace, staying there longer than she expected.
"What happened to your face?" Mimi asked. She loosened her hold to look at the bruising on Elliot's nose and upper cheek. "Did you run into the wall again?" She laughed.
Elliot pushed his childhood friend away. "Stop, Memes, don't."
"Alright, alright," Mimi said softly. She corralled Elliot's arms and hugged him with a tighter squeeze, longer than he expected.
Elliot sighed. "I don't know why I'm doing all these crazy poses. Aless says it helps him stay calm. It's supposed to be a way of meditating -- finding inner peace."
Mimi released her grip to face the young man.
"Why are you trying to find inner peace?"
"I-I don't know... "
He hesitated.
"... Well, I guess I... I'm trying to... "
He sighed.
" I-I don't know what my purpose is."
"Your purpose?"
"Yeah, like, 'Why am I here?' 'What am I doing?'" He blankly looked at his childhood friend. "I don't know what I'm doing."
"This must be about graduation."
"Maybe, I don't know," Elliot replied. He stepped away. "It's like, I've been working so hard -- and maybe I shouldn't have assumed anything -- but I thought I was staying on here at Anderson. Now I guess I'm not."
He dropped his shoulders at the statement.
"I-I don't think I can survive the Outside World. I don't know what I'm going to do."
"Elliot, you need to talk to Berman about this."
"I-I've tried!" The senior student began to breathe heavily. "He doesn't want me to stay here. He says I-I need to consider other options... "
Mimi frowned. "What other options?"
"I don't know!" Elliot blurted. He raised his hands to his head, as if to grasp the anxiety creeping, crawling, making its way around his brain.
"Easy, Elliot," Mimi replied. "Relax. Take a deep breath... "
Elliot closed his eyes and wrinkled his forehead. "Fuck!"
"Elliot!" Mimi stepped closer and placed a hand at his shoulder.
Elliot writhed away from Mimi's hold. "How did I get stuck in this stupid, fucking place?"
"Elliot, stop! You love Anderson. You grew up here! Look at all the great things you've learned and all the smart people you've met. You can't second guess that now!"
Elliot drew in a sharp breath and choked back his fears. He shuddered as he tried to regain a sense of calm.
He closed his eyes.
A long moment passed.
His breathing eased.
After a while, he reflected upon his life in the Science Center.
"You're right, Mimi. If not for Anderson, I probably wouldn't have met Alessandro."
Mimi froze.
"He's the only one who's helped me deal with all of this stress," Elliot continued.
Mimi dropped her jaw.
"You must really like him then."
Elliot agreed. "We've become good friends." He sniffled. "He's quiet, but he also has this spiritual side to him."
"Spiritual? I don't see that."
"Well, you don't know him, but he likes to talk about God and religion. Our conversations have been... inspiring."
"What do you talk about?"
"Um, well, for example, one day we talked about God as an all-powerful being. Why would He ever allow bad things to happen?"
"Mm-hmm. And what did Alessandro say about that?"
"He said, 'Evil exists so that goodness may prove itself above it.' "
Mimi allowed the statement to soak in.
"It's a little convenient, isn't it?"
Elliot frowned. "What do you mean?"
"Would peace ever be possible, Elliot? If evil always exists?"
Elliot wrinkled his nose. "I-I don't know. But as long as evil exists, creatures of God must battle for goodness."
"What are you talking about? Creatures of God?"
"Beings with mindfulness. Intelligence. They can talk and reason. They have the freedom to choose -- good or evil."
"What's good or evil is not always clear though," Mimi responded. "Killing another person is bad, but what if you're doing it to protect yourself? Or to protect your way of life? Or your religious beliefs?"
Elliot hesitated.
"It is difficult to put others before oneself. It is difficult to love and even harder to forgive."
Mimi wrinkled a brow. "You sound different," she noted.
Elliot's eyes glinted.
"The purpose in our lives should be about seeking love and goodness for ourselves and for our neighbors."
"Are you seeking love?" Mimi asked.
Elliot stopped in his movement.
"What's your point in all of this?" Mimi followed up.
There was a slight pause.
"Maybe peace is possible between humans and animals, in spite of the presence of evil," Elliot answered. " Instead of fighting, we should be choosing to help one another."
Mimi looked at Elliot. "I think you found your purpose."
Elliot gave his childhood friend a lasting look.
"I understand why you like Aless," Mimi continued. "He falls right in line with the Center's philosophy."
"Yeah," Elliot agreed. "I guess so."
"But I also think Aless is dangerous," Mimi contrasted. "I don't know how you can trust him so easily."
"I'm sorry he's acted so strange around you," Elliot apologized. "Sometimes he can be so passionate. I think he's still transitioning to life here. I think he actually likes you."
"Likes me?" Mimi laughed. "How flattering! He attacked me!"
"He called you a 'child of God.' "
"What?"
"He saw your necklace, the keepsake from your father."
"Oh... " Mimi recalled. She touched the chain link at her neck.
"He thinks you're pretty."
"What?"
"He compared you to Helena of Troy."
"Oh," Mimi said. She looked down at her state of dress. She wiped some dirt off one of her pant legs, then cleared some loose strands of hair from her face. "Well, we all know that's not true."
Elliot watched Mimi fiddle.
"Anyway, I'll let you get back to your meditating," Mimi said.
She started toward the exit.
"Mimi?"
"Yes?" She stopped and turned back, her eyes wide.
"Would you like to try some of this with me? The meditating?"
Mimi's face slowed into a smile.
"No, thanks. Maybe later."
"Oh!" she remembered. "In the next week or so, I should be able to safeguard a visit outside the Center for you and your boyfriend."
Boyfriend? Elliot thought.
"Aless isn't my boyfriend," Elliot said. "We're just friends."
"Oh," Mimi answered. "Okay then." She turned and waved goodbye on her way out.
Hello there! Thanks for reading! I hope you're having fun. If you've made it this far, you haven't seen anything yet! Get ready to get turned upside down! Onward, Upward!