I still have a boner up until I reach my apartment. I really am not interested in jack-offing to release it, though. I know for sure whose face would appear, and I don't want to disrespect her by doing it.
So, I change my outfit into a hoodie and training pants. After wearing my sneakers. I start my midnight run. It's been a while since the last time I did it.
Nothing much of a change except the building couple blocks from my apartment has finally finished being reconstructed. The old man that always sleeps in front of a bank's front door is still there. I slip a hundred dollar in his front pocket. And on my way back to my building, the couple of three buildings before my apartment is still yelling at each other over random stuff. I wonder why they haven't filed a divorce yet, nor killed each other. But, well, maybe.. that what love is. Unconsciously, I crook a smile when my brain said the word 'love' before her face appears.
Hhh.. I decide to take another round of run just so I can occupy my brain with other things beside her. I drop by to a 24/7 diner to have their delicious apple pie and a cup of hot coffee. I know I won't be able to sleep whether I drink coffee or not.
After slowly finishing my apple pie, I go back to my apartment. I thought I have spent hours outside, but in reality it is only 1.5 hours after I left my apartment for running.
I take a long bath to refresh and relax my self. When I finally get bore, I dry my self and go to turn on my phone. There are few messages and e-mail from Thief. I turn on my laptop to open her email.
As expected, she couldn't determined the species of my scorpion, but she sent me a list of scorpion's species that similar to my description. She asked me to pick few that more similar so she can narrow down the searching. I reply her e-mail with giving her three species that most similar.
After that, I remember about my plan to learn programming. So, I search on the courses recommended by Thief. She advised me to learn a programming language called Python. she said it is an easier language and good for image data.
Most of the courses use videos to teach. That is a great method, actually, since people now is more into multimedia than just text. But for me, with my brain being speed up, those videos are too slow. Even after I increased their speed into double, I still found it too slow. So, I change my strategy to search for a book. I finally pick one book to start learning.
Turns out, programming is easy. It is like learning new language with new grammar and vocabulary. The main different is that we need to explain our mind super clearly and every statement which called code line is only to order the computer exactly one task.
Soon, I am drowning into making a program to turn images into array of value of each pixels. Then I try the sliding window technique to change the values. Only then I realise. If I wanted to get the code that is hiding inside the image, I need to compare the images with other image. But which other image ? Or.. Is there another way of doing it ?
"There is other way, but it will take years with hundred of machines running in the same time," Thief answers my question before yawning so loud. It makes me glance at a clock on my wall. No wonder, it is almost 3 AM. I must awoke her from her sleep.
"Why is that so ?" I ask again.
"The encryption must be based on a mathematical equation. But we don't know what it is. So, if you want, you can make your computer runs every equation that is possible, which is.. I don't know... billions ?"
"I see," I murmur in disappointment. "Maybe he meant for the secret is not being discovered."
"Non sense," Thief disagrees. "If he meant the secret for not being discovered, why would he put all trouble to encrypt it in the first place ? He could just wipe or burn down the evidences. He would die soon, anyway. The secret would be buried with him. But he deliberately saved those images in CDs then kept it in his safety box. So the images are important, he didn't want any random people to just found it. But in other hand, he definitely wanted certain people to find it."
"Maybe those certain people already knows the code ?"
"Maybe.. But I'm certain there are pair of each image," Thief says and lets another yawn.
"Okay. sorry to disrupt your sleep," I say to her.
"I thought you would never realized that," Thief chuckles. "How long have you been up this time ?"
I glance to my laptop to find what date today is. "Less than 48 hours," I lie to her. It is three nights since I started to learn to code.
"Sleep," she orders.
"I will," I tell just to please her. When she skips another yawn, I say my thank you and good bye to her.
My head is full with Thief's words. She is right. There is no way Jen's father kept those pictures in CDs and kept it in a difficult passworded safety box if he didn't want someone to find the secret. There must be an original image for each image. But where are they ? Is it possible that other party has them ? Who are they ? Or maybe.. I just haven't being meticulous enough on searching the images in the CDs ?
I start counting the images. There are 88126 images in total. Assuming each image has a pair, there are 44603 unique images. So I compare the 44604th image with the first image. There is no similarity in my eyes, but maybe the code just change it that much. I try to compare each images and keep the result to learn a pattern on them later on.
It only took me half an hour to write the comparing program. After that, I let my computer runs the program. I just stare at the monitor while it is running. Soon, I feel my eyes are heavy and drowsy. So, I lay my body on the couch while still watching the program runs.
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"Open up, Bennet !" A shout and bang on my door wake me up. I glance at my laptop, it is still running. The date is still the same as the last time I see. So, I may only sleep like couple of hours.
"In a minute," I respond, slowly wake my body up and approach the door. "Wh.."
"Geez.. you stink again !" Andy scolds me before I manage to finish my question. "Go take a quick shower. I found a perfect place for you."
"You mean new apartment ?"
"Yes ! It is a little smaller and a bit pricey, but it has the best view. And we must hurry. The owner is going abroad soon, so he needs to make a quick deal."
"That's why we must meet him this early ?" I ask in confuse. It is still 6 AM.
"No.. I need to show you the best view it has. It can only be viewed in particular time. Go! Hurry !!" Andy says while dragging me to my bath room.
"Best view ?!" I ask Andy again when we are already in his car.
"Yes, you will see it for your self," Andy says, not exactly answering my question. "I almost forgot !" He then gropes his back seat, almost all the way turn his body around. I have to grab his wheel to make sure the car is still moving properly and not hitting anything.
After finding what he is looking for, Andy throws the thing on my lap. "Early Christmas gift from me," he says.
I look at his grinning face in confused before opening the gift. "Spotting scope ?"
"Not just a spotting scope," Andy rebukes me with a hurt tone. "It is a Celestron 52268 C90 Mak spotting scope, one of the best. It can spot as far as 1000 yards."
"Okay.. a Celestron-something-something-Mak spotting scope ?" I repeat my question.
Andy laughs. "You will get when we arrive to your soon to be apartment," he says then chuckles. He seems to be so confident that I'm going to love the view he said.
Once we finally arrive at the apartment building, Andy drags me to walk right behind him. He talks to the security for a moment, before going to the elevator where we are heading up to the 17th floor. I prefer to live on higher place. Andy knows me well.
When the elevator's door is opened, Andy goes to the right and just walks until the end of the alley and approach the left door. He opens the door. "Come on," He invites me to come in.
"The owner is in his parent's place now for saying good bye."
I just nod to Andy's explanation. It is smaller than my current place, but it is still comfortable for a single man to live. It is also placed in downtown, so it's only natural to have more expensive price.
"Check out this window !" Andy exclaims to attract my attention. There is an almost full-wall window on one side of the wall. One of the reason I love being in a high place is to have a good view, and the view from 17th floor here is definitely nice, except for that two-towers building around 600 meters in front of this building.
"That's actually the best part of the view !" Andy rebukes when I complain about the building that blocking the view.
"What ?"
"Just give me your scope!" Andy says impatiently. Once he has his gift for me, he sits on a chair that is put right in front of the window and setting the scope for some time.
"Here, see it for your self," he says, giving me his seat.
I sit and put my eyes to the scope, squinting at what I see. "A couple having doggy style ?" I ask, not hiding my chuckle.
"Noo !!" Andy denies. "Gently shift the scope to your left without changing the height, until you find a window on the next building. Do you get it ?" I hum to answer him.
The window is still having its curtain down. "Just wait for few more minutes, you'll see," andy continues, knowing I'm about to make another complain.
Around a minute later, the curtain is opened by a hand of a woman. I'm about to complain to Andy when my brain finally recognize the woman who is now sitting side-wisely in front of the window, putting her make up on. Jennifer.