The name of the book I read was "Crime and Punishment" [1]. It's one of the old classics that people used to read for school. Punishment. Crime. Crime and Punishment, as if everyone who does something wrong always gets what they deserve. Well, sorry to shatter your beliefs, but the world doesn't work like this. Some people do what they want and no one stops them. To err is human, but to persist is diabolical. By following this assumption, we conclude that we are allowed to make mistakes, but not to repeat them. But what if someone already knows they're doing something bad and still does it? Isn't that diabolical too? In my opinion, it isn't.
***
"We need to talk about your life choices."
"No need, I've got everything under control."
"That's not true."
"Alright, that's not true, but that doesn't mean that I can't wear a tracksuit!"
Yoichi shook his head as his brown eyes fixed on Yuuya's outfit. The raven-haired male shot him an exhausted look before checking his clock.
"Listen, bud, I think you should relax a little. I don't know, why don't you start doing yoga? My grandmother does it two times a week and she's way more chilled than you. Try it sometimes."
"What the heck are you saying?! Could you please stop doing whatever you're doing?!" screamed Yoichi in anger. Yuuya let immediately go off the yoga mat and stood up.
The blonde boy sighed in frustration "I'm just saying that you shouldn't wear a tracksuit on your first day of work, especially if you're going to stay with older people. "
"Save it for another time. Uh, look, my limousine has arrived! I'd better go now. Bye!" Exclaimed Yuuya as he ran towards the black car parked in front of the café.
Yoichi snorted, unamused by his friend's behavior.
***
Yuuya's legs kept trembling all the time. He was pretty excited about having a job, but maybe Yoichi was right: wearing a tracksuit wasn't a very good idea if the objective was making a good impression.
The night before, immediately after dinner, he received a call from Skyard Inc. confirming his hiring. For the first time in several weeks, he phoned his father to inform him that they would have to change the driver's timetable, but Akira Kuroyami only replied with "You can do it yourself. I'm too busy now. "
After returning from the interview he had to take an antibiotic to get rid of the pain in his hand that had continued to persist for several hours. The family doctor had said that it was a simple insect bite, not at all worrying.
He hadn't talked to Yoichi about it for fear of getting one of his usual lectures.
Thinking about it, he didn't understand why his appearance was so important to his friend. Simple overalls wouldn't have been the reason for his firing. The real problem was what would happen once he was introduced to the research team. The woman from the HR department had described his grades as good enough, but obviously, she couldn't have known about all the money his father dropped to get them. If he needed to do the calculations he was supposed to know, he would have to go by heart, but as he spent most of his time in class scribbling on the book he would surely have a hard time remembering anything.
The family driver, Mr. Smith, was a twenty-seven-year-old man who had moved to New Tokyo for a couple of years. Being one of the few young people in his father's service, Yuuya was quite comfortable with him, and even if the two did not exchange more than a few words they had become confident enough to be able to joke together now and then.
Yuuya whirled towards the window, where he could see his reflection almost like in a mirror. That afternoon he had combed his hair more than usual, but the heavy dark circles under his eyes remained one of the most striking features of his face. When he was younger, when he was still considered a good and kind boy, he had several girls who sent him love letters every month. He had always rejected them all, unable to bear the idea of having a girlfriend while still being in school. After that, he began to sleep less and less and spend his days indoors while at night he played video games on his computer or wandered around his immense house, which included three floors of the attic of one of the largest skyscrapers in the city center.
When they finally arrived in front of the main entrance of Skyard Inc., Yuuya couldn't help but shiver. He had just realized he had no idea where to go or what to do.
Many people, most of whom were workers, had stopped to talk in front of the reception, making the passage difficult for anyone who needed help.
Rolling up his sleeves, Yuuya slowly made his way through the crowd.
When he finally arrived at the reception, a woman in her thirties greeted him with a friendly smile, while her colleague gave him a hostile look. For the first time in his life, the boy did not reciprocate with another I'll-disposed glare. However, he couldn't help but clench his fists.
Fortunately, at that time it was not necessary to undergo a blood draw before entering.
"How can I help you, dear?" asked the woman as she scribbled some notes on a yellow paper.
"Uh, yeah. I was hired as a part-time researcher in one of your laboratories, but I don't know where I should go."
"Name and age please." said her colleague.
"Kuroyami Yuuya, eighteen years old." replied the student.
The two looked into each other's eyes for a couple of seconds before they both leaned over a stack of papers and scribbled some notes. Yuuya stood still staring at them, unsure what he should do. After about ten seconds the woman raised her head again and smiled amiably "Ah, doctor Ishida is waiting for you."
Ishida. He'd heard that surname before, but he couldn't remember when. But the scientist had already foreseen his arrival, so that meant he hadn't the wrong time. Just as he was about to ask the two employees where he should go, the man gave him a blue flyer "Lab. 9, floor -4. Just use the elevator."
After a quick nod, Yuuya headed towards the main corridor where three still empty elevators were waiting for him. Most people were still on their lunch break or had finished their morning shift, so the building was considerably less crowded than when he was first interviewed.
The interior of Skyard Inc. could certainly be described as prestigious. The glass walls allowed those who passed by to enjoy the view of the city from one of the tallest buildings in the center, while the rigorous marble columns that supported the upper floor made it look like a kind of medieval castle modernized. Yuuya's house had also been built following a similar model, and the unpleasant feeling of familiarity with that place continued to occupy his mind.
Just as he was about to press the button that reads "Floor -4", a young man who couldn't be more than a few years older than him threw himself into the elevator. Panting, the latter raised his hand in recognition. Sweat dripped from his temples and his cheeks were rather red. His brown hair had stuck to his face, covering his forehead. When his blue eyes finally fell on Yuuya, he smiled happily "Thank you. Uh-huh, and sorry for this," he said while pointing to himself "I had to run to arrive here in time. Name's Kane Wilson by the way."
Yuuya raised a brow but tried to ignore the unpleasant smell of sweat that was forming in the elevator "What floor do you have to go to?"
" - 4."
"Same as me then."
"Really?! Are you a part of the research team I was assigned to?"
"Mm-mm. I'm new too. I was searching for Doc. Ishida."
"Me too. I guess we'll have to find him together."
The two took a short time to get out of the elevator together. They found themselves in an empty corridor, very bright and with immaculate white walls. There were no doors, and since they were underground, no windows. The two young men looked at each other for a couple of seconds before taking their respective blue leaflets and following the directions.
When they found themselves facing a dead-end, Yuuya shrugged and sighed "I guess we will have to go back to the reception and say that they gave us some wrong information."
"No, we would just look foolish. Why don't we try to enter there. " Kane Wilson said pointing to a metal door to their left.
"If you say so." agreed on Yuuya with a dead tone.
The door swung open, letting in the light from the main corridor to illuminate the darkroom that loomed before the two boys.
"U-Uh I think I just changed my mind. Never mind! Let's go back to the reception!" enthusiastically exclaimed Kane Wilson as he quickly took a few steps back.
Yuuya raised a brow, looking skeptical "What? Are scared of the dark now? Come on, don't be such a wimp, and follow me."
Kane Wilson looked a little taken back by the younger man's words but still followed him down the corridor.
Their footsteps echoed all around them, and Kane Wilson's heavy breathing became louder and louder. The led lights on the ceiling kept flickering, making the atmosphere quite creepy. The two hadn't met anyone yet and had been walking in the same direction for a couple of minutes already.
At a certain point, the lights went out and turned on again all together, leaving Yuuya with bated breath. The sequence repeated, faster, and faster until everything returned to normal.
At one point he felt a pain in his neck, but when he tried to touch him he felt the presence of a metal object.
In his hand, he held a soporific dart.
Suddenly he felt way too heavy and collapsed on his knees. Just before blacking out, he heard a distant voice calling his name.
And then, all he saw was darkness.
***
[1] Crime and Punishment is a novel by the Russian author Fyodor Dostoevsky, published in 1866. Crime and Punishment focuses on the mental anguish and moral dilemmas of Rodion Raskolnikov, an impoverished ex-student in Saint Petersburg who formulates a plan to kill an unscrupulous pawnbroker for her money. Before the killing, Raskolnikov believes that with the money he could liberate himself from poverty and go on to perform great deeds. However, once it is done he finds himself racked with confusion, paranoia, and disgust for what he has done. His justifications disintegrate completely as he struggles with guilt and horror and confronts the real-world consequences of his deed. (Wiki)