25 Closure

After leaving the building, the two young men walked towards a nearby basketball court and sat on a bench.

"Explain. " The first one to speak was Adam.

"Do you miss the old days? " James replied with a nostalgic expression while looking at the carefree young kids playing basketball.

"Why, suddenly...? " Adam asked James in a concerned tone.

"Because I always do... " James spoke, while his body shook uncontrollably, "they diagnosed my mom with a rare type of dementia after the incident. "

"... " Adam turned silent as James began explaining with a quavering voice.

"Sometimes, she's normal, but sometimes she forgets things, including me. " James continued, "whenever she realizes she forgot something or someone, she locks herself in the bathroom and starts panicking until she either remembers or passes out from exhaustion. " He explained with tears in his eyes.

"Did the doctors say anything about a cure? " Adam asked in a melancholic tone.

"No, they said it will only get worse with time... " James replied with his gaze fixed to the ground. "This is all because of the bastard that caused that incident. " His sadness turned to rage as he emitted immense bloodlust, making the air around him thick and stuffy.

*Sniffle. *

*Gasp. *

Which terrified the kids around them and alerted the people who were walking around the court.

"James, calm down! You're scaring the kids. " Adam said before tapping James' shoulder, which woke him out of his angry daze.

"S-sorry... I sometimes get out of control... " James calmed his rage and apologized when he noticed the terrified looks everyone gave him.

"Are you okay? " Adam asked James in a concerned tone.

"Y-yeah, I'm fine. " James replied with a forced smile.

"Let's get out of here. " Adam said before standing up and dragging James out of the court.

They walked through the neighborhood and arrived at an empty, small park in the vicinity.

"Is it okay to leave your mom alone, by the way? " Adam asked as they entered the small park.

"Yeah, the doctors say it's better to leave her alone when she panics because extra stimulation might get her too agitated. " James replied with eyes full of anxiety and concern. "I have a master key to open the bathroom in case she passes out. "

"Was your father's death the trigger? " Adam asked in a careful tone. He did not know what to say in this situation: comforting people wasn't exactly his strong suit.

"Yeah, after my dad died, I awakened my abilities, and my mom started hallucinating. " James spoke, "she kept talking about how my dad was alive at the beginning and then it got worse; she started asking me who I am, or where she was out of the blue, but it would only last for 30 minutes tops. "

"And then it progressed into this? " Adam asked.

"I wanted to help her, so I entered tournaments and fought other High Humans to earn money for doctors. " James replied. "That was when Darius scouted me and offered me a spot in the task force. He even transferred to my school to stay close in case something happened to my mother. " He continued with a smile.

"Why didn't you try talking to me earlier? " Adam asked in a confused tone.

"I tried, but you simply weren't the same, Adam. " James replied with a pained expression, "I was angry at everything, and when I saw you, I thought we would fight it together, but you had given up and moved on from it, which made me even more furious. "

"So, you bullied me because you were angry?! " Adam's confusion increased at James's words. He sympathized with James's situation, but wanted to know what exactly led him to believe that it was okay to make him suffer for those years.

"I remembered the words you told me when we were kids, 'it's only okay to fight back when someone is being a bully, ' and thought that if I pushed you enough, you might return to the former Adam by fighting back... " James said in an apologetic tone as his gaze turned to the ground. "I went too far and got carried away in my anger, but I wanted to help you find your confidence, the same way you helped me find mine. "

"Then why did you beat me up when I fought back?! " Adam stopped walking and asked in a gruff voice.

"I was angry because you treated me like a stranger. Even when you fought back, you said nothing about our past friendship. I was furious at the thought of you simply discarding our memories. " James replied, "those memories meant a lot to me, and it felt like they were nothing to you... "

*Sigh. *

Adam sighed before walking towards the crestfallen James.

"I was depressed, too... " He said as he approached him. "Honestly, the only reason I forgave you at first was that I was too lonely at that point in my life. I wanted someone to rely on, even if it was you. "

"... " James kept staring at the ground silently. He knew that Adam forgiving him for all his mistakes was too good to be true and was ready to accept his punishment.

"When the memories of our friendship came back, I was too shocked to even think about it because I always thought of you as an enemy, but I think I prefer you as a friend. " Adam spoke before placing his hand on James' shoulder, "So, although I will never forget the harsh times I went through because of you, I will try to cherish the good times we're going to have together. "

"I will, too. " James spoke and looked up at Adam, "I'm sorry for all the pain I caused you. " He continued with a teary voice before hugging him.

"W-Woah! " James' sudden embrace surprised Adam. "I-it's fine. Let's go get something to drink. " He said with an awkward expression.

_____________

After buying a couple of soda cans from a nearby vending machine and calming down, Adam and James sat down on a bench.

"James... " Adam spoke while holding his soda with both hands and staring at the ground.

"Hmm? " James looked at Adam.

"There's something that I need some help with. " Adam said in a serious tone.

"What is it? " James sensed Adam's change in tone and asked with a curious expression.

"I can't share all the details, but I need your help with investigating something, or actually, someone. " Adam replied before looking at James, "someone who killed many people. "