True Nature

In a dark room, a middle-aged man sits on a bench, sipping a martini in his left hand while munching on Lay's chips and watching Netflix. 

"PFFFF!!! This tastes terrible."

He's absorbed in the show *Peaky Blinders*, completely oblivious to the chaotic noises outside his pub. He decides to close the bar today due to some minor "issues" with New York City's security, starting his binge-watching from the first season.

"Nick!!!"

Suddenly, he stands up and strides to the main entrance to open the door for whoever is calling him.

"NICK, OPEN THE FUCKING DOOR!!"

He feels irritated by the voice constantly yelling at him. "Who the hell is this?" He mutters. Though the voice sounds familiar, he wants to see who it is and why this guy is at his door at this hour.

He quickly unlocks three of the door's preinstalled locks and pulls the door open.

"Neil? What are you doing here?"

Neil, his friend, stands in front of him, flanked by a few others, most of them kids. However, Nick is taken aback by the sight of a teenage girl with blood smeared across her face. She stands there, speechless, looking almost soulless.

Nick has no idea what has happened to Neil and his companions since he last saw him yesterday, but he soon understands that something terrible has occurred. It feels impolite to ask for details and deny them shelter.

"Come in."

With that, he steps aside to let them inside. As soon as he says this, Neil pulls Jenny and the others in with him. Nick scans the group and realizes there are about nine people in total, not counting himself.

Once everyone is inside, he swiftly closes and locks the door with the three locks. The newcomers look around, unfamiliar with the dim interior since he has turned off all the lights and closed the curtains, likely to avoid any "unnecessary attention."

But first, he peeks out the window and spots a small shadow emerging from a right turn.

"Everyone, get down here!"

Without a doubt, he knows they are being pursued by terrorists, and someone hasn't made it out alive. He gives them an order they don't initially understand, but his gesture quickly makes his intentions clear.

Everyone follows him, dragging each other forward to sit on the floor with their heads tucked under the windows, while Nick strangely opens the curtains and turns off the TV.

"Why did you open the curtains?" One of them ask.

Without answering, Nick rushes to his bartender's table and pulls out a shotgun from beneath it. Now Neil finally understands the "safety" of the Safe Bar.

Finally, they settle in to wait... for whatever comes next.

...

VROOM VROOM!!

Slowly but steadily, the rumbling engines of the terrorists' military trucks thunder past, followed by the footsteps of some who have opted to get off the trucks and hunt down the fugitives themselves.

They use any clues they can find—footprints, sounds, and even blood drips. A freshly recruited terrorist spots something suspicious in a small restaurant called "Safe Bar."

While all the surrounding buildings are tightly curtained to keep people out, this one stands out. He can look straight inside through the windows and see the wines, chairs, and a bench facing the wall-mounted TV.

It appears abandoned, but his gut tells him that even though no one is inside, the pub feels so packed that they could throw a party.

"Hey, what did you find?" Someone behind him asks in an unfamiliar language. Before responding, the terrorist takes another look at the bar.

"Nothing, just some thoughts in my head." He replies in the same language. No matter what language they are speaking, it's clearly not English.

"So what do we do now?"

"I have no idea, but no matter where they go, they're good at hiding. I suggest we go back before the commander scolds us."

"And let them go?! Don't you think they'll take revenge on us for killing their friend?"

"Don't worry. If they're running away, it means they don't want to fight us. Our forces are all around this city; they wouldn't dare do anything stupid. Capturing them would just waste our time and ammunition."

"Oh, can I grab some vodka? There's a bar nearby."

"Nope, we're only here for a short time, and I don't want to become a thief over that."

With that, they all pile into their vehicles and drive away from the street, heading back to their headquarters, which is only a mile away.

...

Inside the bar, everyone sits tight, waiting anxiously. They do their best to stay quiet, some covering their mouths to stifle any sounds. Meanwhile, Nick and Neil take defensive stances, rifles raised, ready to take down anyone who opens the door.

Finally, a collective sigh of relief washes over them as the terrorists decide to leave in their vehicles. However, Jenny feels stunned, frustrated, and anguished.

"Sally is dead..."

As she speaks, everyone's eyes shift to her.

"Sally is dead. She asked for help, screamed for her life, begging to be saved. She could have escaped with us if you hadn't stood there and done nothing! All you did was run like a coward, leaving a seventeen-year-old girl to die at the hands of those BASTARDS!!"

To everyone's shock, Jenny strides up and grabs Neil's collar, yelling in his face, "Why didn't you help her?! Why did you leave her to die?! Tell me! TELL ME!!!"

As Jenny screams at him, the tension reaches its breaking point. Chad realizes things are spiraling out of control and decides to step in.

"Jenny, stop! He did all he could! We're still alive; isn't that enough?"

"Enough? So as long as you and the others survive, sacrificing people like Sally is acceptable, isn't it?"

"No, I mean... what I was trying to say is—"

"Just minutes ago, she was still talking to me, and yesterday she told me her dream. She wanted to enjoy life and live it to the fullest. She was a good person, an ambitious girl, and... my best friend! You're no different from him! You're just a useless, puny, weak scaredy-cat! I witnessed Sally die! I saw her arm get blown off in the explosion because you guys were too useless!!"

As Jenny criticized and insulted him, Chad didn't feel anger; instead, he felt helpless, an overwhelming sense of guilt swelling in his chest. He imagined that if he had been decisive and helped Neil and Jenny instead of just standing there, Sally would still be with them.

With nothing more to say, he conceded and allowed Jenny to continue her confrontation with Neil.

"Now tell me. Why did you leave her?" Neil remains silent.

"Why didn't you fight those guys?! Why did you run?!" He still stays silent.

"What did she do to deserve this?!"

Jenny's irritation grows as Neil repeatedly avoids making eye contact and dodges her questions. However, she begins to sense something else entirely.

"Wait... Why aren't you crying?"

Neil stands there, shoulders back and head held high. He shows no regret or sorrow on his face; instead, he wears the same expression he has every day.

"Why does it feel like you're familiar with this? Don't you feel any guilt or remorse at all?!"

She fires another question at him, but this time, his only response is to look at the ground and sigh. Jenny's rage reaches its breaking point as she finally understands Neil's true nature.

"You... you are a HEARTLESS, EVIL, BRUTAL MONSTER!"

"Monster?"

Jenny begins to punch Neil in the chest with her fists, cursing him mercilessly as tears well up in her eyes. However, as she starts to feel more sorrow than anger, her attacks grow weaker and slower. Eventually, she drops to her knees and begins to cry.

Neil finally turns to look directly at Jenny, but instead of saying anything, he sighs once more.

Everyone stands in shock, immobile as they witness a girl mourning over her dead friend. They feel sympathy for her, but what can they do?

Selena, however, walks over to Jenny and sits down beside her. Without saying a word, she comforts Jenny, wrapping her in a full-body hug as tears slowly begin to well up in her own eyes.

"It's okay, Jenny. It's okay."

She gently coaxes Jenny, leading her toward the stairs, leaving everything else to the boys.

"Huh! Girls." Brent scorns.

"What do we do now?"

"Today is 9/11, and we're being attacked by terrorists. I never expected history to repeat itself in the worst way possible." Chad says ironically.

As the others remain unsure of what to say, Saiko suddenly speaks up. "Everyone, check the news."

At this, they all pull out their phones and other internet-connected devices, checking Twitter, YouTube, Facebook, and even Reddit. However, before they can find the information they need, they have to sift through some irrelevant news.

"Jada Smith broke up with Will Smith? NASDAQ rose by 1%? The Empire State Building is being reconstructed? What the hell is this?"

"Keep looking!"

After a moment of swiping up and down, they finally find the latest news.

'Men in black suits attack the city. Could this be ISIS?'

'Terrorists attack in New York; Wall Street is falling apart.'

'Crazy drones with machine guns are chasing down anyone who runs from them.'

That's all the information they manage to gather. However, another headline catches their attention, and perhaps the attention of the entire world:

'BREAKING NEWS: The President of the United States has been kidnapped.'