Number 7

"Former? What do you mean by that?"

The woman on the other end of the line questioned the strange manner that Bradley had answered - contrary to his typical line.

"Sorry, Anna. I probably sound a bit pathetic right now. But can we meet up? I wanted to talk to you about some things, but I think they should be said in person. Is it alright if I head over to your place?"

"Hm? Well I suppose that's fine... but is everything alright? I mean... you don't sound... normal."

"It will be alright."

As the woman spoke with concern, the man responded with confidence that had suddenly returned to his tone.

It was not a confidence that was based on any plot or plan, nor was it based on any new information that he had received.

No, rather - it was confidence that arose out of what Bradley told himself at that moment.

"Everything will be alright... because I'm going to make it that way."

----

"A lot... happened today."

Holding his head as a migraine slowly overcame him, the red haired man sat at the table of the blonde woman who had taken him into her home.

Tea had been served to him, and the steaming liquid wafted before him - yet he had not taken a single sip.

"Tell me what happened. I'll listen."

The woman prompted him to release his stress, gently urging the man to confide in her.

"I... I don't know where to start. But... well, I guess I'll put it simply."

Looking up without wavering, the man gazed at the woman without retreating into his own patheticness.

"I lost my job today, and everything I once had is gone."

He admitted this to the woman, not hesitating for even a second as he owned up to the results of the situation.

At the end of the day, no matter who he blamed, no matter if he had been deceived, everything was his fault.

It was his fault for allowing himself to be deceived in the first place.

And therefore it was his responsibility to work to regain what he had lost.

"But I don't intend on allowing everything to end like this. Right now... well, I'm not in a good position, but I'll find another job. I'll figure something out, and I'll work my way up... but this time I'm not going to lose myself in the process."

The man spoke with hope in his voice, determined to make up for the situation.

He had admitted his own faults and shortcomings, and was prepared to do what was necessary to improve himself, and his life while he was at it.

Even if he had to restart, perhaps that was exactly what he needed.

"I see."

With a simple nod, the woman probed the man to continue.

At which, he did.

The two sat, and the man explained everything.

He explained the situation, the events of the day, and the conversation he had with Alexander. He explained everything, and as the woman listened he could tell how irritated she was at the entire situation.

"How could someone do something like that to you?"

And these were the concern-filled words that she spoke as Bradley told her about the actions of the President, and the fact that he had planned his demise this entire time.

"No... even if you blame him, it's as I said. This entire thing is my own fault for allowing myself to trust him-"

"Is that what you thought I would say?"

However it was at that moment that the expression of the woman changed.

From a gentle and caring one, she became vile and spiteful in that instant, at which Bradley jerked his head up to witness her.

And as he did, he noticed it.

The woman sitting before him was not the one he knew.

"Who... are you?"

"Who am I? What kind of question is that? You know, I'm sick of a lot of things - but first among them is you. I'm sick of listening to you. I'm sick of comforting you. I'm sick of having to sit here while you prattle on and on. I'm sick of having to work and work and work just to get you to talk to me for a moment. I'm sick of all of it. So I'm really glad, you know."

The woman let off on the man, speaking with irritation in her voice as she vented to a confused Bradley.

"I'm glad that this job is finally over... and now I don't have to deal with this anymore."

"Hey... wait a minute-"

His eyes widening in shock as Bradley refused to accept the sudden change in the woman, he held out his hand towards her with longing as his voice became void of the hope which he had previously held.

"I guess I have to explain it to you? HAH! This really sucks, doesn't it? You were tricked. Deceived. Duped. I'm an actress. Everything I did, from the moment we met, was all an ACT."

As the woman said this, Bradley froze.

He could not move, for his heart had been shaken to its very core.

And as his eyes widened in horror, something snapped within his mind.

"Those men that you saved me from? They were hired subordinates. The dates we had? The time we spent together? This apartment, and my entire life? My identity? It was all fake. My name isn't Anna. Anna is just a character I created in order to distract you."

"Distract me?"

With a quivering tone, Bradley slowly looked over to the woman, barely able to contain his emotions as his processing worked at light speed to accept the situation he was presented with.

"From... what?"

"My goodness... do I need to spell that part out as well? HAAAH!!! Now that I've finished this job, I'm never doing something like this again. It paid well enough to cover me for life, after all."

It was at that moment that a knock was held at the door.

Bradley turned to watch as the woman perked up with a smile as soon as the knock was heard, and he was forced to witness as she spoke with cheerfulness.

"Ah! That must be my new boyfriend!"

'No....'

Everything was shattering.

'Stop....'

He had lost everything.

'Stop it... stop this....'

And now, even the woman that he thought he had loved was nothing more than a scam.

And as that door opened, he saw it.

The face of the man known as Alexander Meyer.

"Evening, darling. Hey hey, looks like we get to see each other again quite soon. Isn't that right, Brad?"

The man spoke with cheerfulness as he gazed around the woman to the red haired man while the woman seemed to cling to him.

"Hey Alex... I'm kind of concerned now. This guy... he might go nuts on me. You can protect me from anything he tries, right?"

"Now, now, I'm sure that he won't try anything anymore. But if he does, then I'll stop him for sure. Ah, Bradley. I suppose this means it really is your loss, right? You accepted defeat so quickly - and this was the reason why, wasn't it?"

The words of the man cut into Bradley as Alex motioned to the woman that clung to him, at which Bradley merely stood up, defeat in his eyes as they twitched with insanity.

"You thought that you had something to return to... when that very thing was just another layer of the trap I set for you."

"You.... you...."

"What are you going to do? Assault me?"

"AGH!!!!"

The man, filled with rage, swung blindly as he rushed at his opponent - yet this was dodged smoothly.

Even this red haired man who was once a delinquent could not graze Alex as he dodged, grabbing the woman as well to protect her from any damage.

"If you don't leave this place, then I'm calling the police. Trespassing, attempted assault - even if I didn't have any political power, then you would be convicted of these things. But I think you know better than I do that I have more power over you than that."

With this threat, Bradley was completely shut down.

Even in his rage, despair overcame him as he recalled the pathetic image of the man who had invaded the party that very day.

'How could someone fall to such a state?'

Was this not the exact thing he had thought earlier?

As he thought this, the man walked off, a dead expression in his eyes.

He stumbled forward like a zombie, completely devoid of even the slightest bit of life - all hope having crumbled.

And as he left, the man known as Alexander Meyer merely chuckled.

"What a fool. But it's thanks to him that I'm going to be receiving another promotion... thanks for your hard work, babe."

"Of course! But I'm never doing anything like this again, alright?"

"Don't worry. This was the last time. After all... there's only one more person in line that I need to overcome now. And I can do that much on my own."

This was the conversation that the two had to one another as Bradley had trailed off.

The man eventually came to a place outside the apartment complex, where there was a fence gate that was locked from the outside.

One could exit freely, but would need a key to enter.

And so, exiting the place, Bradley found himself sitting down, his back to the fence as he looked to his hands with madness evident in his eyes.

"AGH!!!!!!!"

And he screamed.

He screamed and he shouted, and he punched the fence with such force that the metal bars creaked and bent.

He punched and he punched, until the entire thing looked like it had been mutilated, and the man was left panting to himself.

"WHY!?!?!?!?!"

And then, after letting his anger out, the man once more slid down to the ground.

And he cried.

He wept pathetic tears, only furthering his own wretchedness as he displayed himself in a manner which was not fit for a grown man.

He held his hand to his forehead, gritting his teeth as the self hatred welled up in him, and one single thought filled his mind.

'What did I do wrong?'

Posing this question to himself in his wallowing, the man desperately attempted to find an answer - yet there was none to be found.

[It wasn't you who did anything wrong.]

However in that instant, perhaps in his own insanity - a voice spoke.

It was the voice of a female.

It was neither gentle nor compassionate, but rather filled with a spite for everything.

"What would you know about me?"

The man responded in such a manner, looking down as he buried his head while gritting his teeth.

"What would you understand about anything?"

[Oh... but I do understand.]

And as the voice spoke a second time, the man sat up, looking around as he tried to pinpoint its source.

However as he did so - he realized that the voice contained no direction.

[I understand everything you've been through... because I've been watching from the sidelines.]

"Who the hell are you?"

Standing up with swiftness as he looked around, fear began to overwhelm Bradley as he failed to pinpoint the source of the noise.

It was dark, and behind him beyond the fence was nothing more than a parking lot.

In front of him was an empty street, and not a single person was present as he gazed around himself with confusion.

"If you're going to talk to me in such a manner, then why don't you show yourself?"

[I don't really want to... but I suppose I will if I have to.]

At that instant, Bradley's hand felt strange.

It was as if he had hit it on something, and it became numb to the point where he lost all feeling within it.

And at that moment - it began to morph.

A blob of flesh formed on his hand, detaching itself from the man as it slithered forwards.

And then, growing from that blob of flesh - was an eye.

A single eye, lashed and feminine - yet the whites of which were completely pitch black.

The pupil was red, and from the blob of flesh a mouth opened as well as it spoke with the same feminine voice.

[Are you satisfied, now that you've witnessed this disgusting form that I've been forced to take?]

The flesh seemed to bubble up and down, as if it could not retain a proper form.

It was enough to make Bradley want to throw up, however the thing that terrified him the most was not the monster that had shown itself before him - but rather the fact that it had come out from his own hand.

"What... what is going on?"

For as he looked upon his hand - he noticed that it was gone.

And remaining was merely a stub.

"What... happened to my hand?"

Tears streamed down the man's eyes as he looked down on the creature with horror - and just for a moment he forgot the entire predicament he was within.

For without his hand, he could truly do nothing.

"I... I need to be able to write... how can... am I dreaming? Is this all just a dream? Hah... hahaha... that must be it."

Placing his nub to his forehead, the man began to laugh to himself as he denied everything, walking off into the distance.

"How stupid... that's right! Nothing... nothing that happened today should have been possible. It's all too much. It's ridiculous. How could so many bad things happen in one day? It's impossible. There's no way that so many bad things could happen all at once! It's as if some cruel author was writing a demented story. But my life... hahaha... this isn't just a story."

Stopping in front of a stone wall, the man turned as he gazed upon it with a dark expression.

"This is a nightmare."

And at that moment, he slammed his head into the stone.

"Which means all I need to do is wake up from it."

Blood rushed down from the man's forehead, however nothing changed.

"Maybe that wasn't hard enough?"

SLAM!

Once more, the man smashed his head into the wall, and more blood began to drip - enough that he could hear the pitter patter below him as if it were raining.

"Why won't this work? Maybe I'm doing it wrong. Ah... I know."

Wiping the blood off his forehead, the man began to laugh as he walked forward - heading towards a bridge in the distance.

"I haven't produced a large enough stimulus."

At that moment, the man began to run.

He ran and he ran, and while he ran he didn't even realize that his hand had returned.

And when he had reached his destination, he climbed up on top of the bridge, looking down at the traffic below.

It was an interstate.

Hundreds of cars passed underneath, all of which were traveling at around 100 miles per hour.

And with a smile, the man looked down upon this scene as his blood fell down upon this highway.

Spreading his arms, he looked up to the sky as he spoke - and whether he was speaking to the creature or merely to himself, even he did not know.

"If this is a nightmare... then surely this will wake me."

At that instant, the man jumped.

He fell with his back facing downwards, spreading his arms as he closed his eyes with peace in his expression - accepting everything without a question.

"And if it is not... then I suppose that is fine as well."

[Do you intend on giving up?]

Yet these words interrupted his fall, as Bradley found himself distracted by them.

SMASH!

And in that instant, his entire body was filled with an immense pain as he plummeted through a windshield.

"AGH!!!!"

The woman in the car who had suddenly been hit by the body of the man screamed, and in her panic the car veered to the side, and she smashed into another car.

The next one went spinning, blocking the path of two more as the cars piled up with the horrible creaking of metal and smashing of glass.

The body of the man flew forward as he tumbled across the asphalt, and the pain continued to erupt within his body as he lost his strength.

"COUGH!!"

One after another, he could hear the sounds of the cars piling up, however as he spit out a volley of blood there was one voice in particular that spoke to him with disdain.

[I had thought that you were a stronger human than this.]

And in that instant, screams and explosions filling his mind, everything went quiet.

'What... is going on?'

This was his last thought before the feminine voice answered his question.

[I'm not letting you die here like this. I've chosen you, human. So don't disappoint me any further. I'll see you in your next life.]

Thus, Bradley died.

For the first time.

----

What was this?

Everything was dark.

"Hello?"

He spoke out, and when he did so he could hear his own voice - however this voice did not seem to vibrate in the same manner that a mechanical wave would.

It was as if all sound was... artificial.

[Hello, Bradley.]

"Who are you? What are you? Where am I? What... did you do?"

[Too many questions. Do you have a particular order in which you wish me to answer? Well... I suppose in order to answer all of that, I'm going to have to bring you back to life, aren't I? After all... this is no place to talk.]

"Bring me... back to life?"

[You hate them, don't you?]

The feminine voice that belonged to the creature conversed with Bradley as he fell into the realm of confusion, unable to perceive what could possibly have been happening.

However, there was one thing he knew for certain.

"I... do. However... before any hatred... I have no intention to sit here and allow myself to fall into a pit of blind rage."

If he had a body to stand up, perhaps he would have at that moment.

"Rage... anger... hatred... yes, all of these things are boiling over within me. But even so, there is one person that I hate more than anything right now. And that is myself... for allowing myself to fall into such a horrible pit of betrayal in the first place."

This was the statement that he had repeated, over and over.

How many times had he admitted this at this point?

How many times had he blamed himself?

How many times had he held himself accountable for not being able to predict the actions of others?

[It's true that putting trust in those around you is a mistake. I won't deny that for even a second. But let me ask you this, Bradley.]

As he found himself questioning this very concept of whether it was truly his fault, the alluring voice of the female seemed to pull him in.

[Is it not also their fault for betraying your trust?]

She spoke these words, which immediately silenced the man.

He knew that they held the truth.

He understood that more than anything, he should not be focusing on himself - but rather on the actions of those two in particular.

Alexander Meyer, and the woman he had come to know as Anna.

They had conspired against him.

They had deceived him, even going as far as to set up some sort of scene where he played the role of the main character.

He had saved the girl, and she had continuously bugged him to the point where he began to lose any doubt he had of her.

Was allowing his guard down truly his mistake?

He had doubted her.

He had been suspicious, he had tested her, he had tried to get away - yet after probing and prodding, she continued to ease his suspicions until they had eroded away.

Like a stream that slowly chipped away at a mountain, eventually a path had been cleared - and a hole was opened within him.

However once that hole was opened, she used it to burst right through, smashing his heart and his sanity in the process.

They used love to weaken him, to make him susceptible to mistakes, to focus his attention on something besides his work, to make it so that he would not question the things that he should have been more focused on.

"I... hate love."

Spitting out these words, he made his declaration to the creature within this void of death.

Even though perhaps this would be his last time speaking to anyone, he stated these words with absolute confidence.

"Love is the very thing that ruined me... it made me weak, and this is the result. Therefore... if I were ever given a chance to live again... then I wouldn't fall for such a thing."

Recalling the words of the creature, who had mentioned bringing the man back to life, he chuckled.

"Heh... if such a fairy tale were actually true... if you could truly bring me back to life... then I would enter this world with one single goal."

With regret and spite in his tone, the man uttered his next words.

"To destroy anyone in this world who dares to use love as a method of ruining others."

[Is that truly your desire?]

The female creature asked this question, as if to confirm before a contract was entered.

"Yes."

And without missing a beat, the man responded in the affirmative.

"If I can do that... if I can prevent something like this from happening... and if I can punish those who do so... then that would be my REVENGE."

[Ah ah... now you've said it. Hehehe... you know, Bradley... I always knew that we were compatible. From the moment I first saw you... I felt that you had a burning desire in your heart.]

As if his chest was a violin and his arteries within it were the strings, the man suddenly felt an immense fear unlike anything he had ever experienced before.

For he felt that this woman was playing him like an instrument.

[To take revenge on this very world.]

And yet, despite such an intense fear that he held, he felt a similarity.

He felt the pure hatred in her tone, and the longing for something.

The same longing perhaps which he had felt as he walked those streets, witnessing the darkness of this world as a mere spectator.

[Revenge... it happens to be something I'm very good at, you know.]

With these words, the world of darkness seemed to cut out - and as he opened his eyes, the light slowly entered his vision as Bradley realized that he was once again in the land of the living.

----