Breathless

A Story by Fish

"Every day all I could do was watch her from afar"

I was brought to this city to do one thing, and that was to keep watch.

Every single day my task was to do surveillance for one section of the park that had a wonderful view of the city below.

That part was like a veranda. It had flower pots at the corners, and a bench in the middle of it. Maybe a few meters away from the bench was a hedge.

Of course, it had a lamp for when people wanted to sit there at night. Nothing really special happened there. People sat down to admire the view, they ate food, or fed that food to the birds. Really, there was nothing special.

I guess you could say that the seasons changing was interesting, but I've watched that for 2 whole years already and it's lost its magic.

This task of mine was boring, however, I was made for it. I couldn't even complain if I wanted to.

One day, as I was keeping watch, I saw a little girl that was crying on the bench. I wondered why she was crying.

I wasn't exactly made to approach little children. More importantly, it would be downright creepy of me to just suddenly be at her side.

Thankfully, a couple, which I assume were her parents, picked her up and consoled her. Such caring parents. What a lovely sight. After she was done crying, they just sat down on the bench.

They left when the sun had already set. I also noticed that she was sleeping. The crying must have taken its toll. She was cute....

It seems that the little girl took a liking to the view. She and her mother practically sat there every day.

My job seems a little lighter now because of the fact that I get to see that little girl on a daily basis.

Time went on.

Before I knew it, the little girl was now in middle school. She still visited the park, of course, albeit without her mother.

I guess she was old enough to walk home on her own. However, that wasn't the only aspect wherein she matured. That little girl was now a teenager.

Her physical features were much more defined now compared to when she was still little. She had also grown her hair to her shoulders. Growth is a wonderful thing.

Some days she would have some friends in the park as well. I was curious why she brought them here, but that's not something I really needed to know.

There were boys in the group, but most of them were girls. They talked amongst themselves and laughed heartily. As long as she's having fun, I guess.

....she's been taking side-glances at one of the boys in their group. I see that she's into pretty boys. A blossoming love? Now, this is definitely something interesting to watch.

As soon as all of them were gone, I was left to wonder if their young romance would come to fruition.

The following days, there was nothing that piqued my interest. I kept watch as usual.

Until....

The girl had brought her friends again. Surprisingly, there was an absence of boys, including the one she liked.

They all just sat on the bench. The girl had that anxious look to her. She must be seeking advice on how to get together with that boy she liked.

The group of girls talked.

And talked.

At one point, the girl who wished for romance even took out a notepad. An admirable effort on her part. I shall be rooting for her.

They just didn't stop talking. She listened intently and took down notes every now and then.

This must be a very elaborate scheme. It could very well be foolproof, however, it all comes down to how the boy will react.

A week has passed since the last time I saw the girl with her friends. Not surprisingly, I was on watch at my usual post. Was their plan successful?

I pondered for a little while ....what's this? It was the girl. She was dressed up in clothes very unbefitting of her age and was holding a swirly lollipop. That wasn't really my main concern though.

What was more striking to me was the fact that she walked in a "funny" way. She headed towards the bench and sat. Not too long after that, she broke down and just threw away the lollipop.

How I wish to just pat your head and console you. It seems that the plan that her friends thought of was a little too successful, and now she's paid the price.

You win some, you lose some, I guess. She may have won his heart, but in doing so, she's lost her purity. It was tough seeing her like this, but my job entailed

just watching over my post. I could not look away, even if just for a second. Eventually, she wiped up her tears and left.

I would not see her again until she was in her senior year. It was her graduation too, I might add. She'd also gotten to know a special someone during her time of absence.

Obviously, she had developed again. A few "parts" of her were now a bit more prominent. Her shoulder length hair now reached her back. She was quite curvy as well.

This was definitely a lady. A lady that had a gentleman with her. I was very thankful that it wasn't the pretty faced b*****d from middle school.

It was a bit strange that she'd bring a boy to the park after graduation. Usually, you'd be out eating with your family after the ceremonies are done.

I guess she really loves this park, huh? The both of them walked around while holding hands. Occassionally, they'd slip out of my view and come back after a while.

Hmmm.... is her dream of romance coming true at last? After circling around for a few more times, they ended up on the only bench that's within my post.

The two of them sat down and leaned on each other. Is this finally it? It probably is. They just kissed. Simply a magical moment. They kissed for a minute or two before separating.

For sure, she's going to be in good hands. I'm a little bit jealous of the lucky man. She leaned in on his shoulder while they were walking away.

Now, I'm definitely jealous. I bid them good luck on their future. As I was feeling good about that romance scene I just witnessed, a suspicious man pops out of

the hedge, possibly eyeing the couple, or maybe even... her? This might spell trouble for them....

A few years have passed...

The couple returned to the park... with the addition of a little girl. What was once a little girl, now had a little girl of her own.

Her daughter was just as cute as she was when was little. The happy family took strolls around the park. The daughter in the middle, and the parents at the sides.

I was happy for them. It seemed like nothing could ruin this moment for them.

It was a good thing that I was far from being right. That suspicious man from a few years back must have been just a local creep or something. Or so I thought...

One week following their return, the family came back again. I'm guessing that it was their wedding, seeing as how they were all dressed for the part.

All textbook stuff. However, what wasn't textbook was the fact that they were here. It must have been "her" choice to spend their time here.

This park really was that special to her. Not surprisingly, they sat down on the bench where they had their first kiss. The couple spent their time chit-chatting while the daughter

circled around the park. It was just a happy family. Absolutely nothing special.

Night had fallen upon the park. The couple left and I was all alone again, until a black figure popped out of the hedge. Was this the same man from a few years back?

I couldn't rule it out. Only time would tell if my suspicions were correct.

During one afternoon, I noticed the daughter was alone on the bench, presumably waiting for her mother. This brings back memories.

She was just happily staring at the sky. Once again, the feeling of wanting to protect another little girl wells up within me. I can only keep an eye on them though.

A man sidled up to the little girl and patted her head. Now, who's this? A family friend? An uncle? A stranger? He didn't seem suspicious at first glance, but I

shouldn't really let my guard down. The man seemed friendly enough that he could strike a conversation with the little girl. He'd nod a few times, or even laugh

wholeheartedly. He eventually left, even leaving a lollipop as a kind gesture to the little girl. Shortly thereafter, the little girl's mother arrived. The first

thing she noticed was the lollipop. She quickly snatched it from her daughter and threw it away. Just like last time. Her daughter cried and she immediately hugged

and consoled her. When her daughter had already calmed down, they left hand in hand.

So, it really was the same man...

The next day, the daughter was there on the bench again. This time, she was with his father. I was relieved that the mother took precautions and asked the father

to keep their daughter safe. Sadly, it wasn't enough... From the hedges that pretty faced b*****d dashed towards the father and just slit his throat clean. There wasn't even any struggle from him.

This was the worst scenario that could have come out of this. Absolutely horrifying. The little girl didn't understand what had just happened, she just sat there staring at what was once her father.

The killer wasn't quite satisfied with this. He sat on the bench and carried the little girl on his lap. She didn't struggle, probably because of the shock of the current events.

They just waited there until the mother arrived.

Like a fly to a spider web, the mother came. She immediately notices her dead husband and proceeds to take out her phone. The man responds by holding a knife to the

neck of her daughter. They both have a heated exchange of words. Neither gives in to the other's demands.

I'm sure she was doing this to try to save her daughter. She was admirable even in the face of danger.

The man had had enough. He made the little one suffer the same fate as her father and threw her away like how a kid rejects an unwanted toy. Horrible.

(What's this...? My vision seems to be getting blurry. I'm probably showing my age, too. Was I finally shutting down? No... not until I see this through.)

She stumbled around at the sight of her daughter getting killed. This wasn't good. That man approached and ended things swiftly. A quick slash to the throat

was all it took.

He took her lifeless body to the bench and sat her down. He started to talk to the corpse. The absolute madman.

(I can't take this....)

.........

"I am very impressed with how colorful their reports can be, but they still get too attached to people. We only need them to be watchers, not as acting guardians to these people. I hope you understand this, Dr. Edson."

"As you wish, G. I'll work on the next batch of Breathless AI as soon as I can, however, I might need some more "motivation" in the form of human test subjects, maybe?"

"...I will get someone to search the alleyways."

"Much obliged, G."