'Drip...'

Adam stood still after the chaos had died down and a deafening silence took its place. The machete in his right hand felt heavier than usual, slicked in the crimson blood from the three corpses strewn around him.

'Drip...'

''I really hope this made you feel better, Adam.'' Sanna's voice washed the last of the lingering rage away, waking him up to the exhaustion that always followed. Looking over towards her as she sat on the bureau in the corner, his cold and tired gaze met her radiant and piercingly blue one. Her blonde hair flowed down in a beautiful cascade of unkempt beauty, ending just below her shoulders. A smile slowly crept onto her lips—revealing the white teeth she took such pride in—as his gaze lingered for far too long on her. The vibrant summer dress contrasted strongly against the white walls peppered with small holes behind her as she pushed herself off the furniture to stand on her own two bare feet. 

'Drip...'

The sound took him out of his daze, bringing him back to reality once more. Reaching up to the pocket in his jacket, he pulled a piece of cloth out and started to wipe the machete off with practiced movements, cleaning the blade from the gore his quarries had doused it in. Looking around, Adam noticed the gruesome tone the rest of the room had taken. Splotches of red partially dyed the previously white walls and oaken floors. A campfire—now stomped out and smoking— had been set up where the coffee table usually had stood, just infront of what remained of the torn up couch. The desk in the corner was gone, and so was the tv usually sat opposite the couch. In its place, a few shoddily constructed boxes stood filled with a variety of things.

''You know, I think this is the perfect time to begin anew, Adam.'' He turned around to look at Sanna again, only to see her holding little Cleo in her arms this time. The cat watched him in the way that only cats can, her large amber eyes cautiously watching his every move yet somehow still filled with a subtle love and admiration for him. Her meticulously cleaned white fur parted as Sanna ran her fingers through it, giving Cleo the gentle scratches she always longed for as a loud purring broke the silence caused by her statement.

''...It doesn't feel like I'm able to do that yet, Sanna. I can't just forget everything that's happened and go on with life.'' His hoarse voice cut through the rhythmic hum of Cleos purrs. 

''You're going to have to, Adam. You were able to go on after me, weren't you?'' She flashed her characteristic smile again, and a powerful pang of emotion surged through him.

''I really haven't..'' He took a step towards her and reached out to her cheek to move a few strands of her hair out of the way of her face. She stopped petting Cleo as she reached up to his hand and pressed it gently against her cheek. The grime and dirt he'd slowly been amassing since the fall of the world clearly contrasting against her pale, spotless skin. 

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''You have, Adam. You still standing here in front of me is proof enough,'' she stepped closer to him and nuzzled her face into his chest. Melancholy threatened to take over everything at this point as he closed his eyes, focusing on breathing as the sensation gradually tightened his throat. 

Then everything faded. Like it always did. The melancholy. The tightness.

Cleo...

Sanna...

He opened his eyes once again to the lonesome reality laid out in front of him. A few seconds to gather himself once more was all he needed before he began to go about the work needed to be done. He started by kneeling down and stripping the maimed corpses of anything of value, one by one. Not a lot of the clothes or armor were salvageable, but the knives they all carried were good enough so he slipped them into the hiking backpack he'd set down out on the balcony connected to the room. It only took a few minutes after that to clean the rest of the place, his former home, out of anything edible and drinkable and pack it away as well. Slinging his pack onto his back and strapping it in, he hefted his machete and strode through the door and down the stairs of the apartment complex without looking back. 

All it had taken for him to become someone else was a few weeks in this new world. Someone who'd be able to end the lives of three men with no qualms and regrets to haunt him after the deed had been done. 

Someone who would be the hunter instead of the prey.

-22 days earlier-

The piercing blare of the phones alarm started Adam awake in a panic to turn the thing off. He reached for his phone, accidentally slamming his hand too hard into the side table with a loud groan before silencing the morning terror. 

''.. Here we go again,'' he mumbled to himself as he sat upright and threw his feet down on the cold wooden floor. The thick duvet he'd tangled himself into during the night still stuck to him, unwilling to release him. Looking around in a tired haze, Adam quickly located Cleo sat atop her throne—or cat tree as anyone else would call it. As usual, she was pretending to not have woken up from the chaotic morning routine that was played out infront of her and laid there with her eyes closed only to sneak a peek every few seconds thinking he'd be fooled by her perfect acting. Which he wasn't. Not ever, really. She was an open book when it came to her emotions, as long as you could read the signs she usually blared out in the open. Flashing a tired smile, he stepped up to her and threw the duvet back on the bed, the cold and crispy morning air stirring from his movements and making him shiver slightly. He reached up and started to run his fingers along the back of her head, neck and spine, rousing her into the usual purring she'd always spin up when given the attention.

''Alright, girl. I've got to go to work and you've got to stay at home today again,'' he leaned in, saying the words softly to her. Her unceasing purring continuing, in no way acknowledging him having spoken to her. Like usual. 

Preparing a simple breakfast of granola, tea and a bit of juice while staying undressed in the apartment chilled by the late winter night was the norm at this point. The sun had not yet risen so sitting by the kitchen table and downing the breakfast while scrolling through yesterdays news, he savored the silence before the chaos of a day at work began.