THE RECREATION LOUNGE was there for a purpose. The behavioural psychologists' department headed by Dr Ira Kirby, studied the random behaviour patterns of those present in there. The lounge was opened for rec-time, after their class hours in the evening. It was normally occupied by about fifty regular faces every night — mainly by those who ditched their school homework to indulge in the mediocre activities over there as means of escapism.

But there were also those who were taking a refreshing break from their dorm, by coming over in between their studies — some boys like Reeves, sometimes used to do that...

Tonight, he was there on a different purpose — he did not do his Marie Curie assignment, and most importantly, he needed an alibi when the hall closed up for the day at ten pm. After when the lights were out, he had decided to break into the IIRC director Tina Martin's office to search for his information background records, before he escaped into civilization.

Some boys were playing table-soccer. Others were hooked on video-games, while most of them lazed, chatting in the lounge around the television set. Reeves was sitting on a small table nearby, playing a board-game of chess by himself — mentally ruminating strategies when he moved the game pieces on the board — but, his ears were closely listening to the nine o'clock news to keep track of the time...

'It will be an hour before the rec-room closes.'

He occasionally looked up to see the TV screen with the local newscaster that night, who was reporting on a surviving policewoman who gunned down the four Intersexual gang members dead — and the woman cop was now recovering at the St. Andrews Hospital for serious injuries sustained in the gun battle...

"Officer Roberta Jensen, aged 22, was rushed to the emergency room 5 days ago after the incident where the four street gang-related criminals had earlier ambushed another policewoman, Mandy Thompson. Thompson, aged 64, lost her life when she was shot at point-blank range."

The group of Intersexuals was glued to the news. "Today our reporter, Kim Robinson interviewed the heroic police officer Roberta Jensen from her hospital bed at St. Andrews." The newsroom image then super-imposed into Roberta's bedside interview...

Reeves stopped moving the chess pieces, and he watched the butch in the hospital garb speaking from her bed. He noticed that her eyes avoided looking at the TV camera lens — she seemed nervous, and her voice shook when she communicated...

"I am really gonna miss my partner Manny — Mandy Thompson. I was out of the Academy four years ago, she had been my partner ever since — and was a good cop and friend. She taught me a lot on the meaning of duty, integrity — and standing up to the truth, while we are in the uniform.

"Today, she is just — gone — killed in the line of duty — if only I had been there, two minutes earlier — Manny would not have faced those street punks alone, all by herself and — we both would have brought those gangbangers down together — and, Manny would be alive today..."

Roberta was too distressed to continue and she sobbed...

"Please, I can't do this — I can't — please go..." Roberta shielded her face from the camera.

One of the Intersexuals in the rec-room lounge who was watching the news was touched by Roberta's act of valour. Reeves continued back to playing his board-game, but his ears eavesdropped on the boys' conversation...

"What a hero, I wanna be a damn, good cop like her someday," said Kirk — who was known to his circle as Kiki-boy. His sarcastic, buddy Hank then asked...

"Will you do what that bitch did — and shoot those free-males, huh? Will you kill one of our own kinds and brag about it later on TV?"

"Hey, what's with our-kind bullshit? Those are hardcore criminals with Uzis, man — whether it is a female or shemale criminal pointing a gun at me — I will damn well be like Dirty Harry, blow away their tits or their nuts off, to save my ass!"

All the preteens laughed and jeered out loudly at Kiki-boy.

Some turned next to glance, at the rec-room door opening, and they noticed Big Joe walking in. Reeves detected him too walking over, he then looked away.

It is forty minutes to closing time. 'What is the fat-boy doing here? Get lost, will you!'

The red-haired boy approached gingerly over, still anticipating that Reeves would pounce back — and punch him square in the face. Joe sat on the opposite side of his small table. "How have you been, Reeves?" No reply while Reeves pretended to concentrate on his board-game.

Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere.

"Mind if I play?"

Joe started to move a chess piece. "Get lost Joe, this is not your game — just go play some stupid video-games, and stay away from me."

Joe chucked and teased back. "I am playing anyway, and I will let you win this time." Reeves killed it, and took out one of Joe's pieces, and tossed it out of the board.

"It has been 3 days since we had last spoken — but, we never fought this long many days before, man," the redheaded boy reminded.

Reeves was still annoyed, but he remained lull by not raising his voice. "What is there to speak anymore — we have said what was on our minds, and it is best that we go on our separate ways."

Joe nodded, educed another chess piece...

"Just think straight before you make that move — it is a dangerous world out there, bro."

Reeves at once beat him again with his move on the game-board, the unfaltering rebel countered...

"I know what I am doing, and I don't need any advice at this point in my life." But, Joe grinned, shaking his head. "Do you really have a plan once you leave Wesleyan, by the way?"

Another annoying question that was vexing Reeves inside...

Yes, he was going to break into Director Martin's office later — but, Joe's presence right now was just jinxing him.

"That is none of your business! Now, why do you want to know? Are you going to tell on me?"

"Hey, fuck that Reeves, you know me — I will not tell them shit — I am just concerned for you, man, that's all..."

Reeves finally looked at him straight in the eyes — and evinced bitterly. "Don't give me that bullshit, Joe — you don't care at all, or else you will be on my side now — and, we will be doing this thing together.

"You just damn pussied-out, you fat-fuck — and I blame this place for what it has done to you, and with the rest of the other idiots here. Those IIRC bitches have screwed you all emotionally and make you think like soft and flabby sissies — so that they can control you all easily — they have given you their 'Fear-Factor' thoughts, like everything outside the damn wall, is so scary and dangerous, isn't that right, Joe?"

Joe laughed out as usual to the same personal-evaluation of Reeve's relentless, psychoanalysis of profiling people and situations — whereby, he had heard such clichés rantings, many times in the past.

"Come on, that is not true, Reeves. I don't have to do anything irrational to prove anything to myself. If you don't want to think rationally — fine — what am I to do about it, huh?"

Reeves rebuked back sarcastically...

"Just look at the choice of your words, they have taught you all... like — ra-tio-nal — what a real pussy-word that is — you wanna hear the science behind rationality? Here it goes...

"What if that guy Edison had listened to his rational wife, he would have given up after a thousand failures, and then he would not have invented the fucking light bulb. If those Wright brothers thought like their rational wives, then a piece of metal called an aeroplane would not be flying in the fucking air, isn't that right, Joe? What more can you humour me with about your reality, of being rational in this shit-prison?"

Joe was abashed by his friend's misanthropic cynicism, but he kept on laughing in a nervous tone.

"You are really a top-grade, A-one class, A-hole — and I think you know that too."

He came tonight, to talk Reeves out of whatever he had up his sleeves about escaping — but, Reeves seems to be adamant in his decision.

Reeves discoursed bitterly. "Yeah Joe, go on ahead, and laugh yourself stupid — I will rather be an asshole than to be one of you fools — swallowing their defeating feminist philosophy that they are preaching here...

"They even have already decided role models like fucking Marie Curie for you sissies to clap, cheer and jack your dicks off to. Yeah, go ahead Joe, and wait on for the next 100 years, for your next female hero scientist, to find you guys a cure to the Medusa Virus.

"Yea, Good luck to you all, you sorry-believers, — since I know what I want in my life, which is to be outside that wall, and before you know it, I will be long gone away from here..."

Reeves' animosity was escalating with Joe's unassertive attitude — he stood up to leave, but Joe stalled him.

"Hey, where are you going, bro — we have not finished the game."

Reeves was too chafed — when he saw the lamentable Joe's submissiveness, and his stubborn refusal to see the picture with a clear head — nor did he believe in any kind of incantation of the possibilities, and hopes outside the wall.

Reeves finally felt that he had been in the company of a buffoon, in all those years together with Joe.

Reeves swiped his palm and knocked a few chess pieces off the board, some dropped on the floor. The boys who were watching TV nearby were distracted — and they caught Reeves warning Joe...

"No, we are done here, you fat-fuck! You come to irritate me one more time again, and I promise I will break your face — just keep the fuck away from me, from now on!"

Reeves walked to the door and left outside with a loud slam. Joe bent down and picked the few fallen chess pieces. One of the boys voiced out to him...

"Everything okay there, Big Joe?"

"Yeah, all is cool, Hank."

Kiki-boy then goofed...

"Wow, he told you off to stay away. You both have some marital problems, Big Joe? Is darling Eve having a headache tonight — and he can't blow you, is that it?" The others laughed...

Joe threw a chess piece and it hit the boy's chest, Joe castigated out loudly...

"Fuck you, Kiki! Stop acting like a leaking douche-bag, you bitch-cunt!"

The boys all laughed aloud again, watching Joe leaving the recreation room too.

They liked bullying the big, fat-boy Joe — but, it was different with the reticent Reeves — the last time they had picked on him, they backed away when the plucky, pint-sized Reeves challenged Hank for a fistfight — and Hank was the biggest sized, in that loudmouth group.

Kiki-boy chuckled, held up the chess piece that Joe threw at him...

"Damn, he hit me with a Queen — see that, a fuckin' Queen — now who is the bitch-cunt?"

They all laughed again.