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  Sister Jane seemed confused about me. She told me to wait in the hallway while she and the other nuns contemplated on what to do with me. After some consideration, they agreed to let me stay.

  One of the nuns showed me to the bedroom where I got a bunk. The room was large, and there were at least ten rows of bunk beds in there. She showed me my bunk, gave me a change of clothes: a pair of pants and a black T-shirt that felt loose, and I sat down contemplating what to do next. The bed was almost softer than the ones I slept in at the facility. I showered off, and change into the new clothes.

  For the next two weeks, I just sat there. Sometimes, I felt like the last person on earth. After all, everyone who was like me was probably dead for all I knew, and all the kids here were just ordinary kids. I only left the bunk to eat, shower, or use the restroom.

  When we ate, we sat in a large cafeteria. We mostly ate preheated food, and that day we had chicken soup. I paused for a moment, and observed my tray. I had never eaten food like this before. In training, we mostly ate nutrition bars that were gray, and had no taste, but they did have all the vitamins, minerals, and everything else the body needed. I took the spoon, stuck it in the soup, pulled out a piece of chicken, and ate it. It tasted juicy and tender, so I started to shovel the food down my throat. Some of the kids looked at me like I had never eaten anything before in my life.

  A few days later, I decided to read one of the Bible’s that the orphanage had. I read the entire bible in under a few hours, and it really didn’t seem like much to me. I could not understand why people would put so much faith into these stories.

  One day, a group of kids came in and started to hassle me. One of them had short blond hair, and pretty big.

  “Why do you always sit there and not talk to anyone?” one of the kids asked.

  “Because he’s a weirdo,” another replied as the other kids laughed.

  I stood up with my chest out ready for him to attack.

  “What are you going to do weirdo, huh?” he said.

  The kid pushed me which barely moved me. I punched him in the chest and sent him flying into the next set of bunk beds. Another kid charged into me and threw a punch, but I dodged and pushed him into a wall. He turned around, and I side kicked him in the face. One kid grabbed me from behind, and I threw him over my back onto the ground and punched him in the chest. Sister Jane saw the fight and broke it up.

  “Hey, that’s enough!” she said as the other kids left the room.

  She approached me. We walked to my bunk and sat down.

  “What happened back there?” she asked.

  “The kids were making me angry, ma’am,” I replied.

  “How did they make you angry?”

  “They were calling me names like weirdo, ma’am.”

  “Fighting is strictly prohibited here. If someone is bothering you, tell one of the nuns about it.”

  “Why, ma’am?”

  “Because you just can’t go around hurting people that make you angry. Do you understand?”

  “I guess, ma’am.”

  “Good. Now that is straightened out, let’s get down to business. You need to get cleaned up. I have some nice clothes you need to try on for adoption day.”

  “Adoption day?”

  “Yes, that’s when people come in to find children to take into their homes.”

  I cleaned up and got dressed in a white shirt and black pants for adoption day. I sat in the main hall where couples would meet with orphaned kids to adopt them. The hall had round tables scattered about that could seat five people. Most of the couples went for the smaller kids. After sitting there for hours, I spotted a couple talking to one of the nuns about adopting someone. The nun walked the two people over to me, they were looking for someone older like me.

  “Hello, I’m Claire Connors, and this is my husband, Robert,” Claire said.

  They were Robert and Claire Connors. Robert was average-sized, had short hair, and dressed well. Claire was tall, skinny, and had dark chin-length hair.

  “Pleasure to meet you, ma’am,” I said. “What’s your objective here, ma’am?”

  “We’re looking for someone older to bring home, and we were wondering if you would like to come home with us?” she asked.

  I was confused. What was going on? Why where these two people interested in me? I wasn’t sure of anything. I didn’t know anything about family life. But then again, they seemed nice, so I decided to join them.

  “Yes, ma’am,” I replied.

  I went upstairs, packed up what little stuff I had into a suitcase, and went with the couple. I sat outside of the lobby, while they filled out some paperwork in the office. When the Connors’ were finished, they came out and we left.

  Chapter Two

  We traveled to a small town not too far from where the orphanage was, called Brooksfield, California. The house I arrived at was massive and beautiful like a castle. I had never seen anything like it. I mean, I knew what a house was through my training or, more specifically, my suburban survival training, but I never saw one before. It was a two-story house, painted green, and to the left of it, sat a garage. The neighborhood looked pretty nice. The grass was green, there were plants in front of the house, and I could hear birds chirping, and kids playing. I got out of the car, and stared in awe at the house. I looked around the yard and admired the plants that were there. The couple stared curiously at me for a bit, with Robert holding my suitcase, and then went to the house.

  “Come on, Alex,” Claire said as she unlocked the door.

  I followed them inside.

  “This is our home. Do you like it?” Claire asked as we entered the house.

  “You have a nice house, ma’am,” I said.

  “Thank you. The nuns told us that your name was Alex, correct?” Claire asked.

  “Yes, ma’am,” I replied.

  “That’s a nice name,” Robert said.

  “The nuns gave me that designation, sir,” I replied.

  “What was your name before?” Claire asked.

  “115, ma’am,” I said.

  “That’s an odd name. Where did you get it?” Robert asked.

  “My superiors, sir,” I replied as I looked around the house for a while. The furniture in the living room was so soft; I thought I was going to sink into it. I just wanted to fall asleep on the couch it was so soft. The house smelled like it was freshly cleaned. The training facility smelled moldy and felt dirty.

  I looked at the pictures on the walls. All of the photos had only Claire and Robert in them.

  “What are these pictures from, ma’am?” I asked.

  “That’s from our wedding ten years ago,” she replied.

  “It’s nice, ma’am,” I said.

  “Why don’t I show you up to your room?” Robert said.

  “Thank you, sir,” I replied as I followed him upstairs.

  He opened the door and showed me inside. It was spacious, and I got excited to have my own room mostly because I never had my own room before.

  “Do you like it?” Robert asked.

  “It’s impressive, sir,” I replied.

  “Well, we’ll be downstairs if you need anything,” he said as he left the room.

  I went to lay down for a bit and tried to take a nap. The bed was much softer than the ones at the orphanage, and the sheets smelled freshly cleaned. When I lay down, I just wanted to lay there forever. As I lay there, all I could think about was what happened back at the base. I tried to go to sleep but the thought just kept me up. Who were the attackers? Why did they do it? I didn’t know. A few hours later, Claire came into my room.

  “Dinner is ready,” she said.

  I went downstairs. I could smell something rather pleasant, and my stomach started growling, my mouth watering. Claire was finishing up cooking dinner, and Robert was finishing up setting the table. I sat down at the table and saw all kinds of food on the table from rolls to a big bowl of salad. I never saw this much food in my life.

&nbs
p; “Hope you like spaghetti,” she said as she and Robert sat down.

  I took the fork and stuck in into the food; I twisted it, picked up the food and ate it. It was rather delicious, and I started to eat faster. The food was so delicious, I could not help myself. I started to eat rather sloppily and shoveled the food down my mouth.

  “Slow down, it’s not going anywhere,” Claire said.

  “Sorry, ma’am. It’s delicious, and I never ate it before.”

  “Thank you. If you’re still hungry, there’s plenty more if you like,” Claire replied.

  “Yes, ma’am,” I said.

  “Why do you end everything with sir or ma’am?” Robert asked as he took a drink.

  “I was taught to say sir or ma’am after I was done talking… sir,” I replied as I ate.

  “Well, you don’t have to do that here,” she replied.

  “Of course, ma…sorry,” I caught myself.

  “I’m curious. Where did you come from? Some kind of cult or something?” Robert asked.

  “No, but what’s a cult?” I asked.

  “It’s something where you worship and don’t question, I guess,” he said.

  “No, I was not in a cult. It’s quite complicated,” I said.

  “Have you ever experienced life outside of where ever you came from?” she asked.

  “No, I spent most of my time indoors,” I replied.

  “Doing what?” Robert asked.

  “It’s hard to explain. What do you guys do?” I asked.

  “Well, I’m an accountant,” Robert said.

  “What’s an accountant?” I asked.

  “It’s a person who keeps track of other people’s money,” he replied.

  “I mostly stay at home, taking care of the house, cooking, and cleaning,” Claire said.

  “Have you ever had children before?” I asked.

  “No. I guess we never got around to it,” Robert said.

  We continued to eat dinner and talked about other things, like how their days went, things they saw on TV, and other things. I went to bed that night and had a nightmare about the attack on the base. I woke up sweating, and my sheets were wet as well. I laid there for an hour still wondering what happened to the facility before I eventually went back to sleep. The first week was pretty good for me, and Robert and Claire were nice.

  Every morning, Robert would wake up, shower, eat breakfast, and go to work. Claire would make breakfast, stay home and take care of the house. That first morning, she made pancakes and bacon; the pancakes were fluffy, and the bacon was juicy. After breakfast, I went back up to my room and mostly just sat thinking about where my life would go now. My favorite times were at dinner. Not only was Claire a great cook from what I could tell, but I liked to talk to them and learn more about them; it made me feel welcome.

  I debated on whether or not to tell Claire or Robert about where I came from or what I was. After all, Robert and Claire were all I had, and without them, I would have nothing. One night, I had another nightmare about the attack on the facility. I went downstairs to get a drink when Claire heard me and followed me down.

  “Hey Alex, are you okay?” she asked as she rubbed her eyes and yawned.

  “I’m fine. I just had a nightmare,” I said.

  “Did you want to talk about it?”

  “No, it’s okay. I’m going back to bed,” I replied as I put the glass in the sink and started to head back upstairs.

  “Just so you know, you can talk to me about anything you want,” she said.

  “Anything?” I asked.

  “Yes, of course, whatever you want,” Claire replied.

  For a few seconds, I contemplated about telling her. I didn’t know if she or Robert could take it but then again, they were the only two people I could trust. So, I sat down at the table with her.

  “I’m just confused about everything.”

  “How exactly?” she asked.

  “Before I got placed in the orphanage, I never spent any time outside. All of this is different for me.”

  “What were you doing before you were at the orphanage?”

  “It’s difficult to explain. You wouldn’t believe me if I told you.”

  “Try me,” she said.

  “Do you promise you won’t think I’m weird?” I asked.

  “Of course,” Claire replied. I sat back down with her to tell my story.

  “I was born in a facility that experimented on people. The experiment was to create super soldiers. I was genetically engineered and trained from birth to be the perfect super soldier. We had numbers instead of names. My number was 115. A few months ago, the facility was attacked by terrorists. I escaped and spent several days on the run until the two police officers found me and took me to the orphanage.”

  “I don’t understand,” Claire said.

  “I can show you,” I said as I got up. I lifted the couch up with one hand. Robert saw what I did when he came down and saw me in the living room.

  “What’s going on?” Robert asked.

  “I have been trained from birth and genetically engineered to dispose of enemy personnel. I’m an expert on numerous types of warfare. I was also trained to adapt and survive in any environment no matter how harsh. I also have heighted intelligence. I can absorb information like a sponge absorbing water. And I have enhanced physical abilities like strength and speed.”

  “So, you’re like a super Rambo?” Robert asked.

  “I don’t know what that is.”

  “He’s a fictional soldier,” Claire said.

  “Oh, well, I guess you can say that.” I said. “I didn’t mean to scare you guys. I just wanted to show you what I was.”

  “I don’t even know what to say,” Robert said.

  “I know you didn’t mean to scare us. Why don’t you go back to bed?” Claire said.

  I went back up stairs. I sat at the top of the stairs, listening to what they were talking about in the kitchen.

  “Okay, so we adopted a thirteen-year-old Rambo. What do we do know?” Robert asked.

  “I don’t know. I mean, he looks safe. I don’t think he will try to kill us or anything,” Claire said.

  “I’m not worried about that. I just don’t know about raising someone like that. I mean, how could he fit in?” he asked.

  “I don’t know. Let’s just go to bed, and talk about this another time,” she said.

  I went back to my room. I laid there worrying about what they were going to do with me. The next morning felt awkward. I came downstairs, and sat down to wait for Claire to finish cooking breakfast. She gave me a plate of eggs with three slices of bacon. Robert quickly ate his food and left for work. I ate pretty quickly as well. While we ate, we didn’t say a word to each other. A similar situation happened at dinner. We just ate without talking, and then just went on with our lives. This went on for a couple of days, and I started to get worried that they might get rid of me.

  I didn’t think I could take one more day of not speaking to them, not to mention that I didn’t want them to get rid of me. So, I decided to go and talk to them about what they were going to do with me. When I approached them, they were sitting in the living room watching TV.

  “Hey, guys. Can we talk?” I said as I walked up to them.

  “Uh, sure, honey. Come sit down,” Claire said as Robert turned off the TV.

  “Is everything okay?” I asked.

  “We’re fine. How are you?” Robert asked.

  “I guess a little concerned,” I said.

  “About what?” Claire asked.

  “Well, how did you feel when I told you what I am?” I said.

  Claire took a breath.

  “Well, I guess we’re just concerned, that’s all.”

  “Concerned?” I asked.

  “Well, about how will other people take it if they know about you. About how different you are?” Robert said.

  “Are you guys going to get rid of me?” I asked.

  Claire and Robert looke
d stumped. I was afraid that they might say yes, so I begged them not to.

  “Look, I know you guys feel different about me. But I promise you, I mean you no harm.” I leaned closer into Claire. “Please don’t get rid of me. I have nothing, and nowhere to go,” I said.

  Claire came in and gave me a hug.

  “We’re not going to get rid of you. We’re going to show you the world, I promise,” she said as Robert moved closer and put his hand on my back.

  My adoptive parents began to rehabilitate me into society; they exposed me to just about all aspects of civilian life. We did everything like going to movies and parks, I even developed an interest in video games. Although the virtual military shooters were nothing compared to what I was trained for, they were still fun. We also spent a lot of time together, watching TV or playing board games. The civilian life was great for me, and it helped me adjust to normal life. But even then I still had a long ways to go. Sometimes, civilian life made me feel like I was an alien from another planet. Not to mention, there were no other people or children like me.

  One of my favorite days was when we went to the library to learn about the world through books. I spent hours there, reading as much as I could, and Claire would join me to watch how fast I absorbed all the information. Sometimes she would quiz me on how much I learned; and if I did okay, she would take me to get ice cream every once in a while. Luckily, my metabolism was five times stronger than normal. So, getting obese would not happen for me.

  One day when we were at the movies, we came out and I heard something not too far from where we were. It sounded like someone being punched and crying for help. I went to investigate. As I walked down the alley, I spotted two guys mugging someone for his wallet.

  “What’s going on here?” I asked.

  One of the guys let the man go, and walked toward me with his gun pointed at me.

  “What does it look like, kid? Now turn around, and walk away,” the robber said.

  I attacked and disarmed the first guy by simultaneously slapping his fist and forearm to knock the gun out of his hand. I knocked him onto the ground by front kicking him in the chest. The other guy tried to shoot, but I quickly disarmed him by crescent kicking the gun out of his hand, followed by a tornado kick to his face that knocked him over. Once they were on the ground, the victim ran off. I picked up the gun and decided to shoot the robbers. As I prepped the gun, one of the muggers pleaded for his life.