The Resolution of Professor Bluefield Goldman

Reef stares at Mr. Blue.

Mr. Blue was already staring at him.

Neither say a thing.

Suddenly, Mr. Blue says: “You know... I always knew she was sipping from my coffee when I wasn’t looking.”

It becomes quiet again.

Reef slowly stands up fully. His hair creates shadow on his eyes. His smile slowly erasing, turning to anger at Mr. Blue, realizing his true identity, clenching his hold on the pipe.

-“Am I supposed to feel bad for you?” Reef asks.

-“Then tell me. Tell me I killed her.” The professor answers.

Neither say a thing again.

“You won’t say that to me... I guess you really are a good kid.”

-“And what if I told you I’m going to burn down everything you’ve built?” Reef asks with anger and surprising composure.

-“Is it going to bring you happiness?

-“No.

-“Is it going to bring you fortune?”

-“No.”

-“Is it going to bring her back?”

-“NOOO!!!”

-“Will you still do it?”

-“YESSS!!!”

-“Well...” The professor looks at the sky.

🔥”Burn it good then.”🫀

“Clang...Ling ling...” The pipe falls from Reef’s hand.

Reefs breaks down on the floor, crying. He yells to the sky: “AAAAAAAHH!!!”

It becomes quiet again and it stays like that for a few moments.

-“Before Crysty was born, I used to have a daughter who died to the same illness as her mother, as I’m sure you heard. Everything I did was to create a better future for them. That was my only push. When my wife died, I only had Coral, my daughter. I pushed technology, telling myself it’s all for her. When she died, there was nothing I could do. Medical technology wasn’t enough. Pushing the technology more and more, hoping it will eventually change the world for the better became the only thing I know how to do and the only thing I really had left.

And then... One day, I found a baby at my entrance, abandoned. You already know who it was. Her biological parents probably hoped she will have a better future this way, seeing my household was fancy at the time. The doctors said she was born at that very day. I took her and raised her as my own. She looked a lot like her sister, but their personality were opposites. Her sister reminded me more of myself - practical, calculated. But Crysty... She was a lot like you, hype and creative. A kind soul. A free soul.”

Reef starts crying again.

“I did everything I could for her just as much. Eventually, she met a similar end. Until I found Crysty, I thought I was cursed! But the moment she appeared in my doorstep, I knew! There is good in this world. I’m looking at something worth fighting for.

When I lost her too... I started questioning the point in life itself.

I assigned people to take my place and moved away to a simplistic cabin in the woods, outside of the city. I left fancy houses all around Japan, waiting emptily for my return there. I tried living a simple life. Clear my head. See if I can come up with anything. I decided to get back to where I started. I signed to work as a janitor in the city.

All sorts of sanctions I left in order to have a human hand participating - have been slowly combated against by different directions. No matter how much I try to protect society from dangers of the very evolution I created... The future always had a different plan.

As the city council decided to have students help clean the streets, with good intentions and educational purposes behind it - the punctuality of that overcame the sanction protecting people’s jobs from A.I intervention. Instead, people took other people’s jobs unintentionally. But then...

Although I was already notified about those planned changes because of my position, I didn’t receive a message that my services are no longer needed as a janitor. I used my contacts to dig into it and I heard that there is a wide wave of littering.

As I went about cleaning the streets, I did notice the larger amounts, not to mention, straight out vandalism at certain cases. I didn’t know what could bring about such a change. I tried monitoring the situation as no matter how much we cleaned, it kept reverting to chaos. I started monitoring the students too. After following some of the groups, the only thing I saw was a mature attitude shown by young people towards their responsibilities.

-‘What could possibly be the reason?’ I asked myself...

Eventually, I noticed the littering was prone to being in specific places more often than not, as I went about and cleaned myself daily. It was as if those places were more convenient to litter by some standard.

I tried staying late, to check if I could see some action. I even tried hiding behind a bush, feeling like I’m inside one of those nostalgia movies. And one time... I heard a noise. I tried getting closer. I saw a young man wearing a hoodie and a mask. He looked familiar but I didn’t know who it was. I realized it must have been one of the students. As I tried getting even closer, I made some noise and noticed the young man was no longer there... But the littering... I now knew where it came from.

And then truth hit me. For some reason, one of the students who cleans the streets in the morning - trashes them at night.

I didn’t know the reason, but I did know something else. I must speak with that person.”

Angelica covers her face and is in tears.

Arney starts tearing too.

Albert looks at Reef and the professor, thinking: “Maybe everything will be alright.”

Reef’s eyes slowly show a bit of light. He looks at the professor.

-“Consider your fines covered.” The professors reassures him.

“Reef, you were the person closest to my daughter. Would you sit down with me to converse about many things like we used to?”

Your loyalty may make you never forget the past, but your love will make you build the future they would’ve wanted you have.

Be loved and loyal.

-The end-