SWNOVELXO Chapter 106: Arine and Mike.
Arine's jaw dropped. "No, you're not. Don't fucking lie." He let out a laugh. "You're on your twenties! How the hell can you be a trauma surgeon?"
"I'm 35, Arine." Mike replied with a straight face.
"No. No, no." Arine pointed at him, waving his finger. "You look like a someone in his twenties. You act like one. You even talk like one. But you're a boomer?"
"I'm not a boomer. I just look young. Good genetics, I guess. But yeah, I'm 35."
"Oh my God." Arine groaned, hitting the steering wheel in frustration. "I'm a fucking loser…"
Mike raised an eyebrow. "What?"
"Hector's got a diploma. You're a damn doctor. Dani has a master's degree. James was in college before he dropped out. And me?" He jabbed a thumb at his chest. "I didn't even finish high school. What kind of mafia family is this? Everyone's overqualified!"
Mike scratched his chin, thinking seriously for a second. Then gave the most fitting answer he could come up with.
"Because this country's a fucking shithole. That's why."
"Yeah…" Arine sighed, then leaned back. "But for real, what the hell happened to you? I guess you were making good money as a trauma surgeon. Why the hell did you end up here, Doctor Mike?"
Mike's eyes darkened as he stared out the window. "Things happened, you know?"
Arine sensed the shift in tone, but he didn't back down. "Look… we're together every day, risking our lives, but we don't know shit about each other. If we die tomorrow, we'll die as strangers. So let's talk. Let's actually talk."
Mike glanced at him, took a deep breath, then spoke.
"My father's a well known neurosurgeon. My mother's a nurse. Growing up… there were a lot of expectations on me. I did what they told me to do, no questions. Fast forward a few years, and I became a trauma surgeon." He paused, exhaling slowly. "But I wasn't ready. Not mentally."
He looked out the window again.
"I was good. I saved lives. But in that world, they teach you not to care. Doesn't matter if it's a gang member, a cop, or a kid from a car crash…you just save them. That's your job." He turned to Arine. "Then one day, a patient came in. Gunshot wound to the chest. I could've saved him. But before he even made it through the ER doors, I heard who he was."
Arine stayed quiet, already sensing where this was going.
"He was a pedophile. A monster. Had done terrible things to a lot of little kids. The cops shot him while he was holding a six year old girl hostage. And even though they teach you to treat everyone the same… I knew, the moment I heard what he was… I wasn't going to save him."
"What did you do?" Arine whispered.
"The surgery started. And he died...that's it." Mike shook his head. "With that, I destroyed my whole career. They persecuted me. But my dad, being who he is, got me a top tier lawyer. So they didn't throw me in jail. Just stripped my license. I wasn't a doctor anymore. Just a guy who used to be one." He smiled again. "And then my family kicked me out. I was a disgrace. After that, I just drifted. Went with the flow. And then James showed up. He was different. I don't know why, but I believed in him. Heard he was the kind of man worth following. So I thought, maybe I could help him. Be his doctor or something. And so I joined."
There was silence for a moment. Then suddenly, Arine leaned over and hugged him. It was awkward, a little embarrassing, but Mike didn't stop him.
"I'm sorry, man." Arine said. "That must've been hard."
"Yeah…i was."
Arine pulled back, then looked at him seriously. "Can I ask you something?"
Mike nodded.
"Back when all that shit happened… when Rafael and Hans died… "Why did James survive? I mean, Hans got shot a couple times and didn't make it. But James… he was blasted. He went into a coma and still lived. Rafael, I get, he got shot in the throat. But Hans, man… I can't wrap my head around it."
Mike sighed and leaned back. "Hans was hit by assault rifles. James got shot with a 9mm pistol. The caliber alone makes a big difference. And…" He looked out the window again, face unreadable.
"And?" Arine asked, leaning in.
"I was there to save James. I have experience in gunshot wounds, and I know how to stop the bleeding or at least try to stop it. But Hans… Hans was just bleeding out. They didn't know how to apply pressure well…and I saw his autopsy report, but I don't want to talk about that."
Arine sighed "Still, it's strange… like something was there to save James. Like a god or something."
"I thought about the same…" Mike said quietly. "You know, in school they always told us not to believe in God, because you have the blade. You're the one who saves the life, not God. But…in that moment it felt like God took Rafael and Hans… just to save James…"
After Mike said it they sat in silence for a bit, thinking about what really happened.
"But now, tell me about yourself." Mike said as he turned toward Arine.
He shook his head. "Shit, hearing yours, my life was like a loser." He laughed.
"I don't care about it, just tell me."
Arine leaned back, placing his hand on the steering wheel. "I was living with my abusive mother and stepfather, and with my sister."
Mike immediately knew that Arine's story was going to be far worse than his.
"They did drugs in front of us, drank alcohol, and beat us up almost every day. That's why I didn't finish high school. But one day, it was too much. My sister was beaten up so badly that she lost consciousness…and that fucker, who was my stepdad, tried to touch her." He looked up. "So I ran to the kitchen, pulled out a big ass cleaver knife, and I went up to him as he knelt. He turned around and Pum!" He gestured. "I hit him in the head and I went again, Pum, Pum, Pum!" He gestured again. "Until that whole face was a messed up flesh.
"My mother came screaming at me, but I turned and sliced her throat." He said it simply without even a flicker of regret in his voice. "After they died I took my sister with me to the police station and turned myself in. She was placed in a foster home, while I went into jail for double murder. I got out of prison when I was 24, and now I'm here at 27."
He laughed and looked at Mike, whose mouth and eyes were wide open. "Are you kidding?"
Arine realized from Mike's expression that his story was a little different.
"Well, who knows what really happened? But one thing's for sure, my sister has a family now, and she didn't even invite me to her wedding. How messed up is that? Still, I'm happy she's living a good life."
"Yeah… so, you killed your family, right?" Mike asked, half joking, half curious.
"Maybe. Who knows." Arine replied, leaning back and closing his eyes.
Mike just stared at him. They were both messed up… but Arien… Arien was on a whole different level, at least, if what he said was true… and who knows if it true?