Mutagen

Mei grew up being treated as an object to be traded off at the right moment. A political tool to expand their family\'s business drastically. It made her like a bird trapped in the cage with no one beside her.

She understood that feeling of not being loved by one\'s parents. Mei watched in loneliness while they valued her brother like the most valuable gem in the world.

Even so, she was rich and beautiful. People would flock like flies towards her, wanting her friendship in one way or another. All of it was fake, though, for the very same reasons.

Nonetheless, despite all those, she never experienced hunger due to a lack of money.

Mei might have felt that she was all alone in the world. She had no freedom and had no right to decide for herself. But compared to Mark, Mei was way well off. She could not imagine what she would end up if she had those kinds of experiences.

It might not be surprising for a person to give up midway through those experiences.

Mei could not believe that the most important person to her went through that experiences while growing up. She felt frustrated and wanted to cry for him.

However, Mei did not let a single tear off her eyes. Mark might have gone through all that, but what he needed right now was not pity.

Mark\'s mind was fleeting through his past experiences. He did not notice until Mei\'s hand was already on his head, caressing his hair gently.

"Gege did great."

Mei\'s voice entered his ears.

Mark could not help but feel his eyes a bit watery.

Mei was right. What Mark needed right now was not pity but commendation. He was already past the time he needed anyone\'s pity and help. He persevered alone and was now, here beside her.

And from here, Mark continued with the remaining bits of his story.

***

Crippling anxiety was hard to recover from, especially for Mark, who was receiving neither support nor treatment.

Mark became a shut-in for a few years, enduring more and more sermons and scoldings.

It was until finally, they grew tired as Mark also stopped listening.

They thought that Mark was already a lost cause.

And from there, Mark was truly alone, spending all day in the confines of the four walls of his small room. Although he still had some interactions with his family, it was kept to a bare minimum.

In the least, he did not stop doing house chores. After all, it was all that someone like him that had no job could do to help. Mark might have the disability to work, but he did not want to entirely become a burden.

But of course, his parents turned a blind eye to his remaining effort and deemed him useless.

In any case, they left him alone.

Unexpectedly, being left alone without interference gave him more opportunities.

One day, a vocational school opened up just on the opposite side of their housing subdivision. It was just a ten-minute walk away from his house. It was his father that subtly told him about it.

The best thing about this was that the school was free. Anyone with interest was free to attend. It was funded by the government. However, would that vocational school be flocked with people because of this? No. Even if the slots for the school was limited, it was never filled.

Why?

The only course that the school provided was NCII Pen and Paper Animation. It was an industry not highly valued in this third-world country.

However, as an Otaku, it was one of Mark\'s few aspirations.

Thus, even though Mark was a bit late to enroll, he managed to enter the school\'s six months program.

Mark managed to actually pass the exam six months later with flying colors. With the help of the instructor that taught them for six months, Mark managed to finally land his first job since graduating college.

It was on an animation studio in Manila, affiliated with a children\'s channel in America. Animating cartoons was not really Mark\'s goal, but it was already a big step for him.

At that same animation studio was where Mark met Halley and Nicole and became friends with them.

In his first weeks on that job, Mark came across an incident that changed his life a bit. It was his encounter with the PsyCrystal that fell from the sky. He thought that his life was getting better. He even kept the strange crystal not only because it was strange but maybe, it would bring him good luck.

Unfortunately, as if it was never meant to be, Mark had to leave the studio after working for about five months. Not only Mark left but also some of the animators that entered the studio together with him. It was not an issue with them, but an issue with the studio being unprepared for new employees even though they hired them.

Was Mark unlucky? Maybe he was.

And like before, Mark was back to being jobless once more.

In the least, this time, Mark felt that there was still some hope for him.

Although he left the studio, he still had some contact with the instructor that recommended him there. The instructor called him back to the school because of the new course they had. It was NCIII of the same course that Mark had before. While NCII was a course for in-betweeners and assistant animators, NCIII was a higher one for actual animators of scenes from the storyboard.

Well, it was already late, though. While Mark was spending time in the studio, the new course already started. Instead, Mark was invited to participate in the exam without actually attending the training course. It was because they were short of attendees and needed Mark to fill in the numbers. Mark had no reason to refuse. If he did not pass the exam, in the least, he had the idea.

Nonetheless, Mark passed the harder exam without the training at all. It did not take long, and he got the certificate. And to say, it was Mark\'s most important treasure.

***

"I even always carried it with me until now."

Mark said, taking out a printed certificate from his ring and offered Mei to take a look.

Mei took the certificate with a look of amazement. She was careful as Mark said that it was his treasure.

"By the way, I also had this."

Mark said, taking out another certificate.

Mei also took a look at the next certificate and was stupefied.

"Civil Service Commission Certificate?"

Of course, Mei knew about this. Her family had connections to the government.

Passing the Civil Service Exam would grant a person eligibility for a position in a government office. While what Mark had was just a sub-professional examination certificate, it did not remove the fact that it was an exam that not just anyone could pass.

It was an examination with a ten to twelve percent annual average passing rate nationwide.

"I had nothing to do while jobless, so I took that on a whim. I barely passed. My score is right on the passing mark of eighty percent."

Mark explained.

Mei did not care about the score. It did not erase the fact that Mark passed such a hard exam.

***

Unfortunately, Mark never had the opportunity to use these two certificates at all.

It would be hard for Mark to actually get a job as an animator since he would need more experience. There were also no animation studios nearby.

As for a job in the government office? Mark would never dream of that.

Government offices were always filled with a huge number of people. Someone with anxiety, like Mark, would not be able to handle such a place.

Not to mention that Mark\'s abilities as an Empath started to develop faster at that point in time.

That was when Mark just decided to spend time doing things he liked while at home. Taking inspiration from the internet, he began to make his own props and crafts.

At one time that who knows what entered his mind, he actually posted pictures of his working anime props on social media.

Unexpectedly, it became quite popular in the field.

Until one day, someone contacted Mark.

***

"It\'s Mizuki."

Mark said to Mei.

"Alana?"

Mei asked to confirm.

"Yep," Mark confirmed. "She contacted me online if I\'m accepting commissions on cosplay props. Since I had nothing to do, I accepted it. It took quite the courage to actually meet up, though. She was also satisfied with my work and not only paid above the price we agreed on but continued to give me commissions."

***

To say, Alana was Mark\'s savior at that time. She did not mind Mark\'s odd aura but valued his work more. Although it was not really a constant flow of money, he was getting some, nonetheless. She also referred him to other customers, giving him more chance to earn money.

With Mark earning money, he began to have more freedom at home.

However, it seemed that he was destined to be unlucky.

One day, while going home, Mark came across a kidnapping incident.

***

"That\'s the first time I met you, I guess?"

Mark said, glancing at Mei. Of course, Mei was stupefied. She never mentioned to Mark that she was kidnapped a few years ago. But then, she realized.

"Don\'t tell me..."

Mei stared at Mark, only to see him shake his head.

"I did see you getting taken out of the vehicle, but it\'s not me who saved you. It\'s Freed, who took over might body at that time. I also almost died at that time, you know? No, actually, the two of us should have died at that there. It\'s just Freed interfered."

***

Was it something destined? No one would be able to tell.

It was that time that the things that Mark thought were getting better became worse.

Mark\'s connection to his family felt stifled even more than before. It was fortunate that he was already used to it and the connection between him and his family was already thin in the first place.

And from there, it was the story that Mei knew.

***

Mark finished telling Mei his past. It was no wonder now that he did not want to associate with his family at all. Although he still made a bit of effort for them, there was no way that he would try to appear before them.

Without them, Mark was doing fine.

Mark\'s past experiences were what made him what he was right now.

As someone who could not eat enough in the past, it was not surprising that Mark would not pass good food at any possible time.

Since he experienced being under and leeching off someone, Mark never wanted to be under anyone once again.

It was a past filled with limitations and struggle. That was why Mark wanted to be free this time around. Uncaged by anything that wanted to trap him.

And most of these... Were things that the apocalypse gave to Mark.

***

"Should we go to sleep?"

Mark asked Mei while he returned his certificates inside his ring.

"Let\'s go."

Mei nodded with a smile.

Knowing each other\'s story made their hearts closer to each other. It made them understand each other, and know what shaped their current selves.

Unlike the previous nights, this one was special. It was since Mark finally opened his past to someone.

***

A pair of people contrasting each other in many ways. One was beautiful while the other was below average. The first was rich and the second was poor.

Yet, they were also similar.

Unbound by destiny, freed from the cages called their past.

They were now able to write their own fates, and affect others instead of being affected.

The night was deep and they embraced their rest.

Tomorrow would be a new adventure.