"What’s the plan today?" The young boy asks, innocence gleaming in his puffy eyes.

The man laughs while taking a long drag from his cigarette. "Simple," he puffs a ring of smoke then throws the rest of the cigarette remains on the ground.

One hand reaches over to the gun resting in the holster around his leg while the other hand motions the child in his direction. The boy complies with the man's orders. A smile forms on his face and hands the weapon over to the boy. The puffy-eye kid receives the gun and feels confusion building up in the pit of his stomach. "What do you want me to do with this?" he asks in discomfort.

The man kneels down to the youngster's height and gently places his rough hands on the kid's shoulders. A frail smile forms on his face, then pulls the boy into his embrace. They stay in that position until the young one slightly pulls away. He reads the sadness written on the man's eyes and the pain on his weak smile. The boy feels his heart ache. He lowers his head into the crook of the man's shoulder and mumbles, "Tell me what I have to do." 

The man lowers his head and hears the boy stomach start to rumble. He lightly chuckles which causes the boy to raise his head. The man looks into the eyes of the young one and points to the building behind them. The youngster turns around and sees a restaurant containing a collection of people all dining in an atmosphere that the boy is not familiar with; they are interacting in various ways that his mind tried to comprehend. The boy could not help but feel the stirrings of jealously and envy rising to the surface. The boy clenches the gun between his hands, his knuckles turning white, and his breaths beginning to quicken. 

He snaps out of his trance as he feels a large hand firmly grab his own. The boy turns his head and sees the man looking at him. The expression on his face is different from the ones the child is familiar with. The young one realizes that this is the first time the man is showing sympathy towards him. The man also attempts a couple of firsts by comforting and soothing the boy out of his emotional tantrum. The boy begins to question these foreign feelings boiling within him.

"It's going to be okay," the man says on repeat; a mantra for the boy to follow. The boy nods and hesitantly wraps his arms around the man's neck. The man's face beams with delight and pulls the boy into the embrace. The boy slowly pulls away and hears his stomach grumble. “That’s the second time.” A light chuckle left the man's lips. “Are you hungry?" he asks the boy.

The boy finally manages to crack a smile. "Yep, but first, what do I have to do?"

The man releases the young one from his grasp and pushes him towards the building and says, "First, you eat."

The boy nods. "Then what do I do next?"

The man clears his throat and points towards the gun in the boy's hand, "Then you shoot."

The boy gulps, "Finally?"

The man stands up and looks at the boy. The boy is familiar with this expression; however, the boy cannot prevent the cold shiver that starts to eerily travel down his own spine, the goose bumps slowing crawling on his skin, and the feeling of fright painfully rousing his body. The next few words that leave the man's mouth make the boy experience true fear and terror.

"You exit the vicinity," the man says sternly, his menacing eyes piercing into the boy's soul. "Then, you point the gun towards me, pull the trigger, and leave me to die."

A heavily and eerie silences blankets the two. The boy looks down towards his hand the holds the gun. He clenches it tightly and raises his head to look at the man with sincerity. They both nod at each other with no hesitation.

“Is that all I have to do?” The boy breaks the silence.

The man’s expression changes as he laughs and walks toward the boy. “Think of this as a second chance.”

Confusion is evident on the young one’s face. “A second chance at what?” he asks.

The man smiles, already knowing the answer and ultimately the young boy’s fate. “Think of it as something that I couldn’t give you; something that you couldn’t achieve when you were chosen to be partnered with me.”

“What would that be?” The boy begins to tear up. He knows that in this moment the unknown of his own future will be put to the test by his premature actions.

The man looks at the boy one last time and smiles. “The chance of living a normal life, being free, being able to explore the world to your heart’s content.”

The boy nods and heads towards the restaurant.

He does what he is told.

He orders and eats.

When he is done with his meal he points the gun at the civilians in the restaurant and shoots.

Finally, as the second to last bullet is exits the gun and enters the last body, he leaves.

As he exits, he looks up to the man with tears clouding his vision. He raises his arms, both hands on the gun, both fingers on the trigger. The young boy turns his head as he hears the gun go off. He looks down and sees a pool of blood collect around his feet. He stares at it, noticing his reflection.

Suddenly, something clicks in his head. A part of his mind pieces something together on his own. This is new to the boy, but he smiles. Somehow, he feels that he’s in control of himself, of his decisions, of his life.

It is foreign to him, but he oddly enjoys it. Unorthodox as it is, he feels reborn, complete; he knows that he is a new person.

Before he decides to depart the vicinity, the young boy takes one last look at his own reflection.

Somehow, his image speaks to in pleasurable volumes, telling him that he is a free man.

Somehow, his image transcends the stereotypical boundaries that human nature creates. He feels as though his possibilities are endless and his human growth will be infinite.

Somehow, he sees the authentic beauty in himself; a rarity that many humans could never see.

Somehow, he sees how all of this ties together; making him an imperfectly perfect person, helping to reach his final form and his own true self that he begins to genuinely love.

The young boy smiles as he ventures off to where the world and fate will take him.

With one step at a time, he lives out his first second chance.

But he will always remember to eat, shoot, then leave.