PFC Chapter 4474 The Darkest Night (2)
Chapter 4474 The Darkest Night (2)
Chapter 4474 The Darkest Night (Part Two)
Victor was speechless, looking at Schiller with pleading eyes. He whispered, "Perhaps that's why he didn't choose to blow up my lab. We have to figure this out..."
Then he looked at Chick and said, "There's still a long time until the Christmas ball, why not find a dance partner?"
“He promised me! I’m not the one who did anything wrong! Why should I endure this humiliation?!” Chick was very emotional. “And he… he…”
Victor paused for a moment when he heard the pronoun he used, then sighed and said, "He found a girl?"
Chick didn't answer, but his expression suggested he was pretty much right. Victor felt a splitting headache; he sat down on the sofa and downed a cup of black coffee in two gulps. Mrs. Edson finally realized this topic wasn't suitable for her to continue listening, so she used making coffee as an excuse to leave.
“What I’m more curious about is how you hanged yourself.” Schiller looked at his neck, which had no marks, so he must have been rescued before he was even hanging himself.
“There are beams above the cryogenic lab,” Victor said. “Physics labs don’t have ceilings because there are a lot of pipes that need to run overhead, and the ceiling would interfere with the inspection, so he can hang ropes up there.”
"He tied a knot?"
"what?"
"After throwing the rope up, did you tie a knot at the bottom?"
“I don’t remember,” Victor said. “It was chaos. Everyone was busy getting him down, and nobody checked the rope. Is there a problem?”
“No, this only shows that it was his first suicide attempt and he didn’t have much experience,” Schiller said. “It’s difficult to hang oneself over a beam with a thin, circular rope because the rope will roll. When a person is struggling in the face of death, their movements are very large, and they will fall down because the rope is rolling. Either use a flat ribbon, or throw it up and then throw it around again, and then tie a knot at the top to secure it…”
Victor looked speechless and said to Schiller, "You're going to mentor him?"
"This proves that he was probably just acting out of anger, rather than suffering from severe depression or some other illness."
Victor looked at Chick. Chick sat there lost in thought. Victor, still trying to resolve the issue, said, "How about I ask your dance partner to come over..."
"No!!!" Chick screamed, "Why do you always try to shift the blame onto him?! If it weren't for you..."
“I see,” Schiller said. “You think he stood you up because Victor scolded you and embarrassed you?”
Victor was even more speechless. He said, "Who on earth would break up with you just because the professor insulted you a few times?"
“Nora certainly wouldn’t,” Schiller said, picking up his coffee cup. “That’s why you two were able to end up together.”
"Don't say anything yet." Victor couldn't take it anymore. He looked at Chick and said, "Did he tell you that he broke up with you because you got scolded?"
“He said I’m always careless, and that’s what he meant by this. I know it perfectly well…”
"Are you sure you didn't forget the rehearsal you agreed on?"
"I haven't forgotten!"
“Your mother wouldn’t let you go,” Schiller said again. “You chose to listen to your mother, lost your dance partner, and then, because you felt wronged, decided to blame the professor.”
Victor tossed his hair back, wiped his face, and said, "Tell me, what are you planning to do? What do I have to do to stop you from throwing the rope onto the roof beam?"
“You need to apologize to me!” Chick said. “You shouldn’t have reprimanded me like that in public…”
“I can’t do that,” Victor said. “I can’t apologize to you after you’ve actually made a mistake, because that would seem like I’m endorsing what you did. But actually, leaving the power source on is very dangerous. If I did that, it would put other people at greater risk.”
"But you shouldn't have reprimanded me in public! There were so many people in the lab at the time, and none of them liked me. You made me lose face, and now I can't even get along with them anymore!"
“I can apologize to you privately,” Victor said. “I was a bit out of line at the time, but I was just so angry. That piece of junk equipment was worth $7…”
“Chick,” Schiller called his name, “though it may be a bit harsh, I have to remind you that whether this matter goes to the principal or Brainiac, you will suffer financial losses, and I don’t think you can afford to pay that amount. Perhaps you should consider whether it’s worth getting to this point with the school and professors over your dance partner.”
"Why isn't it worth it?! You ruined me! I can't hold my head up in school anymore, it's all your fault! I tried to get along with them, but it's impossible now. It's all because of you..."
Victor pressed his eye hard and looked at him, saying, "Just tell me what you want. I'll agree to anything except a public apology."
"Nothing will do. If you don't apologize to me, I'll definitely die in your lab, or in your office—there's always a time when no one's around! Or I'll jump off a building in the classroom..."
Schiller sighed and said, "I think you should calm down. How about I have Mrs. Edson come and keep you company?"
Before Chick could say anything, Schiller pulled Victor away. Victor let out a silent roar. Schiller patted him on the shoulder and said, "Look on the bright side, he's just immature, but at least he's willing to communicate instead of silently blowing up the school."
“If it weren’t for that, do you think I would even listen to him?!” Victor scratched his head in frustration. “Brainiac told me that there will be more and more normal people in the next few classes. Is this what normal people are? I might as well give the lunatics back to me! At least they don’t cause trouble!”
“Some individuals among normal people are like this,” Schiller said. “They cannot control their emotions precisely. When they get excited, they will act recklessly and get stuck in a rut.”
"What do we do now? I can't let him die in my lab or classroom, and his office is even worse!"
“Brainiac will be watching him. Otherwise, how could someone have rescued him before he even had the noose around his neck?” Schiller said.
Victor sighed. Schiller glanced at his watch; it wasn't lunchtime yet. He looked at Victor and asked, "Are you going to dance practice with Nora?"
“She still has classes,” Victor said. “After class she has to pick up Billy because of the bad weather; elementary school is only half a day. They should have lunch at home.”
"Then go to the library to prepare lessons?"
Victor forced a smile and nodded, saying, "Let's go. There's a contract here that I need to take a closer look at."
"I'm going back to my office to get the books. See you at the library later."
Schiller returned to his office and retrieved his basic psychology books and some references. He rummaged through the pile of papers; he had an extension class that evening where he would be teaching some cutting-edge industry knowledge, and he needed to use his own papers as references.
Just as he was searching through useful papers, there was a knock on the office door. Schiller, without looking up, said, "Come in."
Jenna walked in, smiled at Schiller, and said, "Good morning, Professor. I'm here to ask for leave. I'm afraid I can't go to the evening enrichment class. Amanda needs to speak with me."
"How much does the Federal Shield pay you?" Schiller asked.
"Two thousand dollars a week. But that's not important. What's important is that they're very generous with the points. If I can't have a whole Neapolitan pizza with triple cheese and creamy matsutake mushroom soup on Friday after school, life is meaningless."
Schiller smiled helplessly, then said, "Go ahead. But can I ask her what she wants to see you about?"
“I’m not too sure about that, but last night, Bruce Wayne went to the headquarters of the Federal Shields, and I saw him.”
“I suppose something’s happened with the Justice League,” Schiller said, then, as if remembering something, he asked, “Have you heard about what happened at the Cryophysics Department?”
Jenna paused, her hand on the door faltering. "I know a little bit."
"perhaps?"
“Milos’ new dance partner is my roommate,” Jenna said. “His ex-boyfriend is that suicidal guy, Chick. Perrotta said it was because Chick was always unpunctual and stood Milos up several times.”
"that's it?"
“All I know is that Perrotta wasn’t lying. I haven’t met the other two,” Jenna said, shaking her head. “With Brainiac around, no one could possibly commit suicide, right?”
“Chik was very excited.”
"You saw him?"
"Because he intends to pin everything on Professor Frith."
“Oh? What happened?” Jenna said. “How can you blame the professor for such a personal relationship dispute?”
“Victor confronted him directly, reprimanding him for not turning off the power supply.”
"It's good enough if he doesn't have to pay compensation."
"Who can argue with that?"
The two walked out together, then parted ways at the stairwell. Jenna paused for a moment before saying, "I have a feeling that what could unite the Justice League and the Aegis of the Federation is no small matter. If anything comes up, I'll have Brainiac send you a message, Professor."
"No problem. Hopefully nothing serious will happen."
Schiller arrived at the library and quickly found Victor by the window: "What are you doing sitting here?"
"what happened?"
"Didn't you say that changes in the sky and light affect your work? You used to sit inside."
“I don’t think I can concentrate on my work. I have to ask Brainiac every ten minutes if the roof beams in the lab are okay.”
“You’re too anxious,” Schiller said, pouring him a glass of hot water. “Brainiac doesn’t acknowledge that suicide is a person’s right. If he does exhibit multiple extreme behaviors, Brainiac might take coercive measures against him, including hospitalization.”
"In my opinion, he just lost control of his emotions temporarily. Hormonal changes and mood swings need time to subside. He'll be fine once he calms down."
"The problem is, how long will it take him to calm down? I can't keep living in constant fear, can I?"
“That’ll probably be after the Christmas ball.” Schiller blew on the hot water and looked at the condensation on the glass next to him. A snowplow passed by the library, and the cleared asphalt road was quickly covered with a new layer of fine snow.
Victor leaned back in his chair, staring blankly at the ceiling. It took him a while to finally snap out of it. He buried himself in the documents, but it was clear he was trying to avoid the issue.
“If this matter can’t be resolved soon, I might come in handy with those hanging tricks you taught him,” Victor sighed.
Schiller sighed softly and said, "I'll figure something out."