Click, click, click.

Ah, there’s nothing like the sound of a mechanical keyboard. There’s just something about the tactile feedback that soothes the soul, especially when it’s the only sound bouncing off the walls.

Giving my fingers a break, I leaned back in my chair and cracked my knuckles. My eyes closed for a moment, making a mental list of all the things I still wanted to accomplish by the night’s end.

Technically, I should have been out of the office hours ago, but right about 4:30, I had made a breakthrough in my code. If I could just debug everything, I could make sure our security was ironclad. It would be next to impossible for someone to hack into the database.

But there was this one particular kink that was giving me a hard time.

Trying to clear my mind, I got up, stretching my legs.

HQ was a ghost-town at this time of the night, especially the tech department.

Plus, with Cruz and Franklin away on a top-secret mission (somewhere in Korea -- both the exact location and goal had been unspecified in the briefing), no one bothered to work overtime. Well, no one but me.

I was a nerd like that. Always was, always will be.

You could say I’ve always had a thing for computers, ever since I was a little boy. They fascinated me, especially with all of the ways you could manipulate them. Sure, they were a machine, like any other, but at the same time, they could transform into just about anything.

In a way, it was modern-day magic.

And since I couldn’t be a wizard, being a computer geek was the next best thing.

Rumble.

My hand dropped to my stomach.

I couldn’t remember the last time I had eaten something… lunch maybe? Had I even had breakfast?

Rumble.

“Alright, alright,” I mumbled to myself. “I guess we can go home and get something to eat…”

Hesitantly, I saved my progress and turned off my computers. I didn’t need one of the new guys stumbling in and messing with my work.

I chuckled.

And to think, I had been the new guy just a few months ago, but now, I was in charge of cyber-operations. Well, at least until Franklin returned. Still, I was a big deal now.

Ego inflated within me like a hot air balloon.

Okay, Ned, don’t go off getting a big head now, I thought to myself.

Knowing it was best to just leave before I persuaded myself into pulling an all-nighter, I grabbed my jacket and headed out the door, locking down HQ as per protocol.

* * *

After I got home, I plopped in front of the TV, a takeout container of fried rice in hand. For the umpteenth time, I tried to master the skill of using chopsticks, but it was a lost cause. I had watched YouTube tutorials. I had read the back of the wrapper. Hell, I had even gone to an authentic Chinese restaurant, just to try to learn how it was done. But it had been all to no avail.

So I was stuck with using the flimsy plastic fork they’d tossed into the bag for guys like me.

"This is your last chance. After this, there is no turning back. You take the blue pill - the story ends, and you wake up in your bed and believe whatever you want to believe. You take the red pill - you stay in Wonderland, and I will show you how deep the rabbit-hole goes."

The Matrix was my go-to movie. There was just something about it that captured my imagination like nothing else. I swear, I could watch it on repeat until the day I die, and I still wouldn’t be bored of it. That’s what you call a true masterpiece.

Suddenly, the movie was interrupted by a baby’s wail. It was loud and penetrating, managing to pierce through the otherwise thick, concrete walls.

It was the first time I had heard anything coming from my next-door neighbor. I hadn’t even known that the apartment had been rented. Most of this condo building was vacant, unable to compete with the flats downtown.

The crying continued, getting louder and louder.

Maybe something was wrong…

Still, it wasn’t my problem. Right?

I turned up the volume on the TV, trying to enjoy my midnight dinner.

Somehow, however, I could still hear the baby.

Something was definitely wrong, and I was going to get to the bottom of it.

I discarded the rest of my rice (it was disgusting, anyway) and walked down the hall to my neighbor’s door.

For some reason, I hesitated. Realistically, I was in no position to advise someone on how to care for their child. I had been a bachelor all of my life. I didn’t know the first thing about raising a kid. Maybe it was normal for them to cry like this. I had no clue.

Yet my gut told me that something was wrong, and it rarely led me astray. Well, except when it had convinced me that it was a good idea to get Chinese takeout at two in the morning.

Knock, knock.

The sound was deafening in the quiet halls of the complex.

I waited, listening for footsteps. At first, there were none, but then I heard the muted sound of floorboards squeaking underneath a carpet.

Whoever it was, they lingered at the door. I could see their shadow dancing along the gap.

Of course, they weren’t going to answer the door at a whim. It was two in the morning, after all. Any sane person would be wary. So I stood there, a smile on my face, hoping I looked friendly enough.

Although the longer I waited, the more I worried. My fingers ran through my messy hair. I probably should have made myself a bit more presentable before showing up at someone’s door…

I was just about to turn back when the door opened, only a nudge.

“Hello?” a soft, frightened voice called out.

I peeked through the crack, offering a warm and harmless smile.

To my surprise, I was met by a tired sight. The woman standing at the door looked ragged and worn. There were clear bags under her eyes, and the skin on her face looked taut, almost like it would tear at any moment. Her long hair fell down to her waist in unkempt tangles.

She looked like she hadn’t slept in days.

The baby kept crying.

So maybe she hadn’t.