<table width="100%"><tr><td style="vertical-align: top; width:50%; padding-right:10px;"><span style="color: #E6E9FD"><span style="font-family: Nyala;"><span style="font-size: 120%; line-height: 116%;">Regret was the one sure way to tear down any human being. Period. If someone wanted a weapon that would affect both men and women of all ages and from all ethnically backgrounds, no matter the disabilities or diseases, one of the only things that could satisfy that requirement was regret. Because it didn't really matter where you came from or how you were raised or who you were as a person or an individual. You had regrets. Everyone had regrets. And regret is an unconquerable challenge. <br/><br/>At any points in someone's life, many people are told that they can conquer any challenge they faced. They are told this by movies, their parents and siblings, advertisements and various other media sources. They are encouraged to do what they want to do, to go and become an astronaut or a famous actor or actress or to paint and draw. Follow your dreams. Nothing can stop you. They are told that they can do anything they set their mind to. But the thing about that was that it wasn't true. You can't do anything you set your mind to. Because sometimes, there are things you can't set your mind on. <br/><br/>You can't tell yourself that you're not going to have any regrets. You can't simply tell yourself that you aren't going to regret the things you've done in the past because it has already taken root inside of you as soon as you committed the act. As soon as it was done, it was implanted inside and it would never be removed. Because regret isn't just a bad feeling people get when they do something bad. It's not just some bad memory of calling someone names and pulling their hair. Regret is your very nature telling you you were wrong, and it won't let you forget. And with that sort of discontentment and that sort of reality at hand it simply was one of the greatest weapons on the human mind there ever was. <br/><br/>And when you have a lot of it, you were nothing more than a broken toy. <br/><br/>Laying on the imaginary carpet of human society, that's all Chester was. A broken toy. A mechanical, run down toy that malfunctioned, buzzed and twitched. With his broken wheels and lazy eye, no one wanted to touch him as if it were a disease. Like it would spread and they would become broken because of him. And in some attempt to fix himself, he ended up packing on the largest regret he had ever had. And that weight just began to settle in. <br/><br/>The man's heart began to sink deeper into his chest and he was certain the only thing keeping him together was that small hospital chair. While he remained where he was for several long minutes, streams of salt water ran off his face and down his palms and forearm. Even as a few of the droplets entered his quivering mouth and his tongue could taste the sea like water, he continued to cry at the shambles he was in, knowing there was no way out for him. Not this time. Because you can't hide from regret. It was impossible.</span></span></span></td><td style="vertical-align: top; width:50%; padding-left:10px;"><span style="color: #E6E9FD"><span style="font-family: Nyala;"><span style="font-size: 120%; line-height: 116%;">So the little broken toy cried away into his hands like any broken toy should. The pain in his chest wasn't accurately represented with his quickly expanding and deflating nature, because it didn't matter how much sparking he did nor how many partially wound noises he made. No one would know the full extent of his trials with regret because it had company. Suppression. And unless it left, only lies would greet those who asked and relief would never come. <br/><br/>Which is why once the stranger sat down, it began. <br/><br/>Chester heard the man slowly make his way to his side but didn't think he was going to sit down until the stranger actually did. And try as he must, he couldn't fully contain his low sobs which were still the most prevalent noise in the room. He sniffed blatantly a few times which replaced a tear for a second each, but it was a fast decent with no easy way up. The man next to him didn't really do anything at first, at least not to his knowledge because Chester avoided eye contact as if it were some sort of trap. They both simply sat next to one another, side by side for a long few minutes, Chester being the more audible out of the two.  His hands lowered and wiped the glistening streams off his face and out from under his eyes, inhaling as deeply as he could to cut off the supply of tears. And although it stung to hold it back, tears eventually did stop falling.<br/><br/>The sniffling continued on the other hand in it's place, because no matter how much Chester wanted it too, it wasn't that easy to set aside a horrible mistake. So the two sat there even longer, the brunette blinking to eradicate the extensive gloss and wetness in his eyes which contrasted beautifully with the reds in his face and whites of his eyes. It was at that point that the silence finally cease with the boy questioning the small toy in front of him. And that's also when the lies started to verbalize themselves. <br/><br/>Sniffing again for good measure, the comedian wiped his running nose with his wrist and nodded in a disheartened sort of way. He folded his hands together as he continued to lean on his elbows, answering with a choked tone in his unprepared voice. "Yeah." Because that was a completely reassuring answer for someone looking at a man who had completely broken down in front of them. He chuckled at the visualization of how pathetic that must have looked and sounded. But it was an answer that not too many people argued with when they got it, so Chester didn't correct himself in any way. Instead, he looked at his hands and adding," Just worried about my kids is all."<br/><br/> It all sounded so much like an excuse to him now. Whenever he wanted to get out of saying the truth, he would add 'is all' to the end to make it seem like it wasn't a big deal. It was such a stupid excuse too because it didn't even really mean anything in of itself either. It just added to the fluff around the lie he hoped wouldn't be seen. And look at how convincing that really was. A man blubbering in the middle of a hospital lobby saying he's alright. Entirely convincing for sure.</span></span></span></td></tr></table>