It was too painful. The joy of finally making eye contact with someone quickly hanged into frustration and rejection.Even during so an important event for Kaeso, but he could not enjoy it.

"Can we just sit here for a moment?" He asked with a breaking voice. 

Green eyes did not answer. Kaeso took that as an agreement. Sitting in silence, he stared into the police officer's eyes, slowly sinking into them. They had no blemish, which made them seem very cold. If eyes are the window into the soul, Kaeso could not see even a shadow of empathy in those. Two dark little islands surrounded by a calm ocean carefully watched Kaeso's moves. Now he could tell, that their exact color was emerald. Every second he was able to read more and more from them. One after the other, anger, tiredness, and emptiness occurred, reflecting the amount of time this man spent hearing testimonies of people like Kaeso. 

"Is there something on my face?" The policeman asked, lighting the cigarette.

"Can I get one?"

Taking his time, the man passed Kaeso a package of cigarettes and then tossed the lighter toward him.

"Are you not going to scold me?" He asked casually before putting a cigarette in his mouth.

"It's too late to try to fix you. What would my words change? If your parents could not do it, then I think I would also fail."

With a slightly trembling hand, Kaeso lit a cigarette and joined the policeman in the ritual of self-poisoning.

"Maybe if they had the opportunity, they would be able to do it… Can we..." Kaeso's voice broke. "Can we finish this package?"

The attitude of the officer changed. Kaeso saw it in his eyes. Something between compassion and concern caused the appearance of waves in the oceans. Surprisingly, some emotions were still in their depths, now floating to the surface. Besides fulfilling Kaeso's request, there was nothing more the policeman could do. He let the boy calm down by smoking cigarettes together and letting him look into his eyes. The room quickly filled with smoke.

Mentioning the parents brought back Kaeso's memories. Their favorite sayings, laughter, their silhouettes, smiles... But how their eyes looked like? Kaeso couldn't find them in his mind. Were they also green? What was their color? Unexpectedly Kaeso felt water trickling down his cheeks. He discovered its source by putting his hands to face and following the trail. 

"It's because of the smoke." Kaeso whispered before the streams on his face turned into the rivers.

"Knock when you calm down." The man stood up, went to the door, and stopped for a moment before opening it.

"I hope your loneliness will not last forever."

The man left, leaving Kaeso alone with his thoughts. Splashing in tears, Kaeso promised himself that he would never feel anything again.

—----------------------------------------------------------------

Over time, Kaeso's memories of his parents became more and more blurred until they faded out completely. He had already come to terms with the possibility of never seeing them again. Occasionally he looked at photos he kept in his wallet, but the faces on them were also blurred. He has never honestly talked about it with anyone. Initially, he thought that maybe it was an effect of the accident in which he was involved. It started innocently with visual disturbances related to the disappearance of people's facial features. Kaeso communicated to doctors that there was something wrong with his eyesight. However, he never told them the whole truth, afraid of being diagnosed as mentally ill. Numerous eye tests, brain resonances, and other examinations showed no mechanical damage that could cause such problems.

Kaeso felt like he was playing in the game with a glitch, causing the NPC's faces not to load in. Maybe it was not a defect but a riddle the main character was supposed to solve. This mystery kept him on one of the levels and did not let to move on. At some point, Kaeso gave up. Occasionally, the idea of ending the game appeared in his mind. But, there was one person who changed it. 

Adam, the first man, with a face…