[ WP ] You are in the audience at a convicted murderer 's execution , when he/she is asked for any last words , he/she scans the crowd finishing with you and looking into your eyes simply says , `` I forgive you . ''

A scene like that of Ancient Rome unfolded before me. Anticipation passed through the morbidly curious individuals that had gathered here like an electric sensation. They all held a quiet glee in their hearts, wishing to see a brutal end up close. Here in the many faces of the crowd, they could relinquish their individuality and embrace their darker desires openly. Their excitement was not unlike that of a crowd at a modern day racing or fighting event, hoping for a quick and violent end. A rush that they would not experience at home or in their day to day lives. I was among this crowd and I shared many of their sentiments, but for reasons all my own. The man that marched solemnly, flanked by armed guards, had taken the lives of those closest to me yet had spared me. His heinous crimes were due an equal punishment in my mind, but this would have to suffice. 
 
 Slowly walking towards the front of the crowd, my body began to shake. The mind conjured up imitations of his final moments as they would unfold before my very eyes. What brought me the most joy was the opportunity to see his eyes cry out with the light of life only to find it extinguished, slowly, painfully. He needed to know the agony that I suffered each and every day. A slow and painful death that arises when one finds their will to live. That is what I wished upon him. Whether that event would take place, I would soon know. I arrived at the front line, staring directly at the killer. His eyes did not meet mine, not immediately, as though he was searching for something. For someone. This angered me, much more than it should have, his dismissal churned my stomach as a deep seated fire began to burn in my intestines. I felt my temperature rise as my face flushed and all else blurred out. The quiet murmurs of the crowd faded from my ears as I heard my own quickening heart beat while attempting to burn holes through his head with an acidic stare. 
 
 Moving from right to left, his head slowly tilted my way. I began to realize that he was looking upon each person's face, that he was indeed searching for someone in particular. The officials finished giving their statements and reading the charges that the man had been found guilty of, several less than he deserved. Finally he found me in the crowd and our gazes met as they asked him for his last words. Filled with anger and hatred focused solely upon him, I listened intently for any words he would have to say. Determined to burn them deeply into my memory, to think upon in days long after his passing or to mutter as I spit upon his grave. However, the words that escaped his lips brought my mind to a screeching halt. It was a blockade that I could not pass. Why he uttered them and what they were supposed to mean to me was a mystery that I could not solve. Though perhaps that was his intention after all. 
 
 “ I forgive you, ” he whispered with a smile. 
 
 -223
