C1: The Regeneration Serum

University of Biological Science and Arts, Gotham City. 

Date: 21st of May, 2022. 

My name is Bruce Wayne. 

At that time I was a 20-year-old student of Biological Science. This was also when I discovered the serum that would later change my entire life. 

From nothing to everything. 

Sometimes I wonder if I should regret that choice I made. Yet, I find myself being satisfied with what I got. Maybe even proud of what I've become, no matter what the people said. 

It was a Saturday evening when the serum first showed the exact reaction I wanted. 

I was working late, as always. 

Alone in the lab, I sat in my comfortable rolling chair with my eyes on the computer. I was slowly drifting to sleep, yet I forced myself to keep my eyes open. 

Of course, I failed to do so. 

I was alone in that laboratory. My only companions were the vampire bats that surrounded the laboratory, hanging upside down inside their small metal cages. And of course, the laboratory itself, filled with machines, test tubes carrying biochemicals, and all the medical equipment and supplies that filled the shelves to the brim. 

Usually, the laboratory was a busy place with guys and girls in lab coats walking around and making jokes. 

It was empty because of the lateness of the hour. 

As I sat in my chair and stared at the computer screen, my eyes began to feel heavy. 

I was tired. I didn't know what came over me that day, but my eagerness grew in that evening. Hence why I was working from 6 pm to 11 without resting my head down even for a single moment. 

The last thing I saw was the pink cells floating inside a pool of purple on the computer screen. That was the sight of the unsuccessful serum. 

Then, my conscience drifted away. 

…

*flick* 

"wake up, bruce…" 

A distant voice echoed in my conscience as I felt a tingle in the skin of my forehead. 

"Idiot, wake up! You've done it!" 

This time, it was a feminine voice. 

I gradually opened my eyes. The blurry picture in front of me became more clear now. 

I saw blue cells floating inside the red fluid. At first, I thought I was dreaming. 

My mouth dropped open in shock. 

"Oh shit…" 

The two people behind me started laughing and chuckling. Two soft and pale hands hung around my neck from behind, embracing me. 

Layla, the beautiful blonde lady with shoulder-length hair who was my best friend, began to chuckle in my ear. 

"You did it, Bruce! You did it!" 

*cough!* 

Kirk coughed behind me, breaking his outrageous laughter. 

"Mmm…" he cleared his throat, stepping forth and resting his arm on my shoulder. 

I looked behind me and saw my buddy's face. 

Kirk was a tall and handsome guy, although now he looked a bit unenergetic due to the condition he was in. 

He was also bald due to the cancer treatment he had been getting for the past few years. He was my first best friend and we had been mates since middle school. 

This experiment was majorly to save his life. And here I was. 

"You did it… you bastard," Kirk threw his arms around my neck and hugged me right after Layla. 

He patted me on the back. 

I did the same to him.

"We did it, Kirk. All those years of hard work and we finally did it," I grinned, pushing back the tears of joy. 

I stood up from the roller chair and hugged both Kirk and Layla. We huddled against each other for a while. 

"We did it, guys." 

…

15 minutes later, we sat on the couch inside the laboratory together. 

We had just celebrated our achievement with a bottle of some old whisky we kept inside the lab just for this moment. 

Me in the left corner. 

Layla cuddled up next to Kirk's chest in the right corner. 

She was more than happy to see her boyfriend finally able to enjoy life again. 

Kirk and I began this project to create a serum with the biochemical inside vampire bats to create something that could have the power to extend one's life expectancy, speed up the abilities of healing to a miraculous level, and strengthen your physique. 

Here we were after 2 and a half years of continuous experimenting on this project. 

At first, it looked like a pipe dream. 

Now, it was complete. 

Imagine how we felt. 

"I love you, Kirk," Layla murmured in Kirk's ear as she rested her head on his chest. Her eyes shifted in my direction. 

She caught me looking at them with the glass of wine in my hand. I smiled at her. 

"I love you too, Bruce." 

Kirk smiled when he heard this. He wrapped his arm around his girlfriend and smiled at me. 

"We love you, Bruce. You are the man." 

I smiled back at the two. 

"It's a team effort, guys. It's nothing without you two," I replied. 

I withdrew my eyes from Layla's gentle smile. I've had many beautiful women throughout the years. 

Women love money. So, naturally, they love me. 

However, Layla wasn't like that. She loved a dying man even though she knew that his demise was hanging right over their noses. 

Yet, she loved him. 

She was a different woman. 

What's different tends to stand out. And what stands out catches one's eye, doesn't it? 

She did catch my eye every once in a while. But she was the woman of my best friend. 

Not mine. 

Standing up from the couch, I walked toward the table where a small mouse remained in a cage. 

We shot up the mouse with a small dose of the "Regeneration Serum" only ten minutes before. Now, it was time to check if the wondrous serum would actually bring out the effect we needed. 

The mouse was frightened at first when the needle had pierced its skin. Now, it was calmly scurrying around the cage with its whiskers moving patiently. 

"The mouse looks fine, guys," I announced, tapping the cage twice with my finger. 

The small white mouse drew away from the cage where I stood, frightened as it should be. Its natural instincts had not changed. 

"And it's not acting strange either." 

Layla and Kirk stood behind me. They chuckled when they saw the mouse by themselves. 

"Hell yeah it's working," Kirk added. 

I brought a small knife from the table beside me and gazed at the little mouse. I opened the cage gradually to not frighten the little creature and brought my hand toward it. 

It tried to back away, but the cage only went so far. 

I grasped it and brought it closer to my face. 

Kirk and Layla gazed at it impatiently. The mouse tried to escape from my grasp, but I held it tight so it couldn't make a single move. 

"Here goes," I whispered. 

I carefully sliced its skin so I could see the small wound by myself. Blood appeared in the soft slash and started to pour out from the wound. 

The mouse squealed in pain. 

I gulped. 

'Heal,' I begged inwardly, gazing at the mouse. 

Kirk and Layla stared at it intently. Layla was biting her fingernails, unable to hold in the excitement. 

5 seconds passed and there was no sign of regeneration. My anticipation was not over yet. I gave it 5 more seconds. 

Yet, there was no reaction. 

Blood dripped against my wrist from the creature's wound. 

"Argh!" 

Suddenly, I felt a sting on my finger. I threw the mouse back into the cage to set it free. It tried to scurry away from the cage but I closed the door instantly. 

"What? What happened?" Layla stepped forth, touching my shoulder. 

I examined my finger. There was a small bite mark in my finger and blood was pouring out of it now. 

"Little shit bit my finger somehow," I replied, wiping the blood on a piece of tissue. 

"So, it didn't work?" Layla looked up at me, pure hopelessness engulfing her face. 

I stared back into her eyes, frowning. 

"No, it has to work," I said reassuringly. 

Kirk suddenly walked over to the cage as I wiped the blood on my hands and bent down so he could have a closer look at the mouse. He took the magnifying glass beside the table and examined the creature with it. 

He chuckled. 

Layla and I turned to Kirk, surprised. 

"What?" I asked. 

"It worked. The wound healed," Kirk grinned, turning to us. 

I was surprised to see the tables turning all of a sudden. I stepped forth and grabbed the magnifying glass to examine it by myself. 

I leaned close to the metal cage and gazed inside it. 

"Holy shit. It works," I laughed. 

Layla threw her hands around Kirk's neck and kissed him as hard as she could. 

"Oh my God! This is a dream!" 

I shook my head in disbelief, a smile still adorning my lips. I couldn't bring myself to believe that this world could be such a joyous place at times. 

And yet – here I was in one of the happiest moments of my entire life.