Page 32 - Adam 2

Schoolwork, which was after Breakfast, which was after Getting Up ... which was after the alarm clock went off.
He picked up the pieces of the clock and stared at them, then at the wall behind the bed, and the scratches he’d made there. The friendly human had asked him about them. Now Adam asked himself, “Why do you make the scratches?”
“They tell me how long I’ve been here,” he answered.
“But you know that,” he said. “Your internal clock tells you.”
He shook his head. It was a mystery. Just like the humans themselves. And what they meant by the things they said, about ‘tin’, and ‘Funks’. Adam was sure he’d been polite and friendly, just like Father had taught him, but the angry human had hurt him. He replayed their conversation and realised: perhaps the angry human wasn’t angry, but scared. That was interesting.
“Why was the Linden human scared?” he asked himself. After a long time, he said, “Maybe I should ask hir?”
“But Father said to stay in the basement,” he answered himself.
“Yes.” He nodded. “But Father also said I should help people. If Linden was scared, I should help.”
“But helping means – means leaving the...” He
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