A friend and I always argue about whether Gene is evil or not, she says he is and I say different. You'd be surprised how heated we get, (we know to stop only when people start backing away slowly). This story stemmed from those arguments and was something that just popped into my head at about midnight and kept me up 'til around two. Maybe this will help you decide what you think of Gene. Enjoy.
They call me evil. Yes, I know all about them, whispering in the halls and speaking freely when they feel no one can hear. They say I should be locked away, that I must be evil; how could someone be so close to another, a true friend, and then suddenly become the responsible for the other's death without being evil? I myself feel that evil is too strong a word for what I am. Evil is the complete absence of anything good. I am a good person except for that one, let's call it a mistake. Finny's fall from the tree was not an accident, my foot came down on that branch for the sole purpose of destroying his balance and causing his fall. At the same time, it cannot be said that I did it on purpose, my mind was blank at the time and I had no idea of the terrible consequences my actions would have.
Although I was blind to it at the time, my jealousy of Finny caused his death. He was so unique; everyone loved him. He was superior to me in every area but the field of academics, and he even tried to take that from me. I hated him for all of it and secretly I know he hated me for wanting to be on the same level as he was. He had to be better than me in every way, and whenever I found an opportunity to surpass him he would find a way to crush it. I knew this and brooded on it for some time. It was out of my jealousy for him and my hatred of his own jealousy for me that compelled me to shake the branch and utterly destroy Finny's life.
You may now believe that I've confirmed everyone's belief that I am evil; however, I believe that I have confirmed my own. My actions sprung from my jealousy of his flawlessness and my hatred of his flaws. As humans, we covet what is good and despise what is bad, yet the acts of coveting and utterly despising are wrong in themselves. Therefore, I have shown that I am not evil, as some may say I am, but something else. I am human.