FIRST TIME CRIMINAL

       That day, Ethan decided to take Charlotte to see the world again he has never stolen anything in his life and he was a bit nervous as they drove. He had gotten a car and had removed the plate numbers. He decided to go to a place far from the neighbourhood. Charlotte looked at him.  She wore a pink cap and a heavy jacket. 

       "Are you nervous?" she asked him. 

    He glanced at her and hunched his shoulders.  "No, I'm not." 

      "You look a little detached. Is there any problem?" 

    "No, no, not at all," Ethan said and puffed. 

     Silence crept in for a while.  "Can I turn on the music?" Charlotte asked.

        "Sure." He paused for a while.  "I introduced you to my mom today." 

        "Really? Why would you introduce a dying person though?" Charlotte asked and nodded to the rhythm of the music. 

       "Well, you...are my girlfriend. That's the least I could do." 

     Charlotte chuckled.   "You just raised her hopes and dashed it again." 

     Ethan glanced at her and looked back on the road.  "How do you mean?" 

      "She must be excited that you are finally settling down with someone, then you dashed it again." 

      "How do you know that?" 

      "Well, I know things. I just have the feeling." 

      "That's a lie and you know that. It can't be a coincidence." 

       "What can't be?" 

        "You knowing what my mom wants."  Charlotte smiled and rested her head on the backrest and remained quiet. Ethan looked at her again.  "How did you know?" 

       "It's not important." 

      "It is." 

     Charlotte shrugged.  "I know who you are." 

     "What?" 

     "I'm sorry if I investigated you behind but I'm always like that." 

       "You investigate anyone you have something to do with?" 

    Charlotte shook her head before she answered.  "No, I don't. You were suspicious." 

        "How?" 

      "You take calls in secret and at first I thought it was a girl but I decided to eavesdrop. I hear you talking about business and all. You don't even know how to disguise." 

       "What do you mean?" 

      "You still spend money like you would do if you were living your usual life. Look at your furniture, they are expensive, your clothes are still expensive." 

      "What? I picked thrift clothes when I moved here." 

      "Well, you hardly ever wear them. You only raise suspicion and it makes one want to look into you. I was curious to know who you were." 

        "Was that why you refused to marry me?" 

      "Refusing to marry you was because we don't belong together. I know you feel you love me, but believe me when I tell you that this is only pity. You pity me and if we have gotten into marriage it would have been a disaster because then you would realise that I wasn't the one for you."

      "You can't predict the future." 

       "No, I can't, but I can ascertain what I'm saying. Do you remember the first night we met? Do you remember who made you sad that you had to drink to a stupor?" 

        "That doesn't mean anything." 

        "It means a lot. You could not be that helpless if there wasn't something going on.  You and Faith have chemistry and I have seen it more than twice. You might want to deny it or hold your feelings at bay, but I am telling you, it's very undeniable." 

      Ethan sighed.  "You are just shipping us together. The Faith I know doesn't find me worthy enough to even be a friend. It's like I did something to her in her past life. She doesn't see me that way so there is no need. She is even getting back with her ex." 

        "That's because she hasn't sorted out her feelings yet. She has a lot of emotions running that she doesn't even know what she feels. She is in a state of confusion."

        "I'm so confused right now," Faith lamented while Charlie watched her. 

         "What's confusing you?" he asked.  

    She had come to visit him at work and to see Nora too.  But since she came, she hasn't seen Nora anywhere. They were at his desk. "I have different feelings running through me that I don't know what to feel." She closed her eyes. 

        Charlie smirked and leaned closer.  "Do you feel you are falling for me?" 

      Faith opened her eyes and brought down her head. She spanked Charlie on the shoulder.  "Hey!" 

       Charlie held his shoulder and wrinkled his face.  "That hurts. You look soft but you have the hands of iron. Oh, my God, how can your hand be this strong?" 

      "My hands are soft!" she snapped 

       "Who told you that? The first time I met you you seemed like you couldn't even hurt a fly, I never knew you were a bully," Charlie muttered but loud enough for Faith to hear it. 

       "OMG! Who is a bully?" 

       "I asked a simple question and you are making it a big deal. In fact, I'm so mad right now. You ditched me for your ex last night." 

       Faith leaned close.  "Bestie." 

        "Do you want Nora to kill me?" 

         "She won't dare. You are male and she is female. She is my female bestie." 

          "Whatever, I'm not even interested in that title," Charlie said and waved.  "Just tell me why you are confused." 

         "Do I have a sense of humour?" 

      Charlie stared at her for a while.  "You are confused because you have a sense of humour?" 

          "Just tell me." 

           "No, I won't!" Charlie said and stood up to leave. 

      Faith quickly ran to him and grabbed him.  "Where are you going to?" 

         "Do I need to remind you that I'm at work, Miss Prescott?" Charlie teased. 

      Faith raised her arm but it hung in the air.  "My hands are aching to spank you right now, so mind your words." 

      "Yes, Miss peanut King Kong!" Faith squeezed her face and they both burst into laughter.  "What does that even mean?" 

      "You are so small yet you are as strong as King Kong." 

       "You are a lost cause. Sit down." 

     Charlie sat back and Faith sat opposite him. 

       "Ain't you dying to hear how my date went yesterday?" she asked. 

       "For the last time, I'm not interested in you, so I'm not dying to hear but I want to hear the lies he told you yesterday." 

        Faith eyed him.  "What lies?" 

        "The make-up lies." 

         "How would you know that he lied to me? You are not even into a boy and girl relationship." 

        "I know that boys lie to girls, especially girls like you that are blindly in love." 

    Faith scowled and then pouted.   "Right. Men lie a lot. That's why I am so confused right now!"  she whined in frustration, kicking her legs under the table. 

       "What's confusing you?" 

       "What I feel." She leaned closer.  "I keep having double thoughts about Noah's return, I keep thinking of my roommate and my doctor sent me to talk to someone or risk being confined to bed, my best friend is not even talking to me, my life is a mess right now." She bent her head on the table. 

    Charlie leaned closer and whispered. "Why do you keep thinking of your roommate though?" 

     Faith raised her head quickly and glared at him.   "Was that the only thing you heard me complain about?" 

       "That was the oddest. You practically hate your roommate." 

       "That was before I got to know him. I don't hate him but I don't like him either..." she shook her body.  "Why is he being so nice and annoying at the same time?" 

       "Can you tell me something I don't know?" Charlie asked. 

     Faith sighed and eyed him. It was quite a wonder even to her that she was so comfortable with Charlie. Was this how she would have been with her brother? She guesses she grew this close and comfortable with him because she sees him as her brother. All those years she had craved her brother's love. It seems Charlie is standing in for her brother. 

        She wondered what her brother looks like now. Would he be tall, handsome, kind and humorous like Charlie? or will he be cold, ruthless and stupid like their father? No, if Joshua was cold or any of those things she thought about, she would have seen it at fifteen. At fifteen, she wasn't so small and Joshua had been eighteen then. He was a young adult then, so whatever character he had would have manifested. 

        "Snapback to reality!" Charlie said and snapped his finger on her face. 

       Her eyes refocused on him.  "Huh?" 

       "I can't believe Mr Floyd has gotten you like this, you even get lost thinking of him." 

       "Tsk, who is Mr Floyd? I'm thinking about my brother. It's one of the emotions running through me." 

         "Hmmm, can we just finish with one topic first? Your emotions are affecting your interaction. You bring out a topic then you leave it undiscussed and switch to another one." 

        "Really? Is that what I have been doing?" 

         "Yes, ma'am. First, you were talking about your date with Noah or whatever he is called, let's finish that. What are the lies he told you last night?" 

         "He said he wanted to get back and that I have a sense of humour which I know is a lie." 

         "That's not a lie, it might be the only truth he told you last night." 

        "I don't have any sense of humour. I'm not that kind of a person." 

         "Faith, you might not know it but you are humorous, although that's when you are very comfortable with the person like you are with me," Charlie said and flexed his arm. 

    Faith sighed. "I should have known this beautiful speech would end with a smug," she muttered but loud enough for him to hear. 

         "Go on." 

       "Then he kept talking about this Kimberly woman I never knew about." 

          "What kind of a man talks about another woman on a makeup date?" 

         "He was just asking if I remembered her and that she's getting married and all." 

     Charlie sighed.  "I will even like to see these males in your life." 

         "As what? My big brother or what?" 

          "As your grandpa." 

    Faith snickered.  She has been relieved. She came here thinking about the person that Dr Ingrid had asked her to go and meet, but now, Charlie has relieved her even without knowing her problem. 

     "That Noah is not worth discussing. Let's go over to the next topic about your roommate. You said you have feelings for him?" 

         "I never said that. I just said that I keep thinking about him." 

         "What are you thinking about?" 

         "We were all cool the day before yesterday when we got stuck in a remote bar cum guest house, yesterday, I didn't see him because I had to leave for work immediately and I had to see you and meet Noah too. Since then, he has been cold to me. Someone came to look for him and he pushed me out of the house. I keep thinking who that was and why he pushed me out."

    "Does he bully you?" 

       "No, I was all set out to go anyway. But I keep thinking if something is bothering him. Even when I went to see Charlotte after seeing my doctor, he gave me cold shoulders. It got me thinking what kind of a jerk he is." 

          "Two things are involved here.  Does he know about your ex?" Faith nodded.  "If he knows, it's possible that he is jealous that you are getting back together." 

        "But he has a girlfriend. Charlotte is right there in front of him. He seem to like her a lot, could he even feel anything for me? Ahh! That's not the case." 

        "We can't stop our hearts from feeling what it wants but we can decide if we want to act on it or not." 

        She stared at Charlie. Was that why she was so attracted to Ethan? Is she feeling anything for him? No! She dismissed that thought from her head. 

      "Maybe, he likes you." 

      Faith sighed.  "Who likes two women at a time?"

       "If that's not the case, then something is bothering him. Like a good roommate, you should ask him about it."

        "He doesn't look like he is in the mood."

        "Just ask him, since he comes through for you, come through for him too."

         "I'm hungry, let's eat something, bills on me."

       "Alright," Charlie said and held her hand.  "You are causing a lot of stares from the ladies," Charlie whispered in her ear.

    Faith looked around and saw some ladies looking at her and scoffing. "What? Don't they know you are gay?" 

      "Only Nora knows at work and I don't think she is a loudmouth."

       "Take me out of here, please, before I get shot with eyes."

         Ethan pulled up at a convenience store and turned off the ignition. He turned to look at Charlotte and she smiled at him

        "Are you ready?" He asked.

       "I was born ready." 

        "I'll be right back." Ethan went out of the car and started towards the convince store.  Charlotte watched her. He kept glancing back at her, giving her thumbs up. He wore all black clothes and a cap and shades to conceal his face. 

       Charlotte had given him a list of everything she wanted. She watched as he entered the store, she placed her hand on her chest and grimaced in pain. She wasn't sure if she was going to make it to the next day. 

      Ethan went and picked a basket and shopped for the things Charlotte has written on the list. After picking a lot of the things he needed, he went over to the storekeeper.  A lanky teenager with sandy curls and freckles, he wore an earpiece. He reminded him of Tyler and he suddenly felt pity for him. What if they deduct it from his paycheck? 

       "You should be in school," he said. 

     The boy eyed him and continued checking the prices of the goods he bought.  "Mind your business, man," the boy said without looking up. 

       "I was just wondering..."

        "You know you look suspicious and I have been glancing at that TV to see if you would appear on the news. My father has zero-tolerance for criminals so do I," the boy snapped and started putting his goods in bags. 

          "Your dad runs this shop?" 

          "Do I look like I have time to run a shop for paychecks?" 

           "Oh, right." Ethan watched as he packaged the items. 

            "Eight hundred dollars..."

          "You know, I have never been a criminal, but I am going to become one today. I'll pay you next time!" 

       Before the teenager could fathom what was happening, he grabbed the paper bags from the counter and took off. 

         "Hey! Hey! Come back here! I'll call the cops!" the boy yelled and dialled the cops, running after him. 

     Ethan ran to the car, screaming at the top of his lungs. Charlotte cheered him up as he came. She had opened the driver's door for him. The boy ran towards him, he shoved the paper bags into the backseat and started the car. He started driving out of the pa rking lot and the boy hit the trunk of the car with his hand.

        "You bastard!" the boy yelled and stared at the car to copy the plate number but there was none. He stood there helplessly, looking at the car as it receded.