76 A Talk With Strangers

"What's that?" It took some time for Leonard to stand, but when he was done, Officer Lance pointed at the backpack that got its insides thrown out, presumably due to the impact of its fall earlier. A gift-wrapped box can be seen popping out while a few notebooks were lying on the ground beside it. 

"Oh, that? That's a present for my grandson. His birthday is tomorrow, you see. I'm on my way back home to get that to him, actually." The man took out a handkerchief to wipe off some blood from his nose. Making his way to the backpack to get the things back inside, though his stumbling walk showed that he wasn't as fine as he made it out to be.

He made a quick look at the bloodstains and his eyes widen for a second before turning back to normal. A normal person wouldn't have caught it but Zel was focused on his expression the whole time. The man was way too suspicious and was acting strangely, making Zel want to find out more about him before making a move. Zel did feel quite bad to make the man injured like that, but he didn't think the strength boost from [Unarmed Combat] was that drastic.

"Why was the boy chasing you? And why did you not stop? You two don't seem to be hostile with each other, and you don't even seem mad that you got your face turned to a mess by a little kid. No offense." Officer Lance quickly gave out questions because he felt that the situation wasn't going to escalate any further. Leonard seemed intent on not making it hard for the boy, which Lance was grateful for. No need to make the child feel unsafe, especially when it looks like he is alone.

'Why is this kid alone?' Lance was about to ask Zel when Leonard started talking.

"Oh, this little scratch? Doesn't even hurt, so how bad could it be? As for why I was running? Well, it's actually a little embarrassing. I thought the kid wanted some money, so I ran away. Though now that I took a closer look, the kid was just trying to help me get my backpack back to me. Isn't that right, kid?" Leonard gave Zel a smile that felt more than a little friendly.

It weirded out Zel, but he nodded because this would basically solve this whole mess. "Yes, mister. I didn't mean to make you fall like that. I swear I didn't use all my strength when I threw it!"

Zel raised his arms as if displaying the non-threatening body of a young boy. This action made Leonard's right eye twitch uncontrollably as he could still feel the pain from his upper back.

'That throw was weak? You're not giving it your all? What am I then, a stick?' A flustered Leonard ended up coughing to save himself some face, catching Officer Lance's attention.

"Anyway, I actually really need to go. Mind if I take my leave?" Leonard didn't actually need to stay, because there was no reason for Officer Lance to detain him. It was just a courtesy to give the man some respect.

"Stop right there!" But it seems that Officer Lance wasn't going to let him go that easily. Thoughts came and went inside Leonard's head as he virtualized scenarios in his head. Unfortunately for him, all his expectations were disappointed in a radically different way.

"Let me replace that hotdog for you, and get that nose of yours to a damn hospital. Oops, little boy, don't copy this old man. I never said 'damn', alright?" Officer Lance gave the boy a wink before facing a stunned Leonard whose hand was already holding on to his phone.

'Phew.' It was a good thing that Leonard didn't dial them immediately or he would have made a mess of things. Those guys had quite a big price tag after all, even if they had a hundred percent rate of completion.

"Want one too, boy? I got some money to spend since my wife got a promotion!" Officer Lance seemed to be fond of how Leonard was lenient on the boy, and the fact that Zel was trying to give a lost bag to its owner was also quite nice of him.

He found it better to break the ice so these two don't think any badly of the other person. Especially the kid, since he might get some bad thoughts from this experience. He knew a lot of boys who made bad choices because of some messed up experiences. Kids that could have been more than they were now if someone was there for them.

People seems to just think nothing of these small things when it happens to kids, and some even punish them for doing something this risky. As for Officer Lane, de'd rather reinforce the kid's will to help by giving him a reward. They need more good people in this harsh and unfeeling world.

"Sure! I want chili on mine! And no mayo!" Zel quickly agreed since it was free food. Even though he was quite wealthy in his past life, he was never one to spend all that on luxury.

He hasn't even tried eating on a fancy restaurant before, wanting to use that money to invest on the future instead. Besides, most good foods are made by people who sell them throughout the day. You know the food is good if people keep coming back, and he had never got regrets spending on those kinds of restaurants.

"I'll take mine plain, then. Just ketchup on top and nothing else." Leonard looked at Zel's happy expression and his undecisiveness disappeared. This was probably the only time he'd have a meal with the boy, and he wouldn't miss it for the world.

"I'll take a fully loaded one, Bessy." Officer Lance made a waving gesture at Bessy but she didn't seem to care. Though her hands were moving constantly, cooking hotdogs, burgers and making sure they don't burn. But she let go of the spatula in her hands and wiped those hands on the towel attached to her waist.

"Hey, it's you! I knew you'd be back! So, soda or fruit punch?" The woman vendor quickly caught sight of Leonard as his handsome appearance was quite hard to miss. She hastily pulled out a soda from the icebox and took one of the filled cups to present to him.

"Ah, thank you, madam. I'll take the fruit punch, then. He'll pay for the hotdog, though." Leonard pointed at Officer Lance while taking a sip of the fruit punch. Cool, refreshing while a little tangy. A strange combination, but it might just be because he hadn't had fresh fruit juice in years. He did like it, enough to let him finish a quarter of the cup in one go.

"Tasty! This is really good, mam." A rather excited Leonard complimented the woman who was placing the hotdogs on some buns. She gave him an 'aww, gee, thanks' look while covering her mouth with one hand. Leonard's smile was rather seductive after all, even though he didn't want it to be that way.

'Hmmm...' Zel couldn't help but think of when he saw that smile before. But he shook his head after a while since his hotdog was ready. He quickly took it from Officer Lance who handed one to him and another to Leonard.

"You from somewhere near here, kid? Where are your parents?" Officer Lance quickly chatted up Zel when they got settled on a nearby bench. Zel sat in the middle while the two men sat on both his sides.

"I live down the street, around five minutes away from here. I just wanted to buy some candy in the convenience store down Lake Dale." Zel spoke while munching on his hotdog, not minding his manners at all.

Who would bother about table manners when eating a hotdog sandwich while sitting on a bench anyway?

An asshole, that's who. And that asshole managed to run by Zel's direction when he saw him.

"Hey, twerp! I still don't have that pokebeast in my game, and I seem to remember telling you to- Hick." A black haired boy wearing a loose white shirt and jersey shorts was riding down the park on his bike but stopped by Zel's bench when he caught a glimpse of him.

This was Ranton Porelli, a boy who went to Zel's school and was one of the rich kids. Rich in the sense that his father was one of the board members of the rather famous corporation, Linton Industries. That wasn't just the standard rich, that was the powerful rich that could change a man's life on a whim.

But even the worst of scum had fears, and as a young boy, Ranton was scared of higher authority. Seeing the uniform on Officer Lance, he quickly stopped talking and rode away to safety. Even though the only danger would be his running dirty mouth.

"Hmmm? Are you getting bullied, Zel?" Officer Lance didn't even get to ask Zel about what just happened when Leonard spoke with a rather grave voice. His eyes were locked on to Ranton who was shakily riding his bike.