004 - ALICE!
" So are you the owner here or something " Grayson asked
" Nah I'm just managing the shop it's not mine, so what's your situation "
" can I not tell you"
" I really need to know if I'm going to accommodate you even if it's only a night"
" A night....don't say it like that" Lucas said chuckling
" you know what I mean, don't bother changing topics, I need answers and I need them now"
" hehem okay madam" Lucas answered chuckling.
" you know what, you really need to wash up, if not we really won't get a sale"
" damn that's so mean, you only say things like that to your friends "
" Nah you're only my junior brother at best"
" Anyways you look so battered and there are still traces of blood on you which looks like you washed the rest off, are you sure you weren't part of some gang fights or something" she continued
"So you're acting like a detective now aren't you"
" Answer my questions okay....God I don't even know why I'm doing this and that reminds me, you're not spending the night with me if I don't even know your name alright"
" My name is Denim" Lucas blurted, damn where did that come from, he felt like he was onto something so he just kept thinking hard but in the end he couldn't remember anything else except his last name which was Sterling, his age which was 14 and his birthday which was May 25th.
"Denim, Denim hey Denim" the lady tapped him and only then did he respond.
" Are you sure you're okay" she asked
" Yeah uhm... so what's your name"
" I'm Alice and it's not a pleasure to meet you"
" I appreciate your honesty" Denim replied amidst chuckles
" Denim how old are you " she asked
" why...are you getting interested in me...I don't do older sisters"
" you're really being cheeky"
" I'm 14 anyways "
" your gaze and your way of speaking is much more mature, it kinda feels like I'm talking to a man in a boy's body" she exclaimed
" and you seem more like a teenage girl in an adult's body" he replied
"Is that supposed to be a compliment or an insult, I feel like you're insulting me "
" whichever way you take it"
And they kept on talking about random things completely oblivious to the passage of time which was unsurprisingly rapid, that's how Decembers are in the blink of an eye they're gone and you have to wait a whole year to get there again.
In the evening when they both stood up to close the store and go home Denim asked
" was I the only customer here today"
"Yeah I rarely get customers especially during December nobody buys primark and my boss has probably even forgotten that he has a shop over here"
" So how do you get paid"
" I get paid by primark themselves and it seems like the boss works as a representative for primark stores in New York"
" I thought it's a franchise"
" not all but most are a franchise but this one here is owned by the company"
They walked down to a bustop which she called "mall" bustop and took a bus called 44 which took them down to Port Richmond which was the area where she lives.
After they alighted the bus they walked silently along the street that led to her place each with their own separate thoughts running through their minds.
"You know....."
"You know....."
They said at the same time before smiling
" Go first " she said
" Nah ladies first" Denim
" tsk.. acting all grown up" she went silent for a while before saying
" I want to know where you came from, what happened to you and what your next point of actions would be. If not I wouldn't be comfortable having you at my place even if it's for a day" she said with a concerned but serious look on her face.
" well, long story short, I was brought here from some where in New Jersey after I was beaten really hard that I passed out, when I woke up I couldn't remember anything about my self and there were some guys around me who thought I was dead, they spoke about bringing me out from New Jersey and the fact that their boss killed my parents which even till now I can't remember what their names are or what they look like, Alice to be honest with you right now I am stranded but I'll find a solution to my problems" at some point while he was talking he had already started crying profusely.
He felt so pained. The world really didn't allow him the luxury of having parents, his dad in his past life died while he was young, his past life mom died while he was barely 30 and now in this lifetime his parents died the moment he showed up. He felt like he was cursed.
Alice stood there a minute looking at the boy beside her who had started crying, he was crying so hard and his face was contorted in pains that were not physical but emotional. She resonated with him so much as she was an orphan herself but she had long acclimated herself to a life in the absence of her parents. She turned to him and hugged him tight while patting his back softly, no one understood this young boy more than she did.
"Urgh" Denim groaned in pain as she hugged in a bit too tightly
" sorry" she said
" uhm it's okay and thanks by the way" Denim said
" Yeah, so what did you want to say" she asked
"I was going to tell you that you're really a kind woman and that you should not say yes to any other person if it's not me, it's risky" Denim said.
" Argh shut up okay. You're too cheeky " she laughed
"And we're Here, wait a minute lemme get some painkillers for you" she muttered before walking of to a store that was near the small house where she lived.
she said after handling me the painkillers that she bought.
Okay then let's go in shall we?