Her

Him

Looking up from my desk, I noticed the room was half empty. I'd been sitting at my desk for a few hours now. The janitor walked past and saw me staring. "Welcome back, sir." I peered over at him and nodded. "What time is it?" He shrugged and kept mopping. "Check your computer, sir. No watch on me." Obviously disoriented, I snapped back to reality. He was right. I moved my mouse and the computer lit up. I never understood these things. Technology. Tch.

9:38 PM. Saturday, March 13th, 1998. I groaned. I was supposed to have been off of work four hours ago. Annoyed, I stood up, placing my jacket in my arm and walking to the door. "Have a nice night!" The janitor called out. I mumbled to myself before uttering "You, too. See you tomorrow." Not a single coworker even attempted to wake me. I know I yelled at them before but it was time to go. Geez. I stepped onto the empty streets of New Hampshire and began to walk down the block. Crime was relatively low here and the department was near the outskirts of town.

I always thought this was a stupid decision as it would take longer for us to reach any potential crimes but there's nothing a rookie police officer can do. I kept walking as a few cars passed, one slowing down to get a look at me. I rolled my eyes and kept moving. What was there to stare at?

I'm just any other guy. 5'11, Caucasian, dark brown hair, skinny and I have a little mustache. There are a million of me in this city. I heard sounds of a party coming a block over as I kept walking. Jazz music faintly filled the air and what sounded like a crowd. People were happy, content. Me? I was 23 years old with no dad and no mother. Forced to live alone and fend for myself as my family distanced themselves from me. What with Y2K coming up, I'd hoped it takes them first and I somehow survive.

I needed them the most and they abandoned me in my time of need, placing me in a foster home. I growled thinking about it. My body began to shake and I calmed myself down. 'Just get home, Lawrence.' I thought to myself. 'Get home.' I made a left towards the party and noticed the street was blocked off. Cars filled the streets and a crowd of people stood in the middle of the road, on the sidewalks and in the yard. I ignored it and walked through, amidst the stares.

"Yo who the fuck is this clown?" I heard someone say. "You lost, vato?" Another said. I kept my head down to avoid any trouble. Yet, as we know, it's never that simple. I was shoved in the back, followed by "Hey ése, I'm talking to you." I turned around and a 5'10 male, mango skinned with a bulky build looked at me. My shoulders slumped. I did not have time for this. I raised my hands. "I don't want any trouble." He stared at me for a few seconds. Then he uttered "Estás buscando problemas, fool. Paseando por aquí así." I glanced at him, not knowing what he said before taking a step back. "I just want to go home, ése." This seemed to rile him up.

"Oh! You're making fun of me, fool?" He shouted. "Marcelle!" A voice shouted. He stopped and turned. Then I saw her. Beautiful, breath taking. She was on the short side, black hair tied up. She had an apron on but her curves were very hard to miss. The force coming out of her voice definitely did not match her stature. And even with her looking like she was slaving over cooking the entire night, she still looked like a model. "Deja de jugar con él, tonto. Dijo que no quiere problemas." "Está caminando por nuestra fiesta, Josie. Quiere problemas." Marcelle replied back.

Josie. That was her name. Beautiful. I stared at her as she and Marcelle stood bickering, back and forth. I'd zoned out, just staring at her, no idea what either was saying. I smiled, imagining a life with her in it. "Ayy ayy, fool! You hear me?"

I snapped back to reality. "Huh?" I sputtered. "Get the hell out of here. And I better not see you around here again." Marcello told me. I looked back at Josie and she seemed to be pleading with me to listen with her eyes. I looked back at him and nodded. "You got it." I turned and walked off, heading home. This was not my original route and I had no idea why I took it but just seeing Josie was worth all the trouble.

My mind remained on her as I kept walking down the street. She was just the most beautiful thing. I pondered how her smile looked. Could I make her smile? Of course I could. I began to daydream as I walked. My feet kept going on autopilot and I emerged from my daydream to see I was at Tony's. Tony looked at me. "Hey, pal. It's getting late and I'm about to close. Gonna get something or do I have to tell the police you're creeping around?" I smiled at him and flashed my badge. "Go ahead. Tell me."

Tony's face beamed and he grinned. "You got it! You got it, kid!" He came from hehind the register and walked over to me, giving me a huge handshake. "I knew you'd do it. I just knew it. Your mother would be so proud of you." I nodded and smiled, hiding my sadness. 'Yeah. She would be proud.' I thought. "Get whatever you want, my boy. It's on the house."

I'd realized I'd day dreamed myself back into my childhood neighborhood. Tony watched me grow up but hadn't seen me for years. I guess me getting the job was my excuse to be here. "Is that why you're here, kid?" He asked me as I picked up items. I hesitated. "Uh..yeah. Had to tell the man that practically mentored me, right?" Tony smiled and nodded. "I'm really proud of you, kid. It's been so long, I'm just glad you didn't turn out bad." I peered up at the clock. 10:40. Shit.

I placed the items on the counter and looked at Tony. "Hey. I'll pay for these when I get paid." He stopped me. "It's in the house, Larry. No worries! Besides, you probably won't be back here for another 10 years." He laughed and I chuckled nervously. "Okay." I replied. He packed them up in a brown bag and sent me on my way. I walked out the door and groaned. "Focus, you idiot. Focus. Get home." The wind blew at me in agreement and I trudged to my apartment.