The Light at the End of the Tunnel

Kids these days don't know basic courtesy (2)

AIDEN ACHARYA was a busy man. He was 23, a detective with high demand, had to take care of his mother, and had to juggle a job of a barista at a well known cafe, and had shifts during rush hours. Isn't that fun?

To add up to all of that, he now had a new case and got an opportunity to work with Detective Foudre, otherwise known as 'The Sherlock Holmes of the Era'. 

Well, he was a little scared about it. He had heard she worked best on her own, so if she turned out to be a really bad partner, then Aiden wouldn't be able to stand her. But she was also really close with his best friend, Brynne, so maybe she wasn't so bad after all.

But honestly speaking, Aiden was really excited to work with her. Even her name was cool! Foudre was lightning in French. He was just Detective Acharya, and that was just his last name.

But right now, he was just relaxing and having fun with his hobby, which was photography. He was supposed to meet her tomorrow, at the museum across the street. So, he came back to his mom's home and just relaxed. He opened his window and took a picture of the scenery outside. 

The buildings looked beautiful with the ambient lighting of the oranges and pinks of the sunset. Some girl had made her way into the picture, and while Aiden would usually think this was photobombing, she actually just topped off the light and dreamy mood for the picture.

He put aside his camera.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Aiden put some normal clothes and washed his face. Eating his breakfast, he started telling his mom about his work. Not about being a detective though.

It wasn't that he didn't want to tell her, but it would worry her about the new case. So he just talked about the barista job.

"Like can't she just put 1 dollar in the tip jar? It took us so much time to complete it!" He said, washing his plate.

"There will be people like that, but some people are good" His mom laughed. "Anyway, where are you headed?"

"Across the street. I'm gonna check out the museum"

"You used to go there all the time as a kid. Relive your memories?"

"Yep" Aiden stacked the plates and checked himself in the mirror. He kissed his mom in the cheek and said "I'll be back soon" 

As he reached the museum, he saw huge crowds inside the museum. Would it be hard to keep things confidential? But he wasn't about to doubt his agency.

He entered the museum and checked his phone. The agency told him that the password was 'the sun sets in the north' which was just stupid. The sun sets in the west, obviously, and if he tells this to the wrong person, imagine the looks he'll get!

He walked up to the front desk. "Excuse me, but are you the secretary?" 

The woman looked up. "Yes? Oh, hold on, have we met before? You look awfully familiar"

"I live across the street, but I don't think we've met" Aiden said, lying through his teeth. He knew who this was. It was Sherrilyn, of course. She always looked after him when he visited. He thought fondly about his memories, but remembered he was a detective. There were things to lose and things to gain.

"Oh alright then. What are you here for?"

"Um...the sun sets in the north?" He said timidly, feeling more stupid with each word.

"No it doesn't, it sets in the- ohhhh" Recognition crossed her face. "Please go to the Hall Of Gods. Thank you for your business"

He set foot in the Hall Of Gods and immediately wished he brought his camera. The lighting, the statues, the shine-

Aiden felt a gun to his head. He felt someone breathe near his neck. 

"I'd be quiet if I were you. Don't you know the Hall of Gods isn't open to visitors?"

"I'm looking for Detective Foudre?"

"That's not the answer to my question. You know when someone asks a question, you should answer it. State your business"

"The sun sets in the north"

He felt the gun dig a little deeper into his head. 

"Hand over your ID"

Aiden fished into his pocket. He held it backward and it was snatched by the person. Then they took the gun off his head pushed him forward.

"Ugh. So I have to work with you?" 

He turned around to see the person in question. They had a mask covering most of their face, a baseball cap and shaded sunglasses. They were wearing black all over except for a white t shirt under a black jacket.

They pulled down their mask and took off their sunglasses.

Detective Foudre.

"Close your mouth and get used to the sight. I hate to say it, but you and I have to work together" She said, chewing bubble gum. She put her gun back and walking past him. 

Aiden scoffed. His mouth wasn't even open!

"Do you have any leads?" He asked, catching up with her.

"Nope" She replied, blowing a bubble. 

"Oh cool. I don't either"

"I know"

"O...kay. There's a plane to New Jersey tomorrow"

"I know" She rolled her eyes. "I looked at the case file too, ya know"

"Okay. I'm just making sure" Aiden said defensively. "I like to be on the same page as my partners, that's all."

"You know what it is? It's a waste of time" She walked a bit faster. "Everyone is shown the same case files, and if you're a detective, of course you're gonna read it all. Duh"

Aiden frowned. This wasn't like how Brynne described her.

"Could I see your ID?"

"Finally!" She threw her hands up. "I was waiting for this. I can't believe you let me see your ID without asking for mine. This is the first thing you do. You want to go back into training?"

She handed the ID.

Aru Shah, 22 years old.

And much more stuff, but basically it was her.

"I didn't ask for your ID because you're pretty much famous. Everyone knows how you look like."

"I'm flattered" She said flatly, as if she had heard this a thousand times already. Then and again, she probably had. "Give me back my ID"

"Say please" Aiden said. It was childish, but he could not and would not work with someone who didn't know basic manners.

"Please? Please?" Aru scoffed. "Who are you, my English teacher? It's my ID and I'm not about to beg you to give it back to me"

"Saying please isn't begging" He crossed his arms. "It's basic courtesy"

"Right. Too bad I don't care about basic courtesy" Aru crossed her arms as well. "Hand me back my ID"

He sighed and gave it back. In all other circumstances, he would've barged back to HQ and demanded out. But the Council made it very clear he could not.

Well. Guess he was stuck with her.

Alright. Rundown's story hasn't been updated for weeks, so here's something else to keep you preoccupied.

Also for some reason, I always put New Jersey in my books. Idk why lol.

Bye!

-Loife xx