Guile and Bonita

Encounter

Before the tournament, before Shadaloo, before the day Guile became an official family man to the woman he adored, there was a period where Guile was alone. Well, for the most part. Doing some work for Interpol while also being assigned to the air force, he had a fair share of stories to tell. These included the many situations he and Charlie got into before his disappearance. This also includes...her.

Guile and Charlie were just out at the park, casually drinking some coffee as they enjoyed their break. That was until Guile spotted something unusual. A child all alone, not playing with the other kids, she had isolated herself beside a tree near the pond. Charlie was continuing on the usual conversation for a moment before noticing Guile's staring. Confused, his speech slowed and he proceeded to look in the same direction. As if on cue, Guile got up from the bench and made his way over to the girl, gesturing to Charlie to follow.

Staring off into the scenery, the child failed to notice the two men as they walked over. The clearing of Guile's throat brought her attention towards them. She had flinched a bit as she turned her body to face them.

"Sorry about that. Didn't mean to startle ya. What brings you around these parts today? You look a bit lost." His voice had changed slightly into one of concern.

Biting her lip with hesitation, she avoided the question and asked "Are you a stranger..?"

"Haha, no, I'm not. Just making small talk. I'm Guile, and this is Charlie. We're interpol officers And you are?"

"I'm Bonita...did someone send you two here..?"

Guile and Charlie glanced at each other wondering what exactly she meant by that. "No, we were just on break. May I know how old you are?"

Nodding, her eyes averted "I'm thirteen.."  it didn't seem like a lie, she certainly seemed young.

"You're a little young to be out here by yourself. What brings you out so far from home? Running away or something?" He asked with concern in his voice, after all there was no adult nearby that seemed to be watching over her. The small look of fear in her eyes once he said those words seemed to be implying his suspicions were right. "Calm down. I'm only asking because I want to help. I wouldn't want anything bad to happen to someone as young as yourself. We can help take you back home to your family. Is that okay?"

Bonita frowned a little and looked at the ground. "I don't wanna go home..." she pouted.

"Is there something that happened that made you feel that way?" Charlie chimed in.

She opened her mouth to say something but quickly covered it, shaking her head as she looked up at him. Guile sighed softly as he kneeled down to her level . He reached out for her hand gently and pulled her closer to him. "Listen, it'll be fine. If anyone can get through any mess alive, it's us Americans. We've been fighting since before you even knew what war was."

Raising an eyebrow at this statement, Bonita just said "My dad was in the military..."

"Where is he?" Guile wondered, more questions flooded his mind when she mentioned this.

"In the afterlife, Sir. He suffered from a medical condition." Once again, she looked to the ground.

Guile swallowed dryly, feeling pity for her. "I'm sorry to hear that. What about your mother? And do you have any brothers or sisters?"

"My mother is also gone. And no, I'm an only child, Sir."

Her response made the air feel a bit more tense, Charlie and Guile kept exchanging glances realizing this was more difficult than expected. Charlie decided to take over for the moment. "Correct me if I'm wrong, I assume that means you may be some type of orphan, is there not a single person who knows you're here?"

Hesitated at first, then slowly she disagreed "My stepmom probably suspects by now I'm gone."

Charlie furrowed his brows a little "Your stepmother...?" He tilted his head "So you did run away from home?"

"Hm...I got into an argument with her..she locked me in the room and so...I crawled out of the window to get away for a bit..." Bonita explained, confirming Guile's thoughts. Unlike Charlie, Guile had been through a case like this before.

Charlie froze, unsure what else to say. He pursed his lips together tightly, looking a little disappointed in you. But he kept his voice even "So, you're running away because of a simple argument with your stepmother? Is that really worth it?"

"I really can't say, Sir...I just wanted some time away from that place.."

Charlie shook his head, rubbing his forehead as he tried to think of something to say. Bonita felt guilty, even if they hadn't scolded her yet. She felt herself wanting to cry as she avoided looking them in the eyes. Noticing this reaction, Guile acted fast.

"Look kid, I don't want to judge you. We don't even know you. But running away is never the answer, especially in your situation. You're a child, alone in a big city. God knows what could happen to you out here."

Bonita just kept her silence, tears starting to pour a bit. She didn't know what exactly to say to him.

Guile sighed heavily, reaching up to brush some hair behind her ear "Look, I understand why you ran away. It must have seemed like such an easy way out. But please believe me when I tell you this - there are much better ways than crawling out of windows."

Bonita pouted, to some degree she would argue he didn't understand "Just take me home..."

The two officers were clearly surprised by her request, she seemed to not want to argue or say much else. "Are you sure?" Guile asked.

"I have no other choice, besides I was intending to return later tonight..."

They paused for a moment, glancing at each other and nodding in agreement. "Alright...if you insist. We'll go back to your house and talk things over with your stepmom, Deal?"

Bonita nodded, telling the two officers her address. As they escorted her, Bonita held onto Guile's hand. She didn't say a word throughout the trip. It was a bit awkward but the two officers assumed she was just preparing herself for a scolding by her stepmother.

When arriving at the house, Bonita's stepmom opened the door. She seemed a bit strict, definitely carrying the looks of an older woman. Guile explained the situation for why they were with Bonita, who gave a guilty expression. She was unamused as she looked down at Bonita, apologizing to Guile and Charlie for having their time wasted before taking her inside. Bonita looked back at the two with a saddened expression, turning away from them. Before they were able to question, the door was closed on them.

The air in that moment felt awful, did that interaction imply this wasn't the first time something like this happened?  Getting back in the car, Charlie let out a breath he didn't realize he was holding. Guile started the engine up and began to drive their way back to the Interpol police station, his thoughts running wild.

Charlie seemed to have something on his mind as well. Guile hated this tension, deciding to break the silence. "You found it strange too, right?"

"Yeah...how did her mom not know she was gone? Not only that but...we didn't even get to question the damn woman.'

Guile nodded as he made a turn "Exactly my thoughts, if anything we may need to keep a pin on that. No doubt readers will find the report suspicious."