Dark Country (Detective Loki from Prisoners Fan Fiction)

Part I: Meeting Detective Loki

Part I: Meeting Detective Loki

As I turned the corner into the aisle, I found a dark-haired, young man standing there with one hand holding onto the cart while scrutinizing some product’s label with the other.

What first caught my attention about him was the large star-shaped tattoo on his neck that was partly covered by the collar of his shirt, and his slicked-back hair. He was tall at 6 feet, and slim. His clothes were rather plain, with black khaki pants, a matching black rain jacket and a light blue button-down shirt underneath that was buttoned up to the top of his neck. He wore black work boots. From the way he dressed, I gathered he was either in the construction business or a truck driver.

He seemed to be in my age group: late 20s to early 30s. I had to admit that I was instantly attracted to him. He wasn’t wearing a wedding ring, much to my delight. In fact, he wore a sole ring on his left hand pinky finger with an indiscernible symbol on it. More tattoos were plastered on his fingers: tiny symbolic marks that only he could know the meaning of. If I didn’t know any better, I would have assumed he came from the wrong side of the tracks.

It turned out that he was checking out the same product I was going to get. He was so focused on the bottle’s label that he didn’t notice my approach. My breathing became somewhat erratic as I continued to watch this handsome and intriguing stranger. Knowing this was my opportunity to make new friends with the few people of my age in this backwater of a town, I mustered up my courage and said, “I would get that one. It’s a bit pricier but the quality is the best.” There I said something, now I can breathe more normally.

He looked up at me with big polar blue eyes, and appeared surprised. I exhaled at the sight of those majestic eyes, which stood out from underneath black eyelashes.

I waited for him to say something, but he didn’t. Either he was a mute or a very introverted person. “Hi, I’m Emma. I just moved into town,” I finished saying as I extended my hand out to him.

He looked at my hand with trepidation, but then a moment of clarity must have hit him because he unrelentingly grabbed my extended hand and shook it gently while saying, “Hello. I’m David.” He half-smiled. So, this guy really was shy after all, I thought inwardly.

“Well, it’s nice to meet you, David,” I said with the friendliest smile I could give him.

He reciprocated in kind. My train of thought was interrupted momentarily as I admired his gorgeous smile, which amplified his attractiveness. The difference between when he wasn’t smiling and when he was seemed like night and day.

“Me, too,” he replied with a slight nod of his head and an odd, but cute, double blink.

“I’ll see you around,” I said as I grabbed a bottle from the shelf like the one he’d been examining.

“Yea,” he said with a sheepish grin, and another double blink. Was that a facial tic?

I walked away slowly, part of me hoping he’d call me back. But he remained just standing there silently. I could feel his stare burning a hole through me. Once I had wandered far away enough that I was completely out of his sight, I had to stop for a moment to catch my breath. He was so strange yet bedazzling. His facial tic was a little distracting, but somehow made him more interesting.

Finally I finished gathering my groceries, and was at the checkout line waiting my turn. I looked around hoping to catch a glimpse of the mysterious David. At least I got his name, I thought.

As I searched, I found him two aisles down from me. He couldn’t see me as he stood with his back to me. I couldn’t take my eyes off of him. At that moment the whole world revolved around him. Please look at me, I thought to myself. As he finished paying, a miracle happened, and he turned around and gazed straight at me.

He smiled at me with the sweetest smile I’d seen in a long time. I instantly smiled back and silently mouthed the word “good-bye.” He nodded his head in acknowledgment and walked away with his groceries in hand.

I continued to stare at him until he had completely exited the store. “That’s Detective Loki.” I heard a raspy female voice say.

“Oh,” I said nonchalantly as I realized that the lady in line behind me was talking to me. “So he’s a cop?” I mistook him for a totally different profession, and was shocked that he was an officer of the law. He certainly didn’t seem like it.

“He’s the best detective in town … has never lost a case. A small town like this,” the older woman said as she shook her head in disgust, “We’re very lucky to have him.”

“Interesting,” I said as I continued to stare in the direction from which David exited the store. Detective David Loki, I mulled over in my head. The words seemed to fit together like a lock and key.