NEVER Talk To Strangers

~ 15 ~

"Freeze!" Mari gasped, taking a step nearer to Budo. She felt scared. "Hands up where I am see them!" The officer demanded. Budo hesitantly raised his hands, and Mari did the same. She knew they were in trouble.
"This isn't what you think sir." Budo tried to reason. He knew the officer thought they'd broken in to steal something, but he couldn't be more wrong.
"What? The pair of you didn't break in?" He asked accusingly, walking closer to them. Budo sighed, not having a response. That's exactly what they had done.
"Okay, it is what you were thinking. We're not here to steal, though." Mari tried reasoning with him. She'd never been in trouble with the law before, so she'd never had to do this. The officer rolled his eyes, nodding his head.
"I've heard that excuse before. I think we need to talk about this back at the station." He told them. They both shared a concerned look. That was the last thing they wanted.
"I think that's a bad idea." Budo retorted, lowering his arms and folding them. "Like she said, we aren't stealing anything. Why don't you let us go, and we'll be on our way." Budo offered. He and Mari would leave as promised since they had no reason to be at this school anymore.
"I said hands up!" The officer shouted, causing Mari to flinch. Her hands were still up in sight. Budo sighed quietly and raised his again. "You two must think I'm really stupid, don't you? I saw that stolen car parked outside!" He told them, getting angry that they weren't complying. Mari looked up at Budo disapprovingly.
"I told you not to steal that car!" She told him in a hushed voice. It wasn't like the police officer couldn't hear her. Budo sighed, glancing down at her.
"You're not helping, you know." He told her. She went silent, looking down. She was really anxious since she'd never been arrested before. Budo sighed internally, turning to the officer. "Look, the smartest thing you can do is let us go. We clearly haven't stolen anything." He tried to reason.
"Except the car." The officer responded, folding his arms and continuing to block the exit.
"Keep the car for all I care!" Budo snapped, getting angry. He was pushed up against the wall, but he wasn't done fighting. He couldn't let them be taken to the police station, because then Mari would be sent back to Dr Shuyona and he would've broken the promise he'd made to her. "Unless you want this to get messy, you'd better let us leave and forget you ever saw us." He threatened, trying to intimidate the officer.
"Don't tell me what to do!" He snapped, clearly not amused. "Get moving. Nice and slow!" He demanded, stepping aside while keeping his eyes on them. Mari sighed and looked up at Budo.
"We'd better do what he says." She sighed defeatedly. She didn't want to get hurt, which she feared would happen. He nodded his head, slowly leaving the room with her just ahead of him.

Budo and Mari walked out into the corridor, followed by the police officer. Budo, in particular, was surprised to see that no other officers were patrolling the corridor.
"Mari..." Budo said quietly, catching her attention. They both stopped. Mari turned, looking up at him. 'When I give the signal, run!' She heard Budo's voice say. She was clearly reading his thoughts again, but this time it was actually going to help if they succeeded. She nodded his head, understanding what he was saying.
"Keep moving!" The police officer snapped, appearing right behind them. He obviously had no idea what had happened between them.
"Now!" Budo shouted, signalling Mari to run. He shoved the police officer as hard as he could, pushing him back and knocking him out. Budo turned back to Mari, seeing she was still with him. "You run ahead, I'll catch you up." Budo suggested. He wanted to stay back to be sure the officer wouldn't follow. Mari shook her head, not wanting to.
"I'm not leaving you behind." She told Budo. Budo sighed and knelt down beside the officer.
"I told you to run!" He snapped, getting frustrated. It didn't help that he was already in a bad mood, and he hadn't meant to snap at Mari.
"I don't want to leave you, Budo..." she told him, sighing. She didn't want to be alone incased she was caught by a police officer and taken away. The officer tried to get up, not succeeding. Budo didn't want her to be around anymore.
"Fine, let's go." Budo sighed, grabbing her hand and running away. She ran with him, keeping up with Budo. They had to escape the police officer to ensure Mari's safety and future.