I guess I couldn't hurt to share my story, it's not like he could get any information off it anyway.
Hesitantly, I move to sit on the ground next to 'Lee Know'. My god, what a stupid name.
I sit with my knees to my chest in defence in case he tries something, but when I settle he leans further into the tree and relaxes more.
At this, I let my legs down a bit and notice his eyes on me.
"So, how did you get into this life?" He asks with actual fascination.
Why is he so interested in me?
I shake off the thought and start recalling the bitter memories.
"Well, I wasn't born into this or anything. Right now I have the choice to be here, but back then I didn't." I start. He scoots closer to me and rests his head on his palms.
He's like a child.
I smile a little at his actions and continue explaining.
"Um, when I was around 5 years old my father died in the hospital. I never found out how, I just know he couldn't really breathe before he was gone. A few years after that, me and my mom were driving when a car hit us from the driver's side. She died at the scene, but I ran into the alley way to stay away from the loud noises." I say and notice the slight sadness in Lee Know's eyes. Is he sorry for me?
I look away and continue.
"I don't know how long I was in the allies, but after a while Cha- ah, I mean someone came and helped me, took me in. We made a group together and have our own cause for our crimes. That's how I grew into this life." I finished.
When I finished and looked over to Lee Know he looked more sorry for me than before.
"What's with the face?"
"Nothing, just that I was right. You shouldn't be in this life." He says plainly.
I guess I could have definitely gone a better route other than the one Chan showed me. But if I hadn't followed him, where would I be right now?
I shake out of my thoughts and look back at Lee Know.
"Ok, I went, now you go."
He looks away towards the river.
"My story isn't as nice as yours. To start, I never knew my mother. If she was with my father after I was born, I just don't remember her." He starts.
Now I'm the one with the sorry eyes.
"My father wasn't .. great. As soon as I hit secondary school, he would send me to his friends to get his drinks or his .. um.. illegal things. I didn't understand that I could say no, so I didn't. Then, as soon as I was of age to drive, I became his personal driver. I had to take him to his gambling spots, bars, places with his friends. It's also not to far off to guess that when we was drinking he couldn't control his actions, even towards me." He stops and looks higher to the road across the river.
"I don't know how he had money to gamble, he never had a job. Either way, he only had money for him, not for me. So when I was about to go to high school, I started stealing food and clothes for myself. After a while, I got so tired of his crap that I took some money and ran away. I found a place to stay, some connections to get what I need, and some people like me to take in."
When he finished his story he turns to me.
"So, yeah. That's me."
I look back at him with the same eyes he had on me earlier. That's worse than what I went through.
"Well, we both have different ways of getting here, but we really aren't that different."
He laughs out. "Don't say that, yes we are. From what I saw in that warehouse, we are really different. I steal to survive, and you steal to let others survive."
That's a new way to think about it. I always thought we weren't any better than other criminals, we steal expensive things too. Yes we give it away, but we still stole it in the first place.
I'll have to think on it more later.
I feel my phone vibrate in my jacket pocket and reach to check it.
When I have it in my hand and unlocked it, a hand quickly comes in front and swipes my phone away.
I look up to see Lee Know turned away from me and looking for something.
"Hey! What are you doing?! Give me my phone back!"
He swerves and I bump into the tree trunk.
I get ready to charge for him again when he puts my phone in his pocket and grabs a low hanging branch.
He pulls himself up and onto the branch, away from my reach.
He's like a cat.
I stand under him and huff out in defeat. I don't have much upper body strength, I probably couldn't climb any part of this tree if I tried to.
"What are you doing?"
"I just want your number. I don't understand why you're making such a big deal about this."
"I'd appreciate it if you respect my privacy. That's my phone, give it back."
When I say this he puts his hand out and drops my phone. I react quickly and grab my phone before it hits the ground. After a second, he jumps off the tree and flashes his screen in front of my face before stuffing it in his pocket.
I catch a glimpse of the screen and see the name he put down for me.
"Squirrel boy?"
"Yep, that's you." He says while reaching into his jacket and pulling the plushie out.
"Here, a deal is a deal."
A/N:
Surprise chapter!
I guilt tripped myself from the kind-of cliff hanger on the last one, so this happened.
Sleep update: I couldn't go back to sleep. So I'm just gonna live it up being really low energy all day.
Here's an extra meme for today:
I'm in an NCT mood💚
Love you guys!❤🖤❤🖤❤🖤