The Heist

It was silent, as it always was during this time of night. People were sleeping in their beds and the streets were empty but a few homeless men, prostitutes, and drug dealers all looking to make their dough. The moon shined a dull light tonight; the perfect light for them. They moved quickly and quietly throughout the various neighborhoods.  They hopped fences and climb over walls with amazing speed and agility. Their all black clothes and black face scarves did well to hide their young features and their large backpacks carried nothing more than small knives and gloves.  Finally they made it to their destination. Picking a small window on the rear of the building, they quietly unscrewed the caps on the window and swept through.

“I don’t want any mistakes. BJ, you and I are going to grab the money but first Tony you get on that alarm system. When everything is set, we meet back here at exactly two hundred hours.”The heist begin.

            Tony, BJ, and Danny have been friends since they were five and have been stealing from pawn shops, small banks, and jewelry stores since they were 10. They’re not rich but they’re not poor either. It’s the thrill that gets them, or at least what got Danny when he stole the vodka glass from the drugstore near his house. He only wanted the bottle because of its decorative blue and clear design. He convinced the others to follow along and each heist there after improved their speed, agility, and cleverness until they could rob a store so good it was as if the store was never robbed at all.

 “Come on where you,” Tony grunted.  He had to find it. It was the only way they were going to get away with this. He scanned the walls frustrated until his flashlight beamed over a gray electrical box.

“Well hello there”, he said with a smirk and he begin working the cords inside the box, cutting off security cameras and laser floor traps that triggered the alarm system if you stepped in its beam.

“Your turn”, said Tony and BJ and Danny begin ransacking the jewelry store. When the boys first started out they stole everything in sight but Tony realized that that was how the cops would find them so they robbed strategically. So they only took money, this way the cops could never find them. BJ and Danny grabbed their sum of money and one by one the boys left the store. That’s when they heard the sirens.

“I thought you turned off the alarm systems,” exclaimed Danny.

“I did,” said Tony nervously and the boys ran faster but it wasn’t fast enough for the cops who were hiding out near the store. They encircled the boys and demanded that they raised their hands. BJ wasn’t going down without a fight and tried to charge at one of the officers before he shot BJ in the chest.  The two boys screamed but their protest meant nothing to the cops who slammed them to the ground.

The cops had driven the boys to the hospital because of BJ but they had Tony and Danny chained to the ER chairs.

“All you have to do is tell us why you did it,” one of the officers goaded. Danny spit in his face and the officer gave him a hard slap to the cheek.

“Where’s BJ?” asked Tony. The officer laughed.

“I hope God has a jewelry store in heaven because it sure as heck going to be nicer then the place you two are going.”

The two boys begin to cry and the heist ended. 

Life on a Road

          It was nighttime. The city was alive and filled with neon lights that shined from storefronts, skyscrapers, and clubs. There was music and the laughter of people dining together in the restaurants and small cafes that lined the downtown area of Amsterdam. But it all meant nothing to Anna. She could not hear the music nor see the pretty lights. All she saw was the road. She zigzagged throughout the streets of Amsterdam, avoiding the roads that lead to the waterfronts where people dined on boats happy and content. Anna hated those people because they knew what happiness was and she did not. She hated those people because they were loved and cared for by someone and she never was. Anna hated those people because even though they suffered pain and struggled, they were never alone but Anna always was.

          “Hey watch it!” exclaimed a pedestrian who was nearly nicked by Anna’s motorcycle as she streamed past him. He doesn’t matter, thought Anna. You don’t matter, her conscience thought back and instantly Anna was reeled back to a French colonial in Vancouver.

          “Hurry up Anneth or you’ll be late!” yelled Dorothy their housekeeper.

          “I don’t know why she bothers trying. She looks like a dork no matter what she wears”, said her sister Hayley.

          “Or a butt faced foot”, exclaimed Hayley’s friend and the two girls laughed hysterically.

          Anna walked down the stairwell. It was the first time in a long time that she felt good about herself. It was earth day, the only day of the year that mattered and it was all because of him. Andy, the beautiful cancer patient she saw every week while volunteering at the hospital. He loved the earth and always smiled his dimpled smile whenever he spoke about ways to help the environment and make the world a better place for everyone. He was the only one who did not laugh at Anna and call her out of her name. The only one who did not bully her and call her a slut simply because she decided to look pretty one day. He was the only one, until he wasn’t.

          A tear streaked down her face as her mind reeled back to the present. It’s all your fault, her conscience snarled. Your lips are poison and your body is nothing more than an infectious gangrene that never goes away. You made him leave; murderer of all hopes and dreams.

          “SHUT UP!!!” screamed Anna and she barreled down the streets faster. But it was too late, she was already gone.

          “You’re not dumb, ok. They love you.”

          “No they don’t. You don't see the way they look at me. It’s like I don’t belong to them, like I don’t matter.”

          “Shut up ok, because you do matter.”

          “No I don’t!!! They don’t love me. No one does.”

          “That’s not true. I love you.”

          “You love everyone.”

          “No. I don’t love everyone. At least not the way I love you.”

          “You can’t love me. I can’t be loved.”

          “That is not true!! You’re beautiful and you're special and everyone can see it but you. Who cares what they think? They don’t matter. You matter, and you matter to me.”

          She had said goodbye to him, hoping to see him the next day. Except there was no next day, at least not for him. When she returned to the hospital his room was empty. New bedspread covered the bed and already a new patient was being wheeled into his room. She had never cried as hard as she did that day. Andy with the beautiful blue eyes and dimpled smile was once her best friend, her only friend and now would never be anything again.

          He loved you and all you did was whine like a dog with its tail between its legs. You didn’t deserve him. “Why can’t you just leave me alone?!” She screamed and drove faster and faster until she was no longer driving, but floating into her own subconscious, staring at her life. Her mother with that jealous scowl, her step-father with his lustrous gaze, her sister with her benevolent eyes and all the girls and boys at school. They spray-painted her locker and mocked and teased her for just being Anna. She remembered Andy and the bathroom stall she sat in alone during lunch. She heard laughter, screaming, and crying until she heard nothing at all.  The light faded and she realized that she was still on her bike barreling towards a man walking in the middle of the street. She stopped. He turned towards her and looked at her as if he knew who she was, because he did. She got up from her bike and removed her helmet. She knew she’d never forget. He embraced her and when she looked up into his beautiful blue eyes, she knew it was over. "I love you too." she whispered. and he kissed her. She was finally free.

Misfits of a Little Cat

The sun shined through the four paneled window into the kitchen. It beamed a reflective shade on the pots and pans that hung from the pot rack above the island. It cast shadows off of the various knick knacks on the counter before highlighting the kitchen sink and the refrigerator in a glistening white and silver. No one was home in the beautiful downtown loft, no one but Snowball, the cat that the owners of the loft adopted from the pound three years before. He was a strange cat, Snowball. His green eyes did not match his orange and white fur and his long whiskers always brought the attention away from his pink nose. He was very small and was constantly lost in the shuffle of furniture and the movement of people around him. He was different from other cats.  While most cats purred and meowed their feelings and complaints, Snowball stayed silent, as if he decided that his emotions should never be shared with anyone or anything; even to those who loved him the most.

Snowball’s day started and ended like any day, he would awaken from his long slumber, peek open one eye to check his surroundings of any new things that the owners may have brought in from the world outside the loft, then pad slowly and softly to the kitchen where a warm bowl of milk and fish would await him on the linoleum floor.  After eating he would use the litter and lay down in his usual spot in the living room, in a blanketed basket next to the couch. The owners would pat him and try to get him to exercise either by casting lasers beams from the back of a pen on the wall or throwing out the blue rubber ball that Snowball rarely played with. But Snowball never budged, too afraid that one movement of fun could hurt him. Today, however, was different. The owners were getting a new pet, a creature that did not meow nor bark but squawked. Rainbow, the blue, red, and green colored parrot that repeated every word the owners would speak. She was loud and fidgety. She flew from one place in the loft to another, without an ounce of smoothness or grace. Snowball did not like Rainbow because her raucous attitude lasted all throughout the night until she tired herself to sleep, leaving Snowball anxious and stressed in the morning. The owners were fond of Rainbow because her rambunctiousness lifted the loft into high spirits and laughter. For a long while the owners forgot about Snowball and forgot to feed him one day.

“Skinny cat, skinny cat”, croaked the bird as she knocked her beak repetitively onto Snowball’s head.

The cat batted the bird away with his paw but that didn't stop Rainbow from lifting the grumpy cat with her claws up into the air. They flew about the rooms of the loft, twisting and turning, rising and then quickly descending. Rainbow squawked with joy while Snowball whined with fear. Finally Rainbow dropped Snowball onto the floor and he scurried to his bed, covering his face with his tail while he shivered in despair. A little while later the front door clicked and the owners bustled into the room.

“Scary cat, scary cat”, squawked the bird before flying to her nest.

The owners quickly walked over to where Snowball laid shivering in his bed. “Poor Snowball”, exclaimed the man. The woman lifted the cat into her arms and hugged him. “You will always be our favorite pet”, said the woman and Snowball purred silently to sleep. 

A Principle I Plan to Keep

One principle I plan to try and maintain for the rest of my life is to not be judgmental. Referencing to the book Great Gatsby, like Nick’s character I was also raised to not look down on others because I do not know their life situations. My friends however, find me to be very judgmental even though I try not to be. I like to look out for people’s best interest even if that person does not agree with my opinion.  If it comes across offensive, it’s not intentional. Although, I strongly dislike people who are judgmental, it would be very hypocritical of me to do the same. Also, it is in human nature for people to do whatever they please and if I don’t like it then I have to accept that because it is not my life and therefore none of my business. This principal is important to me to maintain because I do not want to lose friends and acquaintances because I judged them. The people of the world feel ashamed or proud enough of their own choices and I and everyone who is also judgmental should keep out of their way.