Deep in the heart of London the strike of Big Ben chimed through the cool autumn air, sounding the moment of midnight
This is partially inspired by the movie Pretty Woman, which I watched the other night (I love that movie!!) but the plot is pretty different. So yeah, hopefully this turns out good. Everyone is a normal human in this.
Max and Fang come from completely different worlds, one lives the high life and the other on the streets. Romance story. Better than it sounds, I suck at summaries! Enjoy !!
Deep in the heart of London the strike of Big Ben chimed through the cool autumn air, sounding the moment of midnight. A light sprinkle of rain was showering down softly on the city. The building of black, heavy clouds warned everyone that a storm was approaching- and fast. Desperate for shelter, a young boy ran to hide in the safety of an underground car park.
Crouching low in the darkness, the boy sat down tightly in a small corner. It was damp and musky, but it would do.
A few meters away an abandoned shopping trolley lost its grip on the wet ground, sliding into a nearby wall. The crash echoed loudly through the empty car park, breaking the still silence. The boy did not startle.
Skinny and weak, the boy was covered from head to toe in dirt and grime. A think strand of long black greasy hair covered his dark, brown eyes and he flipped it back carelessly. He couldn't go out in the approaching storm, not tonight. He would have to return in the morning.
The boy was a beggar- vermin in the eyes of common English folk. To him, he was not worthy for the privilege of living in such a fine country. In fact, he wasn't worthy to live at all. He was potentially harming their tourism business, occasionally stealing their bounty of endless food or a simple necklace that would never be given a second thought, and he made the place look bad. But did anyone ever care? Did anyone ever do anything to help him stop being the worthless scum he was? No. All anyone ever did was curse at him and call the cops on him- sometimes just for sitting in the wrong place at the wrong time.
Sighing quietly he curled up into a little ball, resting his head against his arm, and tried to get some sleep. The others would be worried sick, but he couldn't do anything about that now. It would have to wait until tomorrow.
Somewhere over on the other side of town, a young girl climbed back in through her open window. Short of breath and soaking wet she stumbled blindly through the blackness of her room and flopped down on her soft carpeted floor.
She had cut it close, getting home before the storm hit, but it was worth it. It was always worth it. Her one outlet of freedom in a smothering imprisonment was not going to be taken away from her.
She grabbed a towel and dried herself off hastily, before climbing into her bed, fully clothed, and drifting into a wrestles disturbed sleep.
Fang's POV
As expected, the storm hit bad. Winds howled all through the morning as rain battered at windows and doors in deafening bangs. The sun was high in the sky before I could leave my sanctuary.
I ran as quickly as I could, knocking over the occasional unlucky pedestrian. But it didn't matter. I just needed to get back.
A wave of relief washed over me as the old abandoned laneway I had substituted for my home came into view. I broke into a sprint, and practically dived around the corner.
"Fang!" My greeting was an ambush attack, wrestling me to the ground, smothering me in a choking hug. "You're back!" she sniffed. I ruffled the 11 year olds mane of tangled knots and debris.
"Course I'm back, Nudge. Where else would I go?" She looked up at me with her wide brown eyes, and beamed a smile. I felt the corner of my lip twitch up involuntarily, making Nudge's smile even wider.
"Seems like you made it back okay," Iggy said, holding his hand up into the empty air before him. I reached out my own grubby hand and grabbed his wrist, a reassurance that I was here, and safe. As his skin came into contact with mine he grinned, almost evilly, and broke into laughter. "Yeah, I knew you'd be alright, you always are." It always amazed me how Iggy could keep such a bright outlook on life when he was homeless, starving and blind. It's a skill I've never been able to acquire, even though I have it better off than him.
"So, where did you go?!" Nudge asked, her voice full of excitement.
"Oh, I just hid out in a car park when the storm hit."
"Really? Was it all damp and disgusting? Did you see any rats?" I almost rolled my eyes. Here we go, with the endless questions and demands about how I spent my uneventful night away.
"Yes and no, Nud-"
"Oh, did you get any food? I'm starving! And so is Iggy!" A rumbling stomach proved her point and she giggled a little at the perfect timing of it all.
Out of my pocket I pulled two apples. Throwing one to Nudge and handing Iggy the other, I realized myself just how hungry I really was.
"We need money," Iggy said through the crunch of his apple. How he knows my exact worries before I even think them myself, I've never been able to figure out. Maybe he was just gifted. "I say, we raid a richies house and then sell their stuff at the pawn shop. That should keep us fed for a while."
I grimaced at his idea. Constant stealing can't be making a good impression on our criminal record, and Nudge always seemed too enthusiastic for something that could get us killed, worst case scenario. But it was the only way we were ever going to get anywhere in this damn place, so why the hell not?
I crouched down low outside the target house. The bitter wind blew straight though my thin jacket, sending shivers down my spine and infesting my arm with tiny mountains of goosebumps. Beside me, Iggy and Nudge were huddled up together, trying to protect one another from the harsh gusts of wind that were barricading us.
"Iggy, are you really sure we should be doing this?" I asked hesitantly.
"Why not? We need money, and you seem to have a problem with constant robberies. So why don't we just make this one big score so we can be set for another couple of months?" My eyes dropped to the gravel below my feet and a deadly chill flew through me, though not from the cold.
A million things could go wrong tonight. A million things could go wrong on a regular raid, but this was different. The stakes were higher. Much higher. Breaking and entering into the house of possibly the richest family in the area was a risk I just wasn't willing to take. Just getting in without setting of a whole load of security alarms would be near impossible.
But we were here now, and already prepared to go. The others wouldn't back out now.
I raised my head high, looking towards the old Victorian brick house. "Okay then, let's go." Together in the dark, we headed to the gate of the Martinez household.
--
I'm not going to lie. I was shitting myself. It was a miracle we made it through the gate without being caught. Somehow, Iggy miraculously managed to put the cameras in a loop. I'd have to ask him about that later. But that was only half of the problem. What if a person saw us? What if we triggered an alarm? What about silent alarms? It was all just too much.
Nudge's head popped around a corner, and she gave me a thumbs up. Okay, there was no one in the area and no immediate threats. I was good to go. I took a deep breath and placed my hands on the thick white windowsill. Using all my strength I pushed upwards, opening the window. To my surprise, it opened effortlessly and silently.
Secretly, I was disappointed. Secretly, I wished that the window hadn't opened and that this whole thing just failed so we could go back and sleep. Yes, we would be hungry for another night, but what if we got caught? What if we got sent to the police and locked away? What if we got separated? So many possibilities that would inevitably tear us all apart would have no chance if we just went home now.
But no, nothing ever worked for me.
Nervously, my eyes scanned the room, double checking there were no signs of life. We had already scoped out the room to be sure there was no one in it, but my nerves were still on edge.
Jumping up on a foothold made by Nudge I clumsily stumbled through the window and rolled onto the soft carpet.
It was heaven right there lying on that floor. I cursed the carpet for being so inviting before bounding up, sweeping anything that looked of any value of a wooden dressing table.
Necklaces, earrings, bracelets, watches, this girl had it all. I marveled at my selection. Golden chains, pearl earrings, precious stones and gems embedded into strands of silver, gold and white gold, delicately hand crafted boxes worth hundreds of pounds filled with fragile trinkets and foreign nic nacs, porcelain figures that felt as though they would crumble in my hand, finely woven satin cloths, a small tiara with intricate patterns engraved into the soft silver, and so much more.
As carefully and quickly as I could I placed all that I could get my hands on in an old canvas bag.
I made my way around the room, circling through the dressing table, wardrobe and desk grabbing anything small of value. I was about to leave when one last thing caught my eye.
On a bedside table, next to a glass of water, was a silver bracelet. A soft, flowing design was engraved into a heart that hung off as a charm, in the middle was a bright sapphire. Written on the back was 'Dear Max, I'll Love You Always And Forever With All My Heart, Mum' It was so simple yet strikingly beautiful. Now for the big question, do I take it?
To its owner, it was probably more precious than everything in this bag combined. But my greed for food was pestering at my morals. Should I steal it away from her?
My thoughts were distracted by a quick noise. Instantly my senses sharpened and my eyes darted to the source of the sound.
At the other end of the room a door had been opened. In entered a tall girl in her nightie, wet hair dripping down her back and shoulders. She held a white towel in one hand, the door handle in the other. She opened her mouth and inhaled sharply, as if she was about to scream. But she didn't. She just stood there staring at me. I stared back at her.
The world was frozen in time right there, with me and the girl staring at each other, neither daring to breathe. The bracelet fell from my hand and landed with a soft clink on the floor. The girl's eyes followed the chain's every move, before flying back up to me.
"I… Uh…" My hands began to shake as I tried to find words. I was screwed now. This girl would probably call the police and I'd be gone.
In a moment suspended in time, we both stood, staring each other down, waiting for each other to make the first move. Neither of us did.
Woo, first chapter! Review if you think I should keep going with it. Suggestions, comments and all that are very much loved. Hopefully the second chapter will be up soon. Cya!