Steal
Summary: Young Helena finds herself in a sticky situation. "And all I wanted was that stupid Mighty Toms CD."
Disclaimed.
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I run across the food court, slamming into people, spilling drinks and scattering napkins. My heart is thumping, my breath is fast, adrenaline is shooting through my veins. I feel like I'm running for my life. My school bag bounces from side to side, throwing off my rhythm and compromising my balance.
Which is how the cop catches me.
He corners me as I'm heading out of the McDonald's Express. I bolt to the left and try to fake him out, but I misjudge the weight of my backpack and skid to the floor, banging my head on the soda fountain.
Ow.
I shake away the stars and get up to run, but the cop grabs me by the back of my shirt -- that's my favorite, you jerk -- and drags me out to where his cruiser is parked. I fight the whole way, but no 13-year-old kid can get away from a determined (not to mention overweight) cop three times her size, not even if she's been taking self-defense and gymnastics lessons since she could walk, which I have. I almost make it right as we leave the mall, but then he grabs me again and shoves me into the car.
At the station, the cops look at my school ID, put something in my record, and call my mom to pick me up.
Then they send me out to the waiting room. I sit in a chair that's so old, the vinyl seat cover has pretty much completely peeled away, and a few minutes later, a girl sits down next to me. She has red hair and looks a few years older than me -- 19 or 20, maybe.
I guess I must have looked pretty miserable, because she asks me, "What's wrong?"
I don't really feel like answering, but it's okay, since she keeps going. "You're Helena, right?"
"How do you know me?" I ask. I don't think I've seen her before…
"They're all talking about you in there," she says, nodding towards the door. "You gave Officer Bullock more exercise than he got in the past six months."
I grin. If nothing else, the look on that cop's face was worth it -- "Wait a second," I say. "You're a cop?" She looks too nice to be one of them.
"Oh -- I'm Barbara," she says, "the Commissioner's daughter. I'm just waiting for my dad to authorize your release."
"Sorry," I mumble. Look how much trouble I got into. And all I wanted was that stupid Mighty Toms CD.
The door opens, and my mom walks in. She looks really mad. I stand up, but so does Barbara.
"Selina," she says. She looks tense.
"Barbara," my mom says back. They stare at each other for a bit, then they both nod, and Mom goes up to the front desk and talks to the receptionist.
Weird.
Commissioner Gordon comes out of his office and says something to my mom, and then they both come over to where I'm standing. "Well," he says. "You seem like a smart kid to me, Helena. You've got a good head on your shoulders, you just got to learn how to use it."
"Right," I say.
"Now, your mom tells me that this won't happen again," he continues. "Is she right?"
I take a peek at my mom, but she still looks pretty steamed, so I just nod and say, "Yeah."
"Well, then, you're free to go."
"Thank you, Commissioner," my mom says as she grips my arm -- ow! -- and pulls me onto the street. We get into the car and drive back to the apartment.
When we pull up to the curb, I move to open the door, but my mom stops me.
"Helena," she says. "what could you have possibly need so badly that you had to steal it?"
Oh, great. I am so dead. "A CD," I mutter.
"Louder," she prompts me.
"Mom, it's no big deal, okay?" I say. "It was just a CD!"
"Damn it, Helena, this is a big deal." I'm surprised. My mom never swears, and what's scarier is that she doesn't even sound angry with me. "I don't want to stealing. Why couldn't you have just asked me?" she asks softly.
I look away. "I didn't want to."
"Why not?"
"I didn't think it was important," I whisper. "I didn't want you to worry about what I want on top of your job and the bills." I don't even know if my mom is working. She's always there in the morning and when I get back from school, and the bills just keep coming.
"Oh, Helena." She grabs me in a hug. "I never want you to have to worry about money, okay? Not in this household; not while I'm still breathing. I'll always take care of you."
We go inside.
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The next morning, when I wake up, I find the Mighty Toms CD on my pillow.
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A/N: The Mighty Toms is a fictional band from the show.