Riley Freeman felt uncomfortable crawling through the vents. It was starting to get really warm in there, and he had a hard time breathing, but he wasn't focusing on how cramped he was. Instead he was concentrating on getting into the check out window. Although, after every nudge he made down the metal walls, he knew he was going to regret this decision for a long time.
Once he was sure he was near the end of the tunnel, a luminous figure stood before him. Riley shielded his eyes at the sight. He rubbed them for a few minutes before getting used to the sudden blast of light. What he saw was the vent door. Creaking the door open, he peered around to make sure no one was around before he made began to make his move. There was no living man in sight. Riley let out a sigh of relief and fully opened the tiny door, crawling out. He placed himself on the carpet and squirmed across the room until he reached the cash registure. His heart thumped wildly inside his chest, and he was sure he was going to pass out any moment now. He felt more unsure than he ever felt before.
"Hey! What the Hell do you think you're doing?", shouted a voice. Riley looked up. In front of him was a grown man wearing a bright red shirt.
Riley stuttered, but managed to choke out the words, "I can explain this."
A few hours later, the Freeman's door rang. "I got it," called out Grandad. He opened the door, and was somewhat shocked, even though he's seen this many times before, to see Riley in the hands of a police officer.
Huey peered at the door from the living room."What did he do this time?", he sighed.
"Riley, what is the meaning of this?", Grandad snapped.
"Can I talk to you for a moment?", asked the officer.
"Uh... Sure," he replied.
He pushed Riley into the house. "I'll deal with you later," he said, and stomped off.
Riley slumped across the living room before falling onto the couch. Huey gave him a look of disapointment, which was the look he often gave his little brother whenever he made a bad choice.
After several akward minutes, Riley spoke up.
"They made me do it," he said quietly.
"Uh, huh. Wait- Who?", Huey sat up.
Riley began, "remember that lecture Grandad gave us earlier? About our 'money problem?' Well, it got me thinking."
"Speak up, Riley. What did it make you think about?"
"Well, if we loose our house, we're gonna live in the streets," he said holding back a few tears. "You and I both know I don't like this house, but I don't wanna live out there... so I made a quick plan to get my hands on some paper."
"By robbing a convenience store?", snapped Huey.
"No- Well... not at first."
"What, then?"
Riley took a deep breath and said, "it's a long story, Man."