Riley

Authors Note: I couldn't sleep the other night (of course) so I decided to watch a movie I haven't seen in a while, Holes. And, voila , this story was born. A lot of information in this chapter, so sorry about that, but if you enjoyed it, let me know.

I know this story is so over done so I thank you for clicking mine. I swear this isn't completely unoriginal! Just give it a chance. Mary Sues are banished while plenty of twists and turns are welcomed in the fandom. I hope you enjoy.

Disclaimer: I don't own Holes but Riley, Elliot and Fletcher are indeed my own characters, which I do own. Any similarities are purely coincidental unless stated other wise. Holes belongs to its respected owners. Yadda yadda yadda.

Sometimes we do things because we have to, not because we want to. I stole to feed myself and Elliot, not because I enjoyed it but because it was a matter of survival. I was good at it too. I could slip my hand into a pocket and pull out a bill faster than someone could say stop. By the time they realized they had been picked pocketed, I was gone.

Like I said, I didn't enjoy it. Living life as a sixteen year old on the streets was no easy occupation. I did what I could to keep myself going and for the past five years, it had worked pretty well for me. I hadn't been caught. Not yet at least.

I suppose it all started when I was eleven, but my story started even further back than that. I never knew my parents and they never knew me. I was put up for adoption when I was born, and told that I was birthed out of wed lock. I was adopted to a nice couple and given the name Riley Larson. I lived with them until I was about six, when they were both killed in a car accident. I didn't remember them much, but they were the only family I had ever came to really know. After that, I spent the next five years of my life moving from foster home to foster home, being placed in all sorts of families, just waiting for someone to adopt me.

I guess I just wasn't one of the lucky ones, like the other kids.

By the time I turned eleven, I was sick of it all; sick of the adults pretending everything would be okay, sick of my peers pretending to sympathize with me, sick of pretending like everything was normal. So I did what any eleven year old would have, I ran away. The first year was rough but I was a quick learner. I had to be if I wanted to survive on the streets. I learned how to take care of myself by taking from others.

I was fourteen when I met Elliot. He was twelve at the time and in a similar predicament I was in. He struggled adjusting to street life so I took him under my wing and showed him the ropes. We literally became thick as thieves, fitting together like puzzle pieces. We looked out for each other and we look care of each other. Elliot was good at drawing peoples attention away, while I would quietly rob them blind. We made the ideal team and together, we managed to stay alive. I felt a certain responsibility to protect Elliot, he was the closest thing to family I had.

That's how Elliot and I found ourselves tucked away quietly in an alley, waiting.

I peered down the street, spotting a boy not much older than me making his way towards us. He wore a worn red hat on top a head of curly brown hair. He was skinny, whistling a tune I had never heard before. I caught a snippet of it as he passed by the alley.

"The wolf waits below, hungry and lonely--" The boy sang, before whistling the end of it.

I turned to Elliot and nodded. He grinned, and dashed out of the alley, running down the street towards the boy. As he passed the boy, Elliot rammed his shoulder into the his back, making the boy stumble forwards and knocking the hat from his head. Elliot didn't even miss a step, calling over his shoulder, "Sorry 'bout that!" as he ran away, turning the corner.

The boy leaned over and picked up his hat, frowning as he cleaned it off before replacing it on his head. When he bent over, I slid his wallet from his back pocket, retreating into the alley. I glanced over my shoulder. The boy hadn't even noticed, he just continued on his way.

I smiled and flipped open the wallet, rummaging through its contents. Elliot appeared by my side seconds later.

"So?" He asked eagerly, trying to peer into the wallet, "How much did we get Riley?"

Annoyed, I shoved him away, "Back off, will you? I'm trying to count," I snapped, pulling out the bills, "Barley ten dollars," I replied after a minute. I tucked the money into my backpack, pulling out a student ID card, "Look," I laughed, showing Elliot the name on the card.

Elliot chuckled, "Stanley Yelnats?" he asked, "What kind of name is that?"

I shrugged then discarded the wallet. Looks like today was not Stanley Yelnats's lucky day.

"Ten dollars," I said, turning to Elliot, "We need more than that, you need new shoes. Let's head down to the cafe."

There are things every street kid comes to know while living on their own, things I had come to observe early on.

The first is that I never knew when my next meal was, so I made the best of what I had.

The second was that getting caught out after dark was a recipe for disaster.

The third was that I always had to watch for cops.

That is where I made a mistake that would land both Elliot and I in deep trouble.

We headed down the street. The cafe was pretty popular, both for residents and for the street kids. We always managed to rake in a pretty good amount of money there. I looked at Elliot and he gave me a quick nod. He knew what he needed to do.

Elliot took off up the street, stopping a large man with a bushy mustache. Elliot pulled out a deck of cards from his back pocket, flashing an innocent smile.

"Excuse me mister," he said jovially and I rolled my eyes at his ridiculous act, "Would you like to see a card trick?"

"No thank you," the man replied, waving Elliot off. He tried to side step him, but Elliot moved so he was blocking his path.

"Please sir!" Elliot said, "I've got to practice! It will only take just a moment."

Without waiting for a reply, Elliot began shuffling the cards, then asked the man to pick a card from the deck. As he did so, I brushed up along side the man, slowly reaching my hand towards his pocket. Elliot instructed the man to replace the card in the deck and he did as he was told. My fingers brushed the leather of his wallet and I managed to slide it out carefully.

"Is this your card?" Elliot asked as I pocketed the wallet and gave him a nod.

The man rubbed his mustache, "No."

"Oh," Elliot replied, catching my gaze, "I guess I need more practice. Thanks mister," he said hastily then followed me around the street corner and out of sight.

A few seconds later and I released the breath I had been holding. No matter how many times I had picked pockets, it was still a nerve wracking prospect of getting caught always loomed in the air. I handed Elliot the wallet, relief flooding my body.

I spoke to soon.

"Hey!" I heard the large mans voice carry down the street, "Those little rats took my wallet! Someone get them!"

I turned to Elliot, "Run for it!" I cried and we took off down the street just as a man in a blue uniform rounded the corner.

How had I not seen the cop? We never got cops around the cafe during the week day. I hadn't expected one to be there but that was still no excuse. I should have known better. I was sure the cop had been lingering on the street the whole time, watching mine and Elliot's crime unfold before his eyes. We were done for.

The sound of sirens made me turn my head. The cop had jumped into his car and was pulling away from the curb, the red and blue lights flashing at us mockingly. There was no way we could out run a cop car. I looked around and spotted a narrow ally. I took hold of Elliot's shirt sleeve and dragged him between the buildings, anything to put distance between us and the cop. I heard the screech of his tires as the cop pulled over to chase us down on foot.

I could feel my heart pounding in my chest as I ran. A chain link fence blocked our way at the end of the ally but that didn't stop us. We nimbly climbed over the fence and kept running. The cop was hot on our trail and while the fence slowed him down, it didn't stop him. We rounded another alley that head out to the street again. Another cop car pulled up to the mouth of the alley. Elliot and I skidded to a stop. We were trapped, a cop on each side.

The two cops closed in on us.

"Enough games," the one who had chased us panted, "You two are in serious trouble."

I took Elliot's arm again and tried to make a break for it. It was a useless attempt but I was desperate. The cop lunged for us, laying a hand on my shoulder and yanking me back while the other took hold of Elliot.

"Riley!" he cried desperately.

"Elliot!"

"Let go of her!" Elliot snapped, wiggling free of the cops grasp. He ran towards the cop that had me pinned and gave him swift kick to his shin. The cop cried out in pain and released me. I scrambled up the alley to escape, turning to see both cops now wrestling Elliot to the ground. They pined him to the pavement and I could hear a soft whimper escape him.

"Elliot!"

"Get out of here!" Elliot cried, "Go on! I'll be okay!"

I hesitated, watching as the cops pulled out a pair of handcuffs and secured Elliot's hands behind his back, before I took off. I ran down the street, ducking into alleys and jumping more fences. I wasn't sure if the cops were still following me and I didn't dare look over my shoulder. I finally stopped when I rounded another street corner and leaned up against a brick building to catch my breath.

I took a deep breath and then another one. The cops had Elliot pinned and I just turned and ran, abandoning him like a coward. He wouldn't have done that if I was the one being cuffed. He would have come back for me. I should have fought harder or ran faster or done something, anything, to help Elliot. But no, what did I do instead? I turned and deserted the one person in my life who I considered family.

By now the cops probably had Elliot in the back of the cop car and were whisking him down to the station.

"God Riley!" I sighed angrily at myself, "You stupid girl!"

I took a few more deep breaths. I need to calm down and think straight. I needed to figure out some way to save Elliot. I needed to keep him out of a juvenile detention center. I needed to clear his name, help him escape, keep him away from the foster homes.

I needed help.

I needed Fletcher.