CHAPTER 2 Unlikely Partnership
"We ask Pouppe how he got here," said Neal. Neal came to approach Pouppe. But Pouppe whined and hissed as though he's ready to bite him.
"Gezzz... !" Neal stopped instantly. "Candy, in order for my plan to work, he needs to be my friend," said Neal. "Could you tell him that?"
"Sure, Pouppe is a smart skunk." said Candy. She then spoke to Pouppe really gently.
"Pouppe, smart Pouppe, this is Neal. Neal is my friend, he's a good boy..." She gave Neal a meaningful look. He looked at her back silently, with a mild grin, feeling odd with the sentence, too.
She got up and brought Pouppe closer to Neal.
"Neal, you should hold him and pat him," whispered Candy.
Neal was scared. "Er, eh... Would he bite me?"
"No, he won't," said Candy. But Neal was so scared, he only moved half an inch closer. Candy lost her patience, she grabbed his palm and gently but forcefully, pulled it closer to Pouppe.
"Candy... I... no!" said Neal tried to protest.
Frightened, he shut his eyes and threw his face felt ready that he'd be bitten at any time. Soon, he felt something warm and hairy on his palm, he almost threw it off his hand. Luckily, Candy held his hand tightly. After a while, feeling no bite, he started to peek then opened his eyes slowly. Accidentally his eyes met hers. Trough the dim of the moonlight from the little window in the basement he saw her eyes directly for the first time. They were friendly, big, and kind unlike any other eyes he ever saw.
"Look Pouppe trust you now," said Candy breaking his muse.
He realized that the skunk was already on his palm.
"Say hi to him, pat him," whispered Candy.
"Hi Pouppe, nice meeting you," he patted Pouppe half consciously half thinking about Candy. This sweet girl's life had suffered so much because of him. He'd not let her be killed, at any cost whatsoever because of him. He said with a full determination, "Candy, I promise I will take you out from here."
He then returned Pouppe back to her. "We can use the way he entered here to get out. Ask him how he got here."
Candy asked gently to Pouppe, "Smart Pouppe, tell us how you got here."
Pouppe shrieked happily, ran behind the big cabinet and disappeared. Candy and Neal pushed the cabinet and saw a big hole connected to a tunnel. The hole was just big enough for them to enter. They got in, crawling following the tunnel. They had no flash light, it was as black as pitch but with Pouppe as a guide they felt secured and confidence that they're in the right track. Finally they saw the moon light at the end of the tunnel. Happily they ran outside and quickly hid behind one bush to study the current situation.
"We get to their car and drive back to London," said Neal in a low voice.
"Do you know how to drive?" asked Candy worried.
"Kind of, Stear taught me how."
"Do you have the car key?" asked Candy
"No, but Stear taught me how to shortcut the cables and start a car engine without a key. Come, hurry," said Neal.
They approached one truck, but they're found out. They heard someone shout.
"They escape! Get the boy first, he's easier to handle," shouted one.
"Don't move kids or I shoot," barked the other.
Candy was scared and disappointed. But, Neal had already another plan.
He whispered to Candy, "Follow what they say, don't run, trust me on this. Stay still."
They stood motionlessly waiting for the two bad guys to get closer. Candy's heart fluttered in terror, but not knowing what else to do, she followed Neal's request. Neal held her hand firmly to calm her and at the same time to make sure she didn't move. The feeling of his grip eased her. Without knowing about the blank skunk sitting on Candy's shoulder, the men walked closer to them. The situation was so intense, she almost collapsed couldn't bear the tension anymore when she heard Neal whispered, "Pouppe, go! Bite them!"
Suddenly Candy and Neal saw one man shouted and dropped the gun, the second one too.
"Ouch! What was that?" they screamed horrifically in pain and surprised.
Pouppe had bit them as hard as he could. He knew his two young friends were in danger and came to the rescue. Without wasting anymore time, fully aware that this would be the last chance for survival, Neal hurriedly picked up the gun.
"Go inside the barn! Now! Or I shoot," barked Neal.
"Don't listen to him! He won't know how to use a gun."
The man's words were cut by a loud bang. Candy jumped in surprise.
"Don't provoke me," said Neal. Of course he knew how to use a gun. He used it a lot during the fox hunting season. "Throw the car key and get into the barn."
"Our boss, he took the key with him,"
"Throw the key to me, don't lie," Neal said.
Neal gave another shot very closed to their feet as a warning. But they still swore they didn't have. They were begging for their life and sheepishly went to the barn as he instructed. He locked the gate and grabbed Candy's hand to take her run to the car. He then used the skill Stear taught him to short cut the cable to jump start the car engine. His hands trembled nervously, many times the cable fell from his hand and he needed to grope again in the dark to find it which slowed down the process greatly. Candy nervously waited for him which seemed like forever.
Finally, he made it. The cable was connected successfully and the engine started. Candy was so excited. Carrying Pouppe, she got into the car. He drove to a nearby police station.
The rest was easy, the police caught bandits, called the school, notified the parents, headmistress and so on. Candy and Neal were waiting in the police office excitedly.
"You're brilliant, Neal," said Candy.
That was the highest praise he had ever gotten in his life because it came from Candy whom he owed so much from. He grinned trying to respond in an eloquent way but seeing her green deep eyes disoriented him, all his facility of words failed him He simply responded, "You're better."
Then, they heard a woman's voice shrieked. His mother and sister came running to huge him tightly. Candy watched them. She took a deep breadth seeing the touching moment of a mother and a son and a sister. She never had a real family. She sighed. But before long, a tall man ran dashing to her and before she realized it, she felt warm lips crashed in her mouth kissing her passionately.
"Candy... I was so worried." It's Terry.
"Terry, you're here!" Neal heard Candy called Terry excitedly.
Then came Archie, Steer, Annie, Patty. All surrounded her impatiently waiting for their turn to hug her.
I may not have a mom, a brother, or a sister, but I have Terry, caring friends and two mothers. I have nothing to miss. She smiled at that thought. She hugged them all at the same time. It was a warm merry sight to see, even for Neal. He felt lucky that they could escape and return to their normal life. It's like being given the second chance to live life to the fullest. Before he disappeared in the doorway, he excused himself from his mother and sister and ran to Candy. Terry and Archie hurriedly stood in front of Candy to protect her from the short boy.
"Just want to see Candy, briefly," said Neal.
Candy walked forward to approach him. He offered her a handshake which she received with a friendly smile. He then looked at Pouppe and opened his palm. Pouppe unhesitatingly jumped to it. He hugged Pouppe.
"Thank you, Pouppe," Neal he said. He took one of Pouppe's front leg as if to shake hands with him.
He returned Pouppe to Candy before he ran back to his mother and sister whom he loved so much. He felt lucky that he could still be with them.
Thus, life was back to normal... One day Terry left Candy a brief note saying he left for America to work on his career. She was devastated. Without thinking twice, she soon left London for America to look for him.
ooOoo
Years later...
Everyone had come back from the UK to Chicago... Terry had established an enviable career in New York broadway.
Candy excitedly climbed a tree with a letter in her pocket. Sitting on the highest possible branch, hurriedly she opened the letter which she just received from Terry. To her surprise, inside she found a one way train ticket to New York and a VIP ticket to the premier of Romeo and Juliet.
One way ticket!, she thought excitedly, understood what Terry was implying. Oh Terry!
With eyes blurred with happy tears, she read the letter eagerly. Terry, the most promising raising star in New York, would play the Romeo himself! It's a highly publicized event which was preceded by fund raising gala ball attended by only the super rich and famous.
Candy was so proud of her man. She hugged the letter, kissed it many many times. She wanted to give her most stunning look to surprise her man. She was so nervous and sought for her friends' advice. Stear, Archie and their girls happily agreed to take her to a boutique.
That day, they went together to the boutique. While they're busy looking for a dress to try, Candy saw two girls entering the store. One was pretty. The other one had a haughty look who she instantly recognized as Eliza. Hurriedly she looked at another direction pretending not seeing her.
Then, from the corner of her eye, she saw a tall, slender, debonair, devastating young man walk behind Eliza. Wow, what a taste she had!, thought Candy thinking he was Eliza's boyfriend. In silence, she admired his marvelous look and pitying him at the same time. Her giggle was cut short a second later when she heard how Stear and Archie called him.
"Hi, Neal," greeted Stear and Archie.
"Archie, Stear, what a coincidence," he greeted them back with a deep, masculine voice.
Neal! How much he had grown up!, Candy thought, astounded. Wow, what a favor time has been to him!
From their conversation, she overheard that Mr. Leagan sent Neal to attend the gala. He took his sister and Daisy, as his date, to the ball. Today he accompanied the girls to shop for the occasion. After stealing another look to his impressive manly appearance, she went to the fitting room to try her dress.
When she came out, she didn't see anyone else except but Neal. Stear and Archie were presumably accompanying their girls to try their dresses. Left alone, Candy was looking at herself in the mirror as well as looking for other dresses to try. While doing it, she felt someone kept staring at her back. She made a sudden turn around move to catch the observer. She caught Neal was indeed staring at her, intently, unmoved.
The girl had grown up to be a beautiful mature woman with a killer curve and voluptuous figure unmatched by anyone he had ever seen in his entire life. His eyes couldn't help not to following her with pleasure. With a look that's absolutely sinful, he's openly examining her from head to toe, never before experienced such a barbaric temptation at the sight of a woman. O how he could stare at her emerald green eyes, held her juicy body, kiss her luscious lips all night long... Got totally lost in her, he didn't realize that she walked approaching him.
The next thing he knew, he heard her voice hiss angrily, "You promised that you'd stop bothering me."
Suddenly he was aware that Candy was standing in front him.
"No.. . Ahem," he almost got choked by his own tongue. He gulped, stammered,"B-but... L-look, I haven't moved from my chair since you came out from the fitting room."
"Stop looking at me!" said Candy.
He finally caught his breadth. He quickly regained his composure, cleared his throat and got up from his chair. His tall figure was towering over her, she needed to stretch her neck up to look at his eyes. "Candy, long time not see, how do you do?"
He wanted to kiss her hand but she quickly pulled it.
"Don't bother," she sniffed.
He grinned. "I am not trying to annoy you. But, seriously, with you are here, nothing else here is worth looking at."
"Watch your own two girls," said Candy.
"They are have me," said Neal. "But on the contrary, you need help."
"No, your help is not needed. I have Archie, Annie, Stear, Patty here to help me."
"Your four friends combined can't match a tenth of me."
He went to one of the shelves to pick one dress, put it on the table then went back to his seat.
"Try that one. The gauche looking dress they picked doesn't do justice to your beautiful curve. What a waste! It looks old and dull. The color is also against your vibrant facial color, hair, and eyes. My dress, on the other hand, complements that as well as accentuates the screaming curves of your big hip and round full bottom," he said with a grin.
Candy couldn't believe that he'd really describe her shapes that explicitly. She could choose to ignore him but but the word "big" was inexcusable.
"Big? Are you saying that I am fat?" she whispered with face pale with anger.
He added,"No. 'Big' here is a compliment, not a boo."
She was about to swing his hand to his face and blast him with nasty words but Annie and Patty came out.
Candy threw her face from him and hurriedly turned to Annie and Patty.
"Ah, you both look gorgeous," said Candy giving friendly compliments to the two girls.
"Let me see your dress, Candy," Annie said. "Uh it's okay, but wow look what you get here." She looked at the dress on the table. "This one is good." The three others who happened to see also showed their agreement. "You have a magnificent taste today, Candy. Try it out."
Candy was speechless. All she could was to throw a menacing glance to Neal which he caught with a big grin. When she's out wearing the dress, everyone couldn't stop doing oh and ah with admiration.
"Beautiful, Candy," everyone non stop giving her compliments.
Stear needed to nudge Archie several times to stop him from staring at Candy with mouth open so wide. Candy could see Neal giving her a winning grin from behind Eliza and Daisy which she responded with a little lip twist.
-To be continued-
Thanks for reading.