Chapter 3

Now Caroline knew what they were looking at, it was easy to spot him.
He was across the road, standing on the curb. He was throwing his arm up whenever a yellow cab passed, but none of them stopped.
Caroline gasped, she hadn't expected to ever see him again and now he was standing just across the street. The past couple of weeks she'd made up so many ways to take revenge on him if she'd ever see him again. There were so many insults she'd wanted to throw at him, but now that he was so close, she was at a complete loss as to what to do.



"You're right, Annie. What do we do now? Call the police?" she suggested.

Annie glanced at Caroline before directing her gaze back to the man across the street.



"That'll take too long. He'll have gotten a cab by then. We have to do something now." With that, she left the sidewalk and started for the street.

"What are you doing?" Caroline called after her.

"I'm going over there, what does it look like? Come with me, I could use your help."
She then turned around and started walking across the busy street, stopping every two feet to avoid getting run over by cars that sped by, only a few inches away from her. Several drivers honked their horns, a cab driver pointing to his forehead as he drove by. Annie ignored them and continued her way across the street.
Caroline hesitated for a moment, but then followed Annie's example, receiving the same treatment from the passing cars.
Once they had both crossed the street, they stood still between some parked cars at a small distance from the man who didn't seem to notice a thing.

"What do we do now?" Caroline asked nervously, fidgeting nervously with her nails. This was a job for the police, what was she doing chasing a criminal herself?

"Now," Annie interrupted her thoughts, "We get your money back."
She left Caroline with no more time to think about it because she sped off and dove on top of the unsuspecting man.

"Annie!" Caroline exclaimed and ran after her.

"What the h-" the man exclaimed in shock, swatting at whoever was attacking him.

"Thief!" Annie shouted, her arms wrapped tightly around his shoulders. She tried to keep her grip on him as the man was bending forward and pulling at her arms, trying to shake his attacker off of him.

"Let go!" he commanded when he still couldn't free himself.

"Annie," Caroline pleaded, carefully approaching them, "Let go, please."

"Alright" Annie sighed disappointedly and let herself slide off his back.

"What the hell was that?" the man exclaimed angrily and turned around. His expression changed immediately when he recognized the two women standing across from him.

"Oh it's you" he said softly.

"Yeah it's 'us'" Annie retorted angrily.
"And don't even think of running away again, you owe my friend here some money." She gestured to Caroline.

Richard's eyes moved away from Annie to look at Caroline and his expression turned apologetic.
Caroline knew she was naïve and she knew he'd tricked her before but for some reason it seemed genuine this time. But she also knew she shouldn't trust her intuition anymore and she decided to follow Annie's example.
"You conned me" she said to him and he looked as though she'd slapped him in the face.
"You robbed me of pretty much all of my savings and to think I trusted you!"

Annie planted her hands on her hips as she and Caroline were waiting for an explanation.
A hand moved up to his face to cover his eyes as he bent his head in shame.
"I know" he said, "I'm so sorry, I can't tell you how sorry I am."
His voice wavered slightly with his last few words.

Annie wasn't impressed.
"Sorry's not gonna pay the rent! When are you going to pay her back?"

"I-I can't" he stammered.
"Look, I'm terribly sorry, it's just that I've been poor all my life. Ever since I can remember I've wanted to be an artist. That's my dream and I've been struggling to make it for years and years now. I live on barely 12,000 dollars a year."
He sighed and raked a hand through his hair as he continued, "So when I got to exhibit one of my paintings at the Greenwood gallery, it was a big chance for me. When you said you wanted to buy my painting, I was over the moon. And you really were the first person to ever buy one of my paintings," he clarified, "I didn't lie about that, you have to believe me."
He looked down at Caroline who was listening intently and wordlessly encouraged him to go on.
He sighed again and rolled his eyes upward, "I don't know, but it just seemed like my prayers were answered. Of course I knew it was wrong, but something in my brain just clicked and I decided that this was my chance to move out of the dump I've been living in for the past three years. The prospect of eating something other than stale bread, to pay off my student loans, buy new shoes…"
He looked down at his feet. He was wearing dark shoes, the soles had come loose at the toe and Caroline briefly wondered if they were even waterproof.
"It was a chance at a new life, a chance to start over. Of course I regretted it straight away, but by then it was too late already."
He looked down at his feet again in a way that reminded Caroline of a little boy showing up for detention and she couldn't help but to feel sorry for him and maybe even forgive him. She'd been complaining about missing out on her holiday while this man didn't even have the money for new shoes...

Annie on the other hand was a lot harder to impress.
"Ugh please," she replied with a dismissive hand-wave, "We're not looking for a movie of the week, we just want the money back."

He looked up and nodded helplessly.
"I know, but I don't have it anymore, it's gone."
He quickly looked away again, afraid of Annie's reaction.

"Well that leaves us with no choice but to call the police" Annie replied relentlessly.
She pulled out her cell phone and started punching in the number.

Richard's head jerked up in shock and Caroline quickly grabbed Annie's wrist to stop her.

"Annie, hold on. I have another idea."

Annie and Richard looked at Caroline, fully focused, both wondering what Caroline's solution could possibly be.
"I'm a cartoonist," she explained to Richard, placing a hand over her heart.
"Maybe you know my strip? 'Caroline in the City'?"
When he shook his head, she continued, "Well anyway, it's very popular and I can't seem to get everything done on my own anymore. So what I'd like to propose is the following; how about you work for me until you've paid me back? I'll just pay you enough to live on and the rest of what you'd normally earn will go to reimburse me."

Annie's eyes became wide as saucers as her jaw practically dropped to the ground. Richard's eyes simply filled with disbelief.
"Really?" he said softly, grateful for her forgiveness.

"Caroline!" Annie objected, pulling her friend aside until they were out of earshot.
"Are you nuts?? Have you not learned from last time? Isn't it enough he conned you, now you want to let him into your apartment!? He could be dangerous!"

Caroline glanced over at Richard, who was giving directions to a couple of tourists while he waited for them.
"I know, Annie. But look at him, he's hardly a ruthless criminal, is he? And I believe he's really sorry for what he did. Everyone deserves a second chance you know."

"Of course" Annie agreed, throwing up a hand for emphasis, "But do you need to let him into your apartment to do that? Why don't you just demand the painting back?"

"Because I don't want him to get away with it that easily. Besides, he might not even have it anymore. Plus, he can help me with that stack of panels. Haven't you seen how much work there's left?"

Annie didn't really mind this solution. She was inwardly jumping with joy at the prospect of never having to see the ugly thing again. She nodded.
"Yeah, sure but what about the other people he conned?"

Caroline thought hard for a moment.
"I've been thinking about them too. But if I inform them, they'll go straight to the police and his career will be over before it has even started. There has to be another way to reimburse them. Maybe he could have an auction for one of his other paintings, we'll figure something out."

Annie shrugged.
"Well I still think it's a stupid idea."

"Look Annie, I'm not going to leave him alone in my apartment or anything, I can keep an eye on him all the time. It's not a permanent thing, he's just going to work for me until he's paid me back and then he's out the door again. I still don't trust him, but he doesn't seem like a bad person to me either. So now he can color those panels for me, forty hours a week."
She grinned devilishly at Annie who mirrored this.

"I like this evil side of you. Okay, I can see how working for you is punishment" she teased, "Maybe it's a good idea after all."

Caroline nodded, glad she'd finally managed to convince Annie. Though she wasn't entirely sure it was her evil side Annie just saw. She hadn't told her friend that she was looking forward to having him near her every day and she had neglected to tell Annie how her heart had fluttered when she'd looked up into those brown eyes again.
But of course Annie didn't need to know all that…

When Richard showed up for work, he looked all gloomy and annoyed, his whole attitude aired his dislike for the situation. He obviously didn't want to be there. But at the same time he was careful not to open his mouth because he knew he wasn't exactly in the position to complain. And at least he got to be around Caroline every day although he didn't have the illusion that she'd be interested in him. That probably made this arrangement all the more difficult and he wished he'd be gone soon. He felt guilty straight away because his new employer was doing all she could to make him feel at home, while she really didn't have to.

"Welcome, Richard!" she exclaimed enthusiastically upon his arrival as though he'd just come back from a trip around the world. She jumped up from her seat at the desk and moved to the middle of the room.
"Come in, take a seat. Have you eaten yet?"

"Why?" he asked, eyeing her warily as he hung up his coat, wondering why his eating habits would be any of her business.

She was a little taken aback by his defensive reply, but immediately recovered.
"Well, I thought we could have breakfast together, you know, get to know each other?"
She cocked her head to the side as she regarded him for a moment, giving him time to consider the offer. She didn't want to come on too strong since he obviously scared easily.
Instantly uncomfortable under her gaze, he moved away to what he assumed would be his side of the desk. He heard her walk to the kitchen and when he turned around, he found her rummaging through the cabinets, for the first time realizing her upbeat mood was actually nervousness.
He found it kind of endearing as he watched her searching for something edible, trying to assume an air.

"I already ate" he stated.

She slowly closed the cabinet again.
"Oh, I see. Well maybe we should just get started then, hm?"
Without asking anything else, she brought over two cups of coffee and joined him at his side at the desk.
"Let's see, this will be your workplace as you already discovered. Here are the pencils, they're organized by color scheme…."

Her arm shot across from him, her upper arm slightly brushing his as she pointed out the pencils.
He immediately stepped back.
"I get it, Caroline" he retorted with an eye-roll, "I'm a trained artist, remember?"

The look of defeat and disappointment on her face was immediate but instead of putting him in his place she simply nodded.
"You're right, I forgot I don't need to tell you these things."
She forced a smile and went back to her side of the desk to start their first day of work together.

Despite her expectations, working with Richard never did get any easier. Never in her wildest dreams had she thought his cynical and negative behavior was in fact part of his personality rather than a result of nerves on his first day. If someone had told her a year ago she'd be working with someone like that day in, day out, she would've laughed at them and told them there was no way she'd be able to cope. But strangely enough she didn't find it as hard as it first seemed. Gradually, he started to grow on her and occasionally, he even seemed to make an effort to be nice or remotely positive for her.
There were times when she thought he did that just for her. She always hoped he'd stay for a drink and a chat after work so she could discover more of the unique but wonderful qualities he so rarely displayed. But he never did. The second the minute-hand on her clock jumped to five 'o clock, he was out the door. The first couple of times she thought it was pretty funny and imagined it was a bit like a fairy tale, as though he'd turn into a frog after five. But for that to be true he'd have to be a prince and he certainly wasn't acting like one. In fact, it had become quite hurtful to see him rush off straight after work and she wondered if she was the only one who enjoyed their time together.
But despite all that, he wasn't a bad person, she was sure of that. He seemed kind of sweet even though for some reason he liked to keep it a secret from the world. The only reason she'd had the privilege of occasionally seeing this side of him was thanks to her nosiness and the fact that she spent 40 hours a week with this man.
It was quite a transition for her, she liked to talk while working and when she worked alone, she always had the radio on. Richard hadn't uttered a single word other than what was necessary in his first week. She'd begun asking him questions about his personal life but quickly found it was to no avail. She hardly ever received an answer and when she did, it clearly made his already downcast mood even gloomier.
What worked a lot better was when she did all the talking and just had him listen. At least she thought he listened to her, she could never be sure.
It also helped to pick topics of his interest and occasionally, it was actually possible to engage him in a conversation, even if it was about the decay of the planet.
It seemed that when he talked, he merely did it to express his frustration about the simplest things or whine about his pay which, despite the recent raise, was still too low.
It annoyed Caroline quite a bit to hear him complain about his salary so much. After all, he was there to pay her, not the other way around. Of course she could never tell him that, she didn't know how.
And what was more: he was an excellent colorist. He was very precise but as a result turned in perfect panels and he got everything done in spite of his regular tardiness.
But his immaculate work couldn't eternally make up for his everlasting negativity and it was on a Friday afternoon that the situation escalated.

Richard took off his glasses and briefly rubbed his tired eyes before putting his glasses back on.
"Well, " he said, placing the green pencil back in the standard between its light green and blue partners, "I'm done, I'm going home."
He was already in the process of zipping up his portfolio and had begun his short walk to the door when Caroline looked up from her panel. A quick glance at her watch told her it was 4.17 p.m.
She cleared her throat, knowing she'd have to do the 'boss-employee' thing, and she hated it.
"Um, Richard…it's not five yet" she stated carefully.

Surprised, Richard glanced over his shoulder, not used to her saying anything in return when he snuck away from work early.
"I know, but I'm done, so…."
He didn't finish his sentence. It didn't seem worth the effort, Caroline would accept it nonetheless. He began to put on the two coats he'd been wearing to shield himself from the winter cold outside.
Caroline swallowed, knowing her attempt at assertiveness had failed. Instead, she decided to drop it for now and be friendly rather than create even more distance between them.
"Um…okay then Richard. I suppose if you're done…you can go. So, do you have anything fun planned for this weekend then?"

Richard made a face as he wrapped the dark scarf around his neck.
"Hardly. As if I could even afford to make plans on what you pay me…" he muttered from under the thick fabric. He picked up his portfolio and reached for the doorknob.

Caroline's hand landed on the mahogany desk with such a force, the sound actually seemed to echo through the apartment.
Richard was startled and jumped an inch in the air, then turned around wide-eyed to find Caroline fuming with anger.
"That's it!" she screeched, her voice so shrill it made her vocal cords burn. She removed her hand from the desk. She didn't even feel the tingle of pain, she was too angry to care.
She jumped up, defiantly approaching her assistant who was staring at her in shock, probably wondering what on earth possessed her.
"I'm sick and tired of you complaining about your pay all the time, Richard! I pay you plenty and in case you'd forgotten, you're working here to pay me back so I don't even see where you find the nerve to complain!"
Her breathing had quickened and her heart was thumping against her ribcage, both from anger and fear. She'd never flown off the handle like this and she had no idea what Richard would say.
Richard, as it happened, didn't say anything. He seemed completely tongue-tied.
His eyes remained fixed on hers as he slowly set down his portfolio and took one step away from the door. He pushed the scarf down a little and Caroline found herself holding her breath, anticipating his response. Would he apologize? Or would he yell back at her? She hadn't a clue, the man was so unpredictable.
It turned out it was neither, he didn't say anything. He just kept staring at her. His expression seemed a mixture of confusion and shock.
The silence was almost deafening and Caroline had to reluctantly admit that even him yelling at her would be better than this silence.
She felt extremely uncomfortable and decided to speak up again.
"So, have you got anything to say to that or are you just gonna stand there?"
She crossed her arms in front of her chest for effect, feigning self-confidence.

He could kick himself for getting her upset. She'd given him this job so they could amicably settle his debt to her and all he'd been doing was bitch about it. He'd been telling himself to loosen up for weeks now but he just couldn't manage it. Being in her presence always made him tense and it caused him to say the exact opposite of what he meant. If he'd had a choice, he would've quit this job weeks ago. Maybe then she'd finally leave his thoughts or stop haunting his dreams. Maybe then he could forget just how beautiful she looked. She was even more beautiful when she was angry he realized as he saw her glaring at him, a couple of feet away.

"I've had it with you, Richard!" she yelled, "When I suggested this arrangement I expected, no hoped, you'd start thinking of this as something other than a way to pay me back. I was hoping for just a little dedication, that you would actually care. What was I thinking!?" she exclaimed with feigned wonder.

"No, that's not it at all. It's just that…-" he replied desperately, struggling to find the right words. He wanted to say something that would undo all of this but he knew it was impossible.

"Save it, Richard" she interjected. "It's obvious you don't give a damn about the strip or me!"

His head jerked up in shock. Was that what she thought? That he didn't care? After the way he'd been acting, that wasn't very surprising. But how was he going to convince her otherwise? He could hardly tell her how he felt about her and he couldn't really reason with her either, he couldn't get a word in edgeways.
"Caroline, that's not true…."

"I don't want to hear it Richard!" she yelled, not allowing him to say anything in return.
"I just can't believe I was so wrong about you! In that gallery you seemed all sweet and sincere, you were so passionate about your work…
I was actually starting to fall for you, you know that?! And now you turn out to be this enormous…-"

Her words were smothered by his lips on hers. She froze for a split second but then her body melted into his and she kissed him back. She completely forgot about her anger as her feelings took over from her thoughts. She wound her arms around his neck and pulled him even closer.
Richard was amazed at his decision to take such drastic measures but it had seemed the best way to get those crazy ideas out of her head and convince her that he did care.
He was grateful that he finally got to kiss her, he'd wanted to do this since the first time he saw her, when she was admiring his painting at the gallery. He'd never had the nerve to act on his feelings but when he'd just heard her admitting how she felt about him he was unable and unwilling to hold back his feelings any longer.
Caroline was so overwhelmed with surprise that it took her a while to get her thoughts back in order.
When she did, she pulled away, keeping her eyes closed. His face was still only inches from hers and she could feel his warm breath on her mouth. She carefully opened her eyes to find him smiling down at her.
She didn't know what to do or say, her thoughts were racing through her head and her heart was still pounding from anger. Or the kiss, she wasn't sure which.
She slowly took one step away from him, hesitated briefly, then slapped him hard across the cheek.