Master of Thieves
Chapter 16: A Priceless Pearl
Back in the Present Day, 2 weeks after Terry had returned from Ancient Egypt, he helped Bentley, Murray and Carmelita with a few tasks, mostly chores since they were too busy with pinpointing where Sly went and, in Carmelita's Case, an increase of crime ever since Muggshot's breakout. Although normally he'd do it for no reason, he was helping them so that he would grieve inside himself because he fears that Sly would perish before they could pinpoint him; despite that, however, he takes some time now and then to visit Pearl at the Diner, who he had developed feelings for.
On one notable visit, on a light misty evening, Terry came by the diner as he usually does to see Pearl turning the door sign to 'Sorry, we are closed' before exiting. She then said in surprise "Oh, hey there cutie-pie. You're a bit late, aren't ya?" Terry shrugged with a sigh and replied "Yeah… I wound up helping Interpol with incapacitating a few escapee prisoners from Muggshot's Breakout. Not that I mind, but it wasn't easy since I was chasing them on foot on the rooftops while they fled in a stolen van."
Pearl pursed her lips, before she asked "How'd you caught up to them?" Terry replied, with a hint of amusement in his voice "Well, there was a stretch of road with spots of wet concrete, when they unawarely drove into about a 200 metre long of wet concrete that was just drying up. They tried to floor the accelerator, open the front and back doors and even tried to smash open the windshield, though they were pretty much busted at that point." Pearl giggled with her left paws on her mouth with a faint blush, before she took in a deep breath.
As she was about to ask Terry a question, Terry added "They wound up being caught via helicopter, though the Merc Squad had to cut through the roof with a spot welder in order to even get the escapees. I don't even want to tell you how embarrassing it is for the escapees to be airlifted back into jail, though I was laughing hard on the rooftop anyway." Pearl had then giggled with an amused grin on her face, with her left paw on her cheek, before she glanced backwards to think of something.
With a deep blush, she asked Terry "Hey Terry… Do you… I mean… Do you want to spend the night… With me?" Terry looked at Pearl with a look of astonishment and a blush, surprised that she would ask him to stay at her place. Although he took residency at the Cooper hideout, he supposed that they won't mind if he slept at Pearl's for the evening; with a conclusive thought, he nodded at Pearl with a gentle smile. Pearl then held Terry's hand in a firm, yet gentle hold, before walking him to her apartment complex.
During the walk over, Pearl asked Terry "So… Had you helped out your friends with anything else over the last 2 weeks?" Terry replied, his breath emitting a little transparent mist "Well, last week, I helped Murray with getting some groceries at the supermarket; 2 days later, I helped Bentley with gathering materials to make another Time Warp due to what me, Sly and Slytunkhamen had been through. Other than that, just some chores for them like cleaning and cooking and such." Pearl rested her head on Terry's shoulder and looked up at him dreamily, since she has developed an interest in him the first time she saw him enter her diner. After about 3 minutes of walking, Pearl pointed out to a 6 storey building to their left and led him inside to the reception desk.
When they entered the building, they were immediately met with a welcoming warm temperature from the building's automated A/C, before Pearl went to a mailbox with the number '603' on it. As she got out her key ring in her purse, Terry had got a message in his Binocu-Com; he checked it to see it was a message from Bentley, asking where he is at the moment. He then messaged back, saying in a barely audible voice "I'm spending the night with Pearl, the opossum waitress at the diner who took a fancy with me. Sorry I didn't message you sooner, but her request kinda took me off guard."
When he sent the message to Bentley, Terry looked at Pearl and saw her mouth trembling when she saw a certain mail among her bills. He looked concerned about her, when a message notification came from his Binocu-Com; he then looked to see Bentley asking for a photo, unsure on what waitress he's talking about. Terry made a sigh with a reluctant expression, before he looked up at Pearl and said "Hey Pearl? Is it alright if you pose for a photo? Bentley just needed a reminder on what you look like, since I'm staying at your place for the night without asking him." Pearl gave it a thought, before she nodded and looked at Terry with a sweet smile while adjusting her purse, before he took a snap with the Binocu-Com's camera. He then made a thumbs up gesture at Pearl, which she hid her face because she was blushing so much, before sending the snapshot to Bentley.
After a few moments, Terry got a message from Bentley, telling him that it's fine to spend the night with his girlfriend and he'll notify him for any progress for locating Sly. Terry blushed deeply at that message, before he glanced at Pearl, who's looking back at him with a flustered look; he then smiled at her, before putting away his Binocu-Com and followed her up the stairs to the 6th floor. They then reached the hallway on the 6th floor and went for a few paces before Pearl turned left to a door with the number '603' on it; she then unlocked it with her apartment key and held Terry's right paw with a sly smile, before pulling him in with a childish giggle and closing the door.
After being pulled in, Terry looked around and saw, compared to the Cooper Hideout, Pearl's Apartment is much cleaner and organised: The wallpaper was a bright eggshell white with mahogany trims, the carpet was a light tan with a stain here and there, though not as much as the hideout, the living area has brown leather seats and a couch, with a pure black entertainment unit with a large black wall-mounted flatscreen above it and an oak coffee table with various lifestyle magazines piled in the centre.
Guessing she might as well give Terry the 'grand tour', Pearl led Terry to the kitchen area: The floor and wall tiling were both white ceramic, the counters where white with black topped trims, the refrigerator was a pure white with an lavender-scented air freshener perched on top, the stove/oven hybrid is touch activated, the silver stainless-steel dishwasher on the right of the stove/oven had a slot to insert cleansing pods for heavily dirty dishes and utensils and the cupboards were the same as the counters.
Pearl then told Terry "Alright darling, I'm going to make some dinner for us both, so please wash your paws in the bathroom sink before you have your meal." Terry puts his paws in his pockets, before replying in a gentle grin "Anything for you, m'lady." Pearl smiled with her eyes closed, before she glanced backwards with a pink blush and went to the pantry as Terry decided to look around the rest of Pearl's Apartment. His first logical stop was the bathroom, since he needs to wash his hands in case the meal that Pearl got planned involved their fingers instead of the cutlery.
When he opened a door with a fresh draft coming out the crack underneath, he saw that it was indeed the bathroom: The tiling were the same as the kitchen's, the sink was pure white with a silver stainless steel spigot and two knobs resembling the hot and cold water, respectively. The shower had a smooth, stainless steel frame with a sturdy glass frame, a stainless steel shower head, stainless steel knobs like the sink and a detachable shelf with bottles of shampoo, conditioner and body soap on it. The toilet was pure white, with a roll of toilet paper sitting between the corner and the back of the toilet and a small air freshener wall-mounted above.
Terry then used the soap dispenser on the sink and rubbed the runny soapy liquid on his paws, before running the sink with tepid water and washed both of his paws, before turning off the sink and turned to the left to dry his paws with the hand towel. He then left the bathroom and went into an adjacent room to see it was the bedroom: The wallpaper was a standard brown with white trims, the carpet flooring is a steel grey, the bed is a queen sized with a forest-green duvet, the pillows were leaf-green with a small teddy bear in between them. The bedside drawers and cupboard was a dark oak, with small lamps on either drawer and an electronic alarm clock on the right bedside drawer.
Pleased that Pearl has made a good living for herself, Terry closed the bedroom door and went back to the kitchen, realising that, due to the ingredients that Pearl got out, she was making Chicken Curry with White Rice for dinner. Pearl saw Terry coming back into view and said "I hope if you don't mind Chicken Curry, darling… I've been meaning to make this for a bit, but I kinda got stuck on graveyard shifts lately."
Terry licked his lower lip and replied "Honestly, I have such a fondness for Chicken Curry… I mean, when I was little, I had my first serving in a Chinese restaurant and I loved the stuff ever since." Pearl grinned happily with a deep blush, pleased that her lover is happy to have Chicken Curry, before Terry asked her "You want me to help you? I helped my mom with cooking before…" Pearl is surprised that Terry wanted to help with the cooking, before she accepted the offer.
During the preparation of dinner, Terry felt Pearl's tail brush along his body smoothly, making him blush in flattery; as they began to steam the White Rice, Terry returned the affectionate favour by brushing his tail along Pearl's body, making her blush in flattery too. Pearl then glanced at Terry in a sweet look, which Terry glanced back at her with a kind-hearted expression; seeing that they have time to kill, Pearl slowly moved her left paw onto Terry's right paw as the latter did the same thing inversely.
When their fingers made contact, they slowly grabbed their paws gently before Pearl said "Darling…" Terry then made a small, gentle smile and replied "Honey…" Pearl glanced downwards for a moment, before she and Terry turned their heads and nuzzled their noses affectionately, closing their eyes and grinning broadly as Pearl giggled softly. They then opened their eyes a little, then they wrapped their arms around each other: Pearl wrapped her arms around Terry's neck as the latter wrapped his around Pearl's waist.
Feeling that somehow this was meant to be, they slowly inched their head closed, with their lips pursed, before making a soft peck. The sudden contact felt like a spark between them had spontaneously flared up wildly, because Pearl had placed her right paw on Terry's cheek as the latter rubbed the former's back in gentle circular strokes. Although they wanted to be romantic all night, they reluctantly broke off their tender moment but they looked at each other with soft, gentle smiles before setting up the bowls and cutlery.
A few minutes later, Terry and Pearl were sitting at the couch with their meals, with the former smelling the succulent smell of curry mixed with the steamed rice, much to his deep delight. Pearl then grabbed the TV remote and tuned in to the News Channel, where a report just came in of the escapees that Terry mentioned earlier; Pearl then snickered at the footage of the escapees being airlifted out of the stuck van from the roof as Terry shook his head with an amused grin.
As they both consumed their meals, Terry noticed that Pearl has a spot of curry on her right cheek; he then grabbed her attention and tapped his right cheek and pointed at her, before Pearl tapped her right cheek and felt something, before realising she has a bit of curry on her cheek. Pearl then glanced at Terry with a deep blush, before she gestured him to come closer to her; knowing what she wanted him to do, he sidled closer to Pearl and kissed her cheek while dabbing the spot of curry away with his tongue.
Pearl giggled rather childishly from Terry's affection, before he suddenly stopped and pulled his head back with a glum look, which Pearl looked at him in concern. She then asked "Is there something wrong, darling?" Terry looked at Pearl and slowly nodded in confirmation, before the latter patted her lap; Terry, knowing that Pearl wanted to have a consoling talk with him, lied on the couch and rested his head on Pearl's lap.
Pearl brushed her left paw on Terry's head in a concerning look and asked him softly "Can you tell me what's the matter, sweetie?" Terry gently purred from the stroking he's taking, before replying "Well… I just have this bad feeling ever since my cousin was sucked into a Time Rift in Ancient Egypt. I kept on thinking that he will perish before me and the gang would locate where and when he is."
Pearl felt sympathetic for Terry, before brushing her right paw on Terry's left cheek and pecked him on the forehead. Terry looked at Pearl with a gentle smile, before the latter spoke up optimistically "As long as you don't give up, I'm sure you will succeed in retrieving Sly back to the present." Terry felt emotionally better from Pearl's reassurance as the latter continued stroking his head gently with a warm smile.
Their tender moment was interrupted when Terry's Binocu-Com rang an incoming call; since Terry was a little subdued at the moment, Pearl answered it for him since Terry taught her how to use it earlier in the fortnight. Carmelita's voice then said "Terry, thank heavens you answered! There's recently an important development as to where Sly had gone; I need you at the Interpol HQ right now!" Pearl then answered, albeit a little startled "Uh… Won't be a moment, Miss. I'll just put you on to Terry now."
She then gave the earpiece to Terry, who puts it in his right ear and said "Yo… What's up?" Carmelita inquired confusedly "Terry, who was that girl that answered your Binocu-Com?" Terry replied passively "You know that opossum girl that was present when Muggshot attacked Dimitri's nightclub? Yeah, she's recently my girlfriend… Sorry for not informing you, though." There was a few moments pause, before Carmelita noted "Okay then… I need you at the precinct right now; there's been a sudden development that cloud lead to where Sly is now." That news had such an effect that Terry suddenly sat up on the couch with a surprised look. He then said in a blank tone "I'm on my way now."
He then ended the call and stood up suddenly, before he paused for a moment and turned to Pearl, who looked rather sad that Terry had to go. Feeling sorry for leaving Pearl so suddenly, Terry held her right paw and said with a consoling look "I'm seriously sorry that I have to go, but I swear that I will come back. This is just important to me, but I will keep you posted when I get back." Pearl looked at Terry forlornly, before she made a small smile and shared a soft peck with Terry before the latter went to the apartment door.
As he opened it, he stood still for a few moments, before asking Pearl "Sweetie? How would you feel if your lover's cousin is part of a largely renown clan of thieves going far back as the Stone Age?" Pearl then replied, with a sly smile and her arms crossed "Honestly, with that much reputation and a serious amount of thieves through the ages, I'd be honoured to meet him." Terry smiled, enlightened that his girlfriend had no dislike for the Cooper Gang, before leaving her apartment to Interpol HQ.