"Don, I don't like this idea at all!" Roma protested, pacing about while Don pulled on a jean jacket he'd found in the sorry excuse for a coat closest by the door leading outside. Much to his surprise, there were quite a few man's coats in the closest, which brought suspicion as to where they came from and why she kept them. At first, he guessed they might have been Ramesh's old clothes that she kept for memories sake, but he left the mystery to chance after he memorized the strong scent on them. It wasn't Ramesh's and he felt confident he'd find who it belonged to if he came across them.
"I don't have a choice and neither do you." He finally said without looking at her, straightening the sleeves with a unimpressed frown. What a ugly color it was on him.
"Besides, if you want me gone, you have to help me do this one very simple thing, then I can afford to leave on my own and get out of your beautiful hair." He ran a hand through her short hair briefly in a mocking manner before turning around to face the small mirror on the wall and fixed his collar.
Roma stomped her foot and continued pacing, wiping off her hair where he had touched it.
"But this is different, Don. If we get caught. If I get caught!"
"It's not really that different, you just do what you always do and give that tough girl look and follow my lead. They'll love it. And you won't get caught, relax." He advised as he finished priming himself. He turned after, getting one last look of his bearded and unruly appearance in the mirror and exited the flat, Roma trailing along unsurely behind him, stomping her feet slightly.
"Don." Roma said, trying to get his attention and perhaps some comfort for what they were about to embark on, but he refused to give it, staring at the closed elevator doors while waiting for it to arrive on their level instead. She growled and walked closer, slamming her forearm against the metal doors loudly, leaning into his face. He didn't jolt, scream or make some big reaction to her threats, just watched her closely with his eyes, the rest of his form unmoving.
"Listen to me. This is completely ridiculous! I'm a cop I will not be helping you to steal, kill or deal drugs just so you can earn some cash to leave. You can just go NOW and never come back! I can't do this." Roma admitted, glaring at him.
Inside, he was quite upset and offended that she was waving him off so simply, acting as if she didn't care about him or his well-being, as much as they both knew she did. He held back making comments though, finding exposure of his intentions and feelings quite premature and awkward. Plus, she had her mind made up and he refused to make himself look like a fool while trying to plead his case. That was below him and his pride.
Don smugly smiled and cocked his head to the side, pretending to be perplexed as to why she was so upset.
"And why is that?" He asked her, only making her to flair into heated anger. He rather liked seeing it, right now most of all, since she was trying to pin off guilt and blame on him, she might as well suffer under some harmless frustration with him.
"I could lose my job! That's one reason, and another is- You're Don! The man I hate and want to kill. You honestly have a lot of balls even coming back to me in the first place, I could have killed you, but I didn't, and now you want my help doing God knows what in some crime ridden part of town? NO." She fumed, yelling into his face, causing him to flinch ever so slightly, but it was more from the force of her voice against his face than the words.
Though they both effected him just the same down inside but he couldn't show it. The dam holding back his wrath was cracking but he couldn't let it break.
In order for his plans to work, he must remain as calm as possible.
"And you're Roma, a cop. I've things to lose from your company as well, but I don't hear myself screaming in the middle of a hallway while waiting for the lift. You must calm down and realize, I will be gone once I have what I need. If you had money on you, I'd use that, but you don't have any to spare so that means taking more drastic measures... As for killing me, I'm not to blame for that, You had more than one chance to end this since I stumbled to your doorstep that night. That was weeks ago and yet you almost make it sound like I was stopping you... I did nothing. I couldn't do anything... I needed your help desperately then and I still do now..." Don defended with ease, his face still unchanging, only his eyes against hers, fighting a war without words.
He was right and they both knew it, which was the part of Roma he loved. She was very smart, very logical... But she'd refuse to admit the truth if she had to for her own personal gain to oppose him. It reminded him of himself.
She searched for words to combat with his, her eyes darting back and forth between his own, unable to find a suitable reason to explain why she behaved the way she had when he was ill. A way that didn't sound insane or as affectionate as she felt. Her anger subsided into confusion and she decided it was probably best to leave the subject alone. It was too complicated and sensitive for her, addressing these things would cause more problems than it would solve. She lowered her head and moved away from the door, shaking her head, wishing suddenly she hadn't slammed the door or gotten in his face the way she had.
"I didn't want to kill you when you couldn't fight back." She said, finally, hoping that would be the end of it.
"Oh, really? Why not? It would have been much easier." He said, already knowing her answer.
"B-because. It's unfair." She looked down at the ground, hoping he'd just drop it now.
"Such valor." He mocked with a chuckle, sensing her discomfort and backed off some, knowing that speaking of it was difficult and though he was truly curious about how she felt for him, he didn't want to get himself mixed up in the middle of her emotional devastation, were it all to come pouring out.
"Why do I have to be involved in you anymore at all? Why can't you just leave and let that be the end of it for now? Why do I have to help you get money?" She asked, changing the subject.
"Because, I'm still rather weak and I have no money." He answered, giving his wounded stomach a pat.
"I thought you were going to go steal-... Whatever you do... now so you had it. Why do you need it before?" She asked, her face forming to one of disgust. She treated the concept of him "stealing" or "drug dealing" in such a immature manner, Don debated rather to be irritated or amused by it. She'd also broadcast it so generally, as if all there was to his life was just stealing, shooting and swashbuckling.
And cops thought gangsters stereotyped! The rumors cops had about gangsters and what they did was unfathomable, at least "gangsters" didn't brush every thug, drug dealer or runner into one group under the same title. It was actually rather insulting.
The elevator bell chimed and the doors slid open to reveal a empty lift, Don placed his hands in his pockets and stepped inside all proper like.
"Simple, without money I cannot rent a cab or use the bus to get where I am going, which is a dangerous part of town you don't want to be walking in alone. I'll need a mobile transportation of some kind. You have a car, so it seems only logical for you to give me a ride and provide me with some backup, seeing as I'm not all too well yet..." He explained before clicking the button and adding with another smile, "Just like the old days, know you?"
Rap music, loud enough to split the tension filled air in half, set the mood as Roma's car rolled down the trash covered, crime ruled streets of the south side. No one with respect or money lived here, or at least not honest money.
The atmosphere was thick with greed and filth, shady characters watching from every ally way below the smoggy skyscrapers, just waiting for their chance to pounce and take what they could from any unexpecting passerby. Large badly dressed gangs stood on corners, conversing about their next moves where everyone could watch to appear more intimidating to rival gangs and the residents of the area who, apparently, needed a hundred and one more reasons to be terrified out of their minds to live there.
It was a dangerous mix of thugs and murders with crime-lords who were all devious opportunists, but the one thing they all disliked more than themselves... Was newcomers.
Roma turned the music up a bit louder in her car, plastering herself nervously against the seat with both hands on the steering-wheel, rolling her window up a little farther as they paused at a stoplight next to some gangsters who were giving them a nasty look.
Don sat next to her on the passengers side with his arms nearly wrapped around his head as he tried to block out the terrible music protruding from her speakers so grotesquely.
Seeing as she nearly had holes burned into her head from his stare, Roma nodded toward one of the gangsters who just pointed at her and nudged another huge man, she panicked when they all turned and looked at her as one and looked away, not understanding what she did wrong. She glanced at Don for some support, seeing as he was probably from this area, but he appeared tangled up in being over-dramatic.
"Don, will you calm down? It's just rap music! I'm sure you've heard worse." She said, taking her the coffee she had bought from the cup-holder and sipping it, trying to act all "chill" about the gangsters now.
"What?" He asked over the music, wincing some, lifting his hands from his ears but immediately regretting it. He shook his head in disgust and placed them back where they were originally stationed.
"I said, it's NOT THAT BAD! It's just music! And good music, I love this song!" She said, smiling some at his silly reactions.
"This is NOT music!" Don yelled back, rolling his window down and sticking his head out the window partly for some air and relief, though it did little to supply him with either.
"You don't like rap music?" She asked, smiling wider.
"This isn't music! It's a bunch of unhappy men yelling profanity at women because they have no proper upbringing or other possibilities of courting a female without being utter assholes! Buying this kind of shit only encourages such disrespectful treatment!" He answered, snarling his upper lip. Roma seemed taken aback by the fact he obviously felt so strong about this and never expected him to care about something like this, but it was hysterical all the same.
He glared furiously out the window as the light changed and Roma continued driving, her laughter sounding clear over the intense rhyming and low beat as they drove.
Up til now he had directed her where to drive and he was exceedingly happy they were about to reach their destination.