The Crack
"Look at this newsletter, how this neighborhood has gone to all hell. Just the other day I was driving home from work and there was this group of boys loitering in some lawn drinking, laughing, making one hell of a noise, and throwing beer cans at cars that passed."
"What did you do?"
"I called the cops and turned their sorry butts in."
"You called the cops?"
"Damn right I did. They were throwing bottles all of the place. This was not the kind of neighborhood I wanted to live in and damned if I'm going to let my kids live in it with all those stray dogs running all over the place chasing little kids just like that one mean-looking one was doing last week. And the cops here! I called them in and the woman just laughed and said she knew the dogs. And they haven't been killed yet? I tell you, Mary Ann, something is wrong with this neighborhood."
"Yeah. Kids in our neighborhood wasting beer by throwing it at people? There has got to be something wrong," Katherine said, wandering in the room to pick up some of her art supplies that she had left in the room.
'Brilliant,' thought Caitlin who had been sitting in a chair listening to her father and mother's discourse.
"I don't need any of your smart mouth, Katherine. It's smart ass kids like you who talk back to their parents that are throwing this neighborhood down the toilet."
'Don't say anything, stupid.'
"Oh, come on, Dad. You know that this neighborhood has some really bad kids in it. Cait and I have been trying to tell you that for years and you finally realize that just because there are a few petty thefts?"
"And you just think that you're better than everyone else, don't you, Katherine? Always pretending to be better than everyone and turning up your nose at everyone around you. Then you get some freaky friends and no one is better than them even though they do God knows what."
"Uh. I'm not going to talk to you about this. I just came in to get my tablet." Katherine rolled her eyes and walked out of the room.
"Don't you roll your eyes at me, Katherine," stormed her father, walking out after her, yelling stuff about her weird artwork and supposed stuck-upness. Their mother ran after them yelling, "Dan! You leave Katherine alone and stop screaming at her!"
Closing her book, Oliver Twist, Caitlin sighed and looked up to the ceiling which happened to have several large holes in it from a previous owner. 'And why was I cursed with this incompetent family, why? Does no one know what to say or not to say when around certain people?' "Sigh," said she. "And what does she mean 'petty thefts?' Not EVERYONE can steal a baby grand piano and find somewhere to stash it; sometimes you've got very little space to work with."
The phone rang. Caitlin looked at it contemptuously and watched it ring a few times, waiting for someone to pick it up. When no one did and she could still hear the screaming in the back of the house, she picked it up. "Hello?"
"Is Kat there?"
"Who's this?"
"Robin. Is she there?"
"She's being screamed at. Can she call you back later?"
"Will she be able to use the phone?"
"Of course. She is the only one who does."
"Okay. Then tell her to call me back, okay?"
"Yeah, got it. Bye." And Cait hung up. She stared at the phone, picked it up, and dialed a number.
"Hello?"
"Hi, this is Cait. Is Beccah there?"
"No, she's out with Shawn. They went to go see Matrix: Revolutions about an hour ago."
"Oh. Did they call me or leave a message?"
"No, I don't think so. Do you want me to ask them to call you when they get home?"
"No, thank you. I'll probably be gone by the time they get back. But thank you. Good bye."
"Good bye, Caitlin."
Cait hung up the phone, looked at it, then picked the whole thing up and prepared to throw it before thinking better of it. She looked at the antiquated-looking wooden clock above the entertainment set and saw that it read a little after three. Sighing, she stood up, crossed the room, took out the key, and started winding the clock. Finished, she went into the kitchen, found the time, and went back into the front room to set the clock to eight thirty-six. "Damnit," she mumbled, looking out of the window into the darkness. "It's not nearly late enough to go out without being noticed. Sigh. I'll have to lie." Going out the door, she rang the doorbell, made an exclamation of "Oh, Jennah! Sorry, I'm not ready yet. Let me get my bag and I'll be there in a second." She slammed the door, ran to her room, rummaged in the confines of her closet, pulled out a black bag and called to her still yelling parents, "Jennah is here to pick me up for the movie! I'll be home by eleven to twelve! Bye!" and ran out the door.
Jogging about halfway down her block, Caitlin finally slowed down to a walk and sat down in the middle of the sidewalk by cover of some overgrown tree branches. Out of her bag came several small glow-sticks which were broken and then placed in her mouth. Several torn black strips were taken out and wrapped about her shoe soles and ankles over the torn edges of her pants. Likewise, she pulled out a pair of long gloves and pulled them on, yanking her short hair into a sloppy ponytail and pulling out a do-rag that covered her head. A hat concealed the rest of her hair and she took out a lint-roller, pulling all manner of stray hairs off her shirt and clothing. Slinging the thin bag over her shoulder and thus attired, she set off down the block, cutting across the street and disappearing around a corner.
A little less than two hours later she cut across the lawn to her house, smiling and feeling much better, and turned the knob to her house, finding it locked. Some of her happiness dampened as she pounded on the door, having not taken her key with her, the central irony of the matter not lost to her. Her father answered the door, a pissed look on his face, she having woken him up, and demanded to know where the hell she had been.
"I was out seeing Matrix: Revolutions with Jennah, Dad, just like I told Mom I was going to do and mentioned before I left. I'm sorry that I woke you up but I forgot my key."
"Get in here. If it's not your sister, it's you. And here I was telling the guys at work how proud I was of you, how responsible you were. Now get to bed."
Cait obeyed. Walking in her door, her mother called out, "What is your father yelling at you about now?"
"I just woke him up. Ya know, if you knew that I wasn't home yet, why didn't you just stay in the front room and wait for me?"
"Sorry, Cait. I didn't realize that you were gone."
"Oh, thanks, glad to know that I'm just so important to this family." Caitlin stomped into her room, verged on slamming her door, and thought better of it, closing it quietly, and went to bed.
End heist
Notes: Hello! And so I make my ground-breaking return to the writing scene with a new story about, what else? Thievery! Of course, this was a pretty mild chapter, now wasn't it? I wanted to do something pretty mundane to start it all off. Then some characterization, maybe plot will show up (who knows?), maybe a little funny (not right now though), and MAYBE we'll finally see some action. I need commentary on the general feel of this and the family. I know it's not BAM! action-packed, but that's not what I was going for (obviously). Anyways, I love you all! -- Keebs \^-^/
"Look at this newsletter, how this neighborhood has gone to all hell. Just the other day I was driving home from work and there was this group of boys loitering in some lawn drinking, laughing, making one hell of a noise, and throwing beer cans at cars that passed."
"What did you do?"
"I called the cops and turned their sorry butts in."
"You called the cops?"
"Damn right I did. They were throwing bottles all of the place. This was not the kind of neighborhood I wanted to live in and damned if I'm going to let my kids live in it with all those stray dogs running all over the place chasing little kids just like that one mean-looking one was doing last week. And the cops here! I called them in and the woman just laughed and said she knew the dogs. And they haven't been killed yet? I tell you, Mary Ann, something is wrong with this neighborhood."
"Yeah. Kids in our neighborhood wasting beer by throwing it at people? There has got to be something wrong," Katherine said, wandering in the room to pick up some of her art supplies that she had left in the room.
'Brilliant,' thought Caitlin who had been sitting in a chair listening to her father and mother's discourse.
"I don't need any of your smart mouth, Katherine. It's smart ass kids like you who talk back to their parents that are throwing this neighborhood down the toilet."
'Don't say anything, stupid.'
"Oh, come on, Dad. You know that this neighborhood has some really bad kids in it. Cait and I have been trying to tell you that for years and you finally realize that just because there are a few petty thefts?"
"And you just think that you're better than everyone else, don't you, Katherine? Always pretending to be better than everyone and turning up your nose at everyone around you. Then you get some freaky friends and no one is better than them even though they do God knows what."
"Uh. I'm not going to talk to you about this. I just came in to get my tablet." Katherine rolled her eyes and walked out of the room.
"Don't you roll your eyes at me, Katherine," stormed her father, walking out after her, yelling stuff about her weird artwork and supposed stuck-upness. Their mother ran after them yelling, "Dan! You leave Katherine alone and stop screaming at her!"
Closing her book, Oliver Twist, Caitlin sighed and looked up to the ceiling which happened to have several large holes in it from a previous owner. 'And why was I cursed with this incompetent family, why? Does no one know what to say or not to say when around certain people?' "Sigh," said she. "And what does she mean 'petty thefts?' Not EVERYONE can steal a baby grand piano and find somewhere to stash it; sometimes you've got very little space to work with."
The phone rang. Caitlin looked at it contemptuously and watched it ring a few times, waiting for someone to pick it up. When no one did and she could still hear the screaming in the back of the house, she picked it up. "Hello?"
"Is Kat there?"
"Who's this?"
"Robin. Is she there?"
"She's being screamed at. Can she call you back later?"
"Will she be able to use the phone?"
"Of course. She is the only one who does."
"Okay. Then tell her to call me back, okay?"
"Yeah, got it. Bye." And Cait hung up. She stared at the phone, picked it up, and dialed a number.
"Hello?"
"Hi, this is Cait. Is Beccah there?"
"No, she's out with Shawn. They went to go see Matrix: Revolutions about an hour ago."
"Oh. Did they call me or leave a message?"
"No, I don't think so. Do you want me to ask them to call you when they get home?"
"No, thank you. I'll probably be gone by the time they get back. But thank you. Good bye."
"Good bye, Caitlin."
Cait hung up the phone, looked at it, then picked the whole thing up and prepared to throw it before thinking better of it. She looked at the antiquated-looking wooden clock above the entertainment set and saw that it read a little after three. Sighing, she stood up, crossed the room, took out the key, and started winding the clock. Finished, she went into the kitchen, found the time, and went back into the front room to set the clock to eight thirty-six. "Damnit," she mumbled, looking out of the window into the darkness. "It's not nearly late enough to go out without being noticed. Sigh. I'll have to lie." Going out the door, she rang the doorbell, made an exclamation of "Oh, Jennah! Sorry, I'm not ready yet. Let me get my bag and I'll be there in a second." She slammed the door, ran to her room, rummaged in the confines of her closet, pulled out a black bag and called to her still yelling parents, "Jennah is here to pick me up for the movie! I'll be home by eleven to twelve! Bye!" and ran out the door.
Jogging about halfway down her block, Caitlin finally slowed down to a walk and sat down in the middle of the sidewalk by cover of some overgrown tree branches. Out of her bag came several small glow-sticks which were broken and then placed in her mouth. Several torn black strips were taken out and wrapped about her shoe soles and ankles over the torn edges of her pants. Likewise, she pulled out a pair of long gloves and pulled them on, yanking her short hair into a sloppy ponytail and pulling out a do-rag that covered her head. A hat concealed the rest of her hair and she took out a lint-roller, pulling all manner of stray hairs off her shirt and clothing. Slinging the thin bag over her shoulder and thus attired, she set off down the block, cutting across the street and disappearing around a corner.
A little less than two hours later she cut across the lawn to her house, smiling and feeling much better, and turned the knob to her house, finding it locked. Some of her happiness dampened as she pounded on the door, having not taken her key with her, the central irony of the matter not lost to her. Her father answered the door, a pissed look on his face, she having woken him up, and demanded to know where the hell she had been.
"I was out seeing Matrix: Revolutions with Jennah, Dad, just like I told Mom I was going to do and mentioned before I left. I'm sorry that I woke you up but I forgot my key."
"Get in here. If it's not your sister, it's you. And here I was telling the guys at work how proud I was of you, how responsible you were. Now get to bed."
Cait obeyed. Walking in her door, her mother called out, "What is your father yelling at you about now?"
"I just woke him up. Ya know, if you knew that I wasn't home yet, why didn't you just stay in the front room and wait for me?"
"Sorry, Cait. I didn't realize that you were gone."
"Oh, thanks, glad to know that I'm just so important to this family." Caitlin stomped into her room, verged on slamming her door, and thought better of it, closing it quietly, and went to bed.
End heist
Notes: Hello! And so I make my ground-breaking return to the writing scene with a new story about, what else? Thievery! Of course, this was a pretty mild chapter, now wasn't it? I wanted to do something pretty mundane to start it all off. Then some characterization, maybe plot will show up (who knows?), maybe a little funny (not right now though), and MAYBE we'll finally see some action. I need commentary on the general feel of this and the family. I know it's not BAM! action-packed, but that's not what I was going for (obviously). Anyways, I love you all! -- Keebs \^-^/