His Conundrums

Chapter 8

A Thief Under Cover

"Sirius..." He heard a woman calling his name. It was weak and fragile, yet it's sweet. He knew who owns this voice.

"Mom," he replied.

"Sirius..." He saw his mom on her white nightdress looking for him.

"Mom..." He tried to call her, but even if he shouted out loud, it'd come out soft and weak. Her mother was in front of him but too far to hear his voice.

"Sirius" This time, her voice seemed calm and clear. He was about to call her 'mom' again when someone bumped into him from behind. He saw a boy running towards her. A boy with black sleek hair, fair skin wearing his favorite blue shirt his mother gave him. It was him, the young Sirius.

He felt a hot liquid escaped his eyes. He woke up from his dream. He smiled weakly. It was the first time he had a dream, not a nightmare. He looked at the family picture he had on his bedside table, trying to remember everything about them... but he failed. Only the fragments he had when he woke up from the hospital that time remains, a little memory of his life before and the tragedy that night. He gently touched the face of his parents in the picture. The smile of his mother put his heart at ease. He didn't notice, but his tears are falling. He crumpled on his feet, alone in that room, crying in silence.

-0-0-0-

Joe roamed around the mall, trying to look for a perfect gift wrap and a perfect wallet to lift, to pay what he'll buy with a little extra tip. He stopped when he saw a guy who looked familiar to him, wearing black thick glasses, walking like he was about to stumble on his feet, and who looked like someone well-paid behind that loser-like appearance. He saw him holding a pail of wallpaper glue. It looked like he was on his way to the section where wallpapers are located, and it was right behind Joe. He saw a group of brooms in a big pail on display. One wrong move and those brooms will find themselves scattered on the floor. He calculated the time and distance of when should he start walking so they'll meet right exactly to where those brooms are, and it will be in 10 seconds.

"10...9...8," he counted. Making his smile went wider as it went closer to 1.

"...2...1" He started walking while playing around with the gift wrap on his hands. As soon as they met, his left hand bumped one of the brooms make it fall and scatter on the floor. He moved his shoulder along with his hips when he turned around. He faced the brooms that made him accidentally hit the guy. He saw the guy on the floor while hugging the pail of glue.  Joe's hands were swift, like how he helped the guy to stand.

"I'm so sorry," he apologized for both of his reasons.

"No, it's okay," the guy replied.

"Wait... I think I saw you before," he said, trying to remember every person he had stolen.

"Have we?" said the guy who tried to recognize his face.

"Oh! You were the one who was about to stumble on his feet into Mrs. Porter's crime scene. I asked you before you went in." Joe felt relieved. He's not one of his past victims, but now he is.

"Oh! Really? Haha." He laughed bitterly, knowing he had given time to sit around the corner and do nothing.

"Nice to meet you, I'm Joe--remifasolatido" He forgot that he was on his job and not to use his name.

"Ahaha! Jeremy for short?" he asked Joe, and he nodded. Luckily, he's not just clumsy but also a little bit deaf.

"I'm George," he introduced himself.

"Nice to meet you, George. I have to go. I need to wrap my grandpa's gift," he said.

"Okay, nice to meet you, too," George said and started walking to his wallpapers.

He finally ended up buying a gift wrap and a bunch of canned and frozen food, good for a week's supply. He saw that guy, George, who's being embarrassed in public looking for his wallet. He felt a little bit of sympathy before he decided to help him.

"How much?" He asked the cashier to their surprise.

"One thousand six hundred seventy-eight pesos and ninety-five cents, sir," she said.

He took his wallet with George's money in it and took out a two thousand peso bill. The cashier gave him his change and left George out of words.

"Wait!” George called him, but he was too quick to blend with a lot of people, and George lost him.

Joe was eating at a snack house beside the mall when he saw George running outside the parking lot. He saw him carrying the pail of glue and a roll of wallpaper, and he bought. He laughed inside.

"He was such a clueless man. Is he really a detective?" He mumbled while sipping his cola.