Only time she listens is
when the cash talks
▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃▃

"I'M CRAVING A snickers bar right now," Luke said, holding the door of the 24-hour convenient store open for Diana.

"At 2 A.M.?" Diana smiled, her eyes roaming the empty store. She looked over at the clerk, a fat man in his mid-40s who looked like he was about to fall asleep. He looked up at them with bored eyes before glancing back down at his phone.

The TV behind the clerk was on the news station, reporting the missing case of a 17 year old cheerleader. Her parents reported her room destroyed and bloodied, their daughter nowhere to be seen. Diana looked away.

"Hey, don't judge me," Luke laughed, taking her hand and dragging her deep into the snack aisle.

They stared at the snacks lined up perfectly on the shelves, the plastic wrappers glistening under the faded store lights. Smiling, Luke grabbed three snickers bars and another four Twix bars. "You're not getting anything?" he asked her.

Diana shook her head, "I didn't bring any money." The fact made her want to laugh. She had all the money in the world and yet at this very moment she couldn't even afford a small chocolate bar.

Luke simply chuckled and looked down at her with playful eyes, "You think I'm paying for all this?" He leaned in close, so only she could hear, "Steal whatever you want." His hands slid quickly into his pockets, taking the chocolate bars with them.

A twisted smile snuck onto Diana's face as she stared at him. He felt like a dream and Diana wanted to touch him, to make sure he was real. Looking into those riveting ocean eyes, Diana realized she would gladly get in all the trouble in the world with this boy.

So she reached her hand out and picked up a small Hershey's bar, holding his gaze as she slowly stuffed it in her pocket, hidden out of sight. He smiled with approval and when he winked at her, she felt her blood rush with excitement.

"I'll distract the clerk," she found herself saying bravely. Luke nodded, his eyes sparkling with trouble. They were a team, just them against the world.

Diana made her way to the slouching man, her breathing unsteady and her blood rushing. She felt her hand tremble with thrill when she stopped in front of him, greeting him with a small smile.

"Excuse me sir," she said, her voice smooth. "Do you know what time it is?"

The man looked her up and down, his eyes lingering on her chest a second too long. "2:17," he grunted, staring at her with an unreadable gaze.

"Oh," she said, her mind scouring for another topic to bring up. "You know at the snacks section over there?" she rambled, gesturing her hands wildly to keep his attention on her. "I was going to buy something, but I-I think I saw a rat. I might be wrong, but it was huge."

And as she spoke, from the corner of her eyes, she saw Luke slip quietly out of the store. She smiled and refocused her eyes on the confused clerk.

"Rats?" he repeated.

"Maybe? I don't know, I'm probably wrong," Diana began to back away towards the exit, her mind pounding with exhilaration. "Anyways, have a good night!"

"Wait," the clerk said, getting to his feet, his eyes narrowed at her.

The air froze around Diana as she held his gaze. One hand gripped the chocolate bar in her left pocket while the other gripped the knife in her right. Her mood immediately shifted as she regarded the man, lifting her chin in challenge. The man's suspicious eyes made Diana's blood boil with a familiar anger.

If you know anything about Madison Knightley whereabouts, please inform the police immediately, the television reporter said in the background.

Diana held the knife tighter, the monsters in her head screaming deadly instructions at her.

Seconds passed before the man leaned back and said, "Rats, you say? Damn it, I thought we had rid of those little shits weeks ago."

The air warmed again as Diana let out a breath and the charming smile returned to her face. She nodded good-bye to the man and headed towards the door, her hand releasing the knife.

She pushed the door open and broke into a run. Her eyes searched for and found Luke, who stood hidden behind a tree, waiting for her. She ran to him, panting as she wrapped herself in his warm embrace.

"Oh my god," she whispered as she giggled.

"Oh my god, indeed," Luke whispered back. The night sky danced to their beautiful crime and Diana felt absolutely undefeatable as she stood there with him. He smiled at her, "I snatched this up for you."

She watched as he pulled out a bracelet from his pocket, rendered speechless as he gently put it around her wrist. It was a small silver-colored bracelet, decorated by tiny plastic pearls and simple patterns. Diana looked at it in awe under the moonlight.

"Do you like it?"

Diana wanted to laugh because she realized that this small plastic bracelet that was probably worth not even $5 meant more to her than all the Tiffany diamonds that sat in her drawers.

"I do," she whispered, "I like it so much."

It was there, under the moonlight, with stolen chocolate stacked in their pockets, that Luke kissed her. It was sweet; it was beautiful; it was perfect. And Diana felt her entire body tremble when the voices in her head melted away into melodic sounds of happiness.

When he pulled back and looked at her with those ocean eyes, all Diana wanted to do was freeze time. She never wanted to leave this moment, never wanted him to take his eyes off of her.

And after he kissed her again, they ran out onto the street, hand in hand, laughter echoing into the night.