White Criminal

1. Alyssa Marie

I tapped my fingers onto my steering wheel as I waited for the green light. The pulse of the music made the car feel less lonely. As the light indicated, I turned the corner and held the wheel tightly with two hands. My heels pressed hard on the pedals as a red light headed for me. I smacked my lips and ran a hand through my hair. The wind blew the trees lightly, giving the city a tropical look. As I drove down the lake close to Brooklyn's house, I let myself enjoy it. The water was as calm as I was which made me feel safe. The light blue sky reflected on the shimmering tears. It was a beautiful sight which I enjoyed every time I went to her house. Although the ride to her house was only ten minutes, it seemed like less because my mind loved the lake. Everything felt right especially with my sunglasses and the music decorating the environment.

Slowly, I approached a beige house. I parked in front of it, knowing I had made it to Brooklyn's house. I sighed and rested on my seat before I stepped out. I was considering to call her but I knew, if she was not ready, she won't pick up. Instead, I rung her doorbell and I took a step back. My foot tapped the ground impatiently while I curled my hair with a finger. After a couple seconds, I decided to ring the doorbell again. This time Brooklyn opened the door. She was wearing a black laced dress with a pair of rose pink heels. On the other hand, I decided to wear a burgundy casual dress which had a thin black belt that wrapped around the waist and some black heels. I pressed my lips as flattened my dress out.

Brooklyn invited me in and offered me a drink which I gladly took. My throat felt parched and the water that travelled down my throat felt fresh. I cleared my throat and waited for Brooklyn, who went upstairs for her phone. I could imagine her texting in the middle of a conversation and pretending to care about my day. She is a work addict and she takes her job too seriously. I've told her so many times but every time, it stays the same. I guess it can be a good thing sometimes. If I didn't have her, I would most likely not be where I am today.

"Where are we going?"she asked as she came down. I shrugged and stood up to put the glass without any water in the sink. "Oh, so you aren't going to tell me?"

"You'll know when we get there, Brooklyn,"I said and walked into the living room. Her house was amazingly clean and I had no idea where she had the time to do chores. I barely even have time which means some of my things are disorganized.

"All evidence points to a restaurant,"she said and walked out of the door. I followed behind her and closed the door tightly, making sure the lock is on.

"How are you so sure?"I ask and get in my car. She closes the door and puts on the seat belt before she answers.

"It's around dinner time, you are wearing a dress, and you must be hungry as I saw the way you drank the water,"she informed without looking at me. I shrug, knowing that's enough for me to be convinced. "So, are we?"

"Are we, what?"I ask, playing games with her. She looks at me for the first time since we got in the car.

"Are we going to a restaurant?" I laugh and put on music. I turn on the volume at a small rate. Although Brooklyn was not a huge fan of music before I met her, her passion of music has increase. She was nodding her head, along with me, to the beat of the song. "I heard that the investigation that we recently resolved was going be on trial soon. Do you think we might need to declare our findings?" She was loud enough to be heard but with the possession of the music, I wasn't able to understand.

"Is this about work?"I asked, keeping my eyes on the grey road. Cars past me and I pressed the acceleration pedal. She nodded and explained to me what she had said earlier.

"Can we not talk about work?"I suggested, knowing that my head was going to start bursting in pain. Brooklyn shrugged and looked away. Her arms were crossed like a little kid's when they are mad.

After a couple of minutes with only music to comfort the silence, I was parking near a restaurant. Brooklyn smiled when she realized she was right. I opened the door and got out. By the time I went to check up at Brooklyn, she was already at the front door. I shook my head and put the lock to my car. I ran a hand through the smoothness of it and then made my way to the entrance. When I opened the door, I noticed many familiar features. The white walls surrounding the perimeter of the inside. There was a chandelier hanging in the middle of the room. All of the tables, whether they were small or large, were decorated with the same white clothes and simple red rose in the middle. The floor was made out of marble which made every step audible. The host is wearing a nice long sleeve shirt with a vest and dress pants. His shoes were black and fancy. He greeted us.

"Hello,"I said and smiled at him.

"Do you have a reservation?"he asked. I nodded.

"Under the name of Alyssa Gomez,"I said and he nodded. He walked us to our table and offered us something to drink. Brooklyn ordered water and so did I. We got our menus and I started to look over at it. Brooklyn quickly knew what she wanted. Her menu fell flat on the table. I decided on the spaghetti. Brooklyn called the waiter and ordered. She ordered pasta Alfredo with chicken.

"What are you looking at?"I asked Brooklyn as she smacked lips. Her phone was in her hand. I took a drink out of my glass of water.

"Nothing,"she said and looked up. She forced a smile. As our meals arrived, we talked. We ate in silence, knowing that we had nothing else to discuss. She was unable to speak about work which meant that we had to talk about our personal lives.

"So how's your boyfriend? Should we go on a double date again?"

"We broke up last week,"she said without emotion. Looking up, she gives a weak smile. Surprised, I stuffed my mouth with spaghetti.

"What are you talking about? Why?" I asked.

"I had too much work and so did he which meant that we didn't have time for each other,"she explained.

"But you love him, right?" She was unable to answer because her phone rang. She smacked her lips and answered.

"Smith." She paused. Listened. Nodded. "We'll be right there."