Innocence Stolen

1.3

"Hey, it's Theodore, I need help with my mother. Could you come by for a couple of hours?" the man said, speaking into his centuries-old phone. It was six am in the morning and the first thing he did was call her. He wanted to start his day off on the right note, listening to her sweet melodic voice before she went about his schedule and routines.

"Hi, I can come around three pm, does that work for you?" her sweet voice answered from the telephone. He could tell from her constant yawning that she had just woken up. He imagined that she was waking up right to him. Her hair was a wild mess, her eyes half-lidded, and their bodies tangled after a night of passion. He quickly shook the last bit out of his mind.

"That works, thank you. I will see you then," he told her, his voice sounding more rough than he would've liked.  He collapsed back on his bed. He felt like a young schoolboy after talking to his crush. He wanted to be alone with her, and just her.

Theodore crawled out of his warm bed and went through his routines. He dressed in his beige shorts and pants, woke his mother, and then made his plain steel-cut oatmeal with an apple on the side. He served her bowl on the cherrywood table.

"Mother, Priya will be coming around three pm to help you," Theodore told her while eating his oatmeal.

"That's wonderful, I do need some young liveliness in this dull home." She said back. In all her years, she would've never imagined a young woman in his home, regardless of her relationship with her son. No one has stepped foot in this house besides the maintenance man from a few years ago.

Theodore smiled back. His mother's happiness was severely contagious and he had a gut feeling was going to be a good day.

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Priya was woken up by a phone call from Theodore. She had to get ready for school anyway, so it was a good alarm.

She wanted to look cute in front of Theodore and his mother to make the right impression. At least to fulfil her job and make a shit ton of money, she needed to look hot. She scoured through her closet and picked out a tight floral top that showed a modest amount of cleavage. She also opted for a skirt that stopped midthigh. She let her hair down and wore her favorite flower earrings.

She went downstairs and found her mom making breakfast. Her dad was getting in his dose of cricket. Her sister and brother were already eating their chocolate chip pancakes.

"Mom, I'm going to volunteer at the senior center today at 3." Priya lied while taking her share of pancakes. She obviously couldn't let her mom figure out that she was going to an old guy's house. I mean her intentions were harmless but her mom would object to the idea of her daughter being alone in an unfamiliar place. Typical Asian mom

"Why are you telling me now? That won't work." her mother said, raising her voice.

"Mom, I'll be back in an hour. It won't take that long, besides I'm helping old people. Volunteer hours?" Priya answered back, she already gave Theodore her word. This was her livelihood at stake.

"Fine, but if you are not home by four. I'm gonna call the police and tell them you're missing," she said.

"Thanks, I love you, Mom," Priya said, kissing her mother's cheek. Her overprotective mother rolled her eyes, if only she knew her daughter was walking right into the lion's den.

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The school was the same. Priya didn't have any friends and kept to herself. During lunch and most of her classes, she started scheming plans and different ways to make money, just in case this didn't work. While sitting in the library, she thought of different ways she could bring up the topic of money. It just felt so wrong to ask an elderly family $20 bucks per hour.

"Hey Priya, look at you!" her bully said, placing her skanky nails on her shoulder. Who knew what kind of vile shit lay under her crusty nails.

"What do you want Rebecca?" Priya said, rolling her eyes and shutting her book.

"Nothing, you look more adorable than ever today. Who you tryna impress?" her bitch-ass voice said. God, they were about to graduate high school, why was this bitch still acting like a third-grader. She didn't have the patience to deal with this.

"Thank you, I'm tryna impress your STD-filled 2-inch dick boyfriend," she said, mockingly. Priya picked up her things from the table and walked away. Rebecca and her spineless friends stared in shock as she said that. Priya never stood up to her. They would do their thing and leave. But, Priya grew some balls. Rebecca wasn't going to let this slide, she would get her revenge and put her back in place.

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Ms Ferguson opened the door to find a young and pretty girl standing at the door.

"Hi, I'm Priya."

"Hello, darling. Come inside, I just made a fresh batch of chocolate chip cookies." the mother said, walking into the kitchen. Priya took in her surroundings, it was a very old-fashioned house. Portraits of vases and fruit bowls littered every room. The furniture was all brown and they didn't even have a TV. That's when a scent of something warm and sweet filled the atmosphere.

She looked at the cookies that lay on the cookie rack.

"Those look delicious," she said. "May I take one?" Priya asked, eyeing the chocolatey goodness.

"Go ahead dear," she said. "I also made some tea," she said, grabbing the kettle.

For the next thirty minutes, Theodore's mother and Priya chatted about life and Jane Austen while waiting for Theodore to come home. In reality, Theodore was there the whole time. The old man watched from a hidden spot to learn more about Priya's innocent nature. She was kind and gentle to his mother. A lot of the young kids from this generation disrespected elderly people, however, she was respectful and showed some manners. She was perfect, inside and out.

Theodore came out of his hiding spot and approached his mother.

"Oh honey, when'd you get back? We were talking about you." she laughed. Priya giggled along with her.

"I just came back. Hello Priya." Theodore said, offering his hand.

"I'm going to take a nap. You two have fun," she said, going upstairs into her room, leaving the two people alone.

"Your mother seems very active for her old age," Priya said while sipping on her tea.

"Yes, she likes to overwork her delicate body," Theodore murmured, staring at her, not caring if she felt uncomfortable.  Priya noticed how he stared at her, it was a different kind of gaze. One that she had never seen before in her entire life. His pupils darkened and he focused on her lips.

She decided to ask the question.

"Would twenty dollars per hour work?"

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1231 WORDS! ISTG this book is going to be the death of me. But anyways how did you like the book so far? You can probably tell this is my first time writing a dark romance, so feedback is much needed!

Do we like Theodore so far or is he giving us vibes? I'm trying to make him plain as hell and borderline creepy, so lemme know what you think so far. As for Priya, Idek what her character is. I want her to be strong, confident and shit, so...

I was going to make this a sugar daddy book, but it felt awkward. Like Priya going up to Theodore, who she barely knows, and then asks him can you be my sugar daddy? Too weird. So, I'm taking it in a different direction.

Anyways, thanks for reading this chapter, see y'all in the next one.