Nothing But Thieves (English)

1. Chapter

Smoking can be deadly. Those cigarettes will put you to the grave sooner or later. My partner's words echoed in me. How right he was. Just not in the sense he probably meant. But it's better to start at the beginning.

Actually, this Wednesday started like any other day. I came to the precinct in the morning to start my shift. There I put on my uniform, strapped on the belt with the service weapon and everything else and went on patrol with my partner Caleb. Although I hadn't finished my training for long, I had already found my favorite patrol partner in him. Caleb was in his early 50s, had already experienced a lot and was passionate about showing me how things worked in real police life. He had given me valuable tips during the few police operations we had hit so far. And when we drove to his favorite bakery around lunchtime, he usually brought me something. When Caleb Sykes showed up on my roster, I stopped bringing lunch from home. As a single person with alternating shifts, I unfortunately hadn't yet found a suitable way to permanently reconcile my shopping with my shift schedule. But what were delivery services for?

We drove through the streets of Morgantown as usual; it was a sunny day in September. I wore my aviator sunglasses and the short-sleeved version of our uniform and sat in the driver's seat. Caleb was happy to let me drive because he could then keep an eye on the area and, if necessary, better address any abnormalities. A look at the dashboard showed it was 12:15 p.m. Caleb caught my eye.

"You know where we're going next?" he asked with a sneaky grin.

I nodded with a laugh. "Marcy's Bakery. I know, it's Muffin Wednesday," I replied with a smirk. This was his favorite bakery that had different special offers every day. It was run by one of his former high school classmates. He always stayed for a quick chat and received freshly prepared sandwiches. Friendship service. However, he was also probably her best customer. He had earned his special treatment.

My partner nodded approvingly. "You're doing well, Leon. But spontaneous quiz: what about the other days?"

I thought for a moment. "Mediterranean Monday, Taco Tuesday, Turkey Thursday and Vegan Friday?"

"That's right, but you forgot Steak Saturday and Bacon Sunday," he chided in a mock serious voice. He didn't let anything come to the store.

I shrugged my shoulders in resignation. "You caught me. Then you'll probably have to find another partner who can meet your culinary demands."

He laughed. "Nobody could remember anything about them. They don't eat anything except salad and protein powder. No, I'd rather go with the rookie who appreciates a good tomato and bacon sandwich."

I briefly raised my arms as if I were surrendering. "Guilty as charged. I wouldn't have thought that a fitness room in a police headquarters would be so busy. My tip would have been the break room with a coffee machine and donut box."

My passenger sighed in pain. "If we at least had a box of donuts!" I had to laugh again. It was just pleasant with him. He had a fatherly aura, which I really enjoyed. My parents lived a few hours away from Morgantown, so I didn't see them as much.

There was no parking space directly in front of the store, so I circled the block again until I was able to park in front of the local jewelry store. There was never anything going on here at lunchtime. Everyone was either at Marcy's or had other errands to take care of. We both got out; I still grabbed my pack of cigarettes from the center console. I leaned against the driver's side door while Caleb checked his wallet. Reaching into my back pocket, I pulled out a crumpled ten-dollar bill.

"Can you please bring me a chocolate cheesecake muffin? And a small coffee? You're welcome to keep any change," I said and held out the note to him. He looked at me offended. "Leon, you are embarrassing me. Put your money in your pocket, where would we go if I didn't treat you," he said. As he made his way to the bakery, I heard half-angry mutterings and repeated "does he really want to give me money?" Looking sheepish, I continued to lean against the door and felt bad again. It always went like this. I wanted to pay for my own meal, but he wouldn't let me. Although I felt like I was taking advantage of him, he had tried to pull this tooth on me right from the start. With little success. I still felt like a scrounger. Resignedly, I fished a cigarette out of the box along with my lighter. Since I was a notorious lighter loser, I immediately put it in the box as soon as I cleared a spot for it to smoke.

Caleb turned around briefly and shouted across the street: "The cigarettes will put you six feet under!" I turned red. How embarrassing. Luckily there wasn't much going on in the street. Usually, he didn't comment on it until he came back from the bakery with the bags in his hand.

"Better say hello to Marcy from me," I called after him across the street. He waved briefly and continued towards the store. I stopped accompanying him because I felt uncomfortable standing next to their small talk. And his classmate treated me like a child. Of course I could be her son, but I still felt embarrassed when she asked again when I would find a girlfriend. Although it was meant nicely, I didn't even want to bring up this topic with my real mother, let alone with the baker I trust. Since it didn't appeal to Caleb, I figured Marcy probably didn't mind me.

I pulled my phone out of my pocket and scrolled through my Instagram account. Not much new here, the usual suggestions for meme pages. I continued smoking my cigarette. I had already started in high school; vices like that were just hard to break.

Suddenly I heard loud footsteps around me. Before I could turn that way, someone knocked my phone out of my hand, sending it crashing to the floor with a loud clatter along with my cigarette butt.