Dec keeps his head low as he walks the poorly lit streets leading to the tower block he lives at. The walk home from uni is always anxiety-filled and he has good reason to be anxious. It's not rare to hear about a mugging in his neighborhood.
It was the same with burglaries. Those were almost nightly occurrences in his tower block. So far, he's fortunate enough to not have his flat broken into. Not that there's much to steal from his place.
His flat is almost bare of any furniture. He just has a fridge to stash his leftover takeaway, a wooden deck chair and table, and a "bed." "Bed" is actually too generous. He actually has an inflatable mattress, which can't be inflated anymore since he's lost the pump that went along with it. So now, his "inflatable" mattress is just laid on the cold tile floor.
He doesn't bother with furnishing his place 'cause it would just be a waste of his salary from the local takeaway he works at after his classes. He needs the money more for his mobile bill, uni stuff, and his rent. His food is covered by the nice couple he works for; they always make sure to give him home-cooked meals and some extra food they have left from the shop. Despite this, his wages from the shop wasn't enough for him to buy furniture for his place.
Finally, he made it to the tower block -safely- and rode the elevator to his floor. He then briskly walked to his door and unlocked it. He flicked the lights on and froze on the spot.
What -or rather- who he found inside shocked him. Standing in the middle of his living room/bedroom was an equally shocked burglar. The burglar had his ski mask bunched up in his hands as he stared at Dec. "You live here, man? 'Cause I broke in here to rob yous...but, shit! You've got nowt for me to steal!"
Dec didn't reply.
"Wait here. I'll be right back," the burglar ordered as he dashed out of the flat.
Dec was still in shock by the weird encounter. He doesn't know if he should report the break in or not. The guy didn't really steal anything from him. He literally just broke in to his place. There really isn't anything for him to report.
Besides, if he does decide to report the incident anyway, would he be able to describe the guy? Dec closed his eyes and tried to recall as many details as he could about the thief. Black hair. Blue eyes. Around his age and height. Maybe an inch or two taller than him. And he had a huge forehead.
Dec contemplated on it for a few more minutes before deciding that it was useless for him to report. He'll just look like a proper fool if he reported a burglary that only involved a break-in and no actual stealing.
And besides, it's not like the guy is really gonna come back. He knows now that his place isn't worth breaking into. But to be on the safe side, Dec locks up his door and puts the chain on the door.
He then drops his backpack by his table and goes into the bathroom for a refreshing shower.
When he steps out of the bathroom, he dresses up just in pyjama bottoms goes back out to his living room/bedroom. He then sits at his deck chair to do some coursework before heading to bed.
Dec was finishing up his essay when he hears scratching on his lock. Slowly, he gets up from his chair and folds it up. With his chair as a makeshift weapon, Dec tiptoed towards his door.
He heard the lock click open and soon the door opened as far as it could with the chain still in place.
"Oi! Open up will you," a hushed whisper came through the ajar door. It was the burglar.
"N-no. Just go away or I'll call the police!" Dec threatened. He then pushed all his weight against the door and locked it again.
"Ugh, my arms are getting tired, Ant." Another voice whispered.
"Then put the TV down for a second." The burg- Ant replies gruffly to the other man.
"But it's gonna be hard to pick up from the floooooor," the other man whined. "If he doesn't want the stuff, let's just go."
"Stop yer whining, Stephen. We're giving these to him." Ant told off his companion. His tone then changed when he spoke to Dec again. "Hey mate, please just open the door. I promise, we're not gonna hurt yous or owt. That's not part of my M.O."
Dec didn't budge nor did he say anything.
Another voice - a new one- suddenly piped up. "Ant, I think we should go. He might be calling the police on us."
"He's not, David. I don't hear anything from the other side," Ant said as he pressed his ear against the door.
Dec looked through his peephole. He can only see the top of Ant's head, but he can clearly see his two companions. One of them was holding a small flat screen TV, while the other man was standing by a rectangular dining table with chair overturned on top of it.
Dec suddenly jumped backed and yelped when Ant suddenly straightened up and tried to look in the peephole.
"Look, mate. We're trying to help you. Please just open the door."
Curiosity got the best of Dec. The small man puts down the chair and cautiously opens the door.
"Finally," Stephen exhales and pushes through Dec and walks into his flat, small flat screen still in his arms.
Speechless, Dec stood aside as Ant helped David carry in the dining table and the chairs. Both men set up the table in the middle of living room, while Stephen sets the TV down on Dec's wooden table.
"Phew, the elevator ride with this table was quite the squeeze," Ant said as he plonked down on a chair. "Stephen had to ride separately from us."
"Which wasn't a bad thing," David quipped.
"Hey!" Stephen punched the taller man on the shoulder.
Dec found his voice once more and said, "What is all of this?"
"Oh, I forgot to explain," Ant chuckled. "These," Ant motioned at the stuff they just brought over, "are all yours now."
"What?"
"What's so hard to understand? We're giving you these furniture, so that your flat doesn't look so sad," David says a matter-of-factly. "Geez Ant, he is cute, but what good is that if he's a bit slow?" David adds as if Dec wasn't standing there to hear it.
Ant laughed nervously. "Sorry about my friends. They're just a bit cranky right now 'cause I forced them out of bed to help me carry this stuff here." To David and Stephen, he says through gritted teeth, "Why don't you twos head out, eh?"
The two muttered their "whatevers" to Ant and nodded goodbye to Dec as they shuffled out of the flat. The door clicked shut behind them, leaving the two short men alone.
Dec was the first one to break the silence that had fallen over them. "Look Ant, I can't accept these things-"
"Nonsense - eh, what's yer name?"
"Dec."
"Okay, Dec. These things are yours now; I'm not taking them back. Partly 'cause I don't think Stephen and David will help me carry them back to our place, but mainly 'cause I want yous to keep the stuff."
"But-"
Ant cut him off. "I don't wanna hear it," he said as he stood up from his chair. "Now, enjoy working on a proper table instead of that tiny old thing you call a table. Oh and don't think I forgot to get you a bed. That's on the way, it might take a couple of days though."
Dec had so many questions swimming in his mind. Like, where had he gotten all of this stuff in such short notice? He doesn't ask though 'cause he reckons it's best he doesn't know, just in case they were stolen. But he does ask, "Why are you helping me? Why did you give me all this stuff?"
Hand on the door knob, Ant looks at Dec with a smirk on his face. "So I can have something to rob from you later."
Dec's eyes widened in fear.
"I'm kidding...sort of," Ant chuckled. He smiled softly at Dec. "But I really am hoping to steal something from you later: your heart."
With that, Ant slipped out of his flat, leaving Dec to soak in what he just said.
Dec hates to say it, but he has to applaud Ant for being a great burglar. After just one night, he's managed to have stolen his heart.
