Being A Professional Thief (on hold)

Chapter 5-Intruder in the Garden

            “I’m back!” Jaden said as he stepped into his house. As usual, his dad sat on the couch with a bowl of popcorn in his hands. His eyes were glued to the television as he watched an episode of Once Upon A Time. Jaden guessed that it was episode two as he just saw that episode yesterday with a bowl of popcorn twice the size of what his dad was holding right now.

             “You’re right Jaden. This show is awesome!” his father said as Jaden closed the door behind him.  The television showed Emma chopping down a huge branch of an apple tree with a chainsaw. “Yeah, you go girl!” his father cheered as ten or more bright red apples fell to the ground.

            “When’s the next episode coming?” his dad asked as Jaden went into the kitchen to grab a snack.

             “Tomorrow at 8 pm. A new episode comes out every Friday.” Jaden said as he poured a glass of milk for himself. Then, he walked towards living room and collapsed onto the couch beside his father.

             “Only an episode per week! Aw man!” It was obvious that Mr. Owens did not like to wait.

             After a few seconds of silence (besides the sounds coming from the television), Mr. Owens asked his son about his first day at school.

             “It was okay. I made two friends today.” Jaden said as he grabbed a handful of popcorn from his father’s bowl and dropped them into his mouth.

             “Good.” Mr. Owens mumbled through his mouth filled with popcorn. The mayor was very angry with Emma for chopping down a branch from her apple tree. In fact, it was quite a big branch and it was no wonder she was mad.

             “Dad, can I go with you tonight?” Jaden asked as he filled with mouth with more popcorn.

             “Wha..?”Mr. Owens was definitely in love with the show now as he paid no attention to his son.

             “I mean, I want to follow you to The Mall to see if this Sam Rider person will appear tonight.” He said, and he took a sip of milk from his mug.

             “Jaden, I don’t own that place. And, you have school tomorrow. So, no! His father turned to face Jaden as the advertisements rolled in.

             “Come on, dad! It’s not every day that this is happening, and I don’t think that this is a prank.”

             “Oh? And what makes you think that?”

             “Man’s intuition.” Jaden said with such confidence that his dad couldn't help but laugh.

             “Please, you’re fourteen and you drink milk. You call yourself a man? Hah!” his dad snorted and almost chocked on his popcorn.

             “Fine, laugh all you want. But when Sam Rider really appears, I’ll tell you in the face I told you so! And, you can’t…will not, call me a kid anymore.”

             “Are you making a bet with me?”

             “Oh yeah. And if you back away, you’re chicken.”

             “Fine by me.” Just then, the advertisements were over and Mr. Owens turned his head back to the screen.

             “By the way, you still can’t come.” His dad added.

             Hearing that, Jaden felt defeated as he sulked all the way up the stairs with his mug in his right hand. Determined to be the last to end the argument, he shouted from the top of the stairs before he went into his bedroom.

            “And there’s nothing wrong with drinking milk!” which was followed by a slam of his bedroom door.

             Jaden’s phone rang from his backpack after he had placed his backpack on the floor and collapsed onto his bed. He recognized the ringtone as a message tone, so he ignored it. He was too tired to move about.

            After five minutes of staring at the ceiling, he decided to take a bath as he felt sticky all over. I’ll take a nap after I shower. He thought.

           Ten minutes later, he was squeaky clean. Remembering that his phone rang just after he lay on his bed, he rummaged his backpack to find his cell phone after he had changed into comfortable clothes.

           Hey Jaden, it’s Tina. Do you want to join me and Sammy for a movie this Saturday? We’re watching The Avengers by the way. Hope you can come! XD

          Jaden’s mouth twisted into a wide grin as he had always wanted to watch that movie. He never got the chance to watch it as he had few friends to watch with and his parents would still be working by the time Jaden was free. Moreover, the tickets were always sold out, so he couldn't even watch it during the weekends. It was a miracle that they managed to get tickets.

          He typed his reply at super speed and quickly hit send.

          Three seconds later, Tina replied.

          Great! We’ll discuss the details tomorrow. See ya! :D

          Completely ignoring his wet hair, he jumped onto his bed and lay on his back. Even with the excitement of watching the movie, he fell asleep almost instantly.

           Jaden woke up with a jolt as he heard police sirens not very far away. He still felt groggy as he sat up. He turned and took a look at his alarm clock, and was surprised that it was already half past nine. He had slept for three and a half hours straight.

           He had nothing to do as he already did his homework during homework period in school today. So, he decided to watch some television.

           He went into the kitchen to get some snacks. Who wouldn’t be hungry after three hours of sleep? Moreover, his appetite was not of a normal human being. He could eat at least three bowls of rice for dinner whenever his mom cooked, but tonight was not that night. His mom would only come back at half past ten, and by then it would be too late to cook dinner. She only cooked during the weekends.

           Once again, he took out the carton of milk and poured it into the mug that he used not long ago. Then, he took out a packet of popcorn and placed it into the microwave to cook it.

           The popcorn would take some time to cook, so he took his mug of milk into the living room and took a seat on the couch. He did not bother to on the lights as he liked to watch television in the dark. Besides, it was bright enough to see because of the moonlight from outside.

           He was about to turn on the television when there was a thud from outside. He froze for a few seconds before he got and placed his mug on the table.

          It’s probably just dad. Maybe he left something at home. Jaden thought. But just to be safe, he tip toed across the living room to open the door.

         Just as he was about to open it, he caught an unfamiliar figure standing outside in the garden. He was not able to make out who it was as just then, a cloud came by and blocked out the only source of light. What’s more, his dad had forgotten to turn on the porch lights.

          He felt like his whole heart had jumped out of his chest as he heard the microwave beeped. His heart hammered against his rib cage at super speed and he felt adrenaline rush through his veins. It was impossible to hear that beep from outside, but he had to be sure.

          Jaden sighed with relief as he was certain that the intruder did not hear anything. He guessed that the intruder was a woman as she had long hair that flowed all the way to her waist. She appeared to be searching for something.

          He made a choice to open the door. It might have been his stupidest decision yet.