I scoffed. “No, I-I was fine on that part until you started talking about people chasing me. Who are these people? And why are they chasing me?”
He shook his head. “I’m not saying anyone will. I’m just talking like worst-case scenario here.”
“If I have to pick between stealing a car and having creepy people chase me, I think I’d rather steal the car.”
“Fine.Fuck.Let’s go. Keep an eye out.” He started leading the way to the house.
It was a quiet neighborhood. All nice houses with neatly maintained lawns. If I had to guess, I would’ve said that everyone in the neighborhood was elderly. Which meant that all of them were probably looking out their windows, watching us as we approached the door. Oliver bent down and pulled out the key that was hidden under the mat. He quickly unlocked the house and put it back, but he moved inside slowly, with me stuck to his back like glue. After he took a few steps in, he called out, “Hello?”
Scared that we’d get caught, I grabbed hold of the back of his shirt. He frowned at me from over his shoulder, but he slowly moved further into the house.
“Hello?” he called out again, but there still wasn’t any answer. He tried to turn around to face me, but I was still fisting his shirt, and it caused him to jerk free. “Would you chill?”
“I’m sorry,” I whisper-yelled. “I said I’d rather steal the car. I didn’t say anything about illegal trespass.”
“Oh my God,” he muttered, raising his hands to his temples. “Just go find the damn keys,” he ordered, dropping his arms to his sides.
We split up, each of us moving through the house to look for the car keys. I moved into the kitchen, thinking they may be hanging from a hook on the wall or maybe tossed haphazardly on the counter. The trashcan in the corner of the room wasempty. So was the sink, but the counters were covered with all kinds of crap, making it impossible to find anything if you just happened to toss them down while putting away the groceries. I scanned over the kitchen and moved across the dining room. I pushed open a door and entered what looked like a bedroom. It was nice and tidy, filled with light thanks to the open curtains. The sun shone right through the white blinds, keeping anyone outside from looking in while still letting in enough light to clearly see.
I had just noticed a set of keys on the dresser when I heard the door slam.
“Kitty, kitty,” a woman called out.
Panic washed through me faster than I thought possible. I grabbed the keys and turned for the door. Just as I turned, I was face-to-face with Oliver. He swept into the room and grabbed my wrist, yanking me around the corner so we couldn’t be seen.
“Kitty, kitty. It’s Auntie Jules. Dinner time!” the lady yelled.
“What are we going to do?” I whispered.
He put his finger to his lips, telling me to quiet down. I could tell by the faraway look in his eyes that he was listening to every step the woman took, trying to judge how close she was getting to the room we were in.
I heard her pour the cat food into the bowl. I heard the water come on and then turn off.
“Kitties? Where are you, silly kitties?” Her voice was getting closer.
Oliver opened the closet door and pushed me backward as he stepped inside with me. The closet was small. Even with us standing chest to chest, we barely fit inside with all of the clothes hanging. It was dark inside, but my eyes quickly adjusted so that when I looked up at him, I could see his eyes looking back down at me. I felt his warm breath on my lips. Without thinking, I wet them, noticing the way his eyes fell from mine, down to mymouth, and back. I felt my heart start to race, and a tug of need that urged me to lean into him. It made me think of the moment we’d shared earlier that neither of us had spoken of.
Still unsure of what that moment was, of what I was feeling as I was stuffed into that tiny space with him, I opened my mouth to tell him to back away, but when he saw my lips part, he shook his head, telling me to be silent.
My body overheated very quickly. Sweat prickled my skin. I didn’t know how long we were stuffed inside that closet, but it felt like an eternity. It had been a long time since I’d heard any noise at all. Finally, he leaned in even closer, his nose trailing across my cheek and making my eyes flutter closed.
“I’m going to see if she’s gone. Stay quiet,” he whispered.
I nodded and opened my eyes, understanding that he wasn’t putting the moves on me. That fact washed over me, leaving me embarrassed.
He pulled away as he opened the door, letting all the cool air from the room rush into the tight space. I sucked in a deep breath and felt it immediately cool my overheated body. It felt like I was gasping for air as I stepped out of the closet.
He walked back into the room a second later. “She’s gone. Did you find the keys?”
I had them in my hand that had been pressed against my chest, between us. I opened my hand and let them dangle from my index finger.
“Perfect. Let’s go.” He grabbed the keys from my hand and turned, rushing from the room with me following along behind him. He opened the door to the attached garage and led me out to the Toyota parked there. He hit the button, causing the lights to flash as the doors unlocked, and he let out a laugh as he opened the door to climb inside.
Within minutes of leaving the closet, we were driving down the road in another stolen car, but Oliver promised this onewould last longer, and I hoped he was right. I may have been used to being around crime, but that didn’t mean I wanted to be the one committing it. I knew if we got caught, I would be just as guilty as he was, and that thought alone kept me on edge as he got onto the interstate, heading east.
“So, what’s the plan?” I ventured.
He was resting his arm on the top of the steering wheel, and instead of answering my question, he turned that hand over like a shrug.
