The Favor

Sam stood in the shadows of the doorway, his attention focused on the shop across the street. Hiding in the darkness like a common criminal wasn’t something he usually did, but tonight Sam wasn’t in his usual frame of mind.

Others would describe him as quiet and reserved. He dressed to be inconspicuous and kept his hair short and unkempt. Rarely did the teeth of a comb traverse his brown locks. At 5 ‘ 8 “ and weighing in at 145 pounds, he could hardly be described as athletic. At 19 years old, Sam had yet to have a real girlfriend, and it wasn’t for lack of trying. But when you could stand in a room with 3 people and not be noticed, attracting the opposite sex become a huge task. In the friends department, most would consider him not worthy of the effort. Most nights, he had his nose buried in a book.... worshiping the dragon slayers and sword bearers. The type of person most would label a lone wolf. Or in Sam’s case...possibly a lost sheep.

Sam’s eyes shifted to the clock tower in the main square and the hands told him it was 8:50. Only 10 minutes until the store locked it’s doors for the night.

He took a deep breath too gather his courage and stepped out from the security of the doorway. Only one other person shared the sidewalk with him, and she gave Sam no heed. The night temperature was a mild 53 degrees. Not really cold enough to cause the shiver that raced down Sam’s spine. The act that he was about to commit claimed responsibility for that.

He was so focused on the doorway of the store he was approaching that he didn’t notice the approaching car. The bellowing horn and Sam’s hesitation at the rude intrusion to his senses were the only thing that saved him from becoming road kill.

His mind was screaming at him to run....leave the scene and abandon what he was about to do. But Sam knew if he bolted now, he would never return.

As he got closer to his destination, his eyes told him that other than the lone employee, the store was void of human life. Which was the reason he had waited until just shy of closing time to commit his deed. Witnesses were the last thing Sam wanted to deal with. They were a complication he could do without.

Or so he thought. Lack of experience was Sam’s biggest foe of the night.

As he entered the shop, the door chime announced Sam’s presence to the lady behind the counter. She gave him the quick once over, decided he wasn’t a threat, and went back to reading the book laying on the countertop.
Despite the huge lump in Sam’s throat, he walked past the lady and made his way to the soda cooler. With a shaking hand, he pulled the door open and grabbed the first bottle within his reach. It didn’t matter to him what the flavor was. That’s not why he was here. From there, Sam walked over to the chocolate bars and scanned the selection. From Sam’s position in the store, the employee did not have a clear view of him, except from the shoulders and up. Sam knew this from previous visits and was the reason he had picked this store. He took 2 bars from the shelf, stole a quick glance at the cashier, then pocketed one of them.

Guilt at what he had just done caused a hotflash to race through him. Not once in his entire life had Sam willingly broken the law before. And for him to do so over something that cost $1.05 was just senseless to him. But he has his reason, and to him it outweighed the stupidity.

Doing his best not to appear riled, Sam may his way to the cashier and placed the soda and chocolate bar on the counter. His hands were still shaking and he dropped them to his sides to avoid detection.

The lady looked up from her book and locked eyes with Sam. To him, she appeared to be peering into his very soul. Reading Sam like she read the book lying on the countertop between them. Sam fought the urge to bolt....to escape from the vision of the all seeing, all knowing cashier. He felt like a 10 year old standing before the school principal for the very first time.

“ That’ll be $2.14 “ she said, her voice peircing the silent moment between them.

Reaching into his pocket, Sam pulled out the $5 bill he had placed there earlier, and handed it to her. His hand was tremoring slightly, but the lady’s eyes never left Sam’s as she took the money from him. Had he been younger, Sam would have been convinced the lady was some alien life form preparing to invade his body. No one looked at another person like she was looking at him. At least no one playing with a full deck.

He broke eye contact to read the name on the employee tag she was wearing.

Jayden

Seemed normal enough to Sam. Not some ancient tongue that contained no vowels or translated in blood sucking viper.

So why the intense stare. Could she know about the chocolate bar I put in my pocket, Sam wondered to himself.
He fought the urge to swallow hard and reached for the change she handed him

“ Wanna bag for that ? ” , Jayden asked, already reaching for one without waiting for Sam’s answer.

Sam replied with an answer that was completely out of character for him

“ No, I’m good “ he heard himself say, “ why kill the planet more than we already are “.

“What the hell. Where did that come from?” said the voice in Sam’s head. “ Now’s not the time to play Mr. cool,” it continued. “Just grab your stuff and leave ! “.

The look that engulfed Jayden’s face informed Sam he was too late.

“ Hmmm “ , she said , “ you don’t strike me as an environmemtal type “.

“Go Sam “ warned the voice, “ LEAVE !”

“ What’s an environmental type look like ? “, challenged Sam.

With those words, he grabbed his goods and bee lined for the door. He had his hand on the door handle when he heard Jayden say “ Not an environmentalist then...... but you are a thief !”.

Despite the shove he gave the door, it wouldn’t open. He pushed harder, then realized his mistake....and pulled it. Nothing. He was locked in. He realized this door had one of those locks the clerk can trigger from behind the counter. The kind that keeps the undesirables out...or in Sam’s case....in.

He turned to face Jayden, his eyes radiating with a look of panic. She was looking back at him, a slight smirk forming on her lips.

“ Open the door, Lady “ , he said, trying to make his voice sound threatening.

“ I’ll open it when the police get here “ Jayden said.

Sam felt panic overtake him.

“ You can’t keep me here “ he screamed , “ open the damn door ! “.

Jayden stood behind the counter, giving Sam the same intense stare as before. She showed no sign of fear towards Sam. And this worried him even more. He couldn’t understand why. Although he wasn’t a big guy by any standards, he was bigger than her. She stood maybe 5’3” and might be 100 pounds soaking wet. So where was her bravery coming from.

Sam decided to try and spook her into letting him go. He let the bag fall from his grip and took a few steps towards the counter.

“ Don’t make me hurt you “, he threatened , “ cuz I will if I need too “.

What she said next stopped Sam dead in his tracks.

“ No you won’t Sam ....you don’t have it in you! “.

The panic Sam had felt before was nothing to what overtook him now. His breathing accelerated, his world turned hot.......and then went black .

________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________


The stinging sensation on his cheek and the condescending voice were the devices used to bring Sam back to his senses.

“ Wake up tough guy !”.

Sam opened his eyes to find Jayden bent over him, her hand poised to strike him again.

“ I’m awake , stop hitting me “ he said , flinching as he expected another slap to the face.

Rising to her full height, Jayden took a few steps back and said, “ I told you you didn’t have it in you “.

Sam ignored the verbal jab and rose to his knees. He was still light headed from passing out and decided standing up might not be in his best interests yet.

“ Listen, “ he suggested “ I’m sorry I tried to steal from you. It was stupid. Let me pay for it and get out of here. The cops aren’t really neccesary “.

Jayden maintained her position just a few feet from Sam, and this bothered him to no end. She’s not even the slightest bit afraid of me, he thought. Either she’s trained in some exotic fighting art, or I really do come across as that pathetic. Who knows, maybe she really could kick my ass .

“ The police aren’t coming, Sam “ she informed him, “ not yet anyways “.

“ What do you mean not yet ? “.

Jayden stepped around Sam and flipped the sign on the door from “ Open “ to “ Closed “. A flip of a switch killed the flourescent lights at the front store, casting a greyish luminescence over Sam and Jayden.

Stepping back around Sam, she glanced back at him and offered some advice.

“ You might want to pick yourself up off the floor and follow me. With the lights out, anyone that sees you there will call the cops “.

With that , she walked to a doorway beside the counter and disappeared from sight.

Sam stared after her, his mind swimming with questions.

How does she know my name? Why didn’t she call the cops? And most of all, why the hell isn’t she afraid of me?

Standing up, Sam went over two options in his mind. He could look behind the counter for the switch that unlocks the door and flee into the night. Then it was a case of her word against his. Having no record, no brushes with the law and looking the way he does, he could probably win that argument. But there was one thing that was stopping him. She knew him by name.......and he wanted to know why. He had never seen her before. A school mate was out as he put Jayden’s age at late 20’s to early thirties. He had no brothers that she might have dated. So short of being psychic, she shouldn’t know who he was.

Decision made, Sam walked through the same doorway Jayden had just used.