"Arf! Arf!"
Turning over in his bed, Kazimir sleepily opens one eye and looks down at Caramel-Strawberry.
"What is- damn, morning already?"
Looking over at the alarm clock, the young detective yawns as he rolls back over.
"Just 30 more minutes, Carabelle."
The small puppy prances back over to her makeshift bed and watches Kazimir from a distance before barking again.
"Alright, alright. What the hell do you even wanna do today anyway?"
Noticing his phone light up, the detective rolls his eyes as he looks at Pierre's contact name.
"School's canceled for the next two days, Mr. Kazimir!"
Hearing Prince and Miracle happily cheer in the background, Kazimir chuckles as he goes into the bathroom to brush his teeth.
"You three can still read something."
"That's what Mr. Pierre said, but we're not doing that!" Khristina says, taking a bite from her chocolate chip waffle. "We're gonna have a fun day today!"
"Surprised he even thinks that way."
"What?"
"Nothing." Kazimir replies. "At least watch something educational."
"SpongeBob is educational! It teaches you about underwater and the fishies!"
"Khristina, a sponge and a squid can't talk. Where's Pierre?"
"He's in the bathroom. Why couldn't I have went with you to Canada, Mr. Kazimir?"
"Because I'm on a trip that you'll find extremely boring." the young man replies after rinsing his mouth.
"Nothing's boring with you, Mr. Kazimir! Please, please, please can I get a ticket and come with you?! I've never ever been to Canada!"
"Maybe another time, Khristina."
Hearing sniffling, Kazimir shakes his head and looks into the mirror wondering how he ever put up with the little girl.
"But you don't get it! A man called me a chocolate drop in the store this morning and said he was gonna come back in 20 years to marry me!"
"A man did- did you tell Pierre?"
"Yeah, but he got away!" Khristina says in between tears. "And I'm scared that he's gonna find me!"
Gripping his phone tighter, Kazimir rubs his temple.
"Put Pierre on the phone."
"But he's in the bathroom!"
"Then tell him to get the heck out because I need to speak to him."
After a few moments of silence, the young man hears a slight rustling noise before hearing Pierre answer.
"You caught the guy?"
"When you agreed to help with Khristina and Miracle, that means you agreed to keep them safe. Why is Khristina telling me that a guy called her a chocolate drop and he's coming back for her when she's older?"
Washing his hands, Pierre nods.
"Yeah, we tried to track the guy but he ran out the store and disappeared. We told one of the cashiers and then went down to the station to report it. Apparently he's a former employee, but was fired due to harassing both female coworkers and customers. He also comes in at around 7 A.M. to see one girl who tried to get a restraining order against him, but couldn't since he's never "tried anything." I'm going out later to see if they have any follow-ups."
"Follow-ups? What you should have did was follow the bastard out of the store and put a bullet in his spine."
"I told you we lost the guy." Pierre says, putting some shaving cream on his chin. "And how'd you want me to do that when there are multiple people around?"
"I clearly said- nevermind, I'll handle it myself since you want to be a bitch and can't do anything right. Put Khristina back on the phone."
"First of all, the guy ran out the store long before Khristina told me. Bruh, I have a child and two mothers of my children as well; you really think I'd-
"Shut the fuck up. I don't give a damn what you do." Kazimir interrupts. "If the person isn't dead or clinging to life after you're done with him, then you're not handling the situation right. Now, put her back on the phone."
Caramel-Strawberry immediately jumps and whimpers a little as she watches Kazimir angrily stand up.
Sighing, Pierre walks out of his bathroom to go find Khristina.
"Believe what you wanna, I guess."
——————
"Oh, please excuse me. This must be Miracle calling."
"Please, take your time."
Pulling out Nyelle's chair, Alexei watches as she gives him a warm smile before walking to the other side of the room to answer the phone.
"My, my. Gorgeous, great mother, knows how to cook and clean, and is very intelligent. That's why I'm officially picking her to be my future wife."
"Did you even make her your girlfriend yet?" Nia asks, cutting a piece of steak. "I'm sure she isn't the type of woman to just jump straight into marriage."
"Yes, I actually have. Last night during dinner. I told her that I was serious about us and she said that she hadn't felt this emotionally cared for since her divorce."
"And if she finds out about your side business?"
The law student chuckles as he picks up a bit of crab meat with his fork.
"Like I said, she's smart. The woman knows her place. Speaking of which, I actually have a delivery to make later on tonight."
"Alexei, you can't be serious. We already have the people of Merderaé to worry about."
"Nia, I can do both back to back. Don't worry, everything's going to be-
"YOOOO! WASSUP, BROSKI?!"
Feeling someone's arms wrap around his neck, Alexei immediately reaches down at his waistband before catching a glimpse of the person and stopping.
"Jai? What're you doing here?"
"I'm on vacation with my parents and my cousin. She's single, you know! We could become brothers-in-law! Wait, is this your girl?! You never told me-
"Jai, this is Nia Ellison. She's not my lady, but a very good friend of mine. Nia, Jai Domonkos. We have every class but one together."
Nia gives Jai a warm smile and nods.
"Nice to meet you, Jai."
"Nah, it's nice meeting you, ma'am.
Pulling a random chair from a table, Jai positions himself in-between Alexei and Nia.
"So what brings you two here? My family came here because the hotel was having some type of comedy show later. You know, I'm all for comedy, but I kinda feel like this is gonna be boring."
"We're on a business trip." Nia says, taking a sip of wine. "I can't tell you much since it's very private."
"Sorry for the interruption. Miracle was calling about a stuffed animal she thought she left behind at the house."
"It's perfectly fine." Alexei replies with a smile. "Nyelle, I have someone I'd like for you to meet. This is Jai Domonkos. He's a fellow peer of mine. Jai, this is Nyelle Richardson. She's who I'd call a very caring friend and mentor."
"Ohhhh! You must be the lady Alexei won't shut-
Subtly yet purposefully knocking a glass of wine over, Alexei watches as it spills onto Jai's shoes.
"Ooh, shit! Did I do that?!" Jai says, backing up from the table.
"I'll help you clean it up before it becomes too sticky."
The two young men walk into the bathroom and Alexei grabs a few paper towels, putting some water on them.
"Here you are."
"I'm glad these weren't my white dress shoes. My dad would've beat my ass. So is she the woman you can't shut up about? I see why, she's stunning, thicker than the bottom of a Coke bottle, nice-
Alexei looks down at Jai, giving him a "shut it" look.
"My fault, bro."
"How's Lennox?"
"Oh, he's good from what I know. His father opened up another trucking location in California, ya know."
"He must be planning to go international. Wonder if he'd like to do any collaborations in the future."
"How're you gonna collaborate a law agency with a trucking company? Oh, you must be aiming to be his personal law attorney!"
"I was talking about my airline company, Jai." Alexei says, shaking his head.
"Oh! I forgot about that! Damn, you're sure gonna be a rich man in the future."
"I'm well aware. How is Yimirah doing?"
"Oh, I haven't seen her in a while. Last she told me, she had to go back home to help with her family's finances. I'm kinda worried now, though. I meant to give her my number before she left, but I feel like she'd become annoyed by that."
"I don't see why she would if you're just trying to be friendly."
Jai chuckles as he runs a little tap water onto the top of his shoe.
"Alexei, I don't have a lot of luck when it comes to girls. Even if I'd like to be their friend. They just seem to find me weird, I guess. I mean, that's what I heard a girl tell her friend back in high school."
"Neither did I, but you know what I did? One day, I went to a park and took a look around. And as I'm looking, I said to myself; "How can people who would be considered more unattractive than me be in a relationship and I'm not?"". Then I had to realize that since I was approaching adulthood, I needed to man up and start approaching woman that I was interested in. You see, you're never going to find the right woman to carry on your legacy if you just watch from the sidelines. If you get rejected, so be it. There's more women out there who'd be willing to start a family with you."
"That's easy for you to say, Mr. Tall, Dark, and Handsome. Literally. I can't even-
"You know what you are, Jai? You may have a facial structure that looks strong, majestic, and masculine on the outside, but in reality, you're a weak bastard." Alexei interrupts as he looks forward. "We as men were placed first on this earth and you're trying to let the sex which comes in second overpower you? As the ones who were placed here first, men will just be better in everything. It's the harsh truth whether one wants to hear it or not. Without men, the female species would be obsolete. That is why I can't stand when I hear a man talk down upon himself. You are a man, first-in-line. Why do you think we're called providers? We provided females the right to be here, yes?"
"I mean-
"And yes, it may be a blow to the ego when a woman rejects you, but think about it; she's physically attractive which is why you're afraid to say something to her. Now, what makes her attractive? Make-up. Without that make-up, she's nothing. Only in rare cases will you see females with natural beauty, such as Nyelle. Even Nia. Don't let the runner-ups take your spot, Domonkos. You know where you stand."
Jai watches as Alexei gives him a pat on the shoulder before walking out of the bathroom.
Looking in the mirror, Jai stares back at himself and shakes his head.
"Was he actually being for real?"
— 10:14 P.M.; Claiza City —-
Unlocking the door to his apartment, Kazimir opens it and looks around at the dark atmosphere.
"Wonder if that motherfucker will track me here."
Placing Caramel-Strawberry's cage down, the young man opens the door and the shy puppy whimpers as she backs further into the cage.
"Carabelle, there's no need to be scared." Kazimir says, turning the lights on. "Look, is that better?"
Looking around, Caramel-Strawberry cautiously walks out and runs over to Kazimir.
"Awwww, I told you there's no need to be scared, girl. Let's get some sleep; we've had a long day."
Placing the dog cage in a corner, Kazimir motions for her to get inside.
"Good girl, that's my good girl. Sleep tight, Carabelle."
"Arf!"
Taking a seat on his couch, Kazimir looks over at a family picture on the television stand.
"Can't believe you all left me here alone. Unfortunately, I'll have to come and say hello later. I have a few errands I need to complete first."