'Miss one crucial penalty in the cup final, and everybody becomes a comedian,' Shaun cursed in his mind as he relived the moment. He sighed, 'I knew I should have worn my lucky boots'.
As he browsed through the aisles, his mouth watered, seeing certain items, but looking in the torn-up wallet, the only cash he had was for the groceries. He wouldn't dare spend any of his brother's hard-earned money.
He pitied himself, looking at his reflection on the glass on the juice fridge, "Lord, why did I only have to be handsome? I'm not a greedy person, just a million or two, and I would be fine." Dejectedly he dragged himself to the counter, he craved some strawberry cheesecake ice cream, but his poor self couldn't afford it.
Plop! – He dropped the basket before the cashier so she could scan the items, "Good afternoon, Shaun!" the petite cashier Lucy, uttered with a smile.
"What's so good about it?" Shaun didn't even look up as he rested his head on the counter. "Someone's a bit grumpy today," she responded. It was as though this was a routine; she chuckled, "Maybe I can help you out."
"Really? Do you have a mil or two to loan me? If so, I would be extremely grateful," Shaun said with satire in his voice.
"Well, that's quite the total. But even if I had that money to loan, I'm sure your brother would disapprove of it," As she mentioned Jamie, Lucy's cheeks became red, "About Jamie, how is he? I haven't seen him for at least a week, and you know how he is with phones," Of course, Shaun couldn't help but notice the subtle change in Lucy's tone, and her flushed cheeks were a dead giveaway. He had a shrewd smile on his face. 'Looks like I am getting my ice cream after all,' He uttered in his mind.
He smiled and responded to Lucy, "Jamie is doing well, working hard. You know you can't get him off that farm. It's funny that you would ask about him because..," Shaun suddenly paused for dramatic effect while playfully rubbing his hands against the counter that smelt of pine. He was waiting for the fish to grab onto the bait.
"Because!?" Rushed Lucy, whose heart had stopped for a moment. With each second that went by to her, it was like an eternity. Inside, Shaun smiled, but his outward appearance seemed a bit conflicted. "I.., I don't know if I should say, what Jamie told me in confidence should never be spoken to outsiders," He ensured to maintain eye contact with Lucy while uttering the last part of his statement.
The last item was scanned and his total shown, so Shaun took up the groceries while Lucy helplessly looked on. He then sighed, saying, "Pity, I wanted that ice cream, but oh well. It was nice seeing you, Lucy. I'll tell Jamie you said hi, or perhaps I shouldn't, seeing as…." He once more halted his speech to the fury of Lucy, who finally understood what the teen was doing.
"Go get your ice cream, Shaun, then get your ass back here!" She said while gritting her teeth. The sheer humiliation of being manipulated by a teen three years her junior. Hehe! – "Oh Lucy, I thought you would never offer," Shaun chuckled before happily grabbing the most oversized tub of strawberry cheesecake ice cream he could find. When Lucy saw the two-gallon container, she wanted to scream, but Shaun didn't flinch, rubbing his hand on the counter patiently waiting.
"Trust me, the information I have is worth far more than this little tub". Shaun innocently smiled, but Lucy felt she had just made a deal with the devil. After a few minutes, Shaun could be seen exiting the supermarket. He might have twisted a word or two, but it didn't matter; the only one who could confirm was Jamie. Would she tell him of their little chat? That he highly doubted.
'This day turned out to be good after all,' He chuckled to himself, but his smile turned instantly to a frown seeing one of his bike tires flat. "You have got to be kidding me?!" He yelled.
Wobble! Wobble! - He started to tow his bike from the supermarket as the flat tire squeaked. Behind him, he heard a powerful engine driving up.
Beep! Beep! – "Hey, dipshit!" Shaun knew that voice oh too well. It was Nick; he was the cliché only son of an old father who spoiled him rotten. "Be on your way Nick, I am not in the mood. So, I'll save you the trouble. I'm poor; you're rich.., yadda yadda!" Shaun outright dismissed him. But still, Nick persisted, "Aren't you curious about the ride?"
Shaun - "No, but you can't help but tell me, I'm guessing."
Nick - "Always the wise guy, huh? I'll fill you in any way", he proudly stated, "Got it for my sixteenth birthday, not the colour that I wanted..., but probably for my seventeenth".
Shaun's brows furrowed as he responded, "Since when are you sixteen? We're like a month apart."
Nick - "So? What's a six months difference, besides with uncle Veron as the sheriff, who's going to arrest me?" He laughed as he spoke, but Shaun simply walked off. He had no desire to build this guy's ego. But Nick seemingly couldn't help himself, "By the way, guess who got early admission into a Super Academy."
"Bullshit!" Replied Shaun as he immediately stopped to look at Nick, but the smirk on his face showed that there was some truth to his statement, "When did you get tested?" He curiously inquired.
"I knew that would draw your interest. Did you forget that my distant cousin is Prism? That means there is a two per cent chance that the supergene is dormant within me.
Ha-ha! – "So, you're bragging about a provisional admission. What happens when you're found not to have the gene?"
"At least I have a chance, didn't that lame brother of yours also test and found to have no trace of the gene five years ago. He wasn't even fit enough to lace the janitor's shoe. 0.0% was said to be the first case ever recorded from Frankfield. At least if it was 0.01%, there was a chance for his grandchildren, but such trash shouldn't even be allowed to procreate."
His words caused Shaun to shake in fury as he uttered through gritted teeth, "Shut up! Don't you ever talk about Jamie, or I'll punch my hand down your throat!"
"I would love to see you try. Speaking of your pathetic brother, let me go and talk to the lovely Lucy. Perhaps give her a ride. Who knows, maybe she'll be riding me as a parting gift six months from now. I do like them petite, but you wouldn't know much about that, would you little fellow." Nick parked his car right next to the store in a no parking zone with its tinted windows down so that Shaun could see its leather interior.
Shaun watched as he strutted into the grocery store, engaging Lucy in conversation while pointing at his red corvette. He was about to walk away when something caught his attention. There were perhaps a thousand voices in his head telling him not to do what he planned, but that voice that said, "Do it", was probably the most tantalizing.
He then acrobatically jumped through the corvette's window, 'Damn, these seats are comfy," He thought before -Beep! Beep! – "Hey Nick! You're right; I do like it!" He shouted as Nick looked up in shock as Shaun had his finger on the starter. Before he could curse, telling him to get out, Shaun mouthed, "What does this button do?!"
Vroom! – As he pressed the red button, the vehicle sped from 0 to 60mph in under 6 seconds Woo-hoo! – Shaun shouted in ecstasy; he knew it was wrong, but damn did it feel so right. He careened on the open road shutting off all thought of the repercussion of his actions. It was just him and the open road; how he wished this was the trip to Lake View City. But Alas, reality struck as sirens were heard behind him. It was then he realised what he had done and slowly took his feet off the accelerator as it started to slow down.
He saw the flashing lights and heard the footsteps circling the car. With dark glasses and a hat, the sheriff looked him in the eye. "Sinclair, Sinclair! I always knew the day would come when I got this call. Grand theft auto at fifteen, now that's the part that surprised me. Now get your Goddamn ass out of this car, put your hands behind your back and get on the ground!" He yelled.
Shaun was then dragged out of the car and handcuffed before being hauled off to the Frankfield Police Station. He was placed in a small cell, its walls were filled with graffiti, but he paid no attention. His head was down as he thought of the words that would be said to his brother.
Cling! Cling! – The cell door was opened by the deputy sheriff, "Come along, Kid!" He uttered, directing Shaun to a lit passage leading to the office. There he saw Jamie patiently waiting with Spek as usual, darting on and off his shoulder. He was calm and composed while speaking to the sheriff.
Sheriff - "I'll let him off with a warning this time, but the next time he gets himself into trouble. I'll ensure he's shipped straight to Juve.
Jamie – "I assure you, he'll be on his best behaviour."
Sheriff – "He better be!"
With that, Jamie and Shaun left the police station. The sun was setting, and not a word was uttered as the two walked home on the street. Shaun wanted to find the words to apologise, but the one thing he didn't want to see was the disappointment in his older brother's eyes, so he kept his head down.
"Where did you get the ice cream?" Jamie casually asked, breaking the ice between the two. "Aah, it was Lucy. She bought it for me as a treat. I can bring it back if you want." Shaun hurried to say.
Jamie – "Nah, but you couldn't anyway since I had a big bowl before coming here. Hmmm!- Strawberry cheesecake, delightful." His words caused Shaun, who avoided his gaze, to look up in surprise.
"Now about that ride?" Jamie finally spoke of the incident while looking at his younger brother, who had guilt written all over his face.
"I don't know what to say. I'm sorry, it was stupid. That asshole insulted you, and I reacted. I wanted him to feel pain, so I took his precious car," He made his case.
"How did it drive?" Jamie responded with a smile.
His response was quite startling to Shaun, "It was awesome. You're not mad?"
"No, I can tell you learned from your mistakes. Besides, if you ever steal anything again. I'll break your legs!" A chill ran down Shaun's spine when Jamie spoke of breaking his legs. He said it in a joking manner, but he didn't even bat an eye.
"Now about that ice cream, I think I am up for a second bowl," Jamie grinned, thinking of that sweet treat waiting for them in the fridge.
"Aaah, Jamie, since we're being honest, I should probably tell you something." As Shaun spoke, he had a wry smile on his face. "About Lucy, I might have…."
Jamie - "You did what! Spek, you have my permission to kill him."