Every road was very damp. I'd stepped several puddles on the street since I left Pearson's Mart. Not only my shoes, but also my jacket were wet. The rain arrived right when the shop closed. I was very unlucky, though it was only light rain.
Walking in the rain was never fun. But, it didn't prevent me from going to Pack-In Bar. The purpose was none other than to meet Uncle Steven. More precisely, to bring him home. Hopefully, he wasn't three sheets to the wind for this time.
I spent fifteen minutes arriving at the bar. Its barrel-shaped lamp looked shinier when it rained. The word stated name of this bar looked clearer in a wet. But, the door and welcome mat were dry.
I opened the door and entered the bar. This place was very cold, much colder than outdoors. It was hard to linger here.
I walked inside and browsed around. I didn't see anyone I knew, except Tony who sat near a bartender lady. He didn't look drunk now. I kept looking around for Uncle Steven until I gave up in the end.
I went to Tony. He was the only chance I had now.
"Hi, Tony!" I greeted.
"Oh. Hi, Richard!" he greeted back. He really wasn't sloshed.
"Did you see Steven?"
"Well, he's been out of here since this afternoon."
"Really? Why?"
"No idea. He looked unusual. He just drank two glasses. Then, he left."
It was weird. Uncle Steven never left this place early. He always stayed here for a long time, morning to evening, mostly until night.
"Do you know where he went?" I questioned.
"No," said Tony. "He didn't say anything even."
"Okay. Thank you."
I turned back, walked away, and left this bar. I went home fighting the wind in rain. My wet jacket wasn't strong enough to protect me from the cold. But, my T-shirt was still waterless. I ran to warm up, to reduce the chilliness.
I arrived home at six o'clock. It was very warm inside. I took off my jacket and hung it near the door. I walked into the living room.
Amanda and Jimmy sat on the sofa. Both enjoyed watching TV. They realized me after hearing my footstep.
"Hi!" Amanda greeted me, followed by Jimmy.
I greeted back. I rubbed my hands to heat up.
Amanda looked at my damp pants and shoes. She asked me with a big smile, "Heavy rain?"
"No, it was drizzle," I replied. "Just, the wind was very strong."
I strolled to a couch, next to the sofa they sat on. I was seated and took out a pack of cigarettes from my pants pocket. The pack was a little moist due to the rain, but its substances were fine.
I pulled out a cigarette, lit it, and started smoking. I felt calm after exhaling smoke four times. All the burdens seemed to disappear straight away.
"Is Steven here?" I asked.
"No," said Amanda. "Isn't he at the bar?"
"He's not. Tony said he'd left the bar since this afternoon."
"What?" she looked confused. "No way. My dad never did that."
"Yeah, I know. It's weird."
"Have you called him?" Jimmy asked me.
"He never brings a phone," I answered.
"Perhaps, he's... in another bar," Amanda argued.
"I don't think so," I spoke in low volume. "Tony said he looked unusual today, he just drank two glasses of beer and left without any words. Besides, I never see any other similar bar around here."
"Two glasses," said Jimmy. "He hadn't drunk yet."
"And?" I inquired.
Jimmy didn't continue. He shrugged.
"Perhaps, we should wait till night," Amanda suggested.
"Okay," I agreed.
I didn't see any other choice. Her suggestion was good. We calmed down. We needed to wait rather than try to finish an objective by doing unclear attempts.
I joined Amanda and Jimmy in watching TV. I didn't see any excitement in the show. It was some kind of romance or drama series, very boring. I had an aversion to it. I didn't understand their preference.
My eyes couldn't stay any longer in front of the TV. It irked me.
"Have you prepared the dinner?" I enquired Amanda.
"After this," she said facing the TV. "It's about to be over."
My cigarette was getting shorter. More than half of its paper had turned into ash. The filter taste faded away bit by bit.
My watch hand kept spinning. The coldness in my body had gone. But, my shoes were still wet.
"Oh, c'mon!" Amanda jabbered. "Why do they cut it like this?"
The show was over. It didn't satisfy her with the ending of today episode.
Jimmy smiled. He caressed Amanda while shaking his head.
Amanda breathed out. She took a remote and turned off the TV.
"Let's cook!" she induced.
"Let's go," said Jimmy.
It was good timing. I finished smoking. The tobacco was singed completely. Only the filter remained.
We all stood up. I joined them to go to the kitchen and helped prepare dinner. The clock showed 6.05 pm. It was around an hour before Ryu and the others got home.
Amanda opened the fridge. Jimmy didn't look surprised on its fill. He might already know about it.
"Anyway," I pointed to the icebox, "those all belong to Pearson actually."
"What?" Amanda was a little shocked.
"Yeah," I reassured. "We stole his food, his drinks. He ordered those from a new provider."
"Nice," she laughed. "You just opened a hell gate."
"It's not funny. We've stolen his items."
"You did, I didn't."
"But you ate his pork last night. We're all in charge now."
Previous fear returned to me. Talking about this was the reason.
"Does Pearson know about this?" Jimmy asked.
"No. I never hope he knows it," I said.
"Then, why do you look weird now?"
"You don't understand. I've been working for him... for so long."
"Oh, man! You overreact. It's not a big deal. Just pretend nothing happened. You even didn't leave any spot. No one will know who the stealer was.
"That's not what I mean. I just feel bad—"
"So what are you gonna do?" Jimmy interrupted. "Return these to him?"
I was speechless. I didn't have any idea how to solve this.
Jimmy was right. This wasn't a big deal. Just letting it go could be the unsurpassed.
Amanda chuckled, "We better start cooking rather than discussing this."
"Alright," I spoke in peace.
Amanda took out a cabbage, a used onion, and some short cucumbers from the refrigerator. She put those on the table. Jimmy helped her bring out a big slice of pork from a freezer. He placed it beside the cabbage and closed the fridge. They washed the vegetables and started cutting those.
I pulled out the kitchen utensils and a bottle of cooking oil from a cabinet. I positioned a pan on a stove, poured a little oil, and heated it. I helped them peel the onion.
"What's the menu?" I asked Amanda.
"Improvise," she said.
No one had decided about the dinner menu. But, we didn't need to worry. Amanda knew how to cook with ingredients as was. Her cooking for dinner was never charred.
We finished cutting the vegetables and moved to the next step. Amanda placed the pork on a pan. She made the oil bubbly. Jimmy cleaned the knives and cutting board. I prepared plates and glasses on the table.
Cooking fumes arrived from the pork. It smelled very good. It gently fulfilled this kitchen.
The color of the meat changed, from pale to bronze. The fumes turned bigger after Amanda surrounded the pork with vegetables. The nice smell was getting stronger.
Amanda stopped moving the spatula. She turned off the stove and raised the pan. She placed the dish on a big plate. She put the pan on the sink.
I took a clean knife. I sliced the meat and divided it into other plates.
Jimmy poured plain water into each glass. Then, he helped Amanda wash the utensils.
It was 6.20 pm. The dinner was ready ten minutes earlier today.
The kitchen tools were spotless. They stacked tidily besides the sink.
We all sat down to rest our hands. Amanda didn't look tired, but her face was unusual. It looked like she was holding something bad.
"Are you worried about Steven?" I questioned Amanda.
"Yeah," she said. "I mean a little bit of worry."
"But, it doesn't look 'a little bit' for me."
Amanda breathed out. "I was thinking about him and... a jail."
"What?"
"You know, right? He'd been arrested many times."
"Of course I know. But, he never went to prison."
Amanda fretted. She was afraid Uncle Steven was under arrest right now. In the past, officers had caught him more than five times. And, the cases were always different.
"You're thinking too far," Jimmy soothed her.
"What if it really happened," Amanda amplified her voice.
"It won't happen," Jimmy tried to calm her. "Everything's gonna be fine."
Amanda didn't reply. Those things kept bothering her mind. It could be discerned through her eyes.
The long hand of clock continued rotating. Its gear sound owned the whole of this room.
The front door was open. Other members of this house arrived. They went to the dining room and met us.
All of them looked terrible. Ryu's hair was so messy. Some mud glued to his pants. Lucy and Will wore wet clothes. Their shoes were soiled.
"What happened to you all?" I asked.
"All because of rain," Lucy retorted.
"Did you all see Steven?" Amanda enquired.
Will didn't say anything. He just shook his head.
"I didn't," Ryu answered.
"Me too," said Lucy. "Can we eat now?"
Lucy was starving. Her stomach rumbled in clear.
Amanda nodded her head. "Sure."
Ryu, Lucy, and Will took a seat. Everyone did a prayer. We all started having our meals.
Lucy ate well. Her hunger wasn't a joke. No gap was in her mouth. It was full of chewing meat. She even just stared at the food.
All enjoyed the dinner, excluding Amanda. Her hand held the fork, but she didn't move it. She faced her plate, but her gaze was blank.
"Are you okay?" I asked Amanda.
Everyone looked at her, except Lucy. Amanda was surprised in sudden.
"I'm just..." Amanda put the fork on table. "I'm not hungry."
She got up and left us. She walked away from this room.
"What happened?" Ryu questioned.
"Nothing," I said. "Just finish your food."
Jimmy looked at me. He nodded his head after watching my head gestures.
"I'll be back," I told everyone.
Jimmy and I stood up. We left Ryu and the others. We approached Amanda in the living room.
"You're really worried about him," Jimmy talked to her.
Amanda sighed, "I can't wait any longer."
"What're you gonna do now?"
"I must find him."
Jimmy raised his head. He closed his eyes for a while. He returned his head position.
"Get in my car," he offered. "Let's go."
"Thanks," said Amanda.
Jimmy took his jacket from the sofa and wore it. Amanda smoothed her hair with her fingers. They went to the front door.
"Wait!" I demanded. "I'm coming with you."
"C'mon!" Jimmy assented.
Jimmy opened the door. He went out with Amanda. I followed them and closed the door.
No more rain, only wind, and wet roads remained. This night was colder than routine.
Jimmy took out a car key. He pressed a little button on it. A silver sedan parked across our house rang. Its headlight blinked. We moved toward the car and got in it. Amanda sat in the front, next to Jimmy. I sat in the back.
Jimmy started his car. Every word and number lit up. The seats shook a little.
"Where're we going?" he asked.
"To police office," Amanda answered.
"No. It's a bad idea," I refuted.
"Why?" Amanda enquired.
"We're still unsure where Steven is," I explained. "Even if he's with police now, we can't do anything. It's useless."
"Do you have a better idea?" she requested.
"I do," I spoke in confidence. "But, I'm not sure it's hundred percent working."
"Well, who needs a hundred percent when it's better than a bad," said Jimmy.
"Okay then." I raised my hand. "Follow my lead."
Jimmy drove the car following my direction. His driving speed was quite fast. Its speedometer kept pointing at number eighty. The road silence affected this speed too. It could help us resolve this problem more quickly.
"Where're we headed now?" Amanda asked me.
"We'll meet someone," I said. "Someone we often bother. Someone... we can expect right now."
"Oh, no! Are you really sure about this?"
"Yes."
"We don't have another choice," Jimmy placated her.
Amanda took a deep breath. She slowly turned her head from side to side. She tried to quarrel, but she didn't have any good solution.
This car moved faster. Many houses and streetlights had relocated backward. Its wheels had twirled for about five minutes. It required a few minutes more to reach our destination.