C:
By that point, I'd gotten pretty good at sneaking out of my room late at night. It was a starry night out, the kind perfect for a romantic proposal. Once again, I waited until Paris was asleep and climbed out my window and up onto the roof. From there, I just hopped along the trees on the way towards Marla's place. But there was something I needed to do on the way there.
I worked my way towards the upscale downtown area. I knew the downtown for being open late, and to its credit was glitzy, lit up and packed with eager shoppers even at this hour. I'd never been down there that late before. It was well past any curfew I'd had, and the feeling itself whipped up excitement. There was something exhilarating about being out so late, in a bustling crowd no less, when I wasn't supposed to. Like I was joining the whole secret world of people who were still out after I went to bed.
After I reminded myself why I was there, I started looking for the right shop. I was there to find something to present to Marla, a physical token of what I felt for her. These stores were all little boutiques with nice shiny things that a girl would like. Still, I did not know what I wanted to get.
There was a store on a corner with a nice display of gold necklaces in the front. They looked nice and formal to show her how serious I was. I walked in and started looking around. Some nice string music was playing in the background and the store felt like it could be a museum.
An old woman came up to me. It looked like she worked there. She had on shiny gold pants that glared and reflected. She spoke with a well-practiced warmth and gentleness.
"Oh... hello there. I'm afraid we are now accepting any job applications, deary. Please leave before I have to call security."
The way she smiled at me, I forgot she'd just threatened to have me forcibly removed for no reason.
"Actually... I'm looking for something for a girl I like."
The old woman stopped, nodded, and gave a knowing look.
"I see... well, might you like to try the Walgreens down the way? Perhaps someone... of your... let's say circumstance would be a bit more comfortable there?"
I wasn't sure what she meant, but she was right that I was feeling uncomfortable.
"Comfortable?"
"I mean... with the prices, deary."
"Oh, I'm not worried about the price."
"*Sigh* No, boy. I have paying customers, I don't have time for you. For your information, that bracelet you were just looking at costs $12,000. Unless you are prepared to pay that, I suggest you find another establishment."
"Oh..."
"That's right."
"Do you take the Black Card?"
"BLACK CARD?!"
I pulled out the "emergency" credit card my parents had given me. It's not like they would notice. And besides, this was more important than any actual "emergency" in my life.
But when I handed her the card, someone smacked it out of my hand.
"Don't do it Andy. She's condescending you."
I looked up and standing in front of me was Miles. He was giving the old woman a disapproving look.
"How dare you talk to my friend like that? I bet he didn't tell you we're from Shadow Lane. I'm Miles Rhodes and I'm appalled at how you were just treating my friend. Is this how you treat all your customers who don't dress in a manner you approve of?"
"I... I... no... please, Mr. Rhodes, your father's account... I can explain--"
"Ah yes, my father's account. I believe I may close it. And I will do so. Start treating people fairly and we may consider reopening it, one day."
As the mean old lady crumpled to the ground, Miles and I walked out of the luxury store empty-handed.
"Miles, it's good to see you. But what are you doing out here so late?"
"I could ask you the same thing."
The two of us walked around for a bit, but we were both hesitant to admit what we were doing there.I didn't know how Miles would react to the fact I was going to visit his sister in the middle of the night.
"Ok Andy, I have to fess up. I'm here to meet a girl. One of the Chorus girls wanted to go to some late-night ramen shop here. It's about time for me to go meet her."
"Ok then. I'll fess up, too. I'm on my way to meet Marla, to confess my feelings to her. I just stopped here to pick up a gift."
I braced for a punch to the jaw. But I was met with a warm grin. Miles nodded and looked up at the stars.
"You know, Andy, I love my sisters. And I have a special bond with Marla. I want her to be happy. Growing up, my family bounced me around international schools so I couldn't always be around. But every time I saw a guy come buzzing around Marla, they never had good intentions. She's beautiful and popular, so all the guys at school want her. But I think you care about her. I've seen that. The two of you have my full support."
Hearing that made me well up with warmth inside. I hadn't known Miles long, but I respected him. And hearing he supported Marla, and me was something more than I could have hoped for.
I gave Miles a heartfelt hug before I want to leave him.
He stopped me.
"By the way, if you want to get into the estate without getting caught by the guards, you need to..."
Miles gave me info on the cleanest route to get through the fortress-like Rhodes estate to Marla's room. Then I left to go confess to Marla.
D:
After midnight, I got to the field a few hundred yards south of the Rhodes estate. I was nervous, my heart was beating like crazy and I was sweating. But I had good reason to be. Not only did I have a serious obstacle ahead of me, I was about to ask out Marla.
They locked the Rhodes Estate down like Ft. Knox. Breaking into this place would be a suicide mission for a normal person.
Of course, this was supposed to be a surprise. There was no way Marla would've approved of me risking my life to break into the Rhodes mansion just to talk to her. And telling her I was coming would've ruined the surprise of my grand gesture. I'd determined I had to do things the hard way.
They stacked the deck against me. For one, the Rhodes Security Forces made the Bloomer Security Forces look like elementary school hall monitors. These guys patrolled with trained Dobermans and automatic weapons. There was a spotlight and Miles confirmed that all three of the guard towers maintained active snipers.
But I was undeterred.
Even the perimeter was well-guarded. There were a couple of armed guys driving around in a Humvee. Thankfully, Miles told me about the secret passage he'd used to sneak out. There was a shed on the side and it had a tunnel that led to the inside of the compound. All I had to do was get there without the guys in the Humvee seeing me.
Between me and the shed was a large dirt road. One that was being patrolled by the Humvee and by a spot light. The light would swoop down and illuminate an entire side of the road, and rotate to another side about every 30 seconds. I needed to time everything right to get across after the car, while still avoiding the pattern of the spotlight.
Hiding in the tall grass, I waited for the car to pass. I heard it buzzing along and ran across the road right after it, making it to the other side undetected. I went into the dusty shed and found a trap door underneath a bunch of old matts and went through. Soon, I was on the other side of the perimeter and technically "inside" the Rhodes estate.
When I came out of the tunnel, I was outside again. Only the night sky was above and I saw the main house a hundred yards ahead of me. Other than the many tall trees, it looked like a straight shot. But it wasn't. Miles had warned me about the motion sensors and cameras they'd setup in the area between the perimeter and the main house.
I'd come far, and I wasn't about to get caught at that point, so I came up with a plan. To get out of my house that night, I'd had to hop between tree tops. This place was setup for me to avoid the ground by acting like Tarzan in the trees again. I prepared to climb the closest one, but then heard something behind me.
"Come on, man, just tell me. Which one of the Rhodes girls do you think is hotter? Yeah, already know who I'd pick."
"Eh… this conversation doesn't seem appropriate. We are at work, after all. What if HR hears about this?"
If they'd been doing their jobs and paying attention to their surroundings, they would've spotted me. Two guys in Rhodes Security jackets walked up behind me. They were so deep in their conversation that they didn't notice my legs dangling down from a tree, not even a foot above them.
Once they passed, I went all the way up into the tree and then did some Rosewings jumping to get the rest of the way to the main house.
My adrenaline had been flowing the entire time. But I could feel my heart pumping harder as I closed in on Marla's room. The two of us had been friends for a long time. But things had changed so much that it was easy to forget where I stood with her. We'd come super far, but in the back of my mind, I wondered if I was jumping the gun.
I wanted to maintain confidence, but I couldn't shake the fact I could leave with a rejection. A rejection that would forever alter my relationship with Marla. That was the fear that kept me from asking for such a long time.
Lately, everyone had been saying I'd changed. I'd heard it from Paris, Marla, Cole and even more people that I'm forgetting. But now, even I see I have changed. I no longer let my decisions be controlled by fear. The worst thing that could happen would be Marla saying 'no' when I ask if she wanted to be my girlfriend. But that was it. Life would continue, and the Gaia Defense Force would continue.
The trees brought me up to the roof of the enormous main house. Miles had even told me where to find her room in the house, so it was quick for me to make it to her window.
There wasn't any balcony, so I bent over from the roof upside down and knocked. I closed my eyes and thought of the day she appeared at my window for the first time as Astra Lumina. The night she radiated brighter than the stars and changed my life forever. And here I was. Things had come full circle.
I shut my eyes to protect her privacy, so the window almost hit me when she opened it. I tumbled in to her room with a thud.
"Andy? What are you doing here? Do you know what time it is? Oh, be careful!"
"*ouch* Oh, Marla!"
When my eyes beheld her, I lost my breath. She wasn't wearing much, and of course had on no makeup. But she was stunning. It looked like she'd just walked out of a Hollywood film. I realized Marla was the greatest natural beauty I'd seen in my entire life. I climbed into her room through the window.
"Andy, are you okay? Why are you here? This is crazy."
I realized I was staring too much, so I got to business.
"Marla… I've known you forever. And, the truth is, I've always liked you. Since we were little, your bravery, your kindness, your beauty and bright outlook on life has always inspired me. You've defended me when I was accused, and more than anything you've always been by my side. I couldn't have asked for a better friend in the world."
I saw Marla's eyes well up with tears, but I wasn't about to stop.
"But I can't be just friends with you. I want more than that. I want you to be my girlfriend Marla. Will you go out with me?"
I held my breath and my hand out for hers. It felt like time stopped. I could hear the seconds tick away on the clock in her room like they were hours. My heart beat in my throat like timpani.
I looked at Marla like she was an angel. Her face was red like a tomato and her slender hands clutched her night gown.
"Andy… I…"