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Carl was training to be a police officer. He didn’t know what to do after seeing his friend, Esther, get shot. He couldn’t do anything about it because the bus doors refused to open. He stood outside where it happened outside of the yellow police line that read ‘Caution’. He stared at the dried up blood on the ground inside the police tape. The murderer who did it was covered in all black and was hard to see because of the lack of street lights.
He stood there, frozen. He stared at the blood and his memories went back to the night before. A girl, his age with long brown hair and brown eyes, ran through the street. She was in a white t-shirt with blood stains. Carl looked at her and saw the red stains. He started running after her. She was fast as she took off. She kept running. There were two men running after her that got ahead of Carl. The two men didn’t look like police officers and Carl thought she might be in trouble. He wasn’t going to let his mistake happen again.
He kept running after her, trying to get ahead of the men. She ran down an alley to a dead end without realizing. She stopped as the two men came closer.
“Aspen,” one of the men said, “you have to come with us.”
She shook her head, her back pressing against the wall. Carl ran in.
“What’s going on here?” Carl asked.
“None of your business,” the man replied.
“Beat it, kid,” the other one said.
“I’m sixteen. Same as this girl. So you beat it!” Carl said.
“Aspen, your mother is worried about you. Look at you, you’re covered in blood.”
“It’s not my blood.” Aspen said.
Carl crossed his arms. The two men pulled out baseball bats. Carl took a step back with his hands raised.
“No, stop!” Aspen yelled.
“Go home, right now.” The men told Aspen. “Go home and never run away again.”
Carl swung his fist into the guy’s jaw, making him stumble to the ground. The other one swung his baseball bat, but Carl ducked. He right hooked him in the face. Carl ran up to Aspen and grabbed her arm.
“We gotta run.”
The two ran down the street. Aspen ran faster than him, as if she was trying to get away from him too.
“Wait, slow down!” Carl yelled.
She turned around a corner.
“Wait, Aspen!” He yelled. He stopped, giving up on running.
Carl went home. Lip was sitting at the table holding Debbie’s daughter, Franny.
“Hey man,” Lip said.
“Hey, where’s Debbie?”
“At work. Asked me to watch Franny.”
“Cool.”
“What happened?” Lip asked, noticing Carl’s expression.
“I saw a woman get shot last night,” Carl said. “I couldn’t help her. But today, I saw a girl being chased by two grown ass men and I helped her, but she had blood on her shirt and when the guy’s confronted her, she told them it wasn’t her blood.”
“You think she killed that woman?” Lip asked.
He nodded. “Yeah, I think it’s possible.”
Lip sighed. Franny got out of his arms and ran to Carl. Carl picked her up and held her on his side.
“Shit, what are you gonna do?” he asked Carl.
“I’m gonna try and find her, get some answers.”
“Okay.” Lip said. “But what are you going to do when you find her? Tie her up in the basement until she talks?”
“Yeah,” Carl nodded. “I did that one time with the people I was trying to help get clean. I could do that.”
Lip just chuckled.
Carl leaned against his fence. He saw Aspen walking down the street.
“Aspen,” Carl said.
“Do I know you?”
“I’m Carl,” he said. “We met the other day.”
“Oh yeah, you’re the dumbass who put yourself in front of two large men.”
“I saved your life.” Carl argued.
She laughed. “No you didn’t. You didn’t do anything but prove you’re a good citizen.”
“Go into my house and into the basement. I have questions for you.”
“Not gonna happen.”
“If you don’t, I’m gonna find those two guys and tell them where you are.”
“Okay, fine, shit, don’t do that.” Aspen said.
“Good, now get in.”
He opened the door and she walked into his house. He guided her to the basement and handcuffed her wrists.
“I’ll let you go when you answer these questions.”
She rolled her eyes.
“Whose blood is that?” he asked, gesturing to her shirt.
“Not telling.”
“Look, your mother is probably worried sick. I want you to go home. All you have to do is tell me.”
She sighed. “Her name is… was Esther.”
“I knew it,” he said. “You killed her.”
“What? No I didn’t.”
“How do you know Esther?”
“I didn’t know her, I just saw her get killed and everything. She didn’t deserve that.”
“No, she didn’t.”
“I didn’t kill her, Carl.”
“Why were those guys chasing you?”
She stayed silent.
It had been 3 days. Aspen still didn’t tell Carl why the two men were after her. He promised not to turn her in, he promised not to tell the police anything, but still nothing.
“I’m gonna ask you again, why were they chasing you?”
She looked down. “You don’t want to know.”
“What did you do?”
“I didn’t do anything.” Aspen said.
“Then tell me.”
“Fine, okay?” she said. “Those guys are hired by my mom. They’ve been taking care of me since I was little. They fed me every day, took care of me. My mom didn’t want to be my mother. She wanted to have kids, but made them do all the work. I hate them, I always have.”
“Did they ever hurt you?”
“Yeah, that was how they punished me. They didn’t know what to do. Nobody seemed to care much about what I had to say.”
“Did they ever do anything… else to you?”
“Ew, no.”
“It only took you three days, but you’re free to go.” He released her hands.
She stood up, but she didn’t move.
“What is it?” Carl asked her.
She looked at him. “Don’t make me go.”
“You have to go home, Aspen.”
“Please, don’t make me leave. That’s the only reason I didn’t speak. The only reason I stayed down in this shithole basement. I can’t go back there, please.”
He hugged her. “It’s okay, you don’t have to.”
“Really?”
“Stay here with me.”
One week later
Carl woke up and Aspen was beside him. Carl developed strong feelings for her. He smiled at her. He went downstairs and sat at the table.
“How’s Aspen?” Debbie asked him.
“Fine, she’s still sleeping.”
“Are you two a thing?” Ian asked.
“I don’t know, man.”
She walked down the stairs and sat at the table. Franny ran to her lap. Aspen picked her up and set her on her lap.
“She really likes you,” Debbie said.
“I guess so.”
“So do I.” Carl blurted out.
Everyone looked at him.
“What?” Aspen asked.
“He said he liked you.” Lip said, popping a strawberry in his mouth.
Carl rolled his eyes at him.
“I like you too.”
“Wait, really?” Carl asked.
Everyone looked at her with shock.
“You’re the only person who actually ever cared about me.”
He smiled. She grabbed his shirt collar and pulled him closer. She kissed him.
Franny covered her eyes. “Ew.” she said.
They just laughed.
And that is the end. Hope you enjoyed the love story between Carl and Aspen.