Carmen surprised him by agreeing to go to the movie. Garrett figured Kevin's accident had a bit to do with it. It was the way with people. Once they saw the underbelly of life, it scared them. Carmen was scared into seeing what she was missing. That was fine with Garrett.

He bought both tickets, even with her protesting. It was the fake kind of protesting, and it made him smile. Though the movie was decidedly for white people, it was spectacular.

Carmen didn't stop talking about the movie as they walked out of the theater. She wound down when she glanced about, noticing the dark sky and empty sidewalks.

"It's late," Garrett said, regretting how obvious that sounded. "I'll walk you home."

Carmen nodded. She may have been willing to fake a protest over a ticket purchase, but was city-smart to accept his companionship on a walk home at night.

They arrived at her front steps an hour later. Garrett wished her a good night, mostly because he didn't know what else to say. Carmen stood half on the steps, half on the sidewalk, as if she couldn't decide what she wanted.

Finally, she grinned and murmured, "'Night."

Garrett wondered if she lingered because she wanted him to kiss her.

In truth, Garrett remembered very little of the film he had been excited to see. What eclipsed all else were the slender, graceful lines of Carmen's hands and arms. They stood out every time the screen lit up in the darkened theater. A few times, she reached up to brush popcorn salt from her lips, and Garrett looked away. He was a gentleman. That didn't mean he wasn't thinking hard on it on the walk home.

Footsteps fell behind him, but he barely noticed. He did move to the left on the off-chance the pedestrian wished to pass him.

All thought of Carmen's hands and mouth vanished as a sharp pain bit into his side. An arm clamped on his arm, dragging him into the closest alleyway.

"Gimme your wallet," a stranger growled from behind, one hand locking Garrett in place, and the other poking what he assumed was a knife near his stomach.

They wanted what every person wanted, and Garrett gave them just that. He instructed them to reach into his right coat pocket. Once the thief had it, they pushed him to the ground and ran.

On hands and knees, breath shallow, Garrett waited one, two minutes. After another minute, he reached out to steady himself on a wall then stood. His legs wanted to rebel. He wouldn't let them.

He arrived home feeling exhausted and bursting with adrenaline all at once. The encounter had scared him, but Carmen had anchored him. He hadn't allowed himself to panic or play the hero, because he wanted to see her at least once more.

~*~

A drop of water slid down into Garrett's nose. It was as close as he'd been to drowning, and he sat up sputtering. The pillow was soaked, but most of the drip had missed his face. He shook his head, grabbed the bucket to catch the drip, and hopped into his work coveralls.

Scary as last nigh had been, it was also wonderful. He wouldn't let the bad parts get him down.

Whistling, he watered the plants, then danced around his small apartment picking up yesterday's socks and newspaper. As the sun rose, he emerged from the building to make it to the bus-stop. Only, when it arrives, he can't get on because his pass and money was in his wallet, and who knew how many hands that had passed through by now. Garrett opted to walk to work, which took an hour instead of the twenty-minute bus ride. For the first time in years, he was late for shift start.

Shift manager Mario gave him a hard time, but not too bad. Just called him a jackass while implying all his "peoples" were lazy, and so it wasn't really Garrett's fault. He couldn't help but be late, apparently. He sighed, accepted the verbal abuse, and promised he would do better.

On the line, someone else had settled next to Carmen. The newbie, in to replace Kevin, was a young man, white, and handsome. Peter, as he overheard the man introduce himself. The boy was reminded several times to keep his eyes on his task instead of continuing side conversations. Garrett figured he wasn't the type to last long. Not at this job.

Peter threw a grin Carmen's way, and this time Garrett tapped him on the shoulder.

"The last guy got hurt, so pay attention."

The kid shrugged and half-assed it the rest of his shift.

Having never really experienced jealously, Garrett was shocked by how ugly he felt inside.

At lunch, Garrett caught up with Carmen. His smile, for her and her alone, disappeared as soon as he noticed Peter seated beside her at their spot. She patted the seat on the other side of her, and told him she missed him, especially after last night.

Seeming to get the hint, Peter slipped away from the table, leaving them alone. Relief and pleasure flooded through Garrett.

So much so, that in a rush, he confesses that he was so caught up in that night, he let himself get mugged.

Carmen laughed. It was the laugh he loved, because it ran over all the bad spots. Then, the laugh dissolved into a wet cough. He handed her a handkerchief. When she pulled it from her mouth, spots of blood bloomed on the fabric.

Alarmed, Garrett suggested a trip to the hospital.

"After what happened with Kevin, they need all the bodies in here," Carmen said, essentially refusing the offer.

Boldly, Garrett caressed her cheek. "You're not just any body."

She covered his hand with hers and smiled. "Lemme buy you a drink after work. You've had a tough night and day, and I wanna treat you."

"A lady doesn't treat a man."

"I'm not a lady. Just your friend."

With that, it was hard to disagree.

~*~