When Carlos wasn't looking, Rue tried to sneak a few dollars, but he flipped right around and smiled at her.

"Stealing again?" He asked, raising his eyebrows again.

"What? No!!" She stuttered. She hadn't stolen anything from the store... Yet...

"Yeah you were!!" Called Galik from behind. "I saw you!!"

"Oh, put a can in it!" Rue yelled back. Carlos smiled, but looked confused.

"So... Were you?" He asked.

"Can we get out of here? Then I'll tell you," Rue offered, not wanting to be overheard by certain, *cough* Galik, people.

"Umm, sure. I'll just tell Journey I'm on break. It'll be fine," Carlos promised.

——

Rue sat on the grass in a nearby park, the wind hitting her face and blowing her knotted hair behind her. Carlos admired her copper hair, and the smile on her face. But he didn't like it when she turned to him and frowned.

"I lied."

"What?" Carlos asked, confused.

"I am a liar, and a criminal," Rue admitted.

"And a thief," Carlos added.

Rue didn't smile, but repeated, "And a thief. It's all because... Because..." She felt like a little kid. "I'm homeless. Well, I have a home, it's just not a home-home. Like an apartment... Does that make sense?"

"Yeah, it does. So, you live on the streets? Cool!" Carlos tried to make the situation better.

"Not cool! And there's more! I lost my mom. I just... I just get so ANGERY!! Like, who am I? Then, I get fired from all of my jobs... And Sidney... And..." Rue panted and started crying, again. "Sidney..."

"Who's Sidney?" Carlos asked.

"Sidney's my... sister," Rue lied.

"Really? Why do I feel like you're lying?" Carlos smiled.

"Fine. Don't tell anyone but, she was my foster kid... Well, adopted kid. When I ran away, she came with me. She, um, got into my suitcase," Rue gulped, "And she was taken away from me, by an officer."

"At least she gets a good, normal life now."

"You don't understand!! I LOVED HER!!!! I am normal! We were normal!! I was her mother, her only hope, her friend! I was the one who fed her, bathed her, sang to her at night!! I WAS HER MOTHER SHE NEVER HAD!! And I let her slip through my fingers. I," Rue sobbed, "didn't give her what she needed."

Carlos looked down at the ground and picked at the grass. "Yeah, you got some pretty bad karma, there."

"Car- wha?" Rue questioned, never hearing of the word.

"Karma."

"What does that mean?"

"Never mind."

"Carlos?" Rue asked.

"Huh?"

"Do you forgive people? And keep secrets?"

"Well, I mean," He started, but stopped when he saw her face, "Yeah. I do. And I will, for you." He smiled at her.

"Thanks."

"Yeah, okay. But will you tell me one last thing?" Carlos looked at Rue and grabbed her hands. "What's your name?"

Rue looked down from Carlos' glare. She took a deep breath and stood up, dragging Carlos up with her. "I am Rue Candice."

Carlos smiled. "Well, Rue Candice, I love you." He kisses her on her cheek. Rue stepped away, dizzily.

"Hey. Woah!! What was that?" Rue asked, still backing away. "I've only known you for a day, dude! Back off!"

"Oof. Sorry, Rue. I'm just... I really like you... Well as a friend I mean. Not anything more, that's just... Strange?" Carlos stuttered, blushing and feeling ashamed.

"It's okay. We all have regrets," Rue admitted. "Just, don't do it again. We  can be 'just friends'."

"Just friends sounds good," Carlos forced a smile, wishing that Rue felt something more for him, but she was right, they had only just met the other day. But Carlos felt like he had known her for a long time. "What else should we talk about?"

"How about you?"

"Oh. You don't want to know about me..." He started, but Rue interrupted.

"I spilled the truth to you, now spill the truth to me. Before I punch you."

"Okay, well, I was born in Kentucky, and my parents moved to Boston when I was four. I was basically a crazy person, and was sent to a boarding school here, in New York. It sucked, really. My parents moved here when I ten, and we have lived here ever since. And then, well, my grandma moved in and I got two younger sisters, and I stopped boarding school. And now I go to a public school. High school stinks, too."

"Oh. That's doesn't sound good. But not as bad as my history." Rue assured him, which he took as a challenge.

"Oh yeah? Then what's your life story?" He smiled.

"Well, when I was three, I got lost in a store. And so I found a guy named Daniel, and he called me Lou. Then, he took me to the foster care center, the worst place ever. I ran away with Sidney when I was sixteen and, yeah. Sidney was taken away from me... Yesterday..." Rue confessed.

"Oh boy... That must have sucked so much."

"Why do you say that word so much?" Rue questioned. She stared at the children with their parents; their mommy's and daddy's. She sighed while Carlos thought of the right words to explain why.

"It shows how much I don't like something. Like it is really bad, but instead of using bad all the time, you say it really sucks," He explained, looking to see if she was still confused.

"But then what is the point of using 'sucks' instead of bad if you say 'sucks' all the time anyway. I mean, why can't you just say that it isn't good, or it's horrible, or it doesn't seem as perfect as it should be??" Rue pointed out.

"Because that's too much work!!" Carlos sighed, and then chuckled.

"Oh, is it now?" She threw a fist full of grass at him. "That wasn't too hard. And it was PHYSICAL activity!"

"Really? You're gonna give me ticks!" Carlos complained, and threw a fist full at her.

"Good!"

It became a grass fight, whatever that is... Then, they picked the dandelions out of each other's hair.

"You know, you're cute when you're playful," Rue noted.

"Are you saying I'm not always cute?" He asked, pretending to be hurt.

"Yeah, that's exactly what I am saying!"

"Aww..."

"You know, I'm glad I told you the truth. I have been lying for too long. I promise to try and stop lying," Rue promised.

"That's a big promise!" Carlos said, "And I am glad we told our truths, too."