RING RIIIIING RING RIIIIING RING RIIIIING Edward Bartlett turned a few heads with the sudden ringing of his phone. He covered the phone that was in the inner pocket of his black suit jacket hoping it’d help tone down the noise. “I’m sorry. Can I pick this up?” he whispered to Felicity Burgin in a black blouse standing beside him. “Yeah, sure,” she answered with a smile. Edward retreated from a group of people also dressed in black who were now focused on a man giving a eulogy speech. He walked on the grass far enough that he could no longer hear the man speaking through a microphone. He then pulled out his phone and glanced at the caller. It was Gray. He picked it up. “Hello?”

“Oww” Edward Bartlett groaned as he fell off the couch. When he helped himself up, he noticed the blanket he used was spread on the floor as if it was meant to be there. He picked it up and was about to lull himself to sleep again, on his way to lie back on the couch; however, the sunlight, piercing his eyes, prevented him from thinking so. “It’s morning already?” he said in a groggy hoarse voice along with a wide opening of his mouth, letting out a yawn. He slightly pinched in between his brows and squinted his eyes a couple more times in order to fend off sleepiness. Then he folded the blanket neatly and put it on the couch, atop the pillow he used. He lightly stretched around, then his gut rumbled. “We didn’t get to eat last night.” He looked over at the kitchen. “I should cook.” He paced toward the kitchen. “I wonder if there’s anything to cook,” he said

“What is that?” uttered Ronald. Gray saw him standing up as well as Colleen. His head turned around, looking for the source of the sound. “Whose phone is that?” The men began tilting their heads and checking their phones. “Not mine,” said one man. “Not mine either,” responded another. “Fuck, fuck, fuck,” thought Gray and abruptly hit the power off button of her phone in panic without looking at the caller. When she peeked back at them, Ronald was still suspicious. She laid flat on the floor. She could feel the beating of her heart rising to her throat. She glanced at the door she entered from. If things go south, that was her only escape plan. “Is someone else here?” Ronald

“Hey!” Gray Stewart abruptly ducked right under where Disgustington was standing. Luckily, since the lights were dimmed, he was unable to notice her. Disgustington, on the other hand, abruptly zipped his zippers up and caught himself. “Fuck!” he yelped. While he was still preoccupied with his own problem, Gray took this opportunity to hide among the machinery, stealthily crawling her way in. She didn’t even bother to check who it was that shouted earlier. Whether the “hey” was directed at her or not, she would find out in a few seconds. Hiding herself behind the machines, she heard approaching steps. “What the hell are you doing, leaving your post?!” a man said furiously. He

Gray Stewart silently listened in on the two men’s conversation beyond the other side of the room, kneeling on the floor with her right ear planted on the door. “I thought they’d be coming tomorrow?” said a man with a hoarse voice. “That’s what I thought too,” intoned another man with a deep voice. “We’d get our money early then.” The hoarse-voiced man snickered. “I don’t know, man.” The deep-voiced man seemed hesitant with his words. “What?” “I got a kid, man. She means the world to me. I’m not really on board with this trafficking thing.” “Oh?” thought Gray to herself. And while listening in on them, she named the hoarse-voice man Evil and the other man Half-evil. Evil sneered. “You gettin’ cold feet now? We smuggled drugs and bombs, robbed banks, counterfeited and laundered money. We even trafficked women before. You still tryna be a saint, man?” “Man, a bachelor like you will never understand me. I have a fa