There would always be a police pursuit somewhere in the city of Los Angeles, and two young white men happened to be in one of them. Matthew had to spend the late afternoon inside Robert's automobile as he drove around the city's warehouse district to evade law enforcement, which consisted of three police cars and a helicopter filming the scene for a live news broadcast. Matthew didn't want any of this to happen, especially at nineteen years of age, but he would have to take some of the blame because of what he had done just half an hour ago.
Robert sped up the car to move across a straight narrow road as quick as possible. An endless row of warehouses flew right past Matthew's line of vision. Pedestrians had little time to see who tried to flee from the police. Matthew wanted to look up at the sky to see where the helicopter would be, but he was too caught up with ways on how to escape. Sitting in the passenger side, he found himself breathless, with two drops of sweat about to fall off of his forehead. Summer's sweltering air did well to give his fretfulness a chance at showing off empirical evidence.
"I hate this!"
Robert kept his eyes on the road. "Just shut up, alright? We can make it."
Matthew wiped the sweat from off his forehead. "We shouldn't have done it, man! We shouldn't have done it!"
"Just shut up!"
"I can't go to jail for this shit."
"Are you fuckin' deaf or something?!"
Robert made a huge turn on an empty intersection, leaving behind visible tire tracks on the asphalt. "I'll tell you when to jump out."
"What if they find me?"
"I'm the one who's driving. They'll keep their eyes on me."
Matthew had no time to question his escape route. Robert slowed down near an empty parking lot. "All right, get out!"
Matthew opened the door and ran out of the vehicle. He didn't have time to see Robert drive off as he climbed up a chain link fence and ran across an empty alley. He could hear the sound of the helicopter fading away, most likely keeping their focus on his best friend. Now Matthew only had to worry about the two police officers and their K-9's trying to catch up to him. The constant yelling and barking encouraged him to keep running. He had nowhere to hide: he could see nothing but an empty stretch of an endless road in front of him.
After climbing up several more fences and passing through empty abandoned buildings, the officers' voices had been reduced to faint echoes. Matthew's athletic abilities really did pay off for now. He only had one of the dogs, chasing from behind, almost ready to strike. The young man was about to climb a wooden fence, which would lead to another empty alley, but the K-9 caught up to him and grabbed a piece of his shoe by the mouth. Matthew had to kick it away several times, but the purebred predator showed no signs of conceding defeat. Barking, it clawed at his pants and shoe. Luckily, it didn't scratch Matthew's skin and injured him. He gave one last kick before finally bringing himself up and jumping off onto the other side of the fence. The K-9 kept barking as it clawed at the fence, but the wood appeared invulnerable to its attacks. Matthew didn't look back as he searched for the perfect hiding spot in the middle of the city's warehouse district.
* * *
It took him at least fifteen minutes to try and find one. Progress came to a halt when he couldn't locate temporary shelter that wasn't inhabited with even a few employees. Matthew walked across a narrow alley alone. The color of the cloudless sky had changed from bright blue to a graceful mixture of orange and dark blue. From the northwest, the towering skyscrapers of the Los Angeles skyline held the appearance of a matte painting, looking realistic even if it didn't exist at all. Matthew wiped away sweat from his forehead. His black jeans and green sleeveless shirt did little to ease his body temperature. The late afternoon wouldn't be of much help, either. Even if the sun would soon relocate itself to the other side of the Pacific Ocean, the heat it left behind still wouldn't allow its own expiration to ensue at this time. A California summer brought out the best and the worst of its cause and effect.
The barking and howling that resonated as faint echoes kept him as vigilant as ever. And once it grew gradually louder, he looked at all directions to see if anyone from law enforcement spotted him. He quickened his pace as he continued to search for an authentic hiding place. Once he crossed the empty street, he came across a warehouse of moderate height and size. It appeared to be a two-story building with white walls that showed recent decay with its scattered brown stains. The rectangular windows looked new, though one was cracked because of a possible mishap. The front door had been left open. Matthew couldn't waste his time analyzing his current situation. He ran inside and shut the door.
From the inside, the warehouse looked quite spacious. It featured several rows of shelves containing boxes of all sizes. More shelves had been placed on top of the mezzanine. Even if the fluorescent lights on the ceiling were activated, the fading beams from the disappearing sun found temporary residency on the gray concrete floor. Matthew looked out the window to see if any of the police officers had seen him entering the building. He could hear footsteps growing louder with every step. But it didn't come from outside.
Matthew quickly turned around to see a bald and muscular African-American man stepping away from the shelves. He appeared to be much older than Matthew, perhaps in his mid to late thirties. He wore a pair of blue jeans and he held a clipboard in his hand.
"What the hell are you doing here?"
Matthew stepped away from the window. "I just need a place to stay. That's all."
A sudden knock on the front door made him lean behind the wall, away from the glass.
The black man asked, "Who's behind that door?"
Matthew whispered, "Probably a Jehovah's Witness."
"Now I know you're lying."
Matthew stayed still as the employee walked up to the front door and opened it. The young man couldn't see whoever stood right outside the door, but he stayed assured that law enforcement was just a few feet away. It became reality when the employee and the cop held a brief discussion regarding Matthew's crime and whereabouts. He took a deep breath and waited for the employee to provide the most crucial information available.
But the employee replied, "No, I haven't seen any at this time."
After a few more questions, the cop reminded the black man to call the police if he had seen the robber that fit the description: a skinny young man with short blond hair. The employee nodded and closed the door. Matthew breathed a sigh of relief.
The employee, who was a few inches taller than the thief, stepped closer with a blank stare. "What's your name?"
"I'm Matthew."
"I'm Aaron."
"Let me stay here for a while, please."
"I can't do that. This place is not a shelter for criminals."
"I just did one thing wrong. It's not like a murdered a bunch of people."
"It doesn't matter. I can't let you stay here unless you earn it."
"And how will I earn it?"
Aaron pointed at the mop and bucket in the corner. "You see that? That's what you'll have to do to keep me from giving you away to the police."
Matthew nodded. "Hey, I'll do anything."
Aaron raised an eyebrow. "Anything?"
"That's right. Anything to stay away from the cops."
"Then you better do what I say. And do it now."
Matthew didn't say another word. He grabbed the mop and bucket and began tonight's unforeseen errand. He wet the mop and cleaned the floor with it. Aaron watched from several feet away, slowly tapping his fingers on his clipboard. Just a few seconds after Matthew started his chore, a door below the mezzanine opened and closed. Another African-American man, this time with long dreadlocks, arrived on the scene.
He took off his truckers cap and asked, "When did we hire another custodian?"
Aaron shook his head. "This guy's not one of ours, Clive. He's here to stay away from prison."
"Is that so?"
"I'm sure he'll do a good job cleaning up this whole place."
"That is, if he's up to it."
Matthew interrupted, "Oh, I'll prove it to you."
Clive walked away with a little smirk on his face.