Strangers, Secrets, and Games

It dawned upon her right then, as Hayden stood, shaking in the cold rain. She was clutching the little black book that the man in front of her had dropped, realizing just how infamous it truly must be if even she knew some of the names inside it's pages. Like a school roster, she couldn't read aloud in fear that if she did she would be marked, like the scarlet letter, having literally called out the names of those possibly involved in committing heinous crimes that she couldn't bear to think of, dare to speak of. She began wondering to herself a myriad of foolish, frightening thoughts. The first, being if those around her knew that she knew?

Paranoid, Hayden clutched the book fearing the way a girl fears she has "changed" after her first time and it might be noticeable, somehow, to her family and friends. Was just having the information stored somewhere in the depths of her mind enough to get her into some kind of trouble? The wealth of scandalous, dangerous information and the people associated with it screamed through the rain like a Siren, calling her, daring her to reopen Pandora's box. "No!", Hayden said aloud and startled herself and a small boy holding his mother's hand next to her. She quickly covered her mouth in embarrassment and began walking.

As raindrops fell, Hayden began to feel like she was sinking, like the drops plop-plopping down from her head, along the strands of her soaked auburn hair and onto the pages of the book. She quickly shut the book, and her mouth which had began to open to call out for the man until she had stupidly looked inside though she wished she hadn't. Hayden decided that she ought to find a place to dry off, somewhere she could warm up, so that she could think about what on earth she should do more clearly. As she strode along, taking quick steps as though she had no time to lose, Hayden thought about the worst part of it all being the VIP's named and blamed inside of the little black book she now possessed. She thought of those who she knew of, but didn't truly know. This book, filled with the names and actions of politicians, athletes, and actors. Although Hayden was just 19 and in her second year at her University, she had seen enough fictional cinematic drama and conspiracy YouTube videos to know that those with too much information about certain people didn't seem to fair well. Well, it was NOT going to be her farewell, that Hayden decided right there. She was going to find her way out of this serendipitous mess one way or another.

On the other side of town now, the man felt inside his jacket pocket to retrieve the book as he climbed the stairs in front of the tall building where he was to meet with his boss that day. Feeling nothing more than the lining of his pocket inside his jacket, dread and guilt swelled up inside of him in a way he had never felt before. Not only had he been wracking his mind all day, trying to forget what he read when he opened up the little black book of secrets, after pulling off such a dangerous heist by request, but now his trouble was 10 fold.

Why did the man agree to this job with out even knowing the truth about it? He had always been so careful in the past. Focused too much on his own pay day instead of using proper judgement even he felt that he had gotten in way over his head on this one. He was entering the large lobby of the building just as he came to the realization that the book was in fact, gone. The man let out a more than audible expletive, that echoed for the lobby guests and employees of the building to hear alike and dashed quickly out nearly slipping down the stairs in the rain. He had no choice but to find it. The man began back-peddling his way to the bus stop when a girl, moving just as fast as he was suddenly collided with him.

Out of Hayden's hands flew the book. It landed about a foot away from the both of them and they dove for it with purpose, like baseball players trying to slide into home with the world series riding on their shoulders. "Hey", they exclaimed, almost in unison, "that's mine". However, the book, nor it's contents truly belonged to either of them and they both shared the same feeling of wishing they had never opened it and become part of something so shadowy in the first place.

The man got to the book first and snatched it up. "I need to know what you know," he said to Hayden. Hayden nodded in compliance, fearing that if she ran it would only make things worse. The two decided to speak over a hot cup of coffee at the cafe in which stood parallel to where their little dance of doom had just taken place. They walked calmly into the shop and sat a a small, corner table. The two of them sizing each other up in their minds. Hayden's eyes seems to move back and forth like the black and white cat clock her grandmother used to own, while the man's moved up and down taking Hayden in as though he could visually extract her secrets.

Without knowing why, Hayden decided it best to tell the man that she found the book and was looking for him to give it back when she bumped into him. The man smiled as he wasn't born yesterday and began explaining as though he already knew that she had looked inside and had also been made privy to the information that an arrangement would need to be made in order to keep them both safe. So, it was settled quickly then, in about 10 minutes, over the best cup of coffee either of them had ever drank after being out in the freezing rain without knowing what to do. It warmed and consoled both of them to have come to this agreement which ended with Hayden receiving a $20,000 dollar pay-off in exchange for signing a non-disclosure agreement.

As they parted ways, both Hayden and the man glanced back towards each other only once, then never again, both wanting to close the chapter in time that began with the secrets inside the little black book.