Chapter 380 - Checks (Background story, can skip)

Checks was there in his office, lounging as always. He had always been comfortable anywhere. If you had been once a street rat then you would find anywhere else comfortable. He had his feet up his desk which was thoroughly organized.

The pile in the center of the table was already labeled and had been assigned to their respectful assassins. He had always liked getting the job done early in the day so he would be able to make better use of his nightime.

Today, he had finished his work earlier than he expected. It seemed like people wanted a lot of others dead before the leaves drop to the ground. There was an astounding amount of money that those papers on his desk hold.

He was looking out the city that he had been on just for a few weeks. He was not that very picky on where he would station. As he always said, "Everywhere but the streets is good." Give him a desk and a chair and he would start working.

He was not lavish. Even though he had come from nothing and now able to buy all the things that he wanted, he still did not indulge himself with all the luxury of life. He was happy knowing that there was money safely in the bank.

When he would retire, he planned that he would build a hospice or an orphanage. Where else was he going to put his money other than in the people who had been the same as him. Jaws, their former boss, had given him a second chance in life.

He was found on the street, dirty and smelly. It was like all the bad scents had created him. He was more smell than he was human. Jaws found him one night. He was m.o.a.ning in pain, trying to sleep. He was sure that he had contracted some kind of disease. He had been living alone in the streets since he ran away from home.

Suddenly, there was just a man shaking him awake. He could barely open his eyes from all the dirt. It had rained the night before and he was covered in guttered water which dried on his clothes, body, and face. 

"Would you like to come with me?"

He immediately shook his head. He had known better. There were men who had asked him to come and gave him food for the night. But there were always something else that they wanted with him. He didn't want to look back on those days anymore.

He always thought that the next one wouldn't do the same but they did anyways.

He furiously shook his head and held out a hand to stop the man whose face was half covered in shadow. "I'm not going to hurt you," he said.

He had heard that before.

"Do you want to eat?"

Just even the prospect of eating made his stomach grumble loudly.

"Do you want to come with me?"

With the pain in his head and his body, Checks could not help but start crying. If this man was going to force him into something, he could try but it was not something that he could fight.

"No, no!" said the man, who chuckled lightly. "I'm not really going to hurt you." Then he signalled to the man behind him and he was handed something that gleamed in the light. "Here," the man said. "You can stab me with this if I do something that you're not going to like. I just want to make sure that you're alright. You're shivering. I think you need care."

Checks lifted his eyelids more and saw that the shiny object was a short knife. It looked sharp and dangerous. He had only been a child then.

"Go on," said the man. "Get it and arm yourself, then I'll get you something to eat."

With a weak arm, he grabbed the knife and clutched it with his fist with all the strength that he could muster. 

"Do you know how to speak?" the man asked.

He nodded.

"What's your name?"

That was where he shook his head. People had come and asked him that, then told him that they would go to the police station to help him find his parents. He had always ran away.

"Hmm…" said the man, tilting his head to the side. "What's that on your shirt? Is that checkered? The pattern?"

He could barely remember how his shirt looked with all the dirt. He nodded anyway.

"I'll call you Checks. Would that be alright?"

He nodded again.

The man stood up and ran a hand on his beautiful straight suit. There was no denying that the man was well-off. Quickly, his eyes went to all the jewelry that man was wearing. He could stab him and take as much. That would set him off for a few good weeks. Maybe even a bed for a month. 

"Come along now. Let's get you your fill."

Checks got up from the rotten cardboard box that had been his bed for the past few months. His hold on the hilt of the knife still strong. He was waiting for the man to attack him but he only casually walked along the sidewalk that was almost deserted.

"We're going to eat here. Is that good enough?" he asked when they stopped in front of a small store. It was a pop-up and was manned by an old lady.

He was given a bowl of porridge and the man only watched him as he ravaged bowl after bowl until he could no longer breathe.

"Are you feeling better?" the man asked when he set the last bowl down.

He nodded his head.

"Good," said the man.

Now that he was full, he felt energized. His body had stopped shivering. A plan had formed in his head. He was going to stab the man, quickly pull every accessory he can, and run away from his men.

That should be easy. He knew these streets well from running away from cops and bullies.

"I've come to offer you a proposition," said the man and he already positioned his knife from under the table. "We don't you—"

The man didn't get to finish his sentence as Checks swung his arm wildly in front of his, aiming for the throat. For a split second, he regretted what he did. He didn't think that living in the streets would force him to become a murderer. But he was desperate.

But then he was relieved when he saw that the man only tilted his chair backwards, avoiding the point of the knife completely.

He was going to kill me now, thought Checks. He had been kind to me and I made an attempt in his life.

He was floored when the man smiled at him. "You're going to need that skill. Do you want to wear suits like this? Earn money? Have a place to stay and eat for the rest of your life?"

What? Checks was confused.

"You can have everything that you want. All you have to do is come with me."

He still didn't know what made him take that man's hand but he did.