Hello there :) Welcome to the universe of my story. I hope all that you find is to your liking. This is my first time doing anything (save reviewing) ever on this site, so that's my excuse for if anything goes stupid.

This entire thing will be in either Andre's POV, or third person. The chapters won't be this short normally, this was really only to set the mood and peak your interest.

I'll update once a week regularly, unless my life decides to go crazy and I can't.

[Mandatory disclaimer goes here]

Enjoy :D

Nobody knows how it went wrong, but it did. And now we're in chains as people look at us as if we are lambs for slaughter, and it pisses me off, to be honest. Even though the situation is exactly like that, to me.

The crime started years ago, on a day when we were all bored and wanted money to buy some ice cream. Jade suggested they find a random person and rob them, then beat 'em up just for kicks. I didn't think she was serious, but when she started trying to plan it out, I made it clear I didn't want anything to do with it. And of course she called me a pussy and turned to persuade Cat, and that didn't take long. She knows Cat would do almost anything she asked her to, and she takes advantage of it.

Then it was the two of them against me, and that didn't take long, either; I gave in when they started talking about doing it just by their selves. It's not just Jade that knows how to manipulate Cat and I, we've been around each other long enough to the point of knowing exactly how to get the others to do something for them. I don't know whether it's pathetic or a testament to our friendship.

We robbed a man in a suit in broad daylight, but we didn't just drag him into an alleyway and rough him up. It was stealthier than that. I walked by him and shoved rough enough for him to stumble and drop his bag, Cat went to busy him, and Jade grabbed his bag and took his wallet. By the time Cat was done, Jade and I were down the block, counting the money and wishing Cat would hurry up so we could go to Ben & Jerry's.

It was only after we had the ice cream did we discuss maybe doing it again. "We're natural-born thieves. Did you see how well we robbed that guy of his wallet? It would be a sin not to take advantage of this glorious opportunity that's been given to us." Jade said.

"What we just did was wrong, the only reason I was in it was because I didn't want you guys getting hurt! It's against the law. What if we get caught? We could go to jail, or worse, 'criminal labor.'" I reasoned, making quotation marks with my fingers. Criminal labor is nothing but slavery for the rich, glorified by the government so that people who can't afford it don't realize what' going on.

Jade rolled her eyes. "Stop being so dramatic, they're not going to put us in chains just because we robbed a couple of people. We'd get a month in the local slammer, tops; and we could only get that if we get caught." She said, and smirked. "We're good, Andre. There's no way we could lose in this situation."

I turned to Cat. "What d'you think, Cat?"

She stopped eating her ice cream and look up at Jade, then me. "I'm with Jade. It's more money and if I'm going to be a famous actress one day, I'm going to need the experience." She said.

I groaned and ran my hands down my face. Jade smirked triumphantly and said, "Well, I guess that tells us what we're doing today. Let's go down to 43rd, my dad says that's where the wannabe big-shots work."

Throughout our entire crime career, I never approved. I promised my grandma I'd be a good person, and it was only a matter of time before I couldn't keep lying to her and spilled to her everything I've done. But whenever I wonked out after we robbed someone (or a place, because they were the next step), Jade and Cat were quick to calm me down, and they brought the guilt down just enough for me to go home and look my grandma in the eye. But even then it was becoming harder and harder to do so.

The worst thing about it was the fact that I could've stopped any time, but I kept at it because it stopped becoming about protecting the two. It was clear that they could do that just as well as I could. Instead it became about how the heists made me feel alive, almost the same way performing did. That was the guiltiest thing about it for me, and it wasn't something that could go away with a few comforting words. Only I could stop it. And I didn't.

The last time we ever stole, the time we got caught, I was planning to tell my grandma everything. All the details about the cleanest times, the bloodiest times, the times we almost got caught, and the times we got away with everything. I guess that's what distracted me during that last robbery, thinking about coming clean, and ultimately caused the plan to fail, but I should stop blaming myself. It's becoming borderline-masochistic, thinking back and blaming myself. And I'm not even a masochist.

It was after we graduated high school. We decided to celebrate by doing something crazy, robbing a bank. Not just any bank, the biggest one with the most money, Bank of America. We'd robbed little banks before (it was surprisingly easy), but not one as big as that.

I was supposed to go in fifteen minutes before Jade and Cat and take out security and video, open the door, and be the lookout. Then Jade and Cat would go in and, by my direction, get to the vault and take as much as they could fit in their duffel bags. Then we'd leave, simple as that. Only it wasn't that simple.

We'd been okay until it was time to leave. There was a shift change, and we had to hide as dozens of security guards entered the building. We waited with bated breath as we huddled together in a too-small janitor's closet for someone to find us. Our hearts never stopped pounding, not even after a security guard walked by and Cat whimpered too loudly, and it tipped him off. Not even after he opened the door, saw us, and called for backup.

Charlotte Harris always wakes up early enough to watch the 6:30 am news, and today was no different. She went to check if Andre woke up, only to see that he wasn't there. It was a little suspicious, but she blamed it on her bad memory because of course he told her last night that he was going to sleep over at one of his friend's houses, and she just forgot. The suspicion never went away as it normally did when she forgets, but she didn't dare think of why that was.

She did however, after pouring herself a bowl of cereal and turning on the TV, find out why he wasn't here or subsequently at any of his friends' houses.

ABC11 was focusing on some story about three kids who apparently broke into the US's largest bank. Hmm, she thought, Andre's in a group of three. It didn't help her paranoia. But then again, neither did the video of the police bringing his two friends out in handcuffs. Oh God, please don't let Andre be next, She thought, as nausea crept up her body and her heartbeat grew faster and faster. But her praying was in vain because there he was, body slumped and hands behind his back, as a tall policeman guided him into the van outside.

She fainted.

"Well that was a big flop," Cat said, breaking both the silence and the tension inside the metal van.

"Ya think?" Jade replied as she lazily turned to Cat.

"You think this is big enough to send us into slavery now, Jade?" Andre asked. There was anger in his voice, and shame. By now his grandma is sure to know his double life as a full-time criminal, and he only wished he could have told her himself.

"I'm sorry, Dre. I thought it would work. It's my entire fault, and if I could I would take all the blame." Jade said, looking him in the eye.

"It's not your fault. I made the decision to go along with it; I'm responsible for my actions." He smiled. "And besides, you know I wouldn't let you take that all by yourself. We're a team." He nudged her shoulder with his.

"What's going to happen to us?" Cat asked childishly. She only acted that way when she was seriously scared.

"I don't know. But whatever it is, we're about to find out." Jade replied, and we were once again silent, although this time it lasted until we left the van.