Hitman [Becca and Cream]

Crim

Crim

The blobfish
It was early afternoon when Ryleigh arrived at the library. It was better than been caught at home between her mother who was still desperately trying to get her into modelling, and her father who had his own business expectations of her. Not living up to her famous parents expectations was hard. She wanted to follow her passion which meant it was easier to hide in the library than stay at home. Plus, hiding here meant there would be no surprise pictures of her suddenly in the media. Ryleigh hated been the centre of attention. She was definitely known as the oddball of her family, and as an only child, she often found herself being talked about for not following in their footsteps.

Ryleigh looked just like her mother, Jessica Anderson. Long red hair and freckles over her cheeks and nose. At 5'3 she wasn't that tall for a model, but due to her mother, apparently she was an exception. The only thing she got from her father was his build - she wasn't stick thin like her mother and had some meat to her bones to give her an overall hourglass figure which she hid under conservative clothing - jeans and a button up long sleeved shirt. She also got her green eyes from her father which were framed by her glasses.

So instead of doing what her parents wanted her to do, at 19 she was majoring in Illustration and a minor in Creative Writing and in her first year. She had fallen in love with a beautiful illustrated copy of the Chronicles of Narnia by C.S.Lewis when she was younger.

Finding a table at the back of the library gave her a good view of the library so that she could take out her sketchbook and start her daily warm up sketches of her surroundings. Ryleigh noticed another person, a male at the table, but didn't take any further notice of him as she put her messenger bag down on the table and dug out her sketchbook. Ryleigh set that and her pencil case neatly on the table before hanging her bag on the back of her chair. She was very meticulous in her actions. It was the beginning of November and the temperature had dropped.

First came off her cream hat, gloves and scarf, which she also placed neatly folded on the table; once they were sorted she removed her matching winter coat and hung it on the back of the chair. Once seatered, she went about sorting out her supplies and neatly ordering them on the table: ruler, pencils, eraser, sharpener and pens. All neatly lined up next to her sketchbook. Definitely a little more than OCD.

Her eyes checked everything over once before she nodded, happy with how everything was before she opened her sketchbook. For anyone who caught her sketches, they were semi-realistic sketches and she had a talent for drawing. Grabbing her pencil, she started sketching in blue, a couple that were sitting across the room that seemed to be doing anything but studying.

Smiling, Ryleigh was comfortable doing what she loved to do more than anything else in the world.
 
Christ this was boring. Property law was genuinely hell on earth and it made Clark wish he was advancing his true job instead of posing for his second. A low grumble echoed in his throat as he flipped the page, giving him a moment to glance up and watch Ryleigh take her seat. She seemed focused enough on her ritual that she wouldn't notice his stormy eyes on her. This little show was disgustingly intimate for a library. The meticulousness betrayed far more than Ryleigh would ever reveal if he actually spoke to her, yet this was on flagrant display. Then the pencils and the tools...

He huffed to himself and slid a scrap of paper between the pages he was supposed to be reading and gently closed the book. Clark adjusted the sleeves of his heather grey sweater as he rose, doing his own ritual. It was as fake as his interest in law, but it prepared him to meet his target. He ran his long fingers through his tawny hair and twisted the front just enough. If he had to work with someone so damned orderly he would allow himself a touch of chaos.

The book which had put him in this mood was swept into his messenger bag before he tossed the strap onto his arm, rising from the table. Taking a steadying breath he smoothed his dark wash jeans then walked towards Ryleigh's table. He towered above the seated girl at a hair under six foot two, but hid it with a slight slouch and sway in his step. The bulky clothes did more than enough to hide the fit physique that filled out his frame.

Clark took out a second book from his bag and rose onto his toes to delicately slide it onto the top shelf, turn to walk away, then take a pause to examine Ryleigh's sketch. He cleared his throat in hopes she wouldn't leap out of her chair when he addressed her, but prepared himself for the near-certain event.

His voice was soft as he stood near her table, but didn't directly look at her. "I see they caught your attention as well." He crossed his arms across his chest, a whisper of a smile on his lips.
 
The strokes of her pencil was a comforting and relaxing sound for her. Whenever she drew, Ryleigh became lost in her own world; away from the reality and stress of everything else in her life. First she focused on drawing the faces of the couple, remembering how they looked when the girl had pressed her lips to the boy's. Ryleigh was a romantic at heart. She often had her head stuck in romance books and she liked analysing people around her and creating their stories in her head.

Lainy, her best friend who was the complete opposite to her often tried to get Ryleigh out into the big wide world. Ryleigh was quiet and shy. Lainy was loud and confident - she wanted Ryleigh to get out and experience life and romance herself.

She was so focused on this, that she didn't even notice that someone was watching her. Not even as he passed her, put a book on the shelf and start to pass her by again. Only when he cleared his throat and spoke, Ryleigh jumped and turned around to look who had spoken, blushing and closing her sketchbook up when she realised he'd seen who she was drawing.

Her green eyes looked him over, assessing his reason for talking to her before she answered. "I'm... it's just for my project." Ryleigh knew her reply was awkward but it wasn't every day that she found herself talking to the member of the opposite sex. He was possibly smiling at her and she couldn't tell if it was at her, or if he just found the situation amusing. And to make things worse she could feel the heat rising up her neck to her cheeks. Lainy always joked about her blushing because her cheeks always tried to match the colour of her hair.
 
He flicked his eyes from her face to her paper and smiled a little bigger. "An art major then? I don't see many of those anymore." He leaned in to get a closer look then chuckled and moved back, not wanting to make the poor girl worry too much. It already looked like she was losing blood to fill her cheeks instead of her brain. "I'm Clark, by the way."
 
"Actually I'm majoring in Illustration which is different to an art major." Ryleigh automatically corrected. It was easy to get the two muddled up occasionally. People who didn't know the ins and outs of the major didn't realise they were completely different. But she didn't need to continue explaining that. He probably didn't need to know.

When Clark introduced himself, Ryleigh was a little surprised that he had continued talking to her. It wasn't every day that someone took the time to notice and talk to her. Ryleigh did everything to not be noticed and to blend into the background. But this guy seemed to be content with talking to her, or at least expecting her to introduce herself back.

"I'm Ryleigh. Ryleigh Anderson."

He probably knew her name and would comment about who she was. She was ready for it. Even expected it. It wasn't anything new. It was why she introduced her full name at the start. To get it over and done with.
 
"Lovely to meet you, Ryleigh, and a true pleasure to see you work." He gave her a warm smile then fiddled with his messenger bag, as if he was planning to leave. It would be easier to leave, to be honest. She didn't seem like she was much up for conversation at the moment and he could only handle small talk for so long. He tightened the strap of his bag then looked at Ryleigh again.

"I'm going to be here tomorrow about the same time. Will you?"
 
Ryleigh was more than taken back by his sudden kind words. She hadn't expected them. And she hadn't expected him to ask if she would be here the same time tomorrow. God Lainy was going to have a field day with this once she told her friend what had happened.

"Yeah, most likely... the Library is the only place I can get things done, it seems." She told him. "It was nice meeting you too. Have a good afternoon."

God, Ryleigh really was awkward with people. That whole thing had been so awkward she doubted he would come back tomorrow, and if he did, he wouldn't seek her out to talk. But Ryleigh was right about one thing. Lainy had a field day with everything.

"And you didn't ask for his number??" She practically yelled, looking at her as if she was insane.

Ryleigh shrugged. "No, it was awkward and he didn't seem all that interested after the first sentence."

"He asked if you'd be there tomorrow. That's interest. Look, I'll come help you out tomorrow."

Ryleigh turned to Lainy and shook her head, horrified at her friend's suggestion. "I don't need help, Lain."

"You need serious help, Ry." Lainy smirked, pulling her friend into a quick hug. "But don't worry, that's why I'm here."

That's exactly what Ryleig was worried about. The kind of help Lainy wanted to give wasn't always the best kind. But as Ryleigh had said she would, the next afternoon she was at the library sitting in the same place and sketching. She'd been there a while. Lainy was actually studying for once, not far from her friend, but watching out for when this 'Clark' appeared.
 
Clark chuckled quietly at Ryleigh's simplicity then bobbed his head. "Sounds like a date then."

The rest of his day passed without interest. He reported his progress to his handler then enjoyed a beer and cold pizza to cap off his day. This was by far one of the duller missions he had ever been assigned to. The poor girl could hardly hold up her own end of a conversation... but it didn't matter in the end. In the end he would do what he had to and her inability to communicate would only make it easier for him.

He woke up at the same time as he did every morning then pulled on another preppy sweater, another pair of jeans, and slung the stupid messenger bag over his shoulder. The thing was going to give him back pain by the end of this charade, but he refused to do anything that would put a chip in his disguise.

Of course Ryleigh was exactly where she was yesterday, a slave to routine. Clark flashed her a crooked smile, not even sure if she would see it, then closed the distance and moved to pull out the chair adjacent to her. "Good afternoon, Ryleigh. Same sketch as before? Or did you need to change subjects since our distracting duo is elsewhere today?"
 
Ryleigh didn't know whether to be surprised or not when Clark showed up. On one hand she had thought that he wouldn't bother. On the other hand he seemed a little too sure of himself. He rminded her of someone who had a sudden interest in something always coming to see it. She didn't know if he had an interest or curiosity in her, not that it mattered. She doubted he did.

This time she did manage to smile as he sat down.

"No, just sketches from memory to practice anatomy and perspective. Sometimes I need to switch it up and for my class she wants us to fill our sketchbook up with small 5-10 minute sketches."

It was then that Ryleigh realised that she should probably ask him something, especially when she saw Lainy from the corner of her eye nodding and encouraging her silently to continue the conversation from the nearby table.

"So, what do you study?"
 
"Law, but it's definitely not all it's cracked up to be." He smoothed his hair back from having tried to catch Ryleigh's eye by dropping his head a little. "Although if I was half as talented as you are at drawing I wouldn't be a quarter as stressed. Five to ten minute sketches my foot. Those look amazing." He gave Ryleigh a sheepish smile, as if he felt a little silly giving such a bold compliment.

"Now what else do you do? It can't just be these remarkable little sketches."
 
Of all the things Ryleigh had expected Clark to say, Law had been the last. He just didn't look like a lawyer. But that was a good dependable subject to study. Hopefully he wouldn't become one of those ones that was corrupt and fought for the wrong side. She didn't really know him all that well to make that decision. Yet.

Yet? What was she thinking? Why was she thinking that they'd get to know each other? Was that what she was secretly hoping for? Ryleigh could feel Lainy staring at them and knew that she'd be wearing a smile from one ear to the next.

Her cheeks turned red again when Clark complimented her sketches. While Clark thought they were amazing, her parents didn't like the fact that she was following in her own footsteps and not theirs. They never complimented her work or supported her dreams. Just ignored her until they needed her to do what they wanted.

"You want to see more of what I draw?" Ryleigh was more than surprised.

Once he confirmed, Ryleigh pulled out a folder from her messenger bag where she kept works from coloured portraits, to larger black and white sketches, to full coloured cartoon fan art, mainly Disney. "Here is some of the full A4 sized stuff I've worked on this year." She told him, a little embarrassed that she was showing someone outside of her class.
 
'These are uterly fantastic and whimsical." Clark spent most of his focus on the sketchbook, but allowed his eyes to briefly wander in the same direction Ryleigh's had a moment before. Someone was watching them, but it wasn't malicious. Of course Ryleigh would have her friends, and this one seemed more impish than mischievous. She would be a fount of knowledge if he could get close enough.

He pointed to a sketch of a princess then chuckled softly, again his gaze reaching for Ryleigh's. "I think that one looks more like you than any of the princesses I grew up watching." His voice was now too soft to be heard by anyone but Ryleigh. Then he flipped to a black and white sketch, a crooked grin taking over the sheepish expression. "Now that looks like a man I could strive to be."

It was clearly a model for understanding anatomy, but the jibe would hopefully be enough to make Ryleigh cheer up even more.
 
"Well I tried to put my own style on the character rather than just drawing Belle straight as Disney draw her. I don't want her to look exactly like their character. I try to put my own twist on all the drawings that I take from reference or that aren't directly my own characters." She explained, still blushing from his compliments.

Lainy was itching to come over and intervene, but she stayed seated deciding to let Ryleigh continue the good work. She wasn't messing anything up currently so she felt it safe not to intervene.

When Clark stated about the man he strives to be, Ryleigh looked to see what portrait he was looking at. It was a portrait based on the type of man she wished she could find, the main character in one of her romance novels she was writing. "He's based on my main character Emmett for a novel I'm writing. Just how I imagine him to look." She decided to say instead.
 
Clark let his eyebrows shoot up when he heard about a writing project. He would love to get his hands on that. A book always told more of its author than of its actual story. Of course he couldn't just outright say that. Things would get interesting in a quite different way. Rather than allow that possibility he began to spin his own tale.

"Well would you fancy that. My middle name's Emmett. Clark Emmett Noakes." He chuckled a little then rubbed the back of his neck. "So, by the look of things, I've got to hit the gym a little harder and pull a Pinocchio to change my nose a tad." He shifted to look closer at the drawing, taking in every last stroke of charcoal.

"So you, Ms. Ryleigh, what kind of novel are you writing? You are steadily turning into a jack of all trades. Drawing and writing, anything else I should know? Are you perhaps a chemistry prodigy? A human calculator?"
 
His middle name was Emmett? Ryleigh couldn't hide the shock on her expression when he said that. She was a big believer in fate and everything that came with it. Was this fate working things? Lainy would be laughing, she always did when Ryleigh spoke about Fate and the likes of all that romantic rubbish that she hoped to get one day.

And when he started going on about how he should change his looks a little to match the portrait she'd drawn... she wasn't quite sure how to react to that. Should she react or say something. Just as she was about to comment, Clark had spoken and she closed her mouth.

"Oh I'm not a chemistry prodigy or a human calculator..." Ryleigh was very smart though and excelled in most subjects. "I suck at anything sportwise. Can't run to save my life. And I was never that good at Physics." She explained. "I'm an illustration major with a creative writing minor. Then I take business classes on the side but that's about it..." She really didn't like talking about herself.

"As for the novel, it's a romantic crime story. Not everyone's taste really but it's a genre I love." She smiled, there was passion in the way she talked about her writing as much as the passion she had when she talked about her art.
 
Clark grinned as she started acting modest. He knew better. He had seen her marks and knew her past. He had to keep from smirking at her inability to run, however. He leaned back in his chair and folded his arms across his chest. "Well, if you ever want a proofer for your novel, I think I would be more than happy to offer you my services. It would definitely be a welcome break from all of the textbooks and law codes I typically have to go through."

He looked at his watch then signed, he had to check-in with his handler soon. They really needed to find another time for he and Ryleigh to flirt at each other. Well... for him to flirt at her and for she to blush. "And I think I'll have to get your answer tomorrow, if you don't mind. I have a class sooner than I'd like to admit." He took a moment to unwrap his arms and carefully move to hold one of her hands with one of his.

"Unless, of course, you'd like to get coffee or frozen yogurt later tonight?"
 
Clark seemed to appear for a few minutes before announcing his departure. He had done the same yesterday and Ryleigh didn't really have time to even think of his offer before he was announcing that he was leaving. But what surprised her more was his offer to meet for coffee or frozen yoghurt later on.

"She'll go for frozen yoghurt with you. What time and where and I'll make sure she says there." Lainy interrupted and answered for Ryleigh.

Lainy grinned, holding her hand out for Clark. "I'm Lainy, Ry's best friend. Nice to meet you."
 
Clark grasped Lainy's hand and gave it a firm shake before covering the top of her held hand with his own. "What a pleasure to meet you. Ryleigh is blessed to have such a proactive friend." He slid a wink at Ryleigh then released Lainy's hand so that he may sweep down, plant a light kiss on Ryliegh's cheek, then move to leave the library.

"I shall see you ladies at eight tonight. The place right off of campus is open late enough."
 
"He totally has the hots for you." Lainy told Ryleigh once Clark had left. Lainy's knew the place he was talking about and agreed that they'd be there. Poor Ryleigh was still speechless over the fact that he'd kissed her cheek. The same cheek that was now the colour of her hair.

"I don't want someone to have the 'hots' for me. I want someone to just like my company." Ryleigh told Lainy as they packed up their things. Lainy needed to get ready for tonight's meeting with Clark. She wasn't interested in him. He was for Ryleigh. But that didn't mean she couldn't dress up. You never knew when you were going to meet a potential boyfriend in her eyes.

The girls split up once they got back to Ryleigh's. Lainy went back home after agreeing to meet back up with Ryleigh at seven so she could make sure she was appropriately dressed. Lainy's definition of appropriate was completely different to her own. When Lainy got to her house at seven, she was wearing a short black mini skirt and a red strap top. Ryleigh on the other hand was wearing jeans, a green strap too and a demin jacket.

"You could dress to impress a little bit more, Ry. There is no shame in showing a little, teasing." Lainy grinned as they left just after seven thirty.

Ryleigh smiled. Lainy said the same thing every time. And every time Ryleigh dressed the same - in clothes she was comfortable in. They arrived at the small diner just outside of campus just before eight and found a booth. As it was mid week it was a lot quieter than normal, only a handful of people in the place.

"He's hot though, isn't he?" Lainy was talking about Clark again.

"I guess... I don't know what's made me catch his attention though... I'm just me..."

Lainy smirked. "Just give it a chance. Don't be afraid and just see what happens. Not everyone is just wanting something because of your money and who your parents are, just so you know."

"Yeah, I guess so."

"He probably doesn't even know who your parents are anyway, so don't worry about it."
 
"A date? You're going on a date with the daughter of your targets. A date."

"Well, yes, a date. A moment to get to know her a little better. Parents are careless around their children if they think nothing of them, which could be the case. She's not doing what they want her to, so who knows how much they have let slip in hopes of bringing her back onto their path."

"... So long as you can manage yourself. Your record isn't exactly the cleanest when you take this route."

"Agreed, so I won't make the same mistakes again."
He arrived in the same sweater and jeans he had worn when he saw the girls earlier in the day. The only thing different was the lack of the damned messenger bag. Once he spotted the girls he grinned and moved to slide into the booth beside Lainy.

"Good evening, ladies. I was sure I would be the first one here, but I guess y'all were a little more eager." He smiled with a small blush then ruffled his hair a little, the tawny locks sticking up more in the back. "How were your days?" Clark shifted slightly in his spot to better look at Ryleigh.
 
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