Righteous Break-In

As the wind whipped thirteen-year-old Michael away from the ninth story balcony it occurred to him that this may not have been the brightest idea he ever had. As he started to fall, he flashed back to how exactly he had gotten here.

Michael was not the smallest student in his class, but he was certainly a contender for the title. Puberty had done little to add to his height. It had mostly just made a formerly purely pleasurable activity into one that needed cleanup. Still he was popular enough and even had a slot on the wrestling team, in one of the lower weight divisions, most of the time he didn't even have an opponent and won by default. That was about half the reason the wrestling team like him. The other half was the best kept secret on the team.

Middle school and high school wrestlers frequently popped wood during their matches. It was widely accepted and never commented on. There was nothing gay about it just the biological function. Of course, this didn't stop most people from jumping back into their pants as soon as possible. That was where Michael came to the rescue. He didn't mind relieving his teammates of that publicly never commented on embarrassment. During tournaments it wasn't uncommon for three or four teammates to request help. His record was seven which was just about the whole team.

Michael was never forced of course. If anything he made them work for it. They either had to wear a condom or some Saran wrap and no, it wasn't his job to provide that thank you very much. The only boy who was exempt from that rule was Rob. Rob was a year older than Michael and Michael's current crush. He had curly shoulder length hair and the body of an Adonis. His only flaw was his unwavering strictness. At least he was as straight as a male could be while still getting sucked off by another. Michael had discovered quite incidentally that there wasn't as much sex going on as some of the boys would boast about.

There was one sixteen-year-old on the team who bragged about his girlfriend and him doing it. Michael had asked in a sincere attempt to improve his technique what his girlfriend did to him. The boy had stumbled around for a few seconds before finally confessing that he and she had not done anything beyond second base. Strange how truthful some people became when they have their cock in your hand. Maybe it was all that blood loss to the brain.

So in brief, Michael was actually quite well-liked and that was how he came across another useful tidbit of information. It turned out that that a certain store, if a certain clerk was alone he would sell mature rated games to anyone for a few extra bucks.  Michael's parents were rather strict when it came to ratings. They had utter faith in the system to protect his innocent little eyes. Of course, that never stopped him from seeing rated R movies with friends or playing their mature games.

Still, it was irritating and he did get teased a little about that. That was why he dropped $75 dollars of his hard-earned allowance, on the latest big new release. The game only cost 60$ but the bribe had to be paid.

His plan was a simple one. He would invite friends over to play it and seeing as it was mature, hopefully they would think his parents had relaxed their restrictions. His parents had no need to check his games once they were purchased and thought no store would sell a mature game to a thirteen-year-old who was in the lowest percentile in height according to his doctor.

The purchase went off without a hitch and he had made it into his apartment building before it happened.

Alexander was the opposite of Michael in many ways. They did share one thing in common and that was they were in the five percentile nearing undergrowth. Alexander was a head taller than him and probably had an extra 50 pounds on a generous day. He was a bully, a petty criminal, a walking advertisement for Juvenile Hall or forced sterilization. His parents didn't care what he did, watch or play. For some reason he had a particular dislike for Michael who fully returned the feelings.

Michael had just opened the doors to the apartment when he saw Alexander moseying down the hallway. Michael's eyes immediately started to dart around vaguely hoping to find a witness. There wasn't any of course. It was four o'clock Wednesday and most people were still at work. 

Maybe he should've run when he saw Alexander there. However, like a predator in the wild, if he had, Alexander would've chased him. It was hardwired into Alexander's DNA just like a hyena. Michael continued forward hoping that today Alexander wouldn't want to pick on him. Maybe he was keeping some fly somewhere so he could pull their wings off and didn't want to be late. It seemed like something he would do.

Michael kept his eyes fixed on the elevators trying not to look afraid. He held his breath as Alexander passed. For one glorious half step Michael thought they would be like two passing ships in the fog. Then much like the Andrea Doria and Stockholm, they collided.

Michael felt a hand on the back of his neck. It was strong and with one of his feet in the air it was absurdly easy for Alexander to introduce his face to the wall. Michael and the wall were actually very well acquainted, but their meeting was as rough as ever. After the initial impact and the shock of pain Michael felt the hand push against his neck. He tasted blood.

“What have you got there?” Alexander said grabbing for Michael's bag.

Michael tried to move it away, but with your head pinned to a wall, mobility is not an option.

“Let me go.” Michael growled trying to push back.

Alexander chose not to acknowledge the request instead obtained the bag and yanked out the game with his free hand. “Hey, how did you get this? Your parents finally letting you play something that doesn't have unicorns and rainbows?”

“That's mine.” Michael said, his mind rather inconveniently bringing up a memory of kindergarten where he had drawn a picture involving a unicorn and a rainbow. It was for a Mother's Day card.

“You know I was hoping to get this.” Alexander said before pulling Michael back and tripping him.

Michael felt backwards his head hit the carpeted floor before he rolled over. Before he could get up he froze under Alexander's gaze. Theoretically, his wrestling training should make up for at least some differences if this escalated into a full-blown fight. The thing was Michael had been down that road. TV shows were grossly uninformative sometimes. If this had been a TV show, Alexander would've crumpled at the first punch if not just being stood up too. Here, that wasn't how things work. Alexander didn't mind a fight. Whereas Michael had been mostly trained in wrestling moves where there were rules Alexander was an experienced bully who didn't mind hurting someone. In fact if anything he kind of liked it.

It wasn't just the inevitability of losing the fight that kept Michael where he was. The last time he had really gotten into a fight with Alexander, he had been grounded for almost two weeks. Alex stared him down for a few more seconds before turning and walking away slightly richer.

All Michael could do was glare at him. When he was alone his eyes started to water up and he wiped at them. Crying was not acceptable. In the back of his mind he knew Alexander had gone way over the line. This wasn't just casual bullying but outright theft. Michael knew he could definitely go to his parents with this or even the police. The problem was that: if his parents found out it was a mature game, he would certainly get in trouble for that and if they found out about the clerk, well some of his friends may not be too happy about that.

Feeling like crap, Michael slowly got up and walked towards the elevators totally not crying. No, he did not cry, he was thirteen dammit. It was just dust from the carpet. Self-denial was such a useful trait.

Reaching his apartment he turned on the TV. There was one TV in the house and his parents had the parental locks activated. Not only did he have parents that actually cared about the ratings, but they actually were technologically savvy enough to use it to its fullest extent. It was really amazing how much of the web could be blocked.

He flipped around for a little, but found nothing to his liking. He looked over at his games, but at the moment unless it had head exploding, he wasn't interested. Dejected he turned the TV off and headed towards the balcony. He was on the seventh floor and it had a view of both a river and a small park. He could pick out the playground equipment he used to play on when he was younger.

Absentmindedly he kicked at the railing hearing the hollow sound of the inch-thick pipe. The balcony was made up of rows of them, one on top of another with just enough space in between to slip a hand. He kicked one of the lower ones which added to the harmony of the first.

It would be a long time before he could save up $75. It wasn't like there was convenient birthday or holidays coming around. Briefly he wondered if he could charge for blow jobs, but that felt wrong. Absentmindedly he licked his lips with his tongue. He could still taste blood and thought he was bleeding. Giving a blow job for a while might be a bit painful. He briefly remembered this one monster that belonged to a seventeen-year-old. It was nearly seven inches and thick too. It was a real mouthful. Usually the thought of it was at least a little arousing, but right now he just thought how painful it would be with the little stupid cut.

Casually he looked up seeing more stories of balconies above him. Each was identical. You could do a small optical illusion making them appear and then disappear just by moving your head slightly. Then he stopped and looked at the side as an idea started to form. The balconies all stuck out a little but they had a wall for privacy. Moving close to the wall, he tried to figure out how far the distance between him and it was. It was only a foot or so. That balcony was only a foot or so away. That balcony went to his parent’s room and beyond that was the next apartment.

Like any prey, Michael was familiar with the boy’s predatory habits. Alexander visited his father on the weekends. His mother never seemed to be home and she was almost scary as Alexander was. The one time Michael's mother had attempted to approach her to address the issue between their sons had resulted in her never attempting it again.

Still if he knew where Alexander’s balcony was he could gain access to it from the neighboring balcony. Of course, how could he get access to one of those apartments? Well he could cross that bridge when he confirmed his first idea.

Michael began to search for rope. He found the remnants of a fifty foot cord left over from when they had gone on a family trip and needed to secure their luggage to the roof of the car. It has been two years ago and it hadn't been used since. Bringing it to the balcony he tied it to the railings looping it back and forth several times before taking the other end and then repeating the process.

He pulled the rest of the rope in both of his hands shortening it until his feet were on the railing and pulled back. He kept pulling and the rope didn't break. After about 30 seconds he lowered himself to the ground.

Untying one end of the rope he wrapped it around himself several times tying different knots briefly thankful to the Cub Scouts for teaching him that. Then he stepped up on the balcony. It was easy to climb up, but when he looked down he had a sense of vertigo. Remembering not to do that again Michael looked towards the other balcony. Slowly he reached over grabbing the far railing before trying to pull himself over.

It didn't take long for him to realize that wouldn't work. It was the wall and the fact that his elbow wouldn't bend that way. Pulling back he thought for a moment. Michael realized what he would have to do. Climbing up on the railing he draped one leg over the side. He slid forward on the railing and was then able to just you reach over to the other railing. With both hands firmly planted on the far railing he went for it.

Turning his foot so it was pressing up against the railing he leaned forward keeping his eyes on the far wall. He slowly slid his body over bringing his remaining foot slowly over the railing he held on for dear life as he blindly felt for placement. The last thing he wanted to do was get his foot stuck when he was on the wrong side of the railing. Michael ended up going headfirst over the balcony but at least it wasn't on the side that didn't lead to a sudden drop. It took him a moment to untangle and right himself. Michael laughed nervously and then tried his parent’s door. It was unlocked and he closed it again. He looked back on the rope and decided to do it again. You need to practice.

As it turned out, he had found the most difficult way of doing it first. It was at his fourth attempt that he felt confidence in himself to try something new. As it turned out there was a small ledge on the other side of the balcony. You could wage your toes just under the first pipe and simply start over to the other balcony. The big disadvantage to this as Michael saw it was that your nose was almost immediately pressed up against the wall so you couldn't look down.

After about a half an hour he packed up the rope and headed inside. His heart was still pumping and that was when he came up with the next brilliant idea. Going to his computer he started typing.

When his parents arrived home that night together because they worked together he smiled and greeted them with a flyer.

Hello residents of Parking View Height. My name is Michael and I'm thirteen-years-old. My desire for physical possessions far outweighs my financial means. As there are child labor laws I am merely seeking odd jobs. I will consider anything and as I have no pride, there isn't too much I won't do.
His parents liked the idea but made him reword the flyer. 

He printed out about twenty but he was only interested in two. You have to stick to your cover story though or else you just get in trouble. That Thursday after school he slipped the flyers under the doors of the adjacent apartments to Alexander's before heading off to school. The rest found their way into a trash can.

He waited nervously all day Thursday but received no calls. He started to give thoughts to how he might be able to access Alexander's apartment from the floor above or the floor below. He was pondering makeshift grappling hooks when the phone rang.

“Hello.” He answered.

“Yes, hello is this Michael?” An unfamiliar female voice asked over the phone.

“Yes it is. I'm assuming this is about the flyer?”

“It is. We just recently moved into the building two weeks ago actually. We have a son eleven-years-old. He's fairly mature, but legally we can't leave him alone until he's twelve. He saw your flyer and suggested maybe we could hire you as his babysitter. I guess you would be less embarrassing than a teenage girl. Would you be interested in such a job?”

Michael vaguely remembered seeing the signs of somebody moving in recently, but didn't remember seeing anyone knew around the building just yet. “Yeah, I can do that. What day and what time?”

The woman told him Saturday and he would have to there at seven. That would be well after his tournament was over. He would've skipped out on it this once but was glad he didn't have to. She gave him the apartment number even though he could've guessed that 50-50 chance of being right.

His parents were happy that he gotten received a job even if it probably could be boiled down to just hanging out. A job was a job even if it only on paid ten bucks. Michael was actually happier that it was adjacent to his target.
Murphy having a sense of humor deemed that the tournament would run long. By the time Michael was heading up to the ninth floor his hair was still wet from the shower he had taken. He had to wrestle today and won his match. More exhaustingly he had sucked four of his teammates including the lovely Rob. His spirits were very high as he stepped off the elevator a backpack slung over his shoulder.

Walking out the door he knocked and a man opened giving him a strange look. For a second he wondered if he might not have read the number wrong but then the man stepped aside. “You're Michael I take it. Welcome, come inside.”

Michael walked in but stopped while still on the entryway tile. “Should I take my shoes off or leave them on?” He asked. His parents were very strict about this but it wasn't universal.

“Whichever would be more comfortable for you.” The man answered.

Michael kicked them off and placed them next to another pair of shoes that looked to be the same size as his. He had a sinking feeling.
A woman stood in the kitchen already dressed up and smiled at him. “Right on time.” She said.

Michael smiled and nodded before catching movement from the corner of his eye and turned to look down the hallway. His heart momentarily fell and he cursed his poor genetics.

The boy had wide shoulders and carried a few extra pounds. His hair which could have a style was brown but at the moment it was disheveled. What was most disconcerting was that at best he was an inch shorter than Michael, two years his junior and almost as tall as him.

“This is Cody.” The woman said. “He can really take care of himself so no real need to worry.”

Cody smiled and he was good enough looking, Michael thought.
Michael asked in general. “Is there anything I need to know? Like a bedtime?” 

“Oh, like I said no worries about that. Both of our cell phone numbers are on the refrigerator. Just in case. Well, we have to get going.” Cody's mother said walking past Michael.

“We’ll be back before 11.” Cody's father added before closing the door behind them.

The apartment fell silent with the departure of the two adults. That was until Cody ventured a question.

“What's in the bag?”

Michael shrugged the bag off and placed it against the couch. “Just some homework.”

“Homework on a Saturday? God you’re a geek.”

“Am not.” Michael said reflectively. “When do you do your homework?”

“On Sunday. Sunday or Friday are acceptable but not Saturday.” Cody said.

“Says who?”

“Me.” Cody said hooking a thumb towards him.

“You know, if you're trying to start to get physical, I should warn you I've been wrestling for almost two years.” Michael said rounding up.

“I'm sure I could take you.” Cody said walking towards the family room.
Michael walked around the couch into family room. It was carpeted and there was no coffee-table so it was a pretty good spot. “Come at me.”

That was a mistake. Most wrestlers who were Cody’s shape were on the slower side. He was fast. Cody came in low and fast catching Michael off guard. He tried to slip away but Cody got an arm around his leg and then Michael met Mr. Floor.

“Should I have mentioned I've been taking judo since I was six?” Cody said placing his weight onto Michael.

“That's interesting. Let's see how good you are.” Michael said slipping his leg under Cody's and then trying to flip him over.

For the next half hour the two went after each other. It wasn't a constant fight. One would eventually get the position he could think of and then they would separate and repeat. Neither one of them gave up; they just sort of rolled apart and didn't continue.

“You really should go out for the wrestling team.” Michael said after he caught his breath.

“Maybe. I'm still not used to going to the new school.”

“Where did you used to live?”

Cody had to take some more deep breaths before he could answer. “We used to live on the other side of the city. It's closer to my dad's work here. Shorter commute.” He finished breathless.

“All right. Why don't we just watch some TV?”

“I pick the station.” Cody said slowly rolling over.

The two of them moved to rest their backs against the couch as Cody flipped through the channels eventually ending up on South Park. Michael had only seen the show a few times mostly in the background at a sleepover. He didn't really care for the show. They watched the end of that episode and then another. It was creeping around the clock and Michael saw his window of operation closing. He couldn't figure out a way to get Cody to go to bed.
Then he heard a joke on the television and laughed. Cody glanced over at him. Michael shrugged. “He didn't know what a blow job was. It was funny.” Michael said chuckling. Then he frowned. “You know what a blow job is?”
Cody didn't answer at first. “Sort of.”

“Sort of?” Michael repeated. “How do you sort of know?”

Cody looked at him for a long moment before turning his attention back to the TV. Not saying a word.

Michael sensing awkwardness apologized. “Sorry. I wasn't trying to make fun of you.”

Cody was silent. As the show came back from commercial he slowly ventured. “I don't know about sex. Like some of my friends talk about it like they know all this stuff. I just kind of fake it.”

“Most of them are.” Michael chimed in. “A lot of people just make stuff up or lie about what they've done. It's just how it is I guess.” Michael hesitated before venturing. “I know a lot about blow jobs so if you got any questions about them I'm your guy.”

“And how come you so much about blow jobs?” Cody asked.

“I'm given more than a few.” Michael said casually.

“To who?”

“Friends.” Michael said.

“Really?”

“Yeah. If you want one I will give you one.” Michael suggested hoping he would take the bait.

Cody was set for a few seconds. “What's the catch?”

“No catch. Just offering.”Then he thought for a second. “No, wait you have to come to the next open mats. We could really use you.”

“This some sort of trick?” Cody asked.

Strictly speaking it was a trick. However, it was a different sort of trick then Cody was suggesting. Instead Michael pointed towards the TV. “Yeah I'm putting myself in a position like Cartman did, but I know what I'm doing. So if anything you could hold this for me.”

Cody considered it. “What would I have to do?”

“Let's do this in your bedroom. We can use your bed.”

The two boys stood up and then Cody led the way to his room. 

“Why don't you undress Michael suggested.”

“Um, ok. Can you turn around?” Cody asked.

Michael thought that was dumb but did as he was asked. He ended up staring at a poster of a dinosaur skeleton. The name of some museum was underneath it.

“Okay.” Cody said.

Michael turned around and smiled. He didn't think Cody looked too bad naked. He was carrying a few extra pounds and had some small man breasts that were currently being emphasized because he was covering himself with both of his hands. 

“Yeah, I'm going to need access to that.” Michael said pointing toward Cody's crotch.

Cody smiled nervously and slowly withdrew his hands. For all the cocks Michael had sucked, he had never seen a boy naked before. He had seen some in their boxers and underwear for weighing in and of course their cocks but then they were usually wearing leotards or something that covered most of their body. Seeing another body fully naked was something he hadn't seen since he was little and taking swimming classes. Maybe that was why he took a moment just to appreciate the sight.

“Michael?” Cody ventured.

Michael shook himself out of his trance. “Yeah, just lay down on the bed there.”

Cody did as he was told. Michael approached staring down at the younger boy. His eyes drifted to Cody's crotch. In all honesty it wasn't very impressive. Michael had sucked thick seven inchers and this Willy was just small. The balls were maybe a little bigger than Michael's thumbnail and were currently shriveled up tightly against Cody's body. He was uncircumcised and Michael could see the glans at the moment. Still, there was something about it. Maybe Michael was just appreciating it from a different angle than usual, but he liked it.

Kneeling down to his elbows on the bed he leaned forward and gave a kiss on the sack. Cody squirmed at the contact, but didn't say anything. He kissed it again but this time with his lips brushing down it before moving to the shaft. Using his lips he slowly stroked it, letting his tongue dart out and lick it. Most of the boys on the team had pubic hair, but one or two of them shaved it off or at least trimmed it. Michael actually liked that. He wondered if he could add that as a rule like how they needed to have a condom on our at least Saran wrap.

Michael turned his attention back to the task at hand or mouth. Cody's little monster was showing signs of waking up. The formally soft shaft was stiffening and the loose foreskin was becoming less so. He let his mouth slide over it in gently placing his lips around it, forcing the foreskin back and exposing the glans to the tip of his tongue. Michael slid up and down before finding the little slit Cody peed from. Using the very tip of his tongue he explored the region slowly circling the entire cock around his mouth.

When Michael finally pulled back, Cody’s dick was fully erect. It had to be less than two inches, but it was nice. He looked up at Cody's cheeks. They were bright red. He smiled a little and he smiled back before diving back onto the little cock. Take the entire thing in his mouth he slowly bobbed up and down keeping his tongue around the tip but using his lips as he moved up and down the shaft. The shaft didn't seem to get bigger but it definitely got harder and he felt pulled up towards Cody's chest.

Michael redoubled his efforts sucking and pulling back, breathing through his nose. Eventually, he rested his head on Cody’s stomach feeling the younger boy breathing as his cheek rested on his tummy. He pulled his head back letting go of the shaft for a moment. It was now covered in saliva. It glistened in the dim light of the room. Sticking his tongue out he slowly lifted back up from Cody's belly and slid his head back down. His lips squeeze tightly around it pulling back the foreskin as far as it would go as his tongue attacked just under the head flicking back and forth. Then it happened. Cody thrashed as his cock began to spasm firing a ghost load. Michael rote it out until it ended and the shaft started to soften. Then and only then did he pull back letting it slide out of his mouth.

When he looked up at Cody, he saw him smiling. His cheeks were brightly colored. His eyes were focused at first but eventually they seem to concentrate on Michael. “I'm guessing you liked it?”

Cody nodded. “That was great.”

“Well, you were great.” Michael replied watching Cody slowly blink.
“I'm going to go to bed, now. I just need to get my pajamas on.”

“Well, I'll get them for you.” Michael said not wanting Cody to wake himself up with excessive moving.

Cody told him they were at the foot of his bed and Michael dove there finding the lime green pajamas. He helped Cody change which for some reason aroused Michael. He didn't understand that. Michael had gotten erections while giving blow jobs but never while helping someone get dressed. Then again he had never done that before. It was usually more of a Wham Bam thing.

Standing up Michael turned off the lights before leaving the room and closing the door. He waited a few minutes before putting the final stages of his plan into action. Retrieving his backpack from where he had left it he slipped into Cody's parents’ bedroom. Their balcony was unlocked and once outside placed the pack down and opened it up and pulled out the rope.

He tied it off like he had practiced and then wrapped the rope around several times before tying it to himself. He started over the railing. There was a slight chance that Alexander's mother might be home but as he climbed over the railing nine stories up he didn't think so. Just like he had practiced he was able to make it over even though it was dark.

He then stared into the apartment which was dark except for one dim light left on in the kitchen. He slowly started over the railing and once safely on the other side untied himself. Now the biggest problem eh faced would be the door. There was a chance it might be locked, but he doubted it. Slowly making his way to the door he tried it and it slid without a problem.

It was only at that moment that he experienced a very strange feeling. This was technically entering if not breaking-in. Could two wrongs make a right? No it wasn't wrong to retrieve your property. At least that's what he told himself. 

The dim light in the kitchen cast crazy shadows in the apartment but fortunately the Xbox 360 had a nice white case which reflected some of the light back and attracted Michael like a bug to light. The empty case of his game was resting on top of it and as he ejected the tray he found his game inside. Briefly he wondered how Alexander would react when finding his stolen game reclaimed. Michael didn't care much. He would experience the same situation Michael had been in, the victim of a crime but unable to report it to anyone. He would probably just try to kick the crap out of Michael, but that wasn't much different than usual. 

His game placed carefully back in its case he made his way back to the balcony and closed the door. Patting himself on the back, Michael reached over to the other balcony. He threw the game on the destination level, not wanting to carry it with him. High on endorphins, he didn't notice that his footing wasn't as good as it should have been because when the gust of wind came he wasn't ready.

The split second between knowing he had lost his footing and the sensation of falling lasted an eternity. It seemed to last so long in his mind that he was able to reflect on how he had gotten to this point.

He fell about five feet before the rope and heard a loud twang as the pipes that made up the balcony echoed with the sudden force being applied to them. He felt the rope tightened around his waist and damn that hurt as he swung like a pendulum. To make matters worse the apartment below was brightly lit and the TV was on. The teenage couple inside was too busy making out to pay attention to the boy just hanging outside their window.

With his sights on fire from the sudden pulls of the rope Michael looked down and was very glad he hadn't drank recently because if he had he would have peed himself. From where he was to the next safe foothold was perhaps a half story of distance, not much but still terrifying. He suddenly felt the very sudden urge to start shouting for help despite the awkwardness that would entail.

“Michael!”

At the sound of his name Michael looked up to see Cody leaning over the railing. He opened his mouth but strangely no words came out.

“Pull yourself up.” Cody snapped.

Another gust of wind came at that moment and Michael felt himself starting to swing like a pendulum again. He grabbed onto the rope trying to stop this and then slowly started to pull himself up. That task focused his mind. Michael pulled himself up and overhead and quickly found himself at the balcony. When he was there Cody helped him over the side.

Michael tried to stand up as his feet hit the balcony, but his legs were not so inclined to support his weight. But already he immediately felt better. Cody apparently in much better shape just stared down at him his eyes as wide as they could be.

“What are you doing?” Cody demanded.

Michael's mind finally coming down from his near-death experience looked around for the game he had thrown over and reached for it. “I was retrieving something.”

“Retrieving something?” Cody demanded.

Michael held up the game and smiled. “Have you met Alexander? He is your neighbor.”

Cody stared at him. “What!”

Michael let out a sigh. “Alexander stole this game from me. So I retrieved it.”

“You broke into his apartment?” Cody demanded. “That's a crime.”

“So is theft. Actually I'm pretty sure he mugged me so that's assault too.”
“You broke into his apartment?” Cody repeated.

“It was a righteous breaking-in. I didn't break anything I just retrieved my property.”

Cody stared down at him in the dark. “He really stole it from you?”

Michael nodded. “Yeah. He's a jerk.”

“Why didn't you tell your parents or the police?”

Michael probably should've been embarrassed about the breaking and entering or at least nearly dying. That wasn't why he looked down. “My parents don't let me play mature games. They didn't know I bought it.”
Cody was out for several seconds. He looked at the rope and then back at Michael. “Okay, I can see Alexandre doing that. I've heard things about him. I'll believe you for now. What is the game anyways?”

Michael told him and Cody pointed out he hadn't played it yet but wanted to. After Michael collected his rope they returned to the family room. Michael finally got a chance to play his game and so did Cody. Cody's parents found them playing when they came home. They sent Cody off to bed and gave Michael his $10. As Michael rode the elevator back down to his floor he thought it was a fairly good night except for the near-death thing.