Work Text:
Late in Rebecca’s shift on Thursday, the shoplifter walked back in.
Rebecca welcomed her presence a bit more than she should. The shift had been boring, and watching her pocket items was a welcome relief from standing at the cash all day. Two lipsticks, a phone charger, a set of ballpoint pens, and a notebook made its way into her bag before she left, not paying for anything this time. Rebecca, despite herself, felt a little disappointed—not at the theft, but at the missed interaction.
She wasn’t expecting her to come back.
The shoplifter walked in again as Rebecca was clocking out. “Hey, Rebecca—oh, is now a bad time?” she said.
“I’m off the clock,” Rebecca said after a moment. “So if you need something...”
“Oh, that’s perfect, actually,” she said. “I have something for you.”
She handed Rebecca a pen and the notebook she’d stolen earlier. “You seem like you’re the sort of person with something interesting to say.”
“Thanks,” Rebecca said, then, after a moment: “But I shouldn’t. I don’t even know your name.”
“Well, that can be arranged,” said the girl. “I’m Kennedy.”
“Nice to see you, Kennedy,” Rebecca said. “And thanks for the notebook.”
Kennedy beamed, then turned on her heel and left.
Kennedy, and her gifts, became a daily occurrence. Rebecca actually found herself looking forward to her shifts. Kennedy stopped by at her till whenever she could, and again afterwards to give her a freshly stolen gift. Rebecca had gained quite the collection.
Rebecca’s manager met with her after some time.
“I’ve been noticing that some stock isn’t at the level it’s supposed to be. I think we may have a shoplifting problem. Have you seen anything, Rebecca?”
“Of course not. If I had, you would already know by now,” Rebecca lied.