Writing Wednesday | Prompt Ten

I sit outside Chilkoot, running my fingers along the embossed metal of a tin filled with something. The tin was held closed with several rubber bands; the item inside would rattle when the tin was shaken but gave no other clues as to its identity. 
 
 I had been sitting here for the better part of an hour. Inside Chilkoot was Jeremy Berendt, high school bully and now doing three to five years for aggravated assault. He had made life almost completely unbearable for me for five years, from when I moved to the town we grew up in in eighth grade. Out of the blue he sent a letter to the realtor agency I work at. A lot of `` I'm sorry I treated you so poorly in the past'' and `` if I could go back in time and beat myself up for what I did to you, I would''. I was unmoved; I had read the papers and knew where he was and why he was there. A tiger never changes his stripes, as they say. However, it was the line towards the bottom that drew me in to this. 
 
 ``... there's something I need that only you can get for me.'' 
 
 He went on to say that in his old home, which was being foreclosed on, there was a metal tin in the wall of his bedroom. He gave me instructions at to where to find it. He asked that I not look at its contents. 
 
 Well, here I was. Sitting in a car, trying to figure out if whatever was in this tin could get me thrown in jail as well. Should I give it to him? I was dying to know what was in this tin. But on the other hand, I was n't dying to land in jail for helping a prisoner scumbag like Jeremy. 
 
 There was also the chance that whatever was inside might help him kill himself. That was a wild card factor; I frankly did n't care if he lived or died but I was n't sure if I'd feel guilty over helping him. 
 
 I decided that my hands would be more or less clean in this exchange in the end. I turned the car on, drove up to the gate, admitted myself, and made my way inside. The guards did a thorough pat-down. A larger lady took Jeremy's tin and opened it. I had forgotten they would need to check to make sure there was nothing dangerous inside. I searched her face for clues, but after a confused look, she gave the tin back to me with an annoyed look. I'd have to ask her about it if Jeremy did n't let me see what was inside. 
 
 I walked through the corridors soaked in florescent lighting until I found the room I was looking for. Jeremy was already inside, in a bright orange jumper. He looked pretty terrible, with his stringy long hair and sunken cheeks. It was a far cry from the days on the basketball team, when finding a date was no problem for him. 
 
 He saw me, nodded, and began tapping on the end of his cigarette. I sat across from him and pushed the tin to the middle of the table. 
 
 `` Thanks, Man,'' he said, lighting up. He blew his smoke to the side. `` Did you look at it?'' 
 
 `` No. The guard took off the bands but I did n't look inside.'' 
 
 `` Good, good.'' He flipped open the lid and pulled out the object I had been waiting to see for weeks. He held it up to his nose and inhaled deeply. 
 
 It was a cork. 
 
 `` A cork? You wanted me to drive all the way here to bring you a fucking cork?!'' I was about to leave when he started laughing. 
 
 `` Asshole. You always were one, you know? And you have n't changed. Hope you rot here.'' 
 
 `` Sit down. I'll explain.'' 
 
 I sat down, promising myself I'd only give him three minutes and then tell him off, like I had always dreamed of in high school. 
 
 `` Sure, I wanted the cork. My mom was a wino and I used to steal the corks from her bottles. I love that smell. But, I did n't ask you to just get a stupid cork. You're legit, man. You have a job and stuff. You can get stuff for me in here without it looking suspicious. And I can trust you- you would n't have been so pissed off if you had looked inside. You probably would n't have even come.'' 
 
 `` So, why me specifically?'' 
 
 `` I saw that you worked for a realtor. You just show them your badge or whatever and you can enter houses no problem. People will think you're just looking for potential customers or whatever. I know a lot of people who need stuff moved around before the cops find it. And, I can pay you well.'' 
 
 `` I'm not interested. I almost did n't come because I did n't know if you were going to get me thrown in jail.'' 
 
 `` Well, if you change your mind, you know where I'll be.''
