X for X

Ross darted through the snow covered alleyway, pulling his hat low over his eyes. He looked around to make sure nobody was looking, and then quickly ran into the shop, grabbed a meat pie off the shelf and ran out again. 

Wrapping the meat pie securely in a handy piece of fairly clean cloth which had just come out of his coat pocket, he began walking toward what he was quite sure was the southern side of the city, the place where he could rest and eat his food in peace.

As he neared the abandoned building where he usually took refuge, he took out the pretend key he had crafted out of paper, making sure to purposefully turn it in the keyhole before opening the door.

He settled himself down on the floor and leaned onto the cupboard which had proved to be an able backrest. He took out the meat pie and had a big bite out of it, holding the cloth under it to make sure that nothing spilled.

How had he come to this? Spending a good month out on the streets, praying that the police wouldn't catch him? From being one of the most respected detectives in town, to being forgotten by everybody and becoming a thief himself?

It was all because of that Hazel Rodriguez. Framing him for the theft of the diamond necklace, causing all of his friends and family to break ties with him and make him look like  a fool! However, a question always rang out in his mind…how had Hazel managed to get a picture which looked exactly like him burgling the jewelry shop in the midst of the night?

He had always presumed it to be a PhotoShopped picture, but he was sure Hazel couldn't have had a picture of him, and besides, she wouldn't resort to such simple methods.

In all his days on the streets, if anybody asked him for his name, he always replied with a code name, 'X'. After all, X was a variable, wasn't it? For an unidentified, dangerous man(supposedly), it was the perfect name.

A loud banging began on the door. Ross immediately jumped up, all of his attention on the door.

"Open in the name of the law, X! We know you're in there, and we know that you've stolen more than a dozen products from more than ten different shops" said a loud, purposeful voice from outside the door.

Dan! That was Dan, he was sure of it! Dan had always been one of his staunch supporters…but now…nobody had a clue where he was and those who did, knew him as the criminal, X. Overcome with a sense of nostalgia, he turned around, smooth as a cat, and almost tip-toeing, ran out of the house. One day, he would prove that he was innocent…one day.