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Martha called me at 10:45p last night to come pick her up. She was working late and I had her car. She asked if I wouldn't mind stopping by Pizza Hut to pick up some food, as her Creative Director was working late and was hungry. I said "sure" and was on my way.
I pulled up to the Pizza Hut at North Avenue and Boulevard. It looked closed but there were a bunch of people standing outside. The manager, in fact, had the side door open and was talking to a group of 5 guys. They looked like they were cutting up, hanging out, and just chillin.
As I got out of the car and went to the front, a skinny black dude in a white/black hoodie was like "hey man, can you help me out... I'm hungry." I told him I didn't have any cash on me but that I'd buy him some food. I was thinking he might like some chicken wings so I was going to come back out and surprise him. The holiday spirit, right?
I went to open the shop door but it was locked. I looked over to the manager - who was still chatting at the back door - and asked "are you closed?" He gave the "cut off at the neck" hand gesture and said, "yeah, we're closed." He went back inside and I went back to the car.
As I opened the car door, I turned around to see a gun pointed at my head. The five dudes who were standing outside had now gathered around me, in an instant, and were demanding my money. The feisty one in the brown hoodie, who had the gun, pressed the nozzle tightly against my neck. He said "give me all your money or I'm gonna shoot you." They put me up against the car and started going through my pockets.
As an unknown number of hands cased my body, I noticed the rain had begun to fall again. I was getting wet. It was warm. I wondered if the gun was real.
After getting my wallet and my phone they pushed me to the ground. Brown hoodie dude was like "where is your money? I'm gonna shoot you motherfucker!" I told him I didn't have any so he asked for my PIN code. I gave it to him. He backed up a couple of steps in what appeared to be an effort to shore up his aim when his buddy, the one I'd talked to upon entering, interrupted, "don't shoot him, don't shoot him."
"Naw, I'm gonna shoot him in the leg."
His buddy implored, "don't shoot him man, don't shoot!"
"No I'm gonna shoot this motherfucker!"
He was psyching himself up to pull the trigger; I could tell.
Suddenly, there was an awkward scuffle in an awkward sort of silence. I held my breath for a few heartbeats when I felt that they were starting to retreat. I slowly turned my head to glance under the car and I saw 5 pairs of shoes walking away. I looked up. No one was behind me. So with keys still in hand, thank God, I jumped in the car and got the hell out of there. I ran every red light to Midtown.
When I got to Martha's work, I reported my card stolen and called the cops. I told them everything, filed a report, and even went back to the Pizza Hut with them... but the guys were gone. After the cops left I decided to head back out and look for them myself but I didn't find them. I don't quite know what I would have done if I had... but it felt good to look.
Anyways, everything is fine. I'm glad that I'm alive. I still don't think it's quite hit me, the enormity of what happened, but then again it sorta has too. It's one of those things I know I won't forget. It's sorta hard to when it replays in your head over and over....
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