Hello, my fellow readers!!! Welcome back to a new chapter of Past Troubles! How do you like the story so far? Do you like it better than the original or does this suck more than the original? Let me know down on the comments and votes. This is published on July 7, 2021.  If you like this chapter, don't be afraid to vote and spam the comment section. That would be greatly appreciated.  Enjoy!*

Buster showed Maya into the office right next to his with a plastered smile. "So...this is going to be the office you're going to work in. Don't worry, I'll teach you all the ropes of working here and you are going to learn plenty from the theater gang."

Maya opened the drawers while she began to move the files in the drawer, confusing Buster with a small blush on his cheek when she met his befuddled gaze.

"Oh sorry. You may not want me to move them around but...they're not in alphabetical order...um, it helps me concentrate better if they are in alphabetical order," Maya uttered meekly.

Buster nodded his head in understanding. "You do you then if it helps you concentrate better."

Maya had her eyes widened, not expecting his reaction.

There's another awkward pause as she continued to put files in a certain order.

Buster felt stupid for staying silent but there's nothing to say to her that's work-related. In fact, he wanted to ignite the conversation but he didn't know where to start.

"Uh...what's your favorite color?" Buster managed to ask.

Well, that was a dumb basic question.

Maya glanced up at him with a small little shy smile. "Um...I would say green...like forest green or grass green."

"No kidding," Buster said as he leaned against the metal cabinets.

Maya nodded her head while being almost done with sorting the files in the drawers. "Yeah. There are these paintings at my house that had a green forest or green grass scenery. It's all so beautiful."

Buster nodded his head. "Yeah."

Maya blinked as she finished sorting. "What about you, Mr. Moon? What's your favorite color?"

"Blue," Buster blurted out while he began to explain with a small blush. "Sometimes I like navy blue and other times I like ocean blue. It varies but blue has always been my favorite color."

"I've seen paintings of oceans and people walking through cities with smiles and...everything...and the people that were drawn there are so lucky to be in the scenery. I've always wanted to be part of a scenery," Maya replied but then she hid her face from expressing her heart. "I mean, I want to be able to see what those artists see. But...I don't really fit in anywhere. You know? I know it's going to sound stupid. It probably is. Sorry, I shouldn't be--"

"No, it's okay. I understand," Buster interrupted with a small smile. "Besides, it doesn't sound stupid to me. In fact, it's a normal thing that people go through. I went through it. Eddie went through it. The whole theater gang went through it. But...you know what my father once told me? He told me that it's okay to be different. Don't let fear of standing out stop you from doing what you love. It's okay to be unique. And you'll find your niche. It'll just take some time."

Maya smiled a bit. "Thanks, Mr. Moon."

"No problem."

They were given silence as they stared into each other's eyes. Buster couldn't help but get lost in her crystal blue eyes. What was he thinking? Buster wanted to look away but he couldn't at the moment.

When the silence went on for a little too long, Nooshy opened the door rapidly, scaring the koalas out of their trance. The theater group followed after her, confusion written on their faces.

"Guys! Guess who's coming to Catalonia?!" Nooshy said excitedly while holding up a newspaper.

"Uh...who?" Buster asked nervously.

"Clay Calloway and Milla Star!!" Nooshy replied while throwing the newspaper on the desk between Buster and Maya. Both of the koalas glanced at the newspaper to read the headlines:

"Former musician, Clay Calloway, is on his way to Moon Theater along with Milla Star!"

"Whoa, he was going to come visit us. That's great!" Buster responded excitedly.

"Who's Clay Calloway and Milla Star?" Maya uttered with confusion in her tone.

There's an awkward pause.

"Okay, I understand if you don't know who Clay Calloway is. But you don't know who Milla Star is?!" Nooshy probed.

Maya blinked. "Uh...no?"

Nooshy gasped like it's an insult. "Oh my gosh! Have you lived under a rock?"

Maya was confused by this question.

Buster calmed Nooshy down. "Whoa, whoa, Nooshy, calm down. I know you're excited but...it appears that we're not too familiar with who Milla Star is."

Nooshy took deep breaths as she finally calmed down. "Okay, Milla Star is the first hybrid performer. She literally came from living on the streets to a flipping singer! How does she do it? I have no idea. But she has inspired a small percentage of hybrids to stand out in the crowd just like her! And on top of that, inspires people who are not hybrids to stand out as well! Basically, people are getting inspired by her left and right! This is big if she's gonna approach Moon Theater! Heck, it says that she'll arrive a lot earlier than Clay Calloway!"

Buster blinked a bit. "Uh...how early?"

They heard a bus pulling up as the theater gang glanced right out of the window to see a small crowd of people gathered around with signs up to welcome somebody back. The group witnessed a young snow leopard stepped out of the bus, smiling and waving to the small crowd while signing their autographs.

Buster peeked out of the window with the rest of the theater group to witness the snow leopard star gazing back at the group. The group stepped back from the windows while Eddie just stood there and froze at the sight of her.

"Oh my gosh! She's here already!" Nooshy zoomed out of Buster's office while Buster sighed deeply.

"Alright, people, we got a guest to welcome! Let's make it happen!" Buster encouraged the theater gang as they exited out of his office except for Eddie. And Buster noticed the sheep staring out of the window. "Eddie? Eddie!"

Eddie snapped out of his thought while glancing over at Buster. "Oh, uh, hi."

"What are you doing? You know it's rude to stare at somebody," Buster replied, hiding a tease under his confident voice.

Eddie rolled his eyes while glancing back and forth between the outside of the window and Buster. "I wasn't staring. I was just---oh, she's gone."

Buster snickered. "Uh-huh, come on, man, we got to look alive out there for Ms. Star!"

Eddie blinked a bit while following Buster out of the office.

~.~

The theater group noticed the snow leopard hybrid star known as Milla Star entered the theater with a shoal that covered her ears. Her fur was gray with white fur on her chest. Her shirt was glittering to the point where it would blind somebody if they look down at her shirt. She had her sunglasses prompted up on her head while her smile was infectious to the group. Her jacket was covering her shoulders but she didn't have her arms in her sleeves.

Nooshy was the first to run out to her. "Milla Star!"

She rushed towards the superstar, hugging her as Milla hugged her back.

"Hi!" Milla spoke sweetly while hugging her back. "How are you doing?"

Nooshy, like a child, held onto the superstar while mouthing to the rest of the gang. "Look, guys, I'm hugging Milla Star."

Buster entered the scene with a sigh. "Nooshy, come on, let go of her. She's got to move."

Nooshy groaned sadly as she moved away from Milla.

Milla smiled brightly while turning her attention to Buster. "You must be Mr. Moon, I presumed?"

Buster nodded his head. "And you're Ms. Star."

Milla nodded her head back to the koala. "It's nice to meet you, Mr. Moon."

"The pleasure is mine," Buster replied back politely while the theater gang left to rehearse while Nooshy was staring at Milla in admiration. However, Johnny noticed that and dragged Nooshy away by the green hood, causing the lynx to relax in his grasp.

Eddie was left standing with Buster as Milla grinned brightly at the men.

"She's very sweet by the way. One of your performers?" Milla asked Buster.

"Yes, she's new," Buster replied with a laugh. "Let me show you around the theater! And I'll introduce you to everyone!"

Eddie noticed Milla taking her jacket off. "Oh, I can take your jacket."

Milla handed him her jacket hesitantly. "Oh...okay, here."

Eddie received her jacket while hanging up on the coat rack. With a small blush in his cheeks, he quickly exited out of the grand entrance to leave both of the koalas alone with the hybrid star.

Milla stared at Eddie with a small smile as she watched the sheep leave the room.

Buster and Milla left the room with Eddie so that Buster could show Milla around the theater.

~.~

Maya was a bit anxious as she was able to find files on her desk about Milla Star. Not that Milla Star was suspicious or anything but the young girl koala wanted to get to know the star more as she heard a soft knock. She glanced up to see an old friendly lizard with a small smile on his face.

"Hello, are you the new assistant?" the lizard asked politely.

"Yes...who are you?"

"My name is Herman. Uh, I need to get a file for my girlfriend," Herman, the lizard, answered.

Maya tilted her head in confusion. "What file?"

"Oh, she told me the name of that file...uh...Arthur Moon, I think," Herman tried to recall.

Maya arched her brow in a slight suspicion. "Why does she need the file?"

"Oh, she works here and she told me that she needed to see it," Herman responded.

Maya felt conflicted. "Um...I'm sorry, sir. I don't know who she is--"

"What's going on?" Johnny walked into the room with his brow arched.

Herman turned with a smile up at the gorilla. "Oh, hello, Johnny. I was trying to get the file for Karen but...she didn't know who Karen is. And it's fine--"

"Alright, it's alright, what file does she need?" Johnny asked as he approached aside Maya's desk.

"Oh, she needs a file about Arthur Moon," Herman answered as Johnny searched for the drawers to find it odd that they were placed in alphabetical order. However, knowing this, the gorilla was able to find the file easier as he handed the file to Herman.

"Here," Johnny handed Herman the file as the kind reptile received it happily. "Is there any reason why Ms. Crawly needs it?"

"She told me that she has a theory. It may be far-fetched but it might tell us more about why Mr. Moon was being hunted other than what Porscha was telling us this morning," Herman responded, not acknowledging Maya sitting between the men with her ears opened to listen to the conversation.

Johnny nodded his head in understanding. "I see. How did you get here by yourself?"

"Oh, I would stick with small crowds of people until I reached the theater," Herman responded while holding the file close to his chest.

"Well, in case you can't find small crowds of people, here," Johnny handed the old lizard a pistol but the old lizard had his eyes widened comically in shock along with Maya, who's witnessing all this. "Too much?"

"Yes."

Johnny put away the handgun and took out a baton. "How about this?"

"I can use that," Herman uttered as Johnny handed the lizard a baton.

"In case you need to defend yourself. Have a good day, Herman, and be careful walking back," Johnny cautioned the old lizard.

"Thank you, Johnny," Herman thanked the gorilla while exiting out of the lobby.

Johnny turned to Maya, who stared up at him in wide-eyed shock.

"Um...is everything...okay?" Maya asked nervously.

Johnny nodded his head reassuringly. "Yes, you have nothing to worry about."

"Um...well, didn't the lizard say that Mr. Moon was being hunted?"

Johnny nodded his head. "Yes. But, that's nothing to worry about Ms. Hart--I mean, Maya. Don't worry about it."

Even when the gorilla said it, Maya still had a concerned look on her face. Johnny scooted up to the piano in the lobby and began to play a beautiful melody that helped the girl koala take her mind off of the worrisome situation.

Maya hopped off her seat and walked over to Johnny playing the piano. She sat up on the bench as she noticed the keys Johnny was pressing to play the melody.

Maya pressed a few lower notes, getting the gorilla's attention. Johnny smiled fondly as he played a couple of notes to show off his piano skills. Before both of the animals knew it, they were both playing on the piano together with Johnny teaching her how to play in the process.

Buster was about to walk into the room to notice the gorilla teen and the koala girl playing the notes of the piano in a fun way while the gorilla was teaching her how to play the piano.

Smiling warmly, Buster couldn't help but leaned against the wall and stared at Maya playing the melody with Johnny beside her.

~.~

While everyone's attention was around Milla Star, Mike took a leisurely stroll, trying to find Bellows Estate without anyone's help. His walk was discreet since he couldn't trust people around him whether they're strangers or people he knew. The only people he could trust were the theater group for right now.

Despite not being close to them, Mike learned more about each of his theater members to see that they were not as dumb or untalented as he initially thought. He learned more about his boss. He definitely learned a lot more about Johnny than anybody in the theater. Because of that knowledge about Johnny, he felt like he could trust the gorilla to help and protect those around them.

Meena hadn't talked to him but he learned that she's in a relationship with this random guy...Alfonso or something like that. Even though he never shared his sentiments, he hoped that her relationship with this guy was going to last a while. And what was up with Maya Hart and Buster Moon? It seemed like his boss has got feelings for his recently hired secretary.

Mike could only smile at the thought of Buster falling in love with someone instead of the theater.

I can't wait to tease him about his little crush.

Mike didn't want to focus on that right now though. His thought immediately went to Nancy, wondering if she's doing okay. She's been missing for five months and Mike hadn't found anything that would lead to that boss who kidnapped her. Bellows Estate may be his last hope in finding his girlfriend.

His thoughts about his loving girlfriend were interrupted when he noticed a pack of dark wolves strolling down the city streets. Mike gasped in recognition. Those were the wolves that held Porscha hostage. They turned a sharp corner into the dark alleyway with rifle guns out, which caused Mike to question what they were going to do.

Mike quickly caught up with them as he peeked from the corner to see the wolves searching the alleyway with green lasers moving everywhere to find the target. Mike slid under the dumpsters while following the pack of wolves. However, before he got any further into the alleyway, there's a sign that was blended into the wall.

Mike glanced up to see the words written:

"Bellows Estate".

He found it...He found Bellows Estate! What excitement and hope this brought him but also fear and anxiety when he remembered Johnny mentioning the legends of what's going on in Bellows Estate.

Mike kept following the wolf pack while walking under dumpster after dumpster just to reach them until...they reached a dead end. Mike hid the last dumpster that led into the circle area with walls surrounding them.

"Keep your eyes peeled. He may be coming out at any moment," One of the wolves instructed as Mike spied on them.

"Chester?" Mike whispered to himself as he noticed a shadowy figure lurking in the darkness, earning a quiet gasp from the mouse himself.

Before anyone could react, one of the wolves was pulled into the shadows as the hooded figure came out with two swords. The wolves began to shoot at the hooded figure...however, Mike had no idea if time was slowed or if this figure could go rapid but the hooded figure was able to dodge the incoming bullets and zoomed towards one of the wolves, slicing through him before circling around the wolf and taking out the other wolf behind him.

The lead wolf tried to shoot the hooded figure down but the figure was too fast for anyone to pin down. So, as his men were getting sliced and their bodies falling apart after the effect, the wolf loaded his electric gun and shot a beam of blue electricity at the hooded assassin, slowing the assassin down by much.

The assassin glared at the lead wolf as he got up and began to charge at him in normal speed. However, the electric shock didn't affect the assassin for long as the assassin jumped right over the lead wolf and sliced through his body in rapid motions.

The wolf froze in questioning whether he got stabbed or cut. The answer came when the assassin just kicked him into the darkness, letting his body disassemble right into the darkness...just like the fate of his men.

Mike blinked with his jaw dropped. "Holy shoot!"

Mike covered his mouth quickly as the assassin turned quickly to the voice. Mike hid under the dumpster, breathing heavily.

Ah, great. That was dumb.

Mike's criticizing thought was silenced when the figure lifted the dumpster he was hiding in as the mouse gasped and backed himself up against the wall.

"Whoa, hey, man, I'm--I'm genuinely impressed by your assassin skills and everything," Mike threw a random compliment in hopes that the hooded figure knows that he was coming in peace. "Uh, I come in peace. No weapon on me or anything."

Mike raised his hands up to show that there was no weapon on him. "I come in peace."

The hooded assassin raised the sword up to the mouse's chin, gaining more fear from the mouse. Mike blinked quickly, trying to think of things to say to spare his life.

"Look, man, I'm just a singer from the Moon Theater. I was just taking a walk and I just got curious and followed the wolves down here--"

"Silence," the hooded assassin's deep voice didn't sound like a man Mike initially thought. It sounded like a female voice. There's a brief pause as the hooded assassin puts down the sword with a sigh. "What do you want from me?"

"I-I was just searching for my girlfriend...and-and one of the accountants working with the mysterious mob boss said that you might know where my girlfriend is being held at and-and I didn't know how to find ya."

"So, you were looking for me?" the hooded assassin probed.

"Yeah, yeah. All I want was to get my girlfriend out of whoever the mob boss is," Mike pleaded while the assassin put the dumpster down and began walking away. The mouse scrambled up to his feet and followed after the assassin.

"So...do you know where my girlfriend was held at possibly?" Mike questioned while the assassin stopped along with him.

"There are two places where she could be held up. Ever heard of Rattler Society?"

Mike recalled to Porscha mentioning it and how they killed her father. "Y-Yeah."

"I don't work for them but I know that they held hostages outside of Catalonia, within the outskirts of the city. Fort Dunstan might be your best place. Although, if I were you, I stay out of the Rattler Society."

"Well, I can't stay out of it. They got my girlfriend and now they're hunting Mr. Moon for some odd reason--"

"What did you say?" The assassin immediately asked.

Mike blinked for a minute. "Mr. Moon, my boss, he's being hunted by Rattler Society for being 'the best' and they gotta kill him to be dominant."

The assassin was silent as Mike blinked for a moment.

"Looks, thanks for the directions, Mr. Bellows. But I oughta head out. Thanks for the help!" Mike sprinted out of the alleyway quickly before the darkness could swallow him but...what he didn't know was that the assassin didn't intend on chasing him.

~.~

Into the late night, Buster sent everyone home early while bidding Milla Star farewell and let her go sleep in one of the hotel rooms nearby with bodyguards guarding her. Maya went back home early before night rolled in, which was odd for Buster but he let it slide since she might have plans. Johnny and Nooshy headed back to the garage to check on Herman, Ms. Crawly, and Porscha.

Gunter and Eddie walked Rosita back to her house to protect her from random gangsters as Eddie walked Gunter back to his small apartment. Luckily, Eddie's poolhouse was near Gunter's small apartment so it's only a short walk from there. Ash and Meena were picked up by Alfonso so that the girls don't have to walk back by themselves while Mike mysteriously disappeared without a trace.

Buster was just left alone in his office with a window opened to get the cool air into his office since his office could easily get stuffy. The koala showman was just paying the bills with a sigh. Before, the act of checking on his bills would terrify him but he's more confident in himself now to pay for the theater he's owned. He had no idea what to do with the next show and it's not normal for the koala to run into a creative block. With a heavy sigh, Buster kept checking as he noticed a picture of his father at the corner of his eyes. His father appeared to be goofing off with someone familiar nearby. However, the person behind his father was just a blur.

Buster sighed deeply as he thought of a name at the most random time.

"Chester Bellows? Why did I know that name?" Buster asked himself while trying to think for a while.

He felt a cool wind just rushed into the office from his window as Buster glanced up quickly to see that it's just the wind blowing rapidly or...maybe it's not the wind.

"Buster?"

Buster turned up quickly to see a hooded figure standing beside him in the shadows. The koala screeched as he held up rusty scissors to defend himself from the assassin intruding his office.

"Oh come on, why are you--wait!" Buster found it odd that someone else was calling him Buster. Normally, it's only Eddie that would do that but Eddie's voice wasn't even in the hood. Everyone knew his first name was Buster based on hearing the name 'Buster' a hundred billion times by Eddie.

But they were more than comfortable to call him Mr. Moon. Not that it's formal but it's more of a fond name to call a teacher despite knowing their first name. However, this assassin called him by his first name where people hunting him would call him Mr. Moon.

But that didn't stop him from raising his scissors up to defend himself.

"Look, if you're going to kill me, kill me. But don't hurt anyone here," Buster replied timidly, turning his head and closing his eyes to not feel whatever the assassin had planned for his death.

The assassin gasped a bit.

"Buster," the tone from the assassin sounded more happy than serious.

Buster wasn't sure why the assassin was happy but he closed his eyes tightly to get ready to seal his fate. However, he felt a hand lowering his arms down and a rustle of clothing.

"Buster, it's me," A familiar female voice spoke.

Buster opened his eyes slowly and moved his gaze up to the figure. He could now see the figure up close. It's a cheetah with green eyes sparkling in the light coming from the lamp and the moonlight coming from outside. Her fur was tattered as if she'd been outside for too long of a time. Her smile was stretched across her face while she had an earring on her right ear and a scar on her right eye.

Buster lowered the scissors while trying to recognize the figure until...

"Wait a minute...Chirea?" Buster uttered.

Chirea, the cheetah, nodded her head in confirmation.

There's a brief pause as Buster dropped his scissors.

"It's...you?"

"Yeah."

Buster gave a moment before a smile and a tear came upon his face. "Chirea!"

The koala leaped happily while hugging his childhood friend as she hugged him back, standing firm so that he wouldn't push her back. Although, he's lightweight that she didn't worry about him knocking her down.

Buster smiled with a few stray tears coming out of his eyelids. He never thought he was going to see her again but here he was, seeing her again.

"Oh my--this is so much to take in," Buster uttered as he broke away from Chirea and sat back onto his office chair. "I mean, look at you! You've changed!"

"So have you!" Chirea responded happily. "I really like that suit on you."

"Thanks, that's the only suit I have," Buster answered with a nervous chuckle. "And you...are you one of those hooded people?"

"Hooded people?"

"Yeah, because I got jumped on the other day by one of them," Buster replied with a slight tone in fear.

"Oh no, you mean the ones that worked at Rattler Society?"

"I have no idea what that is but...yeah."

"No, I'm not one of them."

Buster sighed in relief. "Oh thank goodness. Maybe it's a good idea to close and lock the window. I'm lucky that it's you who came in and not some other assassin."

The koala quickly got out of his seat and closed the window to lock it in place.

Chirea's face grew worrisome. "So...you got jumped on?"

"Huh? Oh yeah, it's no big deal though. I mean, a friend of mine got shot but he's quickly patched up and back in a jiffy while my other friends saved us from the random hooded assassin. And then my secretary got hurt so she's out for a while. We hired a new one to temporarily replace her."

Chirea blinked while lowering her gaze down on the ground. "You don't happen to have a small white mouse as your employee, would you?"

Buster had his eyes widened while groaning deeply. "Oh no, what did he do this time?"

"He didn't do anything but ask me questions about where his girlfriend might be held up by the Rattler Society. I told him where he could find her but he told me that you were being hunted. That's half the reason why I came here because I was worried about you. The dumb thing you did was leave the window open but you're lucky that I got in and not some other assassin."

"Well, I had to get fresh air. The office can be stuffy sometimes," Buster replied back with a small smile and a shrug.

Chirea shrugged. "Yeah, you can't be too carefree. But, in all seriousness, are you okay?"

"Oh yeah, I'm happy. I mean, I had to ask about where you've been and how did you become...you know, an assassin? Or is that too personal?"

"Maybe a bit too personal."

"Okay, I'll back out of that territory then."

Chirea laughed a bit. "Thanks, Buster. It's good to see you."

"You too. Maybe we should hang out sometime. You know, if you feel up to it and you don't have to sneak into my office to see me...or into my bedroom window."

Chirea laughed in memory of that. "Yeah, Dad wouldn't let me come see you and your dad and I never understood why."

Buster lost his smile a bit. "I don't remember much about that. I just remembered you and your dad left but I don't know why either."

"Both of our fathers have kept something from us, huh?" Chirea said, smiling a bit to not be the only one not seeing it.

"Well, Dad would work his tail off for thirty years every day just to help me buy this place. Every day...at a car wash...and...I don't know how to thank him."

Chirea frowned suddenly, a bit taken aback. "He got all that money from washing cars?"

"Yeah, when he bought this place, he told me that was where the money came from," Buster added nonchalantly.

Chirea paused as she leaned up against the wall. "That's...not possible."

Buster perked his head up and glanced up at her. "What do you mean?"

Chirea frowned as she lowered her gaze down on the wooden floor. "You were gone away to college, right?"

Buster blinked while tilting his head. "Yeah, but I'm not understanding what's going on--"

"When did he start washing cars?"

Buster tried to think on the top of his brain, his memories scrambled. "Uh...I think I was in my teens when he did it."

"And how old were you when you fell in love with the theater?"

"Uh...six."

"And you're how old?

"Thirty-six."

"What about when you got this theater?"

"Uh...I was in my late twenties when I got the theater."

Chirea blinked as she stood up straight. "So, you're in your teens when he worked at a car wash, you were in your late twenties when you and your dad bought this place, and you said that he worked at the car wash for thirty years. He would've been doing it and saving up for the theater before you were born and he didn't discover your love of theater until you were six. And our dads didn't make a deal about co-owning the theater until we were six-year-olds and---"

"Whoa, whoa, there. Our dads made a deal about co-owning the theater?" Buster asked with shock in his tone.

Chirea glanced at him, surprised. "You don't remember?"

Buster shook his head while scratching his ear.

Chirea gasped a bit when she realized something. "Your dad didn't tell you?"

"I-I guess he didn't. I mean, I was six, Chirea. I mean, I remember you and your dad but you guys left and I never knew why. And then you would try to sneak in and I let you in so that you can see me until your dad decided to close me off from your life."

Chirea blinked in disbelief. "Wait...Dad didn't close you off."

"Yeah, he did. Do you remember that?"

"No...he didn't. Your dad was the one who closed us off."

Buster stared at her with confusion. "I think we remembered events very differently."

Chirea frowned sadly. "Yeah, I think we do."

Buster looked around the office, his eyes lingered on the photo of his father. Then he met Chirea's gaze. "You think my father lied to me?"

Chirea shrugged her shoulders. "Do you think your father did?"

Buster paused for a moment while thinking. "Well, I may have miscalculated about the car wash years but...I don't know if my father did or not."

"I wasn't there, Buster," Chirea said sadly as she paced in his office. "I wish I knew. But I think your dad might have hidden something from you. And I don't know what it is."

Buster frowned while she began to unlock the window to his office and opened it. She perched on the window sill but paused to think.

"You know, even despite remembering things differently, it's really good to see you, Buster," Chirea uttered with a small smile.

Buster glanced up at her and nodded in agreement. "It's good to see you too, Chirea."

Chirea smiled as she hopped through the window while standing on the ledge outside and gazed at him. "Be careful going out."

Buster nodded. "I will."

Chirea closed the window and managed to hop down from the ledge safely.

Meanwhile, Buster smiled fondly until he thought about his conversation with her. How come she remembered it differently than he did? Granted, she's a different person than he remembered her last but...how could he explain his point of view? He turned his head to see his father in the photo, trapped in a forgotten memory. It's just a little trinket Buster kept until he scooted forward and grabbed the photo, taking it out of the frame. He flipped the photo and looked at the label.

"Arthur Moon, Moon's Car Wash, 1984".

"I was four around that time," Buster muttered to himself as he leaned back against the chair and stared at the photo of his father. "What are you hiding from me, Dad?" 

To Be Continued...