Calvin

Calvin

Evan Charles stood by the register and looked up at the wall clock, counting down the minutes until closing time and he was sweating so much even in this air conditioned electronics store, that it soaked his shirt and put his deodorant into overdrive.

"Why me?!", he said to himself, smiling the plastic smile at the last minute stragglers who often came in near closing time to buy "just one thing" they say they need.

He heard the sounds of the security gates being pulled down and other people chatting as they left their shops. His seemed to be the last one and they did good business but, he was still worried.. 

The last few days, customers have been complaining about on of his employees. In this case it was Calvin.

Calvin was about 30ish and heavy set and he knew his way around electronics and his work history showed that he been a programmer once. Unfortunately, he had some..... issues and the big bosses got wind of it and read the riot act to Evan one morning.

The issues with Calvin started small. Every once in a while, he seemed to just mutter to himself while wondering through the shop. Evan thought this was just a minor quirk and let it go.

Things got worse when some of the customers kept saying that when they approached Calvin, they would see him of scowling, punching the air and muttering to himself until he noticed the customers in front of him. Evan wanted to talk with him about to the issue, refer him to the usual company resources for help, but never got to it.

After about 2 weeks, the bosses got on a conference call with Evan and gave him an ultimatum on the matter. Fire Calvin or go look for another job and don't even think about using them for references. Evan sighed and decided to have the talk to Calvin right after closing 

At last the last customer had left and Evan locked the front door, checked the aisles for recovery and finished the rest of the closing routine, then went to the break room to get Calvin and get it over with. Calvin, however was not there.

"Calvin?" , he called out in the store. He got no response. Maybe Calvin left early without telling anyone. Walking out on the job would certainly make his job much easier.  He could just report this to HR and move on. Simple 

He did one more search of the aisles but saw nothing and then closed up store for the night. He could fill out the necessary paperwork tomorrow.

Just as he pulled down the security gate, he saw Calvin walking down the other end of the mall.

" Hey, Calvin! ", he yelled out. " The mall is closed."

Calvin didn't respond at all and kept on walking and muttering to himself, scowling and fighting the air.

"So much for the easy way out," he said under his breath.Evan got close to him and just barely hear what Calvin was saying while fighting the air and muttering.

"I'm gonna be my momma's boy! I'm gonna be my momma's boy! Bbbbbbbmmmmp!!!"

Just then, Calvin's large frame collided with a pillar that was holding some children's trikes, at which point, he kicked at them and threw them towards the window of a nearby shop, setting off the alarm.  

The cacophony didn't seem to phase Calvin at all as he continued to fight the air and yelling "Bbbbbbbmmmmp!"

Evan stayed put, hiding behind a pillar and pulled out his cell to dial 911. At least with this situation, he wouldn't have to explain to Calvin that he was fired. It was pretty much assumed.

It took about 30 minutes for the police to arrive at the mall and assess the situation.

"Thank God you guys are here! I've been stuck here watching him for half an hour now!", Evan said as he gasped for breath.

The two uniformed officers who arrived were also accompanied by a suited man who took, Evan to chair to sit down while the officers searched the mall for Calvin.

The older man sat next to him and listened intently while Evan relayed his experience, nodding his head most of the time. He took out a pad scanned some notes as well, then looked up after Evan had finished talking.

So, this "Calvin" was talking to himself saying something about "being a momma's boy?' I wonder what that could mean?"

Evan looked at the man, his brow furrowed. "I mean, I don't know! Why are you asking me? I know I hired him, but how am I supposed to know what goes on in his head?"

The man said nothing but continued to look at Evan....

Evan rubbed his eyes and his forehead and thought for a bit then lifted his head to the ceiling.   

"Okay maybe 'Momma's boy' means 'sissy' or something.

The older man rubbed his chin thoughtfully. "Someone who is easily manipulated.."

Evan nodded his head slowly.  

The two uniformed officers came back to the atrium where Evan and the older man were.

With a sigh, the senior officer wiped his brow. "We swept the area. All doors are locked. Bathrooms are clear, Dr."

The older man nodded his head and thanked them for coming.

Evan frowned.  

"What about the broken window by the shoe store?  

The two officers looked at each other and shook their heads in unison. "We didn't see anything like that. The shoe store is right there and you can see that there's nothing broken."

"Calvin! He did it again! Calvin!!", Evan cursed under his breath. “No matter where I go, there he is messing everything up! Mamma’s boy!”

The older man touched Evan on the shoulder.  

"Let's take a walk now, Evan shall we? I think I can help you.", he said to him with a calm voice and a slight smile.   

There were several men waiting outside the doors that were dressed as orderlies.

"Calvin!. It's always Calvin", Evan kept saying over and over before scowling.  

"Bbbbbbbmmmmp!!!!"

"Take it easy, Evan. ". 

Evan felt a slight pain in his arm and started to protest, then slumped into the arms of the waiting orderlies.