It was a chilly night as wind rushed at my face. My father and I had returned from the nearby supermart with our groceries. I gazed at the starry sky as we ambled into the block of our HDB flat.

Suddenly, at the corner of my eye, I caught sight of a man pushing an elderly man into the lift forcefully. As I looked closer, I recognised the elderly man as our neighbour Mr Teo! I stood there dumbfounded and shocked, not knowing what to do next but my father, who apparently had also witnessed everything, grabbed my hand and darted for the stairs. Although our groceries were not much, it was still heavy and slowed us down. We continued climbing, checking each floor if the lift had stopped there. All of a sudden, at level five, the robber shot out from nowhere and knocked into my father. They both fell in opposite directions with a loud thud, followed by the sound of all the groceries spilling onto the floor ending up in a mess. No sooner had I helped my father up to his feet than the robber took to his heels.

“Follow him! I will call the police!” yelled dad.

I did not need to be told twice. Without a moment of hesitation, I threw the groceries onto the floor and gave chase.

The robber ran down the stairs three steps at a time while I could only manage two. As I ran, thoughts whizzed through my mind. I felt mad and frustrated at the man for preying on Mr Teo. Mr Teo had always helped us in many ways and we were on good terms with him. I burst forth and ran with all my might, eyes on the man who was running as fast as his legs could carry him. Soon, we reached the ground floor and my legs were hitting soft grass instead of concrete ground.

Although it was dark, my eyes could make out a faint burly figure because of the streetlights.
Then all of a sudden, the figure dropped and disappeared into a deep, dark abyss in front of me. I was going too fast to realise it was a drain. Too fast that I could not stop myself in time as I tripped and was pushed by my own body weight into the drain. I landed on the robber and rolled over as he groaned weakly before lying motionless. I later concluded he was unconscious.

It seemed like eternity before the glorious light of the torches of a few policemen shone on us. My injuries were not as bad as I imagined. After all, I landed on the robber and he broke my fall. The man however, suffered severe injuries, breaking a few bones here and there and was brought to the hospital immediately. I breathed a sigh of relief as the sight of my dad and Mr Teo waiting for me at the HDB block reached my eyes.

After that, Mr Teo thanked us profusely. The robber after all, did not get any money but broken bones and a hospital treatment fee to pay. When he collided against my father, the wallet he had snatched from Mr Teo earlier on was knocked out of his hand. My father and I then collected our groceries from the fifth floor and limped back towards our apartment.