4. Chapter 4
Chapter four
Golden let out three sneezes in a row.
Holding her shirt up over her nose, she squinted into the overstuffed room. The storage locker somehow held all of her aunt's furniture. Antique armoires to ornately carved davenports to dozens of little end tables and bookcases tucked here and there amongst the other furniture like a jigsaw puzzle. The last time she had been here was when she had overseen the movers filling up the space.
Working her way through the very narrow path that ran through the dusty collection, Golden tried to survey each piece. She really needed to put some furniture in the house, it was getting a little depressing. Besides the bed, there wasn't one other piece of furniture in the entire house.
Taking another step forward to peer around a large bookcase, Golden paused at the familiar blue glass peeking out of some bubble wrap. It was one of her aunt's favorite Tiffany lamps. Golden smiled and ran her fingertips along the lamp's metal edge. The gaudy lamp had been one of the first things she really noticed when she first came to live with her aunt Marisol. They had just completed the three-hour journey from Austin to Stardust. Golden had been instructed to sit in the living room while her aunt made them lunch. At that time, it had been a couple of years since her mom died— two terrible years. Golden hardly said anything as her aunt cooked and talked, she just stared at the lamp sitting on the side table, picking one object out of the cluttered room to focus on. But Aunt Marisol had been patient and kind and above all accepting of her.
Grabbing the lamp, Golden made her way back down the cramped aisle just as her watch buzzed. Looking at it, Golden cursed under her breath. Time had flown by. It was nearly time for her appointment at the college. She walked back out of the storage locker and caught sight of the attendant walking down the hall.
Catching her eye, he nodded to her locker. "Did you find anything you wanted to get delivered?"
Golden nodded and held up the paper he had given her earlier when she arrived. "Yeah, I am going to get a dining table, the couch in the back, the beige dresser just by the door, and two nightstands out. I put the tape on each one so you can find it in that mess."
The man gave her a polite, understanding smile and took her paper. "Sure thing. We will have it brought over first thing in the morning."
With her lamp in hand and the delivery signed and paid for, she walked quickly to the bus stop.
"Too bad I didn't keep Aunt Marisol's car," she grumbled to herself for the millionth time.
It was one of the few things of her aunt's she had let Gaige sell. If it hadn't been for Gaige's help during that difficult time, she didn't know where she would have been.
On the bus, Golden set her lamp on the seat beside her and pulled out her phone. She shot a text to Gaige.
Me : On the bus and heading towards Oakes University to enroll for classes. Wish me luck.
The reply came back immediately.
Gaige : You don't need luck; you need a car. Let me buy you one, goddammit. I can smell the bus people from here.
Golden glanced down the aisle at the two little kids sitting with their mom at the front of the bus and then at the old man reading his paper a few rows away from her. She scowled down at her phone. That uppity little shit. This bus was a paradise compared to New York buses.
Me : There is no smell. And if there was, it would be your elitism coming through the phone harassing these people.
His reply was a selfie of his unconcerned face. From the people behind him, she could tell he was in the middle of class.
Currently taking classes at Harvard, Gaige was on track to follow his father's footsteps in law. As the bus turned up a hill, Golden looked out the window and watched the shimmering blue coast in the distance. It was funny, from what she understood, Grayson had a law degree and an MBA, only one of which he used regularly at his publishing firm and the other occasionally for the family company, Rosebank Capital Management.
Gaige : Since you won't take a car or use the credit card I sent you, I take it you're going to find a job.
Me : I already told you I'm working in the lounge at your family's hotel. Besides we talked about this, friends don't leech off each other. And public transport is actually damn nice here in Stardust.
Gaige : You're family to me. You could never be a leech. And working in the lounge won't be enough.
His typing stopped and she thought he was done before the little dots started moving again letting her know he was typing again. A full minute passed before his text finally came through.
Gaige : Apply at my dad's company. Apply as an intern. I'll call HR, I'll tell them not to tell Dad.
Golden sucked in a breath as she read the text.
Another text came through as her mind reeled.
Gaige : Don't overthink it. You like to read just as much as you like to sing. You said your new major will either be English or Journalism. You need a job + My dad has a publishing company = solution. Do what I say and apply.
Golden coughed out a small laugh at that last part. The boy was so pretentious, so used to getting his way, it was unreal.
But applying for Grayson's company? Golden shivered. No, it would be too much. Far too much. Just getting the card from him the other night nearly sent her into a tailspin, but working at Rosebank Publishing?! That was out of the question. Hurt and embarrassment still coursed through her from the last time they interacted with each other two years ago, she couldn't face him—she didn't want to.
"Now that's a lie," she whispered to herself. A part of her desperately wanted to see him again, if anything to appease her curiosity.
The bus dinged and Golden blinked and looked out the window, shocked to see the pristine campus of Oakes University just outside. Biting her lip until it hurt, she forced herself to focus and grabbed her lamp. This was the new chapter of her life, no focusing on the past.