Chapter Thirteen
Friday - Two weeks later
“Spiced chai latte for Shanoa!”
“It’s my job,” I replied, trying my damndest to keep the sarcasm out.
“Yeah, that’s a dumb question, sorry.” She laughed, though her nerves were on full display. “So, do you have a boyfriend? Or girlfriend, maybe?”
I gave her my own chuckle, followed by an exhausted sigh. “I just got out of a really…complicated situationship, actually. I’m not looking for anything.”
It had been two weeks. The feelings were still raw. But life moved on, and if I had nothing else, I had Tortalgan Coffee Co. “I gotcha,” the woman said gracefully. “I hope things get better.”
“Thanks. It’s getting there.”
The woman left, and once the bell tinkled with her departure, Liam leaned over. “Nothing like a little bit of wholesome harassment to brighten up your day.”
“Oh, hush. She was sweet.”
“Maybe I’m just old and married,” Liam said, barely a year older than me, “but I subscribe to the belief that hitting on service workers is always inappropriate.”
“You literally cheered on Alex and me as a couple.”
“Fine. Maybe I’m just bitter that it never happens to me.”
“Derek literally hits on you every time he comes in.”
“Yes, but he’s my husband. We signed a legal contract.” Liam crossed his arms, looking me up and down. “You doing okay?”
I shrugged. “I’m fine.”
“Well, Derek and I are going to go see some shitty horror marathon at the dollar theater on Sunday, and you’re not closing or opening the next morning. Wanna come?”
My impulsive reaction was to say no and resume sulking in my bedroom just like Mom said I shouldn’t, but I managed to bite it back in time. “You know what? I would. Thanks, Liam.”
He lowered his voice. “Who needs that fuckboy? You’re doing amazing.”
“I’m doing my best, all things considered.”
“What’s the newest stat? How many blocked numbers?”
I grimaced, shoving aside any embarrassment in light of Liam’s enthusiasm. “Seven.”
“That’s three more than last time.” Thankfully, his nod held approval. “I’m proud of you.”
My smile was as sincere as I’d managed in two weeks. “Thanks.”
Later, in the break room, I was still as pathetic as ever, seeing one unread message and thinking maybe, just maybe, it could be from Alex.
Hey sweetheart! Management will be stopping by the apartment to fix the dishwasher sometime today, so if you’re home, go ahead and let them in.
Nope. That was a mom text.
Alex was just up the road at her gym. So close, yet as far away as ever.
I had twenty-five minutes left of my lunch break.
I didn’t have to go inside the gym, but damn, it would feel incredible to give her a piece of my mind.
In a daze, I followed my dumb impulse. Just a quick walk by. I wouldn’t go in or anything. I wouldn’t admit that I spent my quiet moments researching her court cases and scandals and making theories that could only suggest the mind of an obsessive freak.
Regardless, I sped-walked. Took five minutes. There it was: Berserker Kickboxing.
Alex was just a few steps away. She was on her break, probably sparring with Chiara.
I could go in.
My eyes suddenly stung. No, I’d had a stalker before. Not that I was much of a threat, though.
Did she hurt as much as I did? Did she hurt enough to do something stupid? I thought of her scar, how she’d let me caress it; she had opened her whole heart, yet still managed to shut me out.
“Terra?”
I jumped and whirled around, only to see Chiara.
Heart pounding, my hand flew to my chest. “Oh my God, you scared me.” A pause. Her scrutiny was boundless. “I was just taking a walk on my break. I-I wasn’t going to go in or anything. That would be weird.”
“It would,” Chiara affirmed, her judgement cutting right through my resolve.
“I may have been fantasizing about it a little though.” Admitting some fault meant she wouldn’t assume the worst, right?
Chiara looked past me to the glass doors of the gym, half-covered by padding to protect it from the sun.
She took a breath to speak, but I blurted out: “Is she okay?”
Chiara met my gaze again. “Yes.”
“It just worries me. I think you can understand why.”
When she nodded, some judgement left her stance. “She worries me, too. But she’s not a danger to herself right now, I promise.”
“Thank you. I’ll, um, leave you alone now. I gotta get back.” I began my exit, only for Chiara’s voice to pull me back.
“It did mean something to her.”
I turned around, speechless at the admittance.
“That girl is going to be fighting her demons her whole life,” Chiara continued, “but I do think you helped her release a few. I…” She hesitated, then finished with, “…wish she could have been ready to have someone like you in her life.”
She left me alone. I watched her march up the steps and disappear into the gym.
I didn’t cry so much anymore. But my tears fell freely as I wandered my way back to work.