I step back quietly, giving Monet a moment to collect herself.
“I can’t thank you enough,” she repeats, dabbing at her eyes.
“No thank you needed. You did the hard part, showing up for yourself. And I love you for it.”
Monet walks over, still clutching the tissues, and wraps me in a big hug. The overwhelming gesture doesn’t throw me off—it actually makes me smile wider.
“I’ll get changed so you can make the final alterations,” she says, pulling back.
“That’s fine. I’ll get your appointment set up.”
I step down and head out of the dressing room, making my way to the front of my suite where my desktop rests at the reception desk. I move the mouse cursor to wake up the screen and start typing as my appointment calendar opens.
A jingle from the door and approaching footsteps should make me look up, but I don’t bother. Instead, I call out, “Welcome to Big Jackie’s, where curves get the love they deserve. I’ll be right with you.”
The steps get closer as I finish setting Monet’s next appointment.
“Ms. Jackie Murphy?” A sharp male voice breaks my concentration.
I finally tear my eyes from the screen and look at the man standing before me. He’s wearing the standard Penobscot Building uniform shirt along with an ID badge hanging from his neck. He’s a white man in his thirties with a clean-shaven face, tan khakis, and casual shoes that have seen better days.
“Yes, how can I help you?” I ask, straightening my posture.
He holds out an envelope. “This is for you.”
I take the envelope cautiously, my eyes narrowing. Once it’s in my hands, the man makes his exit without another word, the door closing softly behind him.
The envelope has my name on it and the building’s company logo, nothing else. I grab a letter opener from my pen holder and slice it open, then pull out the letter and scan the contents.
At first, I breathe a sigh of relief—it’s just a lease renewal reminder. I’m due to renew in two months, so this checks out. But as I scan the new lease terms, my heart plummets to my stomach.
“How the fuck is this even legal?” I mutter, and a little too loudly at that.
My suite was just fifteen hundred a month, but now they want three thousand. I can’t afford that. Sure, my business is profitable, but I can’t just double my prices to meet the demands of my greedy landlord.
“Gentrification, fuck!” I slam the paper down on my desk and let out a loud huff, looking around my beautiful space—the space I’ve poured my soul into for the past two years.
How did I not see this coming? All these new expensive high-end boutiques popping up in Downtown Detroit, turning this area into a playground for the rich. I’ve worked so hard to build this business, and I was finally on track to save enough for a down payment on a home this year. Now, I’m being priced out of my own boutique. It’s not fucking fair.
Monet steps out of the dressing room, and I quickly shove the paper into one of my drawers, trying to steady my emotions.
“Jackie, is everything okay?” she asks, concern etching her features.
“I’m fine, Monet, just a little setback is all.” Setback is an understatement. Does this greedy landlord even know how hard it is to take clients virtually? How hard it is to be taken seriously when you’re running your boutique out of your home?
I was making moves, and Downtown Detroit is the place to be right now. I’m getting clients left and right. Why? Because one, I’m that girl, and two, location!
I’m the plus-sized woman the world loves to hate. I’m confident, I know my worth, my beauty. I keep my face beat, my hair laid with a bus down middle part, lashes, nails, feet done, and I’m always dressed to impress. Those fatphobic assholes hate to see me coming. But right now, I’m feeling defeated.
Fake it ’til you make it, Big Jackie, I silently tell myself.
“Oh, I was worried,” Monet says, studying my face. “Are you sure everything is okay?”
“Let’s just say some setbacks are just openings for bigger opportunities,” I reply, forcing my voice to sound upbeat.
Monet smiles, her eyes brightening. “I love your enthusiasm, Jackie. You are truly an inspiration.”
“I try to be, every day.” The words come out automatically, my customer service voice taking over while my mind races.
