I close my eyes. The apartment is quiet around me. The TV faintly behind my door, the radiator clicking.
“Thank you, I…” how to explain the weight on my chest. “I’m just not used to this.”
“Friends helping you?”
“Having friends, really,” I laugh bitterly.
I look at the laptop again. One tab with the supermarket job. Another now with my inbox, a new email notification lighting up the corner.
I click on it.
Subject:Vektor Sports–Junior PR Coordinator Role.
I skim the first few lines. Competitive salary. Immediate start available. Please contact HR for details.
I scroll back to the supermarket tab. Hover over the X.
Then I close it.
The screen feels lighter without it.
I bring the phone back to my ear.
"I’ll call them," I say.
Katharina laughs, short and surprised. “Good luck in the interview. And Élise?”
“Yes?”
“Good luck,” she says.
I sit there for a moment, phone in my hand, staring at the closed laptop.
Then I stand, cross to the window, and lean my forehead against the cold glass.
I wonder if I should go and tell Nico. But me getting a job is probably the worst news he could imagine.
Which is the strangest part: my relief will look exactly like his worst fear.
Chapter 17
The Choice
Playlist:
Sebastian Yatra: Two Orugitas
Greenday: Wake Me Up When September Ends
Salzburg, Austria, March 21
