Didn’t add the rest, that the manager said I couldn’t carry trays or deal with ‘customer demands,’ that it was a ‘business decision’.
Didn’t add that I didn’t even try to fight it. Didn’t add that the second he said it, a part of me felt… relieved.
Layla leaned forward, whispering, “What are you gonna do now?”
I didn’t know.
So I just smiled, small and shaky. And signed,I’ll figure it out.
But as I looked down at the jacket again, at the way the fabric swallowed my hands… I wasn’t sure if I wanted to.
Their voices blurred together. Offers, suggestions, sympathy, one after another.
Layla leaned forward first, soft but determined. “Rora, listen, I know someone at a café near downtown. They’re hiring.”
Jennie jumped in, “Or my parents’ school! They always need assistants; you’d be perfect.”
Aly nodded so fast her hair fell into her face. “Literally, we’ll find you something better; you don’t need that disgusting club anymore.”
I just sat there.
They didn’t understand.
They didn’t know what it was like to lose everything in a single night because of someone else’s one mistake, if I could even call it a mistake.
I shook my head. Once. Hard.
No.
Layla’s smile faltered. “Rora—”
Another shake.
I pushed the tray away, the clatter echoing a little too loudly.
I didn’t want help from people who weren’t the reason I lost everything. If I needed to face this, I’d face the person who started it.
I grabbed my bag and stood up, ignoring their protests, their worried eyes following me until the cafeteria door swung shut behind me.
The cold air outside hit my skin like a punishment.
And there he was.
Joshua.
Sitting in his expensive car with Alex in the passenger seat, both looking as if they owned the world.
My heart started pounding so loud I swore they could hear it. I clenched my jaw and crossed the lot before I could overthink it.
Each step heavier than the last.
Then—
Knock, knock, knock.
The sound of my knuckles against his window sliced through the cold air.
Alex glanced up first, brows shooting up before nudging Joshua. Joshua’s head turned slowly, and when his eyes met mine through the glass, he froze.
