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“I’ve been busting my ass around here,” I spit at her. “The other day I didn’t get out until late because your dumbass nephew and his sucky band ate all our profits and left me the mess to clean up. Every day is a mystery with you, because I don’t know which wild idea I’m going to have to scramble for. You think you have to keep coming up with new stuff, but really you need to focus on what we already have going on and improve on that, and you need more than one person on shift, especially for closing.”
I’m just getting started, feeling every single resentment well up inside me as I vomit it all at Susan. I know I should stop, that the things I’m saying won’t change a thing. But I’m so angry, I can’t help myself.
“I’ve hardly ever called out sick, and trust me there were days I’ve wanted to. But I show up because I know if I don’t, it’s my coworkers who suffer, not you. When was the last time you thought of that? Like when you waited until the last minute to post our schedules, or you hired your nephew’s band so that our ears have to bleed while you’re cozy at home. Did you think of us? Or even the shop? Because this place ran so much smoother before you became manager and fucked it all up.”
“Nina, that’s enough. You’re not on the schedule because you’re f—”
“Fired? Impossible. Because I quit.” I throw my crumpled apron on the ground, then turn to the bewildered new hire next to her. “If things get too rough, get out while you can. This place doesn’t pay enough for a living wage, and there are plenty of cafés that make better coffee.”
Then I storm out of Insomniacs for the last time ever.
I book it to my Cadillac, the rage coursing through me like molten lava in my veins. When I slide onto the seat, I slam the door hard enough that the car creaks at me.
“Sorry, girl,” I mutter, patting the dash. Too much of that, and the car will break down for good, just out of spite. I toss my bag in the passenger seat at the same time my phone starts ringing. I manage to dig it out before it goes to voicemail.
“What?” I bark into the phone.
There’s silence for a moment, and then, “Don’t hang up.”
Fuck my life. Fuck fuck fuck. It’s Jordy, and damn it all to hell, I should hang it up. But I’m so angry, I stay on the phone. In fact, I take the opportunity to tell her exactly what I think of her.
“Go to hell, Jordy. You are the last person I want to speak to, along with either of our mothers. As far as I’m concerned, you all are dead to me. I’m sick and tired of bearing the weight of your blame for a situation I didn’t create, and I’m done being labeled the villain of this family over every single lie you three tell about me. Do you understand?”
I breathe hard, waiting for her answer, almost sure she’s going to hang up on me.
“I don’t,” she starts, and I wind up to lay into her some more. She beats me to it. “But I want to. Brayden and I were talking last night, and he mentioned—”
“Brayden,” I laugh. “I should have known the two of you were talking shit about me. This is just rich.”
“No, we weren’t talking shit,” Jordy says. “Well, I was. But Brayden mentioned that I’ve only heard one side of the story, and that it was from my mom. I didn’t quite understand it last night, but I’ve had some time to think.” She pauses, and it’s the perfect opportunity for me to hang up. But I don’t. Some small part of me, the part that must revel in abuse, wants to hear what she has to say. “Nina, can we meet up? I think we need to talk.”
“So you can go right back to our mothers and have a good laugh?”
I know that’s not it, but I’m not about to bring up her mission of being my roommate. My hope is that she’ll forget the whole thing, and maybe if I cut this off now, I can move on from this crazy family and forget they even exit.
“Goodbye, Jordy. Have a good life.”
“Wait,” she says before I can hang up. “That’s not what’s happening. Please give me a chance, I’m trying here. You have to understand how it feels from my side. I loved Nanna Dot. Maybe I didn’t live with her, but I was close to her. When she died and cut me out of the will, you have to know how awful that felt. It was like she was taking back every kind thing she ever said to me. And because you got everything, it was easy to hate you because I can’t get mad at someone who already died. But Nina, I’m so mad, and I’m so hurt. But I’m trying to overcome all of this just so I can hear your side. This isn’t easy.”
“Easy?” I laugh loudly. “You have no idea. Where were you that last year of her life? It’s like you forgot we were even your family. We can pretend our rift happened when Nanna Dot died, but we stopped being close before that.”
She’s quiet a moment, and I hear her sniff. She’s fucking crying. For a moment, my heart twinges at the realization. But then I harden my heart.
“I have to go.”
“Nina, you don’t owe me anything, but—”
“You’re right, Jordy, I owe you nothing.” I look up at the roof of my car as my vision turns blurry. “You know the worst part? You knew me, you knew what I was going through with my mom because your mom was the same kind of asshole. You abandoned me, and when Nanna died, you took their side. You didn’t even talk with me. You just completely forgot about our friendship. You threw all that away the moment you believed your mom, when you knew me better than anyone.”
It’s quiet on her end, but I can hear her breathing.
“I’m sorry,” she finally says. “I want to hear you out. Can we meet? Maybe for coffee or something?”
I look at Insomniacs, tightening the grip on my phone. “Fine,” I bite out. “But not coffee, I know somewhere better.”
Chapter Nine
Nina