Page 120 of Taeja

Grabbing the remote, Taeja glanced at Liyah. “Yu cya offer mi a drink?”

Liyah hissed her teeth. “You’re not a guest here. If you want anything, come help yourself.”

“I miss the days when you used to love me.”

“Mi love yu like cook food.” Liyah grinned and sat beside Taeja, resting her head on Taeja’s shoulder.

As the opening soundtrack of Taeja’s favorite film filled the room, Taeja threw an arm over Liyah’s shoulder. Cool air drifted through the nearby window and grazed their skin.

“Why do you have the window open?” Taeja asked, hating how the humid air would make her hair frizzier.

“My AC stopped working and my landlord is being an ass.” Liyah sighed. “I can’t wait for my lease to end. I already have a room lined up for me at school because I’m working on campus. Can you believe it’s our last year?”

“No. Time moved so fast… Wait. I thought you were gonna do grad school?”

Liyah scoffed. “Hell no. That was before I knew how serious these student loans are. Maybe when I pay them off, I’ll consider it. My focus is our graduation in December.”

Taeja smiled. “Remember when you were against taking all those summer classes and now we’re going to be graduating a semester earlier?”

“Mi deevn ago ansa yu,” Liyah laughed.

Taeja cleared her throat. “Remember that thing you did for me last year?”

“Be more specific. I’ve done a lot for you.”

“You know… The account you opened in your name.”

“Oh. Yeah. Do you want the card now?” Liyah asked, and Taeja nodded. She leaned off Taeja’s shoulder, her brows narrowing as she looked at Taeja. “What happened?”

“Jerry cut me off…” Taeja murmured, unable to push away the weight on her shoulder. It burrowed into her skin, shimmering down to her heart, and leaving a deep, painful wound.

Liyah sighed. Then, she stood and went to her room. She returned a minute later with a white envelope in her hand. “Here.”

“You didn’t open it?” Taeja asked as she accepted the sealed envelope.

“I did. How else was I supposed to activate it?” Liyah laid her head on Taeja’s shoulder. “But I resealed it, so it would feel more real for you.”

Tears pricked Taeja’s eyes. “Thanks, Liyah. I say this a lot, but I do love and appreciate you.”

Liyah grinned. “I know, but say it one more time so I canreallybelieve it.”

Taeja snorted a laugh. “Cho, Liyah.” She opened the envelope with shaking fingers, her breathing quickening as her heart paced. She got her first card in her first year of high school, but this was her first time ripping open her own envelope. Which reminded her… “You didn’t use any of the money?”

Liyah shook her head. “Of course not.”

“I told you that you could,” Taeja said. “You did a lot for me when you opened this account and made all the deposits.”

Liyah leaned off Taeja’s shoulder and looked at her with a smile. “I know, Tae. But I always made ends meet, so I didn’t touch it. It’s your money. You worked for this, and I know how much it means to you. Besides, mi prefer when yu spend Jerry money pon mi.”

Taeja chuckled. “This is a lot of money, though. Considering all that I did… It should be close to five hundred thousand because it was just collecting interest.”

“Rich and naa talk!” Liyah exclaimed. “How me love this fi yu so? Don’t mi always tell yu seh Jerry cya wul yu down? Now look at you, almost a millionaire at twenty.”

Taeja smiled until her cheeks hurt. “Stop swell up mi head.”

Liyah grinned. “Happy for you, bestie. Mek Jerry gweh! As one door closes, another one is gonna open every time!”

Taeja nodded. “I guess you’re right.”

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