Page 16 of Sweet Surrender
How wrong I’d been.
I stared at my sketchbook, trying to put my brain in gear and come upwith a design, but by the time the winter sun had risen, my page was still blank.
Since Liam turned my world upside down and left me to pick up thepieces, I hadn’t been able to draw anything. It was almost as if my creative juices had packed up and left when he did four months ago.
Maybe it was because no matter how hard I tried to switch off, Icouldn’t help but let myself be consumed with the worry of how the fuck I was going to dig myself out of the blackest hole Liam had left me in.
Giving up, I threw my pencil down with a heavy sigh and dragged mypathetic ass to the bathroom. The only way out of this mess was getting a new job, and to do that, I needed the internet.
Before I knew it, Mrs. Wade, the librarian who was as old as thebuilding itself, was telling me it was closing time. I’d spent the entire day applying for countless jobs, from waitress to museum curator. I wasn’t exactly qualified for half of the jobs I’d applied for, but I figured I had nothing to lose. You had to be in it to win it, right?
Saying goodbye to Mrs. Wade, and telling her I’d be back tomorrow, Iheaded out, ignoring my grumbling belly reminding me that I’d skipped lunch.
I’d walked to the library this morning, deciding the fresh air would dome good, as well as saving a few cents on the bus fare, and given that the new snowfall we’d been promised hadn’t fallen yet, I decided to walk home.
As I neared my apartment, I walked past a take-out place, and thedelicious aroma of fried chicken hit my nose. My mouth salivated, and my belly once again rumbled.
Take-out was a rarity for me; I couldn’t justify the expense. But feelingthe weight of the world on my shoulders, the craving for greasy, warm, comfort food took over, and before I knew it, I was pressed against the window, looking at the menu.
It was stupid to consider wasting precious money on take-out, butthere wasn’t a whole heap of food in my apartment, none that seemed appetizing anyway, and the thought of tasting the fried food made me feel asmidgeonbetter.
Deciding to treat myself to a piece of chicken and some fries, Icrossed the road and headed to the ATM to withdraw some cash. Before I could talk myself out of the impulsive decision, I put my card in, entered my pin, and selected the button to withdraw $10.
To my annoyance, a message flashed up on the screen telling me mycard had been declined before said card was spat back out. Figuring there was a problem with the machine, I put my card back in, re-entered the pin, and again, selected the option to withdraw $10.
A second later, the same message flashed up, and my card wasviciously spat out.
My brows pulled together in a frown. I only wanted a bit of chicken,for fuck sake. It was just my luck that the damn machine would be broken. I knew I had $78 left in my account because I budgeted for every cent I had to my name, so it wasn’t that my accountwas empty.
Hoping for third time lucky, I inserted my card and again typed mypin. Only this time, before selecting the ‘withdraw cash’ option, I selected the ‘check balance’ option, just in case.
My heart sank at the balance displayed on the screen. Not only wasmy account empty, but I was overdrawn by $300.
What the hell?
I racked my brain, trying to think of where the fuck my money hadgone, and what could have possibly pushed me $300 overdrawn, but I couldn’t think straight thanks to the panic coursing through my body.
I was struggling to pay what I already owed, I couldn’t afford to getmyself in any more debt. Thishadto be a mistake.
Numbly, I ejected my card and walked home in a daze, going overevery recent transaction I’d made and my monthly outgoings, but by the time I reached my apartment, I was still none the wiser as to what had happened.
Had Liam somehow found a way to fuck me over some more fromwherever in the world he was?
Cursing under my breath at the thought that Liam was behind this, Iflung my front door open. As I stepped inside, an envelope crunched underneath my foot.
I reached down to pick it up, finding my name scrawled on the front.Dread began building within me as I tore the envelope open and pulled out the letter, instantly recognizing the scruffy writing as belonging to my landlord.
My eyes scanned over the words, and with every sentence I read, myheart thudded harder against my ribs, and despair seeped into my bones.
‘Unforeseen building work…must be rectified immediately...costly…no choice but to increase rent…an additional $100 per week, starting next week.’
My back slumped against the door as the letter fell from my hand,floating gently to the ground where it lay mocking me.
I was going to be homeless.
Chapter 6
Savannah
