Chapter 334: You’re Good

Mina was standing in Mr. Zane's study wearing the tracksuit he had purchased for her. She had four requirements for the suit; black, nondescript, drawstring hoodie and loose fitting, but what the man bought was something else entirely.

It was black, and had a hoodie, but it was fitted and embellished along the arms and legs with silver sequins. Still, the worst part by far was the word 'cute' that was written across the chest. The letters were all capital, and it made it appear as though Mina was shouting the word at people.

"Please Mina, I need a picture of you," Zane said.

"Did you buy this on purpose?" Mina asked. She knew that he did, but she needed to maintain her calm.

"I saw it, and I thought. You know who likes to play cute little games? Mina does. So, I bought it." Mina pretended not to understand Zane's mocking words, but they were clear. The outfit was a form of revenge.

"What games? Mr. Zane, please tell me this is a joke. I don't want to walk around like this."

"You should have thought about that before." Zane let his words hang, but Mina understood. Still she lied.

"Mr. Zane, please. I already told you that I just want to live peacefully. This…" Mina lifted the part of her sweatshirt that said 'cute'. "Will not help me do that. Do you know how many people are going to stare at me?" she asked.

Mina looked at President Lee who was staring at her wordlessly. She knew he was holding back, but she could not blame him if he laughed at her. She looked ridiculous, and even though she disliked the man, it was okay for him to laugh.

"Is that really what you bought her?" President Lee asked his friends and Zane nodded.

"I think it's the most fitting for someone who is as good at being cute as Mina is." Mina's mouth hung open. She wanted to pretend to be hurt, but she was almost boiling inside, and it was becoming difficult.

"It's okay. I get that you do not trust me, but I really just wanted to help. If you do not want to move forward with the nonprofit, I'll just go tell Miss Meagan that you changed your mind." This time Zane's mouth hung open; Mina was threatening him.

"Oh, you're good," Zane said. Both he and Mina were aware that his mother had gone to bed excited about the potential for her to help people in a way that she wished she could have had. Meagan had spent the entire night researching Mina's claims, and when she found out that there were really no outlets for women to recover, her mind had been made.

"What do you mean?" Mina replied. She took off her glasses and revealed red and tear-filled eyes.

"Okay that is enough," Ian said. He had been silently observing the interaction between Zane and Mina, and while he originally wanted to laugh at the girl; his heart was now aching on her behalf. He clipped their conversation short and told Mina it was time for them to leave.

----

Mina sat next to President Lee, even though they were hours behind schedule, she insisted that they stop at a store called Targa, which he had heard of, but had never visited. Inside, Mina beelined toward the snack food section, and picked up a bunch of things Ian knew was not for her.

"Who is all of that for?" He asked dumbly. He was already aware of what Mina said she was going to do with the things, but he wanted to make sure she was not preparing for an escape.

It did not evade Ian's notice that Mina was picking up dry foods with a long shelf life. Most of them did not require warming or cooking, and it made Ian think of a prolonged period on the run or outdoors.

Ian knew from Mina's texts that she had been invited on a camping trip, but he also knew that Cylus Rue would not have invited Mina without planning to meet all her needs. He also knew that Mina would not have started purchasing items for a trip that was still days away, without waiting to see how her face healed first.

"Hospital food is depressing," Mina replied. "I want to cheer Dom up." Ian felt his brow furrow. Her answer was too simple, and it made him more suspicious; jealous even.

"Do you like him?" He asked, not really caring how blunt his question was.

"I do; Dom has always been nice to me. Well, not always, but he is a kind person once you get to know him." Mina believed that President Lee hated people who were kind to her, which made her think that her words might cause a negative reaction. However, Mina also knew that she could not lie. If she did, then her current actions would make no sense.

"Are you interested in him?" President Lee followed up, and Mina froze. She narrowed her eyes at the nosey man, trying to figure out his angle, but she was careful not to become too hostile.

"President Lee, I know that in the upper-class, men and women are not friends without a reason, but for common people like myself and Dom, it's not the same." Mina did not let her eyes linger on the man too long, because if she did, it would be hard for her to avoid hitting him.

----

Mina watched the cashier ring up her items. She owed Dom $273.34. Even though he had insisted that she had no need to pay him back, Mina hated to owe anyone anything. She had even gone to the lengths of looking up the items Zane purchased for her and making a price list for everything. She had originally felt that she owed Dom a lot, but it was not even a drop in the bucket of what she owed Zane.

Mina's total came to just over $100.00. She handed the cashier her bank card and watched the transaction go through without much of a reaction.

"How come you can spend that much on Dom but not on yourself?" President Lee asked.

"I'm not the one recovering in the hospital," Mina replied. It was a sarcastic answer, but it was an honest response.

"I don't think you would spend that much even if you were," the man added and Mina sighed.

"I feel guilty when I spend money on myself." Mina was telling the truth, but she had a feeling president Lee would not believe her, and if he did, she had a feeling she would be spending a lot more money on her own upkeep, which so far had been being taken care of by the Lee's or Zane.

----

Mina was once again sitting inside of President Lee's car. The man did not speak to her much and she was grateful. It allowed her to focus on where they were going, and not all the possibilities of the unknown. The car was just about to pass by the convenience store, where Mina had stopped with Dom in the past, and she could not contain her enthusiasm.

"President Lee, please; Can we stop at that store?" Mina asked as she pointed, and to her surprise, the man did not protest.