Chapter 9

"Tough talk."

Halle jumped. "You scared me." She sat down next to Shizuka. "Was I that loud?"

"Kinda."

"I . . . uh . . .,"

"I know what you're gonna say." Shizuka leaned in and flicked her forehead.

"Ow! What was that for?" Halle rubbed her forehead.

"That was for thinking that I see you as a burden." Shizuka sat back. "Yui is much happier with you and Aunt Cassie."

"Yes but . . ."

"Fine, you owe me. I'll take the money when you're rich. Happy?"

Halle gave a half-hearted smile. "That wasn't it. It's just . . . how do I put it . . . you see, everyone has something to fall back on, either their family or their education or their partner or simply the money they have. But I have nothing. I feel so helpless and I have no idea what will work and the only thing I can do is bake. Pace was good at it too, so we joined a team. I take the majority of the profits. It was her idea. I just feel I am of no use. And on top of all this mess comes Kairo. Just to enjoy seeing me squirm in the heat of all the trouble. I'm blabbering nonsense but . . . these thoughts keep swirling in my head over and over again and I have no answer."

"Uncle Alan left you in debt and even though you have no money you are not in debt now which means you paid back all the money Uncle owed. That takes a great deal of hard work. How many people can pull it off? Do you know how many people die because of debt? But you saved the little things that were left and you made a decent living. I'm sure you'll do better." Shizuka patted her lap proudly. "Yui will definitely be proud to tell every one of her friends about her aunt's famous café."

Halle smiled. "Yui brings so much happiness into my life, you believe it or not."

"And like it or not, you do have something to fall back on."

"What's that?" Halle asked quizzically.

"You have me and Pace. We may not be family and you think it is a burden to us," Shizuka continued. "But think about it, Pace let you take most of the profits because she cares for you. I am here to take care of Aunt Cassie. When you needed people, you fell back on us. So don't tell me you have no one or I'll have to flick you again."

Halle didn't know what to say.

How ungrateful she'd been.

"I . . ."

Shizuka placed her hand over Halle's and smiled. "It's okay."

Halle stared at the ceiling. She lay in her bed comfortably with all the lights, except for her bedside lamp, switched off but she was wide awake. Her thoughts racing even more in the quiet. Did he know where she lived? Does he know about mum's condition? Did he investigate when he came back to town? Or was he doing it right now? Her worries intensified and her helplessness to the situation made it worse. She turned to the side and curled up into a ball.

"Nothing bad is going to happen . . ." she started chanting quietly to keep her mind from wandering back to those thoughts.

What if he already had a plan and that's why he came to check up on her? What if that's the truth? What was she gonna do? Does she have an escape plan? She had to make one right now so that she doesn't end up entangled in his plan.

"Ugh." She turned to the other side. She can't do anything with her mum in this condition. And he can and will do anything in his power to ruin . . .

"Damn it!" she sat up. He's gonna go after her job; make sure she doesn't get any customers. That's why he didn't come back to the café after knowing she hid from him. She rubbed her forehead. What did she do to him that was so bad that he needed to do this to her? She left him because he treated her like a doormat and didn't want to be treated that way anymore. Why can't she remember anything more than that? She had distracted herself from those memories too much that she'd lost them. It would've been better if all of this didn't happen. She needed to remember. The frustration was too much to take that she felt like screaming into the darkness. She sighed. She needed to sleep and there was not a wink of sleep left in her to fall asleep. But she had no sleeping pills!

She lied back down with all those thoughts, deciding this would be the start of the many sleepless nights to come.