Chapter 21

"I thought she'd never leave."

Halle stared at her. "You've been listening?"

"The oven's not loud," said Pace. "And as for the baking time, I have nothing to do, so I listened."

"More like eavesdropped." Halle locked the café from the inside and went to the Baking Room.

"Yeah okay." Pace followed her to the Baking Room. "But wasn't it weird?"

"No, Pace."

Pace sighed. "But she wasn't wrong asking that."

"Seriously?" Halle looked irritated.

"We are doing great sales at the moment and if you're right," Pace continued. "It will end with the holiday season. Will it be enough for the operation?"

Halle sighed and shook her head. "Close to half, that's about it."

"What if you take all the profits? I'll take my share as double after everything's settled."

"I really wouldn't want to add more burden on you—"

"Right." Pace folded her arms.

"But even if I did, it would amount to a little more than half the amount we need though."

"Damn . . ." said Pace shocked.

"If mom holds up for a while," continued Halle. "and if we're lucky, maybe we can make enough by 3 to 4 months."

"That's a long time . . . considering the situation."

"But it's all we've got."

"Can't you take a loan for the rest of . . . ?" Pace stopped seeing Halle.

"After what happened with dad?" said Halle with a sad smile. "I don't want to go through it again."

"What about your sister?"

"You don't start it please."

"If you're gonna talk about mom, why shouldn't you talk with her?" asked Pace. "It doesn't concern you. It's about what Aunt Cassie needs. You need the money, why don't you just ask?"

The ding of the oven brought her out of her thoughts. Pace pulled the tray out and tapped them onto another plate.

"She thinks that me leaving Kairo was wrong." Halle said after a while.

Pace turned to her quizzically.

"He's rich."

Pace eased herself into a chair. "I've been meaning to ask but couldn't bring myself to. But really, what happened between you two?

"I've seen people with exes but the way you reacted, I don't know how to put it, the way you were literally shocked out of your wits."

"It's a long story."

She patted her lap. "That's why I sat down. If you don't have a problem saying it, that is."

"Honestly, we were together for like . . . three years."

"That's a long time. You decided to leave after three years?"

"I don't even remember if I said yes to the relationship in the first place."

"What?" Pace leaned forward. "What do you mean?"

"I don't remember anything." said Halle. "These days I'm trying to remember them, in case I'll have to tell people why I left, you know. I remembered that it was something related to dad and the loan and . . . it was the time Juniper got married. A lot of stuff happened and I felt that I can't take it anymore. That's why I left."

Pace looked at her like she might speak more.

"The leaving part was hard . . . , it was very hard." Halle smiled. "Probably why I forgot most of it. The good times and the bad times."

"It would have been hard on him."

"No, he just couldn't take it." said Halle. "He took it to his ego. That made it worse."

"But anybody would, right?" asked Pace. "It was three years after all. Nobody would like it."

"That's why I'm trying to remember them. I don't want people to think I am a heartless person." Halle paused. "I don't want to be a bad person."

"Hey, you're not." Pace got up. "You are not a heartless person. But I find it difficult to understand how your memories just vanished."

"Would you believe me if I told you that they didn't 'just' vanish," said Halle. "They are all in my head like a puzzle but all jumbled up. I need to piece them together. Like, I can remember that I never liked being with him, but I can't remember why. I know the reason I left has got something to do with my dad, but I don't know what exactly happened. And on top of all that he was just so obsessed with me that it is unnatural and unbreathable. Even if I forgot the incident, I can remember how he'd made me feel all those years ago. Even now I don't think he came here just to convince me and take me back with him there would be something more behind it."

"Hold on."

"That's it," said Halle. "He's here to get back at me for what I did to him. Or he's playing with me. If not he would have killed me when he had the chance."

"Kill you?"

"Wait . . ."

"Halle?" she heard Pace's voice slowly becoming distant. "Halle . . .!"