"Sorry I'm late," he says.
"Don't worry. Thanks a lot for helping us out. I promise you, we’ll pay you back as soon as we graduate and start working." Parker stands by my side, looking at the bar with the same expression of disgust that I am sure is splashed on my own face. The place looks even more run-down in broad daylight. We both look out of place here, Parker in his navy suit, me in my smart black dress.
"No problem. Just promise me you will not go to places like this again."
"Yeah well, you wouldn't have caught me dead in this one if it weren't for Jess. And I highly doubt she's learned anything from it."
Parker purses his lips, looking away. I smile unwillingly. He's been around our place quite a few times since Jess got out of the hospital, helping with one thing or another. I think he feels guilty for not preventing Jess's accident, since he was in the bar when it happened. But Jess is not nearly as charming as her usual self these days. The fact that she has a cast on her injured leg, not to mention postponing her trip to London for her job interview, made her downright insufferable, especially to Parker. I think they had a falling out a few days ago.
It was a nice of Parker to come here, really. I wanted the check to be delivered in person, paranoid it would get lost in the mail or something. Since Jess doesn't leave the apartment except for her classes, I took the task upon myself. Parker, a gentleman as always, insisted on coming with me so I wouldn't face the
bar owner alone. As if sensing how much I dread going inside, Parker says, "Let's stay here until you drink your coffee." He folds his arms over his chest. "How was your interview?"
"Excruciating. But it was nice to be in New York." New York is a good place to forget one's thoughts. There is so much noise in that city one can't hear her own thoughts. "I'm not getting my hopes up though. The competition was unbelievable. They interviewed forty people for one spot."
"Rubbish. You're smart. I think you have an excellent chance."
I blush at the reassuring nudge he gives my arm. It's unbelievable how much faith he has in me. Just like James. I brush aside the thought of him, clasping the cup tighter in my hands. It's almost empty now.
"I don't really want to move there, I went mostly to get some interview experience. Fingers crossed that one of the jobs in San Francisco works out."
Parker grins, but I cannot help feeling ashamed. I sent out almost two hundred job applications, and only scored three interviews. An exceptionally lousy percentage by any standards.
I drink up the last drops of coffee and, wanting to postpone the moment when we have to go inside, pull out my phone to check my emails. I’m excited to discover a new email from one of my computer science classes professor. In my desperation to find any kind of student job, I made use of my computer science minor for the first time ever. One of my professors mentioned in a class that he needed a student to help him on a project, and I jumped at the opportunity. He tells me in this email that I am to come to his office on Friday so he can give me more details and I can start working right away. Excellent.
"Let's go inside, shall we?" Parker says, checking his watch.
"Sure. Are you going back to the office afterward?" I ask, and immediately regret it. Since he works with James, I never ask about his work because I don't want to give him the opportunity to bring up James. Like Jess, Parker didn't have any qualms in offering his opinion on our breakup. Both of them firmly believe James and I belong together.
I don't. And neither does James. He hasn't made one single attempt to contact me in all this time.
"No, I'm not going back to the office today. I have to attend a charity event tonight for the company." He frowns, as if concentrating on something. "I still need to find someone to come with me. I didn't have time and you can't go to these things alone. Are you free tonight?"
"Yeah. But… James will be there."
Parker shakes his head. "He won't. He asked me to go because he's not in the mood."
"I'll think about it. I'm kind of tired after the trip to New York," I say, biting the inside of my cheek. I'd like nothing better than to crash in my bed and sleep as soon as I get home, though it's early afternoon. But I owe Parker. Turning him down doesn't feel right.
He holds the bar door open and I step inside first. I wrinkle my nose at the protruding smell of alcohol and smoke. The bar has been closed for weeks, but I suppose the smell clings to the walls. I quickly walk downstairs, willing to finish this as soon as possible, with Parker hot on my heels. Even with the poor lighting, I can see that the place is in shambles. Behind the bar is a man in his fifties, bald and sweating, with a protruding belly. The owner. He looks just like I imagined him when we talked on the phone. He watches Parker and me with small, watery eyes.
"Hi. I'm Serena McLewis. And this is Parker—"
"You're late." The man cuts me off.
"The due date is not for another two days," I say, my heart in my throat.
The man smiles, revealing all of his yellowed teeth. The sight makes me want to puke. "What I meant was… it's already taken care of."
"What's taken care of?" Parker asks, the bewilderment in his voice mirroring my own.
"The six thousand dollars," the man says greedily. "I already got it."
I just stare at him, waiting for an explanation. When he doesn't offer it, I pull myself straighter and ask, "From whom?"
"That guy who keeps showing up on magazine covers. James Cohen."
"I'm not sure this is a good idea," Parker says wearily, looking at my clenched fists when he pulls over in front of their office building. I made him drive here after we stormed out of the bar.