The city felt alien, its streets both familiar and changed. My tiny house, the one beacon of stability in my life, stood waiting for me. Fortunately, I had saved enough money to buy the house after graduation; if I had been renting, the landlord would not have wanted to lease to an ex-con like me.
My parents had died long ago and I finished college with no one to rely on, so my little house was all I had to get by. Simon transferred the money he promised and Scarlett, along with her parents, did the same. Seeing the increasing zeros in my bank balance, I laughed, then cried, feeling hypocritical as I wiped my tears and forced a smile. For the first time, I realized how hard it was to genuinely laugh.
Then my phone rang. It was Simon. “Zara, I’m sorry I didn’t pick you up today. Scarlett caught a cold.”
I nodded, feeling sullen. “Simon, the contract has expired.”
There was a long silence on the other end, so long that I lost patience. Now I didn’t have much patience for Simon anymore. Finally, he said, “Can I pay more and renew the contract?”