Page 3 of Over Us, Over You

I took my time walking past the vendors and farmers who were setting their wares and fruits out for a new day. Past the giant, white Ferris wheel that spun slowly in the distance.

I wanted to soak up every mundane sight I’d taken for granted while living here, wanted to cling to my last sense of independence before having to come clean and tell the truth.

Unless I can come up with a Plan B...

When I made it to my apartment, a cramped walk-up in the middle of an alley, I noticed that the door was already unlocked.

What the hell?

I pushed the door open and saw a man with salt and pepper-colored hair tossing things from my kitchen into a pile. I grabbed an umbrella so I could beat him over the head, but he turned around, and I realized he was my landlord.

“Mr. Everett?” I dropped the umbrella and crossed my arms. “What the hell are you doing?”

“What I should’ve done six months ago.” He turned around and narrowed his eyes at me. “Putting your ass out. You and your smart-mouthed roommate, Kelsey.”

“It’s Kelly.”

“It’s irrelevant because she’s just as broke and incompetent as you are.”

“Is this because we’re always a few weeks late with the rent?” I pulled my checkbook out of my purse, knowing damn well anything over twenty dollars would bounce today. “I can pay you back right now.”

“I doubt it.” He held up his hand. “I called your bank when the last check bounced. They said your balance is rarely above eighty-five dollars these days, so the chances of me getting my money for the last few months and this month are slim to none. Are they lying?”

“They’re breaking the law,” I said. “They can’t disclose my information like that. But for the record, I try to keep it at ninety-five dollars. Not eighty-five.”

“That’s what I thought.” He shrugged and tossed my favorite romance books onto the pile. “You’ve got forty-eight hours to get all of your shit out, and I won’t file a lawsuit against you for back-rent.”

“Mr. Everett, please give us one last chance to pay what we owe. We had a few unexpected expenses with our shop three months ago, so—”

“Forty-eight hours.” He cut me off. “Period.” He pulled an envelope from his pocket and handed it to me. “Your boyfriend dropped this off for you an hour ago. I was tempted to open it, but since it didn’t feel like a wad of cash, I left it alone.”

“Thanks.”

“You’re welcome.” He smiled and pointed to a stack of flattened boxes in the corner. “Get busy packing, young lady. I’ll be right back with some duct tape.”

I waited until he walked away and took a seat at the breakfast bar. I’d counted on the final day of my leased cafe space being over, but I wasn’t prepared for a sudden eviction from my apartment.

Pulling out my phone, I scrolled to Kelly’s name and hit call.

Please pick up. Please pick up. Please pick up.

“Hey, Hales!” Her voice was cheery as usual. “Did you get a chance to take a few final pictures of the café?”

“I did. Did you get a chance to talk to the loan company?”

“Yeah.”

“Yeah? So, what did they say?”

“Nothing good.” She sighed. “They said they would loan money to a homeless person before giving us another chance.”

“Well, seeing as though we’re about to be homeless in forty-eight hours, can you ask them if that means we qualify now?”

“What?”

I held back my emotions and replayed the last five minutes I’d had with Mr. Everett, while she damn near hyperventilated.

“I think it’s time for you to call your brother, Hales,” she said after several minutes of silence. “You always said you would go to San Francisco with him for a fresh start if this business didn’t work out. “

---