Page 19 of Mending Scars

I rubbed my eyes as I swiveled away from the screen. My phone buzzed on my desk, and I thought about ignoring it, not wanting to deal with another text from the unknown number.

Don’t live in fear—you wasted most of your life doing that.

I grabbed the phone and keyed in my password. A message from Kamden popped up on the screen.

Thank God.

Kamden: I’m sorry sorella

My stomach tightened uncomfortably thinking about what happened. Kamden had never laid a hand on me before, and it was like a piece of my heart broke when he pushed me into the wall.

I gnawed on my bottom lip as I thought about what to text back. I was hurt and upset, but not to the point where I didn’t want to talk to him and resolve everything.

Me: It’s ok I know you didn’t mean it

I set my phone down and tried to concentrate on my projects, but with everything on my mind, it was virtually impossible. I was lucky that I hadn’t been fired for my lack of work since I’d returned from my leave of absence, but my boss had been understanding of my situation, which I was extremely grateful for.

I had just typed some figures into one of my new account’s spreadsheet when my phone vibrated again. A new text popped up on my screen, and fear strangled the air from my lungs.

Unknown: Soon you will pay for what you did

My heart thundered in my chest as I stared down at my phone. I exited out of the message and went through my phone log to call Ryker. I clicked on his name and was about to press call when I stopped.

Ryker was already worked up about the texts, especially since he couldn’t do anything about them. I didn’t want to worry him when there was nothing he could do—that would only frustrate and upset him more. And I didn’t want both of us stressed out over the situation. Plus, I still needed to call my phone company and see if there was anything they could do on their end, and I wanted to be able to give Ryker answers.

I went back to my home screen and opened my texts. I tapped Nori’s name and started typing a message.

Me: Wanna grab some lunch today

It only took a few seconds for her to respond back with her answer. Nori worked about ten minutes away from my office, so we decided to meet at a small cafe about halfway between our buildings.

I took a cab to the cafe to save time, and Nori was already there, waiting for me outside.

We rushed in, clutching our coats around us as a gust of wind attacked us. The door practically slammed behind us from the force of the wind blowing outside.

I unbuttoned my coat. “Why didn’t you wait inside for me? It’s freezing outside.”

Nori shrugged. “I don’t mind the wind, unlike you. You freeze when its fifty degrees outside and a small breeze brushes past you.”

I rolled my eyes. “I’m not that bad.” I really was.

Nori gave me a seriously look, arching an eyebrow with a playful smirk. We both laughed after I failed to fight a smile. Nori and I always had a good time together, and it was nice to forget about everything that relentlessly weighed down on me, if only for a brief time.

Once we were seated, I took off my jacket and set it beside me in the booth. Nori did the same as she asked, “So, what’s new?”

I groaned and Nori chuckled. “That bad, huh?”

Exhaling a heavy breath, I nodded. I proceed to ramble about the therapy sessions with Kamden, the confrontation the night before, and the text I had received this morning.

Nori sat in stunned silence, both her eyes and mouth wide open as she took everything in. “Wow, I, uh-”

Just then, the waitress walked up, interrupting our conversation. “Hi, my name is Amy and I’ll be your server today. What can I get you to drink?”

Once she left with our orders, I urged Nori, “Well?”

She looked at a loss for words, which was definitely unusual for her. After a few seconds, she finally spoke. “Damn, girl—I don’t know what to say.”

I snorted. “That’s a fucking first.”

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