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Crossing her arms sternly over her chest, Vivian pinched her lips together and shifted her jaw for a second before saying, “This young lady claims you harassed her when she came in to shop last week.”
I blinked, not expecting that. “Huh?”
A lie. She was trying to get me into trouble by going to my boss with a lie? What a stupid, lame, overused technique. I was actually disappointed in her. Did the witch have no other tricks up her sleeve?
Vivian would never believe her over me. She loved me. I was her favorite employee; she’d told me so yesterday.
“Did you call her a dirty skank and refuse to sell her a dress she tried to buy?”
“No,” I said, frowning. At least, I’d never called her a skank aloud...not while I’d been working. And besides, “She didn’t try to buy anything.”
“I did too.” Melody wiped her eyes before pointing at a dress hanging nearby from the wall. “I wanted to buy that one, but she told me no way in hell would she let me taint such a pretty dress with all my dirty skankiness.”
Well, she totally would. It was an awesome dress.
My thoughts must’ve reflected across my face because Vivian began to shake her head. “I-I’m at a loss of what to say here, Bailey. That behavior is totally unacceptable.”
“Except that’s not what happened,” I argued.
She lifted her hands as if they were tied, still shaking her head. “I’m sorry, but I just can’t put up with a salesgirl who’d do something like that. I’m so disappointed in you, Bailey, and I’m afraid I’m going to have to let you go.”
Behind her, Melody broke out into a huge grin and even fist-pumped the air before waving her fingers in farewell at me and then mouthing the words, “Bye-bye now.”
That.
Bitch.
Not only was it her fault Beck was a hundred miles away from me right now unable to enter the entire city or he’d be beaten to a pulp or called awful, terrible, untrue names, but now she was attacking my only means of income?
Oh, I don’t think so.
I’m not sure how to properly explain what happened next, but I snapped. I just…snapped.
I spun to Vivian, utterly outraged. “Are you freaking kidding me?” I shouted.
She blinked, not expecting my outburst. Then she glanced toward the other two customers in the store who were peering curiously our way. “Bailey,” she said in a lower, cautioning voice.
But I’d had it. “No.” I pointed a finger at my ex-boss’s face. “You can’t fire me because I fucking quit! I can’t believe you took the word of this lying bitch over me, this bitch who’s had a vendetta against me ever since I actually told the truth about her. This bitch who destroyed an innocent man’s life just so her boyfriend wouldn
’t find out she was cheating on him. This bitch who lies to get whatever she wants. That’s what’s disappointing. If you can’t summon any more faith in me than that, then I’m sorry, but I just can’t work for you any longer. I hope you realize you just lost the most faithful employee you ever had.”
And because I was on a roll, I whirled to Melody, satisfied when she lurched backward away from me as if intimidated. “And you,” I charged, aiming my finger her way. “That is the last lie you’ll ever tell about me.”
I had no idea how I was going to keep that promise, but damn, it felt good to make.
Both Vivian and Melody gaped as me as if I was the deranged one in this situation, as if they truly feared I was going to pull some tommy gun from my pocket and start blasting holes in the place. And yes, maybe I’d lost my cool, but fuck them. I wasn’t the one spreading lies or believing such stupid lies.
They were idiots. Both of them.
With a sniff, I rolled my eyes and turned away, done with them. Done with this store. Done with this entire fucking town.
A rush of adrenaline filled me as I marched from the shop. It crowded into my blood, flooding my system until I actually felt euphonic. I’d just screamed at my boss and lost my job, but damn, getting all that out of my system had felt good. It felt awesome, actually.
It was probably a bad thing to feel this way at this moment, I was juiced and ready to take on the world. Or at least ready to tell the world it could go screw itself.
Working off pure emotional steam, I made the most impetuous decision of my life.
I started packing as soon as I reached the apartment, throwing clothes willy-nilly into my bags. Thank God none of my roommates were home; they would’ve wanted an explanation and I wasn’t in the right frame of mind to explain anything. Besides, they would’ve no doubt talked me out of my crazy, reckless decision of leave Granton, and college, and everything here forever. And no way did I want to hear anything rational or sane right now.
