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If he says anything, I don’t hear him. I run downstairs where everyone is standing staring at the stairs. Fiona has a smirk on her face. Tina is standing by Anita consoling each other. Oliver is waiting for me. He takes my bag from me. We walk outside where an SUV is waiting. We don’t say anything. He opens the door and I slide in. I see Viktor standing at the front door. Who knows why? I look away, unable to take it. As the door closes Viktor is taking steps towards me.
“Ava,” he calls out.
“Go,” I tell Marco. There is absolutely nothing Viktor can tell me that will change our reality. I don’t belong here. It’s over. We are over.
“Where to Ms. O’Brian?”
“Away from here.”
“Where?” He asks again.
“Home.” He looks at me. “My dad’s place.” He nods.
It feels like a lifetime ago. Eight months since our arrangement first started. I believed Viktor when he said I was his. I believed him when he claimed I was the only woman for him. I believed him when he said we would spend our life together. At least it’s what I told myself.
Forty minutes later Marco pulls into the projects. The entire drive was quiet with the exception of my phone ringing, which I put a stop to quickly by turning off. It feels foreign to be here. Like I don’t belong here either. This isn’t my home anymore. I take a deep breath. I get out of the SUV with my bag in hand. Upstairs I open the door and it’s quiet. Dad isn’t home, which I am grateful for.
Inside it smells both familiar and different. I walk to my bedroom. I set everything on the bed and sit. I don’t know what I am supposed to do. I don’t have a plan. For the last few months, the plan was to marry Viktor and live happily ever after. How wrong I was. I let the tears out. I thought I could live with a criminal, pay off a debt, and not fall in love. The joke is on me. He belongs to someone else.
I knew who he was from the very beginning. To think he could change was ignorant on my part. I wipe my tears. I can’t sit here and wallow. I need a job. I need to leave this place. I need to move on. Viktor will come for me. I know that much. I have to go far away from his grasp. I need to forget him and live my life.
I take my laptop and start searching for a job. Anything will do. I just need to get out of the city and start fresh where Viktor can’t find me. Where I can forget the last eight months. Close a chapter that should have never started. But all the crying has exhausted me. I am not in the right mind frame to do anything tonight. I change and try to sleep. My problems are all going to be waiting for me in the morning. Staying up isn’t going to change my new reality. I’m just torturing myself. For the first time in my life I wish I would have never met Viktor. I wish I would just have let my father deal with his own problems.
Chapter Fifty-Seven
Ava
I get up feeling the weight of the world on my shoulders. Dad never made it home. It’s disappointing since it means he is probably gambling but I can’t make that my problem. One thing Viktor was right about is my dad is a grown man and I need to start thinking of me because no one else will, not even him.
I turn on my phone. There are a few texts from Tina and Anita. But nothing from Viktor. I’m actually disappointed and hurt. I swear I thought he would at least try. But another reminder I never truly meant anything to him. I don’t know what I expected. He is a good liar.
I get out of bed and continue my job search. I decide to stay in the city just far enough away where Viktor can’t find me. Three hours later I have decent prospects. One in particular gets my attention. A position at a boutique. I call and schedule an interview. My next task is finding a place to live. I can’t afford anything on my own but maybe I can find someone looking for a roommate. After compiling a list and calls made, I leave to check them out. Time is of the essence.
The first two are a bust. One of them was a man looking for a woman to play his maid. I almost spit in his face. He should be ashamed of himself. Now I’m arriving at the third. Hopefully this is the one because I am running low on options. I knock, not knowing what to expect. A woman my age opens.
“Hi, you must be Ava. I’m Lisa, come in.” My first impression is that she looks nice. Inside the apartment looks good. Everything is clean and in order.
“Thanks for letting me see the room on short notice.”
“No problem. I’m getting pretty desperate, to be honest. I’ve met with over a dozen potential roommates and it has been a horrible experience.” She laughs.
“I saw a few places myself. And it wasn’t pretty.”
“Finding a good roommate is tough. Would you like something to drink?”
“No, thank you.”
“Tell me about you Ava,” She leads us to the living room.
“I’m trying to move away from home. Get a fresh start.”
“You sound like me. I did it last year. It was tough at first but I’m glad I did. Let me tell you about the bedroom, it’s the reason we are here.” We laugh. “The bedroom is furnished. It’s six hundred a month for rent and an additional one-fifty for utilities and internet. It might be high but trust me, for this neighborhood it’s cheap. I go to school during the day and work evenings. I’m rarely here. I only have one rule. No loud tv or music after ten. I come home pretty beat.”
“It sounds reasonable and the price is perfect.” I looked in the neighborhood and she isn’t lying. The prices are high. I wanted to make sure I was somewhere safe which means I have to pay more. It also helps that I’m on the other side of town where the wealthy and elite live. No way Viktor will think of me here. “When can I move in?”
“Right away. My last roommate moved out two days ago. All I need is first-month rent.”
“Will cash work?”
