AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“I also want you to know that you’ve done great work for us in the past few weeks and that we’re not extending the same offer to some of the other interns, so that is a testament to what you’ve been able to show us in just a few weeks.”
“Thank you. I appreciate that,” Layne replied.
“So, here’s what’s going to happen. We’re going to let you keep your laptop and the monitor we sent you as a courtesy, and I hope you use them both with us next year, but even if you don’t, they’re all yours. We’re going to call yesterday your last official day of work, but we’re still going to pay you for the entire pay period through next week to help as much as we can. Unfortunately, I couldn’t get any actual severance since it’s an internship program and it only started a few weeks ago.”
“Right. Okay.” Layne nodded, but she wasn’t actually hearing anything the woman was telling her.
Truthfully, the computer they’d sent was way better than her personal one, and she’d never had an external monitor before, so she was happy she’d get to keep all of that and the adaptors they’d sent with everything. She was also grateful that she’d have at least another week of getting paid, but she had no idea what she would do after that.
Her mom was still technically sick and couldn’t go back to work. This was the only money they had coming in. And her mom’s COVID-related medical bills would soon need to be paid since her benefits weren’t exactly great. Worse yet, they’d have rent to pay, and while there were extensions available to them now, Layne knew they might end up on the street unless she was able to figure something out soon.
When the meeting ended, Layne closed the computer, no longer needing to work that day. She had no idea how to tell her mom that the program was over and she’d just lost her job, so she just picked up the plate left for her and walked to the kitchen to do the dishes. After that, she went back to her bedroom and promptly crashed into her bed, feeling the weight of the world hit her.
Then, Layne coughed.
CHAPTER 19
Shay missed another shot and ran after the ball, trying to catch it before it ended up in the street. She’d missed thirteen shots in a row, which might be a new record for her. She thought an easy layup would help her get back on track, so she dribbled toward the basket and practically lifted the ball up, watching it promptly hit the rim and bounce off. The ball then proceeded to roll into the street and over into her neighbor’s grass.
“Fuck,” she whispered to herself and hurried across the street to pick it up.
She decided to switch it up and work on some dribbling exercises, which would undoubtedly go better than her shooting attempts, but she couldn’t find her rhythm. She knew why that was: she’d been off since receiving Layne’s last text message.
Layne: Okay.
That was it; one word. Layne’s messages had gotten shorter and shorter, and instead of them being every day how they’d been coming in before, after she’d told Shay about her mother being sick, Shay was lucky to get a message every other day. She knew Layne was dealing with a lot, but it was August now. They’d gone a whole six weeks without talking and with only a few messages exchanged between them. Shay didn’t want to make Layne feel bad about not being available more, and they weren’t technically dating or anything, but they’d at least been moving in that direction, so Shay had been expecting a little more than a text every two to three days from the woman she liked and who, she knew, liked her back.
“Okay. I will. I have to go. Bye, uh… babe, I guess,” Layne had said, and that had been the last thing she’d said to Shay. They hadn’t actually talked since.
“Honey, I’m sure she’s just busy taking care of her mother,” Shay’s mom said at dinner that night.
“I know. And I don’t want to bug her or appear like I’m clingy or anything, but I’m worried about her, Mom. They don’t… Well, they’re not exactly rich, and her mom doesn’t have vacation days or anything, so if she’s still really sick and can’t work, I just… I’m worried. Layne told me what she makes at her internship, and it’s not much. It’s barely above minimum wage. So, I’m worried about her mom being that sick, Layne catching it, and the fact that I know they can’t exactly afford for her mom to be sick like that. I’m sure it’s weighing on both of them, and I want to be there for her.” Shay pushed her dinner plate away.
“I know you do, honey. But she might want or need to handle it alone right now. I’m sure she wants to talk to you; it’s not that. She’s busy with a lot right now. Just be patient.”
“I am being patient. It’s not like I expect her to call me just so we can talk about whatever’s been going on between us or anything. I can wait for that. I just want to know she’s okay and help if I can. I hate that she’s so far away, Mom. I hate that I can’t just see her when I want. At least, we had our daily calls and video chats. But now, I don’t even have those.”
“You really do like her, don’t you?”
“I do, yeah. I’m still so mad at myself for not seeing it before. She was there for four years. I never took the time to try to get to know her, and I should have.”
“Honey, not everyone wants people to get to know them.”
“What do you mean?”
“Well, based on what little you’ve told me about her, it sounds like Layne kept to herself, mostly.”
“Yeah, but our team wasn’t that big.”
“You know how you just told me that her family isn’t well off?”
“Yes.”
“Well, Dunbar isn’t a cheap school. It’s not a state school, honey. It’s not as expensive as some, yes, but it’s also not as cheap as some others. You’ve talked about a lot of your teammates over the years, and I know you think your dad and I don’t listen, but we do. They all seem… well, like you: basketball or bust, with outgoing personalities. Maybe Layne didn’t want to draw attention to herself because she didn’t feel like she fit in with that group. And you’re just now getting to know her because she trusted you enough to be herself with you. I think that’s a good thing. Also, beating yourself up over the past won’t change it, so it might be time to just embrace where you are now, plan where you want to go next, and worry about that.”
“I’d like to talk to her about all that. Things are starting to open up now, but I don’t know if she’s moving to Chicago or if they are still letting her work remotely.”
“Does that make a difference?”
