AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“Hey.” Lyric craned her head so she could see through the crack. “I thought I’d stop by since you missed class today.”
“Oh, great.” The girl walked out onto the first step and closed the door behind her. “I’m quitting yoga.” She stuck a hand to her hip, a sassy pose Lyric had used herselfback in the day. “I’ll take a summer class to make up the credit.”
“You shouldn’t quit because you don’t like me.” She only had one chance to get this speech right, and she didn’t want to send the girl running again. “Coming to a few more sessions is going to be a lot easier than taking a whole class over the summer.”
Hesitation flickered in Elina’s deep scowl.
Lyric took the opening. At least the girl hadn’t shut her down completely. “Look, I know I overstepped at the store. I get that. But I’ll back off. I promise. The yoga class is an easy way to make up the credit you’re missing. If you stop coming, you’ll only be hurting yourself.”
“Fine.” Her gusty sigh fluffed her bangs. “I’ll come back to the class, but only if you chill about me and Franco. What I do outside of class is none of your business.” She moved to step back inside.
“Wait.” Thatch was right. She needed more time with Elina. A chance to show the girl she really did care about her and want to help. Kyra had been talking about hiring someone for months anyway. “I also came by because Kyra and I could use part-time help at the clinic. Just cleaning, light paperwork, scheduling, and stuff. I thought maybe you’d be interested in earning a little money for yourself. The hours would be super flexible.” She stopped there so she didn’t come across too desperate.
“Really?” Elina closed the door on the noise behind them again. “You want to hire me?” Genuine interest replaced the annoyed scrunch around her eyes.
“Elina!” a woman shrieked behind her. “Who’s out there?”
“No one,” she yelled. “Just my yoga teacher, Lyric.”
The door opened wider, and Elina’s mom stepped out to join them. Cathy, she believed her name was. She was young—probably a few years older than Lyric—and her dark eyes and black hair were identical to her daughter’s.
“Hey there, yoga girl.” The smell of alcohol enveloped Lyric’s senses. “Why don’t you come in? Elina needs to make dinner before the kids completely lose it.”
Elina needed to make dinner? Lyric glanced at the girl’s downturned eyes and saw past the irritable teenage shield. She was genuinely embarrassed right now. “I’m coming in a minute, Mom.”
“Thank you for the invitation,” Lyric said brightly. “But I really can’t stay tonight.” She held out her hand in the woman’s direction. “It was nice to meet you, Mrs. Mills. I’ll see you soon, Elina.” She turned to leave to save the girl from any more embarrassment, but Elina followed her halfway down the drive. “Wait. I could only work a few hours after school every day. Maybe a little on the weekends when I’m not babysitting my brothers and sisters.”
“That would be fine.” An ache worked through her heart. This girl seemed to shoulder far more responsibility than Lyric had realized. “We’re flexible.”
Elina nodded, her scowl back in place. “How much would you pay me?”
“Twelve dollars an hour to start.” At least that was what Kyra had mentioned a few weeks ago. “With the opportunity for a raise later if everything goes well.”
“Okay.” She peered over her shoulder and then said quietly, “I’ll take the job.”
“Great!” Lyric toned it down. “Good. Why don’t you come by tomorrow, and I can show you around? We’ll getyou a key so you can work whenever it’s best for you, even if we’re not there.”
“I’ll stop by after school.” Elina turned to walk back to the house but then stopped. “Thank you, Lyric,” she said quietly.
She blinked back the tears before they gave her away. “You’re welcome.”
By the time she made it to the car, she’d started to sniffle. No wonder Elina maintained such a tough exterior. The poor girl was trying to take care of everyone—her mother and her siblings. Lyric slid into the driver’s seat and automatically pulled out her phone to call Thatch.
“Hey, what’s up?” he answered cheerfully.
“I’m just leaving Elina’s.” The tears were flowing now, making her voice wobble.
“What’s wrong? What happened? Are you okay?” He spoke with tender concern.
“I’m okay.” She exhaled slowly. “It’s sad, that’s all. I think Elina is trying to take care of her entire family. Including her mom.” She used her shirtsleeve to mop up her cheeks. “But I offered her a job and I think she’s going to take it.”
“That’s good.” Thatch’s tone was still gentle and soft. “Maybe that’ll open the door for you to really be there for her.”
“I hope so.” A sudden fear gripped her heart. He wouldn’t back out of their arrangement now that she had an in with Elina, would he? “So you’ll get closer to Franco, and I’ll have more time with Elina, and maybe we can still hang out with them together to watch them interact.”
“Oh. Yeah. Sure.” An awkward silence followed the response.
“I think seeing them together as a couple is still important.” Yes, that was why her heart had dropped at the thought of him bailing. Never mind that talking to him always seemed to make her feel better. Never mind that she had immediately called him for comfort in her sadness. Never mind that she was getting used to him being a bigger part of her life. “We have to stay together—er, I mean in this fake relationship—for Elina,” Lyric said with conviction.
