"Life changes.
You lose love.
You lose friends.
You lose pieces of yourself that you never imagined would be gone.
And then, without you even realizing it, these pieces come back.
New love enters.
Better friends come along.
And a stronger, wiser you are staring back in the mirror."

Reading this piece out loud makes me wonder about the path I traversed to be where I am today.
A year back I was in a marriage that was initially a dream but in a few months, that dream whirled into a nightmare.

My self-esteem and confidence have been eroded in that relationship, and the threat of abuse increased my self-doubt.

I have grown up listening, that for every dark night, there is a bright day, and hoping that someday my nightmare will end. Every night I used to encourage myself that I have to just make it through the night as there's a brighter day ahead.

Then I met her, Paakhi, an angel disguised as a human. She makes a broken look beautiful and strong look invincible.
She walks with the universe on her shoulders and makes it look like a pair of wings.

She inspired me to leave that toxic relationship and prevail.

"Sorry for making you wait, have this." I come out of my thoughts and smile as Mrs.Savita takes a seat at my table.

"You seem busy, " I remark looking at the rush.

"Oh, after the girls renovated this place, we seem to have more customers each day." She looks around and says proudly.

I smile, She is really like their mother.

"You miss them..." I did not mean to say it out loud yet the words tumble out of my mouth.

"I do! They were the allure of this place. " she softly confides.

"But I know the new journey they are on is more important." Her smile returns.

"They are happy," I assure her.

"I know," she softly smiles.

I stay silent for a few seconds, not feeling this to be the right moment to say anything.

"You seem nervous?" She glances at my adjoined hands.

"I...Umm..." I stammer.

"You don't have to be so nervous girl, We would love it if you'll help us around." She assures me and I feel a bit relaxed.

"But you know for the pay..."

"No, I'm fine with whatever you'll pay." I jump in before she completes her thoughts.

Genuinely, I don't need money. I want to work so that as much as I'm busy I don't think about my past. I fear going to sleep knowing he'll haunt them.

Having girls around made me a bit relaxed, but after their marriage, I'm all alone in the apartment which I don't like.

"I'm so glad to hear that," she stands up and comes around to hug me.

I'm still getting comfortable with people's touch but, I get a bit nervous when someone hugs me.

"So when can I start?" I ask as she steps away.

"Whenever you like," she smiles and leaves to attend to the customers.

I finish the coffee and cookies she brought me and look at the time. I have four hours until my shift at the club starts. So I stand up and walk over to the counter.

"I have three hours to spare, so can I help around?" I ask Mrs.Savita.

"We will be glad," she applauded and called me around the counter.

I walk around and stand beside her.

"I need to check inside, take the money will you?" She passes me some bills and walks away.

I look up to see a customer walking toward the counter and I standstill.

The lady reaches the counter and stands.

"May I help you?" I ask anxiously.

"Are you new?" The lady assesses me from top to bottom.

"Yes..." I reply in a small tone.

"Hey, what's happening here?" Mrs.Savita appears beside me.

"Savita, where were you?" The lady asks her.

"Working around," Mrs.Savita laughs.

"Now what happened?" She asks the lady.

"Oh no no, I just didn't see you around with your cheery smile and missed you," the lady smiles widely at her.

"But we have Sana here," Mrs. Savita puts an arm around me.

The lady just scrunches her face and walks away.

"Don't mind them, dear, just put on a smile and go with it," she tried to encourage me.

"A smile is infectious and contagious. Pass it on!" She pats me on my back, puts on a wider smile, and steps to greet her new guests.

I stare with admiration at this strong woman. No wonder Paakhi always keeps a smile.

I spent an hour and a half at the counter. Even though I tried multiple times no smile masks my face.

"Mrs.Savita," I walk over to her.

She turns to look at me and smiles.

"I have to leave for my shift at the club," I inform her.

"Oh sure, thank you so much for helping out," she unexpectedly throws her arms around me.
I relax when the warmth of her touch reaches my heart saying it's okay.

"Take care," she steps back and I collect my purse from behind the counter before walking out the doors.

Taking a short walk to the Apartment, I shuffle while looking around. People chat away at the tea stand and some rush to get to the place they want to be.

My walk to the apartment took nearly 10 minutes.

Opening the door and walking in I feel an eerie silence and I instantly miss the girls. They were the soul of this place, this apartment would resonate with their cheers and chatters, but now every nook of this house seems dull.

With a deep sigh, I rush to my room which Paakhi so generously vacated for me, and change into a black shirt and jeans. The thing I like about this club is that we don't have to wear skimpy clothes.

Tying my hair into a ponytail, I look at the time and hurry out of the apartment to the Van waiting for me.

"Hey, girl!" Just as I slide in, Zoya greets me.

I look up and smile at her before looking out of the window to avoid other passengers.

Zoya is the only person at the club I'm acquainted with. She's a bubbly person with a fiery attitude.

When I first started my shift at the club she taught me everything about waitressing.

"How was your day?" She asks me.

"I started a job at a cafe," I reply.

"Girl! How much money do you need?" She asks dramatically.

I look down when people stare at us.

"Is there some loan on you?" She ignores those stares and keeps questioning me.

I just shake my head and keep my gaze on my adjoined hands.

"Why are you not talking?" She asks dubiously.

I look up at the staring people. She follows my gaze and shouts at them, "You idiots mind your own business."

They all look away and she smiles at me."You delicate flower doesn't need to worry about these assholes when I'm here."

I smile at her and admire the confidence she possesses.

She understands that I won't talk again, so she gets engrossed in her phone.

I sigh in relief and look out the window for the remaining ride to the club.

"Another night of drinks, vomiting, and dancing! Sadly I won't be doing any of it," Zoya quips as we make our way into the club through the employee corridors.

I look at her face and chuckle at her mockery, unaware of the person standing at the end of the corridor.

I bump into that person causing my smile to turn into a frown.

I look up to see our boss staring down at me.

I step back and mumble an apology.

"I would like it if my employees know how and where to walk!" He grunts.

I look down ashamed of my actions.

"Now Everyone!" He claps his hands to gain everyone's attention.

"We have a celebrity guest coming in tonight with his friends. I would like everyone to remain neutral, aware, and cautious. We have a reputation to uphold! Every patron is equal so mind everyone equally." He announces.

"And I would like the lounge area to be cleaned and prepared." He further adds.

"Zoya, Shreya, and Max you guys are assigned to the lounge area." He stares at each of them and walks off.

Just as he leaves, the chatter resounds in the room.

"I wonder who will be coming tonight," Zoya says wearing her apron.

I help her adjust her apron and she does the same with mine.

"As if you care," I remark.

"Yea usually I don't, but today I do!" She grumbles.

I smile at her and follow her outside.

We part ways and I follow everyone chatting about the celebrity coming tonight and see the joy on their faces.

With such a positive atmosphere, I get motivated too and get to work.
Walking to the front of the club, I step over to the bar to help with glasses.

"Hey, sweetie," I smile at Josh as he winks at me.

"Hi," I answer back taking the spare cloth and wiping down the counter.

"You are an angel, helping me." He places a kiss on my cheek and continues arranging the alcohol bottles on the display.

If another man had come this close to me, I would probably lose my mind. But Josh is different in every sense. His black t-shirt saying 'No pussy' in bold, his soft eyes and always smiling face tells a lot about him.

"So you heard about the celebrity coming?" I ask him.

I don't know what is it about him but talking to him is so much easier.

"Ya girl, thinking who hottie might be coming!" He cheers excitedly.

I laugh at him and thank God for making me meet such nice people.

"So how was your day?" I ask him.

"Awesome! Ravi and I enjoyed our morning strolling around the central park, followed by a hearty breakfast." He replies.

I always find knowing about his day entertaining. He always does something romantic with his partner.

"I would love for you to meet Ravi someday!" He lets out working.

I set the glasses as he taught me last time.

"You are a quick learner!" He comes around and admires my tower of glasses.

"Careful!" I squeal when he starts pouring the champagne into the glasses.

"I do this every day sweetie," he laughs.

Just then the gates to the club open and people start entering.

"Work calls," I say and step away from the bar.

I stay in the shadows, waiting to be called, and look around when my gaze lands on Zoya ascending the stairs and Josh at the bar. I smile thinking about my life. My life is different now, I don't know if it's what I want, but I'm comfortable with it. These people make me forget my dark days. And I hope my upcoming days don't include any of those bad memories.

_____________________

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