· · ────── ·𖥸· ────── · ·
𝐂𝐇𝐀𝐏𝐓𝐄𝐑 𝐅𝐎𝐔𝐑

I've officially dropped my mom off at the clinic.

For once, she sobered up a little bit. She kissed me, hugged me, and cried. I shed a tear too, but I promised myself this is better. That she will be fine.

And now I stand behind the bar again, taking up orders with bags under my eyes. The friend group has the map in front of them, but they don't seem to bother my presence after I told them I wouldn't be able to come with.

Soon, I will have the money. My apartment is sold and even though I hire it, my house manager knows my struggles with money and offered to give me some.

"Hey." I shake out of my thoughts, finding a smiling Sonya in front of me. "You okay?"

I force a smile, but it only intensifies the look of my eye bags. "Yeah, fine. What about you? How's the planning going?"

"Great." She smiles even brighter. They must've succeeded. "I got money from my parents and from my own piggy bank. Newt, too. Minho obviously has money, Fry tells us he will do anything to go to Europe, and Thomas promises he has money as well. We've also invited a few others: Gally, Aris, Teresa, and Harriet."

"That's awesome." My smile turns realer. I'm happy for them.

"We were wondering if you managed to gather some money, too," she adds, her eyes filling with a curiosity I don't really enjoy at first, but then my stomach makes a jump. They care.

I shrug awkwardly. "Yeah. I, uh, got money now. Enough money."

She doesn't question anything else. "That's amazing! Guess I'll see you in Spain." A wink before she vanishes.

I look back down, focused on decorating cupcakes, and not the fact that I don't have a house anymore. One disadvantage: if I spend the money on vacation, I won't have a place to stay when I come back.

"Excuse me?" a male voice asks. My back is turned to him. "Can I get a coffee? Black, please."

"Yeah. Of course." I hurry to make it, wiping my hands on my apron.

"I heard you scraped some money together."

Minho. A good, yet strange shiver runs down my spine. "Yes, uh, I got it."

"How?"

My teeth sink into my bottom lip. "Oh, well. Your money made it just enough to... have enough."

I won't tell anyone about the apartment. They would think I'm some weak thing. With a drunk mother and no father. As if I am asking them to stay at their houses, without using any words.

"It was a thousand dollars, Quinn. That's enough for a plane ticket, but that's it," he tells me. The way he pronounces my name makes my stomach flutter once again.

I spin around and hand him the steaming hot coffee. "That'll be three dollars, sir," I say, as if he is a normal customer.

I mean, he is.

A smile that looks more like a grin forms on his face. "Thank you, ma'am."

I rub my cheek. "You're welcome. Enjoy."

· · ────── ·𖥸· ────── · ·

The Gladers

*Quinn has been added to the group chat*

Thomas
QUINN!!!

Fry <3
Hey!!

Gally
Aloha

Teresa x
Hi!

Aris
Hey

Quinn
Oh, hi!!

Newt
Welcome to the gc

Happy, I plop down on my couch. I don't recognize all of the names, but I'm happy I've been added to the group chat.

Being home without my mother feels weird. Almost unsafe. I plan to sleep on the couch, even though the bed is free now. It feels weird. It's my mom's, not mine.

I end my day by cleaning all the empty bottles up, making the bed, and getting ready to sleep. This is the last night I stay in the apartment.

After that, I am... homeless.

I grab a thin blanket and cover my body with it, shivering until I get used to the cold. Sooner or later, I fall asleep.

· · ────── ·𖥸· ────── · ·

He stands there, waiting for me in the corner of his room. It's dark and isolated, the air heavy. I put my stuff down on his bed. Groans leave my mouth. I shouldn't have worn those heels.

His arms are crossed, breaths heavy, and expression raging. I back up immediately.

"What made you think you could wear that?" he snarls, his eyes on my clothes. A black dress, which covers my thighs and nearly hits my knees. The straps are thin, though.

My face falls. "It's not very revealing, Aiden. Please, I—nothing happened."

"It's not very revealing?" he repeats, spitting his words out as he moves closer. My eyes widen. Slowly I take steps back. "Not revealing? Look at you! Fucking look!"

I close my eyes. "I'm sorry," I whisper. "I'm sorry."

He scoffs. "Sorry won't fix anything, Quinn. Promise me you'll come and let me check your outfits before you go out."

I nod. Hold my breath and tilt my head up as he speaks, tears forming in my closed eyes.

"Promise me!" His voice raises.

"I promise," I peep. "I will let you check."

"Good." Satisfaction fills his voice. I sense him taking a step back. "Come on, darling." He takes my hand, gentle now. Eyes lingering as he watches me change. Careful as he gets under the sheets of his bed.

I follow. His arms wrap around me. Burying myself in his chest, I smile.

"I'm sorry," I say quietly. "I really am."

A kiss on my forehead. "It's okay. Just don't do it again." A pause. His breath mirrors against my face, hot and comforting. "I love you."

I close my eyes. "I love you, too."

· · ────── ·𖥸· ────── · ·

Don't think about it, I tell myself as I get up.

The flashbacks are a normal thing by now. This one isn't as bad. But sometimes I have dreams that leave me screaming. It frightens me that the Gladers might hear it.

"Morning," I greet a customer. I try to hide how unhappy I feel. My mind constantly goes back to Aiden, lingering on him as if he cast a spell that makes me unable to forget about him.

I haven't seen him since our breakup. I moved to my mother and never told him the location ever since things got out of hand.

But sometimes, it has to be like that. You break rules and you receive a punishment. School, work, relationships, society—you can't break rules. It's only fair to get punished.

"Quinnnnn," Thomas says dramatically. I look up from the cash register. "We're leaving tomorrow. Pack your stuff and meet us in front of this cafe at five thirty a.m," he explains. "We want to have as much time in Europe as we can, so that's why we leave the third day of summer. We'll see how long we stay."

And then he leaves. I hurry to tell my boss I won't be working for the next few weeks. After a grumbling below his breath, he nods and wishes me a nice vacation.

Then, I rush to go to the house manager, pleading to sell all my furniture. Even more money made.

I'm excited to pack my bag. My last vacation was a few years ago with Aiden. He was nice on vacations. I loved them.

By the time I'm done, the suitcase isn't even full.

I sigh. I will have to buy new clothes soon. Earlier, I did some research on European stores. Cheap ones. Primark, C&A...

I guess I'll be fine.