Chapter 31: New Beginning

Upon waking, I burrowed myself into the warm and soft sheets. I groaned in exasperation as I refused to open my eyes. Everything that happened lately felt like a dream. I thought that I would just wake up and everything would be back to normal.

I would still be working at the diner, making minimum wage and dealing with snobby and impatient customers. As I served their meals, I would be dreaming of working as a celebrity and hair stylist and during my breaks, I would look at different makeup looks and hairstyles that I can recreate during my free time. The old me would have never believed that I worked at Williams, Inc.

And at this point, the real dream here is me being able to work in the entertainment industry ever again. My experience working as a celebrity makeup and hair stylist has become nothing but a distant memory that I wish I could burn into my mind forever.

I felt ridiculous for ever feeling like Cinderella before. She got her happy ending, while I didn’t.

I let out a long sigh as I rubbed the remainders of sleep from my eyes and gazed out at the horizon; its vivid light extended across a rosy sky. This was something that the majority of people would consider beautiful, however, at that moment I found it strange, hard even, to find something so meaningful in something so mundane. It's not like the sun wouldn't rise, it had, after all, been reliably happening since the beginning of time. So what was so special about it?

I could no longer bring myself to feel the joy from it like others did, the magic that drew so many artists and photographers in, as if they had some lens or filter I’d missed out on.

Or maybe I’m just being too negative.

“That’s probably it.” I sighed drearily as I sat up from my bed. I let out a yawn as I stretched, deciding that it is time for me to stop sulking. In fact, I should be proud of myself. I did something I never thought I would ever do in my whole life.

I am a survivor.

I covered my face with both of my hands as a wave of mixed feelings washed over me. I feel lost, confused and relieved at the same time. I am relieved because I was finally able to let out this weight in my chest. The truth really does set you free and for once, I was able to have a taste of freedom.

I am lost and confused because I honestly don’t know what to do now. I didn’t know where I should begin. I am alone at home and jobless. I wanted to message Ellie, but I did not want to bother her anymore after everything she has done for me. I desperately want to call Arthur as well, but we definitely did not end on a good note.

From the corner of my eye, I spotted my laptop on my bedside table. I pressed my lips into a thin line. I still have bills to pay, so I can’t afford to stay in bed all day. Even when I don’t have the energy to do anything, I have to keep going.

I need to get myself together. I decided to open my laptop to browse different job listings. I searched for minimum wage jobs and job openings in the entertainment industry. I saw a lot of job opportunities in the minimum wage section. I scanned through the list of companies looking for waitresses and janitresses. I saw familiar fast food chains like In-n-Out Burger, McDonald’s, and Subway. Upon checking the entertainment industry section, there were only a few companies who posted job openings like Wolf Corp., BLT Inc., and Dream Ltd. I decided to send my resume to some of these companies, trying out my luck with all of them.

I closed my laptop after sending out my curriculum vitae to my prospect companies and returned it back to the bedside table. I walked out of my bedroom to go to the living room. I plopped down on my sofa and pulled out my phone from my pocket. I browsed through my social media account to pass the time.

After scrolling for a while, I saw Ralph’s photo. His grin was wide as he did a peace sign next to one of our coworkers at the diner. I’m glad to see that he’s doing fine.

It was then I suddenly had an idea, it was like a light bulb lit inside my head.

Maybe I could call him to check up on him and ask if there’s still an opening at the diner. I closed my social media application and dialed his number on my phone. I anxiously waited for him to respond as I tapped my foot on the ground impatiently.

“Hello.” Ralph said as soon as the call connected. I smiled as I heard his familiar voice. It felt like ages since we last talked.

“Hey, Ralph! It’s Sandra.” I replied excitedly.

“Hey Sandra! It’s been ages since you called me. I miss you so much.” He said excitedly, which made me laugh. God, I missed him. I miss having a close co-worker.

“I’m sorry I only called today. Work had been hectic.” I muttered as I felt a pang of guilt for not reaching out earlier. I got too caught up with my work, Arthur, and Kevin that I forgot to contact my other friends. The only friend I actually called frequently is Ellie.

“Hey, no worries. I understand working in a huge company would really make someone very busy.” I sighed apologetically. I took a mental note to make it up to him sometime.

“Yeah, actually I wanted to talk to you about that.” I croaked awkwardly, not knowing how I can tell him about my dilemma.

“About work?” He asked curiously.

“Yeah, well…” I trailed off as I took a deep breath. “I actually resigned from Williams Inc.” I murmured shyly. I feel ashamed to tell him about this. He might have thought I was an idiot for resigning from one of the biggest companies in town.

He gasped in surprise. “What? Why?” His voice was laced with disbelief and shock.

“It’s a long story. I’ll tell you all about it in person.” I told him dismissively, desperately trying to change the subject.

“Alright, so what do you want to talk about?” I let out a sigh of relief as he didn’t attempt to pry anymore.

It was only then that it dawned on me that I might have interrupted his working hours. “Are you working right now?” I asked cautiously, berating myself for not having thought about this in the first place.

“Actually, I’m on my break, that's why we can talk.” He answered casually.

“Oh okay, that’s good to hear. Can you do me a favor?” I crossed my fingers, hoping that he could help me.

“Sure what is it?” He asked nonchalantly. Alright, here goes nothing.

“Can you talk to Kyle and tell him to take me back? I'm looking for jobs right now and I thought about coming back.” I requested pleadingly. Kyle is the owner of the diner. He’s nice and all but he’s strict most of the time. He has a soft spot for Ralph though because he reminds him of his brother. Back when I worked at the diner, all of us would use that to our advantage. “If that’s okay with you.” I added immediately.

“Sure, no problem. I’ll talk to him after my shift ends.” My heart leaped with joy as I smiled triumphantly. Thank God for Ralph.

I couldn’t hide the happiness from my voice. “Thank you so much, Ralph! I owe you one.”

“No worries. By the way, I need to go now. I gotta get back to work. Bye!” He said hurriedly as I heard someone call for him in the background.

“Alright, bye!”

“Let’s hangout soon okay?” He added before abruptly ending the call. Relief consumed me as I let my back fall onto the couch with a thud and stretched my legs. At least that problem is solved.

I stared at the ceiling blankly as I started to think about Arthur. I wonder how he is doing now. I miss him badly. Did he already forget about me? Or is he also missing me? My heart dropped to the pit of my stomach as I recalled our last conversation with each other. Things would be better if it stayed this way anyway.

My thoughts were cut short when I heard my phone ping to signify a new message.

I lazily reached out to grab my phone. I narrowed my eyes, adjusting to the brightness of my phone to see that it’s a text from Ellie. I sat up to read her message well.

From: Ellie

Hey, Sandra, check this out NOW.

She texted me again soon after, this time with a link. I click on it immediately, thinking that this is what she wanted me to check out as soon as possible and it redirected me to a news article. I gasped as I read the title. I placed a hand over my mouth in disbelief as I scrolled through it. My breathing became rapid and shallow as my eyes widened when I saw the images that were attached to the article. It was as if each word impacted me and had knocked every wisp of air from my lungs.

I sat there struggling to inhale, to exhale- or to do anything for that matter. My hands started sweating and my heartbeat spiked up as I read each word. I was paralyzed in shock; for a moment, I couldn’t remember how to speak or even breathe properly. I was totally stunned as the words on the article bounced around inside my skull.

My eyes and mouth were frozen wide open in an expression of stunned surprise as I finished reading it. As I slowly closed my phone, I just sat there in shock. Maybe shock is an understatement to describe what I’m feeling right now. The news has totally left me flabbergasted.

I just couldn't believe what I saw.