Free Web NovelChapter 17: Red Cheeks
The night had arrived much earlier than usual for Lana.
Sofia sped up the photo shoot just so Lana could get off work early. The Colombian model felt terrible for what she might have done to Lana’s relationship, and this rushed schedule was her own way of apologizing.
Currently, Lana was seated at Aunt Mio’s Beef Shed.
It was a small, unassuming stand by the roadside that she always visited to drink and eat roasted beef whenever she managed to finish early from work.
Lana placed an empty beer bottle alongside the other three she’d already finished. She looked up with sleepy eyes and held out an empty bowl.
"Aunt Mio, one more please..."
Aunt Mio looked at her with worry.
She wiped her hands on her apron.
"Lana, you’ve been coming here for two years now, and I’ve never seen you drink like this before. You rarely even eat this much beef at once! Aren’t you the same Lana who used to say a secretary shouldn’t drink alcohol or eat heavy food?"
Lana let out a tired laugh as she tossed another piece of roasted beef into her mouth.
"Ooo, that Mrs. knows so much!"
She giggled loudly. Her pretty face was flushed.
It was extremely clear from her sloppy tone that she was very drunk.
She laughed some more, swaying slightly on her stool.
"Can I have some more beef too, please?"
Aunt Mio sighed softly as she handed her a fresh beer bottle while taking the empty bowl.
"Are you on vacation or something? You’re eating so much that I’m really worried, Lana dear. Won’t all this affect your work tomorrow?"
Lana smiled deliriously and took the bottle with trembling hands.
"I have serious problems with my boyfriend, Auntie... I’m so sure he’s going to break up with me. He’s the whole reason I started this secretary work in the first place, you know? So if he’s gone... there’s just no point!"
Her cheeks were bright red from drinking so much, and her eyelids looked heavy. She clumsily poured the beer into a medium glass cup, then tilted her head back and finished it in one gulp.
Aunt Mio watched with sadness.
"Are you really sure you want to quit your job? What about all that money you’ve been saving to buy that home for you and your boyfriend?"
Hearing this, Lana fumbled with her handbag, pulled out her cracked smartphone, and proudly thrust the screen toward Aunt Mio.
It was a picture of a pretty duplex. frёewebnoѵel.ƈo๓
"Look at it, Auntie..."
Lana’s drunk eyes lit up as she talked.
"When I saw this house, all I could think about was Chrome and me wearing matching sweaters and reading books in the second living room, or having barbecues out on the porch... all that stuff. Then we’d have kids, and they’d be running around in the big front yard while Chrome and I tried to catch them."
She stared longingly at the beautiful picture of the house and sighed.
"It’s an expensive house in the middle district... I’ve been working so hard to try and save up money to buy it. But all I’ve saved up so far is a little over $20,000, and the house costs about $800,000. I really wish I could say I hate being so poor..."
Aunt Mio turned back to the grill and flipped more beef as she spoke.
"What’s wrong with saying that? I, myself, hate it."
Lana shook her head with a sad smile.
"My family doesn’t have much, Auntie. We even used to be in a worse spot financially than Chrome... to say I hate being poor would be an insult to my parents. They raised me with their sweat and tears. So rather than cry about it, I have to repay them by working hard!"
To motivate herself a little, Lana held her two dainty fists close to her chest and puffed out her cheeks.
Aunt Mio leaned across the counter.
"If that’s the case, then why don’t you just keep working for yourself? Why do you have to quit your job just ’cause you’re breaking up with that boyfriend of yours?"
Lana drank some more beer.
"I never really liked that job anyway... but it’s close to his school, so I could drive him to work everyday. If he finally decides to break up with me, I’ll likely get a job in the middle districts instead. It’s much closer to my parents, and the walk home will be less stressful."
On days when her beat-up sedan broke down, which was almost every single day, she usually walked half the journey from the upper districts to the lower districts just to save some extra change.
In fact, her leg bruises got very bad back when she was saving up to get Chrome a laptop for school. She’d get off early and walk the entire distance from the upper districts all the way to the deepest parts of the lower districts.
Speaking of walking, Lana had already finished at Aunt Mio’s Beef Shop and was now on her way back home.
The night breeze blew her lovely brown hair, scattering it all over her face.
She was walking barefooted, holding her broken high heels in one hand and her handbag in the other.
Inside her bag, her phone was ringing, but she was far too drunk to take any calls right now.
Lana kept staggering along the dark street.
Spinning and blurry visions, but she stubbornly kept her tiny feet moving. She still lived with her parents, so their home was squeezed inside a dirty apartment complex in the worst parts of the lower districts.
"Life goes on..."
Lana mumbled to herself, stepping over a puddle.
"Both happiness and sadness will always pass by. No one suffers forever, and—kyaaah!"
Her foot slipped, and she felt her balance give way.
But before she could hit the hard concrete, a pair of strong arms caught her.
Lana’s blurry vision couldn’t make out the fine details of the stranger, but she could see it was a remarkably handsome man with blonde hair and beautiful green eyes. He wore very expensive clothes, and he carried a sweet, distinct scent that smelled just like Chrome’s.
"Chrome...?"
The calm, gentle voice replied. "Are you okay?"
Lana couldn’t respond.
Her eyes went shut right after.
The next day.
Lana was dressed in casual clothes, sitting on the edge of her bed as she pulled on her socks.
Her phone was pressed to her ear, on call with Stacy.
[Are you okay, Lana? You sound... well, wiped out.]
Lana groaned, holding her forehead.
"I can’t remember anything from last night, Stace... and it’s making me feel really weird. I haven’t been drunk like that in years, you know? I promised my parents I’d stop, so I’m so sure they’re mad at me..."
[Wait, you really can’t remember anything at all?]
Lana nodded to the empty room.
"Yeah. It feels like something good happened, but I just can’t put my finger on it."
[Well, if you can’t remember it, then it’s probably not that important. You probably just danced in public or did something silly like that.]
Lana got up to her feet and slipped her bruised feet into her worn-out sneakers.
"Ehh, it’s definitely not that."
[Erm *chuckles* anyway, I’ve already helped you pack up your desk stuff, so you just need to come to the company and pick it up. But are you sure you wanna quit?]
Lana adjusted her handbag across her shoulders.
"Yes, I’m sure."
[*sighs* Fine. But Sofia’s gonna feel like total shit when she hears about this, so just think about it. You’re lucky the management lets you leave so easily without drama, but whatever. Let’s drink tonight.]
Lana bit her lip. "But my parents..."
[Oh, please, you’re a big girl now.]
Lana blushed on the other end of the line as she nervously twiddled her thumbs.
"I know... but yunno..."
[No excuses! See you later.]
The line went dead.
Lana looked at herself in the mirror and adjusted her hair a little so it’d look prettier and neat like Stacy’s. Stacy was a pretty girl, so she always had many guys around her who worked hard and gave her money.
But Lana wasn’t raised like that.
She’d never accept anything that belonged to Chrome.
’A lady must take care of her man. That’s the tradition.’
She gave her reflection a motivated nod.
"Okay, let’s go!"
Grabbing her beige overcoat from the rack, she rushed out the door for the day.
...
Meanwhile.
The campus bus had just dropped Chrome off on the main road so he could finish the remaining journey into the slums himself. The bus driver was always too scared to drive too deep into the lower districts, since a luxury school bus could easily get raided by gangs, and the children of rich public figures would either get robbed or abducted. frёewebnoѵēl.com
Either way, the driver would get fired.
Chrome walked down the dusty sidewalk as he smiled down at his smartphone.
"I can’t believe I have a luxury villa in Ibiza now..."
He chuckled proudly.
"And then there’s my bank balance that’s now in the thirty million dollars range! I’m winning!"
He pumped his fist high into the air.
But a second later, his expression turned a little sad as he swiped back to his call log.
Over 30 missed calls, all ignored by Lana.
He let out an exhausted sigh.
"I need to fix this..."
Walking briskly through the slums, he arrived at the Slot family apartment. He walked up the stairs and knocked firmly on their door which was notably newer and sturdier than most in the poor, crumbling building.
The door swung open,
Lana’s mother stood at the entrance. Laura Slot.
Chrome gave the pretty woman a polite wave.
"Good day, Mrs. Slot. Do you know where Lana is?"
Laura immediately frowned at Chrome.
"She’s not around. You should know that."
"Hey! Is that that bastard?!"
Lana’s father started screaming furiously from the living room background.
"I want to beat that bastard so badly! Look what he did to my precious daughter! Lana came back home yesterday smelling like cheap alcohol! Let me at him!"
The man tried to scramble up from his chair to give Chrome a piece of his mind, but one sharp, fiery glare from Laura instantly shut the man up.
Laura turned her attention back to Chrome.
"Leave."
"Please, Mrs. Slot, I just want to—"
Laura slammed the door directly in his face.
