3

That's right.

My mom doesn't love me. She loves my brother.

Refusing to give up, I called my mom again. This time, she was clearly impatient, yelling at me over the phone, "Chantal, what's wrong with you? I'm playing mahjong, and you just keep bothering me! If I lose because of this..."

I felt a surge of helplessness, but I cut her off. "I just want my money back. You've taken almost all of my salary for the past few years."

The moment she heard I was asking for money, my mom's voice turned shrill. "What money? Chantal, I raised you for twenty-five years, and you have the nerve to ask me for money? Do you have any conscience at all? I don't have any money. Go ask whoever you want!"

Strangely, in that moment, I felt a sense of liberation instead.

"Fine. I don't want the money anymore. Consider it my repayment for giving me life. From now on, I'll remember that I have no mother."

I hung up as soon as I finished speaking, her curses still echoing in my ears. Then I blocked her number.

'It's a relief, really. My world is finally quiet. No more petty family squabbles, no more favoring sons over daughters.'

'But where am I supposed to go now?'

'I only have a little over a thousand in my bank account, and payday is still more than twenty days away. I can't bear to spend it on a hotel.'

'This thousand or so isn't enough to rent a new place, either.'

Just then, a black car pulled up in front of me, and a familiar voice called out.

"Chantal."

I looked up. It was Ian Sheffield.

He looked me in the eye, his face expressionless. "Get in."

I wanted to refuse, but a car behind us honked just then, so I had no choice but to get into Ian Sheffield's car.

I sat in the back seat.

After Ian Sheffield had driven a short distance, I finally managed to stammer, "I... I'm headed out on a business trip."

Ian Sheffield was silent for a moment before he spoke again, his voice even. "Chantal, you can't fool me."

My heart gave a painful lurch, and tears of indignation welled up in my eyes.

I hadn't felt this sense of indignation even when I cut ties with my mom, but a single sentence from Ian Sheffield was all it took to shatter my composure.

I quickly wiped my tears away. "Why would I lie to you?"

: Inventing a Friend

4

Ian Sheffield said no more.

I quietly took a deep breath, held back my tears, and pretended like nothing was wrong, asking him to just drop me off at the roadside.

But Ian Sheffield acted as if he hadn't heard me. He made a U-turn at the next intersection and actually drove to the apartment complex where I lived.

I froze, asking a beat too late, "What are you doing?"

He didn't explain. He just grabbed my wrist and pulled me upstairs.

It was a full five floors. He walked so fast that by the time we reached the fifth floor, I was completely out of breath.

There were still noises coming from the apartment. Ian Sheffield knocked directly on the door.

The landlord hadn't left. When he saw I was back, and with a man in tow, he snickered, looking completely unafraid.

"It doesn't matter who you bring, you're still in the wrong. Look what you've done to my apartment..."

Ian Sheffield tightened his grip on my wrist, his voice ringing with conviction. "Your building is old and in disrepair. The security bars on the window are rusted and they cut Chantal. How dare you rent out a place like this? And another thing—I can compensate you for the security bars, and we can move out, but you must compensate us with three times the rent."

The landlord was stunned. So was I.

'At that moment, I couldn't care less about my pride. All I knew was that it felt so good to have someone stand up for me.'

The landlord snapped out of it. "It's my apartment! I'll rent it out if I want to, and I won't if I don't!"

Ian Sheffield scoffed. "As I understand it, this building is slated for demolition, isn't it? You're just trying to kick us out this way to avoid breaching the contract. You don't want to pay triple the rent? Fine. We'll see you in court. Your property deed will be frozen, and I'll drag this out with you. I have all the time in the world."

...

When we came back out, there was an extra thirty thousand in my bank account. Ten thousand was my year's rent, and the other twenty thousand was compensation from the landlord.

'Why didn't I think of that?'

When we got to Ian Sheffield's car, I stopped and looked at him gratefully. "Thank you. You've already helped me twice today. I... Can I treat you to a meal?"

Ian Sheffield watched me in silence for a moment, then opened the car door. "Get in."

I hesitated, and Ian Sheffield noticed. He gave me two options. "You can either go stay in a hotel, or you can come with me. Your choice."

"..."

'Then I'll stay at a hotel,' I decided, though the cost made my heart ache a little.

Ian Sheffield pursed his lips. "I have a friend whose apartment is empty. He happens to be looking for a tenant. Come on, I'll take you there."

I still didn't want to go. First, I didn't want to owe Ian Sheffield too much. Second, I didn't have enough money to rent a nice apartment.

"Ian Sheffield, I..."

Ian Sheffield suddenly leaned in close. "Hotels have all sorts of people, and motels are even less safe. Are you sure you don't want to come with me?"

"..."

And just like that, I followed Ian Sheffield to his friend's apartment.

To my surprise, Ian Sheffield knew the passcode and keyed it in to enter.

I took one look inside and immediately wanted to back out. The apartment was a hundred times better than my old place. It was a top-floor unit with a small loft and was very spacious. One month's rent here would probably cost as much as my entire year's rent before.

'I'm still trying to save up to buy my own place.'

"You probably saw the passcode just now. The rent is the same as your old place. Just transfer it to me, and I'll pass it on to my friend. No need to sign a contract; we're all acquaintances."

After saying that, Ian Sheffield turned to leave.

I quickly stepped forward to stop him. "Don't tell me this is your apartment. Did you just make up a friend?"

Ian Sheffield: "...Do you want me to go get my friend's property deed and show it to you?"

'Fine, I believe him. It's his friend's apartment.'

But...

"How could an apartment like this only be a thousand a month? Are you..."

"Am I what? Paying the rest for you? Chantal Chancellor, do I look like a sucker to you?"

"..."