"HAZEL ?!!!" Mr Robin yelled as I panicked behind the counter.
I had mistakingly delivered the wrong order to a customer again today for the fifth or sixth times today.
"Am sorry Mr robin"I muttered to myself praying he doesn't fire me today.
I was part of his Favourite employee that was the grace he has been giving me for last three days I had been losing my mind.
"Of course I will lose my mind,Who wouldn't I had just gained the admission I had earnestly been looking for and then I saw the tuition fee and the hell I was swept off my feet,It was over 300k"Why was college so expensive ?,it will be really great had it been I had a lot of time to come up with the money.
But instead we were asked to pay 3 weeks after accepting the admission,How do I come up with that in just that few weeks.
"It was messing with my mind as I absentmindedly live every single day after I heard the news,kinds of various way to come up with the money.
I had ask my boss Mr Ben where I work as a delivery girl to pay me in advance but he said he can't that I might run away,I asked my other bosses too but they all refuse now I only had Mr robin left and here I was jeopardizing any small opportunity I might have again"But I want to go to school"
"Find me that pretty ass pls" I heard Mr robin said to Cecillia as he adjusted his glasses pissed.
Cecellia stylishly looked at me where I was hiding before she faked a smile and nodded her head.
"Come here sneaky ass"Ce has dragged me by my arm after she was sure enough Mr Robbin has left her view.
"Ouch..it hurts"I cried out trying to fake been hurt in other to avoid her question,but she wasn't having it.She knows me too well.
"Don't even try to change the topic zel,what is happening ?,Why aren't you telling me ?,Are you in some kind of trouble ?,is anyone threatening you ?,Why do you think you can't confide in me ?" Her questions tumbled out faster than Hazel could answer. Hazel couldn't help but smile despite herself.
Cecillia had been her anchor, the one person she could trust. When her mother passed and her father threw her out, Cecillia had given her shelter, advice, and a steady hand to cling to. She was more than a friend, she was now family.
"I… I just don't know how I'll pay for college," Hazel admitted finally, her voice low.
Cecillia's expression softened instantly. "Zel… why didn't you tell me sooner? You don't have to do this alone. We'll figure something out. Together."
Hazel swallowed, tears pricking at her eyes. "I… I didn't want to bother anyone. I tried everything. Jobs, advances… nothing worked."
Cecillia's grip on her shoulder was firm and grounding. "Then we fight. We figure a way. You're going to college, Hazel. I won't let anything stop you."
Hazel wanted to believe her, to trust in that certainty. But the weight of her struggles ,financial, emotional, existential, pressed on her chest. She could almost feel the world closing in around her.
Thanks, Ce… I don't know what I'd do without you."
Cecillia smiled warmly. "You'll never have to find out. I've got you, Zel. Always."
"Mr Robin might come find us soon let's go back before he comes here with his glasses" Ce joked and we both laughed.
...….
The rain pounded mercilessly on the quiet streets, turning the neon reflections into a blur of colors on the wet asphalt. Hazel rushed, tiny umbrella in hand, trying to protect the bundle of groceries she had picked up from the market.
She had promised Cecilia she did pick up
Some groceries on her way back home, because she was on a night shift today on her last part time job. So for things to be more easier for Cecillia she had offer to do the groceries shopping.
As she scurried past the flickering streetlights, she noticed him.
He was leaning against the cold brick wall of a closed storefront, drenched in the rain despite wearing an expensive looking coat. His hair was dark, plastered to his head, and his expression was unreadable stoic, even cold. Hazel froze, a strange shiver running down her spine. There was something dangerous about him, something that made her stomach tighten.
Then she saw it his leg, twisted awkwardly beneath him, and the faint grimace that flashed across his sharp, chiseled features.
"Are you… okay?" she asked as she moved closer , her voice barely audible over the storm.
He didn't move. Didn't answer. Hazel frowned, stepping closer. "You look like you need help."
Finally, his eyes lifted to meet hers. Hazel had seen many faces in her life angry, sad, desperate but none as sharp and intimidating as his. Those eyes, they were dark, deep, and unreadable, like they had witnessed everything and nothing at the same time.
"I'm fine," he said finally, his voice sounded deep low and smooth, almost commanding.
But Hazel wasn't convinced. Something in her guts told her otherwise. Something about him screamed that he wasn't as untouchable as he appeared.
"You're not fine," she said firmly , planting herself firmly in front of him. "Your leg are you hurt?"
His gaze softened just slightly, and for a moment, she thought she saw the man behind the mask the one who might actually need saving.
"I can manage," he said, though his voice lacked conviction.
Hazel wasn't about to leave someone suffering in the rain. She motioned to the small bag slung over her shoulder. "Here. Lean on me. I can take you home."
He looked at her like she had just offered to walk into a storm with a lion, but then without another word he allowed her to loop his arm over her shoulder. Hazel gritted her teeth as she struggled under his weight. He was heavier than he looked, solid muscle under that wet coat. But she didn't falter. She wasn't going to.
Every step they took, Hazel felt the weight of her own past of the nights she had slept hungry, of the bitter loneliness, of the father who had abandoned her. And yet, something about this man's quiet strength it drew her in.
When they finally reached the small apartment a cramped, run-down place that smelled faintly of old books and cooking oil, Hazel guided him inside and onto the couch. He didn't resist, didn't protest. He simply sat, letting the warmth of her space seep into his drenched clothes.
"You're incredibly reckless," Hazel said, shaking her head as she grabbed a towel. "Who goes around in the rain like that, hurting themselves?"
He gave her a small, almost imperceptible smirk. "I didn't expect anyone to notice."
Hazel's brows shot up. "Noticed? That's what you call noticing? You were about to collapse on the street!"
For a moment, silence hung heavy between them. Then, almost reluctantly, he said, "But you NOTICED"
Hazel's chest tightened. It was such a small word, and ye it carried something heavier than she expected. Gratitude, maybe. Relief. Or perhaps a hint of vulnerability she noticed he didn't want to show.
"You're welcome," she replied softly, turning to retrieve a blanket. "Sit. I'll get you something warm, Ce isn't coming back tonight so you can stay over" Hazel said as she looked around to find a pillow.
"You share this place with another person ?" Richard asked surprised but his expression were hard to read nor comprehend.
"Ofcourse, My best friend she is on a night shift today she will be back tomorrow" Hazel answered as she walked into the small kitchen.
As Hazel moved to the kitchen, the man Richard, she would soon learn his name sat back, watching her with an intensity that made her skin prickle. There was something undeniably powerful about him, something dangerous that seemed just beneath the surface. And yet he wasn't a threat. Not yet.
Hazel returned with a steaming cup of tea, holding it out to him. He took it with a nod, his fingers brushing hers. The contact was brief, fleeting, but enough to send an unexpected spark up her arm. She coughed lightly, pretending not to notice the jolt that ran through her.
"And why are you helping me?" No one offers help for free in this world so just go straight to the point " His commanding voice was at it again as he asked suddenly, his gaze locking onto hers.
Hazel blinked. "Because I can. Because I don't like seeing people suffer. Because someone helped me once, and I didn't want anyone else to feel alone, don't think everyone is asking for something in return when they help" Hazel replied sharply.
His eyes softened in a way that almost scared her. There was something hidden there a depth she couldn't yet touch but she wanted to. Wanted to reach in and understand it.
Richard paused for a while looking up at her trying to read through her expression but he found nothing scheming yet calculating in it.
"You can rest now,I will get the first aid kit ready, the pain might sting so I would search for a pain killer so you won't feel it too much" Hazel uttered while looking at his now stretched leg.
As she turned to leave the room, she didn't notice the way his eyes followed her. Not just with curiosity but with a silent calculation, a deep intrigue. Something had shifted in him tonight, something that no power, no wealth, no control could have prepared him for.
Hazel, oblivious to the storm she had just walked into, went about her small tasks, humming softly to herself, unaware that her life was about to change forever.