ma chérie | cl16

chapter thirty-five

11th of October 2022
two months later

Adeline gently pushed open the glass door to Hazel's new office, only to be greeted by Hazel's resounding scream. The sudden outburst almost caused Adeline to lose her grip and spill the two coffees she carried in a paper holder. Startled, Adeline watched as Hazel vented her frustration into her phone conversation.

"Tell them I need those fabrics right now! What part of the word 'urgent' don't they understand? Just take care of it!" Hazel groaned, her voice full of frustration and anger. Tapping furiously on the red icon, she abruptly ended the call, oblivious to Adeline's presence at the doorway. Hazel tossed her phone into the nearby bin, almost as if she could throw away her frustrations along with it.

"Someone's grumpy in the morning," Adeline pointed out with a chuckle. Hazel's face instantly relaxed as she locked eyes with her amused best friend, elegantly dressed in a beige pantsuit, approaching her table with two cups of coffee. Hazel's gaze then shifted to the small furry ball beside Adeline, joyfully running towards her.

"Thank god, Addy. You always know when to save me with a coffee," Hazel let out a sigh, accepting the paper cup almost as if her life was dependent on it. Maybe it was.

"Mocha is hardly a coffee," Adeline couldn't help but sarcastically point out. "Yeah, I have a day off, so I thought we would stop by with Knightley," she sat down on the chair across from her best friend, who was now a true businesswoman.

Two months ago, Hazel made a resolute decision to break free from the company she had worked for. The burning passion to create, design, and establish her brand ignited within her. She had always wanted to have a flourishing brand. Something that could be her own. Adeline had been there to support Hazel not only in a legal way but mostly as her best friend.

And of course, Adeline's West Highland White Terrier, Knightley, had been the best-supporting system.

"Hello, sweet boy, would you like a treat?" Hazel brushed off Adeline's sarcastic comment about her mocha and began searching through her drawer to find a special treat for Knightley. "So, what are your plans for today? You've been working your ass off lately on that case. I hope you'll relax today!" Hazel finally turned her attention to Adeline, who casually sipped her doppio. Adeline couldn't blame Hazel—her attention had always drifted to the adorable fur baby, too.

"I will! I have a meeting with Marianne in the afternoon," Adeline smiled, thinking about today's session with Marianne, who had been her therapist for the last two months.

Looking for a therapist again had almost seemed like a step back, but it had been quite the opposite. Initially, Adeline had been attending sessions with Marianne twice a week, then she gradually reduced it to once a week.

Marianne had also ignited the idea of adopting a rescue dog within Adeline, as nobody truly wanted to be alone. And Adeline had realized that she had never enjoyed the loneliness and emptiness of her apartment. That is why she had decided to help Knightley, with whom she had fallen in love the very first time she had visited the shelter.

They were both helping each other in many ways. They became each other's chosen family. And Adeline loved her new role as a dog mom.

After so many hours in therapy, Adeline had never felt so at peace with both her past and presence. It felt liberating.

"Ugh, I really need to schedule an appointment immediately. It feels like my head is about to explode," Hazel exclaimed, rolling her eyes in frustration, before taking a satisfying sip of her perfectly made mocha. Running a business proved to be far more challenging than she had initially anticipated, but despite the difficulties, she was passionate and optimistic about her brand.