The Old Lady Next Door

Chapter 6- Forgiveness

I begin to receive my monthly credit card statements one by one as the end of the month approaches. Every consuming record and luxurious bag in my closet shows that I have been enslaved by vanity. After moving to this rustic community, everything I have doesn't fit in here at all, so I start selling the extravagant things I used to buy online. I was living paycheck to paycheck as a journalist. Now, even though I work as an online English tutor and do some freelance work from time to time, it's still hard to make ends meet. The spending habit is now taking a toll on my finances. As I open each envelope and check how much I'm paying, I can't stop thinking about that bitch Natalia who got promoted but not me. I hate her!

Just as I curse the bitch, my phone rings. It's Rebecca.

"Betty, I just wanted to thank you for getting me the information on the paedophile professor. I guess you know he's gone viral online and we decided to make hay while the sun shines. We'll be digging deeper into this topic to get more year-end bonuses! When do you have free time? Let's have dinner together! It's on me!"

"Perfect! Rebecca! We need more reports like this. I don't know how many children have been hurt by these jerks, but at least our reports can make society a better place. Thank you for protecting these children in your own way."

"Betty, you've changed."

"What do you mean?"

"Wow! <Our reports can make society a better place.> That's not what I could hear from the cold-blooded monster in the past." Rebecca jokes with me. Yes, my nickname at the office was Monster.

"Come on! It makes me feel like I was a ruthless beast who was crushing everything all the time."

"That's exactly what you were! I don't know what cracked your armor, but I'm glad to see the warm side of you showing through the crack. Speaking of which, have you heard of the Red Bull?" The nickname "Red Bull" Rebecca mentioned is exactly the bitch Natalia.

"Rebecca, you know that's the last name I want to hear in the world." I complain.

"I know, but rumor has it that she's getting a divorce and she's in bad shape right now..."

"Oh, come on Rebecca, it's none of my business." I say, rolling my eyes.

"All right, I just told you what you might need to know. I have to get back to work now. Text me when you're free to have dinner with me. See you soon." Rebecca hangs up, leaving me in the silence.

I think about the conversation Rebecca and I had a few minutes ago. "<Our reports can make society a better place.> That's not what I could hear from the cold-blooded monster in the past." It seems that what she said is true. When I was a journalist, all I cared about was whether my report could make the front page, whether I could get more year-end bonuses, and whether I could crush that bitch, Natalia.

In fact, Natalia and I were best friends in college. She was the star of the school. She's the most popular person who always came out on top in the exam and had a charming look. Every guy had a crush on her. Because we both loved fashion and we were passionate about being an outstanding journalist. We soon became best friends. We told each other all the secrets we dared not tell anyone else, went to the library together for final exams, shared everything, even our leather mini-skirts and bracelets. She even helped me finish my master's thesis when she was struggling with hers. I still remember that we stayed up all night celebrating the fact that we had joined the same company at the same time as journalists.

We had a hard time when we knew very little about the real news field, but we still tried our best to support each other. After three and a half years, I was promoted ahead of her, and that was when everything changed. She was the one who always pushed me forward, but ironically, I was the one who surpassed her. What's more, her ex got fed up with her because she was totally involved in her job and didn't care about his feelings, they ended up in a furious midnight fight in the office. In contrast, my ex, Chris, was always considerate of his workaholic girlfriend. There were still a lot of details that I couldn't remember why we drifted apart, but when I moved to the new office as I got promoted, we gradually stopped talking to each other.