Charity Night (english)

27

I go to the second floor and can hear Zac shouting angrily at his father from the stairs. In my room I close the door and collapse onto the bed. It really couldn't have been more embarrassing. I never thought I would find myself in such a situation in front of my boss. Annoyed, I exhale and grab my phone to distract myself a little. But then I'm disturbed by loud shouting from one floor down and I'm just too curious. I gently press the handle of the door down and open it a crack. Why does Mr. Hyde react to us in such an extreme way? There has to be more to it, right?

"I'll tell you again. You have to sort this out or you'll see what you get out of it, Zachery. You have two hours, then I'll be waiting for your call!" Then I can hear the sound of a door slamming before I hear footsteps on the stairs. I quickly close the door again and fall on my stomach on the soft mattress, reach for my smartphone and open Instagram.

Zac tentatively knocks on the door and waits until I invite him in. "I'm sorry you had to experience that." He says before I turn to him. But I can see from his look that I'm even more preoccupied. He seems changed and somehow cold. "I think it's better if you leave again. So to London. I don't need you here anymore for the time being and a lot of things will stay there as long as you're here." He barely manages to look at me while he says that and it feels like my blood is freezing in my veins. I can't believe it... He's sending me away. Without any explanation. Because what he just served up to me here is hardly what he really thinks. Otherwise we wouldn't have had such a wonderful day.

"What? What do you mean?" I ask him to be more specific, but he just shrugs his shoulders. "Just like I told you. We'll see you back in the office next week, but until then I have so much to do here that I can't get distracted! I can still go to the airport later, but for now it would be good if you sort everything out in England. I can lend you a travel bag so you can store your things." He then turns around and goes out of the room, only to come back in a minute later with said bag, throw it out of the bed and back through the hole in the wall to disappear.

I stand in his apartment completely dumbfounded and ask myself what just happened. You don't act like that after you've tried everything to get me to stay and have repeatedly assured me that everything will be fine now.

In shock and as if in slow motion, I pack the new clothes into his weekender and grab the jacket he gave me two hours ago, throw it on top and leave the room without looking back. I expected I would cry, but I can't even do that. As if in a trance, I go downstairs and leave the apartment without saying a word. I just have to get out of here.

In the lobby I ask the doorman to call me a taxi and go out to wait for the vehicle. I just couldn't say goodbye to him. It hurts too much. Basically, we've been hurting each other for as long as we've known each other and it has to end now. We can't carry on like this.

I have no idea how long we were traveling, but I look up confused when the taxi driver tells me we are at the airport. I've already booked a ticket on the way and since I only have hand luggage it won't be long before I'm on the plane. On the way home and away from Zachery Hyde, who has already messed up my life far too much.

The process at the airport went smoothly and I also completed boarding quickly. Luckily there was a flight so soon because I wouldn't have been able to stay here much longer. Now I sit paralyzed in my seat and stare out the small, oval window at the goings-on of the air traffic controllers. And then I realize what I have to do to break this cycle. But until then, I have to get through this flight without losing the control that I'm trying so hard to maintain.

Eight hours later we land in London and I'm happy to have English soil under my feet again. The hectic hustle and bustle of Heathrow Airport leaves me little time to think. Passport control is quick and easy and I make my way to the train station to catch the next Heathrow Express into the city.

I get off at Paddington Station and luckily I only have to change again when I take the Middle Circle Line to Kensington (Olympia) and then the Outer Circle Line to West Hampstead and from there it's only a few hundred meters to me finally arrive at my apartment.

Completely exhausted, I throw my bag on a chair and plonk myself on the couch that I haven't seen in what feels like forever. It was only a few days that separated me from my usual surroundings.

My stomach growls loudly and I realize that I haven't eaten properly in a long time. So I order Pad Thai and Mochis from Banana Tree, my favorite Thai restaurant, turn on the TV and open Netflix to watch my favorite series again. Gilmore Girls is just perfect for an evening like this. The food comes pretty quickly and tastes heavenly, as always. But neither of these really distract me from the dilemma that has occurred in the last 12 hours.

So I'm trying to click through my emails a bit so that I'm not just busy with that tomorrow.

Most of them are rather unimportant and I dealt with them quickly, but one suddenly catches my attention. It is with the subject -important Announcement- marked. I don't know the sender, but it comes from the office in New York.

*

Dear coworker,

we announce the engagement of

Zachery Hyde & Louise Demantes

To celebrate this properly, we will give you a day off on Friday.

Best regards

Mr. Ernest and Mrs. Marissa Hyde

*

I sit on the sofa paralyzed and read the message for the hundredth time, but I can't understand it. How can that be? Who is Louise and why has no one mentioned her before? The anger that builds up inside me is only overshadowed by disappointment and the feeling of humiliation.

My cell phone rings and I see that it's Nadine, who has probably already read the email, but I just can't talk to her right now, so I push her away. But she tries again straight away and I know she'll never give up, so I pick up without saying a word. "Are you all right? What happened over there? "You read the email too, right?" she fires off one question after another, but I still don't say anything. What am I supposed to say? I don't know what that's supposed to mean.

At some point I pull myself together and whisper, "I can't talk now." Then I just hang up.

Zac made my decision a lot easier. So I grab my laptop again and start typing.

*

Dear Mr Hyde,

I hereby terminate my contract as soon as possible. Furthermore, I am now claiming my remaining vacation of 26 days. Since my notice period of 4 weeks has been met, I will no longer return to the office from today onwards.

Charlotte Love

*

Then I press send, grab my purse and head straight to my office to pick up my things. I'm definitely not going to continue making a fool of myself and playing his receptionist. Fuck my career. Now my mental health is more important.

Fortunately, it is already late when I enter the building and normally no one is in the office at this time. Which makes me sad on the one hand, but at least keeps the questions at bay that I don't want to answer.

I enter my workplace and start packing my things into one of the boxes in which we received the copy paper. It's funny what has accumulated here over the years. I'm just putting away the picture frames with my family's photos when someone behind me clears their throat. Startled, I spin around and see Lucas standing in the glass door.

"I heard correctly that you are back. What are you doing here? "Why are you packing your things?" he asks when he sees what I'm doing. I quickly grab the rest of my things and reach for the cactus that Tom gave me back then because he said I was just as prickly when it came down to it.

"Ask your brother!" is the only thing I say to him before I leave the room and with it my old life.