What Now

6. Compromises

I checked my phone again and saw that I still haven't received any messages or calls from Sean. I shouldn't be surprised, I told him I didn't want to talk about it. I was actually a little surprised that he left.

I had been so overwhelmed since I first opened this god-forsaken letter. I tried calling the landlord this morning to dispute the charges, but it didn't look like I was going to be able to get out of this.

I guess I could use a lawyer, and I knew Sean had a great one. It just didn't feel right to ask him for help. I understood that we were in a relationship and we were a team; but at the same time, I'm used to doing things on my own.

Asking him for help with something like this made me feel like I was taking advantage. The same reason why I told him not to buy me an art studio. I needed to learn to take care of myself. The only issue was, I didn't have enough to pay the landlord. Not even in my savings.

The door to my dorm room opened and I saw Ellie come inside. "Hey, Lydia. I had the worst day today. I think I completely failed my Physics test."

I ran my hand over the back of my neck before taking a seat on my bed. "I'm sorry, Ellie. That sucks. I hope you did well on it."

"Me, too," she said before turning to look at me. "What's wrong? You look upset."

Maybe it would be a good to confide in Ellie about what was going on. She might be able to offer me some advice. Maybe she can help me with figuring out my options regarding how to handle this.

"You know that envelope you handed me that came in the mail?"

She nodded. "Yes."

"Well, it was from my old landlord. Last year, I couldn't afford to pay rent and he evicted me. Well, I didn't have a permanent address until now and he sent this letter," I handed it to her, "saying I have to pay up."

I watched as her eyes darted across the paper. When they widened, I knew she was reading the total amount owed.

"Lydia, that's a lot of money."

"I know," I sighed and buried my face in my hands. "I don't even have that much in my savings account."

She handed me the paper back. "What did Sean say about it?" I closed my eyes tight and stayed silent. "He doesn't know, does he?"

I got to my feet and started pacing in front of my bed. "He came by yesterday for lunch and he knew something was wrong. He wanted me to tell him, but I need to learn how to handle things on my own."

She was quiet for several minutes before she got up and walked over to me. "Lydia, I love you and I'm going to be honest with you. When you lost your job last year and got evicted, you were on your own. You tried handling things on your own and got overwhelmed. It happens and I don't judge you for it." She smiled as she continued, "Look at you now. You're back in school, living on your own, and holding down a steady job. That's a huge turnaround."

She grabbed the envelope off of the bed and held it in front of me. "This is a big deal. If you, or anyone, tries to deal with this alone, it can get worse. You should talk to Sean. One of the great advantages of being in a relationship, is that you have someone in your corner when times get tough."

"I don't want to use him for his money, Ellie."

"You aren't. If the roles were reversed, wouldn't you be pissed if he hid something like this from you?"

Unfortunately, she was right. I would be pissed if he hid it from me. "So, what? I just let him pay this guy off?"

She looked over the paper again and frowned. "Lydia, when you got evicted, did he give you any legal notice from the courts?"