My Words Are Law

Troubles Arise (5)

Without a choice, she searched for a restaurant that would graciously agree to accommodate a reservation for that night. She felt helpless, having been rejected countless times, and it didn't help that Harrison was too busy to answer her calls, even in between classes... Not a single reply to her messages, as well. Perhaps his esteemed professors were arranging extra classes in the hallway even while relocating rooms? It wasn't until she had forwarded him her most recent message that he had finally managed to find the time in his extremely tight schedule to respond.

'I found a restaurant. I'll send you the address. (Amaryllis)

'Thank you so much! You don't know how much you saved me!' (Harrison)

His insincere gratitude agitated her already sunken mood, but she sucked it all up and didn't say anything about his lack of disregard for her initial decision. 'Don't feel so relieved. The restaurant manager said they can't do anything about decors because time is constrained. For the reservation fee, I paid with my allowance this month, so I hope you can pay me back as soon as possible...'

'Of course! Thank you again.'

She soon left the area and went straight to her part-time job, thinking it was finally over. Later, when she was about to finish her shift, a distraught restaurant manager called her and asked why nobody had arrived at the venue yet. When she looked at the time, it was already fifteen minutes past eight, at which the party should have started. She humbly apologized and politely asked her to wait as she called her classmate on a conference call. No way was she going to answer to her alone. Where the hell were they?

"Hey, sugar! Are you coming to come to the party, after all?" Harrison's overly-familiar greeting surprised Amaryllis.

Sugar..? What the hell? Amaryllis frowned at the lax response of her classmate. It sounded very noisy from where he was, the cheers and laughter mixing into one big cacophony. A feeling of impending doom clutched at the pit of Amaryllis' stomach after hearing the familiar sounds of people 'partying'. "No. I'm working right now. Where are you guys? The restaurant manager contacted me wondering why nobody is showing up." She decided to overlook how he addressed her and went straight to the point instead.

"What? Didn't Melinda message you about that?"

The frown on her forehead dug deeper at Harrison's question. "Message about what? I didn't receive any messages. At any rate, you can't just ignore the reservation like this. Where are you?"

"Well, about that... Melinda suddenly informed me that she made a reservation somewhere better than the place you found. She said she'll message you to cancel your reservation, but she must have forgotten. Anyway, just tell the manager to cancel it."

What the hell was Harrison saying? He's clearly out of his mind! How could she just cancel it like that? Thankfully, it was a conference call, and it seemed like he hadn't noticed it yet. She'd better take advantage of this and clear her name. "You can't just do that! The restaurant will lose a lot of money. Besides, why didn't you tell me directly that Melinda made a reservation? I spent my whole morning walking around, asking for a reservation for a party I won't even attend because you messed up. And now you want me to take responsibility for canceling the reservation, too?" She couldn't hold her anger and frustration as her voice rose an octave higher.

"Well, what do you want me to do? Go and beg for the manager's forgiveness? I'm at a party, for chrissakes! If the manager were here right now, I'd do that, but she's not, so just call her back and cancel the reservation with an apology. Besides, this is a good opportunity for you to practice your people skills." Her classmate responded in exasperation.

He still had the gall to comment on her people skills after what he did to her? Amaryllis heaved before replying. "I told you I'm working part-time! I shouldn't even be taking a call like this! And by the way, the restaurant's manager is listening to our call, so go ahead and do what you just said you'd do. This is your fault. Deal with it." She couldn't be bothered to be polite. This classmate of hers is too laid-back. Does he think she's that of a pushover?

"Hello?" The restaurant manager finally joined in the conversation, but promptly after she spoke, her classmate ended the call.

She bit her lip, holding her tongue from hurling curses at the bastard. She can't believe he bailed just like that! "I'm... I'm so sorry, Ma'am. I didn't think it would be like this. I know apologizing won't be enough, but still-"

"I don't need an apology, Miss. I need compensation for wasting my employees' time and effort. I can't believe you let me waste my time listening to your quarrels. Seeing as you're just a student, I won't make a big issue of this anymore, but don't expect me to return your money."

She winced at the sound of the telephone slamming down as the call ended.
The initial strength she had began to leave her body as she slid, falling to the floor behind the counter of the small convenience store. Groaning, she pulled at her hair in a hissy fit. She should have just ignored his ridiculous request and sent him a text that she wouldn't do it.
And as if her day couldn't get any worse, her boss chose to come out of his office just in time to see her dawdling behind the counter with her phone in her hands. He didn't ask her to explain. She was immediately fired.

But despite everything that happened, Amaryllis decided to let it all go. It was gone. Even if she faints from anger, it won't bring back anything. She consoled herself, thinking she could just get another part-time job. As for her daily expenses, she can borrow from her aunt in the meantime... She doesn't want to confront Harrison. She just wanted her money back, but it had been a few days since, and not once did he approach her to talk about it.
All the while, her classmates, for some reason that only god knows, were giving her dirty looks and were flat-out avoiding her. And Chryses... He'd been the only one interacting with her with his small talks, blithe greetings, and fleeting angelic smiles. These small instances made her wonder if what she saw that night wasn't just fatigue playing tricks on her mind. Maybe it was really just the dim lights that made her see things...

However, the friendlier he acted, the more her classmates despised her. Regrettable as it is, she began to distance herself from him, but he was clueless and didn't seem to notice the consequences of his kindness... Or was he..? She found out about the answer a week later when she finally confronted Harrison.

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A/N: Thank you for voting!