CRACK!!The ceramic plate shattered into pieces the moment it fell to the floor with a loud noise.The woman who had slammed the plate on the ground was now glaring at a stunned waiter, rage pouring out of her eyes. “Didn’t I ask you to stop doing these shitty minimum wage jobs and embarrassing me?” Elijah Wilson, the waiter in question, took a few moments to react. He calmly placed the tray of oysters on the table, before bending down to pick up the shards of the broken plate. He straightened up, his hands clutching the broken pieces. Despite the acidic pang of humiliation choking his throat, he tried to speak in a steady and formal voice.“Kathy, this is just a temporary arrangement. I’m only doing it for you, because you wanted the jewelry set, and a new designer bag. I thought I’d earn some extra cash so I could…”Kathy’s icy cold voice cut him off mid-sentence. “Can’t you see I already have all those things?”She gestured toward the table in front of her, where glossy shoppin

Sweat mixed with the blood seeping through Elijah's bandages, stinging his cracked skin.​He stared at Kathy, his eyes desperate, searchingly scanning her face for any trace of the woman he had loved for three years.​"Kathy... please," Elijah gasped out, his voice cracking beneath the weight of his despair. He reached his hand through the cold metal bars of the gate, his fingers trembling in the air toward her. "Why are you doing this? Why do you want to leave me like this? What happened to us?"​Kathy didn't move an inch. She stood on the marble porch beside Jordan, her arms crossed tightly over her chest, her lips pulled back into a look of absolute disgust.​"Kathy, think about everything we went through!" Elijah pleaded, tears spilling over his bruised cheeks as the memories came rushing back. "Think about college! We spent such good times together... those were the best years of our lives! You used to tell me that you were happiest whenever we were together, no matter how simple

Elijah had spent the last night shivering on a cold bench at a nearby park. He didn't have the courage to go back home and face Kathy after everything that had happened, nor did he have anywhere else in the city to go. ​In the morning, he finally picked himself up and made his way towards their apartment, hoping that he might talk to Kathy for the last time, or at least get his wallet and belongings from there so he could survive. ​His body ached with every step, but he forced himself to walk up the stairs. But just as he turned the corner near their door, he froze in his tracks. ​There were several large, black trash bags placed right at the door of the apartment. Kathy was standing there, dusting her hands over one of the plastic bags with an expression of disgust on her face. ​Elijah swallowed hard, his voice raspy as he spoke up. "Kathy... why are there so many trash bags here?" ​Kathy turned her head with an icy glare. "I had to put your stuff somewhere, after all. Now you

“Oh, I get it now!" Elijah shouted, shaking his head with a bitter smile. "So this is your new trick, huh?! Using my parents' memory to guilt me or blackmail me into coming along with you?!"​He took a step backward, pointing a trembling finger at the two of them. Tears of pure frustration welled up in his eyes, but his voice was full of deep resentment and exhaustion.​"I told you both plain and simple—I am completely broke!" Elijah yelled at the top of his lungs, his voice echoing down the empty street. "I don't have a single penny to give to anyone! Not to you, not to Kathy, not to anybody! If anything, if you two take one look at my bank balance right now, you'd be the ones handing me money out of sheer pity! I don't even have six cents left to my name!!"​He threw his head back and laughed at the absolute absurdity of the situation. Here he was, covered in dried mud and blood, being followed by two strangers talking about his useless locket as if it were made of solid gold.​"So