Revenge Looks Good In Gucci

Life Is Unfair

 Xavier barely made it up the steps before the Café door swung open.

Old Mike stood there, arms crossed, with a deep frown on his face.

  “You’re late. Again.”

Xavier opened his mouth, but Mike cut him off. “Don’t bother. I’m done hearing excuses.”

  “Mike, please…” Xavier said weakly. “I’ve had a rough–”

  “You think I care?” Mike snapped. “You’ve been dragging yourself in here looking like a walking corpse. You make customers feel awkward and Amber is covering for you. You think I opened a café to run a damn rehab center?”

  “I just need a little more time”

 “You need a new life, son.” Mike stepped aside and jabbed a finger toward the VACANCY sign taped to the glass door. 

 “Already looking for someone new. Someone competent.”

Xavier stared at it, numb. “So… I’m fired?”

 “You fired yourself, son.”

 “What about my paycheck?”

 “You’ll get half,” Mike said, stepping back inside. “If you’re lucky. That’s all you earned this month.”

  “Half?” His voice cracked. “I need that money, Mike. I’ve got nothing left.”

  “And I’ve got a business to run,” Mike snapped. “You should’ve thought of that before showing up late for the past week looking like you slept in a trash bin.”

He held out his palm. “Key.”

Xavier pulled the café key from his pocket, hand trembling. Mike snatched it without a word and shut the door in his face.

Later that night, he sat across from Chris, his buddy from way back, at a low-lit dive bar in the Bronx.

Chris had already ordered drinks, two whiskeys and a cheap beer chaser.

  “You look like hell,” Chris said with a laugh, sliding a glass over.

Xavier didn’t smile. “I need a place to crash.”

Chris blinked. “Uh. For how long?”

  “A couple nights. Just until I figure things out.”

Chris scratched the back of his neck. “Man… I wish I could help, but my roommate just had his brother move in and my cousin is around. The place is cramped as hell.”

Xavier frowned. “You live in a two-bedroom. There's enough space.”

  “Yeah, but it’s… complicated right now. Plus, I’m barely home, working double shifts at the studio.”

  “You literally posted a video of yourself cooking pasta in your boxers this morning.”

Chris laughed awkwardly. “Dude, don’t be weird about it. It’s not personal.”

  “Right.”

  “But hey,” Chris added, trying to lighten the mood, “drinks on me tonight. We’ll toast to better days, yeah?”

Xavier stared at the glass for a long moment.

Then he muttered, “Thanks,” and downed it in one go.

The walk to Amber’s place felt longer than it should’ve.

He didn’t knock.

He just sat on the steps, hoodie pulled low, hands tucked into the sleeves. His fingers were trembling, either from the cold or from whatever was breaking inside him. Maybe both.

A soft creak.

The front door opened.

  “Xavier?”

He didn’t look up.

Amber stepped outside slowly, spotting him hunched on the step like a discarded package. Her voice softened. “How long have you been out here?”

He shrugged.

  “Come inside.”

He didn’t speak, just got up like his body was on autopilot and followed her in.

He moved like a ghost and sat on her couch, hunched over like his spine had given up on holding him together.

Amber stood for a moment, watching him. Then wordlessly went into the kitchen and returned with a glass of water. He took it with both hands.

  “Thanks,” he muttered.

She sat across from him on the edge of the coffee table.

  “You’re shaking,” she said quietly.

  “I haven’t had anything to eat today.”

Her brow furrowed. “Jesus, Xavier…”

 “I’ll be fine.”

  “No, you won’t.”

He laughed, bitter and sharp. “Chris bought me a drink, at least that counts.

“You've been out there drinking on an empty stomach? You are wiser than that, Xav.”

  “At least you think I'm wise. You are the only one out of everyone who hasn't called me a fool” 

There was an awkward silence.

  “I tried everyone,” he finally said. “No one wants to help. Not even Chris.”

He laughed bitterly. “Old Mike told me I was bad for business. Fired me on the spot, didn't even let me in the door.”

Amber crossed her arms, frown deepening. “He’s always been a hardass. But that’s low, even for him.”

  “Maybe he’s right.”

  “Don’t say that.”

Xavier took a deep breath and looked at her for the first time. His eyes were glassy. “Chris won’t let me stay. Said his cousin moved in.”

Amber raised an eyebrow. “He doesn’t have a cousin.”

  “I know,” he whispered.

A silence hung between them.

Then, slowly, like a dam cracking...

  “I begged Lisa,” he said, voice raw. 

   “I went after her  to beg her to talk to me. To fix things but she looked me in the eye like I was disgusting. Like she never even loved me.”

Amber said nothing, letting him speak.

  “She took Emerald. Said she was never mine. Sold the house. Said she regretted ever being with me.”

He rubbed his eyes with the back of his hand as the tears flowed down his face.

  “I spent eight years loving her, Amber. Eight years building a life with her, protecting her, defending her. And the moment an opportunity came for her, she kicked me off the edge like I was nothing.”

Amber’s throat tightened. “You’re not nothing.”

  “I must be. Because even the people who I thought had my back, don’t pick up their phones anymore. Nobody wants to be associated with the guy who has become a meme.”

He looked down. “You know what hurts the most? It’s not even the fact that she left me for being poor. Not even the house she sold and left me homeless. It’s that Emerald… might not even be mine. And she’s the only reason I kept breathing some days.”

Amber reached forward, touched his knee gently. “That little girl knows you. She loves you. Whatever biology says doesn’t change who raised her.”

  “But I didn’t raise her well enough to make her mother stay,” he said. “I wasn’t enough, Amber.”

 “You were too much for people who couldn’t handle your heart,” she said firmly.

He blinked at her.

Amber sat beside him now, her voice quieter. 

  “You gave more than anyone I know would. You loved deeper than she ever deserved. And when things fell apart… you still tried to make it work. That’s not failure. That’s what a real man embodies.”

  “I’m tired,” he whispered.

  “I know.”

  “Like, really tired. The kind of tiredness that doesn’t go away with sleep.”

Amber nodded slowly. “I understand you.”

He ran both hands over his face. “I don’t know how to start over. Everything I was building just collapsed like it never mattered.”

  “You’re still here,” she said. “Still standing. That should mean something.”

There was a long silence.

Then his voice cracked again. “Why are you being so nice to me?”

  “Because you’ve been there for me too,” she said. “Maybe not like this. But I know what it’s like to fall apart in silence.”

She stood, walked to the linen closet, and returned with a folded blanket.

  “The couch is yours, for as long as you need it. No pressure.” 

Xavier took the blanket from her, eyes wet again.

  “Thanks,” he said.

Amber gave a small smile. “You’re not alone, Xavier. At least not tonight.”

He nodded, speechless.