The

    bChapter /bb8/b.

    The mention of triplepensation instantly deted the anger of the drivers who’d gotten out to confront him. Joshua arrived quickly, jotting down the drivers‘ phone numbers. Traffic soon flowed again.

    “Uh… Miss, could you wait a sec? I’ll be super quick, just give him my number…” the taxi driver ventured, clearly tempted by the triplepensation offer.

    Rosalind cut him off.“This fare is about 5 dors. Triple wouldn’t even hit 20 dors. I’ll give you 200 dors right now. Drive. Now.”

    “Y yes, ma’am! Right away!”

    The driver beamed and hit the gas.

    “Money does make the world go round,” Rosalind mused, rubbing her temple.

    For a fleeting moment, she almost understood Latoya.

    A handsome, mature man visited her shop every day. He never made inappropriate advances or pressured her. His only action was to purchase one piece of jewelry from her hands.

    This deliberate, patient pursuit carried an air of quiet inevitability. Few women could resist such an approach.

    For Latoya, a woman bearing the weight of a painful family history and constant financial insecurity, this strategy proved particrly disarming.

    “She’s one lucky girl. Boyfriend that handsome, risking his neck to get her bracelet back. Some girls ihave /iiall /ithe luck.”

    Rosalind stayed silent.

    The driver continued, “But if he’s loaded like that, why not just buy her a new one? Why run back into traffic? Crazy dangerous!”

    The words echoed in Rosalind’s mind, pulling her back to the day she met Christopher.

    She was in eighth grade. Walking home, she’d found an injured kitten.

    She cradled it, heading for the vet, but the terrified creature wriggled free right in the middle of a busy street

    Cars swerved, tires screeched. Heart pounding, young Rosalind squeezed her eyes shut, ready to dart into the chaos after the kitten.

    Suddenly, a figure shot across thenes, a blur of white. He scooped up the kitten, dodged the traffic, andnded safely beside her.

    “Your cat?”

    He wore a basketball jersey and a sweatband, sweat dropping along his hair.

    He pulled her firmly onto the sidewalk and ced the kitten back in her arms. “That kitten’s life matters,” he said, his voice soft, “but yours doesn’t? That was reckless. You could have been killed.”

    Christopher was a senior then, towering over her.

    19.52

    7.1%

    Chapter B.

    bShe /bstood clutching the kitten,pletely enveloped by his shadow, biting her lip and nodding silendy

    His friends caught up.

    One wrinkled his nose at the kitten. “That thing’s ugly. If you want a cat, just buy a cute one. Risking byour /bneck bifor /i/bthat stray? Dumb.”

    Christopher shot him a re.“Shut it.”

    “What? It is ugly. And filthy…”

    “Keep talking, and tomorrow your precious ‘Wings for the Future‘ find themselves under a bus.”

    “Hey! Don’t you dare! Those are my favorite kicks!”

    Christopher crossed his arms, echoing the boy’s earlier words with a smirk.“Well, to me, they look ugly and stink. Want shoes? Buy new ones. Not worth running into traffic for.”

    His friend instantly deted.

    Christopher turned back to Rosalind, his expression softening.“Hey, bit’s /bokay now. Don’t be scared.”

    “Thanks.”

    He nced down at bher /bschool ID clipped to bher /bshirt. “Mapleholt High? Rosalind bJohansen/b?”

    “Yeah.”

    He smiled.“Christopher Foret. If you ever need anything at school, find me.”

    Rosalind was quiet by nature. Even after learning his name, she bnever /bsought him out.

    He, however, started showing up again and again.

    Before long, everyone knew Christopher had his eye on Rosalind.

    That rescue had been the beginning of their rtionship.

    Today’s encounter on the street felt like the end.

    Rosalind thought, “Perhaps this is for the best. Let it end as it began. Fifteen years together, we loved deeply,

    cherished sweet moments. At least it feels like aplete journey, a story properly closed.”

     Chapter 9