Chan watched as Veronica sipped her coffee, leaving behind a red lipstick stain on the white plastic lid. They had taken their coffees to go and were walking on Pine Street. It was a beautiful night. The sky was clear, and one could see the stars. The chill in the air was a pleasant reminder that Fall had started. The street was decorated with fairy lights that illuminated their path, and the gravel was still wet from the rain in the morning.
"Question," Chan said, matching his steps to Veronica. "Why do you always say that you owe Nate and Selena?"
He was still thinking about that date Veronica had with that cockroach of a person, Ryan. The minute Chan had seen him touching Veronica's arm, he had felt red-hot rage slither in his stomach. The twisted look on Ryan's face as he looked at her as if Veronica would deign to even breathe in his direction.
She didn't speak for a moment. He watched as the light breeze ruffled her hair, making her tuck the loose strands behind her ears. "They gave me this job when I had nothing. No money, no place to stay," she replied, her eyes lost in thought. "They trusted me with a job without knowing anything about me." After a beat, she said, "They are the reason I am even standing here."
Chan didn't know how to reply to that. He was still trying to figure out Veronica's past. It was a jigsaw puzzle he was trying to solve.
"You know," Veronica said, sipping her coffee. "Nate paid for my deposit and even paid my rent for the first month. They are immeasurably kind and generous, and I will owe them everything till the day I die."
This was the most information she had revealed about herself in a go. Every reply that came to his mind sounded lame. But he felt like Nate and Selena didn't want Veronica to think that she owed them anything. From what he had seen, they treated her like family. This mental burden, this accountability that Veronica felt, was something she had created herself. He knew for a fact that if she told Selena about her date with Ryan, Selena would march up to that guy's house and sucker punch him.
"My turn," Veronica said, looking up at him. She opened her mouth but then her phone started ringing. Chan took her cup as she dug through her bag and fished out the device. A crease appeared between her eyebrows as she read the caller's name.
"Officer Jennings?" She answered. "Is my mom okay?"
Chan couldn't hear what the person on the other line said, but he watched Veronica lift her hand to her lips in shock. "I-What? When did this happen?"
Veronica didn't speak for a while, listening to whatever Officer Jennings was telling her. After a couple of minutes, she said, "Okay, I will be there."
"Is everything okay?" Chan asked, taking a step forward. Veronica bit her lip, looking down at her phone. She pressed a hand to her head and said, "I need to go."
She started walking in a random direction, Chris waited a second before following her. "Where?"
"I need to find a bus stop," she mumbled. "I need to go to the city."
Chan didn't think they were walking in the direction of the bus stop, and judging by the way Veronica was breathing heavily, he didn't want her to go alone anywhere.
"Veronica, stop," he said, trying to get her to listen. When she didn't, he rushed and stood in front of her, making her stop. "Chan, I need to go. Move."
"Veronica," he said firmly, making her look at him. "I will take you to the city. You look in no position to take the bus."
She shook her head. "No, no. This is my mess." There was a frantic look in her eyes, and he could feel the anxiety bubbling through her skin. "I just have to find a bus stop. And an ATM. I need to withdraw cash."
"What do you need the cash for?"
Her voice was agitated when she replied, "To bail my mother out of jail."
Her reply had Chan quiet for a moment. Veronica must have noticed his silence because she said, "Yeah, I know." She stepped around him, probably searching for an ATM in their vicinity.
Chan quickly regained his composure and took after her. Catching up, he wrapped his fingers around her arm, making her turn around. "Veronica, you are not going to the police station alone. We can look for an ATM on the way to the city. Please, just let me drive you."
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The drive to the Pelhalm police station was quiet. Veronica leaned her head against the window, her eyes closed. They had found an ATM near the spot where Chan had parked the car. He didn't know what to expect once they reached the police station, but he just knew that he didn't want to leave Veronica alone.
From the corner of his eye, he watched as she sat there, not saying anything. How quickly her demeanor had changed. Not two hours ago, they were sitting at the restaurant laughing. He was curious to meet her mother. He wouldn't say it to Veronica, but even from the abysmal information he had on her mother, Chan didn't like her. Whatever relationship she had with her daughter, it was clear it hurt Veronica.
The GPS announced that their location was to the left. Chan parked the car and pulled the keys out of the ignition. Veronica just sat there, looking at the grey before her as if lost in memory. Exhaling a heavy breath, she unbuckled herself and got out.
"You don't have to come in," she said, watching him get out of the driver's seat. "This won't take long."
Chan walked over to her side and squeezed her hand. "Let's go."
They walked into the building. It looked similar to the police station he had seen in the movie. Drab architecture, white lights, and police officers in uniform working around them. He had been to the South Molton police station once to file a complaint when someone stole his phone. This station was bigger than that. As they looked around for someone to help them, Chan noticed the holding cell filled with people.
Veronica must have found someone she knew because she started walking towards them with purpose. Chan followed.
"Hi, Officer Jennings," she said to a woman sitting behind a metal desk. The woman looked up at Veronica. She appeared to be in her forties, her black hair tied back in a bun. Her face was plain but friendly.
"Veronica," she said, getting up from her desk. "I didn't know if I should've called you, but when they brought her in, I thought you'd like to know."
Veronica nodded. She looked uncomfortable but still smiled at the officer. "Thank you for calling me. Where do I pay the bail?"
"I will get the documentation, and then you can get her out." Officer Jennings left to get the paper, leaving them at her desk. Veronica was tapping her foot nervously, looking around the building.
Chan gently touched her shoulder. "It'll be okay."
She didn't look like she believed him. "Would you believe me if I told you that at one point, I knew at least four officers here by their names? Because that's how frequently they'd come to our house. I had their phone numbers in case there was any emergency. Can't believe Jennings still had mine saved." Before Chan could say anything, the officer came back. Veronica signed the documents, paid the money to the court clerk, and waited for them to bring her mother out.
The first thing he noted about Veronica's mom was the blood on her shirt. Chris wondered if it was her. His eyes jumped to Veronica, watching her reaction. She looked pained, as if looking at her mother hurt her. Veronica's mom was arguing with the officer who was bringing her out, their voices out of reach. She was a thin woman, and he could see some similarities between her and Veronica, but looking at Veronica was like looking at the moon, soft and resplendent. Her mother, on the other hand, was scowling as she approached them.
She shook herself away from the officer. "Don't touch me."
"Mom," Veronica said, her voice thick. "Let's go."
She stared at Veronica, looking her up and down. Chan felt Veronica fidget next to him. "I am not leaving until Eddie comes out."
Veronica hissed, "Are you fucking serious right now?"
Her mom crossed her arms and stared at her. "Bail him out or I won't go."
Chan's eyes jumped between the two of them. A myriad of emotions passed through Veronica's face in a blink of an eye. She turned around and walked out, hands fisted at her side. Chan went after her. He was about to say her name when the station's doors opened and her mother came out.
"You bail him out, Veronica," she shouted, her eyes wild. "Or I go back in."
Veronica turned around, her face incredulous. "Go back in?" Her voice shook with anger. "It's not a ride Mother that you can go on for a second time. It's jail. They won't just let you sleep in a cell because you miss your boyfriend," she spat out.
Her mother laughed and it was then Chan realised that she was drunk. "It's not hard to get thrown into a cell. All I had to do was beat someone up, I can just do it again."
Veronica walked towards her. "Are you insane? What is wrong with you? I paid 300 bucks to get you out. Do you even understand that? I am not spending a single penny on that man. I don't fucking care if you get arrested again, I am not coming to get you out a second time." He had never heard her shout, but he could hear the tremor in her voice, the effort it took her to even get the words out.
She was about to turn around but her mother grabbed her arm. Chan took a step forward, unsure of what she might do. "Oh, but I know you. I know you will come to bail me out. Again. And again. And again." She cupped Veronica's cheek. "Because that is what you do. You can't help it. You are rotten like that. But honey, it won't make people love you. You hate Eddie so much, but who do you have? No one. You know why? Because anyone who comes close sees you for who you are. Broken. And pathetic. Everyone you love leaves you."
Chan saw Veronica's eyes well up. She was shaking but didn't move away from her mother. It looked like she wasn't breathing, the way she was standing there, unblinking. He had enough. He walked towards her and grabbed her arm. "C'mon, Veronica, we are leaving."
Her mother's eyes slid to him. It was the first time she had looked in his direction. She removed her hand from Veronica's face and stared at him. "He's going to leave you too," she slurred, pointing in his direction. "Because he's seen it now. What you truly are. And when everyone is gone, my darling, you'll realise that I am your real future. That the person you escaped is the only destiny you'll ever have." The vehemence in her mother's tone made Chan sick. How could she say that about her daughter?
He tugged at Veronica's arm a bit harder, finally snapping her out of her daze. She staggered back a little as Chan walked them to his car. He opened the door and helped Veronica get in. Buckling her seatbelt, he got on the other side and pulled the car out of the parking spot.
"Veronica?" he asked, glancing in her direction. She hadn't said anything. She was just sitting there, staring out of the window.
"She was drunk," he said, trying to get her to talk. "She didn't mean it."
She let out an unamused chuckle, wiping a tear from her cheek. "She did. She meant it, every word."
It had started raining, water droplets pelting against the windshield. He didn't know what to do. What to say to Veronica. She had to know what her mother said wasn't true.
"What she said isn't true, you know that, right?"
She looked at him, and it pained to see the hurt on her face. "But it is," she whispered, looking down at her hands. "I would have bailed her out again."
He reached out and intertwined their fingers. He wanted her to know that he was there, that he wasn't going away like her mother had said.
They didn't talk for the rest of the drive home, but Veronica didn't take her hand back. When he parked in front of her apartment, she didn't get out immediately.
"Thank you for coming with me today," she said, staring forward. "And I am sorry that you had to see that."
"Hey." He made her look towards him. When her eyes met his, she smiled sadly. "I don't care about anything. Are you okay?"
She nodded. Chan didn't believe her.
"I will go now," she said, getting out of the car. "I have to be at the inn early. Lenin delivery."
He watched her go into the apartment but didn't drive away. He had half an urge to take the car back and scream at Veronica's mom. But he knew he couldn't do that.
He knew Veronica wasn't okay. No one would be after hearing their mother say that about them. He wanted her to talk to him. To tell him what was going on in her mind. She didn't have to deal with this alone.
But did he have a right to go knocking on her door? As a friend? Would she throw it in his face to mind his own business because he wasn't her boyfriend?
Before he drove off, he picked up his phone and dropped Veronica a text: I am here, if you want to talk.
He was lying in his bed, with his sheets a mess around him, unable to sleep when his phone buzzed with a new text.
I know