Too Broke For Afterlife

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"I might have a confession to make."

Walter scratches his arm and looks at me with anxious eyes.

"What?"

"I was the one who manipulated that woman's phone. To send a false alarm. And I also made sure that the receptionist let Jasper through."

He waits for my reaction, probably expecting me to get mad. But I just roll my eyes.

"It's a concierge. Not a receptionist."

Walter blinks confused.??

"Okay? That's it?"

All I can do is shrug. "I already knew that you were involved. What do you expect me to say?"

And let's be honest here, if Satan and Walter hadn't hired Jasper to kill me, maybe he would have done it anyway. Afterall, he is a sick stalker.

Clemens raises his glass. "Well, I think that was a nice story to close the evening."

I snort. "Define 'nice'."

He blinks. "Well-structured, right amount of details, good-"

"That was a joke."

I empty my cup with one sip and get up from the lawn chair.

The blanket falls to the ground and I consider picking it up again. But letting it lie on the ground, helpless and dirty, seems like a better idea to me.

The others start rising as well, except for Clemens.

"We have a lot to discuss and to plan tomorrow so please, mortals, make sure to get enough sleep."

Mortals. I know he isn't trying to be mean and that's just the way he talks but I can't help myself from feeling pissed.

"Whatever, I'll wash the dishes," I mumble to myself and finally escape the awkward scene.

<<<

The soapy water runs over my hands as I clean the used cups, mugs and cutlery from their stains and bacteria.

Washing dishes has always been relaxing to me, the only reason why I don't have a dishwasher yet.

The only difference between washing dishes at home and here is that I usually wear latex gloves to protect my skin from drying out and smelling awfully. Sadly, I was not provided with such gloves here.

But oh well, I'll get through it. Dry hands should be my smallest of problems right now.

The bathroom door opens and Parker squeezes himself next to me to pick up what I've cleaned so far.

But in the middle of him doing so, he stops and looks at me.

"Are you okay?"

"Me? Of course. Why wouldn't I be?"

I smile. But it's fake.

He sighs. "Don't lie to me. I don't want to annoy you, I just want to know because???"

His voice hesitates so I look at him.

"Because we're friends?"

"We are?" He seems surprised.

"Of course we are. I saved your life. You saved mine. Plus, you've been trying to uplift me these last couple days. You care about me, I care about you. We're friends."

"Huh. I guess that's true. Friend."

He takes the dishes and leaves the bathroom. I can only shake my head in amusement but my smile fades quickly when someone else steps into the room.

"Can we talk now?"

Judy's voice is firm. If I say no, I know it will end in a fight.

I turn away. "What is there to talk about? I think everything has been said."

"No, it has not! Could you listen to me once? Please?"

Ugh.

I turn to Judy and close the door behind her, before I lean against the shower and cross my arms.

"What thoughts would you like to share? Maybe why you're not scared at all despite being kidnapped? Maybe why you've been canoodling with that weirdo earlier? Or would you like to share how much you hated being my girlfriend because the things I had no control over were such an awful burden to poor you?"

Judy's face turns red with anger and I almost expect her to slap me.

"What are you talking about? I was not flirting with Walter! Why would I do that? And I am scared! Okay? But when your enemies are nice to you, you have to be nice back. Who knows, they might kill me if I try any tricks! And that last thing you said???"

She shakes her head.

"You don't get it, do you? I'm not blaming you for anything, why do you have to make everything about yourself?"

"Excuse me?"

"This is not about 'you', Isabella. This is about me not being able to handle all this. The drama is too much for me. I wanted a more exciting life, yes, but one I could still handle! Not this!"

I nod. "So you left me hanging when I needed you the most?"

"Again! This is not about you!" Judy's voice is so loud at this point, I'm sure everyone can hear her. But it is shaking as well. She is upset.

"You're so egotistical sometimes, like you're stuck inside your own bubble and-"

"If it's not about me, then why are you so eager to talk to me?"

"Because???" Judy is struggling to find the words.

I know what that means.

"Goodnight."

I walk past her out of the bathroom and make my way to the lounge where my handbag is.

"I wasn't done yet!"

I hear how Judy follows behind me and I quickly lean down to grab the small orange plastic bottle.

One blue pill.

"Don't let us end our relationship on this note."

Okay, maybe two.

I quickly let the pillbox fall into my bag again and grab the water bottle. Then I turn around.

"What do you want to hear? It's okay? I understand? Let's still be friends? Judy, it doesn't matter. I'll be heartbroken either way."

Her mouth drops open but closes again. "I don't want you to be hurt."

I shrug my shoulders. "Who cares? As you said, this isn't about me."

"But-"

"Look, if you think that there is only one side to this story, your side, then maybe, Judy, you're the one who is egotistical."

I leave the room and this time, luckily, she doesn't follow me.