Loss and Longing

Stevie nodded and turned back to face a grinning Rachel. It was clear she had heard her side of the conversation and had worked out what was going on.

“Don’t say a word” Stevie warned her.

Rachel a tall, slender, brown eyed, blonde woman, who was a year younger than Stevie, laughed and held up her hands in a gesture of surrender.  “Anyone would think he was making you pay for it.”

“He is” Stevie said biting the side of her mouth as she considered how she was going to come up with the cash to pay him back “that’s the trouble.”

“You’re not going to refuse it are you?” Rachel said horrified and her eyes widening further still as Stevie looked at her, she added, “you are aren’t you?”

“Of course I am” Stevie said “it’s not right. The man at the panel shop already thinks more than he should because of it. ”

“You’re crazy” Rachel said shaking her head “who cares what he thinks? You know that’s not the case.”

“I care” Stevie said. “I don’t like people assuming things about me.”

“Then you’d better move to a desert island” Rachel said. “People always assume something about everyone on little or no evidence. You can’t spend your life worrying about it. You’ll end up not living at all.”

Stevie looked at her for a minute. “I can’t help it Rach.”

“Well you’re going to have to learn hun” the other woman said with a kind smile before moving off and going back to unpacking some stock that had been delivered.

Stevie sighed. She knew Rachel was right, she’d heard that argument from many people before. She knew she had to form a tough outer skin and not worry about what other people thought, but that was easier said than done. Sighing again she put that issue aside for now. She needed to tackle one problem at a time and the more pressing issue was how she was going to pay Grant back because she could not accept his gesture. So she went back to working out how to get her hands on that much cash straight away.  The only way she could think of was to ask for an advance on her salary. She knew her boss would do it without question, but she hated to ask favours, especially about money and she also knew things would be even tighter next week because of it. Damn Grant Rumor.