“I’ll just scan it for you,’ he said in a low voice.”
A soft ding echoed and $70.20 popped up in my account. My mood instantly lifted. I flipped through the papers, the crisp sound making me grin.
“Now then,” I said, raising my voice, “who else here owes me money? Come on, let’s settle everything today.”
I went around the office, checking everyone’s tabs. After half an hour, my payment app showed nearly $700 more. The coworkers’ faces grew darker by the minute.
After a long, awkward silence, one of them spoke up. “Tom, digging up old debts like this, making such a scene... We shouldn’t hang around you anymore.”
“Yeah,” another added, “acting like this makes it seem like we took advantage of you.”
As they kept throwing blame around, Tom wished he could sink into the ground.
I grabbed my calculator and walked toward him. “Stop pretending to be dead. All this money was lent by me. After so many years, it’s only fair to charge interest.”
“Add 1,000 for interest, plus the debts we just counted. Transfer all of it.”
Blood rushed to Tom’s face. His fists clenched until his knuckles cracked.
“Calista, don’t push it too far...”
Before he could finish, a soft voice came from the doorway. “Calista, how can you pressure Tom like this?”
Diana Walker stood there, dressed fashionably, holding a lunchbox that didn’t match her outfit.
The office buzzed with gossip. “Tom’s cousin brought him lunch again. She’s so pretty and kind, I’m dying of envy.”
“Family should care for each other. Calista’s just humiliating him in public.” Tom’s face softened slightly. Just as he was about to speak, I let out a cold laugh.
“Cousin? Please. She’s obviously his mistress.”
The room fell dead silent. You could hear a pin drop. Diana’s smile froze, twisting into something ugly.
Then came the murmurs. “Damn, that hit home. I’ve never seen a cousin bring lunch every day, all dressed up like that.”
The dignity Diana tried so hard to keep was crushed right before her eyes. Tom glared at me, boiling with rage.
“Calista, you bitch!”
He rolled up his sleeves and charged at me. Diana hurried to block him, forcing a smile.
“Tom, calm down. Everyone’s watching.”
She turned to me, still pretending to be composed. “We don’t see each other often, so it’s normal you don’t recognize me.”
She walked toward me in high heels, showing off a shiny designer necklace. “Calista, remember last year? He bought a necklace and said it was for his cousin, that was me.”
She reached out her hand with fake politeness. “No need to worry about the past. Let’s get to know each other again. I’m Diana Walker”
“Oh, quite the actress, aren’t you?” I swatted her hand away and grabbed the necklace around her neck, snapping a photo to check its price. Damn! 2,040 dollars.
A red mark appeared on her neck as she cried out in pain.
“Calista, are you insane? I just bought Diana a necklace. Is that really worth getting jealous over?” Tom said, looking at her pitiful expression.
Diana nestled into his arms, sniffling softly.
