Echoes of Unrequited Love

Chapter 41

Hogan and I finally parted ways on a sour note..

But this time around, I wasn’t freaking out.

Sure, Hogan was a tough cookie, but with Cecilia in the picture, he’d got his Achilles‘ heel

Had a dreamless night, and when I woke up, my phone was buzzing with a few unread

messages.

They were from Tina.

We hit it off at Darren’s birthday bash and added each other.

[Xaviera, are you and Darren actually an item now?]

She was fishing for some juicy gossip.

It seemed that she caught wind of that post too.

I had no choice but to run through the whole spiel I gave Cecilia yesterday, and ended it with [Do me a solid and clear the air with the rest of the gang, will ya?]

Tina was a peach, and she agreed right away.

But thinking about how all this might affect Darren, I was still feeling edgy, so I gave him a ring.

“This is why you’re blowing up my phone first thing in the morning?” Darren asked in his usual laid–back tone, sounding a bit miffed, “Xaviera, do you really think I’m that petty?”

“Darren.”

with you, Xaviera, is an

me off, his voice as warm and comforting

up at the moment, you go on with your day.”

quickly hung up.

trying to brush Darren off on purpose. I had to check in on

staying in a no–frills residential area in the

fruit, his colleague told me my uncle had the morning shift and was already out patrolling the

then headed to the street

hadn’t gone far when I heard my uncle’s intermittent voice. My heart skipped a beat,

dressed to the nines

our neighborhood lose its class? Are we

usually meek uncle was nervously clasping his hands, apologizing to the woman while stuttering. “I just thought n–nobody wanted it, I–I’m not a

sweat, and his eyes were

“Uncle!”

sound of my voice, and a genuine smile briefly

a stutter his whole

hung his head low, looking like he was caught red–handed.

the woman, “Ma’am, seems like

tilted her chin up arrogantly, “And you are? Related to this

“thief” drew a

a thief. Got any proof?” I glanced at the cardboard boxes at her feet, speaking

me to push back so hard. She pointed at me and said, “Denying it, huh? I had my cardboard boxes

got the picture right away.

on the