A new start
1505 Words
Brianna
“Girl, are you sure you’ll be able to make it there without passing out on the road?”
Beth asks as I limp slightly from my room into the kitchen.
“Bethy,” I sigh dramatically, “you’ve already forced me to stay home for an entire week.
I’ll be fine. It’s not like I got hit by a truck or something.”
A small smile spreads across my face despite the soreness still lingering in my body.
Ever since I came back from my…
encounter with the mysterious stranger, Beth has been nothing short of amazing to me.
It’s only been a week since I moved in with her, but somehow she already makes this place feel like home.
Although, if I’m being honest, my legs still feel like they might detach from my body at any moment.
But there’s no way I’m admitting that to Beth.
She’d chain me to this apartment if she knew.
And I really need to leave today because I still have to submit my application at that bar.
I refuse to become a burden to her.
“If you say so, girlie,” Beth says with a grin as we settle down for breakfast together.
Then she eyes my oversized outfit with obvious disappointment.
“I really don’t think that bar is going to appreciate your appearance,” she says dramatically.
“No offense, but I genuinely don’t understand why you insist on hiding that body of yours.
I would kill to look like you.”
I snort.
“Oh please. Have you looked at yourself lately? You look like you walked straight off the cover of a fashion magazine no matter what you wear.”
I take a sip of water before continuing quietly.
“Don’t try to make me feel better.
We both know I’m basically a bloated hippopotamus compared to girls like you and—”
“Stop right there.”
Her expression hardens instantly.
“I am not going to sit here and listen to you insult yourself.”
She puts down her fork and turns fully toward me like she’s preparing for a motivational speech.
“First of all, you are not fat. Curvy? Absolutely.Thick? Definitely. But never fat.” She points at me for emphasis.
“And don’t even get me started on your olive skin or those ridiculous hazel eyes.”
Then she lowers her voice conspiratorially.
“Honestly, if you’d just give up on men and date women instead, I’d happily worship you myself.”
I burst into laughter.
“So dramatic.”
“I’m serious!” she insists through her own laughter.
“You’re gorgeous, Anna. But if you keep tearing yourself down all the time, you’ll never realize your own worth.”
The sincerity in her voice catches me off guard.
Emotion suddenly tightens in my chest as I stand and walk around the table to hug her.
“Please stop making me emotional this early in the morning,” she groans dramatically, wiping fake tears from her eyes.
I laugh softly.
“I’m really grateful for you, Beth.”
“You’re welcome,” she says proudly. “But next time, my emotional support services are coming with taxes.”
That sends both of us into another fit of laughter.
After breakfast, we clean the dishes together—well, mostly because Beth refuses to let me do anything alone—before I head back to my room to change.
I swap my oversized clothes for fitted jeans and a long-sleeved cotton top since Beth refuses to let me leave the apartment looking, in her words, “like a retired grandmother.”
“Later, Bethy!” I call out while heading for the door.
“Take care, love!”
“You too! Bye!”
I step outside and make my way through the busy streets of the Bronx.
A slight ache between my legs suddenly stops me in my tracks, instantly dragging my thoughts back to last week.
The stranger had completely ruined me in ways I still couldn’t process properly.
And honestly?
I wasn’t complaining.
That night had easily been the most intense experience of my life.
I didn’t know his name.
Didn’t know anything about him, really.
But I figured that was how one-night stands were supposed to work.
Trying not to dwell on it too much, I continue walking until I finally reach Paradise Bar.
I pause outside the entrance, giving myself a quick pep talk before stepping inside.
“Good morning, sir,” I greeted the large man seated near the counter.
“Morning,” he replies gruffly. “How can I help you?”
“I… um… saw the vacancy sign outside for a waitress position, so I came to submit my application.”
He studies me for a second before nodding.
“Have a seat. I’ll get my boss.”
“Thank you.”
A few minutes later, he returns.
“He’s on a business call right now, but he’ll be out shortly if you don’t mind waiting.”
“I’ll wait. Thank you.”
He nods and disappears through another door.
I pull out my phone and check my emails for updates from the other places I’d applied to, but there’s still nothing.
With a sigh, I decide to call my grandmother instead.
It’s been nearly a week since we last spoke.
She answers almost immediately.
“Oh, my little bambina!” she says excitedly.
A smile spreads across my face instantly.
“Hi, Abuela. How are you? How’s Naples? And are you taking your medication properly?”
“Everything is fine over here, sweetheart. We all miss you terribly.”
The ache in her voice makes guilt twist painfully in my chest.
“Have you made any progress finding your father’s family?” she asks gently.
“You know you didn’t have to go all the way to New York for this. We were surviving just fine.”
“Abuela,” I say softly, “this was my decision. I owe it to Mama and Papa… but most importantly, I owe it to us.”
She sighs sadly.
“You’ve always been stubborn, just like your parents.”
I smile weakly.
“I’ll be okay.”
“Please take care of yourself, bambina. And call me whenever you need anything.”
“I will. I love you, Abuela.”
“I love you more.”
After the call ends, I search online once again for anything new about the Hemsworth family.
As usual, it’s just articles praising their billion-dollar empire and rising success.
I lock my phone with a sigh.
A few moments later, footsteps echo through the quiet bar.
I glance up to see a ruggedly handsome man who looks to be in his late thirties stepping out from the back office.
His gaze lands on me immediately.
“You must be the applicant,” he says.
“Um… yes, I guess?”
He sits across from me.
“Alright then, let’s get straight to it. What’s your name?”
“Brianna.”
“So, Anna—if you don’t mind me calling you that?”
I shake my head.
“Good. Any previous work experience?”
“Yes, sir.”
“Where are you from?”
“Naples. I just moved here from Italy.”
“And your work experience was there too?”
“Yes.”
He nods thoughtfully.
“I’m guessing you’ve worked in restaurants before?”
“Yes, sir,” I answered, slightly confused since this was clearly a bar.
“Well, I actually own a café across the street,” he explains. “Coffee shop in the mornings, restaurant during the day.”
He pauses briefly.
“I’d like to make you an offer.”
I sit up straighter immediately.
“You’ll work at the café during weekdays, then here at the bar on Friday and Saturday nights for extra income.”
I hesitate.
Part of me wonders if I’ll even need the job once I finally meet my father’s family.
But another part of me knows better than to rely completely on hope.
What if things don’t go the way I imagined?
What if they reject me completely?
I can’t afford to gamble my entire future on a fantasy.
“I’ll do it,” I say finally.
Relief immediately washes over his face.
“Perfect. You start Monday at the café by seven in the morning, and Fridays here at six in the evening.”
He slides a paper toward me.
“You can write down your contact information here. And by the way, my name’s Benson—but you can call me Ben.”
“Thank you… Ben.”
He smiles warmly.
“It’s no problem, Anna. I look forward to working with you.”
I thank him again before leaving the bar with the biggest smile I’ve had in days.
For the first time since arriving in New York, things finally feel like they might start working out for me.
- Writer
