Desperation
1566 Words
Lucien was a liar. He had to be.
Aria stepped out into the dark night, the cool breeze hitting her skin, but it did nothing to calm the raging storm inside her.
“Your sister will be evicted by tomorrow morning.”
The words echoed in her mind, sharp and unrelenting, seemingly getting louder with each passing minute.
No. It didn’t make sense. There had to be a mistake.
Her steps quickened as she moved down the pavement, her heels striking the road harder than necessary, her grip on her phone so tight her knuckles turned white.
She thought she still had time. She pulled up her messages, documents, her files scrolling quickly, searching for anything—any confirmation that this wasn’t real.
Nothing. Her chest tightened.
Without thinking, she tapped her landlord’s number. It rang. Once. Then twice.
Then it went to voicemail.
“Pick up,” she muttered, pulling the phone away and calling again. “Come on, pick up.”
Voicemail.
Her pulse spiked.
This couldn’t be happening.
She shoved her phone back into her bag and stepped off the curb, raising her hand sharply as a taxi approached. It slowed just enough for her to pull the door open and slide inside.
“Maple Street,” she said quickly. “Get me there fast as you can.”
The driver nodded, pulling back into traffic.
Aria leaned back, her leg twitching restlessly as the street lights blurred past the window. Her thoughts raced faster than the car, looping over the same thing again and again.
He knew.
Of course he knew. Lucien Blackwood didn’t say things like that unless he was certain.
She shook her head slightly, pressing her lips together. Even if it was true, there had to be something she could do. Someone she could call. Some way to fix it before morning. For her sanity, she had to find a way.
The car slowed while she was still in the mess that was her thoughts. “We’re here.”
Aria barely waited for it to stop completely before pushing the door open. She stepped out, already reaching into her bag for cash, handing it over without really looking.
“Keep it,” she said quickly. Then she turned, and froze.
The building stood exactly as it always had. It had a familiar worn-down, old, used look to it. But tonight, something was wrong.
The front light flickered weakly, casting uneven shadows across the entrance. The usual hum of conversation from inside was gone, replaced by a heavy, unnatural quiet.
Her chest tightened as she took a slow step forward, then another, before she saw it.
A white sheet of paper taped to the front door.
Her steps slowed as she approached, each one heavier than the last. The words blurred at first, her vision refusing to focus, her mind already trying to reject what she knew she was about to see.
"Eviction Notice.
Effective immediately."
Aria’s hand trembled as she reached out, her fingers brushing the edge of the paper. Her throat tightened. Her name and address were on it, stamped, sealed and final.
A sound escaped her—something between a breath and a laugh, hollow and disbelieving.
“This is a mistake,” she whispered. But that felt like a lie, even to herself.
She forced herself to move, pushing the door open and stepping inside.
The hallway was dim, quieter than usual. A few doors were slightly ajar. Aria kept her head down as she walked quickly to the stairs, her heartbeat pounding in her ears. Each step felt heavier.
By the time she reached their floor, her hands were shaking. Their door was half-open. Her stomach dropped.
“Maya?”
She pushed the door open fully and stepped inside. The apartment looked the same. For a second, she thought something had happened.
“Aria?”
She turned.
Maya stood in the middle of the room, her arms wrapped tightly around herself, her eyes wide.
Red. Unusually puffy, with dried liquid around its edges.
She had been crying.
“Maya… what happened?” she asked, even though she already knew.
Maya let out a shaky breath. “They came earlier.”
The words hit harder than the notice.
“Who?”
“The landlord. And someone else.” Her voice trembled. “They said we had to leave. That we don’t have any more time.”
Aria shook her head quickly, stepping closer. “No, that’s not right. They told me we still-”
“They changed it,” Maya cut in, her voice breaking. “They said everything’s been processed. That if we’re not out by morning, they’ll remove us.”
“That’s not how it works,” she said, more to comfort herself than anything. “They can’t just-”
“They can,” Maya whispered. Silence fell.
Aria swallowed hard, forcing herself to stay steady.
“It’s okay,” she said, reaching out and placing her hands on Maya’s shoulders. “We’ll figure it out.”
Maya looked at her, her eyes searching.
“How?” she asked softly.
Aria opened her mouth, but nothing came out. Because she didn’t know. She had no real answers. Maya seemed to realise this too, because once the silence got too prolonged, she found herself speaking.
“I don’t want to go back there,” she said, her voice trembling. “I don’t want to stay with people who look at us like that. I don’t want-”
Her words broke off as tears slipped down her cheeks. Aria pulled her into a hug instantly.
“It’s okay,” she murmured, even as her own chest tightened painfully. “You won’t. I promise.”
Aria didn't know if she could keep such a promise, but she'd made it anyways. Maya clung to her, her grip tight.
“I’m scared,” she whispered.
Aria closed her eyes briefly. So am I. But she couldn’t say that. Not now.
“Hey,” she said softly, pulling back just enough to look at her. “Look at me.”
Maya hesitated, then lifted her gaze.
“We’ve been through worse,” Aria said, forcing steadiness into her voice. “We’ll get through this too.”
Maya nodded slowly, though the fear in her eyes didn’t fade completely.
“Okay,” she whispered.
Aria offered a small smile.
“Why don’t you pack a few things?” she said gently. “Just in case. I’ll… figure something out.”
Maya hesitated for a second, then nodded again, turning toward the bedroom. The moment she disappeared from sight, the smile fell from Aria’s face. She exhaled slowly, running a hand through her hair as her thoughts spiraled.
Think, Aria!
She grabbed her phone, scrolling through her contacts.
Friends.
Acquaintances.
Old classmates.
There was no one who could take them in.
Her grip tightened around the phone. Then she remembered him.
Lucien.
The name surfaced before she could stop it.
Her jaw clenched. No. Absolutely not.
She shook her head, dropping onto the edge of the couch. There had to be another way.
Minutes passed, and her thoughts kept circling back, no matter how hard she pushed them away.
"Marry me," he'd said.
“I’m not doing that,” she muttered under her breath.
Silence answered.
She let out a shaky breath, leaning forward, her elbows resting on her knees.
A soft sound came from the hallway. Aria looked up. Maya stood there again, a small bag in her hands.
“I packed a few things,” she said quietly.
Aria nodded, forcing a small smile. “Good.”
Maya hesitated, then stepped closer.
“Are we going to be okay?” she asked.
She reached out, brushing a strand of hair away from Maya’s face.
“Of course we are,” she said softly. She really hoped it wasn't a lie.
Maya studied her for a moment, then nodded slowly.
“I trust you,” she said, as she turned and went back to the bedroom, leaving Aria alone again with her thoughts.
The silence that followed felt different. Because now there was no pretending about the situation: there wasn't really much she could do.
Aria stared at her phone again.
Lucien.
Her grip tightened. She hated him with every fibre of her being. Not just for what he did, but for everything he represented.
“I would rather lose everything again than tie myself to you.” Her own words haunted her. But now she was realizing, this wasn’t just about her. It never was.
Her gaze shifted toward the bedroom door. Maya. Her innocent little sister, looking up to her as a role model and as a saviour. How could she fail her now?
Slowly, she unlocked her phone. Her fingers hovered over the screen.
She hesitated at first.
Then she remembered her reality:
Morning.
Eviction.
Nowhere to go.
Her fingers moved.
She typed a message. Stopped. Deleted it.
Typed again.
Her pulse pounded in her ears, each second stretching longer than the last. This was it. If she crossed this line, if she made this choice, she would never be able to uncross it; she would never be able to take it back.
Aria stared at the screen for one long moment. And this time, before she could stop herself, she pressed send.
“I’ll do it.”
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