chapter 3
1318 Words
“Did you get the money?”
Natalie stared at him.
“The money?”
“Yes.” Mark looked impatient. “The money you promised me.”
She frowned.
“You mean she promised you money?”
Mark stared at her.
“What?”
Natalie quickly corrected herself.
“I mean, I promised you money?”
“Yes, you did.”
She looked away for a second.
Everything about this conversation felt strange.
This man knew her as Anna. He should know about the money she owed.
Natalie looked back at him.
“If I promised you money, didn't you know I needed money to sort out some debts first?”
Mark sighed.
“I know.”
“You know?”
“Yes, Anna. I know you're owing people.”
“Then why are you asking her, I mean me for money?”
“Because you promised to give me mine first.”
Natalie stared at him.
“Yours?”
“Yes. You said you would give it to me today.”
She shook her head slowly.
“So I'm owing other people money, and you still expect me to give you money?”
“I don't expect you to give me all your money. I just need what you promised.”
Natalie's irritation rose.
“What exactly do you need it for?”
“I told you. I have something to pay.”
“What?”
“My own debt.”
She almost laughed.
“You have debt too?”
Mark looked annoyed.
“Yes and you know about it.”
Natalie pressed her lips together.
She was beginning to understand the kind of relationship Anna had been trapped in.
This man knew she was struggling. He knew she had debts. He knew she had recently lost her mother and had been left with hospital bills and people demanding money.
Yet his first concern was still the money she had promised him.
“Babe,” Mark said, looking at her closely, “I don't even understand what is going on with you today. Why are you acting like this?”
Natalie looked at him.
“Like what?”
“Like you don't believe me.”
She said nothing.
“You promised to give me this money today.”
Natalie looked at him for a long moment.
“If you know I'm struggling, why are you still asking me for money?”
Mark frowned.
“Because you promised me.”
“But you know I need money too.”
“I know.”
“Then why can't you help me?”
Mark gave her a confused look.
“Help you with what?”
“With everything!”
Her voice rose.
“You know this girl is already struggling. You know she owes people money. You know what she's going through, and you're still standing here asking her for money! Why can't you help her instead of making things worse?”
Mark's face tightened.
“Why are you talking to me like this?”
Natalie stopped.
“When did you start talking to me like this?” he continued. “You never used to speak to me this way.”
She stared at him.
He was probably right.
Anna had apparently treated him differently.
But Natalie wasn't Anna.
At least, she wasn't supposed to be.
She rubbed her forehead.
“Forget it.”
“Anna.”
“I need to go.”
“Go where?”
“Home.”
Mark looked around the tiny apartment.
“This is your home.”
“No.” She shook her head. “I mean my real home.”
He frowned.
“What are you talking about?”
Natalie hesitated.
She couldn't tell him the truth.
She didn't even understand the truth herself.
“I need to get back to New York.”
Mark's eyebrows rose.
“New York?”
“Yes.”
“Why?”
“I just need to go.”
“You've lived here for years. Why are you suddenly asking about New York?”
Natalie looked at him.
“Because I'm leaving.”
“Are you planning to relocate?”
“I'm going home.”
Mark stared at her.
“Anna, you're already home.”
“You won't understand.”
“I think you're still drunk.”
Natalie looked at him sharply.
“I don't drink.”
Mark laughed.
“You don't drink?”
“I don't.”
“You always drink.”
“I said I don't.”
“Sometimes you get tipsy and start acting strange. Maybe you're still feeling it from last night.”
Natalie shook her head.
“I never drank last night.”
Mark stared at her.
“Okay. Something is definitely wrong with you.”
Natalie didn't answer.
She needed to leave.
She needed to find her parents.
She needed to get back to the life she had lost.
Her mind was still struggling to accept everything when Mark suddenly looked toward the kitchen.
“Is there anything to eat?”
Natalie turned toward him.
“What?”
“Food. I'm starving.”
She stared at him in disbelief.
“You're hungry?”
“Yes.”
“And you're asking me to cook?”
“Can you?”
Natalie shook her head.
“If you're hungry, make something yourself.”
Mark looked offended.
“You always make food.”
“Not today.”
“Why?”
“Because I said so.”
He shook his head and reached for his phone.
“Fine.”
Natalie turned away from him.
She was done.
She didn't care about his food.
She didn't care about his debt.
She needed to get to New York.
Then Mark suddenly stopped scrolling.
“Unbelievable.”
Natalie glanced at him.
“What?”
He stared at his screen.
“Wow.”
“What is it?”
“That's crazy.”
Natalie walked closer.
“What happened?”
Mark looked at the phone again.
“It's about Natalie Lancaster.”
Natalie's heart skipped.
She froze.
“What did you say?”
“Natalie Lancaster.”
She stared at him.
“Do you know her?”
Mark looked at her as if the question made no sense.
“Who doesn't know Natalie Lancaster?”
Natalie's breathing became uneven.
“She was a famous influencer,” he continued. “A celebrity. She's all over the news.”
Natalie couldn't take her eyes off him.
“What happened to her?”
Mark's expression changed.
“She died.”
Natalie stopped breathing for a moment.
“Died?”
“Yeah.”
“How?”
“Car accident.”
Her fingers went cold.
The crash.
The broken glass.
The pain.
The voices around her.
The ambulance.
She remembered everything.
Mark continued looking at his phone.
“She died about a week ago.”
Natalie stared at him.
“A week?”
“Yeah. It's been almost seven days.”
Her hand slowly moved to her chest.
A week.
It felt impossible.
She had opened her eyes only hours ago.
She had woken up in Anna's room.
And now she was being told that Natalie Lancaster had been dead for almost a week.
Her own name.
Her own death.
Her own funeral.
It felt as if she had closed her eyes and opened them again.
“There's something about her burial,” Mark said.
Natalie's eyes snapped toward the phone.
“What?”
He read the notification.
“Her fans are gathering today.”
Natalie's heart began pounding.
“Today?”
“Yes.”
Mark scrolled down.
“They're expecting thousands of people.”
Natalie could barely breathe.
“Why today?”
Mark looked at her.
“Because today is the burial.”
She stared at him.
He turned the phone toward her.
The headline was right there.
NATALIE LANCASTER'S BURIAL TO TAKE PLACE TODAY.
Natalie's lips parted.
She whispered,
“Today is my burial.”
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