The nobody i fell for

Chapter 6

THE NOBODY I FELL FOR

Chapter Six — Blake's POV

By the time I got home, the sun was already beginning to disappear behind the rooftops, leaving the sky painted in warm shades of orange and pink.

I walked through our little front gate with my backpack hanging from one shoulder, still trying to process what had happened that afternoon.

I had gone to that enormous mansion expecting to be turned away.

Instead, somehow, I had walked out with a job.

A real job.

I couldn't stop the smile that spread across my face.

The house looked exactly the same as it always did when I reached it. Small, slightly worn, but familiar. The kind of place where every corner carried a memory.

I opened the front door.

"Grandma?"

"I'm in the kitchen!"

I followed her voice.

The moment I stepped into the kitchen, I stopped.

There was food everywhere.

A whole roasted chicken sat in the middle of the table, golden-brown and surrounded by buns. The smell filled the entire room, warm and comforting, making my stomach growl instantly.

I looked at my grandmother.

She was standing beside the table with the biggest smile I'd seen on her face in a long time.

"What is all this?"

She laughed.

"Don't stand there looking shocked. Sit down."

I put my backpack on the chair.

"Grandma, where did you get a whole chicken?"

"I bought it."

"You bought a whole chicken?"

She rolled her eyes.

"Yes, Blake. A whole chicken."

I laughed.

She picked up one of the buns and placed it on my plate.

"You got the job, didn't you?"

I stared at her.

"How did you know?"

She gave me that look only grandmothers could give.

"Because you walked through that door smiling like someone just handed you the world."

I smiled.

"I got it."

Her face lit up.

"Really?"

"Really."

She immediately pulled me into a hug.

I wrapped my arms around her and closed my eyes.

For a few seconds, neither of us said anything.

Then she pulled away and held my face between her hands.

"I'm so proud of you."

I smiled.

"It's just a gardening job."

"It's a start."

I looked at the food on the table.

"How much did all of this cost?"

She waved me off.

"Don't worry about that."

"Grandma—"

"I said don't worry."

She sat down and started tearing the chicken apart.

"You've been working hard. You're studying and now you're going to work too. You deserve a proper meal."

I watched her.

I honestly couldn't remember the last time I'd seen her this happy.

She looked lighter somehow.

Like for the first time in weeks, there was something she wasn't worrying about.

And seeing that made something warm settle in my chest.

I reached for a bun.

"Thank you."

She smiled.

"Eat."

I took a bite.

"Tomorrow I'll get my first payment as soon as I can."

She looked at me.

"You don't have to give me everything."

"I know."

"But?"

I smiled.

"But I'm going to help."

She shook her head, smiling.

"You've always been stubborn."

"I got it from you."

She laughed.

The sound filled our little kitchen.

I looked at her and smiled.

Maybe the job wasn't glamorous.

Maybe I would spend my afternoons covered in dirt while other students were hanging out with their friends.

I didn't care.

If it meant coming home and seeing that smile on my grandmother's face again, I'd plant a thousand flowers.

I glanced at the roasted chicken in the middle of the table.

For the first time in a while, dinner didn't feel like just dinner.

It felt like a celebration.

A small one.

But ours.