Vows Before Love

Chapter Four:High Stakes

Chapter Four: High Stakes

Aria’s POV

Days bled into a week, and the job hunt was an absolute disaster. Every morning, Jake and I sat at his small kitchen table, circling listings in the newspaper and sending out resumes on our phones. Nothing paid anywhere near what I had made at the lounge. The panic in my chest grew heavier with every passing day.

We were in the middle of debating whether I should apply for a receptionist gig across town when my phone began to buzz loudly on the table. My landlord’s name flashed on the screen.

I frowned, staring at the lit display. "That’s weird," I muttered, looking up at Jake. "Why is he calling me? My rent isn't even due yet."

"Only one way to find out," Jake said, gesturing toward the device. "Put it on speaker."

I swiped the screen to answer and tapped the speaker icon. "Hello? Mr. Harris?"

"Aria," the landlord’s blunt voice cut through the quiet room. He didn't sound like he was in the mood for small talk. "I'm calling to let you know that you need to move out. You have one week to pack your things and vacate the apartment."

The air left my lungs in a sharp gasp. I froze, completely paralyzed. "What? Move out? Mr. Harris, what are you talking about? I've never missed a payment!"

Jake leaned forward, his jaw tightening as he glared at the phone.

"It doesn't matter," Mr. Harris said coldly. "The reality is, someone else came along and paid a significantly higher amount of money for the place. A massive lump sum. I’m not turning down that kind of cash. You have seven days."

"Wait, how is that even possible?!" Jake snapped, unable to keep quiet any longer. He slammed his hand lightly on the table, leaning closer to the speaker. "You can't just break a lease because someone threw more money at you!"

"Who is this?" Mr. Harris barked on the other end. "Look, it doesn't matter who you have over there. The deal is done. The apartment is rented out to a higher bidder. One week, Aria. If your stuff isn't gone by next Tuesday, I'll have it thrown out on the curb. Since it's short notice, I’m willing to give you back your deposit right now, plus an extra couple hundred bucks cash to help you move this weekend. But you have to get out by Tuesday."

Click. The line went dead.

I sat there, utterly stunned, staring at the blank screen. My stomach twisted into a violent knot. Within a matter of seconds, my whole world had turned completely upside down. I hadn't just lost my job; now I was officially being evicted.

"He can't do that," Jake growled, pacing across the kitchen. "That greedy piece of—"

"Jake, what am I going to do?" My voice cracked, a heavy tear spilling over my eyelashes. "I don't have enough money for a security deposit on a new place. I don't even have a job to show a new landlord. I’m going to be on the street."

Jake stopped pacing. He looked at me, his anger fading into pure determination. He walked back over, grabbing my hands to stop them from trembling.

"Hey. Look at me," Jake commanded softly. "Since he's giving you your deposit money back, I'd say we should just go pack your stuff. You're coming to live with me."

I looked up at him, wiping a stray tear, my heart sinking at the thought. "Jake, I can't just move in with you. We're best friends, but living together? I don't want to be a burden."

"Is it weird? Maybe a little," Jake admitted, offering me a warm, reassuring smile. "But you know what's weirder? You sleeping on the street while I have a perfectly good couch and an extra room. It's temporary, Aria. Until we get you back on your feet. No more arguing. Let's go get your things."

Left with no other choice, I moved into Jake’s apartment. Having him around helped keep the darkest thoughts at bay, but the guilt of being a burden ate at me every single day.

A few days later, I went back to my father's house. I desperately needed a distraction from my own miserable life, and despite the tension that always lingered there, I wanted nothing more than to play with my sweet, four-year-old stepsister, Pearl.

But as I approached the front door, the sound of muffled shouting and violent crying echoing from inside made me freeze. I rushed inside, and the scene before me made my blood run cold.

A heavy, intimidating man was practically tearing a terrified, weeping Pearl out of my stepmother's arms. Pearl was sobbing, screaming for her mommy, her tiny hands reaching out in pure terror. My stepmother, Mary, was sobbing violently, clawing desperately at the man's large arms to let her baby go, while my father was on his knees, begging the man for mercy.

"What is going on here?" I yelled, throwing myself into the room, my heart hammering against my ribs. "Let her go! Put my sister down!"

The imposing man shoved me back with a cold glare, completely ignoring my demands as he kept his brutal grip on a crying Pearl.

"Mary, what's happening? Why is he doing this?" I demanded, rushing over to help my stepmother, who was trembling on the floor.

Mary looked up at me, her eyes red and filled with pure desperation. "Aria, please! He's taking Pearl away! Your father... he owes this man's boss a debt. A massive debt. They said if we can't pay, they're taking our daughter to settle it!"

I looked over at my father, who couldn't even meet my gaze. "How?" I asked, my voice shaking with a mixture of horror and fury. "How did you get into this much debt? How much is it?"

My father snapped his head up, his face pale with shame, but his expression quickly hardened into deflection. "Don't ask me how!" he shouted back at me. "If you really love her—if you really love your sister the way you say you do—you would look for a way to help her out!"

I stared at him, utterly dumbfounded and breathless. "How do you want me to help?!"

Mary reached out, her hands trembling as she clutched at my coat. "Aria, please! Do you have anything? Any savings at all? Anything?"

"Mary, I just lost my job," I whispered, my voice cracking as I looked from her desperate face to where the massive man held my crying stepsister. "Okay... okay. How much is the money? Just tell me how much it is!"

The heavy-set man sneered down at me, his voice smooth and cold as ice. "Fifty thousand dollars."

The room seemed to spin. My stomach dropped into a bottomless pit. Fifty thousand dollars? That was a fortune. It was an amount of money my family wouldn't see in a lifetime, let alone right now.

"Oh my god..." I gasped, pressing a hand to my forehead. "That's... there's no way."

"If you don't have it, then the girl's got to go," the man barked, shifting Pearl's small weight in his arms.

Pearl let out a terrified shriek, her tiny fingers reaching for me. “Aria! Momma! Help me!”

"Wait! Please!" I panicked, stepping in front of him to block the door. "Can I speak to your boss? Please, can I just call him and see if he can give us more time? A few weeks, a month, anything! I'll find a way to get it!"

The massive man didn't even blink. "No. The boss's orders are absolute. No money, no kid."

With a harsh shove, he pushed past me, knocking me back against the wall. Before any of us could stop him, he stepped out of the house, slamming the heavy front door behind him.

Pearl’s screams faded into the distance as a car engine roared to life outside, speeding away into the afternoon.

Mary collapsed onto the floor, wailing, while my father buried his face in his hands, groaning in shame. I stood frozen in the center of the room, the echo of my stepsister's cries ringing in my ears.

She was gone. And I had absolutely no idea how I was going to get fifty thousand dollars to save her from a man I didn't even know.