Total pages in book: 105
Estimated words: 100277 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 501(@200wpm)___ 401(@250wpm)___ 334(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 100277 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 501(@200wpm)___ 401(@250wpm)___ 334(@300wpm)
“What is it?”
“I think whatever you choose might involve going back to school.”
Horrified, I gaped. “At my age?”
“Because twenty-eight is so old.” His teasing reminded me of Rafe. “Star, it’s more than likely you’re going to need a degree to pursue a career.”
“How the hell am I supposed to afford to go back to school?”
He shrugged. “Loans.”
My head hurt. Groaning, I dropped it into my hands and stared at my list. “I could kill my parents.”
“Your parents?”
“Yeah, I would like to officially blame them for everything that is wrong with my life.”
Roger chuckled. “About time you started blaming them for something.”
In all seriousness, I said, “What am I going to do, Roger? And shouldn’t I feel more panicked than I am? I’m only stressed because I feel like I should be more stressed.”
“Why? You make enough money to pay your rent and buy food and clothes and books.”
“But I work jobs that can’t last forever.”
“Star, I’ve never met anyone who lands on her feet like you. When you set your mind to something, you achieve it. Just because it hasn’t been some fancy degree for a fancy career doesn’t mean you haven’t succeeded at your goals.”
“What if I want a fancy career after all?”
“Then I know you’ll do what you need to do to achieve that. And so do you. That is why you are not panicking. You have more faith in yourself than you know.”
I loved my friends. “You’re the best.”
“I’m aware. I take it the next coffee is on you as payment for my wisdom?”
Grinning, and feeling far better about my pathetic little list, I stood to go get him a much deserved second coffee.
* * *
• • •
Roger’s reminder was everything I needed to go about my daily life without a storm cloud hanging over my head.
Until Friday night.
* * *
• • •
On Friday morning, I’d come into the city for a job at a new bakery opening. The bakery owners wanted me dressed as a giant cupcake, which wasn’t exactly character acting, but they were paying the same fee as everyone else, so I was ready to don that cupcake costume.
I’d dropped my bag with clothes and toiletries off at Rafe’s apartment before he left for work and promised to be back at his place by five.
Perhaps it was the perfect storm of events. A handful of interactions that all happened in one day in a way that affected my emotions and my decision making.
The job as a costume character actor usually involved dressing up as a character in popular culture and imitating them. There was a skill and challenge to that, that I enjoyed.
Donning a cupcake costume to stand outside a bakery in Brooklyn, yelling things to entice customers inside, wasn’t my usual gig, but it seemed We Bring Them to Life was branching out for the sake of dollars.
However, one of the co-owners of the bakery grinned at me in excitement when I showed, and the buzz of energy among their small staff got me juiced up for them. I was ready to sell the heck out of some cupcakes. Then, said co-owner asked, “I take it you don’t have class this morning?”
“Class?”
“School.”
“Oh, I’m not a student. You think I’m young enough to be a student?” I was thrilled. “I’m twenty-eight.”
Her eyes bugged out of her head. “Oh. Oh, okay then.” It was the way she said it. She drawled it so rudely, I almost shoved the cupcake costume at her.
Instead, I decided to be me and give her the benefit of the doubt. She was nervous because her business was launching today. So I laughed it off and put on that pink cupcake, telling myself I looked adorable instead of stupid.
People did laugh at the giant pink cupcake as they walked by, but it wasn’t the usual laughing along with me when I did my costume character acting jobs. They thought I was ridiculous. I couldn’t shrug that off like I usually could. Maybe it was that damn “okay then.”
The universe wasn’t finished with me, though.
The gig lasted until one o’clock when the bakery closed, and I handed over the costume and they didn’t tip me. Not even with baked goods.
Charming.
Then I scurried back to Manhattan to switch places with a colleague who’d been standing in line for a game console since five a.m. He had another job to get to, so I’d offered to take his place in line and finish the job. Thankfully, by the time I got there, he wasn’t too far from the front entrance of the store.
Once I’d taken his place, I pulled out a snack from my purse and was munching on my lunch and reading my e-reader when the conversation behind me seeped in. Turning to look, I saw a young guy and a woman standing talking to people in line. The woman had a professional camera around her neck and the guy was writing things down on a tablet as he asked questions.