Part 1A

Greg and Mia Smith return home early from their holiday to work

from Greg’s perspective

Day 6 continued

The whole family is in the living room of their suite at the hotel in Bay of Angels, in Mexico.

“True, I need help in the office first,” Greg agreed with the sentiments expressed by different family members... “Yes, true.” Helen nodded and turned to Mia. “Honey, I’m so sorry you have to go home. It’s not fair. No, I think I have to go. You’ll be too busy working in the office to run the house.”

“Come on, Mom, it’s okay. This is a good opportunity to get to know the job better. Don’t worry,” Mia argued. A warm feeling flooded Mia at being needed.

“Are you sure?” Helen asked hesitantly.

“Yes, I’m sure.” Mia gave a small smile and nodded decisively.

“I’m sorry, Mia. I promise I’ll make it up to you. Have you unpacked?” Greg asked as he put his hand protectively on Mia’s shoulder.

“No, I haven’t. Give me 10 minutes, and we can go,” replied Mia, returning to her room.

Greg was weighing the alternatives. I reckon this is the best option. I’m really going to need Mia in the office.

“Greg, are you okay? Are you ready for the trip? Maybe you should get a few more hours of sleep before you leave.” Helen asked anxiously.

“No, honey, I’m fine. I want to leave as soon as possible,” Greg answered, putting some force into his voice.

“You should at least have breakfast,” Helen prodded him, trying to ensure he was taken care of.

“Only if Mia needs to eat. If not, then we’ll eat on the way.”

“Okay, I’ll repack for you.”

When Helen went to the room, Greg looked at Daniel. “I’m sorry, Daniel. Just don’t think about it. Try to make the most of this time. I’m sure you’ll have a good time with your mom. She’s a little upset right now, but try to relax her, and then she’ll be fine, and you can have fun.”

“No problem, Dad, I know how to handle it.” Daniel tried to sound reassuring.

Mia and Helen reappeared with the luggage.

“Okay, I’m ready,” Mia called out cheerily.

“Yep. We can go,” Greg asserted, reaching for the luggage.

“Wait a minute, I’ll go get dressed and we’ll see you off,” Helen offered, drawing her robe tighter around herself.

“No, you two go back to bed. It’s too early. We’ll go out alone,” Greg said, walking over to Daniel, hugging him, and murmuring to him in low tones, “Son, try to enjoy yourself as much as possible and take care of your mom.”

“Sure, Dad,” Daniel replied, giving a manly hug.

Greg walked over to Helen and kissed her. “Honey, I’m so sorry...” Greg’s voice caught.

“It’s okay, drive carefully and text me when you get there.” Helen was distraught.

“I will,” Greg promised reassuringly.

Daniel hugged and kissed Mia. “I don’t know how to say it, but I’ll miss you,” Daniel said gruffly.

“Yes, of course, haha. Maybe I’ll miss you too if I have time, haha.” Mia’s eyes misted.

Greg and Mia left. Getting in their car, Greg looked at Mia, “So, we’re going back. Another long trip. You can rest. When you want to stop, simply tell me. We aren’t in a hurry.”

“Oh, okay, you know, I love being on the road.” Mia rested her head on Greg’s shoulder for a moment.

“I’m so sorry that instead of relaxing at the resort, you’ll have to spend time with me in the office.”

“Dad, it’s okay. I’m glad that I can help.”

After seven hours straight driving, they arrived near the city late in the afternoon.

“We’re arriving in the city during rush hour. There’s a lot of traffic. First, we’re going to the hospital to see Trevor and Lisa,” Greg announced his plan.

After an hour, they managed to park their car in front of the hospital and went inside. Neither Mia nor Greg had been to the hospital often. The newly built hospital center was a really big complex.

“Where should we go now? I can’t find my way around.” Greg sounded a bit lost.

“It’s my first time here, but there’s an information desk.” Mia pointed at the information desk just to their left.

They got the information, and after 10 minutes, they finally arrived at the right place. They entered a large waiting room. There were dozens of people there. Greg and Mia stood there scanning the crowd.

“There’s Tim and Susan.” Mia pointed towards the corner.

“Let’s go to them.” Greg started towards them with long strides.

As soon as Susan saw them, she stood, hugged Greg, and started crying.

“Oh, Greg, I’m so sorry...” Susan sniffled.

“Don’t feel sorry. How are they?” Greg patted Susan’s back.

“Lisa is okay. She’s not hurt too bad, but she got a blow to the head. The doctors want her to stay in the hospital for a few days to do some tests to verify everything’s okay.”

“Yes, of course, they would,” Greg said, patting Susan’s hands.

“Oh, thank God.” Mia let out a sigh of relief.

“What about Trevor?” Greg pressed on for more information.

“The operation is still in progress. They had to put him in an induced coma ... oh...” Susan started crying again.

“Everything’s going to be okay.” Greg patted Susan’s back absentmindedly.

Tim, silently standing with them, feeling left out, had finally asked, “Would you like me to get you some coffee or something?”

“No, thank you.” Mia smiled wanly.

“Thank you, no need,” Greg replied, offering a man-hug to Tim.

At that moment, Mia whispered, “Oops, attention please. Someone’s coming.”

Everyone turned. Shit, it’s Megan, Trevor’s ex. I don’t like this situation, Greg thought.

Megan walked up to them. “What’s up, Greg? You look like you saw a ghost.”

“Well, after all this time...”

“I know...” Megan’s voice faltered, and she started crying and hugging Greg. “How are they?”

“Lisa is fine, but she’ll have to stay in the hospital for a few days while Trevor has surgery. Both will be fine, I’m sure,” Greg summarized the situation.

“I really hope so,” Megan managed to say between sobs and tried to school her expression.

Megan looked at Mia and switched to an overly sweet voice. “Mia, darling, you look so beautiful. How are you? I heard you’re going to work with Lisa.”

“Yes, I can’t wait to start working.” Mia gave a sad smile.

Megan looked at Susan and offered her her hand. “You must be Susan.”

“Yes, that’s right.”

“Nice to meet you, Susan.”

“Nice to meet you too.” Susan squeezed Megan’s hand.

“Thanks for calling me and taking care of Lisa. I’m so grateful.”

“Oh, Megan, no problem.”

“And, is this handsome guy Tim?” Megan looked up at Tim from under her lashes, offering her hand. Susan did not like Megan’s flirtatious manner.

“Yes, nice to meet you, Megan.” Tim shook Megan’s hand, which was limp.

“So, Greg, how is Helen?” Megan asked, referring to her longtime friend.

If you wanted to know how Helen is, you could have answered one of her hundred calls,” Greg replied, not masking his displeasure.

“Dad!” Mia admonished him.

“Okay, I’m sorry, Megan. Now is not the time...” Greg tried to appease his daughter—he certainly didn’t care about Megan.

“I’ve brought Lisa’s things. Can I see her?” Megan finally asked about her daughter.

“She’s on the second floor, room 204. But she can’t be visited right now. The nurse will take her stuff,” Susan offered.

“Okay, I’m leaving. Nice to meet you, Susan. Tim ... bye, Mia ... Greg.” Megan wiggled her fingers.

“This was...” Greg harrumphed. How dare she...

“Hmph, she was quite nice,” Susan said in a cutting-edge voice.

“She always knows how to behave,” Greg replied, and he let his irritation show.

“I found her number and called her first thing in the morning. She came here in the evening. You arrived here from another state faster than she did ... I couldn’t wait. I went to buy everything Lisa needed ... I didn’t want her to go without her creature comforts.” Susan let her dislike for the woman be known.

At that moment the doctor came in. I see a smile on his face. That’s a good sign—Greg thought.

“I’m pleased to inform you that we’ve operated on the gentleman successfully. The patient is still in an induced coma. This could take a few hours or a few days.” The doctor clutched his hands in front of him.

“Oh, thank you, thank you very much. When can we see him?” Susan asked in a soft voice.

“Tomorrow. Now go home and rest. You can see him tomorrow morning.” The doctor smiled.

“Thank you, Doctor.” Greg shook the doctor’s hand.

“You’re welcome,” the doctor replied to them and nodded.

After the doctor left, Greg looked at them and cleared his throat. “Okay, we should go now.”

Everyone continued walking towards the exit. When they left the hospital, Greg asked, “Are you with a car?”

“Yes. I brought Susan with my car,” Tim replied.

“Okay, tomorrow will be a hard day, so I’ll rest. Goodbye.” Greg started towards their own car.

“Wait, Greg,” Susan called out. “You’ve been traveling all day. You and Mia must be tired and hungry. Let’s go to our place. I’ll make something to eat.”

“There’s no way, after a day like that, you still have to prepare food,” Greg said protectively.

“I want to do it. I really do,” Susan pleaded.

“Why don’t we all go to a restaurant together?” Greg blurted out. It would be quicker and less stressful for Susan too.

“I’m in,” Mia quickly agreed.

“Okay, but I’m not dressed properly...” Susan fretted.

“Come on, Mom, you’re always well-dressed,” Tim countered.

They went to a nearby restaurant and dined together. They had a nice chat and socialized. Greg paid the bill, and then they went home.

At home, Greg laid out the plans: “Mia, we need to be at the office around 8 in the morning. So, we should wake up at 7 a.m.”

“No problem. I’ll set the alarm. I’m just going to shower and go to bed right now. I’m exhausted. Good night,” Mia turned and went to her room.

“Yes. Me too. Good night, Mia.” Greg could hardly wait to fall into bed after such a long day.

Day 7

Greg got up very early. He was sitting in the kitchen reading documents. Today was a momentous day for his job. Namely, he had a crucial meeting with potential business partners. He had been preparing a project for a long time. It was a contract worth half a million dollars. They replied that they were interested and would come to the meeting. If they accepted the offer, it would give his company great financial security. I wish Trevor were here now ... I can definitely present the project much better than Trevor, but he’s the one who could sell sand to an Arab or ice to an Eskimo.

“Good morning, Dad, or should I call you boss?” Mia sassed.

“Good joke haha ... Hey, wow! Mia, you look so...” Greg replied, unable to finish the sentence.

“Not good?” Mia asked anxiously.

“That combination of official and...” I can’t say the word “sexy” to my daughter.

“So, is it good or not?”

“It’s good. You look so pretty and...”

“Can you finish a sentence today? Whatever. Shall we go now?”

“Aren’t you going to eat anything?”

“Eat? Who can eat so early?”

“Okay then, let’s go!”

They arrived at the parking lot in front of the office building. We arrived a little early—Greg thought—so it wasn’t hard to find a place, but otherwise it would have been a problem. They got out of the car and headed towards the building.

“What’s the first thing you must do when you go to work?” Greg asked teasingly.

“Well, I don’t know, probably review assignments, a diary, or something...” Mia replied hesitantly.

“Wrong. First, you have to have a good coffee. Roy’s bar is the best place for that.”

“If you say so.”

Mia and Greg entered the cafe and sat down at the bar.

“Good morning,” Becca, the waitress, greeted them.

“Good morning,” Mia and Greg jointly replied.

“Neither you nor Trevor have been here for a few days. I already thought your business had failed,” Becca quipped.

“Long story. Anyway, this is my daughter, Mia,” Greg introduced his daughter.

“Nice to meet you, Mia. I’m Becca.”

“Nice to meet you too,” Mia replied, smiling.

Becca turned to Greg. “Are you sure she is your daughter? She’s beautiful. Haha.”

“Can you give us coffee today?” Greg grumbled.

“Oh, someone got up on the wrong foot. Coffee is coming.”

“Why are you being like that to her, Dad? She was only joking.”

Becca picked up the pitcher and poured the coffee. “Okay, now let me hear what the problem is.”

“We were supposed to be on vacation. We were going to Angels Bay on Sunday, but...” And Greg told Becca everything that had happened.

“Oh, I’m so sorry. I hope everything is okay with Trevor.”

“He’ll be fine. Okay, we have to go now. Bye.”

“Bye and good luck with the meeting.” Becca gave a small wave.

After saying their farewells, Greg and Mia headed upstairs to the office.

Greg showed Mia the main layout of the building. Stopping at the office door, Greg waved his hand. “There are three ways to get into the office: key card, phone scan, and fingerprint. I’m sure Trevor will install an eye sensor soon. Until Trevor gets back, you’ll only use the card.”

Mia tried the card, and they entered the office.

“Okay, this is your place.” Greg stood in front of the desk in the entryway. “I’ll give you the password to the computer later. Your main job is to answer the phone. You should always ask who’s calling and find out their contact information, phone number, or email address. You write down every activity in your diary, and you write down every task or event in our shared diary. You are responsible for ensuring that the tasks are done. For example, it says to call Mark on Wednesday morning. I’m sure I’ll forget that, so it’s your job to remind me. This is a start. You’ll have many other responsibilities later, but you’ll learn over time. Another example: you’ll need to know when someone calls whether to connect me with them right away or if it’s someone less important, then don’t bother me and say I’ll call them later. But you needn’t bother with that now. Now come here.”

Greg entered the main office, motioning for Mia to come, too. “This is my and Trevor’s office and a meeting room. As you know, very important people will be coming at 11 o’clock. Here’s the kitchenette. There’s a coffee maker and kitchen stuff, a refrigerator ... You’ll serve them drinks. Of course, you know how to make tea and coffee and pour whiskey or something like that.”

“Okay, no problem.” Mia tried to act self-assured, but she wasn’t completely sure she would ace everything.

“Okay, now I have to get ready for the presentation. You go to your place, familiarize yourself with the computer, the desk, the phone ... And connect every call to my line. When the gentlemen arrive, feel free to bring them in here.”

“Yes, boss.” Mia saluted playfully.

Greg was preparing the presentation. Okay, the PowerPoint presentation is ready.

At that moment, the door opened, and Mia ushered in the clients, “Gentlemen, come in, please. Mr. Smith is ready for you in his office.”

An older gentleman entered first, followed by two other men.

Greg extended his hand to the older gentleman. “Please come in.”

“Nice to meet you, Mr. Smith.” Mr. Ronson, the prospective client, greeted Greg.

“It’s a great pleasure to meet you, Mr. Ronson,” Greg greeted him, shaking his hand.

Mr. Ronson introduced the men accompanying him. “This is my advisor, Mr. Gunterman, and my IT specialist, Mr. Chang.” Greg shook their hands, as well.

“Gentlemen, please sit down.” Greg invited everyone.

They sat down. Greg remained standing, and Mia was ready to offer drinks. “Mia, please serve the guests drinks.”

“Thank you. No need,” Mr. Ronson rejected the offer.

Mia sauntered back to her seat.

“Okay, Mr. Smith. I don’t know anything about technology or IT, but now I’m giving you a chance to convince these two of my people why we should buy your services instead of the one your former company offers for the same price.” Mr. Ronson opened the discussion without much ado.

“You’ll find out in 20 minutes. First...” And Greg started his presentation. During the presentation, Mr. Ronson sat quietly. Chang and Gunterman listened intently to Greg and took notes.

After 20 minutes, Greg made his final argument, “And one more detail. Yes, the price is the same as my former company’s retail price. It’s also the same developer, but this version has been improved, and I’m not asking for a 5-year contract. We also offer free maintenance and troubleshooting while you are using our product. That was all I had to say.”

When Greg finished, Gunterman and Chang handed the paper to Mr. Ronson. He looked at the paper briefly and put it on the table.

Mr. Ronson cleared his throat. “The new system should go live on the first day of the new year. That means I must know everything is in order and ready on November 1st. If I understand correctly, the preparations will take 2 months, and the full integration of all 39 branches takes another 2 months.”

“Yes, that’s the maximum time, including all unplanned difficulties. In reality, it’s much faster,” Greg answered measuredly.

Mr. Ronson reiterated, “Okay, so it’s the 1st of November by the time everything is finished. And after a successful technical test, I’ll pay you half a million into your account—if everything is as you said and if everything is in order. Is that correct?”

“That’s right,” Greg reaffirmed.

“I’m glad. Until then, you should communicate with Mr. Chang. If you want, we can sign a preliminary contract for your safety on the day you start the final work,” Mr. Ronson graciously offered.

“Yes, thank you. We’ve completely understood each other.” Greg smiled.

“I’m glad. In that case, we can leave.” Mr. Ronson stood up, and everyone shook hands as the guests left.

Oh, it was hard. I’m so happy. I want to jump for joy. I want to scream, Greg thought, and turning to Mia, he said, “Mia, you seem to bring good luck and happiness.”

“Did you really make it?” Mia grinned widely.

“Yesss!!! Come here! I want to hug you!”

Mia happily jumped into her dad’s arms. Greg hugged her tightly, kissed her, and asked smugly, “Who is my princess?”

“I’m your princess, Dad.” Mia also hugged Greg and rested her head on his shoulder.

“No matter how old you are, you will always be my little princess.”

Mia snuggled closer in Greg’s arms. “I know.”

Standing up, Greg announced, “Now we can go to lunch.”

“Good idea. I’m getting hungry.”

They went to a nearby restaurant. After an hour, Greg inquired, “Mia, was the food good?”

“Yes. I overate. I can barely breathe.” Mia groaned.

“It’s hard to go back to work, isn’t it? I know. I’ll do my best to finish as soon as possible because we have to go to the hospital to visit Lisa and Trevor. I also have to call Susan.”

They went back to the office. Greg continued his work, and Mia sat in her place, getting informed about her duties and getting acquainted with the job.

Time flew by, and soon Greg stated, “It’s 4 o’clock. We’re done for today. Let’s go.”

“Okay, I’m ready. Let’s go. The hospital is our first stop. Right?”

At the hospital

“Shall we go to visit Lisa first?” Greg asked,

“Yes, I think it’s on the first floor, room 20 ... something.”

They found the room and went inside. Lisa was lying on the bed, typing on her phone. When she saw them, she left her bed happily and greeted them, “Hey.”

“Hey, Lisa.” Mia and Greg greeted Kisa in tandem.

Greg, wanting to help, inquired, “How are you?”

“I’m fine, and I don’t really know why they’re keeping me here,” Lisa replied, obviously flustered.

“They need to make sure you’re fine. They’ll let you go soon,” Greg tried appeasing her.

“It’s really boring here,” Lisa continued grumbling.

Mia patted Lisa on her shoulder. “I believe you.”

“How’s the office?” asked Lisa.

“The meeting went well; we got the clients.” Mia recounted, letting her pride show in her voice.

“Congratulations, that’s great.”

“I can’t wait for you to start working too.” Mia hugged Lisa.

“I’m sure you’ll be there next week too.” Greg offered his emotional support.

“I hope so,” Lisa replied wistfully.

“Is it possible to visit Trevor?

“Susan and I are allowed in his room, and the others can only watch through the glass. The doctor said everything is stable. Now we’re just waiting for him to wake up. It could take a few days.” Lisa gave her an update on Trevor’s state.

“Do you remember how it happened?” Greg pumped Lisa for information.

“All I remember is driving to the office, and then I woke up here.”

“It must be awful.” Mia sympathized.

“The experts say it’s better not to remember anything,” Greg informed them.

“I wish I didn’t remember many things, haha.” Lisa tried to make light of the situation.

Greg turned to Lisa and Mia. “Haha. Can we go see Trevor?”

“Yes, I’m going with you too. I think Susan is still there.” Lisa informed them.

They went to the top floor of the building. Lisa led them to the room. The nurse let them look in through the glass. Susan was inside. When she saw them, she came out. “Hi Greg, Mia ... Congratulations on the contract.”

Greg acknowledged the recognition but quickly asked, “Thanks. How’s Trevor?”

“They say he’s stable. We can’t do anything ... Just wait.”

“Yeah, Lisa said the same thing.”

“Susan, you don’t have to be here all day. I’m here anyway. I’ll call you if I need to.” Lisa tried to lighten the older woman’s load.

“Thanks, Lisa.” Susan smiled and patted Lisa’s hand.

“Okay, we’ll take you home, Susan.”

“And you’ll stay for dinner. You promised,” Susan cajoled.

“No, not today. I’m still really excited about the contract. I want to go home and open a bottle of whiskey, and Mia must be tired from the first day. We better save that dinner for a day or two when Trevor wakes up. Then we’ll celebrate. Okay?” Greg put his foot down.

“Okay, I’ll take your word for it.” Susan acquiesced.

They left the hospital, dropped Susan off at her house, and went home. As soon as they got home, Greg first went to the basement where he kept his expensive drinks. Greg picked up a bottle. Oh yeah, this one from Scotland will be okay. And another one when Trevor wakes up. Greg took the bottle and went into the house. He sat in the living room and opened the bottle. He filled a glass. This is medicine. I can’t remember the last time I drank alone. These past few days were ... a lot of stress, but I’ve proven I can handle it. First a disagreement with Helen about Daniel and Mia, then vacation, a break from vacation. Trevor’s accident, a presentation, a contract, a meeting...

Greg had a few drinks. I should probably be celebrating with my friends at the bar right now, but I really don’t care. This is how it suits me now.

Mia entered the room, dressed only in a T-shirt and panties—as she usually dressed at home. “Dad, I should make something for dinner.”

“No, honey, you don’t have to do that.” Greg declined.

“Who then? Mom’s not here. You think I don’t know...”

“I’m sure you do, but after your first day on the job, you need a break, not another job.”

“Oh, Dad, you’re so careful.”

“Of course, you’re my princess.”

Mia stepped closer and kissed him.

Greg offered, “Can we order a pizza? Will that be okay?”

“Okay. I’ll order it through the app.”

“Okay.”

“Dad, are you sad now?”

“Why do you ask?”

“I don’t know, you’re sitting here alone drinking. Mom is not here. Trevor’s in the hospital. You’re lonely.”

“Oh, my princess. You’re so cute. I’m fine. I was thinking about going to the bar for a drink, but I only want to rest my brain like this, at home.”

“Can I have a glass with you?” Mia asked outright.

“Hmm. This is a potent drink. Even people who drink every day can get drunk on a few glasses. I’m not sure that’s a good idea.” Greg pondered.

“Come on, Dad, it’s not because I want to drink—it’s because we’re celebrating a contract.”

“In that case, I can’t say no.” Greg poured the glasses. “Cheers.”

“Cheers.”

They both drank. As soon as Mia drank, she started coughing.

Greg patted Mia on the back. “Are you okay?”

“Oh, this is so strong. I feel a fire in my stomach,” Mia sputtered.

At that moment, the pizza arrived. They sat in the kitchen and ate. Mia had eaten a lot more than usual.

“I overate,” Mia complained.

“Yes, it’s because of the whiskey, and it stimulates appetite.”

“Yes, but I feel so heavy right now.”

“Me too.”

“I’m going to go get some rest. Later, if you’re here, I can join you.”

“Okay, princess.”

Mia kissed him and left.

I feel heavy too. But I’ll have some more, haha. Greg went back to the living room. He lay down on the couch. He poured himself a whiskey and turned on the TV. After a few more drinks, Greg fell asleep.

Day 8

Greg slept in the living room all night. Waking up, he thought, Oh, so that’s where I slept. This whiskey makes me sleep so well. And yes, there’s no hangover. That’s why it’s important to drink such quality drinks. Okay, I’m going to get ready.

Greg was already sitting in the kitchen, waiting for Mia.

“Good morning,” Mia called out cheerily.

“Good morning, princess.”

“Are you ready?”

“Yes, let’s go.”

In the car on the way to the office, Mia asked, “Did you sleep on the couch all night?”

“Yes, I was too lazy to go to the bedroom.”

“I was awake. I saw you sleeping, but I didn’t want to wake you up.”

They arrived soon, and of course, they went for coffee first.

Becca greeted them, as always, “Morning.”

In reply came the usual, “Hi” and “Good morning, Becca.”

“Any news on Trevor?” Becca inquired.

“No. He’s stable, but still in a coma,” Greg replied, leaning on the counter and noticing that Becca was not in the best mood, and she looked tired. Becca poured coffee, and Greg asked, “A rough night?”

“No, it wasn’t.”

“Then what?”

“Dad, stop questioning her. That’s not polite.” Mia intervened on Becca’s behalf.

“You have enough problems. You don’t have to listen to my problems. I’m sorry, I have other customers to serve.” Becca excused herself.

“She really has problems,” Greg murmured.

“Who doesn’t?” Mia shot back.

“Exactly,” Greg replied, thoroughly enjoying his first coffee of the day.

The workday went well. Mia was busy sorting out the scattered documents. She converted all the digital records to paper, arranged them in binders, and Greg was successfully winding up his job for the day. The end of the workday was approaching.

“Looks like we’re done for today.” Greg patted a folder on his desk.

“If you say so...” Mia lifted her shoulders.

“Susan said Lisa is going home tomorrow. There’s no change in Trevor’s state, though, so we don’t have to go to the hospital today.”

“Dad, if you don’t mind, I’d like to go with my friends today. We haven’t seen each other in a while. We were planning to go shopping and then have a drink somewhere.”

“Sure, honey. Go. I’ll transfer some money to your card now.”

Mia jumped into Greg’s arms and kissed him. “Oh, thanks, Dad.” Mia took her phone and typed a message.

“Cindy will pick me up here in 15 minutes,” Mia informed her dad.

“Okay Mia, I’ll see you at home tonight.”

Mia and Greg left the building. Mia went to where Cindy would be waiting for her.

Now, I think I can go to Roy’s for a drink. And Greg made his way to Roy’s Café.

“Hi again.” Becca smiled.

“Are you still working?” Greg asked.

“Yes, I have to work overtime, but for another half hour. What are you going to drink?”

“A beer, please,”

“I wish I could have one too.”

“You can have one later at home.”

“Ah, at home.”

She really looks sad, Greg thought.

“Where is Mia?”

“She went shopping with her friends. I know you girls like to shop.”

Becca made an even sadder face. “Yes, we like it, but people like me can’t.”