The Bi-State Area

Chapter 51: Debt Free

Max jumped around in the apartment, whooping and hollering. This was the loudest he had been since he came to the apartment complex. He was feeling like the shackles of life had finally fallen away. He was so happy he didn’t know what to do with himself.

He hadn’t even paid the money to the bank or Gareth yet, but seeing it in his account made him happy.

He took out the black notebook and added the $300,000. When he saw the excess he would have, he grinned so wide that he felt the sides of his face would split. When he finally calmed down, he simply lay on his bed and closed his eyes.

He was loud before, and now he wanted to be quiet.

He thought about the few contracts he still had active and decided that as soon as they ended, he would never go back to being a sugar baby. He couldn’t handle the disrespect.

Now, he didn’t need to look at anyone’s face to decide how to act. He could be himself. If he could ever remember who he was.

Closing his eyes, he fell into a deep sleep.

He was woken up by a knock on the door.

Max’s opened his bleary eyes. Feeling drool on the corner of his mouth, he wiped it. He looked out the window and noticed it was dark. Did he sleep that long? He reached for his phone and saw it was after six. He had slept for nearly five hours.

Making himself look semi-presentable, he went to open the door. Outside, Cassie and Stacey were waiting.

"You think he’s okay?" Stacey asked

"He should be. He sounded so happy earlier," Cassie responded.

When they saw the door open and saw Max’s sleepy face, they immediately understood. Stacey didn’t stand on ceremony and pushed her way into his house. She plooped down on the sofa, crossed her legs and arms, and stared at Max.

Max watched Stacey walk in. He turned to Cassie and used his thumb to point at Cassie as if asking, ’what’s she doing?’. Cassie shrugged.

"Cassie, come in. Are you going to stand out there in the cold while he decides whether you should come inside?" Stacey asked.

Max gestured for Cassie to come in before closing the door.

"Sorry," he murmured.

"It’s okay."

"So," he sat on the sofa with them, "why are you two barging into my place?"

"After all the fire truck sounds, you went quiet. We were worried something happened to you," Stacey said.

Hearing this, Max felt a little warm. It felt good to have someone checking on him. Maybe it was the fact that the debt was off his shoulders, but Max was feeling particularly nice today. He ignored Stacey’s comment about him sounding like a fire truck.

"Since you two are so nice, how about we go out to dinner tonight? I’m feeling pretty generous. You can pick the place."

Stacey looked at him, suspicious. "I don’t trust it. When have you ever been so kind? You’re always eating my food. All of a sudden you want to take me out. Are you planning to sell my kidneys?"

Max ignored her. "How about it, Cassie? If Stacey doesn’t want to go, it will be just us."

"Hey, hey," Stacey waved her hands. "I never said I didn’t want to go. Can’t I ask questions?"

"No questions. Just tell me if you want to go."

"Go! Of course I’ll go. What time are we leaving?"

"First decide where we want to go."

"Let’s go to Blackstone Cut. It’s just opened, and I hear the steak is amazing."

As she spoke, Stacey couldn’t help moving around. Max shook his head. He turned to Cassie. She had been silent the entire time. She didn’t question anything.

"What about you?" Max asked. "Is there anywhere you want to go?"

Running a hand through her hair, her face turned red. Her eyes shifted around the room.

"I’m not really sure about any of the restaurants. I haven’t had time to visit the city yet."

It was only then that Max remembered that Cassie was a newcomer. He glanced at Stacey. He couldn’t believe that since Cassie came, she hadn’t brought her out for a night on the town or anything.

"Stacey didn’t throw you into the wild?" He joked.

"She’s been busy. She did bring me to the mall yesterday to buy some clothes, but I don’t know anywhere else."

Max gave Stacey a thumbs up. "You’re a pretty good friend."

"Don’t blame me," Stacey said, exasperated. "I have genuinely been busy. I haven’t had the time to do anything with her. I’m already feeling like crap. I don’t need you to add to it."

As for whether she really did feel like crap, Stacey was the only one who could truly know.

Max wrapped an arm around Cassie’s shoulder. "If she doesn’t show you the sights, you can come to me. I’ll take you to a few good places."

Five minutes later, they made their decision. They would go to the place Stacey suggested. It was an upscale steakhouse. They called and were lucky to have a reservation cancel so they fit into the slot.

They had two hours. One hour to get ready and another to arrive.

"Alright," Max clapped, "Now that’s planned." He looked directly at Stacey. "A cocktail dress is fine, or a pantsuit. If we can’t get in because of you, I’m throwing you in the ocean."

Stacey heard this and stuck out her tongue. "It was one time; I didn’t know they had a dress code."

Cassie watched the two banter. They had known each other for years; it was expected that they would have incidents and memories she didn’t know about. She ignored the small ache in her chest.

There wasn’t a relationship between her and Max, and she didn’t like him enough to be in a relationship with him. So, she was able to ignore the feeling.