Muse

Jade’s POV

Beep-beep-beep.

Ughhh. I groaned and reached for my alarm, slapping it off with more attitude than strength. Great. I have to get up again.

Rubbing the sleep from my eyes, I sat up and whispered a quick prayer. Then I got to my feet, shuffled through my morning routine on autopilot mode.

When I opened my bedroom door, there she was. Chloe, my black and white pug, lying right in the doorway fast asleep.

“Hey, Chlo Chlo,” I murmured, crouching to rub her head.

I love her so much. She was basically a rescue. I met her while volunteering at a shelter years ago she was crying in a cardboard box on the side of the road, tiny, cold, and scared. I wrapped her in my scarf, walked her back, and the rest is history.

I stood and made my way to the kitchen. “Mac and cheese it is,” I muttered. Should I eat healthier? Probably. But when you’re twenty, broke, and living away from your single mom for the first time this is survival.

Cassandra used to meal prep for us. She was my roommate and best friend now she’s married to her childhood best friend, a literal billionaire named Sean Romanov.

I smiled to myself, missing her like crazy. She deserved her happy ending. Her last relationship was toxic too it’s actually how we bonded.

I started cooking, zoning out as the water boiled. Cooking and daydreaming my usual combo. My mac and cheese turned out decent, thanks to the extra mozzarella.

I can’t cook everything I mean, spaghetti still feels like a mystery but I can handle basics. Fried chicken? Easy. Rice? Done. Gourmet? Not yet. Between my job at the clothing store, bartending part-time, and volunteering at the animal shelter, I don’t even have time to breathe, let alone bake a soufflé.

And I’m saving every penny to go back to college. I want to be a psychologist it’s been my dream forever.

My phone buzzed. “Thank You Jah” by Vybz Kartel blasted through my small apartment.

Mom.

I sighed and answered.

“Hey Mommy, how are you?”

“Jade, baby? You can hear me now?”

“Yes, Mommy. I’m okay. Just eating some mac and cheese before work.”

“Mac and cheese again?” she scolded. “You really need to move back home. You’re too skinny. You and Oliver still together?”

At the mention of his name, my stomach flipped.

“No, Mommy. We broke up years ago. Remember?”

She went silent.

“I’m sorry, baby. I just… I worry. You deserve better.”

If only she knew. He was everything to me. Until he wasn’t. Until he broke me. Until the cheating, the gaslighting, the violence.

I caught a glimpse of myself in the microwave reflection. Still standing. Still healing.

“I love you, Mommy. I’ll visit soon, I promise.”

“Put God first, always and I love you.”

“I know Mommy, bye.”

I hung up, fed Chloe, washed the dishes, and braced myself for the day ahead.

I had no idea everything would change before the week ended starting with a wedding I never meant to crash…