11 Chapter#10 Bad

Well, in my opinion there is nothing better than feeling the fruit of your work well done in your hands, isn't it? Ingrid was never a lover of money but she actually felt good having the first pay in her hands. A very juicy one indeed, but that was not the reason for her happiness, but that she was already close to buying a digital drawing tablet. That was one of her wishes with her salary, now that she took a good look and did the math, if she managed to do the design of the store's promotional model successfully, she could do it perfectly.

In those moments she felt like Mr. Krabs with his beloved money and his millionth dollar.

Keeping the money in her wallet, she decided to update his ways and decided that between these remaining days of the week, make a checking account with a debit card. She had to get up to speed with economic technologies so she would ask Diana for help since she was not used to doing these steps.

Safeguarding her pay in her locker at the store she sat next to her co-worker to eat her lunch. She had asked the manager for permission to make some iced tea for the two of them and it was granted, so she came with her lunch bag clutched between her teeth and the two transparent containers in her hands.

"Can I help you with that?" -The black-haired woman went to get up from her chair.

"Not at all, thanks, I've got it under control now." -He said a little funny.

He takes a seat and gives the drink to his companion to begin eating in peace. He seizes the moment and takes the little notebook where he was writing down orders with his pen and begins to sketch what he had in mind for the advertisement and the poster. He wanted to put wings with a couple of ribbons and he had to make a particular logo that would be between those wings.

"What are you doing so concentrated that you are not eating huh?"

"Well, only one idea came to my head so I'm taking advantage of it." -Takes a sip of his tea.

"Well, why don't you tell your inspiration to hold on a little bit so you can eat in peace?"

"Because she's as fickle as you are with your Raphaela makeup."

—Don't mess with my makeup dear, it's sensible.

"Him or you?" Sometimes I think you just wear it out of habit, there are days when it looks pretty sloppy.

"Na, only those days I go out too hurried because I fall asleep or something."

"If you say so, it's because it's true, so let's pay attention to you and your makeup and have lunch, is that okay?"

"What star will fall to make you listen to me with your crazy head?"

"No idea, let's just start eating before my inspiration wanes."

-If that.

It had been a few weeks since his last kick to the gut by the world. He had already gotten his pay and made Mariam promise to buy his bed with his first salary, he did not want the good woman to spend money on it, besides he managed to convince her to also pay for some things like water and television, he had to cooperate as some way. If something she could not bear was to depend completely on someone else, she became very depressed when she felt useless and that was not good.

Coming back to the good stuff, he managed to establish a good relationship with his counterpart at work, Raphaela. She turned out to be a great girl. A league away she could tell that she was partying and she loved the nightlife. Unlike Diana, who was homey above her usual madness, Raphaela was the extreme of that madness. She was the type who cared little what people said and she went from party to party because according to her there was more life than time and although it sounded stupid, she had the logic of it. Actually, that happiness was contagious so being so different they quickly coupled. However Tobias was not the case. She was the boy with the skates, but with this he did not bring any kind of relationship, only good morning and nothing else, she could notice his look a bit contemptuous and spiteful but she did not know the reasons so she ignored him with you grow.

Finishing the last sip of his drink, new customers arrive. Two men and three women. They empty the box to serve quickly as the men went to one of the tables by the window. Without much thought, Ingrid took her notebook and went out to greet them.

"Hi, how can I help you?"

"Well, I'd like to have the coffee with milk and cream with a ham and cheese sandwich." one of them spoke, more specifically the one with light hair.

"I want a strawberry mint tea please, hot if possible." -the other spoke looking at the window with his hand tucked under his chin.

With a nod, he goes out to get the orders and thinks about those hands. He had already seen them before, of course he would, he would never forget such beautiful hands as those, now the question was, where he had seen them. She remembered someone who asked for the strawberry mint tea every time he drank and fell silent on the grumpy boy, even though he didn't look much alike because "grumpy" how he had made him had black hair, not tomato red. But those hands were unmatched so she decided to look closely at the owner of them when he delivered the order.

The stipulated five minutes of waiting passed and as I always fixed the appearance of the food, putting a little effort into the presentation of it did not take more than a minute so I did not understand why the state of that food so inconspicuous. She going out with the tray in her hands, she reaches the men and places the respective orders.

"Where were the skates?" -speaking one of them.

-Excuse me? -frowns his eyebrows.

—The skates, where are they? From that day I did not see them anymore.

—Well, they weren't mine and it hadn't occurred to me to buy some so ...

-Good

She was not confused, had she really asked him about skates? It was weird but cute at the same time. He carefully deigned to look without qualms at the accuser of his service methods and he couldn't take his eyes off that red hair. Unable to stop his tongue he asked.

"Excuse my curiosity, but weren't you wearing dark hair?"

"Yes, I painted it recently, does it look bad?"

He didn't answer anything since he had left his mind in limbo the moment he made contact with those green eyes. Wow, they were cute, they weren't very garish but they weren't that soft either. In fact they had a slight mix with brown tones giving it an exquisite combination. He always caught those eyes, although his Tata always told him that the color of his eyes was treacherous and vile, but that didn't matter, he couldn't take his gaze away from there. Unable to help it, his cheeks felt hot and he stumbled back to avoid the pain.

—This yes, it looks interesting. With his permission I am withdrawing.

Leaving there like a rocket he hides in the kitchen.

"Well, they were bitten, you don't waste your time."

"Shut your mouth and eat, we have to go back."

—Yes yes yes, whatever you say tomato

—Don't call me tomato

"You look like one, accept it and the color of your eyes makes it look like an anomaly and it has the little leaves at the bottom instead of the top."

"Yeah, hush, it looks good."

—Yes, of course, the only one who has told you that is the girl who brought us the drinks, don't be stupid and she didn't even say that she looked good, she said that she looked interesting, I mean, she said it out of pity. -He holds the mocking laugh- Were you trying to impress or what?

- Shut up demons, I will consider coming back with you.

"Don't be difficult, you know you love me and you can't live without me."

—Yes yes, whatever you say, finish now, I want to go.

Still in the kitchen Ingrid she saw from the small window the two men talking while she kept her cheeks puffed up and red. Did she really only recognize her from the skates? Well, she couldn't complain since she was doing it with her hands, but on second thought, the skates were a good idea and she was going to put it into practice. She with a bit of courage she grabbed a couple of cookies and put them in a bag. It was her mother's recipe and she let them make them while she had lunch, they were warm and fresh. She came out with a friendly smile and collected the glasses and the bill to bring the change back to her owners.

When she was about to leave she stops the tomato boy and gives him the bag of cookies.

"Here, so you can sweeten the rest of the day, tomato boy."

He just looks at her with wide eyes and red cheeks, now she could tell she's a tomato.

"Thanks, have a good day."

-Equally. she-she says goodbye to her with her arm.

She gave herself the freedom to smile while she took a cookie and put it in her mouth, it was actually quite pleasant the taste of chocolate on her palate and more if they came from that adorable girl with plump cheeks.

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Minutes after finishing her work routine, Ingrid took a bath in the store's showers and changed her clothes for clean ones to go to college. She had to take the afternoon classes and catch up with the last shift of the day plus she had an exam and had to do a presentation in art class. She had thought about using the ideas she had for the store sign in the presentation so she could use that time to develop.

As she walked to the entrance of the university, she thought about the days that she had spent time with Marcos. They were quite strange days for her as she experienced for the first time what could be called a flirt ... or so she believed. She went on "dates" and she more than once she tried to be kissed only being reciprocated about two times. She actually didn't feel like it was very comfortable but she just went with the flow.

They had reached a couple of points as they spoke. On her part she liked affection but not too much while he wanted to continue with her customs, which she had no problem since she cared little. They seemed more like a pair of friends than a relationship. In one of those impromptu dates he asked her to be her girlfriend and she accepted, something quick but her curiosity was bigger than herself so she said to herself: "why not? Anyway I don't lose anything"

Already coming to herself by the sound of the rapid steps to enter the classrooms she saw her "boyfriend" at the entrance of the next class. She decided to go say hello as the good girlfriend she thought she was but she was completely ignored even though she was looked at. She didn't like that, but she put her foot out of the situation because she might be busy or something. Too bad, her innocence was even stronger than her.

The minutes passed and with it the hours. She was already in art and she was happy because she had managed to get a high grade in geometry and arithmetic without much effort. Without leaving her smile, he sat down in front of the easel, placing the brushes in a specific order and at her comfort. The canvas was still completely clean despite the fact that she had many ideas in her head, so she dedicated herself to looking at the lares seeking to remove the laziness from her. She finally took some charcoal and started a sketch. She decided to do something simple but at the same time eye-catching and beautiful.

Focusing on what she wanted to achieve as the main poster she began to draw a pair of open wings. She gave them gold colors for some details, plus the shadows to bring them to life. As a background she put a sunset while in the middle of the wings she made a sphere giving the illusion of transparency so that the background could be appreciated. After that, in the center of the dial she placed in ornate cursive letters "Wings". She was in charge of adorning it with gold and white putting glitters on the sphere and the wings. To give it a personal touch, she decided to put some ribbons that were hooked from the wings to the sphere giving the illusion that they were tied to it. To finish with an extra ornament, she put a phrase under the sphere with the same letter, which was a little more artistic:

"Wings to fly to your dreams"

"Oh, how I want those wings for me ..." she murmured to herself staring at the canvas.

She took a photo of her with her cell phone and kept it in her gallery to show it to her boss later. Now that she remembered, she still had an unfinished sketch from months ago, she had to stop by the beauty salon again and talk to him or the manager there and propose the idea to her.

When leaving the room after collecting all the things she received a message on her cell phone:

"Wait for me on campus, I love you"

It was Marcos, she was doubtful but she wanted to hear what she wanted to say, plus a couple time doesn't kill anyone so she walked there with the headphones in her ears.

Stepping foot on campus someone takes her by the arm and leads her into one of the janitor lockers that were in each corner of the school. Her mouth was covered but she quickly gave up her panic because she knew those hands. Cold, callused hands, Marcos's hands. She with a shove she dislodged the grip and looked at him with murderous eyes.

"Is it possible to know why you brought me in here?"

"Well, to have privacy as a couple, darling."

-Seriously?

-Yes of course. -He takes her by the waist- so we are alone.

"Let's see, stay still." -He separates from the grip- I do not find logic in this so let's get out of here, if we are a couple we are supposed to walk where they see us.

"But you told me you didn't like much contact and stuff."

—In public I don't like excessive contact, but it doesn't mean it's completely zero.

"Well I'm sorry, I thought you might be uncomfortable."

—I'm too uncomfortable right now because God knows what people would be thinking when they saw me being dragged into a janitor's room.

—But if nobody saw ...

-Are you sure? Half the school saw us in that grace. I think that if what you were trying was not to be seen, you have failed with that.

One opens the door and storms out.

"I'm really sorry, will you excuse me?"

"Okay, okay, no problem."

Without many goodbyes, she left there quite annoyed with a mind full of fire. I seriously didn't think it was that way. She was suspecting that "her boyfriend of hers" is feeling somewhat ashamed of her or something. But hey, you can't always think bad, can you? For now she would just go home to focus on the outstanding design and help with dessert for dinner today, he promised Diana that she would make the apple and cream cheese tart that she loved so much.

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Seattle 9:39 PM Tom's Apartment

The black-haired man was playing with his hairball throwing the plastic bone in the living room and part of the balcony. The barking of the dog resounded throughout the apartment and the man's laughter could be heard quite lively and cheerful. From one moment to another the furry animal jumped from where it was and rubbed with the hand of its owner in the area of the wrist where there was a black leather band with ornaments. The reason, the piece of leather smelled like Ingrid as it was the last gift she gave to Tom before leaving.

Seeing his friend so longing for the smell in the band he also became nostalgic. He missed her scolding whenever he didn't clean her room or when he sat on the couch without having changed his clothes. Just a few treacherous tears and he remembered the little paper he gave him before leaving the apartment.

He ran into what was her room and looked for where he had kept her little paper. There was a note with his workplace address plus a happy face. He remembered what he told her about him going to visit her there, so he would make sure to do it the next day, since he wouldn't have her gossip girlfriend lying around and wouldn't know where to look for him. He could finally see his cute crazy little sister.

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Seattle 10:00 PM Cliver's apartment.

—Aaaa!, how good it was. –With a silly smile and hand on her stomach, Diana sighed after taking the last bite of cake from her.

-It was good?

—You know that if, I don't know why you ask.

—Yes dear, it was excellent, you have to give me the recipe one day.

—Don't worry abu, I'll give it to you. she-she abruptly shut up on saying such a nickname and was embarrassed.

—Don't worry dear, you can call me whatever you want, I'd be delighted if you called me grandmother.

With slight tears in her eyes she nodded with a big smile. She really did miss that feeling, that familiarity, that warmth. She really did miss her family, or at least, when she had her.

After enjoying the night a bit, they all went to their respective rooms. Tomorrow Ingrid had no class at the university so she could go to work and rest in the afternoon. Tomorrow she would show her ideas to the boss plus the idea she had for advertising on the internet and she would hopefully go around the room to propose the idea that she had.

As soon as he fell on the bed, yes, the bed, they had bought the bed without notifying him, and to top it off his new grandfather did not want to accept the money for what it cost so he had to resign himself and receive a scolding hit on his head. Diana had already fallen asleep in her secret corner as she called it. Ingrid was staring at the ceiling with nothing better to do and suddenly a couple of memories came to her mind.

Blows on her back, lashes on her legs and cigarettes being put out in her arms. The slaps on his cheeks and the burns with hot water ... The teasing ... "You are a dirty girl, nobody will love you, be grateful that we got you out of there, nobody would love a dirty, ugly and fat girl like you"

She hugged herself with her arms and pulled the sleeves of her sweatshirt up to cover her wrists. She made a lump on the bed and cried herself to sleep with no strength for anything else.

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