What Separates Me and You

Chapter 28

Chapter 28 Happy Birthday

The smile froze on Sierra’s face. She struggled for quite a while before finally managing what seemed like a smile.

“I was just joking! What’s gotten into you, why are you being so fierce?”

The corners of Lewis’ lips raised as he chuckled. “I was just kidding too.”

People in the restaurant came and left, and still, Josephine waited silently. An hour passed, and then another. Still, there was no sign of Lewis.

She rested her chin on her hand, gazing out the window at all the lights out there. One by one they went out, and the bustling crowd on the road dwindled gradually.

Soon, the diners in the restaurant left too.

The lights outside were slowly switched off, and in the end, even the lights inside the restaurant were switched off.

The person who promised to celebrate her birthday with her never showed up.

“Mrs. Alvarez,” someone called out behind her.

Josephine snapped out of her reverie and turned around. It was the manager followed by two waitstaff standing beside her.

The manager smiled and said, “We’re closing.”

Josephine looked around her in the dim lights of the restaurant to find that everyone else had left.

She wasn’t exactly disappointed. After all, she was already used to it.

She hadn’t waited that long either. It had just been five hours. Compared to how long she had waited for him in the past, five hours wasn’t that much.

Just as Josephine got up and was about to leave, one of the waiters brought out a cake.

“Mrs. Alvarez, it’s your birthday today. This is a cake that’s been prepared for you in advance. Happy birthday!”

The waiter put the cake in front of her, and the manager said, “It’s almost 12, have some cake before you leave, or you can make a wish.”

Josephine felt that the flickering candles on the cake were not well wishes. Instead, they were the manager’s pity and sympathy toward her.

She tried very hard to put on a smile, although it did not turn out pretty.

Then closing her eyes, she said silently to herself, “Happy birthday, Josephine.”

She did not make a wish, Blowing out candles after making a wish did not work. She’d tried it long ago.

The manager sighed silently to himself at the sight of Josephine’s frail figure.

He had seen her waiting for hours. The man from earlier on had everything planned. out and had informed him that someone would be there soon. But it had been five

hours since, and the person was not there yet.

How pitiful it was to be stood up on one’s birthday.

Josephine opened her eyes and blew out the candles. The manager then proceeded to cut the cake into pieces for her.

Josephine shared the cake with them. The manager smiled when he took the cake from her. Then, he pulled out a little plastic figurine from his pocket and passed it to Josephine. “This is a souvenir from our restaurant. Please take it as our birthday gift to you, Mrs. Alvarez.”

Josephine looked at the figurine and took it. She nodded with a smile on her face. and signed a “Thank you.”

It was then that the manager realized in astonishment that Josephine couldn’t speak.

Not wanting to waste any more of their time, Josephine picked up a fork and took a bite of the cake. Contentt bel0ngs to N0ve/lDrâ/ma.O(r)g!

The moment the thick taste of cream entered her mouth, her stomach churned. However, she bit down on the urge to throw up and forced herself to swallow.

She dared not take another bite, so she took her phone out and typed on it. “Thank you, I’ll make a move now.”

“Have a safe journey home, Mrs. Alvarez. Shall we pack this cake up for you?”

Josephine looked at the cake. Although she couldn’t stomach any more of it, she got them to pack it up.

Then, she took the cake and left. She made a beeline for the trash can as soon as she left the restaurant.

She threw up everything there was left in her stomach and felt much better after

– | Chapter 28 Happy Birthday

ridding her system of the thick cream.

Elysium was a humid city and the wind at night was frigid. She wrapped her arms around herself tightly. The moisture in the air was so chilly that her nose went red from the cold.

As she walked on the deserted pavement, the dim streetlights cast long shadows around her. She walked slowly, stepping on her own shadow with every step.

After she went a slight distance, Josephine caught sight of someone by the trash can not too far away.

She blinked and approached the person, only to find that it was an old lady.

Somehow, the person looked quite familiar, so she went up and patted the person on the shoulder.

The old lady was startled and whipped around in shock. She heaved a sigh of relief when she saw Josephine.

Then, taking the half-eaten bun which she hid behind her, the old lady began eating it in front of Josephine.

Josephine stared at the old lady and reached out for her hand, shaking her head to tell her to stop eating.

“Do you want this too?” The old lady looked Josephine up and down. She didn’t look like she was short of money.

Josephine placed the cake she was holding on the ground and motioned, “Mrs. Jinkins, don’t you remember me? I’m Josephine.”

The old lady stared at Josephine’s hands, which seemed like butterflies fluttering around in the air under the dim illumination of the streetlights.

A while later, the old lady shifted her gaze to look at Josephine’s face. Her voice wavered. “Jo-Josie?”

Josephine nodded with tears in her eyes. “Yes, I’m Josie. What are you doing here?”

“You’ve grown so much.” Mrs. Jinkins sighed as tears streamed down her face. She picked up a walking stick beside the trash can and hobbled over to take a seat on some stone steps nearby.

Josephine followed her.

Mrs. Jinkins had been a household staff of the Alvarezs’, and was a trusty worker of Old Mr. Alvarez’s. She had been the one to take care of Josephine ever since she came to the Alvarez family as a child.

Then one day, she broke her leg in the process of saving Daphne from falling down a flight of stairs. Because of that, Old Mr. Alvarez arranged for her early retirement so that she could recuperate.

Josephine had always assumed that she had gone back to her hometown after her retirement, and she had not expected to see her here.

She passed the cake to Mrs. Jinkins and signaled. “It’s my birthday today, Mrs. Jinkins. Will you celebrate it with me?”

Mrs. Jinkins was stunned. A warm smile broke out on her wrinkly face. “It’s your birthday? Happy birthday, Josie! It’s too bad I have nothing to give you as a present.”

Josephine shook her head, telling her that she didn’t need presents. Everyone was wishing her a happy birthday, but ironically, she did not feel happy at all.

She sat quietly beside Mrs. Jinkins, watching as she wolfed down the cake. When she went to buy Mrs. Jinkins a bottle of water, she found out that all her cards had been frozen. Fortunately, she still had some spare change of approximately a hundred dollars.

She brought the bottle of water back and passed it to Mrs. Jinkins, asking her about her condition.

It was then that Mrs. Jinkins told her about everything that had happened. She had worked for the Alvarez family her entire life, but after she retired, her son and daughter-in-law took all her savings to buy a house in the city.

Before Old Mr. Alvarez passed away, the Alvarezs’ would send her a monthly stipend so she could live comfortably. However, once Old Mr. Alvarez passed, she no longer received any money, and her daughter-in-law chased her out of the house.

As a crip pled old lady like her was unable to find a job, all she could do was rummage through trash cans, in hopes of finding anything she could use or any valuables that she could sell.

Josephine felt a myriad of emotions in her when she saw what poor conditions the old lady was in. Mrs. Jinkins had served the Alvarez family her whole life, and in the end, she couldn’t even meet her basic necessities. How woeful was that?

Josephine insisted on sending Mrs. Jinkins home after she was done eating the cake. Mrs. Jinkins asked worriedly, “What about you? Wouldn’t Mr. Alvarez be

worried about you if you aren’t home at such a late hour?”

Josephine cast her gaze downward. He had stood her up at her birthday celebration. Why would he ever worry about her?

Seeing her disappointment, Mrs. Jinkins did not probe any further. She got off the steps with the help of her walking stick. “Let’s go then. Just don’t be surprised by how rundown my place is.”

On Lewis’ end, he took Sierra home and carried her to the couch before setting her down gently.

Just as he was about to leave, Sierra tugged his arm lightly and whined, “Can’t you stay any longer? The pain is killing me.”

Sierra had bandages on both her knees and her forehead. She had bugged Lewis in the office to have dinner with her. When Lewis refused, she ran away in a fit of anger.

But when she was running across the road, a speeding car nearly sent her flying. She still had tremors thinking about it now.

“Mrs. Wolsey, keep an eye on her.” Then, he turned to Sierra. “Stay at home and rest for a couple of days. I’ll come and visit tomorrow.”

“It’s already so late. Where are you going?”

Lewis looked down at his wristwatch. He was stunned when he saw the time. It was already half past midnight