Fifty five

Fifty five


Marinette's POV

I stood there, frozen, as Terry dismissed the chefs. His voice was firm, but it didn’t hold any anger—just a sense of urgency.

“You, help with Lucy’s wound, attend to it and cleanse it ” he ordered one of them before turning to me. “Come with me.”

I barely had time to blink before he was already leading me away, not bothering to listen to the whispers from the other staff members. I could feel their eyes on me, but I didn’t care. Not anymore. All that mattered was getting away from the tension in that room.

I followed him down the hallway, my thoughts scattered. What was going to happen now? Terry seemed to know what he was doing, but I didn’t know how to handle this. I didn’t want to make a big deal out of it, but Lucy’s actions... they had pushed me too far. I couldn’t just ignore it.

“Marinette,” Terry said, his voice gentle yet serious as we stopped in front of the staff lounge. “Tell me exactly what happened.”

I took a deep breath, trying to steady myself. My hands were shaking slightly, but I forced myself to calm down. “Lucy... Lucy came up to me just before you arrived in the kitchen. She... she said that I should stay away from you. That I’m nothing but trouble and that if I dint now i wont like what she's as going to do. Then, when you walked in, you told me to take the tray and go serve the customers, she made a scene—on purpose. She bumped into me, and when I dropped the trays, she started yelling, like it was my fault. She wanted to mek me look bad in front of everyone just because I yelled back at her.”

Terry’s face darkened as I spoke. He clenched his jaw, clearly upset by what I was saying. “I had no idea she’d been so... cruel. I’m sorry, Marinette. I should’ve noticed earlier.”

I shook my head quickly. “No, Terry. It’s not your fault. You didn’t know. I should’ve told you sooner, but I didn’t want to cause trouble.”

“It’s not about causing trouble,” Terry said firmly. “It’s about you being treated with respect. No one should treat you like that. Especially not someone you work with.”

I sighed, feeling the weight of his words. He was right. But at the same time, I didn’t want to make things worse. “What are you going to do about Lucy?” I asked, suddenly feeling a little nervous.

“I’ll deal with her,” Terry said, his voice cold. “Don’t worry about that. I’ll make sure she knows exactly what happens when someone crosses the line. I will settle scores with her.”

I couldn’t help but feel a little uneasy at his tone. It wasn’t the first time he’d been protective of me, but something about the way he said it made me uneasy. I didn’t want him to cause problems for anyone, even if they deserved it. I didn’t want anyone getting hurt because of me.

Before I could say anything else, Terry placed a hand gently on my shoulder. “You’ve had enough for today. All the yelling and unnecessary bullying to the accident and embarrassment. Take a break. Three days off. That’s an order.”

I shook my head, feeling a rush of frustration. “Terry, I don’t need a break. I’m fine. I can keep working. It is just a minor wound, I can work with it.”

“No,” he said firmly, giving me a look that told me there was no room for argument. “You’ve been through too much. You’re taking those three days off, whether you like it or not. I don’t want to hear any more about it.”

“But I don’t want to leave everyone else with the work,” I protested. “It’s not fair to them.”

“I’ll take care of it,” he said. “You’re not responsible for everyone else. Your well-being comes first. Got it?”

I stared at him, my frustration building. I didn’t want to argue with him, but I didn’t like the idea of just stopping everything. “Terry, please... I don’t need this. I can manage. I can just keep going.”

“I said no,” Terry replied, his voice soft but unyielding. “You need this. You’ve been pushing yourself too hard. Don’t make me argue with you.”

I opened my mouth to protest again, but before I could get another word out, Terry gave me a look that stopped me cold. It wasn’t angry or harsh, but it was full of authority—an authority I couldn’t ignore.

With a sigh, I relented. “Fine. Three days. But I’m not going to just sit around and do nothing. You can’t make me do that.”

“I don’t want you to do nothing,” Terry said, his voice softening. “But I do want you to rest. You’ve been through enough already.”

I wanted to argue again, but I could see the determination in his eyes. I knew he wasn’t going to back down. I didn’t like it, but I could tell he was just looking out for me.

“I’ll take care of it,” I said finally, my voice quieter. “But just so you know, I don’t need this break.”

“I know,” Terry said, giving me a reassuring smile. “But it’s for the best.”

That night, as we drove back to my house, the silence between us was comfortable, though I could feel the tension lingering in the air. I kept replaying the whole situation in my head, from Lucy’s words to everything that had happened after. I couldn’t shake the feeling of unease. Part of me felt guilty for not standing up for myself sooner, for not speaking out about Lucy’s behavior. But at the same time, I was relieved that it was finally over—at least, for now.

When we got to my house, Terry stopped the car and turned to me, his face serious. “I’ll check in on you tomorrow. Don’t overdo it, okay?”

I nodded, managing a small smile. “I won’t. Thanks for... everything, Terry.”

He gave me a brief, soft smile before stepping out of the car and walking me to the door. “Take care of yourself, Marinette.”

“I will,” I said quietly as I opened the door. “Good night, Terry.”

“Good night,” he replied, his voice warm. He paused for a moment, as if he was about to say something else, but then he turned and left, walking back to his car.

I closed the door behind me, leaning against it for a moment as I exhaled a shaky breath. The whole day had been overwhelming, and I wasn’t sure if I was ready to process everything yet. But at least for now, I had a break. A few days to catch my breath, to reset.

When I walked into the living room, my grandmother was sitting on the couch, knitting as usual. She looked up at me, her expression warm. “How was your day, dear?”

I sat down next to her, feeling the exhaustion finally catch up with me. “It was... a lot. There was a big scene at work. Lucy—” I stopped myself, realizing how much I had to explain. “She’s been behaving weird since showed up and today... it all came to a head.”

I told her everything—how Lucy had threatened to stay away from me, how she had made a scene, how Terry had stepped in and made sure I was okay. My grandmother listened carefully, nodding as I spoke.

“It sounds like Terry is taking good care of you,” she said after a pause. “But you must take care of yourself, too. You’ve been working so hard, Marinette. It’s time to rest. Don’t let anyone push you around.”

“I know, Grandma,” I said softly, feeling the weight of her words. “I just... I don’t want to let anyone down. I don’t want to be a burden.”

“You’re never a burden, sweetheart,” she replied, giving me a reassuring smile. “You deserve to take care of yourself.”

I smiled back, feeling a little lighter. Maybe it was time to rest, after all.

The next day, I spent the morning doing nothing. I didn’t feel like doing much else. My mind kept drifting back to the events of yesterday, and I found myself replaying the entire conversation with Terry, the argument about taking a break, and the way he had handled everything. I was still a little frustrated, but at the same time, I couldn’t deny that it had felt nice to have someone care enough to tell me to slow down.

I was staring at my phone when it rang, breaking the silence. It was Terry.

“Hey, Marinette,” he said when I picked up. “I was thinking... how about I take you out today? We could do something fun. Something to get your mind off everything.”

I couldn’t help but smile, feeling a flutter in my chest. “That sounds nice,” I said, my voice softer now. “I’d like that.”

“Great,” Terry replied, sounding relieved. “I’ll pick you up in an hour.”

As I hung up the phone, I couldn’t help but feel a little excited. Maybe this break wasn’t going to be so bad after all.