Chapter 5
Melissa looked at the long list of entries, and her face fell.
"Emily, I honestly do not have that much money right now," she said as she put the phone down. "I just paid my rent and my credit card bill, so I'm really low on cash. Can I pay you back in installments?"
"How do you want to break it down?"
"Maybe 700 dollars a month? Would that work?" she said, looking at me tentatively.
I did the math quickly in my head. "At that rate, it would take almost two years to pay everything back. Are you sure you can stick with that?"
"I'm sure." She nodded immediately. "I swear, this time, I will actually pay you back."
"Okay, then send me 700 dollars right now
She hesitated for a moment. "Right now?"
"Yes, right now."
"But I left my bank card at home, and I don't have enough in my Venmo account." Her eyes darted away from mine.
I stayed silent and kept my eyes on her.
The air grew thick with tension.
Melissa clearly felt the pressure and kept her head down as she tapped away on her phone. "I will ask my boyfriend to send me some money," she mumbled.
A few minutes later, her phone buzzed. She opened her banking app and sent me 700 dollars.
After I saw the transfer, I said, "Thanks. So next month around this time, I will come find you for the next installment, alright?"
Melissa's expression soured. "Emily, do you really have to do this? You are acting like I'm going to stiff you or something."
"Isn't that exactly what you are doing?"
She was caught off guard for a moment. "Can you stop nagging me about it? I won't forget to pay you back, but you are making me feel really pressured."
"If it is too much pressure for you, then pay it all off in one go."
"I seriously can't come up with that much money right now." She was clearly getting worked up. "Do you realize how much I spend every month?
"Rent is 2,600 dollars, beauty and skincare cost me a thousand dollars, and I drop at least seven hundred dollars on going out.
"Plus I have to buy clothes to keep up appearances.
"I barely have anything left over at the end of the month. You expect me to pull almost twelve thousand dollars out of thin air? Where am I supposed to get that kind of money?"
Listening to her complain, I found the whole situation almost laughable.
She made eight thousand dollars a month but spent more than seven thousand of it, while I barely made three thousand a month, yet somehow ended up covering her expenses.
"That is your choice," I said, keeping my voice steady. "You could always cut back on your spending and pay me back first.
"Why do you get to tell me to cut back on my lifestyle?" Melissa shot to her feet, her emotions finally boiling over. "I earn my own money, and I will spend it however I want."
"That's your business. I can't control how you spend your money." I stood up too. "But you still have to pay me back. If you can't, then we will take it to court."
She stared at me in utter disbelief. "You are going to sue me? Just for twelve thousand dollars? Emily, are you crazy? We are friends!"
"Is that what friends do? Take advantage of each other for money?" I looked her straight in the eye. "Real friends respect each other and keep their promises.
"They do not treat each other's kindness like something they are entitled to."
Melissa was completely shaken by my words. She stood there with her mouth open, unable to say anything for a long time.
Finally, she grabbed her bag and stormed out.
Right before she left, she shot back, "Emily, now I know who you really are." Then the door slammed shut behind her.
I stood there, staring at the unopened box of tiramisu on the coffee table.
My phone buzzed with a message from Melissa. [Just wait. I will pay you back. But from today on, we are not friends anymore.]
I looked at her message, my heart a tangled mess of emotions.
Maybe this friendship had been twisted from the very beginning.
*****
Over the weekend, I met up with another friend from college.
Claire Foster, Melissa, and I used to share a dorm room back in the day.
After graduation, Claire moved to another city for work, but she transferred back this year.
We met at a café in the city center. Claire arrived ten minutes early and already had two coffees waiting.
"Long time no see," she said, giving me a hug.
Then she looked at me more closely. "You look a little worn out. Have you been tired lately?"
I sat down and took a sip of my coffee. "Just dealing with some stuff."
"What is going on? Is it something at work?" she asked, genuine concern in her voice.
I hesitated for a second, but I decided to tell her anyway. After all, she knew Melissa too, and maybe she could give me some advice.