Moving Forward

The warmth of Monica’s Diner wrapped around Aurora like a fragile cocoon, a stark contrast to the cold uncertainty clawing at her insides. The scent of freshly brewed coffee, buttered toast, and something sweet, maybe pie lingered in the air, mixing with the faint, aged smell of the vinyl seats. The soft hum of a distant radio filled the silence, the quiet ticking of the diner’s old clock marking time she no longer knew how to measure.

She curled her hands around the ceramic coffee cup the moment the waitress set it down, welcoming the heat that seeped into her chilled fingers. The adrenaline had worn off. Now, in its place, exhaustion settled in heavy, and relentless.

Her limbs felt leaden, her body aching in places she hadn’t even realized were tense. It was the emotional toll that crushed her the most, the weight of betrayal sitting thick in her chest like cement. Shawn had cheated.

It shouldn’t have surprised her. He had been abusively cruel for a long time, using words like weapons, breaking her down piece by piece until she could barely recognize herself in the mirror, but it hadn’t stopped there.

The first time he grabbed her wrist too hard, she told herself it was an accident.

The first time he shoved her, he swore he’d just had too much to drink.

When he finally raised his fist, when his rage had escalated into something undeniable like a living beast, he made her believe it was her fault.

He had spent every dime she earned, controlling who she saw, twisted her once bright, ambitious mind into believing she was nothing without him.

Now, even after all of it, after he had finally pushed her past her breaking point, it still hurt. She should have left him a long time ago, but somehow Shawn had become her everything.

The worst part? She had no one.

No family to call. No friend’s couch to crash on. She had spent years being isolated, wrapped in the web Shawn had woven around her, making her believe she needed him. That she had nowhere else to go.

She was free now, but what does that freedom really mean?

Even if that freedom came with uncertainty, with the gut-wrenching fear of not knowing where she would sleep tonight or how she would survive the days to come.

The waitress a middle-aged woman with tired eyes and a gentle face paused as she wiped down the counter. “You alright, hon?” She had a slow comforting way of speaking, giving the impression that she was raised with manners and grace.

Aurora hesitated, then swallowed hard. No. She wasn’t alright, but admitting it felt dangerous. “I… I was just wondering if you know anywhere hiring?”

The woman gave her a once-over, eyes lingering on the slight tremor in Aurora’s fingers as she cradled the coffee cup. Then, without a word, she disappeared behind the counter.

Aurora took a slow sip of her coffee, letting the bitter warmth slide down her throat as she blinked against the threat of tears. Crying wouldn’t change anything. She needed to think, to figure out her next move.

When the waitress returned, she set down a folded newspaper beside Aurora’s cup.

“Not much in there, but there might be somethin’ for you,” she said, tapping the paper with a ringed finger before walking away.

Aurora smoothed a trembling hand over the worn pages before flipping it open. She skimmed the help wanted section, her eyes darting over the small collection of available jobs. Warehouse worker. Dishwasher. Call center agent.

Then, something jumped out at her, a nanny position.

She bit her lip, reading over the details. The family was looking for someone full-time, someone responsible, patient, and dependable. She could do that. She had always been good with children, always imagined herself as the type who might have had a family of her own one day. When her and Shawn started dating, she even had the white picket fence fantasy in her head.

Then, reality came crashing in. She had nothing no extra clothes, no references, not even an address to put on an application. What mother would trust her with their child when she looked like she had nowhere to go herself?

She swallowed the bitter lump in her throat and kept scanning.

Nothing else seemed promising. There were waitressing gigs, but she couldn’t risk working anywhere near where Shawn might find her. He’d track her down the second he realized she was trying to leave him for good. He was possessive and it was now crystal clear to Aurora that Shawn seen her as another possession.

Aurora turned the page, searching for available rentals hoping that she would have better luck with them. Her heart sank. Even the cheapest listings, studio apartments in the worst parts of town were more than she could afford. She had no deposit, no steady income. The reality was suffocating.

Her only option was temporary work, saving every penny until she had enough to get off the ground, but even that seemed impossible.

A plate slid onto the counter in front of her, breaking her out of her spiraling thoughts.

Aurora blinked gazing down at a thick slice of warm apple pie, golden and glistening under the diner’s soft lights. She lifted her head, eyes, meeting the waitress’s.

“I can’t—” her voice cracked.

“Eat.” The woman’s voice was gruff, but there was understanding in her eyes. “You look like you need it.” Something in the woman’s gaze told Aurora that this woman knew what she was going through.

Aurora couldn’t stop the tear that slipped down her cheek. She wasn’t used to kindness. Not anymore. She picked up the fork with shaking fingers and took a bite, the taste bursting on her tongue it was sweet, warm, safe.

She didn’t know if it was the exhaustion, the hunger, or the simple act of someone caring, but the bite hit something deep inside her, something fragile and frayed. For a moment, she just let herself sit there, savoring it.

The bell above the diner’s entrance jingled, and all too swiftly the smell of cheap cologne and alcohol penetrated the atmosphere of the diner.

Aurora stiffened, instinct tightening in her gut. She had spent the last couple of years walking on eggshells, actively avoiding upsetting Shawn. She was in constant fight or flight mode, Shawn had ensured that her body was primed for this. She swallowed the bite too quickly, the sweetness turning to something bitter on her tongue.

The men who entered weren’t here for coffee and pie.

There were four of them. They moved with a false confidence, the kind of men who thought brute force made up for lack of intelligence. Their clothes were meant to look expensive but missed the mark. Leather jackets with fraying seams, gold chains that looked just a little too thick, shoes that creased in all the wrong places.

Their faces were rough, lined with the kind of hardness that didn’t come from discipline but from years of making the wrong kind of choices. Their presence oozed danger, but not the kind that came with control or calculated power. No, these men were crude, opportunistic. The kind of men that got off on hurting people simply because they could. They were the kind of men who would use their fists before their brains. The kind who took what they wanted, simply because they could.

Aurora kept her head down, forcing herself to breathe. Rationally she knew that these men had nothing to do with her. She was nobody to them, and as long as she kept her head tucked down it could stay that way.

She didn’t know why, but the way they moved, their controlled, predatory awareness felt eerily similar to the way another man had moved. She realized that they made her feel the way she did when Shawn came home after drinking too much with his friends.

Couldn’t life give her a break?

“Hey sweetness how about you give me a bite of that pie?” one of the men yelled over to Aurora.

“Y’all grab a seat, and I get you some menus.” Aurora released the breath that she hadn’t realized she had been holding as the waitress addressed the men.

As the men moved towards a booth Aurora contemplated leaving. She had no desire to be around men like Shawn.

Although she was reluctant to give up the warmth of the diner, she steeled her mind as the waitress moved to serve the new customers.

Once all the men were seated, Aurora gulped down the rest of the coffee. She hoped that the men would ignore her as she left. Taking a deep breath, she grabbed her purse and made a swift exit from the diner.