My New Girlfriend Pt. 05 - The Finale

This is the final part in my series called My new Girlfriend if you've not already read parts 1,2,3 and 4, please feel free. I've really enjoyed writing this series the first part of which was published 31 October 2019. There were times that I didn't think I would ever finish, mostly due to the difficulty I had writing part 2. But I've always felt like it's a story I want to tell. I've had quite a few people contact me directly and provide me feedback and I really appreciate it. Any feedback is always welcome. To everyone that has taken the time to read this series I thank you and I hope that this instalment is a fitting ending to the series.

MET university isn't far from city, but for me eight miles was enough for now. I park up for the night in a hospital car park. I sit back in my seat and rest my head on the head rest. I'm exhausted, all I want to do is get some sleep, but the adrenaline is pumping through my veins. I'm angry, I'm angry at Hallie but most of all I'm angry at myself. I can't help but think to myself, that I should've done more and put up a fight for her. It infuriates me that I did next to nothing and it chews me up inside.

The following day, after a sleepless night, I'm straight out looking for work. Luckily with many students finishing or almost finished for the summer there's plenty of jobs going. I take a full-time bar job for the summer with the promise of part time hours come the new term. A week later I'm offered and I accept a second job in a call centre working full time for an online payment processor. I tell nobody where I am, not even my friends or my mother. For now, I just want to be left alone.

A few weeks later the police pull me over. My car flagged up on their database for a missing person's report. I explain to them that I'm fine, show them my ID and the leave me to go on my way.

That evening I call my mother.

"Hello?" She answers.

"Hi mom," I reply.

"Simon?" She replies.

"Yeah," I reply.

"Thank God, you're alive," she replies with relief. "Where the fuck have you been?"

"I'm sorry I've not been in touch, I've been busy trying to get things sorted," I reply.

"Getting things sorted?" She replies angrily. "I've been worried sick here. I have the police looking for you and everything!"

"Yeah, they pulled me over today," I reply.

"Where are you?" She asks.

"I'm still in the city. I have a job for the summer," I reply.

"Doing what?" She asks.

"Just some bar work," I reply.

"Are you coming home at any point?" She asks.

"Nah, I really need to get back on my feet," I reply.

"Where are you living?" She asks.

"I have a place," I reply vaguely.

"I can't believe you would be so cruel, as to not getting in touch with me and let me know that you're ok," she says.

"Sorry mom, I just wanted to be left alone," I reply.

"It's not good enough Simon," She replies. "I've been dreaming about the police coming to the house and telling me they'd found you at the bottom of a river or something."

"Sorry, I'll be in touch more now, ok?" I reply sheepishly.

"You'd better be," she replies angrily.

"Do you know that Hallie and I broke up?" I ask.

"Yes, I do. She came to the house on Tuesday last week to drop off your things," she replies.

"It wasn't my fault," I reply.

"I know, she told me everything," mom replies. "She's really sorry Simon."

"You know something, mom?" I reply in an annoyed tone. "I don't care how sorry she is right now."

"I know it hurts Simon, but I think you should call her...talk to her," she replies sensitively.

"Fuck off!" I snap furiously. "How the fuck can you take her side?"

"I'm not taking sides, Simon." She replies defensively. "I just think you should talk to her."

"No!" I shout. "Fuck this I'm going!"

I hang up the phone, my blood boiling and my teeth grinding. I punch my steering wheel hard. It hurts so much I punch it repeatedly as I let out a loud roar. I punch out my anger and sit back in my seat. My hands are sore. I look at them to inspect the damage. My knuckles are bleeding and much of my skin is scuffed and split. I can't understand why my mother would push me to speak with Hallie after what she did. Angry and unable to settle, I decide to go for a run to clear my head and burn off some energy.

With the call centre being a day job and bar job being mainly evenings the two work perfectly for me. Working over eighty hours a week, in jobs paying slightly above minimum wage, plus tips and overtime. I quickly start to build up quite a war chest ready for the new term.

Still unable to afford a deposit for somewhere to live, I continue to live in my car for the summer. I sign up for a membership at a twenty-four-hour gym so I have a place to shower and shave. Along with a free meal at my bar job I don't do too badly for myself.

Late August rolls around and so does the new academic year. I'm exhausted and looking forward to reducing my working hours to actually focus on my studies for a change. Living in the car is an experience which I'm more than ready to put behind me.

I'm working my last Wednesday evening shift before returning to university. The bar is quiet, just the way I like it. There's just a small trickle of people coming and going, keeping my shift ticking over nicely. I use the time to clean the bar so I can get away earlier, after we close.

I'm busy changing some of the empty spirit bottles over, when I hear a rowdy group come through the door. It's not something that I'm concerned about and I know I have a few seconds to finish what I'm doing before I turn and serve them. The voices get closer to the bar as I finish the last bottle.

"Simon!" Comes a shout from behind me. I turn around and see John, Michael and some other guys from the brokerage firm standing at the bar. I have a quick scan around the bar for Peter who's luckily nowhere to be seen.

"Hello, lads," I reply.

"What are you doing working here?" Michael asks.

"Working, what else?" I reply.

"Did you give up on uni?" John asks.

"Nah, I'm going to MET this year," I reply.

"Really?" John asks. "Why?"

"Things weren't working for me at City," I reply. "I needed a change."

"Why's that?" Michael asks. "Were you failing?"

"Nah, nothing like that. I'm actually doing really well...I just didn't like it there," I reply.

"Fair enough," Michael replies. "Right drinks, five pints please Simon."

I start pouring the drinks for the guys.

"What you guys out for?" I ask.

"Celebrating," John replies.

"Ah right, celebrating what?" I ask.

"We signed a big client to the firm today, should be pretty lucrative," John replies.

"Lucky you," I reply.

I finish pouring the drinks and hand them over.

"Twenty-four seventy-five please?" I ask.

"Here you go kid," John replies. "And here's a little for yourself."

He hands me over a sizable tip and I quickly put it in my pocket.

"Hey lads, make sure you're putting your hands in your pockets for this lad tonight," John says to the group.

I'm quite relieved that Peter's not shown up and as time goes on, I make a small fortune in tips from the guys.

"Simon, come sit with us," Michael asks as I bring them another round of drinks to their table.

"I can't, I'm working...I've got other customers to serve, you know?" I reply.

"Ah shame. Here," he replies handing me the money for the drinks. "Keep the change."

"Thanks," I reply turning away from the table.

As I walk back to the bar, the door opens. I look round to see who's entering and see Peter in the doorway. My heart sinks. He doesn't seem to see me at first, instead he's looking in the direction of the guys' table. As I reach the bar I turn and watch as Peter walks over to their table.

I instantly begin to feel on edge, I can't go anywhere, as I'm on shift alone. I walk behind the bar and begin sweeping the floor desperately trying not to look.

"Hello son," comes a familiar voice from behind me.

I close my eyes and I take a deep breath to compose myself.

"Hey, Peter," I reply while turning around.

"What are you doing here?" He asks.

"Working," I reply hesitantly.

"In that case..." He pauses, "How's your Scotch here?"

"Shit," I reply.

"Wow, I don't think you're meant to say that part out loud," he chuckles.

"I'm the only person here Peter. I know, you know your Scotch and its shit," I reply.

"In that case I'll just stick with the beer," he replies.

I grab a glass and begin to pour him his drink.

"So, this is where you ended up," he says.

I finish pouring and hand him his drink.

"Four ninety-five please?" I ask.

"You know a lot of people were worried about you?" He replies while handing me a twenty.

I walk to the till to get his change.

"Keep the change, Simon," He says.

"Thanks," I reply pocketing the money.

"You gave up uni then?" He asks.

"No," I reply. "I transferred."

"Well since you're in this end of the city. I can only assume that it must be MET you've moved to," he replies as he starts to nod in seeming approval. "Well done. It's not easy to get in there. Did they let you transfer your credits over?"

"Yeah," I reply.

"You must be doing well then. They wouldn't have taken you if you weren't," he replies.

"I'm acing it," I reply. "Probably the only thing that's going well for me."

"Yeah..." He replies with a sigh. "I heard about all that business. I'm so sorry son."

"I don't want to talk about it, Peter. And I'd appreciate it if she doesn't find out about any of this," I reply.

"No problem," he replies.

"Look, I need to get on," I say abruptly.

"Fine, go do what you need to do," he replies. "Good seeing you son."

I don't really need to go. Truth is the bar's all but emptied out and I'm on top of what I need to do.

The lads have a few more rounds before calling it a night. I cash up, put the money in the safe, put chairs and stools on tables and call it a night.

I can't wait to get back to the car and get some sleep. I set the alarm, open the door and lock it behind me. I turn around to walk away and see a shadowy figure resting up against the wall of the store next door. There's been a number of robberies in the local area, so I clench the keys between my fingers ready for a fight. The figure sees me, pushes off the wall, turns in my direction and begins to walk towards me.

I proceed slowly, ready for anything. The figure moves into the light of a street light. I feel relief when I see Peter emerge from the shadows. I take a deep breath to calm my nerves.

"What are you doing here Peter?" I ask in an irritated tone.

"I just want to talk," he replies holding out his hands up.

"If it's about Hallie, forget it," I reply angrily.

"It's not," he replies quickly.

"Then what?" I ask.

"Where are you heading?" He asks.

"Home," I reply.

"Ok, I'll walk with you," he replies.

I don't really want him to, but I really want to get away as quickly as possible.

"Fine," I reply.

I walk past him and he needs to turn quickly to catch up.

"Are you all sorted for MET?" He asks as he jogs to catch up.

"Yeah, pretty much," I reply.

"A few of our guys went to MET," He continues. "It's a top university, you should do well."

"I hope so," I reply.

"What are you doing for money...If you don't mind me asking," he replies.

"I'll be working here part time and I have another job in a call centre working part time," I reply.

"And how many hours will that be each week?" He asks disapprovingly.

"Well, its four six hour shifts here and two twelve hour shifts in the call centre at weekends," I reply.

"Simon, forty-eight hours is too much," he replies. "Fair enough sixteen or twenty...maybe twenty-four at a push but forty-eight?"

"I don't have a choice," I reply bluntly. "I'll have rent to pay for. Food, bills, car and I'm trying to keep my student loans down. And I'm not asking my mother for any more help."

"Simon, if you're looking to get a top tier degree, there's no way you're going to be able to do it working all those hours," he replies.

"Other people do it and I did it last year," I reply.

"And are you on track for a top tier degree?" He asks.

"Actually, yeah," I reply. "Like I said it's the one thing that's going right for me."

"It only gets harder. The assignments only get harder," he replies. "What are you going to do when you have a major assignment to do and you have one day off a week?"

"I usually attend my lectures and hang around to work on my material afterwards," I reply.

"It's not enough," he replies passionately. "You're going to end up with a degree that's all but worthless. I can tell you now. I get so many graduates come to me asking for a job, I don't even talk to them unless they have a top tier degree. You could end up putting yourself through all this for next to nothing!"

"What else can I do Peter?" I ask in an agitated fashion. "I'm broke. If I don't work, I don't see how I'll finish and it will all be for nothing. So, the way I see it, I have two options. Option a, I quit go home, don't earn a degree and still have loads of debt. Option two I stick at it, work hard and pray that I can maintain my work and come out with something."

Peter laughs.

"You said option a and then option two," he chuckles.

"Yeah, I know, it's something I do out of habit," I reply.

"You're funny kid," he replies with a short laugh. "Anyway, what I'm saying is that...I think you have a lot of potential and I'd hate to see it wasted because you have to work so much. Don't get me wrong I admire your work ethic, not many would do what you're trying to do."

"Thanks, I appreciate the sentiment, but I don't have a choice. Maybe I can get by with less hours in the future but I'll cross that when I come to it," I reply.

"Which course are you doing the three year or four?" He asks.

"Four," I reply.

"Ah, so you will need a placement next year?" He asks.

"Yeah, but I need to get through this one first," I reply.

We continue on down the street making general conversation.

"Why do you park so far away?" Peter asks.

"I don't have to pay," I reply.

"Fair enough," he replies.

"It's just down this side street anyway," I reply.

We round the corner and walk up to my car. I unlock the car before turning to look at Peter.

"Simon," he says curiously. "Why do you have a duvet and pillows in your car?"

I hesitate for a second thinking about how embarrassed I am about the answer.

"Because I live in my car Peter!" I blurt out.

"What?" He says in a shocked manner.

"I haven't found a place to live yet. I'm waiting till next week to see if any house shares come up," I reply.

"Simon, you've been here...what? Ten, eleven weeks and you're telling me the whole time you've lived in your car?"

"Yeah," I reply frankly.

"Jesus Christ!" He replies. I can't work out if it's in disgust or disbelief. "Where do you sleep?"

"I put my passenger seat back and lie down in it," I reply.

"No, I mean where?" He replies. "You're in the middle of the city, it's not exactly safe around here."

"I drive out of town, around six miles there's a small car park in the green belt. It's secluded and quiet. And actually, really pretty in the morning," I reply.

"I can't believe it...I just can't," he replies clearly taken aback by my revelation.

Peter begins pacing back and forth in front of me. I can tell he's clearly in deep thought and I think it best to say nothing.

Several minutes go by and Peter just continues to pace back and forth. Feeling uncomfortable I start edging towards my driver's door.

"I'm going to get away," I say cautiously while opening the door.

"Give me a second," Peter replies.

"I really need to get some sleep Peter, it's been a long day and the sun rises really fucking early," I reply.

Peter stares down the street and sighs.

"Right," he says assertively, nodding his head as he turns and faces me "First off, shut the fuck up!"

"I didn't say anything," I reply defensively.

"Just...when I start talking, just shut the fuck up and listen," he says.

"Peter I wasn't interrupting you," I reply.

"Yes, but when I say what I'm about to say, shut up, listen and when I'm done shut the fuck up. Then think really hard because this is a one-time offer," he says aggressively.

"Ok," I reply.

"Right," he says clearing his throat. "My offer is, that you come live in my apartment here in the city."

I immediately move to speak.

"Ah, shut the fuck up," he says interrupting me. "You can come live with me. I'm never there these days anyway, I need someone there to watch the place anyway... For that I want you to reduce your hours to no more than sixteen per week. If you do well this year and I'm taking top tier, best of the best, results all year...next year you can come do your work placement with me."

I move to interrupt again.

"Ah! Stop!" He interrupts. "Once you graduate there will be a job there waiting for you... Now, this comes with conditions so listen. First off, if you don't earn a top tier degree the deals off. That's something I'm not going to budge on. Second, when you do take the job. I want you to sign a contract, guaranteeing that you will commit to working for the company for a minimum of three years. Meaning for getting to come live in the apartment and the placement you have to work for me for three years. Finally at the end of those three years, I will pay off your student loans."

I'm gobsmacked, I can't speak and I stand there in stunned silence.

"Think about it Simon...I mean really think about it," he says moving closer to me. "No rent, no stress, a quiet place to work and study. No smelly students getting in your way. You won't have to worry about what placement you will end up with. A job guaranteed for three years and you will be debt free. After that you can stay or go...Now you see why I told you to shut up. You will be what? Twenty-five? Twenty-six? With a top degree and three years' experience...actually, you could call it four years with the placement, at a respected brokerage firm... Simon, you could name your price."

He steps away from me. I try to focus on the offer, but inside my heads screaming, Hallie over and over. I can't help but be suspicious, as the offers so good there has to be a catch and it must involve Hallie.

"What about Hallie?" I ask.

"She doesn't need to know," Peter replies.

"Is that guaranteed?" I reply.

"I won't be the one that tells her, if that's what you're asking," he replies.

"What if she comes to visit?" I ask.

"Apart from when the two of you stayed, she hasn't been to the apartment for years. And, there are two keys, I have one and you'll have the other...Well actually three keys," he replies. "The cleaning company has one."

I still have a nagging feeling gnawing away at my insides but the offer is too tempting to turn down.

"I'm not getting back together with her," I say.

"It's not a condition of this offer," he replies. "Simon, there are no other strings to this except what I set...Oh actually one more, you keep the place tidy and you clean up after yourself."

"Isn't that what the cleaners are for?" I reply sarcastically.

"Hey, Jasmine doesn't steel from me, you have no idea how hard cleaners like that are to find. So don't piss her off," he replies.

"Ok," I reply while still holding onto some trepidation. "I accept."

"Smart move," Peter says while offering me his hand.

I reach up, take his hand and we share a solid handshake.

"Shall we go?" Peter asks.

"Go?" I ask.

"Yeah, back to my place," he replies.

It didn't even occur to me that it would start straight away.

"...Yeah," I reply still in a little shock.

We get in the car and I drive back to his apartment building. We talk the whole way about the modules that I've covered, what I've learned and he shares some insights into each thing which really clears some things up for me.