Chapter 393
“Don’t mention it,” Elissa replied.
Once they ended the call, Hadley quickly received a message from Elissa with the address and made her way there.
Elissa’s apartment was actually nearby, located in the old part of town, just like Hadley’s own place.
“Made it here?” Elissa greeted Hadley at the door with a warm smile, ushering her inside immediately. “Step in, step in.”
The entryway was occupied by a plastic mannequin, and the living room table was cluttered with various pieces of fabric and sewing tools, both cut and whole.
While they worked together, their roles at the troupe were quite different: Hadley was in the spotlight as a dancer, whereas Elissa worked behind the scenes as a costume designer.
“Excuse the clutter,” Elissa said, grinning.
“That’s totally okay,” Hadley responded, brushing off any concern.
“Really, I should be apologizing for imposing.”
“Ha, no worries at all!” Elissa chuckled. “Let’s just be comfortable around each other.”
Elissa was genuinely easygoing, not prying into Hadley’s circumstances but instead saying, “You’re welcome to stay as long as you need.”
After a brief pause, she added humorously, “Just a heads-up, you’re on your own for meals here.”
“That’s fair,” Hadley replied with a smile, feeling more at ease. “I’ll handle the household chores during my stay then.”
“That works for me.”
As they were settling in, Hadley felt her phone vibrate in her pocket. She pulled it out to find two new messages—one from Denver and another from Eric.
Unlocking her phone, Hadley immediately looked at Denver’s latest message.
“Hadley, I’m here managing everything at home. It’s fine if you’re not ready to talk; I’m not going anywhere, and I’ll wait until you’re ready.” Closing her eyes briefly, Hadley was moved by Denver’s commitment, yet it also filled her with sadness.
Why did he remain so hopeful about them?
She then navigated away from Denver’s message. It was one she found herself unable to answer.
Ignoring his texts might eventually make him stop trying altogether.
She felt that cutting off contact now would be the kindest thing to do.
Taking a deep sigh, she checked the message from Eric.
“Hadley, just checking in. Everything alright?”
Her brow creased with confusion as she read.
How did he see Denver? Wasn’t he supposed to have dropped her off and just left? Could he have returned? And for what reason would he come back?
There was another message from Eric waiting for her: “I found your hair tie in my car. I went back to return it.” That explained the situation.
Feeling her wrist, Hadley noticed her hair tie was indeed missing.
She began typing a response.