Jaden came back until the next morning with messy hair and noticeably missing her bra. 

“Edwin! Close the blinds! I have a super bad hangover.” she yells out. She stumbles to her room.

“What’s for breakfast? The guy I was with made shitty eggs from a carton and toast when I woke up. Can you believe it? He said that all he can afford ‘cause he was on a scholarship or whatever and hasn't gotten paid yet. Like, is that supposed to be my problem? Even take-out would’ve been better. Gross! Edwin, bring breakfast in bed!”

Edwin prepared a tray with a frittata, cooked with cherry tomatoes, mozzarella, and basil, and some black coffee with 2 aspirins. After eating and taking the medicine, Jaden fell back asleep. Meanwhile, Shashi is getting ready for work and comes out of their room. Edwin serves them breakfast.

“Are you sure you feel well enough to go to work today? Maybe your boss will understand if you take another day off.”

“I doubt it. But really, I’m better now.” Shashi finishes their breakfast quickly and gets their tool box ready to go. When they leave, they turn to Edwin.

“Have a good day, Edwin!”

“You as well, Shashi!” Shashi then leaves. Edwin can hear Shashi’s truck engine from inside the apartment, and watches as they drive out the parking lot. He goes back to washing dishes. 

Shashi gets to work, preparing themselves for not only the physical, but mental toll as well. 

When Shashi walks in, their met with a pleasant surprise. Brandon isn’t at work today. When they look around, Vali speaks to them. 

“What a relief, huh?” 

“Yeah. I might actually not despise being here for once. Do you know why he’s gone?”

“I’m not too sure, but I heard a rumor he quit. Just this morning, I think.” responded Vali.

“Really?” asked Shashi in delight.

“Well, whatever the reason, I glad I don’t have to see that deformed, yellow smile anymore.” they add.

“Hehe, or smell him. I swear, he always reeked of a pig that rolled in mud with alcohol and tabacco.”

The two chuckled at Vali's last comment and went to work. It was a peaceful day, and when it was time to clock-out, Shashi walked to their truck as usual, and noticed Brandon's gang quietly arguing near presumably one of their cars. They hide behind another car nearby.

"I'm telling you, it was that fucking freak!" Elliot, the shortest of the group, almost yells out.

"Bitch ain't stupid. She- he- whatever knows we have more copies of the video. If anything, it was Rust Sharks. Brandon had debts all the way up his ass, and they don't play fair with deadlines." says Jacob, who is closest to Brandon.

"Yeah, but he also had problems within the gang. Remember when he pissed off Sahar?" questions Jack.

"True. There's a reason no one fucks with her."

"Whatever the case, we need to watch our backs. We shouldn't have gotten involved with that fucking idiot."

"Eh. He was fun to hang out with."

"And look where that got him." With that, they all got into their separate vehicles and drove off. Shashi gets out of hiding and walk tho their truck, sitting in silence for a bit.

"'Look where that got him?' Is he dead? And I remember Sahar being brutal, but she didn't like to kill people. It was most likely the Sharks. If he is dead, they would have thrown him in a river. But..." they paused for a moment.

"Jacob made it sound like they saw his body. Sharks make sure you can't find a body... but maybe his all valuables were stolen and knowing he owed money, if would make the most sense it was the Sharks." Shashi shakes their head.

"Nope. Stop think about it. This is none of my business. Not anymore. I don't need to worry about it. If anything, I should be thankful that Brandon won't be able to blackmail me anymore, at least it seems like that. Hopefully his friends won't either. They have other things to worry about." Shashi drives home, and upon arriving, tells Edwin about a change in schedule.

"Canceling schedule for tomorrow night."

"Thank you. What's for dinner tonight?"

"I have vegetables in the oven to turn into a soup later. I'm making tomato soup with carrots and cream."

"Ooooh, that sounds really good. I thought you were supposed to boil the ingredients, though."

"Actually-" Jaden interjects, grabbing Edwin's arm.

"We found a lot of recipes saying that cooking them in the oven gives them more flavor. Oh, by the way, don't think I forgot about your date the other day."

"Oh, that? It wasn't really a date."

"Oh my god, you can't lie to me. Dressing up all fancy. Going out late at night- wait. It went bad, didn't it? Roomie, I am here to hear you out if you need to-"

"I really don't want to talk about it, Jaden. Please. I don't want to be gossip fuel for your friends." Shashi, now visibly annoyed, walks to their room. Edwin was about to go after them but stopped himself just before Jaden turned her attention back to him.

"So dramatic. Well, I'm going to start my night routine. You should be done with dinner by the time I'm done, so bring it to my room when you finish." Once Jaden is out of sight, Edwin goes to knock on Shashi's door. When they open, they had already changed into their pajama pants and tanktop, with their hair let down.

"Are you feeling okay?"

"Yeah, I just really didn't want to talk about what happened."

"You mean the 'date' my sweetheart kept mentioning? That night I went to pick you up? I don't think that would be considered a date. They seem much different from the movies I've watched with my baby."

"You're right. It's not, so please don't call it that. Or just ever talk about it. Hey, what's that on your cheek?" Shashi reached toward Edwin's face and pushed some of the faux hair behind his ear.

"I bumped into something earlier today. You know how I have been glitching, correct? My sweetheart is going to take me to see someone who is going to do full-system check."

"Oh, that's good. Hey, wait here a bit." Shashi goes to their work desk, which is covered in books and sketches, and pulls open a drawer. After searching for a few seconds, they find a couple of containers, one with powder and one with a clear liquid. They grab a small plastic cup from the other side of their desk and mix the liquid and powder with a popsicle stick. They hurry over to Edwin and apply the thick mixture over the cut. Shashi gently spreads and evens it out, not noticing Edwin staring at them with wide eyes.

"There. Good as new. In about 15 minutes, the pigment from the surrounding skin should be absorbed into it, and it'll be like it was never there."

"Thank you very much, Shashi," Edwin says with a warm smile.

"No problem."