Regret Came Too Late

Grace took a deep breath, her tone softening as she said, "I'll go buy the matching cups and flip-flops right now. At least give me an address, or how am I supposed to find you later?"

Ed quickly sent her an address, but it was in a really remote area, way out in the suburbs.

Grace checked the address against nearby buildings and saw that it was mostly rundown factories, completely deserted.

She felt her heart sink. Had he been working all this time in the dark and still couldn't afford a decent place?

Still, she didn't say anything. She just told him she'd be going over in the evening.

It had been a while since Grace had gone shopping, so she invited Joanne to join her. Joanne happily agreed, and they met at the mall.

While browsing through the luxury section, Grace immediately spotted a pair of expensive flip-flops, two hundred dollars a pair, and of course, they were the matching kind.

Joanne, who had dressed up specially for today, gasped when she saw the price. "Grace, isn't that a little too expensive?"

Grace reached for the flip-flops, but before she could grab them, someone else snatched them up. The voice that followed was dripping with sarcasm.

"People like you shouldn't even think about buying shoes like these. This kind of stuff isn't for people who need to save for months just to buy a pair."

Grace looked up, recognizing the voice. It was Jodie.

Jodie, wearing a hat and black sunglasses, was the picture of a spoiled rich girl. She smirked when she saw Grace and shook the flip-flops she had taken.

"Grace, your family doesn't even give you enough money, and here you are pretending to be rich. And your friend-what's the deal with her? She looks like she works as a waitress somewhere. Even if she could buy these, I'd love to know where the money's from."

bit her lip, embarrassed by the attention they were getting. Her face turned a shade of

Joanne behind her

being a little rude, don't you think?"

Grace, hitting her in

yet. You little bitch, you've made Alice cry every day, and now she's got depression. You even threw a

more, Grace hurled her handbag at her. The bag hit Jodie's forehead with a sharp thud, causing

to fire you!

come shopping alone, hoping to buy a gift for Ethan. Now, she was sobbing as

unmoving, and turned to check on Joanne.

face was pale as she shook her head. She said, "Maybe we should go somewhere else? Ms. Henderson

"It's fine. No one says you can't browse just because you can't afford it. Plus, I'm in a good mood today've just started

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I'm in a good mood. Why not

a small smile, but her

flip-flops and a

tell,

stayed close behind, clearly curious about Grace's new

your boyfriend out for dinner? I'll treat. I'm

but if he doesn't want to, I won't pressure him. I'll ask him later, but he's probably not up for it

attractive, working as a server? It seemed so unlike what Grace would go

process it. "So, how far have