Bloom woke to the sound of arguing.
It wasn't loud more like the kind of half-whispered fight people have when they don't want to wake the whole neighborhood but it was sharp, each word cutting through the thin walls of her bedroom.
She sat up, pulling on her hoodie, and crept into the hall.
Jay was by the front door, his voice low but tight, speaking to a man in a dark coat who smelled faintly of cigarettes and rain. She couldn't see his face clearly, but his posture screamed trouble.
"I told you, I just need more time," Jay said. His hands were shoved into his pockets, shoulders hunched.
The man's voice was calm, too calm. "Time's the one thing you don't have, Jay. My boss doesn't like waiting. You know that."
Bloom stepped into the light. "What's going on?"
Both men turned. Jay's eyes widened just slightly caught. The stranger gave her a slow once-over, then smiled like he was looking at a puzzle he could take apart piece by piece.
"This your sister?" he asked.
"Leave her out of this," Jay snapped, stepping between them.
The man held up his hands. "Hey, I'm just making conversation. Nice place you got here." His eyes flicked to the cracked ceiling, the peeling paint, the stack of unopened mail on the side table. "Real cozy."
Bloom crossed her arms. "Whatever you're selling, we're not interested."
The man chuckled, and it was the kind of laugh that made her skin crawl. "Selling? No, no. Just reminding your brother of some… commitments he made. Have a good day."
He left without another word, but Bloom didn't miss the way he glanced back before disappearing down the stairwell.
As soon as the door clicked shut, she turned on Jay. "Who was that?"
"No one."
"Jay"
"I said no one, Bloom!" His voice cracked, and he rubbed his temples like the conversation was already too much for him.
"You're in deeper than you're telling me," she said, her voice low now. "I'm not stupid. That guy wasn't just some friend stopping by."
Jay didn't meet her eyes. "It's fine. I'll figure it out."
"You've been saying that for months. Meanwhile, David's in the hospital and the bills are piling up. I can't keep bailing you out of everything."
Jay's head snapped up. "You think I want this? You think I like owing people like him?"
"Then stop!"
"It's not that easy!"
The room went quiet. The only sound was the faint hum of the refrigerator. Finally, Jay shook his head. "I'll fix it. I just… I need to think."
Bloom wanted to scream at him, shake him, demand that he tell her the truth. But she was too tired. Too drained.
She spent the rest of the morning at the hospital. David was having a better day at least he was awake and cracking jokes between coughing fits.
"You look like you haven't slept in a week," he teased as she set down the paper bag of food she'd brought.
"That's because I haven't," she said, pulling out a sandwich for him. "Hospital coffee isn't doing me any favors."
He unwrapped the sandwich slowly, his thin fingers trembling slightly. "Jay been by?"
Bloom hesitated. "He's… busy."
"That means no." David's voice softened. "You don't have to cover for him, Bloom. I know he's a mess."
She sank into the chair beside his bed. "He's in trouble. Worse than I thought."
"Worse how?"
She considered lying, but there was no point. "A guy came to the apartment this morning. The kind of guy who doesn't knock twice. I think Jay owes more than he's telling me."
David sighed. "He's going to get himself hurt."
Bloom didn't say it, but she was afraid of exactly that.
By the time she left the hospital, the sky had clouded over. The streets felt heavier, like the air itself had weight. She ducked into a corner store for milk and bread, but even there she couldn't shake the feeling of being watched.
When she stepped back outside, she caught sight of a dark sedan parked across the street. She didn't recognize the car, but the way it stayed there as she walked down the block made her skin prickle.
She told herself she was imagining it paranoia brought on by too little sleep and too many worries. But when she turned the corner and glanced back, the car was still there.
At home, Jay was gone. No note. No call. The quiet felt too loud.
She set the groceries on the counter and stared at the pile of unpaid bills. Rent was due in a week. David's next treatment cycle was coming up. Jay's debt whatever the real number was loomed over all of it like a storm cloud.
Bloom pressed her palms against the countertop and tried to breathe.
She could get another job. Maybe something late-night, cleaning offices or working at a diner. It would mean less sleep, more exhaustion but exhaustion was better than losing everything.
Her phone buzzed. Unknown number.
She almost didn't answer, but something told her to.
"Hello?"
A pause. Then a low voice: "Tell your brother he's out of time."
The line went dead.
When Jay finally stumbled in around midnight, Bloom was waiting.
"Where have you been?"
He froze in the doorway, guilt flashing across his face. "Out."
"Out where?"
"Just… out."
She stood, crossing the room until she was right in front of him. "Someone called. Said you're out of time. What does that mean, Jay?"
His jaw tightened. "It means I need to find the money. Fast."
"How fast?"
"By tomorrow."
Her stomach dropped. "And if you don't?"
He didn't answer, but the look in his eyes was enough.
That night, Bloom couldn't sleep. She sat at the kitchen table again, staring at the same numbers in her notebook, but the math hadn't changed. It never would.
She thought about selling her car. It wasn't worth much, but it could cover part of Jay's debt. She thought about pawning the gold necklace her mother had given her before she died the last piece of her mother she had left.
She hated herself for even considering it.
The truth was, she was running out of options. And the walls were closing in faster than she could push them back.
The next morning, she went to the hospital early, hoping the routine of seeing David would ground her. But when she got there, she found a nurse outside his room, looking tense.
"What's going on?" Bloom asked.
"Your brother's fever spiked overnight," the nurse said. "We're running more tests."
Her chest tightened. "Is he okay?"
"We're doing everything we can."
Bloom stepped into the room, forcing a smile for Liam's sake, but inside she felt like she was standing on the edge of
a cliff.
Jay's debt. David's health. The strange car. The phone call.
It was all too much. And she knew deep down that something was going to break soon.