A Heaven Without You

Just as I finished arranging a pair of brown Oxford shoes on the shelf, the wind chime at the door jingled. Looking up, I saw Julia White's high heels step onto the entrance rug. Beside her was Giles Duke, their hands linked. Instinctively, I wanted to hide, but my body froze in place. Julia's gaze quickly landed on me, a cold smirk playing at her lips. "Well, well, isn't this Cyrus Lowry?" Her voice was soft, yet it seemed to freeze the very air in the shop. Giles leaned against the shelf, hands in his pockets, eyes full of scorn. "How did you wind up selling shoes? You weren't like this back then." He said slowly. I clenched the shoe brush tightly, saying nothing. Julia walked over to a pair of slender-heeled sandals, bent down, and pointed. "I want to try these on." I picked up the shoes, preparing to crouch down. "Wait." Julia suddenly spoke. "My feet are sensitive. You kneel and put them on for me." Everyone around turned to look, and my face immediately flushed. "Julia, there's no need for this." My voice trembled. "No need?" She raised her voice, "Back then, you let Giles suffer so much—what's this compared to that?" I thought of Mochi still waiting at the pet hospital for the medical fees, and my heart sank deeper. "I'll give it a try for you." I gritted my teeth and said. When my knee touched the cold floor, I heard a sharp intake of breath from others. Julia stretched out her foot, her tone arrogant: "Hurry up, don't waste my time." Giles was taking photos nearby, his smile never fading. I swallowed my humiliation and slowly put the shoe covers on her feet. A wave of dizziness washed over me, and I steadied myself against the shelf. Julia frowned, "Pathetic. You can't even handle something this simple." I said nothing, only wanting this humiliation to end quickly. When the end-of-shift bell rang, the store manager called me into the office. "Don't take what happened today to heart," he said. He handed me a glass of water. I shook my head, only wanting to know when the salary would be paid. "The salary is paid at the end of the month, but if you're in a hurry, I can advance you some." The store manager said. I thanked him, but in my mind, there was only one thought: to get my wages, pay Mochi's medical bills, and then find a quiet place to end it all. The pain from the terminal brain cancer grew more frequent; living had long since become torment.