The Love Song (GXG)

Part two - Chapter 6

My phone buzzed in my pocket, breaking me out of my thoughts.

"Sofia, I'm about to enter the courtroom," I said hurriedly.

"Miss Ayleen is here to see Marcus, and she's crying," Sofia informed me. "Miss Alcaraz? Can you hear me?" she added.

"Get her to my office, and don't let Marcus near her. I'll be there in 30 minutes," I said before quickening my pace to the room.

"Judge Katherine," I said as I entered the courtroom.

"Clara," she greeted with a wide smile that made me queasy.

"I need to postpone this case," I said abruptly, ignoring the formalities.

"Postpone?" she asked, confused. This was the first time I had asked for a postponement. I was always prepared for my cases.

"I have a personal emergency," I explained after a second of silence.

"Can one of your juniors stay? We need to start the hearing, and any of your lawyers can ask to postpone," she said attentively, as if she saw this as an opportunity to do me a favor.

"Thank you," I nodded and walked away. I hated asking her for anything, but for Ayleen's sake, I didn't mind.

I hadn't driven as fast as I did that day. I almost ran into the office. Sofia gave me a reassuring nod as I rushed inside. Ayleen was sitting on my couch, tears streaming down her face.

"What happened?" I asked cautiously, hesitant to approach her in case she pushed me away.

She looked up at me, and a soft sob escaped her lips as she pulled an envelope out of her purse.

"Eviction?" I asked curiously.

"I thought he was taking this to court, but somehow I'm getting evicted. How did this happen? I don't understand," she struggled to speak.

"Henry's brother happened," I explained as I took my glasses out of my bag and read the eviction notice, pointing to the signature on it that belonged to Andrew Garcia.

"So that's it? I'm losing everything?" she said, despair in her voice.

"Ayleen, you're not losing anything. Go back to the studio, and I'll handle this," I reassured her.

"Clara, I can't lose this," she said, placing her hand on mine. My breath hitched in my throat.

"I promise you won't lose anything," I said, wanting to tell her to trust me, but I knew she would have laughed in my face.

"How can you say that?" she withdrew her hand, and I immediately wanted to grab it again.

"Andrew has a lot of scandals, scandals that I'm very familiar with. I'll go have a quick chat with him, so consider this paper gone," I said as I tossed the envelope in the trash.

"I can't lose this studio. I worked too hard for it. It's my life savings. It costs too much to set up a studio, and I can't start over somewhere else. I have a lot of contracts coming up with deadlines I must meet. It's not just about losing the studio; it's losing clients and my reputation," she said, and I listened to her quietly.

I missed her voice. I missed how her hands moved when she talked. Her features had matured and became more beautiful, but she was still the sweet Ayleen that I loved.

"And you won't lose anything. I'll make sure of that," I said, wanting to hold her and stroke her hair. I wanted to tell her that I was by her side, but at least we were having a civil conversation.

"Thank you," she whispered, and a smile appeared on my lips.

"I'll talk to Andrew. You can stay here and calm down. I'll ask Sofia to get you some hot chocolate," I said as I stood up and walked toward the trash to retrieve the envelope I had thrown away.