Chapter 11 - THE WAITRESS WHO BUILT SOMETHING NEW
The Meridian Steakhouse reopened four months after the shooting.
Eden returned for one shift.
Just one.
She wanted to stand in the dining room without hearing gunshots.
She wanted to walk past booth 42 without trembling.
She wanted to prove to herself that the restaurant no longer owned her fear.
Her coworkers hugged her.
The bartender cried.
The manager offered her a promotion.
Eden thanked him.
Then declined.
She had decided to go back to school.
Before her mother's illness, she had dreamed of becoming a social worker.
She wanted to help families overwhelmed by medical debt, housing insecurity, and grief.
But life had interrupted.
Now she was ready to begin again.
She enrolled in a degree program.
Applied for scholarships.
And started volunteering at a community resource center.
Nico offered to pay her tuition.
She refused.
He nodded.
Then asked whether she would allow him to support the center through its regular donation process.
Eden smiled.
"That would be different."
He grinned.
"I'm learning."
May you like
She laughed.
"Slowly."
