"I did it because I love your work," he says calmly. "Iris, sit down. You''re drawing unwanted attention."


    II scoff, refusing to sit. "Fuck your attention. And I''m calling bullshit, because if you even understood the nature of my work, your would have known better than to use your wealth and status as a weapon against me."


    Before he can answer, I turn on my heel and storm out of the bar. The cold night air ps me across the face as I burst out onto


    the-street, and people are staring, but I hardly notice.


    All this time, I thought that the anonymous patron was a genuine lover of the arts, of my art. I thought that my career was


    making strides, that I was finally being noticed by the higher-ups in the art world.


    vet, it was Arthur. Fucking Arthur.


    And yet,


    I feel like I''m going to be sick. Stopping to breathe, I grip a nearby stop sign, hunching over to


    get air into my lungs..


    "Iris!"


    Arthur''s voice makes me feel nauseous all over again, and I straighten, picking up my pace


    once more. But then he''s in front of me again, blocking my way.


    "Move," I growl, trying to resist the urge to p him.


    "Iris, listen to me." Arthur moves wherever I move, blocking me from making my way down the


    street. "You''re not thinking straight."


    I scoff. "I''m thinking perfectly ''straight''. You only gave me that patronage to make mepliant,


    didn''t you? Did you think that I was going toe crawling back to you once I realized that you


    were the anonymous donor?"


    "No," he growls, clearly growing agitated. "And if you would just listen to me—"


    "I''m tired of listening to you," I cut him off, my voice rising slightly. "Frankly, Arthur,


    I can''t tell if bing Alpha President changed you, if she changed you, or if you''ve always been like this and I was just too stupid to realize."


    His eyes narrow. "Like what?"


    "A self-righteous prick who thinks that all human women are nothing but gold diggers who are content with being paid concubines," I retort. "Perhaps some people are like that, sure, but not me. I thought you knew me well enough to know that I didn''t need money to love you. Even if we had been on the streets, so long as we had each other, I would have been happy!"


    By now, tears are in my eyes, clouding my vision and turning the amber street lights blurry. But I keep going, backing toward the


    +20 Bonus


    curb as I speak.


    "You chose her over me," I choke out, shaking my head. "Despite everything, despite how much I cared for you, despite how


    much I sacrificed to help you with your campaign, you chose her. Because you only saw me as worthy of being your human sex


    doll, sordid and secret. And you still see me that way."


    Arthur blinks, almost as if he didn''t expect me to say that. "Wait, Iris="


    "You broke my heart, Arthur," I go on, stepping into the street. "I won''t forgive you. And I won''t let you hurt me anymore."


    Before he can answer, I turn and flee into the street. All I can think about is getting away, putting as much distance between us as


    possible. I need to find a cab, a bus, anything-anything to never have to see him again.


    But in my haste and despair, I forget to look before I cross the street. And a momentter, the bright re of headlights fills my


    vision, the loud re of a car horn blocking out all other sound.


    I freeze, turning, and stare at the car as it screeches toward me.