GRACE
Life sucks.
As I parked my car, my lips scrunched into an unpleasant pout and my back slumped into the comfort of my seat.
While holding back a sigh that was threatening to drop, I tilted my head to the left and that was when I noticed that my breakfast was still untouched and shielded from straying eyes.
I lazily reached for it and the smell of fried eggs and fresh bread hit my nose.
As I observed my meal from the plastic packaging it was caged in, the fact that my life has already hit the deepest of bottoms crept into my mind and I finally released the sigh.
Since I left the office, all I did was sigh. I sighed so much that I think my shoulders are tired from taking all the grunt of my emotions.
Soon, I shrugged and told myself that I had to take care of my growing hunger before brooding over the failure of my life.
So, I kicked off my shoes, adjusted the seat till my feet could barely touch the controls, and dragged out a sandwiched pair of my breakfast.
As I munched on the very delicious meal, I started to think about my life. I desisted from such thinking while driving because I didn’t trust myself.
I have proven numerous times to be unstable emotionally. So, I might have gotten into an accident if I had not taken caution while driving.
Crossing my legs, I took another bite of my meal.
′This shit is good.′ I thought and after that, I thought, ’My life is shit!′
Samantha was right.
My recent way of dealing with the ache I have been carrying about is causing me unnecessary pain. In some sense, I was using something harmful to treat the fault in my life.
What could be more dangerous than that?
And, the fact that I keep ignoring the danger I was putting myself in makes things worse.
Just last week, I almost got demoted from my position after I showed up to work at a super early hour. I was half drunk and sort of horny.
According to the staff who stayed overnight that day, I was dry-humping one of the shelves in the library while mumbling words he could not understand.
Aside from the insane humiliation I keep plunging myself into, it is clear that I totally deserved to get fired.
But what do I do with my life now?
With some bread still in my mouth, I groaned like a hungry baby whale. Distress overpowered me and the sides of my eyes wrinkled as I bit into what was left of the meal in my hand.
The anguish in my soul amplified and my eyes started to itch. They started to ache, almost as though telling me that more tears were on their way.
But at this point, I am beyond tired of crying. I have shed so many tears in the past weeks that I can’t just do it anymore.
A knock on the window of the front passenger seat dragged me out of my little drama. I looked up and wiped the oiliness staining my hand on my trousers.
It was Da... yeah, David.
With excitement, the man I almost slept with waved at me so much that the front of his styled hair fell to the side.
I reached for the control and lowered the window.
He popped his head into the car, but his wide smile disappeared when he saw that some tears had managed to fight their way out of the surface of my eyeballs.
I quickly faced the other side and got rid of the evidence that I was deep into the feeling of dejection.
“Rose... why are you back so soon? Why do you look sad?”
Ahh... I guess it’s too late to hide what has been discovered.
I faced him again and David swiped away the little mass of hair blocking his view, a look of concern etched on his pretty face.
While I managed a small smile, I took a second to appreciate my ability to get fine men into my bed when drunk.
′Nice work, Rose!′ I gave myself a sarcastic smile and reminded myself to stop giving myself false names whenever I’m drunk.
I looked away from cute David, grabbed another sandwich, looked ahead at the plain white wall my car was facing and resumed a silent munching.
David opened the door and I felt the impact of him sitting down.
“Rose...” he called.
“Grace,” I corrected him, and his brows queried me. “My name is Grace. Not Rose. Well drunk me apparently is, Rose or whoever she chooses to be.” I replied to him with a lazy tone. Anyone that hears me right now would think that I am fed up with life.
Ha! I am kind of fed up with life.
He nodded as though he understood and continued, “Okay, Grace. Why are you back so early? Did you forget something?”
“I got fired!” I slammed my hands on the steering wheel. I don’t know what irritated me all of a sudden... his questions or the state of my life.
I dragged a shaky breath into my lungs and slowly let it out. That lengthy breath I just took is part of the tears I have been trying to hold back.
My eyes pinched to get rid of the blur that covered them and I glanced at David who was yet to say a word. His worried expression was gone and replaced with an unreadable one.
“Aren’t you going to say something?” His silence was starting to make me regret screaming about my recent life issue.
“Did you murder the boss or something?” I gave him a ‘are you kidding me?’ look and reached for another paired slice of my meal. Well, it was the last one.
David continued, “I mean that question. I mean, you were late. So, what? People go to work late a lot these days. There is this laziness-flu in town and let me let you into a secret...” He pushed his hair to the side again. “This flu has affected more than half of the population. Go and check the stats.”
How can someone say such foolish things with pride?
“Listen, David.” I sighed. “I got fired because I was late. And... I sort of have been doing that for some weeks now. And in addition to that, I have been exhibiting some crazy behaviour thanks to the irresponsible and drunk side of me.”
“Do you need a hug?”
His question instantly turned my soul into jelly. I settled the untouched bread back into the bag. A babyish look landed on my face and I gave a very big nod.
David leaned forward and engulfed me in his chest, his cologne hitting my nose. He smelt very manly and that made me want to stay longer in the hug.
Apart from Sam who hugs me at any given opportunity, I hardly have any other person to hug me.
“Okay, Grace... I think we should go upstairs and watch something that will make you laugh. What do you say?” David asked after releasing me from his very warm hug.
Once I adjusted my position till I was seated well, I looked up thoughtfully for a few seconds.
“I think I want to go for a walk.”
“Well...” He nodded. “... walking does help clear the mind. Let’s go.”
“Whoa, whoa. Wait.” He lifted his brows. And I must say, he looks cuter doing that. “What are you still doing here? I thought you would have left. I mean, you didn’t even get the one-night stand you could have had.”
“Well, I am still here, even after not getting the sex.” My lips pressed into a thin line as I dashed him an apologetic look. “I was leaving already but I saw your car here and I had to check.”
“I can’t believe I am saying this. But I am glad you did not leave.”
“I am glad I did not have sex with you.”
“Huh?” I was confused.
“If we did, I would not be here and you would have probably sat here all day and cried till you couldn’t anymore.”
“Are you a freaking sorcerer? That is some shit I would do,” I replied, feeling a bit happy that I had company. “Let’s go for that walk.”
We got out of the car and I locked it, after ensuring I did not leave my phone behind.
“So, how come you are not at work right now?” I asked a few seconds after we hit the sidewalk.
“Uh...I am a freelance graphic designer. For about six months now, I have been working with only publishing companies.”
“Really? I work... well used to work in a publishing company.” My voice went from excited to way less excited within a very short span. As if sensing the sadness about to set in, David immediately changed the topic.
“Have you ever tried cloud reading?” I looked at him, interest on my face. “It is this silly yet fun thing I do when I am bored. I look at the sky on cloudy days and read cloud shapes. One day, I saw a dinosaur with a camel-like hump and a mermaid tail.”
“Really?” He nodded and I chuckled. “There’s no way that’s true.” It was unbelievable yet exciting to hear.
“I swear, I saw it. And I wasn’t surprised because, on a certain day, I saw a very happy donkey posing beside...” He nudged me. “...guess what it was.”
“Uh... a burrito?” He shook his head in the negative. “Hamburger?”
“Nope. It is a male part.”
“A male part. Is it the sexual...?”
“Yes.” He did not even let me finish the statement.
When it finally dawned on me, my eyes immediately brightened in disbelief.
I glanced at him, gave a short laugh then looked away.
“I don’t believe you,” I said.
“I wish I were lying. And before you say it...” His index fingers pointed in my direction. ” I wasn’t high that day.”
“Oh my God.” I burst into laughter, stopping in my tracks to properly do it. As the image crept into my mind, I laughed some more, gaining looks from people passing us. David just stood still and watched me with a huge smile on his face. “That must have been wild.”
“You should try it,” he offered. “Cloud reading is a great way to have fun and free your mind.”
My mirth came to an end and I caved into his idea.
As I transferred my line of sight to the distant sky, I saw that there were a lot of clouds, some even blocked a great portion of the sun.
I squinted my eyes but a paper flew to my face and blocked my sight.
“Uh... I see nothing but white.” I removed the paper from my face and was about to throw it into a nearby bin when I noticed the word VACANCY written boldly on the top.
That caught my attention.
“What’s that?” David moved closer and looked into the paper. “Do people still make fliers?”
“They need a babysitter.” I looked up at David. “And I need a job. This is good. I can go for the interview or whatever it is called.”
“You want to work as a babysitter?” I shrugged and nodded at his question. “You used to work at a publishing company. Why would you want to become a babysitter?”
“It is not a terrible job.”
“I know it is not. But my point here is that you can choose to walk into any publishing house right now. And I am sure they would... Wait, which position did you hold?”
“Assistant Chief Editor.” I am surprised that I am easily discussing something this important with a man I nearly slept with.
“Seriously? Why would you want to babysit when you have such a qualification? Publishing houses would die to have you work with them. You worked with Elite Publishing, Grace. Elite Publishing.”
Realising I never told him exactly where I worked, I frowned and asked, “How do you know that?”
“I saw a mug in your kitchen.” The man didn’t stutter. “It had the name of the company boldly written on it.”
I nodded in agreement. I did have such a mug. Two actually. They were part of the employee packages we got for the Christmas party we had three years ago.
I was still in my right mind then.
I squared my chin shoulders and said, “Who cares if I worked at Elite? I have been through a lot, David. I need a more decent distraction. And, hooking up with men isn’t exactly that much of a decent distraction. Besides, my reason for being dismissed from my position is not pleasant enough to give me the confidence to stand in front of other employers in the publishing field.”
“Well, if you say so. So when is the interview or whatever?”
I know, right?
I don’t even know if you get interviewed for babysitting jobs.
I checked the paper. “Tomorrow.”
“Do you even know how to take care of a kid?”
“I once helped a kid get on a swing at the park.” I looked up at him again, not sure if that counted.
“Well, if that could happen, I guess babysitting shouldn’t be that hard for you.”
I smiled grandly and said, “This should go well. How hard could it be?”
He shrugged, returned my smile, grabbed my hand, and suggested that we go get something to eat.
GRACE‘You what now?’ Samantha’s voice reeked of surprise.I looked out of the fast-moving car as it drove past the Empire State Building, a place that recently causes my heart to ache each time I set my sight on its grandness. I quickly looked elsewhere before my eyes could have a reason to start welling up.“I am looking at getting a babysitter’s job,” I repeated to Samantha who had initially called to apologise for not making it to my place the previous day.‘A... A.. Ba... Babysitter?’ It was as though the words were choking her. ‘Grace, you are one hell of a hotcake in the publishing world. But you want to become a babysitter?’“I don’t want to deal with that life for now. I need a huge break from reading lengthy manuscripts.”‘And babysitting is your option? If you want, you can decide not to get a job, you are that well-to-do.’My sigh ran deep, so much that it sank my shoulders. “Samantha, I can’t sit around doing nothing. You know too well that I hate being idle. I want a dis
GRACESeconds later, we were walking past a huge car park and our feet led us to the rear of the building. We entered through one of the revolving doors and faced an elevator moments later. The fanciness in that space met my expectations and as we waited for the ting of the elevator, I kept my eyes glued on the red rug that ran its length and breadth over the entire ground in that empty room.The elevator opened without wasting much time.“After you, ma’am,” The guard ushered me in before he walked in.Once we were settled and the doors were closed, he pressed one of the buttons.PH 5.That could only mean that we were heading for a penthouse.Damn...This family is without a doubt, rich. Because residing in a penthouse in the great Hotel Pierre can only mean that these people are the true meaning of super-rich individuals.Soon the elevator stopped and vomited us into an open room that had a dark green carpet decorating its floor.As the guard and I stepped out, the elevator adjacent
GRACE“It would be amazing if you got that job!” I glared at Sam. “What?” she asked, her mouth filled with popcorn.“The other day, you were against babysitting. You didn’t think it was so befitting for someone like me.”She rolled her eyes as though I was lying against her.“Of course, it does not fit you. But since you’ll be babysitting in a rich home, it is the best job you could probably have.”“Money does change people’s minds faster than a snake bites.” As I threw some popcorn into my mouth, the movie playing on the television became distant to my ears because I recalled something. “It has been two days and I have not received a call. What if I didn’t qualify for the job?”“You have to chill, girl. Whether you get the job or not, you will be called or texted at least.”I agreed with her with a nod and assured myself to stay calm. I have been acting out of place because I keep worrying about not getting the job.It seems as though I am sure that I will fall into devastation again
GRACEFiona got off the stool and walked towards the exit. “It is almost three o’clock, Ruby should be on her way now.” I stood up and followed her. And when she stopped walking and raised a finger in mid-air, I stopped as well. But I didn’t raise my finger.“Ruby’s father will be back around seven pm so you have to stay till then. But make sure that you resume early tomorrow. You need to be here by seven AM. If you can come earlier, that would be nice.”“Thank you, Fiona.”Our walking resumed and as we reached the grand living room, the front door opened and a little girl appeared.She fully walked into the room, and my entire face lit up with a huge smile.The little girl was very pretty. Donned in a black gown top that carried a pink flower in its centre and blue leggings, the girl made noise with her flip-flops as she ran towards Fiona.“There is my baby.” Fiona hugged her to her bosom, almost burying the girl with her love and... her chest. When she dropped her, Ruby faced me. He
GRACE“Huh?” Samantha did not hide her surprise.Okay, right now, I might be shooting myself in the leg. I need to resume by seven am and I’m yet to be in bed even though it is a few minutes to midnight.I am currently chatting with Samantha and David, empty boxes of pizza sprawled on the table in front of us.The two of them surprisingly showed up at my door a few minutes before eight. Though it took them a few minutes to get used to each other, they were soon bonding over small talk and pizza. And I quickly forgot about my desire to fall asleep.In the midst of all that was happening, I told them about my boss. It was that information that Samantha was reacting to.“The very Dominic Powers?” Samantha was close to jumping off the couch.“Dom, Dom, what now?” I sounded uninterested but my insides were desperate for some information. It seemed Samantha knew something huge about my new boss. But Sam didn’t appreciate my tone and smacked my arm in a flash. “Ouch.”“That is what you get f
GRACEA short laugh and I gave in to her pulls. I hurried after her little figure and as we approached the elevator after closing the door, I wondered what could be so exciting about the pool.And when we arrived at the pool site, I saw what the rave was about.The swimming pool, while having a bit of gold in its features, was accompanied by a freaking huge slide that was positioned at a height I would not dare to reach without the assistance of the attached ladder.As my widened eyes scanned the grandeur of the indoor pool, I began to wish that I brought my swimsuit. The peaceful water was tempting enough to pull me. But so was the largeness.Gosh... This is what I’d like to call a proper display of money.“I don’t think you will shwim,” Ruby commented as she put down her juice box.“I wish I could right now,” I mumbled to myself. And when I realised Ruby was still waiting for an answer, I looked down at her. “I wish I could. But, don’t worry, I’ll roll up the legs of my trousers and
GRACE“I feel like I should prank Daddy.”Swiftly, I faced Ruby who sat still, nibbling on what was left of her cookie as if she just didn’t say something about pranking her father.We were at her ballet academy, waiting for her session to begin.“Ruby, why do you want to prank your Dad?”She clapped her hands to shake off the cookie crumbs, swinging her legs which barely touched the ground.“He doesn’t play with me at all. And I want him to. So, I’ll prank him to get his attention.”Aww. That’s weirdly... cute.“But, do you have to prank him?”She frowned and looked up at me. “Uh?”“Why don’t you try talking to him first? Tell him how you feel.”After looking up thoughtfully for some seconds, she faintly groaned, “I don’t know. Daddy doesn’t talk to me after he comes back from work.” Her gloomy expression saddened me but when it briefly wore some brightness, I became intrigued. “When Fiona was here, I talked to her about many, many things. But my Daddy doesn’t talk to me.”I reached
GRACEI faced Bethany who stomped her foot on the ground because others in the room agreed with the voice that replied to me.“Listen to me, Bethany. If Ruby tells me that you pushed her again, I will do the same to you and you will not like a bit of it.”I don’t like that I am speaking to a child this way, but this Bethany girl was able to get on my nerves with her annoying attitude.“Miss Sands! How dare you threaten my student?”“Well, freaking tell your students to stop pushing people their size.”I spat at the woman beside me, snatched the box in her hand, and walked back to Ruby.But before I made it to Ruby, a force pressed against my back, and before I knew it, my forehead was kissing the tiled floor. My entire body felt intense pain for some seconds but I was able to get rid of the feeling after seconds.While I swore at the person who pushed me within my soul, I managed to get up.I maintained my grip on the nod and turned to see a huge smirk on both the teacher’s and Bethan