GRACE
“Good morning, baby.”
That strange yet soothing voice caused my eyes to snap open faster than Thanos’s fingers. For a second, I trained my sight on the familiar ceiling above me because I could already tell that I had once again brought home another stranger after a long night of drinking.
My head started to race, trying to figure out what and what happened the previous night.
Even though one thing was sure- I entered the clubhouse drunk and then got extra drunk- it was necessary I remember who I hooked up with.
Ugh...who am I kidding? I won’t remember shit. My nightlife is a shitty cycle.
A shitty, shitty cycle.
Once it was established that I am indeed stupid, I braced myself to face the man I had foolishly brought into my house with the intention of having crazy and drunk sex with. It is the type of sex I would never remember and that is the most perfect because I don’t exactly work well with feeling ashamed.
Gently, I sat up.
But my head hurt madly, I had to groan and grab both sides of my head. I tell you, the after-effect of intense drinking feels new every other day, it is almost as though I am yet to get used to the aftermath of my insane nightlife.
After sweeping my long black hair out of my face with a small shake of my head, my hands still grabbing my head, I finally noticed the stranger I brought home.
Sitting in front of me was an all-smiling, cute Asian dude, probably Indonesian. I would have returned his smile because it was that contagious, but a battle was still going on in my head.
“Good morning, Rose,” he greeted.
Shit. I must have taken up another identity again.
“Hiii...” I wished to pretend that I was happy to see him, but my mouth failed to cooperate. My mouth was too lazy.
“I made you a hangover relief juice. It is my Grandma’s special.”
I narrowed my eyes at the green juice pushed to my face.
“Your Grandma has hangovers too?”
He chuckled, his motion vibrating the weak bed in a way that caused me to feel a sharp tug in my head. “Ouch. Ouch.” My face squeezed to relay the pain I was feeling.
“Oh my, are you fine?” Continuously hearing the tenderness in his voice would have been enough to cure my pain, but it sadly wasn’t enough.
Neither was his cute face.
“Could you maybe not laugh? My head is...” He lifted one of his thick brows and I instantly began to eye the greenish liquid in his cup.
Then, seconds later, without bothering to ask what the exact content of the cup was, I snatched the object from his hand and downed half of the juice without pausing.
When I finally took a break from drinking, I sensed the bitter aftertaste. I masked the way I felt with a short smile and the man gave me a grand smile in return.
His attentiveness yet to disappear, he said, “You will feel better very soon.”
After a quick nod, I began to scan my room. It was necessary to know what damage we might have caused the room during our possibly heated romp.
But everything was looking neat. Even my drawer was well arranged. On a normal day, it never is. My eyes went to the floor again, and I noted that there was no sign of discarded clothing.
With a confused look, I faced Mr. Cute who was still smiling at me like I was his favourite video game.
“Uh...” I paused because I quickly realised that I still didn’t know his name. Honestly, I am not used to knowing the names of men I wake up to find on my bed the next day.
A simple thank you and goodbye always did the work.
As if he knew what was on my mind, the man answered, “David. My name is David.”
I dropped the half-filled cup onto the little stool beside my bed and dashed him a quick smile before asking, “David... Why is my room looking like an unused hotel room?”
“Oh, last night when we got back from the club, you kept wondering what it would be like if you had a genie who would wish your room tidy. It was fun to watch you pretend to be Aladdin.”
My eyes widened a bit as I processed what he had just said. “So, we didn’t...have sex?”
He got up and said, “Nope.”
“Huh?” My shock failed to hide itself. “Are you sure?”
“Yeah. You did say you wanted to have sex but you thought I was gay because I was talking to the bartender in a way you found suspicious. So, you told me to take you home and here we are.” He put his hands on his waist and gave another grand smile.
“Wow.” I was still shocked. My vicious nightly pattern has been broken thanks to David and I am really shocked about that. Because David doesn’t seem gay in any way.
Or...
My eyes slightly narrowed, and I asked, “Are you gay?”
“Nope. Honestly, I wanted to sleep with you badly, but I just couldn’t do it for some reason.” He shrugged, a pretend nonchalant look on his face.
“Wow.” I think it’s a good thing that nothing happened. It is nice to know that I am making progress with the way I live my life.
True to David’s words, my headache had reduced and that meant it was time to go to work. I tried to rack my brain to remember which day it was; Monday? Tuesday?
Whichever it is, I need to prepare for work. Hopefully, I don’t see a zombie when I look in the mirror.
“I need to check what I am cooking,” David announced as he adjusted his t-shirt and made our eyes meet. “You would love to have breakfast, yeah?”
I nodded in affirmation and got off the bed.
Isn’t he so extra cute? He is making breakfast for me even though we didn’t get any action.
“Wait....” I stopped David whose averagely-built figure was already at the door. He turned, raised a brow, and I asked, “What time is it?”
“Uh... last time I checked it was ten-thirty or so.”
“Oh, okay... What?!” I screamed. “Are you sure your time is correct?”
“Yes. It should be eleven o’clock by now.”
My eyes widened more and I could feel my head dance in an unpleasant way.
“David... I am freaking late for work!”
Why am I fucking screaming at him as if he is the reason I got stupidly drunk?
Argh!
Hurriedly, I got rid of the gown I had on to expose my bra-covered boobs, and naked pubic area to David who I could have sworn let out a groan at some point.
But before he quickly excused himself, he urged me to try to hurry.
“Please, pack my breakfast! Thank you!”
I grabbed my folded towel from the end of the bed and rushed into the bathroom for a quick shower.
I could have opted to excessively spray my body with perfumes of different brands, but the smell I was getting from my body was discomforting, so sacrificing five minutes to bathe didn’t seem like a task.
In no time, I was putting on a pair of blue and silver check trousers and a blue t-shirt supported by my very comfortable black slip-on shoe. I grabbed my phone and office bag and rushed out of the room.
“David, is my breakfast ready?” I took a quick look around my little living room while I fiddled with the earring I was putting on.
David walked out of the kitchen on cue and stretched a brown bag in his hand toward me.
After a quick appreciation was thrown in his direction, I grabbed my car keys from my bag and rushed out of the apartment. It was when I got into the car that I remembered that I forgot to tell David to make sure he leaves before I get back.
It was already strange enough that a man I didn’t know just made me breakfast.
But, right now, David, is the least of my issues.
Grateful that my apartment was on the ground floor, I roughly backed my car out of the underground garage and soon, I joined the busy roads of Manhattan. It
GRACEWith speed and roughness, I swerved toward the shortcut that led to my workplace. With the way I drove, it was surprising that no police car was on my tail.But it is a good thing that did not happen. It would have been tedious to have another reason to be held down.Soon, I arrived at my destination.With reckless haste, I grabbed my bag and ran into the two-floor building.I could feel eyes on me as I raced to my station while I hoped within me that my friend was able to cover for me and that my boss wasn’t around.Many seconds later, I made it to my office but I was breathing so hard that I had to pause for a minute.With my right hand reaching for the edge of my desk, I leaned against the wall and slid down until I reached the floor.“Grace is that you?” I heard the voice of my partner, Samantha, calling from her seat.Unable to speak as I was still trying to achieve normal breathing, I managed to wave my right hand to answer her.In no time, my blonde workmate was crouched
GRACELife 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 v
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