SHOPPING WITH ANDY

After our embarrassing situation earlier today with Andy, I wrapped up cleaning and came to relax on the couch as always, waiting for the lunch delivery.

Andy has since not come out of the study. When we finally pulled away, after asking me if I was alright and I nodded my head that I was, he excused himself to go change from his then-wet clothes, and I was left to dry the floor. Only after I was done and out of that room did I see him going in.

It's now twelve, and I am done doing my chores already. I was just thinking about that feeling earlier, when I was on top of him. On top, huh? My mind is becoming so nasty, and I abhor how my body is fascinated by these wildly crazy thoughts.

"Are you sure you didn't get hurt earlier?" That is Andy's voice, and he parks himself on the next couch.

"Yes. I am alright, sir. I mean, Andy!"

"Okay. Take that stool out of that room immediately. Tidy up only where you can reach. I will not be there to fetch you next time."

"Okay. I apologize for what occurred earlier."

"It's alright. Here. I got you a phone." He says, handing me a phone that looks way too valuable for a servant like me.

"For me?" I hesitantly asked.

"Yeah! You can talk to your family and friends any time."

"Well, thank you so much." I walk backwards after gladly receiving the phone and sit where I was seated earlier, eyeing the gadget in my hands. It sure must be very expensive, to the point that I can't even guess its price. And to top it all, it is my very first souvenir from someone. How ironic! A heartwarming irony, I must admit!

"Don't you like it?" He speaks, maybe after discovering I am lost in thoughts.

"I do like it very much. Thank you." I say it with all sobriety, and he nods his head. "Ooh, it has a password." I further state:.

"I forgot to deactivate that. Let me." He walks and sits beside me as he deactivates the password, which doesn't take long. "Here. It's done." He hands me back the phone and proceeds. "After picking up Angel from school, we will go to the mall. You can get a SIM card on the way."

"Okay. Thank you so much once again!"

"Don't mention it. Instead of being bored here when Angel is at school, you can call your family and friends and catch up. As long as you prioritize your work."

"Sure. Nevertheless, my circle is too small. I only have my family—my dad and my mom—and my twin siblings—Mina and Mira. As for friends, I only have Rita." I confess.

"Aren't you too young to be that reserved? I mean, people your age are out there having fun and exploring the world. Don't you feel like you are trailing behind the trend or something?"

"Not exactly. I'm okay this way. I have a lot of obligations to my family right now. I can't afford to get diverted. Maybe when I accomplish my goal, I will have time for myself to "explore"."

"Your parents must be so proud of you." He says it with a small smile on his complexion, and since I don't want to brag about how delighted my parents are with me, I just smile back. I know my parents are proud of the decision I made. And I hope it will be worthwhile. I can't afford to leave them in the lurch. I'm their only hope. The fate of my two sisters lies with me. I want to help them pursue their careers and secure their dreams. I want to help my father pay off the bank loans before they come to mortgage the little we have left. What is there to mortgage anyway? That reminds me; I didn't even ask how much Andy would be paying me. I should ask so that I can start rationing for it. "Let's go."

"Huh!" I exclaim.

"Let's go pick Angel up and proceed to the mall."

"Aah...okay." I think my qualm will have to dawdle for now.

He grabs the car keys and his phone, and after locking the house, we get into his black limo and hit the road to Angel's school.

"I haven't seen Mark since yesterday evening," I state.

"I gave him the weekend off. He will be back on Sunday evening." He retorts, and I nod my head. Didn't I tell you that Andy is a terrific boss? Inside this impassiveness that is on the outer surface lies a sweet candy!

I wonder why, with all his rich, luxurious life and bubbly daughter, he refuses to smile at the world. Why boss?

We drive in silence to Angel's school and pick her up, and we take a different route to the mall, I presume.

I thought that the cute doll will fill this limousine with giggles and her childish chit chats, but no. The kid fell asleep almost immediately in my arms. I wonder why she just fell asleep like that. Her breathing is shaky, like she has cried or something. I might be wrong, though.

Pulling up in front of the most glamorous mall I have ever seen, not that I have been to any before, Andy parks in the parking lot. I don't know what we are supposed to do in the mall, and I don't think I need to ask. I'll just sit here, getting a kick out of the view, until I am told what to do. People have a life in the city, I tell you. I look at the happy children jumping up and down the playing grounds, playing together. Couples walking hand in hand in and out of the mall, the parking lot almost filled up with expensive, sparkling four-wheeled machines. My!

"Should we wake her up?" Andy's voice cut my eyes off abruptly.

"I don't think so. The poor kid might be so tired."

"Okay then. I'm afraid I'll have to leave you with her. Here." He hands me the car keys after lowering the tilted windows down a little to allow in some fresh air. "In case she wakes up before I come back, you can step outside and breathe some fresh air."

"Okay," I mumble as I take the keys.

"Let me adjust the seat for you." He says this and leans in, dangerously close to my not-so-innocent brain. Again, this closure agitates some mixed emotions in me. What are you doing to me, Andy? I never felt this way, even for that pathetic boyfriend who I thought I loved, only for him to betray me with my only cousin. Why do I react like this to a man I have known for hardly two weeks? Am I ordinary? Is this even normal?

"Is that okay?" He implores, and due to the heat that is suffocating me because of him being this close, I cannot find my voice. I just nod, praying that he gets done now. When he is done, he steps out of the car, and only then do I release the breath I didn't know I was holding. Ooh, my! I lay my back on the seat and pull Angel close to my chest so she can rest well. The kid is still fast asleep.

After resting in the car for a few minutes, Angel decides to wake up eventually, and we get out of the car so she can get some fresh air.

"You've slept a lot, kiddo. What made you so tired? Did you play a lot?" I inquire once we are outside.

"No, auntie Ania! I did not even play today. I just got into a fight, and then the teacher caned me." She sadly explains.

Huh? The little disciplined kiddo I take care of is not capable of starting fights. This isn't like her.

Crouching in front of her with one knee, I take her small hands into mine.

"Why did you have to get into a fight, princess?"

"It's those kids again. They taunted me again about not having a mother. So I got furious and slapped one of them. Then we started fighting. The teacher came and they said I am the one who started the fight."

"Didn't the teacher ask you why you started the fight?"

"She did, but I kept quiet. I didn't want to say anything in front of the whole class. What if everyone starts taunting me too?"

Ooh, poor kid. This is deeply amiable!

"Let's see, we need to tell daddy about this, princess. He is the only one who can sort it out."

"Daddy will get mad at me. He tells me that kids who cause trouble are bad. He always tells me to be a good kid, not to fight."

"But daddy will surely understand if you explain it to him." She shakes her head. "You still don't want to tell daddy?" She shakes her head again. "Ooh, sweetie! Do you want me to talk to your teacher?"

"Yes."

"Okay. Cheer up now, alright? I'll talk to the teacher on Monday, but here is the deal - after I talk to your teacher, I will have to tell your daddy too about this whole thing, okay? We can't hide things from your daddy, princess."

"Yes, untie Ania. Deal!"

"Come here, you smart kid!" I hug her tight, to assure her that things will be okay. I hope Andy won't skin me alive for this. If there is one thing I know about him, it is that he doesn't joke when it comes to his daughter and that he is so insecure about her.

Pulling away from each other, I encounter two deadly eyes from a lady glaring at me. If looks could kill, I would be dead by now.

"Who the hell are you?" The lady implores, scrutinizing me from head to toe with an expression that speaks nothing but mockery. As much as I don't like being rude, I can't help it this time.

"And you want to know who I am because you are...?" I hold Angel with one hand.

"Such audacity from a cheap, worthless bitch! No need to respond anyway. You can't be anything more than Andy's maid."

Andy? Did she refer to him as Andy? So they know each other? What is she? I mean, who is she? His ex? His girlfriend? His ex-wife?

Whoever the fuck she is, she has no damn right to talk to me like this.

"First, you do not have any right to talk to me like this. Secondly, I am his maid, so what, huh? Do you have a problem with that?"

"Ooh, please! What problem would I have with trash like you? Gosh! Be cautious with his kid, will you? You might contaminate her with some God knows what diseases and..."

"What's going on here?"

Whoa!

Andy roars from her back, cutting her off and I saw how terrified she seems all of a sudden. Her face turns completely pale. Andy, on the other hand, looks like an enraged devil.

"Janie!" Andy calls, clenching onto his shopping bags that are about to fall. They are a lot, and hefty. Just what did he buy? "What the hell are you doing here?"

"Andy..."

"Even outside the office, I am still your boss, Janie! Address me properly!" Andy orders, with a voice that can unnerve even the devil himself.

"I'm sorry, sir." She speaks, head hunched down like a servant in front of a master. Between me and her, she's more fit for the position of a maid right now, and I can not hide the smirk on my face. "I just saw your car here and decided to say hi, sir Adrian."

"Was anything I heard earlier in any way close to hellos? What right do you have to disrespect someone like that?"

"I'm sorry, sir. I just saw how she was clutching your daughter... and... the way she's dressed.. and.."

"Get lost from my sight! And, Janie? Leave your resignation letter with my PA on Monday morning. I have condoned more than enough of your crap already. You have exhausted your chances. You are fired!"

Wait, what? fired? As in, FIRED? Just like that?

I pull Angel closer to me, quivering like I am the one who is being relieved of my duties.

The bitch opens her mouth to maybe beg for pardon, but a single glare from the beast Andy seals her lips, blocking whatever she was about to utter somewhere in her throat. As she walks away, she doesn't have even the bravery to look back at me or Andy.

Huh, serves you right, bi.a.t.ch!