Chapter 4

Isabella's p.o.v;

Thursday evening,

"Did you finish Ms Devlin's assignment?" While we were on our way to the cafeteria, Evelyn inquired.

"We're going to a cafeteria, not a library, so think just about food for the time being, okay?" Noah silences her while conversing with Liam, who is strolling beside him.

While strolling alongside them, Sophia and I laughed a little.

"Why did you zone out so much in Mr. Chavez's class?" Sophia asked me a question.

"Is there any reason why you didn't space out? Come on, it's Mr. Chavez. Who will listen to his tedious lecture? Not everyone in his class is as conscious as Evelyn. Is that correct, Liam?"

Liam replied to me with a thumbs up, stating, "Yeah! Absolutely!"

Sophia, "Liam! I'm conversing with her. Please do not interfere with us. You can flirt with her afterwards."

Noah clapped Liam on the shoulder and said, "Dude! Let's start with a look at today's meal."

"But I want to walk with Bella..."

Noah dragged Liam to the cafeteria while Liam worriedly looked at me.

I smiled broadly as I waved to Liam.

"Returning to my original question, please do not attempt to deflect. What happened?" Sophia inquired.

"Why are you bothering me so much? What do you want to know?"

"Because the way you've been acting recently isn't you."

Sophia and I are so close among my pals that we can quickly sense each other's emotions, so concealing the pact from her will be difficult. But I had to do it anyway, so I made up a lie "Ah! It's because I haven't even begun Ms Devlin's homework I guess, despite the fact that the deadline is tomorrow. I'm not sure what I'll do with the assignment."

She was adamant about questioning, "Is it really because of an assignment?"

"You know how ignorant I am when it comes to homework, don't you? Urgh! The browsing, searching, compiling, and writing! I believe I'll go to the library after school to gain some inspiration for the task."

"Do you require my assistance?" Evelyn approached me and inquired.

"It's all right. I'll handle it myself. It is preferable to do it alone rather than with a friend. And you already know what will happen if we start working together. We'll end up in a cafe or karaoke joint instead of the library." And then he laughed.

"That's correct... But if you need my assistance, you can come over to my house."

"Got it!" I said as I hugged Evelyn.

"Bella…"

I hurried Sophia and Evelyn to the cafeteria before Sophia finished, saying, "Enough with the talking. I'm starving, so let's eat first."

During the last hour of class, I checked my watch to see what time it was. It's 2.30 p.m. This lesson will continue for another thirty minutes. I couldn't recall when they invited me to come to Mr Martinez's residence. Did they say any particular time? Should I go there after school or first to my house? I couldn't concentrate in class because the contract kept running through my thoughts. Mr Martinez wanted to take my hand in his? But what about my hand?

I let out a long sigh.

I was pricked. I turned around to see who it was. It's Liam calling.

"What happened?" Liam inquired quietly.

"Feeling a little drowsy," I said back, shaking my head.

He nodded and said quietly, "Sleep with your bag in front of you. I'll keep you updated if the teacher notices." returned to listening to the class with a smile. I did as he instructed and took a nap.

The class was over.

I snuck away from my buddies and exited the school, the car standing proudly in front of the school entrance. This was my first time seeing a high-priced car in broad daylight.

I slowly walked to the car, got in, crouched in my seat, and yelled, "Quick! Fire up the engine!"

"Of course, ma'am." The driver raised his voice.

After passing the school, I relaxed and told the driver, "Stop the car."

"Do you require anything, ma'am?"

"Take caution! Can you make out at the candy store on the other side of the street?"

"Would you like something from the sweet shop, ma'am?"

"Nah! Listen to me first, Don't wait for me in front of the school hereafter. You can park your car here from now on and I'll walk here."

"Certainly, ma'am."

"By the way, why are you addressing me as ma'am? I'm much younger than you are. Simply call me Bella or Bell. And what about you?"

"Mateo, mam."

"Nice name, Mateo."

"Thank you, Mam."

We arrived at Mr Martinez's place.

I immediately exited the car before the driver opened the door for me.

"Gotcha!" And then I laughed at him.

I made my way to the residence. The door was completely open. I entered the house by walking through the door.

Someone assisted me. I followed the person while taking in the scenery. I'm wondering how much this house would be worth if we sold it.

The person in front of me opened a door to a room and said, "Please remain inside, ma'am. Mr Johnson will be with you shortly."

He walked away after I nodded.

I moved around the room, inspecting the situation. It appears to be an elite room in one of the pricey hotels I've seen on television. The walls were painted white with gold stripes colour, the furniture had a historical feel to it, and the bed in the room's interior was large and magnificent. I noticed a terrace in the room. I came out of the room and stood on the patio. My eyes flinched at the abrupt exposure to the strong brightness, and I blinked briefly to adjust. The view was spectacular, and it was very different from how I observed the house from the front. I believe it is the view from behind the home. There was a large yard with green covers and flower patches scattered about. There was a garden in the middle of the yard with colourful flowers and a fence made of towering trees.

"Are you admiring the garden's beauty?"

I moved my head towards the direction of the voice. It's Noah, Mr Martinez's assistant.

"It's wonderful," I said as I returned to the room.

"Because Mr Martinez designed it."

"You mean... He created it himself?"

He nodded and continued, "Yes. And you're supposed to arrive at six o'clock, not four."

"My bad. I had forgotten about the time. Where, by the way, is Mr Martinez?"

"He's at his office."

"All right, then I'll wait here until he arrives." I was sitting on the bed. "Wow! So smooth!"

"A maid will be working in the room next to yours. Inquire with her if you require anything."

"What about my room?"

"You are welcome to stay here till the contract expires." And attempted to flee.

"Where are you leaving?"

"I have a task to complete."

"What exactly do you do at this house? How much money do you get? Will you be present all of the time or only at certain times? Martinez, how about him? How is he doing…"

He walked out of the room like he was dumb as I was asking him.

I brushed him off and collapsed on the bed. Wow. So comfortable. I'm going to buy a bed like this after I've saved up enough money. When I was resting on the bed, I saw the ceiling, which appeared to have detailed artwork on it. The lights on the ceiling appeared to be set up for a festival. My gut churned. I realised I hadn't eaten anything after lunch. I would have made and eaten quick noodles if I had gone home. Wait. Noah mentioned that a maid was working across the room. Will she still be there?

I got out of bed, walked to the door, and looked through it. I couldn't see anyone in the corridor.

"Do you want anything, ma'am?"

The maid surprised me. She appeared to be rather young.

"Y-You scared me," I said as I grabbed my chest.

She began imploring, "I apologise, ma'am. I'm sorry for giving you a scare like that." And bowed down to me.

"It's all right. Raise your head, and please don't do it again."

"Ma'am, yes. Do you want me to bring you something, ma'am?"

"Yes, I'm a little hungry. Have you had anything to eat?"

"I'll relay the word to the kitchen, Mam, and if you mentioned what food you wanted to eat, I'll let them know as well."

"N-No. I'm fine with eating whatever is cooked beforehand or eating leftovers too."

"But mam..."

"Don't prepare anything for me. Wait. I'll just go down to the kitchen on my own and see what's there to eat."

"However, ma'am..."

I shut the door behind me and asked the maid to join me because I was unfamiliar with the house. The maid agreed and followed me.

I asked her while we were walking, "My name is Isabella. What is your given name?"

She looked astonished and didn't respond to my question. I shook her and inquired once more.

"Rose It's Holander, ma'am," she said.

"You have a unique name. It's nice. Can I call you Rose?"

"I will be honoured, ma'am."

"What age are you? You seem so young?"

"I'm 26 years old, ma'am."

"How long have you been here, Rose?"

"Thirty years, ma'am."

"Why is everyone calling me 'mam mam mam' ? Call me Bella, Isabella, or Bella."

"Mr Martinez has invited you to stay with him. We are not allowed to address you by your first name, ma'am."

"Really? Then I'll make everyone call me by my first name as soon as possible."

We're already in the kitchen.

One of the guys who was cooking in the kitchen came to a halt and approached me, asking, "I'm almost done preparing dinner for you, ma'am."

"What are you preparing? Do you have anything ready to eat that was cooked in the morning?"

"T-that..."

"I don't mind eating leftovers. You don't have to be concerned about it."

"We're not supposed to treat our guests in that way, mam."

"Okay. But don't cook many foods for me."

He gave a nod and went behind the counter to continue cooking the food.

I took a seat at a table next to the counter.

Rose, "This is for the servants, Ma'am. Come with me, and I'll show you to the dining table where the guest will be eating."

"I'm okay with this. And... Did you eat anything?"

"Ma'am, yes. Thank you for asking me."

"I'm younger than you, Rose. Don't treat me as though I'm an elderly soul."

"I'm sorry ma'am," Rose responded with a slight smile.

"Ah! Again, the 'mam' thing."

While I was speaking with Rose, the food was placed in front of me.

The cook helped me open the cloche.

"Wow! It looks stunning." After I nibbled into it, "It's delectable. Yummy. It dissolves in my mouth. I haven't had food like this in a long time."

I looked at the chef and said, "You're so good. I love your food very much. It makes me want to eat every three meals of the day here."

"Thank you, mam."

"No! I should thank you for providing me with such delicious food."

Rose, "You look different than you did that day, ma'am."

"Which day are you referring to, Rose?" While eating the dish in front of me, I inquired.

"That night you got intoxicated, ma'am."

I remembered the night she was talking about. I was humiliated.

"I'm truly sorry for what happened that night. That was never my style. It was alcohol that got inside of me."

"Is it permissible to consume alcohol at this age? Ma'am, how old are you?" A man in an apron approached me and inquired.

"I'm already seventeen. Um… I know Seventeen wasn't the legal age to drink but I lost the game and got drunk, I'll never drink again in my life."

"Seventeen???" His eyes almost popped out.

"U-Um... Y-Yeah."

He whispered something to the chef after I answered him.

"What happened?"

"Nothing. I'll bring some water for you." He went back into the kitchen.

I asked Rose, as I was eating, "When I initially arrived here, I didn't see Mr Martinez's parents. I didn't see them either today or yesterday. Where are they? Do they have to work so hard to be away from home?"

Rose muttered, "Mr Martinez's father was bedridden when I started working here. Mr Martinez's mother died when he was a child, according to what I've heard. His father died two years ago after becoming ill. And there was a lady who visited frequently when I asked another maid about her. They were unaware of it. That lady occasionally visits Mr Martinez with her son. Everyone here gossips about her because she is the lone visitor to Mr Martinez."

"Who is that lady?"

"I'm not sure, ma'am. We shouldn't raise questions about them because we're all servants here."

"You sound like we're living in some primitive century."

"You will not grasp the rules till you begin working here. That's why we don't discuss certain topics in this house, ma'am."

"Okay, I get it now. Um… Rose, how much do you make here?"

"Two thousand five hundred dollars per month, ma'am."

"That's a fantastic salary. Should I start working as a maid here as well?"

"Mr Johnson told me to take you to Mr Martinez's room, ma'am," someone remarked from the kitchen while I was talking to Rose.

I stood up from where I was. One of the guys working behind the counter took my dish, and Rose and I exited the kitchen together.

I saw Noah as I exited the kitchen.

"What are you doing here?" he inquired.

"Um... I'm eating."

"Inside the kitchen?"

"Yeh."

"Only the Butler and the maid eat in the kitchen. Not you, understand."

"What's the harm in eating in the kitchen?"

"You're not here as a servant."

"That was before signing the contract," I said as I stepped closer to him. I flashed him a look and followed the guy who was meant to bring me to Mr Martinez's room.