She Promised
1534 Words
Maria was sad,she had cried earlier,her eyes were red,she had finished her shift,but she had made a mistake in the morning,
She accidentally broke a plate and her boss shouted at her, also promised to deduct from her salary.
She sat on a small stand in the corner of the kitchen, crying silently and was depressed.
"What type of life is this?" she whispered to herself. "I'm sick and tired of being treated like this."
Helen, one of her boss' daughters and her favorite friend, talked to her.
"What's going on here?"Helen asked and moved closer to Maria.
"I broke a plate, and your dad screamed at me. I was frightened. He's going to deduct from my salary for the plate."Maria said, wiping her tears.
Helen's expression changed suddenly and felt for Maria.
"Oh, Maria, I'm so sorry for that."
"You're a hard-working woman,one mistake should not make you depressed like this." she said, reassuring her.
"It's okay and stop crying." I will surely talk to dad about it."
"I apologize on behalf of my dad."Helen said with a pleading eyes.
She left Maria in the kitchen and went upstairs.
Meanwhile, in the living room, Helen's father was chatting with his son.
"What's wrong, sweetie?" he asked, noticing her concerned expression.
"It's Maria, "she broke one of her favorite plates, and you scolded her."Helen replied.
"Yes, I did. she's careless, and I have to deduct the cost from her salary."her father replied and nodded his head.
Helen's eyes widened. "Dad, that's not fair. Maria is the most hard-working staff here,also you know Maria's struggling to make ends meet. Maybe you should find another way to handle the situation."Helen said softly.
"Deducting from her meager salary will worsen the situation and l suggest you should forgive her,"Helen said silently.
Her father sighed, considering his daughter's words. "Maybe, you're right, Helen. But she didn't suppose to break the plate, no matter how, l worked before l can get money to buy all these things, I'll talk to Maria about it tomorrow and see what l can do about her salary, because I had already deducted it "
"Dad, please,try and do something about it fast."Helen pleaded.
"Okay."her father answered.
Just that the plate she broke was one of my favorite plates."he said, rubbing his head.
"We all make one or two mistakes everyday and it's normal, please, don't deduct from her salary, she is a hard-working woman."Helen said softly.
"Okay,I heard you,"her father said.
Maria was unable to eat in the mansion again,so she packed her lunch into a nylon bag and quickly changed her uniform into another outfit.
Maria stood up, gathered her belongings, and left the mansion unannounced.
She couldn't bear the thought of facing her boss again.
Just as she was about to exit, Helen called out to her, "Maria, wait!" Maria turned to see Helen rushing towards her, she looked at Maria with pity on her face.
"Maria, I'm so sorry about what happened earlier. My father was out of line, and I apologize for his behavior," Helen said, her voice showing sincerely.
Maria was okay by Helen's apology. No one had ever stood up for her like that before. She was very happy again and she hugged Helen tightly.
"Thank you, Helen," Maria whispered.
Helen dropped some notes of money into Maria's palm and ran inside the house..
Maria was grateful and left immediately.
She stopped a cab,Parliament Road."she said to the cab man.
The driver stepped on the brake immediately, and Maria got in, lost in thought.
I could remember the day l got this job,l walked through the streets, my feets paining me and my heart was sad.
"What have I done, God, to deserve this kind of punishment?" I murmured to myself, feeling like I'd offended God.
"I am a single mother, I must feed myself and my only daughter, and foot my numerous bills."
"That's why I'd been searching for jobs, to make ends meet. But the challenges and intimidating were too much, and I felt like I was going down now.
The day I got this particular job, walking in the town up and down. I
had never thought it would be this difficult, The work was much, and the pay wasn't enough to cover the expenses.
As I walked, I was thinking about my only daughter, innocent and pure, depending on me for everything, I had to keep going, no matter what."
She was interrupted by the cab man.
"Where to, miss?" the driver asked, but Maria didn't respond. She was too caught up in her own thinking.
The driver tried again, "Miss, please tell me where you want to go."
Maria finally snapped out of her thinking, touched the driver's arm, and paid him without saying a word.
She got out of the cab and walked slowly towards the gate, her feet carrying her slowly to the house .
She slowly opened the gate. She expected to see Avira waiting for her, but the whole environment was empty.
Maria was quiet as she needed someone to tell about what had happened in the mansion today.She had been looking forward to talking to Avira all day.
"Avira?" Maria called out, but there was no response.
Maria walked into the house, already feeling depressed due to what happened in the mansion today. She wondered if things would ever get better for her.
She thought Avira was probably out running errands or visiting friends. Maria decided to eat something, take a warm bath to calm her nerves and try to shake off the past experience.
She went straight to her small bedroom, removed her clothes and tied a towel.
She went to the bathroom and soaked in the bathtub, Maria's thoughts went back to her conversation with Helen.
She couldn't believe Helen had apologized for her father's behavior.
"Hmmm,she pleaded on behalf of her father," Helen is such a nice girl."
"I could remember the first day,l got a job in the mansion,she welcomed me politely," Maria said to herself.
It may be a small act of kindness, but it meant a lot to Maria.
After she's through with the bath, Maria put on a long fitted nightgown
and decided to wait for Avira in the living room.
She took some from the food she brought home and kept the remaining for her daughter, she ate it slowly.
She picked up a book to distract herself, but her mind kept wandering back to her past.
Avira watched Ethan as he was drinking his juice. Ethan,l really appreciate your effort and sincerity.l should let you know a few things about me.
I'm presently on scholarship in school because of my good grades, which earned me admission into one of the prestige high school,"
My father passed away when I was a little kid. My mom is a single mom because she refused to remarry another man due to the strong bond between them."Avira narrated.
Ethan listened attentively and nodded his head as Avira continued her words.
Mom worked as a maid somewhere in the town to make ends meet.
Avira continued and looked into Ethan's eyes.
"My friends were the ones that introduced me to the stripper job to help my mom to foot some bills in the house," Avira continued.
"I only need a part-time job to help my mom. I need to attend school in the morning and work in the afternoons to assist my mom with paying some bills."
"I don't hide my identity or live a fake life. I want you to know that I didn't accept your offer because of your money or family background. I come from an average family, and I accepted because you promised me a job."
Ethan took a sip from his juice and leaned forward to listen to Avira.
He has never seen or met a girl like Avira before, beautiful, smart and intelligent.
"I don't mind,l don't care,if you are poor, you are still my friend,Avira and l will stand by you no matter the situation."Ethan said, looking straight into her eyes.
I'll make sure to find you a part-time job that fits your schedule. You can focus on your studies, and I'll help you support your mom."
Avira was happy to listen to Ethan's statement, Nobody has ever accepted her like that before without judgment except Reynolds and now Ethan.
Avira smiled,"Thank you,"Ethan."It means a lot to me."
"You welcome,"
Ethan smiled and leaned forward. "Avira, I want to help you and your mom. I will get you a better job and that will improve your life."
Avira's eyes filled up with tears as she nodded, feeling excited,she hadn't felt for a long time.
They both left the restaurant and Ethan drove to Avira house directly and dropped her.
They both bid each other good bye.
Meanwhile, someone was watching them afar.
He quickly took his phone from his chest pocket and dialed a number.
"Yes,boss.l have seen her,she alighted from his car now, and i wrote down the car plate number,"he said.
"Just text the house number and his car plate number to me immediately,"he said with a commanding tone.
"Right away,boss,"he said and left.
- Writer
