Scar Red

9: Jamboree

In less than one week's time, Madam would be home. The rumours about her son were all over the place. They say it's been two good years since he last came home and according to what I've heard, those were perilous times; Madam would go full on melancholic and everyone would be agitated but that was just some exaggerated nonsense to me 'cause if someone acted crazily it didn't necessarily mean that he or she was crazy.

Today had been regular so far and for goodness sake, I hoped it remained that way especially with the kind of luck I have. Regular days were nonexistent for me 'cause there was always going to be a prank or disaster along the line.

Whilst humming a song, I just came around a corridor, my cleaning materials in hand when I spotted her; Susan a.k.a SILENT SUSAN with her partners in crime. My happy, carefree expression morphed instantly. That bubbly and hopeful feeling I had about the day ahead of me waned immensely.

"See, regular days are something I hardly experience these times, that's how wrecked my life is."

Earlier on, Denise explained who exactly 'they' were. Silent Susan was the girl I saw with Estefania on that day I helped her(Denise). Susan was older than most and had been working there for the longest time. She had an intimidating demeanour and she was like the law there as no one dared challenging her self-bestowed authority.

She had her entourage with her; Estefania was the first I spotted along with another girl, Anne, and a redhead like me named Lordys who worked in the kitchen.

Susan had a smug smile curving her lips and when our gazes connected, tlhat mysterious sparkle in her eyes that I had become all too familiar with, fueled my resolution to keep my guard up and be cautious of her.

I didn't want to have anything to do with her but I knew deep down that that wasn't my choice to make and that I'd have to settle things before it got out of hand.

I sometimes wondered why I never noticed her...or perhaps I should have been wondering why she never did notice me or why she'd taken interest in me all of a sudden.

I willed myself to move but remained rooted to the spot. As they passed, Estefania purposely knocked her shoulder into mine.

"Watch it, flattie," she laughed.

Flattie had become my nickname 'cause I possessed a relatively flat chest and derrière. That incident where my clothes were nabbed, leaving me no other option but to walk into the room wearing nothing, led to the birth of that horrible nickname.

On that sour night, I was spotted then mocked and scorned and made fun of—not one of my best moments and I'd rather not remember it. Nonetheless, that was also the same incident that had put me on Susan's radar.

Shaking off those thoughts, I managed to drag myself all the way to the room I was assigned to clean and pulled out the keys to it. My hands trembled exceedingly as I fiddled with the bunch in a vain attempt to find the right ones.

I had to face it, I was in a constant state of trepidation, misery and fear… Frustratedly launching the keys in a haphazard direction across the hall, I sunk to the ground whilst letting my bucket of cleaning materials follow suit...

"I can't take this anymore."

Reminiscing every verbal abuse and physical assault I'd had to put up with ever since I came there, I suppressed the urge to sob and ran my shaky hands warily through my hair.

I've been trying to keep it together, trying not to let their words cut too deep, trying to withstand whatever came my way but there's only so much one person could take.

Had I known that this was what I'd encounter on coming there then I would've been more than willing to stay back. What had I been thinking?

A tear slipped through my barriers and almost immediately, I furiously wiped it away...