Scar Red

42: One Good Turn...

It had been almost two years since I'd been in the city and I had stayed in the convent for close to a year. I was then in speaking terms with my family and by family, I meant my older brother, Nicholas.

Every now and then, we'd talk and I'd fill him in on what went on in my life, and in return, he would inform me of how our family fared.

There were a plethora of things I hid from him—things I wished I didn't have to hide and I would have to make up something every time he asked.

Initially, I had to plead with him to keep our interactions over the phone secret, not to let our parents—most especially know that we were in touch.

It was hard...knowing that they were worried sick about me, not to talk of the absurdity of such a request. However, he agreed to it but not before much persuasion.

A queer sensation lingered within me as I prepared for work that day. I had been working with P&P's maids' cleaning services—a residential housekeeping company—for months then.

I watched myself scrutinizingly in the mirror, wondering if a last-minute change of clothes was necessary.

The staring contest I had with myself was so intense that I didn't notice Maureen's entrance at all. Not until she tapped me.

"Just in case you're wondering, there is nothing wrong with what you're wearing." She remarked.

Sometimes, I forgot I wasn't alone anymore. Once, she had gone to visit her family—a visit that lasted close to a month. And, I was the only one who slept in that room, and on very rare occasions, I let Anaïs stay over too—with permission from Mother Dorothy or Mother Nora, of course. It was good to have her around again but sometimes, her presence was startling.

On regaining my composure, I let my shoulders sag as I said, "Oddly enough, it's more than just a wardrobe issue."

She tilted her head on seeing my befuddled state. "Then, what is it?"

"I don't know. Maureen, I just feel really strange today in a way I can't explain." I admitted. "Does something important happen today or what?"

She paused for a moment as she considered my question before shaking her head. "None that I can think of." She added. "Maybe if you're not feeling up to it, you should take a day off."

Chuckling lightly, I said, "Only if it were that easy… However, it's unnecessary. I'm just tensed, that's all."

She shrugged her shoulders. "Suit yourself then."

On my way to work, I still couldn't shake off the unsettling sensation.

"You're late." Selene enunciated as soon as I got in.

"I'm so sorry, Ma'am." I apologized. "It's just this one time."

Selene was my boss and she was well, 'bossy' but fair nonetheless.

She snorted. "You're lucky you're one of those who give this company a good name."

As she said this, she didn't fail to look pointedly at the ones standing beside me—Corinne, Cheyanne, Ada, and Gloria—dousing them in her disapproving gaze.

Not that they had done anything wrong. Actually, she just wanted them to be more like me, and I was committed to what I did. I put a lot of hard work into the job as I had always been trained to and the customers sent back favourable comments for the work I'd done.

"So," she began. "As you can see, Shantelle is not present and that's because she called in sick. So, the work will be shared amongst you all."

I didn't know much about Shantelle—or the rest of them either except that she was a single mother and had been working in that company longer than I had.