"I-I did no such thing, ma'am…"
In a lavishly decorated room, Ida stood near the door with her head hung low and all colours drained from her petite face.
"Is that so?" Linda hummed, "But if I am correct, Luke hasn't been served by any maid other than you, has he been?"
Although her words were casual, the expressions and coldness behind them were lethal.
"I… I didn't disrespect young master Luke in any way, ma'am…" Ida stuttered, her legs shivered slightly, showing her fear.
"I know of what happened 2 years ago, Ida." Linda sighed, "But Luke is a changed man. I don't care if you spread your legs for him or you don't, I won't accept any disrespect towards my son."
A shiver ran down Ida's spine when she imagined Jeremy's bulky and fatty arms touching her skin. Goosebumps erupted and she felt worms crawling up her skin.
"No- No, ma'am. I will not disrespect young master Luke in any way, however, if he tries to force me again, what shall I do?"
"Tell me. I will set him straight."
"Yes, ma'am." Ida bowed gratefully and quickly ran out of the room with her tail tucked between her legs.
'Sigh… Luke.' Linda facepalmed as soon as Ida was gone.
***
"3… 4… 5…. 6… 7… 8… shit!"
Inside his room, a fatty man could be seen doing weird pushups, where his knee was kept on the bed while his hands were placed on the floor.
It was different from the inclined pushups as in this case, he was taking full support from the bed, and only pumping the torso part of his body rather than his entire body.
But even doing such pushups, Jeremy could barely complete 8 before his arms gave out and he fell flat on the floor.
'Trash… Fucking trash…' Jeremy cursed in his mind when he felt his muscles getting sore after just a simple workout.
He pushed himself off the feet and slowly walked towards the window in his room, looking out at the advanced world around him.
If he was reincarnated here in any other circumstances, he would have been quite happy about that. The place was beautiful, advanced, and convenient, and the chicks would throw themselves at him if he was even a little more- even a little handsome.
But every time Jeremy looks into the mirror, he is overwhelmed by the sense of disgust that prompts him to end his life.
'Calm down,' Jeremy took a deep breath, 'The field trip, I can convince them even if I need to sever my ties with the Orsics to do that.'
*Knock Knock*
Jeremy was interrupted in his thoughts as he spun and walked to open the door, and to his surprise, Ida was the one knocking on the door.
"Yes?" Jeremy looked at Ida and then noticed another woman standing behind her, the one with a voluptuous body and a cold smile on her face. His mother.
"H-Hello young master Luke, I, Ida, your maid, am really sorry if my behaviour was not up to par."
Clearly, Ida didn't mean a word of what she said.
But well, Jeremy didn't care. She was being forced to be respectful, then how could he not make her work harder?
"Oh it is really fine, Ida." Jeremy smirked at her, "We are much closer than some talks of disrespect, aren't we?"
Alas, if only Jeremy knew in what way he was close to her. He was just teasing her casually, but he didn't know how many times he has triggered her trauma by now.
Ida hung her head low in shame and gritted her teeth, holding herself back from saying the vile sentences in her mind. Mrs. Orsics was still standing right there.
"You are dismissed, go make my bed." Linda waved at Ida and Ida quickly dipped her head in a bow and scurried off, eager to leave the proximity of Luke's room.
"Hello, mother." Jeremy turned to Linda and matched her cold smile with an expressionless gaze of his own.
"Perhaps have you forgotten how to beg for what you want, Luke?" Linda smirked, "I reject your proposal on the table, we aren't obliged to sign your application."
"…" Jeremy sighed, "I understand, ma'am." He moved backwards and slammed the door shut on Linda's face, or so would have happened if Linda didn't hold it before it closed.
"Closing your door on your mother, Luke?"
"No, ma'am. I don't see you as my mother anymore. You only have one son anyway." Jeremy replied coldly, he was trying to assault the maternal instincts of his mother.
Because no matter what, there isn't any mother who doesn't love her child, and Linda is no different.
Yes, her love is buried deep under some hate, grief and disgust, but it is there. It always is. You just need to find it.
Linda as expected, was visibly shocked by his words.
When she first heard Luke addressing Matthew as 'sir' instead of 'father', she was only mildly surprised. She thought Matt was the one who told Luke to do it.
But now that she was addressed as 'ma'am' by her own son, her heart ached. He was her own flesh and blood.
"Who said I have only two sons?" Linda asked with gritted teeth.
"Your actions." Jeremy scoffed, "No respect in the house, silent treatment on the dining table, rejecting the only thing I ever requested from you. What else is this?"
Jeremy didn't know whether Luke had requested anything from his parents in the past, but well, he said it anyway.
"I fixed the respect part."
"Scaring a dog into submission doesn't earn its respect, Ma'am." Jeremy looked her in the eyes, "The dog will bite as soon as the fear dissipates."
"Hah! Then what do you want me to do, Luke Orsics?" Linda clenched her fist and glared at him.
She took a brief pause and her breath hitched as she spoke,
"What am I supposed to say to a poor girl who was forced upon by my own son? Do you know the punishment if you are caught for that? Did you not care about respect when you did such a disgusting thing, Luke?!"
"Wait… I did what…?"
Jeremy froze.